CFD – Chapter 3 –  Childhood Friend

“Yotsuka-kun” (???)

After school, as I leisurely walked home, someone called out to me from behind. When I turned around, it was my classmate, Azami Shirosaki.

“Azami-san?” (Yotsuka)

She caught up with me from behind and walked beside me.

Even though we grew up together as childhood friends because our houses were close to each other, we distanced ourselves from each other as we grew older. Although I occasionally saw her on my way home, it was rare for her to talk to me.

“What’s wrong?” (Yotsuka)

“No, just because I saw you, I thought we could go home together. Is that okay?” (Azami)

“Yeah, that’s fine.” (Azami)

What kind of situation is this? She’s a person who is nice towards everyone, but since she’s never approached me before, there must be something going on.

For a while after that, we talked about trivial things while walking home together.

The topic of conversation shifted to our respective career paths.

“I heard from Amane-chan that you’re going to continue being an explorer.” (Azami)

Amane is my younger sister’s name. It seems that both of them are still maintaining a close relationship.

“How about you, Azami-san?” (Yotsuka)

“I’m planning to continue being an explorer, while also working as a streamer.” (Azami)

“Your popularity is amazing.” (Yotsuka)

“Well, umm… I mean, even just from streaming, I can make enough revenue to support myself, along with Nai-chan and the others. But we don’t know how long it will last, and dungeon exploration is a good exercise for Nai-chan and the others, so I can’t exactly quit being an explorer either.” (Azami)

Nai-chan is the name of a monster she tamed, its real name is Knight¹. Originally, it was a dog-type monster, but it has evolved and is now a Fenrir.

One of the abilities of a monster tamer is they can tame and nurture the growth and evolution of the monsters under their control, and Nai-chan benefits from such a skill. 

Monster evolution is not fixed and there are several branching paths, so just because you raise another dog-type monster of the same kind doesn’t mean that it will also become a Fenrir. Rather, Fenrir is a rare branching path and it also symbolizes Azami’s high capabilities as a monster tamer.

By the way, the reason why I know the name of my childhood friend’s monster and its evolution is because I am one of her stream viewers. I occasionally watch her stream, not because she is my childhood friend, but because I just want to watch a cute girl’s stream.

“Aren’t you worried about becoming a full-time explorer, Yotsuka-kun?” (Azami)

“No, not at all. If I can make ten times the profit after graduation, it’s a win-win situation, and if I become a full-time explorer, I’ll have more time to explore outside of weekends, so I’m actually looking forward to it.” (Yotsuka)

“I see. You’re strong. Actually, I became a little anxious after hearing about Ooyama and the others this morning. That’s why I wanted to talk to Yotsuka-kun, who also aspires to be an explorer.” (Azami)

“Oh, is that so? Well, when you put it that way, it’s not surprising to feel anxious.” (Yotsuka)

If a classmate has died while exploring a dungeon. It’s natural to consider the possibility that it could happen to us too.

“It’s sad when people die, isn’t it? They were on their second exploration of the upper floor, with four people. I wonder what happened.” (Azami)

If they were exploring the upper levels with a party of four, it’s unlikely that they were wiped out all at once. That’s what she is trying to tell me.

“Maybe Ooyama pushed them to go deeper into the dungeon? He always acts recklessly and tries to be cool.” (Yotsuka)

It’s easy to imagine him pushing forward despite his teammates’ objections if things were going well. That’s just the kind of guy he was.

“But still, for everyone to die like that.” (Azami)

She had a gloomy look as she said that. Then, she turned and looked at my face.

“Yotsuka, please don’t die, okay?” (Azami)

“Well, I might die sooner or later.” (Yotsuka)

“Huh?” (Azami)

“Even veterans die at some point, it’s just how it is for explorers.” (Yotsuka)

“…Please stop.” (Azami)

“But it’s a fact that we can’t turn a blind eye to.” (Yotsuka)

“…Then why did you decide to become an explorer knowing that you might die someday?” (Azami)

“Well, it’s something I’m good at, and it’s also necessary for society. If someone doesn’t do it, monsters will overrun us. And, of course, I think the pay is good.” (Yotsuka)

“But is it something worth risking your life for?” (Azami)

“Well, my father was an explorer too, and it’s just something that’s in my heart. I’m okay with living and dying like him.” (Yotsuka)

Although, at the moment, I don’t have any signs of settling down like my father. Even though I’m already in my third year of high school, I have no luck with girls. I might be the last in my family line.

Meanwhile, Azami lowered her gaze. Perhaps my attitude as an explorer wasn’t something she found pleasant as a fellow explorer. She might have delved into the dungeon with a more relaxed posture.

“Well, this is the typical attitude of an explorer who delves deep into dungeons.” (Yotsuka)

So I implied that it might be fine to explore only up to the middle layers of the dungeon.

“Even so, I don’t want Yotsuka-kun to die.” (Azami)

She spoke in a soft voice at the end.

Right as she said that, we arrived at my house so we parted ways.

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TL notes:

Thanks for reading!
My man seriously believing that he has no luck in girls when Ms popular streamer childhood friend is right beside him. Also I’m sorry, I probably butchered the last few lines, I have no clue what MC was talking about.

Btw should I add in the Selfless Protagonist tag?

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Footnotes:

1. Knight in JP is pronounced as “Naito”, so she just took the “Nai” from “Naito” and add “-chan” to get its nickname.