A Pitfall.

I found it more convenient to have the Orichalcum Golem grow claws from the back of its hands than turning its arms into swords. This was because it had wrists and fingers, making it easy to make fine adjustments.

However, it was so wriggly-looking that Niku even described it as an [Orichalcum Slime].

Well, I've done all sorts of experiments, so I'll turn back into my original self… Oh, right, [Super Transformation] can stack at Lv 6. I prepared a change of clothes and used [Super Transformation] to go back to [Myself] and—

—in the next moment, I found myself lying on the ground in the arena with Rokuko trying to undress me.

"Huh!? Wh-what are you doing!?"

"Oh, you're awake, Kehma. No—you died naked… Well, maybe it's more accurate to say you died and then became naked?"

"Eh?"

"Nn."

Rokuko pointed at Niku, trembling and crying with tears streaming down her face.

"G-Goshujin-sama… I'm glad you're alright…"

"Ah, yeah? I'm fine, but what happened… Rokuko? You said I was dead?"

"Yes, according to Niku, it seems you collapsed with pieces of the Iron Golem flying out of your body."

"… What? … Oh, I see…"

I understood.

I'd appeared to have died for a moment there. The cause of death was an extreme shape change due to foreign objects remaining inside my body when I transformed. The pieces of the Iron Golem that I had crammed into my head must have crushed and destroyed my brain, resulting in instant death.

After that, I was resurrected naked due to the revival effect of [Super Transformation].

… Wow, that was close. If I had just turned back into my original self like I usually do, I would have died right then and there.

"By the time I rushed over, you were just sleeping naked and there was no trace of blood."

"… I'm sorry, Niku. It seems I startled you."

"Y-yes… I never thought Goshujin-sama would die… I'm so relieved…"

Niku continued to cry.

Seeing Niku's emotions show on her face for the first time, I patted her head.

… I realized just how much she cared about me. Well, I'm sure she was also shocked to see my grotesque corpse after hearing the sound of me falling and smelling the blood.

And when Rokuko noticed something was wrong and rushed over, she found a naked me lying next to the Golem's fragments, with a crying Niku clinging to me.

At that point, Rokuko used [Purify] to clean up the mess and was about to dress me when I woke up.

"I see. I'm sorry I scared you, Niku, but I'm fine now."

"Uuuu…"

It seemed I still needed to use [Purify] as a handkerchief substitute. I hugged Niku like I usually did when she's my body pillow, patting her back. My clothes got wet from her tears, but that wasn't a problem.

"Hmm, looking at Kehma's situation, even by chance… If you turned into a candy and ate it, there's a possibility that you would return to normal inside the stomach. No, considering the Golem's fragments were properly outside, there might be a chance of revival outside the stomach if that's what led to your death."

"Hey, hey, how are you so calm when I just died, Rokuko?"

"I said it before, but you were sleeping like you usually do by the time I got here—you were naked though. You woke up before I could panic."

That explained her calm demeanor.

"But if that theory holds, we might be able to use the Issun-boshi strategy."

"Issun-boshi… Ah, Fairy Knight? The one from the Beddhist Scriptures?"

I remember that it was written in the fairy tale adaptation series.

"The one where a Fairy who's swallowed by an Ogre kills it from the inside. I think the moral of the story was to chew your food well, right?"

"Huh, are you going with that perspective…? Well, I suppose it could be a cautionary tale about parasites…"

In that case, transforming into a parasite might be faster.

"Anyway, I can't use the Orichalcum Golem transformation if I die every time."

"Huh? Why?"

"Huh? … Oh, right."

I quickly realized what Rokuko was wondering about with her puzzled expression.

"Right, I can just into an [Orichalcum Golem with iron added] next time. Wow, [Super Transformation] is really useful."

"Huh, that's your solution? I thought you'd suggest discarding the excess before reverting, or that it could be used at least once every three days."

"… Well, I'll experiment with it after the 72-hour cooldown and when I have an extra life."

I shouldn't be careless and die. I'll conduct that kind of investigation when I have an extra life.

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

"… Hoh, that's quite an interesting story."

"Hehe, right? So, as we agreed—"

"Of course. I'll share the chips with you."

"Way to go! Yeehaw! Now I can gamble again!"

In the Holy Kingdom's casino on the main street, a Narikin was drinking and stacking chips while sharing three chips (worth three silver coins) with an informant.

"Excuse me, Master? That information earlier… I don't think it was that useful?"

"Hm? Is that so?"

"Yes, I don't see how the story of [a lost pet search request] would be of any help. Have you had too much to drink?"

As NaanaToy pointed out, Narikin's face was indeed red. Although he was a Living Armor, he had assumed human form for infiltration purposes, so his body was susceptible to alcohol.

"But isn't it interesting that that lost pet crocodile almost got eaten when it wandered off?"

"Interesting, you say??"

"In order to avoid paying the penalty, they ended up buying it at a slightly higher price than the request fee, as meat. Hahaha, being an adventurer is quite challenging. The job was to find the pet, so they should have let the client pay for the purchase."

"Ah, if only the client was in on the scam and it turned out to be fraud, that would be perfect."

"Hoh, that's interesting. Alright, I'll give you some chips too, Naana."

"… Thank you."

NaanaToy responded to the cheerful Narikin.

Well, if the goal was to give Narikin and his group a vacation, this could be considered a success.

"However, these roulette bets don't seem to run me out of chips very quickly. I like them."

Rokufa watched the dealer throw the ball in the game of roulette—originating from a hero, it was a gamble almost equivalent to Earth's roulette—and quietly placed half of her remaining chips, five in total, on the number 14.

… The ball landed on 14. Her chips were multiplied by 36, returning to 180. The dealer gave a wry smile.

"… Madam, normally when you continue to bet like this on a single number, your chips run out quickly. You can bet on a broader range, you know?"

"As long as they're not running out, it's fine, isn't it?"

Rokufa was observing the trajectory of the ball with her eyes and guessing where it would fall. The angel race had excellent observational skills. Their eyes were meant to be used in battle.

Her predictions weren't perfect, of course, but they were accurate one out of five times. The absence of diamond-shaped protrusions on the inside of the roulette wheel, making it unlike Earth's roulette, also made it easier to predict the trajectory of the ball. It was almost like precognition.

"Guessing the hole where the ball will fall is such a simple rule, isn't it?"

"It seems like we can still have some fun."

Likely to push more people into sharing their information, Narikin was smiling and saying they could still have more fun.

NaanaToy was hoping they could leave soon with the remaining five chips when they hit the jackpot. She sighed, knowing that it would take longer now.

… And the information they were collecting was truly insignificant. A lost yellow handkerchief, a mouse making a hole in someone's wall, a shopkeeper at a tool store having an affair—these stories had absolutely nothing to do with the hidden dungeon they were supposed to be searching for information about.

Even if they were to report this kind of information to Kehma, the only response they would get would probably be [Oh, um, okay?]…

"Come on, my wife has won again! Truly the goddess of luck. Now, is there anyone who wants to share in such luck? If so, bring some interesting stories to entertain my wife!"

"Lord, My Lord! Buy my story!"

"No, buy mine!"

"Hahaha, one at a time, one at a time. Go ahead, tell your stories."

If Rokufa were simply making a profit from roulette, they would have likely been banned from the establishment quickly. However, due to Narikin's reckless spending of chips, the casino maintained a delicate balance without intervening.

The chips generously spread around by Narikin were used without hesitation by the other patrons, who would then purchase more chips, actually boosting the casino's revenue.

Narikin and his companions were also easily spending at least 25 silver coins a day. Though they would lament not being able to achieve their daily quota once they returned to their lodgings.

"Well, I guess this is fine. I'll try to take it easy since it's a vacation. Oh, excuse me. I'll have some fruit."

NaanaToy paid the boy on the floor with the chips she had received earlier and took a bunch of grape-like fruits. She popped one into her mouth and moistened her parched throat with its sweet juice.