"In the heart of the Great Forest."
"Let's see what new ingredients I got this time!" shion cheered as she opened her inventory after slaying several monsters.
"Hmm, hmm... Oh! Bear claws! Looks like I can make... yes, steamed bear paw! That's going to be delicious! I've got to let Lord Rimuru try it once I find him!"
"This game is actually kind of fun." shion hummed cheerfully as she picked out some of the ingredients and used her skill—Ultimate Chef: By defeating monsters, ingredients are dropped. Cooking different types of ingredients results in dishes with all sorts of unique effects.
Shion's skill was extremely special. She had ten skill slots, but instead of fixed skills, they allowed her to instantly use the effects of any dish she prepared. For instance, the overpowered skill she had just created:
Blackfish Holy Sword – A normal fish fried to a pitch-black shine, now possessing miraculous hardness. The sword can release a slash of indestructible sword energy, dealing massive damage and repelling enemies.
Far away, as Rimuru was busy fighting mobs, a sudden chill ran down his spine.
"Achoo! …Whew… Why do I feel like something terrifying is coming my way?" Rimuru felt like someone was plotting against him.
"I didn't expect to run into you here, Miss shion!"
Just as shion was deciding which dish she should make for Rimuru, a voice came from nearby.
"Who's there?!" shion immediately drew her large blade, ready to strike.
"No need to be so tense! I'm Otto—I'm not a bad guy, really!" A dazzling figure stepped out from the shadow of a tree.
"…What?" shion blinked at the person's introduction, her brain struggling to keep up.
A blonde girl with an angelic face, pale rosy skin glowing softly, and emerald green eyes beaming with joy looked back at her.
"You actually drank that bottle of Feminizing Spring?!" shion stared in horror. Just how obsessed was this guy with Karen? He actually made such a drastic choice?!
"I have Mr. Roger to thank for this," Otto said, gazing at his pale hands in delight, utterly unbothered by shion's expression. "He gave me a brand-new experience in life. It's not bad at all. Plus, Karen actually warmed up to me a tiny bit."
"R-Really? Well… as long as you're happy!" shion stared at Otto with zero intention to fight and every urge to just run away.
"Miss shion, if you're planning to escape, I'm afraid that's not going to happen," Otto said sweetly as dozens of floating swords—Heavenfire Judgement—appeared, all locked onto her.
"Guess I have no choice but to fight, huh?" shion sighed. She really didn't want to deal with this guy.
"Heavenfire Judgement—Unleash!"
"Stubborn Cake!"
Just as the bullets from Heavenfire Judgement were about to hit shion, a giant cake-shaped aura shield enveloped her entirely, leaving her unharmed.
"This skill? Now this is interesting," Otto narrowed his eyes.
"Don't get cocky! Blackfish Holy Sword!!"
A jet-black, fish-shaped weapon appeared in shion's hand. She swung hard, sending a massive black sword beam hurtling toward Otto.
"Void Arsenal—Defense Construct!"
An energy barrier blocked the sword beam, but the impact still knocked Otto back dozens of meters.
"Mystic Fruit Juice!"
Before Otto could react, shion threw a small bottle filled with some weird, colorful substance. It shattered in front of him.
"What is that smell?!"
A cloud of deathly-colored gas poured out. Otto's face went ghost-white as he immediately leapt back, gagging.
"I'm out."
Without a second thought, shion turned and sprinted off.
"So this is the pinnacle of culinary arts… Killing through cooking. I never imagined shion had that kind of move." Otto felt like his nose had been completely destroyed. The terrifying stench couldn't even be described—it had to be lived.
He glanced around. All the nearby mobs were foaming at the mouth, passed out cold. Even the grass beneath their feet was withering in patches.
After a long pause, Otto chose to walk away in the opposite direction.
There was no way he was dealing with that again. He didn't have time to chase her either. Finding Karen and staying close to her was still his number one priority.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Great Forest…
The four-person Hogwarts Squad was lying in the grass, plotting a massive scheme.
"Professor, are we really sure this is ethical?" Hermione looked nervously at Dumbledore.
"Come on, child. You've been in the guild long enough. Don't you know how things work by now?" Dumbledore said teasingly.
"What rules?" Hermione blinked. She was a good girl! She didn't know anything about this!
"The rule is: when you're in these kinds of events, as long as you win, everything else—including your dignity—is expendable," Dumbledore declared firmly.
Snape: "…"
Hermione: "…"
McGonagall: "…"
All three of them silently screamed inside:
"You old scoundrel, you're the worst!!"
"Ahem! Alright then, back to the plan." Dumbledore's face flushed slightly under their stares.
"In a bit, Hermione will lure enemies over here. Then the three of us strike together—nobody survives a combo like that." Dumbledore grinned wickedly.
"Illegal teaming is wrong…" Hermione muttered, rubbing her aching forehead. Still, she obediently walked out to attract some unsuspecting solo players.
"Hey hey! Look what I found—a weak little loli all on her own!"
Soon enough, the first victim stepped into the kill zone.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
"Fiendfyre!"
"Avada Kedavra!"
The poor guy didn't even have time to react before he was sent straight to the afterlife.
And so, the Hogwarts four continued their ambush scheme—Hermione lured, and the others finished the job. One by one, every player who tried to bully little Hermione ended up eliminated.
They earned heaps of gold and quickly leveled up their combat strength.
At first, some of them felt uneasy about using such tactics… but soon they realized—this method was genius! They worked even harder. Their war cries got louder. Hermione's acting improved drastically.
The moment anyone saw her, they couldn't help but rush toward her… and right into their doom.
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