Thanks to the Proficiency Panel, learning skills from the same class was essentially trivial for Shirakawa.
Using his teleport scroll, he returned to modern Japan, bought sandwiches, bento boxes, and some sugary soda, then hopped right back to the Konosuba world.
Back in the wooden cabin, he found Megumin and Aqua slumped over the table, unmoving.
"I brought food."
The moment the words left his mouth, Megumin's head shot up. Her crimson eyes sparkled at the sight of the beautifully packaged convenience-store food.
Without a second thought, she grabbed a sandwich and tore into it. The fluffy bread and rich mayo blend practically made her eyes pop.
She devoured it like it was her last meal.
"So… good!"
"..."
Megumin didn't care about appearances. As for Aqua—who had once been a literal goddess—she was more familiar with modern snacks. She grabbed a bag of chips and paired it with some soda.
Then she asked again:
"Hey Shirakawa, are you sure you're not interested in my proposal? With me and Megumin on your team, defeating the Demon King should be easy…"
He almost laughed. As if.
There was no way he'd rely on a priestess who used all her skills for party tricks.
It was ridiculous.
"If you want to get your class identified, I can cover the 50,000 Eris fee," Aqua offered.
She didn't know much about his world, but Shirakawa came off as a regular high schooler. He'd probably be interested in adventurer stuff, right?
Megumin, having finally recharged with food and soda, was feeling fantastic.
Thinking back, this guy—who wasn't even part of any party yet—had generously fed her such luxury.
So when Aqua asked about him again, Megumin blinked and answered truthfully:
"I think he's already an adventurer. He even asked me to teach him Explosion Magic."
"Yup."
Aqua had joined the group later and didn't know Shirakawa was already a Holy Sword Wielder. He didn't mind teaming up, but…
Time was the issue.
His teleport anchor only lasted seven days, and back in his world he was just a normal student. Most importantly—what would he gain from defeating the Demon King?
He didn't respond to Aqua. Instead, he turned his attention to Megumin again.
Most of the food was already gone. She'd been really hungry.
Feeling his gaze, Megumin wiped her hands and said solemnly:
"Thanks for the feast."
"Now, it's time to fulfill my end of the deal!"
"First, I'll demonstrate how to cast the spell. Then, with your Adventurer Card, you should be able to use skill points to learn it!"
...Which didn't apply to him at all.
His Arch-wizard skills came entirely from his system interface, and the Proficiency Panel let him bypass all that card nonsense.
But he still smiled politely.
"I'll be in your care, Megumin. I've been dying to learn Explosion Magic!"
It was like flipping a switch in her heart. Megumin, lover of all things explosive, beamed.
She leaned across the table.
Her thin frame couldn't even fill out the smallest mage outfit, and as she leaned forward, her robe slipped enough to reveal a hint of skin.
"With how eager you are," she whispered, "I'd be willing to teach you a hundred times if you wanted."
Megumin spoke with visible excitement.
"No, to be precise—aside from Explosion Magic, are there any other skills worth learning?"
Thanks to Megumin's guidance, Shirakawa's proficiency panel immediately lit up with a notification. A new skill had become available for acquisition.
"Skill detected: Explosion Magic. Learn now?"
"Yes."
The main goal of coming to the Konosuba world was to meet Megumin, change class, and acquire the devastating area-of-effect spell: Explosion Magic.
Now, that goal had been thoroughly achieved.
"You have successfully acquired the skill: Explosion Magic (Lv1)."
—[Explosion Magic (Lv1): The ultimate offensive magic. At its core, it is the pure detonation and dispersal of magical energy. It is the strongest offensive spell capable of damaging all existence.]
Skill Cost: 10% of your mana + unlimited additional mana output.
The skill's usage was surprisingly simple.
The only prerequisite: a massive amount of mana to cast. The more mana expended, the more destructive the explosion.
Having finished learning the spell—
Shirakawa looked toward Megumin again and gave a small nod.
"Thanks. I've fully mastered your Explosion Magic now."
"Then…"
Megumin, feeling her beloved Explosion Magic had finally been truly acknowledged, was clearly thrilled. In her eyes, Shirakawa was a kindred spirit.
He loved explosions just as much as she did!
"Would you… consider teaming up with me?"
"I need to finish some other matters first. But if you get too hungry to bear, look for Aqua—she has a way to contact me."
Letting Aqua and Megumin join someone else's party?
That thought had never even crossed Shirakawa's mind. He only needed to accumulate enough points in the Konosuba world to set up a stable world anchor for teleportation.
Once that was done, everything else would get much easier.
"Oh…"
Megumin nodded seriously. She didn't think Shirakawa was rejecting her.
After all, he fed her and loved explosions—what more could she ask for?
Even if it was a rejection—
She'd still find a way to follow him!
He had come to meet people and learn skills, and it wasn't even noon yet. Not even Shirakawa had expected things to progress this smoothly.
He'd already requested leave from Miss Shizuka Hiratsuka. He only needed to return to school on Tuesday.
"Next…"
"Maybe I should take on some commissions to test Explosion Magic's power—that doesn't sound too bad."
As Shirakawa thought things over, his gaze drifted to Megumin and Aqua, who were still munching on chips. Just as he was about to speak—
The dimensional chat group's notification sounded in his mind.
[Group Notice: Member "Saeko Busujima" is in danger. Emergency group mission activated. Participant limit: 2.]
[Reward: 200 points.]
[Would you like to accept this rescue mission?]