As the sun set, the three of them returned to the stable with their long shadows trailing behind them.
Aqua was still full of energy as ever, holding a gigantic grilled sausage she had not finished yet, courtesy of the foreman, of course, and humming some strange little tune under her breath.
Kōichi and Kazuma, on the other hand, looked like travelers who had spent three days crossing a desert. Every step they took felt as heavy as if their legs were filled with lead.
"Um... Aqua..." Kōichi cleared his throat and shot Kazuma a meaningful look.
Kazuma instantly got the message and slipped straight into full actor mode. He suddenly clutched his chest, let out a pained groan, and slowly collapsed onto the haystack. "Ah... I can't go on... my heart... my soul... they're both being crushed under the weight of debt..."
Aqua jumped in fright and nearly dropped the sausage in her hand. "Hey! What's wrong with you? Don't die! If you die, who's going to help me haul bricks?"
"Aqua, don't you understand yet?" Kōichi crouched beside Kazuma with a look of deep grief, gripping his trembling hand, his tone so heavy it sounded like he was delivering a eulogy. "Kazuma's been driven mad by the crushing debt these past few days! Just think about it. Every morning he wakes up owing money, and every night he goes to sleep still owing money. That kind of mental pressure, even a god couldn't take it!"
"But... but I've been working hard to make money too!" Aqua protested, sounding aggrieved. "Look, I earned a lot today!"
As she said that, she pulled out a heavy money pouch from her pocket.
"That's what you earned, but you spent even more!" Kazuma suddenly sprang back to life, sat bolt upright, and pointed tearfully at Aqua's pile of random shopping bags, stuffed with useless trinkets and snacks. "That lucky pot! That singing stone! And that Goddess statue that does nothing except look pretty! Can you eat any of that? Can it pay off our debt?!"
"T-those are works of art! They improve our quality of life!"
Aqua tried to argue back, but her voice had already lost most of its confidence.
"Quality of life? We can barely afford food right now, and you're talking about quality of life?" Kōichi cut her off, full of righteous anguish. "Aqua, you're a Goddess. You don't understand mortal suffering. Money is filthy stuff, stinking of copper and sin. Asking a noble Goddess like you to manage something so dirty is practically an insult to your divine dignity!"
"Huh? I-is that true?" Aqua blinked, clearly starting to buy it.
"Of course it is!" Kazuma pressed the attack while the iron was hot, putting on the most sincere face he could manage. "To protect your pure heart, and to keep you from being corrupted by filthy worldly money, let us two humble servants take on that burden for you! Give the money to us to manage, and you won't have to worry about these little details anymore. All you need to do is enjoy life happily every day!"
"Really? If I hand over the money, I won't have to do the math anymore? And I won't have to worry about paying off debt either?"
Aqua's eyes lit up.
As someone hopeless at math, nothing disgusted her more than dealing with complicated numbers.
"That's right! Leave everything to us!" Kōichi thumped his chest in assurance. "We'll plan every coin properly, make sure you get something tasty to eat every day, and keep you from worrying about debt at all! We'll manage the money scientifically, make money generate more money, and in the end we'll give you the life a true Goddess deserves!"
"That actually sounds pretty good..." Aqua tilted her head and thought for a moment, then very decisively tossed the money pouch to Kōichi. "All right! Then I'll leave it to you two from now on! But you have to buy me one bottle of premium bubbly every day! And don't skimp on the fried chicken either!"
"No problem! Leave it to us!"
Kōichi and Kazuma took the money pouch and felt its satisfying weight in their hands, and inside they were overjoyed.
Finally. They had finally taken back control of the finances.
They were still buried in debt for now, but at least they no longer had to worry about waking up the next morning to find it doubled.
In the morning light of Axel, sunshine filtered through the thin clouds and spilled across the streets, while the air was filled with the smell of freshly baked bread.
Kōichi and Kazuma sat side by side on a bench in the guild tavern, holding steaming cups of cheap coffee and staring blankly at the passersby.
"Finally..." Kazuma let out a long sigh, his voice carrying the release of someone who had survived endless hardship. "We finally paid off that damned 30,000 Eris. It feels like we crawled our way back out of hell."
Kōichi nodded and rubbed his shoulders, which were still a little sore. "Yeah. Aqua's still complaining that she did not get enough fried chicken, but at least we're free now. No debt. No collectors. Just... just..."
At that point, Kōichi suddenly trailed off.
Just what?
Just pockets that were still completely empty?
Just the miserable fact that they were still living in a stable?
Just the same old desperation over how to pay for the next meal?
Kazuma seemed to realize the same thing too.
He turned to Kōichi, his expression turning a little strange. "Hey, Kōichi. I just thought of a really serious question."
"What?"
"Why... did we even reincarnate into this world in the first place?" Kazuma's voice was full of confusion. "I remember that Goddess, meaning Aqua, said we were supposed to go to another world and defeat the Demon King, right? We were supposed to start an exciting adventure, right? But look at us now."
He pointed at the rough cloth shirt he was wearing, stained with dust and mud, then at the shovel in Kōichi's hand, the one he used for mixing cement and had not gotten around to returning to the foreman yet.
"Do we look like adventurers to you? We look like two refugees who just escaped from some black-market mine! Other than hauling bricks, washing dishes, and trying to run a scam, unsuccessfully, have we done a single proper thing?"
Kōichi fell silent.
It was true. Ever since arriving in this world, the two of them had been struggling just to survive, and had completely forgotten their original goal.
Swords and magic. Heroes fighting the Demon King. All of it had been shoved to the back of their minds.
In its place were things like how to fill their stomachs with as little money as possible, how to dodge creditors, and how to placate that idiot Goddess who could explode at any moment.
"And on top of that..." Kazuma continued, driving the knife in deeper, "we still do not even have a proper status."
"Stop. Just stop." Kōichi covered his face, feeling like his heart was bleeding. "This is way too pathetic. If people back in our old world found out we ended up like this, they'd laugh themselves to death."
"So!" Kazuma suddenly shot to his feet and slammed his coffee cup onto the table, even though it was already empty, his eyes blazing with determination. "We can't keep sinking like this! We have to change! We're going to become real adventurers! We're going to take quests! We're going to kill monsters and level up! We're going to... go buy equipment!"
"Buy equipment?" Kōichi froze for a moment. "I heard them say the other day that registering for adventurer status costs 1,000 Eris per person."
"Don't worry about it!" Kazuma pulled out a little cloth pouch from inside his shirt, and a few crisp metallic clinks came from within. "This is what we managed to save these past few days by pinching pennies! It is not much, but it should be enough to register! And..."
He lowered his voice and leaned in close to Kōichi's ear. "I also secretly stashed a little of Aqua's private money. She has no idea."
Kōichi looked at his grinning companion, and the corners of his own mouth rose in spite of themselves. "Nicely done, Kazuma.
That's exactly what I'd expect from you."
Once they made up their minds, they moved fast.
Kōichi and Kazuma hoisted up Aqua, who was still grinning foolishly at thin air, probably fantasizing about fried chicken raining from the sky, like two guardian kings flanking a prisoner, and charged toward the guild counter.
"Welcome! Are you here to accept a quest?"
Behind the counter, the receptionist Luna, with her chestnut wavy hair and her spectacular chest, gave them a professional, sweet smile. She was clearly startled when she saw Aqua, but thanks to her professional composure, she did not say anything.
"No!" Kazuma slammed the little pouch of hidden savings onto the counter with a heavy thud and declared boldly, "We're here to register as adventurers! Three spots! Keep the change!"
Luna paused for a moment, then smiled as she put away the money pouch. "All right. The registration fee is 1,000 Eris per person, so that is exactly right. Now then, please place your hands on this crystal ball one by one. It will display your status card and recommend a class based on your aptitude."
"I'll go first! I'll go first!"
The moment Aqua heard it was something like a test, her urge to show off instantly exploded.
She shoved Kōichi and Kazuma aside and confidently pressed her hand against the crystal ball.