Astral Online: Cursed by the Demon Lord to Become the Strongest Beautiful Girl, I Rapidly Grow and Dominate with Cheat Skills Despite Being the Weakest Profession - Chapter 146

Chapter 146: Romantic Comedy Takes a Sudden Turn

After that, Sora and the others met up with Kurono and fully enjoyed the festival before returning home after watching the final fireworks.

Since Kurono was staying over at her house, Sora changed into shorts and a short-sleeved shirt while sitting on the living room sofa.

Shiori had changed into her loungewear and was holding our overweight pet cat, Shiro, while Kurono relaxed nearby.

Speaking of which, school was finally starting soon, but I wondered what Kurono would do.

She was still in middle school, and presumably undergoing compulsory education, but I couldn’t help but wonder if she’d end up being a hikikomori here as well.

When I asked her about it, Kurono’s face lit up with joy as she pulled out a silver-colored card from a rabbit-shaped bag.

“I passed the exam I took with my adventurer privileges while you were unconscious in the hospital, so I’ll be attending the same Kamisato High School starting next month!”

“Huh?”

“I looked at the exam content later, but I didn’t understand it at all. Yet, Kurono-chan managed to score perfectly on it. And it seems like she’s been getting help studying from Shiori and the others, so she’s already caught up to what you guys are learning.”

“Huh?”

I let out a completely clueless sound in response to Kurono and Shiori’s words, lacking any vocabulary.

Receiving the card, I squinted to confirm if it was real.

It turned out to be exactly the same as my Kamisato High School student ID, with her name, Kurono Takanashi, written on it. Her proof photo showed her in a girl’s uniform.

When I asked why she wasn’t just a middle school student like the others her age, Kurono leaned forward with both hands on the sofa and explained earnestly.

“Shiori-chan said that someone needs to support Sora now that he’s a girl.”

“During PE or swimming class, it’ll be tough, right? Since Shinji and Shiro can’t help with that, we talked about how it would be good to have another girl nearby just in case, and that’s when I volunteered!”

“I worked hard for Sora!”

Kurono made fists with both hands and raised her eyebrows, trying to look determined.

I see. So she took the high school entrance exam for my sake and managed to pass.

Ah, this little partner of mine.

Kurono looked at me as if she were asking for praise.

Feeling my heart warm at her kindness, I sensed that the tear ducts that had just burst in front of my friends were loosening again, so I awkwardly patted the girl’s hair.

“W-Wait, Sora?!”

Seeing her slightly flustered expression, I stopped my hand and smiled, then expressed my gratitude.

“Thank you, Kurono.”

“…Hehe, you’re welcome.”

Kurono smiled shyly, her cheeks turning slightly red.

“And you know, I thought that if I was with Sora, I could go back to school.”

Ah, now that you mention it, that was true.

After her parents disappeared, Kurono couldn’t get anyone to believe her, which led her to become a hikikomori.

It wasn’t something she chose.

She reached out for help, but no one took her hand, and in despair, she became unable to blend in with her surroundings.

Having once fallen to rock bottom, she was now mustering up the courage to take a step forward again.

If my being by her side could help her, then I would support her as much as I could.

“Truly a mutually supportive relationship, huh?”

“Because we’re partners!”

“Yeah, having a reliable partner like you makes me really happy.”

This time, I gently patted her head, and Kurono seemed to enjoy it.

While we were having that exchange, Shiori, who was nearby, suddenly threw a cushion at Sora’s face.

Caught off guard, I caught it with my face and fell back onto the sofa, landing on my back along with the cushion.

Shiori, with a smile on her face, had veins popping at her temples, clearly annoyed about something.

“Uh, Shiori-sama?”

Sora instinctively addressed her with respect, and Shiori replied coldly while maintaining her smile.

“Geez, I don’t know why, but seeing such a typical hot romantic comedy up close makes me so angry.”

“R-Romantic comedy…?”

“Mmm, it’s even more infuriating because you’re so oblivious. This is what we call a natural gigolo, Kurono-chan.”

“Even though Sora is so amazing in the game, why does he become so dense when it comes to love or reality…?”

“Uh, um…”

With Kurono agreeing with Shiori, I found myself in a mysterious predicament.

Even if you call it a romantic comedy, I feel more like Kurono is a little sister to me, so when it comes to romance, it feels a bit strange…

A cold, questioning gaze and a curious look.

Two stares with different meanings pierced through her, causing Sora to break out in a cold sweat and step back in pressure.

Eventually, unable to endure it any longer, she exclaimed, “I need to check something in ?Astral Online? right now…! E-excuse me!”

Realizing the overwhelming disadvantage, Sora turned and made a strategic retreat from the scene.

………………………

Sora lay down on the bed and put on the VR headset, which was sized to fit her head perfectly, and said, “Game start.”

The device activated in response to her voice, directly connecting to the user’s brain to provide virtual sensory information and generate a virtual space.

She found herself in a world indistinguishable from reality, standing as a silver-haired, blue-eyed girl avatar that looked exactly like her.

She was not in her previous room. Instead, it was a high-quality room with white ceilings, white walls, and expensive-looking wooden floors furnished with elegant furniture.

This was an adventurer’s inn located in the great nation of ?Enoshigaios? by the sea.

Considering her status as a celebrity, she rented a highly secured room along with her partner, Kurono, also known as Kuro. However, the downside was that all the rooms only had double beds for two.

Slowly lifting her body, Sora got out of bed and began a light stretch to confirm synchronization with her avatar.

It was a bothersome task, but there were rare occasions when the avatar’s movements would be misaligned, so this was an important step.

After confirming that there were no discrepancies in her avatar’s movements, Sora touched the empty space to bring up a window display. She checked her current status and equipment.

—— —— —— —— —— —— —— ——

?Adventurer? Sora
?Body Type? Type S
?Level? 65
?Profession? Enchanter
?Skill Level? 100 ?Accumulated  140 Points?
?HP? 1300
?MP? 650
?Strength? 65
?One-Handed Sword Proficiency? 100
?Carrying Capacity? 265+20

?Upper Body Equipment?:
– Water Spirit’s Shirt
– Envy of Darkness Coat

?Lower Body Equipment?:
– Water Spirit’s Pants
– Water Spirit’s Boots

?Accessories?:
– Spirit Bracelet
– Effect: ?Reduces MP Consumption by 5 Points?
– Fafnir Royal Family Ring
– Effect: ?Carrying Capacity +20?

?Total Defense? – B

?Right Hand? Silver Magic Sword (+10)

?Left Hand? None

—— —— —— —— —— —— —— ——

She hadn’t updated her equipment much, so there was no change in her stats.

If she had to say anything, it was that she had purchased a set of Water Spirit clothing, which enabled underwater activities.

Additionally, after defeating the ?Demon Dragon King? Belial, Sora had reached level 65, and just like her skill level as an ?Enchanter?, her one-handed sword proficiency had finally hit the milestone of 100.

From here on, she could choose to either “acquire a skill” or “enhance a skill” for every 10 proficiency points she gained. She chose the former between the vertical strike skill ?Vertical Slash? and the horizontal strike skill ?Horizontal Thrust?.

The main reason was that the vertical strike seemed to have better usability.

According to the support system ?Lucifel?, it could be activated both up and down, so he was looking forward to future battles.

“Well then, let’s get to the main topic.”

With her heart racing over the new skill, Sora touched her profession to bring up a new screen.

What she wanted to confirm was about her profession , ?Enchanter?, which had finally reached its limit in the lava area.

The new screen displayed: ?Spend 100 MP to start a Job Quest?.

Now, the beginning of a story leading to even greater heights awaited.