Chapter 7: The B-Rank Adventurer and the Hero

It’s been about six months since Kazuya confessed his feelings to me.

Since then, I don’t think our relationship has progressed much.

He’s gone back to waking me up in the morning like he used to.
Lately, though, I’ve been gradually getting used to waking up earlier on my own, even before he arrives.

Even when I wake up early, I usually just lounge around or read a magic book while waiting for him.

One morning, when I was pretending to sleep after waking up early, Kazuya came in to wake me and just kept staring at my face.

I thought he’d caught on that I was faking it and sat up, unable to take it anymore. But Kazuya was startled—apparently, I hadn’t been caught after all. He just always stares at me like that.

When I asked him why, he answered without hesitation:

“Well, I get to gaze at the sleeping face of the person I love—on top of that, she’s a world-class beauty. I could watch her forever. You know that saying, ‘You get bored of a pretty face after three days’? Total lie. If you get bored that fast, she wasn’t really a beauty to begin with.”

…This guy.

How can he say stuff like that to my face so casually?

What is this feeling—exasperation, maybe? But still, Kazuya never wavers.

Ever since that confession, he’s made no effort to hide how he feels about me. In fact, he’s openly and shamelessly affectionate, flaunting it every chance he gets.

And if any other guy tries to hit on me, he immediately steps in to block them.

“You better not touch my girl,” he says—though I’m not his girl. At this point, it’s practically a routine between us.

According to others, our back-and-forth that follows comes off as nothing more than flirtatious bickering, and before I know it, the guy who tried to approach me is already gone.

Every time that happens, Kazuya gives me this smug look. It’s kind of cute... and kind of annoying.

Oh, and just for the record, I don’t sleep naked anymore. Not that I ever really minded before, but now that I know how he feels about me, it would be way too much of a “service.” It’s kind of embarrassing, too.

Kazuya looked visibly disappointed, but hey—he was the one who told me to wear clothes in the first place.

Right now, Kazuya and I are C-rank adventurers, and the quest we just completed was one intended for B-rank parties.

We had just finished clearing out a group of stray ogres and returned to the Adventurers’ Guild.

“This means we can take the B-rank promotion exam. Would be nice if we both made it through safely together.”

“Yeah. I’ve never really cared much about rank-ups, but I don’t want to drag you down either.”

And just like that, it’s been about six months since Kazuya reached C-rank, and now he’s already eligible to take the B-rank exam.

It’s a ridiculously fast pace—practically unheard of.

I still don’t get how only Kazuya is able to take on quests above his rank. Sure, his skills are already top-tier B-rank—honestly, probably even higher now—but still.

There’s definitely something going on. Every time I ask, he either dodges the question or says it’s a secret.

“Once I become B-rank, there’s something I want to tell you, Miki. So look forward to it.”

He said it with that usual warm, friendly smile of his.

Huh? What could it be? It can’t be another confession—he’s already made that pretty clear. Hmm... I have no idea.

After reporting our completed quest, we received the details for the promotion exam.

I’d already been offered the exam earlier, but I decided to wait so we could take it at the same time.

There’s a written test and a practical one. The written portion is basic arithmetic, which, for us—people born in Japan in a past life—is no problem at all.

The practical exam tests etiquette and combat skills. Both Kazuya and I studied proper manners thoroughly, so that part was a breeze.

When it comes to the combat portion, things get tricky—by B-rank, there are very few people qualified to evaluate your ability. In our case, we’d already been handling B-rank level quests, and the practical exam was really more to see if we could handle A-rank quests.

But A-rank adventurers are so rare, none were around to administer the test.

So the Guildmaster just said, “Don’t die,” and passed us both.

After passing the test, the guild receptionist Marin told us, “There’ll be an announcement at the guild shortly, so please wait here.”

So now, Kazuya and I were alone in what looked more like a meeting room than a waiting room.

Kazuya turned to face me and spoke.

“Well then, I’ll tell you first, Miki.”

“Ah, yeah.”

Seriously, what is it? I couldn’t even begin to imagine.

“I’ve become a Hero!”

“…Huh?”

What the hell is this guy saying? Is he going through a chūnibyō phase now?

No, wait—I've heard of Heroes before, even in this world. But still, knowing Kazuya, it could just be a joke.

Besides… yeah, there really was a Demon King long ago. The one I know of was about 150 years back.

While I was still trying to process it, Kazuya continued.

“Truth is, I was born with the Hero aptitude. And now that I’ve reached B-rank, I’ve officially been recognized as a Hero.”

According to Kazuya, this world’s people are born with inherent aptitudes, and those are typically identified during childhood. Whether to pursue a path aligned with your aptitude or not is up to the individual.

I already knew that people could have their aptitude read.

If I remember right, it reveals the person’s most outstanding potential and informs them of it.

Kazuya, it turns out, was born with the extremely rare Hero aptitude. He became an adventurer in order to one day become a Hero.

But just having the Hero aptitude doesn’t make you a Hero right away. You’re only officially recognized as one by the nation and the guild once you reach B-rank.

I had no idea Heroes were selected based on aptitude too.

Just possessing the Hero aptitude puts a lot of pressure and expectations on you. Some get crushed under that weight, and there are even those who, despite having the aptitude, never make it past C-rank. That’s why the guild keeps the existence of Hero aptitude a secret until the person reaches B-rank.

People with the Hero aptitude grow faster in terms of physical ability and combat skills, making it easier for them to become strong.

Because of that, the guild allows them to take on higher-ranking quests relative to their actual strength. That’s why Kazuya was able to take on those advanced quests.

That answered a question I’d been wondering about—and now it all made sense.

Normally, for adventurers, reaching C-rank is considered a major success. Only a handful of true experts ever reach B-rank.

So the fact that Kazuya climbed from F-rank to B-rank in just two and a half years—even with the Hero aptitude—makes it clear how much effort he put in.

But for a Hero, B-rank is just the beginning. If you want to defeat the Demon King, you need to reach A or even S-rank and gather companions of a similar caliber. Otherwise, it’s impossible.

Just finding comrades like that is a monumental task—something only the truly chosen ones can achieve.

Back when I left the elf village for the city 30 years ago, there was no Demon King.

But 23 years ago, someone proclaiming themselves as the Demon King appeared, and the world’s been under threat ever since—apparently.

Because of that, B-rank and above quests, which were previously rare, have become more common.

There are a few other Heroes too. Each one is gathering comrades and working daily to fight demons and take down the Demon King.

And then—

“Miki, I want you to join me—as my comrade, as a Hero—and help me defeat the Demon King.”

Kazuya said this seriously, holding out his right hand.

“You don’t even need to ask. Leave it to me!”

Without hesitation, I grinned and clasped his hand.

We’re in this together for life—and besides, having a goal like that keeps things from getting boring.

Still…

Now that I’ve actually grabbed his hand, I realize—Kazuya’s hands are huge.

Rough, too. Totally manly hands.

Even his arms have gotten thicker and more muscular. No wonder he’s gotten so strong.

While we were still shaking hands, the receptionist Marin came to call for us.

“Marsh-san, Claire-san, we’re ready for you now. Please come this way.”

“Alright, let’s get going.”

“Yeah! Time to show off Hero Kazuya!”

“Hm… it’ll be Hero Marsh to everyone but Miki.”

Kazuya scratched his cheek awkwardly as he corrected me.

Right, Kazuya is Marsh, and I’m not Miki—I’m Claire.

But whatever. We still call each other ‘Kazuya’ and ‘Miki’ in front of everyone anyway.

We left the room and headed to a spot on the second floor that overlooked the guild hall below.