Fer, Sui, Dora-chan and Grandpa Gon gathered in front of the treasure chest.
âLetâs open it,â said Fer.
He deftly flicked the cover open with his forepawâ¦
Psssstttâ!!!
Black smoke suddenly shot out from the chest.
âFfunn,â
With a light snort, the black smoke was quickly dispersed by the magic enhanced snort. Once the smoke disappeared, they all leaned over to peer into the chest.
ââHey, are these gold coins?ââ
âIt looks like the ones that Master has a lot of.â
âHumph, what a shabby monster.â
âSkeleton Kings are supposed to be one of the top undead, right next to Lichs. It spoke human language too, but the prize is such a bustâ¦â
If any other Adventurers were here to witness this incredible scene, they would have wailed and gnashed their teeth at the Gluttonous Quartetâs behaviour.
Thatâs a large chest full of gold coins, you know? A great fortune, you know?
Any normal Adventurer would have cried with joy.
The chest of gold would be enough for a full party to live on for the rest of their lives so long as they donât live extravagantly or make stupid decisions⦠like purchasing a dragon fang sword.
âI guess we should take it with us,â said Grandpa Gon as he placed the treasure chest into a magic bag.
âMu, since we have nothing else to do, shall we eat first?â
ââOu!ââ
ââFood~~ââ
It was a unanimous decision.
Soon, four large tubs of sandwiches were laid in front of the familiars. The excitement they showed for the contents of these plastic containers went above and beyond their reaction to the treasure chest.
âMeat Sandwiches!â
Everyone grabbed one and begin chomping into their meal.
âMaster is a genius, fried meat on its own is incredibly delicious, to put it between breadâ¦â
ââYummy~~ââ
ââThank you, Master, for the lunch boxes!!ââ
âHmm,â Fer was the only one wrinkling his face. âItâs not that I hate this, but does Master really have to put leaves into the bread?â
ââHey, there are some without vegetables.ââ
ââVeggie~ crunchy~ââ
âI donât mind it,â said Grandpa Gon. âIt gives the sandwich a different and more refreshing texture.â
âSomeone switch sandwiches with me, I want meat only!â
ââNo way!ââ
âI wish to taste both types. It is more interesting to alternate between ones with vegetables and ones withoutâ¦â
ââSui wants both too~~!ââ
âTch.â
Unable to exchange, Fer reluctantly ate the ones with shredded cabbage as well. The Gluttonous Quartet were in the middle of chomping through their meal when something strange happened.
A greyish fog rose from the sea and the broken-down wooden ship from earlier materialised within the fog.
Thenâ¦
âI liiiiiiiivvveeeee!!!â the Skeleton King roared to the sky from the deck of his ship, both fists in the air.
Then, his red eyes caught sight of Fer, Grandpa Gon, Sui and Dora-chan eating together below the ship.
âUghâ youâre still here?!â
The Skeleton King began to panic.
âOhoo~ looks like this fellow respawns after half an hour, how efficient,â commented Grandpa Gon.
ââYeah!! I get to go next!!ââ
ââEhhh~~ Sui wants to go next~~!ââ
âNow, now, letâs be reasonable. How about we go by seniority? As the oldest one, I should naturally go firstâ¦â
âGururururu, whoâs getting carried away now?â
ââHey! Seniority by age is unfair!ââ
âAhem, whatever it is, letâs eat first before fighting, hm?â
âBut of course,â
ââYeah, I want two more sandwiches.ââ
ââSui too~~ââ
With that, the Gluttonous Quartet ignored the Skeleton King and helped themselves to more sandwiches instead. The Skeleton King was flabbergasted.
âWhat the⦠I used to be the most feared pirate captain of the great seas! I went down with my ship during a battle with a Kraken, but still manage to rise above a mere insignificant undead to become a Skeleton King!â
His words, however, were lost to the four who were too engrossed with their lunch to care about the Skeleton King. Seeing these creatures ignoring him, a cunning idea entered his head and he suddenly leapt forward and swung his great sword down.
âDIEâ-!!!!â
The single sword slash split into multiple attacks in that one swing and struck down.
Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank!
âMwahahahaha- hah?â
Instead of the expected massacre, four monsters looked up at him, not a single scratch on them or their food. No, surely not! Surely not even Fenrir or Dragons could escape unscathed from such an attack!?
Could it be⦠a barrier??!!
They could use barriers?!
âHey, those who dare get in the way of our meals deserve death.â
âHow annoying, I shall take care of this insect right now. Guwaaaâ!â
In an instant, overwhelming light burst out of Grandpa Gonâs mouth. It was his Dragon Breath attack.
âNot againnnââ!!!â
The Skeleton King shrieked as he and his ship disappeared under the attack. This time the treasure box they collected held a dagger that has a large blue sapphire in the middle of the handle. The sapphire was surrounded by smaller diamonds and other gems. Next to the dagger was a gem-encrusted scabbard.
âA knife? Can this thing even be used to cut vegetables?â n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âItâs not even a magic dagger, so itâs another bust.â
ââItâs shiny though, at least thereâs that.ââ
ââSui makes prettier knives~~ââ
Once again, the Gluttonous Quartet looked down on a precious item that would have sent any other Adventurer weeping with joy.
âJust put that thing away, Dora,â muttered Fer. âIâm going to take a nap.â
âHmm, I believe I shall too,â said Grandpa Gon. âYou two may attack when the Skeleton King respawn.â
[1]
ââOu! In that case, me first!ââ
ââNo, Sui~~!ââ
While the two smaller familiars argued, the Skeleton King eventually respawned. This time, it hid itself.
However, it was too bad that Fer has excellent senses. He blinked and yawned, âHey, that thing has respawned.â
ââWhat? Really? Where?ââ
ââWhere~? Where~?ââ
âBehind those rocks over thereâ¦â said Grandpa Gon.
ââHere I go!!!ââ
ââDora-chan~! No fair~!!ââ
Sui was bouncing with anger, but Dora had already unleashed his Ice Spear attacks.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
The rotting ship was immediately covered in ice.
âWh-wh-why is this happeningâ??!!â
The Skeleton King wailed as he sank into the waters with his ship.
Yet another treasure chest appeared. This time, it contained 10 precious jewels.
ââWhat a bust,ââ muttered Dora-chan. ââOnly ten useless stones. Oh, well, Iâll play with these for a bit before putting them away.ââ
ââBoring~~ââ
In fact, the âuseless stonesâ were 10 large diamonds about 10 carats each or more. These diamonds were clearly precious stones that were worth a lot of money. Sui and Dora-chan ended up playing with the diamonds during that half an hourâs wait.
ââOh, looks like itâs materialising again,ââ Dora-chan squinted at the gathering fog.
ââSui gets to fight it~!! Itâs Suiâs turn~~!!ââ
ââOu! Go get him!ââ
âCanât you guys just leave nowwwwâ-!!!â
Pew! Pew! Pew!
This time, the Skeleton King and his ship melted out of existence from Suiâs Acid Attacks. The Gluttonous Quartet looked inside the fourth treasure chest of the day.
ââHey, whatâs this thing?ââ
âA red stone. Is it a jewel?â
âUmu, according to the [Appraisal] thatâs something called the âPhilosopherâs Stoneâ. Whatever that means.â
âOh, look, thereâs a piece of paper under the stone,â said Grandpa Gon as he delicately picked out the paper with the tips of his claws. âHmm, this is a⦠reward from Demiurgos-sama to our party for punishing those unscrupulous fellows from the Church of Rubanov. Apparently, this stone could turn regular iron into Mithril, [2] Orichalcum and Hihiâirokane.â
âHooh~~ an actual gift from God. And this Hihiâirokane is something that is rarely seen. I believe I only laid eyes on it a handful of times.â
ââOi, why do good stuff appear when itâs Suiâs turn?ââ Dora-chan grumbled.
ââYay~ yay~ good stuff~~ good stuff~~ââ
To the eyes of these Gluttonous Quartet, this Philosopherâs Stone was seen as a âgood stuffâ. If word got out to the world that something like this appeared in the market, the world would probably descend into anarchy as various factions plotted to steal, cheat, murder or even go to war over it.
âShould we go home? The sandwiches are good, but I feel like I could eat more.â
âHmm, the monsters here arenât even that interesting,â
ââEh, I think weâre just too strong~!!ââ
ââSui wants to eat Arujiâs food~~ââ
Indeed, though they had collected several kingdoms worth of fortune, nothing could be more valuable to this Gluttonous Quartet than their masterâs cooking.
Skeleton King: And donât you ever come back!!
Gumihou: Yeah, Gumi totally took the time to diss Elland the Dragon Maniac
[1] Added more details for the âargumentâ over who gets to kill the respawned Skeleton King.
[2] Orichalcum
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orichalcum
[3] hihiâirokane â Some kind of red mythic metal depicted in some ancient Japanese legends. Lighter than gold, but harder than diamonds and does not rust. Even said to be able to bring water to boil without heat.
https://en.touhouwiki.net/wiki/Hihi%27irokane
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