Chapter 100

"Gruruu!?"

Seemingly surprised that his arm was being held, the giant bear let out such a sound. Then, its attention seemed to shift from the kitchen to me.

"Gruruu aaaa!"

Perhaps it was extremely frustrated that it couldn't push away a much smaller human. The giant bear let out a roar of irritation and put even more strength into its arm. Despite being covered in fur, the bulging muscles were clearly visible.

"Strength contest? I won't lose to you."

I also put strength into my arm. My muscles swelled, and my arm became twice as thick.

"Gruru..."

"Hmm, it's a stalemate."

Our strengths collided, and our arms trembled slightly, but neither of us could push the other. Our arms remained completely still.

"Ah, you're having an arm wrestling match with the Arm Grizzly!?"

"Moreover, it's a tie...?"

The young tamer and Asia opened their eyes wide in disbelief.

"Is this your full strength?"

"!?"

"I'm not even at my full strength yet."

I stood up. It's harder to exert strength while sitting.

"Let's say 50% of my full strength."

"～～～～～～!?"

The giant bear's upper body tilted. It tried to adjust its stance, but as it was being pushed further and further, it couldn't hold its ground with just its feet. It hurriedly put its other hand on the floor to support itself, and we were back to a stalemate.

"Then, let's go to 60%."

"!?!?"

The giant body slid across the floor. It seems this level of strength is enough.

I continued pushing the giant bear until I pushed it out of the shop.

"Stay there quietly."

"Kuuu..."

Realizing it couldn't win, the giant bear pitifully groaned and hung its head.

"You pushed out the Arm Grizzly with one arm!? What are you!?"

"Rather than that, a tamer should properly manage their familiar."

I warned the young man who had rushed out of the shop. He looked like he wanted to argue for a moment but, understanding his mistake,

"Kyo, for today, I'll leave it at that..."

He led the other monsters away and left dejectedly.

Back inside the shop, I sat back down in my seat.

"Hmm, is the food ready yet?"

Looking towards the kitchen, the couple who were supposed to be cooking stood there in a daze, staring at me. At that moment, a strong smell of burning wafted over. They snapped out of their daze,

"O, oto-san, it's burning, it's burning!"

"Ahaaa!"

It took another ten minutes for the food to finally be served.

"Itadakimasu."

"A, you don't need to pay."

Just as I was about to pay after finishing my meal, I was told this.

"Because you caused a disturbance."

"Is that so?"

I just brushed off the trouble.

"Besides, you really helped us. If it had continued, the shop would have been in a mess..."

Familiars, especially those newly tamed, often don't listen and require careful handling. They are usually not allowed in shops. The young man left with a comment, "For today, I'll leave it at that," but Asia called out, "I'll ban you from coming here in the future!"

"Still, you're not a tamer...?"

"I am a tamer. But I'm also a swordsman and a magician."

"...Huh?"

"Hey, Asia! Take the order!"

"A, yes! I'll be right there!"

The shop had become quite crowded. Called by a customer, Asia interrupted our conversation.

"I'll hear the details when you come again! So make sure to come back and eat!"

She hurriedly said this and rushed to take the order.

I left the shop. The sky was already turning a deep red, and the people who had gone out to the plains were returning, bringing life back to the town.

"The challenge to the plains starts tomorrow."

For now, I decided to stay at an inn.

The next morning, I stepped into the Great Plains.

Apart from the scattered weeds and low shrubs, and the shadows of what seemed to be monsters moving around, there was nothing. In the distance, a reddish-brown rock, which served as a landmark in the center of the plains, was visible.

"Hey, kid. You're not thinking of challenging this plain alone, are you? That's a reckless move, you know."

Suddenly, a voice came from behind. I turned around to see a group of four, well-equipped adventurers.

"Who are you?"

"We are the A-rank party, 'Frontline.'"

They seemed to be an adventurer party. Composed of men in their late twenties, they had a seasoned air about them.

"And I'm the leader, Break."

"Is that so?"

"Wait, hey!?"

Since I had no particular business, I was about to move on, but they hurriedly called me back.

"The Great Plains, even at the outer edge, are a true demon's domain, filled with B-level or higher monsters. Challenging it alone is suicide. I'm telling you this for your own good. We've seen many young guys like you die. I'm just giving you a friendly warning."

"Hmm, unfortunately, I don't feel that way."

"...Is that so. Well, if you insist, do as you please."

They looked at each other, shrugged, and sighed.

I'll do as I please, whether you say so or not. I continued forward.