Hiatus Gifting This Unfortunate Guy With Blessings

The tiredness I acc.u.mulated in one form wouldn't be carried over to different forms but it certainly didn't disappear magically either. With that said, the fact that I landed on Megumin's shoulder when we exited the forest to have some rest wasn't weird at all. I certainly didn't want someone to pet me so-

"Are you tired again? Let me use Heal on you." Aqua 'gracefully' offered out of her own initiative.

Noooo, you destroyed my plan- I meant, how very kind of Aqua…

There was no other choice for me but to transform and walk normally or come out as a weirdo that wanted to be petted. I, of course, chose the former option.

There were some advantages and disadvantages of being in Aqua's good grace it seemed.

Kazuma looked as if he has been struck by lightning though. Is it that rare of an occurrence for Aqua to help someone else? It looked like it because I saw Kazuma rub his eyes repeatedly while looking at Aqua in the last kilometer before the city to the point of Darkness asking him if everything is okay.

"I don't know myself." was his only answer.

We went through the city gate and headed towards the guild building. Outside of it, surprisingly, Aqua met someone she knew so we headed inside without her.

Kazuma went to explain what happened during our short journey and to claim the reward for the quest. Darkness, Megumin and I went to a restaurant part of the guild and ordered some food for us all. Just as we received the plates Kazuma also came back with a smile plastered on his face.

"Good news. After hearing about the mutated Gator the prize for the quest was raised twofold! Originally it was 250,000, so it's now 500,000. A hundred grand per head!"

Woah... that was twice the amount I got from Chris! It would be more than enough for another pair of adventurer's clothes for my Crimson Demon form so I could actually walk around without looking like a weirdo in those prison-pajamas.

Darkness showed a happy expression as well, but Megumin didn't seem to care that much and was totally absorbed with battling with her plate's contents.

Kazuma handed out a pouch full of coins to each of us and then took two for himself and Aqua. He then started energetically devouring his food as well and for a few minutes only the sound of tableware could be heard at our table.

When everyone was full Aqua still didn't show up but Kazuma didn't seem to be concerned about it.

I started a new topic.

"So, when will we take another quest?" It didn't seem like questing every day was necessary to earn a decent living so I guessed tomorrow will be a day off and Kazuma confirmed my predictions.

"With this money, I can finally afford to buy some actual gear so if no one objects I would propose next quest after I get it sorted.

"No objections." x2

Darkness and I calmly answered but Megumin suddenly stood up and shouted.

"I object! I won't be able to use Explosion Magic until then! I want to take the next quest tomorrow early in the morning!"

"..." x3

"What?" Megumin questioningly looked at the rest of us when we fell silent not knowing how to answer her demands. Everyone was kinda stumped on what to say for another 10 seconds until Kazuma asked:

"Do you really need to-"

"Yes! If I don't use Explosion each day, then I will die!"

That was a kinda abrupt statement! It seemed like a big exaggeration!

Kazuma gave Megumin a deadpan stare and said:

"Well then, it was nice knowing you! Darkness, Kazuki, is 4 pm okay with you for a daily meeting in the guild?"

"Hey, don't brush off me like that!"

We nodded in answer to his question and Kazuma stood up as if nothing important was left to say and walked away. Darkness also tried sneaking away when Megumin was focused on Kazuma but her clunky armor didn't make her a stealth master.

"Darkness, you too?!"

"Ummm… I have… an m-meeting scheduled with an acquaintance today so I have to go to get ready!

With that said Darkness awkwardly waved to Megumin, nodded her head towards me and quickly marched off.

I was left with Megumin and after Darkness exited through the door Megumin's head slowly turned towards me. She closed her eyes and gave out one of the brightest smiles she ever had.

"Hey, Kazuki-kun, what plans do you have for today~?" She asked in a sweet voice too.

I could neither straight-up ignore Megumin's antics like Kazuma nor sell out some story to run away like Darkness and I was already here so Aqua's approach of not appearing was out of the question.

So I answered truthfully about wanting to go buy clothes for my Crimson Demon form. Megumin's smile didn't waver and she asked:

"And after that?"

"Mmmmm… I don't have... anything else planned today." The quest took only a few hours since we left the guild so the day was still far from over.

"Then you don't mind me sticking around during your shopping and then you would come with me for a little walk?"

"...How long would that walk take?"

"An hour or so." Megumin said without changing her expression.

I didn't have any option but to sigh and agree. Megumin didn't seem like the sanest person in the world so probably if I were to reject her proposition she would go alone 'on her walk and then she would spend a few hours on the ground entirely defenseless. I could perfectly imagine that happening.

We have left the guild and started searching for some clothes shops. I knew the one that I have visited together with Chris so it seemed like a good start. Megumin didn't stay silent and suddenly remembered that she wasn't able to properly finish her lecture about Explosion magic in the morning so she continued where she left off.

With wisdom about Explosion being poured down my ear canals we have arrived in the shop. Surprisingly Megumin acknowledged that fact and started scrutinizing every available outfit if it would suit a male Crimson Demon. Contrary to Chris who let me choose the outfit I wanted Megumin straight up started choosing it for me.

Phrases like "not cool enough", "no cape, crimson demons need capes to live" or "too bright" were flying left and right and the lady in charge looked angrier and angrier. I also heard that lady whispering "... comes to my shop two days later with another girl after making the previous one pay…" but Megumin hasn't noticed that at all.

After another thirty minutes, Megumin finally gave thumbs up to the very peculiar outfit. Coloristically it fitted Megumin's own clothes and had a cape that was connected with buttons on shoulders. It had some weirdly placed belts on the left arm and right leg that didn't seem useful for anything but strangely they didn't bother me at all.

I honestly found that outfit pretty cool myself.

When I was looking at my reflection in the mirror I felt a sudden urge... to strike a pose. It was twenty times stronger than during my first introduction to Megumin. I used every trick I knew to distract my mind from that ridiculous idea but when Megumin asked if everything was alright I lost my focus and my body moved on its own.

"...I am the dark flame master..."

Noooooo! What was that? Why was I keeping my hand halfway hiding my mask while the other arm was fl.i.c.k.i.n.g the cape behind me?!

I used all my willpower to run into the changing room and switched back to human form and started to calm my breathing. The amount of shame I was feeling skyrocketed the moment I changed the forms. That Crimson Demon form was totally weird! Do they have those weird urges ingrained in their blood? It isn't just Megumin's quirkiness?

After quickly calming my breathing and promising myself to never look in the mirror as a Crimson Demon I walked out of the changing room to face worried Megumin who was standing there.

I reassured her I was perfectly fine and after Megumin had bargained a discount, I bought the outfit. While I was careful of mirrors we left the shop. I sighed with relief and asked:

"So, now for the walk?"

Megumin looked as if asked something stupid. "What are you saying? That mask totally doesn't fit these clothes."

With that said Megumin made me go to the stall that was selling masks. She once again started energetically pointing out various masks and saying that I should try them out. But soon she reached the conclusion that choosing a mask similar to the one I currently had but with dark colors would be the coolest.

With several thousand Eris less in my pocket we finally left the area. Megumin also made a purchase for herself. She has chosen the scariest and most crimson mask resembling a demon and said she will hang it in her house. For now, it was stored in my human form while we headed towards the city gate for the 'walk'.

Soon enough the lecture restarted as we were walking away from the city. Megumin was leading the way in north-east direction. After some time I spotted a little lake in the distance. When we got closer Megumin stopped in place and kept explaining stuff about Explosion for another 2 minutes after which she said:

"... and that's all the basics you need to know to obliterate your enemies in the flashiest of fashions. Now, finally, I will give you a presentation."

When I thought about it, this was the first time I properly observed Megumin use her spell.

The air around us stirred and streaks of blue mana, visible to the n.a.k.e.d eye, started to converge around Megumin's staff's core. A few meters in diameter, a blazing, crimson magic circle appeared with Megumin in its center. As she kept chanting the spell, that for the life of me I wouldn't be able to repeat without stuttering, the patterns in the magic circle were constantly changing.

In the distance, above the lake, another huge magic circle started appearing. As the one under Megumin kept shrinking the other one high in the sky kept growing. When Megumin ended her incantation another series of smaller magic circles appeared above and a huge streak of mana went through them, getting accelerated in the process.

There was momentary silence before the loudest roar I've ever heard filled the world. It seemed as if the previous two instances of Explosion I saw were puny in comparison. The explosion itself was unlike anything I have seen on the net, maybe besides the most powerful of modern bombs.

After the raging inferno subsided without anything to fuel it Megumin seemed to finally lose power in her legs but I managed to catch her before she hit the ground.

The spell's casting time was around ten seconds but I felt as if I were watching it for a few minutes.

"This is the power of Explosion." were the only words she said while observing the masterpiece of her own creation.

I had no idea if it was because of me using Crimson Demon form at that moment but I had a thought going in my mind, saying that it was the coolest moment of my life. I honestly couldn't put into words how awesome it looked. At one moment I thought I would even start tearing up.

"Ahhh, that felt good. Nothing beats this feeling."

When ringing in my ears subsided I put Megumin on my back and started going towards the city without commenting. Megumin kept silent until we were halfway back to the city. I thought she was sleeping silently but she suddenly started talking. "U-u--u-mmmm… w-w-we got a p-p-problem."

I looked at her face and she was blushing like crazy.

"I got so excited about showing you Explosion that I forgot to…"

She whispered the last part so silently that I honestly didn't hear it but I realized what was it pretty soon.

…

Give me back my feelings of admiration I wasted on your Explosion!