I love time travel the most!

When Kobayashi and Megumin started arguing, Sato Kazuma cried out in agony, "Kobayashi-senpai, I can't take it anymore! Aren't you two done yet?!"

"It's alright, I can hold on for a while longer!" Darkness's longsword broke again, and he held onto General Winter's legs tightly, seemingly having a lot of fun.

"We'll discuss this when we get back. Let's deal with the enemy first."

"Hmph, no matter what you say, I won't change."

This little girl...!

Huihui raised her magic wand and began to chant her spell.

"Blacker than black, darker than darkness, here I entrust my true crimson golden light!

When the time of awakening comes, the corrupt principles of the absurd church will become invisible and distorted and revealed!

Dance, dance, dance!

The collapse of my power's very essence, an unparalleled collapse, will burn everything in the world to ashes. Descend from the abyss!

Explosion! "

The magic shook the cold, dry air, creating a deafening roar and blasting a large crater in the center of the white plain, revealing the brown earth beneath. But the figure that remained standing even after the snowstorm subsided told everyone that the explosive magic had been utterly ineffective.

Huihui rarely showed a disappointed expression.

"Don't be discouraged. Your explosive magic is indeed unmatched. It's just that your opponent is too overpowered." While comforting him, Kobayashi handed him a magic crystal and said, "Here, continue."

Huihui bit her lip.

"That's right! There's nothing that one burst spell can't solve! If there is, then two will do!"

Explosion!

Explosion!

Explosion!

After three shots in a row, even Huihui couldn't take it anymore. She swayed and collapsed weakly into Xiaolin's arms.

"Megumi! Are you alright, Megumi?!"

She was shaking her body.

The little girl opened her lazy, moist eyes, and with a strange charm, said in a sweet voice, "...So satisfying."

"Don't say strange things at times like this."

Xiaolin couldn't help but complain.

But the next second, the hairs on his back stood on end, and an indescribable sense of danger stimulated his peripheral nerves. The warning from the necklace on his chest made him instinctively roll forward to dodge.

- Swish!

A white blade of light, carrying an unstoppable aura, plunged into the air, even cutting through the air currents, demonstrating just how sharp it was.

"They didn't even manage to kill it?!"

An incredulous feeling welled up inside me.

Looking at General Winter, one can see that it is not as healthy as before. Its white armor is tattered, its feathers are completely charred, and most of its left side has melted away.

Although it was tragic, it took four burst spells to achieve this effect, and that was under the condition of elemental advantage.

It's really strong. What should we do?

Xiaolin couldn't find a solution for the time being.

Ryuko suggested, "Why don't we use my ability to help you all escape back to town?"

“No, that won’t do.” Kobayashi shook his head and rejected the idea: “Going back to Axel will only bring General Winter along as well. We can’t transfer the danger to the newbie village.”

Solve your own troubles; this is the most basic principle for adventurers.

However, Ryuu's ability is also crucial. Kobayashi always felt that there was a flash of inspiration in his mind that was about to burst out but just couldn't.

"We're doomed!" Aqua cried, clinging to Kobayashi and scolding loudly, "Why did you have to fight General Winter? Why didn't you just kneel down and apologize? Explosion magic is useful, but it requires a huge number of explosion spells, and we simply don't have that many right now!"

"This is it!"

"……Eh?"

"That's it! A massive amount of explosive magic! No, bombs!"

Kobayashi finally remembered.

—Crystal bomb!

I bought it from Wiz before. After activating it with magic, it will explode into a useless bomb with the same specifications as the Explosion Magic within one second!

"Hey Hey……"

Kobayashi's expression gradually turned sinister.

"Lord Kobayashi, please restrain your obscene smile."

"Ahem, sorry."

He coughed lightly, feigning nonchalance, and then whispered something in Liu Zi's ear. The elegant waiter's eyes lit up slightly upon hearing it.

"It seems that in the end, the useless Lord Kobayashi will still have to rely on me. But I didn't expect that the junk that Lord Kobayashi bought would actually come in handy. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that you have no brains or taste. Well then, I'll be right back."

Liu Zi lifted her skirt and gave a slight bow.

Amidst the puzzled looks of Aqua and the others, Ryuu reappeared before them, surrounded by hundreds of dark, round spheres.

Hehehehehe...

"Let's begin, our plan." Seeing the spheres, Kobayashi's smile turned sinister once more.

Aqua asked anxiously, "What's wrong? Is there some kind of plan?"

"Ah, of course there's a plan."

The plan is simple.

First, Kobayashi charged these crystal bombs, and then Ryuu used the [Imaginary Mechanism] to throw them at General Winter's feet. General Winter, who wouldn't have time to react, would definitely be blown into the air!

The whole process was quick; to increase the destructive power, Kobayashi ignited all the bombs at once.

Then Ryuu used her ability, and Kobayashi appeared on a distant mountaintop in the blink of an eye, with Aqua and others beside her, and even Darkness was brought along.

"Huh? Wasn't I just wrestling with General Winter? Why..."

"Thanks for holding off the enemy, Darkness. Now, let's watch the fireworks together!"

----boom!

As soon as Xiaolin finished speaking, Liu Zi appeared beside him. A deafening roar, ten times louder than the explosion magic, resounded across the distant plain. A towering flame, accompanied by a gale and a visible sonic boom, swept in, and the entire team was instantly knocked to the ground.

The blast created a huge, bottomless crater in the plain below, and now not only General Winter, but even the snow-covered plain has disappeared.

"What? What happened?"

"this is……"

"Senior Kobayashi, did you do this?"

Everyone turned their attention to the man in front of them.

"Haha, hahaha... Ahahahaha, hahahahahahahaha——————"

Kobayashi's laughter was truly terrifying.

The team members huddled together involuntarily, trembling with fear, looking at the man's back as if he were some evil demon king.

Having successfully defeated General Dong, Kobayashi and his companions' reputations soared once again. However, along with that came a debt of 1.5 million yen.

Damn it, why?!

Chapter 173 I'll remember this grudge!

"Wait, wait, wait! It's strange, isn't it? It's strange no matter how you look at it! Why would there be compensation?!"

The team members huddled together.

Kazuma Sato gripped a check with trembling hands, and his voice trembled as he saw the large sum on it.

He couldn't understand why, after defeating the powerful monster, he not only didn't receive a bounty but also had to lose money.

"And it's 1.5 million Eris?!"

Aqua was also dumbfounded, staring blankly at the bill.

"That's an outrageous amount, dozens of times more than the compensation I've had for the ruins I've damaged in the past." Huihui raised her right hand, striking a pose that seemed to say, "I'll do my best too," though it was unclear who she was comparing herself to.

Darkness nodded and said, "Indeed, we went a bit too far back then."

Everyone recalled the scene when they killed General Winter.

Hundreds of explosions, each with the power of a burst spell, were released simultaneously, blasting a crater hundreds of meters wide and bottomless into the plain. Even if the compensation claim reached hundreds of millions, it would be understandable.

...Understand my ass!

You painstakingly defeat a powerful monster, only to be told you have to pay compensation when you're ready to receive your reward. Who can understand that kind of pain?

Is this reasonable? !

Isn’t this bullying an honest person? !

Kazuma Sato rushed to the counter, pointed at the amount on it, and questioned the receptionist, "Miss Luna, why is it like this? Don't you think this number is strange? Actually, what's written in front of the amount isn't 'debt,' it's 'bounty,' right? The kingdom's bounty is 1.5 million Eris, isn't it?"

"This one……"

Luna looked troubled but didn't say anything, though her expression told them it was true.

Aqua excitedly grabbed Luna's collar with both hands, lifting her exaggeratedly large chest and shaking her back and forth, the ripples of water and the white halo reflected in everyone's eyes.

He tilted his head slightly.

Oh no, I almost got completely absorbed in it.

"What do you mean? Why is there such a high compensation? Are you trying to cause trouble? Hey!" The underworld goddess glared at Luna with displeasure, especially her final tongue click, which perfectly captured the essence of a street thug.

Sometimes you can't help but wonder if she really is a goddess.

“Miss Aqua, even if you say that, it has nothing to do with me. This is the kingdom’s decision… to be precise, it’s the lord’s decision.” Luna looked at the unreasonable Aqua with a helpless expression.