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She just totally told me, that I take advantage of being a cute girl. Well, I know I do, but…

“F-for the time being, should I make a weapon for you, Mika?” I tried to change the subject. “You’re using a bow, don’t you?”
“Yeah, I do. Up to what grade can you make weapons? With Item Master, that is.”
“Up to legend grade”
“Isn’t that the highest possible grade? I guess, I should’ve expected that.”
“Yeah, it is.”

For some reason, this no longer seems to be enough to surprise her.

“Will you make one for me? A legendary grade bow.”
“Yep. I’ll go and get the materials, so just wait for a bit.”
“Thank you! But…”

Mika seems to be frustrated, doesn’t she? I wonder, what’s wrong.

“You’ve done so much for me, Alim, but I haven’t done anything for you… right? Is there anything I could do?”

I see, is that what troubles her? She doesn’t have to force herself to do something.

“…Just you being here makes me happy, Mika.”
“That’s no good. It’s not enough for me!”
“Uh…”

Even talking to me with upturned eyes¹ won’t change it. Though, it takes high skill to use that on someone of the same height. Putting that aside, she looks as if she feels indebted for something. Still, there really isn’t anything she can do.

“What I want to ask of you, is to become stronger. You can do anything you want, as long as you raise your level. How about we think about it, when you’ve gotten a bit stronger, Mika? Alright?”
“Y-yeah. Got it. Have a safe trip, will you…? T-that’s right. I’ll raise my cooking skill and make us a meal, while I wait for you!”
“Okay, understood. I’m looking forward to it.”

With Mika seeing me off, I headed to the Tria Erial Mountains. There were some ores that I hadn’t dug up yet, among them Mythril and Ultimetal.

I’ll use the same alloy as the Magic Absorption Sword to craft a weapon for Mika. I’d like to use Orichalcum, too, but it’s rare and I want to use it in combination with materials from magic beasts that are SS-Rank or higher.

Thus, I collected just as much ore as I needed at tremendous speed and used the magic room, still in the mountains, to craft the bow. Until a while ago, it took me around 15 hours to make a legend grade weapon, but now, I was able to create it in about an hour, thanks to the accessories I was wearing.

Making a shock-absorbing accessory was the right choice, after all. It was rather demanding without it.

I rushed back to Mika.

There’s a good smell coming from the room. It smells like cabbage rolls, doesn’t it? Maybe she maxed out [True Cooking], right?

“I’m home, Mika.”
“Welcome home, d-dear!²”

Mika’s face was slightly flushed, perhaps because it embarrassed her to say it, when she emerged in an apron.
She’s adorable.

“It smells great. Are those cabbage rolls?”
“That’s right. I gave it my all when I made them.”
“Did you improve your cooking skill?”
“Yeah… It turned into the [True Cooking] skill, and I also maxed it out, but, you see, I wasn’t able to beat your Item Master, Alim…”

That’s because Item Master seriously surpasses everything. It can’t be helped.

“Don’t feel so down. With that skill at MAX, its taste is at least equal to food made by the head chef of a top-class restaurant.”
“T-then, what level is cooking made with Item Master?”
“Divine flavor?”
“Hm, strangely enough, I agree.”

While we were having such a conversation, we ate the cabbage rolls together. It was delicious, really. After that, it was time unveil the weapon I’d created.

“Ta-dah! This is the bow I made for you, Mika! I was able to craft it from an alloy of Mithril and Ultimetal.”
“You can even create alloys? Incredible, really. Thank you!”
“Then, please try to look at it with the Tozumaho.”
“Yeah.”

Mika appraised the bow with the Tozumaho.

Mika looked quite surprised.

“Can I really have this?”
“Yep, it’s alright.”
“Thank you, Alim, no, Ayumu!”

She seemed really delighted. She even gave me a kiss on the cheek.

…This alone is already enough to make me happy.

“Ah…”
“That’s your reward, you see. I’m your girlfriend now, right?”
“Y-yep.”
“Then, shall we take a quick bath and go to bed?”
“Alright. You can go first, Mika.”
“Yeah, thank you.”

Thus, the day ended.

1. It’s probably something similar to what the Puss in Boots does in the Shrek movies.
2. Unlike the one in chapter 132, which I misinterpreted, this one’s the real deal. She calls him あなた (“you”, “dear/honey”) in the meaning used by a middle aged woman when talking to her husband.
3. In the original, there’s an additional 魔物合, which I have absolutely no clue what it’s supposed to mean. 物合 seems to be a historical term referring to paintings and poetry.