Volume 1 Chapter 19 The Nurturer
I raise my voice in shock at the sudden confession.
"Hey, Ms. Terra!"
"Ah, wait? Maybe you didn't know yet?"
Rose still hasn't figured out that Aroze was in the hero party.
I wanted to keep that a secret as much as possible, but I never expected it to slip out of Ms. Terra's mouth.
As I try to shoot a glare at Ms. Terra, I realize it wouldn't really change anything.
"...So, Mr. Roezé was actually Mr. Aroze from the hero party?"
"Huh? You noticed?"
"When I heard Trainer Mr. Roezé, I thought the name and features sounded similar. Plus, from the skills you showed when you helped me, I figured it was probably you..."
"Y-You should have said something earlier!"
I mean, it makes sense.
With all this information out, it would be weird if she didn't catch on.
Anyway, since Ms. Terra revealed that I'm Trainer Roezé, she has some responsibility in this too, so I decided to narrow my eyes at her.
Then Rose, realizing I'm Trainer Aroze, starts asking about my time in the hero party.
"I heard you quit the party due to lack of skill. Is that true?"
"...Yeah, that's right."
That understanding is correct.
Just like the rumors going around town.
I couldn't keep up because of my lack of skill.
But Rose still looked unconvinced, her face showing doubt.
"Really? Someone with Mr. Roezé's skills got disbanded for being underqualified?"
Rose, who has seen my skills firsthand, says this with a puzzled expression.
Honestly, I feel like she's overestimating me.
Unable to bear her gaze any longer, I decided to come clean.
"They said they didn't need a Trainer anymore since all the party members reached their level cap. Apparently, having me around was causing some issues too."
"...That's awful."
At that time, I thought it was a terrible thing, but now I don't really care that much.
I probably wouldn't have been able to keep up with the fight against the Demon Lord's army anyway, and right now, I'm living happily.
"So, it was because of the job class that you had all those issues, huh?"
"Yeah, that's right. That's why I didn't want to join another party as a Trainer. I didn't want to go through the same feelings again, and honestly, I'm just tired of it all."
I stretch my back as I continue.
"So now, I'm living freely while using up the savings I earned during my time with the hero party. Well, it seems like I won't be able to do that for much longer, though."
"..."
After saying that, I realize a bit late that Rose looks really sorry and has a troubled expression.
"Ah, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that...!"
"No, it's my fault. I used that money to help your mother."
I might have said too much.
Rose looks filled with guilt and bows her head sincerely.
"I'll make sure to repay you as soon as possible for what you lent me. I'll also add an apology, and I'll do whatever Mr. Roezé says."
"N-no, it's fine. Just pay me back whenever you can. It's a shame I won't be able to live so leisurely anymore, but if I work hard as an adventurer like before, that'll be enough."
Yeah, there's no need to feel so responsible.
It's just that my slow life has been slightly disrupted.
And saving a life is more than enough.
It's just that I'll have to work hard as an adventurer again.
As I'm thinking this, Ms. Terra gives me a calm reality check.
"But Roezé, you just re-registered with the guild, so you can only take on low-rank requests of rank 5."
"Ugh──."
That's right.
Plus, I just finished the promotion exam to rank up to 4 just yesterday.
For a while, it looks like I'll have to stick to being a rank 5 adventurer and only take on low-rank jobs to get by.
Of course, I can't survive on that alone, so I'll probably have to do some day labor or other jobs on the side.
Just thinking about it makes me feel heavy inside.
My precious slow life...
"I-I'm sorry. Just because I asked for help with my growth, it ended up like this..."
"It's fine, really. No one expected things to jump this far, and I did all of this because I wanted to."
Adventurer jobs and day labor.
Going from being a member of a hero party to a struggling rank 5 adventurer, I felt my shoulders slump heavily.
If there's a promotion exam, I could probably pass it, but until then, I guess I'll just have to scrape by little by little.
As I was drowning in those gloomy thoughts, Ms. Terra unexpectedly brought up a surprising proposal.
"What if we turn this into a 'business'?"
""Eh?""
What does she mean by this?
From the flow of the conversation, she's probably talking about the "helping with growth" thing.
What does it even mean to turn helping with growth into a business?
"It's tough to make a living just on rank 5 adventurer jobs. So, while balancing other work, I want Roezé to be able to live as leisurely as possible without too much struggle."
"Y-yes."
Hearing it again, it sounds super lazy.
"Then, like with Rosie this time, how about helping beginner adventurers grow and getting paid for it?"
"..."
Helping with growth and getting paid.
So that's what she meant by turning it into a business.
"When I asked before, 'What if you started a business?' you said, 'That might be good,' right? Because it seems like it would be easier than now."
"Y-yeah, I did say that, but what exactly do you mean by turning this into a business? Like, 'What if I went on an adventure with you and helped you grow?'?"
"Hmm, that seems a bit confusing, so how about we set it to 300 Flora every time the level goes up? I remember Roezé has the power to make levels grow really fast."
"...I see."
Rewards come every time the level goes up.
This could turn into a pretty good business.
Plus, the price of 300 Flora seems spot on for a quick idea.
It's about the same price as a rank 5 adventurer's request, so even beginner adventurers should be able to afford it.
Compared to the curse-breaking fees of Curse-breaker Lotus, it's a cute price.
"There are a lot of beginner adventurers like Rosie who are struggling to grow. So, I've been thinking it would be nice to have something like a 'level-up shop' for those kids."
"A level-up shop..."
"Well, that sounds a bit too obvious, so maybe we could call it 'Training Hall' which means a place where trainers help with growth?"
"That... sounds a bit weird too..."
Well, the name doesn't really matter at this point.
The real issue was somewhere else.
"If we do start that Training Hall, I really don't want people to find out I have the Trainer job class."
I really don't want to stand out.
Once people realize I'm a Trainer like Rose, many will probably connect me to the hero party Aroze.
If I continue to work as a Trainer, that problem will always follow me.
I wonder if there's a way to avoid it.
Just when I was feeling stuck, Rose offered an unexpected solution.
"Nurturer..."
"Huh?"
"If we say it's a job class called 'Nurturer', then it won't give away that you're Mr. Aroze, right?"
"...I see."
So, it's about pretending to have a different job class.
Originally known as Trainer Aroze, now the idea is to operate asNurturer Roezé, which might keep me under the radar.
"How about we just use the job class name directly for the business? Like 'Mr. Nurturer', what do you think?"
"..."
Mr. Nurturer.
The moment I heard it, something clicked in my mind.
A job that helps beginner adventurers grow.
I just tag along on their adventures and watch them level up.
I don't have to do anything complicated, and I get paid based on how much they improve.
It feels a bit like I'm taking advantage of struggling beginner adventurers, which makes me hesitate a little.
But if that's the case, I won't have to deal with other annoying jobs, and I can earn money at a relaxed pace.
Since I'm not forming a party with anyone as an adventurer, I don't have to worry about being tossed aside either, and it seems like a good way to make the most of the Trainer job class.
"...That could be good."
If I keep going like this, I'll just be scraping by with low-rank adventurer jobs and day labor.
If I'm going to rot away like that, I might as well give this a shot.
There's a chance I could live a more laid-back life than before.
More than anything...
'Thanks to Mr. Roezé, I've become this strong! I really appreciate it!'
Remembering Rose's smile, I made up my mind.
"I think I'll give Nurturer a try."
By helping one girl, my new challenge began that day.
As a Trainer who got kicked out of the hero party, I'm aiming for a slow life as a Nurturer!
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