Chapter 223: Spring Has Come, But Not My Personal Spring

Spring arrived in the Axel Region over a month early.

The ice and snow melted, and the plains burst with vitality.

Adventurers, too, grew active after their sluggish winter state.

"My spring has finally arrived!"

Megumin was excited from early morning, donning her full Archmage uniform.

"Why's this guy so excited?"

Aqua, chewing on a cheese bun, asked Yunyun beside her.

"Megumin joined an adventurer party. Today she's teaming up with them to go outside and do a commission. And if that party acknowledges Megumin's capability, she'll have a proper job."

Yunyun answered Aqua's question, then placed the grilled bacon on a buttered slice of bread, added lettuce, a fried egg, squeezed on ketchup, topped it with another slice of bread, and handed the finished hamburger to Broly beside her, also pouring him a glass of milk.

"So that means this guy's gonna leave this home soon?"

Aqua froze for a moment, surprisingly feeling a bit reluctant.

"That's right. Once I officially join an adventurer party, I'll never have to be ordered around by a lazy bum like you again!"

Megumin gnawed on her DIY hamburger, pointing at Aqua and shouting.

To avoid being a parasite, she had voluntarily become a live-in maid in this home.

Trading labor for the right to live here, and for daily meals.

From that time on, Aqua stopped calling Megumin a parasite, but acting as the mistress of the house, she would boss the Red Demon Clan girl around, ordering her to do this and that while nitpicking.

Megumin had enough of Aqua's harassment. Thinking she'd soon be rid of this bastard woman, she felt a surge of excitement.

"Hah. With your skill and temper, it'd be a miracle if you don't get kicked out."

Aqua retorted with a sarcastic remark.

"Want me to go with you?"

Broly asked after finishing his sandwich and drinking the milk in front of him.

"No need. I'm not a child. I can solve my own problems."

The 14-year-old Megumin directly refused the boy's kindness. She believed her past employment failures were due to a professional mismatch.

And now, the adventurer profession — which often requires battling dangerous magic beasts — Megumin considered extremely suitable for herself, a profession that matched her specialty.

"I'll make a name for myself here. The name of Archmage Megumin will stand at the peak of the Axel adventurer industry!"

"Aqua Master, give Megumin some blessings."

Megumin prepared to go alone. Broly had no intention of forcing her, simply turning his head and saying to Aqua beside him.

"Broly, you're the most thoughtful after all. Too bad someone doesn't appreciate your goodness."

Aqua praised her own disciple, then beckoned Megumin with a finger.

"Hey, red-eyed maid over there, come here. I'll give you some blessings."

"Hah. I don't need your blessings."

Megumin refused.

"Who wants to bless you? If I weren't afraid you'd die outside before settling the account for all the free food and lodging you've had before working in this house, I wouldn't bless you at all."

Aqua spoke rudely, but still walked over and piled a heap of buff blessings onto the girl.

Aqua's blessings were potent — they could amplify an ordinary person to the level of a Professional. On Megumin, it was equivalent to giving her a temporary stat boost at the all-class low-threshold level.

"You really piled on the blessings. When I usually go out and ask you for blessings, you never give me this many."

Darkness started complaining.

"As expected, Aqua-san still quite likes Megumin."

Wiz also said with a smile.

"Hah. Me like this flat-chested brat? Hell no. I just don't want our household servant to go out as an adventurer, overestimate herself, and come back missing an arm or a leg."

Aqua loudly rebutted.

"Who are you calling flat-chested, bastard? I'll definitely return in one piece, and with a stable adventurer job to boot! I won't be bossed around doing chores by a saggy-breasted woman like you ever again!"

That day, Megumin left the house full of vigor and huffing. When she returned, she was leaning on her staff.

When Yunyun asked how the party commission went, Megumin confidently raised her right thumb, indicating no problem.

"Today my Explosion Magic displayed its divine might. My teammates all praised my Explosion Magic as amazing. The captain told me to rest for two days, saying that in two days, he'd give me a reply confirming I passed the entry trial."

But when two days later Megumin went to find them, she discovered that the party, which lacked a mage, had already found a lower-class mage to replace her position.

"Sorry. Your Explosion Magic is too amazing. It doesn't match our party, which often takes hunting commissions, so..."

Megumin was eliminated. Her Explosion Magic directly annihilated the target magic beast, causing the party she joined to suffer a massive drop in earnings.

After tallying expenses, they were even running a deficit. The adventurer party captain naturally declined Megumin.

However, they still settled the commission reward for last time's mission with Megumin. As for the loss portion of the cost, there was nothing to be done.

"I actually lost to a lower-class mage?!"

For the next two days, Megumin fell into self-doubt.

However, she soon rallied her spirits and continued looking for other parties at the Adventurer's Guild.

However...

"I'm sorry. For a Red Demon Clan Archmage as powerful as you, our rookie party really has no way to accept you. Please go seek another party for a better position."

Clearing weeds that had turned into monsters for a spring orchard, a single Explosion Magic destroyed half the orchard. The Eris earned wasn't enough to cover the orchard damage compensation. Megumin was dismissed again.

"It is regrettable. Compared to an Archmage who only has one shot and needs us to extract energy to protect her safety after firing, our party hopes for a support caster with more well-rounded capabilities."

This was the reply given to Megumin by a party that subjugates high-difficulty commissions.

Of course, that party, which often takes high-difficulty commissions, also said that if Megumin were willing to learn some practical low-to-mid-tier magic, they would also be willing to help Megumin overcome the early-leveling difficulty and become companions growing together as adventurers.

However, this proposal was refused by Megumin. A person's energy is limited. If she learned other magic, her energy would inevitably be scattered.

This left Megumin, who dreamed of reaching the pinnacle of Explosion Magic, truly unable to accept it.

Therefore, the situation became like this: Megumin still could not find a Stable Job suitable for herself.

The commissions that low-to-mid-level Adventurers usually Accept have no use for her Explosion Magic whatsoever.

And for Adventurers challenging high-difficulty commissions, Megumin's Explosion Magic is a decent counter card, but Adventurers capable of challenging high-difficulty commissions themselves have levels that are not low; Compared To Explosion Magic, an Intermediate Assist Aide brings greater returns.

It Can Say that, aside from certain extreme Subjugation Quests where Megumin is useful, at other times Megumin's versatility is Too Low.

After a Long Time of being rejected when trying to find a party to coordinate with, rejected when trying to find a party to coordinate with, until In The End Adventurer parties lacking a Mage in Axel This Side would Subconsciously avoid her upon seeing her in the Guild, the girl finally Comprehended one thing.

"In life, one cannot be strong at every turn; sometimes one must also appropriately learn to rely on others."

(Chapter End)