I Will Be Unrivaled With The Skill [Sewing]! They Said It Was A Bad Skill, But With Effort, I will Make It A Hit~ - Chapter 68

Episode 68: The Balni Cirque

Seneca and the others traveled northwest from Nishiro and arrived at the city of Ein.

Ein was a lively city known for attracting wealthy individuals, especially nobles. Seneca thought it might be nice to spend some leisurely time here, but unfortunately, this wasn’t their destination.

The Nishiro Jungle had been an area filled with weak monsters. Their next destination, the Balni Cirque, was home to fewer but far stronger creatures.

Everyone felt that battling numerous enemies had strengthened the party’s core abilities. It was time to take on the next stage of training in a slightly more challenging environment.

The Balni Cirque was located in a high mountain range. Though it was a warm season, the extreme temperature fluctuations required proper preparation. Maior judged that fighting strong enemies in such a harsh environment would contribute greatly to their growth as adventurers.

It wasn’t a particularly popular area, as the rewards weren’t especially lucrative. However, since the number of monsters was moderate, retreating during a tough battle would be easier.

Balni Cirque was the only place where they could safely confront mid-tier monsters. The four of them decided, “We have to go.”

After spending one night in the vibrant city of Ein, the group headed for Balni Village.

Balni Village sat at the mountain’s base, surrounded by vast peaks. It was a popular tourist spot. From a bridge located a bit outside the village, visitors could look up at the cirque, but most people never ventured beyond that point.

However, some rugged individuals, burdened with heavy gear, would press on into the mountains.

Seneca and the others, carrying their own heavy loads, stepped into the Balni mountains.

“Wow, what a view!”

After about an hour of walking, a river came into sight. Though they were surrounded by greenery, raising their eyes slightly revealed snow-capped peaks in the distance.

Enjoying such magnificent scenery was one of the privileges of being an adventurer.

“I guess it’s times like these that make me glad I became an adventurer,” Seneca remarked.

Gaia nodded in agreement.

“There are nobles willing to pay high commissions just to visit places like this, but the real sense of awe comes from reaching it with your own strength. This is what adventuring is all about.”

Seeing Gaia savoring the moment, Plautia smiled softly.

“Ufufu. And this is just the beginning. Judging by the strength of the monsters, we’ll probably only make it halfway up, but I hear the higher you go, the more breathtaking the view becomes. Plus, there are tons of rare alpine plants!”

“But since there hasn’t been much research on them, we can’t sell them as materials…” Maior sighed, her gaze distant—she was also in charge of their finances.

“Still, we can take them back and have Kito analyze them. We might discover something,” Plautia added cheerfully.

She and Kito had been bonding over their shared interest in potion-making, often exchanging ideas.

Meanwhile, Gaia checked their location on the map. The four of them were currently heading toward a planned campsite.

“I’m really glad Gaia has experience camping in places like this. You were great at gathering info from the locals too,” Seneca commented.

“It’s just experience. In places like this, one mistake and you could lose your life. Over time, you naturally get better. I’m sure you all will too.”

Maior figured Gaia was just being modest but decided to accept her words sincerely.

Gaia’s skills were impressive—not only was she great at planning for different scenarios, but she also managed to pack efficiently without overburdening the group. It didn’t seem like something that could be chalked up to mere experience.

For an ordinary rookie party, venturing into the Balni Cirque would have been daunting. But thanks to Gaia, who had once trained alone in even harsher environments, The Moonlit Oath was able to take on this challenge.

Seneca felt a surge of confidence. The party’s versatility is our biggest strength, she realized, grinning as she pressed forward.

Following Gaia’s instructions, they pitched their tents and spread out expensive monster repellent, specially formulated for the local wildlife.

Afterward, the four of them grabbed their weapons and set out to scout the area.

Plautia’s eyes sparkled when she spotted some rare plants. Her 【Plant Gathering】 skill had improved with her recent level-ups. By now, she could even collect fruit from inside an Elephant Tree without laying a hand on it.

“Oh! This one’s delicious!” Plautia exclaimed, pointing toward a cluster of small, red berries—lingonberries.

She raised her hand and activated her skill. All the berries within reach floated toward her, landing neatly in both her hands.

“There’s plenty! Let’s make something to drink with them.”

Gaia, having caught her intent, pulled a wooden cup from her belt and offered it to Plautia.

” 【Selection】 “

Plautia used her skill to extract only the liquid essence from the berries. The cup was now filled with pure lingonberry juice.

“Gaia, try it,” she said, offering the cup.

Gaia nodded and took a sip.

“It’s mildly sweet but pretty sour. Honestly, I like it.”

Being fond of sour flavors, Gaia was clearly pleased.

Seeing Gaia drink so happily, Maior decided to give it a try herself. However, the tartness was far more intense than she had expected, causing her face to scrunch up, every feature pulling toward the center.

Seeing this, Seneca burst out laughing—until Maior silently offered her the cup. Accepting the challenge, Seneca took the cup, drank it down with a gulp, and declared.

“Delicious!”

Seneca, too, had a taste for sour things. Though she had expected it, the fact that Seneca didn’t even flinch made Maior pout in frustration.

For the record, Plautia wasn’t a fan of overly sour things. Later, she mixed in some floral nectar and shared the sweeter version with Maior.

“Plautia, your sub-skill is really something,” Seneca commented during their break.

Plautia’s new sub-skill was called 【Selection】 .

It allowed her to separate specific parts or components when harvesting plants—like isolating liquids from solids or selecting specific tissues.

Though they hadn’t found a clear use for it yet, Seneca thought, “Kito would probably love this kind of skill,” and planned to report it—if Plautia gave her permission.

Back at the campsite, they divided the tasks and prepared dinner. The main dish was Gaia’s special stew, with rabbit meat that Seneca had hunted, simmered until tender.

Tomorrow was a preparation day. Seneca and Maior would descend the mountain to restock on food and water, then return.

Meanwhile, Plautia and Gaia would continue scouting the terrain and exploring the surroundings. If they found more natural resources, they could reduce their trips down the mountain and focus more on training.

Lately, the four of them had been spending every day together.

Even after changing into their sleepwear, they often stayed up chatting.

Lately, their conversations had drifted toward romance.

“Maior, what kind of person do you like? Another adventurer?” Gaia asked.

“Hmm. I do want someone who can protect me when it counts… but I also think someone reliable outside of battle would be nice.”

“Like, in what way?”

“Let’s see… someone who’s really good at cooking? Or maybe a craftsman?”

“You… don’t sound too convinced.”

“Yeah, that’s the thing. I mean, it would be great if someone could fight alongside me against dragons, but would a hero like that ever take interest in someone like me?”

Maior showed an unexpected lack of confidence.

“I feel like girls who fight dragons aren’t exactly popular…” she muttered.

Despite being quite popular back at the adventurer school, Maior herself seemed oblivious to it. Gaia, meanwhile, was starting to look at her with a sort of pitying expression.

“How about those popular guys at school? Like Pulcher-kun or Strolo-kun?”

“They’re good-looking, sure. But there are girls who are absolutely head over heels for them. When I see that, I just think, ‘Nope, not for me.’”

Gaia silently whispered in his heart, “Sorry, Strolo-kun.”

“What about you, Gaia? I’ve barely ever seen you talk to guys.”

“I’d like someone I can feel at ease with. Of course, strength is important, but a lot of adventurers are pretty rough around the edges… it makes me hesitate.”

“There are gentle adventurers out there, you know?”

“I’m sure there are. I’ve just never met one.”

Seneca and Plautia, both of whom already had someone they liked, quietly listened to the conversation before slowly drifting off to sleep.