I Paired Up With a Woman From an Adventurer Matchmaking App, She Had Perfect Compatibility, But the Worst Personality. When Our Erotic Compatibility Exceeded 200%, She Became the Most Obedient Team Member at Night. - Chapter 2

“Reward Payment? Ah, well, I know about it.”

Reward Payment.
It’s a system where the “rewards” paid out by the Guild, such as bounties or quest completion rewards, are used in advance for payments.
It can be used at established shops with their own buildings in this city.
Even if you don’t have any money on hand when you make a purchase, the amount you’ve already spent through Reward Payment will be automatically deducted from your future Guild rewards earned through adventures or other means. The deducted amount then flows to the shop.
It sounds complicated, but essentially, it’s like a public line of credit.
To ensure shops don’t get stiffed, you need to have earned a certain level of trust with them. That’s why it’s not something just anyone can use willy-nilly.
So, as a mere Wild Adventurer, I should never have used Reward Payment before…

“N-no way…!”

Startled, I whirled around.
There stood Cordelia, a cool expression on her face, nonchalantly twirling the ends of her blonde hair as if she had nothing to do with it.
Come to think of it, Cordelia lived remarkably well for a fledgling adventurer.
She resided in a luxurious apartment in an exceptionally prime location, and all her daily necessities and equipment were top-tier.
Moreover, she had newspapers and deliveries delivered almost every morning, spending money lavishly on this and that without a second thought.
If all those expenses were being covered by “Reward Payments”…?

“Y-you! I thought you just had a terrible spending habit, but this is what’s been going on?!”

“Oh? That’s quite the accusation. But didn’t you just buy a whole new set of full-body equipment? That must have been paid for with Reward Payments, too, right?”

“Even so, that was still 3.5 million Nogle! Most of what’s gone is from your spending, isn’t it?!”

“How rude! You live in that room now, too, and we’re in the same party, bound together. Why should I be the only one getting blamed just because I spent a little extra?”

“Of course you should be blamed?!”

“Besides, the Reward Payment wasn’t just for living expenses.”

“What?”

Whether Cordelia’s various extravagances could truly be categorized as “living expenses” was debatable.

“I also made donations to orphanages and churches as charitable acts.”

“Why?! …Ugh, it’s hard to argue with that! Donating is a good thing!”

“As expected of you, Lady Cordelia.”

“But that doesn’t mean you should praise her without reservation, Maid!”

“Well, maybe it’s that ‘noblesse oblige’ thing. The duty of those who have, you know?”

“But I don’t have anything! I’m paying the rewards! Shouldn’t we secure some leeway for ourselves first before doing that?!”

Completely exasperated, I ran my hands through my hair, messing it up, and turned to Cordelia.

“I admire your noble ideals and all! But why would you spend so recklessly when we don’t even have the resources?!”

“We did have resources. We cleared the Violet Dragon and the Death Golem Dungeon, after all.”

“But if that means the rewards we get are reduced, that’s a huge problem!”

“What’s the problem with that?”

“What’s the problem?…”

Cordelia waved her right hand dismissively, cutting me off before I could elaborate.

“There isn’t a single problem.”

“…Why not?”

Completely drained of my venom, I gazed at her luscious lips.
Cordelia was always needlessly confident, and now her mouth curved into a perfect bow.

“If the Reward Payment reduces your earnings, just earn more rewards.”

Between her outstretched index and middle fingers, she held a document detailing a quest.
She glanced up at me provocatively, her red manicure dazzling in the light.

“If the rewards aren’t enough, just defeat stronger bosses. For now, I’ve brought you the quest with the highest payout currently available.”

Is this what they mean by being speechless?
The document read:

“…Slime Queen Subjugation Quest.”

Even a Wild Adventurer like me knew the Slime Queen—a notorious monster.

“Hey, you know… the Slime Queen is one of the Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings!”

That’s right.
The Demon Lord’s Army, ruled by the Dark Lord, who commands all monsters in this world.
At its pinnacle stand the Four Heavenly Kings, the Demon Lord’s personally appointed elite subordinates.
The Slime Queen holds the third position among the Four Heavenly Kings.
She typically operates from her base, the Slime Queen’s Tower, leading her army of gelatinous slimes.
While the Slime Queen herself is formidable, the diverse and powerful slimes guarding her tower are equally dangerous.
There are fire-breathing slimes, poison-spitting slimes, slimes that can harden like steel, and even colossal slimes weighing thousands of tons.
Facing such a diverse horde of slimes is far beyond the capabilities of a single party.
Despite the Slime Queen’s Tower being known as one of the Four Heavenly Kings’ strongholds, no one has ever dared to challenge it for conquest. It remains one of the most perilous dungeons in the world.
That’s why I had to explain it this way to Cordelia, who clearly didn’t grasp the harsh realities of this world:

“You can’t just waltz in and defeat something like that just because you want the reward, you know?”