The Goddess Granted Me the [Hatching] Skill and Somehow I Became the Strongest Tamer, Commanding Mythical and Divine Beasts - 158

Chapter 158: First Job

The next day, Olivia the princess and I rode in a carriage to the work site.

I’d brought Rock along with Koku and Riko this time, and the job was repairing a collapsed tunnel.

“It’s worse than I thought.”

The entrance was completely buried in dirt, so there was no telling what the inside looked like.

According to the story, it had been perfectly fine for passage just last week, with no warning signs at all before it suddenly caved in.

“This is the tunnel connecting to the Cyrus Kingdom, so if it’s blocked, travelers have to take a seriously roundabout route.”

Olivia the princess explained it that way.

“That’s why we have to pour in a ton of budget and get it done in a short time, but…”

Her body trembled as her voice rose in frustration.

“Why haven’t you hired anyone?!”

Her face loomed right up close, making me pull back. I’d taken this request from her.

“Well, I didn’t really want outsiders knowing too much… I figured I could handle it alone just fine?”

I’d told her ahead of time that I could manage by myself, but she must’ve been worried because she came along anyway.

“Really? With no idea of the inside conditions, we can’t tell how long the repairs will take. You know what happens if the work drags on, right?”

The deadline was one week. That was because someone was scheduled to come through the tunnel ten days from now.

“Of course I know.”

Even so, I’d judged that the team here was the best fit for finishing the job as fast as possible.

“Rock, let’s do this?”

“…………(All right)”

When I spoke to him, Rock clenched his fist and nodded.

“First, let’s get the dirt inside out.”

Rock and I both used earth magic at the same time.

“Wha, whoa?!”

I heard Olivia the princess’s surprised voice. That was because dirt was pouring out of the collapsed cave in huge heaps. We were using earth magic to control and push the soil’s movement.

In about ten minutes, the tunnel cleared enough that we could see through to the other side. It was only about a hundred meters long, but what had caused it to collapse like this?

“S-Sure, it might be open now, but what about reinforcing the ceiling?”

As that question crossed my mind, Olivia the princess asked it out loud.

The collapse had hit the tunnel’s center, gouged out like something had exploded.

“For now, let’s shape this up with earth magic…”

Once I restored it to its original form, I looked at Koku and Riko.

“Koku and Riko, you’re up!”

“Koku koku!”

Riko bit into the tunnel, and crystallization started spreading from there.

The dirt gradually changed form and turned transparent. After a while, not just the collapsed spot but the whole surrounding area had turned to crystal.

“Wh-Wh-Wh-What?!”

I heard Olivia the princess’s stunned voice.

“This is… the ability of a crystal cockatrice?! Turning such a wide area to crystal all at once…”

“Well, even if they’re young, they’re A+ rank monsters.”

It’s said that even master-class humans can only take down A-rank monsters solo.

There are supposedly only about five people per country who can do that, and since A-rank monsters only show up once every few years, it’s hard to verify.

Koku and Riko are undeniably A+ monsters, so while they might’ve been different right after hatching, now that they’ve grown a bit, pulling off feats like this is no big deal for them.

“This is the power of mythical beasts…”

Olivia the princess swallowed hard, her throat bobbing, as she stared intently at Koku and Riko and Rock.

“I’d heard the rumors, but you really do tame monsters, don’t you?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

I put Koku and Riko on my shoulders and tickled them with my fingers.

“…………Koku~♪”

Koku and Riko looked totally content.

“Anyway, that wraps up the repairs for now—the officials just need to come inspect it.”

“The original schedule was a whole week, but this is way too fast?!”

She usually kept such a calm face, so this reaction felt fresh.

“My familiars are top-notch.”

By using familiars, I could finish jobs several times faster than with human hands alone.

From here on, I planned to take on these kinds of jobs to spread the word about how useful familiars could be.

“Sigh. Being around you, Klaus, makes common sense feel all off-kilter.”

“Haha, I hear that a lot.”

It oddly reminded me of the exact same line from Lorraine, Tabasa, and even Charlotte.

“If you want, how about touching the familiars?”

“I-Is that okay?”

At my suggestion, Olivia the princess looked surprised as she eyed the three of them.

“I’ll be right here, and these guys are super cute, you know?”

“Really? Then… just a little…”

When she reached out her hand, Koku and Riko turned to look but stayed perfectly still, letting her touch them.

“I was scared of monsters at first, but with you here, Klaus, it doesn’t feel so frightening anymore.”

“…………Koku~♪”

Her hand stroked under Koku’s chin and along Riko’s back.

“They have such pretty scales. Yeah, they might actually be cute.”

Olivia the princess got lost in it, petting away.

“Let me pet that one, Rock, too.”

I grabbed Rock from my shoulder and held him out to her.

“…………(Eek)”

He squirmed in my hand. I’d thought he’d gotten used to Melissa lately, but he was still shy around people.

“You’re so cute when you panic like that.”

She smiled as she poked at Rock’s chin. It looked like she’d taken a liking to him.

After watching Olivia the princess play with the three for a bit, we headed back to the royal castle.