That Unique Monster Who Just Got the 'Consciousness' Passive Skill

"You know… in all the turmoil and struggle we found ourselves in, I'm grateful to at least have you guys as partners." He didn't say "friends," he said "partners." "Especially you."

"U-Uh… We are, too. …More importantly, here." The babe presented me forward, still gripping my shoulders.

"Yes. Speaking of gratitude, where are my manners? I shouldn't forget to thank the little man here, should I?"

"Right, so you recognize him, too. I've actually just met him again by chance… Oh, but gee, let's not mention how we met! Right, my boy?" I politely laughed, and the charming babe shook me by my shoulders, playfully being "angry."

"Oh, haha? Was it bad?" She said she wouldn't mention it, but in the end, she did, and in the end, even that leader person had to whack a little chop on my head for causing trouble. For a minute, the pair of them chatted idly about me, then the leader knelt down to my height, and decided to thank me properly.

"Really, thank you, little man." With both his hands, he seized mine. I still had that "Warlord Orc Head" quest item, by the way, so the leader only took my remaining hand, shaking it firmly. It was the first time someone shook my hand—I wanted him to stop, I felt it was annoying. I didn't let my annoyance show through, and nodded at the leader, acknowledging his thanks.

After I asked him about how precisely I did help them, he explained to me, with his heavy emotions surfacing again, that without my help, his precious friend wouldn't probably be alive, as we spoke. That was funny: I never intended to save anyone's life, and if I had known my action would save a person's life, I probably wouldn't have acted it. Naturally, I didn't voice my opinion; I knew the people didn't like a monster's opinion.

"The guy who yelled at you earlier, he's just a little rude sometimes, so please, forgive him," the leader apologized. "Had he recognized you, he would probably be the one thanking you the most, right now."

That was funny again. I was the one to bump into him, so he was right to be pissed at the annoying brat who had just hit him square in the stomach with so much might. Still, as it would have been a huge pain to voice my opinion, I nodded my forgiveness to the leader.

To the charming babe, the quirky boy was surprisingly lenient, so she shook me like an excited little girl would her plush toy, and cried "Atta-boy!"

"Hehe. Yeah, thanks again, little man." Now, it wasn't the babe's soft hands resting on my shoulders, but his. Ew. The leader insisted. I really saved their asses, back there. It was very brave of me to rush and take out the huge orc after the enemy was about to bring their precious friend down with a single blow.

The quirky human boy was super agile. "You seemed so concentrated on your own little crusade, at the time, I doubt you even had time to notice us. Got me impressed. Super impressed. You'll grow strong, I'm sure." The leader must have meant "even stronger," but okay. "In the end, we could only collect that one head you left us plus another one. …Oh, you're grimacing… because of my hands…? Sorry. …Oh! I know how I can repay him!"

"Oh? So you'll be repaid, 'little man'..?"

"Sure he will. I-I mean, heh-heh-heh… that's nothing like a real reward, you see, little man… but here!" From his back, the leader produced some sort of leather bag and handed it to me. "You can take it— No, you must take it." He went on to explain he and his party initially thought they would make it big, out here, on the battlefield, so they brought many bags to be sure to transport their loot, but in the end, only one bag was enough for them. "That'll work as a little thank-you, maybe. That way, you can store your orc head, right?" Both humans said my orc head was gross, though not directly.

Thankfully, the leader remarked, it somehow had long hair so it wasn't so gross, but still. That was a warlord orc head, by the way: I wondered if they could tell it was way rarer than their regular heads and admire me even more.

It didn't quite decay yet, but it would soon, under this hot sun. I had better head over quickly to the Guild's trading grounds, they said. If I didn't wrap my loot carefully before I obtained my reward, I would be called uncivilized and squalid—I accepted the bag and placed the warlord orc head inside.

I was happy, then. To learn a lot from life, I had to interact with the world, and that's what I did today. Thanks to my venturing out on the battlefield, motivated by my old advisor's instructions, I was able to learn a lot from these humans. I learned from their emotions, their wishes, and their work.

"Thank you, Leader Person."

"Heh-heh," the man rubbed his nose, "calling me your leader already!"

…Ring! ❮ "Learning the ropes!" — Meet and get acquainted with the adventurer lady's group of adventurers and friends. 1/1 ❯ That was just marking the beginning of a long quest, though it was only a mandatory one, that would only be wrapped up in a month or so from now. For the present moment, however, I thought the quest was probably just about that—meeting a circle of friends I didn't know without any reason or anything. Yes, just like with the quest I completed, being a "friend" of the Orc Tribe from some Ladafar town or something, the new instructions didn't come up right away. Before the quest continued, I'd have to find myself seated in some noble's Academy, in the capital, with my elven princess and the heaviest sense of boredom penetrating through the every pore of skin—

But for now, the hidden monster, I, had a warlord orc head to dispose of.

The leader stood up and said he would excuse himself, thanking me again. My adventurer lady said she would be off, too, now. As she was worried, I thanked the babe for all her help, and set off to the Guild Bureau at once, showing her I knew the way perfectly well.

With a smile, we parted. Minutes from now, I'd be inside the Guild Bureau, more precisely at the trading ground, and my cover would vanish—people would recognize me as the monster, then I'd be attacked by the military and—

Ha ha ha.

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