"…Someone brought the real deal here."
It was currently close to dusk.
"What's your problem!? Why are you always, always so stingy about me! All you ever do is make my life hard, penny-pincher Kazuma!"
Smack-center in the town's graveyard, Aqua and I conversed with one another.
"U-, Uhm… Please you two, people should be arriving here soon, so…"
Wiz, who had been forcefully brought here by Aqua, tried to mediate the situation.
This all began yesterday afternoon.
Amongst the many requests from the guild, one of them was to be a staff member for the test of courage being held by the neighborhood association. Interested, Aqua took the request, but…
"Are you retarded!? It's just a test of courage by the neighborhood association, so don't bring real undead here! Also, there's no point in a test of courage that doesn't look scary whatsoever!"
"What!? Are you trying to say that Wiz isn't scary!? Are you trying to say that the stray ghosts over there are scarier!? Apologize! Apologize for hurting a lich's pride! And Wiz, say something with a scary expression if you please!"
"A-, Aqua-sama, uhm, I actually feel more hurt by what you said instead…."
But what should we do now?
I'm pretty sure the guild hired some adventurers to act as monsters, but at this rate the test of courage will be ruined by this idiot.
Perhaps noticing my worries—
"Uhm… It'll be fine. Just leave this to me! Despite the way I am, my title of undead ruler isn't just for show. I will be sure to give them a scare!"
Wiz, with a clenched fist, announced such.
The sun soon set, and the cemetery began to feel like a real cemetery. It was then—
"Perfect! No matter how I look at it, this is a zombie alright!"
"…You really are talented when it comes to irregular work."
Aqua nodded satisfied, drawing tools in hand.
"I-, Is it really that amazing? How does my face look like right now…? I said that I would give everybody a scare, but I'd rather not overdo it…"
Wiz, who had been given a Hollywood-level makeup by Aqua, said so with unease.
"Well, I guess your zombie-makeup is good enough to make an elderly person have a heart attack on sight."
"I-, Is it really!?"
"Oh, they're coming! First, Kazuma and I will start a conversation with the participants. Then, when they're off guard, jump out and give them a scare! Wiz, hide!"
"Y-, Yes, I understand!"
After Wiz hid behind the grave, Aqua and I went with cheery smiles to greet the participants.
"—Huh? Kazuma also took the job?"
I thought they were just participants, but it turns out that they're just some familiar adventurers.
Well that makes sense. It'd be pretty lonely if there was just one or two people doing this entire thing.
"Ahh, Aqua and I were gonna talk to the participants like this to drop their guard, and then…"
Just as I was explaining—
"B-, BAHHHHHHHH—!"
A voice that didn't quite suit the dark cemetery sounded.
According to plan, Wiz jumped from behind the shadow of the grave.
"Ah, Wiz, this is a misunderstanding. These guys are here to—"
"""""Owaaaah—!"""""
Before I could finish explaining, the adventurers screamed in terror.
Ah-, wait….
"I-, It's a zombie! It's the real deal!"
"Damn, that sure gave me a scare, but we're lucky that it showed up before the participants!"
"Ah shoot, I didn't bring my weapons."
The adventurers unanimously such things.
"…Huh?"
Unable to grasp the situation, Wiz kept her arms raised like a zombie.
Then, one of the adventurers pointed to Aqua.
"No, we don't need our weapons. We have Aqua-san here, don't we?"
""""Ah""""
"Wha-? W-, What-!? P-, Please wait…"
Ignoring Wiz—
"""""Aqua-san, if you please."""""
"W-W-W-W-W-W-, Wait! I-I-, I'm not a zombie! Uhm, I'm not a zombie, so—"
"T-, That's right! She's not a zombie. It's just some sort of special makeup…"
As Wiz and I hurriedly tried to resolve the misunderstanding, the adventurers tilted their heads in puzzlement.
"…Oi, this zombie is talking."
"It even said that it's not a zombie… What's this? Some sort of rare subspecies?"
"I don't really get it. I really don't, but just in case…"
The adventurers nodded their heads.
"""""… Since 'Turn Undead' won't hurt any living beings, Aqua-san, please go ahead and do it."""""
"...U-, Uhm… I'll hold back a bit, ok?"
—That night. The zombie that ran away with all its might through the cemetery caused the test of courage to be bustling and lively.
For some reason, Aqua got a special bonus.