Lol @ comment section. "HE'S YOUNGER THAN HER!?"... by people who surely read at least one of the dozens of series about kids chasing senpai. Theirs is apparently one of the chases that paid off!
@Puke shows a great example of this phenom in manga, but there have been many others. It's a weird trope, IMO, but since it seems to be fairly common, I'm glad to see someone take it to its logical conclusion -- an actual plastic bag kitty!
Predictable, but I at least still enjoy the last-minute rescue. And while it's obvious to the reader that the guild master is not to be trusted, what young adventurer would expect to be deliberately sent to her doom? You have to be some combination of confident and ambitious in the first place...
Finally, maybe. As they say around here, "light dawns over Marblehead"
https://www.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_origin_of_the_phrase_light_dawns_over_marble_head
What a riot! And, you know what? It never changes! Awkward people (or at least some (or at least I)) remain awkward about new relationship even when they grow up! Thanks so much for this burst of new chapters. They are so cute! :-)
In other, episode-related news... I'm surprised how amusing it was to see our characters heads lopped off. Certainly helps that there's no gore, no evidence of pain or misery, and the consequences are (almost) zero. An unusual pleasure!