Chapter 19: Lucky Star 4
Stained tables and boisterous adventurers filled the room.
Busy waitresses carrying trays of food moved about, asionally swatting the hands of lecherous patrons who tried to sneak a feel.
Despite the chaos, the establishment maintained cleanliness thanks to the high-quality magical tools.
"Wee to the Lucky Scoundrel!"
The atmosphere at the Lucky Rascals inn was more akin to a college bar or cabaret than a traditional restaurant.
While I had never been to a cabaret and had only seen them in movies, the staff of beautiful women bustling about left a strong impression.
Though not as striking as the receptionist at the guild, the waitresses here were neat, clean, and wearing makeup.
The first floor housed a clean dining area, while the second floor had budget-friendly lodgings stocked with basic magical tools.
The food was somewhat overpriced but boasted decent vors.
"How many guests?"
"Three for dinner, two for lodging!"
I shouted at a waitress wearing a uniform simr to the guild''s attire and pped a gold coin on her exposed corbone.
A gold coin in this adventurer-filled area was like a business card.
Intermediate adventurers could earn gold coins, but it was umon for them to tip gold coins for drinks or entertainment.
Thus, disying a gold coin like this was a way to assert one''s status.
shing an adventurer''s badge in the dining area would be tacky.
It wasn''t just me asserting this; it was a cultural norm in this area.
I figured I could show off a bit since Han Se-ah and Grace hadn''t arrived yet.
A man with my appearance in this world had no reason to maintain innocence.
The waitress, who had been eyeing me appreciatively, licked her plump lips as she noticed the gold coin on her corbone.
"Your table is this way. Are yourpanions female?"
"I''ll be leaving thedies at the lodging."
"Hehe, I see."
I had taken off my armor, leaving only a shirt on, while the two women were running a bitte as they had things to tend to.
I asked about the inn''s closing time from the waitress before taking a seat.
***
Raei Trantions
***
Shortly after, I spotted Han Se-ah and Grace entering and looking around.
"Over here!"
As I raised my arm and called out to them, I heard a few disappointed sighs from the surrounding patrons.
Both women had removed their armor, revealing their feminine figures d in in cloth.
The exotic, spirited beauty with ck hair proudly showcased her alluring curves, while the grey-haired beauty with herrge, undting chest
Was it a bit too big?
It was only natural for the lewd gazes of the drunken men to be drawn to them.
The two women ignored the intrusive stares and joined me at the table.
"Why is this inn called Lucky Scoundrel? Grace didn''t know either."
"I''ve been to the tower often, but I''m not familiar with ces like this."
On the way here, the two women seemed to have struck up a conversation and be fast friends.
Just an hour ago, they''d been addressing each other as "Miss Hanna" and "Miss Grace," but now they seemed as close as sisters.
It was only natural for Grace to be unfamiliar with this kind of inn, even though she had shown more expertise in the tower than Han Se-ah.
The inn was unmistakably a ce targeting male adventurers, evident from the morous waitresses with their low-cut attire and the magical tools used to maintain cleanliness.
"Quite literally, it''s a ce where lucky scoundrels from the towere."
"Lucky?"
"Those who be intermediate adventurers without dying and rookies who score rare materials for a big paydaye here!"
The way to entice the waitresses here was simple: generous tips apanied by thrilling tales of adventure.
They would cling to the patrons, listening intently.
Of course, this wasn''t a seedy establishment that only sold women''s bodies.
It was also a ce where lucky patrons could enjoy luxurious food good enough to relieve their stress.
This wasn''t some run-of-the-mill tavern serving ordinary stew and watered-down beer.
Rather, it was a high-end restaurant where patrons could savor dishes prepared by renowned chefs from the kingdom''s capital, apanied by certified top-quality liquor.
The cheapest item on the menu was priced in silver coins, not copper, making it a ce where only the luckiest of beginners and intermediate adventurers could afford to set foot.
And there were the adventurers getting pped on the back of their hands they had money butcked exciting tales, so they were rejected.
"Is it expensive?"
"The price of a steak you''d eat would be about the same as 350 goblins."
"Heavens!"
After deducting lodging expenses, food, and equipment repair fees from the money earned through low-level magic stone and herb gathering quests, such a luxurious meal would be beyond one''s wildest dreams.
Thus, the patrons of this establishment fell into two categories: lucky novices who came into arge sum of money and sought to relieve the stress of life-or-death battles, or those who had consistently ventured into the tower without dying and rose from beginners to intermediates.
While skill yed a part, most adventurers believed that fortune was the key to surviving and thriving in the tower.
With monsters appearing so randomly, it seemed fitting to attribute sess to luck.
If it weren''t for my high-stat body, I''d have ended up as a corpse hidden in some cave.
"Of course, it''s only expensive for rookie adventurers. Intermediate adventurers can afford toe here once or twice a month."
"Is the ie gap that big?"
"Rookie adventurers are abundant, so low-level magic stones are as well. But from intermediate rank onwards, there are fewer adventurers. Setting aside the difference between low and intermediate magic stones, the fees for alchemy materials or herbs from the middle levels are of a different order of magnitude."
Grace''s party took on a beginner''s quest to gather herbs from the ins without disturbing their roots and submit them to the guild.
One could earn about twenty copper coins by filling a human-head-sized pouch with herbs from several gathering spots.
However, the reward for the forest material-gathering quest given to intermediate adventurers was at least two silver coins, even if it was considered meager.
Considering that one hundred copper coins equaled one silver coin in the game''s 100:1 exchange rate, the rewards for simr quests had a difference of more than ten times.
"So, you''re today''s lucky scoundrels. Rookie adventurers who get to enjoy a meal bought by a senior adventurer are hard toe by. Oh! And I''ve also secured amodations, so you can stay here."
"You''ve arranged amodations as well?"
Grace seemed a little flustered by my words.
There was certainly a difference between treating someone to a hearty meal and covering their lodging expenses.
However, there were various reasons for such generosity.
The main concern was the gossip that had arisen from my gold coin donations, all the way to the hammer I had given to one of my fans.
Rumors like, "That unyielding Pdin Rnd made his novice adventurer party stay in a lowly inn worse than a stable," could be quite bothersome.
While other adventurers might let it slide, the patrons responsible for my luxurious andfortable lifestyle were mostly nobles.
Although some of them tended to look down on adventurers, many others saw them as romantic figures in pursuit of grand stories.
"High-ranking adventurers shouldn''t let their party members, especially beautiful ones like you, stay in strange ces. People would talk. So, don''t be so shy as to refuse the support a senior adventurer offers to a rookie adventurer."
"Beautiful, you say... Do you also win over women''s hearts, not just monsters?"
Adventurers were romantics who risked their lives fighting monsters and exploring uncharted territories.
Maintaining an image of being generous, cheerful,rge-hearted, and righteous would bring in better requests.
Some adventurers mightin about groveling or ttering nobles, but it didn''t matter.
The rewards that came from spending gold coins and gifting spare weapons far outweighed the costs.
Grace, who had a rough understanding of the adventurer business, epted my exnation with a light-hearted joke.
As for Han Se-ah, she didn''t seem to mind or refuse.
She appeared happy to meet a well-off patron with impressive stats.
"Anyway, to Hanna and Grace, let''s work well together!"
I raised my ss of ice-cold beer, a wee change from the usual lukewarm cheap brew.
I put aside my doubts about whether medieval beer was originally consumed cold, as both of them enthusiastically raised their sses as well.
The impressive energy of the rtively tall Han Se-ah and even taller Grace caught the attention of nearby adventurers.
Already caught up in the atmosphere, the two didn''t seem to care.
With a loud clink, our wooden cups collided, and the resulting foam spilled onto the table.
Their spirited energy captured the attention of surrounding adventurers, but the twodies seemed entirely unfazed, already intoxicated by the atmosphere.
With a resounding clink, our wooden cups collided, sending frothy white foam spilling onto the table.
***
Thats 4/4. Just a warning, the next chap is 19+ so i''ll be posted a censored version here and posting an uncensored one on my Ko-fi. I can''t have 19+ content on the website when I haven''t been approved for ads.
The link will be at the beginning of the chapter.
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