Chapter 147: It Seems You Had Fun Last Night (2)


    It was already May, so they seemed to be nting various summer vegetables. I walked a bit further and found a field with sprouts that looked familiar


    Huh? Hmmm? Huh? Seriously? Ah I see, thats how it is No, yeah. What I found was rice. Rice in a field, not a paddy field, but in a regr field  und rice.


    The rice circting in this country, even though it was a short-grain variety, had a somewhat weird taste, and this was probably the reason. Und rice, unlike paddy rice, tended to suffer from insufficient water during its growth stage, making the seed part that is used for consumption harder and less ptable.


    Its kind of strange to have solved a long-standing question in such an unexpected way, huh? But Im not exactly thrilled.


    But und rice, huh Well, managing paddy fields is a real hassle, after all


    After making the discovery about und rice, it was already around noon, so I decided to head back to town. I thought about grabbing something to eat from a stall; cooking seemed like too much trouble.


    I wondered if there was anything delicious avable. While browsing the stalls, someone called out to me.


    Oh, its Ren?


    Huh? Nell?


    Meeting in a ce like this was unusual, and it had only been a day since west met.


    Whats up? Are you taking the day off from work today?


    Ah, well Thats more like what I was going to say, or how should I put it


    Huh?


    What does she mean?


    Well, can youe with me for a moment? Theres something I want to talk about Um, its about the room in that inn over there, the one were renting


    She pointed to the inn where we had stayed when we first came to this town. But what does she want to talk about? Hmm Could it be rted to buying the magic sword? Im not sure about selling it, though


    Um, its not lunchtime yet. Would you like to eat something first?


    Oh, sorry! I wasnt considerate But if thats the case, can I treat you to something? Lets go over there!


    I was led along as if being dragged, and we ended up at the high-ss restaurant where we had lunch on the day we arrived in town. Could this be some form of hospitality?


    We eventually discussed what she wanted to talk about while having a meal. As expected, it was about buying the magic sword.


    Apparently, Rad really wanted the magic sword I had loaned out. He thought that since I already had several of the same sword, he might be able to persuade me to part with one if he gathered enough money and begged for it.


    From then on, they took on special quests to exterminate Goblins and earned a substantial amount of money. The party members agreed that having a stronger weapon for Rad would improve their overallbat capabilities, so they worked hard together.


    Recovering almost all of the equipment that had been stolen by Goblins was also significant. It allowed them to bounce back from their quest failure without a significant financial burden. They managed to gather 2,000 gold coins,bining Rads personal savings with a portion of the partys shared assets.


    However, simply bowing and begging wouldnt guarantee that I would sell the sword to them, and building up trust and credibility would also take time.


    So, what they came up with was to use a Contract Sorcery¹ to make a formal contract.


    To briefly exin, in broad terms, magic referred to using only ones own magic power for casting spells, while sorcery epassed a wide range of practices that involved using a catalyst.


    However, the distinction here was quite fuzzy. For instance, ritual magic that required a catalyst or high-level spells was sometimes referred to as sorcery, and disposable magic scrolls were not typically called sorcery. Its a bit nebulous in that sense.


    Among these, Contract Sorcery involved imbuing a nk magic scroll with specially processed magic power and inscribing it ording to predefined formats. This allowed the effects written in the contract to be enforced on the contract participants. Naturally, these scrolls used for contract sorcery were quite expensive. They must have worked really hard to save up for it.


    In the case of viting a contract made with contract sorcery, the person in breach may temporarily lose their voice, be immobile, or be prevented from taking actions contrary to the terms. Even attempting to go against the contract may cause excruciating pain throughout the body, and in the worst-case scenario, it could lead to death.


    In other words, youre saying you will use the contract sorcery to swear that you wont disclose my information?


    Yes. I understand that building trust gradually is the best approach, but time is of the essence If youd like, we can even include a use stating that we wont be hostile toward you.


    Ah, well, including that use might be a good idea to ensure we dont end up identally hostile to each other without realizing it. Yeah, I did receive help from Rad yesterday, and well, maybe its okay to sell it.


    Understood, that sounds fine. I will let go of it.


    Are you sure?! Really?! Thank you so much!!


    With that, we headed to the inn where Nell and her party were staying to finalize the contract. Rad, who had been feeling down in his room, became ecstatic when he heard that I was willing to sell the sword. He rushed off to find the other members of his party. His emotions are quite intense!


    The contract we agreed upon had the following terms:<ol><li>You shall not disclose my (Rens) information, directly or indirectly.</li><li>Unless unavoidable circumstances arise, such as being deceived or unknowingly bing hostile, you shall not be hostile toward me (Ren).</li><li>All members of Rads party shall strictly adhere to the above terms.</li></ol>


    With all members of Rads party and me signing and sealing the contract with blood, it was officially established. And this contract scroll will be in my possession from now on.


    Ohh! Finally, this sword is in my hands! With this, I can be a Swordmaster! Thank you! Thank you so much!


    Well never forget this favor! If you ever face any trouble or need an extra hand, please dont hesitate to ask. Im sure we can be of help!


    Hmm, theyre expressing their gratitude so intensely that its making me feel a bit ufortable Just to rify, not only Rad and Nell but also the other members of their party were incredibly thankful. Some were shaking my hand vigorously while others had tears in their eyes. In the midst of it all, Rad was literally crying.


    After things calmed down a bit, Rad mentioned that his savings had taken a huge hit due to the purchase of the magic sword. He was determined to go Goblin hunting tomorrow to replenish the funds, and hed need to make up for the withdrawal from the partys assets as well. So, it looked like hed be quite busy in the near future.


    By the way, it turned out Rads party was actually a harem party. All the members were in romantic rtionships with him. Their party funds were also savings to ount for their future Someone should just tear his thing off.


    And once again, they asked me to name the sword, which put me in quite a bind. Asking me to name things, huh? Dont regret itter!


    So I gave it the name Evercut.


    Just to rify, its not a kitchen knife, its a magic sword. I did consider names like Solid sh, but I was concerned about copyright issues, you know?²


    <em>Evercut</em>, huh It has a unique ring to it, but its not bad at all.


    Seriously?!<ol><li>The word for used here is  instead of . Normally they are both tranted as magic but since its specifically differentiating them, Im going to use Sorcery instead.</li><li>Evercut is a Japanese kitchen knife brand. Solid sh is a magic sword from a fantasy franchise called Record of Lodoss War. Ren slightly altered both terms in a way thats indistinguishable in trantion.</li></ol>