《Transition to Another World, Landmines Included》 1-Person introduction (spoilers available) Classmate] --------------------------- Naofumi Kamiya ¡ú Nao The main character. Elf. Around 180cm tall. Tomoya Nagai ¡ú Toya Childhood friend, part 1. wolf beast (only has ears and a tail). Gray body hair. Late 180cm tall. Haruka Azuma ¡ú Haruka Childhood friend, no.2. Around 160cm tall. Her hair is semi-long and a little long. Her hair is a little below her neck, and she wears it in a bun. Yuki Shidou ¡ú Yuki Haruka''s best friend. The first. She is very sociable, but also very outspoken. Around 155cm tall. Her hair is cut in a bob. Furumiya Natsuki ¡ú Natsuki Haruka''s best friend. Part 2 Her parents live in a rich old family. She looks like a Yamato Nadeshiko ....... She''s sick of being picked up, so she''s hard to deal with. Around 165cm tall. Her hair is long. Usually has a ponytail. Yutaka Wakabayashi ¡ú Tommy Formerly a cute guy''s daughter ......, or boy. Longing for the wild, he became a dwarf. About 130cm tall. I''m not a big fan. I''m not a big fan of heavy drinking, but I do enjoy a good drink. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. He is currently working as an apprentice to Gantz, a blacksmith. Yoshito Tanaka Moved here with Tommy. He has taken the "Heroic Qualities" and found a carriage being attacked by bandits at the right time. However, his skills were not enough to become a hero, and he died. Itsuya Takahashi Transferred with Tommy. Obtained [Magic Power, Max]. He and Tanaka went to save the carriage, but failed to control it when they tried to use magic flamboyantly. The carriage is killed. A classmate (male) Obtained [Skill Robbery]. He had bad feelings for Yuki and Natsuki, and blew himself up. Disappeared without being noticed. Kenta Iwanaka In the original world, he was able to study well. However, he has a complex because he was beaten by Haruka and others. He is a lecherous man. Fell in love with a brothel and fell in love with life. Fell into banditry and was defeated. He was killed when he fell in with a bandit. Noriyuki Tokuoka Yoshiro Maeda I''ve been a bit of a failure since I was in Japan. When he came to the other world, he was released and started playing with women whenever he had money. He says he is going to be big, but is made to be a part of crimes by bad adults. Eventually, he fell into banditry, taking Iwanaka with him. He is defeated. Satomi Takamatsu ¡ú Satomi Satomi uses her skills to deceive people and start a religious organization. I saw something on the Internet a long time ago that said, "Religion is the most profitable way to make money. It originated from a document I saw on the Internet a long time ago, something like "Religion is the Most Profitable Way to Make Money" or "How to Create a Religious Organization. He is a person who is riding a good wave, but he overlooked the phrase "don''t overdo it" in that document. But he is a careless person who overlooked "Don''t overdo it". Yasue Umezono She is a bit forceful but has leadership qualities. She does not get along well with Haruka, who has natural leadership skills. She''s not stupid, but she''s an unfortunate person in a bad situation. He was thrown out on his own, and things didn''t go well. When he''s stressed out, he runs into Haruka and the others. Her fate is to be revealed later at ....... Other Classmates To be added when they appear. Local people] ---------------------------------- Diora Receptionist at the guild. Late twenties, but pretty. Marks Head of the guild. Andrew. The guild''s warehouse manager. Also does appraisals. Gantz Weaponsmith in the city of Raffan. He is also a blacksmith. Tommy''s mentor. Simon An old carpenter. A good friend of Yuki''s. Aella A city-trained cook. A short elf. Luce Aella''s friend. Worked as a waiter at Aella''s restaurant. At Aella''s request, she joined Aella''s restaurant. Ishka Chief priest of the temple of Advaistris in Rafan. Head of an orphanage. Early twenties. Viscount Nenus Lord of Rafan and Kerug. Joseph Fader. Lord Lieutenant of Rafan. 2-001 Prologue "Hi!¡¡I''m an evil god!¡¡But I''m not a bad evil god! --What? That''s the only way I can describe my feelings at that moment. In front of me, prostrating himself, was a boy in his early elementary school years. And then, in the pitch blackness, countless human souls - human souls! You''re all confused, aren''t you? No wonder, no wonder. You''re human!¡¡Oh, I thought I already said that! And the boy laughs again. No, it''s not funny! I''m super confused! "I''ve prepared an explanation slide for you guys!¡¡Look at this one! The boy points to a screen that appears in white. Oh, you''re ready. The first page. The text appears in black on a white background. - I''m going on a school trip. Yeah. Yeah. That''s right. I''m pretty sure our school was in the middle of a school trip - or rather, we were on a bus to the airfield. Just as I''m convinced of this, the slide changes, flipping back and forth. - The bus crashes. - The whole class dies. - B-A-D-E-N-D. Only four pictures! And they''re only words! Perhaps the hearts of the souls in this room--perhaps even my classmates--are united at this moment. -- Huza ke le na! -- "Yes! Yes!¡¡That was really easy for me to understand!¡¡--What?¡¡More details?¡¡Show me a video?¡¡No, no, no, no. That''s R18. I''ll get mad at you. Besides, what''s the point of having all those mosaics? You have that? No, no, no, that''s not what I meant. If it''s R18 and needs a mosaic, it must have been a pretty bad death. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ....... If it was a normal car accident, it wouldn''t have happened that way. I don''t know.¡¡You don''t remember what happened when you died?¡¡Yeah, I''ve let that part go. You don''t need to remember the pain and suffering, right?¡¡-- "If I remembered, I wouldn''t be able to talk to you. Ah, yes, ......, if he was burnt to death or something, maybe. But this guy... He''s an evil god, isn''t he? It''s like he''s answering questions without hearing voices. "Why do they call me an evil god?¡¡Yeah, that''s strange. I just give dead people a new career path when I feel like it, and they don''t like it. Career path ......? "Yes, I''m just offering dead people a new career path when I feel like it. Oh, the doctor and the driver were old enough to have been sent back to reincarnation, so they are not here. I looked around. I counted 32 human souls. I counted 32 human souls, and since there are 16 men and 16 women in my class, that''s only the number of students. This means that my childhood friends, Haruka and Tomoya, must be among them. I can''t tell them apart at all. "Yes!¡¡A quarter of the people in my class just thought, "The whole class will be transferred to another world"!¡¡It''s like a game where you move to a world where you have status and your level goes up!¡¡Yay! Light!¡¡You''re too light-hearted, Evil God! It''s no wonder you''re considered an evil god if you do that! And I''m surprised that there are so many people in this class who like novels! I like them too, though! It''s not a reincarnation, so your age remains the same. It''s not a summoning, so you won''t be forced into any unreasonable tasks, nor will you suddenly be made a slave!¡¡Yay! Yes, I have. There''s a story where someone summons you without your permission, says something like "You''re a brave person," and makes you kill people. I don''t know what they''re thinking, just listening to one side of the story and being a part of the war. There are some people who have no choice but to survive. You want to live in an otome game world?¡¡Well, that''s impossible!¡¡It''s not a game, there''s no scenario!¡¡You have to work on your own charm!¡¡It can be done with the same level of difficulty as the original world!¡¡Yay! No, it''s impossible. If it''s the same level of difficulty as the original world, it''s absolutely impossible. At least, there''s no point in expecting the girls in my class to have the skills to win over the most beautiful women or the most beautiful men. Harem?¡¡That''s the same as before!¡¡It''s only possible if you have charm and money! Yes, needless to say, the same goes for boys. Do you have any cheats?¡¡No, there is no such thing!¡¡I just transfer them at my whim!¡¡I''ll just transfer you at my whim. Oh, and I''ll make sure you can speak, read, and write for a great service! --Okay, are we ready for questions?¡¡Then let''s start preparing for the transfer! The boy said and waved his hand lightly, and something like a window appeared in front of him. At the top, it said 150 points, and below that were the races and skills, and the points needed for each. It''s a completely different world, so you won''t be able to adapt to it by transferring directly. I''ve made it a little more editable in the service. The points at the top are the ones you can use. This is roughly the same for everyone. There are some differences in the specs and actions you took before you died, such as working out, studying hard, and so on. Hard work never fails you, that''s a good one! Hmmm. I don''t know if 150 is too much or too little because we can''t even talk to each other ....... My grades weren''t bad at school. I was not bad at sports either. ...... What is the evil god''s assessment of me? I''d be happy if my grades were higher than the average of the average person on the other side of the world, regardless of my position among my classmates. You can never expect a social safety net, and you have no experience living in that world. Hmm. Hmm, even the people with the least amount of money are above the average of the world out there, so I think you can make it if you work hard! If you work hard, huh? It''s not like you''re going to be able to enjoy your life. You should choose your skills with that in mind. You want a skill that''s not here?¡¡Well, list what you want. If it''s okay, I''ll add it. --Skill robbery?¡¡Hmm, okay. --Copy skills?¡¡Okay. --Double experience?¡¡Then let''s add quadruple and tenfold! --Shironing?¡¡Oh, you want that?¡¡Fine. --Heroic qualities?¡¡Do you want to be a hero?¡¡A hero? Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. I was just trying to be firm. The self-proclaimed evil boy basically dismisses none of them, and new skills are added to the window. The ones that seem advantageous require more points, and the ones that don''t require as many. It seems to be balanced, though: ....... If you want to add a new skill that you requested but didn''t get, you can do so. So if you want a skill and it doesn''t get added, just think about it! Now, it looks like the one the boy mentioned has been added, but ......1 there may be some skills that require more than 50 points. What I seem to need is ...... help with this window? The skill descriptions are too brief. Yeah, some people aren''t used to this kind of thing. "Yeah, some people aren''t used to this, like girls who don''t play games. I''ll add help. Oh, it''s added. I need 20 points.¡¡You need points?¡¡And isn''t that a lot?¡¡It''s only available now, right? "Well, I guess we''re all out of ideas, huh?¡¡Go ahead and pick one if you want. We''ll close in about an hour. There are no cheats, so think carefully about what skills you want to use! As a result of the boy''s wishes, the number of skills displayed in my window had more than doubled. There''s something outrageous about what I saw. ...... No cheats, right? But there are skills that could be cheats if you take them, right? Sure, like skill copying, which requires 100 points and consumes most of them, but . Is that okay with you ......? ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó So, what should we do first? The first thing I''m interested in is "Help". This is where you can get advice and detailed instructions. It says "Once checked, it cannot be unchecked. Because of its nature, it cannot be cancelled. It would be meaningless if you could cancel and start over after receiving the explanation or advice. Should I take this?¡¡I don''t think I need to think about ....... 20 points is a lot of points, but if you make up a character without advice and it turns out to be a mine character, you''re screwed. If your character has a persecuted race, traits, or skills, you''re screwed. The common sense is different, so saying "discrimination! It''s a necessary expense and a peace of mind. It''s a necessary expense and a peace of mind, I told myself, and checked the box. --Oh, the display changed. Some skills that have run out of points will be hidden, and the skill description text will be added. You can''t remove it once you''ve checked it. Once checked, it cannot be unchecked (you can still get some explanations and advice after the transition). The text in parentheses is the newly displayed description. Oh, if it can be used even after the transition, it''s convenient and a good deal, isn''t it? Okay, now let''s look at the races. The race that doesn''t need points is the Human race. The race with average abilities (you can''t use magic unless you have magical qualities). Elves are a bit more desirable. You need 20 points. They''re good at magic and on average have twice the lifespan of humans (they can learn magic without qualities, but they''re relatively weak). The one that tickles my chubby fancy is the vampire half. 50 points required. He has a strong body, resilience, and magical qualities. As a half-vampire, he is also resistant to sunlight (his blood-sucking urges are more severe than those of a vampire, requiring more than 400cc of human blood per day. Most of the time, they can''t control their urge and suck blood until the target dies. (Because of its nature, if it is found, it will be an immediate target for killing. Oh, no. It''s a mine race. I chose to help, and I''m fine! If you read through the descriptions, you''ll see that almost all of the special races have weekpoints in the additional descriptions. It''s quite dangerous, though, because the first description alone seems to give you an advantage. That''s 20 points. But is it really evil to withhold important information, or is there another reason? ....... Other races that you can choose without problems are ...... "Dwarves" will be stocky and bearded when you choose them, and "Halflings" will be under 120cm tall. It''s a good idea in games, but not in real life. I like beast ears, but I wouldn''t be happy if I had them. I''m just a chemist who wants to be loved. ...... Okay, I''ll go with "Elf". That leaves me with 110 points. The next step is skills. There''s a lot of stuff that''s been added: ....... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Skill Robbery (80 points required) Takes away all skills of the target without changing their level. You don''t need to specify the skills you want to take. You don''t need to specify the skill you want to take, it will be returned to you when you die. (4% of your lifespan x the total of the skill levels you took. (A skill with no level is considered to be level 5. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- This skill seems like a cheat, but the disadvantages are too severe. I''m not sure if it''s fair to take something that someone else has spent a lot of time developing and then give it to them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Skill Copy (100 points required) You can copy a skill without affecting the opponent''s skill. You can copy a skill without affecting your opponent''s skill, but you have to check the name and level of the skill to be copied. However, you must check the name and level of the skill to be copied. (The copied skill becomes level 1 and is sealed.) You can remove the seal by having the original person teach you the skill. (You cannot copy a skill without a level. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- There is no disadvantage to the copied person, so the penalty is low. If you copy a skill with your opponent''s permission, you can use it at level 1, which is pretty good. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Double experience (50 points required) You gain twice as much experience from combat, training and discipline. (The experience required for proficiency is 10 times that of others. 10 times the experience gained (120 points required) You gain 10 times as much experience through combat, training and discipline. (The experience required for proficiency is 10 times that of others. Heroic Qualities (Points required 80) You have the qualities to become a hero through training and effort. You can become a hero through training and hard work. (It is easy to get into trouble and your life is always in danger. Magic Qualities, All Attributes (80 points) The ability to learn all types of magic. (The difficulty of learning all types of magic increases many times) Magic Power (Points required 80) You have a huge amount of magical power in your body. (Physical strength and durability become extremely low. Also, it becomes very difficult to control magic power. Fascination (Points required 50) Attracts and charms the opposite s*x. The appearance does not change. The person you charm becomes possessive and tries to keep it to himself. You cannot choose the object of your attraction. Extremely Attractive Appearance (30 points required) A perfectly sculpted appearance. Heteros*xuals and even homos*xuals are attracted to this appearance. (This may be useful for homos*xuals. (This may be useful for homos*xuals, but is not recommended for the originally beautiful elves, as they will be in trouble. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --I don''t know.¡¡These are almost all mines!¡¡That''s the evil god! I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. If there was no help for this, all those who thought "I''ll be a warrior! If there''s no help, all those people who think "I''m going to be a warrior" are going to die, aren''t they? Oh, but the only ones who are really going to die are the ones who use [Skill Robbery] to rob without thinking. They''ll die instantly at a total level of 25. The others are tougher, but not instant death. I feel like there are only disadvantages to gaining experience, but as long as you spend points, there may be advantages I don''t understand. The original skills are available at ...... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Robust (10 points required) Makes you physically stronger. It makes you less prone to injury and more resistant to disease. (Since this is a different world, there is a possibility that there are different germs from the original world? Magical Qualities, Fire (10 points required) You will be able to learn fire-based magic. You can''t learn fire magic without it. Elves can learn magic without it, but they can use more powerful magic with it. Attractive Appearance (10 points) Makes you more attractive to others. (Not recommended for elves who are naturally good-looking. (Not recommended for elves who are naturally good-looking. Sword Talent (Points required 10) (This is a talent, so training is required.) ¡¾Sword Talent (10 points required)¡¿¡¿ You will be able to use a sword better than others. (This is a talent, so training is required. Don''t be overconfident. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Oh, that''s normal! The advice in parentheses is usually useful too! No, the advice on additional skills is super important, but that''s just a description of the degree of mine. But are all the newly added skills mines ......? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shironing (5 points required) You can get whiter skin than others. You are less prone to sunburn. (Because of its light pigmentation, it is vulnerable to sunlight and turns red easily. It is not easy to get sunburn. Heavy drinker (5 points required) It is not easy to get drunk. (It is not that you will not get drunk, but that you will not be affected by alcohol. (It does not eliminate the disadvantages of alcohol. Be careful of acute alcoholism and alcohol dependence. Fraud (10 points required) You may be better at talking than others and be able to deceive with the tip of your tongue. (People who talk too much cannot be trusted. If you want to build a long term friendship, show it with your actions. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is still a decent piece of advice. The advice is still sensible. Yeah. ...... No, I don''t think so. The rest of it is just bad. Try to avoid additional skills. It''s probably right to choose the ones that are there from the start, except for [help]. ......, right? And so on for about an hour. The skills I chose were as follows. [Help (20 points required) [Robustness Lv.2 (Points required 15) Spear Talent (10 points) [Spear Art Lv.2 (Points required 10) Evasion Lv.1 (Points required) ] Eagle''s Eye Lv.1 (Points required 5) ] Stealthy Footsteps Lv.1 (Points required 5) ] ¡¾Surveilance Lv.1 (Points required 10) ¡¾Magic Qualities, Space-Time System (Points required 15) Spacetime Magic Lv.2 (Points required) ¡¾Fire Magic Lv.1 (Points required 10) Trap Knowledge Lv.1 (Points required 5) Perception Lv.2 (Points required 10) Spent 20 points on race, for a total of 130 points. I used the standard game character makeup as a guide, and didn''t take any of the weird, seemingly cheat-like stuff. It''s a solid choice, but it''s probably the right one. You can''t go adventuring, judging by the amount of additional skills you have. It''s your life on the line. I hope Yuu and Tomoya also have a solid character makeup. ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not.¡¡I''ll be moving on soon~. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Hey, hey, hey, that''s random!¡¡I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I don''t think they usually do, but... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡If you know what I mean. Hey, hey, hey!¡¡That''s so last minute! You can''t know that when you''re a human soul! --I thought, "What?¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. It''s a familiar feeling. What?¡¡Haruka and Tomoya? Huh?¡¡Am I the only one who didn''t recognize them? Could it be that I''m more heartless than I think? But it didn''t matter that I was upset, the boy smiled and waved his hand. "Well, have a good life this time, everyone! The moment I heard those words, my vision was filled with light. 3-002 Were here, other world! (1) When my vision returns, I''m standing in a meadow. As I look down, I see my hands, which have become slightly slimmer. I look to the side and see a beautiful elf who is checking out her body just as I am. Blonde hair, long hair. I feel a certain familiarity with her face, which is definitely a beautiful girl, just one step ahead of a beautiful woman. "Well, are you, are you Haruka-san? Is that you, Nao? "Yes, that''s right. I nodded my head in reply. I''m not sure if it''s the same thing, but it''s definitely a different look, but it still has some of Yu''s vibe. He is a little shorter than ......? It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything you like. "What? I''m not sure if he felt my gaze, but he narrowed his eyes and looked at me. Your voice is a little low. No, no, you''ve become beautiful.¡¡You''re an elf, after all! I hurriedly shake my head and change the subject. I shake my head and turn away. You''re not human, are you? "Hmm... You''re an elf too. --It''s just as I thought. He says this and averts his gaze. His cheeks are a little red, so maybe he''s embarrassed. Yeah, I don''t usually call my childhood friends ''beautiful''. I know you guys are good friends, but you should care about me a little bit too! A voice called out from behind me, and when I turned around in a panic, there was a beastman? It has dog-like ears on its head and a bushy tail on its butt. The face is ...... Ah, this is easy to recognize. It''s Tomoya. The eyes are a little sharper, but it''s almost the same. "Oh, Tomoya. What''s that?¡¡A dog? It''s a wolf!¡¡As a kemona, I have to choose a beast! Tomoya puffed out his chest and happily moved his ears and tail. Yeah, he''s that kind of guy, isn''t he? I personally don''t know who would want a male beastman, what do you think about that? "Hmm. I strongly agree with that. But!¡¡What if beastmen can''t marry other species?¡¡You''d give up?¡¡No!¡¡I can''t pass up the chance to get a beast-eared wife! Tomoya asserts with a lot of force. It seems that he chose his race with more thought than expected. I''m not so sure about that direction, though. No, well, I understand a little bit how you feel. The "beast-eared wife" is a bit intriguing. "Hmm, so Tomoya came with you. I''m not sure what to make of that. What''s up? Did I interrupt you? I didn''t say that. --I need a shield. "Hey, did you just say shield?¡¡Did you just say "shield"? Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. I''m counting on you, wounded warrior! I''m not going to be able to do that. I think I heard a suspicious comment, but I''m sure it was just a joke to lighten the mood, yeah. But we''re childhood friends after all. But we are childhood friends. "Oh. I could sense that you knew each other. Yeah, I guess so. We''ve spent a lot of time together, that''s for sure! The two of them nodded at each other as if it was obvious, and I hurriedly followed suit. I can''t tell! I can''t tell you how much I didn''t know until you pulled me in! "Yeah?¡¡I know, right? There are no other people around who look like ...... classmates, so let''s just be happy that we''re together. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that we''re together. I follow his lead and look around, but I don''t see anyone I know, not even a shadow of a person. I can see farther than before thanks to my eagle eye skill, but all I can see is grass and forest, and the rest is just wild birds. Is this unfortunate? Is this bad luck?¡¡Or is it good luck? Let''s call it a blessing in disguise. It doesn''t change the fact that you were in an accident, so there''s no point in being negative about it. Sighing, I shrugged my shoulders with a wry smile. It''s a bit of luck for me.¡¡You''ve got the possibility of a beast-eared wife! I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I didn''t come to this world. I''m not sure what to think of my parents, but I''m sure they''re still dead even if they didn''t come to this world. If we don''t agree on this, we can''t work together. If we can''t agree on this, we can''t work together. "Oh, yeah, right? I was planning to act together with my childhood friend unconditionally, but it seems that Yuu is a realist. Real lives are at stake. "Well then, ......, ''take care of your life''. Yes, recite! And then he pointed at us. "What? Wasn''t this supposed to be a policy meeting? He repeated it again, ignoring our confusion. "Cherish your life! "Value your life! I don''t want to be a hero! I don''t want to be a hero. "Steadfastness is the surest way! "Steadiness is the best shortcut! "Master Yu is absolute! Wait, wait, wait! Wait a minute! I almost said something strange. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m sure you''re not the only one. Well, let''s go with a policy like that. You don''t object, do you? It seems that my protest was simply brushed aside. Well, it''s always like this, so I guess it''s just business as usual. I don''t mind. I don''t mind, as long as I can find a wife with animal ears and live a quiet life! "Me too. I mean, I can''t imagine leaving you guys. I''m too nervous to be alone in a strange world that I don''t know anything about. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure what to do. Well then, good!¡¡Then let''s check each other''s condition. If we''re going to survive here, we need to work together to ensure our safety. "Right. Let''s see, is ''status'' right? Whoa!¡¡It showed up. I guess that''s it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: Naofumi Race: Elf (17 years old) Status: Healthy Skills£º¡¾Help¡¿ ¡¾Spear Talent¡¿ ¡¾Magic Qualities, Space-Time System ¡¾Spear Art Lv.2¡¿ ¡¾Avoidance Lv.1¡¿ ¡¾Stubbornness Lv.2 Eagle''s Eye Lv.1] [Stealthy Footsteps Lv.1] [Spotting Lv.1 Perception Lv.2 (Trap Knowledge Lv.1) Space-Time Magic Lv.2 (Fire Magic Lv.1) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The name is in katakana. In kanji, it''s Naofumi. Isn''t there a numerical value for the ability? There is no such thing as HP, MP, STR or DEX. And level. Yeah. I think it''s better if the status and skills are displayed. They nodded their heads, staring into the void, as if to confirm. The state is now ''health''. If this is a poisonous or cursed condition, it would certainly be useful in a way. You can treat it as early as possible. Incidentally, Yuu is not much of a gamer, but since he is a good friend of Tomoya and I, he sometimes accompanies us, so he has some knowledge of the game and does not seem to feel uncomfortable. What''s important is your skills. First, [help]. You''ve got this, right? Of course. I guess Yu got it too. If it was 5 points, I might not have taken it, but 20 points is like saying ''it''s important''. I was worried about the high price. What?¡¡You guys took that?¡¡You can at least make a character without it, right? --What? It''s not like you didn''t get it. I''m not sure what to do. It''s not good, it''s not good. If you''re not careful, you''re in big trouble! "Tomoya!¡¡Tell us all about your skills! "Yeah, yeah, I get it. ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Sword Talent] [Swordsmanship Lv.3] [Charge Lv.1 [Roar Lv.1] [Evasion Lv.2] [Robustness Lv.4 Agility Lv.2] [Appraisal Lv.2] [Kurosmithing Lv.1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ...... Alright!¡¡No mine skills! I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I had to give it up in tears. No, you''re right not to take it! You''re right!¡¡Your weird obsession is unusually useful! Watch out!¡¡You''re not going to die, but you''re going to have a hell of a time! "Oh, really?¡¡It''s not that I''m competing with you, but...¡¡It''s not like we''re competing. It''s a trap!¡¡It''s a trap! It''s a huge trap! The two of us took turns explaining the minefield of additional skills, and Tomoya''s face grew darker and darker as we listened. ....... "MA-JI-DE! I shouted. Like a certain Munch. "What?¡¡What?¡¡If I choose the wrong skill, my life is almost over! "Right. I''m sure the guy who thought it was a bad idea and took [Robbery Skill] is already dead. That''s right. That''s the only thing that could kill you instantly. I don''t know the skill structure or average level of the people in this world, but if you use it against me, you''ll die instantly. I''m not sure what the average skill level is, but if you use it against me, you''ll die instantly..." The skill will be returned, so only my lifespan will be extended without any disadvantages. The fact that all the skills are unconditionally taken from you is, in a sense, malicious. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. Scary!¡¡Super scary!¡¡That''s the evil god! I''m not sure what to say. Yeah, I know the feeling. I screamed in my heart when I first saw it after getting the help. "But I think he was pretty nice. But I think he (?) was pretty nice, you know?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. You chose a cheat-like skill on top of that, so in a way, you deserved it? "No, that may be so, but you know what? I don''t know.¡¡There''s no benefit to it. Yeah, that''s true. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out why. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure about that, but I''m pretty sure he said ''hard work never fails you'', so maybe he doesn''t like it when you try to make things easier?¡¡And isn''t it still better that you can get by with hard work?¡¡Other things can''t be helped by effort. That''s a very ungodly thing to say. If you try to have fun, you''ll be forced to work many times harder than others. It''s kind of ...... god-like strictness. You can hardly get any skills. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who can''t afford to pay for it. You can''t get most of the skills. I''m sure you''re right. It''s not uncommon in science fiction to be wiped out by a disease to which you have no resistance. What?¡¡Was [Robust] really that important? Oh, Tomoya doesn''t have any help, right? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to do the same. In the description, it says, "There may be an unknown disease. I saw that and took it, too. You might build up a tolerance, but it''s better to not get sick. "There''s no such thing as unemployment insurance," Yu mutters. That''s right. There is no national health insurance and probably no life insurance. If you can''t work for a certain period of time, there is a high possibility that you will die. We don''t have any guardians we can rely on. Oh, yeah!¡¡I''m glad I saved it. Tomoya was relieved to hear that. I''m sure you didn''t think about illnesses from the word "robust", but I''m sure you can handle most illnesses with Lv 4. "Okay, now for my skills. It''s like this, but-- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Help] [Bow Talent] [Alchemy Qualities] I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I can. ¡¾Enhancement of Magic Power¡¿ ¡¾Common Sense of Another World¡¿ ¡¾Bow Lv.2 Stubbornness Lv.2] [Throwing Lv.1] [Spotting Lv.2 Dismantling Lv.1] [Light Magic Lv.3] [Wind Magic Lv.1 Water Magic Lv.1] [Rapid Chanting Lv.1] [Alchemy Lv.1 Sewing Lv.1 ] [Cooking Lv.1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4-003 Were here, other world! (2) "What?¡¡I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Tomoya said and twisted his head. Yes, I do. It''s a lot more than I have, but ...... Yu, how many points did you have? Obviously there are many. I don''t remember exactly how many points are needed for each skill, but I think my points are probably not enough. "Points?¡¡It was 200. You say that so nonchalantly. --What?¡¡What? "Huh?¡¡I was 120. I''m 150. ....... Is there really that much of a difference in specs between you and me? You''re still good!¡¡You''re still good! I''d be a double score if I wasn''t! It''s true that Yu''s grades were better than mine, and he was also better looking. He is also a good athlete and has good communication skills. ....... But when you see it in numerical form like this,......, it makes you cringe. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.¡¡It''s not like your value as a human being is lower than mine or anything! "Your human worth: ...... "Nearly half ...... I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not a good person, but I''m not a good person. Tomoya is very depressed (????). I''m not worried about it, I''m not worried about it!¡¡You can raise your skill level in the future!¡¡It''s your turn now, Nao! I''m sure you''re thinking that this is a bad idea, but Yu patted me on the back as if in a panic and urged me on. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of it, but it''s a good idea. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Help] [Spear Talent] [Magical Qualities, Space-Time System [Spearmanship Lv.2] [Evasion Lv.1] [Stubbornness Lv.2 Eagle''s Eye Lv.1] [Stealthy Footsteps Lv.1] [Spotting Lv.1 Perception Lv.2 ¡· Knowledge of Traps Lv.1 ¡· Space-Time Magic Lv.2 Fire Magic Lv.1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- My skill set is looking kinda good, isn''t it?¡¡I was thinking that my skill set was a little good, but after seeing Yu''s, it''s a little too subtle. I''d like to think that Yu is too high. There''s no way I''m too low compared to the rest of my classmates, right? I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡As expected, it''s ....... "Oh, really?¡¡Did you think about it? Of course he did. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s hard for me to complain since I didn''t think about it. I''m not going to complain because I wasn''t thinking about it, but I''m glad we''ve got a good mix of vanguard, mid-range and rearguard. Then let''s move to the city as soon as possible. I''m not sure what to do. What''s wrong if we don''t hurry? If we''re on the city side, it''s not that dangerous. It''s just that humans can be killed by boars.¡¡Even if we get the skills, we need to test them in a safe place first. Yeah, it''s all over the news sometimes, when a boar comes out and badly injures or kills someone. I''ve heard that humans are no match for a serious cat, but what do you think? It''s true that catching a cat that runs away is quite difficult. Considering this, I think Tomoya''s point is not entirely wrong. I mean, we''re unarmed before we have any skills, right? We''re unarmed, though we''re (probably) dressed in the style of our world. "Come on, come on, let''s move before we talk!¡¡You have the Eagle''s Eye, right?¡¡Do you see a city anywhere? He urged me to look around again, but all I could see were meadows and forests. There is nothing that looks like a city, and in the distance you can see mountains. ...... Oh, maybe that''s a road? I don''t see a city, but I do see what looks like a road in that direction. No city in sight. I don''t know about the city, but I think I see a road in that direction. Let''s just head that way. Yeah. We walk in the direction I pointed for about ten minutes. What I saw was a road about three meters wide. It was just a simple pile of earth a little higher than the surrounding area, but it was definitely a road that had been used by people. It''s definitely a road. Now we just need to figure out which way to go. ...... Which way do you want to go? "Which way should we go?" Yu asked us, looking left and right, but even I couldn''t tell. I don''t see anything that looks like a city on either side. ...... If we were a little higher up, we might be able to see it, but there are no trees around here. ...... There are some ups and downs, but the road continues to the horizon. By the way, the horizon seems far away, but it''s closer than you think, less than five kilometers from Earth. ....... The distance varies depending on the size of the planet, so it may not be the same here. It''s not necessarily the same here. I''ve been thinking about this for a while, and then Tomoya smirked and suddenly started saying something like that. What do you mean by that? The one where I fold my hands, you put your feet on them, and then throw them off. I couldn''t do it before, but we can do it with this body, can''t we? Yes, there is. That''s how you get over the wall in comics. I''m sure I weigh less now, and Tomoya''s muscles are stronger. But... I''ve never done it before, but I''ve never done it well.¡¡I''ve never done it before, but can I throw it right up? Yeah, that''s what I thought, but somehow-- Stop it. What if you get hurt? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to try. You can still see miles ahead. I agree. I don''t want to get hurt. "I see. I''ve always wanted to try it. But when Yu glared at him, he smiled and stepped on his feet, and said, "Okay, come on! I''ll be back. I''ll go. Using Tomoya''s hand as a springboard, he climbed up onto his shoulder. I was able to stand on top of him without wobbling, probably due to my own increased physical strength. "Well, what do you see ......? The front is ...... empty. Behind me is a ......?¡¡A wall, huh? What do you see? I think I see something that looks like a wall over here. While descending from the top of Chizaya, he pointed in the direction of the wall. Thank you. Are you okay? "Yeah, no problem at all. Did he just rub your shoulder?¡¡It looks like your physical abilities have improved a lot. Tomoya replied while brushing off his shoulder that had a little dirt on it. You too? My senses are quite different too, so I''ll have to investigate. That''s right. You''re right. There''s also magic. But with that out of the way, let''s get to the city. We can talk on foot. You don''t want to stay out here, do you? "No. We don''t have any food, so it''s impossible. With Yu''s words, we started walking with Tomoya in the lead. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the best way to get the most out of your wedding.¡¡On Earth? "Is that so?¡¡As expected of Yu. That''s why you''re a genius!¡¡I don''t know anything about that! I don''t understand any of that!" Tomoya says this with a laugh, and Yu sighs. Tomoya, don''t say things you''re not proud of. And it''s not like I can do it by heart, either.¡¡It''s just that I remembered that the horizon is only about 5 kilometers away, and even if I doubled my height, the distance I could see would still be 1.5 times less. It may be in the realm of trivia, but just remembering it is amazing enough. That''s what a woman with 200 points gets. ...... I''m not jealous, okay? Well, then we''ll be there in two hours. That''s right. --By the way, do Shang and Tomoya have anything? Hmm?¡¡As you can see, it''s just one body. Is that so? I''m not saying it''s shoddy, but it''s a good idea. I''m not going to say it''s a shoddy ......, but he''s wearing very ordinary clothes made of rather thick cloth with a handmade feel, and he doesn''t have a single piece of luggage. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of that. No, it''s not in my ''common sense''. There are some very expensive magic bags and pouches that can hold a lot of things. No, it''s pockets, pockets. You have pockets on your clothes. I checked my clothes and found a pocket on my pants. I put my hand in it and pulled out a few coins. They are about the size and thickness of a ...... hundred yen coin. Money, right?¡¡One, two...... ten of them. Oh!¡¡I''m the same! I''m not sure what to do with it. "Yeah, same as me. That''s a large silver coin. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡It depends on the item. Here, it''s 100 Reais. I see. So all these things are worth about 10,000 yen. Like the clothes, did the evil god give this to you?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that. The additional skills were also terrible. I feel that the additional skills were bad because they wanted skills that were not worthy of the money, but I feel that the trap-like ones were mean. I don''t know.¡¡I think it''s pretty sweet. You''re giving me clothes that I don''t feel uncomfortable in, and you''re giving me enough money to go into town, buy some personal items, and stay overnight. And that''s for the whole class, 32 people, right?¡¡If you were Tomoya, would you give 320,000 yen to someone you''ve never met before and provide them with clothes? When you say it like that, I feel like you''re a very nice person. I feel like a very good person. You brought me back to life. "Well, if you say so. But he''s God, right?¡¡If you were really nice, you wouldn''t have planted those mines. "What do you expect from a god? Most of the gods in mythology, both ancient and modern, are not selfish. The god of Greek mythology would be a very bad s*xual predator if he were human. That''s true. That myth is too much. In a sense, there are few decent gods. Considering the unreasonableness of the myth, this is like a light joke. It''s not nice to die from a joke, but you''re dealing with a god. ....... And there were some useful extra skills too, if you didn''t want to go overboard. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡Not just [help]? Yeah. My [Common Sense of Another World] is also an additional skill. Oh, I was going to ask you, do you have that skill?¡¡I didn''t notice it. I thought I had checked everything first, but... I thought I had checked all of them first, but I wished I was in the middle of making my character and they were added, so maybe that''s why. "I see. I took the help and didn''t look at it until I saw the additional skills. The [Common Sense in Other Worlds] is probably pretty important. You guys should ask me before you do anything. You don''t want to look bad, do you? That''s right. If it weren''t for you, I wouldn''t even know the value of money. It''s hard to ask someone about common sense. If we were in Japan, and a passerby asked us how much a coin was worth, we would probably take him or her to the police first. It''s just common sense. I understand. Can you get into the city normally? No. If the city has a wall, you need to pay a tax. It varies from city to city, but it''s around 100 Reais. Also, people who live in the city and those who are registered with the Adventurer''s Guild won''t need it. "Oh, you have an adventurer''s guild? Tomoya turns around and says happily. Yeah, I know. It''s a promise. But!¡¡This is a warning, but don''t get into fights.¡¡Adventurers or not, you''ll be rounded up and thrown in jail. In fact, it''s more severe than fights between ordinary people. So there''s no such thing as non-intervention in a fight between adventurers? "Well, they''re usually armed. I heard that martial arts is a serious crime in Japan. "I see. So you don''t have to promise to get involved in guild registration. Hey, why do you look a little disappointed, Tomoya? For the time being, the goal is to keep a low profile and maintain a stable lifestyle. That''s right. Don''t forget what I just recited! Got it. I''m gonna get myself a beast-eared wife one of these days! Yeah, yeah. Good luck. Yu and I laughed at Tomoya''s unwavering attitude. 5-004 Arrived in the city (1) We walked for about an hour, asking Yuu about the common sense of the other world. We had arrived at the gate of the wall surrounding the city. It''s less than three meters high.¡¡It is made of blocks and the gaps are sealed with plaster or something. Looking from the gate to the wall on either side, we could see that the wall curved and continued for a long distance, so it must be a very big city. The gate is a double door made of sturdy wood, and it is now wide open. The width of the gate is wide enough for two carriages to pass by, but there are not many people passing through the gate, and it seems that there is no need to wait. In front of the gate stood several soldiers with swords at their waists and spears slightly longer than they were tall in their hands. Come on, let''s go. I''ll deal with them, you guys stand back and keep your mouth shut, you have no common sense. "...... got it. No, well, it''s true that we don''t have [common sense in other worlds], but the way you say it, it sounds like we''re insane, right? I think it''s better to leave it to them, so I won''t talk about it. "Hello~ A few soldiers are standing in front of the gate greeting people entering the city, and I talk to a young man a little older than us. His perfect sales smile made the soldiers'' mouths water. The proportions have become more modest, but the beauty has increased! If it weren''t for my childhood friend, I''d be fooled too. "Oh, hello. So, are you ...... adventurers? The soldier looks around at the three of us and twists his head as if he can''t make a decision. No, we haven''t registered yet, but we plan to. "Oh, really?¡¡You don''t seem to have any weapons. ...... Yeah, I actually lost my wallet in the last town. ....... I lost my wallet in a previous town and had no choice but to sell it for some street money and come here. It''s not dangerous to use our magic alone in this area. "Hmm. With two elves, I suppose. So, are you sure about the taxes?¡¡One large silver coin per person. The rules don''t allow for a check or anything. ...... He nodded his head in agreement, and then looked at Yu with concern. We don''t seem to be getting much attention. I''m a bit annoyed, but I''m grateful in a way, so I''ll hold back for now. Yes, we can handle that. Yu responds, handing over the tax money for the three of us at once. After confirming this, the soldier nodded with a smile and moved a little to the side to make way for us. "Yeah, sure. If you can use magic, I''m sure you''ll be fine, but you have to be careful. Adventurers have a lot of dangerous jobs. "Thank you, sir. He smiled and bowed, and we bowed and went through the gate. Oh, you guys! A few steps later, a voice called out to us from behind, and we stopped dead in our tracks. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. "Um, what is it? You haven''t decided on a place to stay, have you?¡¡I''d recommend the "Bear of Slumber" inn on the right side of the square up ahead!¡¡Also, my name is Cass. And my name is Cass. I''ll be happy to help you if you need anything! The soldier said this to me with a smile. Maybe it''s just pure goodwill. I''m sure there is a little bit of ...... an ulterior motive for Yu''s good looks. I''m not sure what to say. But to be honest, I don''t have the presence of mind to deal with that. Thank you very much. I''ll look into it! Tomoya and I are trying our best to keep our faces from turning red. We were thrilled. We started walking again, and proceeded in silence. When we were far enough away from the gate, we looked at each other and let out a big breath. I didn''t say anything. I didn''t say a word, but I''m nervous. "Yeah!¡¡If it weren''t for you, I''d definitely be suspicious! I looked at the people passing through the gate, but not a single one of them was wearing cloth clothes and no luggage like us. Even the lightly-dressed people had sturdy leather clothes and small backpacks, and they had knives at their waists. Considering that, being outside the city unarmed would be suspicious in itself. "Well, we made it. It wasn''t a very good excuse, but even if people thought I was suspicious, as long as I didn''t cause any problems and took my job as an adventurer seriously, I''d probably be fine. By the way, are there times when you can''t enter the city? Of course there are. Well, you can usually get in as long as you pay the taxes and aren''t a clear criminal, but you''ll have to go through a long interrogation and let them know where you''re staying, which can be a hassle. You can praise me for getting through it so well, right? Way to go, Yu! You look great, Yu! The three of us looked at each other and laughed. After that, the three of us looked at each other and laughed. Now that we''re in a safe place, we''re a little less tense. Goo¡«¡«¡«¡« Oh. Haha, I''m starving! It was Tomoya''s stomach that rumbled. He scratched his head with a wry smile, as if he was a little embarrassed. "Well, it''s about noon, so it''s perfect. Let''s buy some food and go to the inn that was recommended to us. I realized that I was pretty hungry, too. Well, before I died, I ate breakfast and got on the bus, and I don''t remember eating lunch. ...... No, it may not matter because my body is different. You''re in the habit of eating lunch, aren''t you? That''s okay. It''s just that common people usually eat lightly at food stalls and the like. But it''s better that they don''t eat two meals a day. As an ex-modernist, it''s tough to suddenly cut back. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. ...... I don''t think you should get your hopes up, though. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure.¡¡It''s cheap there!¡¡I''m not sure what to do. Let''s try that place! Tomoya, oblivious to Yuu, happily pointed to a stall. In front of the stall, soup was simmering in a huge pot, and bread was piled up beside it. The bread, a little larger than the palm of your hand, is a little black. Is that the famous black bread of fantasy? I''ve eaten ordinary rye bread before, but this is the first time I''ve eaten completely black bread. It might be fun. "Well, what can we do? I don''t have any money, you know. Yuu was reluctant, but we happily paid and received the soup and bread. We were about to eat when Yu raised his hand to restrain us and took us to a place a little further away from the stall. The bread is softened in the soup.¡¡The bread is softened in the soup and eaten. Leave some bread in the bowl and wipe the bowl with the bread before eating. The bowl must be returned. Okay? "Yes. It''s true that this bread looks hard. We nodded our heads to Yu''s explanation. Kuro bread is rumored to be a hard bread. Let''s dip it in the soup. ...... It''s hard!¡¡What?¡¡It''s even harder than I expected!¡¡And ...... isn''t it bad? It''s a bit sour, and the broth is a bit sour, but it doesn''t taste good, does it? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Well, Yu, is there anything that doesn''t taste good? Thinking that maybe our taste buds were wrong, I asked him, but he shook his head in astonishment. It can''t be good. I knew that, so I was prepared for it. By the way, you told me not to get my hopes up, didn''t you? You said that I shouldn''t get my hopes up. I was kind of longing for something like black bread because it''s a staple, but this is at least not for the average Japanese palate, right? Seriously? I thought it would taste better while reading a romance. ...... It seems that Tomoya was the same as me, looking at the black bread with a pitying look and sighing heavily. It''s also a benefit.¡¡It''s a great way to preserve food for a long time. ...... There are no other options. I think rice is the best food storage. I think rice is the best food for preserving, it lasts a long time, and if you have a rice cooker, you can eat good rice over a fire. In that case, isn''t the dried rice the best? Oh, yeah.¡¡It''s from the classics. Yes, yes. You can eat it as it is, or you can just pour water on it. Well, it''s still available today. That''s dried rice?¡¡You can eat it just by pouring water on it, it''s almost the same as normal rice. I''ve eaten food that was sold as disaster food, and it was delicious. Of course, it was not the same as freshly cooked rice, but it was so good that it could be eaten regularly. I''m sure that modern technology has made it very good. But unfortunately, rice is not part of my ''common sense''! "So you''re saying that if I''m going to be an adventurer, I need to get used to this bread? When asked, Yuu nodded gravely. There are other preserved foods, but they don''t taste as good, do they? Hmm, I''ll think of something when I can afford it. "Yeah. I''m not a fan of the taste either, so I''ll help you out with that. ...... After that, the two of us, struck by the reality of the situation, fell silent and finished our meal in silence. Yu collected the empty bowls from us, stacked three on top of each other, and presented them to the stall owner. Uncle, I''m looking for a place to stay, do you know any good places?¡¡I''m looking for a place to stay. "Well, that depends on your budget. ...... That''s what my dad said as he stared at our outfits. We don''t look rich, to say the least. I''ve been recommended a place called The Bear Who Sleeps. "The Bear of Sleep" ...... Oh, there it is. Oh, yeah, that''s right. They have an inn there. It''s not bad. The old man is not very friendly. It''s in an alleyway that''s a little hard to find, so when you get to the plaza, go down the main street on the right and ask for directions. The father takes the bowl and points to the end of the street. He pointed to a place a few hundred meters ahead that was a little wider. Thank you!¡¡I''ll be back! He smiles and waves to his father, then urges us to walk away. "...... Are you going back? He smiled and shook his head. I''m probably not going. Unless I run out of ...... money. I''m glad. I''m glad to hear that. The bread is good, but what about the soup ......? I''m not sure. Even consomm¨¦ soup, which can be made in 10 seconds by pouring hot water, seems to be very difficult to make from scratch by yourself. I don''t know if I could make a good soup if all I had was salt. Is that so?¡¡You''re a pretty good cook, aren''t you? Not often, but as a childhood friend, I had occasional opportunities to eat Yu''s cooking. I don''t know about the cooking skills of other high school girls, but at least Yu''s cooking was pretty good. Thank you. But that''s only if you have the right seasonings. It''s just a matter of how well stocked the dry goods are. dried foods...... dried bonito flakes, kelp, wakame seaweed. Dried shiitake mushrooms and roasted baby mushrooms are also dried foods. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. When I cook, I throw in powdered dashi to cut corners, but when I watch cooking shows, they throw in a lot of dried bonito flakes. If they use dried fish at that level, then dashi is probably a luxury item. I''m losing confidence in my ability to live in this world. I hope that Yu, who is a good cook, will somehow do his best to make good food at a low cost. 6-005 Arrived in the city (2) As the father of the stall said, "The Bear of Slumber" was located in a slightly confusing place. After asking for directions several times, we arrived at the restaurant, which was located in an alley off the main street, a little far from the center of town. Although it looked a little old, it was not dirty, and I had a good feeling about it. Come on, let''s go in. I''ll take care of the negotiations this time. Yuu said, and we nodded in silence. It''s a little pathetic, but common sense is important. Yuu was the first to open the door, followed by the rest of us. As soon as we entered, we saw the cafeteria with tables lined up. It may be obvious, but there doesn''t seem to be a lobby like in a hotel. There are about ten round tables that can seat four or five people in a wide space, so it''s quite spacious. At one end of the room is a long counter with a rather large, slightly macho bearded man standing at the counter. Next to him is a staircase, which is probably the guest room. Hello, I''m staying here, do you have a room for three? "Hello, I''m staying here. If you want to add breakfast and dinner, it''s 80 rares more. Use the well in the backyard for water. If you need hot water, it''s 15 rares for a tub. You''re a brusque old man. I''m telling you exactly what you need to know. "All right, sir. One night, meals included. Seven hundred and forty rares. Okay, that''s it. Yu nodded without seeming to be particularly concerned, took a large silver coin out of my pocket without permission, and paid for it together with the money he had taken out of his own pocket. Oh, by the way, Yuu also paid the tax for the city. In other words, Yuu has almost nothing at the moment. That''s pretty tough. The guest room is at the far end of the stairs on the right. The old man handed the key to Yu in exchange for the money and said only that. But he''s really unfriendly. But it''s better than having him ask unnecessary questions. "All right. Let''s go, both of you. Okay. We followed Yu up the stairs and went upstairs. We walked down a dark corridor and entered the designated room, which was brighter than I expected. There were four beds, a small desk, a wooden box that looked like a closet, and a rather large window on the side facing the street. A rather large window facing the street. It''s pretty nice?¡¡It''s better than some of the wooden inns in Japan, isn''t it? Tomoya nodded his head as he checked the bed sheets and the interior of the room. But a boarding house in Japan? Tomoya, have you ever stayed in a place like that? "Yeah. Yeah. A few times, when I went on a trip. They don''t have proper windows, and the futon you put down is full. ....... In that respect, this place has a better atmosphere. No air conditioning, though. I''ve never even stayed in a capsule hotel. I''ve never even stayed in a capsule hotel." Yu also looked at Tomoya with some surprise. I''ve only ever stayed in inns and hotels, what are they like? I''ve only stayed in inns and hotels.¡¡I''ve only stayed in inns and hotels. It''s cheap and convenient, depending on your purpose. I wouldn''t recommend it for women. ...... Well, I''m more tired than I thought I would be~ Tomoya said, falling into bed and breathing heavily. His tail was wagging and ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. "Yeah, I''m not so sure about a guy touching me. ....... But as a chemist, I understand how you feel, so it''s okay. "Thank you! He looked a little uncomfortable, but gave me permission, so I started touching him. Oh!¡¡It''s even fluffier than I thought it would be. I thought the hair would be a little harder than that. I''m going to give it a quick stroke. "Oooohhhh! As soon as I did, Tomoya jumped up from the bed. What the hell!¡¡What? Don''t shout suddenly, Tomoya! No, it''s because you''re touching me like crazy!¡¡I can''t do it anymore!¡¡Don''t touch me! Ee~~~! Tomoya shook his head, refusing to be touched. I don''t know what''s wrong with me!¡¡I don''t know what it is, but I can''t feel the creepy feeling of someone touching my back. "Yeah, I guess that''s a no-no. He may have been lost in expression, but he thought about it for a moment and made such an analogy. But then again, it''s unlikely that the other beastmen will let you touch them anytime soon, and you''ll never get the chance to touch their ears or tails again. It''s a shame that we''re in a different world ....... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. Let''s take a rest today. You''re both tired, aren''t you?¡¡Especially mentally. Tomoya, who was lying on the bed again, protested, but Yu sighed and patted Tomoya on the head. I understand how you feel, but there''s no way you can afford it. Tomoya, how much money do you have? "Let''s see, ...... one, two, ......970 rare? Yes, confiscated~! Aah! I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''re not the only one. We don''t have the luxury of managing our own money right now. Yes. Since there is nothing good to be done by disobeying Yu in this state, I give him all the coins in my pocket. It''s not like he''s going to run away with it, so it''s better to keep it all together. The whole thing is ......1870 rare. Now you have to get ready to become an adventurer. What do you think? I don''t know the exact cost of living, but at least I know I can''t afford it. We can only stay here for two more days, so we can''t spend the rest of the day in the sun. Well, first of all, let me ask you a question, are you an adventurer by trade?¡¡It''s a classic. "It''s not really a standard, but more of a ''no choice'' thing. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. If you are a woman, you can work as a waiter in a tavern, but the wages are quite low. If you are not lucky enough to have a live-in job, you will barely be able to pay for lodging, and if you want to save money, you will have to sell your body. In addition, there was an apprenticeship system for craftsmen, and those who were not introduced were not hired, and there were no introductions for soldiers, and it was difficult for them to have common sense. That''s why it''s hard to choose between them. Yu shrugs his shoulders and sighs. It''s true that even in Japan, if you don''t have a resume, you can''t even get a part-time job. If you think about it, the adventurer''s guild, where even we can register, might be a viable option. Do you have any other questions?¡¡Yes, Tomoya. Yuu pointed at Tomoya, who had raised his head while lying on the bed. I''m not opposed to adventurers, but I''ve got less than 20,000 Japanese yen in my pocket right now, right?¡¡It''s impossible, isn''t it?¡¡You can''t even buy a change of clothes for three people, can you? In Japan, you can buy underwear at a hundred-yen store and buy clothes at Shi-Mura. It''s not like there are mass-produced products here, and you can''t just buy clothes and be done with it. Yes, it''s very tough. We won''t be working today, but at least we''ll be ready to go tomorrow morning, or we''ll be camping out. I don''t want to do that!¡¡--but what do we need ...... for now, let''s ask Yu, who has common sense, to list them and then we can discuss them. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. These are sundries. The rest is weapons and armor. ...... Can you afford it? ...... It''s tough. If you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, you can contact us at the web site. We will buy a change of underwear for Yuu only, and the rest will be used for Tomoya''s weapons. The rest will be used for Tomoya''s weapon. The armor, as well as mine and Yu''s weapons, will be put on hold. "Even if we reduce it to this level, we might not be able to get a decent weapon. "That can''t be helped. Even in Japan, where machines are available, a kitchen knife costs several thousand yen. Tomoya, a club in case of emergency. Yes. You''ll start out with a ''hinoki-no-bo'', like an adventurer! No, more like a brave man! Actually, if you don''t mind people looking at you, I think an iron rod will be enough. Anyway, let''s go buy one. What a subtle start to our adventuring life. Yu smiled at us as we forced ourselves to get excited. The first stop was a general store. The first place we went was a general store. The first place we went to was a general store. When we asked the quiet old man of the inn for a recommendation, he gave us one easily, even though he was unfriendly, so we didn''t get lost. Yu was also in charge of shopping here. He bargained well and got it for a few percent less than the original price. We were standing behind him, looking at the products. We were not involved in the negotiations. "Hey, we''re useless, aren''t we? We don''t have much to buy, so we''re not even useful as baggage handlers. ...... Don''t worry about it. Think of it as a way to avoid being picked up. That''s how it is in Japan, isn''t it?¡¡Besides, it''s more likely that a beautiful woman will give you a discount if you bargain with her. "That''s, well... But with your current appearance, it might work with women, right? I haven''t improved my negotiating skills, but if you say so, why don''t you try ......? Your appearance is getting better, right? I haven''t been able to see it on my own face. I need a mirror. "Instead of thinking like an idiot, think about making enough money so you don''t have to discount. I''m going to the armory next. And then we have to go to the guild. As we were having this conversation, Yuu came back and said in a dumbfounded manner, and walked off quickly. We quickly followed him, but within a few minutes he had entered a store. It must be a weapon shop, judging from the sword and shield written on the sign. The man who greeted him was also an old man. He glanced at me and didn''t say a word of welcome. I wonder if there are any cute sign girls in this world. Everyone I''ve met so far, except for the gatekeeper, has been an old man. The gatekeeper was a man, too, so in a way, it''s realistic. There aren''t many pretty girl soldiers. I''ve got a little over 1,300 left, but I''m not sure I can handle a sword. ...... Swords and spears are lined up on one wall, while shields, maces and other weapons are placed on the other side. There is no armor on display, but there is a wooden board on which the approximate price is written and posted. Let''s see, the cheapest sword starts at ......4,000? I picked up the cheapest one to try it out. ...... A blunt instrument in the shape of a sword? I''d rather use a steel rod for this, wouldn''t you?¡¡You don''t have to think about the edge. The only other cheap ones are ...... spears, wands and knives. Yu, what do you want?¡¡You can buy a spear. You can buy a spear, just barely. "Hmm, on second thought, we''ll need a knife. For dismantling prey. By the way, you''ve got the [Dismantling] skill, right, Yuu? Are you going to do it?¡¡Are you going to do it? I don''t think I can handle a mammal. I can handle raw fish, so I''ll try my best to handle reptiles. ......? And it looks like you''ll have to pay a guild registration fee. Oh. More money ....... If you ask me, anything is 900 rares for three people, ...... and you''re out of options, right?¡¡I''m not sure what to do. ''Both of you, both of you!¡¡I got something good for you! I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It was a ...... wooden sword?¡¡It''s made from a sturdy piece of wood, shaped somewhat like a sword, with a small piece of anti-slip cloth wrapped around the handle. It''s a little more battle-ready than the wooden swords you see in souvenir shops in Kyoto. But wooden. Will it work? Priced at ......150? That''ll just about cover the cost of the knife. Okay, go for it, Tomoya. We have our magic. I''m sure. I haven''t used magic yet, so it''s wishful thinking. But you can''t shake what you don''t have. We bought only those two items and left the weapon shop quickly. I''m sure it was my paranoia that made me see the old man''s gaze as ''Keh, he''s so shy. I''m sure he didn''t expect anything from a pre-beginner adventurer. Well, we''re going to the Adventurer''s Guild, but before we go, let''s choose a name. My name is Haruka, which is unusual, but I think I can handle it. Naofumi is very Japanese, so let''s avoid it. Also, you don''t need a last name to register. This seems to be another advice from the common sense of another world. We don''t want to be famous. We don''t need to stand out. Well, the less trouble we cause, the better. I''m Nao, right? "Yes, I think that''s fine. We''re used to calling each other that. How about Tomoya? How about Toya?¡¡If you guys mispronounce it, it''ll just be a mishearing.¡¡It''s easier for me to react to similar names. Yeah. Then let''s call each other by our current names from now on. Understood. Well, Naofumi has always called me Nao, and I''m the only one who doesn''t. Well, it''s a relief to know that you don''t have to worry about what to call me, Tomoya. I won''t say it, but... 7-006 Arrived in the city (3) The Adventurer''s Guild was located near the gate in the other direction from the one we came in. From the point of view of the sun - according to Yu, there is one sun in this world, rising in the east and setting in the west - we came from the east, and this gate was in the south. The guild building itself is an ordinary one, about twice the size of the inn where we are staying. In front of it is a sign with words written on it instead of pictures. Haruka led the way without any sign of getting lost, so I followed her without hesitation, but when I asked her about it, she said she had confirmed the location at the general store. As expected, she''s very dependable. When I told him that he had common sense, he scolded me saying that it was a problem before that. Yeah, we''re relying on Haruka a little too much, aren''t we? When I looked next to him, I saw that Toya was also looking at me. They exchanged glances and nodded at each other. "Okay, now leave it to us!¡¡Haruka. That''s right!¡¡We can do this. We can do this. We''re women, we''ll be licked! Wait, wait, wait! We were about to step in front of Haruka, but she pulled our hands and stopped us. I''ll take care of the negotiations for a while.¡¡I''ll take care of the negotiations for a while.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. ...... That means you specialize in manual labor, right, Haruka? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡Maybe ...... I haven''t seen my own face yet. Yeah, I know. You look like you''d be easy to kidnap--on the outside. A good-looking elf with a weak appearance, if not substance. "...... What? In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to always ask for help. No, Haruka is not weak. You''re not weak. You were in Japan, and now you''ve got the skills. "I don''t think she''s masculine, but isn''t that a little bit different from weak? He learned aiki as a self-defense technique. He''s also strong-minded, and I''ve heard a few stories about him helping out a younger colleague who was being picked on in the original world. You can''t deny it!¡¡...... No, no, no, no, no, no. It''s the appearance that matters, right?¡¡It''s a good idea. I''m sorry. If it helps, I''ll do my best. I''m just standing here. That''s how I ended up in the guild, with Haruka in the lead, but what I found inside was a little disconcerting. About two-thirds of the large hall immediately inside the guild was occupied by counters and other office work, making it look like a government office. The rest of the hall was lined with tables that resembled a cafeteria, where people who looked like adventurers were chatting and enjoying meals and drinks in a normal way. Unexpectedly, no adventurers were drinking, and the place did not look chaotic at all. Haruka told me later that if you do something stupid, your rank as an adventurer will be lowered without mercy, and if you are too bad, you will be expelled and blacklisted, so there are few people who would cause trouble in a guild where there are many eyes on them. It''s like drinking heavily in front of your boss and making a fool of yourself. Well, if you want to drink heavily, you should go to a regular bar instead of a guild. Hello. I''d like to sign up for a new account, if that''s okay. Haruka went to one of the counters. It''s not a pretty place, but it''s staffed by a smiling, likable woman. Yes, of course. And the two behind you?¡¡We need 900 Rea for the three of us, is that okay? "Yes, here we go. Haruka presented nine large silver coins and was given three pieces of paper in exchange. Please fill them out and submit them. Do I need to explain? No, I''m fine. There was only one pen, so I waited for Haruka to finish writing and then I started to fill out the forms. However, all I had to write was my name, race, and personal PR. Haruka had written "some magic and a bow", so I followed her example and wrote "some magic and a spear". Toya seems to have chosen ''swordsmanship''. Hmmm, it''s a strange feeling to be able to write other characters as you write Japanese. That''s the power of God. It seems that only a minority of people can write, let alone converse, so the fact that they made it possible for us to write normally may indeed be a great service, as the evil gods say. Yes, indeed. Wait a minute. ...... By the way, are you guys in good health? The lady took out three cards and asked me while she was working. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. "What?¡¡Yes, I don''t think there''s any problem, why? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to think. I know something about this. ....... I don''t know, I''m scared. Do you have any idea what caused it? I''m not sure. This is a great way to get the most out of your time and money. "That''s not what happened at all. One of them was lying dead on a table before I knew it, and one of them came into the guild and collapsed when I thought he was looking around. Neither of them had any external injuries, and there was a lot of fuss about poisoning or plague, but there''s no sign of that either. Sighing, I handed her the card I had made. It''s a metal plate about the thickness of a cash card, with our names engraved on it. The rest of the card is just some decoration and the words "Issued by the Raffan Adventurer''s Guild" written on it, but it looks like an ordinary metal plate. From the way it''s written, is Rafan the name of this city? Yes, your registration is now complete. It seems that similar incidents are happening all over the city, so please be careful, okay? Thank you very much. But what should I be careful of? That''s for sure. ...... Well, your health? Yes, thank you. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. I''m sure you''re right. Do you accept herbs in this town? "Yes, of course. Here, the eastern and southern forests are the places to collect them. It''s a bit far, but I recommend the eastern forest for beginners. There aren''t many demons here, so if you have two elves, you might not have to worry. When she said the eastern forest, she was pointing in the direction of the gate we had come in through. It is true that there was a forest, but it was very far away, right? No, thank you for the advice. No, thank you for the advice. I''m going to be cautious at first, so this information is very helpful. "Is that so?¡¡I''m glad to hear it. Good luck to you. Okay. "Thank you very much. Toya and I both bowed our heads to the smiling sister and thanked her, and we left the guild. She was not particularly beautiful, but she was the first woman I had talked to since I came to this world. --No, it''s not like you can meet beautiful girls all the time in another world. It''s not a harem novel, you know. Now, before we go back to the inn, I''ll explain a little about the guild. I''ll explain a little about the guild before we go back to the inn, but it''s not so different from what you think, so I''ll keep it simple. Haruka stopped at the end of the road, a short distance from the guild, and took out the card she had just been given and showed it to us. "This is the guild card. It''s some kind of alloy, strong, but it doesn''t have any special functions. It''s just an identification card. It has your name and the name of the guild in the city that issued it. There''s nothing on the back at the moment, but when you get a request from the guild and your trust level rises, you can get a stamp .......¡¡The more stamps you have, the more privileges you get and the more requests you can accept. Hmm. Just as I see it. I didn''t know what the back side was for until you told me. Isn''t there any high-tech features, like not being able to use it on others, or knowing your status? No. No. You can''t put something like that on a 3,000 yen card. Anyone can register. Haruka simply denies Toya''s question. Isn''t there a standard function for a novel? Well, even if such a function were possible, it would be very costly, wouldn''t it? "The maximum number of imprints is 10, and that number is your rank. That means we''re rank zero. That means we''re rank zero. The Mark can''t be erased, so if we get in trouble, we''ll get a "B" and lose our rank. You can move up again, but you''ll always have the mark, so you''ll still have the same rank, but your credibility will suffer. I guess that means I have a criminal record. Convictions that can''t be erased are scary. I have to be careful. In a way, it''s well thought out. Just because you don''t need a referral doesn''t mean you can register, but troublemakers are excluded. It''s not easy to lose your rank, though, since you''ll be warned several times beforehand if you''re not too bad. Also, ......, do you have any questions? It''s a relatively conventional adventurer, right? Not much in the way of game conveniences. You asked about herbs, what are they?¡¡Is that a standard request for herb collection? Yes. You can buy herbs in most towns if you take them. You don''t need to be an adventurer to collect them, but they are not readily available in the city. No one would pay for that, would they? Yeah, of course not. If it''s something that even a child can do, the money you''ll get will probably only be a child''s pocket money. "What about the average?¡¡Can you live on it? Well, let''s hope that ...... Toya''s [Appraisal] and Nao''s [Eagle''s Eye] can help. I think we can save some money with my dismantling and finding prey. Haruka says this with a bit of worry. I''m sure you''ll have to work very hard to make ends meet. There is not much income to be made from a job that anyone can do, even in this world. It''s just a matter of how many hours you work. We want to make enough money so that Haruka won''t hesitate to buy a change of clothes. We don''t want to be a worn-out sparrow either. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. "Toya may be able to make money, but it''s not for me and Nao. It''s all about physical strength. It''s a physical job. It''s not a job for elves by any stretch of the imagination. There''s a way for us to collect herbs and have Toya do that, but you don''t want to do that, do you?¡¡And I think it''s better for us to be together, level-wise. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. Is that just a skill? In the data that can be seen in the status, the level is listed for some skills, but there was no so-called character level. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. There''s no way to check. In other words, it is thanks to the evil gods that we are able to acquire skills and check our status. Hmmm?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. But there is a common understanding that you can get stronger by training and killing demons. Yeah, that''s a given. In the original world, you could get stronger by training. The only way to find out is to verify if the upward curve is steeper than we think. By the way, the woman who just mentioned demons also said they were demons, what are the demons in this world like? "First of all, a demon is a creature with a magic stone in its body. Basically, they live only by instinct and have no intelligence, so it is recommended to get rid of them. You can get a reward for defeating them, but you need to bring proof of defeat. Also, it doesn''t disappear when you kill it, so you''ll have to dismantle it to get the magic stones and materials. "Ugh. I have no tolerance for gore. Me too. ...... I''ve only ever handled fish. But you have to do it, right?¡¡I''ll do it for a while, so you two can get used to it! I guess you''re right. Since we are childhood friends and grew up in almost the same environment, I would be more surprised if you told me that you have hunting experience and are good at dismantling prey. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the following web site: ....... Hi ...... I''ll do my best. ...... In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. 8-007 Arrived in the city (4) After returning to the inn from the Adventurer''s Guild, we were resting in our respective beds. We were able to get a rough idea of what we would be doing tomorrow. It''s not an optimistic situation, but it''s a step forward just to know that if we work diligently every day, we can make a living without camping out. Of course, there''s always the possibility that I might get sick and not be able to work, so we''ll have to increase our income little by little. But is it okay for Haruka to stay in the same room with us? Yeah, what?¡¡Toya, are you going to attack me? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I can''t believe it! But she''s joking because her cheeks are loose. Of course, Toya understands this, so she smiles and says something back. No, it''s not. Even childhood friends have to be a little careful, right? "Well, that can''t be helped, since we don''t have any money. You can''t help it, you don''t have any money. Let''s be patient and be careful with each other. ...... Ah~ but ...... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡What is it?¡¡I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. I''ve been under a lot of stress since I arrived in the other world. It would be better for the future if we could agree on what we want to say, even if it''s a little difficult to say, rather than getting frustrated and exploding. "Well, ......, try to keep your own power generation to a minimum, okay? "Self-powered ......?¡¡Oh, no!¡¡What? That was harder to talk about than I thought! No, but you guys, you know, you accumulate, right?¡¡I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s hard to be understood like that! No matter how much we''ve known each other since childhood, there''s no way we can ask each other to leave the room for a moment to do something. Toya and I looked at each other awkwardly and cleared our throats. If you notice something, it would be nice if you could pretend not to notice it. Boys can be quite sensitive too. "Yes, of course!¡¡Yes, I''ll do it naturally, naturally! I''ll be natural, I''ll be natural!" Haruka said in a bit of a panic, but no, it''s probably impossible. It''s Haruka. But one thing!¡¡But one thing, don''t go to those stores!¡¡It''s very dangerous! "...... Oh, STDs are dangerous. Oh, STDs are dangerous. There have been many in the past. Syphilis, for example. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. You may not have the same disease, but you should be aware of the risk of some STD. You can''t be sure that you won''t get infected even if you have the "stubbornness". Especially Toya!¡¡You can''t have a cute girl with animal ears! I''m not going!¡¡I want to be loved!¡¡I want a pretty wife!¡¡It''s not a direct connection to the lower half of my body! "Really?¡¡That''s fine. --Oh, by the way, beastmen don''t go into heat, so don''t worry. Oh, okay. ...... I''m not sure what to do. Hmmm. Hmm. Talking about such things between heteros*xuals is awkward. Let''s change the subject. What did you think of the story I just heard at the guild? I didn''t bring it up on the way home because I was worried about people''s ears, but I was quite curious about it. It was a bit of a forced change of subject, but I guess they didn''t want to go any further. They immediately came to the conversation. "You''re talking about the case where people died, right?¡¡Hmmm, the poisoning case?¡¡No, you said there was no trace of it. Otherworldly magic, maybe? Twisting his head, Toya says a ton of nonsense while keeping a serious face. Did you even listen to our explanation at the beginning? No, it''s your classmate. Isn''t it true that you used the skill robbery and ran out of time? I''m glad I didn''t take ....... If I had 200 points, I probably would have taken it. I clapped my hands and said such a foolish thing. You didn''t remember it clearly, did you? That''s a pretty important point.¡¡You didn''t see the description of that dangerous skill yourself? If you''re talking about the guild''s sister, what we know now is that four or five people are dead? Yeah. ....... Hey, how many people do you think are taking it? I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''m not sure if you have. The required points are 80, and our initial points are 120, 150, 200. If the initial points were based on athletic ability or academic achievement, we would have been above average, if I do say so myself. Even taking that into account, we all probably had at least 80 points. So, everyone can get it if they want to. I''m not sure, but I''m sure half of them would have taken it if they wanted to.¡¡It sounds like a cheat, and the boys would love it. Hmm. Toya''s guess is half. But I''m thinking a little less. You know that thing called "skill copy"?¡¡If you have a few points to spare, why don''t you take that?¡¡People who don''t want to stand out or get in trouble. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, it''s possible that you''ll be able to find it on the internet. The rest is just how thoughtful they were . I know that about a quarter of them thought of "the whole class transferring to another world" when the evil god said that. That is to say, they must have read some of those novels and thought of cheats by stealing skills and doubling experience at the same time. The words of the evil gods, the skills of the [help], and other necessary points make it seem suspicious or not: ....... Also, I don''t know how someone without such knowledge would have made the character. And it''s not necessarily because they don''t know that they''re going to take [help]. In the short term, the skill robbery is advantageous, and in the long term, the experience doubling is advantageous.¡¡In reality, though, they''re all mines. The other additional skills may not kill you instantly like the skill robbery, but they''re still bad, right? The hero/heroine quality is really just a troublemaker. If you don''t have the ability to get through it, you''re just unlucky. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡It sounds like a pain in the ass. There are a few mine skills that affect not only the person who has them, but also the people around them. To put it bluntly, I don''t want to get close to them. And it seems that Haruka was the same way. I don''t mean to be unkind, but you should try to stay away from your classmates, not just those with [Charm] or [Hero/Heroine Qualities]. No matter how you look at it, you can only expect to get into trouble. It''s a good thing?¡¡Haruka''s friends might be there. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Besides, I''d like to think that none of my friends take [fascination] ...... . I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event that you''ve got any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. I''m sure they''re taking men, too. "It seems like they''re taking men too, like a harem. The description of [fascination] makes it sound like yandere, stalker mass production. I have a little desire to be popular, but I don''t want to use [Charm] even if it''s free. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll do fine. So it''s not a crime if no one finds out. If there''s no one to sue, there won''t even be an investigation. In the game, you could enjoy the mined jobs and skills to a certain extent, but in real life, ...... "In a way, my classmates are literally mines. In a way, your classmates are literally mines, because you don''t know what their skills are, you don''t know if they have mines, and if they don''t, you get caught in an explosion. Toya, you''re good at that, aren''t you?¡¡It''s inappropriate. But we agree, don''t we?¡¡The qualities of a hero are exactly the same as "Stay away!¡¡Danger! And... I don''t care if you''re from my hometown, you can''t risk your life for a mere classmate. I hope you''ll be happy far away from here. I know that sounds harsh, but I agree with you. Toya and I nodded deeply. We''re not saintly enough to help people selflessly. "In fact, how long do you think Haruka will survive? "I don''t know. ......1 About half in a month?¡¡Maybe even less, depending on where we move. Not all of them came near this town. In addition to the skills listed above, there are also mine skills and mine races, so if you choose those easily, you can ...... Hmmm. I''m a classmate, so I have a fair number of friends, but a lot of them will probably die. I don''t really feel it though. If they died in front of me, I might be upset. ....... I''m not sure if I''d be too upset if they died right in front of me, but I''m sure I''d be upset if they died right in front of me." "Well, the careful people who took [help] and the serious people who didn''t think about cheating will survive, so there will be opportunities to interact with them eventually. You mean you won''t go out of your way to find them and protect them? We''re not in a position to talk about protection from above, are we? That''s true. You''re right, we''re in no position to talk about protection. The only decent weapon is a wooden sword ......, or more like a club. You can''t even get a private room in a hotel. It''s a good idea to take a look at your own personal life and the way you live it. And then there''s ...... the question, are there any slaves or anything? "That''s a bit of a stretch. It''s basically banned in most of these countries. Basically, ......? I don''t know what''s wrong with the way you said that. I frowned, and Haruka waved her hand in denial. Oh, there''s no such thing as slave hunting, you know.¡¡Kidnapping people is a crime. If you can find them. But besides those criminals, there may be other situations that are substantially similar. There are many forms of slavery, even in Earth''s history. There are many forms of "slaves" in the history of the earth, including those who are just hired hands, and those who are not treated as human beings. "Well, even in Japan, if you go back 100 years, there were peasant farmers, and there were also people who were sold to pedants from farming villages. "Well, in Japan, if you go back 100 years, there were small farmers, and people were sold to pedants from rural areas. "Oh, I see. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. If you''re going to say that everything together is an absolute no-no, then I guess it''s time for a minimum level of social security and poverty alleviation. Of course, I think that kidnapping people and turning them into slaves is absolutely unacceptable, but there is certainly a history of slavery in terms of social security. You can starve to death, become a criminal, or become a slave. That''s what it means to not have a social security system. I see. What are the chances of that happening to us? As long as we don''t go into debt or get involved in crime. Then we''re safe!¡¡We''re so well-behaved! As long as we don''t get cheated. You have no common sense, so be careful for a while. You don''t even know if it''s a crime.¡¡Especially Toya! What?¡¡I''m careful, okay? You look unhappy, Toya, but I don''t know what you''re talking about. That look of disbelief is already unreliable. He''s always been a bit out of control, but now that he''s in this world, he''s getting carried away. I haven''t missed the fact that I''ve been following the beastmen with my eyes every time they pass by while I''m walking in town. "You seem to be going out of control with your beast ears. "Ugh. I can''t deny that. ...... It seems that Haruka also agreed with me. And it seems that Toya herself was aware of this point. ....... I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. 9-008 Arrived in the city (5) "Well, why don''t we go out for dinner soon? When Haruka suggested this, Toya and I looked at each other with a reluctant look on our faces. When we got back to the inn, the three of us were talking about various things, and we could hear a lot of noise coming from downstairs. The old man of the inn told us that we could come and eat whenever the dining room was open, which would normally be a fun time to eat, but ....... Ugh, is it that black bread again? Yes, that''s the reason for the look on our faces. I''m getting pretty hungry, and I think I can put up with a little less than delicious, but that thing is ....... It''s 80 rare for two meals, so it''s possible. Seriously? I''m not much of a picky eater, but I''m not a fan of that bread either. Well, if you''re lucky, you might get some white bread or mashed potatoes or something. Potatoes? "Potatoes?" "Potatoes are also eaten as a staple food. I don''t think it''s that good. I don''t care if it''s not that good, as long as it''s easy to eat. Sour bread is a little tougher. ...... Hey, Haruka, can you make me some? It''s not the same as the original world, but there''s hope that Haruka might be able to make you a meal you can eat. At least, she has the same taste as us. In that case, we should earn enough money to rent a room with a kitchen. "Surely. You can''t do that living in an inn. In a way, it gives me more motivation to do my job! Well, motivation is a very subtle thing. While we were talking, we went downstairs and sat down at a table. Without saying a word, the quiet old man in question brought a meal for three people and laid it out on the table. Extra food and drinks are extra. That''s all he said, and he dug his heels in. That''s all he said. And there is no sign of the girl. A large plate of soup and a drink were placed in front of each of us. The soup was a clear, light brown color and contained several kinds of vegetables. The main course was served on a platter with several lettuce-like leaves and mashed potatoes on top of them. In addition, there were two pieces of meat the size of the palm of your hand, more than an inch thick, and dripping with juices. This ...... looks good? If it''s just for looks, it''s as good as anything you''ll find at a steak restaurant. The only problem is that you can''t tell what kind of meat it is. ....... "Yummy!¡¡It''s so good! "Oh!¡¡He''s already eaten! While I was examining the food, Toya was already biting into the meat. No, you should eat it too!¡¡It''s so good!¡¡I''ve never tasted meat this good before! I''ve never tasted meat this good before!" Toya said excitedly as he stuck his fork into the meat and bit into it. To be honest, it''s not the best way to behave, but since it comes with only one fork, it can''t be helped to some extent. Haruka and I looked at each other and bit into the meat with our forks as well. As soon as we do, the meat juices overflow. The meat is not so soft that it can be cut easily, but it is not so tough that it is difficult to bite through. It doesn''t have the rich fat and flavor of Wagyu beef, but it tastes like a lean loin steak. No matter how poor the breakfast is, if it tastes like this for 80 rare, it is very cheap. If there was one in my neighborhood, I would go there at least once a week, maybe two or three times a week. "Hmm, what kind of meat is this? The meat itself isn''t bad, but it''s quite tender, as if it''s been prepared properly. Compared to Toya, who was eating it as if she was stuffing it into her mouth, Haruka was savoring it as if she was calmly examining it. Seeing this, I calm down and try to taste it too. "Well, it is. Is it seasoned with salt and herbs?¡¡I didn''t use any pepper. But it''s still pretty good. Then I scoop up some mashed potatoes and put them in my mouth. Yeah. ...... light taste. It''s a little moist, but refreshing. You can''t really taste the potato itself like a potato. However, it is easy to eat because it has no lye or peculiarity. It goes well with the thickly seasoned meat. The soup is not as good as consomm¨¦, but it is much better than the thin salt water soup I had for lunch. It''s good, but it''s not as good as ....... If you think about it, the mashed potatoes are no better than regular bread, and the soup is better than powdered consomm¨¦ soup. The meat itself is not bad, but the seasoning is simple, so the family restaurant is superior in terms of the taste of the sauce. I take back what I said before. It tasted good to me because my expectations had been lowered to the lowest level, but I wouldn''t go there once a week if it wasn''t for the one-coin price. The portions are more than enough, though. But it''s probably the right place, in this world. To be honest, I didn''t like the guy who sold me the bad food at lunch, but good job for not introducing me to another inn. It was the gatekeeper who introduced us first, though. You can forgive the fact that he was subtly flirting with Haruka, but you can forgive him for this meal. I can eat like a normal person! But thanks to that meal, I can really feel how good this meal is. "Is that a good thing?¡¡I mean, what does a typical meal taste like? It''s not that [common sense in other worlds] can''t help you understand individual tastes, but based on the knowledge that black bread is common and salt is the basic seasoning, the taste of that food cart might be more common. ...... "Ugh. I think I''ll make meat my staple food now. You''re a beastman, you can do it, right? I don''t know. I don''t know if it''s because I''m a beastman or because my lunch is too bad.¡¡Or is it a reaction to the bad lunch? But isn''t it true that carnivores are healthy only on meat because they eat herbivores'' organs as well?¡¡It''s different from cooked meat. It''s not the same as cooked meat. "Maybe if you eat raw meat and drink the blood?¡¡Do you want to? "Yeah, breast milk is blood without hemoglobin, right? Is it nutritious to drink the blood?¡¡I thought I heard somewhere about a tribe that lived on milk. No, that is indeed ....... When I heard about blood in raw meat, Toya grimaced and shook her head. I don''t care if it''s rare meat, I don''t want to drink blood unless I''m in an extreme situation. In the first place, considering parasites, it seems dangerous to eat food without cooking it thoroughly. Of course, raw eggs and sashimi would be absolutely wrong. "Oh yeah, speaking of drinks, what do you think this is? In an attempt to divert the conversation, Toya pointed to the drink that came with the meal. It was a brownish liquid in a wooden cup. I smelled it, and it smelled a little sour. It''s an ale. "Oh, this is the famous... It''s a fantasy classic. Toya would have been happy to drink it, but he was cautious because of the black bread, so he didn''t sip it, but held it close to his nose to smell it. "Alcohol, right? "Yes, but it''s probably lower in alcohol than beer.¡¡A glass or so won''t get you drunk. ...... You guys aren''t extremely weak at drinking, are you? It''s ...... what''s up with that?¡¡You look different, don''t you? Yeah, I guess so. Your body is changing, too. I''m not sure what to do with it. The question is, what about my body? ....... "Well, let''s drink with caution. Okay. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. Toya didn''t notice us, and sipped from the cup fearfully. Then he makes a very subtle face. ...... Well, what can I say? It''s like a bad quality beer-like drink. ...... Oh!¡¡You guys don''t drink! "Oh, so it''s not undrinkable. "Thank you, Toya. Thanks to Toya''s poisonous taste, I''m going to drink it too. ...... Hmmm, this doesn''t feel like alcohol. It''s not really a drink. It''s warm, a little sour, and not very tasty. Water would be better. It seems that Haruka felt the same way, and frowned. ...... If I''m going to pay for this, I''d rather have well water. "Is the water safe to drink? "I think well water is safe to drink. We are also in this world''s body, and we all have [robustness]. That''s right, you''re right. I''m really glad I have it. As an ex-Japanese, it''s too difficult for me to live in a place where I can''t even drink water without worry. I''m going to get some water. I''m going to get some water." "Oh, please get some for us. Fortunately, we were not charged extra for water. Fortunately, we were not charged extra for water. Although it is not as easy as in Japan, it is somewhat easier to get safe water than in Europe. But I didn''t expect the ale to be so bad. "But I never thought ale would be this bad... They''re really ruining my fantasy dreams with this black bread. Drinking this stuff is like a punishment. No, wait. "No, no, no, wait. I''m not so sure about that either.¡¡I''m sure it tastes better in the original world.¡¡I mean, do you even like wine? Haruka dismissed our hopes with a shrug. It''s true, I didn''t think the expensive red wine tasted very good when I was given it to drink. And it seems that Toya felt the same way, so he stumbled over his words. No, it was just a little bitter. You don''t have to drink alcohol if you don''t want to. Do you think it''s safe to get drunk and lose consciousness in the first place? You''re right. It''s different from Japan where there is no danger even if you are drunk and sleeping on the street. At least until you get used to this world and feel safe, you are not allowed to drink. Understood? "Hi. That''s what happened. 10-009 First job (1) The next morning, we woke up at sunrise and had breakfast. We didn''t have a clock, so we couldn''t tell the exact time, but in the original world, we would probably still be sleeping. However, I went to bed early last night, so I just woke up earlier. I went to bed early after dinner, because I was tired from my first day in this world, and I couldn''t stay up late without a light, even though I can see better at night now. Of course, we had to pay for candles to keep the lights on. It was a luxury item for us. There was a discussion about using magic, but we thought it might be dangerous to try it indoors, so we didn''t actually use it. By the way, I thought I woke up early, but when I woke up, Haruka had already washed her face and cleaned herself up. Toya, on the other hand, was sleeping soundly even after I returned from the well. I immediately woke him up by ruffling his ears. In a way, it was a good thing. Toya''s ears weren''t bad to the touch. Yeah. What my father, who was consistently unsociable even in the morning, served me for breakfast was stewed meat with soup, and bread. Shiro bread with a lot of rye, the kind sold in Japan. The bread was not very puffy and a little hard, but it was freshly baked and tasted good enough. If it is a little hard, it can be eaten by soaking it in soup, so I am very grateful that it does not have a strange sour taste. Toya also muttered, "I can live in this world with this ......," so he may have been quite overwhelmed by that bread. I agree with him, though, because it was indeed difficult for me to keep eating it for a long time. Moreover, the bread was free for refills. It''s a rather heavy bread, though, so a few pieces would be enough. Toya ate only three or four pieces, so he probably felt the same way. "Oh, you two. We may not have lunch today. We have no money. I take it back. Toya and I looked at each other and stuffed more bread into our stomachs, following Haruka''s example of silently eating bread. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. Now that we had eaten our fill, whether it was a satisfying breakfast ...... or not, we came to the east gate that we used when we first came to this city. It was early in the morning, so there were not many people there. The soldier from yesterday - I''ve already forgotten his name, but he doesn''t seem to be there either. There didn''t seem to be any special checks when leaving the city, so I walked past the soldier standing there in a daze, and proceeded along the street stretching eastward. After walking for a while, I looked to the south and saw a forest ahead of me. Perhaps that''s the forest to the south that the guild sister was talking about yesterday. Compared to the forest to the east, where you might have to walk for several hours, it looks closer. Nao, we''re going to the east forest today, right? "Yeah, I know. Safety first. Haruka, who may have seen where I was looking, reminded me of that, but of course I knew that. I''m not reckless enough to run into a dangerous forest with just a club that Toya has. "Should we continue on the road to the eastern forest? Yes. It''s along the road. It''s a bit far, about two hours on foot, but it''s along the road so it''s relatively safe. We walked for about an hour yesterday, so we''re about an hour further along the road from where we were dropped into this world. That must be the forest we saw out of the corner of our eye. I wonder if the evil gods were warm-hearted enough to drop us on the east side, which seems to be relatively safe. "Four hours round trip plus gathering time ......, that''s almost a full day''s work. How much money can we make? If all goes well, we''ll be home by mid-afternoon. ...... That''s about a day''s pay for a normal person, so-called commoner, plus hazard pay. If you''re good at finding them, or if you''re in a dangerous place, you can make a lot of money, but you''re not going to make a lot of money collecting ordinary herbs. "Well, that''s true. If that were possible, everyone would be an adventurer. That''s what I meant. Of course, there''s no such thing as an easy job. Haruka chuckles as she shrugs her shoulders. In a way, since anyone can collect it, it is natural that the purchase price will be around that level. If it''s too cheap, no one will go out and collect it, and if it''s too expensive, more people will collect it and the price will go down. Inevitably, the price will settle at the level of an ordinary person''s hourly wage plus a technical fee, which seems to be the same even in other worlds. That is the economic principle. "It''s like that in the original world, too, if you don''t have any qualifications or skills, so I guess it''s the same in different worlds. "Fortunately, we have been given those skills, so let''s train hard and enjoy earning money later on. "Oh, I agree. I don''t want to be too extravagant, but I''d like to be able to eat good food every day! "Yes. Well, at least enough to maintain the current inn. ...... I''d rather not eat at that stall. Agreed. I want to live a life where I don''t have to eat black bread. I''d also like to live a life where I don''t have to hesitate to use hot water. Yesterday I just wiped myself with well water instead of using hot water to save money. It''s not hard in the current climate, but in the cold season, I want hot water at least. I don''t have the luxury of a bath or shower. ...... No, I still want it in the long run. I''m Japanese. I guess I need to earn enough money to buy a house. By the way, are we going to the forest? No. ...... Well, now that the city gates are out of sight, we might as well. Let''s take a look at your abilities for a moment. Haruka looked back once to make sure he was okay, then moved away from the street and toward the meadow. "Whoa!¡¡You''re going to show me your magic?¡¡I''ve been wanting to get one too, really. I gave up for lack of points, but ...... "Is that so?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure what to make of it. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. Buying a forge is also out of the question, of course. If you''re a successful adventurer and have a lot of money saved up, that is. "No, no, it''s pretty hard for a beastman to get magic.¡¡I''ve tried it, but I couldn''t raise the level of magic without getting the magic trait, and learning magic after getting the trait required dozens of points. The [blacksmithing] skill is ...... romantic! I''m supposed to respect Toya for choosing romance in a ...... life and death situation? No, you''re just an idiot! I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not going to eat romance!¡¡You can''t eat romance! You can''t eat romance!¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... Is that so?¡¡If that''s the case, I was a little out of line. Sorry. You''ve thought about it. If you listen carefully, it seems that for a beastman, you need at least 30 points to make one magic level 1. Considering that elves only need 10 points, that''s pretty heavy. With the remaining 10 points, Toya chose [Kurosmithing] as a skill that she thought would be useful. It''s true that in the game, durability is reduced and the item breaks, so it''s not a bad choice. But isn''t it pointless in real life?¡¡You can''t repair something without a furnace, right?¡¡At best, we can re-sharpen it. I thought about it, but Haruka dismissed it out of hand. You''re right. We don''t have any weapons to sharpen, and we don''t have any grinding stones!¡¡You''ll have to wait and see! The only weapon we have is the club. I know. --No, no. A wooden sword. A wooden sword. It has the shape of a sword. It has to be a sword, apparently. It has to be a sword. Well, I''m sure the knife will come in handy in the dismantling, so I''ll leave the sharpening to you. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m a bit of a jerk or because I''m a bit of a jerk. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. Okay. You won''t know exactly what you''re doing, but you''ll get a feel for it. At Haruka''s suggestion, the three of us tried the short dash, vertical jump, repetitive jump, long jump, and stone throw. As a result, it became clear that Toya was clearly more capable. ....... "What do you think? "Oh!¡¡This body is awesome!¡¡It''s exactly what I thought a beast would be! He''s jumping up and down with glee. His lightness is clearly at a level that would have been impossible in Japan, since he is above my chest height just by jumping lightly. Although it is inferior to that, Haruka and I can also jump up to our waists, so it is certain that our physical performance is higher than that of the original world. We are also much more powerful than our original bodies, aren''t we? I think we''re thinner in physique. "Yes, we are. I''m obviously a better student too. I''m an elf, so my race traits are probably a little different, and I don''t have any skills related to physical abilities, so does that mean the evil god enhanced my abilities? "Maybe so.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''re going to want to make sure that you''re getting the most out of your business. It is possible that the average human in this world is much higher than in the original world, but ...... "Well, that''s good, isn''t it?¡¡It''s not like we''ve become frail! Yeah, well, you know... There''s nothing I can do about it. Now let''s try some magic. Whoa!¡¡I''ve been waiting for you! Hey, you go over there and pretend you''re not there. You can watch, but make sure you stay far enough away. "What? I don''t know, but I think it''s really dangerous. You don''t want to get burnt to a crisp, do you?¡¡You don''t know if you can control it. Nao, let''s get far enough away from each other that we can practice heading in different directions. You''re right. It''s a completely new technology. We have to be careful. Toya, you''re going to get bored of watching this, so just be patient. All right. I don''t want to die, either. Well, I''m going to go over there. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. The spells I''ve taken are space-time magic and fire magic. In the event that you have any questions regarding where by and how to use it, please do not hesitate to contact us. You can check the status of these spells, so you don''t have to worry about not knowing what kind of magic you have. There are two spells per level?¡¡That doesn''t sound like much, but ....... Oh, but it''s not like the game where "Fire Arrow" costs a certain amount of MP and does a certain amount of damage, so does it have any applicability? Let''s try it out for now. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. "Ignite. With that sound, my fingertips twitched. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I couldn''t see any flames. You can''t see the flames. "Too little magic?¡¡Gather a little more - Ignite! I can''t believe it! "Whoa, whoa, whoa!¡¡I''m not sure what to do. This time, more flames than expected appeared for a moment, and he turned his face away in panic and fell back. It''s harder than you think. It''s not as easy as you might think. ...... Make it clearer. ...... It''s like running a thin stream of water through your fingertips. "Ignite. Bob-bo-bo ...... "Oh, that''s good!¡¡Isn''t this the kind of magic that lives up to the name Ignite? It''s like having a candle at your fingertips.¡¡The flame is flickering and wavering. Hmm, I''d like to do something a little more creative. Couldn''t it be more like a turbo type lighter or a gas burner? The flame seems to be enough to light dead leaves, but it seems to be a little weak to light charcoal or wood. Once the fire is extinguished, you can use your fingertips to create a jet of magic power. ...... Ignite! "Ignite! "Oh!¡¡Exactly! It''s like a gas burner, with a blue flame shooting out of your fingertip about 10 centimeters. You can even use charcoal with this ......... stop! I felt as if something was diminishing inside of me, and hurriedly put out the fire. It''s dangerous. That''s magic power, right?¡¡In other words, it is consumed in proportion to the power of ....... It''s natural, of course. Although I can''t grasp it numerically, the way it diminished was a bit dangerous. If I had used it for a minute, I would have lost all my magic power. "No? I might be able to use it when I grow up, but for the time being, I''ll have to earnestly start a fire from a small spark. Of course, there''s no such thing as an igniter in this world. It would be better to collect some dry leaves, twigs and bark and keep them with you. It''s not always convenient to have a fire when you need one. "Well, next, next. Let''s try the Fire Arrow. The target should be the ground around there. I draw a circle on the ground about ten paces away, and return to my original position. What will it look like this time? ...... It''s an arrow, so it''s like you''re accumulating it and spitting it out all at once. ....... Fire Arrow! Stick your palm out in front of you and chant it as if you were sending magic power out of it. Boom! At that moment, a flaming arrow shot out from my palm and landed right next to the target circle. Oh!¡¡I''ve succeeded in one shot this time!¡¡The target position is generally correct, and with a few practice shots, I think I can use it. ...... I''ll try a few more shots, this time with more or less magic power. As a result, if the distance is about ten paces, it will be able to focus on a range of about 20 centimeters, and the power can also be changed slightly. Hmm. And then there''s space-time magic, but the magic power is more subtle. I only have a sense of it, but considering the amount I''ve used so far and how tired I am, I''m going to run out of magic power if I keep practicing spacetime magic. You can''t use up all of your magic when you''re on your way to collect it. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to use all of it.¡¡I think the effects are slightly confusing. ...... As the name implies, it is a spell that makes the target of the spell heavier or lighter. First of all, pick up a stone under your feet and cast "Heavy Weight" with less magic power. ...... Does it get a little heavier? You can see the change because you''re holding it. It''s not going to last very long, and it''s not going to be very useful. ......? I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡If you drop a stone from above and apply "Heavy Weight" right before it, it might be effective. Next, I''ll try "Light Weight", but it''s also a bit subtle. It might be useful for removing rocks from the way, but it will require a lot of magic power. That''s it for now. 11-010 First job (2) Are you done? Oh, my God!¡¡You''re here? It''s a good thing it''s Haruka, but if it were an enemy, we''d be in trouble. It''s a good thing it''s Haruka, but if it were an enemy, it would be bad, right? I wonder if I''ll be able to detect her presence when I get used to fighting? By the way, Toya, who said she wanted to see magic, is in the back of the room waving a wooden sword with all her heart. He''s also doing some kind of sword dance, but I wonder if that''s an effect of his skill.¡¡Her sharp movements do not look like an amateur at first glance. "How was it?¡¡Does it work? "Well, Ignite is a good substitute for flint. I think the Fire Arrow can be used to attack ....... There is the problem of being able to hit a moving enemy, though. I''m not sure about space-time magic at the moment.¡¡If you have enough magic power, you can extend the duration and use it to bring back a lot of stuff. What about Haruka? "Light magic is pretty good. There''s healing and stuff. But it can''t heal serious injuries yet, so be careful with that. Wind and water are level 1, so they might not be useful in battle. You can make water, though, so they''ll come in handy. So how do you attack? No. The best it can do now is to make noise to get your attention or to surprise you by spraying water on you. If we don''t get her a bow soon, she''ll be useless. "No, I''m grateful enough to be able to heal you. No, I''m grateful enough to be able to heal you, but Haruka has been a great help to me before the battle. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. --although as a man, he''s a bit pathetic. Also, to be honest, I''m most afraid of getting hurt. In this world, if you can''t work, you''ll be homeless. The value of Haruka''s ability to heal is high enough on its own. I think the power of magic depends on the amount of magic power used, but isn''t that the case with healing? It''s the same. But ......, I have to tell Toya about this. Toya!¡¡Stop pretending and come here! Oh, did you finish your magic test?¡¡How did it go? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to have to. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ve never even tried kendo in your original world. If it''s because of the [swordsmanship] or [talent for swordsmanship], the influence of the skill seems to be quite high. At least I can use simple attack magic. Toya looks quite different, doesn''t she? Yeah. I don''t know, his body just moves by itself. I''ve gained a lot of confidence in my movements, if not my attitude. It''s a good thing that I have level 3 sword talent and swordsmanship. I''m not sure how much level 3 means in this world. I don''t know what level 3 is in this world, but at least I''m not a beginner. I''d like to see you work hard as a wall. As for me, I''ll be specializing in healing for now. I''m going to focus on healing. The power of magic increases with the use of more magic power, but when it comes to healing, the range of wounds that can be healed increases, but the depth of wounds that can be healed does not change, so be careful. "...... You mean? I''m not sure what you mean by that. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to buy a lot of things at the same time. However, if he has a deep puncture wound and a large blood vessel is cut, even if he uses a lot of magic, the Light Cure will not heal him. You need to use a higher level of healing, the Cure. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s a good idea to be cautious and make small cuts rather than aiming for massive damage. You have to be especially careful with missing parts.¡¡There are very few people who can heal them, so it''s practically impossible. If you have access to magic, it''s worse to lose a finger than to get stabbed in the torso. "Oh. I''ll be careful. Is a non-life-threatening finger usually more important than a fatal injury? On the other hand, if the situation is such that Haruka can''t heal it, then it''s worse to get stabbed. ....... I don''t know how calmly I can think when the time comes, but I have to be careful too. And while I''m at it, let me give you a little common sense about magic. "Oh, now?¡¡Isn''t that something you should have done before you started practicing? I can use it just fine now, can''t I? Of course, there''s a reason why I didn''t do it first.¡¡Of course, there''s a reason why I didn''t do it first, which I''ll explain later, but I told you that in this world, you can''t check your skill level like we can, right? Yeah, well, at least there''s no way to check it as easily as we can. ......?¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Yes, as Nao found out, people in this world don''t know what level you are at so you can use this. So what to do is to get a grimoire or learn from a master. A grimoire is just a book of standards that says, ''This spell has what effect and how powerful it is. In other words, it''s not about what level you are and what spells you can use, it''s about what level you are if you can use these spells according to the grimoire. "So, to put it simply, the level of a spell is how difficult it is to use, but the type of spell is not determined? "That''s what I mean. The reason I didn''t teach this at the beginning was because I thought it would be more applicable. ...... How did you like it? That''s ....... For example, if I had been told at the beginning that Ignite is a spell that lights a candle-sized fire at your fingertips, I would have used it exactly as it is. If you''re trying to avoid stereotypes, you might have been right. "I don''t understand, but it''s okay? "Well, of course. You can''t compare them. Haruka smiles at me. This may be a kind of educational theory, but since we can''t compare under the same conditions, it''s hard to understand which is better. At any rate, since I was able to use various types of Ignite, I guess it''s safe to say that there is no problem. So, what is it?¡¡You can create any spell that is not on the list.¡¡You mean you can create and use any spell not on that list? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡My dreams are expanding~. It''s a shame that I didn''t take up magic. I''ll tell you, it''s not that easy to use.¡¡The reason why we were able to use the magic on the list and its application is probably because of the evil gods'' correction. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for in a spell. In our case, Haruka considers that since we are reincarnated with the skill level of ''stable activation'', we can use it normally and within the scope of the application of that magic, we can use it without difficulty. So if you want to learn a new spell, you''ll probably need the same kind of training as any other wizard. As a test, Haruka also tried to use her best light magic, imagining a magic that was not on the list, but it did not work at all. Apparently, it''s too optimistic to think that as you level up, you''ll be able to add spells to the list and use them quickly. If Toya wants to improve her sword skills, she''ll have to find a good teacher or train hard on her own. No, you''ve already got the sword skills, so it''s not like you''re self-disciplined.¡¡What do you think about that? Yes, my body moves naturally. I don''t know if this is a movement in accordance with some kind of school or not, but ...... the skill is amazing! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us.¡¡I''m not sure how I feel about that. I''m sure you''ll be fine in the Eastern Forest if you can move like this. --Since we''ve taken so much time, why don''t we go for a quick run? "Yeah, I don''t mind. Fortunately or not, I''m only wearing clothes, my weapon is a wooden sword, and my pack is almost empty! "Right. If we don''t collect as much as we can, we won''t be able to stay at the inn. It''s true that you can earn money for lodging, but if you don''t save up some, you''ll be living for the day. We''ll run at a speed that won''t cause fatigue and will allow for normal conversation. Understood. --I want to get home as soon as possible. We''ve been here for more than an hour, I think. At least, as long as we haven''t bought any food, we won''t be able to have lunch unless we go back to the city. On the other hand, if we left halfway, we wouldn''t be able to stay at the inn, and it would affect our meals the next day. This is a very motivating situation. The three of us went for a light jog. The three of us went for a light jog -- though we were running fast enough for the original world -- and soon we saw a forest ahead on the right side of the road. The forest began a few dozen meters away from the road, and its edge could not be seen from here. The forest seemed to extend for at least several kilometers. Is that the forest we''re looking for? I think so. It''s a big forest. How big is it? Well, we haven''t looked that far. If we don''t go in too deep, there won''t be any dangerous demons, so we''ll take it near the road. Copy that. The forest had been cut down along the road, and as we approached, we could see old stumps scattered about. There''s a lot of stumps around here, like they were used for lumber. "Hmm, maybe, but it''s for safety.¡¡It''s easier for animals and bandits to hide if the forest is right next to the road. "Oh, I see. Yes, it would be safer, considering the risk of attack. Besides, the remaining trees in the area were not very thick hardwoods, so they would be useless for firewood, but not for lumber. Well, then, let''s get to work. Oh, ......, I don''t know anything about herbs. Oh, I''m at ....... Oh, shit. I should''ve asked at the Adventurer''s Guild. I should''ve asked at the Adventurer''s Guild. I left everything to Hulka. It''s okay. I think. Oh, is Haruka going to give you a class on herbs? No. No. Even with my common sense, I can only vaguely understand it. More importantly, Nao, look at that grass and think, "I want to know something about it. "Hmm?¡¡Oh, ....... I was wondering why Haruka was pointing to a single grass and saying such a thing, but I did as she asked and looked at the grass. You''ll be able to see a semi-transparent tag with the word "medicinal herbs" superimposed on the grass. What?¡¡What is this? I didn''t know this function existed. It''s like a science fiction AR display. I wouldn''t be surprised if there was, since it displays the status ....... "What?¡¡Nothing''s happening to me. I said as I pointed to the herb. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Haruka nodded her head as if she understood. "I knew it. I just noticed that this is probably a help function. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I half forgot that 20 points wasn''t a fluke. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure if it''s ...... or if I''m just being too vague. Thanks to the presence of a dependable childhood friend, I may have been a little less critical. My skills are my lifeline, so I should have examined them more carefully. If you think about it, the other things you don''t really understand are [Spotting] and [Spotting]. I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m sure Haruka has the [Spotting] one. "Hey, Haruka, have you tried using [Spotting]? "Yes. Of course. It seems to be a skill that allows you to check your opponent''s strength ...... or status?¡¡It''s a skill that allows you to check the strength or status of your opponent. But it doesn''t seem to have much effect on strong people. If you are a rookie adventurer, you can see your skills, but if you are a veteran, you can only see how strong you are. You''re right, Haruka. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. ....... I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I see. Then there''s [Searching for enemies]. Let''s try it. ...... Feeling again the strange sensation of somehow knowing how to use it, I searched for signs of my surroundings. I thought it would show me a map like radar, but it didn''t. It only gave me a vague idea of the direction and strength of the reaction, and whether it was hostile or not. Unlike magic, there is no clear sense of consuming something, but you feel mentally fatigued as if you are being forced to do a lot of detailed work, so it seems difficult to keep using it. What do you think? Yeah, I feel some kind of biological reaction to ......, but I don''t feel any definite hostility. Yeah, I can feel that, too. I can feel it too. - Well, you don''t have an enemy scanner, do you? Oh! "Oh!" "Oh, so my [Spotting] is useless? I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡But if you can recognize it in its natural state, you might be able to get the [Spotting enemy] skill in the near future. I don''t know anything about it. Yeah, yeah. Besides, it''s not a bad thing to have more spotters, right? That''s true, but ...... I know, but I don''t know how to explain this feeling. ....... But it''s good that there''s no hostile reaction. But it is good to know that there is no hostile reaction. Well, we have to catch something for lunch, and the demons might be approaching, so keep checking back. They didn''t skip lunch, but got it locally. Is it gibier for lunch? ...... "Yes. You can eat wild grasses, but they have to be tempura or something, otherwise they''re not edible. You''re right, most of the wild plants have a sour taste. Besides, tempura of wild grasses only has the taste of batter, seasoning and a little flavor. There are surprisingly few wild vegetables that can be eaten in a normal way. It''s only served at inns because it''s rare, but if it were sold in supermarkets as a normal vegetable, I probably wouldn''t buy it. In the first place, there is no oil or flour. There is only salt. If you don''t catch it, there''s no lunch. Good luck, both of you! "Yes, sir! No food is hard. And since we''re leaving the dismantling to Haruka, we should at least try to kill it. "Hey, Toya, what are you aiming for?¡¡"Hey Toya, what are you aiming for? "No, only whether it''s big or small. No, just big or small.¡¡The weapon is my wooden sword, right?¡¡I''m not sure if your fire arrows will be good enough to kill it. "Yeah, well. If it turns to charcoal, we can''t eat it. Right?¡¡Then it''s hard to eat birds. Small animals like rabbits might run away. Then, boars, deer, and other animals that might attack us would be better, right? "Right. The question is, are there any such animals in the world? Right. All right, you two. You can talk to me about hunting, but first we need to gather herbs. Your ability to sleep in bed tonight depends on it. While Toya and I were discussing hunting, Haruka clapped her hands and pointed to the ground. In the meantime, I don''t know what kind of herbs there are, but there seems to be a good amount of them, so we''ll just collect as many as we can. "Okay. I''ll be able to collect them without hesitation. If you look at the ground consciously, you can easily find out which herb it is thanks to the [help]. You don''t have to get lost, so you can save a lot of time. Um, I didn''t get any help. "Toya, can you just take the obvious ones?¡¡Also, there''s [Appraisal], right?¡¡You can try to appraise this. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to try. "Let''s see, herb ''harwort'', material for wound medicine. Huh. I guess [Appraisal] has more information. Then I''ll ask Toya to divide them by type and focus on vigilance. "Hmm?¡¡If you just want to divide them, you don''t need the appraisal.¡¡Even if you don''t know what it is, you can bring it to the guild and they will buy it for you. That''s true, but there might be some things that are hard to distinguish.¡¡Both can be used as medicinal herbs, and they look similar, but they are different. Besides, it''s better to know the effects if you can. I''ll probably use them in my alchemy when I can afford it. Yeah, plants are sometimes like that, aren''t they? Even if you explain it to me, I can hardly tell the difference. "I see. I see. I''ll take care of the guards, and you two do your best to collect. "Okay. I''ll take care of the guards, and you two do your best! No, let''s get the obvious herbs, okay? "Yes. We can sense them, so we can be alert while we collect them. When we pointed this out, Toya crouched down dejectedly and began to rake the grass. 12-011 First work (3) It had been about an hour since we started collecting herbs. For the amount of time it took, we had collected quite a lot of herbs. First of all, Haruka and I have [help], so we can distinguish between medicinal herbs and other herbs without having to look too closely. In addition, Toya''s [Appraise], which we had thought would be good for judging after collection, turned out to be unexpectedly useful, or even essential for this collection. At first, I thought it would be good to use it to classify the medicinal herbs that Haruka and I collected, but when I looked at the appraisal results carefully, I found that there were many things that were completely useless even if we collected the leaves, such as the roots, flowers, and seeds that we needed. In other words, most of the medicinal herbs I had collected were turned into garbage when I discovered this. Most of them did not have flowers or seeds, and as for the roots, there was no way to dig them up since we did not know where we had picked them. Since I don''t have a shovel, I can''t dig them up even if I knew. If I had been able to sell them at a high price, I might have tried to use a tree branch or something, but there is no way that something picked in such a place would be so expensive. Fortunately, Toya found out about five minutes into the game. If Toya hadn''t noticed the result of the appraisal, he would have brought back a lot of useless leaves. It would have been better if he had noticed it first, but since Toya got the credit for the appraisal, I''ll let it go. I did ask him to read the whole explanation when he appraised it, though. After that, I learned the medicinal herbs that require leaves, and only collected those. Incidentally, Haruka''s "Common Sense of the Other World" did not seem to follow up on that either. It''s true that I also knew that Dokudami can be used as a medicinal herb, but I didn''t know how to use it. I guess this is the difference between "common sense" and "expertise". As I was quietly weeding, Toya looked up at me. "...... Nao, do you have any hits? Hit ......? Oh! Oh no, I forgot! I''m not sure what to make of this. I hurriedly performed a ¡¾Enemy Search¡¿. Yeah, there''s definitely something approaching. I can''t tell what it is, but at least it''s not a small animal. It''s not hostile, but it''s not harmless either. "What do we do?¡¡Should we intercept it? "Well, if it''s not ...... too crazy, it''ll be our lunch. Haruka, can you stay back on the street a bit? Okay, be careful. Halka immediately stopped herding and moved away from us, taking shelter in a tree a dozen meters away. The way she climbed up the tree looked like an elf, but it felt strange to think that she was Haruka. No, it''s not that Haruka''s athleticism was bad in the original world, but she didn''t look like a tree climber to me. "Hey, Nao, they''re coming. What do you think? "Yeah, I''m going to take shelter in a tree. Toya, hang in there! What?¡¡I''m on my own? No, because I don''t have a weapon.¡¡No, because I don''t have a weapon, and I''ll use the Fire Arrow to cover you if you''re in danger. It''s not like it''s a demon, so we can handle it. It''s not that I''m afraid to run away from it. I didn''t run away because I was scared. It''s just that I don''t have a weapon, you know? I''ve only climbed a few trees in my life, but it''s much easier than I thought. I climbed up to a sturdy branch and stood there, looking down. It was getting closer, but I couldn''t see it even from the top of the tree because of the thick green. ...... can''t be helped. All right!¡¡I''ll do my best!¡¡But if it gets really dangerous, you take care of it, okay? "Got it, got it. If you get hurt, Haruka will be there to help you. I don''t want to get hurt. ...... I don''t want to get injured. Then, after waiting in silence for a while, a boar ...... probably appeared, following the path of the beast. Why probably? Because I''ve only seen boars in zoos! It''s an unassuming animal, so you don''t even look at it closely, you just pass it by. It''s not more than 2 meters tall. Its tusks are about 50 centimeters long and grow upward from its mouth in a slight curve. --Hmm?¡¡I don''t remember boars having tusks that big. Oh, by the way, there''s help. Let''s see-- "Beast (edible)". That''s a bit out of line! It''s probably not my fault that I almost screamed. But it''s safe to say they can be eaten. The wild boar, whose name I couldn''t be sure of, was approaching on foot as usual, regardless of my feelings, but it stopped near the place where Toya was hiding and sniffed around. The next moment, Toya jumped out of the bushes and swung her wooden sword, hitting him in the head. A dull thud sounded. "Tsk! Toya clicks his tongue in frustration and quickly retreats, though he thought he had hit it well. The boar shook its head lightly, snorted in frustration, and glared at Toya. It didn''t seem to be worried about running away, but it didn''t seem to be damaged either. This is a clean hit, isn''t it? "Toya!¡¡Are you okay? I don''t know!¡¡I''ll just do my best! That''s right. It''s your first fight. If you don''t use ...... "Heavy Weight", you''ll take more damage from bodily harm. If you want to use it, you can use "Slow Time". It''s the first time I''ve used this spell, but fortunately, I''ve recovered a lot of magic power. And with this spell, if it fails, it won''t be too bad. Slow Time! I thrust my hand out toward the boar and chanted this, and for a moment it seemed to glow dimly and move only slightly slower. "Toya!¡¡The boar''s movement slowed down a little, maybe. Don''t expect too much! Oh, yeah?¡¡Thanks anyway! Toya thanked me with a subtle expression on his face. You can''t tell if it''s in the middle of a rush or not, but it''s hard to tell when you''re looking at it. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡[Charge]! As soon as Toya said that, his figure moved at a blurring speed, and a moment later, he was there with his wooden sword in the boar''s eye. PIGAAA!!!! The boar screams out in grief and falls down, struggling as it is. Just before that, Toya pulled out the wooden sword and stepped back. The boar moved its legs for a while, but soon stopped moving. So, the hard skull destroyed the brain through the eye socket. Understandable, but to do it in the first battle, ...... Toya, horrible child! Did you do it? "Maybe? I asked from the top of the tree. Toya was not so sure, but she was approaching the boar and poking it with her wooden sword. ...... It looks okay. After confirming that the boar did not move except for a twitching leg, I climbed down from the tree. "First victory, huh? "Yeah. Well, I''m happy for you, but I''m a little sensitive about it. ...... Well, I''ve never had the chance to kill a creature before. ...... I''ve never had a chance to kill a living thing in my life. Except for insects and the like, the most you can do is strangle a fish. Even then, unless you go fishing, you almost never have a chance. The two of us fell silent in front of the boar that had stopped moving its feet. The two of us are silent as the boar stops moving. "Oh, Haruka. I''ve never done it myself before. I''ve killed and eaten animals before, I just haven''t done it myself. I''ve killed and eaten animals before, just not myself. Haruka says, and sticks a knife into his neck to draw blood. He then proceeded to dissect its stomach and remove its internal organs. It''s actually easier to do it hanging, but ...... you guys watch closely, okay?¡¡You''ll learn to do it eventually. Ugh, you''re going to do this: ....... I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. I looked sideways at Toya, and saw that his face had also turned pale and bloodshot. I guess my complexion is similar to his. "Oh, that was a mistake. I didn''t bring any tools to dig a hole. If we don''t bury it, the wildlife might come to it," she said, looking around and noticing the wooden sword Toya was holding. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡You can''t do that!¡¡My sword is! In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the best way to do it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It is true that a broadsword is almost as blunt as a weapon, so unlike a Japanese sword, you don''t have to worry about it losing its sharpness just because you use it to dig a hole. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not a fan of the idea of using a wooden sword as a stick, or because I''m not a fan of the idea of using a wooden sword as a stick. Instead, I want you two to dig a hole. I''ll leave it up to you. Okay. Digging a hole without tools sounds like a lot of work, but since I''m leaving the dismantling to Haruka, I have no choice. He and Toya dug a hole using branches and stones from the trees. Since it was in the middle of the forest, the ground wasn''t exactly hard, but it still took a long time because we didn''t have the proper tools. If there were a river nearby, we could cool the meat down, but for now, we just rinse it with water. If there was a river nearby, we could cool the meat down, but right now we''re just washing it in water." While we were taking our time, Haruka was working quickly, stripping the fur off the animal, laying out the meat on top of it in pieces, and rinsing it with magically produced water. And when we finally finished burying the guts, we even finished storing them in a leather bag. "Sorry about that ...... Haruka. --No, thank you. That''s really nice. Thank you. We bowed, and Haruka shook her head with a wry smile. You have no choice. You have to do it in order to survive in this world, and you can''t. ...... He said this, but his face did not look good. You can''t really blame them for that, because although they have the skill of [dismantling], this was the first time they had actually done it. But still, they are more grounded than those of us who were upset because we just killed them. "Well, you''d better learn it as soon as possible. When you''re an adventurer in this world, you''ll develop a tolerance for gore. It''s not always as easy to die as it was this time. That''s right, isn''t it?¡¡Oh, yeah! It''s hormones, if you look at it that way.¡¡Think of it as liver, pork chops, pork chops. No, well, if you cut it, that''s what it is. ....... If you go to a commercial supermarket, you can find frozen pork feet, noses, ears, and so on. ...... We are trying to convince ourselves somehow by changing the way we look at things. However, even though it looks the same, it is still quite a shock to see the blood flowing. But I guess we''ll have to get used to it. There are not just beasts, but demons as well, and it would be fatal for an adventurer to be upset at the sight of blood. I''ll tell you what, don''t eat the entrails.¡¡Especially the digestive system. I''m sure you can burn it, but it''s not worth the risk. I''m sure you''ll be fine if you burn it, but it''s not worth the risk." "Oh, by the way, some people died from liver in Japan, too. I''m afraid of food poisoning in this world. ...... There''s no disinfectant. Alcohol won''t kill norovirus, will it? Do we need chlorine disinfection?¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡I don''t know. I don''t know how to make it either way. I don''t know how to make it, but I''ll tell you what, until you get used to this world, avoid all the dangers you can. That''s a must. You can''t eat hormones in this world? No. They are, but you have to be careful because they spoil easily. I''ve never been a fan of grilled hormones, but if you have regular meat, it''s not worth the trouble. Basically, it takes a lot of time to prepare motsu. It''s not like buying precooked motsu at the supermarket. By the way, Toya, did you appraise the boar?¡¡My help says it''s an ''edible'' animal. It''s also beneficial to ...... say?¡¡You can tell if it''s edible before you hunt it. The result was "Task Boar". I thought it said the meat was edible and the tusks and fur were usable. "Oh, tusks too?¡¡Let''s see. ...... I picked up the tusks that Haruka had dismantled and separated and tried them. It was heavier than I had expected, and when I tapped it, it sounded quite strong and full of substance. These tusks must have something inside. "Contents?¡¡Do they usually have any? I nodded my head to Haruka, who nodded her head curiously. "Yeah. I thought boar tusks were hollow. They''re probably big too, right? The size is obviously big. And they''re thick. I think there was a kind of boar that was just that long. According to Haruka, the tusks of Japanese boars are not very large, but there are boars with long tusks in the world. On the other hand, some boars have tusks that are so long that they can stick into your head. What does that mean as a living thing?¡¡But that is the case even in the original world. If it were a boar from another world, this level of difference would be within the margin of error. In fact, it''s no problem at all, since the tusks can be sold thanks to it. "Well, let''s get back to picking herbs. --Should we move around a bit? Yeah. We don''t want the smell of blood to attract the beasts. Then we moved along the forest for about 20 minutes from the place where we hunted the boar, and continued to work until noon at a new gathering place. 13-012 First job (4) It''s time for lunch. I was mindlessly picking grass when I looked up at Haruka''s words. I looked up at the sky and saw the sun through the trees, just past midnight. "Yes!¡¡Finally, food! Toya, who was working beside me, shouted loudly and sat down on the ground. I rub my stomach and breathe heavily. I''ve been trying not to think about it, but I''m actually quite hungry. Even though I''d packed some bread, it was still very early in the day. "You were that hungry?¡¡You should have told me. You should have told me." Haruka says, a little dumbfounded, but Toya smiles as she sits down. No, it''s hard to complain when Haruka''s working so hard. I''m just relying on you. It''s not like I''m slacking off, so don''t worry about it. ....... Let''s all gather firewood and move along the road. It''s safer that way. Yeah. I guess not many people come to this area to collect firewood, so it didn''t take much time to collect the firewood. We moved to the side of the road, we prepared the fire, and Haruka started preparing the meat. "Good. I''ll start my ignite! I combine the wood and activate Ignite. The gas-burner-like flame ignited the twigs without a crater, and the thicker branches soon began to burn. No, it did literally start a fire, but is it more useful than a ...... lighter? Toya gave him a subtle look, but he could appreciate it a little more, couldn''t he? The cheapest fire-starting tools I''ve seen at the grocery store were flintlocks, and the magic tools that were supposed to work like lighters were quite expensive. The flint requires a consumable, unraveled fiber-like tinder, and you have to be very careful to make a fire, you know? It''s quite convenient to do it in this little time. --I''ve been trying to convince Toya that it''s useful, but he says it''s too simple. It''s true that flashy attack magic is more "magic", but I think this kind of useful magic is more important in real life. Realistically, as an adventurer, you''ll only be fighting for a period of time in your life. Of course, it''s important to have magic that can survive that period. Okay, we''re ready. Are the fires ready?¡¡You can burn yourselves. With that, Haruka handed me a chunk of meat on a spit. Each of us was handed two pieces of meat on skewers, smaller than the palm of our hands and about three centimeters thick. You can cook them as you like. But make sure it''s cooked all the way through. No rare. If they know what they''re doing, 75 degrees for at least a minute. Haruka cautioned us while sticking her own skewer into the side of the fire. By the way, what''s the norm here? What''s the rule of thumb over here? There''s nothing scientific about it, but it''s the same. We don''t have a thermometer, and we have no experience cooking over a fire like this, so should we cook it a little longer? After a few minutes of cooking the meat, turning it over every now and then, the fat started to seep out and I could hear and smell it sizzling. It looks pretty good!¡¡I''ve never eaten meat this way before! I''ve never had it this way before!" Toya said, staring at the meat happily. As if he can''t wait, he frequently turns the meat over to look at Haruka. The barbecue is usually on a griddle or a net. Come to think of it, I''ve never had a barbecue with skewers. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ....... I''ve never had a barbecue with skewers. I''m sorry if I''m sounding too happy, but don''t get your hopes up.¡¡It''s only seasoned with salt, and I think the meat itself tastes better than regular pork or something. While we were all a little nervous, Haruka was calmly watching the meat cook. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡So this is pork on a spit? It''s okay!¡¡It''s a good thing I''m not the only one.¡¡...... Hey, are you ready to go? You''re not a child, so calm down a bit. You can''t help it if you only burn the surface.¡¡It''s not safe if the inside is raw. After a few more minutes of waiting, we bit into the meat as soon as Haruka gave her permission. It''s hot!¡¡But it''s delicious! This is more than I expected ...... As we bit into the meat, the juices and fat came pouring out. The only flavor is simple salt, but is it the fat that tastes so good? The aroma is appetizing and the flavor is delicious. The fat dripping from the meat makes the surface of the meat crispy and fried, and the texture is indescribable. The meat is a little tough, but not so tough that it is difficult to bite through, and it gives you the feeling that you are eating meat. I thought it would be more difficult to eat, but it tastes much better than I expected. Maybe it''s what you''re eating? "Isn''t there some high quality pork fed on acorns?¡¡If you think about it, a boar that eats good food and exercises is actually high quality meat? "Well, that''s one way of thinking about it. As long as you don''t screw up the tightening process, it might be delicious. ....... If you cut the muscle and marinate it in the sauce, it will be a very tasty meat. It''s a shame we don''t have soy sauce or miso. ...... I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. I agree. I can live with rice, but soy sauce and miso are important. Most of the seasonings I use usually contain one or the other. The only ones I don''t use are mayonnaise and ketchup. I say, recalling the contents of my refrigerator. I like salad dressings that contain soy sauce, too. I don''t like salad dressings that contain only oil, vinegar, salt and pepper because they are tasteless. There''s no Worcestershire sauce in it. I don''t use it much. "But yakiniku sauce and my favorite seasonings, soy sauce and miso, are important. Do you have any? If you have yakiniku sauce, you can surely put up with some bad meat and vegetables. In fact, you can eat a meal with it. What do you think?¡¡I don''t know if it''s made from rice, wheat or soybeans. I don''t care what it tastes like, as long as it tastes like ...... Haruka can''t make it? I know how to make it.¡¡I know how to make it, I helped my grandma make it once. I know how to make it because I helped my grandmother do it once, but she used dried koji mold. You can''t buy koji mold at ....... I''ve never seen it sold even in a Japanese supermarket. I''ve never seen it sold even in Japanese supermarkets, much less on other worlds. I don''t think you can find it. I know how to isolate koji mold, so I can try it when I have more money and free time. I''m not sure if I can really do it, so it will be many years before I can try. "I see. Well, it''s better to have hope. I''m sure I''ll get tired of eating only salt and herbs all the time, but I''ll have to deal with that later when I can afford it. For now, this meat is tasty enough. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... You''re both elves, aren''t you afraid of meat or something? I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. What?¡¡Do you need more?¡¡I still have some if you want to cook it yourself. No, I was just wondering, that''s not what I meant. ...... But I''ll take the meat. I''m not saying that, I''m just wondering. I''m sure each skewer was as big as a pound of steak. ...... Is it because I''m a beastman? You didn''t eat this much before, did you? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get it. I''m pretty full after one and a half. I don''t think my tastes have changed, but what do you think? I don''t think I''ve changed my tastes in any way, but what do you think?" "Well, ......, the conventional wisdom here is that Japanese people like fish, and elves like vegetables. "I see. I see. In a way, I understand. Then you don''t need to worry about your daily diet. I see. Now, when Toya''s done eating, we''ll leave for the day. What?¡¡You''re leaving already?¡¡The sun is still high. It took some time to build the fire and cook, but it was still light enough. It''s still light enough for us to get back to the city in about an hour. There''s basically no light, so we have to finish our errands while there''s still daylight. Buying and stuff, you know. It''s our first time, so let''s give ourselves plenty of time. Okay. Then we waited for Toya to finish his meat, and after a short break, we returned to the city. In the evening, a little before dusk, we found ourselves in the city. When we arrived back in town a little before dusk, we immediately went to the adventurer''s guild and asked to buy some herbs. The person who answered us was the same lady from yesterday. She must have remembered us, because when we entered the guild, she noticed us and beckoned to us. When Toya put the bag on the counter, the lady looked inside and rolled her eyes. Oh my!¡¡You''ve taken a lot of stuff. Please wait a moment while I check. She took the bag I gave her and retreated to the backyard, returning a few minutes later with an empty bag. Yes, everything is fine. Please wait a moment for the calculation. I was a little worried because you''re a rookie. He smiled and handed the bag back to Haruka. "Is that so? Yeah. I give a brief explanation to first-time herbalists, but there are many who don''t listen to me, and sometimes they take things for nothing. For example, just weedbane leaves. "Oh, really? Weedbane. It is a medicinal herb that Toya found to be in need of roots. If it weren''t for the appraisal, we would have been the "rookies who don''t listen". It is inevitable that Haruka''s gaze swam slightly. I''m not going to warn you beforehand because I think you''ll learn from it. That was really good. If we hadn''t been so lucky, we''d have been camping out today. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were you. ...... By the way, you haven''t collected any weedbane, have you? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. I''ll get around to it when I can afford it. Oh, I see. As you may know, thick roots - usually thicker than your thumb - can be sold at a high price, so you can make a lot of money if you do well.¡¡Well, if you can only get thin roots, you may make less money because you need to spend time digging them up. Yes, I didn''t know that. If it wasn''t for the appraisal, I wouldn''t have even known that weedbane requires roots. Thank you very much. Is there anything else you think would be good for this time of year? "Well, at this time of year, maybe dindle berries. She thinks for a moment, takes out a book from under the counter, opens it to a page and tells me. It''s hard to recommend for rookies because you have to go a little deeper into the forest around here. ....... Especially for those who don''t know what they''re capable of. You understand, don''t you?¡¡We nodded in unison at the woman who smiled at us. It went well today, but that doesn''t mean we''re too careless to go deeper into the forest tomorrow. At least as long as Haruka is around. ...... Toya is a bit dangerous. As you can see in this picture, the ding dong is a red fruit the size of a fist, and is a rather expensive fruit that can be eaten as is or dried. The illustration in the book shows a fruit that looks like a cross between an apple and a tomato. The description says that the fruit grows on the tips of trees that are at least five meters tall. However, "five meters" only means "at least," and the actual dindle tree is said to be tens of meters tall. But as you can see here, they grow near the tops of very tall trees, so you need to be a good climber to pick them. Fortunately, there are two elves in Haruka''s party, so if you can climb it, I think it''s pretty good.¡¡They''ll be 100 to 300 rares each. That''s expensive! If the purchase price is that high, the selling price might be over 500 rares each. If you can harvest more than one, you can make a lot of money. If you can harvest more than one, you can make enough money, so you might as well go for it. It seems that you have finished your calculations. When we looked up from looking into the catalog, a person from behind the counter was handing her a tray with money on it. Let''s see, that''s 8,730 Reais in total. That''s amazing!¡¡Not many people make this much money from herbs alone, right? "Is that so? Haruka tilted her head at the startled woman. Even though we had help, we were not experts in the distribution of herbs. If this is the first time we''ve done this, I''m sure someone more experienced will be able to make more money. "Yeah. When the rookies get used to collecting herbs, we will shift to more profitable requests. If you only need to make a moderate amount of money, you can make relatively safe money by becoming a professional herbalist, but there are many young people who dream of getting rich as adventurers. ...... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to buy any more.¡¡I''ve picked up a lot today. "Yes, that''s... Yes, that''s because we basically dry them and use them, so they can be stored for a long time. Besides, as I said before, there are no people who mainly collect medicinal herbs. I understand. I''ll do my best tomorrow. Also, I hunted down a task boar, can I buy it? "Yes. You can buy the tusks and fur here, but the meat will cost you a little more if you take it directly to the butcher. If it''s too much trouble, I can buy it here too. Then just the tusks and fur, please. Yes, sir. Please wait a moment. Haruka urged me to put my bag of skins and tusks on the counter, and the lady took it back to the backyard and came back with the money. I checked it out. They were large without any damage, so the total for the two will be 3,500. Is that all right with you? "Yes. All right. Then this is the price. --But it''s amazing. How did you beat it? While handing the money to Haruka, he looked at us behind him quizzically. The way he was looking at us, I''m guessing he was referring to our equipment, which didn''t even have proper swords. Well, it doesn''t look like the gear of an adventurer, does it? We''re all dressed in cloth, and our only weapon is Toya''s wooden sword. But that''s the way it is in RPG games at first. ...... No, it''s usually the game that''s weird. It''s... I put my wooden sword in the boar''s eye and stopped it from breathing! Toya suddenly interjected, showing off his wooden sword and showing off his chest. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a bit of a jerk. I''m sure you''re a charming person, but you don''t have beast ears. I''m sorry.¡¡--Oh, I''m sorry. I''d like to introduce you. The boar over here with his chest out is Toya, and the elf behind him is Nao. Basically, our style is Toya in the front and Nao and I in the back. I''m sure that Haruka will continue to be the one to negotiate with, but I''d appreciate your help. "I''m Nao. It''s nice to meet you. I''m Toya!¡¡Nice to meet you! I was introduced by Haruka and bowed with the friendliest smile possible, while Toya smiled and raised his hand lightly. Is that a character development, Toya? In a way, it suits you, but don''t you think you''re being a little unpolite? The woman smiled and bailed out of my thoughts. This is very polite. I''m Diora. My main job is to work at the counter, so I''m sure I''ll be seeing you all relatively often. I''m Diora, and I''m sure I''ll be seeing you relatively often.¡¡I''ll tell you later. I''ll be sure to tell you later that if the lady at the counter gets less friendly, it''ll be a big problem for us naive people, affecting our survival rate. Then, after asking Diora for a recommendation for a butcher shop, we stopped there on our way back to the inn and sold all the meat we had left. We were a little disappointed, because the meat we had roasted over the fire was quite tasty, but there was no way to preserve it, and if we had left it behind and got food poisoning, it would have been useless. Because of Haruka''s skillful handling and the fact that there was a good amount of meat, the boar meat sold for a good price, and we were even asked to bring it back if we had a chance in the future. After that, I went straight back to the "Slumbering Bear" and secured a room for a few days. At least now we would not be stranded for a few days. Feeling a great sense of relief, the three of us entered the room, sat down on the bed, and breathed a sigh of relief together. You''re so evil, you''re always on the edge of your seat with your money! 14-013 First job (5) "Well... A few moments after entering the room. You''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this sort of thing. I''ve successfully earned about 18,000 Reais!¡¡Here''s a round of applause! Clap, clap, clap! We both looked up at the bag and clapped our hands loudly. We''ll be able to live in this world now! "Ah!¡¡We''ve earned this! Of course, this amount of money is not enough to live on. Of course, we can''t live on this amount of money, but it''s a great relief to know that we can earn it ourselves. "Oh, I''m so happy. I''m so happy.¡¡Is this what it''s like for a working person when they get their first paycheck? Toya is expressing his joy with a big smile, and I''m sure I have a similar expression. Haruka, who has had a stiff expression since she came here, is now smiling and holding a bag of rewards. I''ve never had a part-time job before, so I don''t know about that, but I don''t think you''ll ever feel a sense of accomplishment like this.¡¡I''ve never had a part-time job, so I don''t know. I''ve never had a part-time job before, so I don''t know. The only money I''ve made so far has been pocket money from helping my parents. Our high school basically forbade part-time jobs, so none of the three of us had ever worked before. So, in a way, this was our first salary. But we made a lot more than we expected. It''s about 180,000 yen a day.¡¡The three of us can live on 1,000 Reais a day, so it won''t be too hard, will it?¡¡This world might be a lot easier than you think. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. It''s sweet!¡¡Toya, you''re too naive!¡¡Your lack of planning is the difference between life and death! "Is that so? "Is that so?" Toya asks with a puzzled expression, having been very strongly denied by Haruka. I''m not sure what to say. First of all, there is no social security in this world!¡¡There is no unemployment insurance, no accident insurance, no social insurance, no health insurance, no welfare!¡¡There is no unemployment insurance, no accident insurance, no social insurance, no health insurance, no welfare! No one will help you if you get injured and can''t work, and the same goes when you get old. There are no pensions, so if you don''t save your money, buy a house, buy farmland, or have a life plan by then, you will regret it! Oh, oh, ....... Haruka''s powerful explanation made Toya falter. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand what I''m talking about, but isn''t that a dream come true? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m not sure what to do. "Dream?¡¡I don''t want to eat it.¡¡I don''t like the idea of you skinny bastards dying out in the middle of nowhere. You''ve so easily excluded yourself, Haruka. No, well, I''m sure Haruka can handle it. Maybe it''s true that women are more realistic. I don''t deny that you can pursue your dreams.¡¡I don''t deny that you can pursue your dreams, and I don''t deny that Toya can get a beast-eared bride or create a beast-eared harem. But that''s only possible if you have security. Don''t get the order wrong. Okay? "Yes! You can''t go against this Haruka. We exchanged glances and both nodded stiffly. Good!¡¡In fact, you won''t be able to stay on the front lines for very long. In fact, you won''t be able to stay on the front line for very long, your strength will fade in your thirties, and even more so in your forties. Ideally, you''ll have another 20 years or so to save up for living and medical expenses for the next 40 to 50 years. Wow. That''s even less dreamy than I imagined. We''ll probably be able to work more because Nao and I are elves, but we''ll have a long retirement ahead of us, and to be safe, we want to have more than enough money saved up before Toya leaves. Toya will have to earn twice as much if she''s getting a wife, and several times as much if she''s getting a harem! That sounds like a lot of work. ....... I''m not sure if I should be thinking about how to earn money after I retire.¡¡Will I be able to get a wife?¡¡Will I be able to live on my own in retirement? I''m going to get a wife with beast ears! I''m going to get a wife with beast ears!" Toya, who had been talking about getting a wife with beast ears, now has a dead look in his eyes. Is this the anxiety of not having a regular job? He is free, but all the responsibility falls on him. No, there is no safety net, so if you fail, you will end up in slums, slavery, or death. ....... "Hey, what''s it like being a common adventurer? "What?¡¡General?¡¡Let''s see. ...... Want to hear it?¡¡You might regret it. You''ll be able to get a lot more than that. No, I''m more concerned when you say it like that. Tell me. So?¡¡Well then, ....... There is no retirement for the average adventurer! Yes? What do you mean? What do you mean? "I''m going to die before I''m old! ...... Really? Yeah. Seriously. Seriously, what a dream! If you''re a successful adventurer, you can live a comfortable retirement with the money you''ve saved, or you can live in a village where you get a house and farmland and work as a farmer. Adventurers with no talent will be weeded out, dying in the middle of a mission, or going into slavery or slums when their money runs out. Adventurers who are good at what they do find a job and drop out of the game. Ordinary adventurers who can earn enough money to live comfortably can''t find the right time to stop, so they continue to play even when their strength wanes. That''s how it seems. That''s why we''re aiming for a certain level of success. --I''m sure you can get by on the average adventurer''s income, as long as you don''t think too much like Toya did earlier. No, no, only a few are as steady as Haruka. In fact, most young people don''t have a plan. If they could live within their means while saving for retirement, they wouldn''t be inundated with commercials for consumer loans and credit cards. I''m sure you''re thinking, "I can make more money in time! I''m sure I''ll be able to make more money in time!" If you''re thinking that easily, you''ll probably end up becoming what Haruka calls a "common adventurer. That''s why it''s forbidden to spend cash just because you have it. I''ll keep your wallet for a while, no complaints? "Yeah, I guess so. I want some money, but I don''t mind. Hey, Nao. Yeah. That''s fine, at least until you can afford it. --Maybe you should come up with your own life plan. Hmm. I''m an elf, so it''s going to be very different from my previous life. If you want, we can think about it together. If you want, we can figure it out together. I don''t know. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. After a light bath and a meal, we were chatting until bedtime, when I suddenly became aware of such a thing. What''s different about it? I''m not sure how to describe it, but it''s ...... not very good. The other skills are understood to be numerical representations of the abilities acquired through training, etc., but these two - and to be exact, [help] - seem to be a little different from the other skills. The AR display allows you to see information that is normally unavailable to you. You can also see your own status in the AR display, but this is understandable if you think that the evil gods gave it to you as a service to help you understand what you have made of your character. It''s just displaying the information you already know. On the other hand, ¡¾Detect¡¿ displays the status, and ¡¾Appraise¡¿ pulls the item data from somewhere and displays it. If what the evil god said about the world being like a game with levels is correct, it doesn''t seem so strange, but in this world, you can''t check status, and its existence itself is not known. The same goes for item data. The evil god''s words, "There is no such thing as a cheat," are too much for us to believe that this skill was added as a service only to us. Isn''t this skill just a cheat? If you think about it simply, this world has a skill system that people don''t know about, and it is possible to learn the skills of "detecting" and "appraising". How about the fact that AR displays and the like are also common? "Hmm. There was oxygen before the discovery of oxygen, and the earth was still moving during the celestial movement theory. Then, if we can find a way to check it, will we be able to grasp the value of our abilities and experiences? But what does it mean that we can find out information through [appraisal]?¡¡Is there some kind of akashic record that you''re pulling information from? Hey, hey, don''t question the game system. No, it''s not a game! I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head in overaction. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it. ....... I''m not sure if it''s an external [otherworldly common sense] kind of thing. I''m not sure what to make of this. "......?¡¡What does that mean? In other words, by taking [appraisal], you are considered to have studied a certain amount of knowledge, and within that range, you have knowledge. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... Well... "Sorry, I don''t understand! I''m sorry, I don''t understand!" Haruka thought for a moment and opened her mouth. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "...... Oh, I see. In other words, the appraisal level is like the second level of the English proficiency test, and if you want to get to the first level, you have to study. That''s what it means. And I think the skill is in being able to pull out what you remember instantly and without error. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea for me to go to the gym, but I''m sure it''s a good idea for you. It''s kind of like a memory-enhancing skill, and it''s pretty useful on its own, but then it''s not really a cheat. So, what about [Detect]? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Have you tried using ...... Nao? Yeah, some in the guild. For most of them, the only thing I could figure out was that they looked strong, but for some of them, it also showed their skills. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m just guessing here, but if you think about it the same way you think about appraisal, then the information displayed by the "see through" may not actually be correct. "...... yes? Then what''s the skill for? In other words, it''s just a way to determine from a variety of information, for example, that a person is likely to use a sword at level 2 or so, and display that information. You''re just translating your own intuition, knowledge, and experience? Yes. Do you have a sword, calluses on your hands, weight shifts that belong to a skilled warrior, or are you just using your skill set to characterize things that we can determine through experience? Then Haruka added, "Of course, both of these are just guesses," but I think she made a good point. "Hmmm... I''m not sure what to make of this. "That''s right. You can''t check your ability values or experience values. It''s not much like a game except for the character makeup. Well, thanks to your character creation, we''ll be able to make a living. Yeah, that''s true. If you had been brought here in your original body, you might have died in the boar today. In a way, we should be grateful to the evil god, right? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It''s hard to thank him honestly because of the landmines. 15-S001 Yuki and Natsuki 01 I hurriedly close my eyes against the strong light. A few seconds later, I opened my eyes and saw a street that reminded me of a back alley in Europe. I saw it on ......, a TV travel program. I''ve never traveled abroad. I''ve never traveled abroad. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. "Natsuki? YUKI?¡¡--I''m so glad... We''re together now. I hugged the person who hugged me with a relieved and almost tearful face. I was sitting next to him on the bus, so I hoped that he would be close to me, and I''m glad I stuck to his side of the human spirit! To be honest, I would have been very nervous if I was thrown out here alone. I''m so glad. I''m really glad. ....... You''re not at ......, are you? Yes. ...... I was seated away from him. ...... I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this topic at ....... I''m sorry.¡¡I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡Explode! YUKI?¡¡What''s wrong?¡¡Are you worried because Yuu''s not here? No, I''m fine. I''m fine. I''m fine. I hurriedly shook my head as Natsuki looked at me with a look of anxiety on her face. Hmm... Watch out. I was about to fall into the dark side. But which one is Yuu''s true love?¡¡I''m not sure, but I think he''s closer to you than me. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out which one is your true love. I don''t know.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. Oh, that''s right. That''s right. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I love you, Natsuki, for answering me. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to do with it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. If it''s someone you like, you might be a little more reserved. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Otome no Shin: ...... Yes, the maiden mind. ...... Yu, maiden, heart. Hmmm?¡¡There''s something different about it. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of this. At least as far as we know. She''s more of a cool girl. The type that girls like. Fortunately, we''re good friends with Shang and his friends, so we haven''t had too many girls of that type come to us. That''s not true!¡¡This is not the time for such girl talk! Oh, that''s right. No, no, I was trying to get Natsuki to regain her composure, yeah. I don''t think it was like that. ...... Oh well. It seems that there are no other acquaintances ...... in the vicinity. I took a quick look around, but didn''t see anyone I knew, let alone anyone who looked like a local. Let''s move to the main street and go into one of the stores to discuss it. "That''s a good idea, but is ...... okay? "Mmm-hmm. Don''t worry!¡¡I have the common sense of another world! I had an extra 5 points at the end of my character makeup, and I was wondering what to do with them, and I found a good one . I took it because I figured it would be useful for cross-cultural communication, which is more than just going to a foreign country! I''m sure you''ll find it useful as it will help you communicate cross-culturally more than just going abroad! No, I think it''s nice that you chose that, but it''s not that, it''s the money. "...... Oh. Oh, no!¡¡Oh, no. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the price, but it''s useless if you don''t have the money! In this case... Yeah!¡¡Sell me something. "What? Natsuki held out her hands. The clothes are of a kind of poor cloth, like those worn by commoners around here. There''s no luggage. Thanks to this, you won''t stand out, but you also can''t sell things from your original world to get money. If I had at least kept my clothes, I would have had a hand mirror in my pocket or something that I could sell. ...... You can find a lot of things in the pockets of these clothes. ...... Oh, Yuki, there''s something in the pockets of these clothes! I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I hurriedly searched my pockets and found 10 of the same coins. This is a big silver coin!¡¡Let''s see, ...... there''s about 10,000 yen worth, enough to get you into the cafeteria!¡¡The price of regular food is cheap! You can have a normal meal for about the price of a bowl of beef. On the other hand, luxury goods are very expensive. On the other hand, luxury goods are very expensive because of the lack of distribution. Let''s get going!¡¡Natsuki. Let''s have a strategy meeting over tea! Wait a minute. As soon as I started to walk away, he pulled my hand and I stepped on my foot bellows. I was about to walk out when he pulled my hand. I''m sure there''s some common sense in other worlds, so I don''t think we''ll be ripped off or go into any strange places. No, not at all. Money. It''s not like that.¡¡That''s all we have, you know?¡¡Can you manage until you get some income?¡¡I''ll put up with the tears for the clothes ......, but you''ll need lodging and food, right? ......... That''s right. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to pay for a lot of things. The cost of lodging and food alone is so high that if other things are needed, the margin will be even smaller. When I explained this to Natsuki, including the actual cost of living, he sighed heavily with a sullen face. This is not the time to sit down in a store and talk about it. This is not the time to sit down in a shop and talk about it. Anywhere that seems safe is fine, so let''s talk about it there. This place is like a back alley, so I''m a little nervous. "Yeah, I guess so. Well, even if it is a back alley, it is not so dangerous, but let''s go out to the street. It''s not a slum, so I don''t think it''s dangerous enough to be attacked out of the blue, but it''s definitely not very public. I walked towards the street with Natsuki''s hand in mine. I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea. Yes, that''s right! It seems that this town we''ve been transported to is a small port town built on a river. One side of the city faces the river, and a port was built there. The harbor and the city are separated by a little distance, and the space between them is like a square. Maybe it''s a buffer zone for when the water rises. That''s the kind of place Natsuki and I chose for our consultation. You don''t want others to hear your conversation, but you are worried about going to a place where you won''t be seen. Here, we have a good view, and if someone approaches, we can see them and they can see us. Besides, if we''re sitting together, it looks like we''re just looking at the river, which is not so suspicious. Not a bad choice, right? So, how can I check your skills? Well, first of all, people in this world are not aware of their skills. "...... What?¡¡We got the skills, didn''t we?¡¡And yet? "Yes. That''s what my common sense tells me. Maybe the evil gods let us choose our talents because we''re transferring in the middle of our lives? There is no magic in the original world, and on the contrary, there are skills that are useless in this world. If you''re transferred with the same specs as before, you''ll have to choose between someone who worked hard at sports and someone who studied English hard. Even if you can use English, it will be of no use to you in this world. Perhaps they thought of that and let us reassign our abilities in the form of acquiring skills. But that''s a problem. I don''t remember all the skills. ...... I think I remember most of them. I don''t remember all the skills, but " "Do I remember most of them?" "No, because I couldn''t get most of them because of [skill copy]. I remember ...... the help and about half of the rest. ...... Oh, wait a minute. ...... I see. I can''t remember the other half, but I remember [help]. I''m not sure if I understand what you mean by "I see". What''s wrong? "Yuki, it seems you should say status. "What?¡¡What? I don''t know anything about it. How does Natsuki know that? Because I took [Help]. This is a skill that allows you to get some advice... So, Yuki hasn''t taken [Help]? "Uh-huh. Natsuki''s face suddenly changed color and she said in a panicked manner. I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m sure it''s useful to be able to get advice when you come here like Natsuki just did, but I have the common sense of the other world, so I don''t need it, right? I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure it''s useful, but I have the common sense to know what''s going on in the other world. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. "......... Perfectly. What is it?¡¡I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''ll protect you too, Natsuki. I thought I was in trouble, but I''m actually in a lot of trouble? Looking at Natsuki''s face, it seems like she''s really serious. I can feel the blood drain from my own face. Oh no, I''m getting dizzy. Yuki, calm down. Please tell me your skills in terms of status first. "Yes. Status. --Huh? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: Yuki Race: Human (17 years old) Status: Healthy Skills:. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The status-like things showed up, but nothing in the skills. "Hey, I can''t see any skills. "......What?¡¡That can''t be ...... what?¡¡My skills also disappeared ...... and returned?¡¡Bug? The moment Natsuki said that, my skills also appeared. It''s like the website took a long time to load. I''m not sure if it''s a problem with the internet or if it''s a problem with the internet. I wonder if it''s something to do with the thin connection of God''s net. So, the first thing to do is to go to ....... Yes, that''s right. First, can you tell me about Yuki''s skills? "Let''s see... I can''t seem to show you the status screen directly, so I''m going to read it out loud. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''d like to know. [Magical Qualities, Fire] [Magical Qualities, Water] [Magical Qualities, Space-Time] [Magical Qualities, Space-Time ¡¾Earth Magic Lv.1¡¿ ¡¾Stubbornness Lv.1¡¿ ¡¾Insight Lv.1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is a questionable skill set, but it seems that there are no other dangerous skills. I''m not sure what to make of that. I was relieved to hear that. If you had told me that they were all dangerous skills, I would have seriously despaired. I''m glad it wasn''t [skill robbery]. If you''re a copy, it depends on how you use it. "Because robbing is like stealing. Copying is also a bit on my conscience, but I think it''s better. I thought it sounded really useful, but it''s still a little bit like stealing someone''s hard work and talent. I was quite upset about the robbery because it required less points. Thank God. Yuki''s conscience saved her life. ...... Is that so? Yeah. I''ll explain it to you in detail later, so please don''t use [Skill Copy], okay? I won''t use it if you say so, but not now, but later? If you''re going to say that you saved my life or something to that extent, I want you to explain it to me right away. ....... I have more important things to do first. "Huh? I was caught up in the seriousness of Natsuki''s words, so I asked her back with a serious face. First, we''re going to take a walk along the main street of the city for about an hour. "What?¡¡What, a walk?¡¡Are you sure you heard correctly? "Yes, it''s a walk. I''ll explain later, but for now, can you trust me? He wasn''t wrong. What was she thinking, that a walk was important in this situation? If it hadn''t been Natsuki who said it, I would have ignored it, I swear! I get it. I''ll just walk with you? Yes. Since we''re here, let''s talk about the common sense of this world while we walk. Natsuki smiled happily and urged us to walk around the city for an hour or so. I''m not sure what to say. --A man. The moment my vision came back, I looked around quickly. A square somewhere. Some square. Some otherworldly streets. I hurriedly jumped into the back alley and hid in the shadows. To get ahead in the other world, it''s all about getting a head start. It''s also a matter of how well you do it without being spotted by your classmates. Because that''s what it''s all about, isn''t it? Classmates with cheat skills are dangerous opponents no matter how you look at it. The most dangerous of all is [skill robbery]. The skills that you have gained with your points will be taken away from you. I wanted to get [Double Experience], but I didn''t have enough points to get it if I took the Robbery, and some of my classmates might take it because it seems useful. If you can get it from them, there''s no problem. Since appearance is also a skill, you can expect to become beautiful by taking them. I don''t understand what you mean by appearance being a skill, but since you can get it, I guess that''s what it is. That''s why I chose to spend all my points on [Skill Robbery]. The best target would be my classmates. They should be close by now. It is almost certain that they have useful skills, but they may move to another city after some time. You can rob people indiscriminately, but it''s hard to imagine that a cheat skill like robbery has no restrictions. It was not mentioned in the description, but it is possible that ...... could be resisted and only one person could use it once, or a limit on the number of times it could be used per day? If so, then we can''t use it for nothing. If you can''t use it, and you run into a classmate who has it, you''re done. If you meet a robber classmate when you are not available, you are finished. The best policy is to use your classmates first. Since they almost certainly have useful skills, they''re like bonus characters. In addition, if you''re not good, you''ll have to fight with other classmates for it, and the fact that it appears only once is also something like that. I''d really like to go look for him right away, but I can''t make a move if there''s a chance I''ll find him first. If it has shifted to the vicinity, there is a high possibility that it will come to a place like this plaza instead of walking in a back alley with few people. Now we wait. I muttered quietly and observed the area from the shadows for a few minutes. Two familiar women appeared a dozen meters away. They were ...... Shido and Furumiya. It''s a group of girls who often hang out with Azuma and the three of us, and they are very popular among the boys. I''m not sure what to make of that. Well, both of them are good natured, so they are not really hacked off, but only teased. But things change when you''re in a different world, don''t they? It''s too bad Azuma isn''t here, but it''s just as well. Let''s start with those guys. To put it bluntly, it would be very difficult to survive in this world if you lose your skills. When that happens, you can help them out with a few kind words. I''ll get stronger and stronger. Just make him dependent on me and he''ll be fine. This isn''t Japan, so eventually you''ll be able to buy slaves ....... You know how to use your skills by feel. I look at the two of them and use my skills. --Immediately after, my consciousness was enveloped in darkness. 16-014 Step Up? (1) For the next week or so, we worked steadily, playing it safe and getting our equipment ready. The first thing we bought was a hoe. Having learned the lesson from the first day''s difficulty in handling the motsu, we bought one the next day. One of the reasons I bought it right away was that it was reasonably priced for a farming tool. Another reason was a little bit of a problem, but in a sense, an urgent need for a toilet. When you are in the forest for half a day, you need to use the toilet. It is an unavoidable physiological phenomenon. On the other hand, it is not good to leave it there. Before saying anything about it as a human being, it is essential to bury it, considering the fact that we will step on it and it will become an "engacho". Although Toya has only used the larger one once. One drawback is that when Toya walks around with a hoe, I feel like I''m not sure if I''m going on an adventure or working in the field. Incidentally, Haruka insisted on buying a blindfold, which we agreed to. How could we object? We were able to buy enough clothes to change into, strong leather clothes for armor, and partial leather armor for Toya, who was standing in front of us, so we were able to get through without getting hurt. As for weapons, I bought my spear and Haruka''s bow. With a bit of training, I''ve been able to kill a boar, but since I can''t aim at the eyes of a charging boar like Toya, I''m not much use in a fight at the moment. He was told by Haruka to use magic to help her because the price of fur would be lower. As for Haruka''s bow, if I were to tell you that I can now eat grilled chicken, you would understand. I would like to buy a pot soon and have a chicken hot pot. I''m holding off on getting Toya''s sword because it''s very expensive. However, since my wooden sword bounced off a boar''s skull on the first day, I bought an iron cudgel ...... instead of a wooden sword, or to be frank, just an iron rod. This is convenient because it allows me to defeat them without damaging their fur, but on the other hand, it''s a shame that my [Swordsmanship] level didn''t increase and my [Stickmanship] skill grew. I can use it just as well as the wooden sword, so I guess the skill is more flexible than in the game. Also, by continuing to train every day, my magic skills have improved somewhat. I''ve been working on my magic skills for a while now. ...... has improved, but it''s not very useful either. I''m not sure what to make of this. On the other hand, Haruka is very active. First, the light magic "Purify". It is a very useful spell that removes dirt and cleanses the body. Although there is no bath in the inn, this spell has helped me to live day by day. Thank you, Haruka-sama! Incidentally, this spell is said to be so popular that adventurers who can use it are in great demand. Adventurers have an image of being filthy, but the truth is that if you are too filthy, demons will find you because of your smell. In order to avoid this, they have to keep themselves as clean as possible, and this spell is useful in such cases. Furthermore, Haruka has also achieved a spell that is not on the list. It''s a relatively small spell, only producing ice the size of a ping-pong ball, but it allows for the cooling and preservation of hunted prey, eliminating the need to return to the city immediately. Me?¡¡I haven''t created any new magic yet. And the most useful thing is the backpack that Haruka''s [sewing] skills shine and roar, and that Toya and I have incorporated our opinions into. This is an excellent product that took a lot of work, and was made in the image of the military backpacks of the original world. The base is made of cloth, reinforced with leather in necessary places, pockets for small items, and parts for tying strings. The bag is also designed to be removed in an instant during battle, and can be carried on the back like a backpack or by hand depending on the situation. At first, I had planned to buy a regular bag, but I found only simple backpacks, hand bags, and shoulder bags, and I couldn''t find anything like a backpack no matter how hard I looked. Fortunately, Haruka had sewing skills, so we decided to make something we could use easily, and after several prototypes, we completed the backpack we are using now. Although Haruka had to go through a lot of trouble, thanks to her, we were able to get enough for all of us at a relatively low price. Moreover, thanks to this backpack, we are able to carry a large amount of luggage, and even if we increase the ratio of hunting, we are able to bring back all the results. However, the difference in physical strength is unavoidable, and Toya carries more than twice as much as I do. I also carry more than Haruka, but the difference is minimal. So, my recent problem is that I feel like I''m not being very useful. "Hey, you two. "Hey, you two. I think it''s time for us to go deeper into the forest. In the past few days, my life has become more stable, and my behavioral patterns have become more or less set. I wake up early in the morning and finish my work by evening. Then, for a few hours until dinner, each of us will train with our swords and magic. After dinner, I would have Haruka apply Purify to me, and if I felt like it, I would bathe. In the hours before bedtime, we had a meeting to decide our future plans. In the middle of such a meeting, Haruka said what I just said. "Well, maybe it''s time to go ......? The reason why Toya''s words are a little unsure is probably because of what happened yesterday. I''ve been able to hunt the task boars that appear near the entrance to the forest without any problems, but the first one I encountered yesterday was a huge bear. The bear, called "Weipu Bear," was three meters tall in a standing position, which was overwhelmingly large for us. Toya attacked it bravely with an iron bar, but it didn''t seem to have any effect on us, and its height made it difficult to aim at its eyes and other vital points. I rushed in with my spear, and Haruka supported me with her bow, but they were ineffective due to the thick fur. In the end, I managed to kill it, thanks to Haruka''s arrow piercing my eye, and the fact that I ignored the consumption of magic power and used magic without worrying about damaging the fur, but to be honest, it was the first time since I came here that I felt my life was in danger. Even more painful was the fact that the price of the meat I brought back was higher than that of the task boar. Although it is rare, the taste is not that good. Task boars are very tasty. I heard that if the fur is clean, it can be sold for a very high price, but since it was quite tattered, it was sold off, and no good came of it at all for the risk. The only thing that comforted me was Diora''s comment that it was not every day that I came across a Weipu Bear. If she''d said, "It happens all the time," we might have reconsidered our decision. Incidentally, it seems that "it happens often" is when a rookie meets a vipu bear and gets wiped out. --Yeah, we don''t run into them very often, but when we do, we die, right? The only reason we were able to survive was because of Haruka''s bow and magic and Toya''s ability to support the front lines, so I can understand why the rookies would be killed. I''m not opposed to it, but I''m not a rookie in terms of skill level. I''m not opposed to it, but when it comes to the depths of the forest, it''s Dingdol, right?¡¡Do we need to go there? On the first day, Diora told me about the fruits that can be gathered deep in the forest. It is said that they can be bought for 100 to 300 rares each, but our current income is stable at 30,000 to 40,000 rares thanks to the boar. In order to earn that in Dindol, even if each one averaged 200 rares, you would have to pick up 200 of them. Even if you have a backpack, how can you bring back 200 apples the size of a small apple? If I sell them as is, I''ll make about the same as I do now, but if I can process them well, I can sell them at a higher price and double my income. It seems that the value of the dindle fruit can be more than doubled by drying the whole fruit and turning it into dried fruit. However, it is very difficult to dry a fruit of this size without cutting it and preventing it from rotting, and a great deal of know-how is required. That''s why they are expensive, but Haruka says, "I think I can manage that with my magic. Also, if we can dry them and make them last longer, we can sell them ourselves instead of wholesaling them to the guild, and we can sell them for a higher price. Well, if we sell them ourselves, we won''t have time to go out and collect them, so we''ll have to think about whether we should do it or not. "Hmm. I don''t know what to say. The new magic is just a drying magic.¡¡It''s useful for drying clothes, though. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I thought she was wearing the same clothes as us, having done the same cleansing as us. ....... No, no, no. Even simple magic is amazing. By the way, Nao. How many spells do you have now? Zero. What?¡¡What? "What?" Toya asks, deliberately putting his hands over his ears. "Zero!¡¡Godd*mn it! That''s my childhood friend. You''re a childhood friend, and you''re hitting me where it hurts! "Yeah, Nao. I''m not going to give up on you if you''re a bad boy. I''m not happy at all. --No, to be honest, I''m a little happy, but more than that, I''m frustrated. If you feel sorry for me, give me money. Give me some tips. Tips?¡¡Tips, ......?¡¡If I had to guess, I''d say imagine not only what you want to achieve, but also the process of achieving it. For example, in this case, "drying". For example, in this case, "drying". Instead of just thinking "dry it" and pouring magic power into it, they are using it by thinking "what do you want to do with the moisture contained in the object". In addition, even if the result is the same, the consumption of magic power differs depending on the process, and between "the water molecules move violently, generate heat, and disappear as vapor" and "the water is squeezed out and disappears," the latter is said to be more energy-saving. Haruka''s thought is that since the former has heat after being dried, that heat also consumes magic power. "Wow. Thank you, I''ll refer to it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to make a pseudo-microwave using the water magic method. The microwave oven uses microwaves to move water molecules and generate heat. In other words, if Haruka''s "drying" is really moving water molecules, then if it can be controlled well, it may be possible to heat food by stopping it at the heat generation stage before drying. Yes. We''re actually experimenting. It''s a step in the right direction. If it works, it''ll enrich our diet again!¡¡I''m counting on it!¡¡Oh, you don''t mind if I eat Nao, do you? We''ve been bringing lunch prepared by the inn every time we go out since we had some money to spare. Fortunately, we have never been unable to catch anything, but in order to eat what we have hunted, we need to build a fire, which inevitably takes a lot of time. So, I brought my own fire with me, but of course, it would be cold by then, and to be honest, the food at the inn, which is reasonably edible, is not so good when it is cold. I''ve been roasting it a little bit with my "ignition", but it doesn''t turn out very good, as Toya made fun of me. I''ll be making some useful magic for you soon.¡¡Keep your head down! "No, you''ll have to wash your head. What?¡¡I''m not going to cut off your head. I''m not going to cut off your head. ...... No, it''s something else. "Hey, Nao, useful magic is good, but combat magic, too, right? Yeah, yeah. Of course I''m working on that too. Now I''m trying to find a way to focus the "Fire Arrow" so that it doesn''t burn my fur, but it''s not going so well. It''s not a new spell, so it does work, but it doesn''t reduce the size of the arrow to the targeted 1 or 2 centimeters. However, I think I''ve achieved the point of making it smaller but not reducing its power, so I think I''m one step closer.¡¡I''m optimistic. So, are you both in favor of going deeper into the forest?¡¡--If we don''t step up our game little by little, we might end up as common adventurers. Oh, the one that dies at the end. That''s not good. Don''t forget to be ambitious. The goal is to be a successful adventurer. "Well, to be honest, I''m a little nervous. To be honest, I''m a little nervous." I nodded at Haruka''s words, but Toya snorted and shook his head. I''ll be honest, I''m a little nervous.¡¡So if you can get me a new weapon, I''m all for it. It wasn''t completely ineffective, but it was the magic and my spear that inflicted the fatal blow. With Toya''s current muscle strength, it was quite difficult to damage that bear''s flesh armor with a bludgeoning weapon. I''m not sure if Haruka remembered this, but she thought about it for a moment and nodded. So, yeah. That might be necessary. You can get by without savings right now,......, and a one-handed sword is fine to use? "As a beastman, I''d love to wield a two-handed sword, but I''m the only vanguard here. Would you prefer to be protected by a one-handed sword and shield? "With our style, I''d feel comfortable with that. Yeah, honestly, that would be great. When it comes to armor, Haruka and I are paper. We''re elves, so we don''t need to mention our physical strength. While Toya seems to be able to survive being hit by a bear, Haruka and I would probably break. Even so, I have to admire Toya''s courage in going toe-to-toe with that bear. Well, the right person for the right job, I guess. Just make sure it''s a good one, okay?¡¡I''m not only trusting you with my life, I''m trusting you with yours! And with that, Toya smiled. 17-015 Step Up? (2) I spent as much on Toya''s sword and shield as our funds would allow. They will serve as a wall between me and Haruka. If I were to be pulled out, I probably wouldn''t be able to support myself, so there was no reason to scrimp here. We spent a day training with the equipment, and the next day we ventured deep into the forest, a place we had never been before. Diora had already told us the location of the dindle tree, so there was no need to search for it. I was promised three Dindle berries as a reward, which was much better than searching through the unfamiliar forest. Compared to the outer edges of the forest, the deeper parts of the forest are much more difficult to walk through, probably because no one enters. With Toya in the lead, we trampled the undergrowth, cut away the branches, and made our way deeper into the forest. However, I feel a little uncomfortable using the sword I bought for this purpose. Give up on that. A machete costs a lot of money, and you''ll be packing it. Besides, that broadsword doesn''t have much of an edge, so it shouldn''t be a problem, right? Basically, swords in this world are more of a blunt instrument than a cutting tool. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. Even in this world, daggers and demolition knives have solid blades, but for adventurers, where the ability to survive is important, a broadsword like this is more convenient. You can''t wash and re-sharpen it every time you cut an enemy. What about the enemies on the road, Haruka?¡¡Hunt them down and bring them back? Avoid them if you can. As for the boar, if there''s room on the way back, we''ll hunt it. Understood. Perhaps because I''m getting used to my skills, I''ve recently become able to distinguish between targets recognized by [Searching for Enemies]. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. However, if the target looks like a demon, let''s fight it. And that''s one of the goals. This is one of the objectives that Haruka presented as a step up. One of the objectives that Haruka presented as a step up this time was to defeat the demon. To be precise, defeating humanoid monsters. This is the first step in dealing with human enemies such as bandits. Although there are few of them in this area, it seems that bandits appear quite often in some places, and the danger of being attacked by humans is higher than that of demons. Bandits, huh? There are such things in this world, aren''t there? In fact, it''s just that the world around us was peaceful, and robbers are common in the original world. Robberies are also common in the original world.¡¡Even snatchers are a kind of bandits. It''s just that it''s not ''kill or steal''. In some parts of the world, people say, "Don''t stop your car at a red light. In some parts of the world, it is common knowledge that you will be attacked if you stop, and even if you go to the police, they will tell you that it is your fault for stopping. In Japan, even if the mugger is not a mugger, the mugger will be arrested. In Japan, if you kill someone, even if they are a robber, you will be charged with a crime. The requirements for self-defense are quite strict. But humanoid... ...... can we do it? Well, if a gorilla attacked you, could you kill it? Gorillas have a very strong grip. ...... They throw shit at you. But I''m sure you could. I could kill a bear. The gorillas in the zoo are the ones who throw poop at you. No, I''ve never met a gorilla in the wild. Goblins are fine. Gorillas are closer to humans than goblins. Is that what you say? It''s strange that I feel okay when I''m compared like that. "First of all... I''m sure you''re right.¡¡Isn''t it enough to treat them as "animals"?¡¡It''s just that they have a slightly human sounding cry. Wow. ...... Haruka, you''re right. Yeah. I think thugs are the scourge of society. Pickpocketing, shoplifting, bicycle theft. "Don''t say ''delinquent'' half the time! "Yeah, I agree with you about the bicycles and umbrellas!¡¡I really want to kill them! I really want to kill him!" Toya nodded at Haruka''s words, and I agreed with him. The amount of damage is more than the amount of money, but because of the inconvenience you will suffer in the immediate aftermath, you will feel even more hatred. With an umbrella, you get wet instead of the culprit, and with a bicycle, you have to walk a long distance or take a bus or train. When I got my umbrella stolen and went home wet, I looked at the river on the way and thought, "If the culprit was there, I would have thrown him into this muddy river! I thought to myself. "Yes, yes!¡¡It''s all a crime, so why don''t we just get rid of it? --He was so unhappy that he said even more bitterly. Well, as far as Haruka is concerned, there''s no way around it. Haruka and her friends are quite cute, even without the favoritism of childhood friends, and they often get into trouble. When Toya and I go out together, it''s not a problem, but when we go out with just the girls, we get into a lot of trouble with pickup artists. We even got into a bit of trouble with the police once. In addition, Haruka is a bit of a sissy, so I heard that she sometimes had to get involved to help younger students. In particular, those who raped her should be castrated immediately. His genes are not worth keeping! Haruka''s face distorted as if she was remembering something bad, and she became more and more heated. It''s true that people who can''t even control themselves to that degree are honestly evil. But that doesn''t mean that we have to burden our children with it. There are also victims who give birth to such children without any intention. "Oh, Haruka. I generally agree with you, but children don''t get to choose their genes, do they? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. So, yes. That was a bit too genetic. But considering the psychology of victims and the high recidivism rate of s*x crimes, I think physical sanctions are necessary. To be honest, it''s pretty scary to think that the person who attacked you could be out there in a few years, and he could be anywhere. Even though he calmed down, it was still a bit extreme. I understand how you feel, but... "Hey, Nao... Haruka, what''s wrong? "Oh, you don''t know, do you? One of my junior girls was victimized before. Fortunately, I was able to save her just before ...... the junior girl was .......) (That''s definitely a traumatic experience.) Haruka was tense for a while at that time, and it was quite difficult. I remember that I had to take care of her and put her in a good mood even though I didn''t do anything wrong. "In the first place, before talking about the criminal''s ''second chance,'' isn''t it more important to talk about the victim''s ''life without a second chance,'' who has been irreparably injured? Well, if a friend or family member of mine was victimized by a criminal''s "second chance," I would definitely think, "If only he had been castrated" or "If only he had stayed in jail. I''d be wondering if her life was ruined by the opportunity she gave to a criminal. "Well, we don''t have that over here, so make sure you do, okay?¡¡If I lose, you''ll be killed and I''ll be raped and then killed. Just keep that in mind and you''ll probably be fine. "Uh-huh. Now that I think about it, I feel like I can kill the bandits that are coming to kill us. Yes, you''re right. In a sense, humanity and human rights are the arrogance of the powerful. To put it another way. There is no way you can care for a criminal in a dying situation. However, whether you can make a decision if you suddenly find yourself in that situation is another matter. I think it was not a waste of time to discuss and prepare in advance. We had such a conversation. Well, that''s the conversation we had. In fact, fortunately or unfortunately, we did not encounter any goblins before we reached our destination today. There was a reaction that looked like a boar, but I was able to notice it in advance and avoided it. It took us about an hour from the time we entered the forest to this point. The reason why I was able to get there without getting lost, even though I had only asked for the general location, was because the dindle tree was much higher than the surrounding trees. "...... Wow, this is ......, I''ve heard of it, but it''s really tall, isn''t it? "How high is it?¡¡It''s taller than an apartment building, right? Is it more than 50 meters?¡¡I''m not sure. The three of us looked up at the tree, which was more than twice as tall as the other trees around it. The tree was more than twice as tall as the other trees around it, and when we looked at the tip with our eagle eyes, we could see a number of red berries. The trunk of the tree is quite thick, not as thin and tall as a cedar, but as thick and stout as a camphor tree. And yet, with its height, it has a tremendous presence. I''ve seen one of the biggest camphor trees in Japan before, but I think it was more than twice as tall and as big. It''s amazing. Are you two going to climb it?¡¡I can''t do it. Yeah. If I hadn''t become an elf, I wouldn''t have thought of climbing it either. It''s true that it''s high, but after climbing it so many times in the forest over the past week, it''s strange that I think I can manage it. I wondered, "But with so many berries growing, why doesn''t anyone come and get them?¡¡That''s a good way to make money, right? Have you considered how many dindle trees there are and how long it took you to get here in the first place? Oh, I see. We''ve been in the forest for about an hour. If you take into account the time it took to get from the city to the forest, you''ll probably be here for a couple of hours at most. After the second time, you don''t have to pay the bills or check the path, but it''s still a long way. However, if we stay here overnight, we can only carry so much. Besides, there are only a few people who can climb this tree. That was one of the assumptions. The reward is rookie level, but the problem is that it''s not a job that everyone can take. Elves seem to have an excellent sense of balance on trees as a characteristic of their race, so it''s relatively easy, but for other races, it''s difficult unless you''re really good at climbing trees. In addition, it''s hard to bring down the fruit from the tree, isn''t it? Haruka said, pointing to the top of the tree. In a way, this seems to be the most difficult part. It''s impossible to throw them down from the top because it''s too high. The branches of the tree would get in the way, and it would be impossible to catch more than 100 apples dropped from the top of the apartment building. Even if you try to drop the apples by attaching a string to the bag, there are branches in the way, so you cannot drop them all at once, and you will have to relay the string several times. Then it would take longer to collect, and the result would be less fruit. So, we have backpacks. The advantage of a backpack is that you can use both hands, and since it is close to your body, it is difficult to lose your balance. The advantage of a backpack is that you can use both hands and keep your balance. So, do I just wait downstairs? No, it''s probably not safe for you to be alone, so you might as well be up on the lowest branch. By the way, if we go up, Toya will be alone, right? Although Toya is now able to kill a boar by herself, it seems dangerous for her to be alone in a place where goblins might appear for the first time. The branch at the bottom of the ...... tree? The branch that Toya looked up at was about five meters from the base - about the height of the roof of a two-story house. That''s pretty high. I mean, how are we going to get up there?¡¡We can''t reach it, no matter how hard we try. No matter how much my physical ability has improved, I am still not strong enough to jump up a five-meter branch. Near the base of the branch, it was relatively straight and uneven, making it difficult to climb by hand. If I could reach the lowest branch, I could climb up from there because there are many branches, but that would be a difficult task. "Of course I''m thinking about that. Information gathering, of course. He looked up at me and nodded his head. ...... I''m sorry. I''m sorry. I was just relieved to hear the location. I''ve got the tools ready for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. --That''s it? That''s all you''ve got?¡¡Because Haruka told me to. So, I''ll throw this! I''ve got a weight on the end of the rope. Haruka threw the rope, and it fell over the target branch to the ground. If you hold both ends of the rope and pull it like this and then like this, ...... The rope was pulled tight and tied to the base of the branch. Now all you have to do is use it as a support to climb up. Haruka is quick to say, using the slight unevenness of the tree trunk as a foothold, he climbs upward using the rope as well. It''s so easy to climb, man. Nao, can you do it? "Hmm... Maybe? In the original world, it would have been impossible, but now I feel like I can do it. Here we go! Oh, I got there. In one breath, I''m next to Haruka. Looks like this is no problem. I can''t do that. I can''t do that!" "Well, if you have a rope, you can make it work. Toya grabbed the rope and gave it a few tugs, then grabbed it tightly and climbed up. That''s what this is. A rope rappelling ascent. Unlike us, who use tree trunks as footholds, he is lifting his weight and his load with only the strength of his arms, which is quite muscular. "......, what should I do from here? After smoothly reaching the top of the rope, Toya looked up at us as if in a bit of trouble. If it was a thin branch, we could probably grab it and climb up, but the branch we were standing on was over 50 centimeters thick. There was a rope hanging from the bottom of the branch, making it difficult to move to the top. We used the unevenness of the trunk to move upward: ....... We should have retied the rope to a higher branch before he climbed. "It''s no use. Here, hold on. I''m sorry. I reach out to Toya and pull him up. I''m not very strong, but I can hold a man, and with my animal strength, I can do this. Are you okay?¡¡Okay, we''ll go upstairs. ...... Toya stayed here. Waiting on this branch for the next few hours will be hard and boring, but it will be easier than us climbing up, harvesting, and coming down again, so please be patient. "Oh, Haruka, can I borrow your bow?¡¡And Nao''s spear. But you can''t use it, can you, Toya? Well, yeah, but we can kill him safely from here, right? Arrows aren''t cheap, and I don''t want you to waste too many of them. ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure I''m going to be able to do it. It''s a good idea to use a bow that''s not too strong, as it''s designed for Halka. ......? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. As Haruka told him, Toya fixed the bow, and after a few times, it took shape. I don''t know if I can shoot the arrow well. If you can, don''t waste too many arrows, okay? Of course I''m not going to waste them. And don''t do anything rash just because you''re free. "Okay, okay. Toya replied lightly, but I had a feeling that she was not trustworthy. I guess Haruka feels the same way. He raises his eyebrows, but then, perhaps giving up, he breathes and turns to face you. I''m worried about something,......, but that''s okay. Nao, let''s go. Yeah. Be careful, you two!¡¡I''m more worried about you two than me, okay? You''re right. If you fall, you die. But I''m not so scared. I waved lightly to Toya and started climbing. 18-016 Step Up? (3) The trunks of dindle trees are more crooked than those of cedar and cypress trees commonly seen in Japan, and they have more branches. They are relatively easy to climb without any special equipment, but in case of emergency, we took turns holding the rope as we climbed. It''s a strange feeling, isn''t it?¡¡It''s like knowing where you''re safe. ...... "Well, that''s what being an elf is all about, isn''t it?¡¡Come on, we''re almost at the top. The wind is very strong around here, but in a way, it''s strange that I don''t feel any fear. On the branches swaying in the breeze, there are many ripe berries, as well as many still green and yellow berries. Ms. Diora said that the ding dong season is past midway, but it looks like we won''t have any trouble collecting them from this tree alone for a while yet. So let''s split up and pick some here and some there. Take it easy, okay? I nodded as Haruka, who had retied the lifeline to a large branch, pointed to it, and I too began to pick from the immediate area. The fruit, which looks like a slightly squashed apple, is much heavier than I expected. The skin is a little thick and tough, but it smells sweet and sour. I checked the color and threw the ripe ones into my backpack at random. There are so many berries around here that I hardly have to move at all, instead of growing in the middle. It took me less than 15 minutes. Soon my backpack was full. I took a breath and looked at Haruka, who still had some room left. "Haruka, I''m almost done here, do you need help? "Yes, I''d like that. I think I''d better. It''s not safe to climb down if we fill it up. Haruka looked at her backpack, shook it lightly and nodded. "Yeah, right? I''ve got as much as I can fit in there. ....... I''ve got a few things to take out and throw away. I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m not sure what to do. You can move some of it over to me. With a little chuckle, she pointed to her own backpack, and I took her at her word and moved some of the dindle berries over. Then they closed each other''s backpacks tightly and checked their balance. I think we''re okay, right?¡¡Okay, I''m coming down. We''re going to be here for a while, so let''s leave the rope tied here. "But won''t the others use it?¡¡You don''t want them to get the berries, do you? Honestly, this rope will make the climb much easier. Maybe it''s not impossible even if you''re not an elf. So I''m not going to leave it hanging down, but I''m going to pull it up to a certain point. If it still comes up, ...... well, that''s good, isn''t it?¡¡It''s not like it''s a job that''s so good that you have to monopolize it. You know what I mean? It''s not that bad of a job. It was a bit much for a complete rookie because of the possibility of demons appearing, but on the other hand, by the time demons could be killed easily, there would be more ways to earn money. So, in a sense, there is almost no competition, as it is only for adventurers like us who are just starting out. If the supply is low, the price is likely to rise, but still, fruit is fruit. Because it is not a necessity, there is an upper limit. That''s the current line, I guess. However, people who like it seem to like it a lot, and when it is sold in the market, it is almost certain to be sold, and in some cases, there are requests to collect it. However, since the rewards are not that high, it seems that most of the berries on the market are collected by adventurers who love dindol, without regard to profit. I hope we graduate from rookies next year and get more profitable jobs ....... But before that, we have to be alive, right? Don''t say anything sinister. I''m coming down then. I called out to Haruka and started to descend. The descent is more like a rappel with a rope. The tree trunks of the dindle trees are not vertical, so even a person with no special skills can do it. As you go down, you''ll see something strange on ....... It''s like a field athletic net stretched between two branches. On it, Toya is lying down. "Oh, Nao. Are you done? "Yeah. Yeah, there was a lot of it. What''s this? I put my foot on the net-- it''s pretty sturdy, isn''t it? I figured it would take a while, so I made a resting place, but it was a bit of a waste, wasn''t it? I thought it would take some time, so I made a resting place. It took a long time, as expected, and it was finished only a few minutes ago. Then he laid down and I came down. You know, I''ve done that before. When I looked in the direction Toya was pointing, I saw a gutted boar hanging from the branch of another tree. Did you kill it? Oh. Almost no problem with boars anymore. At first, we left it to Haruka, but after a few days she got used to it and was able to do some simple dismantling. The only thing that is still difficult is removing the fur, so we basically leave it to Haruka or practice under her guidance, so the boar hanging there still has its fur on. Toya, you''ve got a lot of time on your hands, don''t you? A little later, Haruka landed next to me and looked at Toya with a bit of dismay. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that there''s more to come tomorrow, but ...... don''t waste too much time, okay?¡¡It''s not a cheap rope either. It''s okay. It''s not cut, so you can untie it and reuse it. And I''ve retied this one, too. He pointed to the rope he had used to climb this branch. The rope that had been tied to the branch had been retied a little higher up, so that it circled the trunk and hung down along the trunk. Hmm. I guess we don''t need to rappel like Toya did in the beginning. So that''s how he climbed up after hunting the boar. You hunted a boar too. How many arrows did you use? "......13. I''ve collected them all. Toya looks away a little awkwardly. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who can''t afford to buy a new one. I''m not sure what to do. You can''t reach me from the tree tops with my spear. Why don''t you just use your sword when you get down on the ground? Well, that''s acceptable. "Well, I guess it''s acceptable. I can reuse some of them as they are. Haruka nodded humbly as she inspected the arrows Toya had used. Incidentally, the arrows that are easiest to reuse are the ones that miss. If you don''t hit it, it is less likely to be damaged. It''s obvious. Of course, damaged arrows are also collected and repaired. The easy ones are made by Toya, who has the blacksmithing skill, while the difficult ones are taken to the weapon shop. Arrows that fly straight and true are expensive. You can''t afford to waste them. Small savings add up to big bucks. Have you seen anyone else? No. Only Tasker Boar. But he seems to have come to eat the fallen dindle berries, so there''s a chance that demons might be gathering around here. "I see. If you want to avoid danger, you should go home while you still can. ...... Haruka said and pondered. One of the purposes of coming here is to try to kill goblins, so what should we do? If there are goblins near the city, there will be a request to kill them, but killing goblins in this area will only yield magic stones. It''s not a lot of money, so it''s a little tricky. ....... "Toya hunted a boar. If you haven''t eaten it in a while and don''t run into it before you leave, we can call it another time. "Yeah, ......, I guess so. We''ll be back tomorrow, so there''s no hurry. Whoa!¡¡It''s been a while since I''ve eaten here!¡¡I''m looking forward to it! Since the first day, we had eaten ready-made lunches, sparing the time to build a fire and sell the meat. When I remembered the taste of it, ...... oops, I drooled. ....... "Okay, I''ll take care of the meat, you guys go get the firewood. "Yes, sir! Our movements were swift. We immediately went into the forest and raked up branches. There was no shortage of dead branches in this area, as there were no more people than in the outer edges of the forest. You gather them at a distance from the dindle tree and quickly build a fire. I''m quite familiar with magic, so this is no problem for me. What?¡¡Is it easy?¡¡No, no, it''s quite difficult to control. If you just ''ignite'' it, it won''t light up like a candle, and if you make it too strong, it will burn up. In the future, it will be even better if we can create a magic that can make a fire immediately. If you''re cooking in a pot or something, it''s okay to have flames coming out, but if you''re cooking over an open fire, it''s going to take a long time because only the surface of the fire is going to burn if it doesn''t catch fire. The solution would be to carry charcoal with you instead of collecting firewood, but there is no way you can do such a thing that would be a burden. In the meantime, Haruka''s preparation was finished, and as before, each of us was given two skewers of meat, or three for Toya. Oh, thank you. That''s Haruka, she knows her stuff! Toya, too, smilingly accepts the skewers and sticks them around the campfire. "Hey, Haruka. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡If we prepare a pot, can we eat spare ribs too? The ribs are delicious, but I also like spare ribs. I''d like to try the spare ribs from Task Boar, which are much better than the pork I usually eat. "Oh, me too!¡¡I want some, too! "I''m choosing the part for its ease of grilling on a spit. I don''t really care if it''s not in a pot or on a grill, but the seasoning, you know? ...... Oh, if it''s spare ribs, I want soy sauce or something. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure it''s delicious with other flavors as well, but it''s too much of a waste to use only salt, which I currently have. Well, now that I have a little more money, I might as well buy some cooking tools. I wonder if you have a cooker or something like that. A cooker is an outdoor pot or pan that can be stored compactly for easy carrying. I''ve never used one myself, though. I''ve done some camping before, but it''s easy, like driving a car. You don''t need to buy an expensive and compact one, an ordinary one is enough. Those are probably bought by people who enjoy mountain climbing. If you are going to spend a lot of time in the mountains, why don''t you consider it?¡¡You''ll be packing a lot of stuff. I wish I had an item box. That''s where Nao comes in, isn''t it? Ugh, I''ll do my best. ...... However, I don''t even know if such magic exists. I''m not sure if there''s even such a thing as space-time magic, but it''s so rare that it''s not even generally known what kind of magic there is. One such magic that is known is "space expansion," which can be combined with alchemy to create bags and boxes that can hold more things than usual. Both are called "magic bags". This is probably the best choice at the moment, but it is quite difficult to get a magic bag. First of all, they are very rare because there are very few users of space-time magic, and they rarely appear on the market. Even if it does, it''s not something that we can afford. In the end, the only way would be to wait for my ¡¾Time and Space Magic¡¿and Haruka''s ¡¾Alchemy¡¿to improve, and somehow become able to make them ourselves. Both of them have yet to even get a clue. By the way. By the way, since it takes time for the meat to cook, Dingdol, would you like to try some? "Yes!¡¡I can''t tell you how many times I''ve wanted to bite into one while I was taking it! I nodded without a second thought as Toya glanced at my backpack. I could feel it while I was picking them, but even now I could smell the sweetness of them coming from my backpack. I haven''t eaten anything sweet since I came here, because there is almost no sweetness in this world. That''s why this smell is almost violent in a way. I''ve been wondering about that too. ...... A little goes a long way. Haruka must have agreed with him. Without any particular objection, he took out the fruit and a knife from his backpack. "Let''s just ...... cut it up, shall we? Haruka, not knowing how to eat it, first cuts it in half. The three of us look at the cross section. The skin is ...... probably going to be thrown away, right? The skin around it is thick like an orange and looks hard to eat. The skin is a little strange because it is all red, but it looks like bell bell pepper. The inside of the skin is filled with a slightly yellowish pulp. For some reason, there are no seeds, so at first glance, it looks like a bowl of jelly poured into the skin. It''s a strange fruit, isn''t it?¡¡Don''t they usually have a seed in the center? Yes, ......, though it looks easy to eat. Let''s try a quarter of it. And then cut it in half and hand it to us, Haruka. This is a great way to make sure you are getting the best value for your money. The texture is similar to a hard peach ...... plum. The skin comes off very well and there are no seeds, so it can be eaten easily. The peaches have very little fiber and are very pleasant to the tongue, giving the impression that they are more like sweets that have been carefully prepared than mere fruit. "This is delicious! "Oh. It''s easy to eat, and I can see why it''s so popular. I looked at Toya, who said happily, and we both looked at the remaining slice in Haruka''s hand. "What?¡¡Do you want to eat it? Haruka, who hadn''t taken a bite out of it like we had, but had cut it into small pieces and was eating her own portion in an elegant manner, noticed our gaze and asked. We nodded in agreement. I''m sure you''ll be pleased with the results. What?¡¡But they cost two or three thousand yen each, right? What''s wrong with that?¡¡You can sell them for a lot of money. If you sell three of them, it''s enough to pay for a day''s lodging. That''s the selling price, and the market price is much higher. It''s like a high quality mango in the original world.¡¡Considering that they are smaller than apples, the price is not affordable. Well, I''m not a grower, but I think it''s good to have this kind of luxury as a collector''s privilege. I''d be choked if I had to save all the time. I thanked Haruka for cutting it up and handing it to me, then crunched on it. Yes, it''s delicious. It''s not just sweet, so you won''t get tired of it. "In return, Nao, can you pick me another one?¡¡It tastes even better than I expected, so let''s pick as many as we can and go home. Haruka''s eyes were fixed on Toya''s empty backpack. The original plan was to fill it with random game and medicinal herbs on the way home, but that was also to fill it with Dindol. "...... Oh, I understand. I''m off. If Haruka can''t cook and Toya can''t climb, it''s inevitable that I should go. Well, the rope is already in place. I don''t need to retie the rope again and again, and I have a good grasp of the branching, so I should be able to make it there and back before the meat is cooked. I threw all the dingles I had in my mouth, and took Toya''s backpack on my back and climbed into the tree. 19-017 Step Up? (4) When I came down from the dindle tree, there was a wolf drooling in my care. Needless to say, it was Toya. "Welcome home!¡¡Bon app¨¦tit! As soon as I set my foot on the ground, there it was. "¡«¡«¡«¡«, yum! As soon as I took a bite of the meat, his eyes narrowed and he roared with joy. "You''re so busy. Thanks for your hard work, Nao. Thank you. "No, I''m fine. No, I''m fine. I''ll have one too. I put down my backpack, sat down next to Haruka, and picked up the skewer that was offered to me. I see a large stone on the fire, on which a loaf of bread is being heated. "Bon app¨¦tit. As soon as I took a bite, the fat from the meat overflowed with a crispy sound. It''s just as good as the last time I ate it, but this time it''s even better. ...... There''s a slight fruity scent to it. Haruka, do you use dindol fruit in this? No. But ...... it does have a hint of ....... Does that mean they''re eating fallen berries? Natural high quality feed? I''ve heard that high end wagyu cattle drink beer to make the meat taste better, but this is even higher end feed than that. I took a piece of bread, cut a slit in it, put the meat between the slices, and bit into it. The crispy surface of the bread, the fluffy interior, and the fragrant fat of the meat soaking into it. It is exquisite. It''s seasoned only with salt, but it''s still delicious. Isn''t this a waste of money to sell it?¡¡At least it''s too cheap for the same price! "I agree. But it can''t be stored. That''s true. ...... I''m not sure what to make of this. Direct cooling is limited to making drinks cold, and there is no hope of freezing or preserving them. In the first place, freezing is almost useless since we don''t have a freezer. I''ll just have to ask Nao to do her best there. Yes, that''s definitely my area of responsibility. The basic idea of a magic bag made with space-time magic is to increase the capacity of the bag, but as you get better at it, it will also reduce weight and slow down time. Once you get to that point, you will be able to store not only a large amount of luggage, but also food that has an expiration date. Conversely, a rudimentary magic bag may be able to hold a lot of stuff, but it will make the bag heavier. "d*mn!¡¡Let''s master it by next year and come back to hunt boars this time of year! "Yes. Then we can store up the dindle berries ...... and Toya can-- When I looked at him, I noticed that he was strangely quiet, as if he was the first one to talk about meat, but before I knew it, the three skewers had already disappeared and he had taken the liberty of starting to grill the meat himself. Hmm?¡¡It''s a shame we can''t eat as much of this delicious meat as we can. Toya noticed me and Haruka looking at him, but he didn''t take offense and continued to cook the meat. "You''re not eating enough? It''s okay, though. It''s not as bad as it sounds. But as elves, we can''t eat as much as Toya, unfortunately. "Toya, I''m not saying don''t eat it, just say the word. It doesn''t taste good as it is, does it? Haruka also said in disgust, taking the meat from Toya, slicing it and sprinkling salt on it before giving it back. I''m sure that will make it a little better, but it''s big and it will take time.¡¡Well, Nao, why don''t we try the spare ribs?¡¡We''ve got some stones that are cooked just right. Oh. Me too!¡¡I want some too! As if to interrupt my reply, Toya raises his hand and asserts himself. He shrugged his shoulders lightly, cut out the meat, seasoned it, and began to grill it on the stone. To be honest, if all you season it with is salt, I think the ribs taste better. As he said this, he added more wood to the fire and began to grill the meat on the stone, turning it over with his chopsticks. Of course, these chopsticks were made by myself. Chopsticks that are easy to make and can be used for many purposes are great, aren''t they? They can perform the functions of various cutlery with a single type. There is a drawback that the learning cost is a little high, and that it is not as good as cutlery in specialized fields. What should I do with ...... when it''s almost done? On second thought, there were no plates and no chopsticks for each person. Haruka thought about it for a while, then tore off a large leaf from around the corner, wrapped it around a spare rib, and offered it to us. He tore off a large leaf and wrapped it around the spareribs and offered them to us, saying, "Don''t worry, it''s just a leaf used in food stalls instead of dishes. I thought it was just a leaf, but he had chosen it carefully. I thought it was just some leaves, but he had chosen them well. Now, as for the spare ribs, ...... yes, they are good. It''s good, but not quite good enough. If you''re going to grill them with salt, it''s better to grill the ribs on skewers. It''s not as light as it should be, and there''s not as much fat as there should be. No, but it''s got a nice crunch to it, don''t you think? ...... Toya, that''s not meat, that''s bone, okay? If it tastes good to you, it''s probably because you''re a beast. At least, I don''t think I''ll bite it. ...... Should I give Toya a femur bone or something? "Like a dog? I don''t think I''m going to give her a femur bone. I''m not sure if bones are actually good to eat or not.¡¡There is a stereotype of a dog with a bone in its mouth. No, I don''t know. I don''t know. Is the feeling of crunching pleasant?¡¡The taste is slightly delicious?¡¡It''s not super tasty, but it makes you want to chew it for some reason. ...... It''s like gum.¡¡But it does have a taste. ....... It''s instinctive.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or a bad thing. Yeah, I don''t know. I don''t know. Just keep it out of sight and have fun with it. It doesn''t cost a lot, but it''s too bad for the public to see someone I know walking around with a big bone in their mouth. No, I don''t usually do that.¡¡I don''t usually do it. I just like to nibble on bones when I find them. There seems to be no need to worry about publicity. However, it was quite a shocking image for me to see him chewing up the ribs while saying that. It''s not like it''s been stewed for a long time. It''s just roasted bone, it''s pretty hard.¡¡A human or an elf would have a jaw like that. Well, don''t worry about the bones. But the bones are fine. Can''t you make this into dried meat? "Dried meat! I was thinking of refrigeration and freezing based on modern standards, but it was different in the past! But in the past, it was different! But in the past, it was different! "Come to think of it, how do you make it?¡¡Toya, do you know? I don''t know. ...... slice them up and dry them in the sun? I don''t think so. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. I don''t know. I''m not sure what to do. If you''re on the level of this world, you should first pickle them with salt. If you have the right herbs, you can pickle them together. Once the salt has penetrated, wash and dry them. That''s about it. Is it safe from bacteria and parasites? It''s like cured pork ham. Strong salt will help. If you can afford it, you might be able to make something tasty by using a different pickling liquid or smoking it, but as it is now, there is a high possibility that the dried meat will be salty and not very tasty. If that''s okay with you, I''ll try to make it. The drying process, which normally takes the longest time, can be managed by using the magic of [Drying], which was tried and tested in order to dry the dindle fruit, so it is possible to make it. Can you do it?¡¡Dried meat, it''s like a fantasy, I''m a little bit in love with it. I agree!¡¡Kuro bread and ale were pretty disappointing fantasies. "Disappointing fantasy"... even dried meat would have the same result. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s better than anything you can buy. But this world doesn''t have much in the way of fantasy other than magic. If I had to guess, I''d say that the status check and help functions are strange, but . "It''s not fantasy enough. It''s not fantasy enough. What''s our race anyway? We''re elves. And Toya has beast ears on her head. It''s all very fantastical. However, the townscape and the way of life give the impression of being underdeveloped and inconvenient rather than fantasy. I guess that''s what you get when you actually enter a fantasy world. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''ve never seen anything like it. ...... Yeah, I agree with you. There''s nothing like it on Earth!¡¡I don''t think magic is enough. I think magic is good enough for me. Like what? Mysterious metals like mithril, or swords that somehow cut like crazy? Toya, who was a blacksmith, mentioned those kinds of things. It''s true that those things are fighting against the laws of physics. There''s a description of a sword cutting down a big tree, but it''s going to get stuck! If you cut a tree with a saw, you will understand that the saw blade has teeth called claws that are tilted to the left and right. This allows the saw blade to cut a wider area of wood than the saw blade, and the saw blade can pass through the gap. What about an extremely sharp sword? Even if the tip of a sword with a diamond-shaped cross-section can cut anything, the width of the cut is only the width of the tip. Of course, the peak is thicker than the tip, so there is no way it can pass through. If it can cut, it should be a sword with a very thin blade, or a beam saber that can cut even if the blade is not part of the blade, or a mysterious sword that transcends the laws of physics and the blade part can slip through the target. No, I''d rather see such a sword in fantasy. For me, it''s dragons and dungeons. Speaking of fantasy, these two things are inevitable. When I turned to Toya, he nodded vigorously, so I guess it''s a relatively common image. "Nao, you''re lucky you didn''t meet ....... If you had, you wouldn''t be alive, would you? He looked at me in disgust and sighed heavily. It''s okay to talk about your dreams. "Dragons are a myth. "Dragons are, well, a myth. I don''t know if they''re real or not, but people think they''ll kill you if they see one. There are dungeons, though. "Oh, you do?¡¡A dungeon? Seriously?¡¡I want to go! Yeah, I kind of agree with you. "I don''t even know why it exists or how it was created. By the way, if the starting point was a dungeon, I would have died. That''s true, isn''t it? Even in the early Wee Dolly, where the initial equipment for attacking a dungeon was cloth clothes and 10 large silver coins, I think it was a bit better. Besides, even if you can manage it in a game, in real life you''ll die. "So, Toya, I''m not saying you can''t go to the dungeon, but it''s not for a while. You don''t want to die, do you? "That''s ....... I''ll leave it to you. I''ll leave it to Haruka. This is what we''ve learned in the past week or so. 20-018 Step Up? (5) In the end, they didn''t see any goblins or boars until they got back to town. Toya wanted to hunt one more boar to increase the amount of dried meat, but there was still a lot of meat left. He was reluctant to go hunting because Haruka told him to think of the trouble I would have to go through to cook it. In the first place, it would be impossible to carry more meat than I could carry if I hunted another one. So, on the way back, I collected only a small amount of medicinal plants and herbs that could be used for dried meat. This was the time before evening. At this time of night, the adventurer''s guild is relatively empty. The most crowded times are just after dawn, when the day laborers arrive, and just before sunset. To be frank, it''s a bit crowded during those times. Basically, it''s a good thing that they don''t come in contact with us. The adventurers who come during these hours are those who have gone out of town on a mission like us, but there are not many of them. There is not much work for adventurers in this relatively peaceful area, and adventurers who have reached a certain level of maturity move to other cities in search of more money. Thanks to this, we''ve been able to work at a leisurely pace, so I guess it wasn''t a bad place to move to. You''re all right, Evil God! Welcome back, Diora. Welcome back, Haruka. Welcome back, Haruka, and welcome back to Nao and Toya. I''m back. I''m back. At this time of day, Mr. Diora is usually sitting at the counter. It''s nice to have someone to talk to after work. In this world, there is no such thing as a day off, so he goes to work every day unless he has a particular reason. If you don''t work hard enough to earn that much money, you will have a hard time making a living. For adventurers who are not day laborers, the more skilled you are, the more time off you get. This is partly because the income per request is large, but it is also because many of the jobs are quite demanding, and it is hard to rest. For example, an escort request. While traveling, you will need to stay in the field and keep watch at night. Even if you take a nap, it is not hard to imagine how exhausting it would be if it continues for several days. Therefore, it is only natural that your performance will be affected if you do not take a rest for at least a day or two after arriving in a city. If you don''t rest because of financial constraints, you will make mistakes, and in some cases, you will die. This seems to be the reason why many middle-aged and older adventurers who can no longer take it easy retire or die. Mr. Diora, this is for your information. Thank you very much. It''s my favorite time of the year. "Thank you very much, it''s the best time of the year..." He put his nose to the dindle fruit, inhaled and smiled. "Mmm, it smells good. Now I have something to look forward to after dinner. Diora carefully placed the dingdol in the bag she had given him. But Haruka and the others are very good at gathering and hunting in the forest. Is it because they are elves?¡¡If you have a magic bag, you can make more money. His gaze was fixed on our bulging backpacks. I haven''t seen them around here before. Are they expensive? It''s expensive and rare. It takes an alchemist as well as a user of space-time magic to make one. Almost no one has the aptitude for it. "I see. Then it must be difficult to make one. No, there are only a few users of space-time magic, but it''s not that difficult to make. I heard it''s in the alchemy dictionary. Hmm?¡¡I knew it was expensive and rare, but wasn''t it difficult to make? In addition, there''s something about the word ....... that bothers me. What''s an alchemy dictionary? "Huh?¡¡Don''t you know?¡¡It seems that every alchemist has one. It''s something they make you buy when you join the Alchemists Society. ......? "Oh, so it''s not something you can get normally? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you out. No, not at all. Not at all. What? It seems that buying this is like paying a membership fee to the association, and they make you buy it even if you don''t need it. But only an alchemist would need a book like this, right?¡¡So what if the alchemist dies or something? No need for it? Yes. Unlike ordinary books, it''s not something that ordinary people can read, and even if there is an alchemist in the family, they will have to buy a new one if they join the association. That''s why they are sometimes sold cheaply at used bookstores. "Oh, I see. Do you sell them? It seems to sell a little, because people use it as a reference when they buy items. You can find them here, too. It''s for adventurers to consult. For example, when a demon with a special attack appears, they use it to check if there is an item to deal with it. But this year, we were lucky to have Haruka and her team. Without someone to go and pick them, the information on where to pick them is meaningless. It is Diora''s secret pleasure to sell the information about the location to rookies who go to collect the fruits and get them to give them to her. However, not all adventurers are at that level, and not all adventurers can climb the Dindol tree every year. "Mr. Diora, is that an abuse of authority? "Well, it''s a legitimate transaction. "Well, it''s a legitimate transaction, and it saved Halka from having to look for you. I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. Well, it''s true that we don''t have to scour the forest anymore. Even if you gather information from other people, you still need to be paid. Abuse of authority is a thing. "Abuse of authority is a thing, you know, like buying something at a discount because it''s damaged or something. "What? Hearing this, Haruka''s hand, which was about to take out the dindle to sell, stopped. "Ah!¡¡I''m not going to do that.¡¡It''s the right thing to do.¡¡I''ll buy it at a fair price.¡¡It''s true! I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. Rather, there is nothing but suspicion. "Are you sure?¡¡Will you buy this properly? "Of course!¡¡But, well, let''s see... ....... Some of them are still-- The standard purchase price for a dindle is between 100 and 300 rares. Most of the Dindol I took were priced at 300 rare, but some were priced at 200 rare. I''m not sure if the percentage of low prices is more than 5%. I took a look at it myself, and it looks fine to eat with a few scratches. ....... In fact, that scratch is the problem. ...... It is true that they are bought at a fair price, but it is also true that the value of the fruit is reduced if it is damaged, so they are shared at a private price. If you want to eat them right away, they are no problem at all, but if you want to dry them, the bruised parts are more likely to get damaged, so they are cheaper. So, I''m not trying to be stingy with my purchases, okay?¡¡It''s just that not everyone understands that. ...... "Oh, I see. It''s a kind of Kramer. I''m sure you''re not the only one, but you''re the only one who knows how to do it. It''s ......, but if you think about it, isn''t the family price just a diversion? "No, I''m buying it before it goes on the books, so no problem! No problem! --No, no, no, no. That''s gray. I''m sure he felt our eyes on him, but he shook his head. No, no, really!¡¡But if you want to consume it for yourself or your family, you are allowed to do so!¡¡--implicitly. Is it like an employee price? Is there a concept of welfare in this harsh world, or are the rules simply too loose? At the end of the interview, he quietly added something that bothered me, so I guess the latter is more likely. Well, I don''t mean to say that such things are necessarily wrong. There are countries on earth where the salary system takes into account the tips given by customers, and there are countries where the salary is low in exchange for bribes or lodging. I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. ....... I don''t mind if Diora doesn''t get fired. It''s a good thing I''m not the only one. It''s one of the few perks you get. Diora is fond of dildos, but their market price is too high for a receptionist''s salary to buy them. At the very least, it is more than she can easily afford as a luxury item, so in a sense, the Guild''s damaged dirndls, which can be bought for less than half the market price, are her reward. There are only a few female employees in this guild, so it''s nice to have less competition! Toya and I looked at each other and smiled. Personally, I''m looking for a young, beautiful receptionist. Diora is about 30 years old and looks cute, but young is -- oops, something gives me chills. Yes, Diora is perfectly fine, yes. So it would be great if you could sell them all to me. ...... I''m sure you''ll be glad you did. Diora''s eyes are on my backpack and Toya''s, which are still bulging. Incidentally, Toya''s backpack is mostly full of meat, so Diora''s gaze is a little off the mark. The dingdol I picked up later is divided into mine and Haruka''s backpacks and brought back. It''s not that I''m trying to be mean and sell fewer of them.¡¡I''ve got an idea. ...... Diora, do you know how to make dried fruit out of dindol? "Oh, you mean by yourself?¡¡I think it''s probably impossible, but ...... the process is a secret. He looked at me as if to say, "If you''re going to waste them like that, you should sell them." But I wanted to sell them at a higher price after processing them if possible, and I wanted to keep them for myself if they had a longer shelf life. If it doesn''t work out, we''ll sell it.¡¡If it works out, we''ll share it with you. "Oh, share?¡¡I can''t help it. It''s easy to understand her feelings as her cheeks loosened up while she said, "I can''t help it. But I don''t know much about it either. I don''t know much about it, but I''ve heard that all you have to do is wash them, remove the stems, and hang them out to dry.¡¡There are some tips on the weather, temperature, and how to expose them to the sun, but that seems to be a secret. Hmm, I guess that''s the extent of it. "Oh, but ....... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "Hmm?¡¡Can you tell me if there''s something on your mind? Yes. Just a few hints, that''s all. You could try trial and error, but since the fruit doesn''t last very long, you can''t try it again and again, no matter how much magic you use. Even the slightest clue is better than nothing. At the urging of me and Haruka, Diora opened her mouth somewhat hesitantly. I''ve seen them drying out once, and they were boiling some water,......, I don''t know if that has anything to do with it. I''m not sure if it has anything to do with hot water or ...... actually boiling it and then drying it? I''m not sure if it''s related to that or not. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I see. Thank you. Thanks. That''s a little helpful. I''m glad to hear it. But please don''t tell anyone about it.¡¡I know people who know, but some people are pretty annoying. ...... I know what you mean. It''s not easy being a receptionist. You have to deal with strange people. Yeah!¡¡You have to understand that it''s not like that. It''s also a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. If you''re complaining in a bar, it''s probably not a good idea to agree to it in this place. There are other adventurers nearby, not to mention my boss. "You''ve always been very polite to us, Diora, so we''re grateful. See? Hey. We''re beginners, and we''re making a lot of money because of it. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s because of Haruka''s light words. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to say. ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sorry if I get angry. For now, I''ll leave you alone before Haruka says anything else. Even though it''s not a busy time of the day, it''s probably not a good idea to be chatting too much while working. I''ll be going home soon, then. I''ll see you tomorrow. "Yes, I''ll be waiting. Diora bailed us out and we left the Adventurer''s Guild. 21-S002 Yuki and Natsuki 02 "Well, Natsuki!¡¡I''ll let you talk! The walk with Natsuki was really just a walk. We talked about the prices of things in this world, the adventurer''s guild, money, and other common sense things, and just walked. We walked from the pier to the gate of the city and back again, and did nothing else. I peeked in a few stores, but it''s not like I did anything, right? I know. First of all, yes. Let me tell you about the dangers of [Skill Copy]. I felt the blood drain from my face again as I listened to that restriction with an extremely calm and serious face. What should I do?¡¡Am I going to die?¡¡Is my life over? "Calm down, Yuki. It''s true that you''re useless right now. I can''t deny it. I can''t deny it, but it hurts my heart, Natsuki. But you can still manage to copy me. You can just copy my skills. You''re right!¡¡You can manage it!¡¡That''s Natsuki!¡¡I can rely on you! If only I had someone to teach me the skills, I could get them too! I thought I''d wasted 100 points, but I didn''t! "Well, I don''t know how to teach it to you, sir. "--gghh! Indeed! I''m not sure if it''s a cooking skill, but I don''t know how to teach it either! I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to teach you some practical skills. I''m sure I can teach you the practical skills, so don''t be discouraged. If you can join Yu and the others, I''m sure you can learn more skills. That''s right!¡¡...... But where are you, Yu? I''m not sure, but I don''t think he''s in this town.¡¡Also, I think he''s with Hisashi-kun. "Ah~, it looks like Tomoya is with him too. The three of them can be identified even in that state. At that moment, when I was told to be attached to the soul of an acquaintance, the only one I could vaguely recognize was Natsuki, who was nearby. I would like to think that if Yu had been nearby, he would have noticed. ....... But there''s a part of me that feels like those three would recognize each other even if they were a bit apart. If the three of them can transition together, that''s pretty promising. They seem to be doing better than we are. "Yeah. They have that kind of trust, don''t they? Are they stubborn, or strong, or to the point? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. And the skill robbery, this one is even worse. I was shocked at the details he gave me with a sigh. "Hey, does that mean if you use the skill robbery indiscriminately, you''ll die? "Yes, it does. Oh my god, I''m in danger!¡¡Thank God!¡¡Follow your conscience! If I had given in to temptation and taken the skill robbery at that time, I would have died. Almost certain. "......?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not going to use it, of course, because Natsuki had told me not to use the skill copy, but this explanation is quite important, isn''t it? There''s a clue in the explanation. It''s an explanation of ......? That''s the explanation of the skill robbery, right? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do with your time. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. ...... Perhaps you intentionally let them rob you? Yes, I did. I''m sure you''re aware of that. Was someone using the skill robbery against us at that time? There is a high possibility of that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. If someone has a skill robbery, there is a possibility that they will rob you of your skill robbery. I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to do. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I know it sounds harsh, but... "Also, the same goes for [Skill Copy]. What? They''d have to copy our skills from us, which would be a weakness in itself. That''s true, it does limit them. If you copy a skill from us, you can''t use that skill unless you bow down to us and ask us to teach you. That alone will give you an advantage over your opponent, so in a way it makes sense for you to walk around using yourself as bait. It''s a little black, but still. In addition, the [Heroic Qualities] and other skills that cause damage to those around you can be troublesome, but if you don''t get involved, it''s all over. What if they ask you to work with them? What?¡¡Of course I would refuse.¡¡Is there anyone you can trust in this situation? Maybe not ......? We didn''t have a very wide circle of friends. We didn''t have a very wide circle of friends, or to be more precise, we had a wide but shallow circle of friends. We got along reasonably well within the school area, but once we got out of school, we barely hung out. We don''t know each other''s houses, and we don''t see each other on holidays. It''s going to be very stressful to work with such people all the time. I wouldn''t call them enemies, but I''m not sure I''d want them as my friends. Yeah, I guess so. --Is there anything else I should be aware of? No, there''s nothing special about Yuki''s skills, but I did notice that ...... she acquired them in a strange way. Yeah, is that so? Yes. ...... Shall we write down each other''s skills on the ground so that we can discuss them? Yes. We sit down and copy the skills on the status screen onto the ground. It would be convenient if the status screen could be shown directly to us, but ...... the people in this world don''t recognize it, so it could be a source of trouble. I''m not sure what to do. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. [Magical Qualities, Earth-based] [Magical Qualities, Fire-based] [Magical Qualities, Water-based] [Magical Qualities, Space-time based [Discernment Lv.1] [Earth Magic Lv.1] [Robustness Lv.1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I''ve done it too. Let''s start with Yuki. Yes. I''m not sure I even noticed it was there. I didn''t even notice it was there. Maybe it was added later because someone wanted it?¡¡I didn''t even notice it at first. This is a very useful skill, even though it only costs five points. It''s probably only useful when you first come to this world, but I think it''s an important skill to get you through that period safely. The most interesting thing about this is that it''s related to copying. The thing that bothers me the most is that you''re only taking a lot of magic qualities. I''ve only learned earth magic. I don''t know.¡¡It is more profitable to spend points on qualities that are unlikely to be learned than on magic that can be learned.¡¡Of course, if I had enough points, I would have learned magic. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. On the contrary, if you have talent, even if you are a novice at first, there is a high possibility that your practice will produce results. I don''t want to think that you can''t be good because you don''t have talent, but I think you need a certain amount of talent in order to become proficient. I don''t think that a simple difference in the amount of practice is enough to separate professionals from amateurs. So, if talent is freely available, it would be a loss not to take it, right? "That''s your reason? But it''s a fine play. In fact, humans can''t learn magic unless they have a talent. What?¡¡Is that so?¡¡So if you''re not born with it, it doesn''t matter how much you practice? That''s what I think. Moreover, there is no way to check your skills, right?¡¡Isn''t it hard for people in this world to learn magic? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, it''s possible that you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. In this world, it is common knowledge that if a person cannot use magic even after some training and apprenticeship with a wizard, that person cannot become a wizard. However, since there is no such thing as a system-specific predisposition in this common sense, there may have been cases where the person who could not become a wizard had a predisposition for a system that the master could not use. If you think about it, ...... is a pretty tough road to becoming a wizard. It''s a world of predisposition, completely dependent on one''s natural talent. If you''ve got light magic, you can copy it from me. Oh, Natsuki has light magic? Yes, but only level one. I''m afraid of getting injured in a place that doesn''t have a medical system. --But why did you only learn earth magic? "Because it seemed to be the safest way to make money out of magic?¡¡You know, you can use dirt for a lot of things. I didn''t know what the other world was like, so I tried to think of it in the real world, but most magic isn''t really useful in everyday life. Water - there''s running water, right? Wind - a fan? Fire - I can''t even build a fire in my yard these days. Light--Healing seems useful, but is it a low-level business? Darkness - Hmmm... a test of courage? Space-time--Dreams, right? Only dreams. Soil has its uses. It could be used for civil engineering, agriculture, everyday work. Wouldn''t it be useful in a field where you don''t need to use machines? Of course, I thought the situation would be different since it was a different world, but wouldn''t it be the same if it could be used in everyday life? When I explained this to Natsuki, she was strangely impressed. I was thinking of eliminating the dangers, but ...... you''re more grounded than I imagined. Isn''t ...... more than I imagined? I don''t think you''re the kind of person who would take the easy way out. Don''t say that! It''s already black history! I''m not going to say that! "Yes, it''s like this. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ¡¾Help¡¿ ¡¾Stubbornness Lv.4¡¿ ¡¾Disease Resistance [Poison Resistance] [Night Vision] [Spear Talent] [Spear Art Lv.4] [Light Magic Lv.1] [Magical Qualities, Light System Throwing Lv.1 ] [Body Art Lv.3 ] [Pharmacy Lv.3 Trap Knowledge Lv.1 ] [Unlock Lv.2 ] [Hidden Form Lv.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure what to make of it. You''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this kind of thing. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, please contact us. She still looks like a beautiful, graceful woman with a closed moon. As for spear fighting and body fighting, she originally took up naginata and aikido to build up her strength, so it''s not surprising. I think I''ve raised my level too much. I don''t intend to steal anything, but I thought I could use it in case I got trapped. "Tough, stealthy, able to move at night, able to use body armor. --Yeah, it''s like Special Forces. If you used a knife instead of a spear, you''d be even more perfect. I''m just trying to survive. ...... Will Yuki''s earth magic help me? I''m not sure.¡¡...... Wait a minute. I''m not sure what to do. You''ll be able to use "Ground Control" and "Sand Blast" at level 1. I''ll start with the easiest to understand. "Okay, here we go!¡¡Sandblast! As soon as you stick out your hand and chant it, a handful of sand spurts out of your palm and flies towards you. And then it falls. It''s ...... blinding. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I can do that too.¡¡Here. I''m not sure what to do with it. No, you don''t have to do it! I know I''m too subtle for that! This is ...... Yeah, it''s less likely to be noticed if you suddenly chant it, right? "Well, yes. You don''t have to sneak around and pick up dirt. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Don''t worry!¡¡There''s one more thing!¡¡I''m not sure what to do with it. The ground caved in where he pointed. ...... About 30 centimeters. I''m sure you''ll find it convenient to throw away ............ food scraps? I''m not sure what to say. It''s funny! I thought it would be more awesome! You can''t even use it for gardening with this thing! No, no, no, wait, wait!¡¡My potential is not like this! It''s my fault for using it without thinking, you know. If you imagine the result more clearly and chant it with more energy... "Ground Control"! Boom! A hole about one meter in diameter and two meters deep will be made in the ground in front of me. "Yes! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "Are you okay?¡¡Yuki! I''m not sure. Suddenly I lost my strength and ...... I''m fine now. Thank you, you almost fell. I was wobbly from the sudden weakness, but once I calmed down I was tired enough to stand up. Is this what it feels like to have consumed magic? If you don''t get used to it, you might not be able to use it to the fullest in battle. That''s the thing. This is the thing. Magic depends on the magic power you use and the image you have of it, so you need to have a clear image of it when you use it. So, look. Now I''m going to raise the ground a little bit. It''s only a ten centimeter protrusion, but if you can use it quickly enough, you can at least knock your opponent over. It''s a great idea. But Yuki? What? We have to fill this hole, don''t we? ...... That''s right. It''s too annoying to leave a hole of this size. If you''re unlucky, you could get hurt badly if you fall in. I took a couple of breaks and used my "potential" to bring the hole back to its original state. 22-019 Lets make preserved food (1) "Okay, you two. Today we''re going to deal with the meat and the dingles before we do our own training! In front of her were two backpacks full of din-dolls, a leather bag with the rest of the task boar, and some barrels and pots and pans that she had purchased along the way. "Yes, question! "Yes, Toya! Haruka pointed at Toya, who raised her hand cheerfully. Is there anything I can do? Don''t worry. Anyone can do it. Of course, Nao can too. I''ll start by preparing the meat. Haruka lays out three cutting boards and places a piece of meat on each one. First, cut the meat into bite-size pieces, about an inch thick and about half the size of your palm. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m sure you''re not the only one. It''s just like telling a person who can''t cook "a little" or "just the right amount" but they don''t understand. In particular, the current Toya might say that a very thick slice of steak is ''easy to eat''. Be sure to remove the bones. Also, remove the fat from the fatty parts. "What?¡¡You''re throwing away the fat?¡¡I think the fat in this meat is delicious. ...... The fat that dripped from the grill gave off a faint aroma of ding dong, which was a nice touch. To be honest, I was like, "How dare you throw that away! I understand. I understand the feeling. But if you dry it, I think it will oxidize and not be good. I see. So that''s how it is. I don''t understand it, but I''ll go along with Haruka''s words since she''s a good cook and has skills. "Hey, can''t we just try it for a while? "If Toya is responsible for disposing of it, that''s fine. ...... Just a little? I know. I know. Okay, if it''s good, we''ll share. If it''s not good, let''s let Toya do his thing. He''s the one who started it. --I''m the worst. There''s a lot of meat for a boar. While we were slicing the meat and removing the bones and fat, Haruka was using a pot to mix salt, herbs from the road, a little spice from the store, and chopped dingdol skin. Once that was done, Haruka joined in the meat slicing, and soon had more meat than we did. The meat that was no longer on the cutting board was put into the barrel with the salt that Haruka had prepared. "Hey, how do you think the dindol is made? I can think of two ways: boil them and then dry them, or coat them with herb juice as a preservative and then dry them. If you dry a whole fruit of that size, it will usually go bad, right? I don''t think boiling the fruit would change the fact that it rots, but ...... would be a good preservative. Yeah, that''s right. I''m not sure what to do. Unless it''s completely sealed like a retort pack. What about Toya? Hmmm... ......, it''s not going to get cold all at once, is it? What?¡¡No. The temperature is going to drop seasonally, but it doesn''t seem to go below freezing at night around here. Even at its coldest. Oh, that''s great. I didn''t mind winter, but this world doesn''t have air conditioners or airtight houses. I don''t even know if there are clothes that keep you warm like down jackets, and even if there are, they are expensive to buy. A mild climate is an economic boon in itself. But that''s not good enough. I thought we could take advantage of the temperatures that would allow ice to form. You know the story about the potatoes in the Andes? Oh, yeah. I think I learned something about it in class. In the Andes, they leave the potatoes out in the open. They freeze them at night and step on the melted potatoes in the daytime to release the water, and then dry them to preserve them for a long time. The potatoes are then dried and stored for a long period of time. Stepping on a ding dong may crush them, but I think it is possible to dry them without them rotting. You don''t need hot water for that, do you? It''s ...... just a way to make money.¡¡Or tea? Think about it for a moment and say something as blunt as that, Toya. The clue I got from Diora is ruined. "Well, it''s possible, isn''t it? It''s not a narrative trick, but Diora didn''t say that hot water was a necessary tool. That''s true, but! I feel like an idiot for twisting my head around the use of hot water. So, what do you think, Haruka? "Me?¡¡I think I''ll use it like dried persimmons. The way to make dried persimmons is basically just to peel the persimmons, tie them together with string and hang them to dry, but there are times when you need to soak them lightly in boiling water. Haruka''s idea is that the same thing is done with dindol. "That''s probably for sterilization, right?¡¡Can you do that just by sterilizing the surface? I think sterilizing it would make it less likely to grow mold than leaving it in my hands, but can I get by with that? Since we can make dried persimmons, I think it''s not impossible to make dingdol. I think it''s because of the winter temperature, the air circulation, and the peeling.¡¡It''s warm here, and the din-dolls keep their skins on. The advantage is the low humidity? Temperature and humidity are major factors in food spoilage. In particular, humidity is important, and it is the reason why fish that easily decompose can be dried. In the case of dried persimmons, there is no problem because they are dried before they spoil, but if you ask me if it is possible to dry a fruit of that size with the skin still on, ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡If it were easy, it wouldn''t be a secret. So Haruka''s magic is to ruin the know-how? "Ruin" is a bad word to use. You know how hard I worked to learn that? I know that. In fact, I still can''t use my own magic! I''m not proud of it at all. I''m not proud of it at all, but we''ve never seen a dried dindle before, have we?¡¡There''s a possibility that it''s actually made from mold, like dried bonito flakes. You''re right, Toya. You''re really knocking it out of the park. As far as I know, there''s no dried fruit that uses mold, but that''s not a possibility. I don''t know of any dried fruit that uses mold as far as I know, but it''s not a possibility. That''s it!¡¡That''s it! The meat was being processed as he continued to talk and move his hands. Haruka was the first one to finish cutting the most meat, even though she joined us later, and soon we were done too. All that was left to do was to transfer the meat to a barrel and mix in salt, and the salting process was complete. The fat and bones we removed could be thrown into a skin bag and thrown into the forest for tomorrow''s work. "Both of you, give me your hands and knives. Haruka will clean your sticky hands, grease, and cutting boards by applying ''purification'' to them. It''s really a very useful magic. I don''t want to think about cleaning up this grease without kitchen detergent. What do we do now? ...... at least a day or two, preferably a week or so, until the salt has soaked into the meat.¡¡Then we''ll rinse it lightly and dry it. That''s a lot of time.¡¡Do I need to buy more barrels? ...... Toya, how much dried meat are you going to make? What?¡¡Just a boar hunt? I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Toya, you can''t eat all of that, can you? "Oh, really?¡¡Even if you make a ton of food, that''s less than a kilo a day for the three of us for a year. ...... Is that a bit much? Not a little!¡¡If it''s just meat, but if you eat that much salted meat, you''ll die from salt overload! I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if my [robust] skills are effective against lifestyle-related diseases. I''m not going to do this every day to begin with.¡¡I''d rather not, to be honest. Removing the bones and slicing the fish is not a big deal, but removing the fat was quite troublesome. Remembering the amount of work involved, Toya snorted in disappointment. If only it tasted as good with the fat on as it did on ......, or maybe Haruka''s magic could remove it for good. "Toya, how much are you going to rely on my magic? ...... Maybe I can do it. I''m sure you can. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. Unfortunately, there''s no indication of MP in the status, but you can feel that something is consumed when you use magic. I think I can use a lot more magic than I did at first, but the problem is that I can''t see it, so I can''t tell if I''m really gaining magic power, or if I''m using it more efficiently, or if I''m just squeezing it to the limit. If I could figure it out numerically, I could make progress in my magic experiments. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. In a game, this might not have been a problem, but in real life, we''ve clearly made a mistake in our skill selection. It''s fine in battle, but in everyday life, Toya and I are not very useful. Without our skills, we''re just ordinary people in the original world, doing odd jobs. I have to dry my skin, and if ...... Toya can roughly remove the fat, I think it will reduce the consumption of magic power a little. What!¡¡I''ll do it!¡¡I''m going to fire up my demolition skills! Toya, how much do you love meat? ...... You don''t have the [Demolition] skill yet, right? It''s a great way to save money on food, and if you want to do your best, I''ll help you out. ...... Nao, how well can you use Accelerate Time? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. So, if you put ...... on this barrel for a day or two, that''s like two full days?¡¡It would be a shame to reapply it tomorrow morning. That''s right. I don''t care if I have to take a day off from work, I don''t want to go to the forest and not be able to use magic in battle. Even though I haven''t used it much in battle lately, it''s still necessary as insurance. We haven''t even met any goblins yet. I''ll need at least one more barrel if I''m going to soak it for three days. Barrels are more expensive than you think, aren''t they? I''ve never bought a barrel in the original world, so I can''t compare them, but they''re about two times smaller than a drum and cost about 3,000 Reais. It''s a little more expensive than the pot I bought with it. "Hey, you don''t have to buy a new keg, do you?¡¡Why don''t we ask the old man if we can get one? I''m sure he has some food in barrels if he''s doing so well. "Oh, yeah!¡¡Toya, great!¡¡Yeah, we''re going to use them for salting, so used ones won''t be a problem!¡¡It''s not like you have to worry about the smell. Later, when my father was free, I told him about the situation, and he agreed to share the barrel with me for free on the condition that I share some of the dried meat I made. The barrels, which were said to have contained liquor, were somewhat smaller than the ones we had bought, but thanks to the generosity of those who shared some with us, we no longer had to worry about the barrels. Incidentally, when we checked later, we found that used barrels were usually available for sale, and that good ones (not too damaged in appearance and without unpleasant smell) were about half the price of new ones, so we shared some of them with Dingdol as a token of our gratitude to him for sharing them with us almost for free. 23-020 Lets make preserved food (2) We moved on to the well next to the inn. There was a simple cooking stove and a pot set up there. Of course, I had permission from the inn''s father, so there was no problem. Well, let''s hurry up, we don''t have much time. Thanks to the time taken for salting the meat, there was not much time left until the sun went down. In the original world, I could still work, but in this world, it is common knowledge that work ends when the sun sets. She could have used magic to create a light to continue working, but it would have been too conspicuous for Haruka, who needed magic power to work. If you''re working in the dark, you''ll naturally attract attention, and if you''re dealing with expensive fruit dingles, you can''t deny the possibility of trouble. I''ll boil the water first. This is Nao, please. Okay. In the meantime, we''ll take the stems off the dingdol and wash them. Boiling water is not much more than lighting a fire with wood. If I keep using ''ignition'' from my fingertips instead of wood, I''ll collapse before the water becomes hot. So, when the fire is stable, I help them to wash the dingdolls and pile them in a colander. This colander, which I bought today, is similar to a colander used to dry pickled plums. However, it is not made of bamboo, but of a kind of awn. This grass can be easily obtained in the mountains before winter, and the colanders are made by farmers as a winter handicraft and sold wholesale. Thanks to this, I was able to get a set of ten at a fairly low price. Halfway through washing the dingdol, the water began to boil. What are you going to do, Haruka? Haruka, what are we going to do?¡¡Let''s try different times. It was decided to make seven different kinds of dindol, one at a time, one without, one soaked for a moment, and one soaked for one to five minutes, in one-minute increments. I threw six dildos into the pot, pulled them out one by one, and placed them in a colander. There was no clock, so I had to count them by feel. At times like this, I wish I had a watch. "Yes. I''m getting used to this world''s sense of time. ...... In this world, clocks are not common, so everyone works in a rather vague way. The bells ring five times between sunrise and sunset, so you can get an approximate time, but you can''t tell when the bells are about to ring, so it''s difficult to say, "I''ll meet you at the first bell. Therefore, if you want to meet someone, you have to be able to tolerate the ambiguity of "the time you will arrive at the meeting place after the bell rings. Also, since the bell does not ring after sunset, there is no definite time for bars to close. In this inn, it seems to depend on the father''s mood, and sometimes he stays open until everyone has gone home, and sometimes he kicks out the customers. We try to stay away from the bar after dinner, though, as far as we can tell from the voices coming from downstairs. "Okay!¡¡I''m sure there''s a little margin for error, but that''s good, right? Seven dildos lined up on a colander. There is almost no difference in appearance. If you compare the one boiled for five minutes with the raw one, the boiled one may be a little bit wilder, but you won''t notice it unless you compare them. It doesn''t change as much as I thought, does it? Yeah, it''s hard to tell when they''re mixed together. Yeah. Is this what a fruit looks like?¡¡I''ve never boiled a whole fruit before. ...... That''s right. It''s usually eaten raw. At best, you can make jam, but even that is more like mashing and boiling than boiling. I''m going to try this: ...... ''Dry''! "Oh, wow! It''s like a time-lapse video. The moment Haruka held up her hand and used magic, the dindle fruit, which had been swollen to its full size, wilted and shrunk in a flash. I''m not sure if that''s enough. When I put my hand down, the change stopped, and a beautifully dried dindle fruit was produced. The process took less than a minute. Even with modern technology, this is a difficult feat to accomplish, isn''t it? It''s amazing. ....... There''s something just magical about ....... Oh. In a way, it''s even more impressive than the Fire Arrow. ...... Hmm? I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I can''t deny it, though! I''m not sure what to say. It''s okay to praise.¡¡I had a lot of trouble with this. Oh, that''s a rare look of smugness from Haruka. Haruka is not proud of her efforts, so she must have really struggled. Toya and I looked at each other, applauding and praising Haruka, who was slouching a bit. "Yes!¡¡Haruka-san, you''re the best! It''s thanks to you that we''re still alive! Should I call you Haruka-sama? Or should I call you Goddess? I''ll make you an altar. I will. I''ll make an altar for you." "Let''s do that." We breathed in unison in praise, and Haruka raised her hands with a bitter look on her face. I''ll do it. Just a little praise is enough. You don''t need to waste your breath. Well, it seems that you didn''t like our praise. Of course, we did it on purpose. "Okay. Let''s taste it. "Right. Haruka, cut me. You guys are ........ Well, okay. Just cut it into quarters. ...... Haruka sighed in exasperation and cut up the dindle, which we tasted one slice at a time. It''s not as good as raw. It''s a different taste than raw. It''s sweet, but not sticky sweet like normal dried fruits, and it''s easy to eat, with a bit of a sweet bean paste feel to it. The taste varies slightly depending on how long you boil it, but it''s good in any case. Now, the haruka was easy to make, but considering that it usually takes days to dry, no wonder it was expensive. Now that you''ve tasted them all ......, which one was your favorite? Haruka said, and Toya and I thought for a moment before answering. I''d say the 1 minute one.¡¡The raw ones, of course, but the ones that were raised right away had tough skin and were a bit bitter. I think I''ll go with two minutes ......, or maybe a little less than two minutes. As Toya said, boiling this ding dong seems to remove the bitterness and hardness of the skin. The outer skin, which is inedible when raw, becomes even more delicious when boiled as a dried fruit, becoming one with the pulp. In fact, it is the skin that makes the fruit delicious. I compared it to anko (sweet red bean paste) earlier, and I think it plays a role just like the skin of a bun. It tastes better to eat it as a bun than to eat it only as anko. It is like that. One minute and two minutes. ...... Hmm, it''s tasty enough. ...... Well, is the problem that the flesh is also cooked?¡¡I wonder if it should be quenched, like a half-boiled egg. Haruka listens to our opinions and twists his head while eating a little bit of his own. According to Haruka, the way to make a good half-boiled egg is to time it exactly right, and then immediately put it in cold water when the time is up. This is because the yolk will harden in the residual heat if left unattended. Haruka''s prediction was that the ding dong would taste better if it was cooled when the skin was cooked, so that the flesh would remain raw. Let''s try quenching in two minutes. Nao, get some water. Now I''ll boil, quench, and dry two of them according to Haruka''s prediction, and eat half of each. "Yes. They taste better than before. What do you two think? "Ah. It''s a little different, but it''s better. To be honest, I don''t know much about it. So I''ll leave it to you two to decide. Two in favor, one abstention. Let''s make it this way for today. The only thing we can do is to have Diora taste it and ask her if it''s a commercial dindle. Even if it''s not, it''s good enough for us to eat. "Oh, I see. We''re going to pick more tomorrow. If it''s not about making money, but about preserving our own food, we don''t need to adapt to the commercial products. Even if it doesn''t sell, we''ll be happy to eat good food for a while. It won''t go to waste. "Okay, Toya, can you make a toothpick, mark it so we can tell them apart, and stick it in? Hmm, okay. Okay. That way they won''t get mixed up. You''re smart, Haruka. I thought I''d have to put them in separate bags. A toothpick should be enough to take from here to the guild tomorrow. Unless you have a lunch box with separators, which we don''t. We''re going to mass produce these. Mass production. There''s more than enough for a backpack. Of course, Haruka, who uses magic, has a heavy burden. Even so, there''s nothing we can do except take care of the non-magical work. In the end, that day, I had to push Haruka into bed, who was so exhausted that she fell asleep while eating, and I also used Accelerate Time on the salted barrel with all my might, and she fell asleep immediately. The only one who didn''t use magic, Toya, had a lot of energy left over, and when I asked him about it the next day, he told me that he had been doing some self-discipline exercises that he didn''t have time to do after we fell asleep. It''s a very tough thing to do. The next day I woke up. Waking up the next day wasn''t so bad. To be honest, it helped that even though I was using my magic to the limit, if I slept well one night, I would be fine the next day. But it''s more of a feeling, so I don''t know if I''m really fully recovered. It would be easier to understand if it could be quantified, but once I told Haruka to try to see how many times she could use magic, she said, "For example, press down on the scale with 5 kg of force. Can you do this 100 times without any deviation? Can you do this 100 times without deviation? If the power of magic can be adjusted, it means that the magic power consumed is also variable. In addition, because of the problem of the efficiency of the use of magic power, a spell of the same power does not necessarily mean that the same amount of magic power has been consumed. It''s also possible to use more magic than at first, but it''s not clear whether this is due to an increase in the amount of magic power or just an increase in the efficiency of the use of magic power. Let''s get up! The dawn bell has already rung, so it''s always past time to get out of bed. When I got out of bed and stood up, I looked at the bed next to me and saw that Haruka was sleeping there. I was about to reach out to wake her up, but thought better of it. I almost reached out to wake her up, but thought better of it and stopped myself. Normally, I head to the forest right after breakfast, but today I''m planning to stop by the adventurer''s guild beforehand and have Diora sample the food. However, it would be a nuisance to bother you in the early morning when you''re busy, so we have a lot of time before we leave the inn today. Then, it would be okay to let her sleep for a while yet. I checked the bed on the other side of the room, but it was already empty. Judging from Toya''s behavioral pattern, he was probably practicing on his own. When he was over there, Toya was not the type to jog early in the morning, nor was he enthusiastic about club activities. However, since he came here, he has been improving his sword skills so diligently that he finds time to train. It''s the same for me, but I have to do it or die. I have to do it or die. The only people who can slack off in this situation are those who have no idea what they''re doing, those who have baseless confidence, or those who are in pain because they think they''re the hero. --I''m afraid I can''t say for sure that none of my classmates are like that. Of course, I''m not one of them, so I''m not going to spare any effort I can. I picked up my spear and left the room, being careful not to make a sound. After a while, I woke up and asked Haruka to cleanse me, which she hadn''t done yesterday, and ate a slightly later breakfast than usual. After a light rest, we headed to the Adventurer''s Guild with a prototype of the dried dindle. This is not a time of day we usually visit. Inside the guild, there were only a few adventurers, and the place was no longer busy. The counter where Ms. Diora was waiting was also empty, so I went there immediately. Good morning, Diora. "Good morning, Diora. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. I''ve made a prototype for you. Diora''s eyes widened in surprise as I said this. "Already? Can I have a sample, please? "Yes, of course!¡¡I''m very picky about my dildos, but I''ll give you a good evaluation! She recovered from her surprise and smiled happily. He says "crisply", but it sounds more like "joyfully". Nevertheless, it is nice to be able to taste and evaluate. I don''t have anything to compare it with, because I can''t get dried dindol. So, I have no choice but to ask people who have tasted it. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. "No, no, no. --"No, no, no..." "Phew, that''s a perk. He''s muttering something quietly. I don''t mind. By the way, Diora, have you eaten enough dried dindol to appreciate it?¡¡It''s expensive, isn''t it? ...... "Yes, it varies, but the average price is about 1,000 Reais. Diora''s eyes are swimming, aren''t they?¡¡I''d venture to say it''s about as fast as a butterfly. I''m sure you''ve heard that it''s hard to buy fresh Dindol too. Dried dindol is more expensive than that. ...... And by the way, the guild doesn''t sell it either. It''s a processed product. All three of us turn to look at Diora. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not a big fan of the idea or because I''m not a big fan of the idea. I''m sorry!¡¡I haven''t eaten enough to be able to make a good evaluation!¡¡But it''s true that I''ve eaten it before, so I can compare it to that! When we asked him properly, he said that he had actually eaten dried dindol only a few times, and they were gifts from people, and he had never bought them himself. From our point of view, it would be like receiving a high quality fruit as a sympathy gift when you are hospitalized. No, it''s fine, if you''ve eaten it before. "Yeah, yeah. We just want you to compare. Just try it. Then Haruka put the prototype in front of Diora. As I thought yesterday, you can''t tell the difference by looking at them, so you have to rely on the markings on the toothpicks. In order not to affect the evaluation, I rearranged the order randomly. "Eight kinds? "Yes. They are processed in slightly different ways. Try to compare them. Okay, then. Diora reordered them in order from right to left, comparing them little by little over and over again, muttering and nodding, "Hmmm," "This is ......" and so on. Something tells me he''s evaluating them more carefully than I thought. I thought it would be something like, "This is delicious! I thought it would be something like that. "Okay. It''s done. From here on out, this is better than anything I''ve had before. Looking at the markings, I see that there are two types: heated and quenched, and boiled for one, two, or three minutes. These are about the same, and these are a little different, I guess. Four minutes is about the same, and five minutes, raw, or soaked for a moment is not. "Thank you, Mr. Diora. So this is what you''re selling? The one Haruka pointed to is a quarter. The one Diora said was about the same. But Mr. Diora twisted his head. "What do you think?¡¡I don''t know how you did it, but you made it yesterday, didn''t you?¡¡I don''t know how you did it, but you made it yesterday, didn''t you? No matter how dry it is, it will lose its flavor depending on how it is stored, and I don''t know how good the food I ate was. ...... That''s right. I don''t know if the taste deteriorates with time or if it matures and becomes tastier, but I don''t think it changes at all. Even if it is at the same level at the moment, you don''t know what will happen when it is stored. Even if it tastes good, there is no guarantee that it will not be susceptible to mold or other defects. Hmmm... considering that, we can''t sell it as a preserved food until next year, can we? If we want to be safe, we should get some commercially available dried dindol as a control experiment and store both. Well, in this world, there is no expiration date, so you could just sell it without worrying about it. But this is delicious, no question!¡¡I''m sure you can sell it for a good price. Diora pointed to the heated and quenched one, which was the one we had rated the most highly. It seemed to be the right direction for the taste. I see, there''s a way to sell the flavor instead of the shelf life. Haruka was thinking the same thing as me, and nodded her head when she heard Diora''s assessment. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what to do with it. I''m still thinking about it, but I think I can sell it at a stall at the morning market, right? The morning market, which we often peek at before going to work, is a place where nearby farmers come to sell their crops, and as long as you can find a place, you can buy and sell freely. It seems that most of the citizens get their food here, and the main items they buy at the store are long-lasting grains and processed goods. We can''t set up a store here, and the morning market also sells fruit, so this is the best place to sell dried dindol -- or rather, there is no other choice. If you open a stall anywhere else without permission, you will be removed by the commercial guild. Of course, there is nothing wrong with opening a stall, but whether or not it will sell is up to ....... Haruka tilted her head at Diora, who seemed to be having a hard time saying what she meant. What?¡¡You said that you can sell it for a high price, right, Diora? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get it.¡¡Dried Dindol. I don''t think the people who come to the morning market can afford it often. ...... I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡Oh, I see. ...... You''re right, it doesn''t fit in with the morning market. ...... At Diora''s point, we looked at each other. It would be impossible to sell muskmelons as gifts at the supermarkets around here. Unless it''s in the basement of a department store or in a fruit shop in front of a hospital, the morning market is obviously in the neighborhood supermarket. And even if they were to sell them at such places, considering the income and population of this city, 100 pieces every day would clearly be an oversupply. "d*mn, we''ve suddenly hit a snag... We sigh as Haruka slumps her shoulders in disappointment. It''s not a waste of money because we were thinking of consuming it ourselves, but when we were working on it, we were thinking, "Maybe we can make a little money and have some room in our pockets. But when we were working on it, we were thinking, "Maybe we can make a little money and have some extra money in our pockets. "Oh, I worked so hard. Mainly because of Haruka. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a way to get rid of it.¡¡How does the guild dispose of it? "We have connections with nobles, merchants, and even processors. That amount is no problem at all. In the case of dried Dindol, we send it to other cities as well, so it''s rather insufficient. You can''t just ask them to introduce you, can you? No, I don''t think so. The wholesale commission is our source of income. Mr. Diora smiled bitterly. I''m not sure what to do. You know, the guild can buy them in bulk.¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. That''s true, isn''t it? What do you two think? It''s a bit of a waste, but it''s safer to leave it to us amateurs than to sell it. I don''t think it''s worth the trouble. I agree with you. I agree with you. Maybe we should try hunting or something. We''re not merchants and we don''t have any skills in that area. We''re not merchants, and we don''t have any skills in that area. Considering the risk of getting caught by some strange merchant and getting scammed, it''s not a bad option to go with the adventurer''s guild. It may be a little cheaper, but if you think of it as an insurance premium, it''s not too much to ask. "Okay. I''ll bring it back. "Thank you very much. Can I have one of your samples?¡¡I have to decide how much to buy it for. I''ll take that. I gave one of the samples to Diora for emergency rations. Incidentally, I also carry emergency rations that I bought at the store, but fortunately, I have never had an opportunity to use them. When the three of us tasted one of them, we were even more shocked than we were on the first day at the stall. When the dried meat is finished, it is certain that the emergency rations will be handed over to the dried dindol and dried meat immediately. I''ve got it, sir. I''ll let you know if I''ll be coming by in the evening at the usual time. "Yes, thank you. We bowed lightly to Diora and left the Adventurer''s Guild, feeling a little depressed. 24-021 Earn money from preserved food...? Oh, I must''ve missed that. ...... "Yeah. I was only thinking about the price. ''If it''s good, it''ll sell even if it''s expensive'' doesn''t even exist in Japan, so it was impossible. It was a little late, so we walked a little faster to the forest and had a review meeting. We should have thought about demand and customer base first. You''re right. You can''t sell bento from the department store in a convenience store, can you? It depends on the location, but if it''s a convenience store on the way to school, for example, it''s sure to remain unsold. I think the guy whose parents own a convenience store also said, "If you don''t take into consideration the location, weather, season, and customer base when deciding what to stock, you won''t make a profit. At the time, I just said, "Oh, I see...", but I guess business is not easy in any world. What are you going to do?¡¡Do you want to continue making the dried dindol? "Hmmm, what do you two want to do? I don''t know if the profit is worth the trouble. I''ll leave the decision to Haruka, since she''s the one with the biggest burden, but I think she''s a little less motivated. I vote for making more dried meat. Dried meat doesn''t sell. First of all, I don''t want to eat meat. In the first place, I don''t even know if it will be good dried meat. It would be a great shock if the result was sad. I think it would be better to continue, though. I''m sure you''ll get more than you''d normally get selling it, and your motivation won''t go up considering all the mobile food you can buy. ...... Oh, it''s going to blow up. ...... enough that I can turn a blind eye to a few things. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to buy a lot of things. Instead, it is inferior in taste, and it is difficult to describe its wonderful taste. If I had to describe it, I would say that I felt like I was eating paper mache. We don''t need it at the moment because we don''t take overnight jobs, but when we do, we''ll have to think of some way to do it. The problem will be solved if I can complete a high-performance magic bag by then, but there is no way I can do that easily. The world isn''t so kind as to allow magic abilities to increase so easily. How about we sell a third of the food as is, and then dry the rest and sell the other half? I don''t mind, but is Haruka okay?¡¡I don''t mind, but is Haruka alright? She had a rough day yesterday, didn''t she?¡¡There''s also the dried meat. Yeah. You can say that it is spicy, but you can also keep the dried meat in salt until the end of the dindol season. The season of dindol that Haruka is referring to is the period when dindol can be harvested. It varies depending on the weather, but it lasts about a month. According to Diora''s prediction, this year''s season will most likely be over within the next week or two. That would certainly solve the problem of magic power. Instead, the problem of the barrels will increase. I promised my father that I would get it for him, but whether or not we have enough barrels for a week, and whether or not we can put them in our room, that''s the problem. "Well, if we can get Haruka to rest when she''s not using magic, and we do all the other work ourselves, it''ll be a little better. "That''s all we can do? Unlike in games, you can''t spend skill points to learn magic. It''s easy to do a lot of things if you can earn points by leveling up, but apparently the evil gods don''t provide that level of after-sales service. If I could see him again, I''d like to ask him some questions, but he said something like he was a joker, so it''s probably impossible. Toya is completely out of it, isn''t she? "Yes. It''s common knowledge that it''s difficult for a beastman to learn magic. Maybe that''s why they''re so good at magic. Elves are fine, right?¡¡Nao, why don''t you learn water magic? Ugh. ...... Don''t say that so easily~. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it. In my case, I''ve got the qualities of light, wind, water, and even alchemy. You can''t blame Nao for not having fire magic, and it''s hard to find space-time magic with those qualities. "That''s right! As expected of Haruka, she says the kindest things. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. It''s a good idea to buy a basic grimoire and study it, including me, because there''s nothing you can''t remember. "...... Yes. This is the first time I''ve been able to do so. I''m sure you''ll agree. The selling price of dried dindol has been set at 800 rares each. We can harvest about 300 a day. If we keep 100 of them for ourselves and sell the rest as fresh and dried, we can earn around 100,000 rares a day. It seems like a lie that at first we were struggling to get only 1,000 rares each. Instead, we all have to work until we''re exhausted every day. Haruka, in particular, was under a lot of strain, and even though we took care of everything we could, we were not in a position to work on the dried meat. For ten days after the first day, we had been harvesting in three different locations, but when the number of pieces we could harvest in one day dropped below 200, we decided to stop collecting dindol. In fact, we could have continued for a while longer, but Haruka''s fatigue became too much to bear, so Toya and I decided to force the issue. To be honest, Haruka and I were relieved to finally be able to take a day off, even though it would mean less income. Goblins? Oh, they came out, on the third day. My fears were completely unfounded. First, strength. It''s a little clever, but it''s not a big problem since Task Boar is basically stronger than you. And the humanoid. Again, not a problem at all. It didn''t feel like a person at all. It was just a biped walking on two legs, holding a piece of stick like a weapon. If you want to say they are close to humans, Japanese monkeys are closer. Is it because their facial structure is completely different? In a way, I feel relieved, but in the sense of getting used to the human form, I failed. It''s a subtle result. Perhaps I should seriously consider hiring an instructor to gain experience in human games. The day after the dindle season ended, I took the next few days off from work to rest and make dried meat. I took the meat out of the barrels, washed it in water, and laid it out in a colander for Haruka to [dry]. Haruka went back to her room to rest, while we packed the dried meat in bags and practiced on our own until Haruka was feeling better. This is repeated. It''s not a complete rest, but since we''re almost always using [Searching for Enemies] when we''re outside, just not needing it is enough of a mental rest. As for self-discipline, it''s also a rest day, and the intensity of the exercise is not so intense that it leaves you tired the next day, so I guess you could call it a rest day. What can I say? To be honest, I''m more worried about not doing anything. I''m sure Toya feels the same way when he''s constantly training. To put it simply, "What if two vipu bears appear? is. You will probably die. No, you will almost certainly die. Run away? No, you can''t. Bear, he''s a sprinter. Even a world record short-distance runner can''t beat it if it''s chasing you. If we hadn''t encountered that thing, would we have been able to relax a bit and enjoy sightseeing in another world? Or would we have been unable to have a sense of danger and would we have been exposed to death so easily? I don''t know which it is, but we''re alive now, and we''re living a good life. So we''re not so wrong. I guess that''s good. "Well, we finally have more room. "Well, we finally have some room! Yeah. Yeah, Toya''s getting carried away. ...... The salted barrels that had occupied our room for three days were finally gone. The room was filled with more barrels than we expected, and we had a hard time even walking around. The main cause of this was, needless to say, Toya. In the first few days, we saved only one boar a day, but after we decided to leave the drying work until Dingdol was finished, we went hunting even if we had to go out of the way if we were nearby, and there were days when we hunted two boars. And since Toya had to take care of the boars himself, it was hard for him to complain. "Now we don''t have to worry about the smell anymore. "Yes. To be honest, it was a little hard. You have to process a lot of meat in a room. Moreover, the processed meat is salted and accumulates in the room. No matter how much [purification] was applied, the smell could not be avoided. But the result was good, right? "That''s true, but... Toya said with a smug look on his face, but it was true that the dried meat was delicious. It was good on its own, roasted lightly, or added to soup. It was well-received by my father, and he agreed to give some of it away in addition to the cost of the barrel, so we ended up getting quite a bit of money. Incidentally, Toya''s evaluation of the first small amount of fatty pork was that it was not inedible, but tasted better without it. It was a good decision to remove the fat without cutting corners. But it''s Haruka who makes it so good, right?¡¡Why is Toya so proud of it? I''m proud of you for deciding to make so much. I''m proud of you for deciding to make so much. ...... Well, you did a great job with the meat, so that''s good, right? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out, Haruka.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure. Level 1. Well, you''ve been working hard. But you''re the first one of us with this new skill. Yeah. We''ve been training and working diligently for the past half month, and none of us have gained any new skills, or even increased our skill levels. We''ve done a lot. I''ve been working with meat for dozens of hours. But the fact that it took so long for the relatively easy [Dismantling] to reach level 1 ...... shows that reality is not so easy. Oh!¡¡No, no, no, wait, wait. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. It''s a skill that grew relatively quickly after I started using iron rods out of sheer desperation. I forgot about it because I''ve been using a sword lately. "Oh!¡¡That''s right, there it is, a new skill. I forgot about it because I never use it. He smiled carefree, but you should at least remember your own skills, Toya. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you.¡¡I''m sure you''re using a lot of things like [Searching for enemies]. ...... That''s right. I''ve been training pretty hard, but I can''t get my [spearmanship] up either. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you may want to check with your doctor. It''s more convenient to use than at first, but the level itself has not changed. It''s not a waste of time, because the movement itself is getting better.¡¡It''s not usually something you can see as a number, so don''t worry too much about it. ...... I used to think that if I could visualize my status, I''d be able to get more out of my training, but I feel like the more I see, the more I''m told I''m not achieving anything. "Oh, I''ve thought about that too. I wish there was an experience indicator for each skill, like in games! Oh, I really want that. Even when I''m practicing on my own, I''m often wondering if this is really a good idea. I''m sure it''s not a waste of time, though, since it makes combat smoother than at first. I think it''s easier to think of it as ''skill levels almost never increase''. In general, skills are not recognized, so the maximum level is unknown, but the maximum level of magic in the grimoire is 10, so if you follow that, other skills should also be 10. In the case of magic, the number of people who can use level 10 magic is almost zero, and even if you devote your whole life to magic, you usually can''t reach that level. I think it''s easy to get better when your level is low, but once you reach a certain level, you''ll have to train hard for years to get there. You mean I shouldn''t expect results in half a month? "You''re stronger than you were at the beginning, so you''re getting results, right?¡¡You''re stronger than you were at the beginning, so you''re getting results, and you don''t have to worry if they aren''t reflected in your status.¡¡That''s what I meant. "Well, you can just check your status once in a while. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if there is anything you can do to help. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out by yourself. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. It''s what the evil gods say. But in a way, it''s good, isn''t it?¡¡The less game-like it is, the less reckless it is. Oh, yeah. If you can see the experience, you''ll definitely want to gain it. I agree!¡¡It''s the nature of gamers. You can see the experience values, but you don''t level? That''s impossible. There''s no such thing as dying back in real life. Given your personalities, ...... should I thank the evil gods? No, no, no, you wouldn''t do that if your life depended on it. Really?¡¡You''re not going to say, "Let''s hunt some more goblins because I''m almost at the next level! Really? I look at Toya. A meeting of eyes. Hearts connected. "............ By the way!¡¡What are you going to do tomorrow? You''ve gone off on a tangent, ....... No, because! I can see myself or Toya saying that! If you''re a gamer, you can''t help but get greedy, right? I think this is an opinion that will probably be agreed upon by 90% of gamers. I''m just guessing. Well, okay. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you want to do with it. I''d like to leave the city tomorrow or in a few days. 25-022 Where is your friend? You''re leaving town. ...... Are you serious? "Haruka? Even when Toya says, "Let''s accept the request to take down the enemy," Haruka says, "No, it''s too dangerous. She avoids danger as much as possible, and always asks us to be cautious as well as herself. When Haruka is finally getting used to this world, she suggests that we leave the city. ......? It''s not that I''m talking about going on a trip or anything like that.¡¡It''s just that ...... I''d like to find Natsuki and the others, if possible. ...... He added, looking at us a little awkwardly. "Yuki and Natsuki? ...... I''m not sure what to make of that. The two were particularly close friends of Haruka''s, and the three of them often hung out together. They knew us well enough that the five of us would sometimes go out together. If I were to list my classmates who are close to me, these two would be the next closest after my two childhood friends. At first glance, Natsuki looks like a Yamato Nadeshiko, ladylike but a little harsh - and in fact she is a very harsh girl. However, she only says what she thinks clearly, and is not verbally abusive. If you get to know her as well as we do, she speaks in a very rough manner, but if you don''t, she speaks in a polite and distant manner, which seems to give an impression of being difficult to get to know. This may be due to the fact that he has a very sharp tongue in some cases. There was a time when five of us were waiting for each other. Before Toya and I met up with the girls, we were picked up by two flirtatious guys who were confronting us. We rushed to help them, but something was wrong. The two men were half-crying. And then I hear Natsuki''s words. I won''t go into the details, but the attack was powerful enough to break the men''s spirit to pieces. Or rather, overkill. We called out to them with a little hesitation, and they looked at us as if we had saved them in a way. We two men shivered as Natsuki smiled at us as if nothing had happened. Yuki, on the other hand, was a slightly smaller girl who was very sociable and good with people. She can get along with anyone in her own way, making her easier to get along with than Natsuki, but in reality, she is a bit more difficult to get along with than Natsuki. Well, maybe not difficult, but a little different. She''s a little cautious and takes a while to get used to. In addition to that, both of them have a high level of looks, so the reason why we used to hang out with the three of them is because we were expected to act as their bodyguards to avoid any trouble. Thanks to this, the jealous glances of my classmates were annoying, and they were always asking me who I was dating or asking me to introduce them to someone. Well, I wasn''t going to let that change the way I interacted with my friends, so I distanced myself from the annoying people. I was worried about the two of them, but what about the others?¡¡Some of the girls were having dinner with them, right? Hmmm, that one, well, ...... I mentioned earlier that Yuki is very cautious, but in fact Haruka is a similar type. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea for me to go to the gym, but I''m not sure if it''s a good idea for me to go to the gym. He seems to be a caring person, and in fact he is, but he is also quite a troublesome person. He will take care of you to a certain extent, but he will only really take care of a few people. She switches between public and private life, so besides us, the only other people she has relationships with outside of school are probably Yuki and Natsuki. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out more about it at ....... What about Nao and the others?¡¡Shouldn''t we be looking for friends? I''m not sure I''d go out of my way to look for friends ...... in a situation like this. Oh. I don''t see much reason to risk my life to join you. "Ugh, ......, I''m sorry. I''m not sure why you would want to risk your life to join up. It''s not like we''re in the same situation. Our friend is a man. You''re supposed to take care of it yourself.¡¡Right? "Yeah. We don''t have to help you, man. We''re all in the same situation. Natsuki and Yuki are my friends, and they''re women, and I want to help them if I can, just like Haruka. Well, I just don''t have the kind of friendships that would make me want to help them in a situation like this. At least, not among my classmates. "But why now? There''s a lot going on, but first of all, there''s a good chance he''s not here in Laffan, right? Yeah. For the past half month or so, we''ve been gathering information on our classmates, getting information from Diora and searching the city in our spare time. We didn''t go that hard because it was important to survive first, but we didn''t find any information about the two of them within that range. Instead, I found a few people who seemed to be classmates, but since they didn''t seem to be close friends, I didn''t contact them to avoid trouble. Of course, there is a possibility that they are just misunderstood, or that they have become a completely different species and cannot be identified as classmates. However, if he is alive and living, it is highly unlikely that we will not be able to find out any information about him. It''s hard to avoid using the Adventurer''s Guild to make money, whether as adventurers, day laborers, or for other jobs. Another reason is that even if you don''t adapt well, there''s a good chance you''ll survive for a month or less. The other reason is that even if you don''t adapt well, you are likely to survive for a month. There is, but ...... No, they''re stronger than that, right? I''m sure you''re right.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. If they weren''t, we would have been in even more of a hurry, not to mention Haruka. In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you''ll be able to contact us at the web site. "Well, that''s true, but... But if it''s just the two of us, the problem is when something unforeseen happens. You don''t have to do anything dangerous to live on the wages you can get from a day job. However, compared to men who can do hard physical labor, women do a lot of light work and the wages are inevitably lower. Of course, the opposite is true if they get involved in shady jobs, but I don''t think they would do that, and I don''t want to think they are in that situation. If we don''t have enough saved up, it''ll be tough if one of us catches a cold.¡¡We can support ourselves with the other two. Well, yeah. To be frank, I could make enough money for you two to stay in bed. ...... That''s because Toya is a beast of a man. If you want to convert Toya into a laborer, you need more than two people. It''s usually impossible. If Toya doesn''t have enough money saved up, the cost of medicine will bankrupt her. That''s why I want to go look for her as soon as possible. I''m not against it, of course, but do you have any idea? The first place we moved to was a meadow east of this city. Further east is a riverside town called Sahlstat. Maybe we were transported to that city and the surrounding area. Is it possible that we were transported to this city and the surrounding area? Of course it''s possible. But if you compare east, west, north, south and west, east is the safest. And if we''re counting on the kindness of the evil gods... If we move to the southern forest, we''ll die immediately. Even though we''re used to it to a certain extent, we''ve yet to follow Diora''s advice and enter the southern forest. If this is the first day without any preparation, the danger is even higher. I don''t know the purpose of the evil gods, but based on my wishful thinking that they won''t try to kill us immediately, Haruka''s prediction is not so far off the mark. In the event that you''re not in the city at the moment and you''re not in Sahlstat, your survival is at stake. ...... His expression darkened a bit and he sighed. It''s a good idea to take a look at a few of the most common types of shoes that you can find. It''s not that dangerous to walk the streets to Sahlstat. It shouldn''t take more than half a day to get there. Yeah. So we''ll spend today preparing and resting, and leave tomorrow morning, okay? Agreed. Especially you, Haruka. You haven''t had a proper rest in days, have you? It''s Toya''s fault. You''ve made too much dried meat. What are you going to do with it? "Ugh, sorry. I pointed to the barrels stacked in the corner of the room. The volume of the dried meat has been reduced to a fraction of its original size, but it''s still enough to fill several barrels. There were also two large jute bags of dried dindol. To be frank, it''s not enough to carry around. That''s okay. I talked to my father and negotiated with him to rent the warehouse. "Oh, that''s great, Haruka! After getting the barrels for the salt pickling, Haruka became a little closer to her father. The fact that he almost never speaks hasn''t changed, but I think he''s gotten to the point where he''s willing to give us a little extra for breakfast and dinner, and he''s been a little more accommodating ....... Specifically, they serve water instead of ale from the start and give you a small discount. --It''s a bit subtle, isn''t it? You can also tell Diora that you''ll be out of town for a while. No need to prepare? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea.¡¡We''ve come to a different world. I agree!¡¡We''ve almost never been anywhere but where we need to be, right? I''ve never had the opportunity to take a leisurely tour of the city because I''ve been running around the city for training purposes when looking for my classmates. I''ve never had a chance to look around. Fortunately, we have some money to spare, so we can do some shopping. Haruka''s cheeks relaxed a bit at our suggestion. I''m sure it''s not my imagination that the air around me feels a bit relieved. I''m not sure if it''s my imagination or not, but I think it''s a good thing that I''m not the only one. We can play for a day, right? Yeah, okay. No problem. All right!¡¡Let''s go, then! As Toya stood up, Haruka and I stood up as well. 26-023 First vacation --Bookstore. The first place we visited was the only bookstore in town. This was Haruka''s wish. It is a small store with a depth of less than 10 square meters. It was a little dimly lit, and gave the impression of a used bookstore in a back alley. However, there is a big difference from what I imagine when I hear the word "bookstore". First of all, the sales floor area is very small. There is a counter at the entrance of the store, and in that area there is no bookshelf at all, just a small table. There are only piles of battered books on the table, and the books that are normally for sale are stored in the bookshelves behind the counter. A gray-haired old man sits at the counter, and you are not allowed to go behind it. In other words, the bookshelves are arranged in such a way that you can look at the tattered books, but you cannot touch the ordinary books. The reason for this is, I suppose, that the books are expensive. "Are you buying something? "Yes. As I told you before, you need a book on magic, right?¡¡I want to learn the basics, but I also want to learn systematic magic to raise my level. Yeah, sure. I''m only level one. But you''re buying it now?¡¡You''re going on an expedition?¡¡It looks heavy. Toya told me, and I looked at the bookshelf behind the counter. It has a good atmosphere of fantasy, with books that fit the image of massive. These are not easy books like paperbacks or paperbacks. If you want to weigh them, they must be in kilos. "......, what do we do? "...... price survey, yeah. That''s what we''ll do. Really, in real life, luggage is a big problem. ...... It''s always a drag. In other words, if you can make a magic bag, you can make a lot of progress. I''m sorry. I''m looking for a grimoire at ....... "Which one? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "The basics, water, wind, light, fire, space-time, and some books on alchemy. "...... Hmm. Wait a minute. The old man put down his books and stood up. He pulled some books from the bookshelf behind him and laid them on the counter. Here are the basics, almost identical in content, but with 15,000 rares and 20,000 rares. These are water, light, and fire. These are 30,000 rares, 36,000 rares and 25,000 rares respectively. The alchemy dictionary is out of stock. That''s so expensive! I knew it was going to be expensive, but it''s more than that. A book costs hundreds of thousands of yen. ....... It''s quite expensive. Is the difference in price the beauty of it? No, it''s not. If you just want to read, this one''s 15,000 is enough. If you compare the two basic grimoires side by side, you''ll see that the cheaper one is certainly more worn out and the binding is a bit cheaper. It''s not like you''re buying a work of art, but for those of us who read, the cheaper one is the one to buy. "What about wind and space-time? There is no "Wind and Space-Time". Wind comes in once in a while, but space-time is almost impossible. Is that so? Apparently space-time magic is still rare. If there''s no one to use it, grimoires won''t sell, and if they don''t sell, they don''t come in. It''s a matter of course. In the first place, there are no publishers or wholesalers, so it''s difficult to get the books you want. Most of the books are old books that mages and nobles have given away, and new books and new manuscripts rarely come in. There is a profession of copyists, but it requires not only reading and writing skills, but also the financial resources to acquire the original books, connections to people who have the books, and the patience and concentration to copy them without fail. "Grandfather, what about the books on this table? "They''re for sale. They''re all 2,000 rare each, but you won''t hear me complaining if a page is missing. Wow, cheap ......? No, no, no, 20,000 yen for a used book at a wagon sale with missing pages is not cheap. I almost misunderstood the price of a normal book. But I''m curious about this kind of thing. When I picked up the book, I found that it was indeed in shambles. It''s not like it''s going to fall apart when you hold it, but the cover is missing, the binding is loose and the pages are separated, there are pages that are really missing, etc. ....... That''s why some books are interesting. Nao, you''re going to buy it again, aren''t you? ...... Yeah. I''d love to find a bargain, but I''m frustrated that I can''t pack more right now . I''d like to look for a bargain, but I''m frustrated that I can''t pack more right now. Thank you very much. I''ll come back for more. "Hmm, I''ll wait for you with no expectations. We thanked the old man, who seemed to be in a good mood despite his words, and left the store. --Clothing store. This is also Haruka''s wish. What do you want?¡¡We have enough for now, right? I bought these clothes with the idea of washing them, but thanks to Haruka''s [purification], I don''t need to wash them or even dry them. I change my clothes during the daytime and when I go to bed, but in the extreme, those two outfits are enough for me. You bought cheap and durable clothes anyway. Wouldn''t it be nice to upgrade the comfort and design a little?¡¡Clothing, food, and shelter. It''s very important for life, right? "Yes, it is. Clothes are important too, right? No, do you need them? When I''m working, I wear leather clothes as protective gear on top of my cloth clothes, so you can hardly see me. The only time he takes it off is when he is relaxing after dinner until he goes to bed, and it is like a nightgown. At most, only we see them. Isn''t it necessary? Isn''t it useless? Of course, I''ll tell Haruka that. "Yeah, it might be nice. No way. If you interfere with a woman''s choice of clothes, you''ll get in trouble. Toya and I have learned that the hard way. If possible, I''d like to improve my skills a bit more and get some talking techniques to save time when choosing clothes. Should we give it a try this time? You can''t improve without training. I looked at Toya and he nodded his head, a sign that he was ready to go. "You know, Haruka... I spent only about two hours in the clothing store. Of course, I didn''t buy anything. --Naofumi Kamiya was completely defeated. --The weapon shop. This is Toya''s choice. While Toya had bought a good amount of weapons the other day, Haruka and I had the lowest-grade weapons, and Toya thought it was time to update them. Gantz, you''re in my way. "Hey, you. Are you ready to buy a better weapon? I was greeted by Mr. Gantz, the old man who had been looking after me since day one. He didn''t even say hello to us at first, but after using the store a few times and asking for advice, he learned about us and became close enough to give us advice. I bought it, didn''t I?¡¡I came to see Haruka''s and Nao''s today. Mr. Gantz snickered at Toya''s words. You only have a sword too. You''ve only got a sword, your armor is garbage, and you need a shield, right? Garbage? ....... I had to work very hard to buy Toya''s partial armor - it was very cheap compared to the rest. I don''t have that kind of money. I don''t want to buy anything halfway decent. Or, Mr. Gantz, will you give me a freebie? Don''t be ridiculous. I''m making a living at this. I make my living at this.¡¡--Well, if you''re buying a bunch of stuff, I might consider it. Gantz-san, are you a tsundere? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. And don''t save your money when you''re young. Money is no weapon or armor against a demon. On the other hand, if you have a good weapon, you can defend yourself and sell it off when the time comes. Against humans? It''s bait. When a rookie smells money, troublemakers come to him. Mr. Gantz sniffed again and twisted his face in frustration. We both looked at each other. To tell you the truth, we were also worried about carrying around a lot of money. As ordinary high school students, if we had more than 100,000 yen in our wallets, we would be worried that we might drop it. If we had more than 100,000 yen in our wallet, we were worried that we might drop it. But now, we are walking around with 100 times as much money in our wallets, in a place that is less safe than Japan. How can I not feel uneasy? If I could, I would deposit my money in a bank, but there is no system in this world where individuals can deposit their money. How I wish I could deposit money with my guild card, like in the novel! To be frank, you guys would be sitting ducks in any other town.¡¡You''d be sitting ducks in any other town. You should be thankful for the safety of this town. I guess we''re sitting ducks. Should we check his back for leeks? What should we do? Mr. Gantz has a point. I''ve always been a little scared to carry a purse. (I think I''ll keep about 100,000 Reais and spend the rest. (No, wait!¡¡I need the money to buy the book. (Then we can leave 200,000 to 300,000 to buy weapons and armor, right? We both nodded at Haruka''s words. Have you finalized the consultation? Yes. By the way, Mr. Ganz, may I ask what part of us looks like a sitting duck? Neat outfit, cheap weapons and armor, but one of us has an expensive weapon. What kind of a guy brings a weapon from home? He pointed it out, and we looked at each other. That''s what it looks like. But in reality, Haruka is not staying at a particularly expensive inn just because she''s dressed up nicely with her magic, and Toya''s weapon was just bought with a lot of effort, leaving us behind. It''s true that he has money now. It''s true that he has money at the moment, but there are a certain number of idiots who don''t think things through and just judge by appearances. If you want to avoid trouble, you have to bluff a little. Thank you very much. Do you have a bow, a spear, or something else? Yeah, hold on. After a while, Gantz-san went back to the backyard and brought out two bows and two spears. He placed them on the counter. "Here''s the first one. The bow is made of a compound material of elder torrent and mithril, and the string is made of specially processed Magi Spider thread. The feature is that it uses the archer''s magic power to make arrows. You''ll never need to restock your arrows again. Wow!¡¡It''s a magic weapon. Consumable arrows are a burden on your luggage and your budget, so not needing them is quite convenient. Isn''t that pretty good? "Hmm. Why don''t you just use magic? "...... You might be right. But this can be used by people who can''t use magic. Plus, the activation time is very short. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea for humans or not. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea for humans, but I''m not sure if it''s a good idea for elves. What''s the price? It''s not that powerful, so it''s cheaper than you think. 7.8 million Rea. Too expensive. To be frank, it''s not even worth a tenth of what we paid for it. If you have magic power, you can use magic. And Haruka immediately shakes her head. "Yes, rejected. At least it''s not worth it to us. "d*mn it!¡¡Well, you''re an elf. Here you go. It''s based on a branch of Trent. No special effects, but it''s a good quality bow. May I try a pull? "Yes. Haruka takes the bow from the counter and pulls it a few times to see how it feels. It looks like an ordinary bow made of wood, but the texture of the wood seems to be quite high quality. That''s about all we know, and it''s hard to tell how much it''s actually worth. How much is this? "Well, it''s an ordinary bow. 80,000 rare. That''s a big drop. That was a joke. I''m not buying it. Of course not. I''m keeping this one for now. Let me see your spear. This is the one I recommend. The tip is made of yellow iron and the handle is made of pseudo-ironwood, a very hard wood. It''s a little heavier, but it''s a lot sharper and stronger. I took the spear offered by Mr. Gantz and shook it lightly. It is indeed a little heavy, but it is tolerable. At first glance, the handle of the pseudo-ironwood looks like iron, but when you touch it, it feels like wood. Pseudo-ironwood is an unusual kind of wood. It''s hard to begin with, but special processing makes it even harder. Even against iron, it''s so weak it won''t even scratch. But it also has flexibility. It''s ideal for a spear handle. That''s awesome! In the original world, I think there was a material made from cellulose extracted from wood that was lighter and harder than iron, but it didn''t retain its original form as wood. The other one is a bit special. The other one is a little bit special. Elf, you use magic too, right?¡¡It''s a spear that functions a bit like a magic rod. If you use magic with it, the power will increase slightly. The tip is made from a snake''s tusk. It''s not as hard as iron, but it''s harder than normal iron. The biggest advantage is that it won''t rust even if you don''t take good care of it. This one is lighter than the first one. The ease of handling is definitely better. Although the tip is inferior to the yellow iron, the fact that it does not rust and increases the power of magic is a significant advantage. The tip of the snake''s tusk looks a little strange, like a polished white ceramic. It looks a little brittle, but... I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡If it stings, you could get poisoned. "Gee! "What is poison? What''s poison? It''s a magical process. It''s not painted, so you don''t have to worry about taking care of it.¡¡The yellow iron one is 140,000 rare, the other one is rare, but not many people use spears and magic, so 160,000 rare is fine. You don''t have to reapply the poison potion, it still works. It''s useful, but it''s not for hunting. I don''t want to eat poisoned meat. I''ll take the iron. By the way, Mr. Gantz, what are blue iron and yellow iron?¡¡They''re not normal iron, are they? This spear is yellow iron. Toya is using a sword made of blue iron. There are also weapons made of black iron and red iron. There are also weapons made of black iron and red iron. The appearance is that the iron has a slight bluish glow. It''s not bright blue or yellow. What, you don''t know?¡¡Something is mixed with iron to change its properties. It''s made by an alchemist. The ingots are purchased and processed by blacksmiths. So which one do you want? The pyrite, I think. I don''t want it to be poisonous when hunting boars. What? The poison is magical, it won''t go away if you leave it for a while. ...... No, I''ll take the yellow iron one. I like the feel of the handle. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not, but it''s a good thing. To be honest, the idea of increasing the effects of magic is quite appealing to me. ....... Well, I can''t help it. You shouldn''t use a weapon that doesn''t fit in your hand. Are these two enough? "No, I''ll update Toya''s shield and our armor. Do you have any good ones? Go ahead, buy it, buy it. Buy it, buy it, buy it. Gantz-san laughs happily. I''m not sure if it''s his personality or not, but he doesn''t seem sarcastic despite what he''s saying. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. These three are common ones, and these two are arm-mounted ones. If you wear them on your arms, you don''t have to throw away your shield when you handle the sword with both hands. However, it will be more difficult to handle the shield. Mr. Gantz returned to the backyard with the bow and spear we hadn''t chosen, and now came back with five small shields. The only difference between the shields is their shape and weight, and there seems to be little difference in performance. The price of the better ones goes up by an order of magnitude, so we can''t afford them. Toya repeatedly held the shield in his hands and wore it on his arm, and finally chose a shield that could be worn on the arm. The rest is armor. Chainmail for you guys?¡¡If you''re going to stand in front, partial armor over it is not a bad idea. Soft leather, hard leather, metal, the choice is yours. We followed Gantz''s recommendation and chose good quality chainmail within our budget. On top of that, Toya added metal breastplates and baskets, as well as armor to protect her joints, and I added soft leather partial armor. Haruka is basically a rearguard, and is a little less strong, so he only wears chainmail. Instead, he chooses something a little higher quality than what we have. It''s 560,000 rare, but I''ll give you 550,000. I''ll also give you a suit of armor. A suit of armor is a slightly thicker, sturdier cloth garment worn under chainmail. Ordinary clothes are expensive, but this one is even more expensive because it''s tougher. "That''s very generous of you, Mr. Gantz! "d*mn!¡¡I''ve picked up a lot of money, so I''ll at least give you that!¡¡You can''t buy life!¡¡You can''t buy a life, you know. I''m not sure what to make of this. I probably should have updated the armor earlier. I''ve been so busy that the only time I felt threatened was when I was working on Weipu Bear, so I forgot about it. At that time, I pushed myself a bit to update Toya''s weapon, so it''s not like I was unprepared. You guys are of normal build, so come and get it in the morning. I''ll have it adjusted by then. Also, ...... if you don''t want to stand out, wear something over your chainmail. Or a robe over it. It''ll reflect the light, so you''ll stand out. "Thank you, sir. It''s too good to die a paying customer!¡¡Don''t leave when you''re done. I''ve got to adjust your armor, I don''t have time for this! With a steady stream of hateful comments from Mr. Gantz, we left the weapons store. 27-024 Encount - Wild Mines Have Appeared! --General Store Haruka''s Hope again. In addition to household goods, the store also sells accessories for the common man. If we were smart men, we would buy Haruka at least one accessory here, but Haruka holds our wallets, and Toya and I are on an allowance system. Sadly. Well, since we don''t use it, we still have about 10,000 Reais. That money could buy a lot of things. ....... Yes, you''re right. You''ve been good to me, and I think it would be nice to give you something. Haruka is looking for something at ......1. I approach Toya. (Hey, I''m thinking of getting Haruka some accessories. She''s been good to me, right? I whispered, and Toya''s eyes widened in astonishment. ((That''s a good idea for Nao.)) "No, I''m not that surprised. "You''ve never given Haruka a gift except for her birthday, have you? (That''s true, but it''s not like ......, is it? (I know you''ve taken care of her before, but ......, okay. I''ll give you the money, so you can choose your own gift. "Oh, you''re not going to help me? (I''m counting on your taste. Good luck! That, in my opinion, is the worst thing to expect. I''m not confident at all. Despite my feelings, Toya gave me a thumbs up and quickly moved away from me with a swoosh. If I were to chase after him and argue with him, Haruka would notice, so I sighed and went to look at the accessories alone. It''s a good idea to take a look at a few of the more common accessories that are available in the market. The price range is affordable enough. You don''t have a ring ......, do you? It looks too heavy. Earrings: ...... Oh, aren''t these nice? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The size is small and won''t get in the way. All right. I think these earrings would look good on Haruka. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what''s wrong with ......? I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m sure you know that, right? I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡He looked up at me. "Yes. No, I''m out! Now I realize that Toya was covering her face behind me the moment I called out to Haruka. If you knew what I was talking about, just tell me! I think it might have been my fault for not asking for advice after I made my choice. Well, it doesn''t matter anyway, because we''re different bodies. What?¡¡You''re buying it for me? Haruka sighed and looked at me with a mischievous smile on her face. No, well, yeah. I''ve been taking care of you, haven''t I? d*mn, I shouldn''t have done something I''m not used to. I''m so embarrassed! "And, T-- I was about to say, "You too," when I noticed that Toya was gesturing again, "You too! And? "And? "Can''t we buy a few things before we go to the next town? I rephrase, and Toya nods behind me, saying, "Good job. It''s true that I''m responsible for the wrong choice, but you agreed to give it to him, didn''t you? Hmm. I''ll let you choose something then.¡¡I want something I can wear on a daily basis, so maybe a necklace? How about a hair clip? At the moment, Haruka''s beautiful blonde hair is lightly braided and tied with a leather cord so as not to get in the way of combat. It''s a good idea to have a little something more decorative. I was thinking of something a little more decorative, but then I thought, "Would that get in the way of the fight?¡¡If it''s just a ribbon, I don''t want it to ...... get caught, so I guess no.¡¡When I get some more time off, I can buy something for my off days. It''s true that we don''t have enough money in our lives to adorn ourselves. We have some money now, but the gift of accessories might have been a bit of a mistake. However, Haruka seems to be happy, so there''s no need to take it back. I listened to Haruka''s opinion and ended up giving her a necklace with a pendant top made of the same stone as the earrings I had chosen. Toya? He secretly gave me half the money afterwards, you know? I asked if I should tell her that it was from the two of us, but she said I didn''t need to say anything else, so I didn''t tell Haruka. --Coffee Shop This is where I want to ......, or rather, all of us? This is the place that Diora told me about when I asked her if she knew of any good restaurants. The prices are high, but in addition to food, they serve sweet pastries, which are rare in this world, and I''ve been talking about going there sometime. In addition to the inside of the restaurant, there are also tables set up in the garden terrace, which is not so fancy as to be called a garden terrace, but is rather spacious. There are no flowers, just lawn-like grass and a few shrubs, but even so, it is distinctly different from other restaurants that just have tables in front of the restaurant. However, the prices are also distinctly different, and the food alone is almost three times more expensive than at the Bear of Slumber, our regular lodging. The food is delicious, but I''m not sure if it''s worth the price difference. However, if anything, the level of "The Bear of Slumber" is higher than the others, so I am not particularly dissatisfied with it. It was surprisingly good. "Yes, it was. It was a little expensive. It was a little expensive, but considering the location and all, I guess it was worth it. I don''t think I''ll be back every day. If "The Bear of Slumber" is a set meal restaurant that I would like to go to every day, this is a restaurant that I would like to come to once in a while. Not only in terms of price, but also in terms of taste, this is a restaurant that I would like to visit once in a while. The meal was over, and we were relaxing with a cup of tea while eating the extra sweets we had ordered (enough for two regular meals). The sweets would have been worth a fortune in the original world, but in this world they are precious, so we ate them little by little and drank tea. In a normal cafeteria, I would have been urged to hurry up and eat, but it was too expensive for that to happen. As we were regaining our energy, we suddenly heard a voice shouting in our ears. "Ahh!¡¡You''re Nagai, aren''t you!¡¡And the elves over here are Kamiya and Azuma? I turned my gaze in the direction of the voice and saw a human woman there. I''m sure you''ve heard of them. I think I''ve seen her before. ....... Is that you, Mr. Umezono? Yes. Yes, I''m sure I had a classmate. I didn''t recognize him until Haruka told me. I didn''t have any contact with him, so I only knew his name, and his face was a little vague. "Long time no see. Do you work here? "Yeah, yeah. I have a day job at ....... Really? Oh, yeah. So you''re making ends meet. "Just barely! While I''m talking to Mr. Umezono, Toya and Haruka are whispering to each other and nodding lightly. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''d like to know what skills you guys got.¡¡Tell me. "What, all of a sudden? Come on, we''re classmates!¡¡We''re classmates and we might be able to help each other out in some way! No, but why would you suddenly ask me about my skills? Don''t you usually talk about what you''ve been up to? I''m not a great communicator, but I don''t think that''s a good idea. Well, I could teach you, but what about you, Mr. Umezono? What? You''re going to teach me? You can teach me, but what about you, Umezon-san? I''m a blacksmith.¡¡I''m a blacksmith, an appraiser... I was going to try to make a living by blacksmithing or appraising or something, but I don''t have the space. Mr. Umezono exhales, shrugs his shoulders and shakes his head. He seems to be overacting like a Westerner. I don''t know him well, but I wonder if he is like this. "Hmmm. My skills are-- Then he tells us his skills, and encourages us to teach ours. Well, if Haruka says so, I''ll follow. As soon as I told him what my skill was, he smirked and looked at us as if we were idiots. "Hahahaha, you guys are too dumb, aren''t you?¡¡Are you stupid enough to teach us your skills so easily?¡¡Well, now I don''t have to work in a dull place like this!¡¡I''ll be grateful for that! As soon as she said that, she threw the tray she was holding onto the table beside her and ran out of the store. I was taken aback by his quick change, and Haruka sighed in disgust. What was that? What''s that?" "It''s what I expected, but you should at least finish your work and get out of here. I don''t know much about Umezono, but is he like that? I don''t know him well, but is he like that? I mean, as soon as he hears about our skills, he starts running. ...... She has a copy of our skills. She has no other skills. "...... Oh, I see. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m here. But why did he only [copy skills]?¡¡If you don''t have enough points, don''t you usually take [Robbery of Skills]? You can''t copy a skill if you don''t know the other person''s skill, so it''s risky to just take the "skill copy" option. I''m not sure how well she knows the game, but I don''t think she doesn''t understand it, since it was written in the first explanation. I''m just guessing, but comparing the point requirements and limitations of robbery and copying, she might have thought there were some pitfalls in robbery. Robbery is clearly too much of an advantage. That seems likely. If you don''t have a supplementary explanation, you won''t take a copy unless you''re someone who feels bad about robbing. It''s possible that Umezono thought so, but looking at his behavior, it''s unlikely. If that''s the case, he should have just told us what was going on and asked us to do it, but not at the time of that throwaway line. I''m not sure what to do. Yeah. That means she can''t remember any of the skills we have. Haruka, you''re a demon. I don''t know what to say.¡¡You asked me to teach her, so I did, isn''t that kind of me?¡¡I don''t know what the result will be. Haruka, you have a very nice smile. If she can''t get all the skills we have, she''s going to have a hard time. Even if we can''t get magic anyway, all the major weapons will be wiped out. The disadvantage of this is that our opponents will know our skills, but it''s not a ...... game, so it''s not a problem. If we can''t get the skills easily, it''s useless to think about the combination of skills that can compete with us. If you work hard, you can get by without skills. I don''t know if she''ll work seriously if she suddenly abandons her job. "But what was with that attitude? Why didn''t you just talk to her? Yeah. I don''t understand why you''re getting upset. I don''t understand why you''re getting upset. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m not sure if it''s because of me.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. Although the content of the comment was muddled, it was most likely jealousy of Haruka. The general evaluation of Haruka is that she is cute, has a good personality, can study well, and is popular. I don''t mean to say anything about that evaluation, but conversely, there was a ground for jealousy. "In another world, there''s a chance I could beat Haruka, and she''s acting like that? I don''t know.¡¡I feel like she got along well with both men and women. I''d like to think they don''t hate me, but I don''t know what''s in their ...... hearts. I''m not going to go out of my way to help anyone but Yuki and Natsuki," she said. Yeah, don''t worry about that. I''m not going to help any of the boys. But wouldn''t it be troublesome if they resented you? "Can we get enough information to resent?¡¡Do you think she''ll ask us?¡¡"Why can''t I use the skill I copied without permission? Why? I can''t do that! No one with half a brain would ask that. Right?¡¡Then someone has to tell me what the mines are, but who in this town knows about them? I''m sure you''ll be able to find someone in this town who knows about it. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡It''s hard to meet someone, and it''s impossible for that person to meet the requirements of ......, isn''t it? In the past, I''ve found a few classmates with indeterminate names, but even they may not be in this city forever. Once they leave the city, it''s almost impossible to find their classmates. You''re screwed, Umien. Poor thing. ...... I clasp my hands together and say, "Nameless, nameless. I wish you all the best in your future endeavors. Do you really think so? No, not really. To be honest, your attitude pissed me off. --Speaking of which, you didn''t say "help" earlier, did you? I noticed that Haruka didn''t say it, so I kept it a secret too, but... Yeah. You don''t need to give information unnecessarily, right?¡¡You can''t copy a skill without a level anyway. As expected of Haruka, she is meticulous. The main reason why I took that action was to reduce the strength of the potential enemy. "What? It''s not an enemy to try to trick you out of the blue. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. It''s just as well that Haruka is so meticulous and relentless. I''m not sure what to make of that. You know? Yeah. But even if he''s weak, I wouldn''t want to meet that type of guy. I agree. If she comes back, we''ll be in trouble. Let''s get out of here. We drank all the tea we had left and left the store early. 28-025 Something was down (1) The next morning, I left the inn and headed to the weapons shop, where Mr. Gantz had finished the job as promised. I quickly changed into my new armor and threw on a long hooded parka. This is something Haruka made for me yesterday, and it''s much easier to move around in than the robe, and it''s also somewhat waterproof. The main reason why I chose to make it myself instead of buying a robe is probably the cost, but I''m sure it''s even better than that. Finally, I''m out of leather!¡¡It was still better because of the purification, but to be honest, it was hard to breathe and it was stuffy! Haruka said happily, and spun around in an unusually excited manner. I agree. This is also a little hot in the summer, but it''s better than leather clothing. The armor is made of a slightly thicker cloth, but it''s much better than leather clothes, which are almost impermeable to air, and the chainmail hardly impedes movement. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not a big fan of the idea, but I''m sure it''s because I''m not a big fan of the idea. I guess that''s why it''s so expensive. Now, are we going to head for Sarstat? Well, it''s just a straight shot down the street, so we should be there by ...... midday. It would take a normal person about a day to walk the whole distance. If you are an adventurer with a higher physical ability than that, it will not take you that long. There is no danger on the way, as long as you don''t stray from the main road. "Hey, do I need to get used to your weapons? It''s unlikely that there will be strong enemies, but ...... what do you think, Nao? I''ve done some light practice ....... Yesterday, back at the inn, while Haruka was making a hoodie, Toya and I practiced as usual. There was not much difference between the new spear and the old one, except for a slight increase in weight, and it was easier to handle because of its better quality, so I was not too worried. If anything, I''m more worried about Haruka, who hasn''t had much practice. I''m sure I''ll be fine too.¡¡A bow is a bow. If you''ve got time, why don''t you go get a dindle? Hmm?¡¡I''m sure you can still get them. ...... When I say that the dindle season is over, it doesn''t mean that they''ve all been harvested or that they''re no longer edible. It is just that we stopped picking them because there were fewer and fewer of them to be harvested at one time and they were less tasty. The first tree in particular is the closest one to us, and since it hasn''t been picked for a while, it''s probably still producing a certain amount of fruit. I don''t know what''s going on with Yuki and the others, but it''s hard to eat good food, isn''t it?¡¡I wish I could feed them. Haruka and I looked at each other and nodded deeply. We were lucky enough to make some money and find a good place to stay, so we were able to eat reasonably well, but if we hadn''t had the money, we would have had to put up with the same kind of food that we ate at the food stalls on the first day. If I hadn''t had the money, I would have had to put up with the food stalls on the first day. I''m sure. I''ve got some dried dindol, but I''d like to feed him some fresh dindol. Nao, can I? "Yeah. No reason to object. In fact, I''ll even hunt some meat for you. Oh, good, meat. Dried meat is good, but regular meat is good, too! Now that we''ve decided on a course of action, we''ll leave the city streets and take the road we''ve been taking lately. Thanks to the many times we''ve passed, the undergrowth has disappeared and we''ve reached our target tree in less than half the time it took the first time. "Well, let''s go up. Just one of us, right? "Well, it doesn''t take two to go up, does it? This time I didn''t want to fill up my backpack. I temporarily left the contents of my backpack with them and climbed up the tree. I''d already retrieved the rope from the dindle tree, but I''d climbed it so many times that I was now able to do so without difficulty. It is dangerous to climb without a lifeline, but my physical ability is completely different from before, and thanks to the overlapping branches of the dindle tree, there is almost no danger of falling down even if I should slip. You can easily reach the top and collect the dindle nuts. I''ve already picked the easiest places, so there are many places where it''s a bit tricky, such as the tips of branches, but it''s no problem. My climbing level has improved, and I''ve been using a rope since I reached the top, so I''m not worried about falling. Of course, the "level" is a metaphor, not a "tree climbing" skill. I was expecting to get some tree climbing or climbing skills. ...... Is this level of tree not enough? Or maybe a week or so is not enough. I''m a little disappointed. "Yeah, that''s about it, isn''t it? About two-thirds in my backpack. I''ve collected everything from the relatively easy spots. If we try hard enough, we can still get some, but it will take time and we don''t need that many. We retrieved the ropes that had been temporarily tied and headed down. Climbing trees is scarier on the way down than on the way up. ....... I took some time to descend carefully, and found the remains of a dismantled boar. "Hey, welcome back. Did you get it? "Yeah, about this much. I show him my backpack. You hunting, Toya? Yeah, it''s a small one. Toya''s backpack, which had been flat before the climb, has been transformed into a puffy one. As for Haruka, he looks the same. It may not have been a big game, but his hunting skills have improved so much that he was able to find, hunt, and dismantle it in such a short time. To be honest, Toya''s sensing ability is comparable to my [Enemy Searching], even though she has no skills whatsoever. No, when it comes to hunting without hostile intentions, it might even exceed it. It''s not difficult for me to kill a beast that''s coming towards me, but it''s impossible for me to find my prey in the forest, approach it without being noticed, and kill it in close combat. If you want to compete with Toya in hunting, you''ll have to team up with Haruka, who can use a bow. Isn''t it about time for her to get a skill like [Hunting]? It''s not going to fit in Toya''s backpack, so we''ll have to split the dindle between us. Okay. Can you put half of it in here? I moved half of it into the backpack Haruka had offered me, then took it out of my backpack and repacked it with my other stuff. If I put it in the wrong way, I''ll end up with a crushed dindle all over my clothes. Okay, are you ready? Yeah, let''s go. We need to get back on the road first, though. In terms of the direction of the city of Sarstat, we''ll have to turn around a bit, but it''s risky to just head off in the direction of a roadless forest. In our party, whose banner is "Cautious," the sooner we hurry, the better. We followed the usual route home, and were about to exit the forest when Toya, who was leading the way, stopped in his tracks. "What''s that? What? Haruka, who had turned her face to where Toya was looking, let out a strangely cute scream. Haruka is also a girl, but she''s not. The person in front of you is a person who has fallen to the ground. He was wearing shabby clothes, carrying no luggage, and was lying on his face. This is ...... a stranded man?¡¡He''s small, is he a child? "No, probably a dwarf. He''s stocky. Dwarf. I''ve never seen one before. Both a wanderer and a dwarf. Well, what do you do in a case like this?¡¡Leave it?¡¡Burial? If you have identification, it''s recommended that you take it to the Adventurer''s Guild. There''s no reward, but it''s good manners. Also, if you can afford it, it''s best to bury the body. I see. ...... This is the first time you''ve seen a dead body in this world. Even though death is closer than in the original world, I don''t really want to touch a corpse I don''t know. I turn the body over with my toes to check the situation. If it''s decomposing, I need to be prepared for anything. "Ugh. "Did you say something to ......? No. Me neither. --Hey, you know, I think that guy might still be alive.¡¡It''s hard to tell with his beard. That''s why I''m looking at him again. I''m with you. He''s a bearded man, just like a dwarf. At any rate, he''s not decomposing or anything. The color of his face is ...... not clear to be honest. I can''t help it, so I cautiously put my hand on his neck. ....... "There''s a slight ...... pulse, maybe? "He''s alive?¡¡If so, we should try to save him. If we can afford it," said Haruka, checking for external injuries, but there were no significant injuries. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Haruka uses magic on him, but he doesn''t react. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. Then he started to choke slightly and opened his eyes. "Are you okay? "Oh, I''m hungry. ...... "Oh, I''m hungry. " He said this in a faint voice. It seems that he had collapsed. No matter how hungry he was, it seemed impossible to feed him meat, so I peeled some dindol fruit and fed it to him. After eating three of them as if he were devouring them, he took a break, bowed politely and thanked me again. Thank you, sir. Thank you very much. I haven''t had a proper meal in days. ...... "Well, that''s okay. I''m helping people. To be honest, I didn''t think I should eat three pieces of expensive fruit, but when someone politely thanks you, it''s hard to ask for money. If I bought them, they would be expensive, but it wouldn''t take much effort to pick three more. "So, what''s the matter?¡¡What are you doing here, dressed like that? You''re too lightly dressed to go into this forest. The dwarf didn''t answer my question, but looked at my face, and then at Haruka''s and Toya''s faces. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. That''s right!¡¡I''m Wakabayashi. Yutaka Wakabayashi!¡¡Don''t you get it? Huh?¡¡Wakabayashi!¡¡Excuse me? Wakabayashi. The name sounds familiar, of course. But Wakabayashi was a small, thin, timid guy. He was not very assertive and inconspicuous, but he was popular and loved by some girls. ...... His image is too different from the dwarf in front of him. It''s not just the way he talks, but the way he looks now is very typical of a dwarf. I''m not sure what to make of it. I don''t get it!¡¡What''s wrong with you?¡¡What''s wrong with your outfit! I violently agree with Toya''s cry. Only the tone of voice is consistent with my memory, but with the current appearance and voice quality, it''s rather uncomfortable. Why do you have to look like that again? ...... "I thought, since I''m going to another world... Well, another world debut?¡¡I didn''t mind my old body, but I''ve always wanted to be a man of austere appearance. I''m not sure if that''s true ......?¡¡No, but ...... austere? Is a dwarf "austere"? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea or not. I''m not going to dare point out that it''s fine if you''re comfortable with it. ....... I''m not going to dare to point it out.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. But Azuma-san has always had a beautiful face, so there''s not much change even though she became an elf. Hey, does that mean my original face is no good? I don''t want to hear it because I don''t want to be affirmed! As for me, I can''t help but feel a little uncomfortable with your tone and voice. I know that. I know that, but I can''t change it all at once. That''s true. So, what''s the matter with you, Wakabayashi, here? Well, he was suddenly transported into the woods and wandered around for days and got stuck. I mean, isn''t this too hard mode?¡¡You can''t just throw me out there by myself! We nodded our heads in agreement as Wakabayashi spread out his hands in a strong tone. It''s probably better that you''re not naked, but it''s still a hard mode, that''s for sure. "Yeah, I know how you feel. What would we have done without Haruka? Yeah. Thanks to Haruka. Ah, Azuma-san''s a solid guy, isn''t he? Are all three of you adventurers by the looks of you? Wakabayashi said as he looked at our outfits. Thanks to the equipment we bought yesterday, our appearance is good enough for most people to recognize us as adventurers. We did have weapons a while ago, but in this world, that''s about as common as an ordinary person picking up firewood. I''m registered with the Adventurer''s Guild, you know.¡¡I don''t know if I''m doing the kind of work you imagine adventurers do, but I think I''m making enough to live on. I see. I haven''t even made it to the city yet. I had some money in my pocket, but I don''t even know what it''s worth. ...... Wakabayashi sighs and takes a coin out of his pocket. It looks like he''s just like us. It''s 10 large silver coins, right?¡¡It''s worth enough to pay for city taxes, adventurer registration fees, a day''s stay at an inn, and a few sundries. "That''s not much!¡¡It''s hard mode, after all! Wakabayashi shouted again at Toya''s explanation. Yeah, it''s going to be tough if you don''t do well on your own. I understand why you want to shout, but Haruka frowned a little and opened her mouth. I''m sorry, Wakabayashi, but could you please lower your voice a bit?¡¡It''s not a very safe place to be. "Oh, yes. I''m sorry. I''m sorry." As Wakabayashi bowed his head, Haruka waved his hand lightly and continued. I''m sure you''ll be fine once you get back here. ....... You are alone?¡¡We were able to successfully transfer the three of us together. "Wow!¡¡I''m impressed. You''re so good at getting together with good friends in that situation. I didn''t know who was who, so I stuck to the nearest human soul. ...... Oh, you''re just like me. In my case, I didn''t have to move, but two people came and saved me. Is there a personal difference in understanding and not understanding? It''s really depressing when people say things like "emotional distance". "Couldn''t you have transferred with them? "No, we were able to transfer together, at least. It was Tanaka-kun and Takahashi-kun, but they weren''t really close to each other. ...... So they went their separate ways. Separated or rather ...... He looked down with a gloomy expression on his face and hesitated to say anything, but after a while, he started to speak in whispers. 29-026 Something was down (2) You know, this may sound like an excuse, but I don''t have any combat skills, so I had no choice. ....... Oh, that''s not what I meant. Let''s see, at first there were three of us. We camped out in the woods for a few days, exploring. We were lucky, we didn''t get attacked by anything, and thanks to [Appraisal] we found out what we could eat, so we didn''t starve. So that''s how I''ve been surviving for over half a month without even going to town. If you have the [Appraisal], you can tell if the food is edible or not, regardless of its taste. If you''re in the forest, it''s not a bad idea to set up a base and expand your search. So, on the fourth day, I reached the road and found a carriage being attacked. The first thing Tanaka said was, ''Template, here it is! And then Takahashi said, "Hmm. I want you to be my test subject for magic. And as I said before, I didn''t take any combat skills, and I didn''t have any weapons to begin with, so I hid in the woods and watched. ...... --Oh. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a perfect example of what Tanaka meant. So, Tanaka, did you have a weapon? Just a branch I picked up in the woods. ...... He''s even more stupid than I thought, isn''t he? I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that," he said with a sigh. I''m not sure. It''s a bit harsh to say, but honestly, I agree with you. So, what happened? "Tanaka broke in with his stick and knocked out one of the bandit-looking guys from behind. That was good, but soon after, he was surrounded by three bandits and stabbed. ....... I''m not sure if Takahashi saw this and became impatient, but the magic he was about to use suddenly exploded, causing a lot of damage to himself, Tanaka, the bandits and the carriage. ....... At that point, I got scared and ran away, so after that, ...... Yeah. You are undeniably an idiot. I''m sorry! I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Oh, no, I''m not talking about you, Wakabayashi, I''m talking about you and Takahashi. What do you two think? What do you two think?" "The situation is not a ''template'', the outcome is not a ''template'', it''s realistic! No, I don''t mean that. I''m talking about you two. Maybe Tanaka got the hero trait.¡¡You know, it''s not every day that a tempest happens at the right time.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. This road is relatively safe and the risk of being attacked by bandits or demons is quite low. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at our own web site. "Probably. In the first place, it''s shallow to suddenly try to fight. That''s right. No matter how skilled you are, there is no way you can fight out of the blue. I don''t know if it was really luck that I wasn''t attacked by goblins or beasts until then. ....... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure if it''s because he''s a hero or not, but I think it''s because he''s a hero. Or did he think that he would be thanked by the people in the carriage? What do you mean? I''m sure you''re not the only one who can''t understand what I''m talking about. Well, you don''t think that without [help] you''d be in a pinch with a skill that should give you an advantage, do you? "That''s-- "Wait a minute. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea.¡¡If you don''t want to tell me, I won''t ask you to. No, I don''t mind. It''s nothing to hide from Azuma-san and the others. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ¡¾Talent in Kurosmithing¡¿ ¡¾Kurosmithing Lv.3¡¿ ¡¾Stubbornness Lv.3¡¿ ¡¾Strengthening Lv.2 [Iron Wall Lv.2] [Appraisal Lv.2] [Heavy Drinking Water --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I''m not sure if this is a standard configuration for a production system. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m thinking of a dwarven blacksmith. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''m pretty sure it''s not good for heavy drinking. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m sure this is an additional skill. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. What?¡¡What''s wrong with it?¡¡And mines? ...... I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. What?¡¡What? That''s not how I imagined dwarves to be!¡¡Besides, it doesn''t say anything about that, does it? Was it Wakabayashi who wanted this reaction, this skill? "Yeah. That''s mine . There was a skill called [Help], right?¡¡If you take it, you''ll be able to read additional information, and it''s written there. Whoa!¡¡That''s the evil god!¡¡It''s a terrible scam! Wakabayashi clutched his head and accused the evil god. "Yes, I understand. I understand how you feel, but most of the skills are fine except for the ones that were added later. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''ve seen it before. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. I''m not going to drink it even if it''s free. I''m not sure what to make of it. That''s no good. Seeing this, Wakabayashi sighs and sags in disappointment. I took it from an image. I took it as an image, but it''s not necessarily a good drink. ...... If we didn''t know any better, we''d probably be satisfied with that ale, but we do know how to drink in the original world. I''ve never tasted it, of course, because I''m underage and I''ve only licked it, but I know it''s bad. Then, Tanaka-kun and Takahashi-kun''s too? "Yes. In a nutshell, the heroic qualities will give you trouble, while the magic power will increase but be uncontrollable. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. How can someone who takes such a skill in that situation be expected to be so careful? Well, the answer is probably no. So, you asked me about my skills too? Yes. Because if you have mine skills, I''ll have to think twice about going out with you. ...... What would have been wrong with that? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to do. I don''t want to get involved because I''m going to die soon anyway. I don''t want to get involved. I''m not sure. If you use it, your lifespan will be reduced. If you use it on us, you''ll almost certainly die right then. There''s already been a few deaths in the city that look like that. I can''t confirm this, but I''m pretty sure that''s the cause of all the deaths that occurred before and after we arrived. "And then there''s the charm. I don''t know if it works on us, but I don''t want to get close to it because it only brings trouble anyway. I don''t know if it works on us, but it''s only going to bring us trouble, so I don''t want to get close to it. The same goes for the hero/heroine qualities. I don''t know if it works on us, but it''s only going to bring us trouble, so we don''t want to get close to it. I see. It''s true that I don''t want to get close to them for my own safety. If I had followed those two, I would have died for sure. But are you okay with the rest?¡¡There were other cheat-like skills like [Copy Skill] and [Double Experience], right? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what to do with it.¡¡I don''t want to be in a party with them, though. Yeah. As long as they don''t suddenly become hostile, I''m fine with them. Oh, who was that ...... guy again? I''m not really interested. I''m not really interested in him, so I seriously forgot about him. I''m not really interested.¡¡I think it''s normal for them to grow faster. "Of course you think so. That''s why I''m sure many of you have taken it, but instead of doubling the experience, it increases the experience required for growth by ten times. "What? I''m not sure if I understood what was being said, but Wakabayashi raised his voice and nodded his head. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. ...... I''m sure you''ve seen it before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. I''d like to see it improved as soon as possible. I mean, if you use points to get it, it grows at one-fifth the rate. It''s too bad. ...... I guess it depends on how you use [Skill Copy]. The level of the copied skill will be reduced to 1, and it will be sealed, and you will not be able to use it unless the person you copied it from unravels it for you. It can be useful if you get to know the person and get their permission to use it, but it has a terrible drawback that if you copy a skill from someone you don''t know, you won''t be able to use it anymore. Is that any different from being taught in a normal way? Maybe it''s easier to learn because you have the skill at level one?¡¡I don''t know if it''s worth the 100 points, though. I don''t know if it''s worth the 100 points, but that evil god assured me that there are no cheats. "Hmmm, he''s like a sparrow. People who ignore God''s advice. So the person who chooses the big basket is going to have a bad time. Well, even if you get zero points, you still have your body and your language skills, so I think a few mines can be deducted from zero. And the fact that you came back to life in the first place is a big plus, right? If the average point is 100, then 10 times the experience is 100. That''s a zero deduction. If it''s double or quadruple, there''s an advantage because you can get other skills. You may grow slower, but if you are a high level player at the beginning, you will have a big advantage over those without skills. Skill copying is also an advantage if you don''t use it unnecessarily. --If you have a lot of friends you can trust, you can get a lot of skills, which is quite useful.¡¡If you''re alone, it''s pretty tough. I see. So it''s not so terrible, is it? We''re certainly enjoying the benefits. On a different note, Wakabayashi, you''re still alive. You''ve been alone in this forest for over a week, right? Well, since I was a [appraiser], I managed to survive my hunger by chomping on something I could eat ......, which was something like grass. But I couldn''t find a place to drink water, so I collected night and morning dew and sipped it. ...... The time is vague, but I''ve probably been in a dazed state since yesterday. ...... Ugh. I was with two other people. It seems that when he was with the other two, he was lucky enough to get a lot of edible food. "Hmm, could it be that [Heroic Qualities] just brings trouble? It''s possible that it''s an effect of other skills, but ...... we don''t need it anyway. It''s more important to survive, even if it''s a little boring. Right? "I prefer ''peace and quiet'' to ''checkered''," muttered Haruka. "Well, it''s impossible for ordinary people to survive today. But how did you recover from that condition? Wakabayashi''s current condition is a bit painful, but he has no trouble speaking. If you think he was dehydrated, is this what happens when you take water? I don''t know, but it''s not like I''m sick, so maybe I just need to drink some water, get some nutrition, and use some recovery magic to get better? I''m not sure, but it''s not like I''m sick. This time, it seems that the decline in physical strength was due to hunger and lack of water, so by taking in water and food and recovering your physical strength, you may feel better. Wakabayashi, can you walk? Yes, somehow. Well then, let''s get going. We''re almost to the street. We stood up and started walking, and Wakabayashi followed with a normal, if not strong, gait. Since we were already at the border of the forest, it would take us less than a few minutes to reach the road. When he reached there, Haruka turned to Wakabayashi and said. "Well then, Wakabayashi, I''ll leave you here. "What? Haruka continued without regard to the surprised expression on Wakabayashi''s face. "If you go straight down this road, you will reach the city of Laffan. You can get in by handing over your tax money to the gatekeeper, and I suggest you sign up for the Adventurer''s Guild. With your skill set, I''d recommend manual labor as a safe way to earn money. As long as you stay on the right side of the road, you won''t be in much danger, but be careful. "Excuse me! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. What''s wrong? What''s going on?" "Can you not ...... join us? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of it. What does that have to do with us?¡¡No combat skills, no weapons, no armor, no money. We''re totally slowed down, right? "Well, we''re ...... classmates. ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. I''m sure you''re right, we''re just classmates. I''ve never really known you, and to be frank, I only know your name, Wakabayashi. Do I have a right to take care of you? Harsh. It''s harsh, but it''s the right thing to do. Wakabayashi looked at us as if asking for help, but we just shrugged our shoulders. "If we get a job and find our former classmate homeless in front of the station, we won''t take care of him, will we? If he''s dying, we''ll at least call an ambulance. That''s about it. But not if it''s Nao or Toya. I''ll protect them, I''ll kick their asses, I''ll make them work, I''ll try to get them back on the right track. "No, no, no, I''m not going to be homeless. "No, no, no, I''m not going to be homeless. Don''t get me started. --That''s because there''s trust and affection between us, and we''ve worked hard to maintain it. That''s why we''re willing to help each other in troubled situations. You know that if we don''t have a normal relationship with each other, but we are asked to help each other only when we are in trouble, we won''t be able to help each other, right?¡¡So if you want to ask us for help, you need to be reasonable, not emotional. "......... What''s the advantage of us helping him?¡¡Is it worth investing the money we''ve risked our lives for you? Well, that ......!¡¡I can do blacksmithing! It''s a good idea to take a look at the web site and see if you can find any useful information. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to make a living at it.¡¡But I don''t think it''s going to be easy, so you''re going to have to work your way up to a part-time job, make contacts, gain trust, apprentice yourself to a blacksmith, and ...... do it little by little. Well... There are no forges you can rent like in the games, and you can''t pick up iron ore on the street. It''s hard to buy iron, and there''s no place to sell it. If you don''t have trust, you can''t get an apprenticeship. It''s tough. While you''re saying that, you also took the blacksmithing skill, didn''t you? Yeah. And now you''ve seen the reality! It''s not something you can do on your own. It''s like being a blacksmith while working as an office worker. No, it''s even tougher than that. In our world, you have to work really hard to make a living. It is true that in the original world, if you work normally, you can save a certain amount of money and have weekends off, but in this world where you can''t save money even if you work every day, it''s tough. There is no social security system. Well, that''s the thing. You have a high skill level and you''ve taken some talents, so if you become a blacksmith and the town accepts you, you''ll have a stable life. You can''t help me ....... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I don''t think so. It doesn''t make sense to us. Wakabayashi''s life will be more stable if he can establish himself in the city. We need to raise our level as adventurers to stabilize our lives. We''re going in opposite directions. I''m sure that''s ...... true, but ...... If you''re in a situation like that, where you''re going to die if you don''t take care of yourself, I can help you a little. But if you go to the city and work, you can survive. It''s a bit naive to rely on us in that situation, isn''t it? "......Haruka-san is ...... quite ...... serious. I used to think you were a gentle person,....... In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a little pissed off at you. Aren''t I nice?¡¡I saved you from dying, didn''t I?¡¡I don''t deny that you''re serious. Just so you know, Haruka has no mercy for her enemies.¡¡I''ll tell you what, Haruka has no mercy on her enemies. She''ll beat a dog that falls in the water and kick one that''s about to fall. What''s the point of showing mercy to an enemy?¡¡I don''t live in the world of shonen manga, so I don''t believe in ''the enemy becomes your friend in the second half''. Yeah, it''s a classic. I don''t live in the world of shonen manga, so I don''t believe in ''enemies becoming allies in the second half''. I don''t mind that kind of thing. Crush them when you can. That''s my Justice! Wakabayashi is a little taken aback by Haruka''s strong words, but Toya and I know better and can only laugh. In fact, in a harsh world, half-hearted mercy is a bad thing. It is common sense in this world that bandits should be killed as much as possible. I''ll take care of my allies. ...... enemies and traitors, though, right? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that," he said, laughing as he made a gesture of scratching his neck with his thumb. You''ll be fine, right, Wakabayashi? Of course I am, sir! He smiled at Haruka and shook his head like a baby. It''s rather scary that he has a good face. I''ll try my best alone. I''ll try my best on my own. Do you have any advice for me? Wakabayashi nodded his head with a determined expression, as if he had accepted that our intentions were unchanged. As I said before, with your strength, you can earn enough money if you work hard. The Adventurer''s Guild can help you find a job. Also, if you find a classmate, it''s probably best not to contact them too easily. Of course, it depends on Wakabayashi, but he has some troublesome skills like the ones I just mentioned. What about Nao and the others? "Hmm, what are their names?¡¡We didn''t use last names to be less conspicuous, and I changed mine to Toya. Well, if you don''t want to stand out, I suggest you change it. Oh, that''s why you should also go to ....... He said that, and pondered in silence for a while. "...... Well, how about Tommy?¡¡I''ve been called that because my name is Yutaka. "Yeah, I think that''s a good idea. Well, I''ll register with that. I think about it for a while as I watch Wakabayashi nod. Did you have any advice for me ......? We relied on Haruka for a lot of the work. ...... Well, he doesn''t have Haruka, does he? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand what I''m talking about. I''ll say, "Don''t get carried away. Be humble. Be cautious at all times. When you decide on a policy, you should think about it not as Tommy, but as Yutaka Wakabayashi from the original world. "...... as Yutaka Wakabayashi? You''re twisting my neck. Is that too hard to understand? For example, let''s say Wakabayashi works in the city, saves up some money, and acquires a steel sword. Yes. If he hears that hunting boars is profitable, will he go and kill them? ...... No, I would not. Tommy thought for a moment and shook his head. Yes. Yutaka Wakabayashi is not a fierce warrior (old farmer). If you simply go hunting, you will die. The other world (reality) is not easy mode. It''s better to think of it as Hell mode or Nightmare mode. "More than super hard? Tommy says this with a wry smile, but it''s probably safer that way. The more skills you can see, the more you tend to think easily. There are no continues. We have skills and talents with spears and swords, but we still train for hours every day. Tommy''s going to have to work a lot harder than that. "I understand. I''ll be careful. I suggest you get to know the world a little better and think about what you want to do with your life. If you can become a good blacksmith, you will be able to eat even when you are old. Adventurers, on the other hand, are almost impossible. Take that into consideration, you know. Haruka then took out 30 large silver coins and handed them to Wakabayashi. I''ll lend you those. The first day will be tough with only 10 large silver coins. If you don''t splurge, the second day and onward will be easier. Are you sure? Yeah. It''s good to have a little bit of extra cash, right? Thank you very much. Well, be careful, then! Take it easy, all right? Tommy bowed, and we were about to walk away when... "Hey! Tommy looked up and spoke seriously. If I can grow up to be of use to you in the future, will you join us then? I''m sure you won''t need to rely on us by then, but ...... if you do, of course I''ll think about it. I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that. We followed, and Tommy and I walked off in different directions. 30-S003 Yuki and Natsuki 03 Well, it turns out that Yuki''s earth magic is more useful than I thought. "Surprising is terrible!¡¡It''ll come in handy once you get used to it, I''m sure! "Yes, yes, let''s hope for the future. But more importantly, Yuki, you don''t have any skills related to close combat, do you? Huh?¡¡Yes. To be honest, I thought I could get by with just copying sword fighting and the like. But the reality was not so easy. To be frank, I''m worried about starting to act like this. I don''t know the level of security in this city, but we''re two women. We don''t have the ability to resist. ...... "Oh, yeah, that''s right. It''s dangerous. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. On the other hand, Natsuki has [Spear Lv.4] and [Body Lv.3]. An ordinary adventurer would be no match for her. I guess I''ll have to ask her to protect me.¡¡As a princess. I''m scared!¡¡I''m afraid of you. So I''m going to ask Yuki to learn some body techniques. It''s ......, right? You''ve got the skill copy, right? I don''t know how much training you need, but this will make it easier for me to teach you. "Okay. Okay, I''ll give it a try. [Body Art Lv.3] [Skill Copy] I don''t think I need to say it out loud, but I''ll try to make it easy to understand. I don''t see any change, but ...... has been added to my status. [Body Art Lv.1] It''s been added to your status. The text is grayed out, though. The normal status display appears to my eyes as white text on a black translucent window, but the text for [Body Art Lv.1] is gray. I don''t know if this means it''s sealed or not. So copying is no problem. I''m going to teach you the basics, so please check back often and see when it becomes effective. "Yes, sir. Then, for about ten minutes? As I was moving my body as Natsuki told me to, the text on the status changed to white. No, to be precise, I should say that my body suddenly started to move smoothly, and when I checked the status, that''s what I saw. It wasn''t like I had gotten the hang of it or anything, so it was a little scary. In less than 10 minutes? It''s only level 1, but if you have a teacher, [Skill Copy] might be quite useful. That''s right!¡¡I didn''t fail, did I? If you can learn more than 20 of them, you''ll be in the black. By the way, there are only three or four more that I can teach for sure. "Ugh. Most of the skills that have a level are 5 points at level 1, so Natsuki is not wrong. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure if it''s a bad idea. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not sure what to make of it. "Natsuki stabbed me in the back, you know? I didn''t mean to, but ...... Yeah, okay, I switched!¡¡You''ll be able to learn five things each from Yu and the other three, and you''ll be in the black for now! If it comes to it, I will practice earth magic and make a name for myself as a skilled earth wizard. And there''s no time to be discouraged, is there? We''re short on funds, and if we don''t think things through and act quickly, we''ll be in trouble! That''s right. According to what Yuki told me earlier, the first thing we should do is register with the adventurer''s guild and get a job. We only have about 2,000 Reais. The more time we waste, the worse our financial situation becomes. But first, we need to come up with a cover story. Cover story? Yes. It''s a little suspicious that two young women like us are here with nothing but our clothes on. We''ll need to make up a story about why we''re here, decide on our immediate goals and where we want to go, and possibly shop accordingly. I see, even if you''re looking for a job, it will change what kind of job you choose and how you explain it to others. As expected of Natsuki, she is very dependable. If you haven''t decided what you want to do, you won''t be able to answer even if you go to the adventurer''s guild and they ask you what kind of job you want. After a brief discussion with Natsuki, we decided that we had come to the city with our friends, but they had left temporarily for other reasons and were waiting for us to return. It''s generally unnatural for two girls who don''t seem to be very strong to be traveling alone. The next step is to find a job, but there are two possible directions. Either a part-time job in the city or a job outside the city, right? "Yes. It''s still dangerous to go outside the city, Natsuki, but can you fight? It depends on the degree of danger. We don''t know what kind of enemies will appear. If I can get a spear, I think I can handle it in terms of skill level, but I''m more worried about Yuki. That''s right. I''ve got the [body art] skill thanks to Natsuki, but it''s only level 1. I''m not sure what to do, but I''d like to know what you think. I''m especially afraid of bandits. Two girls alone is a sucker, no matter how you look at it. Natsuki''s [Spear Technique] may be able to defeat a few bandits, but it''s too bad to throw them into a killing contest with humans when they just came here. At the very least, I should be able to fight reasonably well. I guess I''ll be working in the city for a while. ...... That''s right. I don''t know if I can afford to buy weapons with the money I have now. If we''re going to go outside the city, we should both have weapons and armor, right? Yes. As far as Yuki is concerned, being unarmed is too dangerous. Then let''s go to the adventurer''s guild to look for a job. In this world, the adventurer''s guild is also a human resource agency, like an old-fashioned recruiter, so if you''re looking for a part-time job, it''s efficient to go there. It''s not common to find a part-time job in a part-time information magazine or on a sign in a store. Many people can''t read. No, let''s do some shopping first. It''s not natural to carry no luggage at all. "Sure. If you look at me favorably, you might decide to leave your luggage at the inn. I''d like you to recommend a good place to stay. I''d like to get a recommendation on a good place to stay. "Also, I think it''s better to have a weapon so you won''t be underestimated. I can handle a spear reasonably well. We''re two girls, so we should be careful. "All right. Okay, let''s start there! We went to the weapon shop first, and Natsuki bought a spear that she thought was a good compromise. The price was 800 rares. It was almost half of what we had in our possession, but it was a very cheap spear, and it was sold in a variety of ways. Natsuki did her best to pick one out, but there was no way she could conveniently find a bargain, and she ended up choosing a slightly better spear. The next stop was a general store. We couldn''t afford to buy a bag, so we bought a cheap backpack. There is no way to fool people if you are empty-handed, but if you pack something in the bag, they will think you have everything you need for the trip. You can''t see what''s inside. But with all this, there''s only a little over 1,000 Reais left. ...... That''s not good. Yes. Even if I choose the day job, I won''t be able to work until tomorrow, and then I''ll need money for lodging today. I''d like to get 500 rares for the two of us, so that''s only 500 rares I can use? Honestly, it''s not much. Prices are pretty high in this city. But I can''t afford not to. After discussing with Natsuki, I bought only replacement underwear and a cloth to use as a towel, and packed them in my backpack. They were cheap, but I had no choice. But you don''t have a change of clothes, do you? "Yes. They cost a lot of money even at the thrift store. It''s not an industrial product, so I guess it''s ...... tough. It''s a good thing that these clothes seem to be durable, even though they''re simple. I''m not sure what to make of this. The fabric is strong and the sewing is beautiful. I thought that if I sold these clothes, I could buy some old clothes instead, but I decided against it. The level of vintage clothing is a little high. They were quite dirty and many of them looked like they would tear after a few washes, so the difference between them and ...... these clothes was too great. Now then, let''s go look for a job! Yes. It''s time to get down to business. I''ve been looking for a job that will allow me to make ends meet until my friends get back. I''ve been to the city. The adventurer''s guild I visited after asking the townspeople was a very cozy building that I wouldn''t have noticed if I hadn''t been told about it. Inside, it was deserted, with only an old lady sitting at the counter. --It''s not what I expected. It''s too different from what I imagined. Hello, sir. Welcome. What can I do for you? I''m looking for a job. Are there any jobs for adventurers here? Oh, not much here. Here. I looked in the direction he pointed and saw an empty bulletin board. I go to the city of Laffan for that kind of work. Those jobs go to the city of Laffan, so it''s rare. Are you serious? Are you saying that if I want to work as an adventurer, I have to move to this city called Raffan? What about the ...... recruitment agency? Not much there either. It''s a small town. Well, there are a few. What kind of work do you want?¡¡We''re not looking for hookers. No, I''m not looking for that! "Well, you could make a lot of money that way, you two. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. --No, if it''s Natsuki, she won''t change her expression at all if it''s necessary. Even if he''s mad inside. In the first place, the Adventurer''s Guild is here to help you find a legitimate job. If you''re looking for that kind of work, you shouldn''t be here. I''m going to wait for my friends in this town for a while, and I want to earn some money to live on in the meantime. Accommodation is not cheap. "Hmmm, yeah, you guys might be just the thing. There''s an inn that''s looking for live-in waiters for the dining hall. The wages are low, though. "...... live-in? When I asked for details, the wage was only 100 Reais a day, but lodging and meals were guaranteed. I was shown some other jobs, but the wages were just barely enough to stay and eat, considering the average rent in this city. There are only a few jobs available, so I guess they can attract people even with low wages. Hmmm, not bad conditions, huh? When I looked at Natsuki, she nodded with an expression of helplessness. I understand. Then please take this. "Hmm, take out your guild card. Oh. Oh, shit!¡¡I thought we had a guild registration! Should I tell them I lost it?¡¡--No, there''s no point in fooling around, is there?¡¡Maybe? "......, please register as a new member. "Hmm?¡¡Yeah, okay. Six hundred rare. "Ugh. ...... Yes. Natsuki''s gaze pierced me! I just barely had enough, but I was really out of cash! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. As soon as I left the guild, Natsuki, who had been silent for a long time, opened her mouth. "Yuki?¡¡I didn''t hear about the registration fee. Sorry!¡¡I forgot! When I explained about the Adventurer''s Guild, I forgot to mention that it costs money to register. I had budgeted without taking that into account, so it was just luck that I had 600 rares left. "I managed to get enough, but if I hadn''t, I wouldn''t have been able to register, right? Yes, that''s right. I trusted you because you have the common sense of another world. ...... I''m very sorry. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. It''s my fault for forgetting about it. I''m not going to say any more about it, because everyone makes mistakes, but please take care of me. "Yes!¡¡I''m at your service. It wasn''t fatal, so he got rid of it relatively quickly, but Natsuki, who spoke so matter-of-factly, scared me~. 31-027 Go down the road I thought for some reason Haruka was going to join us, but we ended up splitting up, didn''t we? "Oh, Toya wanted to go with you?¡¡If you had told me that, I would have considered it. We parted ways with Tommy and returned to our original path, heading a little more quickly towards the city of Sarstad. The unexpected rescue operation took some time, but Haruka estimates that at this pace we will probably reach the city before the evening. After considering ......, I''m going to say no. At the very least, I wouldn''t take him now. No weapons, no armor, no combat skills. Might be a little tough, but that''s it. Are we strong enough to protect someone like that in a place we''ve never been before? "Normally we''d be fine, but if there''s a vipu bear or something, we''re in danger. That''s a kind of trauma for us. It''s not possible to accurately measure the amount of magic you have, but at least after that battle, you didn''t have enough magic left to fight many battles. Considering the consumption of energy and arrows, even now that I was somewhat accustomed to fighting, I would probably be limited to two. If there was a slow learner, that would be dangerous. But I''m not close enough to him to put off Nagetsuki and the others to save him. They''re more important to me. Isn''t that right? Well, we''re in the same boat. Wakabayashi is not a bad guy, but his social circle is within the range of classmates. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. Besides, Wakabayashi is a dwarf and has power, so he can make a living as a day laborer once he reaches the town. We know each other, and we can''t just take him and abandon him when he''s in danger. I don''t want any of us to get hurt because of it. Like I said before, you can''t heal injuries like missing parts. That''s a fair point. Well, we didn''t really get along with Wakabayashi - or Tommy, for that matter - and I don''t want to join them. I''m not sure what to make of this. If you want to join them, you have to have a lot of compassion or reason, not to mention Haruka. And the only classmates who have that much compassion are probably Natsuki and Yuki. "Hey, don''t Toya and his friends have many male friends?¡¡They hang out with us quite a bit, don''t they? "Well, it depends on their friendship level, but I''m not afraid to admit that they tend to be like that. So you don''t have many friends? No, I do have friends.¡¡No, I do have some friends, it''s just that my friend level is low. I don''t know what Toya means by "friend level"-perhaps it''s a measure of closeness-but I had a good number of friends I talked to and hung out with at school. However, our socializing was limited to within the school, and we would occasionally go out to the arcade after school, but we almost never went out together on our days off. It''s not that I refused to go out with them, but I simply didn''t have the time to go out with Haruka and the others, play with Toya, or play games. I''m not going to complain too much, because we''ve benefited from it in a way. You guys get into a lot of trouble, don''t you? That''s why we often accompanied them when they went out. It was a so-called "insect repellent. I guess it proves that I''m cute, but according to the three of them, "I''m not happy at all when DQNs come near me! They said. Well, that''s not surprising. I''m not sure, but in the original world, you might have [heroine qualities]! "I can''t say that''s not possible, now can I? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to do. Let''s get to Sahlstat as soon as possible. We''ve taken up too much of your time. "Right. Are we gonna get there before the gate closes? I think we''ll be fine. Shall we run to ......?¡¡I don''t think there''s much danger if we stay on the main road. Normally, the gates of the city are closed after dark and you can''t get in. Therefore, if you want to avoid camping out, you should plan ahead, but thanks to meeting Tommy, you''ve probably wasted more than an hour of your time. "No problem. Let''s go for a light run. We agreed with Haruka''s suggestion, and started running with Toya, who had keen senses, in preparation for the enemy. Even though it''s a light run, he''s probably running as fast as a world-class marathon runner. I know from my training and practice that I can keep running at this speed for several hours even with my pack on my back. Since I don''t want to be too tired to fight in case of emergency, this is still a fairly comfortable pace, and I can see the difference between this world and the original world. However, despite such caution, we reached Sahlstat without any particular event. The city of Sarlstad is located in Noria. The city of Sarstat was developed from a ferry crossing on the Noria River. Originally, it started as a few inns that were built to wait for the weather to improve at the ferry crossing of the Noria River, which is a wide and often rough river. From there, little by little, more and more stores were built, houses were built for the employees, walls were built to protect them, and the army was stationed there, and the city was established as a city recognized by the government. Because of this, the city is divided between this side where the city of Raffan is located and the other side of the river, but due to various reasons, there are almost only inns on the other side of the river, and the functions of the city are concentrated on this side. The scale of the city is much smaller than that of Raffan, which is a blessing for those of us who are looking for people. The walls surrounding the city are also much weaker than those of Rafan, made of wood. There is no space for people to enter, but it is small enough that you can see inside. Even in such a city, there is a gate and a gatekeeper, though he is only one person. Hello. Welcome to Sahlstadt. The boats are running today. Thank you. Thank you." The man who answered the door was an elderly, good-looking man. Show your guild card to the person and go inside. Can you tell me where the adventurer''s guild and inn are? "The guild is in that building, and there are about ten inns near the pier, straight down the street. The most popular inn these days is the River Breeze, but I''m not sure if that matters to you ...... girls. "What?¡¡Thank you very much. The gatekeeper pointed to the Adventurer''s Guild, a small building right next to it. It has a sign, but it''s only the size of an ordinary house. Perhaps it''s because of the different scale of the city, but it''s much poorer than Rafan. Why don''t we stop by? I looked at the building, and Haruka shook her head. No, let''s do it later. I don''t know if Natsuki and the others are working as adventurers, but they''re not usually around at this time of day. "Right. We''ll need lodging and lunch first. Perhaps it was because the city of Sarstat was closer than we had imagined, or perhaps it was because we were physically stronger than we had thought, but we arrived in the city in the early afternoon. We had planned to have lunch on the way if it would take too long, but we didn''t end up stopping because Sahlstadt came into view while we were saying, "It''s time for lunch. Well. Let''s find a place to stay and have lunch first, and then we''ll see if we can find him in the city. It''s not a big place, so unless he''s holed up in his house and never comes out, we should be able to find him in a few days.¡¡--If he''s here. Hey, Haruka. Don''t raise any flags. I know you''re here, let''s believe it. It''s a small town, less than a kilometer on each side, and if you hurry, you can drive all the way through it in a day. If Natsuki and the others are working in a public place, there is a good chance that they can be found in a few days, as Haruka said. But that is only if they are in this city. As Toya said, we have to believe that they are there and look for them. I''d like to believe that, too, but I''d be shocked if I were optimistic. ...... Let''s get a place to stay first. The road leading straight from the gate leads to a landing place on the riverside, which is only long enough to be seen when you enter. As the three of us walked along, talking a bit, we soon reached an area with inns on both sides. "Hey, isn''t that "Kawakaze" over there the inn the gatekeeper was talking about?¡¡He said it in a very subtle way, but it seems popular. From the outside, there was not much difference between the many inns, but the one with the sign "Kawakaze" seemed to be a popular inn (or rather, a diner), and even though it was a little past noon, we could hear people''s voices. It seems to be a popular inn (or diner), and even though it''s a little past noon, you can still hear people talking. I don''t mind. In a way, I''m ready. ...... Oh, there''s always the chance of a bad meal. In this world, it''s harder than you think to find a good meal. If it''s cheap, it''s basically bad. If it''s expensive, it''s not that good. In this world, it is better to take the stance that if a dish that you can eat if you persevere is served at a low price, you will not be disappointed. Let''s go in. When Haruka opened the door of the inn, a louder noise came out from inside. At a glance, the tables were full, the counter was occupied, and there seemed to be no room to sit. We wondered if the food here was so good that it was so popular. Our regular lodging, "The Bear of Sleep," is also like this when we eat, but there is one thing that worries me. --There are no women here. All the tables and counters are men only. Dank. Is it because it''s a port town? "Welcome! As if to blow away my confusion, I heard the voice of a young girl. "Here comes the sign girl! It was Toya who said that. I totally agree. It was Father Bear who was in The Bear Who Sleeps, and he had never had any contact with young girls anywhere else in Laffan. I don''t know why. I don''t know why, but wouldn''t it be nice to have at least one signature girl? If you''re looking for a template, the receptionist of the guild is pretty, but it''s a bit harsh to call Diora a "daughter". I''m sure she has a charming face, but I think she''s too old for that. So, I was about to shout my agreement, but I swallowed my voice when I saw the girl''s face looking back at me. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. Yeah. This is unexpected. It was the face of my friend, almost identical to the face I remembered. I guess Yuki chose to remain human while we changed our species. She looks a little more gaunt, and her clothes give her a slightly different impression, but there''s no way I could mistake her for anyone else. I''m not sure if she recognized me right away, or if she looked confused for a moment, but then she looked at me, Haruka and Toya in turn, and her eyes widened in surprise. "--!¡¡Ha! "I need a place to stay for the night!¡¡I''d like to get a room for the night, are you free? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to always ask for help. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. ...... It''s Haruka, right? In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. That''s right. Yuki, right? Yes.¡¡Natsuki is here too. Good. ....... As you know, Nao and Tomoya are in the back. Yuki, I''m glad you''re okay. Long time no see. I''m so relieved. I''m glad you''re okay, Yuki. Oh, I''m ...... Stop. I understand how you feel, but let''s do this later. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "When you''re done, come to our room. You do have a room, right? "...... Yeah. Can I have a room for three? Yeah. How much? One night, no meals, 1,200 Reais, but ...... That''s expensive! --Hmm?¡¡The Bear of Slumber is just cheaper? But it''s more than twice as much.¡¡But that''s more than twice as much as 500 rares without food. Haruka''s eyebrows were twitching, so she must have thought it was expensive. As if she was worried about us, Yuki gave us a worried look. No, it''s not that we can''t get it out, you know? You can''t help it. "Well, it can''t be helped. Okay, here we go. Yes, certainly. I''ll take the key in exchange for the twelve large silver coins that Haruka took from you. The room is at the end of the stairs, on the right. Thank you. --See you later. Haruka whispered quietly, and we headed for the room. 32-028 Baptism of the Other World Again "Hmmm, subtle? With four beds, the room is about the same size as the Bear of Slumber. The windows are small and the room is rather dim. The room looks a little larger because it is not furnished at all, but I don''t think that''s a good point. In other words, the room in "The Bear of Slumber" is better overall. It''s less than half the price. Which do you think it is, that the inn is not good or that the prices in this town are too high? Hmmm, at least the inn is expensive, huh?¡¡Well, at least the inn will be more expensive? Considering its origins, the inn is not a place to stay for long, usually a day. Even if you are waiting for the weather to improve, unless you are very unlucky, you will probably be leaving in a few days. If you think about it that way, it may be inevitable that the prices are higher than those of hotels in Laffan, where people tend to sign long-term contracts. Prices are based on .......¡¡It''s not that expensive if you use shipping or river transport? Either way, it''s not a good place to be based, this price. Yeah, fixed costs are important. I totally agree. Even if the cost of living is only 500 Reais more per day, it''s still not an insignificant amount if the number of days increases. No, wait! Haruka, Nao. I haven''t tried the city''s cuisine yet. Maybe it''s good? But I looked at Haruka and shook my head. Even if there''s a small chance that the food is good, it''s not good here. The size of the guild makes it obvious that there is no work here. Ugh, that''s true. It''s not like they''re going to buy the boar we hunt in this town. It''s because of our money and the population of Rafan. Whether it''s medicinal herbs, meat, or dingdol, the demand is greater than the supply, and that''s why we can get a good price. If you think about it, it would be pretty tough to make money based in this city. No, that''s not the point!¡¡I''m not sure what to tell you right now, but it''s about Yuki and the others. The moment Nao entered the room, she said ''delicate''. No, it''s the price that''s bothering you.¡¡That''s not what I meant! We almost got off track again. Yeah. It was easier than I thought, wasn''t it?¡¡I thought it would take a little more effort than that. Hey, Haruka? It''s not a good thing. As for me, I feel much better knowing that you two are safe. It''s a good thing that I''m not the only one who feels this way. Although she didn''t say it until she had more time to think about it, the fact that her two best friends were missing must have been quite distressing. Of course I''m happy for you.¡¡Of course I''m happy for you, but I''m going to do my best to find them! "Of course I''m happy for them, but I''m a little sad that I''m spinning out of control. "Well, I guess it''s luck, but in a way, it was inevitable that they were found here. "Hmm?¡¡Why? "First of all, I was thinking of two patterns. One is that you''ve formed a party with some other classmates and are living as adventurers. A pattern like us. We''re not classmates, we''re just childhood friends. But to be honest, I thought this was unlikely. It''s too risky to team up with only girls, and there''s no other boys you two can trust. You make it sound as if Natsuki and Yuki are the only ones, but when it comes to male friends, I guess that''s true. This is not because of Natsuki and Yuki, but for most girls, there are not many male friends that they feel comfortable living with all the time. It''s no wonder that in a different world where there are no police, there are some guys who will get out of line. No, in fact, there definitely are. There are people who say, "I got skills, I''m going to be a harem of Tueeee! Especially Natsuki and Yuki. Natsuki and Yuki are especially cute, but they are also very dangerous. Considering the fact that you''ll be going into the middle of nowhere for a mission, you can''t afford to team up with a bad guy. The other pattern is that he lives and works in the city. When I researched this town, I thought that if they were working, it would be as a waiter in an inn, but it turned out to be exactly that. "Hmm. There''s not a lot of other work out there, and with their looks, it''s not a bad job. ...... Ah, is that what this inn is all about? I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why the clientele is extremely skewed towards men. Hmm?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that. Was it because Haruka was there? Haruka is as good-looking as the two of them. You don''t have to choose an inn just to see a pretty girl. No, if anything, it''s because they''re all different species.¡¡There''s nothing against it, but there''s not a lot of interracial marriages, for what it''s worth. "...... Oh. We are originally human, so we didn''t care about it at all, but just in case, Natsuki and the others are different species, right? I''m not sure how much of a difference there is in perception, but I guess it''s like how we look at foreigners? ...... or more? Well, that''s good. What about lunch?¡¡The bottom of the page is ...... full, so you can either just order and eat here or go out to eat. Of course, you could always just get some dried meat. "No dried meat at the inn, either. I''d rather eat the food at the inn. It''s not like it''s gonna be bad with all those people there, right? Yeah. That''s fine with me. We''re in a different city now. Really?¡¡Shall we order? Yeah, let''s just go with Haruka and me. Toya, just give us a recommendation. Yeah. You never know what you''ll find. The cafeteria on the first floor was just as full and noisy as before. Yuki was busily serving in it. There were two other girls working as waiters, but I guess the reason why so many men approached Yuki was because she was cute. I''d like three servings for lunch, please. I''ll eat upstairs. "Yes, thank you!¡¡Hold on a second! I didn''t dare to talk to the serving girl, so I ordered to the lady at the counter who was in charge of cooking. It''s the same at the Bear of Slumber, but the food in this kind of cafeteria is freshly prepared, so it comes out relatively quickly. Haruka and I waited for a little while to see how Yuki was doing. "...... Yuki, you look good. Yeah. I think she''s lost some weight, but she doesn''t look like she''s been hurt. He smiled, but I''m sure he''s in a lot of pain considering how busy and unfamiliar he is with life. But he doesn''t seem to be injured, and he doesn''t look too bad, so I guess he''s managed to get by. Yeah, ...... good. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. It doesn''t look that tasty, but it is ...... unsettling. Soon, three plates of the same food were lined up in front of us. 210 rare for three people! "...... Yes. It''s still a bit expensive, but Haruka pays it off and picks up two of the plates and heads upstairs. I took the other one, and when I returned to the room, Haruka was handing the plates to Toya. This room doesn''t even have a table, so it''s a little awkward for eating. I had no choice but to sit on the bed. So, what''s this ......? Toya''s face was a little delicate. "This inn''s recommendation? He said, "It''s a good choice," and I guessed he wouldn''t have chosen a bad one. Many of the guests were also eating this. When I looked at the plate again, I found two slices of fried carp-like fish. There was a bowl of some kind of green vegetables pickled in vinegar. Two pieces of plain black bread. And a slurry of brown paste. No, it''s just like "sludge". Honestly, it doesn''t look good. "No, no, I can''t evaluate it without eating it, right?¡¡See? I''m sure you''ll agree with me," he said, but Haruka laughed and shook her head. As usual, I think you''ll be betrayed. ...... No!¡¡I don''t know yet!¡¡I''m not sure yet!¡¡--I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to start with the cheapest tile. I''m not sure what to make of it. He claims to have fried it in a big pot, but I can imagine the taste from the look of it, and it''s not going to be that bad. I followed Toya''s example and started on it. Ugh! "......... This is what I mean by ''muddy''! It''s probably a fish caught in the river there. The river fish I''ve eaten so far include ayu (sweetfish), yamame (mountain trout), and in some rare cases, sashimi of amago (fish). If I had to categorize them, I''d say "haze" and "eel" are also river fish. Either way, they are all quite tasty, and I have never felt any muddy smell. This fish, on the other hand, is quite "tough". If you don''t try hard enough, you''ll get an "oops" feeling. ...... It''s also badly cooked. If you want to grill it with salt or meuniere, go to ....... No, I think you should grill it with salt.¡¡Or fried? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. There may or may not be a herb-like odor-eliminating agent, but the salty taste makes the smell more pronounced. The only good thing about it is that it does not take much time to cook. I guess that''s it. "Well, not yet. It''s not over yet!¡¡This is next! Despite the damage, Toya stubbornly thrusts in another cheap tile, pickled vegetables. Yeah. I guess there''s a limit to how bad this can taste. I''ll take a bite. "...... It''s bitter! Is this a stem of some kind? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. If you can put up with the stringy taste, you can eat it, but I don''t think I''d buy it. Toya is just gulping it down at ....... The stringy part stays, right? This. "Mmm, gum, gum. --It looks like a mine, but it''s actually a mine!¡¡sometimes. I''m not giving up! "No, let''s just give up, okay?¡¡This "sludge" is a mine, no matter how you look at it. "No leftovers!¡¡I''ll eat it! I''ll eat it! - Who the hell are you? I''ll eat it!" "What kind of person are you?" "I''m the one who''s going to go along with you," I said. I''ll try to lick a little on my fork. ............ What the hell is this?¡¡What is it?¡¡Bitter?¡¡A little salty? The taste is hard to describe. To be honest, it''s not very good, but if you try hard enough, you can eat it. "This looks a little like Marmite. It looks a bit like Marmite. Since we have ale, why not? "Marmite?¡¡What''s that? It''s a paste made from brewer''s yeast. It''s a paste made from brewer''s yeast. It''s eaten in England, but it''s not very common. It''s not very tasty. Do they really eat this stuff?¡¡"Why do you eat this? Why do you eat it? Toya, who had been looking very reluctant, said with a look of disbelief, but every country has such foodstuffs. Even natto has a taste and smell that''s hard to describe in a way. If you don''t use any sauce, it tastes bitter or something. ...... Recently, there are many kinds without any peculiarity. I''m sure people who like it will like it.¡¡Also, it may be good for your health. Brewer''s yeast itself has been sold as a supplement in Japan. But in pill form. Just as sake lees have a lot of nutritional value, beer yeast has a lot of vitamins and is good for you. I don''t know which one has more nutritional value, but I''m pretty sure it''s the sake lees when it comes to taste. So, Toya, what do you think?¡¡I don''t think I need to eat the black bread. "...... I lost! Toya bowed gracefully, and I smiled and shrugged my shoulders. No, it''s not about winning or losing, but I don''t think we should use ...... this city as a base. I agree. It''s not like there aren''t good places to eat, but the high cost of accommodation is critical. It is possible that there are cheaper lodgings in the area, but Haruka says that with all the lodgings in the vicinity, there is unlikely to be an extreme difference in price. Of course, there might be some cheap lodgings in the back streets, but I can''t think of any reason to stay in this town. We should retrieve Yuki and Natsuki as soon as possible and return to the city of Raffan. We agreed on that idea, and the rest of the time we just mindlessly cleaned up the dishes. 33-S004 Yuki and Natsuki 04 "Hmm, two of you. ...... Not bad. The woman who greeted us with the job application was a fat woman. She was probably over 50. ...... No, I don''t know.¡¡It''s hard to measure the age of a foreigner, especially one from another world. At least that''s how I see her. You''ve heard the terms, right? Yes. So you''re working today?¡¡You won''t get paid, but you''ll get dinner and a room. I''ll take it. Otherwise, you''ll have to stay in the field. After that, you can go to ...... and ask for a day off, but you''ll have to pay for lodging and food. After work, you are free to sell, but don''t forget to pay the deposit if you take a guest at my inn. "I won''t do it! I''m not going to do it! Why do the ladies of this world always try to get you into prostitution? ...... No, it''s not that I don''t understand. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. Besides, with a daily wage of 100 rares, you can''t save any money at all, so it''s no wonder you can''t make ends meet without such a second job. But whether we would do it or not is another matter. I would rather go out and hunt demons than become a prostitute, even if it''s a bit reckless, and if it''s Natsuki, she might die from sticking her tongue out. --Or maybe not. Don''t become a greater demon than me and kill all the demons, I promise. I''m good enough to do that. The only reason I didn''t choose that is because I can still afford to risk my life. If I really couldn''t afford it, I wouldn''t have hesitated. But we want to take safe steps if we can, don''t we? That''s how our first day in the other world ended. The first day of my life is over. You said, "Day 1 of my life in the other world is over"? That''s a lie! It was harder from then until I went to bed. It was very hard. I had imagined my job as a waitress in a restaurant, but in this world, customers have bad manners. They would try to touch our buttocks without any hesitation, and many men would try to "buy" us. Of course, I immediately refused. "How about 3,000? Are you kidding me? It''s not that I''d sell it for any price, but it''s annoying when someone puts a low price on it. I''m really thankful that Natsuki taught me the body art. I couldn''t dodge everything like Natsuki, but I was able to prevent most of them. But as time went by, I was afraid to see Natsuki''s face, which had a business smile on it, become more and more expressionless. I wondered how long it would take for Natsuki''s elbow to smash into the man''s face. You''ve got a track record, haven''t you? Actually. She looks innocent and gentle, and in fact she basically is, and she was weak in her original world, but when she crosses the line, she''s pretty bad. I''m not going to go into details. I''m not going to go into details, but I''ll just say that it was a tough job, but the real test came after that. I was given a room for two with Natsuki, which was no problem at all. The problem was the food that was served. I was dreading what kind of food I would be served because of the poor treatment, but what I was served was the leftover food from the restaurant. I was a little disappointed, but then I thought about it and realized that all the food they were serving was a big pot of food, so there was no need to go through the trouble of making another dish. I''m a little worried about what will happen when they are all sold out, though. If the price of this dish is 70 rares, and breakfast and lunch are 40 rares each, since the same level of ...... is not likely to be served, the cost of food alone is 150 rares per day. In the case of this inn, if two people stay in a room for one night, the cost per person is 400 Rea. If you include wages, the total cost would be 650 Reais. ....... A little cheaper if you consider that you''ll be working as a waiter for a day. If you think of it as the equivalent of 6,500 yen, that''s about 10 hours of work and 650 yen per hour. It''s not outrageously cheap. No, of course it''s cheap, but considering that you''re hiring an unidentified person, yeah. Well, I guess I got a better job, huh? That is, until I took a bite of the food. Nanikore. Can we call this cooking? Isn''t this some kind of blasphemy against cooking? You''re not harassing us, are you? We were serving this at the restaurant, and the customers were eating it. When I looked next to her, Natsuki was frozen with a spoon in her mouth. Her face was slightly pale and her forehead was covered with sweat. From the movement of her throat, it seemed that she was trying hard not to spit it out. To be honest, if this were served at a restaurant in Japan, I would not only shout for my money back, but I would probably win a lawsuit for compensation. But this is a different world. I''ll die if I don''t eat this. I don''t have any money. The water is ...... good. It''s not great, but it''s drinkable. I inhaled, pinched my nose and stuffed the food down my throat, chewed it hard and poured it down my throat with water. I don''t want to taste anything. After repeating this several times, I ate as fast as I have ever eaten in my life, rinsed my mouth out with water, let out a big breath and let go of the hand that was holding my nose. "Ugh! Oh, no! This is not good! I hurriedly pinched my nose again. Maybe it''s because I''ve been holding my nose for so long, but the smell is so strong. I''ll just breathe through my mouth for now. Excellent. Yuki. No, you don''t have to look at me like, "Well done, you''ve defeated your nemesis! No matter how you look at it. If you look at me objectively, I look like a complete idiot. I guess I''ll have to do that too. ...... You can eat it as it is if you can stand it, but just cutting the smell might help with the nausea. The aroma of the food is very important. For example, spiciness is not a sense of taste, but a sense of pain, and you can understand this by holding your nose and eating ginger. If you try to eat ginger with your nose pinched, you will understand it clearly, because it only hurts and has no value. If you take your hand away from holding your nose at that time, the smell softly stands out, and the mere pain turns into a completely different "taste". Incidentally, what I just experienced is the opposite. By taking my hand away from holding my nose, a very tasteless dish was transformed into something so blasphemous that it is absurd to even call it a dish. I wonder if this is the depths of cooking. "Yes, of course. We have no choice but to eat. I don''t have any money. I never thought I''d experience something like this in my life. That''s right. Natsuki''s family was relatively wealthy, so at least they didn''t have to worry about food. If she had lived like that... In today''s Japan, you can eat with very little money as long as you don''t spend extravagantly. In the past, there was a politician who was criticized for saying "poor people should eat wheat", but now you can buy rice cheaper than wheat if you don''t care about the brand. He apparently meant that wheat is good for you, so if you eat it, you will be less likely to get sick and spend less money on medical care. He himself was eating wheat because of his weakness. The media conveniently cut out the word "poor" from ....... Well, he didn''t exactly say "poor," but it was conveniently "translated" and reported. I''m not sure if it''s the same thing. It''s more readily available than wheat, and relatively cheap. Unlike "high quality rice that has been milled to retain its nutritional value," it retains its entire nutritional value and is cheap. If the taste is acceptable, I think it is the best. Now, I''m confident that I can eat brown rice cooked just right with great pleasure. Yeah. Five grain rice used to be a substitute for white rice, but now it costs more than white rice. ....... --Oops, the food was so bad that I escaped from reality. When I took my hand off my nose, I was afraid to pick it up. ...... Oh, I managed to be okay. It still bothers me a little, but it''s hard to keep breathing through my mouth. Natsuki is still trying. Natsuki, you should hold your nose for a while after you finish eating, okay?¡¡If you''re not careful, the moment you let go, you''ll reverse. Natsuki nodded while swallowing with tears in her eyes. It seems to be quite difficult. I''m sure this dish is even harder on Natsuki, who prefers delicate flavors, than it is on me. She''s trying her best to chew it, but she''s trying to swallow it so fast that it''s probably bad for her stomach. I hope I don''t get an upset stomach. I''m sure the combo of [Robust Lv.4], [Disease Resistance], and [Poison Resistance] will do the job, right? I''m a little nervous because I''m only level 1 in [Robustness]. ...... No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It''s not the kind of thing that [robustness] or [poison resistance] can work on. No, right ......? Thank you for your time. Yes. ...... Honestly, I didn''t think the food would consume me this much. I didn''t expect that. I didn''t expect that. Do you think this is the standard taste in this world? What, that''s a scary thought ....... But if this place tasted bad, I don''t think they''d get that many customers. Even if there is something else to sell other than the food, if the food doesn''t taste at least a little worse than the standard, the customers will leave. In spite of this, I ordered this dish and ate it as usual. ....... I''m losing confidence in my ability to survive in this world. That''s strange. That''s strange. That kind of food: ...... food?¡¡What looks like cooking?¡¡Something that could be cooking ....... Natsuki, your cooking is having a gestalt collapse. We still only know this small town. There is hope. Besides, there might be good food in this town too. "Yes, there is. It''s too early to give up. We don''t have a lot of money right now, but I''m sure we can find some good food. Yeah. I''ll work hard for it! With that, we clasped each other''s hands and renewed our determination. But in the end, we would have to wait for Haruka and the others to join us before we could find any delicious food. 34-029 Touching Reunion? After the baptism of lunch, there was no one among us who wanted to buy dinner here, either. As we waited, washing our taste buds with the dried meat, bread, and dindle fruit we had brought with us, we heard a knock on the door of our room when it was quite late. I opened the door, and there was Yuki, and... "Haru! "Yu! "Natsuki! The one who jumped on Yuu, half pushing Yuki away, was Natsuki. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. The hug between Natsuki and Yuu is a scene of "emotional reunion! But behind them, Yuki is frozen with her arms outstretched. I felt sorry for her, so half-jokingly I opened my arms and said, "Come on!¡¡I''m not sure what to do. "Shang! Oh, I didn''t expect that. He just jumped right in. I thought he was in on the joke, but maybe he was crying ......? You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. "Ew, ....... Whether it was a good thing or a bad thing, Yuki clung to me even tighter and started crying in earnest. To be honest, as a purely Japanese person, I''m embarrassed by this kind of skinship, but since it''s a situation like this, it''s possible, right? --But then I noticed that Haruka and Natsuki were looking at me with smiles on their faces. Didn''t you guys just shed tears in an emotional reunion a while ago? And don''t grin too much Toya! I apologize to Yuki, but I pat her on the shoulder and show her what''s going on around her as she looks up with tears in her eyes. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a bit of a jerk. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡It''s not like you''re pushing me away out of nowhere. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you may want to take a look at a few of these. I don''t think there''s anything to be embarrassed about. It''s acceptable to hug a friend. Don''t laugh. Especially Toya, she''s guilty. Haruka and Natsuki were smiling, but Toya''s laugh had a chilling quality. "Oh, really?¡¡I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I could hardly talk to you at that time!¡¡I could hardly talk to you at that time!¡¡I''ve been told not to talk about it! I''m sure Yuki wanted to have an emotional reunion at that time, but Haruka took the initiative the moment she tried to raise her voice. Well, I can''t say that Haruka was wrong, because I was afraid that if she did it in that situation, a lot of trouble would come. You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "What? No, I''m responsible for that too. I was joking, but I said, ''Come on! I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not really happy about it, but more importantly!¡¡It''s not that I''m not happy about it, but more importantly, why did Yuu do that deceitful thing?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Me?¡¡I''m not that kind of character. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time and money. It''s not a character!¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. It is completely in the teasing mode. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that there''s a difference in the level of friendship between me, Natsuki and Yu. No. No, it''s just that Yuki seems to be stubborn.¡¡Natsuki, you know, has the quality of a willow? I can''t believe that Yu thought that way!¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m here. You''re looking good, aren''t you? "Yeah. I was worried about you. ...... But have you both lost some weight? Yeah. We just couldn''t get enough of the food ....... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m not sure what to do. "Yeah, I know. I don''t like the food here either. I''m also on a successful diet. I can''t say I''m too happy about it, though it looks like I won''t have to worry about rebounding in this environment. I can''t be happy about that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how you can get it. "What?¡¡What is this useful magic! Yuki and Natsuki look at each other, their eyes widening in surprise. "Light Magic Lv.2, ''Purification''. It''s a very useful spell. In the beginning, this spell was applied one by one, but as a result of using this spell every time, now it can be applied to all of them at once, even if there are five of them with Yuki and the others. The original purpose of this spell is to purify the wicked, but I think that the number of occasions when it is used for that purpose among adventurers is quite small. I didn''t know light magic had such a useful function. I don''t know why I didn''t make it level 2 back then. I''m not sure why I didn''t make it to level 2. I had no worries about some injuries or lights because of that, but the bathroom was ...... I had a hard time doing laundry. We didn''t have any money, so we only had one change of clothes. They both sighed together. I understand how you feel. If it weren''t for Haruka''s magic, I might have fallen behind. I mean, you can instantly clean your hands after dismantling a boar, or your body and clothes after sweating through a strenuous workout. My only complaint is that it''s not very refreshing, but I''d be punished if I said that. You know. In this world, you can''t even buy 3-packs of underwear for a thousand yen, and clothes are expensive. That''s right!¡¡You''re right! Prices are really high... Tomoya, I''m not wearing such cheap underwear! Yuki, what kind of crazy argument are you making? Sit down. Have you eaten dinner? Haruka patted Yuki on the head and sat her down on the bed. I''m sure you''ll be able to tell. ...... The taste is the taste. ...... "I thought so. You can eat this. Haruka handed me a bag full of dried meat and a bag full of bread. The dried meat is also an emergency food, so there is quite a lot of it, but the bread can be bought at the Bear of Slumber, and it doesn''t last long, so if the three of us eat it, we only have enough to last two days. We ate it for lunch, so it would be gone by the time Yuki and the others ate it, but considering that we''ve been eating that level of food since we came here, I feel like sharing as much bread as I can. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡This!¡¡It''s really, really, really good! Yuki, you''re misbehaving. Why don''t you take a lesson from Natsuki? "......... Natsuki is just munching on the dried meat in silence. It''s a little hamster-like and cute. I''m not sure what to say, but I can''t help but share my excitement!¡¡I didn''t know there was such delicious food in this world! "It''s our homemade. "Oh, really? In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. But the bread you''re eating is from our inn, right? I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Amu amu. Normal. It''s normal, but it''s good. ...... I''m not sure what to make of it. In a sense, it is almost tasteless, but it does not interfere with the taste of other dishes, and compared to black bread, which is difficult to eat because of its own taste, it can be evaluated as "delicious" enough. Natsuki also ate the bread and dried meat, alternating between the two, looking very good. When I look at Natsuki again, her cheeks seem to be a little thinner. "Natsuki, are you okay? "Yes, thank you, Nao-kun. But to be honest, if it wasn''t for the [Robust], [Disease Resistance] and [Poison Resistance] skills, I might have been in danger. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure she''s the weakest of the five of us, even if she doesn''t have the "Gamayanagi quality" that Haruka mentioned earlier. This may be the reason why she took those skills when she made her character. ...... At least that food is not poisonous, right?¡¡It tastes bad, but... I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. "Desert!¡¡I never thought I''d hear those dreamy words again! "...... Yuki, what kind of diet do you have? I''m sorry. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''m not sure if you''ve seen it. Her mouth and hands are still moving, though. The two of them swallowed what was in their mouths in a panic and picked up a piece each and ate it. "It''s sweet ....... Yes, it''s sweet. ...... Nectar. It''s nectar. That''s what ...... is. I''m almost crying. But I understand how you feel. I just ate one after that meal and it tasted so good. Can I have one more ......? Haruka smiled and replied to Yuki, who said so hesitantly. You can eat as much as you want. We have plenty. Yu, you''re a god! You''re a god!" "I''m crying because I can really guess your eating habits. Even so, with her hands, Haruka peeled more and more dingles and put them on the plate. The two of them ate them one by one, but as expected, when they had eaten two or three each, their hands stopped as if they were full. "Phew~. Thank you, Yuu. I''m glad I''m your friend! I''m glad I''m friends with you!" "You say the best lines in the most delicate situations, Yuki. I''m glad I''m friends with you!" Yuki said with a big smile, but Haruka laughed with a subtle expression on her face. It''s a good idea to have a little bit of time to think about what you''re doing. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not getting in either. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''ll go with you. Where''s Nao? I''ll have a slice. There were just three slices left, so each of them ate one. --Yeah, it''s good. They''re good, but I''ve been eating them almost every day for a while now, so I think I''d like to try another fruit. They''re too expensive to buy, though. Sorry, you three. I ate it without reservation. ...... It''s pretty expensive, isn''t it? Fruit is a luxury item. Yeah, I think the market price is 500 Reais a piece. "Five hundred? Wouldn''t it have been awkward to eat a piece of that expensive fruit? No, Natsuki. You''ve shared more expensive fruits than this with me. That was a gift. We don''t usually buy that kind of stuff at home either. In fact, Natsuki''s family was quite wealthy, and we also benefited from their generosity, sharing the desserts they brought for lunch, as well as some nice sweets. In such houses, many gifts arrive at once during the mid-year and year-end gifts season, making it difficult to consume them in one''s own home. Basically, the gifts are food, so they have a shelf life, and you have to return the gifts to each person, so Natsuki''s family is not very grateful. Well, such gifts are unnecessarily expensive, and if you give the same level of return, it''s like being forced to buy expensive and unnecessary things. First of all, the situation is completely different now. You said you had 1,000 Reais at first, right? That''s right. It was tough at first. ...... The distant look in Haruka''s eyes reminded us of that time, too. We bought the bare essentials, not even a change of clothes, and the only weapon we had was Toya''s wooden sword. It was a start we could not afford. Natsuki and the others must have had the same trouble. "Well, this ding dong - you mean this fruit. It''s okay, we picked it ourselves. You can thank Toya for suggesting that we get them. Oh, and by Toya you mean Tomoya. "Is that so?¡¡Thank you, Tomoya-kun. No, I only suggested it, but Nao actually took it. Also, you can call me Toya. That''s how I''m registered in the guild. I understand. Thank you, Nao-kun. How hard is it to harvest this? The tree is 50 meters tall and the fruit grows at the tip, so in the original world it would be quite difficult. Fifty meters?¡¡We don''t have trees like that in Japan, do we? Oh, Shang, you climbed a tree like that?¡¡Without modern ropes or carabiners? Natsuki and Yuki stared at me in surprise. I understand the feeling, because normally I would consider it too dangerous and impossible. I can understand that. You see, Haruka and I are elves, right?¡¡That''s why we didn''t have as much trouble. You know? Yeah. It was a lot easier than the 50-meter mark implies. Oh, so race has an effect? Yes, it does. I can feel things like racial characteristics. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. There are a lot of advantages to spending points to create a character. Of course, there were strong disadvantages for some races, such as the vampire half-breeds, but they are probably in the minority. However, since there seems to be racial discrimination in some areas, it is not always a good idea to choose a non-human character. 35-030 Career Counseling Now that you''re both full, let''s talk about what we''re going to do. Oh, yes. That''s important. By the way, the only reason I didn''t tell Yuki was to avoid any trouble. There''s no difference in our friendship level, so don''t worry. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m glad, but I''m glad! I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to always ask for help. I''m not sure if I''m the only one who finds it suspicious that you''re saying this now. Yes. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. That may be the case. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. And then there''s my former classmate. And if you''ve been taking [help], you''ll know that there are a lot of mine skills, right? "Mines"? That''s a nice way of putting it. But I think it''s unlikely that they''ll get involved. Is that so? Yes. Right after I came here, I went back and forth on the main streets of this city quite conspicuously. And I''ve been working here ever since. ...... If you were going to make contact, would you have done so already? I''m sure they''ve already weeded out the ones with troublesome skills. Hey, listen. Natsuki, you called a character with a [skill robbery] a bonus character? I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m sure you''ll understand. "...... I see. A bonus character. That''s a good point. So you''re a bonus character. Maybe I missed it. "We''re in the same boat! We nodded, and Yuki looked at us as if to say, "Why? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. If you think about the specs of Yuki and Natsuki in the original world, their points are probably equal to or greater than mine. If you take a skill with those points, unless you distribute them in a very strange way, the person you use [Skill Robbery] on will lose their life span in one shot. In other words, the skill disappears for a moment, but your life span increases. He really is a bonus character. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. It seems that you are the minority here, Bonus Character. ""What?" The three of us shouted in surprise. In addition, Haruka stood up, grabbed Yuki by the shoulders, shook her and questioned her. "Yuki!¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡It''s a good idea to have a copy of your own. I''m not the only one. I''m not the only one. Yu, please don''t worry. I told you not to use it right away, so it''s not fatal. I see. ....... I''m glad I didn''t have to leave Yuki behind. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or a bad thing. I''m not sure what to say. I don''t know.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. "Depending on the situation? I''m not sure what to say. I thought you were my best friend! I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''ve been thinking of you as my best friend! At the very least, I wouldn''t be able to take her on an adventure. Since you asked me to agree with you, I''ll give you a reasonable answer. If I had copied them indiscriminately from the people in the city, all the skills needed by ordinary adventurers would have been sealed. That would have been the end of my career as an adventurer. Well, if that really happened, Yuki would have to stay home in town. I wonder if she''d be doing the san-don? But if you take from the general public, won''t cooking and other life related skills be wiped out?¡¡What about the Mesima-zushi Osan-don? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not going to complain. Well, well, well. Well, it''s a good thing that you avoided that future. Thanks to me. You can thank me, right? Haha, thank you very much. Natsuki-sama!¡¡No, really! Yuki really worships Natsuki, who smiles mischievously. When I asked him about it, he said that when he learned about the skill, Nagetsuki strictly ordered him not to use it, and he made him copy from Nagetsuki only those things that he could teach, and he actually learned some of them. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to use it in the future. I''m not sure.¡¡It''s a bad sounding word! "Then ...... ''poor dexterity''? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. It''s a little better, but it''s still negative.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. "Okay, I get it. "Okay, okay. Multiplayer Yuki. "Multiplayer Yuki, we welcome you to our team. You''ll have to work hard to keep up with us, multiplayer Yuki. It still sounds like you''re making fun of us! No, because, hey? I don''t know. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it. Well, enough with the ridiculing of Yuki. If you want to continue working here, you can do so.¡¡If you want to continue working here, I respect that. That''s not true, is it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. No, please join us. To be honest, the working conditions here are not very good. "That''s true. I don''t see any prospects for the future, and if something happens to us, we''ll go bankrupt immediately. Even though it''s a live-in job and meals are included, the salary is 100 rare for a whole day''s work.¡¡Can you believe it? Geez, it''s a real black company! And that meal?¡¡I''d lose my mind in three days. If you''re an apprentice, you can get paid nothing, but ...... isn''t that too cheap?¡¡Didn''t you get another job? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. However, in the case of Yuki and her friends, there was no compensation for food and clothing, and the job was so-called waitressing. The contract is less than non-regular employment and you never know when you will be fired. In that situation, a daily wage of 100 Reais is cheap, even if you take into account the fact that you are in another world. That''s because this town is small and there are few places to work. Besides, I didn''t have time to go looking for one since I didn''t have a day off. To be precise, you''re charged for food and lodging on the days you don''t work. But today was the first time Natsuki took a day off and you went to look for her. Did something happen? No, nothing at all. No, not at all. I found something out of town. Just like the work we''ve been doing, it seems that there''s no shortage of work outside the city here in Sarstat, such as collecting, hunting, and defeating demons. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do. Natsuki''s offensive skills are [Spear Technique Lv.4] and [Body Technique Lv.3], which are probably higher than ours in terms of simple offensive power, but Yuki only has [Body Technique Lv.1]. It seems that she can use earth magic at level 1, but no matter what, with only two girls, I was hesitant to take on such a task, considering the danger of human malice. On the other hand, even if we continued to work here, we would not be able to make a living at 100 Reais a day. There was a part of Natsuki and the others that was betting on the possibility that they would be able to join us, but if they weren''t going to come for a while longer, they had no choice but to take such a job even if they had to push themselves a little. I can''t even buy a change of clothes, you know?¡¡If our first clothes weren''t strong enough, we''d be in a lot of danger, wouldn''t we? "Yes, really. Just between you and me, Yuki snuck into my futon when I didn''t have a change of clothes and she was naked. You don''t have to tell me that, do you? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure there''s a level of Natsuki and Yuki. As an object of appreciation. "Yuki, I''m normal. I''m a normal person," said Haruka, sitting back down a little further away from Yuki. I''m with you!¡¡Also, Toya, don''t say anything disturbing!¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Did we?¡¡I''ve been busy lately, so I don''t remember ....... I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You remember.¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m sure you''ll understand. So you are more than welcome to come with us. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not going to worry about Yuki''s yuri suspicions. When can we leave?¡¡To be honest, we want to go back to the city of Laffan as soon as possible. ...... It''s not important. As for the contract, it can be done tomorrow or immediately, but I''m really sorry, so how about the day after tomorrow? "Oh, really?¡¡I can wait a little longer. No problem. I''ve already told you about the possibility of me quitting abruptly, and the request was made through the Adventurer''s Guild. This is like direct employment in the original world and indirect employment through a staffing agency. On the other hand, you can be made to quit easily without any compensation. Also, I feel sorry for Yuki, who is being ignored. You''re okay with this, right? "Yes, of course. And I''m not a yuri! And I''m not a yuri!" With Yuki''s strong insistence, the discussion of the day ended. 36-031 Bargains The next day, Haruka and I were strolling the streets of Sahlstat. Yuki and Natsuki were doing their last job, and Toya was staying at the inn as their bodyguard. It seems that Natsuki''s physical skills have helped him fend off pushy pick-ups, but there''s no guarantee that someone will think of something crazy when he quits. This is an insurance policy. It''s a good deterrent, because Toya looks reasonably strong in his solid gear. Haruka, do you have a purpose?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a port town that''s basically for waiting for the wind to blow, so it can''t be helped, but the food was bad, and honestly, at this point, I don''t find it appealing at all. It is possible that there are good restaurants and inns, but yesterday''s food had too strong an impact on me. Even if the food is below average, there are so many people who come to eat that food. Even if you take into account the fact that the restaurant has a signature girl, I can''t help but think that the surrounding dishes are not much different. "River fish may not be good for cooking, but it can be used as an ingredient, can''t it? "Oh, I see. Although it''s probably not worth it, because you have to keep the fish alive to remove the mud. No? That muddy smell wasn''t something you could get rid of by cooking. If you can afford it, you might want to come fishing. The water might be cleaner upstream. That''s a good idea!¡¡I''ve never fished before, you know. I''ve never fished before, even though I''ve always wanted to. I''ve never fished before, but I''ve always wanted to, but I''ve never had the chance to. The places where you can go fishing in the ocean are basically off-limits and fishing is prohibited, and fishing in ponds is not a good idea considering the invasive species. I mean, even a pond is trespassing, right?¡¡Unless it''s a reservoir that you own. If you fish there, you are embezzling property. If you release the fish, you are illegally dumping it. If you want to fish legally and cleanly, the only way is to go to fishing spots that are in business. If Natsuki and the others join us, we might be able to afford a little more. Well, that''s something to look forward to in the future. Our goal today is to find a bookstore. The book ...... could be an alchemy encyclopedia?¡¡It was sold out at Raffan. Yeah. I''ve already taken Alchemy, but I haven''t gotten around to it yet. Wouldn''t you like to make a magic bag? Sure. I''ve been practicing, but I still can''t get my level in space-time magic. It''s so hard. You just have to keep trying. As we walked along the main street of Sahlstat, we easily found the bookstore we wanted. Facing the main street, the store was even smaller than Rafan''s. Considering the size of the city, this is probably the only bookstore in the area. Inside, the structure of the store was the same as that of Raffan''s, with bookshelves lined up behind the counter, so that customers could not pick up the books themselves. There are also wagon sales piled up with battered books as well. I suppose this is the standard ...... of bookstores in this world. However, this one is a little cheaper, at 1,800 rare per book. Even if the book is damaged and would normally be discarded, the book itself is expensive, so they try to sell it anyway. I guess that''s how it is. Do you have an alchemy encyclopedia? "It''s a little old, but we have the 18th edition. "It''s a bit old, but we have the 18th edition." When Haruka approached the man at the counter, he replied without looking into it. It''s amazing ...... that he remembers not only the stock but also the number of editions. "What''s the latest edition now? "The 20th edition. It doesn''t make much difference if you''re looking up an item. Oh, yeah. ....... Speaking of which, don''t alchemists ever buy the latest version? No, you won''t. There''s a supplemental edition out, but it''s not relevant to most practitioners, so we''ve never had it in stock. If you''re an alchemist, the items in the previous books will suffice. There is almost no advantage in paying extra money to buy the latest edition or the supplementary edition. Inevitably, there are no used books in the market. That''s the point. "How much is the 18th edition? "It''s a little old. How about 20,000 Reais? That''s a little high. It''s two editions ago.¡¡Can''t you get a lower price? But then again, ...... not many people in this town buy them. ...... I look at the books in the wagon sale, watching Haruka negotiate the price out of the corner of my eye. Whenever I see something like this, I just want to look at it. I know there aren''t many good ones because they''re basically unsold books, but why do I feel like I''m looking for a bargain? But in the case of used books here, there is a possibility that the pages are not in order. If it''s a ...... mystery novel, and only the last part of the resolution is missing, that would be bad. Fortunately or not, there seems to be almost no entertainment novels, but it is risky to buy an academic book, considering the possibility of missing important parts. Unlike today''s mass-printed books, it''s not so easy to find the same book. --Hmm?¡¡There are three beautiful books mixed in among the tattered ones. There is nothing written on the cover or spine of ....... This is not so strange, since there are many books in this world that have nothing written on them, as if the exterior is for decoration or protection. If you open the cover of the book, you will find .......¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... Okay, calm down. You''re not looking at it wrong, are you? Yeah. I''m sure. This is 1,800 rare a book? Seriously? But we can''t be hasty here. Let''s check the facts first. I didn''t hear how much the deal was, but I lifted the book and called out to the clerk who was giving the book to Haruka in exchange for money. "Hey, shopkeeper. This book is beautiful, why is it here? "Hmm?¡¡Oh, that''s right. It''s a grimoire on space-time magic. I put it in there because it wouldn''t sell anyway. Doesn''t it sell? It won''t sell. I don''t care if it''s a bookstore in King''s Landing, who''s going to come to a bookstore in the middle of nowhere looking for a grimoire of space-time magic? I see. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you''re interested in. Considering the scarcity of space-time magic, the clerk must think that no one would come to buy it. Then it won''t sell even if I leave it here, will it? "It''s a fine looking book, isn''t it?¡¡Why don''t you leave it in your room, so you can look like an intelligent man and attract women? Well, that''s one way of thinking about it. No, no, no, it''s not that simple. It''s not as simple as that. I''m sure it''s just a random sales pitch, right? "How about you, brother? It''s not a bad book, and it looks nice, don''t you think? Hmmm... as interior decoration. The price for a mere decoration is ......3 4,000 Rea. What do you think? How about 4,000 rare for 3? At best, ......4,800 rares. My girlfriend bought it for me, so I''ll take it this far, okay? Yeah, ....... Nao, another waste of money? This is a great way to get the most out of your business. It''s a shame you wasted it. It makes you look intelligent.¡¡It''s not a waste. Hey, waitress? "Oh, yeah. Yeah, I''ll give you 4,500 Reais for your spirit!¡¡Bring it to me! As expected of Haruka, nice assist. I guess he thought he''d better sell it before he was stopped, so he gave me a further discount. "You''re so generous, shopkeeper!¡¡All right, I just got paid, I''m going to buy it and go home and be an intelligent man! "Thanks! I pay the shopkeeper, who smiles happily, and get three books. Of course, I was going to buy it even if they didn''t give me a discount, but I ended up spending 900 Reais on it. The shopkeeper might have treated me like a sucker, forcing a defective stock on a guy who didn''t know what he was doing for 1,500 rares a book, but as for me, I got the book I definitely wanted at a discount, and I''m happy. I''m not sure if this is a win-win situation or not. This is a win-win situation. "Nao, you did well, didn''t you? "Yeah. "Yeah. I''d hate to say something bad and have someone say, ''It was a mistake to put it there. Thank you, Haruka. The book would probably cost ten times as much if you bought it normally. There was a possibility that the price would be raised if I showed signs of wanting it. It''s not like modern Japan, where you can''t just say, ''It has a price tag, so sell it at that price. Three books are a bit heavy, but I''m sure Dingdol will be gone by the time we get back. Well, Natsuki and Yuki must have had a serious craving for sweets. Well, Natsuki and Yuki must have a real craving for sweets, and not just sweets, but good food too. This morning they had eaten two Dildos each. This is in contrast to us, who are satisfied with one or two slices. Well, we were like that at first, so we understand. "But we finished our business earlier than expected, are you going back to the ...... inn? No, let''s see if we can find some good bread. You don''t want to eat black bread today and tomorrow, do you? No. It doesn''t have to be good. I just need some bread that doesn''t taste bad. All the bread I had brought with me on my way home was gone this morning. I don''t blame Natsuki and Yuki at all, considering the food, but if I can manage it, I want decent bread, even if it costs a little more. The problem is that the town is so small that there aren''t many bakeries. There were only two bakeries on the main street. There were only two bakeries on the main street. I talked to people in town, but they said there were no other bakeries. I have no choice but to buy one loaf of bread from each bakery and taste half of it. "How''s ......? "This one''s not good. This one''s not even good. "Same for me. Then this one. You buy a loaf of bread, not good but not bad, for tomorrow. We can buy some more tomorrow before we leave the city. The next stop was outside the city. We built a fire and roasted the boar meat we had hunted yesterday. Thanks to Haruka''s ability to make ice, we could eat it for a day or so if we changed the ice occasionally. I cut the meat, Haruka seasoned it and grilled it. I cut the meat, Haruka seasoned and grilled it, and we put it in bread and ate it together. ...... Yeah, it''s tasty enough thanks to the meat. Yes, it is. I guess it''s okay if it gets a little cold. Since we couldn''t have a bonfire in the city, we had to bring back food for the three of us who were staying at home and for tomorrow morning. It will be like a cold fast food hamburger. ...... But it will be much better than that dish. "If I had to splurge, I''d want raw vegetables like cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. "I can handle pickles, but cheese is probably too expensive.¡¡Raw vegetables are dangerous. Fortunately, we''re all strong, but I wonder if it would work against parasites. "If they''re on Toya and Natsuki''s level, they should be fine, right? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Natsuki was a little sickly in his original world, so he took level 4. Yuki, on the other hand, was healthy, so she only took level 1. As Yuki is not sick at this stage, it seems that the effect of [Robust] is quite strong. ....... I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of that. "So boiling is the safest way to disinfect? There''s also chlorine disinfection and radiation disinfection, but they''re impossible in this world. Radiation disinfection?¡¡Is that safe? It''s not approved in Japan, but it''s used in other countries.¡¡It''s safe because they don''t use chemicals like hypochlorous acid, and it''s a good way to disinfect raw food. "But it''s not approved in Japan, is it? No. The Japanese don''t like radiation. Because it can be disinfected without heating, it is said to be a very useful method for food poisoning caused by raw meat such as liver, which was a problem at one time. In fact, it is also used for medical disinfection, so the fact that it is not approved for some other foods is just an image of avoidance. Hmmm, maybe we can create some kind of gamma irradiation magic?¡¡Don''t you want to eat raw vegetables? "I understand its usefulness, but please don''t. What if the gamma rays exceed the expected level during development? Most of the radiologists in history have died from radiation damage. I don''t mean to be a stubborn denier of radiation, but I don''t agree with experiments in an environment without protective facilities. "Can''t we do something with ''purification''? "Oh, no matter what, ''purification'' isn''t that versatile ......, is it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. If this is possible, the usefulness of cleansing magic will be at the top of the rankings, maybe even in the Hall of Fame. I''m sure you can do it. Or hypochlorite magic. This can be detected by smell, and if an accident occurs, it can be treated with magic. DNA damage, on the other hand, would probably be difficult to treat with ordinary healing magic. Hypochlorite magic: ...... producing sodium hypochlorite?¡¡I''m not sure if electrolysis of salt water is possible.¡¡What would be the strain?¡¡I''m not sure.¡¡Wind? I''m not a big fan of chemistry. I''m not very good at chemistry, so I can''t give you any advice. I''m afraid I can''t give you any advice, as I''m not very good at chemistry, but I''m hoping that the three of you, Haruka, Natsuki and Yuki, might come up with something better. However, it seems to me that "purification" would be easier. You just pour it on a person, and it instantly cleans the inside of their pants. Of course, your clothes will be cleaned, too. It''s like ''getting the grease deep inside the fibers''. If you think about it, wouldn''t it be easy to clean the dirt and insect eggs on the surface of vegetables? 37-032 Return (1) When we returned to the inn, Toya was outside doing his daily exercises. "Toya, I''m home. Any problems? Oh, welcome back. Nothing in particular. Well, he''s not going to tell the clients until today, so I guess it''s okay. I guess I''m being unfair, but he''s just a customer at my part-time job. There''s no need to cause unnecessary trouble by greeting them poorly. "Hmm. Oh, here''s your lunch. He took out a couple of hamburgers that he had just made for Toya, or maybe sandwiches since they weren''t hamburgers. I take out a couple of them and give them to him. "Oh, nice!¡¡I don''t want to eat those anymore. Toya takes them happily and immediately bites into them. "Mm-hmm. The bread is okay. I guess I can live with it until I get home. It''s a little bland, though. The bread was a little bland," he said, "but it''s hard to eat if it''s just grilled meat in between. The lack of vegetables is still not enough. Should I have bought some pickles? "I don''t think ...... pickles are bad, do you? I don''t know about that .......¡¡Our image of a pickle is a vegetable pickled in vinegar, but it is essentially a lactic acid fermented product, so it can be a bit peculiar. Fermented foods. ...... Fermented foods from all over the world, it is well known that many of them are basically not to everyone''s taste. Even old Japanese pickles are not to everyone''s taste. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you like. As for me, I''d like to have Haruka make me some pickled vegetables. I agree. You can''t go wrong with that. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure if it''s vinegar and white wine or what.¡¡I''m sure Haruka will be able to make it look good. I have faith in her. In the end, the trouble we were worried about didn''t occur and we were able to leave the city of Sarstad early the next morning. We ate only sandwiches for lunch, dinner, and breakfast, and I was both happy and sad to see that Natsuki and the others had unexpectedly given us high marks: ....... I couldn''t help but feel like saying, "I''ll get you something good to eat soon, old man! I felt like saying, "I''ll have something delicious for you soon! Haruka will do the cooking, but I''ll hunt some birds or something for lunch. What about the return trip?¡¡Do you want to run? Haruka shook her head at Toya''s words. There''s no need to run so fast. Yuki and the others hadn''t left the city, had they? No, we couldn''t get our gear ready. Yuki and Natsuki were dressed in ordinary cloth clothes. In an RPG, this is the initial equipment. The only weapon is Natsuki''s spear. I''d be surprised if he had all of them at that wage. The spear was also bought at the beginning, apparently to camouflage the fact that it would be too suspicious for an adventurer to be completely unarmed. But Natsuki''s [Spear Technique] level 4 is higher than mine. ....... Should I give him my spear here? I''m not sure.¡¡I think you can use it better than me. You can use it better than me." Natsuki looked surprised at my offer, but immediately shook her head. I''m sure you''re right.¡¡I''m not going to use such an expensive spear when I haven''t contributed at all yet. And besides, as they say, you can''t choose the right brush for the right job. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Oh, no!¡¡Oh, no!¡¡You can''t say something you can''t deny! Haruka!¡¡I''m not thinking that way at all, Nao-kun! I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I know it''s a joke, so it''s not like I''m damaged. But the fact is, the strongest among us in melee combat is Natsuki. But in fact, Natsuki is the strongest among us in melee combat, with a spear talent of Lv.4, and even a physical skill Lv.3. That''s right. If you only look at the skills, Natsuki is very strong. Her other skill sets include high resistance, healing, and scouting skills. She seems to be the most adaptable. If you don''t improve your space-time magic, you''ll end up with a worse version of Natsuki. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure how I feel about that.¡¡How were Haruka and the others? When he said that, the three of us looked at each other and remembered the first battle. The first one was Task Boar, right? It was Toya who faced him head-on, and Haruka and I were his backup. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure it''s a little different for me because I use a bow and magic, but considering the cost of lodging and what I''ll need to pay in the future, I can live with that. It''s a lot of money to be able to hunt. "Wow, you''re so practical, Haruka. "In a way, a boar is like money running to you. I just couldn''t get used to the dismantling part. Now I can dismantle it easily, but in the beginning, it was quite hard to skin the fur and cut off the head. It''s okay once it''s a carcass to some extent, but the parts that make you feel the rawness. Dismemberment. We''ll have to get used to it. Yuki, let''s do our best. "Oh, I have to do it too. I''m not very good at it. ...... Yuki smiles a little bit, but it seems that she is going to do it. Well, she''s not the type to say, "I can never do it. I''m not the type to say, "I can never do it. You''ll get used to it. I''m sure you''ll be able to get better than us if you copy Haruka''s skills. "If you don''t get used to it, you won''t be able to fight. If you''re scared of blood and organs, you''ll die. You''re right. If someone says, "Oh my God, that''s scary!" or "That''s disgusting!" during a battle, I''m pretty sure I''ll break up the party right then. You''re having a hard time, aren''t you? It''s not surprising that you''re coming to the city of Sarstad in such a short period of time. I really wanted to get there sooner, but I wasn''t sure that Natsuki and the others would be in Sarlstad, and it wouldn''t have mattered if we hadn''t been able to get there safely ourselves. "No, you''re amazing compared to us!¡¡No, you''re great compared to us! I''m partly to blame, but in the end, we never left the city. Yes, we did. I was expecting you, but to be honest, I''m glad you came. I was about to quit my job at the inn, even if I had to. "Oh, with that kind of salary, I don''t have much of a future. A true black job. In this world, a job that can be done by anyone seems to be like that. ...... "In this world, the jobs that anyone can do seem to be like that. It''s a tough world. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. When Haruka said this, Yuki raised her voice with a surprised look. What?¡¡I don''t have a weapon.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I don''t have any weapon skills! Don''t be absurd to an amateur!¡¡I''ve only learned it from Natsuki, I''ve never used it before! I''ve never used it before!" Haruka puts her hand on her chin, tilts her head and says it cutely, but it''s absurd. I''ve never used it before. What can you do, Yuki? "Toya, you ask that?¡¡I''m not sure. I''ve got a copy of ....... "Sandblast. I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "Blinding. It doesn''t have any offensive power, but if you use it well, it might be effective. Hmmm, ...... a little subtle. It''s not as easy to understand as the Fire Arrow. "What else? "...... Ground Control. It''s about digging holes and making little overhangs. Hey, Natsuki!¡¡Come on, Natsuki, explain it to me in a cooler way. You''re making me look so useless! Yuki protested, and Natsuki thought for a moment before following up. I don''t think you''re wrong. ....... I don''t mean ''useless'', I mean my explanation. "Don''t rephrase it!¡¡Don''t rephrase it, it makes it sound like you have an ulterior motive! He didn''t like it. He didn''t like it. He stuck out his hand and shook his head. But it''s more useful than anything other than fire magic, isn''t it? "Ground Control: ...... Snare. A snare. What?¡¡What''s a "snare"? Oh, Yuki and Natsuki don''t know? It''s an obvious topic for those who understand. It''s kind of a classic fantasy novel. "The meaning of ''snare'' is something like ''trap,'' right? Basically, it''s just a way to block the enemy''s actions, but if you use it well, it can be quite effective. It''s not flashy, but it''s easy to use. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. If you use it at the right time... You can do it!¡¡I can do it!¡¡Yes, you can! Will it work? It''s hard to hit a fast-moving enemy with the Fire Arrow, but it''s pretty hard to punch a hole at the right time. If you''re too fast, they''ll avoid you. Even if you time it right, if your stride doesn''t match the enemy''s, they''ll usually go over. It''s easier to get caught by a protrusion, but it''s easier to get sprained or broken by a hole. If you use it well, it can be quite evil. ....... So, when we find Task Boar, let''s call him in and have Yuki stand in front of him. "Oh, that''s really ...... bad, isn''t it? I''m sure you''re not the only one. That''s true. I''m against it too. On the other hand, Yuki, who has never heard of Task Boar, twisted her head and asked me. "What''s a task boar?¡¡Is that a boar by any chance? "A boar with magnificent tusks, yes. Most of them weigh over a hundred kilos. As soon as I told him, Yuki turned pale and shook her head. I can''t!¡¡You''ll die! If you fail, you die!¡¡If you''re that tense, you''ll be able to do your best, won''t you? "You''re too spartan, Haruka!¡¡Where did that kind Haruka go? That Haruka is dead. I''m the new Haruka. Yeah, I''m dead too. Then I''m the new Nao too. I am!¡¡But you''re dead!¡¡But that''s not it! Then let''s be nice and put Natsuki next to you. What, me?¡¡If you want me to do it, I''ll do it. ...... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a little confused by the sudden change of subject, but I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a little confused by the sudden change of subject. It''s dangerous even if you succeed. Even if you roll well, you''ll be hit by a 100 kilogram or more chunk of meat.¡¡Yuki would be crushed. Toya is right. If we''re going to put him there, it should be Toya who can catch him. Of course I''m joking, half the time. Of course I''m kidding, half the time." Haruka shrugs her shoulders, but half the time she means it. If we''re being serious, we should have Toya next to Yuki, Natsuki in front of her as the main attacker, me as the support, and Nao as the catcher. Hmmm, if Natsuki and Yuki are practicing, is that a reasonable arrangement? I thought so, but then Natsuki looked at me worriedly and opened her mouth. But Natsuki looked at me with concern and said, "Isn''t that dangerous for Nao-kun? No, the boar will be fine. No, I''ve killed a lot of boars. I''ve only killed a few boars. It''s not an exaggeration to say that our life in the other world has been with boars. As long as it''s not a long distance on a straight line on level ground, you can probably escape unharmed. Except for non-dangerous animals like birds and rabbits, we''ve only killed a vipu bear once and a goblin twice. Our flesh and equipment is made of boar and dindle. You haven''t killed many demons, have you?¡¡So your character level hasn''t risen that much? 38-033 Return (2) "Hmm?¡¡What''s a character level?¡¡There is no such thing-- Toya tried to deny Yuki''s strange comment, but Haruka interrupted her. No, actually, there is. It''s like a character level ...... thing. "Oh, really? Yes, seriously. What?¡¡I thought you said there wasn''t one? No, you just didn''t say there was one, did you? "Oh!¡¡There''s a game element here! Haruka, I didn''t hear anything about that. No, you didn''t. Why didn''t you tell me about it before? If you had told me... When we were talking about skills, you mentioned experience.¡¡That''s what I meant. I remember that conversation. ...... I see. You were right not to tell me. What do you mean? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. And to be honest, it''s a pain in the ass to stop them. Here comes the honest truth. But it''s sad that I can''t deny it. If you don''t know, you can''t force yourself. It''s a good argument. I thought that if Natsuki and the others came in, there would be a better chance that we could follow up if something went wrong. ...... It''s true that I kept it a secret, and I''m sorry. Oh, no, it''s nothing to apologize for. Yeah, I know. Especially Toya. Oh, really? Why do you look so surprised? You''ve done it before. I mean, you''ve said a few times, "I''ll take care of it," right?¡¡What if they say it will raise your level? "You said more at ....... Sorry. I''m sorry," he said, bowing his head, as if he understood what he was doing. I''m not sure I could have acted with enough restraint to say anything about Toya either. I''m sure you''ll agree that this is a great idea. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I guess it doesn''t make much sense to Natsuki, who is neither of them. Yuki, you didn''t tell Natsuki about this either? Oh, yeah. We haven''t even been out of the city to begin with. Well, I''ll take this opportunity to explain. Character level - We don''t call it that in this world, but it''s easy to understand, so I''ll call it that. As you can see from your status, it''s not displayed, is it? "Yeah. All you can see in your status is your name, race, age, condition, skill type and level. This alone is cheesey enough compared to the people of this world, but that doesn''t include character level. So there really isn''t one. ...... "There is, isn''t there? I don''t know. What? "I don''t know." - "Huh?" The words, uttered after a slight pause, were a bit of a letdown. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. "Officially unknown, you mean. I''ve been told that there may be circumstantial evidence, but I can''t prove it because there''s no way to confirm it. Specifically, when you defeat a demon and when you defeat a non-monster, the former becomes more powerful even though they are doing similar things. Hmmm. If there is a clear difference in muscle strength between people of similar physique, it is normal to think that there is some unseen parameter. For example, if I have 100kg of back muscles and a muscle-massive person has 300kg of back muscles, that''s not so strange. But if I don''t become muscle-massive and I grow to 300kg or 400kg, that is clearly abnormal. No, no, no. Actually, there is something much easier to understand. For example, what would happen if a girl thrusts a kitchen knife at Nao? "What?¡¡It would sting, right?¡¡I mean, why are you using that analogy? ...... Please don''t make disturbing analogies. What do you mean?¡¡Well, it usually stings and in some cases kills you. But for a high rank adventurer, it doesn''t sting. Strangely enough. What?¡¡You didn''t avoid it?¡¡No, no, that''s too weird! It''s not like he was wearing iron armor at ......, is it? That''s not strange or anything. Even in normal clothes. All right!¡¡He was wearing chainmail underneath! I see. I see. High ranks are prepared for the risk of being stabbed by girls. High rank is a nasty thing. "So, Nao, you''re going to keep a comic book magazine under your clothes. What?¡¡I didn''t do anything to get stabbed. Right? He looks at the three of them, but for some reason they don''t meet his gaze. What?¡¡You''re not going to confirm it? "Well, leaving aside whether or not Nao is a tiger... What?¡¡Was that what you were talking about? I really wanted to object, but I couldn''t go on, so I kept my mouth shut. "It doesn''t matter what equipment you have, it simply doesn''t stick. It seems to sting a little if you''re not paying attention, but it''s not fatal. It''s like there''s a barrier or something on the surface of your body. That''s not just because you''re working out. It''s like a barrier on the surface of the body. But if that''s true, if you raise your character level, you won''t get injured so much. --Good. Honestly, I don''t think I can fight a vipu bear level enemy with realistic physical strength. One hit almost kills you, it''s too hard mode. Well, this is just a simple example, but the fact that physical abilities can increase regardless of muscle mass suggests that there is something different than simple training. "Assuming it''s a level up, does it go up with training?¡¡No, according to what Yuki said earlier, it can be raised by killing demons? It is said that the most efficient way is to kill demons. The theory is that killing ordinary beasts and people doesn''t do much good either. You can''t experiment because you can''t measure, and you can''t prove because you can''t experiment. It''s also a rule of thumb that killing demons is more efficient. What''s the difference between ...... and a magic stone? What do you think?¡¡I don''t know. The most common theory is that it''s against God''s will. God''s will? Normally I''d just laugh it off as impossible. "God, huh~. I used to be an atheist, but now that I''ve met that thing, I''m sure there''s some kind of divine being out there. Unless this is my dream. "So I''m a character in a dream?¡¡Well, in this world, people believe in the existence of God. I don''t know if it''s true or not, but there are oracles and descent. It''s not as vague as it was in the original world, but it''s well documented enough for most people to believe in it. But if gods existed, wouldn''t there be wars? No way. There are wars between nations, though they seem to be rare due to the presence of demons. --It''s a human thing. What''s with the ending?¡¡What about the endings in this context? Oh, you mean people don''t respect God much? Most people do, but that''s not the point, is it? Well, there have been many wars waged in the name of God on earth. I wonder if religious people would say that their wars are in accordance with God''s will. "Yes. The fact that there is an oracle and the fact that the oracle is true are two different things. Yuki chuckles and shrugs her shoulders. If the oracle is at the level of descent, it is not so deceitful, but since the oracle is announced by the temple, ordinary people cannot judge whether it is true or not. For this reason, temples once issued oracles too often, and nowadays, oracles that are too convenient for temples tend to be ignored. But if gods are real, don''t they have natural punishment? "There are records that say ''natural disasters are divine punishment,'' but I''m not sure about that.¡¡I don''t think they intervene much. In fact, we''ve been transferred to this world. "Hmm?¡¡What does our transfer have to do with anything? I don''t think so.¡¡In spite of this, we are here without the intervention of any other gods. In other words, they''re not going to intervene just because there''s a war going on. Hmmm ......, you have a point. If you''re going to leave irregularities that cross the world, there''s a good chance you won''t be involved in what the people living in that world do. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, it''s possible that you''ll be able to find a great deal more information on the web. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. That''s right. There''s no reason for us ordinary people to get involved in wars between nations or religions. Oh, Natsuki, you said it. That''s a flag. Is that so?¡¡But we''re not particularly strong, nor do we stand out. Natsuki responds to Yuki''s questioning, "Aha! That''s true, but... But normally... Normally, you''d be fine, but you have your classmates to worry about. Yeah. You''ve got a lot of skills to get into trouble. "Oh, let''s just stay out of it. Never. We nodded in agreement. 39-034 Survival rate "The real question is, how many of your classmates do you think are still alive? "It''s hard to tell if you change the species. As far as we know, four or five people died in LaFang after using [Skill Robbery]. "In Sarstat, it''s three?¡¡This is probably accurate. Because I heard the story at the tavern. It''s not a big town, so if three suspicious deaths occurred on the same day, there would have been a certain amount of rumors. "You heard it from Tommy, too. Was it Tanaka and Takahashi?¡¡They''re definitely dead. Definitely dead?¡¡And Tommy? Yeah, Tommy means Wakabayashi. Yuki was curious, but I told her what Tommy had told me. The situation made Yuki, who hadn''t taken any help, turn pale, saying, ''Mine skills, really scary. I can''t ...... imagine Wakabayashi-kun being a dwarf. Oh, we didn''t even notice until you mentioned it. We didn''t even notice until you told us. Your tone of voice hadn''t changed, so it didn''t feel right. I''d like you to speak like an old man if you can. Well, I suppose this is prejudice in a sense. I''m sure there are children and young people among the dwarves, so they can''t all be old men. We didn''t get to know any of our classmates after all, but Haruka and the others, only Wakabayashi? Yeah. There was that guy, Umien. ...... Oh, yeah, there was that guy, too. Haruka frowns a little, as if remembering that time. I''m not sure what''s wrong.¡¡You seem to be in a bad mood. No, it''s because Umezono picked a fight with Haruka. I''ll tell them what happened. I''ll tell them what happened. He didn''t have to go to all the trouble to become Haruka''s enemy. "Wow, Ume-sono-san, you''re a challenger!¡¡You''re too reckless to fight Haruka head-on! "Yuki, what are you talking about? You make it sound like I''m a scary person. Haruka smiles, but the smile on her face is a little scary. No, we don''t think so, but do any of your classmates fight with Haruka to her face? No, I don''t. I don''t think so. That''s the smart way to get by. Natsuki and Yuki nodded to each other, "Yes, yes. No boy would be stupid enough to pick a fight with Haruka. The risk of being disliked not only by Haruka but by most of the other girls is too high. How many boys at school think that they don''t care if girls don''t like them? Oh, my God!¡¡I''m clearly the victim here!¡¡--"Look at it objectively. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you have. The fake tone of voice ruins it all, though. "Well, it doesn''t matter. She''s not a threat. That''s it. Isn''t that the strength and fear of Haruka? Well, I guess it''s thanks to that "strength" that we''ve been able to survive relatively peacefully. "Classmates, even if we only know, 25% of them are dead. Too many people are being careless, aren''t they? And what do you think about Haruka''s statement, Toya? I said, "What do you think, Toya? Haruka is in the minority. With a character makeup full of mines, a 25% mortality rate is still low. I guess I agree with you. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. That''s right. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡I''m not proud of it, but I''m confident that if it were just me, I could have taken on the goblins in a few days! I agree. I''m not sure I''d have chosen a cheating skill if I''d been on the edge. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. That''s right!¡¡If there were that many attractive skills, I would have taken it! As expected of someone who has taken [Skill Copy], you have a different point of view. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. You can''t say that again~. I''m regretting it. "No, no, I think it''s beneficial in the current situation.¡¡You can learn from all of us. "Of course! Yuki nodded happily as she regained her composure, but Haruka interrupted her again. But if you don''t decide which of them you want to develop, you''ll end up with poor dexterity.¡¡It''s hard to train. That''s right. ...... But really, if we could use even half of the skills we have, even level one would be awesome, right? Yeah, I''ll do my best!¡¡Good luck, everyone! You can teach us, but it''ll be tough.¡¡We spend a few hours every day training, you know. "Oh, so you''re putting in that much effort?¡¡Well, of course we do. There''s no way we can achieve anything without working hard. The three of them, Haruka, Yuki and Natsuki, are not geniuses in terms of appearance, but they are geniuses in terms of study. They study diligently and participate in practices during school events such as ball games. I''m sure I''m blessed to a certain extent that I''m able to achieve good results. I''m physically stronger here, so I have to work harder. In the original world, Natsuki''s athleticism wasn''t bad, but her physical strength was a bit inferior. She sometimes missed school. Yuki, on the other hand, was very energetic. She was the best of the three in terms of physical strength. In the middle was Haruka, who was as good as Yuki in terms of her ability. If you look at the girls as a whole, they are probably both at the top. But how many of them actually took [Help]? "Girls don''t play the game much, so I think they''re more likely to get [help]. In fact, Natsuki took it, right?¡¡And there was advice that there were no cheats, so some people believed it and avoided dangerous skills, right? I''m sure you''ll be able to get by without becoming an adventurer. ....... I don''t know about that.¡¡If you''re a girl, you might want to choose something like [heroine qualities], [charm], or [attractive appearance] if you''re on the edge of your points. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that, but I''m sure I''d be able to do it. If you''re not a stickler like Toya or Tommy. If you don''t think too much about it, it''s a very advantageous skill. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bit of trouble with the whole thing. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I want a wife with beast ears! "...... I see. Yuki and Natsuki nodded quietly at Toya''s powerful declaration. I don''t know what''s going through your mind, but I''m not going to tell you. It''s okay, right? "You''re an idiot! It''s okay to say, "Idiot! --No, it would have been better if I hadn''t, because it would have started Toya''s chemo talk. But it''s good that the world doesn''t have cheats. But it''s a good thing that the world doesn''t have cheats, because if those skills were rampant without any mines, it would have been a problem for the people of this world. It would have made life difficult for us, too. "Well, you know. "Well, I guess so, with all the cheetos fighting each other and the harem guys and the reverse harem and all that. Yeah, yeah. We, the little people, just need to live in peace. "Little people. ......? "Haruka is ......? The question spilled out of our mouths when we heard the unexpected words. "What?¡¡You have to be careful not to stand out, don''t do dangerous jobs, work hard and save money. You see, for all intents and purposes, I''m a small citizen. Haruka says this while pointing her fingers one by one, but we look at each other with subtle expressions. We looked at each other delicately. "You''re right, if you ask me that much, you''re a petty bourgeois. But why? "I think it''s the image. Haruka has leadership qualities. He''s also a man of action. If he keeps growing, he''ll start his own business or something. Yeah, that''s exactly what I''m thinking!¡¡A female entrepreneur! We nodded our heads to Yuki''s words. I can''t imagine a future where I go to college, find a job, and become an office worker. Is that a compliment?¡¡Well, okay. I don''t know how many of you are still alive, but don''t you dare look for them or get involved with them. Or is there someone else you''d like to find? I don''t. This is the only group I can trust. I don''t know. I don''t know if I''d trust them if I was going out with them, but I wouldn''t trust them if my life depended on it. ...... I think we''ve said that before, but no. Yeah. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Mine skills, however, you don''t have. If you have them, you should actively run away. My proposal was unanimously approved. 40-035 Tatsuki & Yuki, First Team Whoa!¡¡I got a visual on the radar! Give me a status report! Suspected boar, 2.5 miles, 50! "...... Nao, Toya, what''s with the theatrics? Haruka sighs tiredly. Apparently he didn''t like it. What''s that line you want to say? I know!¡¡I''d rather do that one myself! That''s Toya. That''s why he''s on board. I''d take your place, but I''m better at spotting things. Mmm-hmm. We''re walking near the forest, a little off the road. It was getting close to noon, and I accepted Toya''s suggestion that we hunt some boar for combat training as well. As a result, I accepted Toya''s suggestion. As for me, I''d rather eat a bird, but ...... I''ll make a suggestion when I can hunt a boar successfully. "Well, after all, there are two boars about 50 meters away, is that right? "Yeah. You want me to go get some? Well, let''s leave ......1 to Toya, Yuki and Natsuki, and if we catch both of them, Nao and I will deal with the other one. It''s a good idea. Oh, Natsuki, let''s trade my spear. What?¡¡But ...... He looked at the spear I offered him and compared it with his own spear and looked puzzled. It''s true that the prices are probably ten times different. "Only for now. To be honest, that spear would break if you took a task bore head-on. But Nao, you and Haruka are going to fight alone, right?¡¡Isn''t that more dangerous? I''m more worried about Natsuki getting hurt. Besides, I have magic. Thank you Nao-kun ....... I''ll borrow it. He exchanged the spear with a slightly happy Natsuki, thrust it into the ground and headed for the forest. To be honest, a spear in the forest is a hindrance when it comes to fishing. As I entered the forest from a suitable animal path, Haruka, who was following behind me, climbed a tree on the side and set up her bow. As I approached, I spotted a mating pair of Task Boars. The larger of the two is one of the largest I''ve ever seen. The smaller one was also of a reasonable size, so I guessed they were not a father and son but a couple. Basically, task boars are stupid, so if you provoke them, they''ll come straight at you, but if you have both of them, you have to think a little. Aim for the smaller of the two. If you attack it too powerfully, it may run away, so you use the regular Fire Arrow. At the moment of impact, it makes a little noise and leaps into a position where the opponent can see it. You run back the way you came with the screams of "PIGAAAA" and "BUMOMOMOMOO" in your back. He ran out of the forest, grabbed his spear, and ran to Toya and the others, making sure that they were following him. It''s coming! There was no more than a ten meter gap between them and the enemy. The moment I was about to run past Natsuki, who had her spear at the ready, I stepped out and saw an indentation in the tip of my foot. Whoa! Perfect timing! If only I were the enemy! "Oh no! I immediately thrust my spear into the ground with all my might, and managed to take a half step forward to avoid the dent. You''ll be able to see that the boar is a huge one, and at the same time, you''ll hear a heavy thud. With a heavy thud, Natsuki''s spear was thrust into the boar. --It hit the boar right in the eye, and the tip of the spear was sticking out of the back of its head. That''s instant death. This is no time to watch. The boar with the arrow sticking out of its head came out of the forest almost without delay. It''s the boar I hit with the Fire Arrow first. While I was looking at it, a second arrow pierced it, so I rushed over and stopped it with my spear. The boar was weakened by the "Fire Arrow" and the two arrows, so I was able to finish it with a single blow. The boars both stopped moving. The boars both stopped moving, and I let out a big breath when I saw that there was no response to my search. Even with the boar, I was still nervous about fighting. Yuki rushed over to me and bowed. "Nao!¡¡I''m sorry!¡¡I-- "Oh, no, no problem. It''s not going to work out in the beginning, is it? I laughed, patted Yuki''s head, and made her raise her head. In fact, even if she had fallen, it wouldn''t have been a serious problem. He might have sprained his ankle, but Haruka could have healed it, and the boar behind him would have been within Toya''s reach. He was forced to do some acrobatics, but there was nothing wrong with that. Yes, yes. That''s what we''re practicing for. Haruka, who had come down from the tree, agreed with me as she collected the arrow from the boar. "Uh-huh. Sorry. But thank you. More importantly. Yuki needs to learn to dismantle. Fortunately, we''ve got two teaching materials. "Ugh. ...... I''ll do my best. ...... Yuki''s expression is a little tense, but she answers stoutly. The first time I saw my prey dismembered, I was pretty shocked too, so I understand how you feel. Just hang in there. You''ll get used to it. When I returned to Toya and the others, dragging the boar I had killed, Natsuki was pulling the spear out of the boar. He looked a little pale, but his hands were firm. A boar with its head pierced is pretty gruesome, but ...... strong. I was pretty shocked the first time I killed it. Oh, Nao, thank you for the spear. If it hadn''t been for this spear, it might have been broken. "Ah... But it''s amazing, Natsuki. One thrust from that thing. I''m sure the spear was good enough to penetrate his head, but to be able to calmly thrust a spear into his vitals in his first fight is quite a feat, isn''t it? I was expecting Natsuki to attack him as he passed by, and Toya to catch him and stop him, but I didn''t expect him to finish him off with a single blow from the front. And the fact that he didn''t let that huge body run into him, means that he was able to catch that huge mass with his spear, right? It''s not just simple strength, it''s also technology. ...... This is really amazing. It''s a good thing I''m a level 4. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡What''s the difference? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. You''ll be fine, Yuki, with training. I''m sure you''ll be fine, Yuki, if you train." "Well, to be honest, it''s pretty hard to make a well-timed pitfall, so don''t worry about it. It''s impossible to succeed the first time. Thanks for the follow-up. I''ll practice hard. Yeah. But right now, we''re practicing disassembly. Copy that. "...... Yes. Yuki nodded as she accepted the dismantling knife offered by Haruka. Yes, I copied it. The copy itself is instantaneous, after all. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. Then I''ll teach Yuki how to dismantle it. I''m going to teach Yuki how to dismantle it, and maybe you should watch Natsuki too.¡¡I want everyone to be able to do it. I understand. Nao and Toya are at ....... Haruka gave me a look that said, "What do you want to do? I said what I had been thinking about earlier. "Can I go hunting?¡¡It''s been a while since I''ve had a bird. "Birds?¡¡Will you be okay without me? I''m not sure if it''s because I''ve been hunting birds with Haruka''s bow, or because Haruka asked me that question. ...... I can handle it, probably. I''m not sure what to do. But if you can''t hunt, it''s embarrassing, so I''ll take precautions. It''s a good idea.¡¡Don''t go too far into the woods. Okay. Hey, Tor, let''s go. Me too?¡¡I don''t know. I''m off then. A little worried by Haruka and the others, Toya and I went into the forest again. I''m not sure what to say. So, how are we going to kill the bird?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one with a bow. There''s a good number of birds out there, and I can find them with my [Enemy Search] and Toya''s super-senses. I''d prefer a tasty bird if possible, but the first priority is to kill it. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it.¡¡You''ve got legs, right? "Don''t be absurd!¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡...... Well, how about a bird walking on the ground? You can''t reach up a tree with a sword! ...... Well, what about a bird that walks on the ground? Hmm, a bird like a quail, ...... that could be minced? I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. A pheasant or a dove should be fine, right?¡¡There''s also a way to stop it with a roar. ...... "No, no, no, no, you can''t use that, you can''t catch the second one. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. She didn''t need to use it on the task boars that were her main prey, as they came right at her, and she didn''t have time to use it on the vipu bears that threatened her. It was effective against the goblins I fought twice, but I only used it once, and the number of times I fought them was too small to call it active. When used against birds and rabbits, it was useful for stopping their movement, but it resulted in all but the target prey running away from the surroundings. To be honest, it was hard to use for hunting. "Okay, if there''s a large bird within range of the sword, Toya will use it, otherwise I''ll use the Fire Arrow. I''m sure you can, but if you use the Fire Arrow to kill them, won''t it burn them all?¡¡You can also burn its wings and let me finish it off. "Hey, hey, hey, I''m growing up, too, you know?¡¡The Fire Arrow is evolving, too. I''ve been training diligently, and my magic is improving as well. You''ll be able to get a lot more out of it than you did in the beginning, even though your skill level hasn''t improved. Yes!¡¡So to speak, Fire Arrow 2.0! That''s a little old-fashioned. I know what you mean. Leave it. Well, it means you can use it to focus and increase penetration. If you get it right, you can wipe out a quail''s head. "...... if you get it right. "Accuracy is still in its infancy. You''ll have to wait and see with Fire Arrow 3.0. If the target is not moving, you can now focus on a range of 20 centimeters at a distance of 10 meters, but if the target is as small as a quail, you have to get at least five meters closer. "The ...... target is a larger bird. I hope the meat is not too tough. The smaller the bird, the harder it is to find, but basically, the smaller the bird, the better it tastes. If they are too small, there is no place to eat them. Shall we look for them anyway? Yeah. When I say "search," I just concentrate on looking for life-signs, sneak up on them, and check who they are. It''s good if you can figure out what you''re dealing with, but it''s not that versatile. There''s a skill level indicator in [Searching for Enemies], and I''m starting to understand Task Boar, so maybe I''ll be able to figure it out soon. It seems that Toya''s super-sense is even more vague, so we can''t rely on it too much. He can be relied upon to detect something like a killer spirit, though. (Oh, it''s a bird this time, huh?¡¡(Oh, it''s a bird this time, isn''t it? It''s called a cotus.) ([Appraisal]. It''s small. ...... It''s still a little bigger than a quail, and it''s light brown with no pattern. "Okay, I''ll go with my Fire Arrow 2.0. "Oh. I focused my attention and fired my Fire Arrow, focusing it to the limit. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. "It missed! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Hey, hey, hey!¡¡You can do it just like normal, can''t you? And you were moving at the same time as I fired before I removed it, right? I don''t think they trust me. I don''t know how you did it. I was hoping that Nao would take it off and I could catch her as she took off. "Geez, ....... I swallowed my words as Toya looked back at me and smiled. I swallowed my words as he looked back at me and smirked, but I couldn''t say anything because I was within five meters of him. But then again, Kotas'' head is less than three centimeters long, right? You can''t blame them for not hitting you, can you? ...... What?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. I''ll leave Kotas to you. I''ll go for the one that''s out of Toya''s reach. Let''s forget the inconvenient truth. Of course, we shouldn''t make a movie about it. Well, I''m sure the big bird can take a shot at the body with the Fire Arrow 2.0. "No, I''m going for the head!¡¡It''ll work this time. I promise. Yeah. And for a while. The number of dead cotus was increasing rapidly, and finally I found a nice prey. It''s about 50 centimeters long with wings, dark brown with a little white on the tail. It was perched on a tree branch, so Toya wouldn''t be able to disturb it. --No, I was following. Yeah, I just couldn''t guess, could I? What''s that? Coolus. Is it edible?¡¡It''s a little crow-like. It''s okay. --Oh, help. It''s a coolas. Considering that when I saw Task Boar before, it was called "Beast (edible)", I thought it would be called "Bird (edible)", but since I knew the name before I saw it, I guess it showed the proper name. I thought it would say "bird (edible)," but it didn''t, because I knew its name before I saw it.¡¡I don''t think many people eat them these days. I''ve heard that my great-grandfather used to catch and eat them. Since there are many of them in the city, if they were produced locally and consumed locally as "gibier," the damage caused by crows would be reduced, but I guess that''s impossible. But I don''t think that''s possible. Ravens have an image of being filthy. I''ve heard that ravens are smart, and if they think they''ll be hunted, they won''t come out into the city. Let''s go, then. "Okay. Good luck, 2.0. "Shut up. Fire Arrow. Catch your breath, aim well, and fire the Fire Arrow. In an instant, the arrow reaches Coulas and bounces off his head. "Yes! He picks up his prey, which has fallen from a tree branch, its head missing but its body intact. Isn''t that perfect? "Oh, that worked. But we can''t drain it like this, can we? Sure. Because of the Fire Arrow, the wound is burned and the blood has stopped. It''s not a good idea to leave it like this, so I take out my dismantling knife and cut it down a bit to draw out the blood. So now that Nao has her prize, let''s go home. "....... If I had only thought about lunch, I wouldn''t have needed to hunt the crow, since Toya had already killed six cotus. But I guess he was trying to save face by staying with me until I could finish him off. I''d come out with a precautionary line, but it wouldn''t look good if Toya had six and I had none. When we were sure that Cuirass was no longer bleeding, we headed out of the forest. 41-036 Handling birds When we returned to Haruka''s place, the two boars had already been dismembered and separated into meat, skin and tusks. The offal had already been buried, and there were traces of a hole dug in the side. A fire had already been built, probably for lunch. Welcome back. Looks like you made it. Yeah, we made it. I put down the coleus and firewood I had picked up along the way, and Toya did the same with six cotus and firewood. I was going to roast the boar, but it looks like I was right to wait. Haha, I told you I''d hunt. I don''t have to tell you it was last minute, do I? I just put you in charge. Oi!¡¡It''s called, uh, sharing the work, isn''t it?¡¡I''m the one who found it, right? I''ve been trying to recover my position, but Toya has revealed my secret. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m the one who found it. But the reason why Toya killed him and not Nao is because it was better for you, right? Yes, there were circumstances that forced me to do that, weren''t there? Yes, my magic still has a low hit rate. Well, okay. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. "Ah, yes. Okay. Where''s Yuki? I''m sorry, but you got it, so please don''t do it this time. ...... Oh, it''s working now? Yes, somehow. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m so excited. However, he said that the dismantling of the second boar proceeded quite smoothly from the middle of the second boar, so the skill was probably activated at that point. It''s pretty convenient that you can get it just by doing that. Even Nao hasn''t grown yet. "It should have grown by now. But if this is the only way to learn it, shouldn''t we all take the time to give Yuki a skills class? "By all means. I don''t want to be useless! Right. Let''s all teach each other. I don''t know if I can get it as a skill like Yuki, but it would mean something. Aside from knowledge skills, knowing some physical skills such as [evasion] might reduce the danger. You can earn enough money to have time for training. But let''s deal with the bird later.¡¡In a way, they''re more troublesome than boars. That''s true. The division of labor is as follows: ...... Yuki and I will teach and disassemble one kotas each, and Nao and Toya will disassemble two each. I''ll have ...... Natsuki take care of the crows, okay? Everyone nodded in agreement with Haruka''s suggestion. First we need to soak them in hot water. ...... Toya, you brought a pot, right? Yes, I did. I bought this pot to make preserved food. I bought the pot to make preserved food. I put some things inside it and put it in the bottom of my backpack so it won''t take up too much space. When Toya took it out, Haruka magically poured hot water into it. The water was not quite boiling, but much hotter than a bath. He dips all the birds into the water. "Hey, Haruka, that''s magic, isn''t it?¡¡What kind of magic? "Well, it''s based on the water jet of water magic. But it''s not really related. As Yuki knows, magic is quite flexible. But it does consume a lot of magic power. What about it? It''s not that bad. The temperature is high, but the consumption is reduced by the fact that you don''t have to spray it out. The relationship between magic and magical power is sort of like the law of conservation of energy. For example, there is "light". The magic power to light up for 10 minutes at 10 lux is roughly the same as the magic power to light up for 1 minute at 100 lux. For example, the magic power to make a light shine for 10 minutes at 10 lux is roughly the same as the magic power to make a light shine for 1 minute at 100 lux. In the case of "water jet," the faster the jet, the more magic power is needed, and the less magic power is needed if the amount of water is reduced. However, this is not always the case. In the example of "light," it is impossible to make light shine for 0.1 second with 60,000 lux, and the magic power required will increase. On the other hand, the same is true for 1,000 minutes at 0.1 lux, and it is generally believed that the efficiency of magic power worsens outside a certain range. The same is true for the 1,000 minutes at 1 lux. "Now, are we ready? After pulling the bird feathers out of the pot, each person picks up a feather. This process is done in order to make it easier to pick the feathers, but until now we have not been carrying pots with us, so we have omitted it. Even if you don''t do it, it will only make it harder to pick them back, so we''ll make up for it with our efforts. The next step is to remove the organs. Be careful not to hurt them. It''s the same with wild boar, but if you damage the intestines or stomach, you''ll be in trouble. Very, very bad. Think about what''s in there and you''ll understand. I did it a few times while practicing. ....... Thanks to Haruka''s Purify, we were able to avoid this, but we sold it off without eating it ourselves. What, dishonest? No, no, no, I''m not dirty because I''m properly ''cleansed'', okay? It''s just a mood thing. It''s okay if you don''t know. There are many edible parts of wild boar meat, but let''s save the heart and liver for now. Wild boar''s meat does not last long and smells bad if it is not cleaned and prepared, so it is usually thrown away. In the case of chicken, it is delicious when skewered, salted and grilled, so I usually collect these two. The liver is not the gizzard, but the liver. Oh, throw the unwanted part in this hole. Thanks. Yuki made a hole with earth magic, and I threw the rest of the organs into it. The feathers, which had been left in a random place, were also collected by Yuki and placed in the hole. After that, I cut off the legs and lightly roast the skin if there are any hairs left. Finally, wash the whole thing and you''re done, but don''t worry, I''ll do this with my Purify. It''s done. We''ve already done this a few times and we''re working on the second one, but Natsuki, who''s never done this before, finished the first one almost as fast. "Yeah, good job. Keep up the good work, and you can do the same with the coolas. "Yes, sir. Natsuki nodded and immediately started picking up the crow''s feathers. You don''t feel much rejection, do you? We had already experienced dismantling a wild boar before, so there was a part of us that thought it was just a bird. Well, if you look at it as a foodstuff, handling a big fish or a bird might be similar. I''ll cook in the meantime. Yuki, help me. Copy my cooking skill. It''s level one. "Oh, I''ll be happy to help you cook!¡¡But does cooking require a skill?¡¡I can cook, right?¡¡You can cook too, right? "I had some cooking skills in my world, but I don''t have any skills. I think it''s because I haven''t taken it. ...... Incidentally, Natsuki''s cooking skills were more than just "a little". Although he didn''t have many opportunities to eat, he was probably better than Haruka. I think it''s safe to say that she is a professional. You can say that he is a professional.¡¡Haruka. To put it bluntly: ...... What do you mean? No, not at all. I think I''m a normal cook, but for example, the salt I sprinkle on my food makes it taste great. Honestly, it''s the most mysterious thing. I''m sure magic is a wonder, but I can accept it as such. On the other hand, cooking is something that was done normally in the original world, so it seems even more strange. "That''s it? I''m looking forward to it! I''m also very interested in getting ....... The chefs of this world seem to have it, so I''m sure it will grow back if you try. I see. If I have time, I''ll try my best to cook too! I''ll try my best to cook when I have time!" Natsuki clenched her fists and declared with a snort. That''s quite a rare sight. You must have loved cooking, because you were so good at it. Yeah, we''ll do that when we get back to town. Yuki, let''s make yakitori for now. Okay. 42-037 Other world, dining situation I hadn''t eaten yakitori in a long time, and it was very good. The kotas were a little hard to eat because of the many small bones, but I didn''t mind that. At the same time, I compared the one cooked by Haruka and the one cooked by Yuki. Yuki''s dish was tasty enough, but there was a clear difference when compared to Haruka''s. Well, as usual, Yuki''s [Cooking] skill has been activated, so there is a good chance that the next one will be just as delicious. But this crow''s nest is a bit tough, isn''t it? "Yes, it is. It''s easy to eat with no small bones, but it''s a little ...... harder than cottus. "Really?¡¡I like it because it''s crunchy and it tastes good when you bite into it. I think it depends on how you cook it. Maybe it''s just not good for grilled chicken. Opinions were divided on the last bird I killed. 50-50?¡¡Yuki''s opinion was a little more nuanced. My opinion is closer to Toya''s. However, I agree with the ladies that it is hard, so I think that minced meat or thinly sliced beef tongue might be more suitable. But I''m really glad that I''ve joined up with Haruka and the others and can now eat good food. That''s right!¡¡I really wonder why there were so many customers for that dish! That was probably influenced by the presence of Yuki and Natsuki, you know? I think Yuki and Natsuki probably had a lot to do with it. It''s hard to believe that other restaurants are serving worse food than that. No, I don''t want to think about it. That would mean that when you travel in this world, you''ll usually get less than that. Our first meal in town was terrible, too. Yeah. Yeah, we were really disappointed, weren''t we? I thought the black bread would be better. And the ale. After trying it once, I knew I didn''t need it anymore. "I guess Nao and the others had a hard time finding food too. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. That''s true. We''re staying at an inn that serves reasonably good food. The nameless young man who introduced us, the gatekeeper whose name I''ve forgotten, you''ve done a very good job. I don''t miss you one bit. I don''t miss you one bit, but you seem to have a subtle ulterior motive with Haruka. Yuki and Natsuki are cute too. In our case, we had no choice. With 100 rares a day, we couldn''t afford to eat out. ...... You''re right. It would have been different if we had taken a risk, but we were two women. In that respect, I was saved in part by having Toya and Nao. After all, gender does have an effect. I won''t say that there were no men who approached Haruka in the past month or so, but fortunately none of them were so forceful that they pushed Toya and I away. The fact that Toya is a beast, a big man, and is generally recognized as strong may have had an effect. I envy the bond between the three of you that you can transition together in that situation. Yuki looks at us smilingly, but it hurts me to hear her say that. I just didn''t get it. It''s just that I''m dull, isn''t it?¡¡It''s not like deep down inside you''re actually... Ugh, I can''t trust my own mind, d*mn it, evil god! "By the way, I was wondering when I was dismantling the boar, does it lose a lot of weight?¡¡About half? "Yes. If you''re talking about edible meat, it''s probably even less. There is a lot of fat and bones. When dismantling a boar, all the internal organs are discarded, so the weight is reduced considerably. The skin and tusks can be sold and collected, but if there is not enough room, the head and fatty parts are discarded in that order. If there is not enough room, the head and fatty parts are discarded. Toya used to salt the head and roast it whole. ...... The picture is not good, to be honest. --No, it''s delicious. If you cook it on the spot, you don''t have to take it home. If you can carry it, you can bring back the fat, but it''s cheaper than meat. In addition to cooking, it is also used as a light. In our case, we have magic, so we don''t use it as a lamp, but honestly speaking, using back fat as lamp oil would make me hungry. It''s called lard, right?¡¡If so, you might be able to make tempura with it. It might be a little stickier than salad oil, though. "Tempura. Sounds good. I want to eat it. It tastes good enough with just salt. Yuki''s mouth slackens in fascination. I''m salivating, too. Ugh, I want to eat it. You can make pork cutlets, too!¡¡I don''t have rice, but it would be delicious as a pork cutlet sandwich. You can also make fried chicken. ...... "Yes, yes, everyone, back to reality! We were all fantasizing about our favorite dishes when Haruka called out to us, slapping her hands together. "Toya, even if you make pork cutlets, we don''t have any sauce. You can''t cook much when you live in an inn. Oh, there you have it: ....... I think I''ve gotten to know my father pretty well, but I don''t think I can rent a kitchen. The fact that you are renting a warehouse at this time is in itself a very generous treatment. It would be difficult to rent a kitchen in that inn where there are always customers. "Haruka, can''t you rent a house? "House, huh? ....... I''ve been prioritizing ...... getting my gear and going to look for Natsuki and the others. ...... How much are these two boars worth? Probably around 15,000, right? Yeah. They''re pretty big. You want to go a little further? 15,000!¡¡That''s 150 days of our wages! I think Yuki''s wages are just too low. Well, if we divide it by five, that''s 30,000 yen per person, which is roughly 30,000 in Japanese yen, and considering our future stability, I''d like to make that much consistently. I''d like to be able to consistently earn this much considering my future stability. But considering the lack of social security, I would like to earn a little more. If I keep working without a break, I''ll make more than 10 million a year, but I want a break, and I won''t be able to hunt when I''m old. "You''ll make more because you''ll be carrying more baggage. Considering our race, we can both carry as much as Nao, right? Is that right? Yeah. I''m not as strong as Toya. Still, I think I''m better than I was. Of course, of all of us, Haruka is the one with the least physical strength. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. I''m not sure what to make of it. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''re going to need to be able to pay for it. When we get back to the city, I''ll have to make backpacks for Yuki and Natsuki. Oh, you made those yourself? Yes. I have some sewing skills, so let''s work hard, okay? "...... Yes, I''ll do my best. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to try. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m jealous of your ability to do more and more things. "Nao, if you really feel that way, please stop laughing like that.¡¡Haruka, is there anything you can do to help us without your skills? No, I... I don''t want your help. Ugh. I was going to say that I have training, but Haruka cut me off. But in fact, there was very little we could do when we made our backpacks. The first one was made by Haruka through trial and error, and since we didn''t have a precise pattern, all we could do was to cut the cloth with the lines that Haruka drew. The only thing I could do was to cut the fabric according to the lines she drew. That "power" is no longer needed with Yuki. "Well, that''s fine. I''ll help you, and you can leave the sewing to us ladies. The right person for the right job. "Ugh, thanks for following. I''m soothed by Natsuki''s smile. I wish I could say, "Leave the heavy lifting to me," but I''m about the same level of muscle strength. Haruka, did you make this backpack by yourself to save money? No. No. I couldn''t find this type of bag in the market. No, I didn''t find this type of bag in the market. I made it myself, so it''s pretty easy to use. Haruka said, and began to explain to the two of them with a bit of joy about the difficulties and innovations she had made. Yes, I understand how you feel. We worked very hard on this backpack, but since the three of us made it together, we never had a chance to show it off to anyone. When you''ve made something that looks good, you want to tell people about it, right? We were the ones who came up with the idea, but it was Haruka who made it happen. You could have bragged to us about it, but it wouldn''t have been worth it because you knew what it was. "Hmm. But if they don''t sell backpacks, maybe we can sell these. "Sure. It seems to be very useful for adventurers. That''s true. Considering the price and cost of bags sold in the city, it might not be a bad business. That is, if you have a sales channel and Yuki and Natsuki are willing to help. If it''s just me and Toya, Haruka will have to do almost everything. I don''t think so, but I don''t think it''s a good idea to do it at the ...... inn. "Oh, by the way, you were asking if you could rent a house. Haruka, you''ve got that kind of money saved up, don''t you? If it''s just the amount, I still have more than 250,000 Rea... 250,000!¡¡More than 250,000 yen? Yuki squealed in surprise. But actually, we had about 10 million yen, you know?¡¡Until a few days ago. But if we use this, we can''t buy Yuki and Natsuki''s equipment. "Can''t we borrow 100,000 Reais?¡¡In Japan''s provincial cities, you can rent a house for a year or so for a million yen, right? I don''t know how renting works in this world, but at least the city of Laffan is not so much a city as it is a town. If you think of it as a provincial city with a rural feel, you might be able to get by. "Well, ...... the land part is cheaper than in Japan, so we can get by. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to buy a lot of things. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I don''t have the ...... weapon skill. Oh, yeah, I see. You can buy Yuki''s ...... nanica, right? What''s nanica, what''s nanica?¡¡I have the ability to use any weapon I want!¡¡--If Nao and the others have it. Nanika didn''t like it one bit, and protested vehemently, before adding. Yeah, I''m not lying. But when you think about it, you can''t afford it. ....... "Oh, so it''s a stick. "Stick? Yeah, the stick. Toya, did you keep the one you bought before? No one has used the stick skill and there are still some sturdy weapons left. It''s the one that caused the [Stick Technique] to grow. But that''s almost an iron rod, right?¡¡Can Yuki handle it? If you can get the Stick Technique, you can handle it, right?¡¡I couldn''t, though. It''s a real iron rod, so my muscle strength couldn''t handle it properly. I didn''t have the skills, so I just tried to swing it. But if Yuki, who is at least as strong as I am, had the [Stick Art] skill, she might be able to handle it. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to try to learn all the skills I can, and if you want me to, I will. ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to try to learn all the skills I can. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. You can only use earth magic, but for some reason, Yuki has only taken the qualities of fire, water, and space-time. According to Yuki, "I felt that qualities are inborn and cannot be acquired later. Good job, indeed. You can''t copy these qualities with [Skill Copy], and you probably can''t get them either. As far as I can tell from the explanation at the time of character creation. Well, if Toya and Natsuki are the vanguard, they certainly don''t need much. I get it. I''ll practice magic first for a while. Yuki nodded her head. 43-038 Other world, flower picking situation "Well, we''d better get going. We''ve had a pretty good time. We ate grilled chicken, bread, and the remaining dingdol for dessert, and spent a lot of time discussing things while taking a break. There was no need to rush, considering that we should reach Laffan by evening, but it was a bit long for a break. Yeah, right. Oh, but first, a little ......". I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on," said Yuki, standing up and giving Haruka an earful. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve heard it before. "Toya, lend me the hoe. Nao, search for the enemy at all costs. "Haruka?¡¡Why do you say that? I''m not sure what to say. Yuki looks shocked, as if she''s been betrayed. I see, that''s it. You don''t need a hoe because you have earth magic?¡¡But a hoe seems more convenient for applying soil. That''s not it!¡¡You don''t have to tell me that! In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it on the web. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand.¡¡That''s when you''re most vulnerable. "But ...... I know the feeling. I know exactly how you feel. I''ve been there. But you''ll get used to it. Haruka was hesitant at first, but once she almost said hello to the boar, she started to tell us exactly what to do. Well, unlike men, they can''t pee standing up. Incidentally, it is said that the most dangerous time for a woman in a disaster or refugee camp is when she is using the toilet. Even a human being is dangerous, so what would a beast or a demon do? When you do it, dig a hole with this hoe, turn your back to us, and watch your surroundings carefully. This side is safe. If you see anything, come running, even if it''s in the open. Oh, my God, you''re naked! Don''t worry, I''ll clean it up. Would you rather die naked or live naked? "Ugh. ...... I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Still, for a normal person, it''s better than dying. "Well, when you die, not only your lower body may be exposed, but also your whole body. Oh, please don''t make black jokes that aren''t funny. Actually, it would be better to be on the lookout, but if you go that far, you won''t be able to get anything out. Thank goodness Nao has a spotter. It''s a good thing you have a spotter. Well, the navigator can only detect vital signs and hostile intent, so don''t worry too much about it. Can you keep your ears closed? Yuki said this to me and Toya with a red face, but it was easily dismissed by Haruka. You can''t do that. Hearing is not important for spotting enemies. Don''t be stupid, just go!¡¡It''s more embarrassing to strain and leak in the middle of battle, isn''t it? You''re pushing me too hard, Haruka. I''m sure you''re not the only one who''s been through the embarrassment. Yes, he must be thinking about Yuki''s health. "Oh, if Nao detects an enemy, Toya will come to you immediately. Just give up then. He''s done it. Yuki glared at Toya, but he averted his gaze with an uncomfortable expression. But it can''t be helped. Our vanguard is Toya. If something goes wrong, Toya has to stand in front of the bare guy and repel the enemy. So please stop staring at her. "Ugh, Haruka, you idiot! Yuki says, but nevertheless grabs the hoe and runs off into the bushes. Well, it''s no use. You get in, you get out. That''s human nature. Gender and age have nothing to do with it. Only old idols can get the special skill of "not going to the bathroom". You know, ...... Haruka, can''t you do something about it? Oh, you want to go, Natsuki? No, fortunately I''m fine now, but I don''t know if I will be ...... in the future. It''s a physiological phenomenon, so why don''t you give up?¡¡Nao and Toya are not perverted enough to be s*xually aroused by the excretion of the opposite s*x. Right? "Of course! I''ve been trying not to talk about it too much because it''s so delicate, but then suddenly I''m asked to talk about it, and of course we both nodded immediately. I''ve heard that some people have that kind of hobby, but it''s a proclivity I can''t quite understand. There is no difference between men and women in what they produce, right? I''m not worried about that, but ...... it''s still embarrassing. The sound, the smell. Apparently, only Japan has onomatopoeic devices like the Otoxx. Do you want to sing a song while you do it? That''s absurd. If you sing, it will be obvious that you''re stepping on something. "Why don''t you do as much as you can while you''re in town?¡¡If you hold back too long, you''ll get sick. Well, I think it''s important to give up. If you have to work overnight, there''s nothing you can do about it. How do people in this world do it? This is why they don''t often work with men and women, but when they do, they don''t seem to mind. But if they do, they don''t seem to care about that much, or at least they wouldn''t be able to if they did. I''m not sure if you have any magic tools for that?¡¡Isn''t there anything magical in this world? "Magical objects for toilets?¡¡It may be something you can install in your house, but what about something you can use in an encampment?¡¡The X Princess I mentioned earlier? That doesn''t seem to make much sense on its own, since ...... what matters is the danger. ....... A solid wall that repels demons? That would be useful for encampments in many ways, but it''s really not possible. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. That''s true. Otherwise, such useful things would be more widespread. "Do Nao and the others have any opinions? "Oh, you''re asking us? It''s quite difficult to give an opinion. Well, let''s think about it seriously. Let''s start with ''what''s the problem'', shall we?¡¡If you don''t want people to know you''re going to the bathroom, there''s nothing you can do about it, right? "Right. It''s too risky and worrisome to sneak off during a break, isn''t it? Then there are the sounds and smells, and if possible, barriers to give you time to clean yourself up in case of emergency? Aside from barriers, some kind of partition might be necessary. It''s not a problem because we''ve been working in the forest, but it would be a problem on the plains, right?¡¡Nao and Toya, too. Yeah, I don''t want to be in full view either. Hmm?¡¡What are you talking about? While we were talking about this, Yuki came back after picking flowers. As we were talking, Yuki returned from picking flowers. What should we do about the toilet? I wish you had thought of that a little earlier!¡¡So? I''d like to have a way to deal with the noise and smell, something to blindfold them, and if possible, a solid barrier. I''d feel a lot better if I could just do that. ...... Oh, and by the way, Haruka has alchemy, right?¡¡What are some good magic tools? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''ve bought an alchemy encyclopedia. I''m sure you''ll be able to find some good magic tools. I''m sure you''ll find it useful. You can use it for secret talks. You can also modify the airflow to control the smell.¡¡As for barriers, there are many, but the stronger they are, the harder and more expensive they are. So, there is such a thing? Well, I''m sure they''re being studied, because they seem to be very useful. Barriers - physical warding seems to be difficult, though. They can be used for a variety of purposes, such as securing a camp or guarding a mansion, but even small ones are said to be too expensive for ordinary adventurers to buy. How about a blindfold?¡¡Even if you use an assembled curtain, it will take up a lot of space. Since we don''t have synthetic fibers and carbon fibers like we do nowadays, there is no such thing as a simple tent that can be shrunk down and spread out when you take your hands off it. That means a wooden or metal frame and cloth. You''d have to have a carriage to carry it around. That''s right. You''d need at least three of them to cover yourself. ....... You can''t have a fog generator. Maybe something to do with illusions?¡¡Or opaque wards. But soundproofing, odor-proofing, and blinding are at least three magical tools, right?¡¡That''s a lot of money to invest in a mere toilet. Oh, Toya, isn''t that a gaffe? What are you talking about, Toya?¡¡Quality of life is very important! Mental well-being also affects physical performance. Yes, it does. If you don''t have the right environment, you''re going to have to endure a lot, and that''s not good for your health. Oh, yeah, okay. Okay. Okay. You''re right. I''m beaten to a pulp. Shrugging, Toya moved away from the women and came to sit beside me. "Hey, does it bother you? (Of course it bothers me. I think it''s good to have it. "Hmm, it''s a little annoying when it''s a big one. "And think about it. You wouldn''t like it if I was blistering while you were taking a break with a cup of tea, would you? (I hate it. I''d hate it! (Right?¡¡(But for safety reasons, it''s not safe to be so far away that you can''t hear the sound completely. (Fortunately, I''ve only had to use the small one so far, but I''ll need ......) The women looked at each other and nodded, as if they had come to some kind of agreement. In other words, what is lacking is the level of Haruka''s alchemy skills, the materials to raise the level and make the desired object, and the funds to buy it. "I''ll have to earn the money. It''s hard to buy magic tools themselves. Is that okay with you two? When Haruka asked, Toya nodded immediately and I nodded as well. Of course we are! Yeah. As long as you don''t overdo it. We''ll need to raise funds anyway, and it''ll be beneficial to raise the level of our alchemy. If you can make potions in the process, the money you invest will be worthwhile. In the short term, it would be more important to be able to make potions. Even with Haruka''s magic, I''m still afraid of injury and illness in this world. So, now that we''ve decided on a course of action, let''s head for the city! With Yuki''s cheerful voice, we ended our long break and stood up together. 44-039 Rank up...? We were able to pass through the gates of the city of Laffan without any problems. We had been passing through the gates every day recently, and our companions, Natsuki and Yuki, had guild cards, too. The fact that all of the gatekeepers were older and there was no sign of the young man who was supposed to be the gatekeeper was also a factor. ...... I haven''t seen him since the first day, have you?¡¡I''m not sure if he''s been reassigned or not. After entering the city, I immediately moved to the Bear of Slumber, greeted the father, and secured two rooms. We were relieved because it would have been quite sad if we could not get a room here. But I wasn''t too worried, since this was a hole in the wall inn that didn''t seem to be full even when we were staying there. After taking care of our concerns, we headed to the adventurer''s guild to sell the materials for the task boar. It''s been a while, Diora-san. What?¡¡It''s been a while since I''ve seen you. It hasn''t been that long, but you''ve left town, haven''t you? Yes. Fortunately, we were able to finish our business quickly, so we came back. You said you were looking for ...... someone, so you two were there? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''ve already told her that I''m leaving town and why I''m leaving. Yuki here. This is Natsuki. I''ll be working with the three of you, so please take care of me from now on. Yes, thank you. Have you registered yet? Yes. In the city of Sarstad. Diora nodded in agreement with Yuki. Oh, there? If so, you''d better come back. It''s not the best place to work. As a receptionist for the guild, she must have some information about the area. Accommodation is expensive and work is scarce. And the food was so bad that there was no reason to stay. "Anyway, I hunted down a task boar on the way, can you buy it for me? "Yes, I understand. One moment, please. We put the meat and skins on the counter as usual, and Diora-san took them to the back. It occurred to me that Mr. Diora is surprisingly strong. He can carry a leather bag weighing 20 to 30 kilos. So, are you all going to be working in this city for a while? "Yes. We''re just starting out, so we''ll take it slow. That''s good. A lot of people get carried away when they make a little money. ...... Ms. Diora said and sighed gloomily. She must have had a lot of trouble with her first request for herbs, as well as with her "study". Even though adventurers are basically responsible for their own actions, it''s easy to imagine that it''s never nice to see a rookie get injured and go down. I''ve been wondering for a while now if those bags you three are carrying look useful. "Oh, you know what?¡¡I''ve put a lot of thought into this. Haruka happily began to explain about the bags. This is for this purpose, this is for this reason, this bag can carry heavier things without any burden than a zuda bag, and so on. As he had boasted to Yuki and the others a while ago, he could only boast to the two who knew it was a backpack that he had made it himself, but he was happy to boast to Diora about the bag itself. I see. Do you mind if I carry it for a moment? "What?¡¡Oh, yes, that''s fine. Haruka puts her own backpack on Diora-san, who comes out from the counter, and lightly adjusts the straps. Diora-san walks around for a while, then sets it down and lifts the backpack to check its weight. She puts it on again. "This is not magic, is it? "This isn''t magic, is it?" She twisted her head and said curiously, but I couldn''t help but understand her feeling. Compared to a handbag or simply carrying the same weight, a backpack puts much less burden on the body. This is why backpacks are used by the armed forces of many countries. You can even march long distances with a load as heavy as your own body weight on your back. Of course, this is only if you train yourself. Also, even with the same backpack, if you compare a high quality backpack with a cheap backpack, there is a huge difference in the strain and fatigue on the body. It may not look like there is much of a difference just by looking at it, but when you actually use it, the difference is obvious. It''s not that expensive is better, but there is a limit to the quality of cheap products. In this respect, our backpacks are quite good, thanks to Haruka''s hard work. Yes, of course. We use durable cloth and leather, but that''s all. I see. ...... Haruka, if you don''t mind, would you like to sell this to the guild? I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that. "What?¡¡I''m not sure what to say. The bag, or rather the technology. It''s quite revolutionary, isn''t it? We''ve got the manpower and we''re talking about making and selling it ourselves. ...... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. It''s not a bad idea, but ...... I wouldn''t recommend it. Is that so? Yes. Of course, this bag is a good one and will sell. But how much can the three of you make in a day?¡¡If you are working as adventurers, it will be very little, and even if you concentrate on making bags, it will be limited. Haruka''s [sewing] skill is level 2. If you consider that Yuki can take the [sewing] skill right away, her speed may be better than that of an ordinary craftsman. But if you are an adventurer, as Diora says, your numbers will be limited, and if you are a full-time worker, we will be in trouble because we can''t help you much. The biggest problem is imitation. If it sells, the big merchants will copy it and start making and selling it in larger quantities than Haruka''s. "There''s no system to protect ...... ideas, is there? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Even in the original world, where there are international treaties, there are countries that ignore all intellectual property rights and sell copies of their products. At the cultural level of this world, it would be very difficult to protect patents and such things, not only between countries, but even within the same country. But isn''t it the same with the guilds? No, but the Guild is a powerful organization in its own right. There aren''t many merchants who would fight with them head-on. Besides, the main target of this bag is adventurers. It''s like fighting with the target of the sale. If Haruka agrees, the adventurer''s guild will pay us royalties for a certain period of time, so we are more likely to make a profit than if we sold it ourselves. In exchange, I would like you to instruct the craftsmen for a few days, Haruka-san. From what I''ve heard, it sounds like a pretty good deal. I think Diora is reasonably trustworthy, and even if we were duped, it wouldn''t have much impact on our backpack sales. Haruka looked back at us, made sure we all nodded, and agreed with Diora. I understand. First of all, I''m going to make the same thing for these two, and then I''ll make a mold and teach them how to use it, okay?¡¡I''ll need a few days of your time. Yes, of course. Yes, of course. We need to finalize our plans and gather craftsmen. Haruka grasped Diora''s hand with a smile and shook it firmly. Incidentally, Ms. Diora is still carrying her backpack. Her clothes are clearly designed for the streets, so she looks slightly uncomfortable. I left it on my back. I''ll give it back. I''ll give it back to you." Perhaps she noticed my gaze, and a little embarrassed, she hurriedly took down her backpack and presented it to Haruka. I''m sure you''ve just finished your calculations. Let''s see, 18,800 Reais. Are you sure? "Yes. Oh, that''s quite a haul. Haruka takes the money presented to her with an empty leather bag. If you say no, they will give you back the meat, but since we don''t have anything to complain about, this is the basic pattern. The bag is cleaned and returned to us, so it''s pretty easy. If you want to negotiate with them, you can bring the items to the counter in the storage area in the back of the building and negotiate the price. Since we don''t have the knowledge to negotiate, it''s not worth the hassle, and we think it will make a good impression if we leave it to the guild. Also, Diora, I have a question for you. ...... How do you feel about renting a house? What?¡¡Is it for residential use?¡¡Well, if ......5 you want to make this city your base, that might be a good idea. According to what Diora told me, you can rent a house for about 5,000 to 10,000 Rea per month. There is no deposit or key money, but if you are late in paying the rent, you will be evicted immediately. Even so, as long as you pay the rent properly, it is easier to rent a house than in Japan because you don''t need a guarantor. The price depends on the location, layout, and size of the room. "Hmmm, ......, what do you guys think? "Well, are the prices higher near the center of town? Yes. In the center. Along the main street. That area is expensive. The rest of the city is cheaper if it''s unsafe. And, to my disgrace, the area around the guild is also cheap. Even though the area around the guild isn''t too bad, the price is lowered by the image of adventurers. In reality, adventurers who do stupid things are immediately affected by their ranks, so there are very few people with problems, but the general public probably gets the impression that they are walking around looking dirty and carrying weapons. If you don''t have someone who can use "purification" like we do, you''ll inevitably end up walking back to the inn dirty with blood and mud, so it''s unavoidable. ....... So, the guild area is your target? If you''re an adventurer, then yes. We use the east gate a lot, so it''s a bit far. ...... But as you level up, you''ll move your activities to the southern forest, right?¡¡Then it will be closer this time. In general, the east area is for rookies and the south area is for mid-level players, so Diora is right. However, for the time being, we will probably continue our activities in the east. By the way, have you ever killed a goblin? "Yes, twice. These two haven''t yet. Do you have any magic stones? Oh, no, I haven''t. ...... I see. Well, that''s fine with Haruka and the others. Can you give me your guild card?¡¡You too, Nao-san and Toya-san. When we put our guild cards on the counter, Diora engraved them one by one on the back with a chisel-like tool. Congratulations, sir. You are now a rookie. "Huh?¡¡We''re not rookies yet, are we? "Yes. Well, Haruka and the others have made quite a bit of money, so it''s not quite the same, but at least we''re adventurers now that we''ve collected the magic stone. We haven''t collected the samples yet, but it seems that the rank has been upgraded because they would not lie, considering their past achievements. Of course, since it''s the lowest rank, it''s probably not too tough. You are now rank 1. The number of requests you can accept will increase, but I''m making enough money now, so I don''t think it matters much. "Huh. But you''re a rookie at rank one, right?¡¡Before that, what do they call you if you don''t have a rank? There''s no specific name for it, but some people call it pre-Rookie, or ...... some people with a bad mouth call it an odder. I think it''s a good idea even if you don''t defeat demons, there''s still demand for that. If you''ve only registered as an adventurer, anyone can do it for a fee, and if you''ve never defeated even the weakest of demons, you''re probably half-baked. ....... By the way, how much are the goblin magic stones worth? That''s 250 rares a piece. It was cheaper than I expected. Even though they''re not very strong, it takes a lot of guts to kill them. By my standards. I''m starting to think that ...... is half-baked. I''d rather pay for the dindle fruit. The goblins are a little better, though, because they also come with a separate reward for killing them if you request it. But Task Boar is pretty expensive too, isn''t it? That''s just a matter of supply and demand. In the first place, it''s amazing how many of you come hunting for them every time. It''s not easy to find. The only thing you can get from goblins is magic stones, and their value is determined simply by their quality. Magical stones are a kind of fuel, so they are compared to other fuels. To put it simply, if one goblin''s magic stone can boil 100 liters of water, it is compared to the price of firewood that can boil 100 liters. On the other hand, boars are sold for their meat, which is bought at that unit price. The difficulty of killing a boar has nothing to do with it. It''s a hard world. Incidentally, we are able to hunt wild boars frequently thanks to my [Enemy Search] and Toya''s keen senses, so the price of task boars, which are rarely hunted, is reasonable for ordinary adventurers. (Hey, why didn''t you collect the goblin''s magic stone?¡¡It''s worth some money. "(The Goblin''s Stone is in the head, in the hippocampus. (The goblin''s magic stone is in the head - the hippocampus. ...... is not a good place to crack it open. (Oh, I see.) The goblin''s appearance is similar to that of a typical video game, but it walks on two legs, and if you want to get the magic stone out of its head, you''ll have to either smash the sword into its skull, or cut off its head and pick out the contents ....... It''s still a little tough. I''m sorry to make Haruka do it when I don''t think I can. I don''t mind having my skull shattered as a result of an attack in combat, but I''m a little uncomfortable with destroying a corpse. Maybe I''ll get used to it in time, though. I digress. So, what do you want to do about the house?¡¡The guild can act as an intermediary around here. What?¡¡Does the Adventurer''s Guild do that kind of work? Only in this area, though. As I said before, ordinary people are a bit shunned by the guild. Even if the owner wants to lend it to an adventurer, it''s safer to go through the guild. The owner also has the advantage of not having to negotiate directly with adventurers, who have a reputation for being rough and tumble. Besides, adventurers are often treated poorly by ordinary brokers. "Oh, I see. It''s natural for brokers to give priority to people with stable jobs over adventurers. Those who earn money may earn money, but it''s a precarious occupation and their lives may be in danger. Do you have any preference?¡¡Is there anything else you want? I''d like to have a big yard. I want to work out. Yeah, you want a big yard. I''d like a bathroom, but that''s ...... difficult, isn''t it? What do you think, ...... Diora? I''d like that, too. If I just want to get clean, I can do it with purification, but I want to take a bath once in a while. I''m in the mood. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. A bath is ...... impossible in an ordinary house. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. ...... The best you can do is to install a tub in a house with a large laundry room. A laundry room, as the name implies, is a place to do laundry, and in this world where hand washing is the norm, even inns have places dedicated to it. In the case of an inn, guests can usually use the open space by the well, but if it''s your own house, you need to wash your clothes regardless of the weather, whether it''s winter or rain, and even large items such as sheets need to be washed. For this reason, some houses have earthen floors that can be drained indoors. That''s the limit for renters. What else? "I''d like a private room. I''d like to have a private room, and if possible, a workroom for more people, that would be great. Considering Hulka''s alchemy, and my training in space-time magic and making magic bags, it would be helpful to have a room to spare, and there are also barrels of food stored in the rented warehouse of the Bear of Slumber. If you don''t have a large pantry, you''ll need a place to store them. I''ll need a garden, too.¡¡I''d like to be able to afford to grow some flowers. Flowers: ...... Gardening? I''m sure you''ll be able to find a place to put them. In my case, I''ve only been able to pull weeds out of my own garden when my parents told me to do it during cleaning. Even when my parents bought flowering plants and planted them, I thought, "Why don''t we plant fruit trees so we can eat them?" or "Why don''t we plant vegetables so we can enjoy both flowers and fruits? I thought, "If I plant vegetables, can''t I enjoy both flowers and fruits? "Is that what ...... hope is all about?¡¡Ms. Diora, can you manage that? Well, ...... at least five private rooms, a large laundry room, and a garden. I''ll try my best to help you with the bag, Haruka. Can you wait a few days? "Of course. Thank you very much. ""Thank you very much." We all bowed to Diora, who nodded with a smile while twisting her head slightly, and left the Adventurer''s Guild. 45-040 Today Alone Delicious! This was Yuki''s first comment after having dinner at the Bear of Slumber. Hearing her voice, which was uncompromising and honest, even her unsociable father seemed to be happy. It''s true. With meals of this flavor, the rent is cheaper than that inn in Sarstad. ...... I can''t believe it. With Yuki and Natsuki joining us, the inn''s room assignments were slightly changed, with one room for me and Toya, and one room for the women. We could have rented a larger room and stayed in one room, but it would have cost us 1,400 rares per night, including breakfast and dinner. Fortunately, we were not in such dire straits that we had to save a few hundred rares, so we rented a room for a man and a woman. First of all, it''s much cheaper than Sarstat, and the food is good, so I don''t mind paying that much. But if all goes well, we''ll be leaving this place in a few days. That is, if Mr. Diora can find me a good place to stay. I''m sure we can stay here for a long time. The three of us, not including Natsuki, looked at each other and laughed at Yuki''s words. "Huh?¡¡Are you three unhappy? No, of course it''s good enough compared to other places, but ...... It''s still ''restaurant food'' after all. You can''t keep eating it. Yuki twisted her head at our opinion, but Natsuki nodded her head in agreement. "Wouldn''t you hate it if I told you to eat at a diner every meal for a month? "Ohhhh, even if the food was delicious, it would be disgusting. After all, the food of this world is the food of another country. The Bear of Slumber is much better, so I think I can keep eating it for one meal a day, but two or three meals a day would be a bit hard. I don''t want to say "rice and pickled plums," but I do want to eat food with Japanese flavor. I can understand why people bring instant food on business trips abroad, really. That''s why I have high hopes for you, Haruka. I''m going to do my best to ...... make it work, even though I don''t have a lot of seasoning. That''s where your cooking skills come in! The fact that you can''t say that is scary. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on when you level up. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out.¡¡Authority-wise. "Oh, you didn''t know?¡¡Diora is young, but she seems to be the leader of that guild. What?¡¡Seriously? I wouldn''t say she''s young, but I''d say she''s mid-level at best. Yeah. He said he was hired by fate, but he seems to have some ability. "You can''t be an executive if you''re not. But he''s an executive and he''s at the counter? That''s because there aren''t many people there, I guess. Even though it''s bigger than Sarstat, the city of Raffan itself is a rural town. It''s not a town with many adventurers, so there aren''t that many career-track jobs, except for professional positions such as guild leader and appraiser. Hmm, I don''t think there were that many employees. By the way, what are your plans for tomorrow? Now that we''ve taken care of the urgent problem of protecting Natsuki and Yuki, we''re going to work hard to make a stable life for them on a long-term, even life-level. "Thank you again, all three of you. I don''t know what would have happened if we hadn''t gotten together. ...... Thank you very much. Thank you very much. We would have either taken a risk or remained in poverty. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''ve already told you, there''s no need to worry about it. There are benefits for us too. "Yes, yes. It''s nice to have a friend you can trust. One of the factors in our decision to rent the house is that we''ll be able to make more money with five people. If I had left you two alone, you would have been on my mind for the rest of my life. First thing tomorrow, I''m going to make backpacks and patterns for both of you. I''m fine with that. That''s what me and Natsuki are doing, right?¡¡What about Nao and Toya? I think we''ll have some free time. Any ideas? I don''t really have any ideas other than ...... training. I took a vacation before I went to Sahlstat, so I don''t have anything special I want to do. I don''t want to do anything special. I just want to walk around someplace I''ve never been before. I''ve got some ideas, so I''m going to do my usual training and then we''ll go, okay? Yeah, no problem. So tomorrow we''ll do our own thing. The next morning, we finished our training. The next morning, after each of us finished our training, Toya went out early and Haruka and the others stayed in their rooms to make backpacks. I was practicing in my room, reading the grimoire of space-time magic that I had gotten, but after a few hours it became too much for me, so I was lying on my bed resting. I want to make a magic bag as soon as possible, but at this rate, it might take a while. I have the makings of a space-time magician, but it doesn''t seem to be that easy. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. And in a way, it''s also a time of leisure. It''s not just a leisure time, but also a rest to recover your magic power. If I may say so myself, we worked pretty hard since we came to this world. We did take a vacation before we went to Sarstat, but it was mainly for shopping, so I don''t think it was strictly speaking a vacation. Since my life depended on it, I didn''t have the slightest intention of slacking off or anything like that. If the NEETs of the world were thrown into this environment, they would certainly not be NEETs after a week. --Whether they live or die is another matter. "...... Want to go out for lunch? The cafeteria downstairs is a sure bet in terms of taste, but it would be fun to take a walk around the city. Now that you have some free time, why not? In terms of enrichment, this cafeteria is a bit lacking without a sign girl. Other people might say that it''s a bit extravagant to have Haruka and the other three here, but it is what it is, and it is what it is. I don''t have any ulterior motives, I simply want to make more acquaintances in this town. Aside from Diora and the old man of the inn, the only other acquaintances I have are the old man of the weapon shop and Gantz. If you want to live, you should at least get to know your neighbors. It''s not like modern society. Once you''ve decided that, you can go to ....... You won''t get to know people by staying in your room. I change out of my comfortable loungewear into clothes for going out, and leave the inn with only the dagger I use for demolition. I feel a little uneasy walking alone and unarmed, but it''s not like I''m carrying my main weapon, a spear, to make acquaintances. If you''re an adventurer, there''s no way you''ll be able to make friends with ordinary people like that. Well, according to Diora, you don''t need a weapon if you don''t go near some unsafe places, but I don''t know what those places are, so the dagger is just for precaution. Now, where should we go? Our inn, the Bear of Slumber, is located in a small alleyway off the main street that runs north from the center of town. Of course, the main street is the one with the most people, and the stores are lined up along the main street. There is a square in the center of the city, lined with stalls and stalls of vendors and people who have come from rural areas to sell their products. It''s not window shopping, but it''s a fun place to browse. ....... I thought about it for a while and chose to walk down an alleyway that led away from the main street. I''ve walked along the main street several times with Haruka and the others, but I''ve never strolled through the alleys, and I don''t think I''ll have many opportunities to do so in the future. These alleyways are usually lined with ordinary houses, but there might be a bargain store like the "Bear of Sleep" pavilion. I decided to stay at the inn as recommended, and later found out that it was a very good inn, both in terms of the taste of the food and the low price. Because it is not facing the main street, it is not well known as an inn, but the food is so good that the dining room is crowded with locals every day. On the other hand, it seems that even the locals tend to forget that it is an inn. Incidentally, as to why the soldier at the gate recommended this inn, the inn''s father said that it was probably because his parents'' house was near this inn. Well, I''m glad he lives at home. If it had been at home, we would have had to see each other every day, which might have been troublesome. But ...... is so exotic. The buildings along the alley are basically private houses, most of which are one-story. Most of the buildings along the alley are one-story houses, with the occasional two-story building mixed in, and very few three-story buildings. The structures are made of wood, stucco, and brick, and while not quite the neatness of a foreign tourist attraction, they are not too dirty and are enjoyable in their own way. However, there are almost no houses with flower pots on the windowsill or around the entrance, as if they don''t have enough room to grow flowers. I strolled around for a few hours looking at these houses, but surprisingly there were no stores in the alleys. Even if there were some, they seemed to be for regular customers only, so I just glanced at them and passed them by. It is difficult to enter such a place even in the original world, but it is too difficult to enter it alone in this world. Honestly speaking, I would like to have lunch soon, but there are no food stalls around here, and I can''t find a restaurant where I can enter. Hmmm, should I go back to the main street?¡¡...... Oh? That''s when the new store came into my sight. 46-041 Coffee shop? A stylish store, potted flowers in front of the store. A store without the atmosphere of "No visitors at first sight, this store has its own rules! There''s no "no first-time visitors, this shop has its own rules" atmosphere. Hmm, I think I can enter this one. It''s a nice coffee shop. ...... Hmm?¡¡A coffee shop? I stopped my hand from reaching for the door of the store. The exterior of this store looks like a stylish coffee shop, but this is a different world where Japanese common sense does not apply. --In a sense, isn''t this a very high-class store? I don''t need to say this, but I myself don''t have a lot of money. Haruka manages our wallets, and since we were almost always together, there was no need for me to carry money. Therefore, we have only a small amount of money. Specifically, 500 Reais. I mean, it''s really just pocket money. Haruka just gave it to me, saying, "Don''t you feel uneasy if you have no money? I have never actually spent it. We ate breakfast and dinner at the inn, and ate lunch in the forest. The "taste of the food stalls on the first day" is too much of a brake for me to think of buying something to eat when I get hungry. Of course there are good places to eat, but for a quick snack, the dried fruits that Haruka buys in bulk are enough. They are tasty in their own way, and the taste is guaranteed, so I don''t dare to be adventurous with the little money I have. However, even though I thought I had enough money, this restaurant made me feel a little uneasy. The store''s appearance is distinctly different from other restaurants. How can I be sure that the price is not the same? I gently withdrew my outstretched hand and tried to surrender. And then...! Just as I was about to return the favor, the door opened and out came a girl who was a head shorter than me. She had her hair pulled back and her ears were slightly pointed. She had a little pointed ear sticking out from her hair.¡¡You''re a customer, aren''t you? "Oh, yeah. I''m sorry!¡¡I just affirmed it. But it can''t be helped, right?¡¡It''s a beautiful girl, an elf. A little teary-eyed and loli-ish. You can''t help but nod when a girl like that says something desperate.¡¡As a man... What?¡¡I''m an elf, and Haruka''s an elf too, right? It doesn''t matter. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. ...... Oops, I guess I''ve gone a bit overboard lately with all the dad stuff. I''m sure you''ll agree. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. As you might have guessed from the exterior, the interior of the store is also in the style of a relaxed coffee shop. There are several counter seats and table seats. The layout is relatively roomy, so you can sit back and relax. The interior was different from the cafeterias I''ve seen in this world so far, and there were things like houseplants placed throughout the store. --Yes, it''s a high-class restaurant by any measure. In the original world, no matter how expensive the coffee shop was, you could eat a light meal for 500 Reais, which is roughly equivalent to 5,000 yen, but here, it might be bad... ...I can manage to get a drink, right? Please sit here, here. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. What can I get for you? "Um, ....... I casually look around the restaurant, feeling intimidated by the luxurious interior. In this world, there are generally menus hanging on the wall,......, but there are none. Also, it seems that you can ask for something as simple as "meat and sake", but I don''t have the courage to do that here. "The menu is at ....... "Oh, I''m sorry!¡¡This is it! The elf hurriedly squatted down, took out a piece of wood from under the counter and held it out to me. Thank you. The fact that the Elf-san seemed so relaxed made me feel calmer. It''s as if she''s a small child who''s trying to help out at the store. Smiling. Of course, being an elf, there is a possibility that she is older than me. I feel like admiring it for a while, but for now, it''s on the menu. I need to find something that my wallet can afford. The cheapest one is-- "......? I looked down at the menu list and tilted my head inward. It''s kind of ...... cheap? I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s more expensive than the cheaper-than-average Bear of Sleeping Beauty, but it''s priced well enough for my pocketbook. I turned my gaze away from the menu and looked around the restaurant. --Yeah, I don''t need to look again. No one is there. What''s wrong, sir? No, no, no, nothing. No, nothing. I''ll have the daily special, then. Yes!¡¡Okay!¡¡One moment, please. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''ve been doing this. ...... Hmmm... I don''t know what''s going on here. It''s lunchtime. How can there be no customers at this price? ......? I ordered the daily set meal for 50 Rea. The price is average or a little low for a meal in a cafeteria. You can get the daily special at almost any diner in this world for about this price. Even if it is not listed on the menu as a daily special, you can order it by saying "meal" or "something to eat". It''s a relatively cheap and filling meal, so it''s ordered by a large percentage of people, but in general, the contents are quite delicate. We ordered it once, and it came out on a plate with a few boiled salted carrots and asparagus-like vegetables, a pile of fried offal scraps with salt, and a big hunk of black bread. To say the least, it tasted bad. The peculiar vegetables were stringy, the meat had a strong smell, and the black bread was hard and sour. It was a little better than the food stalls in the city, but I still had a hard time finishing it all. Since then, when I was in town for lunch, I came back to the inn and ate there, even if it took me a while. There may be equally good restaurants if you look for them, but it''s too hard to have to eat bad food every time you miss them. --Well, I was alone today, so I decided to gamble like this. From the appearance of the store, I thought it would be a good place, but even the stall had buyers. But there was no one here. It would be interesting to know if the food is bad when there are no customers. No, of course it''s not decided that it''s bad. "Here you go!¡¡Here''s today''s daily special! "Oh, this is ....... The dish came out without much wait. The appearance of the dish was very different from my previous meals. First, the vegetables. Four different kinds of vegetables were cut into bite-sized pieces and neatly arranged on the plate. The meat was also cut into dice and browned on all sides. The staple food seems to be mashed potatoes, but there are minced meat and vegetables inside the potatoes, which are neatly shaped and placed on top. In the original world, it is at the level of a family restaurant, but it is not the same as other diners, who basically put the food on the plate and say, "Serving?¡¡What''s that? What''s that? Hohohoho ....... Let''s eat. Now, eat. "...... Mmm. It''s good as usual. It''s a little bland in taste due to the lack of variety in seasonings, but it''s not bad at all, and I wouldn''t mind coming back for it from time to time. I can''t say the same thing about the innkeeper''s cooking. If I describe the inn''s food as a bit wild, this food is a bit more refined. The food here is a little more elegant, with a flavor that would be popular with women. On the other hand, it may be a little insufficient for manual laborers, but in the atmosphere of this restaurant, this may be the right choice. How''s it going? Mr. Elf, who had been watching me anxiously from behind the counter, asked me cautiously. It''s pretty good. I wonder why there are no customers. The Elf, who had been looking at me worriedly from the counter, asks, "It''s quite good. The elf leaned over the counter and begged me for help. "Yes. I may only be listening to ....... I don''t mind. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. This is a great way to make sure you are getting the most out of your investment. 47-042 Counseling? consulting? This elf, whose name is Aella, has been training to be a chef for quite some time in a big city far away from here. Her goal was to open her own restaurant, but even though she was able to improve her cooking skills through her training, she couldn''t save up enough money to buy a restaurant. So, when he had a certain amount of money, he moved to the city of Laffan in the countryside and bought this restaurant. However, the building itself was not a restaurant, so it needed to be renovated before it could actually open for business, and he had meetings with carpenters at a nearby restaurant. This is where the self-proclaimed "consultant," the source of all this, comes in. This person, who was apparently listening to the meeting at a table beside him, suddenly entered the conversation and started to give Mr. Aera a hard time. He talked a lot about how things should be done this way, that way, and that way, and made up the current plan for the restaurant. Normally, I would not have listened to someone who suddenly interrupted my conversation, but for some reason, it seemed like a great plan at the time, and Mr. Aera did as he was told, even though it was far beyond his original budget. After that, the self-proclaimed consultant received a small amount of money from Ms. Aera under the name of "consultant fee" and disappeared. After a while, Ms. Aella calmed down and became pale because she had spent more money than she had expected, but there was nothing she could do now that she had already placed the order. She had no choice but to open the store three days before it was completed, but it was completely deserted. It seems that I was the first customer who came to the shop when it was almost in despair because there were no customers at all. ...... I did spend too much money, but I thought my cooking skills could handle it. But when I actually started the business, there were no customers at all. ....... What''s wrong with me? A small puddle of water had formed in front of Aella''s face as she turned her head down, as if she couldn''t take it anymore. Her ears were hanging down and she was trembling, which made me want to protect her. It would be a devilish animal to say, "I''ve heard all you have to say, so if you''ll excuse me now," here. And since I am not a devil, I will twist my brain. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on in your life. I''m not sure what to make of it. The interior of the store is, in a way, ''normal''. I''m not sure what to make of it. --Isn''t there a classmate involved in this? I feel like this is what would happen if a person with some skills that make people listen to them planned it with layman''s knowledge and without any consideration for the common sense of this world. The food is good, the prices are low, and the exterior and interior are beautiful. Moreover, the location itself is not bad, as many people commuting to the nearby government facilities pass by in front of the restaurant. If you do well, you can capture the demand for lunch. In the original world, the situation would be prosperous enough. However, this is a different world. There is no way that the common sense of the original world will work. To be honest, we don''t have enough time to help others, but I feel guilty about Aella''s current situation when I think that her classmates might be involved. I''m not responsible for any of this myself, but we''re from the same country. It''s the same way that I feel sorry when I hear news of Japanese people who have done something stupid and caused trouble abroad. Fortunately, I seem to have plenty of time to spare. ....... "Okay. Aera-san, if it''s okay with you, I can help you a little. What?¡¡But ...... I don''t have any more money and I can''t ...... pay you back. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you can get by with very little money. "Are you sure? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll agree. You don''t need to worry about thanking me. It''s hard to wake up when you''re abandoning your own kind. I''m sure you''ll be thrilled when a cute elf comes on to you. You''re not immune. I''m not sure if Haruka is a separate ...... category.¡¡I''m not sure. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Yes, yes!¡¡I''ll be waiting for you!¡¡I''m waiting for you! Please, please take care of me! And so I left the store, promising to come back to Aella''s desperately bowing head. I''ll be back. That''s what happened. At dinner time back at the inn, I told them what had happened today, and they all nodded and listened, until Haruka said something. "So Nao has been picking up girls, right? No, you didn''t.¡¡No, that was a good story about helping someone in need, wasn''t it? What the hell were you listening to? I don''t understand. So you have no ulterior motive at all? ...... Of course. ¡¸¡¸¡¸¡¸ guilty¡¹¡¹¡¹¡¹ Everyone''s voice was in sync. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''ve never met a local elf before.¡¡But I didn''t have any ulterior motives, you know?¡¡It''s not like that, right? "Nao, that''s enough!¡¡It''s okay!¡¡It''s okay to end it now!¡¡--You''re just digging a grave. You''re just digging a grave," he said, putting his hand on my shoulder as I hurriedly put my words together. It''s not like I''m digging a grave or anything, okay? I really just wanted to make acquaintances, you know? "And? What?¡¡Haruka-san, why is your voice so cold? It''s a misunderstanding! However, he moved his chin as if to tell me to hurry up, so I gave up my excuse - or detailed explanation. I''d like to see someone from the women''s side of the family come to the party as well, since I might have a biased opinion. "...... Yeah, that''s not a bad idea. I''m a little busy, Yuki and Natsuki, can you help me? I don''t know why.¡¡I don''t know why. ...... Well, okay. I have a rough idea of how to make the backpack, so I can finish it after dinner. The rest of the work is just to complete the paper pattern and go to Diora to teach her, so Haruka can do it alone. I don''t mind. I''m interested in coffee shops and loli elves. I''ll do the same. I''m also interested in coffee shops and loli elves. - I''m the same way. If my classmates are causing trouble, I''d like to help them somehow. Oh, thank you, both of you. Thank you, both of you. I was hoping to get a woman''s perspective, so this helps a lot. I had a few concerns and suggestions for improvement, but having two people with the same level of knowledge - or even more than me - was quite reassuring. I should be able to get it done in a couple of days, so that should be no problem for you. I''ll do my best to make ...... work. It will be difficult to improve the situation immediately, but it will be a blessing if we can get to the beginning of it. Even if you don''t make a profit, you will be able to improve your business over a long period of time if you don''t go into the red. Yes. We have our own business to take care of. What did you do today, Toya? Me?¡¡I was working on Tommy. I was worried about him. Tommy, you mean Wakabayashi, right?¡¡He''s a dwarf now, isn''t he? Yeah. Well, if you''re working so hard, I thought I could help you out. Toya, you''re very good with him. He''s not a bad guy, so I''m not opposed to helping him out if he can afford it. ....... What can I do to help? I''m not going to say that I''m a bad guy, but I''m not opposed to helping him if I can afford to.¡¡If he can become a blacksmith, I think he will be successful. Of course, you''ll need to learn the common sense of this world and all that. The question is whether or not you can get an apprenticeship, but the guy we''re taking care of, Gantz-san, is there? "Yeah, the usual arms dealer. Gantz-san, the arms dealer, who has been taking care of us since we first bought Toya''s wooden sword. He seems unsociable at first glance, but once you get to know him, he''s quite a nice guy. I was wondering if I could introduce him to Mr. Gantz, if he''s still working diligently. How did it go? "He''s been working hard. You''ve got the muscle, and he seems to be counting on you, but it''s only been three days, so we''ll see how you do for another day or so. "Hmm, you seemed kind of unreliable, I wonder if you''re ready for this? It seems that he had an image of a production worker in an MMO. In reality, there are no forges that anyone can use, and there are no handy tools like portable blacksmithing sets - well, I don''t know if there are, but at least they''re not easy to come by. And first of all, the world of craftsmanship is not so easy that an unknown person can easily become an apprentice. It''s true that we''ve done some shopping and talking, but will Gantz-san allow us to become his apprentices? It may be difficult, but I do have an idea of how to play the trump card, if not the ...... trump card. "I know what you mean about ....... So what is it? "That''s ...... if it works, let''s say. It''s embarrassing if it doesn''t. I''m okay with that, but don''t let Tommy get in trouble, okay?¡¡He has to work for a living. I know. I''ll be careful. Well, I''m pretty worried about that card, but I''ll give it up. So, tomorrow, I''ll be in charge of the backpack, you''ll be in charge of Tommy, and the other three of us will be in charge of the loli elves, right? I''m going to have to object to the loli elves, but I guess that''s it. Yeah, no thanks. Well, we''ll see you tomorrow. Thanks for the food. "Thanks for the food. My request was smoothly rejected, and we all finished our meal together. 48-043 Present despair "So this is the coffee shop. ...... It''s a coffee shop. Yeah. It looks like a nice little coffee shop in a Japanese residential area. Right?¡¡Let''s go in. When we opened the door and went inside, we found that there were no customers today either. "Welcome!¡¡Nao-san! Aera was standing at the counter with a gloomy expression on her face, but as soon as she saw my face, her expression lit up and she ran over to me, took my hand and squeezed it. He took my hand and squeezed it. "You came, you came!¡¡Thank you so much! Aera-san looked up at me with slightly teary eyes. I thought I heard a voice behind me say, "Guilty," but I must have been imagining it. You said you were coming yesterday, right?¡¡You said you''d be here yesterday. Oh, yeah, I''m sorry. Here, let me introduce you to my friends. This is Natsuki, and this is Yuki. It''s nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. --I mean, the way Nao talks is weird. He sounds like a ...... pick-up artist. Is that it?¡¡I''m so mad at you! It is true that the tone of voice was a bit like that of a child, but ...... should we speak in polite language for the outside world? I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I nodded my head in thought. I''ll talk to you in the same way as Yuki and the others. Sorry if I was rude. "No, no, no. We''re not that old. We''re fine. Oh, you''re the same age? No, of course not. In fact, if you''ve trained at a restaurant and saved up enough money to start your own business, there''s a good chance you''re older. Well, these two are two of my companions. There are two more, a beastman and an elf, but they''re not here today because they have something to do. They may come later when they have more time. Oh, so there are others of your kind. I''d like to meet them. I haven''t seen any of my kind in this town. ...... Oh, you''re right, I haven''t seen any elves. In the city where Aella was trained, you could see a few elves on the main street. In this city, Aera is the first elf, and I can only remember seeing a few other races as well. I''ll bring them back when I have time. First, let''s think about rebuilding this store. That''s right!¡¡So what should we do about ......? What should we do about ?" When Aella twisted her head, I pointed to Yuki and the others and said. First of all, ...... can you serve lunch to these two today?¡¡Just for one person. "Yes!¡¡Yes, I understand!¡¡But it will take a while, okay? Oh, it''s still morning. No problem. Please. All right. One moment, please. Aella bows her head and retreats to the kitchen. "Hmm, pretty girl, huh? Yes. She looks younger than she is, and she''s the kind of girl you want to protect. Do you like girls like that, Nao-san?¡¡Are you a pedophile? That''s a terrible accusation!¡¡It''s not like that! I don''t deny that I think she''s cute, but I don''t intend to ...... do that at all. --No, because, you know, I''m a guy too, right?¡¡You can''t help but feel a little bit like that when you see a cute girl, right? It is rather abnormal not to have any interest in girls. Yeah. And Aella''s not a loli. She''s probably older than you. Well, it''s about the store now, right?¡¡Do you have any advice for me? Heh, well, I don''t mind, but... Yuki nodded and looked around the store in a way that didn''t sound good at all. The inside of the store has a nice atmosphere, doesn''t it? Yes, it is. The shop is well cleaned and it would be nice to have the luxury of spending an afternoon tea in a place like this. I see, a cafe. ...... The coffee shop I went to before going to Sahlstat was popular, though a bit expensive. It might be a good idea to go there, but the location might be a problem. If it were a little better known, it might attract people as a coffee shop with a relaxed atmosphere, but in this world where there are few ways to advertise, it might be a little difficult to get there. "Don''t you have a menu at ......? They give you a wooden board instead of hanging it on the wall. Hmm, I see. ...... "Well, I see. " Natsuki groans with a slightly difficult expression. This is a common method in Japan, but it is rare in our world. You can take your time to choose. ....... Oh, sorry to keep you waiting!¡¡I''ll put it on the ...... table. Aera-san came out of the kitchen and looked as if she was wondering for a moment if she should put the plates she was carrying on the counter, then she put the plates on the table, as if she had thought about the number of us. "Here you go!¡¡Please try it. "Wow, what a beautiful arrangement. Let''s eat. Yuki took a bite of her food first, then passed it to Natsuki. "Yes. It''s all delicious. It''s all very good. It''s above ...... the standard. Yes, probably, but in this city it''s up there. Natsuki took another bite of her plate, which was then placed in front of me. Yeah, we just had breakfast. You can''t eat that. I have no choice but to dispose of the rest. It''s a different dish from yesterday, but it''s still good. The seasoning itself is relatively simple, but I wonder if it''s the use of herbs that''s so clever. Can you show me the ...... menu? "Yes, yes!¡¡Here it is! Aera-san runs to the counter and brings back a menu. "...... I see. I get it. Let''s sit down and talk about it, okay?¡¡Is that okay? "Yes!¡¡I''ll get you a drink.¡¡What would you like? I don''t care what it is, but can I have a cup of Musk tea from ......?¡¡Is that okay with you two? What''s that? I''m not sure what it is, but if Natsuki chose it, it might mean something, so I nodded. I understand. Please wait a moment. I''m not sure what that means, but if Natsuki chose it, it might mean something. I''m sure you''ll agree. The first thing to do is to find out why there are no customers coming in. "Oh, really? Yes. If it wasn''t your store, I''m sure you would have noticed it right away, but the store is too high-class. I knew it. Right? Ha! This is a very ordinary residential area, not an area where rich people live. It''s not a main street, so it''s not a street that people who live in other areas would pass by. In other words, to people who usually walk in front of this store, the appearance of this store looks very expensive. I tried to enter the shop because I had common sense from my original world, but if Aera had not come out at that time, I would have turned around and left. If you''re a tycoon who doesn''t care about what''s in your wallet, you might want to come in, but for ordinary people, it''s not easy to enter a store with a "market price" policy. But for the average person, it is not so easy to enter a restaurant where the prices are so high. But in the case of this newly-opened shop, there are no such connections, and inevitably, there are no customers. If you ask me, that''s true. I was happy that a beautiful and nice store was built, but if you ask me if I would want to join this store with my salary, I would ...... hesitate. Aera looked down dejectedly. It''s the kind of thing you''d normally notice right away, which makes it all the more shameful. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything that might help you. No, you don''t need to do anything that expensive. Yes, yes. All you need to know is the price. All you have to do is put up a simple price list in front of your store. This is a technique often used by restaurants on the second floor or higher of apartment buildings, and is familiar to us. They look at the menu and pictures in front of the stairs and decide whether to go up or not. If it weren''t for that, we wouldn''t bother to go up the stairs to the top of the restaurant. That is, unless you were introduced to the restaurant by someone, or had done some research on the Internet beforehand. Aella nodded happily at Yuki''s gestural explanation of how the sign worked. I''m sure the carpenters who renovated this store can make one for you!¡¡Thank you very much. If you want to take some trouble, you could paint the signboard black and change it every day with chalk. If it''s a daily lunch, it would be interesting to draw an illustration or an explanation of what kind of food is served. "I see!¡¡Indeed, ....... There is no explanation for the daily specials served at restaurants around here, so in a sense, it''s a gamble. And the odds of winning are basically zero. Except for the Bear Pavilion of Slumber. If there was a sign outside the restaurant, some people would say, "It looks good, so let''s go in. Now, I think we''ll probably get some customers. ...... Yes!¡¡Thank you very much. Thank you very much." While Aella bowed with a big smile on her face, Natsuki shook her head and said firmly, "But it will probably fail. But you''ll probably fail. "What? Aera-san''s smile froze at his words. 49-044 Give Hope "Why?¡¡You''re sure they''ll come, right? Yes, they will come. But whether it will be profitable is another matter. What? Why?¡¡Aella nodded her head. Yeah, it''s cute. I''m glad I brought Natsuki. I wouldn''t have been able to say anything harsh to Aella. --No, I probably would, but it would hurt my feelings. "This daily special is 50 rare, right? Yes!¡¡Yes! I''m proud of it!¡¡I''m very proud of it! I make it with a lot of thought for color and variation of ingredients. Yes, it''s amazing. This is the first time I''ve seen such a dish in this city. "Yes, it is! Aella said happily, but her smile froze again when Natsuki spoke next. But will it be profitable? "If we sell a lot of ......? She averts her gaze slightly and says something like that. How much, exactly? A hundred plates. But that''s selling at a very low profit!¡¡By offering only one type of food, you lower your costs and sell cheap and tasty food. The profit per dish may be small, but if you sell a lot of dishes, you can make a good profit! Did they tell you that? Yes! No. What?¡¡Is that a lie? No, I''m not lying. But the premise is different. You just said that you can make a profit from over 100 dishes. How many seats does this restaurant have? How many seats does this restaurant have?" "Twenty-six, fully occupied. The restaurant is quite spacious, with only five tables for four and six seats at the counter. Compared to the size of the restaurant, the capacity is small. That means we have to do at least four turns for lunch. Assuming you leave in half an hour, that''s two hours. This time itself may be acceptable, but you''re the only one here, aren''t you, Aella? Yes. You may not have to spend time cooking if you''ve prepared the food, but you have to prepare all that food, bring it to the table, pay the bill, and clean up when the customers leave. Can you do that in less than a minute per person? ......... When it comes to thin profit margins in restaurants, gyudon (beef bowl) restaurants and hamburger stores are the best examples, but they are only possible because they are fast food. The faster the food is served, the shorter the time it takes to eat it, and in some cases, people take it home and don''t stay in the restaurant. This increases the turnover rate of customers, but the atmosphere of this restaurant is the exact opposite. This is not the kind of lunch you can take home, but rather a place where you can sit back and enjoy your meal. If they are aiming for low profit, they need to pack more tables and change the layout so that people don''t want to stay long and just eat standing up. If you want to make a profit, you need to change the layout so that people don''t want to stay long.¡¡You may be able to work in parallel to some extent, but isn''t that a bit much? Do you want to hire a ...... person to do that? If you hire people, you need to make a profit. If it''s just you, Aella, you might be able to get by without making a loss. But if you hire people, you need to make a profit. Do you sell 200 lunches?¡¡Eight revolutions, four hours. That''s a little too long for lunch. If you do, how much profit do you make?¡¡If it''s a low-margin business, the margins are pretty thin. ............ Nah, Natsuki, stop!¡¡Aella, stop! You''re making me cry! Yeah, yeah!¡¡I understand your point. I understand, but you have to go a little easier on her! Aella was completely beaten up. She''s really getting teary-eyed. He''s not raising his voice, he''s speaking calmly, but it hurts a lot because it''s hard to argue with him. Mentally. "Really?¡¡If you want to improve your business condition, I don''t think it makes sense to say something nice. If it was someone who had nothing to do with this, it would have been a simple case of ''you opened a restaurant with a naive idea and crashed it,'' but when it was a classmate who suggested it, coupled with Aella''s appearance, the sense of guilt was overwhelming. "Well, well, well. I understand that Aella''s method is no good. I get it. You get it too, right, Aella? "...... Guffaw. Yes, yes. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out.¡¡What is it? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. It''s a little bit of that, but ...... it''s just the shallow wisdom of a student, you know? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure it will get better if we all think about it based on that. I believe so! Rather, let me believe that. I''m not the one who brought in the guards. Put up a sign in front of the store first. That''s confirmed. But you should raise the price for lunch. The taste and the atmosphere. It''s obviously too cheap considering that. We should sell at least 20 dishes, preferably 10 to make a profit. "Then you don''t have to do a full rotation at lunch. You can enjoy the atmosphere of this restaurant and dine at your leisure. I think that''s what we should aim for. What do you think, Aella? It depends on how much you want to make, but if you make it around ......100 rare, you''ll have room. I''m sure you''ll be able to afford it. You can adjust it according to the turnover rate and the number of customers. If you are selling at a low profit margin, you have to make a large quantity of food, and the profit margin will deteriorate because you expect to discard the food. If the product is sold out, there will be no loss even if the cost ratio is high to some extent. If you reduce the turnover rate, you can make a profit from drinks and side dishes. In general, the profit margin on drinks is high ......, isn''t it? Yes. This Musk tea is also made from good tea leaves, but the only work involved is boiling the water and making the tea, so the profit margin is high. Oh, it''s delicious, isn''t it, this tea? The tea has a black tea color, a nice aroma, and a slight sweetness. It has no astringency or peculiarity, so it is easy to drink. Looking at the menu, the price is 35 Reais. It''s cheaper than the coffee shop I''ve been to before, but more expensive than a typical diner. Of course, ordinary restaurants do not have such good tea. Also, you might want to rethink your menu a bit, considering your target customer base. "Customer base? ...... Aera-san pondered over this. You built the restaurant without giving much thought to it - or rather, you built it according to what the self-proclaimed consultant said. What do you two think? "I wouldn''t serve alcohol at all during the day. I would not serve any alcohol at all during the day, and only a few expensive drinks at night. I''d limit the number of drinks served at night to a small number of expensive ones, and I''d set the price of the evening meal a little higher. "Well, I don''t think there are many restaurants that don''t serve alcohol, why is that? First of all, there''s nothing wrong with people who drink during the day! When I argued forcefully, Aera-san smiled as if troubled. You know, isn''t that really prejudice ......? "Well, I don''t deny that. I''m sure there are some decent ones. However, if you look at the cafeterias around here, you will see people drinking and making noise in the cafeteria in the daytime.¡¡When people like that come in, it destroys the atmosphere of this restaurant that I spent so much money to build. The store itself is good, even though it was built with the help of others. I think it would be more successful to make it a relatively inexpensive restaurant where you can enjoy a classy atmosphere. If you do the same thing as other restaurants, the interior design will be wasted. When I explained this, Aella nodded her head in agreement. And even if we increase the number of drinks, they will get old if they are not consumed enough, right? "Oh, yes. Especially ale, it will deteriorate rapidly. Also, I''m worried about you, Aella. What? If you serve cheap alcohol, people will inevitably get drunk, right?¡¡I may hire someone in the future, but for now, I''m just Aella, and I think it''s dangerous. "Nao-san ...... I''m not sure what to make of this. I think you should put up a blackboard in your restaurant and write down your menu. I think we should put up a blackboard in the restaurant and write the menu on it. "Oh, yes, you''re right. Yes, that may be true. If the menu is not like a diner, but a little more elegant, hanging it on the wall will not destroy the atmosphere of the restaurant. As a result of our discussions, we decided to target women and civil servants living in the area, and to limit the number of drinks to only soft drinks. Instead, we will increase the number of high-priced snacks to ensure profit. In the evening, it was decided that the restaurant would be open only by reservation, and would serve a fine meal for anniversaries. Will it be okay?¡¡I have some confidence in my skills, but when it comes to fine dining, ...... "It will be fine. I''m sure it''ll be fine. It''s that good at lunch, and I''m sure they''ll only take reservations from those who come for lunch. Oh. Even compared to the coffee shops on the main street, it''s enough to win if people know about it. The skill of the food itself is high enough, so as long as you can promote it, that''s all that matters. Besides, unless you want to increase the number of staff, this is the limit if you plan to run the business alone. If you take into account the preparation of the food, you may have to work without sleep if you plan to stay open at night. The father of a similarly sized restaurant, Kumatei, is ripe, but I think he is an exception. It is a wonder why the restaurant serves food without problems. Hmmm, I think I''d like to target the morning crowd.¡¡I think it''s a waste of time when there are so many commuters passing by. ''If you''re a commuter, maybe a takeaway lunch?¡¡Aella, what do you have for me? Takeaway ......, please wait a moment. After a while, Aera-san brought me something on a plate that looked like a meat wrapped rice ball. When I cut it and tried it, what I found inside was something like mashed potatoes. It was like a croquette with a thin slice of meat in the batter. It''s good. If it were sold near the inn, I''d buy one or two before going to work. Judging from the expressions on Yuki and the others'' faces, it seemed to suit their taste buds as well. They''re on a plate now, but we sell them wrapped in leaves. They cost about 10 Reais each. "Wow, they are delicious. I''ve never seen them before, are they common? I don''t know. I''ve never seen it before. Is it common? - I don''t know. In the city where I trained, there were some places that sold it. ...... I''ve never seen it in this city. Not even in the neighboring city of Sarstad. I''m sure this will sell well. Yes, I know it''s a bit busy in the morning, but why don''t you sell these early in the morning in front of your store?¡¡If it''s only ten rares, people might buy it just to try it out, and since it''s delicious, more people might come to the store after eating it. "I see. ...... I''ll try my best! I''ll try my best! I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to try. The only variation ...... is to change the taste of the meat and potatoes inside. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Hmmm, if I had a thick sauce, I could make ''katsu sandwiches''. "A thick sauce?¡¡How about an inspirational sauce?¡¡I don''t know about pork cutlet sandwiches, but... "Inspirational sauce?¡¡What''s that? Oh, I don''t know if you''ve heard of it, Yuki. It''s common among elves. ...... Hey, Nao-san. Oh, you''re shouting at me now? Of course not. "Sorry, I don''t know. "Huh?¡¡Is that so?¡¡I thought most families made it. ...... Would you like to taste it?¡¡I brought the original from my parents'' house, but I used ingredients that are available around here, so it''s a little different from our family''s taste. Please wait a moment. After saying that, she went back to the kitchen, but soon came back and presented us with a small palm-sized plate. 50-045 Secrets (?) ) source In the plate, there was a slightly thick liquid. The color is almost black, but the thickness is similar to my favorite okonomiyaki sauce. I put a little of it on my finger and we all lick it. It''s ...... good. "Yeah, it''s really deep and thick. ...... No, no, no, it''s really good, okay? Is it?¡¡I''m a little frustrated with it. There are a lot of things you can''t get at home, so my parents'' food tastes better. But still, I don''t think it''s as good as my mother''s. Aera-san says this with a slight tilt of her head, but to be honest, I think this sauce is more complete than the sauces made by Japanese companies after their research. I don''t think it will sell explosively in Japan, because whether it will be popular with everyone is another matter, but those who like it will like it very much. It is slightly sweet, yet mildly sour, with a nice fruity aroma coming through the nose. There are many kinds of spices that add depth to the taste, but they also make it a bit peculiar, which is probably the reason why people have different tastes. Nevertheless, it is by far the most delicious seasoning I have eaten since I came to this world. Do you have a lot of these? No, it''s for myself, so I don''t have much. Even if I made a lot, I wouldn''t be able to use it all. He thought it would be good to use it for the dishes served at the restaurant, but he didn''t think it was something he could sell, since it was a kind of homemade pickle and a seasoning unique to elves. I''m sure this will sell well. If Yuki-san and Natsuki-san can accept it, then why not? Can you teach me how to make this?¡¡To be honest, I want this myself. If it''s a secret, I''ll do it. No, no, it''s not that big of a deal. No, it''s not that big of a deal. It''s something that''s made in every Elven home. Yeah, yeah. I didn''t know about it, so you took care of it. But I''m a pseudo-elf, so who cares? First, I need to prepare the inspiration source. "...... has suddenly fizzled out. I''m hopeless! I feel as if I''ve been told, "Eggs first, or chickens first. Oh, no, of course I''ll share mine with you. Thank you!¡¡This is the only reason why I came here today! No, no, no!¡¡No, no, no! I''m the one who''s taking up your time. Besides, I''m glad that you like my Inspiration Sauce. Aera-san smiled happily. I wonder if it''s like a kind of homemade miso. Although we don''t make it at home, my grandmother''s homemade miso was very popular among my relatives, and I recall that she used to make and distribute a large amount of it every year. Now, marinate the fruits and vegetables of your choice in the prepared spirit sauce. You can leave them as they are, but if you are in a hurry, it''s better to chop them into small pieces. Are you sure it''s okay? Yes. As long as it''s plant-based food. There is a tendency for each family to have a certain amount of plant food, but in our house, if we have leftover vegetable scraps, we throw them in as well, so it''s pretty random. Some families put in nuts, but this is not recommended. If you succeed, it will be delicious, but it seems to be quite difficult. Hmmm, the sauce was more random than I thought. Is it possible to get this flavor? I''d recommend using the peel of the fruit. It''s usually thrown away, and it gives the sauce a nice aroma. Then you can add spices to taste. "Well, ......, is this sweetness from the fruit? No, the sweetness is stronger when you add potatoes. Our sauce is very sweet. Some people make sauces with little or no sweetness, so even if it''s an inspirational sauce, it will give you a very different impression. "Does the potato saccharify the ...... starch? Natsuki muttered, as if surprised. The sweet sauce I knew was sweetened with dates, but this sauce seemed to be made with potatoes. I remember learning a long time ago that the enzyme amylase converts starch into sugar, but I wonder if this is similar to that. If it''s so easy to grow, why don''t we sell the ''pork cutlet sandwiches'' that Nao-kun mentioned earlier? It takes about a week, but it''s easy to increase. However, when it comes to serving it in the store, there is a problem with this sauce: the taste is not stable. Basically, we just throw in whatever fruits and vegetables we can get our hands on at the time, so there is a lot of variation in taste. In addition, since the aroma of the drink decreases when the fruits are not added, they increase the amount of fruits and vegetables in the fall to prepare for winter consumption. In other words, if you want to serve it in your restaurant, you have to prepare it in large quantities this season. In other words, if you want to sell them in the store, you need to buy a lot of fruit this season. If you''re a local, you can pick it up in the forest. Fruit is expensive, isn''t it? "Fruit is expensive, isn''t it, when you buy it at the market? In general, the price of fruits in this world is still high compared to Japan, which is high in the world, so it costs a lot of money to prepare with fruits. If you want to make it for yourself, you can just use the peels and scraps, but if you want to make enough to serve at a restaurant, you have to buy them. Nao, how''s the ding dong?¡¡I thought you said it was over for the season. "No, I think they''re still available. ...... What do you think, Aera-san? When I was in my hometown, I sometimes went to pick dingles. It''s delicious, isn''t it? I''m not sure if I''m remembering the taste I had before, but I''m a little enchanted by it. But that''s not what I''m saying. "No, I mean, if you were to put it in an inspirational source... "Oh, yes, of course. Yes, it would be delicious, very delicious. But the ding dong in this town is very expensive, isn''t it? Yes, it''s very expensive. I''ve made a lot of money thanks to you. Shall we go pick them?¡¡Actually, I was there a few days ago, so I think I can still get some. Well, are you sure?¡¡I don''t think I''ll be much help. ...... I don''t think I''ll be much help. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡Are you sure you can handle it without Toya and Haruka? At best, the goblins would only appear, and with Natsuki''s skill with a spear, there would be no danger. I''m not sure what to make of this. You''re not going to get flagged, are you? I''m sure you''ll be fine. I think it''s better to check with Haruka,....... Natsuki also told me. What?¡¡I don''t think I''m that trustworthy. I''m a little depressed. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I don''t mind, but ...... there are no customers coming. But what about you, Nao? We''re fine. The next day or two will be like a rest period. That was the end of the discussion. After that, we chatted for a while, eating some sweets that Aella had brought out, and broke up before lunch. Natsuki and I went straight back to the inn, while Yuki accompanied Aera to the carpenter''s place. Yuki went with Aella to the carpenter''s place, apparently to explain the signage in detail and also to make an acquaintance with the carpenter so that it would be easier to ask him to repair the signage when we rented the house. Yuki said, "If we are recognized as acquaintances of Mr. Aera, who paid a lot of money, we can be more flexible. He is very strong. "Inspirational source, right? "Inspirational sauce, right? Is it good? "Yes. Apparently it''s an elven family dish. The closest thing I know to Aella''s sauce is Oofuku okonomiyaki sauce. It''s a little sweeter and has a stronger spice flavor. That''s great!¡¡The pork cutlet is getting closer!¡¡It''s true that salty pork cutlets are tasteless. That evening, we had our respective debriefing sessions, similar to yesterday. Toya was the one who was most pleased with the existence of the inspiration sauce. He said he wanted to make pork cutlets. He said he wanted to make pork cutlets, "but if the flavor changes so much depending on what you put in it, it''ll make the meal more varied. It''s a little strange that the sweetness is enhanced by potatoes. The potatoes here are not sweet potatoes like sweet potatoes, but non-sweet potatoes like potatoes. There are several kinds of potatoes on the market, but it doesn''t matter what kind you use. I''m sure it''s the saccharification of starch, but at room temperature, it''s not an enzyme, is it?¡¡Is it yeast? "But even if you just throw in some spices, it will still be active and break down fruits and vegetables in about a week, right?¡¡I wonder if there are multiple fungi living in symbiosis? Spices: ...... Well, if you put in regular spices, the fungus activity will be suppressed. That''s why it can be stored for a long time, right? Of course, there are some bacteria that are active even in such an environment. Of course, there are some fungi that can work in such an environment, but I''m pretty sure that the fungi in that source are quite powerful. Yes. ...... In the case of koji mold, it takes a few days to turn steamed rice into rice malt. It takes about half a day to convert it into sugar by adding water and adjusting the temperature. This is why it''s so important to have a good environment to decompose most plants just by leaving them alone for a week. It''s possible that the room temperature environment is the ideal environment, but if such a fungus existed in nature, it would probably cause serious damage to crops. "Maybe there are some conditions for its activity. For example, it may be anaerobic, or it may not work unless a certain number of people gather. If the sauce is so smooth that it doesn''t need to be strained, it''s possible that cellulolytic bacteria are present. If the sauce is so smooth that it doesn''t need to be strained, it could be cellulolytic bacteria. I''m sure there''s a good balance of different types of bacteria. It''s only natural that the recipe would be ''first prepare the inspiration sauce''. The three intellectuals started to talk about difficult things. In my case, all I know is that amylase turns starch into sugar. It''s okay, it''s ''The Fantasy''. It''s easy to make a delicious sauce. "This guy!¡¡He cut it off! That''s Toya. You''ve ruined the discussion. The three of us look at each other in slight disgust. "Toya, ......, it''s pretty important to think about principles, you know?¡¡Like magic. I can''t use magic. I''ve decided to go with the brainy character. Toya is turning out to be more of a disappointment than I thought. That''s a very clever decision. Yuki is surprised, but in a way, it''s possible. It''s better for the balance of the party to have him train his body and act as a shield than to use his head. That''s fine. So, you want to go get a dindle. I can''t make it tomorrow. ...... Where''s Toya? I''m almost there. I''m almost there. I''ll have something by the end of the day tomorrow. ...... I can''t do it tomorrow. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. I''ve been putting off updating their equipment because it''s kind of like resting for a while, so they still have normal clothes and a cheap spear, that''s it. If I lend mine to Yuki, will it be too difficult for Natsuki to wear Toya''s? We''re about the same height: Toya and I are around six feet, Natsuki is in the upper 160s, and Haruka is a little shorter. Yuki is the smallest, probably around 155. However, in terms of body thickness, there is a considerable difference between me and Toya, and the same goes for the women. Therefore, it is difficult to share equipment simply based on height. In particular, chainmail is adjusted to fit our bodies, so it cannot fit. Specifically, the chest armor. "Why don''t you give mine to Natsuki and I''ll borrow Toya''s?¡¡I think I can manage to wear it. Hmm, I''m not sure if all of us have the right gear, but ...... let''s try it on for now. I tried it on. I was reminded that there was a big difference between me and Toya in terms of shoulder width and chest plate. It didn''t fall down, but it was too big, and it would be a little tight if I moved too much. It might be better to tie it with a string or something. I think it fits you better than you think. The one who said that was Natsuki, who was wearing my chainmail. I''m taller than you, but I think the slenderness of the elf''s body and Natsuki''s breasts make a good match. "I think I''m a little tight, my breasts. Unbearable? Not so much?¡¡Maybe for a day. Yuki, who wore Haruka''s dress, seemed a little ill-fitted for Haruka''s slender figure. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. Yeah. For weapons, ...... Yuki got the stick technique, right? Yes. This morning''s training. Toya''s sword is of higher quality, but I doubt it. You may have the skills, but you''ll never be able to wield my sword. Not with your height. No, no, no!¡¡It''s too heavy! The height difference between Toya and Yuki is 25 centimeters. The sword he is using is also a very heavy sword that is designed for the strength of a beast. If they could wield it, it would make for an interesting fantasy picture. But I guess I''ll just have to make do with a stick. Be careful, okay?¡¡Take care, Natsuki. "Oh, ......, isn''t that me?¡¡It''s not me, is it? Experience wise. Natsuki, you''ve got great specs, but you''ve only fought once, right? You''re in charge of calmness. And you''re going to hunt Task Boar anyway, right?¡¡Take it easy. "Copy that, ....... I''ll be very careful. I''ll be very careful. Aella''s here too. Haruka reminded me to take care of myself, and I nodded curiously. 51-046 Get the ingredients for the sauce! The next day, as soon as we had breakfast, I picked up Aella and we set off for the eastern forest. Since I was the only one who knew where it was, I led the way through the forest. Aella was wearing leather armor, a bow and arrow, and a backpack, looking more like an adventurer than Yuki and Natsuki in a way. The two of them were wearing chainmail over the armor they had rushed out to buy yesterday, and large clothes on top of that, with backpacks on their backs. I also finished taking measurements for my chainmail at that time, so I should be able to get my own chainmail within a few days. Thanks to my efforts in searching for enemies along the way, I managed to reach the nearest dindle tree without fighting. Now, here''s the nearest tree: ...... What do you think? When I looked at the top of the tree with the eyes of a hawk, I could see that there were still some fruits growing, albeit sporadically. Of course, the number of berries is much smaller than before. It''s a pretty big tree. ...... Looks like there''s still some left. "Oh, you can see them too, Aella? "Yes, I have pretty good eyesight. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: Aella Race: Elf Status: Healthy Skills£º¡¾Bowmanship Lv.2¡¿ ¡¾Eagle Eyes Lv.1¡¿ ¡¾Attention Lv.2 Stealthy Footsteps Lv.1" "Demolition Lv.2" "Farming Lv.2 Plant Knowledge Lv.3 ¡î Food Knowledge Lv.4 ¡î Cooking Lv.3 Wind Magic Lv.2 ] ¡¾Water Magic Lv.1 ¡¿ ¡¾Cleaning Lv.2 ¡¾Flute Lv.1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ...... No, no, no. You''re just plain strong, right? I''m not sure if it''s just me or you. And you can see a lot of details. It''s a very strange skill, after all. Although it doesn''t show his age. But just in case, this status can be a reassurance. "Well, I can''t see it, but it''s at the top of this tree, right?¡¡Are you going to climb it?¡¡In this tree? "Well, ...... I don''t think it''s quite possible... Oh, I didn''t tell you that, did I? Yuki and Natsuki''s backs are slack. I''ve already gotten used to it, but normally I wouldn''t be able to climb a tree this high. "Yeah, I''ll climb it. Yes, of course. It''s a little big, but it''s not a problem. Okay. You two wait for me at the bottom branch. I took the rope and hooked it to the bottom branch. I''ve done this so many times that I''m already familiar with it. As I climbed up the branch, Yuki and Natsuki also climbed up without any difficulty. Aella, for example, climbed up almost without using a rope, which is quite impressive for a non-pseudo-elf. Aela, that bag won''t hold much, so I''ll borrow Yuki''s backpack. Is that okay? "Yeah, sure. Yes, Aella, you know how to carry it, right? Yes. This looks convenient. You can use both hands. Yeah, it''s pretty handy, you know. It''s easier to carry heavy things than normal. I''ll also advertise, "Coming soon from the Adventurer''s Guild! I''ll also advertise that it will be available from the Adventurer''s Guild soon. Aera-san, who is a cook, may not need it much, but maybe it will be useful when she goes shopping. Let''s go. Okay. I''ll go ahead. I adjusted the backpack Yuki had given me, made sure it was okay, and said so, and Aella nodded and started to climb up. I hurriedly followed her, but her speed was quite fast. I was able to keep up with her because I had climbed the tree many times before, but if it had been my first time, it would have been impossible. Nao, you''re amazing. I''ve always been known as a good tree climber, you know. "No, not really. I''ve climbed this tree several times. I''ve climbed this tree a few times." Aera looked back at me and said admiringly, "But you''re really close. Please don''t look a little frustrated and try to speed up, please. In the end, I reached the top a little later than Aella. I felt a little shameful that I had lost to a first-time climber, but it didn''t matter because Aella looked satisfied and was happily collecting. If I fall in a hurry, I''ll die, right? I''m sure I''ll get caught by a branch on the way, but I''m scared. How''s it going, Aela? As you can see, there aren''t too many, and I think they''re a little overripe, but they''re still on the ends of the branches, so I think we''ll get a good crowd. The reason they were still at the end of the branch was, of course, because we were afraid to go around there. Ms. Aera was riding on a branch that was thinner than her wrist and was collecting as usual, but to be honest, it was scary to watch. We always try to keep a three-point hold, but in Aera''s case, she sometimes only has one foot on the ground, even for a moment, let alone two. ....... Yeah, I''m not going to copy you. I''m going to collect as much as I can get my hands on. I used to be able to collect many without moving during the collection period, but now I collect one, move, collect another, move, and so on, and if you think about earning money normally, the efficiency is still quite low. I must have continued collecting for about half an hour. My backpack is still more than half empty, but even if I continue here any longer, my efficiency will be low. "Aella, should we get off? "Yes, sir?¡¡I think we can still get some more. ...... Whoa, don''t turn around at the end of that branch! It''s really scary. I''m getting all kinds of fumes. "I can get some, but it''s not very efficient. There''s a few more of these. Let''s move them over there. All right. Let''s get off. Then Aella-san jumped up and down. As I was about to scream, Aella-san casually jumped down to the branch below. "Really? That''s impossible. If we were a few meters above the ground, I might have been able to do it. In other words, it''s not impossible in terms of ability. But if you ask me if I could do it a few dozen meters above the ground, absolutely not. The fear makes me squirm. Let''s go down normally even if it takes a long time. ...... There is no point in pushing yourself out of rivalry, because you can go down in five minutes. When I reached Yuki and the others, they were working on transferring Dindol from Aella''s backpack to Natsuki''s backpack. I guess they are planning to fill up the backpacks of the three of us and go home. ....... Aella-san, we''re going to hunt task boars on the way back, so we''ll need room for them as well. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡It''s ...... in my backpack? No, it''s not going to fit. A small, even seemingly childish, Aella has a backpack. Its size is naturally small. The size of the bag is naturally small, and I don''t think it can hold a boar weighing over 100 kilos. Nao, you put the meat in a leather bag, right?¡¡Then we''ll carry it too. Then we don''t need to put it in our backpacks, right? "Yes. If we split up, we''ll be fine, right? Oh, Yuki and the serious Natsuki agree? I see. So the sweetness is strong. Well, I''m cool with it because I''ve eaten enough of it, but if it had been my first day to pick dingdol, I would have agreed with you. Hmmm, it''s pretty heavy when you die a big one, isn''t it? There is a big difference between walking with 20 kilos on your back and walking with 20 kilos in your hands. Naturally, the latter is by far the most difficult. ""I''ll do my best! I nodded reluctantly to the three of them, who were all saying it in the same strong voice. ...... Is that so?¡¡It''s a good thing, then. I''m not sure what to make of it. But it''s still better than defying three women in front of a sweet treat. I''m sure. 52-047 Tonkatsu (material) appeared! The backpacks of the three of us were full only after we had visited two more dindle trees. On the way, we were able to secure a good amount of herbs that Aella had recommended that we collect in the forest, so maybe it wasn''t so bad after all. Well, it''s getting a little late, shall we have lunch? "Yes, I guess so. The plan is to hunt the task boar on the way back, right? Yeah. We''re going to have to fight, so it''s better to eat before that. We found a little open space and sat down. The backpack full of dildos is a bit heavy, but I''ve trained my body enough to not get tired from this. It''s not the same as when I came to this world, so I guess it''s not a waste of time to keep training every day. "Um, would you like to eat this if you don''t mind? I was presented with three fist-sized round things wrapped in leaves. "Oh, those are the ones you said you''d sell for take-out, right? Yes. I made one for each of you. "Thank you. I took it and peeled off the leaves, and out came the mashed potatoes with meat that I ate yesterday. The mashed potatoes were a little warm when I ate them yesterday, but this one was cold, and the aroma of the wrapped leaves accentuated the flavor, making it quite delicious. It''s good. Yes, I knew this would sell well!¡¡If Aella-san''s store was closer, I would go there every day to buy it. Yes, it''s very good. The leaves give it a nice flavor. "Thank you very much. Aella''s cheeks stained with happiness as we praised her. At first glance, she looks like a child, but she''s a very skilled cook. She was a level 3 cook. I wonder if she could make even more amazing dishes if she had more types of seasonings and stuff. In return, we''ll give you our bread and dried meat. The dried meat is homemade, so it''s pretty tasty. Yuki confidently offered the dried meat, but it didn''t look so good. It''s just dried meat. Of course, it''s delicious because it''s made by Haruka. "Oh, you make it yourself?¡¡I used to make it at home too, but ......?¡¡It''s delicious. ...... You know what?¡¡It''s not the same as the stuff they sell around here! I bought this bread at the inn, and it''s okay too. ...... Oh, really. All the bakeries I''ve visited have been less than this. Aella went to several bakeries to see if she could buy bread for her restaurant, but she couldn''t find any that she liked, so she decided to bake her own bread. The reason why she didn''t serve bread at lunch is because it is difficult to serve a large amount of bread when she makes it herself, so she decided not to serve it at lunch. Aella didn''t specify, but I heard that the bread was better than this one, so I would like to try it if I have a chance. Did you make the dried meat, Yuki? No, it was made by another Elf named Haruka, who was not here today. Oh, you mean another one of your own kind. I''m sure the meat itself is good, but his cooking skills are also quite good. I''m sure he''ll be happy to hear a professional say that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. The advantage is that she has a lot of knowledge about the cuisine of the original world. For example, it would be easier for an amateur who knows the taste of curry to prepare a dish that comes close to the taste of curry than for a professional chef who does not know curry to arrive at that taste. I''d like to meet that person. I''d like to cook with him if possible. Maybe when I''m free, I''ll get the chance. --We should get going. Yes, sir. Well, there''s nothing better than leaving early. I made sure everyone had finished eating, and they all nodded and got up to re-carry their bags. Now all we have to do is hunt down the task boar and we can go home. ...... "Will it work out that way?¡¡It wasn''t much of a local catch, though. Don''t worry. I''m good at finding them. --Okay. Me and Aella will take the lead, you two follow us a little further back. Understood. Aella-san and I have stealthy legs so we''ll be hard to find. I thought they didn''t have them, but as soon as we started walking, I felt something strange. I could hardly feel the presence of Natsuki, who was supposed to be behind me. In contrast to Yuki, who was clearly recognizable. --Come to think of it, I do have [Concealment Lv.2], don''t I? I guess my [Stealth Foot] is a skill that muffles footsteps, while Natsuki''s [Concealment] is a skill that hides signs. Which one is more useful depends on the situation, but it seems to be quite useful for hiding. Oh, I see you. Shall I take the lead, Nao? At the end of the forest, we saw a task boar, slightly larger than a medium-sized one. It''s probably a little smaller than the size we usually hunt. "Yes, sir. Please. I understand. Aella replied, and quickly climbed up the tree on the side, she took her bow and immediately shot an arrow. At the same time, I signaled to Natsuki and ran towards the boar. The boar screams at the sudden attack. Then, two spears pierce it almost simultaneously. The boar collapses with a thud. That''s right, my spears and Natsuki''s were almost simultaneous. I was a few steps ahead of him, but it seems that he caught up with me. Since my spear skill couldn''t shorten the distance, it must be a simple difference in physical ability. If it was simple speed, he would not be defeated, but if you include the physical strength of running in the forest, he seems to be slightly inferior to Natsuki. This is the difference in race. ...... Well, let''s work on it. Even if your base value is inferior, you should be able to get by with training. But if Natsuki works as hard as you do, it''s more likely that the difference will widen, considering the race difference. You''re both very quick, aren''t you? We''re adventurers, after all. I''m not sure what to make of this. The arrow that Aella-san shot accurately pierced the boar''s eye. It seems that the damage was not so great due to lack of muscle strength, but it would have been quite effective in inhibiting behavior. I used to go hunting a lot. I used to do a lot of hunting. With a boar this size, I was mainly supporting it. I was good at catching birds," he said, smiling. Haruka also accurately shot the bird, but as I had a lot of trouble using magic the other day, I know how difficult it is. Aella, I think you can become a pro at this as well. Shall we dismantle it then? Do you want me to do it?¡¡I''m used to it. "Well, then, please. I looked at Yuki and Natsuki, confirmed that they nodded, and asked Aella to do it. I understand. Aera-san took out a knife from her own backpack and dismantled the boar with a very skillful hand. There was no hesitation in her movements, and she was even better than Haruka, who was the best among us. He precisely skinned the boar, cut off the meat, and stuffed it into the leather bag we offered him. You''re really good at this, aren''t you? "Yes. I used to go hunting in my hometown, and I had to do a lot of carcass processing in my training. Meat processing is basic. In Japan, meat processing is the job of the butcher, and in many restaurants, meat is usually delivered already sliced. In Japan, meat processing is the job of the butcher. I wonder if it is a matter of preservation technology. As minced meat is easily damaged, it is a little risky to sell it sliced in this world where the supply chain is not developed. Even ordinary chefs need to have the skills to dismantle meat, which is quite a hurdle. However, thanks to Mr. Aera''s skills, we can turn meat with bones that we would otherwise leave as is into block meat, and we don''t have to bring back the wasted bones. However, it seems that some of the internal organs that we usually throw away will also be recovered, which will increase the amount of meat, so the total amount may not be much different. What they are recovering is the heart, the liver, and the kidneys?¡¡And the tongue? Oh, I didn''t recover those. I''ve had pork tongue before. And they''re also taking meat from the back of the neck. I buried the head because of its appearance, but I was surprised to find that there are places where you can get it. I had thought that since boars are related to pigs, ears and noses could be eaten as well, but I never thought of collecting them because they were not good to look at. Can anyone use water-based magic? Oh, that would be Haruka, who''s not here today. I see. Well, I guess I''ll give up my stomach and intestines. I don''t want to take it home without washing it. Apparently, the digestive organs need to be washed carefully and carefully, and if they are not washed properly, other meat will be contaminated. In other words, amateurs should stay away from it. All right, it''s done. Now let''s hurry up and go home. The longer we wait, the less delicious the meat will be. "Well, can we just leave the rest of it?¡¡Or bury them? Yuki shows us the head and guts of the boar. By the way, I didn''t bring a hoe with me today. Do you want Yuki to dig a hole for you? Oh, I don''t mind this much. The animals in the forest will take care of themselves. Of course, if you want to rest or camp nearby, you''ll have to bury it. That''s what he said. I''ve heard that in Japan, when you exterminate vermin, you have to bury them and dispose of them, but it seems that it''s different in the other world. If this is not followed by the [Common sense of the other world], does it mean that it is not common sense, but the common sense of hunters and adventurers? "Oh, really? "Yes. And if it''s near a human settlement. Well, if you can afford it, you can bury it. Aella, who had packed a good amount of food into her own backpack, stood up and presented us each with a leather bag. The boar was a little smaller than we had expected, maybe less than 10 kilos per person. That should not be a problem. Okay, let''s go a little faster. How strong are you? I''m fine. I''m fine. I just took a rest earlier. Natsuki answered my question, and the other two nodded in agreement. Then we''ll go for a short run. Aera-san, let me know if it''s too hard. "Yes. Yes, but I''ll be fine. Aella smiled as she carried her rather heavy backpack with ease. I''m sure you''ll agree. Aera-san''s physical strength exceeded my expectations, as she declared. Aera said, "A cook is a very physical person". Because we gave priority to speed, we encountered a goblin once on the way, but it was easily taken care of by my spear, Natsuki''s, and Yuki''s iron bar. We didn''t even need our magic, let alone Aella''s bow. The goblin''s humanoid form made it a little more difficult to deal with, but in a way, it made it easier to find the vital points and aim. If you use a spear, you can stab a goblin in the heart from out of range, or in the brain from the eyes, so it''s easy if you''re prepared. Yuki and Natsuki also showed no hesitation in killing the goblins for the first time, which should be regarded as stout-hearted. However, the goblin''s magic stone was left unattended this time as well, on the grounds that it was a waste of time. If I wanted to do it, I would have cracked his head with Yuki''s iron bar, but Yuki didn''t want to do it, so I guess that''s what I''ll do. We arrived back at Aella''s store before the evening was over. 53-048 Lets make sauce! (1) I''ll put the meat in the cold storage for now. The first time I entered Aella''s restaurant, there was a large cold storage room, or simply put, a refrigerator in the kitchen. It was about two meters in length and width and about one and a half meters in depth. It seems to be a very expensive magical tool. It''s very useful!¡¡...... Well, if you don''t cook a lot of food at a low profit, this is useless too. I''m not sure what to do with it. Not only is the purchase price high, but the bigger the machine, the more expensive it is to maintain. In other words, if you can''t use it up, you''re just wasting your money. "No, no, Mr. Aera. If you want to focus on sweets, you need a refrigerator! That''s right. With this, we can produce delicious fresh sweets. Isn''t this a big advantage? Is that so?¡¡I mean, what are fresh pastries?¡¡The name itself sounds delicious! Oh, no?¡¡Don''t you know what fresh confectionery is? Yes, I''m not familiar with it. Please teach me! Come to think of it, the sweets in the coffee shop we used to go to were only baked goods like cookies. Sugar candy was also on the menu, but Haruka said, "It''s probably just a bunch of sugar. so I stopped ordering them. What I had in my mind at that time was sweets made of sugar to be offered to Buddha, but maybe I was not so far off. Considering the price of sugar candy at that time, the field of confectionery itself may not have developed much. Aella''s eyes lit up when she heard about the new sweets, and she crowded Natsuki, who nodded, a little confused. I understand. I''ll let you know when I have time. "I''m sure you will! Yes. I''ll tell you when I have time. Oh, right. Well, I need a jar first. Let''s go buy some for our store and some to share with everyone. But, Aella-san. But, Aella, didn''t we have to go get the sign? Yes, I did! When she went to place the order yesterday, she told them that she would pick it up today. The signboard Yuki explained could have been made just yesterday, but she wanted to take a little extra time and effort to make sure it would look good in the store, so she gave herself a day to get it. What should I do? Both stores will be closing soon. Stores in this world, with the exception of a few restaurants and entertainment districts, close when the sun goes down. Considering the time of day, it would be a little difficult to visit both. Well, I''ll go get the sign. Aella, you go with them and buy some jars. Are you sure? Yeah. I''m just going to get it. In return, can I invite the other two of us, Haruka and Toya?¡¡I''d like you to teach them how to make the sauce, and then we can make pork cutlets and eat them. Yes, of course. If you can teach me how to make pork cutlets, I''m all yours! That''s what I thought. This is the store where I got all my tableware. Aella took me to a store in a secluded area off the main street. If you didn''t know about it, you wouldn''t be able to find it. The store seemed to specialize in pottery, and all the dishes and pots were made of pottery. I wondered if the shop was a very successful one, or if they were trying to increase their profit margin by selling high quality products. "Oh... --Do you have money, Natsuki? "What?¡¡Not that much. It''s just what I earn from Sahlstat. Oh, no. Haruka''s in charge of our money, so I only have a little money. The two of us together have less than three thousand Reais in our possession. In addition, the items on the shelf don''t have price tags on them. Hmmm ....... Aera walked to the back of the store and called out to the clerk. Hello. I''m looking for a vase. I need something practical and durable. I''m looking for something practical and durable. The shopkeeper led me to a row of light brown vases with lids. The largest was about fifty centimeters long. Some of the smaller ones can fit in the palm of your hand. If you''re going to use them in your store, you''ll need two of this size. ...... Nao, can you help me carry them? Yes, of course. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Which one should we get? ....... How much sauce do we consume? Which one would you like, Natsuki? "Well, ......, isn''t this enough? Natsuki showed him a vase that was about the size of a large flower vase, with a capacity of about three or four liters. "Excuse me, which is the cheapest vase in this size? I''m sorry, which is the cheapest vase in this size? It''s a little warped, but I don''t think it''s a practical problem. I was told that, and when I compared the vase the shopkeeper showed me with the other vases, I found that the distortion was indeed a bit large. However, the vases here are not wheel thrown, or can not be said to be all neatly aligned. Natsuki takes up the jar, taps it lightly, and nods. How much is this? "That''s 600 rare. Hmm?¡¡Hmm? Isn''t it unexpectedly expensive? I think it''s rather cheap, considering that it''s all made by hand. (What do you think, Natsuki?¡¡(What do you think, Natsuki? Isn''t it cheaper than expected?) (Maybe, but I think it will sell a lot for daily use.¡¡(Maybe, but I think it will sell a lot for daily use. (I see.) (Even if it can be mass-produced by mechanization, it won''t be cheap if it can''t be sold.) Okay, let''s buy it. When I nodded my head, Ms. Aera, perhaps waiting for me, approached the shopkeeper. I''m going to buy this vase and this vase too, so can you give me a little discount? "Well, ......, how about 3,000 Reais for the whole lot? Yes, please do that. Aera-san said, and quickly paid the money. But then, although it may have been cheaper, I don''t know how much it was discounted. ....... So, let''s go home. Nao, can you help me with that jar? Oh, yes. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Thank you very much. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure what to do. How much should I pay?¡¡I don''t know how much it costs, so shall we settle for 600 Rea? No, no, no, that jar is my gift to you. These two jars are a little cheaper than the market price of 3,000 rares, so the shopkeeper probably thinks that the jars are just a bonus. Aera smiles as she adds, "I bought a lot of stuff at that store the other day. I heard that all the tableware used in the store was purchased there, so the price must have been quite high. "Are you sure about this, ......? Then Natsuki looked at me. It''s not like Aella can''t afford it, so she might as well pay a little. ....... I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s a small price to pay for a ding dong, that jar. It''s true that buying two dingles would cost more than this jar. But then again, the ding dong is too expensive. ...... would be grateful. Thank you. Thank you very much. I thanked Aella again, and we got the jar for free. 54-049 Lets make sauce! (2) When I returned to Aella''s store, I found Haruka and Toya already there. According to Yuki, the blackboard in the store was a little big, so she went to call them first and then went to pick it up. Nice to meet you, Aella. I''m Haruka. I''m Toya. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you both. We''ve been working with Nao and the others. Don''t worry about it. We just had some time on our hands because I was busy with other things. Thank you very much. So, shall we make the inspiration sauce first? Yes, after the pork cutlet. Yes. The kitchen ...... is a little cramped, so let''s bring it here. The kitchen was originally designed for Ms. Aella to work alone, but it was impossible for all of us to work in it. We cleaned the jar we had bought and put it on the table. The first thing we''ll do is to get some inspirational sauce. The jar that Aera-san was carrying was about a size larger than the one I had bought, and when she showed me the inside, I could see that it was about 80% full of sauce. He put about a third of it in the big jar that Aella bought, and put the other half in our jar. She put about a third of it in a big jar that Aella bought, and put the other half in our jar. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. I''ve heard of people making eel sauce and other sauces by adding more and more, but I think this is too little sauce to use as a base. ....... Yes, it''s fine. If the amount is small, it will take a little longer. But in that case, it''s better to chop the ingredients as finely as possible. Oh, really? Next is the fruit, this time dindol. Not only the skin, but the fruit as well, that''s really extravagant! It''s too expensive to buy. Are you going to pack everything you picked today? Three backpacks are almost full, so it''s a lot, but two large jars and two small jars should be enough. No, no, no!¡¡No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. It''s not like the ...... dindle is too good? Yes, of course. It''s all about taste, right? Of course it is!¡¡It''s a matter of taste, isn''t it? Yes, it is. It''s a matter of taste, isn''t it? Yuki and Natsuki agreed with me. Obviously they just want to eat Ding Dongs. Well, more than half of them were taken by Aella, so I don''t mind. ...... Yeah, yeah. I need dessert with my pork cutlet! Right. Aella-san, should I chop up the dindol and add it? Before I could change my mind, Natsuki took out the dindle and started to put it on the table. "Yes. Wash them clean, remove the stems, and chop the skin into small pieces as well. Please wait a moment. Aella brought out a large tub of water and began to wash and chop the dingdol and put it in the jar. She washed and chopped the dingdol and put it in the jar. "Oh, don''t put it in this jar. "Oh, don''t put it in this jar, I''ll use it for pork cutlet sauce later. "Oh, that''s what you need. It''s not difficult to chop them anyway, but Aella is the fastest. Her knife work is invisible to the naked eye. Next up were the skilled Haruka and Yuki, followed slightly later by Natsuki. Natsuki muttered, "It''s ...... a bit humiliating to lose to Yuki," suggesting that Natsuki was originally a better cook than her. By the way, Toya and I are about the same. If I tell you that while I process one, Haruka and her friends process two, and Aera-san processes at least three, will you understand how delicate we are? But even so, thanks to the [Dismantling] skill, I think I''m better with knives than I was in the original world. "Okay, that''s about it. I''ll mix it well at this stage. After chopping half of the total number of dindol and dividing it into portions according to the size of the jar, Aella-san mixed it well so that it would be mixed with the sauce at the bottom. The dindol is quite fresh, so if you mix it thoroughly, the pulp will be crushed and it will be a little looser than ketchup at this point. If you have a large jar with a lot of dingdol, it will be mostly dingdol juice (with skin), and there will be only a faint smell of sauce left. At this point, you can leave it alone if you don''t want to, but it is faster to mix it. If you''re making it at home, it doesn''t really matter because you''ll be adding it little by little. In this case, there is only a little amount of sauce because of the large amount of ingredients, but usually, the pieces of fruits and vegetables are submerged in the sauce, so you can leave them alone. Next is the appropriate vegetable. Let''s use what we have. We don''t have any customers and a lot of the vegetables are wilting. ...... ...... ...... ...... Aera-san smiled a little darkly -- scary. With our help, we brought in several crates of vegetables from the refrigerator that were, as Aella said, a bit wilted. Needless to say, these were foodstuffs that we had bought with the aim of making a small profit. Please put these vegetables in their respective jars in an orderly fashion. I don''t think any of them are rotten, but please be careful. "Can I put all of this in?¡¡Can I put all of this in the jar? ...... No problem. It can be made properly even if it''s done properly. However, you should be a little careful when you put in vegetables with a strong smell. Again, I just keep washing and chopping. I desperately need a food processor. While Toya, Haruka, and the others were looking quite tired, Aella, who was chopping the most, was moving at a steady pace. Aera-san, how can you keep going at that speed? Hahaha, it''s pretty tough to be a chef. It was not uncommon for me to peel potatoes for half a day. In the beginning, I dreamed about it. ....... Compared to that, this is a piece of cake that can be chopped into small pieces. The training of a chef is said to be tough even today, but in this world, it is even tougher. Since there are no machines that can perform simple tasks, a large restaurant would have to do them all by hand. In other words, the work would be passed on to newcomers. Did you still want to be a chef? "Yes. When I was living at home, I used to cook for people I knew, but I wanted more people to try my cooking. It''s always been my dream to have my own restaurant. In order to achieve this goal, I worked hard on my cooking skills and saved up money. ...... Thinking about the restaurant, I was able to endure the hard training. It took me a long time to get to this point, but now I finally have a restaurant and I''m ready to start ....... ""........." We''re silent. Who are you?¡¡Who duped such a nice guy! We look at each other and nod in agreement. We''ve got to get back on track, we''re not going to sleep well. A few days ago, I didn''t know what to do. ...... I''m really grateful to Nao-san for coming into the store at that time. "Oh, no, it''s just luck. We''re glad we met you too. You know? Yeah, we got to know some great places to eat. She taught me how to make aspirin sauce. I''m glad to hear you say that. As we talked, we repeated the process of adding and stirring the vegetables several times, and by the time the crates were empty, each jar was more than 80% full. Thank you for your hard work. You''re almost done. Next is the potatoes. The next item in the crate was potatoes, which are used to make mashed potatoes. They are quite cheap and are often eaten as a staple instead of bread. I chopped them up and added them to the sauce, but unlike other vegetables, you don''t want to just add them to the sauce, because they are the key to the sweetness. My sauce is a little sweet, so I put about five in this jar. So, in our jar, it would be about four? Well, there are no fruits in this jar other than the ...... dindol, so five might be fine. I took Aella''s advice and chopped up five potatoes and put them in. Aella''s large jar is many times larger than that, so you will still have to chop dozens of potatoes. Next comes the herbs. I''ll put in the ones I picked in the forest today. You can use whatever you like, but if it has a strong aroma, you might want to go a little easy on it. It''s your choice. This time, I tore it up by hand and threw it into the jar. I don''t know how much to add or subtract, so I just do what Aella tells me to do. My goal is the sauce that Aella-san gave me, so it''s no problem. Lastly, spices. Use less salt. Use less salt and less of the other spices. If you add too many stimulants, you''ll never get it back. What if I add the wrong one? What if you make a mistake? I once dropped a jar of spices into the sauce, and my ...... mother was very angry. Aera laughs at this. In normal cooking, if you make a mistake, you can just throw it away, but in the case of an inspirational sauce, you need the inspirational sauce to make it. There is no way we can throw it away. In that case, we might as well keep them in two separate containers. If one of them fails, we can always get it back. After a week of stirring, it is ready to use. Stirring occasionally will speed up the process. While saying this, Aera brought a long wooden spatula from the kitchen, like those used in food processing factories, and stirred it around, but the contents were hardly moving. But the contents were barely moving. We were small enough to stir it somehow. "Noooooooo, it''s really heavy. "Oh, Aella, I''ll do it. I''ll do it. ...... Excuse me, please. Toya. He looked at the jar and at Toya for a while, but he thought it was impossible to mix the two pots, so he gave the wooden spatula to Toya. Toya took the spoon and stirred the jar from the bottom with a relatively light touch, but it didn''t look like a sauce at all. It''s more like a chopped salad. Aella, are you sure this is okay?¡¡It doesn''t look like a sauce at all. "Yes, it''s fine. "Yes, it''s fine. It looks like this now, but the water will come out after a night. In three days, it will be very saucy. If you want to make a completely smooth sauce, you should stir it occasionally for about a week. "In a week, this is what ...... If you put salt on pickles and put a weight on top of them, they will become very runny overnight, so it is understandable that they will become runny. However, I don''t understand how that sauce can be made in a week. I wonder what kind of fungus has such an excellent metabolic function. Rather, the black sauce itself is a bacteria, or perhaps a slime... Oh, no. I''ll think no more about it. I won''t be able to eat that delicious sauce. "This is the end of the work for now. Thank you for your time. "Thank you, Aella. Now it''s my turn. It''s time for the pork cutlet! Aera-san leaned forward with a smile on her face. 55-050 Lets make tonkatsu! I hope I don''t disappoint you. ...... Let''s just go to the kitchen. I can''t cook in here. Yes! Haruka and Aella, smiling a little, moved into the kitchen. The rest of us are watching from the corner of the kitchen. It''s too small for us to work together. "We need oil first, so let''s start with the meat. "All right. I understand. We just need to get the fat part. We set up a big pot and put the fat from the boar into it. There is a lot of fat under the skin, so it piles up quickly. Ms. Aera''s skill is particularly impressive. She neatly removes the fatty part from the meat. "Hey, frying pork cutlets in lard seems to be really bad for you, doesn''t it? I''m under the impression that salad oil is the best way to fry things. ...... Some places use lard for frying.¡¡It''s solid at room temperature so it doesn''t get sticky or something.¡¡I don''t know if it''s good or bad for you. It''s full of cholesterol. I don''t know if it''s good or bad for you. But I don''t think it''s right to just use salad oil and say, ''No cholesterol! It''s not a lie that vegetable oils have no cholesterol. It''s not a lie. When it comes to food, what is good or bad for you is ultimately a matter of quantity. Even if something is good for you, it can be harmful if you eat a lot of it. There are many things that are harmful if you eat a lot of them. If all the people who started the diet were to follow it seriously, there would be a lot of health problems, wouldn''t there? Most people will probably stop before that happens, though. "Ms. Aera, you''re so used to this. --That''s good enough for me. I''ve processed a lot of meat. Are you going to use all of this?¡¡That''s a lot of meat. Yes. Put it on the fire and melt it. Okay. Ms. Aella lifts the pot, places it on the stove, and does something with it. Is that a ...... magic tool? I think a wood stove is more common, but Aera-san seems to be spending a lot of money in this area. Or is this another result of being taken in by a "self-proclaimed consultant"? "I''m going to make a thick slice of meat next. ...... What part of the meat do you think is best? "I''ll go with the loin. "I think I prefer the fillet. Nao likes loin, doesn''t she? I''m not so picky, but yes. A bite-sized filet is good, but a thick cutlet is more satisfying and feels more like a pork cutlet. This is one of the reasons why I feel like I''m being extravagant, but I guess I''m poor. For now, let''s try making it with various parts of the body, focusing on the loin. Aera-san, can you cut the loin into pieces of roughly this size and thickness? Yes. When you have cut the loin into a certain number of pieces, pound it and salt it lightly. Use the batter liquid to make it easier. Ms. Aella, do you have eggs? Yes, we do, but ...... it''s going to be expensive to serve in the restaurant. Unlike today, when you can buy eggs at unbelievably low prices, eggs in this era are quite expensive. Since eggs were sold at a reasonable price, poultry farming must have been going on, but at least it was not industrial cage farming. Eggs became readily available in Japan long after the end of World War II, so it is not surprising. Water is fine, but it would be better to use eggs. I''ll leave it to you to decide what to do. As she said this, Haruka made a liquid mixture of egg and flour. It looks like tempura. "Hey, Natsuki, is that what you call batter liquid?¡¡It''s different from the way I know how to make pork cutlets. "At your place, do you use flour, egg solution and breadcrumbs?¡¡In some places, it''s flour, milk, flour, egg solution and bread crumbs. We do the former. So you dip the meat in that and then bread it? Yes, we do. If you use that batter liquid, it seems to be easy to make and hard to fail, right?¡¡I don''t use it, though. From the tone of his voice, I''d say he was being subtle. I''m not picky, so as long as it tastes good, it''s fine. "Aella, do you have any bread?¡¡I don''t mind if it''s a little hard. ...... Thanks. Natsuki, shave this off. Yes, sir. I''m sure you''ll have a lot of fun with it. "Wow. You put this in the hot oil, right? "Yes, that''s right. It''s not so difficult as long as you pay attention to the temperature of the oil. ...... I''ll try it. After dropping the breadcrumbs into the oil and measuring the temperature, Haruka put the battered meat into the oil. With a light sound, an appetizing aroma drifted into the air. It''s just the smell of oil, so it doesn''t smell very good in itself, but I guess it''s a kind of conditioned reflex. I''ll give you about this much. Would you like to try it? "Yes! Haruka gives up his place and Aella starts frying the pork cutlet. At first, she was a little fearful, but as she fried a few pieces, her hands quickly became more confident. The amount of pork cutlets made was enough to feed six people, so it took only about ten minutes to finish frying all of them. That''s it. All you have to do is put some sauce on it and eat it as it is, or put it between two pieces of bread. ...... It''s a bit sad for a meal. The pork cutlet looked so good that I wanted to eat it right away, but it was not nutritionally balanced. There is a ding dong for dessert, but I would like a salad if possible. In that case, I''ll make something for you. I''ll make you something, since you have fresh offal. The moment I thought, "I want a salad," you did that? The moment I thought "I want a salad", I thought of a salad made from offal, not that there''s anything wrong with that. "Fresh offal" is too much of a power word. "...... fresh offal? Yeah, it''s tricky, isn''t it? Haruka looked a little taken aback by the word that sounded so dangerous. So I added a few words of my own. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Oh, I see. ....... Aera-san, can I watch you?¡¡I don''t know much about cooking motsu, like how to process it. I''m not familiar with how to cook motsu, but I''m curious, because motsu is perceived as food, even if it means the same thing. "Yes, that''s fine. If you go hunting frequently, it''s good to know how to process it. Internal organs are often avoided because they are easily damaged, but it doesn''t matter if we eat them right away. With that, Aella took out the heart, liver, kidneys, and tongue from the refrigerator. She laid them out on the cutting board. Clearly, it was grotesque. You can call it tongue, but it still looks the same. "So let''s get started. A child cutting open a heart with a smile (appearance only). It looks pretty bad just from the word itself. I''ll wait for you in the audience. I''ll wait in the audience. Thank you for waiting. In the end, Toya and I waited in the audience, while Natsuki and Yuki observed the cooking. As a professional, Ms. Aera''s skills were excellent, and we didn''t have to wait long before we were served with vegetable soup, stir-fried motsu and grilled meat, in addition to tonkatsu. Ooh, that looks good!¡¡But I think I''ll have the pork cutlet first! But first of all, the pork cutlet!" Toya took the jar of sauce that Aera had offered him, poured it over the pork cutlet, and bit into it. "Yumah!¡¡Uah-hi-ho! Don''t talk with food in your mouth. I can understand what you''re saying, but... But I was waiting for the same thing, so I took a bite of the pork cutlet. Hmm~! The crunchy texture, the sweet sauce, and the juices that flowed from the meat combined to make a very tasty dish. I guess the meat itself is delicious. At the very least, it''s a cut above the ordinary pork we usually buy at home. The only drawback is that if you use coarser breadcrumbs, the crispiness may be enhanced. I used some leftover dry bread crumbs and grated them with a regular grater, so they were quite fine. But even so, Haruka and Aella were eating it with their cheeks relaxed, so it must be a dish that is well suited to the palates of the people of this world. I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... Hmmm. A little softer bread, and a little accent would be nice. I''m sure you''ll agree. What do they put in the cutlet sandwiches they sell? Cabbage or lettuce?¡¡Did some of them have mustard in them? But these will sell!¡¡When I finish the sauce, I''ll start selling it. The problem is how much to sell it for. ...... What''s the cost? Well, it depends on what part you use, but if you put in this much and use the cheapest part, you can get by with ......15 rare. The size of the meat that Aera-san showed us was about 50 grams. If you buy meat in this world, it is a little more expensive than in the original world. The average price of the meat we get is about five rares a gram, but this is the price with the fat and bones attached, so if you cut out only the edible parts, the quantity will probably be much less. The pork cutlet itself is pretty good no matter which part you choose. That''s right!¡¡I''ve never eaten a pork cutlet before, but it was delicious and fell apart easily! I''ve never had pork cutlet before, but it was really good. I''m not a fan of belly meat, but everything else was good. Yuki and Haruka nodded their heads in agreement, so they must have agreed. I would eat one once in a while. Or you could boil it, drain the fat, and fry it. I think it''s better to buy the whole animal and use the best parts for more expensive dishes. You need a lot of fat to make pork cutlets. How about you, Aella, as a professional? "It''s better if you can buy it, but it''s difficult for a butcher. But it''s difficult for butchers. They don''t like to buy everything. In this world, livestock farming is limited to a few areas, so butchers in this city buy what hunters and adventurers like us hunt. Inevitably, the amount of meat they receive is not stable, and if they allow people to buy one animal, they will not have enough to sell to others. It is only through livestock farming and distribution that we can easily ''order one more animal''. Hmmm, we hunt a lot, so we can sell one head wholesale. ...... "Really?¡¡We''ll pay you more than the butcher!¡¡You can even buy the organs if you bring them to us. So, if you don''t go through a butcher, you can sell the offal because it''s readily available. All of the motsu dishes that Aera-san made were delicious, and it would be a good business. What do you think, guys? "I don''t mind. Tohya immediately agreed, and Yuki and Natsuki nodded in agreement. I''m fine with it, but ...... we''re not going to be hunting boars all the time, are we?¡¡What about that? Haruka also nodded, but complained about the stable supply. We''ll have to sell them on a limited basis when they come in, or think of other ways to get them. We don''t want to be in trouble if we suddenly can''t buy any more, so I think it''s better to keep looking for sources, you know?¡¡We don''t want to have to suddenly lose them, so I think it''s better to keep looking for sources. The original idea was to sell them early in the morning as a publicity stunt. If we''re going to shift to a more upscale style, there''s certainly no need to force ourselves to sell early in the morning. Aera-san nodded her head in agreement with our words. That''s right. I''ll think about it as well. For the time being, we''d like to start a week after the source is available. "Okay. Well, I guess we''d better get going. We''ve got to get ready for tomorrow. Aella, will you be okay tomorrow?¡¡Do you need any help? No, I''m going to be on my own.¡¡Besides, you''ve already helped me enough. Aera-san then looked at the strangely high-level store sign and the store''s menu sign. Even though it was written in all-white chalk, the shaded pictures and typography - or is it typography?¡¡The decorative letters are just too good. Yuki drew it in her spare time, an unexpected skill that I didn''t even know she had. If I had colored chalk, I could have done a bit more," she said, and I couldn''t believe she was slightly unhappy with the result. We''ll be back from time to time, so please feel free to ask us if you have any problems. "Thank you very much. We said good night to Ms. Aella, who bowed to us, and went back to the inn. 56-051 Get a house (1) No, I''ve heard that inspirational sauce is good, but seriously, how good is it? Really. I honestly can''t believe that they could make that sauce with just a little bit of effort. After returning to the Bear Pavilion, Haruka cleansed us, and we changed into our loungewear, we were chatting in front of the jar of sauce we brought back. You''re fighting the efforts of the sauce maker, aren''t you? --I don''t know much about it. I don''t know the details, but I''m sure they spend a lot of time researching and making okonomiyaki sauce and Worcestershire sauce. But thanks to this sauce, I''m sure my meals will be much better. Seriously, that''s it!¡¡The fact that Nao went to Aella''s store is the greatest fine play in this world, I promise! Don''t say that so forcefully. --I can''t deny it. I have to admit, I was almost despairing of this world''s cuisine because the first thing we ate was that dish from Sahlstat, but I guess some things are better than others. No, no, the majority of the food is not good, so you can''t be too careful.¡¡Eighty percent of the food I''ve eaten in this city has been at a level I never want to eat again. I don''t eat out that many times, but aside from this inn, the only place I would go back to is that fancy coffee shop. I don''t think I''ll ever go back to that restaurant now that I know about Aella''s restaurant. But even if we use the sauce, it''s useless unless we cook it ourselves. How''s the house, Haruka? Haruka, what about the house?" "Well, my teaching is over for today, and they''re going to show me some potential ones tomorrow. Let''s all go take a look. I''m so excited. It''s so exciting to see our own house. If we''re going to do this, we''d like to build the house we like, but is that something we can look forward to in the future? No, no, no, at our age we can''t possibly build a new house. You don''t have ......, do you? Maybe in the country. I''m an adult, after all. You do? That''s great. We can''t even say ....... Considering that a week or so ago we had about 10 million yen. But since it was easily blown away when we bought equipment, we''ll probably never be able to realistically afford it as long as we continue to be adventurers. I''m not sure if I''ll ever be able to afford it again.¡¡Have you finished everything? Yes, yes!¡¡Wait a minute. And then Toya brought out a metal plate and stick? That''s not a shield ....... A shovel? Whoa!¡¡Yuki, you''re right!¡¡It''s a portable shovel. "It''s a portable shovel," Toya said, and inserted the stick he was holding into the metal plate, which indeed became a shovel. I really wanted to make a collapsible one like the ones used by the Self-Defense Forces, but it was technically impossible, so I made an assembled one. I heard that the old Japanese army used one of these. I took a look at it, which I had received from Toya. The metal part is only about the size of a book, but there is a place to put your feet on it, which seems to be useful for digging holes. The tip of the shovel seems to be well forged and sturdy, but it is an ordinary shovel with nothing worth mentioning except for the handle. Did this become a handout?¡¡I thought you went to get Tommy an apprenticeship. Toya must have judged that it was safe to introduce Tommy, considering his diligent work over the past few days and his character in the original world, but from Mr. Ganz''s point of view, he was just a person brought in by one of his customers. But from Gantz''s point of view, he was just a person brought in by one of his customers. Isn''t making a mere shovel a weak hand? No, no, no, no. Shovels are pretty awesome, you know?¡¡Some people even say that it is the most common personal weapon to kill people. But that has nothing to do with it. It''s true that Mr. Gantz mainly focuses on weapons and armor, but I''m sure he didn''t market the shovel as a weapon. Of course, as a tool for digging holes, right? Sure, they didn''t sell shovels, but they had something similar. No, no, no. Shovels have been around for a long time, haven''t they?¡¡There have always been plowshares, though. That''s what''s in the textbook. It was made of wood and had a metal tip. It had a pointed end so you could put your foot on it and put pressure on it, and also so you could carry the soil you scooped up. That seems to be important. It''s a tool that could be sold if it didn''t exist. It''s useful for construction work, and as an adventurer, it''s useful in many ways. Tools for digging toilets and campsites are very important. A hoe can be used, but it is still difficult to use. Well, it''s important to sell it, but I also wanted him to see how hard I worked to make it. I guess that''s why Gantz-san allowed me to become his apprentice. Oh, so you got your apprenticeship? Yeah. Tommy''s happy, I got to try my hand at blacksmithing, and I got a shovel. Not bad, huh? I was thinking and doing more than I thought. I''m sorry to say, but I didn''t expect that. I wondered what he was talking about when he said he was going to be a "brainiac" or something stupid like that. Yuki and the others were nodding their heads in admiration and looking at the shovel. Well, he''s always been pretty good at taking care of people, hasn''t he? "Well, Wakabayashi, you named him Tommy, right?¡¡I''m sure he''ll be relieved to have a stable job. "Yes. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that, but I''d like to be able to help my classmates. Natsuki said this kindly, but Haruka nodded and smiled. Yes, as long as it''s not a mine. Yes. That''s why I can''t casually look for a classmate. Just contacting them can cause problems. ...... They looked at each other and sighed heavily. I''m not sure what to make of this. ...... No, we haven''t met directly, but Tanaka and Takahashi have already left, plus seven or eight others whose names I haven''t identified. Considering this, the odds are less than 10%. The risk of contact is too high. It is also possible that the mines have already left and there are many decent classmates left. The next day, Diora was a little bit nervous. The next day, we all headed out to look at the properties when Diora was free. He introduced us to three properties in total. We went through them in order. --The first house. This one has a large garden. I''m sure you''ll have plenty of room for wielding swords and spears and for mock battles. No, Mr. Diora, isn''t a large garden, or rather a ...... garden, the only thing you have? No, no, there is a building there, isn''t there? Yes, there is, but isn''t that a storage room? The first place Diora showed us was a large plot of land, five to six times the size of the Bear Pavilion. It was a large vacant lot, overgrown with trees and grass. There''s a building in the corner of the lot, but as Haruka says, it''s just a storage room, no matter how you look at it. There used to be a rather large mansion there. It was originally a rather large mansion, but it gradually fell into disrepair while there was no one living there, so it was torn down. Rundown buildings become a hangout for people of bad character. The problem of vacant houses was also serious in Japan, but in the case of Japan, the biggest problem was that when a house collapses, it causes trouble for the people around it. The site is too small. There have been stories of abandoned hotels becoming hangouts for delinquents, but I''ve never heard of a broken-down house living in a vacant house of an ordinary house. I''m not sure if that''s because the homeless in Japan are basically in the cities or because the police are functioning well. ....... Diora, the garden is as you requested, but the building is not as you requested. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that," he said, nodding as if he understood. The building is just a bonus here. That shed can be removed if it''s in the way. You mean we have to build our own house? Yes. Then the house will be exactly as you want, right?¡¡And the rent is only two gold coins a month for this much land! Two gold coins, or 2,000 Reais. Two gold coins, or 2,000 rials. I don''t know what the market is like around here. But when you move out, you must leave the house intact. Well, I''m not going to tear it down just because you''re leaving. It would be a waste of money to demolish the house, and the person who leased the land would have the building as an asset, so they wouldn''t complain, right? But as I said this, Natsuki shook her head and whispered, "No, Nao-kun. (No, Nao-kun. When you rent land in Japan, you are obligated to restore the land to its original state, which means that you have to remove all the buildings and other items before returning it to the original state. (Is that so?) Yes. In some cases, you can use the property as a place to live, but most of the time, it''s just a distraction. (When you move out, it''s usually when there''s a problem.) If it''s a good house that''s comfortable to live in, you don''t move; if it''s a profitable store, you don''t close it down. If the house is old and you are moving out, you don''t need the house, and if the business is not profitable and you are going out of business, you won''t be able to find tenants for the same type of property. This is why landlords do not want to leave their buildings as they are. In the case of Japan, the building''s property tax is also added, so not only the cost of demolition but also the cost of maintenance is incurred. (Well, in the case of residential areas, a reduced tax rate is applied if there is a house on the property, so I can''t say that vacant land is generally better. (I guess things are different in this world, huh?) I don''t know about the taxation system in this world, but it''s probably not as detailed as in Japan. The only tax we''ve ever paid is one large silver coin when entering a city. Maybe it''s included in the money we sell to the guild or the fees we pay at the inn. Hmmm, it looks like we''ll get what we want, but financially it''s going to be tough. That''s right. Diora-san, do you have any idea how much it would cost to build a house like the one we wanted? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to afford it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to afford it. If you save a lot of money on ......, you can do it with about 100 large gold coins. "No!¡¡Absolutely not! "Yes, I suppose so. That''s a lot of money. Yuki and Natsuki immediately said something negative about the amount Diora mentioned, but on the contrary, I, Toya and Haruka fell silent. I actually had that much money until a while ago. There was some kind of special demand for the dindle, but it was not an impossible amount. ....... I think Diora knows this, and that''s part of the reason she introduced me to this site. Most of the transactions are done through Diora. The three of us looked at each other and sighed as we thought about this. Mr. Diora, we''ll hold off for now. Can you show us the next one? That''s right. It''s not the kind of money you can make a decision on right away. What?¡¡Haruka, you''re not rejecting it, you''re withholding it?¡¡You can''t afford it, can you? I can''t say that. Well, it''s on hold, as close to rejection as possible. Let''s move on. "Uh, yeah, ......? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. --The second house. This is a mansion where a certain nobleman''s mistress used to live. The grounds are smaller than before, but it is a magnificent two-story house with a beautiful garden that is well maintained. "Oh, this garden is beautiful?¡¡This garden looks even worse than the one I just saw. Yes, it''s beautiful. It used to be. It used to be beautiful, but now it''s even more desolate because of all the trees. Hmm. If it''s a lawn garden, the grass will just grow back, but if it''s a garden with trees, it will become overgrown with big trees. As the leaves fall, decomposing soil will form, and the plants will flourish. I mean, the trees are so thick that I can''t even see the building from here. Diora explained this to me in front of the gate of the property. All you can see from here is the garden, which is almost a forest. "Mr. Diora, are you coming in? "Are you coming in? What?¡¡We can''t see anything if we don''t go in, can we?¡¡It''s true that it''s a little uncomfortable to go into the forest like this, but we can just knock it off, right? Toya has brought his sword, so he can lead the way. Are we going in? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. ...... You don''t seem to like it, do you?¡¡What''s the deal with this place? "This place costs five gold pieces a month. I think that says it all. What''s going on? As I said, this used to be the home of a certain nobleman''s mistress, but due to various reasons, it is now vacant. No, I mean, what exactly happened to it? A lot of things. So... It''s ????!¡¡Okay? Yes, I understand. You''re smiling but your eyes aren''t smiling at all, Diora. You''re too scary. It''s a matter of aristocracy, so it''s not good to get involved. So, Diora, now that you know what''s going on (????), is there any real damage? No, it''s nothing serious. It''s just that people who borrow ...... often get sick. No big deal! Don''t worry. The link has not been proven. I don''t feel safe at all!¡¡Do you think you could live here, Diora? No, I''m a believer in that sort of thing. Diora shakes her head. I''m not a believer, I''m a believer. Well, it''s a world where magic exists. I don''t think it''s surprising that there are grudges and such. "Don''t introduce me to that. ....... Reject it, reject it. Right. I''m relieved I didn''t have to go in there. Let''s move on. Diora says simply and walks away. Maybe Mr. Diora didn''t really mean to recommend it. Maybe she has a quota or something, or maybe it''s not good if she doesn''t introduce them? 57-052 Get a house (2) --The third house The size of the site here is between the first and second houses. The building is a one-story house, but it has a good amount of space. It''s a little old and may need some repairs. Is there anything special about this place? Haruka looked at Diora with a frown, perhaps because of what had just happened, but Diora laughed and shook her head. It''s normal here. As you can see, there is a field here, but he has grown old and now lives in a small house in the center of town. The reason why the site is so large is because the town of Laffan was built by taking in the entire village and the fields that used to surround it. There used to be houses like this around here too, but as the town grew, houses were built by dividing the large plot of land, and now there are hardly any left. This place costs 12 gold coins, but I think it fulfills Haruka and her friends'' needs quite well. It''s quite expensive ....... I don''t know what the rent is, but I''m not sure. I don''t know the market rate for rent, but it seems a little high considering the cost of accommodation at the Bear Pavilion. It is probably cheaper in other parts of Japan. Haruka, would you like to take a look inside? "Yes. We''re here to see the house. That''s true. Ms. Diora, may I come in? Yes, of course. I''ll open the door. Ms. Diora unlocked the door and we went inside, where we split up and looked around. There were not many rotten parts, probably because it was less humid than in Japan, but there were some leaks, and the laundry room was too small to put a bath tub. There are four private rooms, one large room, and a large barn. The biggest problem for me personally is that the kitchen is small and in poor condition. You may have seen the kitchen of Aella''s place the other day, but it is so bad. To be honest, I wonder if it is possible to make good food here. After taking some time to look around, we gathered again in front of the house and looked at each other, but the expressions on our faces were not good. How did it go? ...... I answered Haruka''s question with some hesitation. It''s not that I can''t live there, but if you ask me if I want to, I''d say no. "No, you can''t. I''m not sure I want to live here either. ...... Despite the fact that Diora was there to introduce them, Toya answered clearly and Natsuki refused modestly. Yuki is smiling without saying anything, but from the expression on her face, it seems that Yuki doesn''t like this house either. I think it''s a little hard for me too, this house. I think it''s a bit expensive. ....... Don''t you think so, Diora? "Well, I guess that''s the landlord''s way of compensating for the memories. It''s their precious house, so they overestimate it a little. ...... I see. If a real estate agent were to intervene, he or she would be able to evaluate the value of the house with a certain coolness, but when it''s their own house, they overestimate the good parts and underestimate the bad parts. "You don''t have any other properties, do you? There aren''t many spacious houses in this area. Basically, this area is not a place for rich people, so most of the houses are small. This house would be a little less expensive if there were similar houses around it. ...... Are they staying high because there is no competition or comparison? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Hmmm, Mr. Diora, let me ask you something. "Yes. To be honest, I think it would be difficult for you to decide. Of course, it''s perfectly fine if you choose not to rent. Thank you. I''ll discuss it with you. We pulled away from Mr. Diora and put our foreheads together. What do you think? "Well, that''s difficult. The first house is empty and this one is in a state of disrepair. The first house has no house, and this house is in this condition. I haven''t seen the second house, but I''ll try. Yuki, what are you trying to do? "...... to get rid of it? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. "...... Yuki, are you a priestess or a sister or something? No, it has nothing to do with that. None of my relatives have anything to do with religion. If anything, I think Natsuki would be a good fit for a priestess. Indeed. Haruka''s hair color has changed since she came here, but Natsuki''s hair is black and she has a Japanese atmosphere, so she would look good as a shrine maiden. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. You''re better than me. I don''t know if maidens are effective against ghosts here! Yuki is not like Natsuki, who is a legitimate ...... shrine maiden, but an anime style shrine maiden. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You''re forgetting about Haruka, aren''t you? "Haruka?¡¡What about elves and priestesses?¡¡--No, is that even possible? You might even look good in kimonos. You don''t have breasts, so in a way, you''re perfect for it. No, you''re not!¡¡It''s light magic!¡¡This is what Purify is all about! "............?¡¡I''m sure you''ve heard of it. "Yes, it was. It''s so convenient that I completely forgot about it. I didn''t expect Toya to point it out to me. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Haruka? I''m sure you can do it magically, but you''re not good enough. You can''t do that with your abilities. You''ll find a lot of people who''ll be able to do this.¡¡Do you think the nobleman''s house would have been abandoned if I could manage it? That''s right. I was expecting to live in a nobleman''s mansion. Apparently, that was the reason Yuki was pushing. I can''t help but feel a little sorry for her. "Let''s get a few things straight. "We''ll give up the big yard and rent another house. Find another place with higher rent. "Give up and continue living in an inn. Build a house on the first property. I think those are the only options, what do you think? "Well, I guess that''s about it. We both nodded our heads in agreement to the options Haruka presented. I''d rather not live in a house without a garden. I''d prefer not to live in a house without a garden. We''ll have to go outside the city every time we want to train, right? We can''t just do it on the street. Yeah. I guess we all agree on that. The others nodded in agreement. Daily training is a must for us, so this is something I don''t want to give up. I''m sure you''ll agree with me.¡¡Alchemy. In addition to cooking, we were discussing renting a house in order to secure a place to keep the tools necessary for alchemy and the books necessary for studying magic. If she continued to live in the inn, all of those things would be ruined. That''s right. We want to eat good food, but we also want to leave the inn so we can hone our skills. So, both of the remaining options are expensive. ...... First, how much money do you have now? Rent in an upscale neighborhood with a big house, the cost of building a new house . Surely, all of these would be substantial. So the amount of money you have is important. ...... To be honest, I have very little. I''ve just ordered chainmail for Yuki and Natsuki. Ugh, sorry. We didn''t have much money on us. ...... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. But it''s a necessary expense. I''m not going to let you two get hurt. No, it''s necessary, and that''s perfectly fine. Yeah, it was cheap compared to Toya. Natsuki is about the same size as me, and Yuki is a little smaller, so the chainmail was a little cheaper. As the name implies, chainmail is made by weaving metal into a chain, so the labor and material costs are proportional to the size. In other words, the price is almost proportional as well. If you''re not careful, the difference in price is so great that you could buy chainmail for two people with one large Toya. All the ...... options are gone, right? As it stands, yes. So you''re saying we save our money for a while? It''s the only way. And I''d suggest renting your first property and building a house. I also find the idea of being able to build a house of my own choice very appealing, but ...... is a bit of a waste of money, don''t you think? If I could find a good place to rent, I would. I''m not sure what to make of it. The town is basically a peaceful country town. Because of this, there are few adventurers, and most of the residents are ordinary people who have settled in this town. Many immigrants moved to the city when it was first settled, and most of them live in their own properties, so there is little demand for rental houses with gardens. Houses for the aristocracy and the rich are sometimes available for various reasons, but they are not affordable for us. So, if we want to make our wish come true, we have to build it by ourselves. We''d like to buy the first house if we can. "Are you buying it, Haruka?¡¡Real estate is not very liquid, and cash assets are better, don''t you think?¡¡We''re not going to settle here, are we? "If we had a bank, yes, but... We''re still low-rank adventurers, right? I see, that''s why. The illiquidity of real estate is an advantage here, isn''t it? You can''t run away with land and buildings. If you buy a piece of land, you can sell it if you leave the city. If you rent the land, you lose the entire cost of the building. That''s what the contract says. It''s also a way to show them that we''re spending money in an understandable way. Yeah, there''s a good chance they''ll think we''ve got money. We brought in quite a few dinars each time. It''s easy to imagine how much money we make if you know what they''re worth. In fact, most of the money was spent on weapons and armor, but my spear was the only thing that stood out. "Oh, what do you mean? To put it simply, if we had money, we might be attacked, so we decided to squander it in an understandable way. I''m not sure I understand what Haruka and Natsuki are saying, but Haruka sums it up in a nutshell. If possible, I''d like to buy some land first. Even if it means living in an inn for a while. With two gold coins a month, why don''t you build a house first? If we build the house, they won''t sell it. If we build the house, they won''t sell it. They''ll get the house for free when we leave. Oh, I see. Let''s ask Mr. Diora about it. Haruka then called out to Mr. Diora, who was wandering around aimlessly at a distance. "Hey, Mr. Diora. "Hey, Mr. Diora, can we buy the first house? "Buy it out?¡¡The owner wants to rent it out. ...... For your information, what''s the going rate? Around here, 400 gold pieces would be enough, but it''s up to the owner to decide if he wants to sell. From my point of view, it seems cheap, but since land in Japan is basically expensive, it''s not a good comparison. At least if you build a house of a certain size, it is certain that the house will be more expensive than the land. That''s why you can rent the land cheaply. As long as you come back later with a house. Mr. Diora, can''t you negotiate? "Hmmm, negotiate? ...... A slightly reluctant expression appeared on his face, as if he wasn''t too keen on the idea. It''s not the adventurer''s guild''s main business to begin with, so it''s understandable. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''m not sure. It''s an expensive fruit, and it''s a gift. It''s an expensive fruit and might make a good gift. "That''s right. It could be used as a thank-you gift for people who have been good to us. It was too obvious a bait, but Diora couldn''t ignore it. He changed his reluctant expression to a smile and called out to Haruka. I''m not sure.¡¡You can''t be sure, but let''s try to negotiate, shall we? I''m not sure, but I''ll do my best to negotiate with you." "Oh, there''s no need to push yourself.¡¡If it''s just land, you might be able to get it in other areas. ...... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. It''s not a bad choice.¡¡It''s not a bad choice, I think. "Really?¡¡Can I ask you to do it then? Yes, we''ll take care of it! We need to make some money, and there''s no need to rush, so just sit back and negotiate. I don''t mind if the price is less than the market price, but if it''s cheaper, we''ll have to thank you for your hard work, won''t we? "I''ll do my best! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. 58-S005 Tommy Rysshi (1) After leaving Azuma-san - or should I say Haruka-san? --After leaving them, I was walking alone along the road leading to the city of Laffan. It''s been about two weeks since I parted ways with the two people who were with me when I came to this world. To be frank, we were not close friends in the original world, but we had spent a few days together, so I was quite upset when they died. However, after a few days passed, I realized that the reason for my upset was not the sadness of the death of my acquaintance but the anxiety of having no one to rely on, and I became quite depressed with self-loathing. Well, that self-loathing didn''t last more than a day. In a sense, you will die of starvation if you are fluent and carefree in self-loathing. There was only a limited amount of food available in the forest, and since I had no success in making a fire, the only food I could eat was raw food. It would have been different if I had been able to make a bow cone, but I couldn''t even turn black from rubbing together wood that had fallen on the ground. That''s why my body grew weaker day by day, and finally I collapsed in a daze. I closed my eyes thinking that I was finally going to be welcomed, so when I opened my eyes again, I thought for a moment that I had come to the other side. I thought I had come to the other world for a moment when I opened my eyes and saw a beautiful woman in front of me. I immediately recognized Mr. Nagai and knew it was real. To be honest, at that time, I was so relieved and thought, "Thank God! I thought I was saved, but the reality was quite harsh. But the reality was quite harsh. Haruka told me to live by myself. At that time, I thought, "Why didn''t you help me? At the time, I was thinking, "Why didn''t you help me? !" But when I thought about it calmly, it was obvious. Haruka and the others were sent to this world under the same conditions, and they''re probably struggling to make ends meet. And yet, it''s risky to carry a burden alone. When Nagai told me this, I realized that even though we''re classmates, we''re still strangers. I have no obligation to take care of their lives. In the original world, if a classmate moved into my house and stayed, I would normally call the police. The situation was worse than in the original world, but I was the one who was insane for asking for help without any reason. Even when I complained, Haruka and the others - though they were a bit harsh - kindly gave me advice and eventually lent me money. Thirty large silver coins. Three times the amount I had from the beginning. According to Haruka, they were worth about 30,000 yen. He lent me the money even though he had no expectation of being able to pay it back, saying that it would be better if he could afford it. It''s heartbreaking to be alone, but financially I have a fourfold advantage over other people. It may be difficult for me to become a useful person like I told Haruka at the end, but I hope I can at least pay back the money I borrowed with interest. I''m not sure what to say. I think I walked for about an hour after I left Haruka and the others. When I arrived at the town of Raffan, I paid a large silver coin to the gatekeeper and asked for the location of the adventurer''s guild, and headed there. On the way, I peeked into stores to check prices. The difference in prices depends on the ...... item. You can find a lot of things that are cheaper or more expensive when you simply convert them to 10 yen per rarity, but I would venture to say that labor costs are cheaper? I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you have. To use an extreme example, if you make a sugar craft, the breakdown of the price is mostly "labor cost" in the modern world and "sugar price" here. Considering the price of raw materials, processed products are cheaper. Food from food stalls is also quite cheap, considering the quantity. On the other hand, rare items such as fruits and spices are quite expensive. You can''t afford them with the money you have now. "Oh, that''s the fruit that Nao-kun gave me earlier, isn''t it?¡¡I''m sure you''re right. A large silver coin is said to be 100 rares, which is about 1,000 yen, which means the fruit is worth about 6,000 yen. I ate three of them just now. ...... They didn''t say anything to me, but I think I did something pretty bad ....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do with the money you have. "Ugh ...... I''ve been treated and ...... I might have had a pretty bad attitude. I''ve seen in some social experiments that even in modern society, most people ignore a dead-end when they see one. However, Haruka and her friends rescued a suspicious person - I am at least aware that a bearded man is suspicious - who was lying in the forest. They didn''t even know he was a classmate at first, so they must be kind enough to care for others even in such a state. I''ll thank you again when I see you again. To do that, I need to be independent. I headed for the Adventurer''s Guild, asking for directions. It seemed to be near the south gate, not the east gate, and it was quite a distance away, but the Adventurer''s Guild was a magnificent building that was easy to find once you got there. "Okay, ......! I opened the door and went inside, a little nervous. This is the Adventurer''s Guild ....... Before I had time to be deeply moved, I heard a shout. Why didn''t you introduce me? You abandoned your job the other day, didn''t you, Yasue?¡¡We''ve received a complaint from the store. That''s ....... You may have had a reason, but you disappeared without notice and didn''t even come to explain the situation. It''s out of the question. What? Yasue? When I looked over there, I saw someone who looked like a classmate having a dispute with the counter person. I remembered Haruka''s advice, looked around and moved to a place where we would not meet. Well, it seems that Nao and the others didn''t figure it out either, so I don''t think there''s any need to worry about them finding out. The difference between her original form and her current form is too great. The only similarity is that you''re shorter. And that''s a tribal thing, so it''s not a clue. Anyway, I can''t offer you a job for a while. Also, please go to your place of work and apologize to them. If you don''t, I won''t be able to find you any more work. All right! I avert my gaze from the woman who is approaching with thudding footsteps and pretend to read the bulletin board next to the entrance. I pretend to read the bulletin board next to the entrance, because even if she doesn''t know I''m a classmate, it''s too much trouble to get involved. "d*mn it!¡¡I can''t use the skills I''ve copied and I''ll lose my job!¡¡I can''t do this! I''m not sure if she''s even paying attention to me, but she''s complaining and opening the door roughly to leave. --I don''t know who Yasue-san is.¡¡I don''t know, because I can only remember a few girls'' first names. The few I do remember? Pretty girls. It''s only natural for boys, right? I''m sure all the boys in the class know the names of Haruka-san, Shito-san and Furumiya-san who are always with Haruka-san. I don''t know Yasue, so I guess she''s not one of those girls, but I think I''ve seen her ...... face before. --But that guy said "copy", right? Yeah, I see, that''s a mine. That''s a minefield. He''s a minefield as a person, not as a skill. It seems he copied someone else''s skills without permission, and he also complained to the guild members. If you leave your part-time job in the middle of the day, you''re bound to get fired. Even I understand that in this world, trust is more important than in the original world. There are no resumes, no guarantors, etc., so the store doesn''t want to put someone who can''t be trusted to work. With that in mind, it would be quite difficult to get an apprentice for my blacksmith. There is no guarantee that the person you hire as an apprentice will not become a robber. Even in the modern age, if you want someone to live in your house and work for you, you''d have to hire them by fate. Oh, I''ve come to register with the guild. I need to find a place to stay, so let''s sign up as soon as possible. I approached the woman at the counter, who looked a little tired from dealing with people in trouble. Hello, sister. Hello. What can I do for you today? "Registration, please. Yes, registration. That''ll be 300 Reais. Here we go. I''ll give you three large silver coins. At this point, I already have four and there are six left. What if Haruka didn''t lend me the money? That would be tough. "Yes, indeed. Do I need to explain? "Yes, please. While listening to her explanation about the Adventurer''s Guild, I filled out the form. All I have to write is my name, race, and personal PR. I wrote, "I''m strong and sturdy. I really wanted to write ''I have a talent for blacksmithing'', but since there seems to be no way for people in this world to check my skills, I avoided it. It would just make me sound like a weird, overconfident guy. The guild card that was made for me was pretty simple, and it didn''t seem to have any magical features at all. It''s a bit of a dream breaker. It''s a little bit of a dream breaker. Are there any more questions? "No, I''m fine. So, I was wondering if you could introduce me to a job. Well, you''re not asking me to be an adventurer, are you? Yes. To be honest, I''d like to be like you and Nagai, gathering and killing enemies outside the city, but I don''t think I''m capable of that right now. In the novel, there is a boy who is transferred to another world and becomes an adventurer all by himself, but how ballsy is that? You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. If you think it''s no big deal, you should try spending a night in the mountains in the countryside.¡¡It''s not like a campground or anything. If I were to recommend a job to you, Tommy, it would have to be manual labor, but to be frank, there''s a lot of competition for good jobs. "Is that so? Yes. Everyone comes early in the morning and stands in line. It''s a little hard to say, but what''s left here now are the bad jobs that no one else has taken. ...... Can I get a better job if I come back tomorrow? I can''t say for sure, but it''s very likely. Is there competition in that area? If I don''t have the money I''ll have to work right away, but luckily I have 3,600 Reais left. This should give you a bit of breathing room. ....... Do I have to wait in line every day to get a job? No. Once you get a day job, you can keep it unless the job runs out or you tell them you quit. That''s why everyone is desperate to find a job with good conditions. I see. So it''s all about what kind of job you can get first. If you can''t get a good job, you can change jobs every day, but if you have to wait in line and take another job every time, I doubt if they''ll trust you. By the way, is there any way to become a blacksmith''s apprentice?¡¡I want to be a blacksmith in the future. "Apprenticeship? ...... Hmmm ....... The sister then makes a difficult face and growls. I''ll be honest, it''s quite difficult. To be honest, it''s quite difficult. Basically, we don''t accept apprentices unless they are introduced by someone we know. Generally speaking, you have to go through your relatives, but since you said that, you didn''t have any relatives, right? "Yes. I don''t have any relatives to begin with. The only sane people I know are Kamiya, Nagai, and Haruka. If you''re not sane, then Yasue is too, I guess. It makes no sense at all, though. One way to do it is to keep doing these day jobs, get to know people, gain their trust, and get an introduction from someone who knows a blacksmith. If you don''t have a lot of trust, it''s difficult. So you''re saying that I should work hard and get to know people. It''s like being a guarantor, so it''s quite difficult, isn''t it? Even in the original world, it''s unlikely that you''ll become a guarantor for your work colleagues. In fact, my parents have taught me never to be a guarantor. The other way is to increase your rank as an adventurer. At the moment, I''ve just registered, so my rank is zero, but when I reach five or six, I''ll be considered a trustworthy person. Once you reach 5 or 6, you will be considered a very trustworthy person, and some blacksmiths may accept you as an apprentice. Of course, I can''t guarantee that. "I see. ...... Thank you. It''s not going to be that easy after all. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s definitely easier to become a sword smith in the original world, isn''t it?¡¡Whether you can make a living at it or not is another matter. In my case, I have parents who have regular jobs, so that alone is worth it to get a job. I''ll come back tomorrow for work, but can you recommend a suitable place to stay? "Accommodation? What kind of accommodation do you prefer?¡¡What kind of lodging do you want? - Food, safety, facilities. I''d prefer the cheapest possible. I don''t mind sharing a room if it''s reasonably safe. If so, this is a good place. You can stay here for about 100 Reais with breakfast and dinner. It''s really a minimal accommodation, but it''s not a strange one. The lady showed me a map of the city and told me where to go. The inn is located in an alleyway outside of the city center. It''s also quite far from here. It''s quite complicated, so I''m trying hard to remember the name and location. It''s a complicated place, so I tried to remember the name and location. But now I have an idea. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I''ll see you tomorrow. "Okay, have a good day. With a smile on her face, I left the Adventurer''s Guild. 59-S006 Tommy Rysshi (2) Before heading to the inn ......, I think I''ll go to the market and buy some food. Haruka and his friends have given us plenty of fruit to eat, but it''s already well past noon. My stomach is starting to growl with hunger, and I''d like to get something cheap to eat. ....... It''s a little expensive for meat, but if you don''t have a livestock business, it''s not that bad. But I guess that''s what you get when there''s no livestock industry. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something you like. If you''re raising animals on grass that humans can''t eat, but you''re feeding them corn and potatoes that they can eat, it''s more efficient for humans to eat them. Basically, it seems that raising mammals is inefficient, and the United Nations says that the most efficient source of protein is insects. However, eating insects as they are is indeed a hurdle that needs to be overcome, so we need at least one more cushion. For example, animals or fish raised on insects as food. I wonder how efficient it would be? Huh?¡¡By the way, wasn''t there a story about a silk production area where carp were raised using silkworm chrysalises as food, and carp were often eaten in that area? Oh, how efficient. Mulberries are grown for food, and the leaves for silkworms. The silkworms make silk, and the unwanted pupae are used to feed the carp. The carp can eat it. No waste. There''s no waste! Fish don''t mind eating silkworm pupae. --Some people eat the pupae themselves, though. I''m getting nervous thinking about it. I don''t mean to belittle insect eating itself, but it''s a different story when I eat it. I can''t accept it physiologically. Even in the original world, insect food is commonplace in some areas, so I can''t say that there is no such thing in the food stalls around here. If you can see it, you can avoid it. If you can''t recognize it, please don''t tell me. If you don''t notice it, it''s not a problem. "But I think I''ll have bread and fruit water today. If you forget, you can eat without worrying, but right now, you will definitely be thinking, "Is there anything in this? But now, in this state, I''ll definitely be thinking, "Is it in this? I don''t want to do that. I chose one of the cheapest stalls, a set of rye bread and fruit water for 10 Reais, and bought it. I bite into it. I bit into it. "Yeah, ......, I''m feeling bloated. The fruit water is mostly water and the rye bread is dry and tasteless. It''s only the size of your palm, so you can stuff it in your stomach with water to drown your hunger. It''s probably a kind of black bread, but it''s not as hard as I expected, so if you can stand the taste, it''s not so hard to eat. It''s not that hard to eat if you can stand the taste. Now, I''ll have to buy a change of clothes. Many of the day jobs seem to be menial, so it''s almost guaranteed that your clothes will get dirty. There is almost no chance that they will lend you work clothes, and you will be in trouble if you don''t have a change of clothes. I returned the cup to the stall owner and asked him where the second hand clothes shop and grocery store were, and headed there. I went to the second hand clothes shop. The work clothes I found at the second-hand clothing store were more expensive than I expected. I wanted at least two outfits for washing, and there were almost no choices when it came to clothes that were durable to some extent and fit my body. Still, I was fortunate that clothes in my size were sold at a disposal price, much cheaper than other clothes. There were no variations, and I guess there were almost no dwarf customers. Well, now I don''t care about design as long as it''s practical, so I''m glad it was cheap. No, it was still expensive enough, though. I also bought a headband and underwear at a general store. It was cheaper than second-hand clothes, but at this point, I had less than half the money I had, and if it hadn''t been for the money I borrowed from Haruka, I''d have been screwed, really. How did you do it, Nagai?¡¡There was no one who could lend you money like me. ...... In my case, my money quadrupled and I could barely afford it. I''m sure you''ve had a hard time. It must have been hard work. ...... And yet, if I had simply said, "You''re my classmate, let me join you," it''s no wonder they would have felt bad. Because at that time, I was obviously going to rely on you. I wasn''t trying to help each other. Even so, you lent me 3,000 Reais when we parted. To someone who had no way of paying me back. "...... Yeah, let''s work hard. The innkeeper who introduced me to the guild was shabby, to say the least. I paid 100 rares and was shown to a room where about 10 people were sleeping together, and my own space was only about a tatami mat at most. I was given only a blanket, and to be honest, it smelled bad. The food that was served was only barely edible, and not something I would enjoy eating. The next morning, I woke up as early as I could, ate breakfast again, and rushed off to the Adventurer''s Guild. There were already a few people lined up in front of the guild, which was still dimly lit, so I hurried to get behind them. All of them stared at me, so I tried to give them a friendly smile, but whether it was effective or not, they didn''t say anything. I waited for what seemed like an hour or two. The doors to the Adventurer''s Guild opened and the first people to enter began to walk in. To be honest, I thought it would be more chaotic and people would be fighting each other to get in, but it wasn''t like that at all. The appearance of the people in line was quite unbecoming - to put it bluntly, they looked like hoodlums, so in a sense, it was very uncomfortable. Later on, I was told that if you make a fuss, you will be immediately removed from the guild and will not be able to get a job. The adventurer''s guild in this world seems to be quite strict. There is no such thing as "we don''t get involved in disputes between adventurers," and if you do anything like that in the presence of guild officials, you''ll be demoted or expelled. Guilds are in a sense a business of trust, so it may be natural. Even in a modern staffing agency, if a dispatched worker causes a problem, the agency would naturally receive a complaint. Next. Yes. I woke up early to get in line, and soon it was my turn. I put my guild card on the counter, imitating the person in front of me. Good morning. Good morning. Tommy, are you ready for some well-paid manual labor? Yes, I''m confident in my strength. The lady who was working at the reception desk yesterday was in charge of me. She flipped through the job postings and handed me two of them. This one has only three days of work, but the pay is high. This one offers ten days of work, but the pay is lower than the first one. Which one do you want? Both sound like manual labor at a construction site, but I''ll take the former. I''d like to get a higher grade of accommodation at least. Seriously. This way, please. All right. Then please take this job offer to the site. Yes, sir. You take the job offer and quickly get out of the way. There was a line of strong men behind me, and I didn''t want to disturb them. I walked past them in silence, feeling nervous inside, and headed for the construction site that was written on the job offer. The work at the construction site was a little hard. A little?¡¡Yeah, a little. To be honest, I had a lot of leeway compared to the people around me. Maybe it''s because I''m a dwarf, or maybe it''s because of my [Robustness Lv.3], [Strength Lv.2], and [Iron Wall Lv.2] skills. I couldn''t do any work that required my short stature, but my strength more than made up for it, and I received compliments from the foreman. The pile driving was one of the most appreciated. There were many opportunities to drive piles at the construction site, and once I was in charge of it, all the work came to me. At the end, I was even asked, "Aren''t you a professional pile driver? This is probably a benefit of the [Kurosmithing] skill, right? It''s good that it''s helping to raise my rating, but as someone who wants to be a blacksmith, I''m feeling a little sensitive. The work is over by sunset. After receiving my paycheck, I returned to the inn, changed my clothes, washed and dried them, and went to bed to prepare for tomorrow. For the third time in a row, I was able to endure a meal that was not very tasty, thinking of it as an intake of nutrition. I was able to have lunch at a slightly better food stall that I had heard about from a workmate. The next day''s work was much the same, but thanks to a bit of familiarity, I was able to work more efficiently and collaborate more smoothly with my workmates. And finally, the third day. Physically, I was able to do the work much more easily, and the foreman even said, "We would love to have you participate in the next construction. Furthermore, even though I finished the work a little early on the last day, I was even given a little extra pay for my hard work, so I guess my work was highly appreciated. "Tommy, what do you think?¡¡Do you want to go out for a drink now? It was a colleague of mine who I had become somewhat friendly with over the past three days of work. After work, we drank cheap sake with our friends, laughing and laughing. Yeah, it''s kind of dwarvish. Not bad. That''s good!¡¡Well, then... "Tommy! What?¡¡Naga, ...... Toya-kun. Just before I said, "Let''s go," I heard a voice calling me, and when I turned around, it was not Mr. Nagai standing there, but Mr. Toya. Yes, yes, Toya, Toya. Kamiya is Nao. I''ll have to remember that. I got used to Haruka-san pretty quickly. ...... Maybe it''s because I don''t usually call her Azuma-san? I wanted to talk to you about something. ...... I''m not sure if it''s because I don''t usually call him Haruka-san or because I don''t usually call him Azuma-san. Yeah, I don''t mind. Tommy, let''s have another drink when you get a chance! "Yes, by all means! Tommy smiled and waved, then walked off with the others. I''m sorry, I didn''t mean to disturb you. I''m sorry, I didn''t mean to disturb you." "No, it''s nothing to worry about. I would have liked a drink. I''ve come to a fantasy world, and I still haven''t had an ale. Dwarves and ale, it''s a classic. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure. I''m not sure. I''m sure you''re aware of the disadvantages of heavy drinking. Yeah, yeah. It''s not just that you don''t get drunk, it''s that you don''t get strong, right? That''s right. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Sure, ....... Normally, people adjust the amount of alcohol they drink after experiencing that they feel sick after drinking this much, or that they don''t remember the next day. But this is not the case for me. If you can do a scientific test, you can measure your blood alcohol level, but that''s not possible here. "And while we''re at it, what''s the point of drinking if you can''t get drunk?¡¡Why not just drink juice? "Ugh ......, no, think of it as pure enjoyment of the taste of alcohol! Some people drink alcohol because they want to get drunk, while others enjoy the taste of alcohol. It''s good to be mature enough to judge the taste of alcohol calmly without getting drunk. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site to find out more.¡¡I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. I''m sure you''ll agree. At least it was less than beer. It tasted like ...... room temperature beer, and after the carbonation was removed. It tastes like ...... room temperature beer, and after it''s been carbonated, it''s a little sour. ...... Or is it a little different? It doesn''t sound very good to me. I''m sure there are people out there who think it''s delicious.¡¡Some people think it tastes good. It''s not like I was drinking alcohol in the original world either. I''ve heard that black beer and craft beer are drunk at room temperature, so the temperature itself is not much of an issue. Well, you should try it. At least we usually drink water. It''s free. Free is a big deal. ....... But I''d like to try it if you''ll buy me a drink! "Then let''s go to my inn. They have decent food. Yes! 60-S007 Tommy Ishi (3) The inn that Toya led us to was relatively close to the center of town, but was located in a little alleyway that was difficult to find. The restaurant was already crowded with people, even though we wouldn''t have noticed it unless someone had introduced us. I wondered if there were a lot of regulars or if it was for the locals. Come on, let''s sit down. Dad, some ale for him, water for me, and something to eat. I sat down next to him at the counter, and a mug of ale was immediately placed in front of me. This is the ale. I''d been told that it wasn''t good, but it still made my cheeks relax a little. "Thank you. "Oh. Drink up. I pick up the mug and take a sip. ...... Hmm?¡¡It''s not that good, but it''s not that bad, either. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if it''s because of the heavy drinking. I''m not sure. I''m not going to say it''s good, but it''s not undrinkable. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. Seriously?¡¡Give me some. Give me some. ...... I can''t do it. What is it?¡¡Is it a race trait?¡¡Or is it just Tommy''s taste buds? "Tasteless is terrible. But what''s a racial trait? It''s not a big deal, okay?¡¡For example, elves have a good sense of balance on trees, and beastmen like me are strong and have a good nose, that kind of thing. I thought dwarves would find alcohol more palatable. That''s very likely. If there''s alcohol in it, it tastes better. Well, if you like it, drink it. It''s not very expensive, and if you work hard, you can learn to drink. Personally, I think you should decide how much to drink beforehand. You don''t know when to stop, do you? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. I''m not sure what to do. It''s better if you can take care of yourself. I''ll be careful. "Dwarf at all costs! I''ll take care of myself." "No matter what, dwarf!" Even if you can do that, it''s not funny if you get acute alcohol poisoning from it. It would be nice if there was a race trait that made them resistant to alcohol, but I''m too scared to try it. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that.¡¡And I thought you had gone to another city. Yeah, I did. I just came back as fast as I could because my business was done smoothly. You''re still going to be based in this city for the time being, aren''t you? Oh, I see. ...... Speaking of which, Toya, do you know a guy named Yasue?¡¡She''s probably a classmate of mine. Yasue?¡¡Who is he?¡¡--What''s wrong with that guy? Oh, no, it''s just a near miss, but apparently he has a skill copy. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I don''t remember his first name.¡¡I don''t remember his first name. "Mr. Umezono?¡¡...... I think so. You''ve met him before?¡¡Come here. Yeah. He copied our skills, then ran off to pick a fight. Oh, you mean Haruka?¡¡You''ve got some nerve. I''d be too scared to do something like that. I would be too scared to do such a thing, especially now that he smiled at me a few days ago when we parted and said he would never show mercy to his enemies. I don''t know.¡¡But you can''t use [Skill Copy] unless you know the name and level of the other person''s skill, right? That''s right. He politely asked what our skills were. "So I told them," he said. You know, at that point, you are almost certain that the other party has a copy of the skill, right?¡¡Especially if it''s Haruka-san. Good answer. I''m sure you''re not the only one. And yet, you told her everything. And yet you told her everything, without explaining the disadvantages. "Oh . No, I think I left out some things that don''t have a skill level. Even so, if you tell them that you have the ability to see through, they''ll know that you know. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡I''m not sure. I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. "Hmm, as Haruka, I think she tried it.¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. In fact, you copied it without permission and sold the fight? If I had apologized honestly at that point, he might have forgiven me and helped me. Hmmm, are you really that stupid? Didn''t he realize that his lie was exposed? Did he not realize that he was being lied to, or did he think he could just copy it and be done with it? I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''ve seen her at the adventurer''s guild, but if you''re based in this town, you might run into her. If you don''t want to get into trouble, you might want to be careful. Okay, thanks. But it''s a bit of a hassle. I have to go to the guild sometimes. You''ve been good to me, and I''ll do what I can to help.¡¡I don''t have a face, you know. Oh, no, thanks for the offer, but we''ll have to report for work ourselves. That''s right. It was out of line. No, I appreciate the sentiment. Besides, even Umezono won''t complain to us that he can''t use the skills we copied without permission. "I don''t think that''s true. If someone didn''t tell him, he wouldn''t know why he couldn''t use it. I wonder if Mr. Umezono like that can honestly talk to any of his classmates who have [help]. There is also the fundamental question of whether or not you can get to know each other. Well, I''m here to help you with your business. That''s what I came to talk about. If you can wait a little longer to pay your debt, ...... It''s not impossible to pay it back with the money you have now, but it''s pretty tough to pay it back. It''s not ...... good, but it''s not urgent. The only reason I came to your place was to see how you work. In fact, I saw you yesterday. What?¡¡You did?¡¡I didn''t notice it at all. I didn''t notice it at all. - There wasn''t much room yesterday. I was trying to be undetectable, you know. You seem to be working diligently. Yes, in my own way. I''m just an amateur, but I don''t think I''ve cut corners or slacked off at all. Because I was new to the job, I worked twice as hard as anyone else, and I thought I could do it as well as one person. The foreman''s evaluation was not bad, and I think that was good. I wouldn''t have gotten involved if you were corrupt or cutting corners, but since you seem to be more serious than I thought, here''s a suggestion. It''s ......, isn''t it? Tommy, would you ever consider building a shovel? "Tommy, would you consider making a shovel? "A shovel?¡¡What, a shovel?¡¡A very ordinary one?¡¡Not like a power shovel? No, it would be awesome if we could make a power shovel, but that''s impossible, right? No, you can''t. You need at least a hydraulic system. I know at least the principle of hydraulics, but I don''t think it''s easy to make one because it requires pistons and hoses that don''t leak oil. You know?¡¡It''s just an ordinary excavator. Did you notice that there was no shovel used at the site earlier? ...... didn''t have one, did it? The tool for digging holes is a hoe. The soil that was dug out was put on a kind of implement like a fern, but the implement used to put the soil on it was a shovel. Because it is a shovel, it is quite difficult to use. By the way, according to the JIS standard, a shovel is used for digging holes, and a shovel is used for shoveling snow or scooping up dirt, but there are many ways to call them depending on the region or industry, so it is a little difficult to understand. Don''t you think shovels would sell well if they were available? Yes, I think they would be very popular because they would improve work efficiency. But how do you make one?¡¡No matter how good your blacksmithing skills are, it won''t be easy, right? In games, it''s easy to pick up iron ore, process it in the furnace to make ingots, and then smash it to make items, but in reality, it doesn''t work that way. You need a furnace and fuel to turn iron ore into iron, a furnace and fuel to process iron, and other tools. In the first place, iron ore itself would not be easy to obtain. Even if you can solve these problems and make a shovel, there is the problem of where to sell it. Do you think you can sell it at a street vendor? You can''t be that unthinking, can you?¡¡I''ve talked to a blacksmith I know. I can borrow his iron and facilities. "What?¡¡Is it really that easy to rent a craftsman? Didn''t you say it''s not easy to rent? It''s not easy, you know.¡¡It''s not easy, because I had to negotiate with someone I have a good relationship with, and I had to put some conditions on them to get their approval. Toya didn''t say it clearly, but it seems that he asked the blacksmith, who buys a lot of weapons and armor, for help. If the shovel turns out well, they''ve promised to sell it to you, but I''m not sure if they''ll be flexible enough to sell it to you. Maybe they couldn''t ignore a request from a client. And, Tommy, you want to be a blacksmith, right?¡¡Diora, the receptionist at the guild told me about you. The lady''s name is Diora, right? I''m sure you''ve heard of her, and you''ve heard of her before. You didn''t just casually come to see where I work, did you? Yeah, but ...... doesn''t have privacy protection, does it? "Well, no. If you want protection, you''ll have to be worthy of it. It''s not so much that Mr. Diora trusts ...... me more than you, is it?¡¡I''ve known him a long time, and it''s not much information, so he''ll tell me if I ask. That''s all. Ugh, it''s a tough world. Mr. Diola wouldn''t tell me if it was really bad. Maybe. Probably? You don''t give out anything you don''t want people to know. Ugh. ...... Yes. So, what''s wrong with that?¡¡I''ve been told it''s almost impossible. At least for a few years. It''s going to be very difficult to raise your adventurer rank, and it''s going to be a long time before you''ll be trusted enough to get referrals for jobs. "Oh. Depending on your results and your work ethic, you might be able to get an apprenticeship. "What?¡¡Are you sure? Yeah. He just said he''d think about it. If you take it seriously and show even a glimpse of your talent, you might have a chance. Oh, thank you very much! However!¡¡Even if you get the chance to be my apprentice, if you don''t do well or slack off, I told you to throw me out without mercy, okay? I''m still happy to have the chance! It''s not a done deal yet, but considering that I couldn''t even get in that door, I''m grateful enough to be considered. Considering the fact that introducing someone to this world is like a guarantee, I can''t thank you enough. Really. Well, that''s if I can make the shovel work. We''ll work on it tomorrow morning, so drink and eat for now. The food here is good, right? "Yes, sir!¡¡--It''s really good! I couldn''t help but say that as I took a bite of the food that the innkeeper had brought and offered to Toya. The food at the stall and the inn was basically bad, but not bad if you got a good one. The food and the ale went well together, though I didn''t have high expectations. You know?¡¡So far, I haven''t found a better place in town than this. It''s pretty cheap and it''s a nice place. Oh, by the way, Toya and his friends are staying here, aren''t they? Is it really expensive? The current lodging is cheap, but I don''t think I can stay here for a long time. Hey, Toya, how much does it cost per night here? "Here?¡¡Dad, do you have a single room here?¡¡Is there?¡¡And how much?¡¡I see. Three hundred for the room, eighty for breakfast and dinner, and fifteen for a tub of hot water. That''s about four hundred leagues in total. You didn''t answer my question, did you, Dad? The old man behind the counter didn''t say a word when Toya asked him. He doesn''t talk much, you know. He just nodded and indicated the number three with his finger, didn''t he? Oh, that''s how you figured it out?¡¡You knew about the food and the hot water, because you''re staying here. Simply put, it''s four times as much as where I''m staying now, but ...... it''s an amount I can manage if I have enough work to last me until today. Do you think I should pay that much for a good night''s sleep? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do.¡¡It depends on whether you can get an apprenticeship or not, right? "Oh, that''s right. --If I do get an apprenticeship, will I have to live with you? I don''t know. ...... Even though I introduced you to Mr. Ganz, he''s a blacksmith. I don''t know. Isn''t that a normal thing to do? "Of course. He wouldn''t trust me enough to let me stay at his house. Do you get paid as an apprentice? "You can at least stay at this inn. I mean, if you do well, you''ll be treated well, if not, you won''t be able to become a disciple. I don''t think there''s a middle ground. I''ll do my best! Oh, good luck. I''ll buy you another drink to cheer you up.¡¡Dad, another round of ale for this guy. That day, I enjoyed good food and good drinks for the first time in a long time, and I left Toya before the sun went down. 61-S008 Tommy Ishi (4) The next morning, I waited for Toya at the central square where he had assigned me. Good morning. Did I keep you waiting? No, not really. Do you guys usually start work around this time? The work itself, yes. We''re closed today for various reasons. ...... And the work itself? Of course, I get up much earlier than that.¡¡I get up in the morning, train for an hour or two, have breakfast and work. Back in town before evening, training until dinner. Then we eat and go to bed. Well, is it the same for everyone? That''s the general idea. Nao and Haruka do magic training after dinner, but I can''t use magic, so I don''t do much after dinner. I don''t do much after dinner because I can''t use magic, and it would be annoying to train in the inn yard after dark. I woke up this morning and came here as soon as I had breakfast. I came here as soon as I woke up and had breakfast, and I''m sorry I thought, "You''re late, Toya. You were much more serious than I was. "Let''s go then. This way. Oh, yes. Toya took me to a weapon shop on a street off the main road. The man who greeted us was a middle-aged, muscular man. "Hey, Toya, is that the guy you want to introduce? Good morning, sir. Good morning, Mr. Gantz. Good morning, Mr. Ganz. - Yes, he''s a serious guy. That''s up to you. Hey, Tommy, you got that? Yes, thank you. As you can see, I''m human. Is that a problem? What?¡¡Yes, as long as you take me as your apprentice, no problem at all. Do you think there is a problem between races? In my case, I''ve never met a dwarf before, so it''s a problem before that. "Hmm, I see. Well, good. Give it a try. I''ll consider it depending on the results. Thank you very much. I talked to Toya about it. Well, go ahead. Yes! All right, Tommy, let''s go. Mr. Gantz, I''ll take that. Oh, I''ll charge you for your trouble!¡¡To Haruka. Mr. Gantz, you gotta trust me. Trust me, Mr. Gantz. If you do that, you''ll be ruined. Ha-ha-ha. It''s no problem if you use it properly. At least don''t bother the girl! It''s not my girl! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m not sure what to do with it. "Yes, yes! I''m already in debt, you know. I''m already in debt." I listened intently to what Toya had to say. Something like that. Well, it''s not that hard, is it? Yes, it is. Don''t they make steel here? They buy it in iron form. Well, it would be more efficient to extract iron from iron ore on a large scale. Normally, it would be done near the place where the iron ore is produced. "No, I don''t know.¡¡Even if we had blast furnaces in this world, wouldn''t we still need to transport coal to the source? Coal is expensive to transport, but what about magic?¡¡If you have magic tools and you need less fuel, wouldn''t it be more efficient to turn it into iron at the source and transport it? "Do you have that?¡¡Do you have such a magic tool? I don''t know. What?¡¡I''m sure it''s better to make iron at the place of origin of either fuel or iron ore. I don''t know if they use more fuel or iron ore, so I don''t really know about that. I don''t know if it uses more fuel or iron ore, but I don''t know. Now, the first thing I''m going to make is a portable shovel. "Portable?¡¡Isn''t that the kind they sell at Home Depot? No, no, let''s go through the steps.¡¡If possible, I wanted a folding type like the ones used by the Self-Defense Forces. ...... No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Oh, you know about that, Tommy? Yeah, well, he''s a boy, right?¡¡He''s a boy. The Self-Defense Forces use a collapsible shovel, also known as an enpi. After it is extended, it is fixed with screws. The shovel can also be fixed at 90 degrees and used as a hoe, which is a high performance shovel, but the folding mechanism and screws are extremely difficult to make. Then, what about the shovel of the old Japanese army? Well, was it the end of the shovel and the rod? "Oh, that. Make it. The old Japanese army shovel was quite simple, simply a shovel with the handle removed and a wooden handle. When you use it, you insert it. There is no special mechanism. It''s simple in structure and small in size, so it''s perfect for practice, right? Yes, it is. Okay, let''s do it! So says Toya, who starts to build a fire in the furnace. Are you going to make one too? That''s right. I have the [Kurosmithing] skill too, and I''ve negotiated hard. I have to do it, right? I see. I see. I helped him build a fire, and heat and beat the iron plate. Thanks to my skills, I can form it into the shape I want relatively smoothly. Toya seems to be struggling a little, so I guess that''s the difference in level. Toya, do you have a stick for the handle? "Yes, I have it ready. Just match it to this one. He gave me a sturdy stick, about 60 cm long and 3 cm in diameter. He measured the size of it and made it so that it could be inserted. It took about an hour. After an hour or so, I finished the work, lightly sharpened the tip, and inserted the stick. It looks like a shovel, but it''s not. ....... "Toya, it''s done, but... "Oh, you''ve done it already? I''m sure you''re a level 3 talent, right? Yeah. There''s a door to the backyard. Why don''t you give it a try? Okay. I took the finished shovel and went out to the backyard, where I found a cozy place with some junk. Conveniently or not, the ground was quite hard. "Yes! I thrust into the ground and stepped in. "Hmm?¡¡Hmmm. It sticks, but the sensation of stepping into the ground is somewhat unreliable. If you put a little more force into it, it might go a little bit off. ....... If you take the handle down further, you''ll hear an unpleasant snapping sound. It''s a good idea to take a look at it and see if it''s cracked. This is a failure. ...... As I walked back inside with my shoulders slumped, Toya called out to me. How did it go? "A failure. Like this. Was the steel a little thin? The problem is not the thickness. The problem is not the thickness, but the shape and the way it''s forged, isn''t it?¡¡See, compared to mine, the center part here. The only part that sticks out is the part where you insert the handle.¡¡By extending it to the end in a neat way, it will become a beam-like structure and become stronger. "Oh, I see. ...... It''s not quite the same, but it''s like corrugated cardboard that''s stronger when it''s wavy. The other thing is the shape of the scooping part. The other thing is that the shape of the scooping part needs to be a little more ...... creative, so if it''s cracked, does that mean it needs to be more flexible than rigid? "Toya, a lot of things make sense to me, but ...... I have a higher skill level than you, right? I understand, but I don''t agree with you in a subtle way. There''s a level 1 and a level 3, and I''m the one with the qualities. This is not the same as skill level. For example, if you need iron with 80% stiffness and 20% toughness, I think Tommy can train it precisely. On the other hand, I may aim for 15% of 85%. But if Tommy doesn''t know that, what''s the point? ...... I see, so even if you can train to the exact shape you have in mind, what good is it if the shape you have in mind is useless? In that respect, my memory is more correct. In my case, I have a hard time getting the shape I want. After he finished shaping it, he carefully sharpened the tip of the shovel. He seems to be sharpening it to the point where it looks like it''s ready to cut. Does a shovel really need to be sharpened like that? I think you''ll soon overtake Mr. Gantz in skill alone. But it''s going to take time for you to learn what it takes to actually be a blacksmith, isn''t it?¡¡Don''t get too carried away, okay?¡¡I''ll come and break your nose. Well, I''m clumsy, so I might break your jawbone instead of your nose. That''s not a metaphor, that''s physics! I know what you mean. My motto is ''humility''. I''ll start using it today! Yeah, that''s probably a good idea. My ladies will come to break your spirit. By the way, not only Haruka-san, but also Shidou-san and Furumiya-san have joined us. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡It''s a little distorted, but it''s tolerable. Let''s give it a try. With that, I followed Toya out to the backyard. He sticks it in the ground just like I do, steps on it, and uses the principle of leverage to dig up the soil. Then he lifts the shovel and checks it. It looks fine to me. ....... Toya nodded his head in agreement, placed the shovel on the ground inside out, and started stomping on it. I''m not sure what you mean.¡¡What are you doing? No, it wouldn''t be good if it warped like this, would it?¡¡The hammer ...... is too much. That''s enough. Toya grabs a handful of rocks from the corner of the yard and drops them onto the shovel without hesitation. The stone rolls away with a crunching sound. Does the shovel look okay on ......? The shovel is ...... okay for now. Tommy, you have a [Muscle Strengthener], right?¡¡Try to twist it as hard as you can. If you''re okay with that, I don''t think you''ll be able to. ...... Hmm. I hold it on the diagonal and twist it as hard as I can, but sure enough, it doesn''t seem to distort. It seems to be fine. I''m a little concerned about the hammer marks, but it''s a good first piece. No, I think it''s great that you succeeded with your first one. ...... That''s not true. I just copied it. I think it''s great if you came up with this shape on your first try, but you had a model, you knew the reason for the structure, and you just copied it. And here I am, a skill level 3 who failed to imitate it. Either I have a bad memory or you have a good memory. "Is the steel as thick?¡¡No, it''s a little bit thicker.¡¡Can I use this as a reference? "Yes, if we make it in the same shape, Tommy will be able to make a better one. Since he gave me permission, I tried to make a copy of the shape. This time it took me less than half an hour.¡¡When I put a lot of pressure on it, it was completely different from the first one I made, and there was no danger at all. The thickness of the iron was changed only a little, but the shape and quenching process made such a difference. When I tried to make the same thing again, I was able to make almost the same thing in even less time. I guess that''s the difference in skill. It''s no problem to do the same thing once you''ve made it, but you don''t know what shape it should be at first, so even if your skill level is high, you still have to learn that part. That''s true, isn''t it?¡¡My guys have taken up magic and alchemy skills, but they buy books and study them every day. I''m going to have to study hard too. The problem is that books are expensive. We don''t have a library. Oh, so they''re expensive? In yen terms, you have to be prepared to pay more than 100,000 yen. For one book. Whoa!¡¡That''s too much! Even if I spent all my money, I wouldn''t be able to buy even one book. If you think about it, the environment where you can study with little or no money if you want to, is precious. I didn''t realize it when I was in that environment. That''s why it''s an apprenticeship. So let''s make the regular size next. "Yes! 62-S009 Tommy Rysshi (5) This is the real deal, the kind of shovel you can buy at a home improvement store. We didn''t have one because we lived in an apartment building, but I''ve used one. You can''t just make it bigger, can you? "No, of course not. "No, you can''t. The handle is twice as long. The force on the end of the shovel is also doubled due to the principle of leverage. If it''s the same thickness, is there a chance it could bend? No, but there was a lot of room, so we''ll have to experiment with that. How about the thickness of the handle? It should be as thick as you can comfortably hold.¡¡The cross-sectional area of the handle is proportional to the square of the radius. It''s quite strong even with the current thickness, so I think it will be strong enough. If the cross-sectional area is doubled, the strength is doubled? Oh, no? I think circular shapes have three times the strength against bending. ......? I don''t remember exactly, but I seem to remember seeing something like that. I don''t remember much, but I remember seeing something like that. I don''t think I can break the handle of a shovel. But people in this world are very physically strong, aren''t they? ...... Oh, there it is!¡¡Then there''s that. I think it''s better to decide on the thickness of the handle, and take advice from Mr. Gantz to decide on the material. In this world, there is wood with high strength. It seems that the handle of the spear Nao-kun is using is made of pseudo-ironwood, a very strong wood. However, it''s an expensive material, so it''s not likely to be used for shovels. I''ll make a prototype of the tip first. "Okay, I''ll try to make one too. The shape is a larger version of the previous one. For the thickness of the steel, I tried to make it as thick as possible, remembering the shovel I remembered. Also, this one has a fixed handle, so extend the steel cover upward to support the handle. ...... It''s done. It didn''t take much time because there wasn''t much difference, but ...... it was already suspicious to the touch. It doesn''t bend when you put a lot of pressure on it, but it looks dangerous. Hmmm, I made it a little thicker, but it''s not strong enough. ...... "Let me see. Yeah, it''s definitely a little thicker, but you''re forgetting the quality of the steel. Oh! Toya touched my shovel, nodded and pointed it out. If you think about it, the iron used in modern industry is iron whose carbon and other metal contents have been carefully calculated. As long as we are using iron that is obviously inferior in strength, there is no way the same thickness will work. Why don''t you make it thicker at first and test it? "Okay. I took Toya''s advice and made a prototype with a much thicker thickness. I fixed the tip and attached a handle about one and a half times longer than I had planned, and put all my weight on it. It won''t bend. Tonya, can you try it? Yes. It won''t bend even if I press it with my weight and recoil. It seems to be strong enough as it is, but on the other hand, it''s heavy. If it is to be used for construction, it must be made as light as possible or it will directly cause fatigue. Since it is difficult to devise a shape, we tried to see how thin we could make it without changing the shape. After several prototypes, I was able to achieve a level of strength that was not a problem even if the thickness was reduced to about half the initial level. Once that was achieved, the rest was easy. I made the handle thick enough for me, a small dwarf, to hold easily, and attached the end of the handle based on what I remembered. It''s good, isn''t it? "Yes, it is!¡¡Let''s try it out right away! I went out to the backyard, dug a hole, and did the strength test that Toya had done. Fortunately, my shovel was able to withstand all the tests. I felt that dropping rocks or something like that was a bit excessive, but I changed my mind when I was told that it could happen if it was used at a construction site. It''s true that there are many tools that break at construction sites even if they are not handled roughly on purpose, so I think strong tools are appreciated. "Are you sure this is finished? "Isn''t it good?¡¡It''s a good thing that it''s been used so much in the original world.¡¡The shape can''t be easily improved. I know. Well, I don''t think my product is that perfect. I wonder if mass-produced products are made by press work. Probably, they have an optimal shape calculated by a computer. I just imitated the shape of mine, so I might be able to make it a little stronger if I work harder. ...... It''s not easy, though. I''d like to make it a little lighter if possible. You''d have to change the material. What material?¡¡Oh, mithril! Who would use mithril for a shovel?¡¡I don''t know if mithril exists, but... Some other alloy?¡¡Or something. What''s a good alloy? I don''t know! I asked him if he could use it, to which he replied confidently. It''s not working. That''s something you should talk to Gantz-san about. I''m not sure if this is an alloy or some other metal, but I don''t even know what it is. What about using them? No, you can''t use ......, can you?¡¡I don''t think it''s just the price of the material, but our weapons are really expensive, you know? ...... Oh, by the way, did I mention that we spent over 8 million yen here? I''m sure you''ve bought some armor and Haruka''s equipment, but from that I''m guessing it''s not going to be the price of a shovel. I guess that''s as far as our knowledge goes. Now that we have a product, let''s show it to Mr. Gantz. What were you working on, Toya? "I was making this. What Toya picked up was something a little larger than a shovel, but with a slightly different shape. Is that a shovel? Yeah. When I was observing Tommy''s construction site, he seemed to be having a hard time scooping up the soil he had dug up. A shovel is good, but wouldn''t it be useful to have a shovel specifically for scooping?¡¡It''s not like you''re digging in the dirt, so it''s thinner and therefore lighter. A shovel can be substituted for the shovel. ...... Indeed, if done well, it could be sold as a set. The shovel can scoop up a larger amount of soil, and if it is light, it can reduce fatigue. I think there is a demand for it. I took the shovel and twisted it lightly, but it didn''t bend like that, so it seems to be strong enough to carry soil. Shall we put a handle on it, then? Oh, please. When you''re done, let''s take a break. You need to hydrate. Oh, yeah. I''ve been so busy I forgot. I was working in front of a hot furnace, and I found myself sweating a lot. When I became aware of it, I realized that I was also very thirsty. As I quickly attached the handle, Toya came back with a bottle of water. Here. Thank you very much. It''s almost noon. Oh, is it that time already? He had been working so hard that the time had gone by faster than he expected. As I exhaled and relaxed my body, Toya took out a piece of dried meat and started to chew it. By the way, I didn''t prepare lunch. So far we''ve been eating at a nearby food stall. ...... Shall we go buy something? "Tommy, you want some? "Oh, you don''t mind?¡¡I''ll have some. As if he noticed that I was looking at him with this in mind, he held out a bag of dried meat to me. I put out my hand and took a bite. "Mmm!¡¡It''s delicious!¡¡I didn''t know dried meat was so tasty! I thought it would just be hard and sour, but it''s not that at all. The taste is completely different from the beef jerky I had in the original world, but the taste is comparable to it. Is this expensive?¡¡If it''s not that expensive, you might as well just have bread and this instead of buying it at the stall. It''s made by Haruka. The ones you buy at those stores are not good. "...... Oh, I see. I''m disappointed. I thought I''d found something I could eat with peace of mind. "If you want, I can give it to you for about the same price as some dried meat. Oh, really? I made a good amount of it. But it''s meat, so it''s not that cheap, you know? That''s right. You know, it''s hard to afford skewered meat. ...... In the original world, beef jerky was quite expensive. With my pocket money, I would have hesitated to buy it casually. But it would be a shame to give up the taste! "Yes, I''ll buy it!¡¡--I''ll buy it when I can afford it. "Good luck. Okay, this is a parting gift. I''ll do it. I''ll give you a parting gift," said Toya, handing me the bag in his hand. There''s still a lot of stuff in it, so it''ll cost a lot if you buy it, right? "Are you sure?¡¡Thank you very much. Eat it while you work on your training. Do you think I can get an apprenticeship at ......? It''s not a problem. If this doesn''t work, I guess I''ll just have to go the ...... straightforward route and earn Gantz-san''s trust. Ugh. ...... I''m worried. Maybe it''ll be okay. --I think he''s here. What? After a while, I heard footsteps and Mr. Ganz came in. "Hey, how''s it going? Toya smiled at Gantz''s casual question and pointed to the shovels he had lined up. Gantz-san, it''s done! "What?¡¡Already? I told you I have the shape in my head.¡¡You said you had the shape in your head, all you had to do was build it, test it and make a few changes. Even if you can think it, it''s hard to give it shape. Let''s see. ...... Gantz inspects the shovel as he says this. "Hmm. There''s a lot of variation, isn''t there? "Yeah, this one and this one are mine. You''re not as good as I am. I''m an adventurer, remember?¡¡I''m an adventurer, I can''t help it if I''m better than him. I''m an adventurer by trade. I''m not sure what to make of this. "Yes, sir! I do as I''m told and make a shovel. I was nervous because Mr. Ganz was watching me closely from behind, but since I had already done this work several times, I was able to make it without making any mistakes. I wondered if he had the skill. I have my doubts, but I promised not to ask Toya. ...... Oh, you''ve been negotiating with me about that. Thank you, Toya! I was worried that he would pursue me because I wanted to become a blacksmith''s apprentice and he only had blacksmithing skills, which is extremely suspicious. Now, show me what you''ve got. "Okay. In the backyard. We moved to the backyard and I demonstrated how to use the shovel. It''s simple enough to use, so why don''t you show me how tough it is? Hmm, that doesn''t sound like a problem. What''s this one?¡¡It''s a different shape. This one''s for carrying dirt. Use it like this. This little one is an assembly line. Don''t you think it''ll sell to adventurers?¡¡At least I want one. Toya says so, and introduces a shovel and a portable shovel. It certainly looks like it will sell well. ...... The problem is the price. ...... "Hey, Mr. Gantz. What kind of metal is strong, light and cheap?¡¡I''ve made it strong, but it''s a little heavy. There is no such thing as a good metal!¡¡If there was, they''d be using it for weapons and armor! That''s true. If there were, they''d use it instead of steel. The weight is not a ...... question, is it?¡¡It''s not like women and children are going to use it. Do the guys in the field complain about this kind of weight? Gantz lifted the shovel and said so, but Toya shook his head. We''re going to be working for a long time, so the lighter the better, right?¡¡What about the blue iron and yellow iron used in our weapons? What about the blue iron and yellow iron we use in our weapons? "You idiot, blue iron is much heavier!¡¡First of all, the price is different from this iron. You can buy red iron for about four times the price, but it''s not as easy to work. Blue iron, yellow iron, and red iron. ...... They also sell black iron weapons, right? What other kinds of iron do you have? Hmm?¡¡Well, the only one we have is white iron. It''s about ten times more expensive, but it''s much stronger. It''s harder to work than red iron, though. It''s the same material you use for your chainmail. "Oh, really?¡¡That''s pretty good. I haven''t had any luck with it yet. If the armor helps, it means you were in danger. I''d rather not have the chance to find out. I don''t want to be in business when you don''t show up to fix it!¡¡Ha-ha-ha. I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. Blue iron and yellow iron are more expensive than that, right?¡¡I guess being an adventurer is expensive. ....... I''m sure it''s not going to be the kind of thing you can use in a normal construction project, given the price of the materials. Hmmm ......, how about a portable model for adventurers?¡¡The more light and strong it is, the more it will sell. It''s true that adventurers have a lot of money, but it''s also a good idea to have ......2 one on hand.¡¡If you don''t have a lot of money, you''ll probably want to buy a regular one, even if it''s heavier. ....... Toya, would you buy one? No, I''m not buying it. Hey! Toya, you just ruined our whole conversation. I''d rather have it made now!¡¡Mr. Gantz, I''ll pay you to share the white iron. And Tommy, make me a portable one! And Tommy, make me a portable one!" "Is ...... okay? When I looked at Mr. Ganz, he sighed and brought an ingot from the shelf and held it out to me. I don''t need the money, just make one. I don''t need the money, just make it. You can see how good he is and what it''s really worth. Gantz, you''re the man! No need to flatter me. Tommy, do it. Yes, sir! When I received the white iron ingot from Mr. Gantz, it was ...... quite light. It''s not as light as aluminum, but it''s very different from steel. It''s two or three times as strong as steel for the same thickness. Yes. But it''s not good to simply make it half as thick. You can make the tip thinner, though. ....... While thinking about this, put the ingot in the furnace and heat it up. When it''s hot enough, take it out and tap it. Gun! --It''s hard! The response is completely different from what I''ve seen so far. The shape of the ingot doesn''t change even after a little tapping, and it''s no wonder that the workability is poor. But it''s not completely unreachable. I just keep on heating and beating as my senses dictate. It took more than twice as long as before, I think. When the shape I had imagined was achieved, I stopped and sharpened the tip. This was also a bit tricky because of the hardness of the metal, but it was much easier than working with a hammer. "Yes, it''s done! The shape of the finished product was almost the same, but it was much lighter and shinier. Its luster is more like stainless steel than iron. "Here, let me see. Mr. Gantz took the shovel from me, tried to put some force into it, hit it with a hammer, and then nodded in agreement. It''s good work. How do you like it, Toya? It''s good!¡¡It''s much lighter and easier to carry. The tip is sharp enough that I need a cover. ...... I''ll have Haruka make one. This might sell. Hey, Toya, are you sure you don''t want me to sell these to you?¡¡Including the one that scoops up your dirt? Yeah, sure. But I need you to take care of Tommy for me. I know. Hey, Tommy, you''re not bad. But since you want to be my apprentice, you got to learn something, right?¡¡I''ll take care of you. Come back tomorrow. Yeah, okay! I''ll make you my apprentice. Thank you very much!¡¡I''ll do my best! Oh, good luck. You''ll be on your own faster than most apprentices. Then you can open a store in another city. I don''t want to lose customers to my apprentice. Ga-ha-ha-ha. Mr. Gantz smiled broadly as he clapped me on the back forcing my head down. I''m a blacksmith, and my back hurts like hell. I can''t talk about it, but... Good for you, Tommy. Keep up the good work. When you''re better than Mr. Gantz, I''ll order you. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Don''t worry, as long as we''re based in this city, we''ll be asking Gantz-san for help. Or will you be overtaken easily? No, of course not!¡¡I''m not so lazy that I can be easily overtaken by a young man!¡¡--I''m not so lazy that I can be easily passed over by a youngster! - Well, when you''re good enough, I can entrust you with your weapons! That''s a relief. Tommy, steal some skills from him. Hahaha ....... But, yeah. Thank you, Tonya. For everything. You saved my life. You saved me from a near-death fall a few days ago, loaned me money, and even helped me find a job. I don''t know what would have happened if I hadn''t met you guys. I honestly don''t want to think about it. At that time, Nao told me that the other world (reality) is Hell mode, and I might have felt like that if I didn''t have help. I don''t know if I would have even been able to stay at a cheap inn now. "Well, that''s good! Toya smiled good-naturedly and patted me on the shoulder a few times. And so I took my first steps as a blacksmith. It was still painful, though, to be slapped by Toya, who specializes in physical combat. 63-053 Make Money Now, that''s why we need to find some money. After parting ways with Diora, who had guild work to do, we returned to the inn. The plan is to live here for a while and save up some money. The only thing we can do is take a job at the guild. Unlike in the original world, we can''t borrow money. "To be precise, it''s not safe. You can be cheated, and if you''re not, you''ll end up a slave. There''s nothing convenient about bankruptcy. Yuki added to Haruka''s words. I wonder if Yuki also has [common sense from another world]. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "What Yuki is talking about is the actual slaves. Like the bad kind of imprisonment. It''s not as warm as it is in Japan, though they try not to kill you. I''ve heard that it''s much harder to pay back a debt than it is to work a normal job, because you''re constantly being monitored and forced to work, and of course a percentage of the debt is taken as management fees. In Japan, if you work as an imprisoned prisoner, you will receive your salary when you are released, but from that salary, not to mention food and other expenses, the cost of maintaining the prison and the wages of the guards will be deducted. The work must be hard, of course. "Yes. No debt, no debt, no debt. I don''t want to be a slave. Of course not. I''m not gonna make you do it. The danger is when you''re cheated, so everyone, not just Nao, report, communicate, consult. Don''t forget that. That''s right. You need to stay calm and consult a third party. The usual method of scamming is to make the other party lose their nerve. There may be scams specific to this world, so be careful. Everyone, be careful with each other. We all nodded in agreement with Yuki''s words. By the way, on a slightly different note, Diora, do you like dried dindol? "Not just ''dry,'' but he''s crazy about dindles themselves. And the dindle we sold him, he got it by doing something subtly abusive to his authority. "No problem! He said. It''s expensive and seasonal, so it''s useful for negotiations. Is dried dindle good? Come to think of it, Natsuki and Yuki had never tried it. Do you want to try it? Are you sure? I want some! Sure. Wait a minute. ...... Here you go. Haruka took out the dried dildos stored in a box in the corner of the room and handed one to each of them. When they received them, they looked at the dried dildos a little quizzically. "Are you going to eat this? "Yes, gulp. You can cut it into pieces if you want. The difference between dried dindol and other dried fruits is that the dindol is dried whole, in a large size. Dried fruits that are dried whole are usually no larger than apricots, and if they are larger than that, they are usually sliced and then dried. Considering this, the size and thickness of the dried dindol may seem a little strange to you. But it''s delicious. We looked at them and said, "Go ahead, eat it," and they bit into it. Then, they immediately rolled their eyes and shouted. It''s so good!¡¡It''s very sweet, but it''s also sour. ....... Even the skin is delicious! "Yeah, I''ve never had dried fruit this good before. That''s right. Yes, the drying process makes the fruit sweeter, and you can even eat the skin, which is discarded when the fruit is fresh, so it''s a bit of a bargain. Unfortunately, the refreshing acidity is reduced, and I like that too, so eating them fresh is also a good idea. I''m sure you can find it at ...... How much does it cost, by the way? Well, I''d say the market price would be no less than a thousand rares. More than a gold coin?¡¡That''s a lot! Come to think of it, we can pay for the land if we sell all the inventory. I disagree!¡¡We must keep the precious sweetness! It''s hard to say since it''s not our achievement, but if anything, I''m ...... with you. The one who immediately opposed Haruka''s words was Yuki. And Natsuki is also negative, though reluctantly. I''m more or less the same, but what about Nao and Toya? I''m willing to sell half of ...... "Yeah, ....... No, I think you should keep it. Oh, yeah, it''s so good! I immediately changed my opinion when I saw Yuki and Natsuki''s sad faces, and Toya agreed with me. We have to earn money to pay for the house anyway, so there''s no need to rush into making the ladies sad. I''ll buy some other cheap dried fruits.¡¡I''ll buy some other cheap dried fruits, though. If you look at the price to weight ratio, you can buy other dried fruits for a fraction of the price. It would be a luxury to eat only the dindol. No matter how many we had, if we all ate one or two every day, it wouldn''t last until spring. But can we make 400 gold coins in such a short time? "Yes, it sounds expensive, but if you consider that it''s only one and a half times the cost of chainmail for the two of us, it''s a little easier, don''t you think? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do. So. Well, it costs over a million Japanese yen. You can buy Toya''s chainmail or a car for that matter. But when I think about it, the old armor cost about 20 to 30 million yen, so it''s not so strange, right? Oh, really? "Yeah. It seems that samurai in the old days had a hard time. They had to spend as much as it would cost to build a mansion, and they had to tailor their armor. "Wow, ......, that must have been a lot of manual labor. Chainmail also seems to be troublesome. Just the thought of making fine chains by hand makes me sick. I''m sure it''s a lot of work, but apparently the white iron used to make it is expensive. It was Toya who said that. He had heard about it when he made the shovel at Mr. Ganz''s place. Is that so? "Yeah. It''s rustproof and light, right? I don''t know if it''s rustproof or not, but it sure seems light for a piece of steel. It''s so light that you can easily compare it to a normal piece of iron of the same size. You''d think it was aluminum for a moment. I think it''s about half the weight of steel.¡¡That''s my feeling. But it''s two or three times stronger. That''s great. It must be expensive, yeah. Oh, you didn''t know that?¡¡All this expensive armor? As she said this, Yuki lifted up the chainmail I had left lying around. You can see how light it is when she lifts it with one hand. I left that part to Gantz-san, the father of the weapon shop. It''s better than having an amateur who doesn''t know what he''s talking about. "Sure, that''s one way to go. If you can trust them. By the way, I heard that the price of the material is ten times higher than steel.¡¡The workability is also far worse. I''m thinking of stainless steel. Yeah, if you do it by hand in Japan, it''s probably not even a million dollars. Stainless steel is very hard. Even cutting a not-so-thick stainless steel wire can be quite a challenge with cheap nippers. If you think of making it from wire without using a machine, how much would it cost? ....... But 400 gold coins sounds like a lot, but if you hunted a boar every day, you could save it in less than two months. "Great ......, isn''t that great?¡¡It''s hard to understand the criteria. Yuki nodded her head. It''s hard to convert because you have to consider the hassle and danger of hunting boars, and the value of the currency depends on what you use as a standard. I usually use about 10 yen per rare, but that''s just based on the staple food, bread. If we simply convert it into Japanese yen, it would be 400,000 Reais, which is 4 million Japanese yen. Divided by five people, that''s 400,000 per month. That''s a lot of money, isn''t it? Toya simply calculated and said so. A high school graduate - no, a dropout - doesn''t earn 400,000 a month. I know that prices vary widely, and that simple comparisons are meaningless, but I''m kind of glad. 4.8 million a year including bonuses? That''s not so high if you consider that you pay all your own taxes, social insurance premiums, and expenses. If you take that into account, it''s actually half of that, maybe 2.4 million. There''s no insurance or hazard pay when your life is in danger! That''s what Natsuki and Yuki said. Suddenly my dream is gone. Somehow I feel sad. "No, no, you can earn money by hunting more than just boars.¡¡If you''re good, you can hunt more than two boars. Toya argues, but Haruka partly agrees, but questions another part. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. The problem is how long we can keep catching boars. Now is a good time of year for them to come out in large numbers, and they are getting fatter, but in the winter they will be fewer and thinner. If that happens, our income will drop drastically. Are there any deer?¡¡If there are too many of them like in Japan, we can hunt them without hesitation, right? I heard that the number of deer in Japan is at a dangerous level and if it continues to increase, it will become a serious problem. It is said that extermination of deer is being carried out, but there are few people with hunting rifles and there is no profit to be made from shooting them. This is a problem. If the deer migrate to this area, I will hunt them. The deer in Japan are caused by the disappearance of wolves. In this world, there are also demons, so I don''t think there will be too many normal animals. It is possible that the number of demons will increase and flood the world. The more animals there are, the stronger the demons will hunt them, and as a result, the more demons there will be. When the number of animals increases, stronger demons will hunt them, resulting in an increase in the number of demons. The increased number of demons will continue to hunt the animals, but if the number of demons exceeds a certain number, the territory they occupied until then will not be able to provide enough food. When this happens, it overflows out of its territory, and if there is a human settlement nearby, it attacks it. This is inundation. I''m not too happy about the fact that demons exist as natural enemies of animals. ...... If there are more of them, it is better that they are eaten by boars and deer than by goblins. There are some demons that can be eaten, but at least I don''t want to eat goblins. If the number of boars decreases, I''ll have to take the goblin''s magic stone.¡¡Even if you exclude psychological resistance, it''s not very efficient. It''s only 250 rares to crack their heads open. And considering that... "Dindol was a bonus item for elves, right? Reaching out and plucking a fruit is one goblin. It''s very efficient. If it''s that good, I''m sure non-Elves will go for it. "No, no, Toya''s not up there. If I were a human, I probably wouldn''t. That''s true. Besides, it seems like there have been a lot of accidents involving mimic adventurers. Aella was more casual about climbing than I was, but it was a huge tree, fifty meters high. The wind blowing at the top of the tree was quite strong. So we stood on the branch and picked the fruit. Then I descended with a bag full of berries. To tell the truth, it is more dangerous to descend than to climb. If I didn''t have a lifeline at the beginning, I would have probably fallen. Also, the path to the dindle tree is not safe. If you are an adventurer or a person who can avoid them to a certain extent by using [Searching for enemies], it is not that dangerous, but for ordinary people, task boars and goblins are still risky to some extent. There''s a reason they''re so expensive, right? That''s right. That''s the economic principle. Just now, Haruka mentioned ''medicinal herbs''. How profitable are those? Normally it wouldn''t be that profitable, but in our case, with the help and appraisals, it''s pretty lucrative. Diora-san was surprised when we first delivered the goods to the guild. Is that so? Normally, you have to learn exactly what kind of herb it is and how to identify it before you can find it among the many herbs, but with your skills, you can easily identify it. "In a way, it''s pretty useful for a skill that has so many mines. It''s not a cheat, but it''s a bonus skill, right? I''m sure there are a lot of people who take [Appraise], so maybe it''s the mercy of the evil gods? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Will we ever know? But Toya is the only one among us who has [Appraisal], right? I have [help]. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that," he said, glancing at Yuki. You''re right!¡¡I''m the only one who doesn''t have [Appraisal] or [Help].¡¡I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it.¡¡That has a level, right? "No, it does, but how do I teach it? It''s a skill that has a level, so you should be able to copy it, but in a way, it''s probably the most difficult skill to teach. You''ll just have to try ......! But if I don''t teach it well, I won''t get it, will I? Yes, but it''s okay. It doesn''t seem like a skill that can be acquired in the first place! That''s true. I don''t think it''s a skill that can be acquired later. "Well, why don''t you try ......?¡¡I can''t be responsible for that, can I? "Yeah, I won''t complain if it fails. I''ll do it. Appraisal level two. Okay. ...... Yeah, I got a copy. Let''s see, that''s ......, right? Toya brings out a dried dindle and offers it to Yuki. "Look at it and think, ''I want to know what this is. Then a window will appear and it will say, ''Dried dindol, a dried fruit made from dried dindol. I can''t see ............, can you? It''s not so easy after all. "Yuki, your previous skills took more than an hour. It''s not going to work the first time. What, you want me to stare at this for over an hour and think, ''I want to know what this is? Well, it needs to be taught, so maybe Toya needs to go along with it? "Oh, really? "Really? "Yeah!" Yuki and Toya looked at each other like that. Yeah, go for it. You can do it anytime, so why don''t you try a little at a time in your free time?¡¡You can do it anytime, so why don''t you try it a little at a time in your free time, and if it works, you''ll be happy. "Ugh ......, I guess I''ll just have to do that. I was hoping to get some before I went to the herb garden. Don''t worry, Yuki. I''m not going to work until tomorrow. "......, you want me to have it by tomorrow? "Well, I guess it''s time to go check out Aella-san''s store. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Hey. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Right. I hope there are some customers at lunch time. We''ll be fine. At least with that sign, I don''t think we''ll have zero customers, right? What, ignore it?¡¡Ignore you? I''m hungry, too. Let''s go. Oh, you''re hungry too?¡¡Wait, wait, wait!¡¡I''m coming too! I''m coming with you!" Yuki hurried after us, and we headed for Aella''s store. 64-054 Lunch at Aeras house In front of Aella''s store, there was a sign that Yuki had written yesterday. The only part of the menu was written by Aella herself, but the price was also written on it. Welcome to ......, everyone! We were greeted by Aella''s voice as we entered the store, with me in the lead. I guess one of the customers had just left, and she smiled at us as she cleared the tables. Looking around, we saw that the restaurant was almost full. Only one table was empty, the one Aera was clearing away now, the rest were occupied. There were only two seats available at the counter. Hello, Ms. Aella. I was a little worried, but it looks like my fears were unfounded. Yes!¡¡Thank you very much. Please wait a moment, I''ll be right back! Aera-san quickly cleared the dishes, wiped the table, and brought out a chair to make room for five people, offering it to us. Her quickness reminded me of my days of training at a restaurant. "Come on in!¡¡What would you like? "I''ll have the daily special. Do you want the same? Yes. Natsuki responded to Haruka''s words, and we nodded. I''ll have the daily special for five. Yes, thank you. Please wait a moment. Please wait a moment." Aera smiles and leaves, and we look around the restaurant again. There were 18 customers. Four were men and the rest were women. All of them were eating relatively slowly, and not as busy as at the Bear Pavilion. Perhaps it was the slightly high price range for lunch, or perhaps it was the atmosphere of the restaurant, but the expected clientele seemed to be coming in. It''s good, isn''t it? It seems to have gone well. Well... I guess the first day was a success, anyway. While I was talking with Natsuki, Aella came back with a tray. Thank you for waiting. Here is today''s daily special. Today we are using the meat that was given to us yesterday. Actually, the task boar I hunted yesterday, except for the tusks and skin, was given to Aella as a parting gift. Even though Toya eats a lot of boar meat, it''s still a small amount. There was enough left to serve at the restaurant. We''ve limited the quantity, so it comes with bread. Did you bake it, Aella? Yes. I can''t do it with a small profit, but I can do it with a limited quantity. I''ll take it then. Okay, take your time. Aera-san bowed and went back to the kitchen. I wanted to ask her how she was doing in the morning, but since she was running the restaurant by herself, she must be busy. I''ll ask her if there''s enough time on the way back, and for now, I''ll just savor the meal. First, the bread. I picked it up and found it to be soft and fluffy, the softest I''ve ever had in this world. And it even has nuts in it, doesn''t it? Hmm!¡¡It''s delicious! The nuts are fragrant and sweet, with a crunchy texture that''s hard to resist. The texture is like almonds, about a third the size, and the taste is similar to cashews. I want these nuts. Depending on the price, they''d be a good snack. Really. Your father''s bread was good, but it''s even better. I''m sure the cost is different. The meat''s pretty good too. I''d come here every day, honestly. How can there be so much difference between the same cooks? It seems to be well received by everyone. Natsuki may be comparing it to Sahlstat, but I don''t think it''s on the same level anymore. I think there are problems with the ingredients as well as the skill, but I''m glad there are more ...... good restaurants. We proceeded to eat while talking about this. Yuki is the only one staring at the dried dindle on the table as we eat. From an objective point of view, this is a rather strange behavior, but Yuki seems to be quite serious about it. "Still no? "Yes, no. Can you do it? He''s not getting any better, is he? Yeah. He doesn''t use it much, and I thought you said he''d have to study it in a book or something to make sense of it. Oh, really?¡¡Then what I''m doing is pointless, isn''t it? I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do. It''s not like there''s a manual. It''s not like there''s an instruction manual - I mean, what did it say when you made your character?¡¡Nao, do you remember? No, I''m sorry, I don''t remember. I''m sorry, I don''t remember. In a way, it''s a classic. I think there was something like "Gain information about the target" in the description before I took [Help], but I didn''t check it after that. You should have taken [Appraise] at least at level 1 before you took [Detect] at level 2, normally. I do remember a few things. I remember a little bit. I think it was something like, ''Appraising the same thing doesn''t mean anything, you need to study it. "Oh, that''s great, Natsuki. If that''s the way it''s written, can you gain experience by appraising things? "I guess so. I guess you could say that if you study while appraising various things, your level will increase. Toya nodded his head in agreement. I see. Well, I guess I''ll be using appraisal more often from now on. It doesn''t seem to consume much. "That''s right, that''s right. It might be easier to use it as you level up. The appraisal is still useful for gathering medicinal herbs, telling you which parts you need. When I level up further, ...... my dreams will swell. I''ve got a shovel now, and it''s easier to collect herbs that need roots. You can collect those too. But then, what''s the point of me staring at a dried dindle like this? "Yuki was before that. You haven''t got the skill yet. I see. And, Toya, you have to teach her better. Don''t be absurd!¡¡How do you do that? Why don''t you just watch Yuki work hard for now?¡¡I don''t understand the skill system. You''re so unreliable. Well, I''ll just watch. After a while. After taking a break to drink some tea, we left the table. The restaurant was full, but now there were two tables and four seats available at the counter. Considering the time of day, a little late for lunch, it was not too bad. Mr. Aella seems to have some time to spare, so I''ll ask him a few questions before I leave. "Ms. Aella, how was the morning sales? "Yes, it was the first day, so we kept the numbers a little low, but thanks to you, we sold out of everything. They weren''t familiar with it here, but it was a good idea to write the description and price on the blackboard. The mashed potatoes with meat wrapped around it that we were served yesterday - what was it called, I wonder? Aella, what is that dish called? "What''s that?¡¡It''s called "poste". The one I served yesterday had meat wrapped around it, so it''s called ''meat poste''. And the one you sold today? Yes, we had some meat that was given to us, so we used it. Yes, I had some meat that was given to me, so I used it. I made it 15 rare with meat, and it was very popular. Meat is expensive, so it seems to be popular to have thin meat. Today''s daily special was also very popular and there were only a few left. But is it profitable?¡¡Assuming we purchase meat as usual. "That''s not a problem, we''ve done the math. ...... But it would be great if you could come and sell it. We''ll buy the meat, too. Yes, you may bring them with you when you go hunting. Especially since the guild doesn''t buy motsu. I feel that if I bring it to the butcher, he might be able to buy some, but I owe Aella for teaching me how to get motsu. I have no reason to refuse to bring it in if they will buy it. By the way, can I use something other than task boars? "Yes, most of them. If it''s poorly processed, I''ll evaluate it. Fortunately, I have a large cold storage facility, so I can handle a lot. He must have bought it for a small profit. When I saw it yesterday, it was pretty empty, and I''m sure it can handle a boar or two. Processing. ...... If the processing is bad, can you give me some advice?¡¡We don''t know much, especially about meat. As much as I can. I''m sure you can use water magic, right Haruka?¡¡You can freeze the meat you bring in, if you want. Oh, I see, freezing is a possibility. ...... I''ll keep that in mind. Well, I''ll be back. Thanks for the food. It was good. Okay. Thank you very much. After greeting each other, we left the store with Aella''s cheerful voice. "Hey, Haruka! I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that.¡¡You must have had a lot of trouble learning the magic of making ice, right? Up until now, to keep the meat from spoiling, we''ve been putting together ice cubes that Haruka can put out. This alone was quite convenient, but it was a little troublesome to change the ice every now and then and to discard the melted water. Considering this, I think it would be convenient if the meat itself could be frozen. I haven''t tried it, but I think it might be possible. Because ice is made by pouring out water and freezing it, right?¡¡Wouldn''t it be easier to freeze something in front of you without emitting water? "Well, that makes sense. But the temperature is different, isn''t it? Water freezes when it gets below zero, but a freezer is at the level of minus 20 degrees or so. Ice doesn''t freeze at minus 1 degree Celsius, either.¡¡I don''t have a thermometer, so I can''t measure it, but I think it''s pretty low. Besides, don''t you think the ice is melting slower than at first? That''s what I think. I don''t have a watch, so I''m just using my senses, but considering the size of the ice that is left when I change it, I think Haruka is right. But, Haruka, isn''t it a bad idea to freeze them?¡¡It''s good if you can keep it frozen, but if you repeatedly thaw it and freeze it,....... It was Natsuki who pointed this out. For those who cook, it is common knowledge that repeated thawing and freezing of meat is not good. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it.¡¡We''ll have to experiment to see how long it takes for it to start melting. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡Can you make a magic bag? I''m not sure if you can make a magic bag with extended space, but you can make one with slow time delay or light weight. ...... No, you can try. It''s not that I don''t like it, but I do like it. However, a closer reading of the grimoire of space-time magic that I had obtained revealed that it was not exactly what I had in mind. Since it''s the most sought after, the basic magic bag is the one with "Extended Space" added, but the actual difficulty of adding it seems to be the same or slightly easier than "Slow Time" or "Light Weight". The reason why it is only added to high-end models is that it is difficult to duplicate it. In other words, a magic bag with only "Slow Time" added without "Extended Space" can be made with not too much difficulty. "I see. Well, let''s give it a try.¡¡I''ve read some books on alchemy and I''m familiar with it. I''ll give it a try. If it works, I''ll be able to make more money. Well, let''s pick up the necessary tools on the way back. Since alchemy requires various tools, we need to buy them or get them by ourselves. It''s hard for us to go out and get them now, so they decided to buy only the minimum amount of tools they need this time. I''m sure I''ll need some tools to make use of Natsuki''s [pharmacology], so I''d like to get some of those when I get the house. That''s right. We all have [Robustness], but that doesn''t mean we won''t get sick. It''s a little strange, but Natsuki is the strongest in that area right now. "Hmm... Yeah, I put some effort into it. If something happens, I''ll take care of you guys, okay? Natsuki smiled and said that. I''ve never been there myself, but when Natsuki was absent, Haruka went to visit her, so she must have been nursed at times. Even now, Natsuki doesn''t look so strong on the outside, but she is the one who is the most disease free in terms of specifications. I see you! ""What?" Yuki suddenly shouted, and everyone turned to look at her. What, all of a sudden? I saw it!¡¡Here, take this! "I saw it!" "Here, look!" The one holding it out was Dried Dindle. I can see it... could it be...? "Appraisal? Yes!¡¡It still only shows ''Dried Dindle'', but I can definitely see it! "Oh, you can copy [Appraisal] too? That''s great! "If [Appraisal] can be copied, then maybe the concept of ''teaching'' is looser than we thought. If you can copy [Appraisal], then maybe the concept of ''teaching'' is a little looser. It''s true that Toya''s explanation was a bit crude. No, it''s true that I don''t know how to teach more than that. However, if you have to be in the same place when you are practicing, it is quite troublesome. Even if there are other people with [Skill Copy], I don''t think they''ll be willing to teach if they have to be there for an hour or so. But this will be useful when I start collecting herbs tomorrow! That''s right. Haruka, shall we try our best to make a magic bag? "Yes, it''s worth a try. And Yuki, since you''re here, I''ll teach you alchemy. What?¡¡You just learned [Appraisal]. Just when I was relieved to finally learn the skill, Yuki rolls her eyes at me for saying that. I''m not sure what to do with it.¡¡I''m going to teach you some space-time magic. "You also have the qualities of water and fire, so you can teach them to him as well. I don''t think I''m at the level where I can use stick figures yet. What?¡¡What?¡¡Spartan?¡¡You''re a Spartan? With Yuki''s confusion evident, we pushed her back and headed back to the inn. 65-055 Lets make a magic bag So, I''ve decided to try to make a magic bag. ...... Can you do it?¡¡Haruka. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. I''ve been reading the book every chance I get since I got it, and I''ve been experimenting with it a bit, so I think I can handle it.¡¡As for the magic bag, it seems to be more of a challenge for Nao. Are you okay? I''ve been practicing ever since I got here, you know.¡¡Of course, I want to be okay ....... No, seriously. I''ve spent a lot of time on it. I''ve been practicing fire magic as well, but more heavily with space-time magic. Both have something in common in terms of controlling magic power, but space-time magic is much more difficult to control. Because of this, the sad reality is that fire magic can be improved without much practice. It''s easy and good, but it''s not as good as space-time magic, which is less challenging. ....... However, this has improved considerably since I got the grimoire. I''m also feeling good about "Extended Space", which can be used at level 3, so I''ll probably be able to handle it in a little while. "Well, let''s start with my preparations. Yuki, you''re coming with me. "Yes, sir! Yuki raises her hand in response to Haruka''s words. I''m very enthusiastic. The first thing you need to do is transfer the magic circle on this page onto the object you want to make into a magic bag. Generally, we use this special ink, but this time we''ll use this thread for embroidery. "Embroidery?¡¡Can''t you use ink?¡¡Isn''t that common? "Well, yes. First of all, the reason why we use special ink to draw the magic circle is so that we can pass the magic power over the line. A line drawn with ink and a line connected by a thread. Which do you think is easier for magic to pass through? The thread, of course.¡¡That''s the usual answer. Yeah. I''m pretty sure that''s what the book says. And the easier the magic passes, the more effective it is. Then there''s no reason not to do it. Well, you''re right. But it''s not common, is it? It''s more effective, but not as productive. Yuki, how fast can you draw a line with a pen and how fast can you embroider? More than 10 times. --I see. Even if it''s more effective, it won''t sell for ten times as much. Especially in the case of magic bags, there''s no point in going through the trouble of making them because they''ll sell immediately. I''ve heard that magic bags are always in short supply. If there is competition, there is a reason to make a better product than others, but if it sells well, there is no reason to reduce production efficiency. If you dare to make a product, it would be when you need performance without regard to cost, but such a product is not something that is generally made to order. In our case, we are inexperienced, so we want to be as effective as possible. "Hmmm, okay. I''ll just copy this and embroider it. But what''s the point if I do it?¡¡I haven''t activated the alchemy yet. I''ve talked about this with Nao and the others before, but I don''t think it''s a matter of ''I can do it because I have the skill'', it''s a matter of ''I can do it as a result of being able to do it''. For example, Natsuki, you don''t have any cooking skills, but you can cook, right? "That''s also true. I haven''t reached level 1 yet, but that doesn''t mean I can''t do alchemy. I think this is true for most skills, except for some special skills like [Help] and [Skill Copy]. In other words, the skill descriptions seem to be pretty random. It''s more like, "This is how it works. In fact, I don''t know how it works, but the fact is that it is not generally known to people in this world. If it only affects your classmates, the evil god would probably just say, "It''s good if it''s a guide. I''ll draw a magic circle in ink for Yuki for today, and you can embroider it for me, okay? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. "...... That''s true too, isn''t it? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to do. That''s why I came back with Natsuki. Toya, who can''t fight, continues training alone. Of course, I''m no good at embroidery either. I''m sure there''s something I can help you with. ...... After cleansing her sweat, Natsuki sat down on the bed and said. I''m sorry. Natsuki, you can embroider, can''t you? Yes, as well as anyone. "Yes, as good as anyone," she said modestly, but it was probably a lie. I don''t think Natsuki, who is a high level Yamato Nadeshiko, would be satisfied with the same level as others (my bias). I mean, what level of embroidery is "human level"?¡¡Can a normal person embroider? At least I can''t. I can only do wave stitching. "I''m going to draw a magic circle and I want you to trace it with your embroidery. Can you do that? I don''t mind, but I don''t know if it''s safe for me to do it.¡¡It''s alchemy, isn''t it? Yes, maybe. ...... If it doesn''t work, I''ll have to make Natsuki work for nothing. You don''t have to worry about that. If there''s a chance, it''s worth doing. Natsuki smiled at me. If it were me, I''d be forced to embroider this troublesome magic circle, and I''d be told, "It didn''t work after all. I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... No, I don''t think Haruka would say "Teehee! But Yuki might. "First we have to decide what to embroider. "Hmm?¡¡Why don''t we just embroider it on each backpack? Well, it''s not that simple. The equation for the relationship between the two is as follows. Size of the magic circle = Energy Energy = Difficulty (magic control power) x Magic power Energy = Range x Effect Level "Hmm. In other words, if you don''t have a lot of energy, you can''t make a big bag, and the effect is low. So if you increase the energy, it''s harder to make. That''s what I mean. If you don''t think about the size of the magic circle first, you might not be able to use it even though you embroidered it hard. So... How about Haruka embroidering a backpack, I embroider a medium-sized burlap sack, and Natsuki embroider a small burlap sack?¡¡And if you fail, you can just leave it until you reach a higher level. "That''s a good idea. It won''t be a complete waste. That''s true. If you fail to add it to your backpack, you can use it as a magic bag for the time being. "Oh. By the way, what happens if I put a Magic Bag with "Light Weight" inside a Magic Bag with "Slow Time"? That''s a bad idea. They would interfere with each other and neither would work. I see. It''s not that easy, is it? No. Especially if you put it in a magic bag with extended space, it will be a disaster. Why-- oh, yeah. You''ll lose the capacity expansion, so either the bag will explode or everything inside will be a mess. That''s not good for an expensive magic bag. We''d have to rebuild it, but it''d be a disaster for the average buyer, that''s for sure. It would be disastrous if they had raw meat or something in there. The flesh and blood would just splatter. Yuki laughed and said so. I''m not sure if that''s the same thing as "misery" or "splattering".¡¡It''s a bit subtle, isn''t it? Well, let''s start by drawing a magic circle on Natsuki''s bag. Yes, please. Yes, please. Haruka quickly takes out the bag, pen and ink. "Hey, can you react a little?¡¡Come on. I let you go through with it. Five points. You don''t deserve it. That''s harsh.¡¡Natsuki. It''s not elegant enough for a greeting. The scene is too dirty. Terrible!¡¡Nao! Oh, yeah. It''s ...... a bit uke? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Thank you for your concern, but I think you should have made it a little more difficult to understand.¡¡She didn''t seem to like it at all. It''s no use. Because it wasn''t popular. Natsuki''s right, the picture that comes to mind is too dirty. We''re supposed to be carrying raw meat. Yuki, you should watch this. I''ll write it down. Yes!¡¡--You bought the ink, didn''t you?¡¡Do you know what it''s made of? Yes. It''s in the book. And how to make it. Basically, it''s crushed magic stone and glue. Well, is that so?¡¡It''s like Japanese painting. "Come to think of it, Japanese painting paints also use mineral powder and glue. But this one has been processed in other ways. As you can see, it''s in an inkwell. What I mean is that a simple liquid mixture of glue and pigment has a problem in preservation. The ink that Haruka bought is a solution to this problem, making it easier to use. If you want to use it right away, though, it''s pretty easy to make. If I had the tools, I wouldn''t have had to buy it. ...... While saying this, Haruka scribbles down a magic circle. It''s a pretty complicated pattern, but she does a great job of copying it freehand. "You''re good at it, Haruka. It''s so complicated. "Hmmm, you feel your hand move?¡¡I''m sure you''ve practiced writing these magic circles as well as your weapon skills, since you''re only level one. It''s like when I use a spear, my body naturally moves. "Good. "Okay, you take this thread and embroider this magic circle. It''s better to use only one thread so that you don''t have to join it in the middle. "Okay, I got it. Did you buy this thread too? Yes. Yes, but I just bought ordinary thread and soaked it with ink. It was a surprisingly simple manufacturing method. Apparently, this thread itself is not sold because embroidery is not common and it is easy to make. Haruka drew more magic circles for Yuki and herself and began to embroider. There''s nothing I can do, so I''m going to go back and review the grimoire. I''d like to practice, but it would consume a lot of magic power. I''d like to have an embroidery frame. Yes, I do. But do you have one?¡¡I''d like to have an embroidery frame. In my case, I don''t know if I can make it because the cloth is so thick. Oh, the embroidery frame, the round one. It''s true that everyone seems to be having trouble embroidering. They are holding the cloth with their feet and pulling it with their hands. Do you need help? "Oh, sure. ...... When I say this, Haruka looks at Yuki and Natsuki and slurs her words. You can help Haruka with this.¡¡It seems to be the thickest and hardest to work with. That''s true. Ours is still easy to hold. Okay. Haruka, who is embroidering the backpack inside out, certainly looks like she''s having the hardest time. Now, can you pull me here and here?¡¡Yeah, sure. Thank you. When I pull and hold the embroidery with both hands, it seems to be much easier for Haruka to use both hands. Her embroidery speed is also increasing. The cloth used for the backpack itself is quite thick, but it doesn''t have the precision of machine-woven cloth, so it doesn''t seem to require much effort to insert the needle. I helped Haruka with the embroidery for a while. "It''s done. The first one to finish was Natsuki. The first one to finish was Natsuki, who didn''t have any sewing skills, but the magic circle itself was the smallest, so she was able to finish quickly. It''s a good job. I''ll stop here for now and try to add it to Natsuki''s bag. It consumes magic. You''re right. That''ll give you time to recover. I don''t know how much magic I''ll be consuming, so it''s better for me to have a break. Rehearse first. Let''s check the procedure. First, Nao and I will place our hands on the magic circle. "Oh. Haruka puts her hand on the edge of the magic circle, and I put mine there. I''ll pass the magic into the magic circle and put it on standby. Nao is next. I''ll keep the magic in the state it was in just before I activated Slow Time and slowly let it flow in. "I''ll prepare the magic, and when it''s done, I''ll shift the magic circle to the end state. That''s it. Okay, that''s it. Just visualize it! I''ve read the grimoire thoroughly. I''ve practiced holding the spell and manipulating the magic. All that''s left is practice. --Can you do it?¡¡...... No, I can. I have a gift. I spent my points! Let''s do this. You keep an eye on Yuki. Yeah. Yeah. I''ll see you at ......! After confirming that I''ve put my hand down, Haruka channels magic power into the magic circle. I also activate the magic. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. The book said that if the control is disturbed or the magic power leaks out, the performance will be degraded, so I just concentrated. But I''m not sure if it''s correct that the magic is flowing more smoothly than I expected. I''m not sure if it''s the right thing to do. --We''re almost there. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. A few seconds later, the flow of magic around the magic circle was no longer felt, and Haruka exhaled heavily. I''m so tired. I''m so tired. This is a lot harder than I thought. What about you, Nao? I have no problem with ...... magic power. At this size, I hardly need any rest. But it''s mentally exhausting. It''s nerve-wracking. It''s like threading a needle. It''s like threading a needle, it doesn''t take a lot of energy but it tires your eyes, just like this work doesn''t take a lot of magic but it tires your mind. How difficult is it, Haruka? "It''s hard to explain because it''s sensory, but Nao''s magic?¡¡Magic?¡¡It is quite difficult to control it. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m still at level 1 in alchemy.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s because I''m still at the first level of alchemy. I''m not sure if I''m putting too much magic into it.¡¡I''ve been trying to do my best with the maximum amount of magic I can control right now. I think you''re right, but the less ...... you put into it, the less time you''ll have to control it, so that should make it easier. The difficulty of the control itself will not change. If you compare a magic circle to a tank of water, the size of the magic circle is the capacity of the tank. The amount of magic power I pour into it is the amount of water I put into the tank. However, regardless of the size of the tank, the spout is the same size. If I''m the faucet, then Haruka is the one who holds the tank underneath and supports it so that the water doesn''t spill. Hmm?¡¡The more water you pour, the bigger the tank, the longer you have to support it. Well, technically speaking, yes. But since I can''t close the lid of the tank while the water is flowing, the ideal would be to pour a little more than the tank''s capacity. The ideal would be to pour a little more than the tank''s capacity.¡¡Me? That''s a matter of experience. With the current magic circle, maybe a quarter would have been fine. Geez!¡¡What a huge waste of time! It''s your first time. It''s better than not having enough. That''s true, but ...... well, practice makes perfect, right? No matter how talented you are, there is no way you can do it perfectly the first time. The fact that you didn''t fail is fortuitous. So, has this bag become a magic bag yet? Natsuki takes the bag, looks inside it, puts his hand in it, and then nods his head. It doesn''t look any different. "At first it would have been easier to understand if it was ''light weight''. Let''s try this for now. With that, Haruka creates ice. Two ice cubes the size of ping pong balls. One is in the magic bag you just made, and the other is in a similar bag. Place them side by side on the floor. "This way we can compare the passage of time. But how much difference? A high performance magic bag seems to stay intact over the years. ...... I''m not an amateur ......, but it was made by a beginner, so what do you think? I''m not a novice , but I doubt it.¡¡But since it didn''t fail, it should be able to perform as specified, right? That should be about 1/10,000th of a percent. ...... "Hmm. ...... How much is one ten-thousandth? If you leave it for a year, the inside of the bag will be ....... So I guess there''s no problem in preserving food. Yes. Well, you can''t store food that''s hot or cold. But you can leave it in there for a month and it''ll still last less than five minutes.¡¡That''s hardly a practical problem, is it? Five minutes in a month? Then it''s less than an hour a year. Yeah, it''s safe for raw food. I could eat sashimi. If it''s working, right?¡¡If I could make a clock, I could measure it accurately. ...... Isn''t that in the Alchemy Encyclopedia? It''s in there, but I don''t think I can do it yet. I''m only one level. I can make a magic bag. Magic bags are rare because there are no users of space-time magic. It seems to be one of the easier alchemy levels. I see. So that''s why Haruka could make one. So that''s why Haruka could make it. Can I ask Natsuki to do it again?¡¡I''d like to make as many as possible for practice. Yes, of course. By the time the sun went down, Haruka had embroidered a backpack, Yuki had embroidered two bags, and Natsuki had made an additional bag, for a total of five magic bags. One of them was made by Yuki and me with [alchemy] activated. I was also able to adjust the amount of magic power according to the magic circle, so Yuki was able to complete it without fail. So now we have three Slow Time and two Light Weight. ...... The first one we made hasn''t melted yet, right? Yes. It''s almost the same as it looked. The effect of the "Light Weight" is more obvious. It''s probably less than a hundredth of a percent. Yuki easily lifts the bag with one hand, which he had stuffed with all the heavy items he had on hand. I don''t have a measuring device, so I don''t know, but the way I held it was the same as Yuki''s opinion. "If it''s this effective, it''s more convenient to have both "Light Weight" and "Slow Time", even if they''re half as effective. It''s true, but ......2 is hard to find, isn''t it? I''m not sure what to do. I''ve tried practicing, but it requires the difficult task of deploying and maintaining two spells at the same time, and then pouring them evenly into the magic circle. I don''t think it can be done overnight. "But you''ve done all these successfully, ...... Nao, can''t you manage it? "No, no, it''s quite difficult. To put it another way, there''s a difference between playing the piano with one hand and with two hands. "Hmm. In other words, if we add "Extended Space" to the mix, we can make an electronic organ that can be played using the feet as well?¡¡I can do it!¡¡With practice, you''ll be able to do it! You say that so casually, man. I''ve been practicing too, you know. It''s that easy. Come to think of it, Yuki can play the electronic organ, can''t she? ...... Oh, really? Yeah, well, maybe a little? I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. d*mn, I missed the metaphor. If you are told by someone who can do it that you can do it if you practice, then you have no choice but to practice. Moreover, since you have "talent", you can''t escape by saying "I don''t have talent". Hahaha ...... It''s kind of serious, isn''t it? But how can you play such a complicated piece of music? But how can you play such a complicated piece of music when you have to switch tones in the middle of it? That''s true. I can play the piano, too, but I don''t know how to play the electronic organ at ....... Hmm, well, you can switch the tone automatically, and you don''t play complicated melodies with your feet. It''s confusing at first, though. "Oh, I see. Practice. ......?¡¡Oh, by the way, Yuki, you do have a background in space-time magic, right? Oh. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. "Okay, okay. I''ll teach you. Let''s practice together. Oh, no, no, no, I''ll teach you alchemy. ...... You''re going to have to learn it anyway, so work together. Natsuki and I will work on the embroidery. Abandoned? You should know how difficult space-time magic is! That''s not fair! We''re going down together! No, because practicing magic is just a steady work that wears on your mind. When you''re practicing by yourself, your mood becomes dark. Moreover, since space-time magic is invisible, it is more prone to this than fire magic. From an outsider''s point of view, you just look like you are grunting and groaning. Still, having a companion - no, not a companion, someone to engage in friendly competition with can help alleviate some of that feeling, right? But in the end, it would take some time before I could create a magic bag with two additional spells. 66-056 Why do you earn money? ''I know it''s been a bit of a long break, but I''m gonna start earning today! "Oh! We raised our voices at Haruka''s call, and Yuki and Natsuki nodded. You two may have to work a little harder now that the bonus item Dindle is gone, but let''s work hard. Yes. But to be honest, we''re a little relieved. Is that so? Yeah. Because we''ve been living on the money that Haruka and the others earned all this time, right?¡¡To be honest, it was painful. If we use the money we earn together to buy land and build a house, we''ll feel more comfortable and it''ll be easier for us to express our wishes. You don''t have to worry about that, but ...... yes, I understand how you feel. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. With only 100 rares a day to buy their own clothes, there was naturally not much left. "Haruka, are you going to the forest? No, let''s just stop by the guild. They might have a good offer for us. That''s true. ...... I mean, we don''t really take orders, do we? If we could make money, we wouldn''t have had to take the risk. If you take a request and don''t accomplish it, of course you will be penalized. If you push yourself to avoid it, the risk becomes higher. If you don''t find what you''re looking for, you''re going to have to go deeper into the forest, even if it''s something as simple as a collection request. I''m not going to change my policy of not taking on too much, but now that there are five of us, it''s an experience to take on a request that seems easy. That''s right. Oh!¡¡By the way, Tommy said he saw Umezono at the guild. "Plum garden ...... Oh, that''s him. He''ll be trouble if we run into him. Yeah. Mr. Umezono is the guy who copied you and ran away, right? He''s a bonus character. I told you, copying skills is not a bonus character!¡¡It''s harmless in and of itself! Yeah, well, he''s useless. If it weren''t for my friends!¡¡I think I''m done being useless. "Is that so?¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m not sure what to do. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Most of the skills are level 1 with 5 pts. If you do simple math, that''s 20 skills. If you''re a human, you can''t use magic if you don''t have any qualities. You''d have to copy all the skills the four of us can copy to make it worthwhile. "Come on, come on, Natsuki, why don''t you play with Yuki? It''s a bit of a hassle, but I think it''s better if Yuki or Natsuki scout the area first. "If it''s reconnaissance, should I do it?¡¡It''s a bit of a hassle, but I think Yuki or Natsuki should scout first. Oh, that thing where you lose your presence. It''s pretty scary when they use it. They lose all sense of presence. It''s okay, right?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be fine. Tommy said he was pissed off when Diora told him she wouldn''t be offering him a job for a while. He threw his job away. "Isn''t that from that time?¡¡At the coffee shop. Isn''t that the one from the coffee shop?" "The one where he left and ran off. He seemed to have been working at that cafe. That''ll get the guild a complaint. I wonder how he''s doing now that he''s out of work. I don''t feel sorry for him ....... He got what he deserved. If he hadn''t said that, I might have been inclined to help him out a little. I''d like him to be at least as cute as Tommy. Not on the outside, of course, but on the inside. Plum Garden wasn''t so bad on the outside either - was he that good looking? It''s possible that he took some appearance-related skills, but ...... it doesn''t matter. I''m not sure what to do. If we do meet, just ignore us. Okay. Okay. I''ve been in the guild for a few days. I hadn''t been to the guild in a few days, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Fortunately, there were no troublesome people. After a quick greeting to Diora, we all moved to the front of the board to look at the requests. Thinking about it, this is the first time I''m taking a closer look. It feels like a fantasy when I look at it like this! I agree with you, but the requests are ...... less adventurer-like. Most of the requests are for gathering, some are for escorting, but the direction we''re heading is south, through the side of the forest we''re avoiding. There are no escort requests to the east, where Sarstat is. Needless to say, it''s almost safe. Hmmm, you have no idea which one is the right one to ask for, do you? "Yes. It just says, "Pick some." I don''t know what the risks are. That''s the way it is with collection requests. It''s all your responsibility. For escort orders, there are some rank restrictions. I guess it''s the adventurer''s job to consider how much danger is expected when going to collect the requested items. "Oh, there''s a warning.¡¡"There have been sightings of vipu bears in the eastern forest. Is that ......? Haruka and I both frowned at the flyer that Toya pointed to. Natsuki and Yuki, who hadn''t met it yet, tilted their heads in confusion. "Is it strong? Yeah, I felt my life was in danger. "That much? Yuki and Natsuki rolled their eyes at my honest impression. No, no, no. We''re different now than we were then. It''s not like we''re a threat. I don''t think we''re a threat. Sure, it''s a double-digit difference in price, but ...... are you sure? Yeah!¡¡I''ll take care of it. I''ve already seen through him! And then he smiles, trying to look cool. Are you sure you''re okay? I don''t care what he says, Yuki and Natsuki are in there too, so there''s nothing we can''t handle. Well, you know. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I guess I''ll put some effort into searching for the enemy. Yeah. "Hey, there''s something called ''Great Salamander Hunting''. Oh, that''s true. The warning says to freeze it immediately after killing it. The warning says ''freeze immediately after killing. "Salamanders look bad, don''t they?¡¡At least it''s not an enemy you see at the beginning, in the game. Yeah, they look like they''d come out of a volcanic area or something! And it comes with ''Great''. And it''s got ''Great'' in its name. Just a name. Look closely. "Look at it. It says ''hunting'' on it.¡¡Not "defeat. Could this be the ...... Isn''t that the giant salamander? They eat it here too, don''t they? That creature is now a special natural treasure. They used to be eaten with gusto. Its name comes from the fact that its meat smells like Sansho. It is indeed Japanese to eat such a ghetto-looking creature. "Wow, if you call it a big Sansho fish, it''s a big downgrade. It''s too cool a name. I think it''s because the mucus on the surface doesn''t burn easily when thrown into a fire? That''s one theory. The price is high, but it depends on where you catch it and how you bring it home. If it''s at least six inches long, it''ll stick out of your backpack. Of the backpacks in my possession, only two were turned into magic bags yesterday, with the addition of "Slow Time". The other three magic bags are small enough to fit inside my backpack, but not too big. In other words, if your prey is too big to fit in the backpack, you will not be able to benefit from the magic bags. Of course, if you chop it into pieces, it will fit, but the way it''s written, it''s not good enough. You''ll have to get a bigger bag if you want to get this one. "Right. You might need more than this, so you might as well get one. That''s right. So we''ll have to wait until tomorrow. I''ll have to talk to Diora about it. I looked at the other requests, but nothing really caught my eye, so I went to Diora''s place. Good morning, Mr. Diora. "Yes, good morning. I read something about a vipu bear. Yes. It seems there are magic mushrooms growing in the area, and they''re coming out to eat them. Magic mushrooms!¡¡Magic mushrooms! What kind of a name is that? Magic mushrooms? Yeah. It''s a favorite food of vipe-bears. It''s a mushroom that causes hallucinations when eaten as is, but it can be used to make painkillers, so we buy it. There''s a chance you might run into a vipu bear when you go out to pick them, so they''re scarce. It''s not just the name, it''s a really bad mushroom. It''s also a painkiller, which is appropriate if you consider that it contains narcotic ingredients. Mr. Diora, what kind of place does it grow in? Are you going?¡¡I''m sure Toya and the others will be fine, but please be careful, okay?¡¡They grow on trees that have been down for a year or two. It seems to grow at a stage before other mushrooms grow. A year or two, depending on the type of tree, is before it starts to rot. Is it a strong fungus that can still grow on fresh wood? "Sometimes Weipu Bear knocks down trees for no reason, but some people say he does it to grow magic mushrooms. It''s a bit of a myth. No, there are ants that grow mushrooms in the world, so I don''t think it''s a lie.¡¡From the point of view of a vipu bear, we who go out to pick magic mushrooms are probably crop thieves. If it were the other way around, I''d say, "Think of the trouble the farmers are going through! But we are selfish people, so we''ll just pick it. Can I ask you about the Great Salamander? I don''t know if you can use water magic, Haruka-san.¡¡The Great Salamanders are found all the way up the river in Sarstat. It''s less dangerous, but a little less profitable, don''t you think? Is that so? Yes. It''s quite a distance, and after you catch it, you need to keep it frozen with magic and hurry back here. If we can catch a 50cm object, we''ll lose a little money, but if we can catch a 1 meter object, we''ll make a good profit. Of course, we''d like you to take the job. That''s a long way. We''re a party of five, so we need to earn at least 15 gold coins a day, which is not a good job for a working man. Considering the cost, I''d like to double that as a minimum. For a Great Salamander, one 50 centimeter size fish is not enough. Hmm, well, I''ll discuss that with you. Thank you. I''ll see you later. Okay, have a safe trip. 67-057 I got a magic mushroom. After we left the guild, we went out the east gate and headed for the forest. What do you think of the two requests I found that I''m interested in? The Great Salamander ...... is already a great prickly fish, isn''t it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results.¡¡I''m interested in going out and catching it, but it doesn''t seem to be that efficient in terms of earning money. That''s true. The distance is a drawback. According to Diora''s tone, it would take about a day to get there each way. It took half a day to get to Sahlstat, so it was only natural that we would have to go further upstream. Besides, if the object was not bulky, it would not be possible to catch a large number of prickly-pear fish. If that is the case, it may be more profitable to catch cheap ones in the vicinity. What about magic mushrooms then? It''s a dangerous mushroom, not only in name but also in effect. No, it''s something I use in my pharmacy. Oh, by the way, you said it was used for pain relief. --I don''t know.¡¡What''s the difference between that and [pharmacy]? What''s the difference between that and [Pharmacy]?" I twist my head at Toya''s words. That''s true. I''m sure you''re right. If you can make potions with Alchemy, then you don''t need Pharmacy, right? Well, ...... Haruka, what do you think? "Alchemy can also make potions. The difference is that [Pharmacy] can only make potions. "Then what''s the point of Potions? No, it doesn''t. There are some medicines that can only be made with Alchemy, but there are far more that can only be made with Pharmacy. Pharmacy is also suitable for mass production. The medicines made with alchemy use magic power. In other words, you understand that there are different types of medicines that are good at one thing and bad at another, right? Yes. Something like that. So we can use both without worry. I''m afraid of getting sick or injured. Natsuki''s [Pharmacy Lv.3] is one thing, but I still need to practice. Still, it''s better than nothing. I''d rather take the medicine you two made than see a doctor I don''t understand. "So, one of you can use the herbs we collect, right?¡¡Wouldn''t it be profitable to sell it as medicine? "No, you can''t. No, you can''t," Toya said, but I quickly denied it. "Why not? Toya, if you saw Viagra on the street, would you buy it? I wouldn''t buy ....... Oh, right, trust. I mean, I don''t need it, Viagra! It''s a good thing that you''ve got a good idea of what you''re looking for. I can''t believe my ears when I hear that it''s common practice to buy drugs from people who come to you unexpectedly without checking your identity and then sell them to pharmacies. I wonder if the medicine wholesalers in Japan are safe, if such an abnormal business practice is going on? As long as they can counterfeit the packages, they can do whatever they want, even terrorism. The counterfeit medicines manufactured in some countries, which look indistinguishable from the original, have become a problem all over the world, and I wonder how much they are not aware of the danger. It''s not like a game where you can determine the ingredients and effects of a product with a simple appraisal. In this world, there is not even a package for it. The average person doesn''t even know if it''s a potion or just water. It''s hard to believe that someone would buy something from someone they don''t know well. You can sell them by registering with a guild and setting up a store, but it''s not very beneficial. It''s expensive. ...... Is it the same for alchemists? In a way, yes. It''s not a crime to sell something, whether it sells or not. If that''s the case, wouldn''t a magic bag sell? That said, they are in short supply and can be sold at any price, right? I can''t use Extended Space yet, but if I can sell it, can I make money? I''m sure it''ll sell, but you''ll get in trouble. To Nao. And Yuki, too. Me? And you? I told you space-time magic was rare. I told you space-time magic is rare. You know how much trouble it''s gonna be if Nao can''t use it without any backing. Oh, the nobility? That''s what I meant. In space-time magic, there is such a thing as teleportation when the level goes up, right?¡¡The powers that be won''t leave it alone. That makes sense. What a pain in the ass. It''s either hide it thoroughly or get a backer, but ...... will have to hide it. I don''t think it''s that easy to find a good backer. That''s right. I don''t think there are people who will back us up without giving us any benefits. If we do, our actions will be constrained. So it''s only natural that you would choose to hide it as much as possible. "Hey, hey, Haruka. I don''t understand why I''m an accessory!¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. "Shut up! Haruka''s chop exploded on Yuki''s head as she started to say something stupid. I''m not sure if I bit my tongue or not, but I''m holding my mouth in a gasp. We''ll be working together, and since Nao''s level is higher than yours, we''ll have the same countermeasures. Unless you want to be independent? "No!¡¡I''ll follow you for the rest of my life! No! I''ll follow you for the rest of my life! Well, don''t use it in a conspicuous way, both of you. Okay. I don''t want any trouble. So, are we going to find the magic mushrooms after all? The problem is the possibility of vipe-bears. The problem is the possibility of vipu bears. What do you think? I''d rather fight ....... It was a close call last time, but there may be more enemies than that in the future. It would be a good training ground. I guess I''ll sit this one out.¡¡I don''t know how strong they are. I''ve never met one, but I think I should try. You always need to play it safe, but you also need to take on higher-ranked opponents in order to grow. Natsuki was even more belligerent than I thought! I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m sure you''ll be fine. Let''s do it then. Toya, please?¡¡He''s the hardest. Oh. We''ve got chainmail and shields this time. We''re a lot safer than last time. I''m pretty sure I tried that time with cheap leather armor and iron bars. ...... Yeah, Toya, you''ve got balls. Against a bear of that size. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. We nodded our heads in agreement with Halka''s policy and entered the forest. I''m sure you''ll understand. After entering the forest, we divided into two groups of three, and took turns gathering herbs and guarding the area. In terms of strength, Toya, Haruka, and the rest. All of us can use [Help] or [Appraise], so we don''t have to collect the wrong herbs. Thanks to the shovel, we can now collect medicinal herbs that require roots. It was Toya who found it after an hour or so of moving around like this. Oh, there''s the magic mushroom. At Toya''s words, I looked in the direction he was pointing and saw a fallen tree about 20 centimeters in diameter with several white mushrooms growing out of it. They looked like shiitake mushrooms with their shafts slightly lengthened and thickened. So this is Weipu Bear''s favorite food. It doesn''t look very tasty, does it? "No, no, Yuki, mushrooms don''t generally look very tasty, do they?¡¡It''s just that you know they taste good when you eat them. ...... Maybe so? The reason why round and thick shiitake mushrooms look so good is because you know they taste good when you grill them with a little bit of soy sauce. If you look at it objectively, it doesn''t look good at all in terms of color, unlike fruits. But in the case of mushrooms, on the contrary, they look bad and you lose your appetite. It''s strange. This is probably because the mushrooms we usually eat are so plain. But pure white looks like mushrooms, doesn''t it? Mushrooms...... magic mushrooms are looking worse and worse. Tohya chuckles at Natsuki''s words. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡Most of them are different in shape from the mushrooms we imagine. "Oh, really? Yeah. I think there''s a kind of warai mushroom. If it has an analgesic effect, does that mean that the alkaloids contained in it are more similar to Datura than to magic mushrooms? Hanaoka Seishu, right? Yes. Wasn''t he the one who created anesthetics? I remember reading about it in a comic book. I remember reading about him in a comic book. Toya, what does it say in the appraisal? "Well, it says something about anesthetic ingredients and that umbrellas less than 3 centimeters in size are worthless, while umbrellas over 10 centimeters are extremely valuable. Three centimeters ...... is not much to collect. You can''t get more than three centimeters. The number of mushrooms growing on the trees we found was sparse, less than that of shiitake mushrooms grown on logs. About half of them were less than three centimeters long, so we could probably collect no more than ten. How much do you get for this size? "You never asked me that. Well, I''m sure they''ll pay a fair price, so let''s do our best to collect them. Right. If you''re dealing with a merchant, you have to worry about being cheated, but if you''re dealing with a guild, you can feel safe. The price is a little cheaper, but it''s not so bad if you consider the time it takes to find someone to sell to. The largest one is about ......8 centimeters. You could leave it there until it gets bigger. ...... No. There''s vipe-bears out there. They''ll eat them. That''s what I thought. Harvest everything over three inches long and bag it. In addition, I checked the trunk of the tree and found what looked like claw marks. I wondered if it had been felled by a vipu bear. However, if the vipu bear is the reason why we can harvest magic mushrooms, I feel bad taking it down. "Really?¡¡I don''t like that bear. He''s not cute at all. He''s not cute? Oh, no. Not at all. It''s evil. Well, meat is cheap and the only thing they sell is their fur, so I don''t want to kill them. Brown bears are still prettier. Just kill them when you see them. We''ll move on as soon as we''re done. We don''t have to wait for vipe-bears to show up. Copy that. After checking one last time to make sure we hadn''t left anything behind, we walked away somewhat quickly. 68-058 I met a bear in the forest After that, we kept looking for magic mushrooms while collecting medicinal herbs, and we found two fallen trees with magic mushrooms. And in the second place, we found a big one, over 10 centimeters long, and we were very happy. But then, there was a reaction to my "spying". Judging from the size of the reaction and the direction it was moving, it was probably a Weipu Bear! "Enemy!¡¡Probably a vipu bear! "Whoa!¡¡It''s here at last!¡¡The reaction is ...... over there. The first to react, Toya, quickly draws his sword and stands on that side, looking for a reaction himself. "Nao and Natsuki, please. Yuki, you cover me. Yeah, yeah. Okay! Haruka moved to the nearby tree tops, and Yuki stood by her side with an iron bar. After a few moments of waiting, the figure of a vipu bear came into view through the trees. "Oh, big ....... The one who let out the words was Yuki. Natsuki didn''t say anything, but her mouth was tied in a knot as she stared at the vipu bear with a serious face, her spear at the ready. It''s about the same size as that time. ...... Just right. Haruka, Nao, can you wait a little while for backup? "...... fine. Can you do it? I will. I''ll do it." Toya made her move just as Weipu Bear, who had been cautiously approaching on four legs, was about to stand up on two legs. "Seiyaaaa! A roar that seemed to echo through the forest. A roar that echoed through the forest. The vipu bear stopped moving for a moment, and Toya rushed into it with quick movements. And then, in one swift motion, he swings his blue iron sword down. Crack! "Ugh! I didn''t look away from the enemy, but I got a good look at him. Toya''s sword plunged into Weipu Bear''s skull, and at that moment, his eyeballs popped out - no, let''s not go into detail. The next moment, as he was about to stand up, Vaipu Bear''s body leaned forward and he fell to the ground with a heavy thud. That''s it. "You got it? "Don''t try to flag me!¡¡There was a response. It''s not a demon, it''s not going to survive in this state. No, I didn''t think it was a flag. ...... I said it just for the sake of it. Toya would have killed him easily. Is it my fault?¡¡--I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s a lie if you can''t kill a bear with it. I''m sure you''re right, but when I think of the hardships I went through with ...... I''m not so sure about the blow. I went up to him and poked him with my spear, but he didn''t budge a bit. "Toya, you''re so strong!¡¡I was pretty scared. "Yes. To be honest, it was more than I expected. That''s what happens when an enemy of this size turns on you for the first time. I think Natsuki can defeat it, but he''ll have to get used to its power. It''s our second time. "It was terrible the first time, the fur was torn up. We''ll get a good price this time. Haruka takes out a knife and begins to peel the skin off. She has gotten used to it. Because of its size, Toya and I will help. "What about the meat? "It was cheap, wasn''t it? It was cheap, but the quantity made it worth the price. But it''s a shame to throw it away, isn''t it?¡¡It''s almost noon. It''s almost noon, and the most we can hunt for task boars is two. Considering the number of people we''ve got, ...... That''s right, we''ll be carrying more stuff. I''ve only picked herbs and mushrooms today, so my backpack isn''t even full enough for one person. If we work hard, we may be able to bring it back. Then, let''s break up the meat. Can we eat the heart and liver? "Let''s take it to Aella. I''ve made a magic bag. That''s a good idea. We can carry them fresh. The disassembled meat was packed into Toya and I''s backpacks first, but we couldn''t fit it all in, so we all had to share the load. ...... I guess we''ll just have to go home, huh? Right? There''s almost no room for the boar. To tell the truth, I''m pretty full of it. Haruka and Natsuki have more room, but that''s because they put them in "light weight" bags before putting them in their backpacks. My backpack and Toya''s are "slow time" bags that prioritize freshness, so the weight is the same. No, I can handle it. I''ll carry it. I''m not too heavy, so I can carry it. ...... I''m not too heavy, but I can carry it," said Toya, who wanted to eat the boar, and Natsuki, who had more room thanks to the Light Weight, but they were carrying something bulky. You can never move fully. "The problem is that it limits our movement. Let''s just head out of the forest and see if we can find them on the way. That''s fine. Nao, good luck with that. As long as they''re within my range, okay?¡¡I didn''t get a hit coming in, so it''s going to be a little difficult. Maybe there are fewer task boars. Or it could be that the vipu bears are having an effect. However, just before I left the forest, a task boar-like response was caught just within my search range, and I had to hunt it down and return home. I''m not sure what to say. Aella, I''m sorry to bother you at such a busy time. No, it''s not even noon yet, and I''ve already made lunch, so don''t worry. Since then, we had been running back to the city from the forest, following Toya''s advice that it would be good training. But I guess Toya''s true intention was to go back to the city and have a good meal. He suggested that they go to Aella''s restaurant right away. Well, I don''t have any complaints about that, but apart from Toya, who took the initiative to take half of the boar meat, I was the biggest victim of this "training". To put it bluntly, if we were to compare the physical strength of the five of us, Haruka would be at the bottom, followed by me or Yuki. And yet, Toya is the second strongest. And yet, I''m second only to Toya, so it''s tough. It was a little pathetic, but I should have asked Natsuki to take over. Natsuki asked me, "Shall I take over? But I was too stubborn. --Maybe we should be more equal from now on. I brought in some meat, would you like to take a look? Yes, of course. I''ve got a problem with the task boar, but I''ve got a problem with the vipu bear. ...... Oh, yeah. If you don''t treat it well, it can have a bad smell. ...... Go to the kitchen. Aera urged us to go to the kitchen, where she showed us each a piece of vipe bear meat. You can eat this kind of fresh meat if you cook it well. If you simply cook it, it will be tough and difficult to eat. Unlike the wild boar, the price of the meat reflects the effort required to cook it. The meat of the task boar was good enough to be salted and roasted. The heart and liver are not usually eaten. You didn''t remove the gallbladder, did you?¡¡You can sell it for medicine. Apparently, the gallbladder was taken from the wrong place. It was a rather painful mistake, because the price of the liver was quite high. The heart and liver were discarded because Ms. Aera, a good cook, would not eat them. I see. Thank you, Mr. Aera. Do you want bear meat?¡¡I''ll take about 10 kilos as a thank you. See? Haruka and the others nodded when I asked for their agreement. It would be a small price to pay for the advice given the quantity. No, no, we''ll pay you!¡¡But, yes, can I have 20 kilos each of bear and boar? "Yeah. Cut them up as you see fit. I got two gold coins for both. That''s a little more than selling them to the guild, but less than Aella''s price at the butcher shop. It could have been a little cheaper, but he said, "It''s cheaper than the butcher. In return, I pushed the boar''s motsu on him. The motsu was not for sale, and we had no place to cook it, so there was no loss. Well, the motsu was served for lunch, and the lunch fee was free, so we ended up with a good profit. I''m not sure what to say. "Mr. Diora, can you buy it for me? "Oh, you''re early today, aren''t you? "Yes, I''ve already killed a vipu bear. We''ve been taking it easy at Aella''s place, but it''s still a little after noon. It''s still a little after noon, a few hours earlier than when we usually finish hunting. Oh, if you bring back vipe bear meat, you won''t be able to have anything else. But that''s not the point. Did you find the magic mushrooms? "Yes, to a point? I don''t know if we''re getting too much or too little, but we did find one over ten centimeters, so I''m hoping for the best. "Let''s go to the back, shall we? Diora stood up from the counter and urged me to go to the warehouse at the back of the guild. Normally, Diora-san would go through the formalities at the counter and carry the items, but seeing that there were five of us and each of our backpacks were full, she seemed to have changed her mind. In the warehouse, there is a large desk where a man is working. We''ll start with the meat, please. "Yes. We take the meat and place it on the table. "And Weipu Bear and Tusk Boar? Their pelts are magnificent. Not a scratch on it. They were beaten to death. It may have been a little cut from the blow to the head, but Toya''s sword is basically a weighted smash, so it doesn''t look like a crisp. It seems that it is not Diora but another man who does the proper assessment, weighing the flesh, checking the condition of the skin, and writing down the numbers on the board at hand. When he had finished with all of them, he showed them to Mr. Diora and explained them to him. Diora nodded and came back to me. "Okay, I''m done. The flesh and skin of the vipe bear, the flesh and skin of the task boar, and the tusks. Total price is 30,600 rares. That''s a pretty good price for such beautiful fur. The next item is herbs. As Yuki pulled out the herbs from her backpack, Diora quickly checked them and wrote down the numbers. The man is also checking after Diora has checked, but it seems that Diora''s role is to price them. "Is it more?¡¡Let''s see, that''s 11,440 Reais in total. As usual, not a single wrong herb is included. I''m impressed. "No, no. No, no, no. Even you, Diora, are able to check everything. I''m a professional... well, you''re all professionals in a way, aren''t you? Diora-san smiles and bows her head lightly. Perhaps the medicinal herbs brought in by ordinary adventurers contain some mistakes. You can''t tell them apart from similar weeds without [help]. I''m sure you''ll be able to find the right one. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out by yourself. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. The next thing is the magic mushrooms. There are 35 magic mushrooms on the desk. One of them was over 10 centimeters long. One of them was over 10 centimeters long. "How could you ...... even get one this big? Haruka-san, have you gone deep into the forest? No?¡¡About the same as usual, but much further than the deepest dindle tree. Is there something wrong? It''s not strange, it''s just that sometimes, in a good year... Even in the shallow parts of the forest, there are years when the magic mushrooms are abundant. When that happens, the rookie death rate goes up because the vipu bears inevitably come out to the shallow parts of the forest. As in the original world, it seems that in this world too, there is a hit year. If it was just the mushrooms, it would be a ''thank goodness'' story, but when it''s accompanied by vipu bears, it''s a disaster for normal people. But Diora, are there any other rookies besides us?¡¡I don''t see any. "Yes, there are. There are a couple. Both of them come to the guild at different times than you do. We don''t often come to the guild in the morning, and we don''t sell until late afternoon or early evening. It''s much earlier than when most people finish work. This is to allow time for training, but we''re certainly not like normal adventurers. I haven''t met any of them in the forest, but considering the fact that there are miles and miles of road facing the city, it''s probably not surprising that I haven''t seen any of them. I''m sure Haruka and the others have encountered vipu bears before. We should be more careful than just putting up flyers to warn people. It''s not often that we come across a vipu bear, but we did in a few days. I wondered if that vipu bear had come out to prepare the kindling for the magic mushrooms. A bear that chops down trees a year in advance to make kindling for the mushroom harvest. It sounds like a heartwarming story, but when you actually meet them, they kill each other. And we''re the ones who get to keep the profits. He''s a bad guy. I''m sorry, that was an appraisal. The price of magic mushrooms is basically determined by the size of the umbrella, as long as it''s not badly damaged. The price of magic mushrooms is determined by the size of the umbrella. But the price goes up when the umbrella grows over 10 centimeters. Most of them are eaten before they grow to that size. I''m impressed that you haven''t picked anything below the limit. That''s thanks to Toya''s [appraisal]. Yes, the total is ......46,300 rares. That''s expensive!¡¡By the way, what''s this big one? "That''s 12,000 rares. The others are between 800 and 1,300 rares. If it''s over 10 centimeters, the price will go up tenfold! There was one that was about eight centimeters long, but it was still 1,300 rares, right?¡¡The inflation rate is amazing. It''s all cash, right? Oh, yes, please. All right. I''ll bring the money to the counter, please. So we went back to the counter, and got 88 gold coins at once. 69-059 What you cant win "You made a lot of money today!¡¡Eighty-eight gold coins in one day. ......2 I miss the days when we worked so hard together and had two large silver coins. "Including Aella''s, that''s 90 gold coins, Yuki. Yuki and Natsuki hold hands with each other happily. I''m happy too, but I''m not as happy as they are, because I''ve been raking in the dildos. "We got magic mushrooms today. It''s not going to be easy after tomorrow. More than half of the price is the price of the mushrooms. Even if we spend more time gathering herbs, we won''t be able to make as much money as we did today. The mushrooms we didn''t pick today won''t grow as fast. Can''t we go somewhere else? "Well, that''s a little risky because you''ll be going to places you''re not used to. The places we went to today are places we''ve been to many times before, and we''ve gradually expanded our search area. When I think back to the beginning, we were gathering herbs at the edge of the forest. From there, I gradually grasped the topography of the area, went to the dindle tree, and ...... grew. I''m not sure I want to go in too deep, but I''m sure bears are out there today in shallow waters.¡¡It''s a threat, but as long as you don''t get caught off guard, you should be fine.¡¡We have Nao. Well, as long as I and Toya stay alert, there''s little risk of surprise. I agree with the idea of expanding the search area. I agree with the idea of expanding the search area, it''s safer than going looking for the giant salamander.¡¡We''ll need the money. Well, then, let''s start tomorrow, shall we? Yes, sir. So, we''ll just train on our own for today? Yeah, it''s too late to go out there now. Okay. After Natsuki stood up, Toya also stood up with a sword. I''ve been thinking about buying one. I was going to buy it, but I put it on hold because of where I was going to put it. I was going to buy one, but I had to put it on hold because of where I was going to put it. ...... Is it really expensive? The basic grimoire for all magic is 15,000 rares, and the light grimoire is 36,000 rares? That''s expensive!¡¡What''s that price?¡¡If I had a bookshelf, I could build a house! That''s true. Ten books will buy you a plot of land, twenty books will build you a house. If you had a library, you could build a castle. That''s why you can''t buy them all. I see. ...... Yuki, you need to read and study the beginner''s course in space-time magic. In the meantime, I''m going to train outside. I handed my book to a disappointed Yuki and stood up, following Toya and the others. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. Thank you. But don''t you want me to do it? We''ll do it later. You can use the backyard, but it''s too small for the five of us. Okay. Good luck. Okay. I raised my hand to them and left the room. "I''m going to work on mushroom hunting today. "I''ll be picking mushrooms again today. The weather was rainy the next day, despite our enthusiasm. It started raining in the middle of the night, and it''s still wetting the ground. "I''m home. "Welcome back. How was it? I asked Haruka, who had gone to talk to the inn''s father, and she shook her head lightly. No. It seems to rain more around January this time of year. "I see. Is it like an autumn rain front? At first, I didn''t have the time to pay attention to it, but when I asked her, she told me that the calendar in this world consists of five weeks of six days a week, one month of twelve months, and one year of twelve months, with the occasional leap day. The days of the week are divided in the order of light, fire, water, wind, earth, and darkness, but since there is no such thing as "Sunday is a vacation," we are rarely aware of it. We don''t know the length of a day because we don''t have an earth-based clock, but it''s probably within the range of 20 to 30 hours. If I had the same body as before, I would have been able to narrow it down more, but with this body, which seems to have adapted to this world, I don''t trust the sense of my internal clock. By the way, it seems that this is the only time of year when the weather breaks down like this. There is no rainy season and no heavy snowfall. The winter temperature is also very comfortable, since there is almost no ice formation outside. In the area where we lived, the temperature was usually below freezing in the coldest season, so I guess it''s much better than that. But I''m not sure if it''s comfortable or not. ....... You still need to prepare for winter. When the temperature drops below 15 degrees, it will be cold enough to wear the current clothes. "That''s true. Especially Yuki and Natsuki. We have leather clothes that we wore as armor. It was not very breathable and not very comfortable, but it could be used as winter clothes. If I had to choose a luxury, I''d want clothes that let steam through but not water or wind, but I guess that''s impossible. Yes, considering all the clothes we have to ...... take a few risks, it would be difficult to spend the winter in our own home. "No, you can''t, can you?¡¡Even if we manage to get the money in time, we''ll need the building time, right? I''m not so sure about that. In this world, it''s often built by many people at once. I think we can do it in two months. In Japan, unless you really need a lot of people, the work is done by a few people or even one person, so it takes a long time. In this case, however, the work is done in a short period of time, and the adventurer''s guild is used to gather manpower and build it all at once. Especially in this case, there is no problem with the ground since the land where the house was originally built will be used. Furthermore, there is magic in this world, and the physical ability itself is higher than that of the people in the original world, so it must be possible. There are people who can carry over 100 kilos with ease. I''m sure we''re still on the edge. There will be rainy days for a while, so we''ll have to think of something. I don''t want to work in the rain. You''re a bad person for saying that!¡¡I agree with you. I agree with you, but in Japan, if I said, "It''s raining today, so I''m going to take a day off work," people would say, "Are you kidding me? No, not in some industries like construction. I don''t know about that.¡¡I don''t know much about it. "Well, we don''t have rain gear to begin with. "It''s dangerous even if you have rain gear. We''d be at a definite disadvantage compared to the beasts, using tools and walking on two legs. That''s right. I don''t want to go to the forest in the rain unless I''m in dire need. After all, everyone was against working in the rain. Haruka nodded with a wry smile, but gave him a warning. You''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this kind of work.¡¡I don''t want to force you, but you''ll have to train in the rain soon. That''s true, isn''t it? If it''s just us, we can choose to run away on a rainy day, but if we get an escort order, it''s not going to happen. I guess we have to train sometime for our own safety. By the way, the Self-Defense Force has a policy of "If there is a puddle, jump in it! I''ve heard that the Self-Defense Forces conduct combat training in the rain or mud. And when disaster strikes, they work hard no matter how hot, cold, or dirty it is. It''s really mind-boggling. I''d prefer to train in the rain when we can get a bath. You''re right. Thanks to Halka, I''m in heaven compared to when I was in Sahlstat, but I miss the bath. Yes. Yes, me too. Even among Japanese, there are people who say, "Shower is enough. Some people say ''I don''t use the bath'', but I can''t argue with that because all the members here are the type who used to take a bath. Here, I can''t even take a shower. Now, let''s decide what we''re going to do today. If the magic users can train there, Toya won''t have anything to do. Since Toya has no magic skills, there''s not much she can do indoors. You can at least do some strength training, but it''s too small. ...... It''s too hot when you do it on the side. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. I think I''ll go to the guild to do some research rather than train in ...... magic. I''m pretty sure they have a reference room, right? It''s not that big, it''s just a place to get information about the area. I''ve never been in there, but Haruka has been there a few times to check things out. I''ve never been in there, but Haruka has been there a few times to check things out. It seems that it''s common for adventurers to check out herbs, animals, and demons before going out to collect them. In our case, thanks to our skills, we can gather useful herbs without checking. So I might as well go there. "Then maybe I''ll go there too. If I increase my knowledge, my [Appraise] skill might become more powerful. "I hope so. I hope so, because our [help] doesn''t seem to be changing. It seems that the content displayed in Toya''s [Appraisal] will gradually change depending on her own knowledge and experience. The [Help] is useful in that you can get some knowledge without having to look it up, but in that respect it is still inferior to the dedicated [Appraisal] skill. It''s not as versatile or easy as just using [Appraise] all the time, but it''s a useful skill. So, today we are all basically free to go. Natsuki and Toya don''t have ...... rain gear, right? What do we do? I think I''ll wear leather clothes. I think I''ll wear leather clothes. I''ll have to get my head ...... wet. I''ll take a hand towel and wipe it off. I''m ...... Nao, you have leather clothes, right?¡¡Can I borrow it? Oh, yeah, no problem. ...... I''m a little nervous about lending my clothes to a girl. --No, leather clothes are half armor, and even when I was in Japan, it was normal to lend Haruka my coat. I''m not sure. I think I should at least buy a hooded coat.¡¡Natsuki, do you want to go shopping? No, I''m fine for today. Really? Yeah. Money is very important. Natsuki smiled at me and I handed her a leather dress I had taken from the luggage compartment. I haven''t worn it in a while, but I cleaned it with Haruka''s Purify before I put it away, so it should be fine. There is a slight odor, but it is the smell of leather, not my body odor. Well, if Natsuki says so, it''s fine. ...... I''m not sure what to make of this. "Oh, ...... this could be a ...... fight, ...... What?¡¡Yuki, what? No, no, no. It''s nothing, okay?¡¡Yeah. I just thought it was funny. Is that so? I nodded my head as Yuki said this with a little smirk on her face. I don''t really understand. Yesterday, while practicing space-time magic, you were screaming, "I don''t understand the concept! while practicing space-time magic. Incidentally, I don''t understand it either. I can still understand three-dimensional space, and I can still manage gravity if I assume gravitons. However, the time axis is difficult. If I think about it too much, I feel like I will enter the world of philosophy instead of physics. We''d better get going. Good luck with your studies, Nao. "Okay. You''re the ones who should be studying. We read the grimoires, but we also practice. That''s true. Well then, we''ll both do our best. "Right. And so the day was spent in training. 70-060 Yonyonyonyo After yesterday''s rain, we were greeted with a beautiful blue sky from this morning. Our footsteps were lighter than usual as we walked towards the forest. "Now that it''s raining, do you think there will be many mushrooms growing? "I don''t think it''s easy to grow mushrooms, but I guess it''s the time of year when they tend to grow. For me, mushrooms are artificially cultivated ones that I buy at the supermarket and the weather doesn''t matter, but when it comes to natural ones, I guess the weather has a big impact on them. I''ve heard on the TV news that the price of matsutake mushrooms is going up this year because of the bad weather, but it had nothing to do with me as a commoner. I''ve eaten matsutake mushrooms before, but my impression is that they are indeed delicious, but I''d rather eat meat if I have to pay that price. "By the way, I found out yesterday that orcs are also quite profitable. Is that so? Yes. Compared to goblins, magic stones are more expensive, and they sell meat. You can sell orc meat? I don''t know what they look like, but if they are what I imagine orcs to look like, I don''t want to eat them. "Orc ...... ''Kukkoro-san''? Idiot!¡¡Don''t make a flag. What if it''s serious? If it''s a gag, it''s "Kukkoro, Kukkoro-san. If it''s a gag, you can say "Kukkoro, Kukkoro", but if there''s a possibility of harm to your family, it''s not worth the trouble. "Fickle?¡¡What''s that? It''s true that only a few people can understand "Kukkoro". In fact, I''d be surprised if Natsuki knew about it. But it''s too hard to explain it in detail. It''s too embarrassing for me. So I''ll use a rather mild and roundabout expression: ....... "Oh, I thought women could be attacked by orcs. I don''t think there are women or men who get attacked. ....... No, of course women and children would be more dangerous physically. He nodded his head. I don''t know if I''m getting the meaning right, but it doesn''t matter. I''ll just nod. That''s not what they''re saying. They''re asking if you''re going to be s*xually assaulted. "s*xual ...... what? I thought I could fake it!¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. Yuki is ...... amused. It''s very possible that he knew what he was doing. It''s impossible to think like that. It''s a different species.¡¡What kind of super genes do goblins and orcs have that allow them to reproduce? "Super genes" ...... is a very apt description. If it''s possible to reproduce with humans, it''s also possible with apes, boars, and so on. But you know about ''that thing'', don''t you, Haruka? "Oh, you idiot! I tried to stop Toya from pointing out something that didn''t need to be caught, but it was already too late. Yes, I saw it in Nao''s room. I knew you hadn''t forgotten! Oh, no!¡¡No, no, no!¡¡That was Toya. Oh, my God!¡¡Don''t drag me into this! It''s yours, for Christ''s sake!¡¡Just do it! I gave you that game! Even if it''s true, you''re supposed to keep your mouth shut! No!¡¡We''re in this together! I''m a guy too, I can''t deny I was a little happy, but I can''t forgive Toya for making it happen! I''m sure you''re not the only one. I don''t care who owns it. It doesn''t matter which one of us owns it. After all, you did it, didn''t you?¡¡Both of you. "Ugh. Of course we did!¡¡If I had a game in my possession that I couldn''t get through legitimate means because of my age! Regardless of whether it fits or not, if someone doesn''t play it even if it''s in his possession, he''s not a prepubescent man!¡¡I assure you. I assure you, it''s not even 99% the same genes.¡¡It''s impossible. Of course you could be eaten, as you should be. That''s a tough one. The end of your life in the belly of an orc. But it''s true what Haruka said. "No, I think they''re actually monogamous, don''t you?¡¡This is also the reason why there are no goblin females in the world. ...... What is it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. When they hatch, they''ll bite through the insides and-- Oh, my God, stop!¡¡I''m imagining it! Toya interrupted my biological musings and held my head. You''re the one who started it. Stop it! You''re making Natsuki nervous. Besides, it doesn''t matter in this world. Oops, sorry. Forget it. Forget about it. Including the stuff I borrowed from Toya. Uh, yes. We''re both healthy men, and I think our slightly peculiar interests are part of our personality. Whether they''ll accept it or not is a bit of a question. ...... Wait a minute. Don''t try to be understanding. I can''t stand it. Fiction, fiction, you know?¡¡It''s a completely different story from your real-life tastes, okay? It''s not like you''re a pedophile in real life just because you like loli characters in erotic manga. "Yes, yes. It''s not like you''re confusing them with reality. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "What''s wrong? No, on second thought, I have a wife with beast ears. "Don''t say that now!¡¡You may be trying to turn a fiction into reality!¡¡But that''s a whole other story! In Japan, if you were to seriously say something like "I''m going to get a bride with beast ears," you''d be a painful guy, but in this world, it''s quite normal. But in this world, it is quite normal. Toya also has beast ears now. The comparison itself is ridiculous. "Don''t worry, Natsuki. "Don''t worry, Natsuki. Most of what Nao has is normal. Is that so? Yeah. I don''t think you have any special proclivities that would end your life if people knew. I''m not sure what I should say to Haruka, who nodded confidently. Should I say, "......, I''m glad you understand? I''d say hide it better. That''s funny. It''s funny. I was pursued for that thing I borrowed from Toya, but I don''t remember them finding anything else. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. By the way, may I ask what your hobby is? Well, I''m pretty sure Nao... Come on!¡¡Let''s keep our heads up!¡¡We''ve never been to this place before, after all!¡¡Hey, Toya. Yeah, yeah, yeah!¡¡We can''t be too careful! It''s not good to talk about it anymore. Realizing the obvious, I clapped Toya on the back and hurried off into the woods. I never hear what the three of them are talking about behind my back. Yeah, totally!¡¡Everything I hear about maids and sailor suits is a hallucination. That must be it. I must be. "This ...... is growing faster than I thought, isn''t it? "Oh. Is this what mushrooms are like? Before going to the new area, we visited the place where we collected the mushrooms the day before yesterday, and we were a little confused when we saw the magic mushrooms growing there. The mushrooms that we hadn''t collected the day before yesterday were now all over five centimeters long. The largest ones are now close to 7cm. In other words, they have grown more than two centimeters in just two days. I''ve never grown mushrooms before, so I don''t know, but I''ve heard that they grow quickly in a good environment. "Yes, I have. Mushroom cultivation. I have a mushroom cultivation kit that I can use at home. It was slow at first, but once it started to grow, it got bigger and bigger. So this is what mushrooms are like? It''s not strange, is it?¡¡But I don''t think they will grow back for a while if I pick the ones that are growing now. Of course, just because it grows fast doesn''t mean it will grow fast. If the environment is right, it will grow in a few weeks, but basically, you have to wait until the next year. Moreover, magic mushrooms are said to grow on trees that have been down for a year or two, so there is no guarantee that they will grow on this tree next year. But at this rate of growth, if we leave it for another three days, the price will increase tenfold, right? Over ten centimeters. ...... That''s the math, but will it work? There are some pitfalls. If it were that easy, it wouldn''t be so expensive. Either they''ll be eaten or they''ll grow too slowly. ...... If it''s so easy to grow over ten centimeters, the price can''t be that high. What do we do?¡¡Do we take it?¡¡Leave it? It''s hard to say. Leave it for a few days and it will increase tenfold, or it will disappear and become zero. I think the probability of zero is probably higher. "Then let''s have a majority vote. Who thinks we should collect it now? Those who raised their hands were me, Haruka, and Natsuki. We''re divided into the steady type and the gamblers. It''s not really gamblers, is it?¡¡There''s a reason for that, you know. Huh? You see, we killed Vipu Bear the day before yesterday.¡¡If this is his territory, why would he come here to eat? It''s true, if it''s only vipe-bears that eat them, but ...... there could be other animals and even competitors, right? I don''t know if there are two rookie parties and how many other parties there are, but it''s not impossible. I haven''t met any of them around here. What about you, Yuki? I''m not really sure. ...... I just thought that if they ate some of it, there''d be some left over. If a bear that size ate it, it would be uprooted. Even if a bear of that size ate it, it would probably uproot it. If vipe-bears grow big enough to eat, they''ll get more. "Well, now that we have a majority vote, let''s harvest everything and move on. Okay. So we picked up the magic mushrooms that were over five centimeters long, and moved on to the second location. There was a slightly unexpected sight. Annihilation. Everything over five centimeters was gone, even the smaller ones. "This is the work of an animal. There are marks where it was nibbled off. When I looked at where Natsuki pointed, it was clearly different from where we had collected it. The shaft is halfway torn off, the pith is still intact, and there are many scratches on the wood. I don''t know if it''s a Weipu Bear or not, but it looks like it was the right thing to do. It''s nature, and the competition is fierce. "Well, let''s move to the third location as quickly as possible. Right. Then we moved a little faster to the third location. There were no problems here, so we collected them. As with the first location, once you''ve collected more than five centimeters, there''s very little left, so it''s not clear whether it''s worth coming back to collect more. I got a good amount, but it''s only 20 gold coins, right? Shall we try to find a new one? Sure. I''ll take the lead, and Nao will stay behind, focusing on searching. I''ll take the lead and Nao will be behind me. Yes. We all agreed to Toya''s plan, and we began to expand our search. 71-061 In Search of Orcs After lunch, we continued walking for several hours. Normally, we would have been on our way home by now, but we hadn''t made any progress in collecting the magic mushrooms. I had found four pieces of kindling, but two of them had been completely eaten, one had only a few pieces over five centimeters, and the other had only a certain number of pieces. This may not be ...... very efficient. As I rested for a short break, Haruka looked into her backpack and sighed. At this stage, with the medicinal herbs, it is probably about 40,000 Reais. If you take into account the time off due to rain, it''s certainly not a great deal of money for five people. If you look at it on its own, it''s not bad, but if you think about the future, it''s ....... "Should we consider going out to catch the giant salamander? Haruka then looks around at us. The Great Salamander. If we can catch it well, we can make a lot of money. I made a large magic bag yesterday, so I can handle several fish up to about a meter. The only drawback is the distance to the hunting grounds. I''d recommend orcs. "Really?¡¡I didn''t expect that. The one who gave a different opinion was Natsuki. I was a little surprised too. Defeating the orcs was something Toya would say, and I thought Natsuki would rather avoid fighting. There are two reasons. One is that we are not prepared enough for an overnight expedition, and it would be costly. The other reason is that defeating demons is one way to ensure safety. The so-called character level?¡¡You should also raise your character level. ...... Yes, that''s very convincing. If Toya had said it, I would have disagreed, but not when Natsuki says it. Yeah, isn''t that terrible? Because it''s Toya. Haruka and I nodded our heads, and Yuki nodded her head. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. You''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this. It''s hard for me to disagree with the idea of raising character levels, because I''ve thought about it too. I was thinking more along the lines of goblins for a while. ...... Toya, what do you think? After groaning and twisting his head for a while, Toya opened his mouth with a slightly troubled look. If I''m being honest, it''s hard to tell. But based on the information I''ve gathered from the guild and the strength of the goblins and vipu bears I''ve fought so far, I think I can handle one by myself. With Natsuki, it would be much easier. With the support of the other three, it''ll be easy. Something like that. Of course, from a strength analysis standpoint. How many of them is too many to risk? Up to three if we''re all cool with it. Four is dangerous. If we want to have a margin of safety, I''d say two. When I looked at Natsuki, she nodded her head, so I guess that was her decision as well. Well, Natsuki''s spear level is 4. If I lend her my spear, she can kill an orc in one hit. Or rather, I usually lend her my spear. I wonder if it will become Natsuki''s spear. I have magic, so it''s reasonable to think of me as a party player, but it''s a little sad. If you take into account the uncertainty of other monsters invading the party, I''d say no more than two. I''m not sure if Nao''s [Enemy Search] will help. "So far, I haven''t missed any. I don''t know if there are any enemies that can cheat the [search enemy], but so far, I''ve been able to identify them with certainty within the searchable distance. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I can find something.¡¡Are all of you in good physical condition? I''m fine. Yes. I nodded my head. I''m not tired at all because my luggage is light today. It''s amazing that my body doesn''t get tired from walking in the forest. I understand. Let''s move deeper into the forest in about an hour. If we don''t encounter any more, I''m afraid we''ll have to turn back for the day. It''s too dangerous to go dark in the woods. Copy that. And so, to increase our safety, we returned to our normal search area and started walking deeper into the forest. It took us about 10 minutes to walk deep into the forest. There were three reactions to my [search]. Bigger than the goblin''s reaction, but smaller than the vipu bear''s. It''s my first reaction. "Three responses, about 80 meters away. Orcs? I don''t know, but they''re weaker than vipe-vears. Can you avoid three? We''ve decided to limit ourselves to two Orcs, so if the reaction is Orcs, we should avoid them, but we don''t know yet. "Let''s just go check it out. If we don''t identify them, we''ll have trouble in the future, right?¡¡If you have my [Appraisal], you can just look at it from a distance. "That''s true. Even if they notice us, we''re weaker than vipu bears, so we should be able to handle them. "Then let''s proceed with caution. Nao, lead the way. Yes, sir. We changed our direction and went through the forest, and within a few tens of seconds, we could see our opponent. Fortunately, they hadn''t noticed us yet. That''s a hobgoblin, isn''t it? They''re stronger than goblins, but still not very strong. The magic stone is 600 rare. Is that the result of your studies? Yeah. Maybe. It''s the result displayed in the appraisal, but that''s because it was written in a document I read yesterday. Even if it''s a memorandum effect, it''s useful enough. I''ve only encountered a few of them now, but if the number of beasts and demons I encounter increases in the future, I won''t be able to remember them all. Let''s take the lead for now. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that with Nao and Yuki. I can use the Fire Arrow now, but I don''t know how powerful it is. As usual, you can easily use it by copying it from me. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s weaker than my slightly customized Fire Arrow, though. I''ll follow you, don''t worry. Then, from left to right, it''s me, Nao, and Yuki. Even if we can''t kill them, we''ll give them a good chase, so Toya and Natsuki, when they come this way, take care of them. Okay. All right. I nodded to Haruka and Yuki, and prepared the magic. I nodded to Haruka and Yuki and prepared the magic. But it was Haruka''s arrow that landed first. The arrow hit the hobgoblin in the side of the head and went into its head, causing it to sway slightly and then collapse. At about the same time, my magic blows off the top half of the middle hobgoblin''s head, and Yuki''s magic arrives a little later, enveloping the face of the hobgoblin on the right in flames. If you fire them at the same time, you can clearly see that the order of speed is Haruka''s arrows, my magic, and Yuki''s magic. I had imagined them to be more powerful, but should I use them with more speed in mind?¡¡It seems to have been a little too powerful for the hobgoblin. On the other hand, Yuki''s magic is weak. On the other hand, Yuki''s is not as powerful as the initial Fire Arrow I used in the beginning. "Ugh, I''m the only one who got killed. ...... Oh, run! The hobgoblin, which I had expected to be attacked and come at me, turned its back on me and tried to run, as if it had been scared off by the instant two of its friends were killed. The next moment, he fell. Yuki shouted. The hobgoblin didn''t even have time to get up, he was hit in the head by Haruka''s arrow, and after scratching his head a bit, he stopped moving. The hobgoblin had no time to get up and was hit by Haruka''s arrow. I''m not sure. It''s hard to time it with a running enemy, but it''s enough to hinder them from running. It seems I caved in a little under my feet when I stepped out. If the ground caved in just a few centimeters when you were trying to run, you''d probably fall. The power of the "Fire Arrow" was low, but the ability to immediately use magic at that moment was amazing. Nao''s magic is amazing. It''s the same magic, isn''t it? But in this world, the name of the magic is only a guide. It is not automatic when you cast a spell, so the power and consumption depends on the magic power and image you put into it. It''s better to have a fixed name for the spell and its effect, so that you can use it more consistently in battle. I''ve never seen hobgoblins before. They don''t seem very strong, do they? "I don''t know. For now, it seems that if you hit the right spot, you can kill them with one hit of Haruka''s arrows. ...... For me, with the magic I just used, it would be about three shots in a row, or a few dozen with a break, maybe. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. In the event that you''re in the market for a brand new pair of shoes or boots, you''ll be able to get a great deal more than that. It''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''ll be looking for the hobgoblin''s demon stone that I blew up. ...... Oh, there it is. It''s lying on the ground. I was worried that it might be broken, but it''s clean and intact. It''s a good way to blow off the head without doing grotesque work, don''t you think?¡¡Toya''s having a hard time. The only thing I can''t get used to is collecting the magic stones. ......6 1,000 yen, 6,000 yen ...... He''s trying to cover up his unpleasant work with the power of money. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. I''m sure Toya''s sword is convenient for the task, but it''s impressive that she''s taking the initiative and not leaving it to the ladies. If I were you, I''d use the ...... "Fire Arrow" to blow off the head and collect it.¡¡The magic stone seems to be strong. You can make a lot of money with hobgoblins if you get as many encounters as in the game, but it''s not worth it when you consider the time it takes to collect the magic stones and search for them. That''s true. Especially the location is not good. The location of the magic stone differs from demon to demon, but most of them are either in the head, like goblins, or in the center of the body, around the tail in humans. Naturally, the latter is the easiest to retrieve. If goblins were of this type, profits would be higher, but normal goblins, hobgoblins, and other subspecies and higher species are all of the former type. Orcs, on the other hand, seem to be of this type, but since they can be sold for their meat, you only need to kill two of them at most to return to the city. It''s not going to be easy. The price is 18,000 yen for killing three animals. I don''t want to go to the trouble of killing them, so I''ll just avoid them if I can. Nao, can you identify them? Well, it''s possible once you get used to it, I suppose, but you''ll probably make some mistakes for a while. That''s not an option. You know? Yeah. But if possible, I''d like Nao or Yuki''s magic to kill it. You know, to collect the stone. Got it. Let''s go then. And so, we headed deep into the forest in search of the orcs again. 72-062 æ–ƒ Orcs It was only a few minutes after the death of the hobgoblin that my detection caught the reaction. Two reactions a little bigger than vipe-bears. They''re coming towards us. "I don''t know if they''re orcs or not, but they are. They seem a little stronger than vipe-vears. "Then it''s almost certainly Orcs. The only thing stronger than a vipu bear around here is the rare report of an ogre. The ogre is overwhelmingly strong, so it should be more than ''a little'' strong, apparently. What should we do?¡¡We don''t have much time. I don''t know if it knows we''re here or not, but it''s approaching us almost straight away. We have a few tens of seconds to spare. "This time, Toya and I will handle it. If it gets dangerous, we''ll need backup. "All right. Be careful. Toya and Natsuki stepped forward, weapons at the ready, while Haruka stood back a little, bow at the ready. Yuki and I have our weapons ready, but we are basically preparing for magic. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. And then I saw the Orc ....... It''s not what I imagined! I had imagined it to be a large, pig-like creature that walked on two legs, but the creature that appeared had fur. Its body was also more toned than I had imagined, and it was over three meters long, about the same size as a Weipu Bear. It looked like a biped based on a boar. The face has tusks, though somewhat short, similar to those of a boar. It holds a thick branch in its hand, perhaps as a club, but it does not appear to have been modified, nor does it wear any clothing. As a result, his crotch is in full view, but unlike humans, it can be retracted to a certain extent, and aside from his balls, his rod is not so conspicuous. Thank God. If they were in such a state of readiness, we would not want to get close to them, let alone the women. I hope they don''t get so excited by the battle that they go to ....... I guess they noticed too. Yes, they did. I''m not sure at what point it ...... smelled? The way he approached cautiously, club at the ready, did not indicate that he was careless. At the very least, it was sure to have noticed us before we came into view. The boar has a nose good enough to search for truffles in the ground. Depending on the direction of the wind, it might be able to spot me from a distance beyond my search area. As the distance between us approached, Natsuki was the first to move. He held his spear in a low stance and closed the distance at once. Toya jumped out to follow close behind. The orc reacts to the two, but he''s a little slow. By the time he raises the club in his hand, Natsuki is already in attack range, and the spear is thrust out. The tip of the spear dipped under his chin and slipped over his head to reveal a bloody point. At the same time, the upraised hand lost its strength and the club rolled to the ground. Toya''s was not a long one, and perhaps that was part of the reason. He jumped up in front of the other one and swung his sword down, but was caught by the Orc''s club with a slight difference in time. He dove for the middle of the thick club, but the wood seemed to be quite strong and did not seem to break. The orc swung the club and tried to send Toya flying, but Toya timed it well and landed safely on the ground. For backup! No! Toya shouts, takes a step back, and in the next instant, shrinks his body and leaps forward with his left shield at the ready. The orc''s left leg was just ahead of him. As soon as it hit his thigh, there was a thud, followed by the sound of a branch snapping and the scream of an Orc. As the orc slumped and fell, Toya slipped behind him and plunged his sword into the back of the orc''s neck, stopping it in an instant. Nice work. I clap my hands, and Toya opens her mouth, looking a little disappointed. No, Natsuki beat me. No, that''s the nature of the weapon. No, it''s a characteristic of the weapon.¡¡I can''t do that.¡¡I can''t do that. Come to think of it, I''ve never seen a proper charge from Toya. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. ...... Although it was more powerful than I imagined. The femur supporting that huge body was snapped with a single blow. It''s not just the joints that are targeted from the side, it''s the muscles wrapped around the femur that are hit head on and broken, the power is tremendous. I mean, Toya, what about that charge?¡¡I''m glad you got lucky and broke it, but the timing was wrong, but the location was wrong. You should at least aim for the joint. You''re right. If he steps on it, he''ll get a clubbing blow from his back. Toya scratched his head and laughed at both Haruka and Yuki''s criticism. You can''t deny it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you could have won without using [Charge]. If you think about the difference in physique, there was a possibility that you could have been stopped, and if you think about safety, you have no choice. "Well, well. It''s your first time fighting an orc, and you have three backups, so that''s why you''re fighting the way you are, right?¡¡If not, I''m sure you''ll fight more carefully, right? I''m sure that''s ...... true. It''s not a bad idea to try it out with a margin of safety, if you put it that way. But to be honest, it was weaker than expected.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Yes, it''s running slow, and it wasn''t very strong, but maybe that''s reasonable? "...... What do you mean? My spear skill is level 4 and Toya''s is level 3. If the maximum skill level in this world is 10, then I think we can be considered to be at a reasonably high level. On the other hand, the Orcs and the Ogres, which we haven''t met yet, are weak enemies in comparison to the rest of the world. If we are struggling at our level, there will be no one who can kill the really strong demons. I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. I''ve been able to use my spear better than I did at first, even though my skill level hasn''t improved. It''s hard to raise your skill level. Well, I''ve been training diligently, but I''ve only been doing it for less than two months, so it''s not surprising. If it only takes a few months, the highest level won''t be 10. Oh, by the way, I''m now level 3 in archery. "Oh, really?¡¡I''ve been practicing more than Haruka, haven''t I? What?¡¡It''s not that easy. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll want to take a look at this website. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡But I''m still level 3! "That''s still understandable since it''s 3 to 4. But Haruka and I are both level 2. We both have the same talent ....... Is it possible that there is a difference in the same "talent"? I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s not a comparison. You can''t compare the two. Even though Toya had no talent, he got the stick technique relatively quickly and made it to level 2. ...... I guess that''s true. Yeah. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m sure I''ve studied more hours than you, but I''m losing in grades!¡¡Why? You can''t date Haruka and her friends if you''re thinking like that. It would be much more meaningful to ask for advice and make an effort before thinking like that. "Hey, don''t talk like that, let''s dismantle it and go home. We don''t have much time. "Oh, yeah. Sorry. I apologize to Yuki who interrupted me as if out of frustration, and we all proceed to dismantle the orc. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do. Fortunately, Toya and I have also acquired the [Dismantling] skill, and Haruka is now at level 2, so we can work more efficiently. Natsuki doesn''t have it yet, but he''s been helping me, so I''m sure he''ll get it soon. He seems to be able to handle a knife well because he can cook, so he can do it in a shorter time than us. As for the motsu, we will collect the same parts as the boar, but discard the head and the tips of the limbs because they are somehow unpleasant. But there are fingers. "Why does it have fingers when it looks like a boar? "Well, boars are even-toed ungulates, but that doesn''t mean they don''t have fingers. Is that so? Yes, they do. The fingers have degenerated and the third and fourth toes have become hooves, so it is possible that the other fingers would still be there if they had not degenerated. Or maybe they evolved again after degenerating. I don''t know about that. So those hooves were fingers. I don''t know if they evolved from boars to orcs, or if they went through some other evolutionary process, or if they just ignore all that because they are demons, but I don''t think the fingers themselves are strange. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. If you don''t pay attention to it, you don''t think it''s a finger. If you''re not conscious of it, you don''t think of it as a finger, but more like a paw. According to Yuki, dogs and cats have five toes on their front legs and four toes on their back legs. This orc has four feet. "This orc has four legs. It has five hands, so it''s similar to cats and dogs. I see. But Toya?¡¡Don''t bother to show me, okay? I protested to Toya, who lifted the cut off leg and pointed the sole at me. The fact that it looks more like a monkey than a cat or a dog is even more disgusting. Is that so?¡¡Biologically speaking, it''s kind of interesting. I''ll leave that to the scientists. I''ll leave that to the scientists. Get on with the dismantling. Yeah. I''m almost done with ....... The meat is divided into parts and packed in individual backpacks, and the parts that don''t fit are placed in other bags on the side. There are five such bags in total. They vary in size, but each of them must carry at least one bag to collect the amount of meat that can be carried. All that remained on the ground were limbs, bones, heads, and organs. ...... Again, it looks like the scene of a freak murder. "Hmm, what a waste of bones. If you take them home, you can get pork chops from ....... I''m not sure what to think.¡¡I honestly don''t think I''d have much of an appetite in this situation. Toya''s mental structure is too tough. In the beginning, you and I were pale when we dismembered the boar. I wonder if one day I''ll be able to look at a bloodied pork chop and think, ''That looks good. Toya, you can''t do that. Oh, tell him, Haruka! Pork bones stink and take a long time. You can''t use it until you buy a house. That''s it!¡¡You can''t use pork bones unless you make ramen. Well, you don''t make it at home unless you have a lot of free time. It''s not worth the cost. Considering the amount of fuel, time, and ingredients needed to boil, wash, and crush the bones, and then boil them with vegetables and broth ......, the bar is too high to make it for just a few people. It''s not like you can store it for a long time, so you can''t make it in large quantities. ...... Or is it possible now?¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do. We don''t have much time. "Oh, right. It might get dark if we don''t hurry. Nao, Toya, take the course that avoids encountering enemies as much as possible. Don''t be absurd. We''ll just go back the way we came. We''ll keep looking for them, but ...... let''s hope we don''t run into any orcs. The hobgoblin didn''t notice us, but judging by the orc''s movements, it''s possible that he noticed us first from outside my search range. We each lifted a sack of meat and started walking out of the forest. 73-063 Earn with Orcs! After that, until we exited the forest, the presence of an enemy was caught in our search range only once. However, I assumed it was a task boar from its reaction, so I continued on my way and escaped the forest without fighting. If it were a game, the encounter rate would be another complaint, but in real life, if the monsters are so dense that you encounter them several times in an hour, they will gather and kill you while you are fighting. If it were an animal, it would probably run away, but demons basically attack humans, so it''s impossible to ignore them when they''re right next to you in battle. After reaching the street, we ran the marathon again. It''s pretty hard with a full backpack and a sack full of meat, but I can''t complain because this time we''re divided into an extra-large group, Toya and Natsuki in the large group, and me and three others in the small group. Maybe we''re almost there, though... "Extended Space". Since the simultaneous activation of "Slow Time" and "Light Weight" is now successful about once in ten times, it should not be long before we have a magic bag with both "Extended Space" and "Light Weight" added. I''ll do my best for my own sake. Yeah. When I got back to the city, I stopped by Aella''s place first, sold some meat, and headed to the guild with the rest. It was later than usual, so I had to wait a bit, but I managed to sell the orcs, some medicinal herbs, and magic mushrooms. I got 72,800 rares for the orcs, including magic stones, meat and fur, and 32,000 rares for the herbs and magic mushrooms. That''s about 100 gold coins. Hmmm, if the weather doesn''t break, I think I can make enough money to pay for the land in two more days, don''t you think? Incidentally, killing the orcs raised us all to rank 2. The evaluation of rank 2 is "a little better than rookie," but Diora says that "it''s around here that people tend to get carried away and die," so we were told to be more careful. He also told me to be careful about Orcs, saying that they sometimes have nests nearby, and that if you fight near a nest, a large number of reinforcements will come. Considering the possibility that they might have been noticed from outside my search range, this was a very important point. Even if you can manage up to three or four of them, fighting is about numbers. If there are 10 or double digits, we are almost certain to lose. We should put more effort into searching for them, considering the possibility of retreat in case of emergency. The next day, and the day after that. The next day and the day after that, we had to earn money mainly from orcs. I tried to find magic mushrooms, but they didn''t grow in most of the places where I had collected them, and most of the kindling I found had been eaten. In that sense, it was quite lucky that I was able to collect them from the first three kindling trees. It was probably the territory of the vipu bear I had killed at that time. I haven''t encountered any other vipu bears since then, so there may be little hope for magic mushrooms in the future. Orcs are also very profitable, but the bottleneck is transportation. After killing two orcs, you have to turn back. Thanks to this, I''ve been able to get more training time. As of yesterday, I''ve been able to activate "Extended Space", so now I just need to be able to activate it stably at the same time as "Light Weight", and I''ll be able to make a magic bag. This will make things easier in many ways. I hope to have it ready in the next few days. In fact, I''m a little concerned that Yuki was able to activate "Extended Space" before me, but she''s still ahead of me when it comes to ...... control. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. The next day, as the weather was becoming suspicious, we got off work before noon after killing only one task boar, and asked Diora about the progress of the land acquisition while selling the materials. Yes, it''s going well. Yes, it''s going well. I''m sure you''ll be satisfied within the next few days. "Really?¡¡I thought it would take longer than that. You''ve been working hard and I''ve been working hard too. An opponent like that is easy for me to handle. Yeah. Diora smiled, reliably. I''ll pretend I didn''t hear the slightly disturbing remark. Are we working too hard?¡¡We''re finishing up pretty early. The first time we killed an orc, we worked until a little late, but we usually came back around mid-afternoon. But they still bring back their prey, don''t they? A lot of rank 1 and 2 adventurers don''t catch anything even if they work from morning till evening, so they just use medicinal herbs.¡¡If such people were to kill even one orc, they would spend several days drinking. A few days? ...... If they do that, they won''t be able to save any money. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you have. If you''re looking for a place to stay in Sarstat, you''ll be able to find it in about three days with some good drinks and food. Weapons and armor cost a lot of money, and we can''t afford to take a leisurely rest. The reason why we can save a good amount of money is because the Bear Pavilion is cheap, no one is spending money on luxury items like alcohol, and thanks to our sewing skills, we can provide our own clothes to some extent. You''re right. It''s impossible to move up in rank at that rate, but many adventurers don''t think too far ahead. ...... On the other hand, it seems that those who can think about the future will steadily increase their ranks. You can get by with hard work up to rank three or four, so those who stall out before they get there have almost no chance in the future. What happens to those people when they get old? What happens to those people when they get old? "Well, most of them will never get old. They die on the way. Yeah, ...... Yuki''s expression hardened at Diora''s blunt statement. In the event that you''ve got some sort of good fortune or you''ve got some sort of good fortune, you may get a regular job, but ......, they''re people who originally have a plan or an unfounded idea that they can succeed. ...... It''s kind of like a second childhood disease. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s like you''re special. If you continue to be an adventurer, you will end up in the graveyard of life. No, the real graveyard. We have to be careful. Home ownership, savings, this is important. It''s not that hard to die an orc and save money if you have a few, from what I''ve seen. It''s not that hard to find them, is it? It''s because you''re strong, Natsuki-san. A rookie who has just become an adventurer is just a young man from a farming village.¡¡They may have some strength, but they''re amateurs with no skills, who''ve only ever wielded a stick. It''s tough to face an orc, let alone a goblin. So, you''re unskilled. That''s a different starting point from those of us who have weapon skills from the start. If you''re lucky enough to find a teacher, he or she may not be able to teach you for free. And it''s doubtful that you''ll be able to save up enough to buy a good weapon like the one you have, Natsuki-san. The spear I bought and Natsuki is using now costs 1.4 million Japanese yen. It''s certainly not a weapon that a junior high school kid can afford. The spear I''m holding now, the one that Natsuki bought, is probably affordable, but to be honest, even I would be scared to face an Orc with it. I''m afraid it will snap off easily. Of course, it''s hard to find them. Of course, it''s hard to find them, too. It''s hard to find the orcs themselves, and you have to pick out the ones that have no more than two orcs, preferably only one, so that you can escape if there are three or more. It''s quite difficult for rookies. I''ve been killed quite a few times when hunting orcs. To sum it up, it''s all about [spotting enemies] and weapon skills. Even if there are no obvious cheats, the evil gods have made it pretty easy for you to earn money. It''s also the place where I was sent. So, to be honest, Natsuki and the others who consistently bring us Orc meat are a big help. Orc meat is very popular. Diora-san? Yes, I like it too. I''ll take you up on that. Diora smiled at me. It seems that, as with Dindol, he is being sold at the guild''s purchase price - or rather, at his family''s price. Meat is a bit expensive in this world, but the guild''s purchase price is enough for an average person to eat every day. For Diora, who seems to be the leader of the guild, this should be no problem at all. I''m glad I could help you. I''m glad I could help you, but you''re probably off tomorrow. It''s going to rain. I''ll be free too. I''ll go back to the landowner''s place. Thank you very much. I''ve got the money ready. "Yes, you can count on it. 74-064 Magic Bag Evolved The rain that started yesterday afternoon is still falling today. Inevitably, today''s work is cancelled, and each of us will be training in our own rooms. I, Yuki, and Haruka are training in magic and alchemy, as usual. Natsuki is embroidering a magic circle. Toya, the only one with nothing to do, had been lounging around in bed for a while, but just now he ran outside shouting, "Rainy day training! and ran out of the house. We didn''t say anything, but he couldn''t stand the fact that he was the only one not doing anything. Normally I would be worried about a cold, but I''m sure [Robust Lv.4] will do the job. I''m hoping to successfully activate Light Weight and Extended Space today. "I''ve been able to activate them more consistently, so I think I can handle it. I hope so. Fortunately, the addition to the magic bag itself can be practiced as many times as you want by releasing the magic power contained in the magic circle. If you just write on it with ink, it seems to deteriorate as you repeatedly add and release it, but perhaps it''s because of the embroidery, but so far I haven''t seen any signs of deterioration. Still, I have been practicing with an ordinary jute bag instead of a backpack. And it is Natsuki who is supporting me. While Haruka is doing additional work as an alchemist and Yuki and I are using space-time magic, Natsuki is doing the work. I think we''re about halfway there. The addition of magic is completed by using the magic, maintaining it just before it is activated, and then pouring the magic into it. The bottleneck is the maintenance part of the spell. If you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to make a lot of money. It''s a bit pathetic, because Halka seems to be taking it pretty well. I''ll try a smaller one.¡¡If we make the magic circle smaller, we can reduce the time it takes to pour. Hmm, that doesn''t sound quite right, does it ......? It''s not just about the size of the bag, it''s about the amount of magic you can put into it. In other words, if you prepare a small bag and a small magic circle, you only need to maintain the magic for a short time to complete the granting. However, I have a feeling that the reason for my failure is not due to a simple maintenance problem. It''s almost like a hunch. However, I don''t really know what it is. It''s just a hunch. "Hey, Nao, did you read this part? "Hmm?¡¡It''s a grimoire of space-time magic, bottom volume?¡¡I''ve only skimmed it. Yuki held out the grimoire of space-time magic, bottom volume. I don''t even fully understand the upper volume yet. I''ve only looked at the lower volume to see what kind of magic is in it. "Then read here. "What''s that?" ...... "Column: Is Space-Time Magic Profitable? . Hey, what''s this about? I''ll just read it. Oh, my God, ....... I protested to Yuki about the title, which was a bit lighter than I expected, but she strongly told me to read it, so I decided to read it. --------------------------------------------------------------------- I''m not sure what to make of this. Hey there, readers. I''ve been working on this for a while now. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I know how you feel. Space-time magic is more difficult to learn and use than other types of magic. Fire magic is easy to figure out, boom, boom, boom. In addition, you can sell ice in the summer and earn money easily, so you''ll be safe forever. Earth magic is also a bit simple, but not insignificant. You don''t have to do anything dangerous, you can still work when you''re old enough to help with civil engineering, so it''s not so bad. Not to mention light magic. It''s been sought after since level one. Once you reach level 5 or 6, you''ll be respected by everyone, and you''ll be able to play and live if you want to. On the other hand, wind magic is a little more approachable. It''s not so great until you get to a higher level. No, it''s just a useful magic. Dark magic?¡¡That''s a bit different. It''s not something to be discussed as useful or not useful. In that sense, spacetime magic is a little hard to use. Up to level 3, the effects are quite subtle. That''s why I was expecting a level 4 Sanctuary.¡¡I wonder who gave it that name. It looks great, but the effect is kind of dull. ....... In fact, this is the spell I''ve used the most. It comes in handy when you''re camping. It keeps all the bugs out. Of course, that''s not how it''s supposed to be used, and it''s great when used by high level people. In the case of my master, he was able to bounce back arrows and magic. I was so happy when I was able to use "teleportation" at level 6. ...... Immediately after that, I was devastated to find out that I could only fly within my field of vision even if I used it to the fullest. Of course, this is also great when used by high level people. But only a handful of people can reach that level. But only a few can reach that level, because it''s usually difficult to even use level 6 magic. --------------------------------------------------------------------- I don''t know. I''m not sure if this is a complaint or not. Well, read it to the end. "Really?¡¡Seems like a waste of time to me. ...... --------------------------------------------------------------------- That''s why most people fail in the middle, space-time magic. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. But if the magic you''re able to use is just a bunch of crap, you won''t be able to maintain your motivation, and you won''t be able to make a living in real life. Ordinary people can''t spend all their time practicing magic. I think the magic bag is the first thing that comes to mind. It''s so well known that people think of magic bags as space-time magic and space-time magic as magic bags. Yes, it''s true that if you can make a magic bag, you can be assured of a secure future as a space-time wizard and a life of left-handedness. I''ve made a lot of money, too. That''s how I''ve been able to find the time to write this book. Anyway. Magic bags are not really that easy to make. In fact, magic up to level 3 is enough, so even a time-space wizard who failed halfway through the book can make one, don''t you think?¡¡No, no, no. If it were that easy, they''d be selling more of them. That''s what I mean. First the alchemist. You need a partner to work with. This other alchemist doesn''t have to be very skilled, but they do have to have aptitude, so it can''t be just anyone. Besides, the alchemist and the space-time wizard need to be in sync, so if they are incompatible, it won''t go well at all. In other words, if you can do it well, you can do it well. Actually, my wife is an alchemist. Ha-ha-ha. Oh, I''m getting off topic again. I''m talking about magic bags. To tell the truth, it''s not that difficult to make a magic bag if there''s only one spell to be cast on it: Light Weight, Slow Time, or Extended Space. I think even a beginner time and space wizard would be able to pull it off. And if you''re actually going to use it, I think it makes sense to have a magic bag that only has one function, but it won''t sell. Or rather, they don''t treat it as a magic bag because they think a magic bag is one that has "light weight," "slow time," and "extended space. I guess it''s a stereotype.¡¡I think there should be a market for single function magic bags, but if merchants won''t buy them, there''s nothing the producers can do. I had a lot of trouble finding the money in the beginning. Now, if the single function magic bag doesn''t sell, then the only thing to do is to make a magic bag with three magic functions, which is commonly known as a magic bag, right? But this is difficult. First of all, you have to activate all three spells at the same time. It''s like writing with your hands and drawing with your feet. I don''t have many tips for this. You just have to practice to be able to use magic almost unconsciously.¡¡It''s quite manageable with practice. The next part is the hard part. You have to pour the magic into the spell circle, but if you just pour it in, it''s almost guaranteed to fail. I''ve had this problem too. I tried pouring them in at the same time so that they were evenly distributed, pouring them in order, changing the order, etc. ...... Anyway, I tried a lot of different things. Anyway, it was hard work. If it hadn''t been for the encouragement of my partner, I probably would have failed. Those days of trial and error were not in vain, though, because they nurtured our love. Well, in the end, all I needed to do was to mix each magic into one, and then pour it into the magic circle. Huh?¡¡You don''t know what I mean? Well, I guess you could compare each magic to colored water, mix them together in your mind to make a new color, and then pour it into the magic circle. At least that''s what I''ve been able to do. If you can do it too, you can make a lot of money and live an elegant life. Of course, you''ll need a compatible partner, though, right? --------------------------------------------------------------------- What the hell is this?¡¡Mostly whining and giggling!¡¡All you need is the last few lines!¡¡And by the way, you should have written that advice in the top volume! I read the whole thing as Yuki asked me to, but most of it didn''t make much sense. The advice in the last part was somewhat useful, but that could have been written in the upper volume, where the magic bag is described, with a few additional lines. "Harassment?¡¡Harassment? I know exactly how you feel. You wanted to stop reading halfway through, didn''t you?¡¡It''s unnecessarily long, and it''s a ''column'' that seems to have nothing to do with the text. Yuki nodded deeply in agreement with my indignation. And then at the end, you give a quick piece of advice that seems important. "Yes, I think so. I think so, too." "It''s written all the way in the bottom of the book! If it had been in the upper volume, near the description of the magic bag, I might have read it. But in fact, it is in the lower volume. The lower volume contains magic of level 8 and above, as well as more advanced concepts. If you are a wizard who has not yet reached that level, you may not have even bought the book. I don''t understand, is there anything good in it? I''m not sure, but did it say anything good? The whole thing is a waste of time. However, some of the advice might be useful. We''ll just have to try it out. Haruka, can you help me? Yes. I''ll use Light Weight and Extended Space. Imagine a color for each: ...... red and blue. Mix them together, turn them purple, and pour them in -- oh, that''s smooth. It''s a lot easier than pouring two spells together. Isn''t this going to work ......? "Okay, done--? It seems to have worked without interruption, but is it a success?¡¡I''m worried because I''ve had so many failures in the past. ....... I don''t think I had a problem either, but let''s try ....... Yeah, right. This time, I made a bag about the size of a plastic bag from a convenience store. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "Oh, oh, oh, oh!¡¡It''s in! It felt very strange to see it again. The spear was two meters long, and it went into the small bag smoothly. The bag was light even when I lifted it up. At least, it''s not heavy enough to hold a spear. "You did it, Nao!¡¡This is going to be so much easier! "Of course!¡¡Right! Right!¡¡Let''s start mass-producing them right away! "Let''s mass produce it right away! We''ve been through so much together. Space-time magic is really difficult. Wait! I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this.¡¡Also, can''t you add ''slow time''? Haruka threw cold water on me, and I pondered. As for the size, I don''t think it''s a problem. I don''t think the size is a problem, it''s that stable. How about three ...... with one more? I can do it with all three, but can I mix them?¡¡And-- Now that I''ve imagined blue and red, what should the third color be?¡¡And what color would that be? "If you think about the three primary colors of color, it''s yellow. If you mix them, you get black ......, which means you can''t mix more than four? You can''t mix more than four?¡¡You can''t mix more than four." "With the way you''re thinking about it, I don''t see the need for a fourth, since it''s basically only used for magic bags. At least for the spells in the grimoires of space-time magic, there are no spells that would benefit from the addition of a fourth. If you''re looking for a way to do this, you might be able to replace Slow Time with Suspend Time, but this is a level 9 spell. Considering the difficulty and practicality, it would be useless. Now it''s about whether you can add all three. Let''s try it. "Right. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. As it turns out, I succeeded in creating a magic bag with Light Weight, Slow Time, and Extended Space. However, it is no good if it is the size of a backpack. The maximum size is a plastic bag. So I had to remove the backpack, and put a plastic bag inside it. But there is no practical problem at all, right? If you put all your energy into a bag of this size, the effect would be "Extended Space", which would increase the space by 100 times or more. The effect of "Light Weight" is also less than 1/100 of the weight. All values are estimates. These are estimated values based on the fact that we tried to fill the room with whatever we could fit through the mouths of the bags in the room, but they did not fill up. That is to say, I can now carry the meat of the orc that used to be carried by all of us by just one person. This means that I can carry all the tents, cooking utensils, and even the dried dindol and dried meat left in the room of this inn. Incidentally, the only disadvantage of this bag is that you cannot put anything larger than the mouth of the bag. If it were possible to distort the space outside the bag, this would be possible, but it is probably impossible or quite difficult. If it were possible, there would be a description of such a magic bag. The problem with this is that you can''t carry a barrel. Dried meat is stored in barrels that were used for pickling, but these barrels do not fit. If it''s just meat, you can just repackage it in a bag, but you can''t take a barrel bath in the open air. In the meantime, I''ll set a long-term goal of "becoming able to add a bag that can hold a barrel". 75-065 My Home (Land Only) Since we got the full version of the magic bag, our behavior has changed a bit. When we enter the forest, we look for, kill, and strip our prey. Find it, kill it, kill it. Repeat until it''s time to return home. Since I am no longer affected by the amount of prey I can carry or its deterioration, I can now work for a full hour. The target is basically orcs for money. Or task boars if you can find them. I ignore goblins, which don''t bring much money and take a lot of time to collect magic stones, unless I''m around them. Sometimes, when we kill them, Yuki and I blow their heads off. In this way, instead of being able to collect magic stones easily, they go missing once every few times, but it''s better than taking a long time, so we''ve decided that it''s acceptable. As for the magic mushrooms, we collected them when we found them, but the number we collected was quite small compared to the area we walked around. No wonder they are as rare as matsutake mushrooms. As for medicinal herbs, we almost never collected them anymore. Natsuki only collects them to practice [Pharmacy], and does not sell them because they are not worth much money. The reason why I''ve started to focus so much on combat is, of course, that I have a magic bag and need money, but I''ve also decided to raise my character level if possible. Up until now, we all wanted to increase our character level to ensure safety, but there were doubts about the safety aspect. If we take risks in order to be safe, it is not safe at all. Now, however, a relatively safe and lucrative prey has come to light. I would hesitate if I had to leave the meat behind after hunting, but I can take it all home. Is there any reason not to hunt it? And so we hunted quite a few orcs. It was a disaster for the orcs, but the frequency of encounters didn''t change much, and since they were demons, no one complained. Now, we can handle up to four orcs at a time without any trouble, so we have quite a lot of orc meat in our magic bag. As you can imagine, bringing a large amount of orc meat to the guild may cause trouble, so I limit the number of orcs I sell to four at a time. At first, there was a discussion to limit the amount of meat that can be brought in out of the magic bag, but since it is difficult to hide the magic bag completely - or rather, it would be throwing away the advantage and it would be troublesome, I decided not to hide the fact that I have a magic bag. We decided not to hide the fact that we had a magic bag. However, we don''t want people to know that we can make magic bags, so we procure an old bag and use it as a magic bag, from which we take out the meat when we sell it. I told Diora that I was borrowing it from an elf friend, and that it was bad manners to pry into an adventurer''s past and other matters. If anyone tries to attack me with the magic bag, I''ll have to fight them off with ....... You might want to raise your guild rank a bit more to keep them in check. I think we''ll be fine in this relatively safe city. I''m not sure what to say. "It went well, Haruka-san. You can sell it for 300 gold coins. It was a few days after the magic bag was completed that Diora told me this. The land brokerage he had asked for had been successfully completed. "Oh, ......, are you sure about that? The market price was less than 400 gold pieces. The market price was just under 400 gold coins, but it had dropped to 300 gold coins. It''s no wonder Haruka asked back with a slightly worried look. Yes. When I told him that the guild might not be able to introduce him to anyone in the future, he gave up. You''ve made your decision. That area is mostly under the Guild''s jurisdiction. Mr. Diora smiled and told me what he was going to threaten me with. The guild leader is not a bad thing. "Are you sure? "Yes, no problem, really. It''s impossible to begin with. If there are people renting, do you think the building will ever disappear? Well, you said something about the house deteriorating and collapsing because there was no one left to live in it. When the building is gone, even if they want to rent the land, I can''t introduce them to anyone. That''s true. The place had no tenants even with the building. It would be very difficult to find a tenant who would accept the offer to build a house on the land. The reason why I set the rent at two gold coins is because I wanted to get rid of the renters at the right time after they built their houses. ....... There''s no way I''d allow something like that to happen after having the Guild as an intermediary. I''m not sure what to do. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. That''s right. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. We''re at a disadvantage because we don''t have any backing. If we can save time and effort by paying a small fee, we should discount it as a necessary cost. But why didn''t people come?¡¡"But why didn''t people come? I nodded in agreement with Toya''s question. If a normal house had been built there, we probably would have rented it. Of course, if it''s too expensive, it''s no good, but if it''s as expensive as the surrounding area, there''s no reason to avoid it. It''s a big place. For people who don''t need a big yard, it''s just ''too'' big. If it were lowered to the same level as the surrounding small houses, there would be renters. ...... The owner thinks, "I can''t charge the same rent for a house that is bigger than the surrounding houses," which is not wrong in itself, but in the end, if there is no one to rent, the house will become more and more desolate. And by the time the owner gives up and lowers the price, the house is in so much disrepair that even if the price is lower than the surrounding area, no one will enter because of the cost of repairs. The result is more disrepair and more houses falling down. The best thing to do would have been to divide the land into smaller lots and build houses on each lot and rent them out or sell them, but I guess they couldn''t make that decision because it would have cost too much money. And I''m not sure if that would have worked either. The city of Laffan is not a populated city, so the demand for houses itself is low. It''s not zero, so people are buying and selling, but the place in question is in an unpopular area. Even if you sell several new houses there, it is unlikely that they will sell. That would be a complete loss. Mr. Diora told him about this and persuaded him, "It''s better to have money that you can be sure of than to have an uncertain investment. "Thanks, Diora. "Thanks, Diora. I need to build a house, and the lower price is honestly a big help. I''ll bring you money and a thank you later, so look forward to it. "No, no, no thank you, just a feeling.¡¡Just a feeling. Diora''s cheeks were relaxed even as she said this. It''s not as if we could have negotiated a better deal, and we need a proper thank you. Now, as a thank you to Mr. Diora, can I have about 50 dried dindol? I went back to the inn, counted the 300 gold coins and put them in a separate bag, Haruka said as she took out a dried dindle. You lowered the price by 100 gold coins. Why don''t you give more?¡¡No matter how high the price of the dried dindol is, the market price is still less than one gold coin, right? "How about that?¡¡If you give us 100 gold coins worth of stuff, there''s no point in us asking Diora-san for a discount, right?¡¡It''s not a good idea for Diora to take the discount as is, is it? Yuki is of the opinion that it''s not much, and Natsuki is of the opinion that it''s not a problem. Haruka gives Yuki some shocking information. Yuki, the market price of dried dindol is about one gold coin, actually. "Oh, really? Yuki''s eyes widened in surprise. It''s so expensive, I can''t believe it. But the taste is also incredibly good. At least I''ve never eaten this level of dried fruit in my original world. Yes. It''s high grade fruit dried in a special way. The selling price to the guild was 800 rares, so if you convert it to a simple price, it''s worth 40 gold coins. He also said that 400 gold coins would be enough for the market price of the land, so the discount should be less than 100 coins. And it''s only a ''thank you'' gift to Diora-san. I think I agree with Haruka. I agree with Haruka. It''s a win-win situation for both us and Diora. I think a half of the discounted price would be appropriate for that. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡...... is a little different. Well, that''s how we got a rather large piece of land with 50 dried dindol and 300 gold coins. 76-066 Lets think about the make-up "At last, we have land too!¡¡Applause!¡¡Clap, clap, clap! As soon as we received the land title from Diora and entered the room, Yuki started clapping her hands and we clapped our hands along with her. I''m not impressed. Yuki waved her hands up and down to show her dissatisfaction with the way we were treating her. No, it''s not really ''finally'', is it?¡¡It''s only been about a week. "That''s true, but... That''s true, but... But wouldn''t it be a little more impressive if I told you that I went into a dangerous forest, collected rare mushrooms, killed several giant monsters over three meters in height, and used the proceeds to acquire land? "That''s certainly true when you hear it like that. ...... Surprisingly, the danger level of the orcs was low. It''s not as if they overcame danger to get it, so it''s probably less impressive. If it had been something like "I saved up 3 million yen to buy it," I would have been very moved. No, it''s not so easy to save up for a normal part-time job. It is quite difficult for a high school student to earn 600,000 yen per person. Well, no matter how it happened, we''re landowners now. "Oh, you''re a hemorrhoid man, Toya?¡¡I''m not, am I? Yeah, it''s hard because we don''t have toilets in this world... hemorrhoids, no! By the way, it''s true that we don''t have toilets. However, the toilet situation is not as bad as I thought. The toilets in the inn are made by alchemy, and the excrement is automatically incinerated. Since garbage is not eliminated, it is necessary to dispose of the residue very occasionally, but even at the inn level, it is not necessary more than once a year. In terms of smell, we don''t have to worry about it at all, which is a big help for us. Most of the households use a regular pumping system, so there is a certain smell. Yuki, I''m glad we got the land, but we need to build a house before we can be happy about it. The time is almost up. "Oh, that''s right. I''ve already talked to the carpenter about it, so I''ll explain it to you briefly. When Yuki went to the carpenter about Aera''s signboard, she asked him about building a house. According to him, ordinary people rarely build houses after detailed discussions like in Japan. To begin with, they don''t draw detailed plans when building a house, nor do they bother to make a model of the house. Of course, it is not possible to see a 3D floor plan on a computer. You just tell the carpenter your budget, the general plan, the rooms and facilities you need, and leave the rest to him. The carpenter will make the missing parts and necessary facilities on his own. It''s less fun to build a house, but I guess I don''t have a choice. Yuki looked a little frustrated as she explained, and Natsuki nodded in agreement. You''re right. When I was building my own home, I was looking forward to choosing the wallpaper and interior design of my choice, and choosing the system kitchen and bathroom. ...... In our case, we don''t know the common sense of houses in this world. In our case, we don''t know the common sense of houses in this world. If we order too many things in detail, we might end up not having what we should have, so it can''t be helped. Well, even in Japan, there are some designer apartments and houses that are definitely hard to live in. It''s fine if you just want to look at them or stay for a few days, but it''s amazing and threatening to see that there are things that seem to have been designed with no regard for daily life. The people who buy such buildings must have a lot of money. This is where they will live for the next several decades. Ordinary people can''t just replace it because they don''t like it or because it''s hard to live in. Well, there''s no system kitchen or unit bath in this world anyway, so there''s nothing you can do about it. "Nor wallpaper. You can choose your curtains and furniture, so why don''t you do whatever you want with them?¡¡It''s going to cost money. I''ll have to earn money again. Oh, by the way, you haven''t saved enough to order a house yet, have you? Yuki, do you have to pay in advance? No. No. Usually it''s half a cent at the most. That''s fine. I can afford 600 gold coins, so the maximum I can afford is 1200. To be honest, the money itself will be enough to sell off the magic bag orcs, so we don''t have to worry about it. That''s what I was thinking. I''ve already saved up a lot of orcs, so even if it rains and I can''t go hunting until the house is finished, there won''t be any problem. Of course, that would mean that the construction of the house would not proceed. Well, let''s order the house as soon as possible, and let''s all think about what kind of house it will be. "Well, yes. I don''t have many wishes, but I would like to have a functional kitchen, even if it''s not as good as Aella''s. I want a private room. If I had to be extravagant, I''d have a place to train indoors. As for me... In this way, each of us put forward our opinions, some of which were adopted and some of which were rejected, and decided the following. 8 rooms in total, including private rooms and guest rooms. Four laboratories and workrooms for alchemy. A well-equipped kitchen. A dining room, a living room, and a parlor. A large laundry room with a bath tub. I asked him to include these things, and then I told him about the requests that were rejected in our discussion, and left the rest to him within the budget. The budget was 1,200 gold coins. The contract is to pay half in advance and the rest upon completion. It is acceptable to go over the budget a little if the work improves, but please consult with me. In Japan, this would be impossible, but since the cost of living is different here, it is not such a reckless request. From our point of view, land and buildings are quite cheap. To begin with, the construction of houses is completely different, so it is strange to compare them. It is difficult for us amateurs to judge whether it is possible or not, so we will go to the consultation tomorrow to discuss the details. The next day, the sky was unfortunately clear. The next day, the weather was unfortunate, so we took a break from hunting, and the three of us women went to the carpenter. Toya and I were given free time. "Do you want to follow us? We were asked if we wanted to come with us, but we knew well in Japan the vitality of women when it comes to fashion and interior design. Naturally, I declined and opted for free time. "So, Toya, what do we do now? After seeing Haruka and the others off, we went back to our room and sat down on the bed to discuss our plans. What should we do? ....... I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡It''s a big place, so we can have as many mock battles as we want. "Toya, ...... you''ve become such a brainiac, ...... you used to be a little better, is your race pulling you down? When I said that and mimicked crying, Toya chuckled and scratched her head. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m too old or too young. In the original world, I wouldn''t have been able to swing a sword as coolly as I do now!¡¡Also, it''s fun to know that I''m improving. "Yeah, I can see that. I also enjoy it when I can handle a spear well. I''m sure men can understand this feeling. When you see a kung fu movie, you feel like imitating it. You can actually do what the characters in movies and comics do, so you can put your energy into it. Although it is true that you can''t use ridiculous techniques like in some comics. But the main reason is still survival. "Well, the main reason is still survival, but even an orc would probably die if I was surrounded by several orcs by myself. "We''re human. We''re human, we can''t just swing our swords around and go ''bang'' with the shockwave, right? That''s the domain of wizards like Nao. No, I can''t do that with my magic for the time being. I need time to chant. To be precise, you don''t need to chant. There are chanting spells in the grimoire, but they are just to help you visualize the magic, and we basically only chant the name of the spell. We basically only chant the names of the spells. In fact, we don''t even need them, but we use them as triggers to eliminate mistakes. It''s like shouting "Meeean! in kendo. If that''s the case, then Haruka''s [Fast Chanting] skill is meaningless, but it''s not. Of course it has the effect of being able to cast spells quickly, but it''s more of a byproduct of the fact that it shortens the time between the composition of the spell and its activation, even without casting the spell -- perhaps. The reason I say "probably" is because there is no comparison. It is true that Haruka''s magic is faster than Yuki''s and mine, but there is no denying the possibility that Haruka is simply better at using magic and that the "fast chanting" skill has nothing to do with it. The fact that we are also able to shorten the activation time by practicing is another reason why we cannot deny this possibility. If I or Yuki could grow the skill of [fast chanting], we would understand. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. I''m not sure if there is such a classification, but we''re still low-level mages. I don''t know if there is such a classification, but at level 3, that''s the best we can do. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I don''t know.¡¡I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that. I''m not sure what to make of that. In other words, no matter how big or small, everyone has magic power itself. "Hmm, can you?¡¡I can''t feel magic. ...... How do you do it? "No, I don''t know. You''ll be able to find out more about this in the following article. If you had suddenly told me to grasp the feeling of magic power, I would not have understood it. I used magic many times and somehow understood what magic was, and then somehow learned the feeling of manipulating magic. It''s not something that can be taught. Can''t you do something about it? It''s not like you can teach it to them. ...... Shouldn''t we find out if beastmen can use magic to do things like magic swords first? "...... That''s true, too. We don''t have a library. ...... Okay, Diora, when in doubt, go ask. Let''s go ask her. I''m not sure what to do. If you''re busy, don''t do that, okay?¡¡I''m working. I know. I know. If you''re busy, I''ll go to the reference room and read something. I was in the middle of something the other day. There''s nothing to do if you stay at the inn alone. Even if I can''t talk to Mr. Diora, reading the material would be a more meaningful use of my time. I headed for the Adventurer''s Guild with a light-footed Toya. 77-067 Tell me, Mr. Diora! The guild I went to was deserted, though I was worried about the weather. Well, the guilds in this town are only crowded in the early morning and evening. Diora was also sitting at the counter, looking bored, but when she saw us coming in, she lightly bailed and smiled. Good morning, Mr. Diora. Thank you for taking care of me yesterday. "No, no, no. It''s our job to support the adventurers. It''s our job to help adventurers. ...... was a bit of a bargain, too. "So it was a good deal for both of us. Yeah, it was. So, what happened today?¡¡Are you off today, Haruka? Yes, it is. The weather is not good. I think it''s good that it''s raining, even veterans can get caught off guard. I think it''s a good idea. You guys bring in orcs frequently, so you can afford it. By the way, since you guys are bringing in orcs so often, there''s talk of a large nest, do you have any idea? Diora said, and Toya and I looked at each other. We didn''t know if it was large-scale or not, but we had an idea of the nest itself. We''ve been repeatedly finding and killing Orcs in small groups using our scouting and Toya''s senses, and based on the range of their appearances, we''ve been able to guess where the nests are and scout them out. Due to skill issues, Natsuki and I went to the place where we found more than 40 orcs in our search range. I didn''t have a visual confirmation, but I have some experience in this area. There was no doubt that there were at least as many demons as orcs, so we immediately turned around and left the area. We''ve killed a number of orcs since then, so if that nest is the only source of supply, the numbers may have dwindled. ....... Diora, how big is too big? The standard is if there is a higher species of orc, but there is no set number. As a rule of thumb, if there are more than 30 orcs, a higher species will be born. "Thirty. ...... Then there''s probably a large nest. I knew it. ....... I thought so, since they were brought in so often. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do. We can kill the orcs ourselves.¡¡We can kill orcs with our own hands, so I don''t think they''re much of a threat. If left unchecked, they will grow in size and appear in the shallow parts of the forest and even on the roads. If left unchecked, they will expand in size and come out in shallow forests and along city roads.¡¡Orcs, too. If they come out to the roads, they''re dangerous. We''ve been able to kill Orcs without any trouble now, but if they had come out when we were on our way to Sarstat to look for Natsuki and the others, something might have happened. If you think about it calmly, Orcs are even more of an enemy than the Weipu Bears that we struggled with in the beginning. As long as the adventurers hunt orcs in moderation, we''ll be fine. ...... "Orcs aren''t popular?¡¡We''re making a lot of money. Well, if you have a certain level of skill and a magic bag, you can make a lot of money, but if you don''t, you''re kind of half-assed. You see, meat is heavy, isn''t it? No matter how many orcs you kill, you can only take one home, right? The meat from one orc is about 300 kilos. Even if a party of six were to share the weight, that would be about 50 kilos per person. The only reason we were able to bring back two orcs before the full version of the magic bag was because we had a backpack and a "light weight" magic bag. The price of one orc is five or six gold coins per person, so it''s not a very good deal. Besides, orcs don''t act alone very often, do they?¡¡If that''s the case, no matter how many orcs you kill, you''ll end up throwing away all but one, which is quite complicated from an adventurer''s perspective. "Oh, that''s for sure. ...... Even if you know you have no choice, it''s mentally tough to throw away something that could be worth over 300,000 yen if you bring it back. "Recently, thanks to the backpack made by Haruka-san, it''s been a little better. Even so, two animals is the limit. If everyone has a backpack, you can bring back about one and a half orcs, and if you have the guts, you can bring back two orcs, so it seems that the popularity of orcs is recovering a bit. Even so, the amount of money you can earn is not enough to reach ten gold coins, but a party with a rank that can handle orcs can earn a good amount of money. But two orcs is too much to ask. You''ll be able to get a lot more than that. ...... No, not if you don''t plan on fighting.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. If a request is made, will any adventurers go to destroy the nest? "No, to be honest, not in this city. To be honest, no. In this city, it''s not worth it, even if the rewards are a bit higher. If you''re a low rank adventurer, it''s impossible to eradicate the nest itself, and if you''re a high rank adventurer, it''s not a good way to earn money. As a result, it seems that even if you submit a request, they will continue to remain. What are you going to do then?¡¡Leave it until the damage is done? No, the government will lose money if there''s damage, so we''ll get the subsidy just in time and organize a guild-organized strike. A guild-sponsored strike is one in which the guild directly asks adventurers to join the strike. It''s not compulsory, but it''s less dangerous to gather a sufficient number of adventurers, and since the guild will also provide a cartage team to destroy the orc''s nest, the guild will be in charge of transporting them to the city for a small fee. Therefore, there is enough profit to be expected, and it won''t be too hard to gather the necessary number of adventurers. I wish we could do it sooner, but the guild would be in the red without the subsidy. It''s not easy. Mr. Diora sighs as he says this. It seems that the government will only take action when people walking along the road are about to be harmed, so they won''t give subsidies if rookie adventurers entering the forest are harmed. The adventurer''s guild would like to protect the rookie adventurers, but it is difficult for the guild to take out all the money to kill them. As a result, the only thing we can do is to warn people. "I see. It would be nice if our party could destroy them. ...... "Oh, no, no, no, no, I''m sorry to complain, but please don''t take any risks, okay?¡¡If Toya and the others are harmed because of it, it will be the end of the world. "Orcs aren''t difficult to deal with if you can lure them out one by one. Are the top Orcs really that strong? "Well, an orc leader is not much of a threat if you have a few adventurers who can kill orcs alone. However, when it comes to the top-ranked Orc King, it seems that adventurers who can deal with normal Orcs will be easily kicked to the curb. I''ve never encountered one in this area, so this is just anecdotal information. Compared to orc leaders and the like, it seems that they are truly an order of magnitude stronger. Of course, they''re the kind of adventurers we''d be kicking around. I''ve never seen one around here," Diora said, which was a relief. "By the way, do orc leaders sell at a high price? When I asked that, Diora smiled and opened her mouth a bit awkwardly. It''s not really that hard. The magic stones and skins are more than twice as much as normal orcs, but the meat itself is almost the same. ....... If you only want to make money, it''s better and safer to kill a few normal orcs. Diora said, and then added, "That''s why I can''t get a commission. More than half of the orc''s profit comes from meat sales. Orcs are still Orcs, even if they get stronger, the taste of their meat doesn''t improve dramatically, so it can''t be helped. In fact, the stronger the orc gets, the harder the meat becomes and the less tasty it becomes. Incidentally, it is said that skins are sold at a high price because they are harder and stronger than normal orcs. In other words, they are more difficult to attack. If you become an Orc King, you can sell magic stones and skins for a very high price. Even so, I don''t know if it''s worth the strength. But the taste of the meat is still the same. However, if you''re lucky, some noblemen who like rare things will buy them at a high price, so you can have some hope. If you are lucky, a noble who likes rare things will buy it at a higher price. So an Orc leader is worth 14,000 rares. Double the price. If you say it''s expensive, it''s expensive, but ...... meat and skin is more profitable, right? Yes, it is. The meat is usually more expensive than the oak. What are the prices of the hides and meat? ...... is the same. I see. No wonder there are still requests. There''s no point in trying to kill the nest, is there?¡¡If I had to give a reason, I''d say it''s for our experience. The cautious Haruka is unlikely to agree. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure if there is such a thing. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure.¡¡I don''t know.¡¡That''s what I''m talking about. I''m not that familiar with it myself. I''m not that familiar with it either.¡¡Is that okay with you? Yes, of course! All right. Let''s see, first of all, ...... you know that if you keep killing demons, their defenses will increase to an unbelievable level, right? Yes. You can''t stick a knife in it, can you? Toya, that''s a metaphor for Haruka. See, Diora is looking at you suspiciously. "Why the knife ......?¡¡Yeah, well, that''s the point. There are now two opinions as to why that is. "Two?¡¡Only? Yes. To put it simply, there are those who believe there is a principle and those who believe there is not. That''s too rough! The "no principle" camp says that it''s God''s reward for us killing demons, or that we''re sucking the mysterious power out of demons, but they all agree that they don''t really understand it. Hmm, the principle of character level in our case. This is the faction that Haruka was explaining to me. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. But this is not well supported. "Is that so?¡¡In a way, it makes sense. If that''s the case, wouldn''t an elf like Nao have to be much stronger than a human from the start? Yeah, that''s true. If that''s the case, doesn''t that negate the use of magic to strengthen the body? That''s not quite true. There are people who can clearly display physical abilities beyond the norm, apart from those who have killed demons, and there are people who use magic to do so. There are only a few of them, so it may not be possible for everyone to do it, but it may not be impossible. I see. ...... In other words, there is no one who can be taught so easily. Yes, it will be difficult. There is a subtle sense of hope, but there is also a sense of hopelessness. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out a way to make it work, but it''s going to take some trial and error on your part. I''ve heard that some masters have crushed rocks with their bare hands or sliced through walls with their swords. I think there is a possibility that magic power is involved in these things as well. If you use a sword to shatter something, you can''t normally cut it. "I see. So it''s possible. Thank you. "I''m sorry I couldn''t be of more help. ...... "No, no, no, that''s very helpful. Also, would you be interested in buying some Orcs? Oh, yes. I see you have one today. Let''s go to the back. Diora urged us to go to the back, and we took four orcs from the magic bag and laid them out on the table. Seeing this, Diora smiled and said. Diora smiles and says, "That magic bag holds a lot, doesn''t it? I don''t know how much is common, but it''s a lot.¡¡Please keep it to yourself. Of course. I''m still a guild employee. Recently, I''ve been putting all my hunted orcs in this old bag, and so far it hasn''t stopped fitting. Incidentally, to be precise, the magic bag is not this bag itself, but a cloth bag attached to it. At first, I was going to say, "It''s too difficult to embroider on the leather of the bag, so let''s use ink to write the magic circle," but then I thought, "We don''t have to do that, we can just put a cloth bag inside. So I re-made a burlap bag to fit the inside of the bag and attached it. But I don''t think you have to worry too much in this city, but you should be careful when you go to other cities.¡¡If people find out about it, there might be people who will try to get it by force. "Thank you for your advice. What should I do in such a case?¡¡Is it okay to retaliate? "Well, to put it bluntly, outside the city, killing them is no problem. If they attack you, they''re just bandits, and there are no witnesses. If they attack you, they''re just bandits, and there are no witnesses. ...... On the other hand, there''s a high risk of being attacked. You can''t keep track of who''s alive or dead outside of town, and you won''t find "murder" listed in your status awards or punishments. There are no restrictions on who can enter or leave the city, unless you''re a rich man and you''re given a description of yourself. It would be useful if there were some kind of magical device that could reveal criminal records with a crystal ball, but it doesn''t seem to exist in this world. In the city, it''s a little difficult to deal with them. Basically, it''s no problem to hit them back, but you will be punished if you cause damage to others. Also, if the situation is ambiguous as to who attacked first, the attacker may be charged with a crime if he is not careful. If possible, it is safer to run away. Hmmm, that''s quite difficult. Unless you''re in a slum, you won''t usually be attacked on the street. There are no slums in this city, but in other cities, if you step into a slum, you will be stripped and rolled to the side of the road. In those places, the treatment is almost the same as outside the city, so feel free to turn the tables on them. Too scary. "Okay, here''s the price for the meat. I''ll return the magic stone to you. The amount will be doubled after the request to kill the orc''s nest is issued, so you''d better save it until then. "Well, are you sure? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s great for us, but it''s a loss for the guild. It''s not strange at all to be told that you''re not eligible because you''re killing them before they''re requested. ....... It''s a good thing that you''re bringing in orc meat so often, because you''re contributing to our profits. Even just wholesaling the orc meat and hides contributes to our profits quite a bit, you know? It''s quite a hassle for us to go and sell the meat too. We used to go to the butcher''s shop when we first started hunting task boars, but lately we''ve been selling everything off at the guild. It''s true that you can get a little more money when you go to the butcher, but it requires a lot of negotiation, and if the quantity is as large as an Orc''s, you may not be able to get it from one butcher. The guild is a great help to us, as they can buy all the items at the specified price without having to negotiate in detail. The request form will probably be out in a few days, so please check it out. I don''t recommend taking on the request itself as a party, but it will increase your profits by the amount of magic stones. "Yes, thank you. We thanked Diora, who smiled at us, and headed for the guild''s archives. 78-068 Toyas Pale Dream? The first time I visited the Adventurer''s Guild''s Archive, I found it to be a very poor place. The room was less than four and a half tatami mats, with four small desks and chairs. There were only four booklets on the desk. That was all there was. The titles of the booklets are "Creatures and Demons in the Surrounding Area", "Eastern Forest", "Southern Forest", and "Medicinal Plants and Others". It''s not even that thick. This is more ...... than I expected. You know?¡¡Natsuki read the whole thing in one day, right? I bet. I think even I can manage to read it if I try hard enough. Whether I can acquire it as information is another matter. I''m sure I''ll finish reading it by the end of the day. I don''t know how much I''ll be able to remember, but I''m hoping my [appraisal] skills will take care of that. "Memorandum ......, no, it''s kind of like a memory skill. If the information displayed in the appraisal reflects the information you have read, it will be quite useful. The disadvantage is that you have to see the object and appraise it to understand it. If you have the knowledge, you will be able to remember the herb that cures the disease, but if you rely on ¡¾Appraisal¡¿, you will have to see the herb, appraise it, and read the description. Of course, it''s useful enough on its own, and the fact that it''s displayed in a window so there''s no chance of misremembering is a big advantage. However, I''m not sure about the body enhancement, but I''m starting to feel hopeful!¡¡I''ll eventually be able to say, "What a slash! I wonder if I''ll ever be able to say, "What a slash!" and cut down my enemies? "You''re shouting?¡¡You''re shouting?¡¡On purpose? "Is ...... too embarrassing? If Toya wants to do it, I won''t stop him. I don''t mind if you use it in your adventures. But if you do it in front of ...... people, you might pretend to be someone else. Awesome!¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "And then you get a wife with beast ears! What kind of situation is that?¡¡What kind of situation is it to use it in front of someone who might be Toya''s target? If it''s a ...... template, it could be a beautiful girl being attacked by thugs on the street, a carriage with a beautiful girl being attacked by bandits on the street, me winning a tournament at an athletic event, and a beautiful girl coming to watch. "You''re dreaming too much. You''ve just heard that it''s dangerous to draw your weapon in the street. You just heard that it''s dangerous to pull out a weapon on the street. If you do any damage, you''ll be caught. It''s probably impossible to deal with an enemy that requires such a special technique without causing damage to those around you. On the other hand, if you have grown to a level where you can handle things smartly without causing any damage, you won''t need to use "What the heck Slash! What about the carriage? As for the carriage, I don''t know.¡¡What about the carriage?¡¡Who was that guy ...... that came with Tommy? Hey, hey, hey, hey. Let''s see. ...... Tanaka and Takahashi. Toya''s just like them, isn''t he? --It''s unlikely he''ll end up like them, if not worse. In the first place, what kind of situation is it when a carriage is attacked by bandits? A merchant or traveler on a dangerous road, or a nobleman with a reason to be attacked. That''s about it. Bandits are not stupid, but they usually don''t attack unless they can win. What would happen if we entered such a situation?¡¡If the difference in numbers is small, we might be able to fight to the death and defeat them. But how can we be sure that we won''t be killed? Even if it is a beautiful girl or a child who is being attacked, if there is a possibility that my friends will be sacrificed to save a stranger, I will avoid fighting. I''m an egoist who cares more about his acquaintances than heroism such as "saving women and children". If you''re a nobleman, it goes without saying. If we were to confront an assailant who could kill his target with the death of a trained bodyguard, the odds of casualties would be high. In the first place, it''s doubtful that the nobles would even recognize us as allies if we suddenly showed up to join them. After all, in order to perform a simple rescue, you need a simple cheat ability. If you want to stand out, you need to be in the top 16 or something, right?¡¡We can''t have a whole country at that level, can we? We don''t even know if there''s a tournament in the first place. It''s hard to hear you say that!¡¡Not in the long run, but when you''re young. ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. If you''re a veteran who has been training for decades, you''re going to lose. If we continue to train, we might be able to win, but if it''s decades later, it doesn''t meet Toya''s goal of being pampered by a beautiful girl and hopefully ....... No, wait a minute.¡¡This world has a different population than our world, right?¡¡It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if there is anything you can do to help.¡¡If you think about it that way, it''s possible. ...... I''m sure you can do it if you ask me. ...... There are cities with populations of over a million, and prefectures with populations in the millions. I don''t know the population of this country, but it''s likely to be less than these. It''s high, but... No, you can''t. Why not? First of all, the competition... The population ratio is different. We''re in a world where demons are common.¡¡There must be a large percentage of people who can fight. Well, sure. And secondly, it doesn''t matter if the number of players decreases, as long as the overall level doesn''t drop. It doesn''t matter if there are 100 or 1,000 people at the level of the competition, if you don''t have the ability to compete at that level, it doesn''t matter at all. If you are competing for the top level, first or second place, the population will also have an effect. Hmm... Well, it''s true that there''s always a possibility that there''s a national champion in the prefectural tournament. It doesn''t mean that the tournament level is necessarily low. If it''s a team game, the larger the population, the easier it is to gather strong players. In the end, if you don''t work hard and become strong, it''s impossible to stand out in a tournament. And it''s not something that can be done overnight. But!¡¡But what I''m dreaming about the most is the fact that they''re all beautiful girls!¡¡How can that be so convenient? It is only in games and novels of convenience that all characters are beautiful. To put it bluntly, the only beautiful girl I''ve met since coming to this world is Aella. Most of the people I''ve met have been old men and women, and I''ve never met a beautiful girl. If I had to pick one, I would say that there was a waitress at the inn in Sarstat, but to be honest, she was not very pretty. The only other store I have visited with a young waitress is a little high-class coffee shop in this town. Diora, who I''ve known for the longest time, can be included in the category of older sister, but she''s not particularly beautiful, and she has a very ordinary appearance. You have to dream about it!¡¡I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that. But the ratio of beautiful girls is not that high. "But the ratio of beautiful girls is not that high. Look at the reality. Even if you encounter a standard event, the chance of it being a beautiful girl is probably less than one percent. In fact, even 0.1% might be a lot. In fact, even 0.1 percent is probably too much. The chances of a girl, especially a girl of your age, riding a merchant outside of a dangerous city is probably very small. And even more beautiful girls?¡¡Not at all. There are pretty girls walking around in this town. We just don''t have any experience with them. --I think Nao''s standards for beautiful girls are too high. Really? I don''t really mean that. ....... Well, ......, Nao, what do you think of the dozens of idol groups that appear on TV?¡¡Are they beautiful girls? "What?¡¡Hmmm, I don''t remember seeing them very often because I''m not really interested in them. ...... I don''t think so. It''s not that they are ugly, but I don''t think they are beautiful. It''s not that they''re ugly, but I don''t think it''s enough to make a big deal about them being beautiful. I''m not sure if they are old enough to be called "girls" in the first place.¡¡I''m not interested in them, so I don''t know their ages well. I don''t even know their ages. In general, they are in the category of beautiful girls. It''s just a matter of taste. That''s how it is. ...... I don''t really look at idols on TV that way. To be honest, I''m not really interested in them. Even for singers, I don''t care much about their looks as long as their singing is good. In fact, I only look at the lyrics in the booklet, so I don''t even recognize the face of the singer. It''s okay, right?¡¡I just want to listen to the song. Nao is a thing. "Nao is that way. It''s bad that Haruka is nearby. And Yuki and Natsuki too. They''re being judged by their own standards. "I''m not saying that''s not true ....... I''m not saying that''s not true, but it''s the same for Toya. I''ve known her for a long time and she''s like family to me, but I think she''s a beautiful girl. The same goes for Yuki and Natsuki. I can''t deny that I''m unconsciously comparing them. But if you say that, then the same should apply to Toya, who is almost always with us. I''m ......, and that''s that. Haruka and the others are cute. But let''s put that aside, the other girls are cute too. Separate. What''s that? ....... Well, what does it matter? I''ll just read the material. I didn''t come here to talk about such nonsense. You''re right, too.¡¡How did we get into this ...... conversation? - Oh, you mean the one about body enhancement? Yeah, because Toya started saying that he wanted to get stronger and more attractive to women. Slightly different ....... Toya looks a little frustrated, but the main idea is correct. I''m sure you''ll agree. It''s not a problem at all for you to make an effort to learn how to use "What a Slash! But if it''s possible to use magic to strengthen the body, would it be easier for me or Haruka to learn it? I can''t imagine that Toya, who can''t use magic, would be able to defeat us in magic power manipulation. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it.¡¡What''s that? I''m not sure what to make of this. "...... Sure!¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for.¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down. Tommy''s at work. You''ve got a job, and you''re trying to stop me? Oh, right. You''re not a free agent like us, are you? Free enterprise ...... has a subtle ring to it. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do with your time. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Oh, is that so? I had never heard of it. I hadn''t seen him since we first parted ways in the first place. I''ve never seen him since we first broke up, but I''ve heard that he''s seen Toya a few times since he got the job and made the shovel. Oh. The place I''m at is pretty bad. He said he wants to move when he can afford it. The food seems to be tough. "It''s hard for Japanese to eat in this world. Yeah, there are places like Aella''s and our inn that serve good food. But Tommy said he could drink ale reasonably well. "Oh, really?¡¡That?¡¡Not "I could drink it if I had to"? For me, I could drink it if I was told to, but I couldn''t bring myself to pay for it. If I had to pay the same money, I would still rather pay for water. And since water is free at the Bear Pavilion, there is no reason to buy ale. I''ve heard that the food at the current inn is disgusting and the food they fed you at the Bear Pavilion was delicious, so I figured it was a matter of taste or because you''re a dwarf. Dwarf ...... seems likely. My image of a dwarf is one that says, "I can drink methyl alcohol! I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s not a bad thing for him because he''s going to be able to act like his character makeup. ''I don''t drink ale. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not going to drink ale. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not going to drink it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea. It''ll be easier for me to learn than Tommy. I''ll do my best if I can. But for now, let''s just get this over with. "Yeah, sure. And with that, Toya picked up a copy of The Southern Forest. Hmm. You''ve already read The Eastern Forest? Well, I guess I''ll read "Creatures and Demons of the Periphery". 79-069 Lets know the demon As the name of the library implies, what was placed there was not a book, but a document. It was a simple collection of about a dozen pieces of paper held together with string. Everything was handwritten, and there were no pictures or even illustrations. It''s a bit poor, but better than nothing, I guess. Let''s read it from the beginning. --------------------------------------------------------------------- What is a demon? A demon is a creature that has a magical stone in its body. It''s a good idea to kill demons when you find them because they are harmful to people, but it''s also important to calmly analyze their strength and have the courage to retreat at times. There are several differences between demons and other animals other than demon stones. One is the fighting spirit. Most animals will not attack you unless they are in danger, but demons are different. When they see you, they will attack you even if you do not attack them. If there are more of them than you, they may run away, but unless you are a high-ranking demon, they will not analyze your strength very well. Another thing is territory. In the case of animals, if an animal of the same species enters their territory, they will try to drive it out, but in the case of demons, demons of the same species often form cliques. In contrast to animals, demons will try to repel a demon of a different species when it enters their territory. Therefore, it is not common to encounter multiple species of demons in one area. When multiple demons coexist, it may be because their ecology is very different (e.g., some demons are active on the ground while others are active in the air or underground) or because they feed on different things. However, please note that this does not apply to special environments such as dungeons. How to make money with demons The most reliable way to earn money from demons is to use demon stones. In most cases, they are found in the center of the body near the heart, and rarely in the head, but since they do not require skill to collect, do not take up much space, and are easy to store, it is recommended that you make sure to secure them. There are also monsters whose meat and skin can be sold, such as orcs, but they require dismantling skills, so it is best to learn from someone with experience. If you don''t know what parts are worth money, you may end up throwing away most of the demons you have killed. If you have enough money, you should buy a demon encyclopedia and study it beforehand. This will not only save you money, but will also improve your safety. When a demon has caused or is expected to cause some damage, a request to kill it may be posted to the guild. In this case, you will be paid a reward for defeating the demon in addition to the normal profit from the sale. In some cases, you may be able to get proof of defeat with magic stones, but in other cases, you may be asked to provide proof of defeat. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Hmmm... It may be common knowledge for adventurers, but it''s nice to know that these things are well explained. The rest of the book is about the demons and animals that live in this area. I think I''ll read the Orcs first. It''s the most relevant part right now. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Orcs. A demon that looks like a giant boar with a bipedal gait. Its body is over 3 meters long, and it is also thick. If you were to take a serious hit, an ordinary human would die instantly. It doesn''t move very fast, but the attacks from its huge body are heavy, and you should face it with a mind to avoid it rather than to catch it. They sell skins and meat as well as magic stones, so if you are good enough to kill them and can carry their huge bodies, they are efficient prey. Orc leaders exist as a higher species, and are said to be born when dozens or more orcs build a nest. In general, they are about 1.5 times larger than normal orcs. To give a rough idea of its strength, it is about as strong as four normal Orcs. If you plan to face them alone, you should be able to face four orcs at the same time and kill them unharmed. Normally, it would be safer to surround them with multiple players, and reduce them little by little while avoiding their attacks. There are also Orc Captains, Orc Generals, and Orc Kings. Their body size does not change much, but their strength will increase by four times. If you are careless with them because their physique has not changed much, you can be sure that you will be easily turned into minced meat. A party with a slightly higher rank should only be able to deal with Orc Captains, and should think of retreating quickly when higher-ranked species appear. Since there are few differences in appearance, when you find a higher-ranked species, you should pay attention to the number of Orcs around it and the size of its fangs. Basically, it is said that the higher the species, the larger the tusks. Also, most Orcs above the Orc General level are accompanied by Orc Captains and lower level Orcs, so you can easily tell that they are a higher level species. Conversely, you will be confronted by several higher species when you defeat them. According to an adventurer who has encountered an Orc King, "Once you see one, you immediately recognize it by its intimidation. It is unlikely to be mistaken for an Orc General or lower. However, this adventurer is at the level of being able to encounter the Orc King and survive, so it is not clear whether a low-ranked adventurer can judge the strength of the opponent. --------------------------------------------------------------------- So there are four different types of Orcs? They get stronger by a factor of four. ...... The Orc King is equivalent to 256 normal Orcs! Yeah, it''s not the kind of enemy you can defeat by yourself. You might be able to get away with sniping them with magic from a distance, but unless you''re in a good spot, they''ll probably get close and grind you up before you can kill them. Can we kill the orc leader if we all work together now?¡¡No, Natsuki might be able to win by himself. Normal Orcs will die in a single blow, and no matter how strong they are, there''s no danger of being surrounded by one. Depending on how you do it, you might be able to manage an orc nest. After that, I continued to read the descriptions of the animals and demons listed, but the number of them was surprisingly small. Should I assume that there aren''t many demons in the area, or should I do as I said at the beginning and buy a demon dictionary and study it for myself? ....... After reading through the book, I closed the book "Creatures and Demons in the Vicinity". I don''t remember anything other than the characteristic parts, but Toya is here, so I can ask her about the details then. Looking at Toya, I see that she has finished reading the first book, "The Southern Forest," and is now reading "Medicinal Plants and Others. I think I''ll go to ...... and read "The Eastern Forest". That''s where I''m at right now. --------------------------------------------------------------------- The Eastern Forest. This is a hunting ground for rookies in this town. There are no demons on the roadside, and you can gather herbs relatively safely. Task Boars will occasionally appear, but if you keep your eyes on them and move away from them slowly, you will not be attacked. However, if you are unlucky enough to encounter one during the time when you are raising your child or when you are in a temper, it will rush at you. If you can kill it well, you can earn money from its meat and skin. There are no magic stones because they are not demons. Goblins, hobgoblins, and orcs will appear as you move deeper into the game. Goblins and hobgoblins are not threatening even for rookies, but if you want to face orcs, you should prepare a good weapon. You may not be able to attack them at all with cheap weapons. The territory of goblins and that of orcs is not clear, so there are many rookies who go too far into the territory and get killed by orcs. It is best to avoid entering the realm of demons until you can kill a task boar with a single blow at the very least. If you go further, you will come to a forest at the foot of the mountain range. In this area, there will be ogre and other demons that rookies will not be able to reach. If you are skilled enough to enter this area, you should change your hunting ground to the southern forest. It is safer to earn money there. The area along the mountain range extending west from here has not been explored, so it is not recommended to go there unless you are very confident. There is almost no information about the demons that appear, but if we tell you that adventurers who can kill ogres have gone missing, you will understand the threat level. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Hmm . I guess we shouldn''t go beyond the orc area for the time being. The pages after that have descriptions of the medicinal plants that grow well in each area. Oh, and an explanation of the orc flood. --------------------------------------------------------------------- [Oak floods Every few years, there is an orc flood in the Eastern Forest. Orcs that are not defeated form groups and build nests, expanding their power and appearing in the vicinity of the roads. During this period, even the forest on the roadside is dangerous, so rookies should carefully check the warning information posted on the bulletin board so as not to miss any signs. Also, if you see an orc in the outer edge of the forest, be sure to report it to the guild. This will save your own life. If orcs are defeated, there will be no flooding, but orcs are not very popular because they are difficult to transport. Adventurers who have magic bags are encouraged to try their best to kill them. When the flood of orcs finally comes to an end, the adventurer''s guild will organize an event to kill them. Adventurers who are capable of killing orcs are encouraged to participate in these events, as they will receive assistance in transporting orcs. If you have the ability, you can expect to earn a lot of money. --------------------------------------------------------------------- It''s the same as Diora''s explanation. --I''m not sure if it''s the same as Diora''s description, or if it''s written by Diora?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s good that it''s not too complicated and easy to understand. The only other thing I''m curious about is - oh, the Great Salamander: ...... --------------------------------------------------------------------- The Noria River. A river that runs east of the town of Laffan. The eastern forest extends to this side of the river. A half day''s walk from the east gate of the city of Laffan will lead you to the city of Sarstat, which was built on the side of this river. The river is both wide and deep, making it difficult to cross on foot, so use the ferry at Sarstad. It is not recommended to swim across the river. If you are unlucky, you may be attacked by a demon. After a day''s walk upstream, the river narrows and turns into a clear stream. Great Salamanders live in this area. Great salamanders are highly prized as food, so if you are confident about catching one, you may want to go and kill it. Since they are animals, they are not very dangerous. You will need a wizard who can do this, or a magic bag that can carry them while they are dead. --------------------------------------------------------------------- That''s over two days round trip. That''s a minimum of 20 gold coins per large salamander, right?¡¡You can make more money as an Orc. There''s no point in going unless you have some other goal in mind. I wonder if I can catch some tasty river fish. The river fish I ate in Sarstat was, to put it mildly, shitty, but if I can catch fish like yamame or ayu (sweetfish), they might be good to eat grilled. Unfortunately, there was no information about fish in the document I just read. "Nao. I''m done reading, what about you? As I was thinking about this, Toya, who had placed the booklet on the table, called out to me. I haven''t finished "Southern Forest" and "Medicinal Herbs and Others" yet. I''ve read most of the rest. Well. What do you think?¡¡I think it''s almost noon. ...... I don''t know. Do you think they''ll be back by now? We hadn''t decided what to do about lunch, but if they were back, we could go to Aella''s for lunch. It would take me half a day to finish my order, but ...... home, so... That''s right. In Japan, there is no way that a meeting to build a house can be completed in half a day. But in this world, the details are left to the carpenter. There may be nothing to discuss at length. I''ll go back to ...... for now. There''s no point in thinking about it here. Yeah. If he''s not here, we''ll go out to eat together. We nodded at each other, rearranged the materials on the table, and left the guild. 80-070 Dining? When I returned to the inn and visited the women''s room, the three of them had already returned. As I had expected, there was no detailed discussion, and the order was completed after answering our requests, budget, and a few simple questions. So, how long will it take? "It depends on the weather, but two or three months. It''ll be ready before the new year at the latest. It''s already less than four months before the new year. It''s already less than four months until the new year, which is pretty early considering the size of the house. The fact that we paid up front, the fact that the budget was not too tight, and the fact that there was no chance of losing anything seemed to be highly valued. What do you mean by "no loose ends," aside from the advance payment? They may know we''re adventurers, but they don''t know us well enough to know what we do for a living. It''s like you''re related to Aella''s restaurant.¡¡He said he sometimes goes there to eat because of the work we do and he knows we sell meat. Considering the price of the meat, you figured it wouldn''t be hard to recover. In fact, we have as much meat as we need. What were you and Nao doing? We went to the guild, talked to Diora, read the documents, and so on. I''ll also tell them about the orc nest and the flooding. Natsuki had read the materials and seemed to have some idea about the flooding, but he didn''t know about the increase in the purchase price of magic stones and the guild-sponsored defeats. I''m grateful to Diora for telling me that I can earn four more fish per day, which is equivalent to twelve gold coins. Let''s go eat, then. Haruka and the others haven''t eaten either, right? "Yes. Yeah, I thought we''d wait until you guys got back. Why don''t we go to Aella''s?¡¡Isn''t that sauce ready by now?¡¡Maybe they''ll have something on the menu that uses it. It''s that time of year again. I wonder if they''ve finished ours? Haruka looked at the jar of sauce that Aella had given her. Since we don''t cook for ourselves, it''s been left unattended. Taking advantage of the opportunity, she opened the lid and took a peek. The fruits and vegetables that had been packed in the jar were completely gone, all in liquid form. The aroma wafted in the air was a little sweeter than the one I had at Aella''s place, but it was good. It looks like it''s working. It won''t be working for a while. No, not for a while. If we dare to use it, it will be when we make our own lunch, but we bought it. It takes a lot of time to build a fire and cook in the forest. We can buy lunch at the Bear Pavilion, and sometimes we go to Aella''s place to buy meat poste. These are tasty enough, so we don''t really feel like taking the time to make our own lunch. And the fact that the dishes we can make are basically limited to roasted meat is also a factor. It''s good, it''s good, but if you eat just grilled meat with salt too often, you''ll get bored.¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. It''s more about food, food, food. And if possible, I''d like to invite Tommy. I''d like to buy him a drink if I could. ...... As if he couldn''t wait, Toya stood up, said such a thing, and looked at Haruka, who was holding his wallet. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The reason he wants to ask you out is probably because he wants to ask you about body enhancement. "Tommy?¡¡I wouldn''t mind buying him a meal or something, but suddenly? No, actually, that was part of the reason I went to talk to Diora earlier. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. When told this, not only Haruka, but also Natsuki and Yuki pondered a bit. If possible, all of us would like to be able to strengthen our physical abilities, and Natsuki, who, like Toya, mainly engages in close combat, would be particularly interested in this. "I see. I see. If we can learn it too, it''s only a small price to pay for lunch. "Hmm, I''ll make a copy if I can.¡¡If I can learn it, it will be easier to teach you. "Oh!¡¡That''s a good idea! If you''re a magician, you''re used to manipulating magic, and you''re able to copy skills, you might be perfect for the job. The problem is whether Tommy can find the time to teach Yuki. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡Do you want me to pay for a few days'' lodging and let you teach Yuki in exchange? I don''t mind if it''s for a few days, but after that?¡¡I''m sure it would be a pity to say, "You can go home now that you''ve learned. I''m not sure what to do with it. It''s not a problem.¡¡It''s almost a done deal that you''re going to move, and you should have enough salary to pay for your accommodation. It''ll save Tommy a few more days of his life. Well, let''s ask him out for now. Okay!¡¡Okay, I''ll go ask him out. Meet me in front of Aella''s store. As soon as he said that, Toya ran out of the room. Well, I don''t mind if Tommy eats his lunch first, so I don''t mind if he hurries, but he''s too busy. Well, let''s go, shall we? "Yes, let''s. Well, if it''s Toya, we might have to keep him waiting if we take our time. Normally, it would be impossible for Toya to go faster than us, as he needed to stop by Gantz''s store, but when he was running at that pace, it was hard to say that he wouldn''t. We looked at each other and nodded, and left the inn somewhat quickly. I''ve been waiting for a while. After a short wait at Aella''s store, Toya came trotting in with a dwarf. Needless to say, the dwarf was Tommy. I wonder if it was out of concern for him that he wasn''t running as fast as he could. "Sorry, did I keep you waiting? "No, you''re earlier than I expected. Hello, Tommy. Long time no see, Haruka. Long time no see, Nao. Hey, long time no see. I''m sorry to ask you out so suddenly. No, I''ll come if you buy me a drink. And it''s strange to say it''s nice to meet you, but you''re Furumiya-san and Shidou-san, right? It''s nice to meet you, Tommy. Please call me Natsuki. I''ll be Yuki, too. But you''ve changed so much! Yes, you have. You wouldn''t know it if you weren''t told. Tommy laughed at Yuki''s voice, which sounded both impressed and a little dismayed. I''m not sure what to make of this. Let''s go in then. Haruka urged me to enter the store, and I was immediately greeted by a cheerful voice. "Welcome!¡¡Oh, Haruka-san!¡¡Is it okay if there are five of us? There are six of us today. Are you available? Uh, yes. Over there in the back, please. I''ll get you a chair right away. When I looked in the direction Ms. Aera was pointing, there was only one table empty. The rest of the tables, including the counter, are all occupied, so the restaurant seems to be doing well. Oh, I''ll bring my own. Chairs are at ....... "Thank you very much. You can take it from there. I saw that there were some chairs lined up against the wall. There weren''t any last time I was here, so they might have been newly purchased for customers who use the table for more than five people. Two of the chairs were taken by me and Toya, and we went to the table and sat down. We sat down. "Can we order the daily special?¡¡Tommy, too. "Yes. Yes, I''m fine with anything. After confirming that we nodded, Haruka ordered the daily special for the six of us. And when he saw that we had taken a break, Tommy straightened up and bowed deeply. "Well, it''s nice to meet you again, Haruka-san, Nao-kun. Thank you very much for your help at that time. Also, thank you very much for the money you lent me at that time. To be honest, it would have been very difficult for me without it. I will return it to you. Then he took out three gold coins and presented them to Haruka. Do you have enough money? Yes. Thanks to you, I was able to get a regular job, so I''m fine. Okay. Then I''ll take this. It was almost as if I had given it to him, and from where we stand now, it doesn''t matter if I don''t get three gold coins back, but I like the fact that he tried to return it properly. Haruka must have thought so too, because he accepted the money and put it in his wallet. "Toya, did you tell him why you asked me out? No, I didn''t. No, nothing." "Toya......, okay. Let''s have dinner first. I see you''re here. When I turned around to follow Natsuki''s gaze, I saw Aella approaching with a plate of food. I''m sorry to keep you waiting. Here are the daily specials. The daily special of the day was quickly laid out: a plate of soup, bread and a pork cutlet. Today''s dish comes with meat. The sauce is ready!¡¡It''s thanks to you that we can serve meat, though. Aera smiled and said, "I''ll bring the others, so please wait a moment. This is a pork cutlet, isn''t it?¡¡And there''s even a sauce like that on it, isn''t there? We nodded gravely at Tommy, who pointed at the plate in surprise. "Yeah. "Yeah, technically it''s not pork cutlet, but oak cutlet. The meat sold to Aera-san these days is oak. The meat sold at Aella''s these days is oak, and to be frank, it tastes better than task boar, so there''s no problem at all. The sauce is also good enough, though it may be a bit picky.¡¡You''re not going to tell me that I can''t have tonkatsu sauce from any manufacturer, are you? "I wouldn''t say that!¡¡I''ll accept any sauce sold in Japan, now!¡¡I wouldn''t complain if they put yakisoba sauce on my pork cutlet. Personally, I think it''s a much better sauce for pork cutlets than yakisoba sauce, so you can relax there. Later, when all the dishes were ready, we started to eat, and found that the sauce this time was slightly sweeter than the one we had last time, with a more pronounced aroma. The sauce this time was slightly sweeter than the one we had last time, and the aroma was more pronounced. The deep flavor was unmistakably delicious, as if it had only been aged for a week or so. Because of the richness of the sauce, the lightly flavored soup with lots of vegetables was just right to refresh the palate. The bread this time was plain, without nuts, but it was suitable for eating with the pork cutlet with sauce. Today''s daily special is also delicious, isn''t it? Yes. The pork cutlet is tender and well done. I hesitated for a moment when I heard it was oak, but the sauce and the meat are both delicious.¡¡I didn''t know there were other good restaurants besides the Bear Pavilion of Sleeping Beauty. ...... The restaurant is beautiful, and at this price, I could come here to eat. The other members seemed to appreciate it, and the lunch was gone in no time. It was delicious. Thank you for the food. I didn''t know there was such a sauce. "This is the secret elven inspiration sauce, you know.¡¡I think this is the only place in town where you can find it. If there is a restaurant that serves this level of food, except for the ones that the common people can''t get into, you''ve probably heard of it. In the beginning, I gathered a lot of information about restaurants. I found out about the coffee shop in the middle of this process, and while it was certainly tasty in its own way, it was expensive and not at all comparable to this restaurant. This store has the disadvantage of its location, but I am sure that it will soon become famous. I really want to support Mr. Aera, but that would make it difficult for us to use the restaurant. The secret sauce? If you sell it, I would have bought some. I would have bought it if they sold it, but I guess you can eat even bad food if you put this on it. We looked at each other and shook our heads at Tommy''s words. I''d be happy to share our inspiration sauce with you, but this sauce is just too much. It''s easy to make more of it by just throwing in some fruits and vegetables, so it''s not hard to imagine that if people knew how to make it and how it tasted, they would make more of it. If that happens, one of the selling points of Mr. Aera''s store will be lost, and we, who were kindly given the sauce and the recipe by Mr. Aera, can''t let this leak out easily. "How was it, everyone? "Yes, it was very good. And the sauce was delicious. Yes!¡¡I guess using the best ingredients makes it taste better. We have been selling pork cutlet sandwiches since yesterday, and they are very popular. People who bought them yesterday bought many more today, so we ran out quickly! Because the price of the meat poste was higher than that of the meat poste, sales were apparently slow on the first day, but it must have been so popular that people became repeat customers once they tried it. To be honest, I''d like to come and buy some too. I''d like to come and buy some before my morning training. So, how''s the store coming along? Yes!¡¡Recently, we''ve been getting reservations at night, so we''ve been able to make a profit. Thanks to all of you. Thank you very much. Aera-san smiles and bows her head. After all, a pretty girl has a nice smile. When I remember that she was almost in tears when I first entered the store, I feel a little emotional. Well, she''s actually older than we are. That''s because of Aella''s delicious cooking. "Yes, yes. We just gave her some advice. But it was your advice that kept the restaurant going. This is not so much a thank-you as a tea service. Please take your time. With that, Ms. Aella placed the teacups on the table, collected the plates of the day, and walked back a bit quickly. Even though there were only a few tables, she must have been busy since she was running the restaurant by herself. "Did you guys do something to him? Well, ...... Tommy, what do you think of this place? It''s a very nice place. It''s clean, spacious, and the teacups are ceramic. I''ve never seen ceramic tableware before. Pottery dishes are not used in cheap restaurants because they break. Cups are also made of wood or, to a lesser extent, metal. Some places even put bread on the table when they serve it. Anything else? What else?¡¡That elf is cute? Yeah. Yes, she is. But not there. I agree with you, but it''s not a store, is it? And it looks like a ...... normal coffee shop. ...... Normal?¡¡No, it''s not normal, this store. It may be normal in Japan, but... That''s it. I predicted that maybe one of my classmates gave me some half-baked advice. Aela was stuck, and I happened to know her, so I gave her some advice to fit the situation in this world. "So. It''s true that bringing a Japanese coffee shop as it is wouldn''t work, would it? I don''t know who it is, but there is someone in trouble. There''s common sense in this world. If it was for nothing, you''d still be getting paid to leave the country. Wow, that''s pretty vicious. He seems to have disappeared before the store started its business, so he might have been aware that things would not go well easily. If that''s the case, he''s even more vicious. But thanks to your efforts, I can have a good meal. The pork cutlet was delicious. "Well, we wanted to eat it too, so we told Aella. It was our good fortune to get to know each other. We were lucky enough to know each other, to be able to help the lovely elf, to have a good meal, and even to get some inspirations. It took a bit of effort, but the bottom line was a big plus. By the way, I thought you said there was a reason why you invited me to dinner. Oh, right. I wanted to ask Tommy something. I''m indebted to you, and I can answer most of your questions. ...... Tommy twisted his head as if to say, "I don''t know if there''s anything I can answer. The reason why I called Tommy today is because I wanted to ask him about your skill [Strengthening Muscle]. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. 81-071 What is muscle strengthening? "[Strengthening], huh?¡¡It''s true that I have it at level 2, but ...... Tommy nodded his head curiously. To be honest, I don''t know much about it.¡¡I just got it through character creation. I''m not sure I understand what the principle of [enemy spotting] is.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea or not. I don''t know what the principle of [spying] is. We predicted that the [Muscle Strengthening] skill might be based on magical power, what do you think? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. The idea is that the magic power is assisting there. It''s not strange in theory. "Right?¡¡Tommy, are you using your magic? Tommy shook his head. I don''t know, to tell you the truth. I can''t use magic, so I don''t even know what magic power is. It would be nice if I could use my status to figure out how much magic I have left. ...... Do you ever feel like you''re losing muscle strength after using up all your magic? When you get tired, your muscles lose strength, but whether that''s because you''ve lost your magic or because you''re just tired is ...... You don''t know? Yeah. I''m not sure. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. "When I think about it, isn''t this strange too?¡¡It''s not like my skin is hard and tough, but it''s hard to take damage. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Yes. If you think about it normally, there is no way that a weapon can''t pierce through soft skin, right? This is similar to when a character''s level increases. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. No, I''ve never heard of it. It''s like an iron wall? Yes. We call it character level for convenience, but this phenomenon itself is common knowledge in this world. However, its cause is unknown. Some people seem to think that it can be enhanced by magic power. The same principle applies to the Iron Wall: ......? Maybe. In a way, there is a mysterious phenomenon like character level, so even if Tommy is using ¡¾Iron Wall¡¿ or ¡¾Strengthening¡¿, it will not be considered strange. If not for that, a person who can''t be pierced by a blade would be a terror. But you know what?¡¡But?¡¡If you keep hitting it with the same amount of force, the damage will be done when the magic runs out. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bit of trouble. "What?¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it.¡¡And you''ll take some damage in the end, right? "Don''t worry, Haruka can heal you! So it''s good, right?¡¡I''m not sure what to do. It''s not all about healing. You can''t just heal people. I''m sorry, Tommy. Don''t worry, I won''t ask you to do anything like that. Yes. I''ll tell you what... Tommy breathed a sigh of relief, but his expression became a little wary when Haruka continued. It''s not like it''s an impossible task, you know?¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. You can teach it to her if you can, but I don''t know how to teach it to her. It''s not that difficult, I think.¡¡Yuki has a [skill copy]. "What?¡¡What? That mine skill? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You''re right!¡¡I''m a land mine!¡¡I''m not proud of it, but if it weren''t for Natsuki, I''d be screwed! I''m not proud of it, but if it weren''t for Natsuki, I''d be screwed! Then don''t brag about it!" I couldn''t help but give a little tsk tsk. No, no, no, I wasn''t bragging about my skills, I was bragging about my best friend Natsuki!¡¡Natsuki, Labyuu~n. Yuki hugged her, and Natsuki said, "Yes, yes," and stroked her in a familiar manner. I think that''s why I can teach Yuki without too much trouble. In fact, even if it''s pretty random, the fact that I taught her is enough for her to learn the skill. "Is that so?¡¡I understand. If you don''t need a guarantee that you can learn it. Of course, I don''t mind. This is a skill whose teaching method is ambiguous to begin with. We''re not going to insist that you learn it. I just have to work, so I won''t have much time. So I''d like to suggest that Tommy move into our inn, the Bear Pavilion of Sleep, right? Yes. Yes, we have a little more room, so we are planning to move soon. Did you ask Toya? Yes, I did. We''ll pay for the accommodation, including breakfast and dinner, for a week, so why don''t you tell Yuki about it at night after work? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. That''s a lot of money, isn''t it? It''s only for one person. I''m sure everyone will agree. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. In the event that you''ve got the ability to learn how to do this, a few gold coins are a small price to pay. And even if you can''t learn it, it won''t hurt you much if you think of it as helping someone you know. "Is that so?¡¡In that case, thank you for your help. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''ll be back. Tommy moved out of the inn that day and moved into the Bear Pavilion. Gantz''s store seemed to be closed when the sun went down and the workshop became dark, so he had already come to the inn when it was a little dim. Since he doesn''t live there, his work ends when he finishes, and he doesn''t have to do any chores after that. The salary is not very high, but it seems to be enough to save some money even if they are staying at this inn, and at least the working environment is not as bad as the one Yuki and the others had in Sahlstat. Even so, it took them some time to move to this inn because they wanted to pay back the three gold coins they had lent us as soon as possible, so they were quite serious about putting up with the terrible accommodation. He immediately started to teach Yuki that night, but his way of teaching was a bit subtle. We listened to him together, but he told us to "put in a lot of effort" or "hmm!¡¡but we had no idea what he meant. It would be almost impossible for us to remember [Muscle Strengthening] and [Iron Wall] with this explanation. Now we have to see if Yuki can remember them. ....... I''m quite worried. It''s hard to ask Tommy to teach them in an easy-to-understand way, since they seem to be difficult to teach. Yuki is doing as she''s told, but will it really work? --But the [Skill Copy] was great. On the first day, Yuki succeeded in activating ¡¾Muscle Strengthening¡¿ and ¡¾Iron Wall¡¿. He stunned Tommy, who was teaching him. Maybe we should call him [Skill Copy] Sensei instead of the minefield that is [Skill Copy] Chan. Although it is a little too environment-dependent. Now, we''re holding a party in our room for [Skillcopy] - or rather, Yuki-sensei, who has accomplished such a feat. Unfortunately, Tommy, who has work to do tomorrow, is left out. After completing his work, he returns to his room, looking a little disappointed, and is already asleep. It''s early at night, but it''s early in the morning, too, in this world of work. And Yuki, how are you feeling?¡¡Are you still using magic? Hmmm, yeah, I guess so. ...... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It was a little strange to see the petite Yuki holding Natsuki so lightly. "Oh, what is it? "I''m just checking ....... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to have to. This is a great way to make sure you are getting the most out of your money. ...... Yeah. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. Yuki nodded her head in agreement and finally set Natsuki down on the bed. Yuki nodded her head in agreement and finally set Natsuki down on the bed. Yuki nodded in agreement and finally set Natsuki down on the bed. He sat back down on the bed. His face was slightly red, probably because he was embarrassed. But letting the magic circulate, huh? It''s a lot easier to understand than Tommy''s "Ggh! It''s much easier to understand than Tommy''s "ggg! You might get better advice by "googling" for "googling". --No, I don''t. No, you can''t. You''ll only get the kind of information that''s a bit like "What''s the wisdom bag? "Can a non-magic person like me do that? "Tommy can do it, so I''m sure he can. I don''t know how much magic I have, so I don''t know if I''ll run out of power. Toya needs to practice grasping magic first. Is it the same with Iron Wall? "Hmmm... ...... I''m not sure what to make of it. "Do you have a suitable attack? I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. "Oh, an attack?¡¡I''ll leave it to you. He quickly gets up from the bed, grabs the spear that is standing in the corner of the room, and sheathes it. Then he pointed the tip at Yuki and smiled. "Are you ready? "Stop, stop!¡¡No, no, no!¡¡Not good! Not good at all!¡¡You don''t need the tip! Yuki waved her hand hurriedly, distanced herself from Natsuki, and stuck to the wall. I''ve been using a cheap spear for a while now, but I can still kill a boar with it. If Natsuki, a level 4 spearman, can use it, he might be able to take on an orc. I''m not sure if that''s true.¡¡If you''re desperate, you might be able to get your [Iron Wall] to level 2 at once. It''s risky! "Oh, by the way, my [Light Magic] has recently reached level 2. "You''re going to stab me!¡¡Somebody help! "Don''t worry, Yuki. I''m level three, as you know. That''s great, but not that way! Don''t worry, I''m not going anywhere dangerous. Then let''s go! I''m going to go then! Should I stop her? Wait! In the event that you''ve got a lot of time and energy, you''ll be able to make use of it. "Aah!¡¡Whoa! I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''ve seen it before. I don''t want to. But!¡¡It was pretty scary! In the event that you''ve got a lot of time and energy, you''ll be able to use it to your advantage. I''m not going to hurt you, that''s for sure. But don''t close your eyes. I don''t meditate when I''m dealing with demons!¡¡...... maybe. Really?¡¡Really? Even if the tip of the blade is right in front of you? No. ...... I''m sure you''re not too sure about that, Yuki whispered a little and looked away. "Well, well. So how did it go? I put my hand on Yuki''s shoulder to calm her down and sat her down on the bed. "Well, it didn''t hurt, so it was a success. "It didn''t hurt, so it worked. It didn''t hurt, so it worked.¡¡Something like that. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to coat the surface of the body with magic power? But the image is a little different from that of an iron wall, isn''t it? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m going to try. But Yuki didn''t seem to understand what he meant and twisted his head. "What? But Yuki, you fell so easily. Even if you don''t take any damage yourself, it''s no good considering you''re a shield for the vanguard. You''ll be easily eliminated. Oh, I see. If you think of yourself as a shield, being easily flung away is a fatal flaw. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. In the event that you are not able to do so, the effect of reducing damage when you are hit will be enough to make it worthwhile. It''s a good idea to take a look at a few of the things that are available in the market. It''s a good idea for everyone to practice. Each of us should practice on our own, and if we notice anything, let''s teach it to each other so that we can all get it. For us, improving our survival rate is a top priority. We all nodded seriously at Haruka''s words. 82-072 Fight against strong enemies The next day, I would like to start hunting orcs again ......, but recently it has become a little difficult to find suitable orcs even when walking in the forest. Perhaps because I have already hunted about 50 orcs, the number of orcs in the group has increased to around 10. In the beginning, I would find about two orcs, sometimes one, but the number has gradually increased, and now that number is . I guess the orcs are getting wise. But considering the nests we scouted before, there must have been about a hundred of them, right?¡¡The orc leader is almost certain, and there may even be an orc captain. In that case, we can''t deny the possibility of the orc leader going out of the nest to hunt, so we can''t be too careful. "Hey, we''ve hunted and dismantled quite a few orcs, haven''t we? As we were walking through the forest looking for Orcs, Yuki suddenly said something like that, as if she remembered. Hmm?¡¡That''s right . Is that it? No, I left the non-meat parts pretty much in place, but I haven''t seen them, I thought. What''s processing it? Come to think of it, when I walk in the same place the next day, there''s almost never a trace left behind. Occasionally I''ll notice a blood trail, but that''s about it. In this forest, it looks like a night wolf and a bug. Wolf?¡¡Are there any?¡¡I''ve never seen one. Yes, there are. They seem to be completely nocturnal, so it''s unlikely that we''ll encounter them in the daytime. They clean up the residue from the dismantling process, so they are very helpful. We don''t have to look at their rotting entrails. I think I read something about this in a book I read yesterday. I think I read in a book I read yesterday that people who are in a group are rarely attacked unless they are very hungry.¡¡I don''t remember all the details. The forest sweeper. If we go down in this forest by mistake... If we fall in this forest by mistake, they''ll clean it up, we''ll be cleaned up. I''d hate that. It''s pretty depressing to imagine your corpse being gobbled up by a wolf. It''s quite depressing to imagine. As for me, I''d rather be eaten clean. I don''t want others to see my decomposing corpse. "I see. That''s one way of thinking. I don''t want others to see my decomposing corpse either. If it''s a girl, it''s even worse. I can also understand the idea that it''s better to be eaten because you''re dead anyway. Of course, it''s best to have a normal burial--no, it''s best not to die. "Yes. Don''t say anything sinister. I''m going to live a long time and die in my bed. I''ll take care of you. When I die of old age? I can''t imagine it yet, but Haruka is an elf, right? If I think about it, will she outlive me? I''ll be a little relieved if someone I know can take care of her. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not.¡¡I''m not sure if we''ll live as long as you.¡¡You know, because of the [Skill Robbery]. "Ah, a bonus character who can share his life span! He claps his hands and says so. It''s true that the reality of the situation is what it is, but the truth is that they''re just a bunch of lowlifes who want to take away other people''s skills without permission, you know?¡¡It''s just that thanks to the evil gods who put mines on the ground, the problem is gone. I''m sure there are some people who thought they could only use it against the bad guys, but those who used it against Natsuki and the others can be treated as bonus characters. That''s right. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. Isn''t that nice?¡¡I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that with a human. "You''re worried about that? Well, there doesn''t seem to be a strict family register in this world, so it won''t be a problem if you move. It''s a few decades away, so I''ll think about it then. I see. In Japan, if you lived for 200 years or so, you''d be found out immediately, but in this world, age is self-reported, so if you move from one city to another, there''s no problem. In a sense, this world may be easy to live in for stragglers in that it can be easily reset. "Hey, guys, we''re in the middle of a hunt.¡¡Don''t just sit around talking, be a little more careful, okay? This is the first time I''ve ever seen such a thing. But Yuki also spoke up with some frustration, "Yeah, but there are no Orcs at all. Right? Yeah, I have no idea. I''ve been talking to them, but I''ve always been searching for them. Other than Orcs, boars and goblins were sometimes caught, but no Orcs were targeted. Should we try to get a little closer to the nest? But then there would be about ten of them, wouldn''t there? So far, the most orcs I''ve dealt with is six. In the first attack, me, Haruka, and Yuki killed two of them, and we took on four of them in close combat. Since we had a little room to spare, we could manage up to seven or eight of them, but ten seemed a little dangerous. But with ten of them, it would be a bit dangerous. "Since we''re in the forest, we might be able to handle ten, you know?¡¡We don''t have to worry about being surrounded. It''s true that the Orcs are at a disadvantage in terms of location. Orcs over 3 meters and us under 2 meters. We clearly have the advantage in mobility. The width of the trees is also completely different, so there are situations where orcs can''t get through trees that we can. Orcs also don''t have enough space to swing their branches, so their attack methods are also limited. This restriction itself is the same for us, but the severity of the restriction is different between our weapons, which can be used to stab, and mere trees, whose purpose is to be smashed by centrifugal force. Orc nests, I''d destroy them if I could. ...... There are at least 30 of them, right?¡¡If the terrain isn''t overwhelmingly favorable to the attacker, it''s impossible. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Haruka often sniped from the tops of trees, but once the orcs got close, even the tops of trees were not safe. You''ll be able to get a group of about 10 orcs and try to fight them while pulling.¡¡The way it is now, they''re just waiting for you to kill them. The current hunting method is to approach a group of Orcs when you see them, wait for them to notice you and approach, and then me, Yuki, and Haruka snipe them from a distance. The pattern is to kill two or three of them, or leave them wounded, and then bring them into close combat. Since Toya and Natsuki could take on two of them at a time, and Yuki and I had enough time to take on one, we were able to hunt safely without getting seriously injured. "By pulling, you mean our sniping will reduce their numbers? Yeah. If we fight too close to the nest, there''s a chance that reinforcements will come, right? Yeah, that''s a concern. If we play our cards right, we might be able to get away with it. ...... What do you think, Toya? I''m in favor of it, Natsuki and I. Yuki and Haruka are not so opposed. So let''s do it!¡¡Nao, keep an eye on the enemy. "All right. We''re getting close to the nest, so be careful, okay? It''s not a good idea to be chatting like that when you''re going into a dangerous place. We kept our mouths shut and moved closer to the nest. When we were about 300 meters from the nest, enemies appeared in my search range. Eleven of them. The response was orcs, but ...... there was something that bothered me. There''s one that''s reacting like it''s stronger than the others. "Is it a higher species, an orc leader?¡¡Is it an orc leader or something more? I''m pretty sure the data says 16 orc captains, right?¡¡I don''t think it''s that strong. Oak Leader. ....... Should we retreat? It''s not as strong as four Orcs, as you can roughly gauge from their reactions. I''m still inexperienced, so I can''t say for sure. I think I should do it. I think you should do it. I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this. That''s how our party is. I was a little surprised that Natsuki insisted on fighting the largest and most powerful group of enemies ever. If we can''t kill this one, I don''t think we''ll be able to kill any orcs for a while. They probably won''t be working in groups smaller than this. That''s a good possibility. After all those deaths. I''ll take the orc leader. There''s a chance you''ll get hurt, but you can fix a broken bone, right? Yes, as long as you can avoid missing parts. Injuries, huh? I''m not sure what to make of this. The only cuts I''ve had are from cutting my hands on grass. Is it necessary to have some experience with injuries?¡¡--I''m not opposed to it. ...... I''m not against it, but I''d like to be prepared. Yeah, I''d rather avoid injury if I can. Then let''s set a trap. Fortunately, they''re not as big as us, so it''s easier for them. The only trap we can make is a pit. Yuki''s magic is very active. Orcs aren''t that smart, so if we dig a hole and cover it with some leaves and branches, they won''t notice. To make sure we don''t fall in by mistake, we''ll place ourselves in a gap in the trees where orcs can pass through and mark the spot. If we want to escape, we should avoid those places and go through places that are only passable by human size. In addition to the holes, we will approach the group of orcs by making a small protrusion in the ground. As you approach them while making random noises, the path of the Orcs that you can check with [Search enemy] changes. "I noticed. Then, let''s move forward a little so that we can lead them to the trap we''ve set. You move forward to a convenient place for an ambush and wait for the Orcs to arrive. The moment the Orcs are within range, my magic, Yuki''s magic, and Haruka''s arrows will fly. Since we had agreed on the order of priority and the location of our targets during the battle, there was no overlap in our targets, and my magic obliterated the Orc''s head. It''s a Fire Arrow, but it can kill an orc with a single blow. Yuki is only halfway there, so I guess she needs to practice. It seemed to work this time, and two Orcs sank, and one Orc took an arrow to the head and crouched down on the spot. Normally, I would wait here and confront the orc, but this time I chose to retreat. The fallen orc was in the way, and he hurriedly retreated while the following orcs were stalled. They''ve spread out and are chasing us! I heard Toya''s voice from behind me, and when I glanced back, I saw orcs spread out on both sides chasing us. The largest orc at the very back is definitely the orc leader. Just looking at it from here, it''s pretty powerful.¡¡Natsuki, are we going to face that thing? I''d like to kill at least a few more of them before we face them. That''ll give us magicians more time to back them up. After running for a while, I stopped when I passed the place where I made the pit, and attacked both ends of the Orcs spread out on either side. I killed one of them again, but I couldn''t kill Yuki, and then Haruka came after me. Shall we retreat once more? Let''s do it! Haruka''s voice made us raise our weapons. It would have been easier if they had chased us in single file, but that''s not going to happen. If they spread out horizontally, there was a risk that they would go around us if we were not careful. That would put Haruka at the back of the line in danger. "One more time!¡¡Fire Arrow! I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. d*mn it! "Nao, calm down. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. ....... I''ll control the orc leader. Please take over. Oh! Natsuki stomped on the fallen orc and ran forward. He climbed over the pit and slashed at the orc leader''s leg with his spear. In contrast, Toya slammed his sword into the neck of the orc whose arm I had sent flying, and headed for the two orcs immediately behind him. I''ll cover Natsuki!¡¡Yuki, Nao, are the other two okay? I''ll handle it! I''ll handle it!" I deployed on the left side, Yuki on the right. And the other two are on the right. I''m still breathing slightly. I slammed my spear into the head of the armless orc that was still breathing and rushed towards Yuki. "d*mn it, ''Fire Arrow''! The Orc Yuki was facing had two arrows in his body and half of his face was burned. Yuki is restraining the orc with an iron bar, but I''m afraid that Yuki, who is less than half the height of the orc, will be easily crushed. She fires a Fire Arrow at the Orc approaching behind her, but it is far from a fatal wound as it is blocked by her arm. "Yuki!¡¡Are you okay? I can withstand it!¡¡But I need backup as soon as possible! I slipped in between the orc and Yuki and called out to him while holding my spear, to which he replied. He''s doing a good job of fending off the club with the iron rod, but he doesn''t have enough time to use magic or inflict a fatal wound. In the first place, even Toya couldn''t damage the vipu bear with the iron rod attack. It was unlikely that Yuki''s attack would be able to penetrate the orc. "Get through it somehow! He readied his spear and glared at the almost unharmed orc. Don''t worry, I should be able to kill it with my skill level. Trust in [Spear Art Lv.2] and [Spear Talent], me. The Orc is aware that I''ve cast a spell, and holds the club in both hands, as if a little wary. Stop it, even if you swing it with one hand, you''ll lose easily. Yuki is behind you, so you can''t avoid him. "This is the time to make the first move! I move quickly around to the left side of the orc and thrust my spear into it. Just as I thought the tip of the spear had pierced slightly, the Orc''s arm came down with the club in his left hand. "Geez! As soon as the Orc''s elbow struck, the handle of the spear snapped easily with a light cracking sound. And then, as if scooping him up, a club came at him. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. What the hell? I fought back a scream that threatened to escape, grabbed a branch that came into view, and pulled myself up the tree. It was quite an acrobatic move, but I managed to pull it off and avoid falling in front of the orc unprotected. --Thank goodness I''m an elf!¡¡I probably would have fallen if I didn''t have that sense of balance. The Orcs were not expecting my move, and stopped moving for a moment with their clubs raised. Fire Arrow! I thrust out my right hand and hit the Orc''s head at the right height with the Fire Arrow with all my might, wiping out its head. I looked away from the orc that was slowly falling backwards and hurriedly looked at Yuki. ...... Oh?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it. Even if Yuki''s technique is capable of it, considering the power of the swing down, how can he fend it off so well?¡¡And it sounds pretty good too... but it''s not! "Yuki!¡¡Fire Arrow. When I came to my senses, I called out to Yuki and fired a spell at the orc. Fortunately, I was able to move to the top of the tree, so the line of fire would pass through. The moment Yuki stepped back, the "Fire Arrow" reached the Orc, and although it missed slightly, it blew off half its head, creating a magnificent fountain of blood. Thank you!¡¡But it''s dirty! When the orc''s head was blown off, blood sprayed out quite loudly, but it didn''t bother me so much because the orc fell backward quickly, probably because it was blown from front to back. This time, however, it took a long time for the orc to fall, probably because I was halfway through the game, and it was even more flashy. Because of this, Yuki, who was covered in blood, thanked me and complained at the same time. "Sorry!¡¡Forgive me! I''m sorry to say, but I''m in a worse situation than Yuki for blowing off an Orc''s head right in front of him! To be frank, my arm hurts, the blood is unpleasant, and I feel a little sick from wasting so much magic power. I need to stay calm in a pinch and use as much power as I need. I looked around the battlefield and saw that Toya had already killed one of the orcs and was able to deal with the second one without any problems, so I left it alone. The problem is Natsuki and Haruka who are facing the Orc Leader. I thought it would be difficult to fight the huge Orc leader in the forest, but the club is about a size thicker than the Orc''s, and a few tree branches are no obstacle, and the wielding arm can break some trees. Natsuki also did considerable damage to the Orc leader''s leg, but it was far from a fatal wound, and the scattered branches made his movements lackluster. Haruka, who went to cover him, is dealing with the Orcs that followed him - the first Orcs Haruka attacked - but although he has a number of arrows stuck in his body, the line of fire is difficult to follow. Although there are a number of arrows in his body, he has not been able to attack the head, which is his vital point, because it is difficult to get a clear line of sight. If he retreated a little, he might be able to attack, but if he did, the Orcs might head towards Natsuki, and he could not fight in close combat. He was in such a situation. "Yuki! I instructed Yuki to attack the orc with a gesture, and I aimed to attack the orc leader. I think they move a little faster than the orcs, but there is no big difference. However, looking at the way Natsuki responded to the attack, I got the impression that the orc was just rampaging, while the leader was attacking with a certain degree of skill. The power is about the same, but the speed is increased. ...... Magic is an image. I concentrated for a moment, and the moment the orc leader''s gaze turned to the other side, I released the Fire Arrow. The speed was probably 1.5 times faster than normal. It was aimed at the head and pierced the orc leader''s left arm, which he quickly raised. "Ah! The arm was gouged in half, but the head was unharmed. "Oooohhhh! The Orc leader screamed in pain and looked at me in anger. The orc leader screams in pain and looks at me angrily. Toya, who had disposed of the orc, slashes at him from behind, but he doesn''t care and steps toward me. Oh no. My left arm is busted, so I have to jump, but there''s not much foothold around. Do you want to use the corpse of a ...... orc as a springboard? "Nao!¡¡At the same time! You''ll be able to see Haruka with her bow at the ready as she clears away the wounded orcs, and Yuki with her eyes on you and her hand at the orc leader. "Oh! Exactly three seconds after I answered. The timing of each situation has been discussed. My and Yuki''s "Fire Arrows" and Haruka''s arrows head for the Orc''s head, and Natsuki runs in at the same time. Natsuki''s spear pierced the orc leader''s throat through the gap between his right arm and his face. Immediately afterwards, Natsuki twisted the spear and pulled it out to the side, causing it to fall back and blood to spurt from the wound. The orc leader still raised the club in his hand, but it did not swing down, and his huge body slowly fell forward. 83-073 Treatment and demolition Nao, any reinforcements? "None in range. Hearing my reply, Haruka let out a sigh of relief. I''m relieved for the moment, but I''m going to hurry up and collect the two materials I left behind and deal with the orcs here. We need to be faster than polite. I don''t think there''s any demon that''s going to snatch our prey, but it''s not good if the orcs notice us. I understand the need to hurry, but ...... I''m sorry, but can you fix me up first?¡¡It hurts. I can''t even take it apart with my arm. I shouted a little pathetically, and held out my broken left hand. "Nao-kun!¡¡Are you okay? "I''m fine, but it hurts. I''m not sure if the adrenaline was pumping during the fight, but I didn''t feel that much pain, but after it was over and I calmed down a bit, the pain started to throb. I''ve had broken bones before, but I''ve never had an arm so spectacularly bent from a point that was clearly not a joint. "Come down here now!¡¡You can''t fix it. That''s what I''m trying to tell you. ...... How do I get down?¡¡Jump?¡¡I''m pretty sure that''s going to hurt my arm. It''s a little too high for me to go down with just my right arm. Here, let me give you my shoulder. "Oh, I''m sorry. I put my feet on Toya''s shoulders, who came to the bottom of the branch, and carefully descended to put my feet on the ground. A sigh of relief. But the slightest movement hurt. This is what a perfect break looks like~ Toya looks at my arm curiously. It''s not something you see very often, but... Toya, if you have time for that, fix Nao''s bone in the right position. "What, me?¡¡I don''t know much about that. ....... Can''t you fix it like this? "It seems to be more reliable and faster to reposition it. Touch your own arm for reference. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if there''s any magic to help with the pain or not. I don''t know. I don''t know. You can cry, but you have to be patient. No, I''ll be patient. ...... In the past, when I had my cracked bones corrected without anesthesia, it hurt so much that my eyes went blank. ....... I''ll do it. I think I know the bone structure better than you do. "Oh, really?¡¡Then, please. The one who came forward was Natsuki. Toya easily gave up his place, but for me, Natsuki was still better than Toya''s fearlessness. So, Natsuki, please. Okay. You can cry if you want. No, I''ll hold back. No, I''ll hold back." Natsuki smiled mischievously, and I clenched my teeth as a man. You''re right. Haruka, are you ready? Anytime. After confirming that Haruka nodded, Natsuki gently put her hand on my arm. And the next moment... "What? In a flash, Natsuki''s hand moves, the pain pierces through me, my eyes flicker, and tears flood my eyes. He manages to keep his voice down, but he can''t stop the sweat from breaking out. A moment later, the pain rapidly receded, and my arm, which had turned an unpleasant color, straightened up and regained its original color. Were you okay? Oh, ...... Natsuki, you''re relentless, aren''t you? Slowing it down will only prolong the pain. You know you can fix it, so the less pain, the better, right? ...... There''s no denying it. You can''t deny that the pain will not be relieved just because the bones are slowly repositioned. I know this in theory, but I can''t possibly imitate that skill and determination. "Natsuki, you''re amazing!¡¡I can''t do that, you know. "Yeah. Really. Considering how fast you heal and how much magic you have, you must have gotten it back to almost perfect in an instant. I''ve been crunching martial arts for a while. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. However, there is a limit to how much the healing magic can compensate, and if a poor magician heals a broken bone, it may be slightly bent and connected, leaving a disability. In that case, you''ll have to break it again and then ask a higher-ranking healer to do it for you,......, which gives me chills. We''ll be safe with Natsuki!¡¡The problem is, if Natsuki breaks a bone... "...... Haruka or Yuki, I''ll teach you and you''ll learn, okay?¡¡Otherwise, in case something goes wrong, I might slip up? Then he looked at the two of them and smiled at them. Her smile is very powerful. "Yes, yes!¡¡Of course I will!¡¡Please teach me when you have time. I''m dying to learn! I''d better learn it too. I think I should learn it too, since Natsuki and I are the only ones who can use light magic. Haruka nodded slowly to Yuki, who shook her head. But both of us are smart enough to learn quickly. I think we should refrain from participating. It''s not going to be about the female skeleton or anything s*xy, but it''s going to be embarrassing. Well, Nao''s in a bad way, but let''s take her apart. Now that the fracture is healed, let''s get you to work. I''ll take care of it. It''s bloody and dirty, but it''ll get dirty again when we dismantle it, and I can live with it if I think Haruka''s purification will clean it up. I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. I guess the division of labor is that I, who can spot enemies, Haruka, who can dismantle quickly, and Natsuki, who has the best strength, will quickly dismantle the orcs near the nest, while the remaining two will stay here to watch for demons that are after the corpses. We moved quickly, Haruka in charge of one orc, and Natsuki and I in charge of another, dismantling them. As you can see, having dismantled more than 10 orcs, I''ve gotten used to the process, and I''m making pretty quick progress. But this makes me want to get a magic bag that can hold a whole orc. That way, we won''t have to dismantle them in dangerous places. "Wouldn''t the bag have to be as big as a container bag that could be carried by a crane?¡¡We haven''t even succeeded with a backpack yet. "You can''t do that, can you? But I''ve been thinking about it a little too. "If you think about it only as a way to move your prey around a bit, with a wide mouth but a very shallow bottom, and if you only add ''light weight'' and ''extended space'', it might work. "Is that so?¡¡Then let''s give it a try. We can sew the bag ourselves. As expected, there are no bags with such a special shape available, so we''ll have to make our own. I think leather would be better. I think it would be better if it were made of leather, because it would be more like spreading it out on the ground and putting things on it, rather than holding it and putting things in it. At least, you can''t use it to lift an orc and shove it into the bag. Looking at the situation after the battle, if we spread out a bag made of linen on the ground as we usually do, there is a very good chance that a fallen tree branch will make a hole in it. At the very least, I would like to use a strong cloth bag, and if possible, a strong leather bag. It will cost more, though. Embroidery sounds like a lot of work, but let''s consider it. I''ll help you. I''ll help you. I recently got my sewing skills. Natsuki has always been good at sewing. Okay!¡¡I''m done, what about you? I''m done, too. The carcasses that had been dismembered and arranged on the skin were thrown into the bag, and the remaining offal was abandoned in the area. Roll up the skin and put it in the bag, and the work is done. At first, I thought the dismantling of meat was disgusting, but lately I''ve come to see it as meat, so the work is fast. Let''s hurry back then. Any enemies? None so far. Not even orcs. There must have been a fair amount of noise from the battle, but no Orcs have approached to check on us, which is honestly helpful, but I wonder if they don''t hear us, think we''re okay, or don''t have the brains to send reinforcements. When we returned to Toya and the others, the two of us were almost done with one orc each. The rest were six orcs and the orc leader. We split up and proceeded to dispose of them. All of them had the [Dismantle] skill, but the fastest was Haruka, who had reached level 2. The rest of the team members are not too far behind, but Toya is a little faster with his strength. Haruka takes care of two of them while we take care of one at a time, and then we proceed to dismantle the orc leader. The structure itself is not difficult to dismantle because it''s only a couple of sizes larger than ......, but it''s quite difficult. I need a big knife, like a tuna knife. Yes, the blade length of the dismantling knife is too short. Aside from removing the skin, it''s hard to cut the meat with the knife, because you have to insert the blade many times. "Do you want to use my sword? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. It has almost no blade at all. I''m not sure what you mean by that. It would be better to have a Japanese sword, but it would be too delicate for actual combat. You can use it to avoid all attacks and not to fight with each other, or you can use it to cut through the enemy by avoiding hard parts, or you can use it mainly for thrusting. ....... If you are in a Japanese battlefield, you may be able to replace the sword you have taken from the enemy, but there is no way you can do that in a battle against demons. It is not always possible to take time to clean the sword after each battle, and unless the sword is a magic item, it would be impossible to use it on a daily basis. Since I have a magic bag, I might as well buy a long demolition knife. I''ll just have to make do with this one. "Right. To be honest, it''s hard to get the fat off. The meat is so thick that you have to repeatedly insert the knife, pull the meat, and insert the knife again to cut it. It is not easy to cut the meat, because the thickness of the arm alone is as much as one arm. I''m not sure if you can use ...... wind magic to cut it in a snap. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. Haruka is the only one who can use water magic now. I''ve got a few qualities, though. You can use it to cut hard objects, but it''s not really for cutting thick objects.¡¡I don''t think it''s suitable for cutting thick objects. Water cutters used in industrial applications in Japan are designed to cut materials by spraying water or a mixture of water and particles under high pressure. They have the advantage of cutting hard objects without heat generation and without the disadvantage of blade wear, but they are not very practical for cutting objects one meter away, for example, considering the air resistance. Unless, of course, there is some magical effect that causes water to constantly accelerate without spreading. At least for the purpose of dismantling, it would be much better to prepare a variety of blades. You don''t have to carry them around anymore. You''re right. I should have bought one. It was a bit of a hassle with the orcs. The blade length of the knife had been a bit of a problem when dismantling Orcs, but since one person could dismantle no more than one at a time, everyone had been able to work without complaint. This time, however, Haruka had already dismantled three orcs by herself, and this orc leader was the last one, so it was not hard to understand her frustration. "Well, we''re almost there, so let''s work hard. "Yeah, sure. Despite his complaints, Haruka''s hands didn''t stop, and even with five orc leaders, it didn''t take long for the carcasses to be transformed into meat and all disappeared into the magic bag. The remaining hides looked tougher than normal orcs, but there were quite a few puncture wounds on the legs made by Natsuki. I wondered how this would affect my evaluation, but there was no way I could tell Natsuki that his death was wrong. His life is more important than a little bit of money. "Okay, it''s done. Well then, let''s retreat quickly. At least not from orc territory. ¡¸¡¸¡¸¡¸ Oh (yes) (yes) ¡¹¡¹¡¹¡¹ In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. 84-074 What are your achievements? We ended up moving out of the forest after that. We were all tired, not only physically but also mentally, and we all agreed that we wanted to rest in a safe place. We sat down on the grass outside the forest and breathed together. "Well, we survived, but we were stronger than we thought, weren''t we? "Yes, it was. Fighting an orc leader alone, at least in the forest, is a bit tough. The orc leader''s movement was also restricted, but if anything, Natsuki seemed to have more difficulty moving. "You got hurt pretty bad this time, didn''t you, Nao? It''s fortunate that no one else was hurt. "Ugh!¡¡--No, I''m the number one destroyer, right?¡¡Three of them are certain, and two more are half dead. Personally, I don''t think Toya is doing enough!¡¡She''s only taken on two of them. No, you can''t deny that. You can''t deny that, but if Toya had taken on three of them, there would have been a little more room, and if she had killed two of them quickly, she would have been able to get to Natsuki''s aid faster. That''s what I was thinking too. "I thought so too," he said. "With your skill, you could have killed them a little faster. I''m not used to doing that. I''m not used to it. I''m not used to it." "Maybe next time you train, you can simulate a fight with more than one. We couldn''t do it in the yard of the inn, but we''ve already bought some land. That''s true. In the past, we had fought each other in training, but as Yuki said, we hadn''t trained one against another due to the location problem. Now, however, there is land at our disposal just a short distance away. It would be perfect for training. How did Nao get hurt? Oh, most likely a broken spear, I guess. You don''t have a spear, do you? I''m sorry!¡¡I was using an expensive spear, so-- I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. No, no, that''s not a problem at all. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It doesn''t sting much even against Orcs. If it had been against an orc leader, there''s a good chance it wouldn''t have done any damage at all. And I think I handled it a little poorly after it was broken. But you might want to get a better spear and a replacement weapon. Not just me. That''s right. Maybe you should buy something as good as what Natsuki is using now. The magic bag will help you carry around replacement weapons. I should also practice with weapons other than the bow. I''m in a bit of trouble this time. Haruka, you used your bow to draw one orc in what was almost a close combat. He was able to do this because of his speed and skill with the bow, but it looked pretty dangerous. If there had been a vanguard that could have stopped the orc, he could have easily killed it from a distance, but he needed to think about what would happen if it got close to him like this. I''m not sure there''s anything special to say about Natsuki ....... I think she did her best. Is that so?¡¡In the end, without your support, we could not have inflicted the fatal wound. ...... You''re in the wrong place this time. I think that''s enough for a frontal challenge with no way to go around. Rather, I think you have the guts to do that. Standing in front of that huge body, dodging a huge club that was coming down at great speed, and attacking with a spear. You can act calmly in a situation where you can be blown away even by a graze. I''ve been blown up a tree by an orc''s club and not by a downward swing, so I know how powerful it is. By the way, Yuki did a good job of fending off the orc''s attack, didn''t she? I''m not sure. That''s definitely thanks to the [Strengthening]. Even in situations where you would normally be outmatched, you managed to do so. Fortunately, there was no situation where the iron wall came into play, but it seems to be quite effective, strengthening the body with magical power. "If I had remembered, would I have been able to avoid breaking my bones? No, I don''t know if I could have done it in that situation.¡¡I don''t know if I could do it on level one or something. I see. But I''ll try to remember. It was pretty painful. But injuries are dangerous, aren''t they? In game terms, it might be described as ''20% HP reduction'', but if I''m like Nao and one of my arms is broken, my attack power is reduced to zero. If I get hit right after I''m injured and scared, I could die. ...... Nao, how did you stay alive? "Yeah, I was pretty lucky ....... I''m not sure what to make of it. If I hadn''t been lucky enough to catch that branch, I might have been in a lot of danger, seriously. In conclusion, we need a little more training to be able to take on 10 Orcs, right? "I think we can handle just orcs.¡¡If Natsuki hadn''t gone for the orc leader, he wouldn''t have been hurt. I''m sorry. I''m sorry. I just said I was going to fight. ...... I''m sorry, I just said I was going to fight. It''s not that it''s your fault, it''s just that I was prepared for you to get hurt.¡¡It''s not that I''m not a good person, but I''m not a good person. You''re right, if we''d done well we could have gotten through this without getting hurt. I can''t deny that. If I had retreated a moment earlier when the spear broke, and in hindsight, if I had used my space-time magic better, I might have been able to deal with it more skillfully. It''s the magic I''m best at. I''m sure Nao''s magic is great at killing orcs with a single blow, but it lacks the power of annihilation. Can''t you use two of them at once? "That''s pretty outrageous! You''re being very reckless! It took me a lot of effort to go from my first lousy Fire Arrow to blowing the heads off orcs. But when you make a magic bag, you''re using three different spells at the same time, right?¡¡If you think about it, isn''t it as easy as using two of the same magic at the same time? "......, that''s what I think. In the case of the Fire Arrow, imagine the power and speed, put in the necessary magic power, check the target, and fire it to hit it. If you keep the power and speed the same, you should have no problem with that part. What''s the problem with flying to different targets and hitting them? I stand up and make two marks about 10 meters apart with a gap of about 2 meters between them. "Mmmm ...... ''Fire Arrow''! The two activations are okay, the hits are ...... slightly off! "Oh, Nao, great!¡¡"Oh, Nao, you did it in one shot. I didn''t think you could do it. I didn''t think you could do it all at once. Yuki and Toya clapped their hands and praised me openly. But you''re a little off the mark, aren''t you? It takes a little longer to activate and is a little less powerful?¡¡Nao, try to hit one in the middle of that mark. "Oh. "Fire Arrow. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s 70 or 80 percent of the power.¡¡I''m pretty sure it''s getting weaker. Can''t you make it a little more powerful? It can be done, but it will take time. The Fire Arrow I''m using on the Orcs right now is based on the maximum power that can be reliably triggered within three seconds. The speed of magic, its power, and its activation time. These three are trade-offs: if you increase the power, the activation time will decrease, if you don''t increase the activation time, the speed will decrease. You can get used to it, but this is the current maximum value. By the way, how about three? You''re right, Toya, that''s absurd. ...... ''Fire Arrow''! It worked. But the aim is way off. I aimed at the first two markers and the center hole that I fired at later, but none of them hit exactly. The closest one was about 20 centimeters away, and the farthest one was about 50 centimeters away. The closest one missed by about 20 centimeters, and the farthest one missed by about 50 centimeters.¡¡It might be useful if the enemy is crowded or for checking them out. I''m not sure what to make of that. It is true that this is a bit dangerous to use in combat. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m going to try to practice so that I can hit two of them with certainty. ...... If you can use it, you''ll have a big advantage. If there are 10 orcs, I alone can thwart 4 of them before they get close. Aside from Nao''s magic, we may all need to train. Weapons and Magic: ...... Shall we buy a grimoire?¡¡I''ve got enough in reserve to pay for the house. The cash itself has not yet reached 600 gold coins, but the orcs in the magic bag have more than that. Even if I spent a few hundred thousand rares, I wouldn''t have any trouble paying for it. Do I want to buy a weapon too?¡¡This iron rod is strong, but it won''t work against Orcs, and it doesn''t really fit my appearance, does it? No, appearance doesn''t matter, does it? Besides, you did a good job of fending off the Orcs'' attacks, so I think it fits you better than you think. No, no, no. With my appearance, don''t you think I''d look better with a dagger or something, bandit style?¡¡You know, I''m small. I don''t deny it, but I think Natsuki has the skills for that position. If you want to buy a new weapon for Nao, Yuki will be the only one without a proper weapon, so if you want to buy one, it''s fine. What, Haruka doesn''t agree? It''s not that I''m against it, it''s that there''s no one who can teach you how to use it.¡¡Can you use a dagger with no skills? There you have it! Our weapon skills are level 2 to 4, except for Yuki''s. Yuki copied it from Toya and was able to use it at level 1, but if she wanted to use the dagger, she had no one to copy it from and would have to start from scratch or find someone else to teach her. But you know, it was easier than I thought to learn stick fighting.¡¡I''m sure it''s because I had [sword fighting], but why don''t you start with [sword fighting] and then train to get [dagger fighting]? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that. If possible, it would be good to have someone teach you how to fight with a dagger. As for me, I don''t think I need to be limited to daggers. I don''t think you need to be stuck with a dagger. An axe, a battle hammer, or a flail might be a good choice. Oh, that''s not pretty! ...... Is it? I''m not going to argue that axes and hammers are cute, but can you put knives in the cute category?¡¡I''m not going to argue that axes and hammers are cute, but can knives be considered cute? "Well, since Yuki wants to do it, let''s let her. I know a little bit of dagger fighting, so I might be able to teach her. It is a kind of martial art that uses a small sword, and she has been taught it, but only briefly. He said he couldn''t do much with it because he was concentrating on his naginata, but it was impressive enough for me, who had never had any experience with it. As expected of Natsuki, he''s very versatile. "Thank you very much. I''m grateful." Natsuki smiled, but the contents of her story were very disturbing. Now, it''s only mid-morning, who wants to go back into the forest? Haruka looks around at us, but we both shake our heads. We''ll just go to ...... today. That''s right. Nao''s weapon is gone. I''ve got magic, but there''s no need to overdo it. I''m a little tired too, aren''t I?¡¡I''m a little tired too. Even if I have muscle strength, facing orcs one on one is quite mentally exhausting. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s still a little early, but let''s have lunch here today and head back to town. It''s been a long time since we''ve been able to eat lunch in a safe place, so we built a fire, drank some tea, and took a breather. After finishing our early lunch, we headed back to the city. 85-075 Operation to increase the force (1) When I returned to the city, I sold the orcs at the guild as usual. However, I was short on cash, so I sold only six orcs today. I then went to Mr. Gantz''s weapon shop. Hello~ "Welcome. The person who greeted me was a middle-aged woman I had never seen before. Whenever I''ve been here, Mr. Gantz has always been the store keeper, but he hired a store keeper?¡¡I''m sure Tommy''s teaching her a thing or two. Oh, Miss Sybil. I thought, but apparently Toya knows her . When I looked at her, she told me that she was Mr. Gantz''s wife. I see, so she was married. Well, at his age, he is usually married. She has a regular job. "Mr. Ganz, are you okay now?¡¡I need to talk to you about something. Is that your husband?¡¡Wait a minute, I''ll get him. Mr. Sybil bowed to us briefly and stepped back. Mr. Gantz, you''re married. "Yeah, actually I just found out. They seem to be on good terms. According to Toya, it was just a coincidence that we didn''t see each other, since Gantz-san was working in the back and his wife was guarding the store. After a while, Mr. Gantz came out from the back, wiping his face with a cloth. "Oh, it''s you guys. What''s up today? Sorry to bother you at work. We need to find a spear for Nao and weapons for Haruka and Yuki. Hmm?¡¡Didn''t Nao buy them the other day?¡¡Oh, that''s your girl''s weapon now? I had magic. I''ve got magic. I think I''ll use the same one. Do you have it? Yellow iron and pseudo-ironwood spears, right?¡¡Hold on a second. The one he brought out from the back was the same as Natsuki''s spear. And it''s all black from tip to handle. This one is the same as the one the girl is holding. This one looks like black iron, but it''s a spear made of magic iron. It''s a step up in strength and sharpness. Apparently, there''s a difference in strength and sharpness between this spear and the yellow iron, so that the black iron is unharmed while the yellow iron is chipped. I took the opportunity to hold it, but... "It''s too heavy!¡¡I can''t handle this! It''s a good weapon if you can handle it. ...... The weight of the magic iron itself is not much different from that of the yellow iron, but because the handle is also made of magic iron, it is said to be much heavier. By the way, the price is about five times as much. The price is about five times as much as I can afford. If only the tip was made of magic iron, I could buy it. "People who use this level of spear have no problem with this level of weight. A goblin''s head can be shattered just by hitting it with this handle! With this weight, hardness, and the length of the handle, it would certainly be able to crush the skull of a goblin just by swinging it. If I get stronger in the future, I may consider it, but for now, I''ll simply choose the Yellow Iron Spear. A 6 million yen spear would be a national treasure in terms of price. It''s just a utility item here. Next, Haruka, what''s your weapon?¡¡Isn''t the bow your only weapon? The only thing I know how to use is my bow, but I wanted to have a weapon I could use when I''m approached. Do you have a preference? I don''t have any. ...... Rapier? "Rapier?¡¡You don''t usually use it, do you?¡¡I think it''s a distraction. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s over a meter long and quite heavy. At least with it on, it would be difficult to climb trees as lightly as now, and it would also get in the way when using a bow. "This is certainly a tough weapon to have as a backup. It''s surprisingly heavy. You know?¡¡I think a short sword of about this length would be more suitable. This sword is about 50 centimeters long, including the hilt. It''s not too much of a hindrance to have it hanging around your waist. Haruka also nodded as he held the sword in his hand, waved it lightly and held it against his waist. This is about as realistic as it gets. If you can fight, you can use your fists as weapons, but you can''t, can you?¡¡It''s a good idea to use a knife, but it''s not very useful against demons. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sorry to suggest this, but we don''t have anything like the Yellow Iron Spear in stock. You can find expensive ones, but you can''t use them as spare weapons, right?¡¡The one you have now is probably too cheap. What Mr. Gantz brought from the store was a fledgling weapon made of ordinary steel and priced at a few hundred Reais. Even if it was a spare weapon, it would not be a weapon of this level. So, you''re ordering? Yeah. --Well, you''re Tommy''s friends, aren''t you?¡¡You''re friends with Tommy, right?¡¡It''s not quite ready for the store, but you can take it for the cost of the materials.¡¡At least you''ll be able to make a better weapon than the cost of the materials. It seems that the current Tommy can''t match Gantz''s even if he uses the same materials. The suggestion was to make up for the shortfall by using better materials and let him make the weapon only at the actual cost. For us, we can get a reasonable weapon at a moderate price, and for Mr. Gantz, we can save the cost of materials for Tommy''s training. It was a win-win proposition for both. So, shall we ask him? Oh, I''ll call you when I''m done, just give me a minute. So, where''s your girl? Mr. Gantz looked at Yuki, but she looked a little puzzled. I thought it was a knife, but is it useless against demons? It''s hard to say. With a knife, you can either slash and bleed to death or aim for the vital point. ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The image would be like killing an elephant with a knife. I don''t know where an elephant''s heart is, but it certainly seems unlikely that you could reach it with a knife, and it would be difficult to aim for the carotid artery in the neck. So, what do you recommend for a guy like me? "You''re a little girl. Flail or ......, if you have the strength and weight, you can use a war hammer, mallet, or poleaxe. Basically, it''s a weapon that uses centrifugal force to strike. I''ve heard that weapons like the flail and the morningstar can do damage through thick armor if used properly, even if you''re not very strong. If you think about it that way, you might be suited for it. In games, there are sometimes situations where a small character wields a big weapon like a war hammer, but in reality, even if you have [Strengthening], you won''t be able to do anything without counterweights. In fact, even if you had [muscle strength], you wouldn''t be able to do it without counterweights. As Mr. Gantz says, it''s impossible without weight. I''m not a fan of this kind of thing. You can''t expect to look cute in a fight!¡¡If you don''t want to get into close combat, you can use a dagger like Haruka. ...... I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m going to try. What do you mean, "maybe"?¡¡I''m not sure if you''re a magician or not with that iron bar.¡¡You should be holding a mage staff! A mage staff is a staff that helps you cast spells, and you can use it to increase the power of your spells and even hit your enemies with it. However, if you hit them too hard, it seems that their function as a mage staff will be impaired, so you won''t be able to use them to ward off orc attacks like you can today. In the first place, it seems to be mostly made of wood, so we can''t expect it to be as strong as an iron bar. Do you have a mage staff here? No, we don''t. If you need one, I''ll introduce you to a store I know. But if you can fight with that iron rod, it might be better to buy a ring activator and use a different weapon. It''s pretty expensive, though. There are a variety of ring and necklace activators that have the same effect as the mage staff, but they all cost a good deal more. It''s a good idea to use a mage staff that''s been designed for beginners to advanced users, while other activators are used by intermediate users and above, so they are priced accordingly. I think I''ll ask Tommy to do it for me. Mr. Gantz, is that okay? "Yeah. Yeah. It''ll be good for him to get some training. Just wait until he''s done with his work. Okay. Gantz-san walked into the back of the store and we sat down on a stool in the corner. We sat down in a corner. Yes. I''ll need some training with the dagger, but ...... Toya and Natsuki, please? Yeah. I can handle the swordplay. I hope my knowledge will be useful. Hmm, let''s have Tommy make something that looks like that. After half an hour of waiting and talking, Tommy came out with Mr. Ganz. Mr. Ganz sat down at the counter, and only Tommy came over and bowed. Hello. I haven''t seen you since yesterday. Are you going to let me make a weapon? "Yes. It''s a conflict of interest. I want you to make daggers for me and Yuki. It better be sturdy, considering its purpose. A dagger ...... with a single blade would be fine. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. It''s like a sidearm that prioritizes sturdiness. ...... What are your priorities, sharpness, sturdiness, or weight? I''m not saying it has to be maintenance free, because you''ll be using it on your adventures, but I don''t want it to be something that you have to clean every time you want to use it. I want it to be sharp, but sturdy.¡¡I want it to be sharp, but I also want it to be sturdy, because if it breaks, I''m dead. I can tolerate the weight to a certain extent. I can live with a certain amount of weight. I see. ...... Am I free to do as I please? If you meet the requirements. If you meet the requirements. When Haruka said that, Tommy smiled happily and nodded. I understand.¡¡So what''s your budget? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before. Haruka looked at Mr. Gantz and he nodded as if to say, "Okay." "How long do you need for delivery?" "The sooner the better, but we don''t want to cut corners. I looked at Mr. Ganz again and he was nodding. Tommy also nodded, so he seemed to be okay with it. We also decided that payment should be made at the time of delivery, and that Tommy, who was staying at the same inn, would let us know when it was ready. We bought some large knives for demolition as well as my spear, and left the store. 86-076 Operation to improve the force (2) After leaving the weapons shop, I headed to the bookstore I had visited before. Here, too, the goal was, of course, grimoires. I bought a basic grimoire, a water-based grimoire, a light-based grimoire, and a fire-based grimoire. In order to save money, the basic grimoire is a bit on the ragged side at 15,000 rares. In addition, there was a wind-based grimoire that was not in stock last time, so I bought that as well. Since it was a good opportunity, I looked around for other books, and found that there was a good demand for earth grimoires, a book on pharmacology that Natsuki wanted, a dictionary of herbs, and a dictionary of demons, making a total of nine books. The total cost was well over 200 gold coins, but since I was buying in bulk, I worked hard to get a discount and got them for just under 200. Nine books for 200,000 rares. After all, books are too expensive. However, now that we have the general books on magic, we will be able to learn magic. No, to be honest, I don''t want to see any progress. Two hundred gold coins is not a cheap purchase. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó I have bought a book of magic. After throwing all the books we purchased into our magic bags, we went straight to the land where we purchased them. Normally, we would have to go back to the inn and worry about the theft of our luggage, but thanks to the magic bag, we did. The land was already under construction, even though it was just yesterday. At the location of the house we had decided on, just a dozen meters straight from the gate, the foundation of a rather large house was rising. It seems that the earth wizard has been commissioned to make this foundation, which is like replacing the concrete foundation in Japan with stones made by magic. Apparently, the earth wizard will be paid quite a lot of money for this work alone. How strong the foundation will be depends on the skill of the wizard, but because of the method of building houses on a solid foundation, the houses in this country are surprisingly strong and resistant to rain. Now, around the foundation, carpenters are working on the pillars that will be placed there. There are piles of materials on the side of the house, but there is plenty of room for us to train because the site is so large. We have taken a space of about 10 meters in front of the house, but the space on either side of the house is enough to build two or three houses, and the space behind the house is much larger than that. The space behind the house is comparable to that. We said a quick hello to the carpenter working on the house and moved to the large space behind the house. Then, for today''s training, ...... magic should be done after reading the grimoire. So, as usual, weapons training? The sooner we teach Haruka and Yuki swordsmanship, the better, but I think we should wait until they have daggers. The sooner we teach them swordsmanship, the better.¡¡It''s not the same length, though. I have a wooden sword that I used to use. This is what he used to face Task Boar with at first, right? It bounced off his skull. I think length is pretty important, so ...... a simple stick would still be better. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I don''t know.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. "What? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I thought craftsmen were difficult to deal with, but Yuki put her communication skills to good use and talked to the carpenter with a smile, and it looks like she''s on her way to having a wooden sword made. He''s gone. "There you go. I''m impressed with Yuki''s ability. You''re making good use of your appearance. As Toya says, Yuki accepts the fact that she looks young and acts accordingly. The fact that she is able to do this without seeming like a bruiser is probably the strength of Yuki''s communication skills. People are inevitably expected to play a role according to their appearance. To put it in an extreme way, a well-dressed man in a suit who begs for sweets like a child is just a crazy person, but a girl who looks like a child is allowed to do it. On the other hand, if you have to deal with some kind of complaint and you want to appear as the "person in charge," which one is more appropriate? At school, Yuki seems to have played a role as a buffer between Natsuki and Haruka, who are both a little bit tougher than the other two, and their classmates. Whenever the boys would talk to the group of three, they would usually talk to Yuki first. He said, "Let''s leave that to Yuki, and we''ll train on our own. First, let''s try ...... Toya''s mock battle with multiple opponents? That''s right. I''ve got a wooden sword, and I''ll use it and the iron bar.¡¡I''m sure you''ll have a great time. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡No matter how much healing magic you have, it''s still dangerous. Yeah, that''s true. We haven''t been doing mock battles that often so far, but if we''re going to train for multiple battles, we''ll need mock battles. In that case, we cannot deny the possibility of accidents. Incidentally, we have used the stone-pelting method in the past. Toya''s sword can be bruised or even broken if he is unlucky, but the tip of a spear can cut unexpectedly. Let''s make do with what we have for now. I''ll use the wooden sword, and you can use the iron bar. Oh, I''ll beat Toya to a pulp! What, I''m going to get smashed? If you don''t like it, you''ll have to deal with it. That''s what we''re training for. No, I''ll do my best. ...... There''s a lot of grass in the way, huh? I''m going to get my sword up, look around, and Toya will blurt out something like that. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It''s better than the forest, I guess. It''s better if you think of it as training. If you say so, there is no need to mow the grass. I hold up the iron bar and urge Toya. "So be it. Let''s do it! Yeah! That was the signal for me and Natsuki to attack Toya. Basically, Natsuki fights with Toya, and I move around him and make random moves. I don''t have any [stick fighting] skills, and Natsuki doesn''t have any [sword fighting] skills. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I''ve been doing this for about 30 minutes. As I continued to attack, swapping roles with Natsuki along the way, I guess I was getting used to using the iron bar, and my attacks began to hit through Toya''s sword and shield. Of course, I''m trying my best to keep my hits close to the edge, but I don''t have the skill to do so, so I''m hitting him moderately hard. Toya said to me, "No, it''s not a jerk!¡¡It''s thumping! But it''s Toya''s fault for not being able to block the attacks of two unskilled players with level 3. Yeah, that must be it. "Wait a minute!¡¡Nao, your attacks are getting faster! Yeah!¡¡Oh, no!¡¡I don''t think so!¡¡I don''t think so!¡¡No!¡¡Come on! He still has time to talk. Natsuki''s attacks seem to have become a little more fierce. For now, I''ll keep attacking until you let go of the sword. He exchanged glances with Natsuki and continued to attack for another two minutes. Toya jumped back at once and raised his hand. Wait!¡¡I need to rest! With that, he let go of his sword and rolled on the ground. He breathed out loudly. It must have been hard for him to keep moving while using his nerves for more than half an hour. Natsuki and I were still taking turns, but Toya was on his own. You guys aren''t amateurs with your moves! I shrug my shoulders as he points his finger at me, lying down. No, we''re not amateurs. "That''s not what I meant. I don''t think you have any skills. I''ve handled a few swords before. I''ve handled a few swords. - I can handle an iron bar like a spear. ...... Oh, there''s a [muscle strengthening] growing. And then there''s stick fighting. It''s no wonder the iron rod felt lighter from the middle. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡In addition to that, you can easily get the muscle strengthening. I''m not sure what to make of that. If you''re at level 1, you might be able to get it if you have some weapon related skills and can handle a stick reasonably well. However, [Strengthening] is a little different. I''ve been working on it for a while, you know.¡¡From yesterday to today. With Yuki''s explanation in mind, I tried to hold things with magic power circulating in my body, and tried my best to grasp the flowing magic power. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find the right one for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure if this is a good thing or not. I''m not sure if this is just a matter of the evil god''s heart. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always ask for help from a friend. Oh, and if you look closely, you''ll see that [Spearmanship] is now level 3!¡¡Okay! The only thing that''s easy to take is something that can be applied from existing skills, and something that was done in the original world.¡¡You''ve had a little nibble, haven''t you, Natsuki? "Yes, just a little. Natsuki nodded at Toya''s words. The only other thing that was relatively easy to get was Natsuki''s sewing. It''s not strange, because Natsuki was originally able to sew. Aside from when you make up your character, it''s not because you have the skill that you can do it, but because you can do it that it shows up as a skill. I wonder if the timing of the skill is when you consciously use it. "Taking a break? "I made a nice wooden sword. Here! As we were talking, Haruka and the others came back with short wooden swords in their hands and called out to us. Yuki happily showed us her wooden sword, and it was indeed well made. I''m sure it''s very well made. A simple stick would have been fine for practice, but it''s shaped to look like a sword. We''re taking a break. We''re taking a break, because Toya is exhausted. Since you''re so busy, why don''t I start teaching you two? "Yes. If they know the basics, they can train on their own. What about you, Nao? With Toya and Natsuki teaching, I''ll have no one to fight with in the simulations. I can train on my own, but... I''m gonna stay here for a while, read some grimoires. "Really?¡¡Well then, let''s do it. I walked away from Haruka and the others who had their wooden swords at the ready, moved to where I had left my stuff, sat down, and took a grimoire from my magic bag. The one I chose was the Basic Grimoire. Unlike the other grimoires, this one was the one that everyone but Toya should read first, but I had only bought one. It would be better if I read it first, so that there would be no trouble. It would be a waste of money to buy two copies. The Basic Grimoire I bought was a little damaged, but not so bad that it would interfere with my reading. I opened the book gently and started reading from the beginning. 87-077 Operation to increase the force (3) After reading the Basic Grimoire with my head down for quite a while, I slammed the book shut, exhaled heavily, and stretched out to relax. My position wasn''t very good, so I stiffened up a bit. I rotated my shoulders and neck to loosen the stiffness. There''s nothing new there. There''s nothing new in there. ...... Some of it might be useful, though. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. Most of them were systematic explanations of things that I had understood experientially, but there were some things in the book that bothered me. It said, "You will not faint even if you consume magic power. To be more precise, it says, "In principle, you can faint, but in reality, it''s almost impossible. What this means is that, for example, it is not impossible to keep running until you pass out. However, normal people stop and rest before that. The same applies to magic. If the magic power becomes low enough to cause problems in the consciousness of the magician, he or she will naturally be unable to use any more magic power, and even if he or she is in the middle of casting a spell, the spell will be interrupted and fail. Magic is completed when the practitioner pours magic power into it, not when it sucks up magic power on its own. As an exception, magic tools made by alchemists can automatically absorb magic power, but only if the opponent has plenty of magic power, and ordinary magic tools cannot absorb too much magic power from an opponent with little magic power. Therefore, it is almost impossible to lose consciousness due to lack of magic power. It''s great that you don''t have to worry about fainting, but there''s no way to measure your magic power. According to the book, "It is essential for a wizard to know how much magic power he has. In particular, for frequently used spells, it is important to know how many times you can use the spell during normal times, and how long you need to rest after consuming the spell to be able to use it again. If you don''t know these things for sure, you may be caught unawares in battle. However, I am grateful to know that I can increase the amount of magic power by accumulating training. It''s a good thing that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not sure if it''s because of the amount of magic or because I''m used to dealing with it. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. Hmmm, something cool about the Dagger Technique. If Yuki were to wear a black costume, she would look like a small, quick ninja. If she can improve her speed by strengthening her body, it''s not impossible, right?¡¡Yuki has acquired such skills as [Hide], [Stealthy Foot], [Throwing], and [Evasion]. You can''t be a s*xy kunoichi, but... I think I''ll try training in [Iron Wall]. I''ve been practicing this as well, but it was harder to get an idea of what it is when training on my own compared to the ¡¾Muscle Strengthening¡¿. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you may want to take a look at the following tips. I tried tapping my hands and feet, imagining a kind of magical barrier, but I couldn''t get the feeling. My hand trying to hit it and my consciousness trying to repel it. I was confused by the conflicting thoughts. It''s best if you have someone to help you. ...... Do you want to try to cast a spell? It''s not possible to cast an attack spell indoors, but it''s not a problem here. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''d like it to be a little hot ...... so that if I make a mistake, I only get a minor burn. Normally, I would refuse to train like this, but there is healing magic in this world. But in this world, there is healing magic, and a burn can be easily healed. I''m going to practice shooting a very weak "Fire Arrow" at some grass before ...... shooting myself. A level that burns in an instant is not good. Adjust the level so that the green grass turns brown...... or yellow. After practicing a few times, roll up your pants and go for it! "Aah! Hot!¡¡But it''s not unbearable. But not unbearable. A drop of boiling water, perhaps. I was chanting "barrier, barrier" in my mind, "self-destruct?¡¡Self-harm?¡¡while chanting "barrier, barrier" in my mind. And for a while, I held on to the pain. When my legs had turned red, I finally saw ........ "Whoa! It''s not hot! The "Fire Arrow" that I shot out disappears as if it is blocked by something. "Yes! I''m not sure what to make of this. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. When Haruka saw my reddened leg, she rushed over and quickly fixed it. "Oh, I''m sorry. To be honest, it hurt quite a bit. "Oh, sorry. It goes away. "What''s wrong?¡¡You didn''t just start hurting yourself, did you? ...... It''s not like you''ve just suddenly become self-harming,.......¡¡No! It''s not that I''m not a good person. I thought I had gotten it, but now I don''t have the Iron Wall skill! And instead, there''s a [Magic Barrier] skill! "What''s wrong? No, I was working hard to get [Iron Wall], but... Oh, so that''s why you have such legs. Oh. Beating myself wasn''t good enough, so I used magic, and the skill I got was [Magic Barrier]. "Magic Barrier"?¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea.¡¡I''ll have to copy it as soon as possible! I''m going to have to copy it right away! I glare at Yuki, who smiles happily. I''ve always thought that skill copying was quite subtle, but when a party member learns a useful new skill, it''s quite effective. But it''s only useful if you have someone who''s willing to teach it to you. But in the end, you still need to ''teach'' them, so Yuki will be in pain to varying degrees, right? "Oh, yeah. In other words, the strength of the magic I cast on Yuki is up to me? What?¡¡Nao is going to leave a mark on my soft skin?¡¡You''ll have to take responsibility for that. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I smiled at her. Haruka''s healing magic is powerful. You know? "I''ll heal you ......, but in moderation, okay? That''s terrible!¡¡You can''t stop me anyway! In the event you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to always ask for help. I''m not an S, and I don''t enjoy torturing girls. But I can''t make it any weaker than it is, because it would probably be useless without some level of pain. You should be able to learn in less time than I can, so I''ll let you endure that much. But more importantly, are Yuki and Haruka able to use daggers now? Yes. I''ve got [Swordsmanship Lv.1] and [Daggers Lv.1]. And Haruka?¡¡I thought Yuki would be able to quickly learn [Swordsmanship Lv.1] by copying it. ...... Should I learn swordsmanship too? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure that swords are much more useful than spears in tight spaces. If you''re not as talented as Yuki and Haruka, you can still learn how to do it with half a day of training. ...... If you want to learn, I can teach you. Yeah. One of these days, please. Right now, I''d like to learn the Iron Barrier. In a way, it was a mistake to learn the magic barrier. [Iron Wall]. If I want to imitate Nao''s training, should I just keep hitting her hard? Yeah, I''ve done that before, so let''s give it a try. Okay, I''m on it! I''ll help you later. I''ll help you out later, okay? I''ll help you out later, okay?" "...... Haha, that''d be great. I''ll help you later, okay?" "Hahaha, that''d be great," Toya said with a dry smile as he set the wooden sword down on the ground and then snapped a branch from a nearby bush and held it at the ready. It was a wise decision. If it hurts too much, I might have to use too much force when I help you. "Shall we train on our own? Yes, we should. Muscle Strengthening, Iron Barrier, and if possible Magic Barrier are important skills for survival. "Okay, okay, I''ll teach you well! I''ll teach you well!" While saying this, the women moved away from us and started training. Am I supposed to just hit them? "Oh. --Just don''t hit me in the head, okay? I know. I glare at Toya, who is walking around me with some kind of happiness, and begins to whack me with a tree branch, and I picture the branch flicking back. I don''t know what the difference is between this and the time I got the magic barrier, but there''s no other way to do it, so I can''t help it. "Hey, Nao, I''m afraid of your eyes. "Don''t worry about it. I''m just trying to keep my spirits up. It''s true that I''m a little annoyed at being hit so casually, but it''s not that I hate Toya. It''s not that I hate Toya. It''s just that I''ve been doing this for a while, being aware of my magical powers. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. The moment you think that the pain you feel when you are struck becomes much lighter, you immediately check your status. I clenched my hands and struck a gut pose, but Toya stopped and rolled her eyes. I''m sure you''ve already got it.¡¡You''ve already got it, haven''t you? "Yeah. I''m not sure if it''s because I''ve learned the magic barrier.¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. The words ¡¾Iron Wall Lv.1¡¿ shine brilliantly in the status. I feel like I was able to do this in about half the time compared to earlier. Of course, I had done a lot of trial and error before this so that I could learn ¡¾Iron Wall¡¿, so I can''t say that this didn''t have an effect on me. "Really? So we''re switching sides? Yeah. I''ll let you do the muscle strengthening, but which do you want to do first, the magic barrier or the iron wall? "I can do the Iron Wall indoors if I want to. Do you want to start with the magic barrier? Okay. Then give me your arm or leg. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Burns can be healed with healing magic, but burnt clothes can''t be fixed. There was no way she could hit him with the Fire Arrow over his clothes. Let''s go, then. Come on!¡¡I''m ready! Be my guest. He fires the Fire Arrow at Toya''s bare legs. Of course, I was very careful about the power of the fire arrow, but ...... the pain that still lingers in my body caused me to lose control a little, right? I''m not sure what to do.¡¡You!¡¡This!¡¡Did you really do this? The moment the magic hits, Toya jumps up and gives me an incredulous look. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Of course, the fact that it hit me on the inside of my thigh was just a coincidence. "Softer!¡¡Softer! I can''t help it. This time, I''ll concentrate a little more and aim for the kneecap. The skin is thicker, so it should be a little better. It''s hot!¡¡But I can take it! That''s good. Let''s go for it.¡¡Hang in there. And get the magic barrier! Advice!¡¡What''s your advice? Don''t think. Feel it. --Feel it. - Yes, the magic! It seems so deep, but it''s not deep at all!¡¡I''m not sure what that magic is! I turned a deaf ear to Toya''s protests and continued my attack. In fact, if you ask me, "What is magic power? I can''t explain it to you. It may be irresponsible, but if I keep eating magic, I''m sure I''ll be able to sense it sooner or later. All I can do is to give you some vague advice, like, "It''s kind of like this. That''s all I can offer. Hang in there, Toya. I''m rooting for you. By the time the training, which lasted until the evening, came to an end with Toya''s acquisition of the magic barrier, both of his legs were almost completely red. 88-078 Mens Only Story Ugh, I''m so screwed. I was trying so hard to be there for you. I went back to my room at the inn and expressed my regret to Toya, who was lying on the bed complaining. The minor burns have already been completely healed by Haruka''s hands, and the [magic barrier] has been successfully obtained. What could she possibly have to complain about? "Is it my imagination that I felt like I was attacked with joy? It was my imagination. --I got bored a few times. Hey! I can''t say that I didn''t feel the need to return the favor after being beaten up the first few times. But after that, it was just work. "It takes a lot of nerve to keep using magic without getting hurt, you know?¡¡If you use it normally, your legs will be blown off. ......... You could say it would have been better if Toya had learned sooner. I don''t blame her. I didn''t even know what magic was. If you can remember it, then you can grasp it, right? You got it, or rather, ...... you got it! You''re being vague, man. I''m sure you''re fine with that, because you''re successful with it. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I stood up, took out the tree branch I brought back and slapped Toya''s ass. Ouch!¡¡What? You want to continue training?¡¡You''ve already achieved a lot today, haven''t you? You can say that after seeing Haruka and the others? I''m going to ...... do my best. In the time it took for Haruka and Natsuki to learn the Iron Wall and Toya to learn the Magic Barrier, they were both able to use the Magic Barrier, Iron Wall, and Muscle Strengthening. Yuki also quickly learned ¡¾Magic Barrier¡¿ by copying it from Haruka. In other words, Toya is the only one who hasn''t learned [Iron Barrier] and [Strengthening]. The reason they learned it so easily is because they have a grasp of magic power? That''s a possibility. I don''t know if it''s easy or not. I don''t know if it''s easy or not, but Haruka and Natsuki can use healing magic. When we left after the training, the three of us were completely uninjured, unlike me who had bruises all over my body and Toya who had burns on both of her legs. However, that did not equal the fact that we were not injured. If we think about it normally, we can''t deny the possibility that they had trained very hard, since they all remembered after such a long time. "Toya, the goal is to learn the [Iron Wall] by dinner time. You''ve got the hang of it, right? "Hmmm, in time, not impossible, huh? We usually have a few hours to spare before we leave the training outside and go out for dinner. If you think about the time it takes for Toya to get the magic barrier, it should not be impossible. I took out my fire magic grimoire, sat down on the bed, opened it, and raised a tree branch. "No mercy for the ass, right? There''s a reason why we spank our children when we discipline them. In the case of other parts of the body, especially the head, even a light blow to the head can cause damage if it hits the wrong place. But in the case of the buttocks, there is almost no chance of that. If it becomes red and swollen, it may hurt when you sit down, but it is not ...... life-threatening. Wait, wait, wait!¡¡Moderate, moderate, moderate? If you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. Normally, it would be easy to push him off, but because of his bad position, he can''t get up. I have [muscle strengthening]. Toya doesn''t yet. That''s the answer. I thought you were trying hard.¡¡If it hurts, it hurts hard. Don''t you? When I nodded my head in agreement, Toya waved his hand and repeated his excuse. I''d like you to put me in the position of having to ask Haruka or Natsuki to fix my ass! "I see. ...... Good luck. I smiled and shook the branch in my hand. I''ll be back. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had it. It probably took him less time than it took me. Pain is effective, after all. I couldn''t help but notice the resentful look in Toya''s eyes as he rubbed his own ass, but it worked, so it was okay, right? How could it be?¡¡It hurt a lot! Then go to the next room and get it fixed. I''ll do that over dinner at ....... It''s hard to go to the women''s room and ask them to fix my butt. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to go to dinner with them, but it''s still a good idea.¡¡If I were you, I wouldn''t hesitate to ask Haruka, let alone Natsuki. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It hurt more than that, in my opinion.¡¡Besides, even a spanking is painful if you take dozens of them. "Hmmm, did I use the wrong amount of force?¡¡-- "Shall I go ask Haruka to do it for me? I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡I''m sure it''s not as bad as you think. "...... No, thanks. It''s not as if I can''t stand it. He thought about it for a moment, then shook his head. Then he turned his head towards me, smiled and opened his mouth. "By the way, Nao, are you interested in the nightlife? What''s with the suddenness? Are you having an indecent conversation with me because Haruka and the others are not here? No, because you and I have never been alone together before. I was in the same room with Haruka until I met up with Yuki and the others, as Toya said, and even after that, we often all gathered in this room. I''m sure we never had a chance to talk about it. "Doesn''t it bother you, Nao? As a healthy man. Well, I won''t deny it. I''m not in this inn, but in this world, it''s open enough for a normal innkeeper to take customers. I''m not in this inn, but in this world, ordinary innkeepers take customers. In the original world, if you go back a little, it was a normal thing. Wouldn''t you like to go there? "I''m not afraid to admit that it''s a little difficult to say that I don''t feel that way at all. I''m a man, too. I''m a man, too.¡¡Then... I''m a man, too, so..." He raised his hand to interrupt Toya''s words. "But, Toya. What should I say to Haruka to get money?¡¡What do you want me to say to Haruka to get some money to go to the brothel? "Ugh. ...... At the moment, Haruka is managing all the money except for a little spending money. There is talk of dividing the money between party funds and personal funds after the house is built, but the current allowance will probably not be enough to go to a decent brothel. A good excuse is ...... not good for many things. Yeah. Lying is not good. In this kind of situation, trust is important. Besides, it''ll be easy to find out. You want to go hunting in secret? You can''t go to ...... then! If you hunt a wild boar, you can get enough for two people, but there are problems before that. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡Don''t you remember? When I first came here, I was warned not to go to such stores because of the risk of STDs! I was warned not to go to such shops because of the risk of STDs. But if you go there and get sick, what will happen to you? ....... There are some high level light magic spells that can cure illnesses, what do you look like when you ask? "Can''t even ...... Nao ask for it? You can''t!¡¡Even if they do eventually cure you, you''ll never be able to stop thinking about it. In the event that you have hemorrhoids and you need to show them to Haruka in order to get them cured, you can''t deny that it''s embarrassing, but you''ll be able to bear it and ask her to help you. However, if you go to a brothel and contract a s*xually transmitted disease despite being stopped, and you have to show your p*n*s for treatment, what will you do? ....... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. No s*x, just hands. ...... This guy just said something even more stupid, didn''t he? "Hey, Toya, think about it, do you want to go that far? "Hmmm, ...... that far?¡¡I''ve never been there, I''ve never been there, so I''m just curious. After a moment''s pondering, Toya answered simply, "Yes. When I was in Japan, it was difficult for me to go there because of my age and the atmosphere, but here it''s more open, so I guess I''m interested. However, our women have Japanese values, and if you ask me if I''m desperate enough to go to a brothel and risk making enemies with them, I''m not that desperate. So, if you can''t stand it anymore, use your own power. I''ll pretend not to see it. "No, I''d rather you keep an active watch then. They''re so easy to get into. That''s true. I mean, it''s not like we''re talking about anything serious. Hmm. What''s the secret is the flower. I tried to say something like that, but Toya shook his head firmly. No, that''s not it at all. Apparently not. 89-079 Operation to increase the force (4) The training to improve our war potential continued the next day. Basically, the two main focuses of the training were for Toya and Natsuki, who supported the front line, to be able to deal with multiple enemies, and for us rearguards to be able to destroy more enemies. In the process, the rearguard''s magic level in the skill list increased, but this seems to be because they used magic of the level set in the grimoire, rather than because their magic ability increased. In fact, the fact that my Fire Magic level is now 3 does not increase the maximum power of my Fire Arrow, so the level itself does not contribute at all to strengthening my strength. However, unlike the Fire Arrow, the Fireball listed as a level 3 spell is accompanied by an explosion when it lands, so it may be effective for destroying weak enemies or for checking them. However, a direct hit on an orc would probably result in the loss of both skin and flesh, so you''ll probably have to use "Fire Arrow" to blow its head off as before. On the other hand, direct combat is not something that can be easily improved. But in the mock battle, everyone got the same [Strengthening] skill, so you can''t really tell the difference. As for other achievements, I succeeded in gaining a new skill, "Vikadaten". Now that I have physical defense, magic defense, and increased muscle strength, I need to increase my agility. As a result of repeated interval dashes to achieve this, I successfully obtained it. Immediately after gaining it, he hid it and had a mock fight with Toya, and won handily, but of course, he was immediately discovered. As a result, a few hours later, everyone got it, and the result was the same: almost no difference. The same result. That day, when I visited the Orc sale as usual, I was approached by Diora. "Nao-san, the request to kill the orcs has been issued. "Oh, so it''s finally here. Did you see it on the side of the road? No, we haven''t had any sightings yet, but Nao''s party has been bringing them in constantly. Diora chuckled. It was us, apparently. Have you seen any orc leaders in the forest? "They are larger than normal orcs, right?¡¡Yes, I have seen them. I see. I''m pretty sure they have a nest. As I said before, take it easy, okay? Of course. Even if you make a profit, you have to stay alive. Our goal is to survive, first and foremost. Secondly, to live at a reasonable level for the rest of our lives. That''s why we kill our enemies, get stronger, and save money. There is no point in dying. Can you buy the Orc''s magic stone and other items? Yes, in the back. As usual, I took out the meat of four orcs and the magic stones that I had accumulated and sold them. The magic stones cost about 3,000 rares per animal, but if the purchase price doubles, it''s not so ridiculous. I tightened my loose cheeks, put the bag of gold coins into my magic bag, and called out to Natsuki, who was waiting in front of the bulletin board. "Natsuki, I heard there was a request to take down an orc nest, do you have it? Natsuki was the only one accompanying me today. Since I''ve been training for the past few days, I''ve been coming with a couple of members who have time to go sell orcs. I have a magic bag, so I can go by myself, but just to be on the safe side, either I or Toya, and one or two of the ladies are accompanying me. "Yeah. Here it is. In summary, the contents of the paper that Natsuki pointed to are: "Destroy the orc nest in the depths of the forest and defeat the higher species of orc," and "Buy the orc magic stone at double the price until the defeat is completed. These are generally the same things that Diora had told me. It may be obvious, but there is no mention of guild-organized defeats if left unattended, or of the details of higher species. It''s dangerous to read this and think that there are only orc leaders to go and kill. "Yes, it is. I guess they didn''t dare to say that they were Orc Leaders, but that''s your own responsibility. As a guild, we haven''t confirmed whether the higher species of Orcs are leaders, captains, or higher. That''s why they dare to write "higher species of orcs". It is up to the adventurers themselves to decide what action to take when they see this. ...... Although it is possible that they simply don''t expect to be defeated. I''m not sure what to do, but I''ll discuss it with Haruka and the others when I get back. I''m sure. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. ...... We nodded at each other and left the guild. I''m not sure what to say. You''re right.¡¡In a way, the timing was perfect. Tommy told me that the dagger is ready. This was Haruka''s reaction when I returned to the inn and told her about the request to defeat the orcs. "Good timing, you''re going to take them down? I''ve been training for this for a while now.¡¡That''s why we''ve been training for a while now. That''s right. I''m pretty sure I can kill them faster now. I''m not sure if I can kill it with the Fire Arrow either.¡¡Last time, I was able to kill one with Haruka. I thought they would be a little more hesitant because they had a lot of trouble last time, but they were all more aggressive than I thought. Well, in a way, I was the only one who felt the danger. The rest of us were only grazed, at best. Incidentally, the time required for disassembly, which was the previous issue. As a countermeasure, I have prepared a magic bag with a wide mouth. The raw material was oak leather, and three women took turns embroidering the magic circle on it. The purpose of making the bag was to temporarily move the orcs, but when you think about it, it seems to have many uses. For example, after the house is finished, it could be used to buy and transport furniture, couldn''t it?¡¡As long as no one sees it. So, shall we go to Mr. Gantz to pick up the dagger first? "Yes. Let''s get it quickly and head for the forest. Is that okay? Yeah. I''m tired of just training. I''m with you. It''s a beautiful day. It''s been cloudy for the past few days, but today it''s a beautiful autumn day. I feel like going on a picnic, but we''re going to kill a demon. We prepared for the hunt and left the inn quickly, heading for Mr. Gantz''s shop. "Oh, it''s you guys. You''ve come to pick up your stuff, right? The person who greeted me at the counter today was Mr. Gantz. "Yes, sir. Is Tommy in the back? Yeah. You know what to do. Come in and get it. As we moved toward the back, Tommy, who was working in front of the furnace in the workshop, noticed us and turned around. "Hey, guys. You''re early, aren''t you? "Yeah. Yeah. I''m going to go hunting after I get it. Oh, really? Well then, you''d better hand it over quickly. What Tommy took out was a rather rude looking dagger. The width of the blade was about one and a half times as wide, and the thickness was a little thicker. The slightly warped shape itself was similar to that of a small dagger, but the hilt and the tsuba were closer to what is commonly used in this world. The scabbard that was given with the sword was also simple, and had almost none of the elegance or artistry of a Japanese sword. Haruka and Yuki took it and nodded lightly. It''s reasonably heavy, but it''s manageable enough. Yes, it is. The center of gravity isn''t bad, and it''s easy to handle at this length. I held it in my hand, and it seemed to be well balanced and easier to handle than I expected. My first impression was that it was like a sword machete, but if I had to choose which it was closer to, I would say it was a small sword. The first impression I had was that it was like a sword machete, but if I had to choose which was closer, it would be the kotachi. The core of the sword is made of tenacious blue iron, surrounded by magic iron and forged. So it is made by wrapping tough blue iron with hard magic iron. I guess they copied the method of making Japanese swords, but I wonder how effective it is. It''s sharp enough to cut through oak bark and won''t spill when struck by an ordinary iron sword. It''s also very tenacious, so I don''t think it will break easily. It is said that the rigidity of the magic iron is more than that of the yellow iron and the toughness is a little less than that of the blue iron, but even so, the single structure of the magic iron seems to be better than the composite structure. Isn''t it possible that the two metals don''t unite well due to their different properties? When I asked this question to Tommy, he looked a little uncomfortable. If I''m being honest, this sword is about the same, or maybe slightly less, than if it were made entirely of magic iron. However, it saves on materials, and if you have Gantz-san''s level of skill, this structure seems to be stronger, so I don''t think it''s the wrong direction to go. Hmmm. Well, it''s not something to complain about, since they made it for me to practice with no charge. Let''s see how it develops. By the way, how would you feel if this sword and my sword went at it? Toya''s sword would be weaker, wouldn''t it? If it''s against yellow iron, the blade might spill, but I think it''ll only need to be lightly re-sharpened. You can do it, right, Toya? "Yeah, I have the blacksmithing skill, too. You can use it to cut down branches like a machete, so I think it''s very practical. --How about it? It''s a sub-weapon, so it''s certainly useful to use outside of combat. There are a lot of twigs and bushes that get in the way in the forest, so there will be many opportunities to use it. Yeah, I think it''s good. I''ll have to try it to understand, but it''s not bad. Oh, really?¡¡Thank you very much! I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that both Yuki and Haruka seem to be satisfied with the product, although their expressions are slightly different. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''ll have to ask Gantz-san about that. To be honest, I don''t know much about it. ...... When he used the materials, he checked with Mr. Gantz, so I''m sure he didn''t exceed his budget, but Tommy himself doesn''t know how much the materials actually cost. Yeah, I get it. I''ll let you know how it goes when I try it out. I''d love to! Yeah, I''ll see you at the inn. Thanks again. As I walked out of the forge and back into the store, Mr. Ganz greeted me with a grin and a good mood. How''d it go?¡¡Not bad at all, huh? "From the looks of it and the description I''ve heard, I have no complaints. "Now we''ll see how it fares in actual combat. Even if the specifications are good, there''s a chance that the actual performance won''t meet them. You don''t have to worry about that, okay?¡¡We''re in business. I''m not going to give you anything that will endanger the lives of my customers, even if it''s for the sake of my apprentice''s training. So how much do I have to pay you? Well, I''ll give you 80 gold pieces for ......2. It''s not badly made using magic iron, but only 80,000 rares? It''s almost half the price of my spear. ...... is cheaper than I thought, isn''t it? "I used witch iron, but the size is a little small. However, please tell Tommy what you think of it, whether it''s a compliment or a complaint. It''ll help him. I understand. Haruka nodded, took out his wallet and began to lay out the gold coins on the counter. It was always a hassle to count dozens of coins. There may be a difference of opinion as to which is easier to count than paper money, but paper money is certainly easier to carry around. There is a large gold coin that is equivalent to ten gold coins, but I have never seen it before. It is said that merchants of a certain size use these coins, but considering that they are worth about 100,000 yen, it is probably inevitable that they are not usually seen. Thanks to this, Haruka, who is in charge of the purse, has to struggle every time. Toya, who had been looking at the sword while borrowing it from Haruka, suddenly asked Mr. Gantz as if he had an idea. What is your opinion of this sword, Gantz-san? "From my point of view, the material is not fully utilized, but as an apprentice, you''re doing a great job. I don''t want to pry into your past, but you''re not just an amateur, are you? "Haha, no comment on that. I''m not going to go into the details, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. I can''t say that I''m a complete novice, although I do have some skills. Well, okay. If it''s just skill, I''m close to being one. I don''t think you need to worry about him. Okay. That''s good. Keep up the good work. I owe you for giving me the shovel. Don''t worry, I''ll take care of you until you''re independent. Mr. Ganz then smiled wanly. 90-080 Practice (1) After leaving Mr. Gantz''s store, we rushed to the forest and headed deeper into the woods. That''s where Haruka''s sword, or should I say small sword, came in handy. Normally, Toya''s sword is used to clear the bushes, but it''s not very sharp, so it''s only effective for breaking branches. The small sword, however, cut the bushes with a crisp and clean cut, making it easier to make a path. The sharpness is excellent. Yes, it is. It''s nice to know that you can handle it roughly. If you only want to clear the bushes, you can buy a magic bag, a machete and a sickle, but it''s too much trouble to go in and out of the bag just for that. It''s time for the orcs to move into their territory. ...... We''re targeting around 10 of them, right? Yes. If you have a group of less than that, you can just hunt them as normal. Wouldn''t a group of 20 or so act like ...... that? If you think they''re hunting for food, it''s unlikely, isn''t it?¡¡The nests we scouted before, there weren''t a hundred of them, were there? No, I think there were about fifty or so in the area we spotted. Even if we take into account the orcs that weren''t in the nest at the time, there wouldn''t have been more than a hundred. If 50 orcs were wandering around outside the nest, they would have been more likely to be caught by my search. The question is, how many orcs were there? I''m sure there are multiple orc leaders, but I''m not sure if there are any orc captains. ...... It would be too convenient to assume that the orc leader we encountered is the only higher species in the orc nest. "Is it too simplistic to assume that there is one orc leader per 30 orcs, or that there is one orc captain per 30 orc leaders? By that calculation, the ...... Orc King would be the pinnacle of the 810,000 Orcs, right? Yuki, who did a quick calculation, questioned Toya''s argument. I''m not sure if that''s true ......? I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s just a vague feeling, but I think even a soldier guarding the gate is a bit delicate. If you think about it, 810,000 orcs is unrealistic. The country would probably be destroyed before the number increases to that level. "What if there are 10 higher species and one higher species? "Then 30,000 is still realistic? Still, it''s a level that could destroy the country. "If we assume that, then we''d have a few more orc leaders and no orc captains. "Let''s just assume that for now. I have my own spotters. If it''s too dangerous, we can run. If we''re up against a strong enemy, we can get away before they get close. The usefulness of the [Enemy Searching] skill is unparalleled when it comes to ensuring safety. It is no exaggeration to say that this is what makes our actions possible. After confirming our plan, we walked around the orc nest, looking for groups of orcs. After about half a lap, a group of eight Orcs was caught in my search. They don''t react like orc leaders, so they''re sitting ducks. ....... What to do? I want to fight on the side closer to the road, in case of emergency. If you fight from this position, you will be limited in the direction you can run when you need to escape. Since the direction of the deep forest and the orc nest are excluded, you can only escape to the left or right. Eight orcs should be fine, right?¡¡If Nao and Yuki can take out four of them, the battle itself will be over soon, and since we have the bag... A big magic bag. To be frank, it''s more dangerous during dismantling than during fighting. You can smell blood, and during dismantling, your hands are covered with grease because you''ve let go of your weapon, so you can''t grab your weapon at a moment''s notice. It takes longer than fighting. The time it takes is also longer than in combat. Since you never neglect your search, you don''t have to worry too much about being caught by surprise, but it''s a pity that you have to run away without your prey. What''s the division? Yuki and Nao, as I said before, will attack the four in the rear. Kill them in one blow if you can. I''ll go in front of one of them. Natsuki and Toya, take care of the front three. After confirming that everyone had nodded in agreement with Haruka''s instructions, they headed towards the orcs. Recently, I''ve been paying a little more attention to my route, and approaching from downwind. If I approach them without paying attention, they seem to notice me even from a considerable distance, in the case of orcs. Maybe they have a good nose. As for footsteps, Yuki and I are the only ones with [Stealthy Footsteps] at the moment, but even so, we''re all able to act more quietly than before, and we can blend in with the various sounds in the forest, so I''m not too worried. And so we approached for a while. It was not until they were in sight that the orcs responded. I guess I''ll have to work hard to be able to catch them completely by surprise. "Here it comes! As the Orcs noticed us, they moved closer and closer, and we moved to the best position. Just before Natsuki and Toya came into the gap, Yuki and I timed our fire arrows to fire, and the two of us cut into the Orcs who were upset by their fallen comrades. Natsuki''s spear is a one-hit kill. Taking advantage of the difference in height, he pierces the head from under the chin. Toya shattered a knee with his sword and struck a crumbling Orc in the head. One of the orcs fell after taking three of Haruka''s arrows, and the other sank quickly after being hit by Natsuki''s spear and Toya''s follow-up blow. "Phew. ...... I exhaled when I saw the result. The battle was almost instantaneous. The orcs were killed with little time to resist, and Yuki and I didn''t even have to wield our weapons. That''s a lot of room for maneuver. Yeah. I''m not sure what to do. Oh, and by the way, you shattered his knee. It made a pretty nasty sound. The sound of the skull crushing right after that was also unpleasant. Last time, it didn''t shatter when I attacked it. "Hmm?¡¡Didn''t you break it the first time we met? That was a shield bash with a charge, right?¡¡If you just swung the sword normally, it wouldn''t work. The fact that it can be shattered using only the strength of its muscles without any assistance is considered progress. It''s a bit tricky considering the dismantling. The best way to kill it is with Natsuki. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. You have to break it down to reach it. The orc''s head, which is about three meters high, is too high for Toya to attack with a sword. He had tried to jump and attack it directly before, but it had caught him and he had refrained from doing so. He''s more vulnerable when he''s in the air. Can''t you just aim from below like Natsuki?¡¡It''s not as sharp as a spear, but that doesn''t mean it can''t pierce, right? No, Natsuki can do it easily every time, but it''s very advanced to penetrate the gap between the arms. Yeah, I can''t do it either. I''ve aimed at it before, but it''s almost impossible to aim at it in a normal face-to-face situation. Even with a surprise attack, it would be impossible for me. "Is that so?¡¡That''s great, Natsuki. Thank you. Natsuki smiles shyly. However, the content of the praise is not in keeping with the expression on his face, but rather the content is very disturbing. Hey, why don''t we clean up the orcs? "Yeah, sure. The magic bag I worked so hard to make. The three women unfolded it and put the orc that Toya and I had brought into it. It is thanks to [Strengthening Muscle] that two people can carry an Orc of this size without difficulty. But when you look at it like this, it''s bizarre. ...... Yes ...... You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. The bag that Haruka and his team made was sewn in an unusual way, and although it expanded into a two-meter diameter oval, it was only about 20 centimeters deep, and it was quite a strange sight to see the giant body of a three-meter orc being easily swallowed by it. I''ve seen magic bags hold a lot of stuff before, but there''s a difference between the sight of a number of items that can fit in a magic bag and the sight of an item that can''t fit in a magic bag. "That''s fine, it''s convenient. Toya, you''re so naive. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡That''s what it is, I guess. --Okay, that''s it! He threw in the eighth orc and folded up his magic bag so that it was small enough to fit in a plastic bag. There''s a total of 2.5 tons of dead orcs in here. ...... Yeah, Toya''s right, let''s stop thinking about it. What should we do?¡¡What do we do now?¡¡Or do we fight some more? It''s all over now, why don''t we just go around and fight if we find any, or leave if there are none? Yeah. We haven''t even used our weapons yet. We haven''t used our weapons yet. - No, the situation where Haruka would use them is a bad one, right?¡¡Wouldn''t it be better if she didn''t use it? But we need to practice. ...... Next time, if there''s room, why don''t we leave three of them and fight in the rearguard group? I agree!¡¡I want to see what I can do! I have no reason to disagree with you, so I''ll nod. I have no reason to disagree, so I nodded... if we can find the right enemies. Let''s go, then. As a result, I encountered and fought a group of 10 orcs before I left. The remaining three were taken care of by the rearguard, and Toya and Natsuki were on standby to follow up at any time. I was able to kill them relatively easily, but Yuki struggled a bit with her new weapon, but she was able to kill them all by herself. Haruka, on the other hand, took a long time because this was almost her first time to fight in close quarters, and she had to fight under the watchful eyes of everyone, but in the end she was able to kill it without any help. Unfortunately, the orc skins became unsaleable, but it was a good thing that Haruka found out that she could cut through orc skins with a small sword. These orcs were also stored in a huge magic bag, and after moving them to the outside of the forest, we all started dismantling them. There were 18 orcs in total. The amount of meat is huge, but the amount of waste is also huge. In the forest, we would have left them as they were, but there were too many to leave here where we could see them from the road. So we used Yuki''s earth magic this time to clean up the mess, and we headed back to the city. 91-081 Practice (2) "Today''s review meeting~! ...... What''s wrong, Yuki? Are you okay? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m sure you''ll be fine.¡¡You''re going to have a review meeting. I do, but ...... "I thought we needed a title call once in a while. We''ve always started off so casually. So you''re saying we need to be more coherent?¡¡Yes, that''s not a bad idea. I think it''s not a bad idea." Natsuki nodded a little happily, while Yuki smiled with a slightly annoyed expression. It''s not that I''m not trying to be precise, but I''m just saying. I don''t know. ...... Natsuki looked a little disappointed. Natsuki is the most serious among us, you know. The other members are the type of people who are fine as long as they do what they have to do, with some differences. To use a summer homework analogy, Natsuki is the type who does a little bit of homework every day. Haruka and Yuki are the type to finish it in a few days after receiving it. Whenever I feel like it, I finish only the math part at once. I do this several times, and finish the whole thing in about half of the summer vacation. Sometimes I do it right after I start, sometimes I do it all at once near the end, and sometimes I drag it out until just before submission. Even so, he is never late, which may be a kind of talent. A review meeting. ...... Anyway, your training paid off, didn''t it? Yeah. --I think it''s more like a skill. Skills are also the result of training. You trained hard to acquire them. I was in a lot of pain. Fortunately, the [Iron Wall] and [Magic Barrier] did not come into play, but the [Muscle Strengthening] and [Wei-Dian] were effective enough. The magic has become quite useful, hasn''t it? It''s great that Nao and I can kill four of them at once. "That''s true. I''ve never had the opportunity to fight multiple opponents, but it might have been good to try ....... As for the close combat between Yuki and Haruka, I guess that''s about it. You don''t need to kill them in the extreme. Yuki is a bit half-hearted, but Haruka is a complete rearguard. The right choice would be to buy time to avoid injury and wait for someone to intervene. It would be too risky for Haruka, the main healer, to drop out. As for me, I''m concerned about the power of the bow. The current bow is a bit insufficient against orcs. When killing orcs with Haruka''s bow alone, it takes about three bows on average to kill an orc. If it works well, it can kill an orc with one, but if it hits the body, it often feels like it''s not working very well. You mean you need a stronger bow? I think that might be a good idea, since there is a muscle strength enhancer. I''ve heard that the lighter the bow, the faster it can shoot, but due to its nature, the power remains the same. I''m sure there''s a fire magic called ''enchanted fire'', right?¡¡What about that? I can''t use it yet, but even if I could, it would be faster to use the Fire Arrow. "......, I see. I''m not sure what to make of it. I think Haruka should learn attack magic as soon as possible. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡You can also create magic that is not in the grimoire, right? I think it''s better to save your magic power for healing magic. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll find a lot of people who''d like to know more about this. You can understand why Haruka doesn''t want to use too much of her magic in battle. However, it was Natsuki who objected to this. I think it''s okay for me to use some. I''ve reached level 3 in light magic, and I don''t use any magic at all in battle. I''m not using any magic at all in combat. I think it''s okay to use magic as long as it''s about half of what you need. ...... I know, Natsuki can use it too. If so, let''s practice a little. Nao, nice to meet you. Me? Because fire magic is the easiest way to attack, right? Yeah, I guess so. Even the grimoires have attack magic from level one. In other magic systems, the level at which simple attack magic appears is between three and five. For light magic, there are no attack spells in the books. It''s not impossible to use them, considering the flexibility of the magic, but basically what is required of a light magic user is healing. So the next time you go hunting is after Haruka is able to use attack magic? "Yes, I suppose so. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. The number of orcs that were there when we scouted. The number of Orcs we''ve killed since that time is 28. If you think about it, Natsuki has a point. Then, let''s each do our best with that as our goal. Haruka''s closing words brought the day''s review meeting to a close. I''m not sure what to say. The next day we started training again. While we''re covered in dirt and magically struck, the house is taking shape as fast as we can. Or rather, it''s building very fast. Aside from the part-time workers doing miscellaneous tasks, there are quite a number of carpenters alone participating in the project. To be honest, even with this many carpenters, I don''t think there are any jobs in this city. ....... Oh, that?¡¡I was wondering the same thing, so I asked him about it, and he said that this city has a lot of furniture production. According to Haruka, these carpenters are usually furniture makers, but when there is construction work to be done on a house or other structure, they call on each other to work together on the project. The carpenters are grateful for the immediate cash flow from the construction work, and the client is also grateful for the short time it takes to build the house. That''s why this form of work has taken root in this city. I''ve never heard of furniture production ....... "Yeah, me too. I didn''t have the time to worry about it until now. How we make a living is more important than the industry of the city we live in. I guess we can''t blame them for that. "But why furniture?¡¡Is there a reason? "Well, I guess there is. They started making furniture because they wanted to make a special product using the famous wood from the foothills north of this city. Hmmm... ...... They''ve been logging in that area? I remember being told to stay away from that area because it was dangerous. Maybe they are protected because they are important resources and there are penalties if you go near them. Like the Yakusugi cedar, for example, which used to be cut down but is now prohibited? No, they don''t cut them down now. ...... Or rather, they can''t. In the past, the only demons that appeared in that area were orcs, and very rarely, ogres, which would cause a commotion. However, at some point, the threat level of demons gradually increased, and the purchase price of the famous wood became out of proportion to the danger level. As a result, there were no adventurers to escort the lumberjacks to cut down the trees, and as a result, the trees became unavailable. The price of the few remaining pieces of wood has gone up quite a bit. And what about the carpenters? They are now making ordinary furniture with wood from the southern forests. They are making furniture using wood from the southern forest.¡¡He said they have a certain amount of inquiries because they have skills they honed during that time. I see. So you don''t rely on rare materials and you''ve been honing your skills. That''s great. Or it could be that the carpenters who did that kind of random work went out of business, and the carpenters who are left now are just that kind of carpenters. You don''t have to worry about the quality of the house, do you? "Yes. Yes, I''m sure they''re on a budget, so you can rest assured. Haruka looked at the house. The pillars are up and the roof is already in place. Now they are working on the walls and floors. Since the structure is basically all solid wood, with some plastered walls and stone pavement, the work is progressing quite quickly. ...... Looking at it like this, I guess they don''t use any insulation. Yes. In Japan, glass wool or urethane foam would be used behind the walls. ...... Will it be cold or hot? There''s no insulation in the ceiling either. I''d like to think it''s okay because it''s a common construction method in this country, but there''s no denying the possibility that they''re just putting up with it. Isn''t there some kind of alchemy that can be used to create such a material? "Glass wool is hard to install afterwards, isn''t it? I wonder if polyurethane foam can be drilled and injected. No, it''s a simple structure. You can just rip out the boards and reattach them. If it''s a structure like "wallpaper on plasterboard," you can''t fix it once it''s removed, but if it''s just a board, you can be flexible about that. If there are any inconveniences after spending a year in ......1, I''ll think about it. "......Yes. It might be easier than you think. I don''t know how much more of this we can endure with our modern mentality. In the past, the Japanese used shoji screens, right?¡¡How could they stand the cold in winter? Oh, by the way, there was a level 2 fire magic called Worms Heating. That''s right. In addition, level 5 is Resist Cold, and level 6 is Resist Heat. If you''re good enough, you can also create ''Cools''? That''s a great idea to learn fire magic. The original purpose of this spell is probably for outdoor activities and extreme conditions, but it can be used in everyday life without any problems. The only problem is whether my magic power will last if I keep using it. If Haruka is able to use it, the majority of people will be able to use fire magic, and the burden will be greatly reduced. The situation where two people can use fire magic and three people can''t is completely different from the situation where three people can use fire magic and two people can''t. In concrete terms, the burden is less than half. Okay, Haruka, hang in there. "Yes, for a comfortable life! ...... It''s a little different from the original purpose, but it''s good to have motivation. 92-082 Destroy the Orcs It took Haruka three days to learn how to use the Fire Arrow. I don''t know if this is fast or slow, but once she can use it, she can control magic as well as us. He was able to successfully activate two of them at the same time. The power is perfect and will easily kill the orcs. So we''re finally going to eradicate the orc''s nest, right? That''s right. I think we can handle it now. What we should be concerned about is the possibility that there will be at least two orc leaders, possibly more. We''ve killed about 80 orcs so far. If we assume one leader per 30 orcs, then Natsuki''s estimate is probably correct. "Natsuki held them off last time, right?¡¡This time, I''ll hold them back too, and while I''m at it, I''ll decimate the rest of the Orcs. ......3 If there are still Orcs, Nao, go for it! I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not going to be able to do that. It is obvious that I''m the only one left, but ...... I''m not sure if I can handle that huge orc leader. If there are three of them, you should avoid fighting. You''ll have to rely on Nao-kun''s scouting, though. "Right. It''s risky to leave it to Nao. The best thing is not to start a war. If they enter the battle, we should consider retreating if necessary. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. ...... Yeah, I think so too, but you can''t help but feel a little bewildered, can you? It''s like being told you''re unreliable? I''m not childish enough to be stubborn here and say I''ll fight for you, but... "Then let''s go with that basic policy. Do you mind, Nao? Yeah. I''m not going to do anything rash. I nodded, and we headed for the forest. The route I''m going to take is the same as last time, approaching in a spiral around the orc''s nest. I approached the nest with each lap at a distance of about half my search range, but the orcs didn''t seem to be trapped at all. After about three rounds, I paused just before the orc nest itself was caught in the spotting range, and like last time, Natsuki and I went out to scout. This time, we approached and investigated until the entire orc nest was within our search range. ...... 20 in all. Two of them are orc leaders. "That''s a lot fewer. Let''s go back. Once we''ve assessed the situation we have no more use for them. We''ll head back to Haruka and the others without being noticed by the orcs. "How was it? When I told Toya the results, she nodded happily. I''m sure you''ll have no problem killing it. Yes. If we''re not too careful, we should be fine. Then we all consulted a bit and settled on a plan. Conveniently for us, the nest was of a certain size, and the orcs were scattered all over the area, not all in one place. Taking this into consideration, the policy I decided on was to first approach them from downwind and surprise them with magic. If the Orcs approach with that attack, they will be killed by long-distance attacks as much as possible, and Toya or Natsuki will deal with them when they approach at close range. If the orc leader comes, the two of us will hold him back and lead him to a slightly distant place as we had planned, and the remaining orcs will be killed by me, Yuki, and Haruka as much as possible. Let''s go then. Toya was in the lead. As I led the way, we soon came upon a nest of Orcs. It was the first time I had actually seen it in person, but it looked like a crude settlement. In the cut forest, there were only structures with pillars and roofs. There were no walls, and the roofs were made of wood with leafy branches on top. They had a handmade cudgel, so they must be intelligent to some extent, but they could only use wood as stakes or ivy for tying, not enough to use stone tools. I can see some orcs lying down under the roof. The three of us confirmed each other''s assignments with hand signs and fired the Fire Arrows at once. The heads of the Orcs flew away and the screams echoed. The one who screamed was the orc that was not our target. The orcs that were our targets died before we could scream. The Orcs that didn''t seem to understand what was happening and were groggy were also hit. Four more orcs fell. At this point, we leave the forest and break into the Orc''s nest, and Toya and Natsuki move around the area knocking down huts and securing our vision. ...... What can I say, we''re almost bad bandits, aren''t we? I''m not sure what to make of this. Hearing the commotion, the remaining 10 Orcs rushed over to us. Two of them were orc leaders. That''s enough distance. Six more fall prey to our magic. One more shot--there''s just enough distance! "Left! I declare, and fire a Fire Arrow at the Orc on my left. At about the same time, Haruka said, "Right! At the same time, Haruka said, "Right!" and fired a Fire Arrow, while Yuki''s Fire Arrow went to the Orc leader on the right. As a result, only one orc leader was unharmed at the point of contact. The other orc was gouged in the left shoulder, and none of the orcs were able to reach him. As planned, Toya faced the Orc leader on the left, and Natsuki on the right. Haruka switched to her bow to conserve her magic power and check him. The plan was to concentrate our forces on the weaker one and take him down, but... Don''t worry!¡¡Nao-kun, go towards Toya-kun! Natsuki shouted as she walked around to the left side of the Orcs and thrust out her spear. The orc leader was unable to keep up with his quick movements. Rather, the spear is already sticking out of his ear and into his skull. The effects of the [Skaven] and [Strengthening] are incredible. When I saw the orc leader''s body lose strength after having his head gouged out, I prepared a more powerful "Fire Arrow" and shot it at the orc leader Toya was dealing with. The orc leader was facing the back of my head, which Toya had successfully provoked, so there was no way to miss. Thanks to a little movement at the end, only the top half of his head disappeared, but the result was the same. "Geez! In an instant, the orc leader was out of breath, and Toya rushed to avoid his body as he fell. "Phew. ...... complete. I''m not sure what to do with it. You''ve got it right this time. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this.¡¡It''s very well done. It''s because we''re well organized. In our case, we discuss in advance who will attack when the enemy comes to what range, and what our priority targets are, so that we can avoid overlapping targets. We also decide how to signal, what type of signal to use, and the number of seconds before the attack, so that we can coordinate our timing. In addition, to some extent, we can act in unison, so there is no need for us to complicate things. Besides, if you shout unnecessarily, you won''t hear what you need to hear. We don''t say unnecessary things, including magic names, out loud as much as possible. That''s our policy. That way, what you say out loud will be heard better. The "left" I shouted earlier is a declaration that I will attack the orc on the left. It was already decided that me, Haruka, and Yuki would attack the orcs first, but there were only two orcs left. From the left, we positioned the Orc leader, two Orcs, and the Orc leader. If the two Orcs were defeated by the two of them, one of them could attack the Orc leader, but it was not clear who would be in charge, so I dared to declare it. Haruka also declared immediately, and as a result, Yuki was able to smoothly direct her magic at the orc leader. Incidentally, shouting is okay in close combat because it gives you more strength, but Natsuki almost never shouts and Toya only does it occasionally. Toya has a skill called [Roar], and I think she could use it more, but it''s not popular with the ladies, so she rarely uses it. We are on the same side, so Toya''s [roar] won''t frighten us, but it''s simply too noisy. ...... I''m sorry, but... As a result, the only sound in our battle is the demon''s voice. But it''s not much, because it blows your head off. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Enemy approaching!¡¡Orc 10, Orc leader 1! They were out hunting!¡¡How long? Tens of seconds! We didn''t shout too much, but the orcs were shouting quite loudly. The orcs outside must have heard it. It was approaching us at a considerable speed. Direction! Behind you! The orc''s response came from the direction we''d entered the nest. They''re coming straight at us. We''ll intercept them!¡¡Natsuki, Toya, you hold off the orc leader!¡¡We''ll take out the rest! Got it! We''ve used a lot of magic, but there''s still no problem with this level of magic power. Prepare your weapons and ambush them. The first one to jump out was the orc leader. With the corpse of an orc lying in the depths of the nest and our backs to it, he lunged at us, screaming in anger. We spread out a little to the side and shot magic at the Orcs following behind us, while Toya and Natsuki split off to the left and right at the moment of the collision to fend off the Orc Leader''s attacks. We each took one more shot. The remaining orc I confronted with my spear, and killed with a rapid-fire shot to the leg. And by the time I turned around, the orc leader, who had been attacked from behind by Yuki and Haruka, had already fallen. ...... Is this the end? I''m not sure what to make of that. I don''t know. ...... We''ve killed 4 orc leaders so far. There are over 100 orcs. If your calculation of 1 in 30 is correct, that means there are about 10 orcs left. ...... You''re not that exact, are you?¡¡I''m sure you''re right. That''s right. I''m not going to neglect to look for the enemy, so don''t worry about that. You didn''t neglect it just now, did you? "Nao-kun, it''s great that you don''t let your guard down even right after victory! "Oh no, ...... hahaha. I laugh at the unexpected praise. The fact that I''m almost always on the lookout for enemies is already something of a habit. This is partly for my own peace of mind, but it has also raised my level to three. To be honest, without this, I would have been constantly on my guard in the forest, and would have suffered a mental breakdown. "What about dismantling the orcs?¡¡Do you want to do it here? "Yes, it would be better to clean up this nest, so let''s do it here. I don''t know if it''s easier for orcs to nest if there are still orcs'' nests left, but it seems that in the past, guild-sponsored orc extermination operations have burned these huts after they were finished, so we decided to follow suit. 93-083 Clean up after We divided up the work, with Toya (the strongest) and I (a man) taking care of dismantling the hut and collecting the scrap wood, and the women taking care of dismantling the orcs. Orc entrails and scrap wood pile up. When the pile has reached a certain level, we light the fire. It smells good, which is a subtle feeling. "Hey, Nao. Is this okay?¡¡It''s burning pretty big. Indeed, it''s burning like a campfire. The fatty oak may be the fuel. It''s pretty open and there''s not much wind. It should be fine. We have Extinguish Fire if we need it. This spell is a level 3 fire spell, and as the name suggests, it is used to put out fires. The description says that it''s a spell that''s highly valued at the scene of a fire, which is unusual for fire magic, and emphasizes its use outside of combat. I only tried it on a small bonfire, but the fire was extinguished in an instant, with no smoke or smoldering. Also, it does not re-ignite after the fire is extinguished, probably because the temperature is lowered to below the ignition point at once. However, the charcoal was hot enough that I couldn''t touch it with my hands, so it seems that it doesn''t cool down completely. Then we can throw them in with no worries. Well, there''s still about half of it left. The branches used for the roof were raw wood with leaves on them, but the rest of the wood was dry and burned well. We repeatedly knocked down the hut and threw it into the fire. There''s something about a fire that makes me feel calm and ...... good. "I know, I know. In some countries, there are TV programs that only show the fireplace burning. Maybe it''s just human nature? "...... You guys, I understand the feeling, but is this really a bonfire? ...... Hmmm, is the flame too big? We can''t deny that possibility. In the event you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out how to do it. "In my country, we have a bonfire like this. I want to bake some rice cakes. The fire''s strong. Be careful it doesn''t fall apart, okay? I''ll take care of it. Since the dismantling of the hut is almost finished, I''ll save a long pole to use for adjusting the fire. The posts were only about two meters long, so there was no danger of them collapsing if they were two meters away from the fire. By this time, the women had finished dismembering the animals, and the meat chunks and skins were being put into the magic bags one by one. The total number of orcs and orc leaders was 38. The amount of meat was enormous. The amount of meat was enormous, to the point where it had to be weighed in tons instead of kilos. Once the cleanup is complete, Natsuki and Haruka apply Purify to all of them to remove the dirt. All that''s left to do is finish this bonfire and we can go home. ....... It''s going to take quite a while for this to finish burning. Yes, it will. There were a lot of huts. There must have been about thirty in total. Each one had four pillars. There were about four beams supporting the roof. They are not very thick trees, but there are hundreds of them. Gathering them together and setting them on fire, they would naturally still be burning fiercely. Let''s have lunch here, though it smells a little like blood. It''s after the battle. The main battle area was the periphery of the nest, but the waste wood was being burned in the center of the nest to prevent the fire from spreading. Although we were far away, the dismantling work was done by the fire to burn the unnecessary parts, so the smell of blood was rather thicker in this area. Well, we''ve gotten used to it, and it doesn''t make us nauseous. "I agree with you on the grilling. Let''s have a barbecue after all these years. "Well, I haven''t used most of the cookware I bought. I''ve only used it once or twice during my adventures. Rather, I''ve used it more often during training. I used them to make a fire, drink tea and roast potatoes during breaks. Roast meat? That''s nice. "I''ve heard about it, but we haven''t done much of it since we joined up. Natsuki and Yuki heard our conversation and approached us with happy expressions on their faces. You''re right, you''re right. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you may want to take a look at a few of the things that are available in the market. "Well, let''s get ready. We have a net this time, so let''s grill it. Okay. We moved from the place where we were dismantling to the other side of the fire, and made a simple cooking stove with the stones we had found there. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. The meat that Haruka and his friends had sliced was laid out on top of it. The fat immediately melted and fell onto the coals, creating a plume of smoke. It''s a little smoky, but that''s okay too! This is the best part of yakiniku, isn''t it? "I agree! You can cook meat on a teppan, but it''s not the same as on a charcoal grill. But with so much meat on the plate, it''s ...... I know. I want vegetables, don''t you? "Maybe we should have bought something. While we were happy with the meat, Haruka and the others seemed a little unhappy. Well, it''s certainly a spectacular sight, but it would have been nice to have something else to take the edge off. What kind of vegetables do you use for yakiniku?¡¡Cabbage, onions: ...... You can grill peppers, eggplant, carrots, asparagus. I like corn, the sweet kind. Sweet corn. But it can be difficult. First, there''s the question of whether there are sweet corn varieties. And then there''s the issue of shelf life after harvest. It is said that sweet corn loses its sweetness as time passes after harvesting. To avoid this, the corn should be kept at a low temperature or heated as soon as it is harvested. So the best way to eat them is to harvest them early in the morning and boil them right away. If you grow it in your vegetable garden, you can eat very tasty corn. Is that why some of the corn I buy at the store is not sweet at all? The problem with corn is that you can''t taste it, even if you know how it grows. I''ve heard that corn with a lot of hairs is good, but it''s hard to know how long it''s been harvested and how to store it. In this world, we can''t expect a supply chain with low temperature, can we? Yes. Magic bags are perfect for this, but they''re not something that the average farmer can use. ...... Okay, I''ll make it in the garden!¡¡I''ve got a big plot of land. Sure, we have enough space for a vegetable garden, but ...... Toya, can you do it?¡¡Do you have any experience? No! No! I don''t have a garden in my house. We all lived in detached houses, but Toya''s yard was certainly not that big. Haruka and I had a reasonably large garden, but we had no experience in vegetable gardening. What are you going to do then? As I said this, Toya looked at Yuki and clasped his hands together in worship. Yuki, you''re into gardening, right?¡¡Will you do it for me?¡¡I''ll help you. "What?¡¡It''s true that I like to grow flowers, but it''s not exactly the same as vegetables. ...... Didn''t Natsuki sound like an experienced gardener? Yes, a little in a corner of the garden. In my case, I just bought fertilizer, soil, and seedlings and planted them, so I don''t know much about it. ...... At Toya''s request, Yuki and Natsuki looked a little puzzled. There is no fertilizer or soil for sale, and the varieties are not the same as the ones that have been improved to be easy to grow in a vegetable garden. The chances of failure were probably higher. I can understand their hesitation. However, it was surprisingly Haruka who pushed them forward. Why don''t you give it a try?¡¡We''re not farmers, so even if we fail, it won''t be a problem for us to make a living. We don''t have enough to live on if all we do is work, so I think it could be a good hobby. It''s true that up until now I''ve been working and training all the time in order to save money for my life, so it would be nice to have some leisure time once I have a house. Maybe I should think of something too. There is no internet, no books to buy, no games to play in this world. ...... if you''re willing to fail. "I''m okay with that, too, if it''s a little loose? Okay, okay, okay. I''m okay with that, too. The two of them chuckled at Toya''s casual smile. I''d like to eat sweet corn too, so I''d like you to do your best. But first, the question is whether or not the variety is available. Well... The meat is almost done. Let''s eat. Bon app¨¦tit! As soon as Haruka said this, Toya immediately flashed his chopsticks. He grabbed the meat from the net and threw it into his mouth. --By the way, chopsticks are not sold, so I made them myself. "Yes, it''s delicious! I followed suit and took a bite of the meat. The seasoning is salt and a little spice. It''s simple, but it''s good. "Sometimes it''s good to have yakiniku outdoors! "Yes. It''s a pity there''s no variation. Some lemon juice would have refreshed it a bit. That''s true. Basically, it''s all salt. There is an inspiration sauce, but I am hesitant to put it on yakiniku. I want yakiniku sauce, right? "It''s amazing, isn''t it? If you season the meat and vegetables with it, you can eat a lot of rice. Some people can eat a meal with just that.¡¡--Can you make it? He looked at Haruka and the others, but they all shook their heads. It''s difficult, you know. I can handle fruits and vegetables, but... You need soy sauce or miso to make it taste right. Soy sauce and miso are the greatest. The ingredients are rice, wheat and soybeans, right?¡¡If you have those, who can make it ......? Haruka and Yuki shook their heads, but Natsuki raised her hand modestly. I''ve made it before. But you need to find the koji mold. "Koji fungus. ...... They don''t sell it, do they? "Well, I don''t think they do. But koji is a type of yeast, so you can find it if you work hard. Then Haruka explained various things to me. ...... Well, anyway, I understood that it would be difficult. I''ll take it as a good sign that it''s not impossible. All I can do is to support him and help him when he asks me to do chores. Well, leaving the soy sauce aside, what are you going to do tomorrow?¡¡Now that we''ve destroyed the orc nest, we can''t make any more money from orcs, right? "Right. There won''t be zero Orcs, but we won''t be able to find them as often as before. Orcs are a nuisance to some people, but to us, they were a good source of money. Therefore, we had a plan to use them as a sustainable resource by repeatedly thinning out their nests to a moderate level without eradicating them, but we gave up when the guild asked us to eradicate them. If we left them alone, the guild would take the initiative in eradicating them, and we would not benefit from it. In that case, it would be better to destroy them first. What do adventurers who have just graduated from Orcs do for a living? "The Southern Forest. Ordinary adventurers seem to move there when they can kill hobgoblins. Come to think of it, orcs aren''t popular because they don''t pay well. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. What''s in the Southern Forest ......? "If you''re talking about the next rank, it''s a woodcutter''s escort. After that, you can find herbs that are a little more valuable than those in the eastern forest, and hunt demons to collect magic stones. If that''s all you''re asking, it sounds a bit sensitive. ......? Well, yes. To put it bluntly, even if you move to the southern forest, you won''t be able to earn as much as you can by hunting orcs. That''s why there are no high-ranked adventurers in this city. "Orcs, they make good money. ...... If you sell four orcs, you can easily make over a million Japanese yen. I think it''s reasonable or even cheap considering the amount of meat, but it''s a lot of money for those of us whose monthly allowance was a few thousand yen. Well, let''s take our time and think about what to do. We have quite a bit of Orc inventory, and I think we should take it easy until it runs out. That''s right. You have enough money, you need a vacation. --Yes!¡¡Why don''t we have a victory party to celebrate the successful eradication of the orc nest?¡¡Let''s make a reservation at Aella''s restaurant. Oh, I like that!¡¡Aella-san''s food is delicious, but I''ve never eaten anything but the food she sells in the morning and lunch. Yuki smiled and clapped her hands together, and Toya agreed with her. There was no reason for us to disagree, so we looked at each other and nodded in agreement. So let''s sell the meat and go make a reservation when we get home. "Yes! Then we took a rest for a while until the huge campfire went down. Then, when the fire was almost out, we threw all the burnt remains into the hole with Yuki''s earth magic, and left the forest. 94-084 Rest (1) As soon as we got back to town, we went to Aella''s store to make an appointment, but fortunately the store was busy and we didn''t get a reservation until three days later. Aella apologized to us, but it''s good to know that the shop is thriving. To be honest, it would have been painful if the restaurant had gone out of business after I had advised him. We were told that the budget was negotiable, but we asked for 20 gold coins for five people. Ms. Aella was quite surprised, but we told her that it was a celebration and paid in advance. From our point of view, 20 gold coins is not a bad price ......, but it is a good price for an occasional celebration. From now on, we can''t be extravagant because there are no more orcs (gold vines). Don''t forget your original intention. You should always keep in mind the time when you had only 1,000 rares and could not even buy a change of clothes. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó The next morning, after my regular training, I was feeling a bit bored. I don''t have any plans, to be frank. Hey, what are you and Natsuki doing today? "Us?¡¡We''re going to buy some fabric. We''re going to buy some cloths. She said that if she had time to spare, she would buy some cloth and make some clothes. I''m still making simple things on my own, but the number is still small, and winter is coming. The idea seems to be that we should make clothes for the season as well. "If you don''t mind, Nao-kun, would you like to come too? "Oh, I''m sorry, no thanks. In Japan, I often went along with the women to avoid trouble, but to be honest, I don''t really enjoy going along with the women choosing clothes. It''s nice when they show me their cute clothes, but when it goes on for hours, it''s really tiring. It won''t take that long just to go and look at the cloth, but you can''t be too careful. It will probably take much longer than I''m expecting. There''s not much trouble in this town. It''s a safe town, and no one will get involved with a woman who is dressed as an adventurer. "If I make your clothes, Nao, will you wear them? "Of course. As long as it''s not too outlandish, I''ll be happy. Thank you very much. I''ll do my best! If you''re going to make it, I should be the one to thank you, but since Natsuki looks happy, I guess it doesn''t matter. Thanks to her sewing skills, the clothes that Natsuki and her friends make are well made, and although the designs are not so noticeable here, they are much more comfortable than the ready-made clothes that we buy here. There was no reason to refuse. However, it is a little puzzling that they give me samue and yukata as loungewear, whether as a joke or something else. I don''t have any problem with them for practical use, but whose hobby is it? "Hmm, the ladies are shopping ....... I''d like to go shopping too, but I don''t have what I need. There are food stalls and such, which would normally be enjoyable, but there is no point if you know that almost 100% of the food will be bad. If you just look at the ingredients at the morning market, it might help you a little. ....... What are your plans, Toya? "I don''t have any plans either. What do you have in mind? I wouldn''t be asking if I did. You could train in magic, but that would defeat the purpose of relaxing. No, there''s no need to be picky, but it''s something. You want to go to Hatake''s? "Field ......? I remember you saying you were going to make a vegetable garden. We already have land. The house isn''t built yet, but it wouldn''t be a bad idea to start now. A vegetable garden sounds like a hobby to me. Right?¡¡Fortunately, we have land, a hoe and a shovel! "Hoe ......, the first one you bought. After we got the shovel, we didn''t need it anymore. Yeah, yeah. After all, you need it for plowing. A shovel is handy for digging holes, but a hoe is better for field work. You can use a shovel to dig holes, but a hoe is more useful for plowing. No, if it''s a vegetable garden, wouldn''t it be better to have some blocks to divide it like a flower bed? That''s also true, isn''t it? My image of a vegetable garden is that it''s a square enclosure with blocks and soil, and crops are planted there. If you turn your garden into a field without any boundaries, it''s not exactly what you think of as a vegetable garden. "Blocks. They don''t sell them, do they? "Well, no. We''ll just use rocks. Okay. No one would complain if you went out of town to pick it up. Unless it is a quarry. Normally it would be hard to carry, but we have magic bags. There is no problem. Let''s go pick it up then! "Yeah! We grinned and headed out of the city in high spirits. We went out of town. "...... Hey, Nao. I''m glad you''re jumping out at me, but where do you think the stone is? ...... That''s a tough question. When you leave the east gate, you will see a meadow. If you walk along the road, you will see a forest, but I don''t remember any rocky places. It''s not that there aren''t rocks lying around in the grasslands, but they are few and far between and not as easy to gather as blocks. In the forest, there were sometimes big rocks, but ...... We can''t both go in there, can we? Even if we make it back safely, we''re sure to get pissed. First of all, how are we going to break the rocks?¡¡How are we going to break the rock? Will he just say, ''Nanchara Slash'' and cut it off? "Of course not. The sword will bend. If you can do something like a magic sword as an extension of strengthening your body, it might not be a possibility. ...... "It might be possible if the laws of physics are distorted. Realistically, it would be a chisel, a wedge and a hammer. I''ll have to go to Mr. Gantz''s next time. Yeah, sure. Let''s just pick up what we have. Yeah. Toya and I split up and walked around the meadow picking up rocks. There were so few of them that we had to run around a large area, but after an hour or so, we had found less than two handfuls of rocks. Moreover, many of them looked like they would shatter if you hit them, and only half of them would be suitable for our purpose. I was getting tired, and when I looked up, I could see a mountain range in the distance. At the foot of the mountain, there is a forest, but there are no large trees above a certain level, which I guess is the forest limit. I wonder if that''s the limit of the forest. "There must be a lot of rocks lying around up there. ...... I can''t go near it because it''s too dangerous. Unfortunately. As I was taking a break, Toya, who was looking for a rock a little further away, came running up to me. "Taking a break? "Yeah. But honestly, we can''t do this, can we?¡¡Can we change the method? What do you mean, the way to ...... that mountain?¡¡No, it''s too dangerous. Toya shakes his head, as if he can see where I''m looking. I know, I know. We''ll go somewhere else. --By the way, there''s no trees growing on that mountain, right?¡¡Is that the forest line? Hmm?¡¡That''s true, but it''s not ...... the same thing, is it?¡¡It doesn''t get that cold around here, does it?¡¡If I''m right, the difference in elevation between here and there is not that much. I''m not sure. Then it''s another factor? I think I heard that the forest limit is determined by temperature and wind. In other words, the forest limit is high in warm regions and low in cold regions. It is said that it is not so cold in this area, so if the nature of trees does not change so much, it may be strange that there is a forest limit in a mountain of that size. Other ...... volcanic ...... hot springs? It is conceivable that gas and geological factors could prevent trees from growing. I can''t deny the possibility, but ...... wouldn''t that leave a little more of a trail? You can''t see steam or anything like that. It may be my prejudice that volcanic activity equals steam, but I would like to see a hot spring if possible. Since there''s not much entertainment in this world, we can dream of having our own open-air bath. --Well, I guess it''s hard to get the strength to go there and soak in the hot spring without any clothes on. What do we do now?¡¡Should we keep picking up rocks? Nao, how many did you get? Eight. How about you? I got 10. ...... is not so easy. Yeah. Let''s get moving. It''s too inefficient to run around the grasslands like this. If we dig in the ground, we might find something, but that''s not efficient either. Should we go into the forest and break up the rocks? We''ll have to call Haruka and the others then. Can we interrupt them while they''re picking out fabric and making clothes? No. Toya answered immediately. I don''t want to get in their way either. I don''t want to interfere with them either. If you forget to be a little considerate, it can lead to a rift in the relationship. As a man and a woman, there will inevitably be small differences in thinking and interests, and the key to getting along well is to give each other half a step. A relationship that requires one person to take a step back will not last long. Well, in our case, we have known each other for a long time in Japan, so we know to some extent what we can and cannot compromise, and fortunately, we don''t have to be so careful. "Shall we just go to Mr. Gantz''s place and get the tools and see how it goes? "Yeah, sure. I''m just passing the time. I''m not in a hurry. So, Mr. Gantz, give me the tools I need for stone cutting. What do you mean? I''ll sell it to you if you pay me. Well, you''ll need a chisel, a wedge, a hammer, and a hammer for chipping. You''ll need several wedges, depending on the size of the stone you want to split. Hammer? A hammer that looks like this. What Mr. Ganz showed me was a hammer with one side pointed like a flathead screwdriver. He said he would use it to cut the roughly broken stone into the desired shape. So, that''s it. I''ll sell it to you if you want, but I think you''d be better off hiring a mason.¡¡It''s not going to turn out good if you''re an amateur. Ha-ha-ha, it''s okay. It''s just for fun. I know it''s cheaper to hire a professional. The amount of time it takes us to gather, break, and arrange the stones neatly to make a frame for our vegetable garden. If we thought about it, it would take less time for us to go to a professional with the money from killing and selling demons. But that''s no fun. It''s a hobby. You have to do it yourself even if you suck at it. If you know what you''re doing, fine. --Well, here''s your set. Come back for more if you need more. Okay, thank you. We took the tools that Gantz-san had collected, paid for them, and headed back to the inn. We nodded to each other and spent the day quietly in our room, as we could hear the happy voices of Haruka and the others from the next room. 95-085 Rest (2) "Hey, Nao, what''s that pile of rocks over there? After training the next day, Yuki pointed to the pile of rocks that Toya and I had picked up yesterday and thrown in the corner of the yard. Well, maybe "pile" is an overstatement. They''re just lying there. You know... I thought I''d need a frame for my vegetable garden, so I picked it up with Toya. ...... Oh!¡¡Instead of bricks!¡¡That''s nice. I want to make flowerbeds around and on the approach to the house when it''s built, and I want you to pick up the frames for those flowerbeds too! "Oh, no, that''s not going to happen. I told him that I could hardly pick up any stones in the meadow. There are no suitable places to find stones. I tell him that I''m thinking of going to the forest and breaking rocks when I can afford it. Forest, huh? ....... We''re still in the middle of making clothes. ...... Haruka, Natsuki, hey! What is it? What? When Yuki called them together and told them what she was talking about, Haruka and the others pondered a bit. I think the idea of a frame made of stone is a good one. I like the idea of a stone frame. "The problem is the forest. I''m not sure I''d be comfortable letting Toya and his team go out there alone. ...... It''s not that easy to break rocks in the first place, is it? Is that too much to ask with your current physical abilities? It''s not that easy to break a rock. Hmmm, well, after the victory party, why don''t we go hunting for the giant salamander?¡¡Just to relax. You can pick up a lot of rocks in a mountain stream, right? I like that!¡¡Yes! I agree!¡¡I''ve always wanted to try mountain stream fishing. I''ve never had the chance to do it in Japan, and I couldn''t fish without permission because of the fishing rights issue. If I''m going to go there, I want to experience it. While Toya and I immediately agreed, Haruka looked at Yuki and Natsuki with a wry smile. I don''t mind either. I don''t mind either. I think we can finish making clothes today or tomorrow. I''m good too. If possible, I want to try a delicious fish like ayu fish. The first fish I ate after coming here was ....... Yuki sighs with dark and gloomy eyes. She must have remembered that dish. I don''t think I want to eat that again either. "Yeah. Okay, Toya and Nao, you have these two days to get ready for the expedition. We''ll need tents and stuff for a day or two. Haruka said, and handed over a certain amount of money. Okay. It might be a good idea to ask Diora''s advice. Well, that makes sense. It''s a good idea to get some advice from Diora. "Toya, what should we buy first? "Toya, what do we need to buy first? Of course, Diora''s first. Well, they don''t sell Dioras, do they? No!¡¡I''m gathering information. Yeah, I knew that. I was joking, of course. I went to the guild and talked to Diora. "Camping gear?¡¡Well, the most important thing you need in the coming season is warm clothes. It doesn''t get cold enough around here to be fatal, but there is still a chance of getting sick. What about the fire magic Worms? It''s a useful spell, but you can''t use it on the move. It works well in an enclosed space like a carriage. I''ve heard that high level magicians can move around while maintaining their surroundings, but it''s easier to wear warm clothes, in case of a battle. "That''s true. It wouldn''t be a good choice considering the magic consumption of the surgeon. It would be comfortable, but... I''m not sure if it''s a good choice, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s not a good idea to freeze to death when you run out of magic power. Yes. It''s better to have a robe to protect you from the rain. It''s not limited to camping, but there are times when you need to move even when it''s raining. If you stay wet for a long time, you will lose your strength, so it is essential to prepare this. If you can afford it, it would be nice to have a tent for sheltering from the rain. Is that separate from the tent? Separate, yes. It''s just a pole and a roof. You can''t build a fire in a tent, right?¡¡It gets cold when it rains, so it''s better to have a fire. You should also have a stove and dry firewood to keep the fire away from the ground, because the ground may be too wet to build a fire. There''s a lot of stuff in there, isn''t there? All of these things make sense, but aside from those of us with magic bags, it''s not a lot for a normal adventurer to carry, is it? You can''t carry this around normally, can you? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. I think it''s difficult to get around here without a carriage. It''s hard for ordinary adventurers to get around here when the weather is bad. What if it does? "In that case?" "You''ll have to travel to the village even if it''s raining, wear a robe and endure, stay in town if it''s going to rain, or don''t go on a long expedition in the first place. That''s harsh! That means spending the night in the rain wearing a raincoat, right?¡¡No, it''s not as good as the Japanese raincoats, so it''s even harder. I''m sure there''s a water magic called "Avoid Rain", right? I''ve always thought that this spell and "Worms" were useful but subtle spells in the grimoire, but they are actually very important for adventurers. Normally, we consider the distance to our destination and the weather conditions, so it''s not something that happens often. Diora smiled at our expressions and added, "You should be careful about that. "If we take care of that, we''ll have the usual stuff. Tents, food, blankets. Cooking utensils if you can afford them. A large, thick cloak is also useful. It can be used when you are cold on the move, but it also allows you to take a nap on the ground if you can''t pitch a tent. This is a good choice for camping. I''ve never camped in Japan with my own gear. I''ve never gone camping by myself even in Japan, but my parents prepared everything for me when I was a child and took me with them, so I''ll try my best to remember that. One thing we tend to forget is water. The more activity you do, the more water you consume. Be careful when you go somewhere new. Not only do you need to gather information about water sources beforehand, but you also need to think about what will happen if the water source is dry, otherwise it could be fatal. "As I recall, there is a water magic called ''Create Water'', isn''t there? Yes, it''s a very useful magic. Yes, it''s a very useful magic, but it''s a problem if you rely on it too much. If you want to be clear about the situation, you should assume that the person who can use the water magic is dead, or even if you don''t go that far, you should assume that there is a lack of magic power or that the person is unconscious. ...... "Yes, that''s right. I don''t even want to think about such a situation, but is it necessary to ensure redundancy? I think it''s better to learn all the lifeline magic that you can. Haruka and I can learn it if we want to, and Yuki can learn water magic. Even if we keep water and other necessary supplies in our magic bags, if these three fall, we''ll probably be wiped out. Thank you very much, Diora. Thank you, Diora. I''ll take your advice and get ready. "No, don''t worry about it. Are you on an expedition? It''s not much of an expedition, but I''ve had a lot of time on my hands lately, so I thought I''d take a break and go catch a Great Salamander sometime soon. "Is that so? I think that''s a good idea. If you''re always fighting hard, you''ll get tired. Still, it''s outside the city, so please be careful. "Yes, thank you. We said goodbye to Diora, who smiled serenely, and went to the stores in the city. We immediately bought rain gear, a tent, and a pole. We decided to hold off on the cloak because we knew there would be some preferences, but we bought enough blankets for everyone. We bought blankets for each of us. In the case of blankets for outdoor use, it seems that practicality is more important than dyeing and patterns, and the only difference was in size. Since there was no need to worry about preservation, I bought some food and a barrel for water. We didn''t buy cooking utensils because we already had them. Ropes, cloths, and other miscellaneous items that might be useful. Do you think one tent is enough? Normally, I''d say separate tents for men and women, but it''s not like we''re going to a safe place to play. The two of you will be awake to keep an eye on things, and you won''t be changing clothes, basically, will you? "Right. In the beginning, I wore the same clothes all the time and relied completely on Haruka''s Purify. For laundry, he still uses the same Purify. Naturally, he would keep his gear on at all times during the adventure, in case of emergency. Should we put the tent on hold and discuss it? I think that would be best. Since we were in the same room at the inn, I don''t think we need to worry about it now, but the situation is different from the time when we had financial constraints. We should be considerate to a certain extent. "Okay, now that the essentials are out of the way, let''s go buy some leisure goods! Leisure goods? Fishing rods!¡¡Mountain stream fishing. What else is there? What are you talking about?¡¡But Toya clenched his fist and insisted. It''s certainly a leisure activity, if you put it that way. As for me, I''m looking forward to it after I catch it. "But is there any place that sells fishing rods? "I don''t remember seeing ....... Neither do I. There was no such thing as a fishing tackle shop, and the grocery stores were looking around for something good for camping, so I would have noticed if they sold them. The first thing to do is to get a hook. I can get anything else I want. If we go to Mr. Gantz, he''ll know what we need, even if he doesn''t sell it. I guess so. I went to Mr. Gantz''s place with the simple thought that since it was a metal product, he must be a blacksmith, but... "Fish hooks?¡¡I don''t make such things. They don''t even sell. Don''t you sell it? It won''t sell. Who''s gonna buy it? There''s no place around here where you can relax and fish. Mr. Gantz says that Sahlstadt might sell them, but even then there would be little demand. They do catch fish in Sarstat, but it''s basically with nets. In addition, there is a territory, and fishermen will punish you if you hang your line in the harbor without permission. There are no fishermen who claim territories near our destination, but only adventurers with a certain level of skill can fish in such a place. And there are almost no adventurers who are willing to do so, so selling fish hooks in this town is not a viable business. Maybe a fishing rod? I doubt they sell them. Just go around and cut some wood. I didn''t want a carbon rod, but I wanted a strong wooden one with the bounce of bamboo. Of course, you don''t have a reel, do you? --You don''t need a reel for river fishing? You can tell Tommy to make you a hook. I''ll give you the materials. It''ll be a nice change of pace. Excuse me, Mr. Gantz. Thank you. I thanked Mr. Gantz, who showed me his chin, and went to the workshop, where Tommy was working on a shovel. There were dozens of shovel tips on the floor, and Tommy was still pounding the steel plate in front of the furnace, shaping it into a shovel. Tommy. Oh, Tonya, and Nao. Hello. When I called out to him, he put his tools down, turned his head to me and smiled a little tiredly. The shovel is selling well, isn''t it? Yes, fortunately or not. Thanks to you, I got a bonus from Mr. Ganz, but I''m getting a little tired of making the same thing over and over again. That''s the thing about work, you can''t help it. Most jobs are the same thing every day. Of course, I understand that. But it''s better than falling into a slum. "A job that requires you to do the same thing every day" is another way of saying "you can get paid for doing the same thing over and over again. Most ordinary people will soon find themselves on the street if they have to do something new all the time to get paid. There are not many jobs where you can try new things in moderation, be allowed to fail, and get paid. So, what''s today? Yeah, a request. Can you make a fish hook? A fish hook?¡¡You''re going fishing?¡¡That sounds great. Tommy''s face lights up and he shouts. Oh, you like fishing, Tommy? "Yes!¡¡Sea fishing, river fishing... I didn''t go fishing in the ocean or the river as often as I should have. It''s not so unexpected. In Japan, we didn''t know each other well enough to know each other''s hobbies. So, what are you fishing for? I don''t know if there are any, but landlocked salmon, char and sweetfish. Any returns on the hook? Hmm?¡¡Are there any hooks that aren''t attached? Yes. If you want to release the fish, you may use a hook without a back. Of course I do. We eat them. You can''t let it go. Tommy, I''d like to use a hair hook, can you make one? Tommy, I''d like to use a hair needle. You can usually make them yourself, using bird feathers or thread. You can find them for sale, though. However, I don''t think you can catch ayu fish with a hair hook. For ayu, you should use tomozuri or lures. "Tomozuri, I''ve heard of it. Is it a method of using a live ayu as a decoy and catching the ayu that attacked you? It is quite a terrible way of fishing. In the first place, since they are attacking to defend their territory, aren''t they ''enemies'' instead of ''friends''? Lures are easier, but you need to know what kind of fish you''re fishing for to make them, so even if you make one and take it with you, it''s a gamble whether it will work or not. Lures are not only imitations of fish, but also different types of lures depending on the type of fish you are targeting, so it is difficult to make the right lure without that information. Hmmm, I see. It''s quite difficult, isn''t it, fishing? What should I do?¡¡Shall we make a regular hook and a lure hook? Please do that. And while you''re at it, can you teach me how to make a hair hook at night? Yeah, that''s fine. How do you make a lure? I''ve never made a lure before, but since it''s a model of a fish, I''ll probably have to carve it out of wood and color it to look like a fish. It sounds pretty difficult, but I''ll just play with it and see what I can do. If it doesn''t work out, that''s just another experience, I guess. ...... "Hey, can I come with you? Tommy asked me a little reservedly, and I looked at him and Toya. He seems to like fishing, and since it''s only half a game, it''s okay to take him along, but the problem is that the destination is somewhere he''s never been before. The problem was that they were going to a place they had never been before, and if they saw a monster for the first time, they wouldn''t have time to worry about Tommy. You seem like an experienced guy, and if it''s a safe place, I''d rather ask you to come. ...... Honestly, I don''t know if Tommy''s going to make it back. That''s it? What?¡¡I''m not sure if Tommy will make it back safely. No, it''s my first time there, so I honestly don''t know. It''s just not a place where normal people go fishing. That''s because it''s definitely dangerous, isn''t it? Of course it is. If an orc or something comes out, you''ll be minced at the drop of a hat. It''s a money-grab for us, but it''s a threat to the general public. Even a mere boar, a task boar, could be killed by a newcomer like me. How much training do I have to do? You''d risk your life to fish? Tommy, you really like fishing that much? We stared at Tommy in amazement. We can go fishing just to relax because it seems less dangerous, but if I were in Tommy''s shoes, I wouldn''t risk it to go fishing. It''s not like you can make money by catching fish. It''s just a game. "Of course, I like fishing, but I don''t want to spend all my time blacksmithing, do I?¡¡It''s fun, but... Do you need a break? Yes. There''s not much entertainment in this world. I understand how you feel. In fact, we couldn''t think of anything to do in our free time either. We haven''t been there yet, and I can''t say how much, but I''d like to be able to kill a hobgoblin by myself at least. We should also train ourselves to be able to run at a certain speed for half a day. "I understand hobgoblins, but running for half a day? Tommy nodded his head curiously, but this was very important. "When a strong enemy appears, you have to run, right?¡¡We''re not going to join forces and just barely defeat a strong enemy. "If you''re on the edge, you run. If we can escape. There''s no point in pushing it. If you die, it''s over. Going into battle at the last minute is already a strategic failure. Constantly fighting against a higher rank may be fun in a story, but we don''t need it. Rather, we should strive to fight below our own rank. And when that happens, if Tommy can''t run, he''ll be left behind. If we have to sacrifice everyone to save one Tommy, we''ll just abandon him. I''ll start running today! "I''m going to start running today!" Tommy declared, his face tightening up at our simple statement. Still, you don''t give up fishing, do you? Good luck. I think it''s easy to run for half a day, but I recommend you to learn to run as soon as possible. In fact, I recommend that you learn to run as fast as possible, so that you can run away alone in case of danger. "Well, ......, are you sure?¡¡Run away alone. It''s better that way. Yeah. We immediately nodded deeply to Tommy, who had a curious expression on his face. In the event that you want to retreat in a dangerous situation, it will be difficult to coordinate with Tommy, who is not usually in a party, and you simply won''t be able to keep up with him in terms of speed. On the other hand, it would be heartbreaking to abandon him as I said earlier. In that case, it would be easier to let them run away first. "Well, if you need advice, just ask. If you want to go kill some goblins, I''ll go with you when I''m free. Thank you very much. I might ask you to do it when I get some time off. Okay. Take care of the needle then. Give them to me at the inn. All right. I''ll bring it to you tonight. I''ll make sure it''s good! Tommy started pounding on the metal, clearly more enthusiastic than when he had been working on the shovel. 96-086 Rest (3) Since we are out and about, we had lunch at Aella''s restaurant. Lately, when I''m in town, I always eat here, except when I eat at the inn. I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t interested in exploring new restaurants, but it''s like trying to win a prize at a festival stall. --In other words, there is a high possibility that you won''t get the right one. In this respect, this restaurant is a safe bet. There are days when you can''t sit down right away, but since we don''t have a fixed lunch break, it''s not a problem if you stagger your time a bit. Today we splurged a little and ordered lunch plus tea and pastries after dinner. We''re taking it as afternoon tea time. The fact that we were two guys was a big disadvantage, but Aella was cute and the pastries were delicious. You need tools to make lures, right? Yes, we do. We can go to the house and they''ll give us some wood chips, but we can''t ask the craftsman to lend us his tools. Hmmm, if I just want to cut a piece of wood, can I get by with just a small knife? "Saws, carving knives, files. Do I need to buy two more small knives? Do I need a file? Do I need a saw and a graver? You can''t always get the right size piece of wood, right?¡¡You can''t cut it with a small knife. Yeah, you''re right. Do I need a graver without the ......? Maybe?¡¡My idea of a lure is smooth. I don''t think they carved the eyes or the scales. Well, I don''t want it. What are you talking about, Nao? After lunch, Aella came over to me, smiling, as if she was getting bored. I was talking about making a lure ...... pseudo-bait. I miss the ...... pseudo-bait. "Hmm?¡¡Have you ever made one before, Aella? No, I haven''t. There was only one person in my village who was into that kind of thing. Even in our village, we usually catch them with traps, so fishing with pseudo-bait is a complete hobby. Can you catch fish with pseudo-bait? Yes, in a way. Yes, but you can catch enough with a trap. ...... Aera smiled wryly as she said that. I guess it really is a hobby. Can I know what kind of pseudo-bait you used? "Yes, of course. The characteristics of the bait he explained to me were a little similar to those of sweetfish, so I might expect to catch fish similar to them. After thanking him for his help, Toya and I left the store and immediately got some tools and pieces of wood. We walked around the city looking for paint for coloring. There was no such thing as a home improvement store, and there didn''t seem to be much demand for it, so we didn''t have much hope, but we succeeded in getting paint and varnish unexpectedly easily. I asked about it and was told that it was a specialty of the city and that it was in great demand for use in furniture making. Then there''s the rod and thread, and the needles. "We can get the line from Haruka and the others. They don''t sell fishing line. That''s right. Then the materials for the rod and hook: ...... bird feathers. Both are in the forest. If we go too far into the woods, we''ll be pissed, but if we go too shallow, we''ll be fine. We got our gear and ran into the forest. Unfortunately, we hadn''t seen any bamboo, so we looked for the thinnest, most flexible trees we could find and collected a few. In between, we collected bird feathers. Or, more accurately, we hunted them. Our snack became grilled chicken. That''s what I mean. When we returned to the inn and were quietly chipping away at the wood chips, Tommy, who had finished his work, came to our room. Good evening. Your order is ready. "Oh, thank you. Did you get it right? "To be honest, I''m not happy with it, but I think it''s as good as it can be. As far as I could tell, the needles Tommy had laid out on the desk were good enough. They came in a variety of sizes, and some of them looked like they could catch not only small fish like landlocked salmon, which we were after, but also large fish like salmon. They are incomparable to the hooks you can get in Japan. ...... No, to be honest, I''ve never seen an actual fishing hook. I''ve never even been to a fishing pond, let alone ocean or river fishing. What''s wrong with that? "The thinness of the hook, the return, and the strength. My skills are not good enough to do it by hand. I don''t understand it, but Tommy, the fisherman, is not happy with it. I don''t understand it, but Tommy, the fisherman, is not happy. "So you''re making ...... lures now? Yeah. It''s not quite in shape yet. It is not even spindle-shaped yet. Whether it will look like a fish or not depends on our efforts. ...... I''m not that good at drawing either, you know. I''ve heard that if you can reproduce the reflection of the scales, you can make it look like a fish, even if it''s not that precise. I don''t know if that''s true or not. The reflection of the scales ...... looks difficult. "I think I''ll just put some metal foil on it. ...... And do you have a tamo?¡¡I think it''s easy to get away without one. I''m sure you mean a hand net, right?¡¡Is it necessary? If you lift it out of the water, the fish will freak out and the ...... hook may come off, so it''s better to pull it in the water and put it in the net before lifting it. I don''t think they sell hand nets. Do you want to make one, Toya? I''ll get some thin rope and weave a net. I''ll get the wakka and the shaft from ....... I''ll get the frame for you. I''ll get the frame, and you can use any wood for the shaft. That would be great! In Japan, you could use a clothes hanger or buy some wire at a home center, but wire itself is not sold in this town. Considering the way the wire is made, it would be difficult to mass produce it without a machine, and since there is a demand for it, I guess it can''t be helped. I have an ulterior motive. You''ll have to take me with you when you train me. He chuckles and says it clearly. Well, as long as you can keep us safe, we don''t have any objections, so it''s easier for us if you say it clearly. --It''s easier for us if you say it clearly. When you reach a certain level, we''ll take you out. Of course, if we go and it''s not dangerous. If we don''t come back, you can chalk it up to a dangerous place. Don''t you dare say anything sinister.¡¡If it''s dangerous, you''ll run back, right?¡¡I don''t like the idea of someone I''ve become friends with dying. I shrug my shoulders and laugh at Tommy''s impatient words. I''m not going to die, of course, but the possibility is not zero in this world. We can kill Orcs without too much trouble, but considering the level of skill given to us by the evil gods, I think it''s only natural that we can do that. However, such orcs are weak compared to the demons of this world. If they were unlucky enough to find a strong demon roaming around, they could be easily killed. My spying is useful, but it assumes that the enemy''s spying range is smaller than mine and that we can move faster than they can. If they see us from a longer distance or move faster, there is a high possibility that we will not be able to escape. Unlike animals, demons will aggressively attack humans. I don''t think I can go sightseeing. If you have the money, you can do it.¡¡You could hire a lot of high-ranking adventurers. That''s unrealistic. After all, it would be better to train them to the point where they can travel the streets without worry. Tommy sighed heavily and then looked up as if he had regained his composure. What about making a hair needle, by the way?¡¡Do you want to do it now? "Yeah. I''m hoping to do it the day after tomorrow. We don''t have much time. All I need is thread and a bird feather. Do you have any? I''ll get them. I went to the next room, told Haruka and the others about the situation, and asked them to share the thread. I put those threads and the bird feathers I picked up on the desk. You''ve collected a lot of feathers. "I didn''t collect them, I took them. You didn''t pick them up, you hunted them. You can''t do that in Japan. There are hunting laws. In Japan, it would be difficult to pick them up and buy them, wouldn''t it? You might be able to find some pigeon or crow feathers, though. The first step is to fix the needle so that it is easy to work with. Normally I use a special vise, but ...... can I use this piece of wood? "Yeah, sure. Tommy picked up a few pieces of wood that he had been given for lure making. When Toya gave him permission, Tommy split the piece of wood in two, put a fishhook between them, and tightened the string. This is how you fix the hook so that the line can be easily wound around this part of the hook. After that, you can use bird feathers or string to make it look like an insect. This is a hobby, so just go with it. Tommy said, cutting and tearing bird feathers into small pieces and wrapping them around the hook with thread. ......" "Does it look roughly like this?¡¡Does it look like a bug to you? "Oh, you''re good!¡¡It looks something like that! I don''t know if there is such a thing as a worm, but it makes the hook look like a worm with wings. Is it enough to have one of these? "If you like it, you can make several different kinds and use them interchangeably. Besides, they wear out with use. That''s true. If you throw it in the river or fish bite it, it will gradually get damaged. Well, let''s try to make a few. Give me some guidance. Yes, sir. I''m not so good at it myself. Under the tutelage of the humble Tommy, we each made a few needles that day. 97-087 Fishing (1) The next day, our lure making continued. I got tired of carving wood all the time, so I continued to work on it, weaving bamboo nets for a change, and by mid-afternoon, I had roughly completed the shape of the fish. It was not very good, but I consoled myself that it was not bad for an amateur, and painted it. I painted the fish like that. I lightly varnished the fish, and sprinkled gold dust on it. This is a little trick to make it look a little more like scales. After applying more varnish on top of the fish, attach the needle and you are done. To be honest, I didn''t think there was a varnish that could be used for lures, but I found one that was strong and waterproof enough, although the raw material was unknown. The varnish was a little expensive, but since I only used a small amount, it was not a problem. The two of us happily went to show the finished lure to the ladies, but their reaction was subtle. "It''s well done, isn''t it? "...... for effort. "You don''t look like a fish. Natsuki was the only one who was kind, Yuki was cautious, and Haruka was dismissive. And if you wipe your eyes, which were clouded by the joy of completion, you will see that this is indeed ...... Natsuki''s kindness that hurts. Do you think this is impossible? I don''t know.¡¡I''ve heard that you don''t have to make it look like a fish. ...... It''s fine. Even if you fail... It''s a game. That''s true, but you want to eat the fish, right? Yeah, ...... I''ll think of something too. I''ve got a regular hook, a hair hook and a lure. I''d like to think that since I prepared three of them, I won''t be out of luck, but I''m just an amateur. But I''m just an amateur. Anyway, it''s almost time for our appointment, are you ready? Oh, that''s... There''s nothing to prepare. We''re having a victory celebration at Aella''s today. But it''s not like I''m going to change into a full suit of armor just to celebrate with my friends. At the most, I''m just going to clean up the room that''s been messy from making lures. I''m looking forward to Aella''s cooking. I''m looking forward to Aella''s cooking. It''s a bit expensive, but I''m sure it''s delicious. ...... I''m looking forward to it. Haruka, we should also clean up soon. There''s a lot of lint and stuff on the floor. Well, I''ll meet you downstairs when I''m ready. "Yes. We nodded vigorously. We nodded vigorously. The food at the victory party was pretty good, to say the least. If we had paid the same amount of money in Japan, we could have eaten much better food, but I don''t think we should compare that. At the very least, it was good to know that even in this world, if you pay a lot of money, you can have a good meal. However, it seems that Mr. Aera offered the meal at almost cost price, and if you actually want to have the same level of meal at other restaurants, you will have to pay two or three times as much. In other words, 100,000 yen per person per meal. It''s not an amount you can easily afford. I went all out this time, but even a tenth of that amount is enough to make me tremble. I am a small citizen. Given that, it is quite difficult to find a good and inexpensive place to eat. I''m hoping that Haruka and her friends will cook for me. But that will have to wait until we get the house. The victory party itself was just us and Aella, so we basically just ate and talked, but in the middle of the party, Aella joined us after she finished cooking, and we had a great time listening to her talk about various things. In terms of refreshing our spirits, it was a success. The day after the victory party, I went to buy a tent and a cloak that I had put on hold. After discussing it with Haruka and the others, we decided to buy only one tent, and one cloak for each of us. Once the shopping was done, we immediately headed for Sahlstat. When the gates of Sarstat came into view, we turned left and headed upstream toward the Norian River. After turning off the road, we stopped running and proceeded rather cautiously. The width of the river, which had been more than 30 meters at Sarstad, was rapidly narrowing as we proceeded upstream, and the volume of water was considerably decreasing. There were no tributaries in this river, but why is it getting so big? Yuki wondered and said, "I don''t know. I don''t know, but I think it''s subterranean water or something. "Oh, I see. Well, the mountains are deep, so it''s not so strange, is it? Even though we traveled from the city of Laffan to Sarstad with the mountain range on our left, there was not a single river in between. If you think that the Noria River collects the rainwater that falls on the mountains in that area, it''s not surprising that the river is so big. It''s there, so it must be, right? "Toya, you''re being blunt. But if that''s the case, why don''t we dig a well in that area? Why isn''t it farmland? The only farmland in the city of Rafan is on the south side, and it''s not that big. As far as we can tell, the grasslands on the east side of the city are less dangerous than the ones on the west side, so it would be a good idea to develop them into farmland. It''s just that there are no farmers. If you have a major industry, furniture making, you can import crops. If there are more people and less land, there will naturally be more farmland here, right? "I see. If the first farmland was built on the south side, then when the farmers who have land on that side expand their farmland, they will cultivate that side. If Rafan is stable as it is now, there is no need to take the risk of bringing in new people and forcing them to develop farmland. I don''t know if that''s the right thing for a politician to do. I''m more interested in the request. How long before the Great Salamander appears? According to the data, it''s about an hour upstream from Sahlstat. ...... That''s pretty vague. Yeah, it is. In this world, there''s a huge difference in physical ability between people. It''s not like there''s a set standard like "5 minutes walk from the station". If we consider the fact that the document was found in an adventurer''s guild, can we assume that it is the travel speed of an ordinary adventurer? "We''ve been traveling for about an hour now, haven''t we? Yes. We''ve been here for about an hour now, right? Around Sahlstadt, the ratio of sand to rock was 7 to 3, but here it was 4 to 6. When we looked into the river, we found that the water was quite clear and not muddy as in the vicinity of Sahlstadt. "Hey, Nao, how''s it going?¡¡Is it there? "I don''t know. Do they swim in the river?¡¡Or are they hiding behind rocks? Ahhh, ...... Natsuki, what do you think? The Great Salamander of the original world was nocturnal, but we don''t know much about the Great Salamander of this world. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website to see if you can find any information about it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this in the future. We all proceeded upstream for another 30 minutes while observing the river, and when the ratio of sand to rock was about 2 to 8. Ah! Almost at the same time I heard such a voice, a spear thrust from my side pierced the riverbed. At the tip of the spear, a flat, blackish creature that looked like a hybrid of a catfish and a lizard was skewered on the head, and its body was shaking. "The Great Salamander. It was Natsuki who killed it. I also checked the help menu, and sure enough, it says ''Great Salamander''. The size of the salamander is about 80 centimeters. It''s not different from my image of the Great Salamander, but ...... it''s still a bit gross. Natsuki, how did you notice it? I''m sure I''ve seen it too. ...... You''re right. I was right next to you. I was right next to you." The spear was thrust out from right beside me, so my vision and Natsuki''s were almost the same. Despite this, I didn''t notice that the Great Salamander was in the river at all. I had seen a few fish swimming in the river, but how could I not notice something of that size? The light reflects off the surface of the river, and it''s hard to tell the color. It''s hard to see the color. "Oh, yes, of course. It''s important to keep it fresh, so Haruka cools the Great Salamander down and puts it in her magic bag immediately. You can be sure to get at least 20 gold coins with this. It''s a leisure activity, so there''s no need to worry too much about how much money you''ll make, but since you''ve traveled all this way, you might as well make some money. I couldn''t find it either, don''t you know?¡¡I couldn''t find it either. Well, not exactly. There are a lot of reactions in the river, but they''re small, probably because they''re not enemies. I''m not sure if it''s because they''re not enemies or because they''re small. In a sense, this is a great help, because if you can sense information about all living things, it would be too difficult to use in a forest full of insects. In the river, there may have been some large salamanders mixed in with the fish, but I don''t think the difference was that large. If there had been a big difference, even I would have paid a little more attention and would have noticed it. How about you, Toya? No, no, no. I have no idea what''s in the river. I don''t have the same skills as you, I''m more like a sixth sense, and I don''t think I can do it in the water where my sense of smell is blocked. Perhaps Toya''s search for enemies is based on a combination of sight, hearing, smell, and magic sensing. If one or two of them are blocked, it''s hard to expect much. "Mmmm ...... here? I concentrated on searching for the enemy, selected something that looked like it, and peered behind the rock to find a dark, slimy thing. It was noticeably shorter than the Great Salamander, and the help message said it was called a Poison Toad. It seems to be a poisonous frog. It is larger than a bullfrog, so it is a bit creepy. Something ......!¡¡No, you''re not! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m sure the Great Salamander is just as creepy, but was it a bad idea to take him by surprise? It''s poisonous, so be careful. Poison toad, apparently? I know it''s poisonous from the name, but is it bad if you touch it? Is it bad to touch it, or does it bite you or spray you with poison? Poison Toad is not that dangerous. If you touch your eyes with it, or if you have sensitive skin, you might get a rash, but despite the name, it''s edible. Seriously? ...... Yes, I''m serious. If you peel it properly, wash it, and cook it, you can eat it. However, as Natsuki said, you can''t grab them easily and you need to be careful when cooking them, so they are not usually used for food. The taste is bland and not particularly delicious, so I guess no one catches them. I guess the Great Salamanders that are requested are tasty. Even though they both look like that. Or you wouldn''t be paying so much. . ...... here?¡¡--Oops! He turned over a rock and seized the creature with a spear thrust. A distinctive turtle, about 50 centimeters in size. It was a spoon. Now it''s a spotted turtle. What do we do now? When Toya strikes the spoon I''m holding down with a branch, the spoon stretches out its neck, which is longer than I expected, and bites the branch. Oh, it''s pretty strong. ...... No, too strong? Toya pulls on the branch, but as the name implies, it doesn''t seem to let go at all, and I can even hear it snapping. The branch he''s holding is thicker than my thumb, and no bigger than a pair of chopsticks. How much bite power does this thing have? If it bites me, it''ll tear my fingers off. ...... Seeing this, Yuki, who had been watching from the side, stepped back as if in fear. I''m not sure. It''s dangerous for ordinary people. I think adventurers like us are probably safe, but we can''t be too careful. "But a snapping turtle is a snapping turtle, right?¡¡Can you eat them? Yes, you can eat them. They were also eaten as a luxury food in Sarstad. I''ve only heard about it. Suppon itself is also caught in the vicinity of Sahlstadt, and it is on the menu of the inn. However, considering the taste of the dish, it is doubtful whether it is good or not. I''ve never eaten sponges before, are they good? Haruka looks at us, but we both shake our heads. At least, it''s not an ingredient that usually appears on the dinner table, and my image of it is that it''s a high-class dish that you would eat at a specialty restaurant. I, a commoner, had never had the chance to try it. The only one who didn''t shake his head was Natsuki. The only one who didn''t shake her head was Natsuki, who said, "It looks a little strange, but it''s delicious. The only thing I couldn''t shake my head at was Natsuki. ...... But Japanese people eat sponges but not frogs, right? If you want to talk about the ghetto level, it''s similar. I''m not sure if frogs are that tasty or not.¡¡"Maybe frogs aren''t that tasty, but if they are, people will eat them, because they are Japanese. This is a convincing opinion. They eat sea cucumbers, too. If it''s good, I''d like to try it. Is there anyone who can cook?¡¡Can I get by with my cooking skills? "It''s not that hard to cook, but it takes time to remove the mud, so you can''t put it in a magic bag.¡¡The water is clean around here, so I don''t think you''ll need more than a week or two. ...... "It''s too good to pass up. Now that we have one Great Salamander, why don''t we camp here? No one objected to Toya''s suggestion. The capture of the Great Salamander was just a side trip, our purpose was leisure. If we could practice camping while taking a break, that would be fine. Besides, there are plenty of fish in this area, so there''s no problem for me if I want to fish. So let''s go to ....... I lifted up the spoon that I had been holding with my foot and put it into the tub that Toya had taken out. I had prepared a rather large tub for the fish, but it was almost full with the 50cm long spoon. There was no room to move around. All I had to do was to fill it with clean water made by magic, close the lid, and place a stone as a weight to prevent the fish from escaping. After that, you can change the water from time to time. I''m looking forward to the first time in my life when I can eat a spoon. 98-088 Fishing (2) First, let''s set up camp. I thought the riverbank was bad.¡¡I know. I know," said Toya, a little smugly, and Haruka shook her head with a wry smile. I can''t say that''s generally true, but ...... One of the reasons why it''s a bad idea to camp on a riverbank in Japan is because of the water released by dams. But this is irrelevant in this world. The other reason is that the water rises due to changes in the weather. Even if it is not raining in the area, if the river is deep in the mountains, flash floods may occur due to rainfall in the distance. However, this is not so relevant here. The upper reaches of the river are steep, but not mountainous, so it is unlikely that the weather would be that different. However, there is a possibility of rain this time of year, so let''s avoid the riverbank. We moved a little further away from the river and set up camp with shovels, and finished a quick lunch with the food we had brought. After that, we were basically free to go. However, there is no guarantee that demons or wild animals will not attack us, so we basically stay within sight of each other. I''ve read that in this area, there are basically only orcs and goblins, but even so, you shouldn''t take the risk of facing them alone. Well, my current [Enemy Search] can cover a large area, and so far, I haven''t detected anything dangerous. I''ll have to wait and see what happens at night, but at this level, I might be able to bring Tommy with me. "Nao, I''ll fish around here, what about you? "Okay, I''ll fish upstream a bit. Let''s see who can catch more fish. Oh, you want to play? That''d be fun, huh? I smiled back at him and sat down on a rock about 30 meters away from him. We''ll start with a hair hook. It''s a good idea to use a bad lure after you''ve had some success with a hair hook. ...... Will it work?¡¡I''m not sure what to do. It''s a good idea to use a lure that''s not very good. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that, but I''d like to try. You can see the fish swimming by itself, so maybe one of them will bite. ....... Thinking about this, I cast the hook several times. "Ah!¡¡Here it comes! I raised my rod and inserted the net at the same time. I pull it in and scoop it up and place it on the rock. "Yes! It''s huge! It must be about 30 centimeters long. I quickly removed the hook and put it in the tub, and it began to swim vigorously. "A landlocked salmon. The name displayed on the help page was "Yamame". I don''t know if they are genetically the same, but if the help shows that they are, then they must be the same creature, in the eyes of the evil god. Thank God we can eat them with peace of mind. "First one. That''s a good start. It''s a good thing I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Not a ...... piece, is it? You''ve caught two fish?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I hurriedly cast my hook, and after a few times, I caught another fish. It was a little smaller than the previous one, but well over 20 centimeters. Perhaps because there was no one else fishing, I was able to catch a fish every few minutes, and by the time the sun was setting, I had a tub full of landlocked salmon. I was a little disappointed that I couldn''t catch anything other than landlocked salmon. ...... Is it because of the hair hook?¡¡Or is it a matter of location? But it''s good enough for fishing. Tomorrow I''ll try using a lure. When I called out to Toya and returned to the camp, Haruka and the others were chatting around the fire. Welcome back. Did you catch anything? "Yeah, we caught a lot. Yeah. I''m surprised at myself. I think it''s what you call not being in the zone.¡¡Even amateurs like us can catch fish. Apparently, Toya had the same impression as me. I don''t think we have any talent for fishing. The hook itself was handmade by an amateur. "Wow!¡¡Amazing!¡¡I can catch so many fish. ...... Can I try it tomorrow? Yuki peeked into my tub and said in surprise. I''ve got enough rods for all of us, so don''t worry. What about Natsuki and Haruka? "Well, they''re ...... pseudo-bait, right?¡¡That''s ....... If everyone does it, I might as well try it. Natsuki doesn''t seem to like insects. Well, a lot of fishing bait is disgusting. I''ll leave the hooks to Haruka and the others, and use lures and live bait. I''m sure I can find some worms if I dig around. What were Haruka and the others doing this afternoon? "We''ll sit here and chat over tea after we set the trap. If I had to say anything, I''d say we practiced some magic. While we were fishing, Haruka and the others were sinking traps that they had asked carpenters to make or had made themselves into the river. All three of them had knowledge of the traps but had never used them, so they didn''t know whether they would catch anything or not. We''ll see how the trap works tomorrow. For now, let''s deal with the fish you''ve been catching. There''s so many. We need more skewers. ......? The skewers we usually use are store-bought. In the beginning, we made our own skewers, but now we use them exclusively because they are quite cheap and easy to use. There are metal ones and wooden ones, but the latter can be used only a few times, so we are using more metal ones now. However, there is a disadvantage that the skewer is too hot and burns when it is freshly cooked. Just prepare the skewers and store them as they are. You can skewer it when you want to eat it. Some of them are big enough to be filleted. Haruka fills Toya and I''s vat with ice from her magic, takes out three cutting boards and knives, and hands them to Natsuki and Yuki. "Toya and Nao can''t do it, can they?¡¡Or do you want to try? No, I''ll leave it to you. Right. Right. Right person, right place. It''s not that hard to prepare the fish. ...... Well, okay. Haruka shrugged her shoulders, grabbed the fish and quickly processed it. And next to him, Yuki and Natsuki. I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure we''re slowing you down. ...... Yeah, we''re definitely slowing you down. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what to do with it. I''m not sure what to make of this. As I am not skilled enough to do anything about it, the taste will be degraded, so I just watch. But do you have a knife like that?¡¡Do you have a knife like that, or do you sell them?¡¡I''ve never seen one before. The knife that Haruka took out was shaped like an all-purpose knife, and was clearly different from the knives sold around here. In the past, I''ve used a demolition knife for cooking. ....... That one?¡¡He ordered it from Tommy. He said knives are easier to use for cooking. "I see. You''re right, it''s hard to use a knife. I''d appreciate it if you could make me a nice meal with it. You''ll be cooking for real in a little while when you get a house, so there''s no harm in getting a custom-made knife. We''re going to eat it, too. By the way, Nao, how many fish did you catch? "By the way, Nao, how many did you catch? ......, but it doesn''t really matter, does it?¡¡It''s easy to catch fish here. Yeah, right. Well, what does it matter? You''ll be able to get a lot of fish in your tub, and you''ll be able to shrug your shoulders. Both tubs are packed with fish. If I could count them on two hands, there would be a point of comparison, but in this case, it would depend more on the time spent than on my fishing skill. Processing is done. Fifty-eight fish in total. Most of them were pretty big, so if we all fish again tomorrow, we''ll have fish for a while. "It was all landlocked salmon, but they were big all the same. The biggest one I caught was almost 40 centimeters long, but overall, most of the fish were around 30 centimeters long, and there were few fish under 20 centimeters. My image of a landlocked salmon was about 15 centimeters, but a big one was much better than a small one. It''s a lot of work just to get the fish out. ...... I''m glad I have the skills. Yuki had only handled fish a few times before coming here, but she still managed to do it without any problems. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a little nervous about this. If all goes well, you''ll be able to handle several times this amount tomorrow. ...... In the event that you''re in a position to help, you''ll be able to do so with the help of your own personal consultant. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Come on, let''s eat this. It smells so good. ...... You''re right, since we have a magic bag, that''s a good idea. Okay, let''s eat. "Let''s eat! Each of us picked up a whole roasted landlocked salmon and bit into it. "Yum!¡¡Yum! It''s just grilled fish, but it tastes better than any fish I''ve ever eaten. Cooked?¡¡The ingredients?¡¡The environment? Perhaps it was all of them. Not to mention the cooking skills of Haruka and his friends, it''s not often you can have the experience of eating fish you caught on a spit around a bonfire in Japan. No, you can do it if you want to, but at least I haven''t experienced it. I''ve never been particularly fond of fish, but I think I could eat as much as I want. I wonder if it''s because the water is so clean.¡¡There''s no smell at all. "Yes. Landlocked salmon is a fish that doesn''t have much of an odor to begin with, but this one is especially delicious. "Oh, it''s really good. When was the last time you ate fish?¡¡Except, of course, for that, which is not considered a fish dish in Sahlstat. They don''t serve fish in Laffan. They sold dried fish in the store, but no one wanted to buy it because of Sahlstat. If it was the same fish that was dried, it was guaranteed to be bad. There was a possibility that it was a different fish, but it was too expensive compared to the dried meat to try. If it were closer, I''d come here more often, because it''s so good. The fish is good, but it takes a whole day to get there and back. The fish is good, but it takes a whole day to get there and back. Considering the time it takes to fish, it''s a little difficult to come on a long trip that requires an overnight stay. Meat is readily available, but eating fish is more of a luxury. Since we have a magic bag, why don''t we extend our stay a bit and catch more fish? "Oh, that''s a good idea!¡¡If we stay an extra night, we can catch enough for a few months. Tohya immediately agreed with Yuki''s suggestion, and Natsuki nodded in agreement. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it.¡¡No one seems to be ...... opposed. So, let''s stay three nights and catch as much as we can. Fortunately, no one is likely to complain. Strictly speaking, I think there''s a fishing guild in Sahlstat. ...... I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find a way to get your hands on one. Well, it would be better if they didn''t find out about it, because it would be a hassle if there were any strange people. Legally, there''s no problem catching fish here, just like the Great Salamander, but there''s no guarantee that there won''t be some thug who wants a share of the profits without any right. We decided to go back to Rafan without stopping at Sahlstat. I don''t have any good memories of that town except for the bargain books I bought there. 99-089 Fishing (3) Well, this is our first encampment. ......2 We''ll have to take turns keeping watch. We''ll have to take turns keeping watch. If you have a higher level of space-time magic, there is a spell called "Sanctuary" ....... My current level of space-time magic is level 3. Sanctuary is a spell that can be used at level 4. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. This is a spell that restricts the objects that can enter the area designated by the sorcerer, and if you are not skilled enough, it is only effective in repelling insects (although it is still beneficial), but if you are skilled enough, it can completely block demons up to a certain level. Even if you can''t block it, you don''t need to leave a guard because the sorcerer will know that you have entered. Incidentally, there is also a level 5 spell called "Isolation Field" that completely isolates the user, but this spell is very dangerous in a sense because it does not allow even air to pass through. I''m not sure what to do. What do we do? "We''ll just play rock-paper-scissors. It''s not a big problem, so we''ll just go with Yuki''s suggestion. As a result, it was decided that Haruka and I would play in pairs first, and Toya, Natsuki and Yuki would play later. Then, Natsuki and the others should go to bed. That''s right. If we go to bed now, we''ll each get about five or six hours of sleep. Chatting around the fire sounds like fun, but what can we do? "No, you guys talked a lot during the day! No, you guys talked a lot during the day! I understand Yuki''s feelings, but I also agree with Toya. In a way, I''m impressed that they have so much to talk about. I like the night situation. ...... Well, sleeping is part of the job, in a way. It''s an adventurer''s job. As he said this, Yuki followed Natsuki into the tent, and finally Toya entered. The sun hadn''t set yet, so it was probably around 7pm. If we keep watch for five or six hours from now and take turns, Haruka and I will be able to sleep until dawn as well. If we were to take three shifts, we would be able to sleep more, but for a few days, this amount of sleep would be fine. But sitting around for five or six hours is boring, isn''t it? I whispered to Haruka as she sat back down next to me. The tent I bought is waterproof and a bit thick, but it''s not soundproof, so I can''t pass the time by chatting. "Well, I guess I can only train my skills. That''s limited to things that don''t make noise. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that.¡¡I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that. Perhaps my sense of time has improved since I came here, or perhaps I''ve become more sensitive to the movements of nature, such as the sun, so I can judge the time from five minutes to an hour without much difference, but at night, even five or six hours, I''m not so sure. I can see the stars today, but I still need a watch. Is it expensive? In Laffan, bells ring at regular intervals, but I''ve never seen a clock. There are no clocks hanging in stores or restaurants, and there is no such thing as a clock tower. If you live in the city, you probably don''t have much need for them, but still, since you don''t see them at all, you can imagine that they are not cheap. It''s so expensive that the average person can''t afford it. Since it is made by alchemy, it would be better to gather the materials and make it yourself. There are hourglasses for measuring intervals, but they''re expensive enough. Glasswork, you know. Perhaps because of the existence of magic and alchemy, glass has become so common that you can see glass windows in the city, but it is still not cheap. If it was an hourglass that required delicate work, it would be more like a craft than a mere utility item. "Well, I''ll take care of the time, and you can do whatever training you want. You need to sleep. I understand. I''ll take Haruka''s word for it. ...... The first thing to do is [search for enemies]. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s not good to disturb the edge of sleep. On the other hand, [Searching for Enemies] is completely passive. It doesn''t emit any magic or sound, so it won''t interfere with your sleep. I''m going to meditate and search for the range of the enemy. First, the river. There is very little movement, which is a change from daytime. The landlocked salmon are probably asleep. However, there are some active responses. Nocturnal fish and amphibians, perhaps. The frogs are still croaking, so it is quite noisy. Considering the Great Salamander, it may be easier to find it if we go there now. ...... Well, there''s no need to push it. It''s hard to catch a lot of them in the same place, considering their size and the fact that they seem to have a certain amount of territory. The next time I turned my attention to the forest, I saw that there were quite a few of these nocturnal animals moving around in the forest. The response itself is not large, so it''s unlikely that there are any that would pose a threat to us, but we should at least be careful. When I told Haruka this, she pondered a bit and muttered. ...... Wolves, perhaps?¡¡There are nocturnal wolves in this forest, aren''t there? Apparently. They don''t seem to attack people very often. They must understand the risk of attacking people. If their habits are the same as in the original world, a pack is no more than ten wolves. Only adventurers camp in the forest, and if you attack them, you''ll almost certainly kill a few of them. There''s no reason to attack an adventurer with a weapon unless he''s defenseless. It would be safer and easier to just go after the deer. Incidentally, a pack of wolves covers an area of about 10 to 30 kilometers square, so it is unlikely that dozens of wolves will attack you in tandem. This means that their ecology is different from that of demons that settle under a superior species. Thankfully. I like dogs, so I don''t want to kill them unnecessarily. The pelts seemed to be sellable, but I wouldn''t dare hunt them. For the next few hours, I spent my time training in [spotting], magic, and [stealthy footing]. The first two were unpopular with Haruka, but I''d like to continue this training, as it''s not something I usually do. The next morning, Haruka and I went to the beach. The next morning, when Haruka and I were woken up by Yuki and came out of the tent, breakfast was already ready. Yuki and her friends had nothing much to do in the middle of the night, so they were leisurely preparing breakfast. However, only Toya, who was useless for cooking, was covered in sweat from repeated muscle training alone, and was hit by Haruka''s Purify in the morning. Toya said, "That''s very thoughtful of you! But I think Haruka just didn''t want to see you covered in sweat at the breakfast table. This morning I made a soup with fish and wild herbs, and added something like udon noodles. Did you get any wildflowers? Yes. Toya picked up some parsley from the river. The rest was just some edible leaves I gathered in the forest. Just like that? But the pot I looked into smelled good and looked quite tasty. The chopped landlocked salmon in the pot seemed to have been salted and dried overnight. The "udon-like" thing is something I made. Forgive me if it''s too short for the space. The udon seems to have been made by Yuki when she was bored. The reason it''s less than 20 centimeters long is because she didn''t have a rolling pin or a wide board, and used a cutting board to make it. I don''t care how long it is, as long as it tastes good. I haven''t tasted it yet, but I''m sure it''s not bad. Well, let''s eat. Yeah. My stomach''s been growling all night. That''s because I''ve been doing strength training all night. I''ve been tiptoeing for a long time, but Toya''s even more so. I didn''t make any noise, so it wasn''t a problem. Let''s eat, then. "Itadakimasu. We all chanted in unison and took a sip of the soup. Yes, it''s good. The base seems to be salty and some spices, but the broth from the landlocked salmon makes a good soup. The seri (parsley) is a little more fragrant than the other wild plants that Natsuki probably collected, but it also adds to the flavor. The udon is almost as good as frozen Sanuki udon, except that it is shorter. The udon is a little less thirsty, but considering the fact that it was made in this environment, it is a good product. "How''s ......? "Delicious. The udon and the soup are good. I replied and smiled at Yuki''s worried question. There is something about the taste that makes me feel at home in Japan. I don''t mind the bread, but I get bored with it all the time. You''re right. It''s been a long time since I''ve had fish soup. It''s delicious. It''s going to be cold soon, so you might as well make dried fish. For soup stock. So far, I haven''t found any kombu or dried bonito flakes, so Natsuki wants something to use as soup stock for her future cooking. Of course, I''m willing to help if it''s for good food. Dried shiitake mushrooms are another option, but dried mushrooms are expensive, aren''t they? Yes. They''re expensive. I guess they are not cultivated. I asked Natsuki about the price, but it was too expensive to buy for soup stock. No, it''s not a matter of soup stock or anything like that. At least, it''s not something you can use for everyday cooking. "Is fish cheap in a city near the sea? "It may be cheaper at the beach, but the distance is too great. It takes days to get there from here, so I can''t go shopping. There is no such thing as a horse-drawn carriage, so we have to make our own carriage or go on foot, which is a very tough way to go. As a matter of course, you will have to camp along the way, and there are dangers from demons and bandits. At the very least, it does not seem practical to go there just to buy fish. "Hmmm, this means I''ll have to catch more and more fish for a good meal! "Yeah, right. No objections! We were both eager to go fishing. 100-090 Fishing line (4) After breakfast, we went to check the traps that Haruka and the others had set yesterday. How many traps did you set in total? "Three small and three large box-shaped ones, and three baskets, for a total of nine. We were so engrossed in the fishing that we didn''t get a good look at them, but they seemed to have been set in a certain range. We didn''t know where to put them. I put them in a few different places. ...... Let''s try the big box first. Halka and the others took me to a place where a long, narrow box, about 1.5 meters long and 30 centimeters wide, was submerged. The box had a number of holes drilled in its sides to allow water to drain out. The box was set in a place not too far from the riverside, deep enough to somehow sink below the surface of the water, and some stones were placed on top of it as weights. As you can see from its size, the target seems to be a Great Salamander. Let''s get it up. Toya said, removing the stones and lifting the box, but immediately shook his head. It looks empty. We all looked into the box, but it was still empty. There''s nothing in it. There''s no food left. Maybe it was washed away. What did they use? Orc meat. That''s a lot of meat. Some of it was thrown in without being properly dismembered, so there''s no waste if we use the parts we don''t eat. It''s a river creature, so fish would be better, right? No, I think they eat pretty much anything, those creatures. Well, let''s see what we got today. Next, next. The second one was a little farther downstream. Toya lifted it again, this time with a grin, and brought it straight to him, carefully opening the lid. ...... That''s a catfish. And two of them. They''re huge, man. Two catfishes, each thicker than my arm and almost a meter long, lay there shuffling about. They looked like they were about to be lifted out of the water, but they stayed still in the box and didn''t move much. They''re not the Great Salamanders, but they can eat catfish, can''t they? "Yes. Yes, but you have to remove the mud. I''ve heard that catfish is often used for fried white fish in convenience store lunch boxes. Oh, really? Yes. I heard that the taste depends on the environment in which it is raised, but I''m sure it will taste good in this river. Okay, let''s get this one out of the mud next to the sponges. We filled the tub with water, moved the catfish into it, and headed for the trap that was further downstream. That''s the last of the big traps. "The big salamander is at ....... Oh?¡¡Is this a hit? "This is the last of the big traps," Toya said as he tried to lift the box, then changed the way he held it and carried it over. It''s heavier than before. Maybe we should be careful. When I looked inside through the hole in the side of the box, I saw the same slimy face I saw yesterday. That''s what I saw yesterday. You can catch it. ....... I didn''t think it would work, but... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one.¡¡I wasn''t sure. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It seems that Natsuki took the lead in making the trap. She was not so sure, though, since she only knew how to do it, but had never tried it before. I don''t want you to get away, so let''s just freeze you. Unlike the catfish, the Great Salamander had legs, so Haruka cast a spell on it while it was still in the box and froze it to a crisp. The Great Salamander then goes straight into the magic bag. It was over a meter in size, so she could get a good price for it. I''m going to have to do this again. I know. Hundreds of thousands of yen just to set it up for one night, I shudder! Yuki is smiling while saying she''s shaking. Of course, we were smiling, too. I like the fact that it''s not life-threatening and doesn''t take much effort! Now let''s pull up the small box. This one is for fish. ...... To be frank, it''s for eels! Eels!¡¡--But there''s no soy sauce, right? It''s the way it''s cooked and the sauce that makes eel so good. I don''t want to eat eel dishes like the eel in jelly that I hear about in England. I don''t want to eat the eel jelly dish that is rumored to be available in England. ......, in case I can get it someday! Apparently, Natsuki doesn''t know how to cook eels well except for kabayaki. I''ve heard of eating shirayaki with wasabi and soy sauce, but this is also soy sauce after all. Let''s go and check first. It''s like a raccoon without a catch, right? "That''s right. It''s not too late to worry about it after we get it. I found a small box of traps in shallow water. It''s about the same length, but it''s less than 15 centimeters on each side, so it looks even longer and narrower. "Oh, it looks like there''s something in it. This time I collected it. When I lifted it up, it was a little heavy. I couldn''t tell if it was eel or not, but it seemed to have something in it. I took it back to the riverbank and turned it over in the tub that had been prepared for it. ....... It''s an eel! A huge eel came out of the box. It seemed to be about a size thicker and 20 to 30% longer than the eel I had imagined. Well, I rarely have a chance to see a real eel. Well, I remember seeing one swimming in a tank at a sushi restaurant. It was very thin and short. Natsuki, are you sure it''s an eel? "It''s probably an eel, and the help page says so. I don''t know if it tastes like Japanese eel, though. Oh, I see. Eels don''t always taste good, do they? "Hmm?¡¡Are there different kinds of eels? It was Natsuki who answered Toya''s question. "Yes. In Japan, Japanese eels and European eels are used for kabayaki. There are many other types of eels, but they are not edible or very tasty. ...... I see. But this eel is at least edible. The appraisal says it''s edible. That''s good news. Let''s see if it''s good or not when we eat it at ....... Then we collected the other two boxes and got two more eels, which, like the catfish, were left for a while to drain. "Finally, the basket. There are three of them. I''ve set them up in three places, one shallow, one deep, and one in between. ...... These are for crabs and shrimps. "Oh!¡¡Can you catch them? I don''t know if we''ll be able to catch anything with edible flesh, but even small crabs can be used for broth, so they won''t go to waste. I''m so excited about crabs! I''ve never had the chance to eat much of anything like that. The first one is ...... Oh! Yes!¡¡Crab! There were more than ten crabs in the basket, each a little larger than the palm of your hand, even at a quick glance. They were quite heavy. The size of the crabs is about the same as a blue crab, but the shape is similar to a blue crab. Is it edible? "Its name is ''Barei Crab'' and it is edible. Yes!¡¡It would be a disaster if we couldn''t eat it. Well then, we''ve got to get this. Let''s put it in a barrel. The barrels used for making dried meat were in the magic bag, so we filled it with clean water and put the crabs in. A few small fish were also in the bag, but I released them. Good luck and grow up. Next time you come fishing. It''s going better than I expected. I thought I''d only be able to catch a few, if not all of them. That''s right. We''re amateurs after all. I guess no one''s coming to catch it. It''s too dangerous. If the word gets out that it''s as good as the Great Salamander, rich people will start asking for it. Okay, let''s keep it a secret! No objections! Toya immediately agreed with my words. Yuki nodded her head in agreement. But Natsuki smiled at us. But Natsuki smiled at us and said, "It doesn''t mean the Valley Crab is still good.¡¡It might just be that they''re not being caught because they''re not tasty. If that''s the case, I''ll be very disappointed. It''s a crab that''s worth eating. "Next, we''ll put the basket in the middle depth. How about this? This time, Haruka jumped to a rock in the middle of the river, pulled the rope tied to the rock, and pulled up the basket. It was hard to see from the riverbank, but it seemed to contain something, and Haruka came back with the basket with a smile. It''s a king prawn, apparently. Toya, can we eat these too? "Well, ...... is edible. I looked into the basket and saw a large number of translucent shrimp jumping around. They are not very big, only about 10 centimeters, but there are a lot of them. I moved them to a barrel filled with water and then to the last basket. The rope tied to the basket was tied to a tree on the opposite bank. I''m gonna have to pull you up with it. Pretty heavy, huh? It''s weighted. It''s pretty deep. It''s probably more than five meters deep. The rope is not very thick and the basket itself does not look very strong, so we pull it up slowly and carefully. If it were made of metal, you could pull it out easily, but it looks like it was made by modifying a wooden basket, and the strength of this trap seems to be quite delicate. ...... Wow. When the basket came to the surface of the water, it was filled with a lot of shrimp-like things. They looked more like crayfish. However, they were about 20 centimeters in size, with hard-looking shells, dark brown in color, and not reddish like the American crayfish. A ''shell shrimp''. It''s also edible. They''re shrimp, so they''re probably tasty, but when they''re all gathered together like this, they don''t look good on ......, do they? "No, but they''re shrimp.¡¡They''ll be good! I hope so. Back on the other side of the river, we put this in the barrel too. It''s overcrowded, but now that it''s back in the water, it doesn''t move much and stays put. But the fish are good, and we can catch a lot in the basket. It''s a pretty good fishery here. "And conveniently, we can eat everything. Catfish, crabs, and two kinds of shrimp. Lucky for us, he says, they''re all edible. No, that''s not surprising. Even in Japan, if you dredge the river and catch all the creatures, you can eat most of them. Whether they are tasty or not, they are edible. That''s right. We can eat carp, crucian carp, longsnout fish, loach, crawfish, black bass and bluegill. Turtles seem to be tougher. But then, shocking information came out from Natsuki. Actually, I heard that you can eat green turtles and leatherback turtles.¡¡I''ve never eaten them, though. Really? It''s true. Seriously. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡I''m sure it will be ....... But, since you''re going to eat the sponges, ...... no, ...... well, I don''t want to eat them as much as possible. The appearance is important. People and food. Even if the inside of the food is good, it''s useless if you can''t get people to eat it. I guess it''s better for the ingredients. 101-091 Fishing (5) But you got more than you bargained for. Yes. I was expecting to get some, but it was more than I expected. We don''t eat crabs and shrimps every day, and today''s catch is enough to last us for a month or two. If we continue for two more days, we may be able to have a good meal for the time being, even if the catch decreases a little. You''re going to set up the basket again, right? Yeah, we''ll taste it at lunch and if it''s good, we''ll set it up. That''s right. It would be a pity if we brought back a lot of food and it didn''t taste good. It would be better to leave them for a few days in order to remove the mud, but we should try to taste them considering the muddy smell. Yuki was right, it would be very hard to waste the effort because of the high expectation. Let''s try our best to catch landlocked salmon, which are known to be delicious. Nao, lend me your fishing rod and hook. You can use any of them you like. I brought a total of six fishing rods, including a spare. The rods are simple ones made of bent branches that have been lightly shaved, but from what I saw yesterday, they''re not too bad for catching landlocked salmon. Toya and I had made three hair hooks each, and we handed them to Haruka and the others. If you put the hooks upstream in a place where the current isn''t too fast, you should be able to catch them. As an example, I threw a hair hook. After a few times, a landlocked salmon bites, so I pull the hook in and pull it in. When it bites, hold up the rod and scoop it up with the net. Easy, right? "Yes, sir. I guess anyone can do it. Yes, I think so. I''m just an amateur who did it for the first time yesterday. Is there anything else, Toya? No, not really. I''ve just been doing it randomly. I was just doing it." Amateurs are amateurs after all. The only thing we know is what Tommy told us. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. It was a hassle to make the nets because I didn''t know if Haruka and the others would be interested in fishing, so I only made three nets: one for me, one for Toya, and a spare. Compared to poles, which are easy to make, taro nets require a lot of time to weave with string. We''ll have to split into three groups. Goo, chop, and par. Right. Goo, choki, par! In unison, Toya played goo, Natsuki and I played par, and Yuki and Haruka played choki. Since we were nicely divided at the first time, we took the nets one by one and split them up. Natsuki and I climbed up on the rocks in the middle of the river, Natsuki targeting landlocked salmon in the slower current, and I using a lure in the faster current. "Nao, are there any fish that will bite such a big bait? "No, this lure is not biting. No, these lures don''t bite. They make it look like it''s swimming, and then they hook the fish that attack it to scare them away. ...... Of course, I''m just taking your word for it. It''s not like they''re going to bite you, so how do you think they''re going to hook you? That sounds difficult. ...... Yes, it does. If it doesn''t work, maybe I''ll try bait fishing. There are ordinary fishing hooks, so if you dig up some worms, you can probably catch something. But since I took the time to make it, I''d like to see some catches. I threw the lure downstream and pulled it upstream, as if it were swimming. It''s a bit awkward, but if you look at it from the perspective of the creator, it looks like a fish. ...... Yeah, that''s pretty subtle from a patronizing point of view. But you can''t give up right away. While adjusting your movements, throw and pull up, pull up and throw again. I''m a little impatient because Natsuki is already catching a lot of fish behind me, but... It''s coming! I feel a sensation on my rod, and I quickly adjust the line. The line is jumping and jerking. "Here you go! I put the net into the river, which Natsuki quickly offered to me, and pulled the rod. The shape of the fish on the surface of the water is quite large. You quickly put the fish in the net and pull it out. "Yes! I place the net on a rock and breathe a sigh of relief. "You did it! Natsuki smiled and clapped her hands. The fish in the net was over 30 centimeters long. Its shape was clearly different from that of a landlocked salmon. "Yes!¡¡Ayu!¡¡...... though it''s kind of big. It''s a little different from the ayu fish I know, but since the [help] page says so, I''m sure it''s ayu-like fish. I''ve never seen a sweetfish this big, although Japanese ayu fish can grow up to 30 centimeters. It seems to be worth eating. Well, as long as it''s big, there''s no problem. Yes, because when they''re small, there''s nowhere to eat them. If you can catch a lot of small fish, you can make tsukudani, but you won''t be able to catch that much unless you use a net. First of all, you can''t make tsukudani without soy sauce and sugar. But for efficiency, landlocked salmon is better. That''s right. While we were talking about this, Natsuki''s rod was hit. Natsuki pulls it in, and I hold out the net and scoop it up. Thank you very much. It''s about 25 centimeters. As you can see, you can consistently catch quite large landlocked salmon, so from the point of view of securing food, it is more efficient to target landlocked salmon. ...... Well, it''s better to have various kinds of fish, right?¡¡We''re here for leisure. Yes, even if you can''t catch anything, it''s okay to have fun. "Ugh. Natsuki said sternly with a smile. No, it''s not that he''s stern, it''s just that he''s Natsuki, so he''s not being sarcastic. It''s not like we''re in dire need of money or food. "Don''t worry, you''ll catch it! At least, I could confirm that I could catch fish with the lure I made. I cast the lure to a place slightly off from where I had caught the fish earlier. Tommy told me that the lure is designed to catch fish by using their territory, so you can''t catch fish in the same place continuously. He told me that I should use a long rod, so I used a longer rod than the others, but it was still less than five meters long. I was told to use a longer rod than others, but it was still less than 5 meters. I''ve been thinking about it. Contrary to our expectation, we were able to catch ayu consistently without moving places. The interval between catches became shorter and shorter, and we could catch one ayu while Natsuki caught four or five ayu. We continued fishing until the sun reached mid-heaven, and then, at Haruka''s suggestion, we paused fishing and returned to the camp. "How''s the fishing going, guys? "I''m not so good.¡¡I can''t catch as many as yamame, but I can catch ayu to a certain extent. It seems that even a bad lure can help, right? I agree with you. I feel the same way. If you''re only thinking about quantity, landlocked salmon is better. ...... How are Haruka and the others doing? We''re doing fine. Hey, Yuki. Yeah. We''re catching fish like crazy!¡¡It''s funny when you catch this many fish. Yuki holds out her tub and smiles happily. When I looked into it, I saw more landlocked salmon wriggling around than I had caught yesterday. I think the two main reasons why people find fishing boring or dislike it are the long wait to catch a fish and the need to attach disgusting insects. I''m sure most people will enjoy this place, but not those who find the fish disgusting. But with so many fish, it''s hard to prepare them. Really. I wish I could put it in my magic bag. I don''t suppose it''ll hold living things? No. I''ve never tried ....... I''ve never tried it." Haruka twisted her head, wondering if she had just said it again. It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web and also the web site. There are definitely microorganisms attached to the items in the magic bag, aren''t there? There are also fruits and vegetables in there, but those are not bio-determined, so ....... Why don''t you try it? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. Then he pulls out his hand and closes the lid. It''s in there, isn''t it? "Yeah. Let''s get it out. I open the lid, take out the bag that Haruka just put in, and put the landlocked salmon in the tub. ...... It''s alive. Is it possible that the biometric test is limited to mammals? I''m not sure if that''s a good idea or not. If we think of the exclusion process as a kind of sensor, it might be easier to determine if it is a mammal than to determine if it is an organism. Either way, it''s a system that works for us. Absolutely. It''ll save me from endless fish-handling duties. There are about a hundred fish now. If we continue until the evening, we''ll probably have more than two hundred. No matter how good your cooking skills are, it''s definitely a disgusting amount. "But you know, it''s the alchemy technique that limits them, right?¡¡Isn''t it?¡¡So you think Haruka can make a magic bag with no restrictions? I can''t do that right now. If you want to put it simply, there is a difference between assembling a plastic model and designing a plastic model. Okay, that''s easy to understand. If it''s that different, it''s impossible. "Well, it''s just convenient, right?¡¡Let''s put everything in it. Yuki was about to put the fish into the bag, and I hurriedly stopped her. "Wait a minute. It''s better to put the fish in the water because it''s not zero, just slow. Even with the overcrowding, it''s better than no water. We transferred all the fish we had caught into barrels and put them in magic bags with lids on. I guess we''d better start cooking some of the fish when we get back to town. Yeah. Then you can freeze it and keep it in the bag for a long time. With Haruka''s magic and the magic bag, you can use it as a refrigerator or freezer. The refrigerator in Aella''s store is quite expensive, so this is a great help. This will make our eating habits even better!¡¡My dreams are expanding. 102-092 Fishing (6) Hey, that''s important, but why don''t we get some lunch?¡¡You''re going to try crab and shrimp, right?¡¡I''ve been looking forward to it all morning. Toya, who had been impatiently watching our magic bag experiment, seemed to have reached the end of his patience and complained while holding his stomach. It was true that I was also getting very hungry. Breakfast was good, but the portions were a bit small, and dinner was a bit early last night. "Oh, I''m sorry. Do you mind if I grill it for now? "Yes. Let''s cook them without spices. Let''s cook them one by one. The prawns are small, so we''ll take two. Quickly build a fire and set the net on it. The prawns are split lengthwise and placed on the net. Salt was sprinkled on top. That seemed to be the only seasoning. The shrimps and crabs gradually turned red with the sound of cooking. Every time the liquid falls, smoke rises and a delicious smell wafts around. "Hey, hey, can''t we eat them yet? "Well, are the prawns ready?¡¡Let''s cut them up. Haruka took the prawns out of the net, placed them on the cutting board, removed the shells, and cut them into two or three pieces. The larger ones are for Toya and Nao. Here you go. I''ve put some salt on this plate for you to use. Bon app¨¦tit! I grabbed a shrimp from the cutting board that was offered to me, dipped it in salt and put it in my mouth. ...... Ooh, delicious. It''s not as tight as black tiger, but soft enough to fall apart. The meat is not tight like black tiger, but soft and crumbly. It''s even better than I expected. I didn''t remove the back gut, but I hardly notice it. It can be used in all kinds of dishes. --Except for sashimi. Oh, maybe not for sashimi? You can''t eat raw fish from the river. Probably not in this world either. I''m afraid of parasites. Sashimi of river fish is not unheard of, but it is not a recommended way of eating. Salmon, which is used as a sushi ingredient these days, is originally a fish that is not good to eat raw. It can be eaten because it is raised in a special environment, and it is forbidden to eat salmon caught in the river as sashimi. It is dangerous to eat salmon caught in the river as sashimi unless you freeze it at a low temperature or use salt and vinegar to kill the parasites. If you want to be safe, you should cook it. "But this is so good, one bite is not enough. Can we cook more? "No, no, no, Toya, we still have shrimp and crab. Let''s eat them first. The crustaceans look good. Poke them with your chopsticks. Sure I will! Sure! As soon as Haruka gave his permission, Toya reached out with her chopsticks and gouged out the tail. It''s delicious! "d*mn it!¡¡No thanks, no thanks! With half of the tail meat gone, there was hardly any room to eat. The meat on the tail was gone, so there was little room to eat it. The meat on the tail might be good, too, but that''s about it. Shall I cut the ......? Haruka sighed when she saw what Toya had done. Natsuki picked up a knife and cut the other half of the tail into four equal pieces. Sorry. No, no, no. After thanking Natsuki, he picks up a piece of shrimp meat, twists it around the meat and eats it. This taste is ...... lobster?¡¡I don''t remember eating more than a few, but it tastes like that. The taste is a little muddy, but I think it will go away after a while of removing the mud. "Crustaceans are delicious, too! "The shells were very hard, though. According to Natsuki, the shells were much harder than those of lobsters, and an ordinary knife would probably not be able to cut through them. Thanks to this knife, I was able to break it vertically, but it''s impossible to do that normally. I heard that he used the sharpness of the knife and his strengthened arm power to smash the shell. By the way, if you just want to eat it normally, you can just insert the blade from the belly, so if you don''t mind the appearance, there seems to be no problem. The head part has a slight odor, but you can remove it, remove the mud, or use spices. ...... Natsuki tasted some of the miso that I put on the head, and nodded and said something like that. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not even sure I can eat this much. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. This is a ...... food resentment is terrible, you know?¡¡I would like to say that, but my anger subsides when I see a barrel full of crustacean shrimp. If this were a barbecue in Japan and the crustacean was a lobster, we would be talking with our fists. The last one is crab. It will be difficult to eat, so I will cut it into pieces. Natsuki places the crab on the cutting board, removes all the legs, and opens the shell. After dividing the body into four equal parts, she cut the legs into pieces so that they could be easily eaten. This is a very impressive move that I could never do. I''ve never cooked a crab in my life. After a while of waiting, Natsuki put down the knife and held out the cutting board. "Here you go. Please take it as you like. With Toya quickly securing a quarter of the body, I picked up the legs. There were no legs like the fins of a blue crab, just normal legs, but the scissors were a little small. The legs are not that thick, but they have a good amount of meat. They are not as long as snow crab legs, but it seems that you can get enough meat from each leg to fill two crab cages, so they are quite filling. The meat from each leg is sprinkled with salt and eaten. Hmmm, ...... is better than crab cakes. "In my opinion, it''s better than canned snow crab. For me, snow crab is better. Maybe the snow crab Natsuki is eating is better. I think it''s better than the crab from the conveyor belt sushi at least. Are we somewhat divided in our opinions? Or should I exclude Natsuki, who seems to be eating the best food? It''s natural for the same food to taste different depending on its quality. At least, there is no opinion that it is bad. Nao said crabapples, but that''s a strange thing to say. It''s easy to use because it has no peculiarities. It''s not really crabapples, but it doesn''t seem to have the richness of crab. Oh, really?¡¡I don''t think so. ...... The one person who had a different opinion was Toya. I''m not sure what you''re talking about. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. "I wonder if it tastes different from the legs? But this crab, like the blue crab, has a lot of meat on its body. "No!¡¡It''s totally different! "Seriously? I also took a bite of the body. It''s ...... totally different from the texture. It''s a little sticky and rich in flavor. It''s like the flavor of the crab is condensed, which may be to some people''s taste. I also picked up some of the crabmeat left in the shell, but it too had a strong flavor. Those who like it will like it very much, but those who don''t like it may not like it. If you mix the legs, the body, and the crabmeat, it might be just right. I''m not sure if that''s a good idea for everyone.¡¡For me, it''s good enough to be served separately. I want to eat crab fried rice. Don''t they sell rice? Since yesterday, I''ve been eating a lot of meals that make me want to eat rice, such as grilled fish and fish soup, and I''m starting to miss rice. Bread is a little different, after all. If you fry fish, it goes well with bread, but if it''s grilled, you want white rice. At least they don''t sell it in Laffan. At least they don''t sell it in Laffan. There''s wheat, so I''m sure there''s rice somewhere. ...... I''m sure you can find it in subtropical and temperate areas.¡¡I don''t know if it''s a short-grain variety suitable for cooking rice, though. Climatic issues. In the original world, historically, long-grained rice was more common, and those who ate it as rice, like the Japanese, were in the minority. In the original world, long grains were more common, and eating them as rice was less common. Yuki made udon noodles for me, so I guess it''s not so bad.¡¡If all we had was bread, I''m sure I''d get bored. "Udon. Udon is good because it''s made from wheat and can be used to finish off a hot pot. It''s a good idea to use wheat. I''m embarrassed to hear you say that. When we get a house, I''ll make something better, so keep your eyes peeled! Yuki smiled and scratched her head at our words. The udon we had in the morning was tasty enough, except for its shortness, so we were looking forward to it. If I were to be extravagant, I''d like some kombu dashi. Well, let''s put aside the fact that we can''t do anything about it right away, and at least secure some crabs and shrimps. Absolutely! We''ll get them all! Of course that was impossible, and we should leave some for later, but that was the mood I was in. Well, we''ll set another trap in the afternoon and keep fishing. "Right. If we set the baskets today and tomorrow, we will have enough to eat for a while. "If it''s this good, it''s worth staying overnight to catch it, and we''ll have to come back when it''s gone. No one raised an objection to my words, and we all nodded in agreement. In the end, our four-day, three-night fishing trip ended with us spending all our time fishing and trapping in the river. Thanks to the fact that we moved our fishing spot a little upstream on the way, we were able to secure char in addition to landlocked salmon, and incidentally, we were not even attacked by a demon once, probably because we had hunted all the orcs the other day. Thanks to this, we were able to secure a large number of fish, crabs, shrimps, and about five Great Salamanders. That''s a lot of food for the five of us, but we''ll probably last about six months. We returned to Laffan, vowing to visit again. 103-093 Hem parting (1) Fascinated by the fish and crabs, we continued fishing until the very last minute on the last day, and left the river after a hasty lunch. Because of our persistence, we drove all the way home and reached the city just as the sun was setting. After three full days of fishing, we had enough landlocked salmon to spare, so we split up and gave two fish each to Tommy and Ganz, and Diora and Aella. It was a little late, but since we were keeping the magic bag a secret, Haruka went around handing out the frozen ones. It would be suspicious if we brought too much fresh food tomorrow or later. Incidentally, I haven''t told Tommy about the magic bag either, in order to avoid any trouble. If it was just Tommy, I could have made him a magic bag, but considering the possibility that other classmates might be in town, I decided to keep it a secret from everyone except the party members. If I made it for them as well, it would spread endlessly, and if I refused, they might resent me and cause trouble. It would be better to keep it a secret at all than to let that happen. I ended up catching about five of the Great Salamanders I had been commissioned to get, but I kept one of them and delivered the rest to the guild. The total cost was about 200 gold coins. They are quite expensive, but apparently they are good enough to sell to vain nobles. According to Diora, the landlocked salmon would be worth two or three large silver coins if we sold them, but since we were not in any particular financial trouble, and since we had them for our own use, we kept all of them in our magic bag except for the ones we shared. A couple of large silver coins for one fish may seem a bit high, but when you consider the size of the fish (about 30 centimeters) and the fact that it''s not much more expensive than other food, it''s ...... not too expensive. Even in Japan, the price of fish can be quite expensive, and considering the level of adventurers who can safely go fishing, it may be a bit cheaper. However, it is not always (?????) possible to buy fish for that price (????). In Japan, most things can be bought at supermarkets, and even if not, you can get them by mail order. In Japan, you can buy most things in supermarkets, and even if you don''t have it, you can get it by mail order. But here, you can''t always find what you want in stores, and of course there is no easy mail order. If you really want something, you can ask an adventurer for it, but that won''t cost you more than a few large silver coins. In such a case, you might want to think carefully about what you sell. You may want to think carefully about what you are selling, because the value may not be equal to the difficulty of obtaining it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea. The next day at breakfast, Yuki said, "I think I''ll go to Simon''s and bring him some fish for lunch, what do you want to do? At breakfast the next day, Yuki asked me this question, and Toya and I looked at each other. Simon was the carpenter who was building our house, and he was also the old man who was in charge of Aella''s store. He must be very skilled, because he was able to complete such a large store just by listening to a suspicious consultant. Since he was indebted to them for helping him make the trap, he decided to serve them a fish dish to encourage them to build the house. But if they find out that they can catch the Great Salamander, more adventurers might go out to catch it. "I don''t like that. I don''t like the idea of that. Crabs and shrimps are delicious. Toya frowned a little at my words. I may be a little selfish, but I agree with him. I didn''t tell Simon that it was a trap, so I think it''s safe.¡¡Maybe he''ll think it''s a carrying box. "A carrying box. ...... The trap I used was a long, narrow wooden box with a hole in it. It''s not a strange shape if you think of it as a way to shove a frozen Great Salamander and ice into it. The hole is for draining the melted ice and the vertical shape is for carrying it on your back. ......? In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. It''s easy to forget that we have three wizards, but only a few of us can use magic. There are even fewer who can produce ice or freeze an object. In the first place, a wizard of that level can earn enough money without having to become a dangerous adventurer. If you think about it that way, you don''t have to worry too much about competition. I''m not opposed to serving you fish if you''ve taken care of me, but you''ve been on vacation for quite a while, haven''t you?¡¡Don''t you have to work? "Hmm, but I did catch a nice Great Salamander. It was a vacation in terms of mood, but in terms of income, we''re working, aren''t we? That''s true. Do you think that each of us earns several tens of thousands of yen a day? I didn''t train while I was fishing, but today I''ve been doing my daily training before breakfast, so I don''t feel slowed down. And I''m still trying to figure out what to do next. What do you think, Nao? Normally we would move to the south forest, right? Yeah. Without hunting orcs. The southern forest is said to be more dangerous than the eastern forest, but in reality, there are no enemies stronger than orcs. However, the encounter rate with demons is higher, so if you only consider that, the danger level is higher than if you were gathering in the outer edges of the Eastern Forest. The most common species are goblins, hobgoblins, and their higher forms, which you will encounter even if you don''t go too deep into the forest. There are also "Branch Eater Spiders" and "Slash Owls". According to the book, these monsters are a little tricky to deal with, but they won''t be much of a threat to us. However, all of these demons are not good for earning money, because you can only earn money by killing them with magic stones, not by selling their meat like Orcs. The medicinal herbs that can be gathered are not much different from those in the Eastern Forest, so they are not very useful either. The main job of adventurers in the Southern Forest is to escort lumberjacks on their way to harvest wood. The city has a strong demand for wood due to its furniture production, so there are daily requests for these escorts, and the rewards are not bad for a beginner adventurer. The reward is not too bad for a beginner adventurer. You can also get an additional reward if you get a magic stone from the goblin that attacked you. You can''t get rich, but the danger is low, and you can earn enough to pay for your daily lodging and save some money. But it''s not like I''m guarding a woodcutter now. ...... As Toya muttered in frustration, for those of us who had been raking in the dildos and orcs, the amount of money was rather modest. To put it bluntly, it was too cheap to motivate us to work. In fact, we could make more money hunting boars in the eastern forest, but the problem is that the number of boars is likely to decrease in the coming season. I wish there was something I could collect that would have a high purchase price. ...... "Hmm, you don''t have to worry so much about that, do you? "Well, you don''t have to worry about it so much," Yuki said to a somewhat worried Natsuki. "Why? "Because, think about what we have now. Even if you pay for the rest of the house, you''ll still have enough money to live on for a year.¡¡You won''t need to pay for lodging. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Well, ...... has plenty of food and clothing. We have enough food and clothing to maintain and even update our weapons and armor, but that''s not enough. "So you''re saying it''s fine if we keep things the way they are?¡¡If that''s the case, don''t you think we should try to improve ourselves without worrying too much about the rewards?¡¡Besides, once we get the house, there are other skills we can use to make money, like alchemy and pharmacy, right? ''...... Come to think of it . If the need arises, we can sell the magic bags and we won''t starve. I''d rather use that as a last resort, but Yuki does have a point. I''ve been making money somewhat obsessively due to the lack of a safety net, but now, even if I get sick and have to take some time off, I don''t have to worry about being kicked out of the inn or having to worry about food. Of course, we don''t have enough money to retire comfortably, but we are not old enough to worry about that yet. Even if we have to reduce our reserves a little in the winter, we can still make money in the spring and fall. In that case, why don''t we scout the southern forest today?¡¡It''s the first time I''ve been in the forest, and I think I might be able to make some money there. "I see. That''s not a bad idea. Tohya agreed to Natsuki''s suggestion, and we nodded. Let''s go and have lunch with Simon and the others first. I''m also curious about the condition of the house. It''s been about a week since my last visit. It had been almost a week since our last visit. It had been almost a week since our last visit, and the house had changed rapidly. Externally, the house was almost finished, and now the plaster was being applied to the exterior walls. About half of the plastering is already done, and judging from the number of people working on it and the speed of the work, it will probably be finished by the end of the day. However, since we can''t see the inside of the building including the interior, we can''t tell how much progress has been made as a whole. "Mr. Simon!¡¡Good morning! "Hey, girls. You''re back? Yuki ran up to Simon, who was supervising the whole thing, and called out to him, and he turned around and narrowed his eyes. In this world, where people marry quickly, a man of his age would be about the same age as his grandchildren if he were Yuki or us. Perhaps because of this, the way he looked at Yuki and the others was as if he was looking at his grandchildren who were working hard. "Yes!¡¡I''ve finished my work safely. The construction seems to be going well, how is it going? "As you can see, the exterior walls are almost finished. There''s one more coat to be applied, but that will be done tomorrow. The inside won''t be done for another two weeks. ...... is pretty fast, isn''t it? Oh, we''ve been blessed with good weather for this time of year. The rest of the work will be done indoors, so I don''t think there will be any delays. If all goes well, it will be finished in a little over a month. There were three main reasons for the earlier-than-expected completion: first, the ground was stronger than expected. The first reason was that the ground was stronger than we had expected. We left the details of the shape of the house to Simon, and he was able to use the foundation of the previous house. Another thing was the advance payment. The other was the advance payment of 600 gold coins, which allowed them to hire more people and proceed with the work at once. They laughed at me when I said, "Normally, you would give them money while monitoring the progress. He laughed at me and said, "Normally, you''d hand it over while monitoring the progress. I wasn''t directly involved, but Yuki, Haruka and the others must have judged that they could be trusted, and they''re actually doing the work without running away with the money. Last but not least, the weather. It is said that the weather is prone to breakdowns this time of year, but we have been lucky enough to have overcast skies and a little drizzle, but never enough rain during the day to stop the construction. So did you come here today to check on the situation?¡¡Or are you doing your usual training? Oh, no, I just wanted to bring you something simple for lunch. You''ve been good to me. "Oh, homemade by the girls?¡¡Well, I''m sure they''ll be pleased. I heard that at one time there were more than ten people working here, but the only ones left are the ones who need the skills, so there are only five of us here today, including Simon. We only need to cook for ten people including us, so it might be easier than I thought. I''ll call you around noon, so good luck with your work! I''ll call you around noon. Simon patted Yuki on the shoulder and went back to his work. There was still plenty of time for lunch, but Haruka and the others seemed to have finished the food preparation first, so they took out a large pot and started working. In the meantime, there''s nothing we can do, so we''re going to do some training away from here. "Ah! What the hell?¡¡What''s going on? I sat down and pointed to a corner of the yard. "Perfect, I forgot about ....... "Stone?¡¡Oh, that''s it!¡¡I had a feeling I was forgetting something! Tell me! If I knew, I''d tell you!¡¡I couldn''t remember! "......, right? I pointed to a pile of rocks that Toya and I had picked up in the meadow about a week ago. Yes, I had completely forgotten about the garden stones we were supposed to collect from the mountain stream. The fishing went so well that we caught a Great Salamander and a lot of crabs and shrimps. I was so satisfied that I forgot the reason why I wanted to go there. "What are you going to do? Are we going back? ''...... on hold. I''ll think about it when we''re out of fish and crabs. I don''t need anything right now. Gardening is just a hobby. If you don''t care about appearance, you don''t need rocks for a vegetable garden. "Hey, I was just wondering, can''t you make blocks out of earth magic?¡¡There are stone missiles, right? It''s not impossible, but Yuki is the only one who can use earth magic. What about Nao?¡¡What about Nao? She''s an elf, right? ...... is not impossible. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure what to say. But I''ve never practiced anything but space-time magic and fire magic. I''m getting used to manipulating magic, so I think I have a chance, but I''m not sure how long it will take me to make a block. ....... "Well, good luck. You can''t blame Yuki for your own misdeeds, can you? You''re just as guilty as I am! I can''t even use magic! You can''t put this on Yuki! I know it''s a joke, but it still makes me want to kill him. "d*mn, you''re a brainiac. Hahaha, I won''t deny it. Deny it. You''re not a brainiac, you know. You just can''t do magic. You''re not a brainiac, you know. He''s not in the top group like Haruka and the others, but he and I were at the top of our class. "It''s a tribal problem, it can''t be helped! "Well, ......, I''ll do my best. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you.¡¡The appraisal skill is almost certainly affected by your own knowledge, right? "Yeah. It''s probably not going to level up if you use it a lot. It seems that Toya has been repeatedly appraising every single thing he sees for quite a while, yet his [Appraisal] level has not changed from the initial 2. What we can expect from this is the possibility that the [Appraisal] skill does not level up just by using it. On the other hand, if Toya increases her knowledge by doing research in the guild, the information displayed in the appraisal will also change. If this is the case, it is easy to imagine that her own knowledge will have an effect. So, shall we read the Demon Encyclopedia? "Yeah, do that. I''m going to work in the dirt. While Toya lay down on the ground and began to read elegantly, I sat down on the ground, gathered up some soil, and began to practice passing magic power through it. 104-094 Heming (2) "Nao, it''s done! With that voice, he tapped me on the shoulder, and I looked up with a start. There in front of me was Haruka''s face. The slightly dumbfounded look on her face suggested that she had already called out to me several times. When I looked up at the sky, the sun was almost in the middle of the sky, and before I knew it, it was time for lunch. "Oh, sorry, I''ll be right there. I stood up and tried to slap my ass, but Haruka held up a hand to restrain me, and then applied ''purification'' to clean my hands, including the dirt on them. Thanks. "No, no. When I followed Haruka to the others, a simple table was set up with deep plates of food on it, and everyone was already around it. Sorry for the wait. Hey. How are you doing, Nao? Almost there. Here. I threw the object in my hand, and Toya caught it well. "Are these dice ......?¡¡Six-sided die, eight-sided, is that ten-sided? I can make an eight-sided die, but a ten-sided die is hard. I threw him several dice made of hardened earth. Each side has a number carved into it and is hardened so that it will not chip easily. I managed to make a six-sided die with a perfect square and an eight-sided die with two square pyramids, but a ten-sided die with a pentagonal pyramid slightly shifted and attached to it was quite difficult. However, the 10-sided die, which consists of a pentagonal pyramid slightly displaced and attached, is quite difficult to make. Hey, hey, hey, aren''t you losing sight of your goal? "...... No, no, no, no, no. Of course, it is an exercise in magic control. Of course, I was practicing magic control. I was just taking a break from my boring training to make a few dice, and I got a little carried away. Yes, just a little. "Come on, let''s eat. It''ll get cold. What Haruka and the others made seemed to be the udon noodles Yuki had made on the second morning of the fishing trip. The ingredients may be a little different, but the warm steam and delicious aroma of the food is very appetizing in this chilly weather. I was waiting for Nao. ...... Well, let''s eat. Simon, please eat too. I''ll take it. --Oh, yum!¡¡It''s so good! It''s so good, man. It''s so good! I bet there''d be a line out the door for this! Apparently, our taste buds were satisfied with Simon''s taste buds too. They didn''t seem to mind the noodles, and ate them without hesitation. I tried it myself, but it tasted a little better than what I had eaten at that time, probably because there were fewer restrictions than in the camp. However, it is a little less tasty than the one I had after the second day, when I added crab to the broth. You guys are really good at cooking, aren''t you? No!¡¡No, wait!¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡Did you guys ...... go up the Noria River to catch the Great Salamander? You know what I mean? I heard there are always requests to catch them. Not many people go out to catch them, though. It''s the only time fish come into town. It''s true that when I''ve gone shopping, I''ve never found any fish for sale. I don''t remember eating fish in this town either, since it''s never served at Aera''s store or the Bear Pavilion. I asked Simon, "Is it because the Great Salamander is so hard to find that so few people go out to catch it? When I asked Simon, he smiled and shrugged his shoulders. I don''t know much about them, but you need to camp in a forest with demons, right?¡¡I don''t know much about it, but you need to camp in a forest where there are demons, and sometimes even orcs. I guess it''s not worth it to spend days camping out in a place like that, looking for a Great Salamander you don''t know if you''ll ever find. We just happened to find one and killed it with a single thrust, but since then we haven''t seen any more except for the ones that were caught in traps. Perhaps the Great Salamander is nocturnal and difficult to find in the daytime. If you look for them at night, you may be able to find them, but of course the danger is high. Without lights, they can''t see what''s going on around them, and if the lights are too bright, there is a risk of attracting demons. But I don''t see any fish in this city. Are they not coming in from Sahlstat?¡¡It''s so close. It takes a wagon a day to get there. The carpenters all shook their heads. No one''s coming in. "It''s too bad, the fish in Sahlstat. It''s not even cheap. "Even though it''s close to the city, if it''s raw, you need to freeze or cool it with magic.¡¡Or dried or salted like we do when we transport them to faraway places. It will be more expensive, but the taste will be better. ...... "Oh, ....... Simon and the others said this with a bitter look on their faces, and we all shouted in agreement. If it''s made from the same fish we ate in Sahlstat, it''s certainly not very tasty. If it was expensive, it would be better to buy meat. I wondered why the people of that town were not afraid to eat such fish, but I wondered if it was some kind of regional delicacy. "If it has fish in it, I can''t serve it at a stall. "We''re adventurers, after all. We are adventurers, just like Simon and the others are carpenters. There''s a difference! That''s what Simon and the others laugh at. We can''t sell it, but we made a lot today, so please eat a lot. "Oh!¡¡We don''t get to eat it often. We don''t mind! As he said, Simon and his friends continued to eat without hesitation, and the cauldron was emptied in no time. I''m not going to go out of this gate. It''s the first time you''ve been out of this gate. "That''s right. I''ve been around here a lot. Just outside the south gate, there was a field. Most of the food consumed in Laffan is imported, so it''s not a huge area, but it''s still pretty big. It was quite a sight to see vegetables growing there, but I had never been here before, so this was the first time I had seen them. Even though the Adventurer''s Guild building is located near the south gate, we have always used the east gate to go out, and the land we purchased is located behind the guild to the east, so we never passed by the gate. Some people are working as farmers. Is it safe to go around here? The visibility is good. If it looks dangerous, they''ll run into town. You can see all the way to the forest. Even from the gate, you can see people working in the forest, far beyond the fields. If the lumberjacks are cutting trees there and the adventurers are guarding them, it''s unlikely that the demons will be able to get past them and come to the field. If that is the reason for the layout of the field, it must be very safe. As we walked along the path, the closer we got to the forest, the more we heard the "cone, cone" sound of axes chopping down trees. Considering the amount of noise and the frequency of the occasional tree falling, it seems that there are quite a few lumberjacks cutting wood. In the work area that came into view, there were only two or three adventurers for every lumberjack. Because they were cutting down trees, they were spread out over a wide area with a certain distance between them. In addition to guarding, the adventurers'' work includes collecting branches and carrying logs. It is doubtful that they would be useful as guards if they were fatigued from such work, but I guess that is not a problem in this area. ...... Oh, you don''t cut down all the trees from the edge, do you? Yeah, it''s more like thinning. As I got closer, I noticed that the lumberjacks were only cutting down the biggest trees in a certain area. The rest of the trees are left behind and moved from place to place. Is this to maintain the forest resources? Is there a rule? Considering that the city of Raffan is built on wood industry, the disappearance of resources is a matter of life and death. In light of this, Yuki was right, it would not be surprising if there were some sort of regulation. However, in this case, the remaining trees would get in the way, and it would be very difficult to cut them out from deep in the forest. Even now, a number of adventurers were coming out of the forest carrying a log, but their steps were slow because there was no proper path. They look more like day laborers than adventurers. That''s part of the Adventurer''s Guild. We''ve never had one. Oh, Tommy did, did he? Men''s work. There may be some fighting against goblins, but from the looks of it, the work of adventurers in this forest is mainly manual labor. They''ve been training diligently day in and day out, so it''s probably not impossible for us to take on this job, but I''m a little hesitant to let Haruka and the others take on this job. There are almost no female adventurers in the area. The reason I say "almost" is that there are some male adventurers who might be women, but I can''t tell. And he''s obviously a lot bigger than me. ...... For now, let''s go around them without getting in their way and enter the forest. "Right. We''ll be in the way if we stay here. Ahh! In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. 105-095 ...... troublesome I looked over and saw a male adventurer standing there, pointing at us with a shocked expression on his face. What?¡¡It''s not like we''re in the way, we''re far enough away from the work area, right? I nodded my head and looked at Haruka and the others. Do you know them? "...... No. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get there. I''m sure the only place you''ll get to know him is the adventurer''s guild, but he hasn''t shown his face much, and no events have occurred where he''s been involved in a tempestuous way. I don''t even go to the tavern, so I don''t get involved in any events there. Also, there was a guy on ...... the gatekeeper who had a thing for Haruka, but he wasn''t an adventurer. ....... I''m not sure what to do. What? I''m not sure if this is a classmate or not. He looks like an old man, but... If I met them on the street, I''d be tempted to attack them as bandits. He looks pretty dirty. So that leaves Azuma, Nagai and Kamiya. He looked at Yuki and Natsuki, who hadn''t changed much, and then seemed to think of us, the people who had always been with them. If you can''t recognize our faces right away, then you''re not very close to us. Incidentally, I feel like I''m the one whose appearance has changed the most, but even so, Natsuki and Yuki only notice it right away. If we''re talking about not only my face but also my whole appearance, Toya, who has grown ears and a tail, is probably the best, but her face itself hasn''t changed that much. Yuki, do you know him? Do I know you? Me, me!¡¡Tokuoka! .................. Oh. After a long silence, Yuki nodded her head, but her face showed that she didn''t remember much. I know you. Of course I''m the same guy. I know Tokuoka. I knew Tokuoka. He was a classmate of mine and he was sitting right in front of me in the classroom. And ............ yeah, something like that. You don''t care about the details, do you?¡¡It''s not like I don''t remember, right? What''s that?¡¡Is that you and Shido? Seriously?¡¡Wow, it''s been a while. And then two similar looking men approaching. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Who are these guys? They''re human, so their appearance shouldn''t have changed much, but ...... I can''t tell because of the stubble. I''ve been shaving my beard a lot thinner since I''ve been here, but the ladies don''t like it if I keep it long, so I shave it off every day along with Toya. .........? Maeda. I''m Iwanaka. ...... Yeah, that''s Maeda and that''s Iwanaka. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m sure I got good grades in ...... Iwanaka, right?¡¡I''m sure I''m not the only one. It''s not like he was a hard worker, and his appearance was relatively good, so I think he was relatively popular with girls. Maeda was a ...... guy who was somewhat good at sports? I don''t know much about them because I didn''t hang out with them much. Did Shidou-san and his friends come to this forest today? Yeah, well, did they? Oh, now?¡¡We''ve been here for a month now, right? Yeah, yeah. The Eastern Forest wasn''t enough for us. We''ve even got a private room at the inn! While saying this, the three of them look at me and Toya like we''re making fun of them. Hmm. So you came to the Southern Forest because you didn''t have enough, and now all you do is carry logs? And is the private room something to brag about?¡¡Well, sleeping together in a big room might be tough, but we''ve never stayed in an inn like that before, have we? I''m not going to bother pointing it out. Oh, that''s right!¡¡Shidou-san, you should join our party!¡¡I think we have more potential than you do. Whoa, he''s recruiting out of nowhere.¡¡Ignore us. "That''s a good idea!¡¡We''ll never make it to the top if it takes us more than two months to reach that level of forest. That''s right. Azuma and Furumiya too. If it''s the East Forest, they''ll have a big room anyway.¡¡You can stay in a private room with us. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll do fine. It''s impossible. It''s not possible." "The smell is a bit strong, can you stay away from me? "Haha, that''s definitely not possible, is it? "Hey! I''m not sure what to make of this. Compared to these two, Haruka''s refusal with a cold expression might be better. The one who was rejected is mentally ill. "Why?¡¡This is not Japan!¡¡Can''t you even understand that it''s dangerous to be without power? If you''re coming here now, you must have a low adventurer''s rank! You guys got good grades, but don''t you know that''s not enough to make money in this world? "You guys had good grades, but don''t you know that you can''t make money on that alone in this world?" Tokuoka and the others shouted indignantly, as if they didn''t expect to be rejected. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. If you''re not a complete idiot, you''d be crazy to accept that offer. I don''t know. I don''t like filthy people. I don''t like filthy people. I don''t like people who carry logs here. Yeah, right. And why are we wasting time talking about it here? I don''t think you should be so serious. I don''t know if it''s okay to be dressed like that and say things like ''we can make it to the top''. ...... That''s right. I think the first thing you need to do is get yourself presentable, don''t you? "Well, even if I was earning money, would it be possible?¡¡Physiologically? Haruka and the others are on a rampage. They''re beaten to a pulp. Toya and I looked at each other and sighed. We both tried to keep our mouths shut so that we wouldn''t get heated, but it seemed to be for nothing. The faces of Tokuoka and the others were getting redder by the second. "...... you bastard! Maeda said, reaching for the dagger at his waist. At the same time, Toya and I both put our hands on our weapons, but at that moment, an angry voice rang out. "Hey!¡¡Rookie!¡¡How long are you going to keep talking? ""Yes, sir!" Tokuoka and the others immediately straightened their backs and replied. When we turned our gaze, we saw an older man, even more muscular than Gantz, staring at us with his arms folded. No, not at us, but at Tokuoka and the three of us. Look, they''re calling you. Good luck with your work. ...... d*mn it!¡¡Remember me! Hey, hey, hey!¡¡Come on! ""Yes! I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. But it''s hard to explain why they were looking more at us, who had been silent, than at Haruka and her friends. Oh dear, they were like a bad pick-up artist, weren''t they? "Yeah, right. Did you have a classmate like that?¡¡I only know his name. I was under the impression that Iwanaka-kun was a serious person, but I only know his ...... grades. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll help. I''m not sure what to make of this. But Nao, since we''re being recruited, shouldn''t we put our bodies on the line to stop them? Haruka seemed somewhat dissatisfied, and Toya and I looked at each other and shrugged our shoulders. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''re going to want to make sure that you''re able to get the most out of it.¡¡You know? "Yeah, yeah. That''s the type. He knows we''re here and he''s doing it. I''m not sure if it''s fortunate or unfortunate that Haruka and his friends had frequent opportunities to be picked up in Japan. There are well-behaved pick-ups who simply back off when we leave, and then there are the vicious types who persist. In the case of the latter, when we, the men, intervene, they lose their reservation and get strangely heated up. Therefore, it is best to leave the matter to Haruka and the others, appease both sides at an appropriate point, and then part ways. There have been times when we''ve had to go to the police because we couldn''t find a way to back out. The other side. However, no matter how much we were the victims, we had to spend a lot of time explaining the situation to the police and lost all our plans for the day. After all, it''s best to avoid trouble, isn''t it? You''re right, he was a bit of a pain in the ass. He was trying to get his hands on a weapon at the end, wasn''t he? Well, who cares about troublesome ex-classmates? You won''t have to deal with them anymore. Natsuki shook her head and said that she hoped that was true. I wish that were true, but I feel that if I say it out loud, it will be a strange flag and I''ll get involved again. I''ll just have to avoid seeing him as much as possible. Yeah. Then let''s get moving. They might come back if we don''t. Tokuoka and the others were driven into the forest by the macho man, but if they stayed here too long, he might come back carrying a log. Well... Let''s go south to a place where there are no lumberjacks and enter the forest at a suitable place. 106-096 Visit, South Forest (1) About 500 meters. We went south from the place where we met Tokuoka and the others, and entered the forest from the place where no one was around. The trees here are a little different from those in the eastern forest in that their trunks are relatively straight. They are not as straight as the planted cedars and cypresses, but they may be of a different type from the trees in the eastern forest, where I had the impression that the branches were growing relatively freely. The leaves, however, are much browner, and their shape is not that of coniferous trees, so there is no doubt that they are broad-leaved trees. I''m hoping for some nuts at this time of the year. Walnuts, chestnuts... Yuki looked at the tree and at the ground with a happy expression. I also searched the ground, but the only thing that looked like a nut was an acorn that was less than an inch long. I don''t see any walnuts or chestnuts. It looks like it should be there. ...... What do you think?¡¡Chestnuts and walnuts are both excellent woods and are suitable for making furniture. ....... By the way, Nao, aside from chestnuts, do you know what walnuts are? "What?¡¡Those wrinkled ones, right?¡¡The hard ones. I don''t have a chance to buy walnuts with shells, but I know what they are. If you crack them open, you''ll find what''s in the mixed nuts for snacks. "I''m not wrong, but they don''t grow on branches or lie on the ground, do they? What? No? I was surprised to see that not only Haruka, but also Yuki and Natsuki had subtle smiles on their faces. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. The walnuts you see are the seeds. The part you eat is the kernel. That''s why there is a rind attached to the surface of the shell. Some kinds of walnuts have the rind broken off and only the inside falls out. ...... Almonds are the same type. I mean, are acorns and chestnuts more of a minority among nuts? I''ve never really paid attention to how nuts are grown, so I just assumed they were grown as is, but apparently not. So how do I find them? "Walnuts are plum-like fruits, but you might want to check the ...... tree. There''s help. "I see! That was a blind spot. It''s easier to find the original tree than to find the small fruit. So I checked the trees around me, and found that there were chestnut and walnut trees growing everywhere. However, when I looked underneath them, there were no nuts on the ground. No, if you look closely, you can see rotten things eaten by insects and crushed brambles, but no nuts. "Hey, someone''s been picking these up, right? "Well, it''s not someone, it''s an adventurer, for sure. Probably a request to collect nuts or something. Walnuts are not just for eating, they can also be used to make furniture from the oil. In other words, it''s impossible to collect them in the shallow part of the forest. There are a lot more demons than in the eastern forest, but there are no targets within my search range as soon as I enter. That means you can collect them safely. No wonder they''re gone. Collecting the nuts isn''t my main goal, but let''s go deeper for now. Toya and Nao, you take the reconnaissance. Bye. It''s our first time here, so be careful. We were a little slack, but we had to be careful. We tightened up our loose spirits a bit and proceeded through the forest in a proper formation. It was said that there were more demons than in the eastern forest, and after a while, we caught a glimpse of a demon in our search range, but we didn''t dare approach it since our goal was not to defeat it. I quickly dealt with the goblins that were still approaching. Yuki and Haruka also have more magic power now that they can use fire magic, so they collect the goblin''s demon stones that they had left unattended until now by hitting them in the head with the "Fire Arrow". Ordinary goblin demon stones don''t sell for very much, but they still provide enough money for lunch for everyone. Hobgoblins and other higher-ranking species can sell for more than double that, so we should definitely collect them. Well, if you have to manually remove the brain, I would hesitate, but with the Fire Arrow, you can pierce the head and collect only the magic stone, so the hurdle is a little lower. But why do only some demons have magic stones in their heads? I''m sure you''re not the only one. Yes. There was a goblin scout and a goblin fighter, but they weren''t very strong. ...... They''re not very strong, are they? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. More importantly, they don''t weigh much, so it''s easy to face them. In the case of Orcs, if they attack your body, even if you can kill them, you will be seriously injured, so you have to be careful. As for demons, there are Branch Eater Spiders and Slash Owls, right? Yes. However, the Branch Eater Spider isn''t much of a threat if you can find it first with a search. As the name implies, these spiders have a tendency to gnaw at tree branches, not to eat the branches themselves, but to use them as tools to hunt their prey. First of all, they wrap sticky spider silk around the branch so that it can be easily broken. If a monkey or some other animal gets on the branch, the branch will break and the monkey will fall down with the thread attached. If it doesn''t, the monkey will be slowed down by the damage from the fall, and when it can''t move, it can be killed with its fangs. Or, if the prey passes under the modified branch, drop the branch and hit the prey. The rest is the same as before. Add a string to restrict its movement and attack. The former doesn''t affect people as long as they don''t climb trees, but the latter rarely falls prey to lumberjacks and adventurers who are acting alone. However, this is not a serious threat because you can find the enemy first with [Search Enemies], or even if you miss them, you can quickly save them by moving with several people at a certain distance. The Branch Eater Spider itself is not a very powerful demon if it appears within reach. However, they are a nuisance to the forestry industry because of their tendency to eat branches. If you submit proof of defeat to the Adventurer''s Guild, you will be rewarded. It''s not a large amount, but it''s enough to make you think that it''s okay to hunt them if you find them.¡¡It''s not a lot of money, but it''s enough to make it worthwhile. The Slash Owl isn''t too strong, but I''m a little nervous about it. Slash Owl: ...... The scary thing about the Slash Owl is that it approaches you silently from a low altitude and tears you apart. For some reason, the outermost feathers of its wings are very sharp, and it attacks you with them as you pass by. If you are unlucky, it will slice through your carotid artery and you will die. They don''t seem to be sharp enough to cut through thick leather, so as long as we don''t get hit in the face or neck, we''re fine. ....... Should I put on a neck guard or something? Even a carotid artery won''t kill you because of the healing magic. ...... That is, if your companion can react quickly enough. You can connect the blood vessels immediately, so it''s the amount of blood loss that''s the problem. I''m not sure if I can hold it with my hand when I''m cut.¡¡There is also the possibility of losing consciousness due to anemia caused by a rapid drop in blood pressure. Well, we''ll see if it''s dangerous. "Right. No matter how fast it is, it won''t be able to move tens of meters in an instant. As long as you can catch it with your [search], you should be able to handle it. If it moves so fast that it can''t be dealt with, then the woodcutter won''t be able to enter the forest even with an escort. He should be about five meters ahead of you. He should be about 5 meters in front of you. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you out. I can get a rough idea of its location thanks to my skills, but I can''t see it from my place because of the tree branches in the way. Since I knew he was there, it would have been difficult to find him under normal circumstances. "Natsuki, can you see me? Yes, I can. ....... --What? At my words, Natsuki looks up into the trees and quickly thrusts out his spear. This is it. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''ve seen it before. It was still twitching, but it was a blow. It was a small fish, if you could find it. But it''s pretty hard to tell, isn''t it?¡¡You can''t reach them with my sword even if you find them. If you don''t have a spear, you can use magic or a bow. ...... It''s a bit tricky. They''re ambushers, so they can be avoided, but they''re ...... a bit of a waste, aren''t they? In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. I''d like to be able to kill them without evading them. Nice to meet you! I don''t mind, but ...... you''ll probably have to do all the work, right? It''s not an enemy that swarms in numbers, and since Natsuki is walking ahead of you, there''s no need for me to step in unless you dare. I don''t mind. It''s not an enemy I have to struggle with. You''re right, it was only for a moment. I''m going to get the Stone. Give me that. Yes. When Toya receives the spear from Natsuki, he stomps on the spider, pulls out the spear, and collects the right paw and the magic stone as proof of defeat. I''m sure you''ll be able to make some money if it comes up often, but there aren''t that many of them, are there? I guess so. There''s only one. We''ve been walking for about an hour now, and we''ve only found one. We''ve been walking for about an hour now, and we''ve only found one, and that was in a place not too far from our route. This may be the effect of the bounty being offered by the city of Laffan. Further into the city, we encountered Slash Owls, but they were not a threat either. The first one flew straight at us, and Toya was able to knock it down easily. The first one flew straight at him, and Toya was able to knock it down easily. If you warn them in advance, you won''t end up in a situation like this. However, when I was attacked from behind during a battle with goblins, it was a bit troublesome. However, Haruka easily cut it off, so unless you''re fighting on the edge of your seat, you shouldn''t have any problems. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Demons are appearing more frequently, but that''s about it. There are no strong demons. We''ve been walking for about two hours. We killed a lot of demons, so it''s not like we couldn''t make money. ...... Since we have killed a good number of demons, the amount of demon stones sold will exceed 10 gold coins, but whether it is efficient or not is not clear. In the event that you''ve got a few groups of goblins in your search range, it''s probably not too bad if you think of it as defeating demons rather than earning money. ....... I''m not sure what the point of leveling up is, but I think it''s worth it.¡¡I''m sure you can find a lot of demons out there.¡¡I''m sure you''re aware that defeating demons can strengthen your body. You know... I can run a full marathon at a world record level without getting too tired. This is the first time I''ve seen my physical abilities improve since I first came here, but it''s clearly different compared to that time. Unlike when I was in my original world, I am training every day, but the rate of increase is not something that can be explained by that alone. But what does that mean even against weak demons? It''s better to defeat the stronger demons, of course, but I don''t think it''s useless against goblins either.¡¡In the first place, if we are strong enough to say, "I can''t get any experience with goblins! It''s not as if we''ve gotten stronger to the point where we can''t get experience with goblins. In order to increase safety, we can spend some time in this forest to kill them. "But it''s a bleak life, isn''t it, when your goal is to defeat demons? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of that. As for me, as long as I don''t have to collect the magic stone from the goblins, I''m okay with that. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to do this if you''re trying to defeat them, but it''s not a good idea to do it after they''re dead. ...... Let''s just go home for now. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on in the forest and how to make money, so let''s go back and talk about it. That''s right. I''m going to ask Diora about it again. It''s not Diora-san in times of trouble, but I think it''s best to ask the locals about these things. We shelved our plan for the moment and headed back out of the forest. 107-097 Visit, South Forest (2) So, let''s set a course, shall we? "Yes, let''s. We decided to consult with Diora, but we came back late from the forest yesterday, and the adventurer''s guild was busy, so we didn''t have time to do so. For the time being, we only sold the magic stones and materials, and today Haruka and the others went to talk to them again. In the meantime, we''re training. You''ll be able to make a brick-sized block thanks to this,......, but it''s just for fun, so it''s not important. It''s a magic block, so it''s hard enough, but because it''s made from the soil of the area, I''ve gotten criticism like, "It just looks like hardened soil," "The color is the same, so it''s not very decorative," and "Wouldn''t it be better to just heap up the soil? It has nothing to do with the fact that I was criticized for using the same color as the original. ...... d*mn it, one of these days I''ll make a block that can''t be complained about. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. It doesn''t seem to get that cold around here, but it still has an effect. The medicinal herbs will die, and there will be less people coming and going, so there will be less work for the merchant guards. The lumberjack guards also seem to be reduced because some of them take a break from work during the winter. That''s why some of them move their bases to cities a little further south. The current situation will continue for another month or so, and then it will be like that for the next two or three months. We''re not going to be taking on lumberjack guards, so it''s not like it matters much, but do we have any other jobs to compete with? As for foraging jobs, there''s wax beetle, hazel nuts, walnuts and chestnuts. There''s also a nut called kut, but it doesn''t pay very well. I don''t know what kind of fruit that is? They were in the lunch I had at Aella''s. Do you remember ......? ...... Oh!¡¡That delicious stuff!¡¡Why isn''t it worth the money? It''s a pretty tasty fruit. It seems to be an easy nut to grow, and you can get a lot of them from one tree. So it seems that houses with gardens are planting them. Even ordinary people with large gardens can plant several trees and sell the harvested nuts at the market to make some money. Why don''t we plant some in our house?¡¡We have a big garden. I like that!¡¡It was just the thing for a snack. How many years does it take to grow a crop? ...... I know, there''s no such thing as a gardener. It''s been three years since I''ve had a peach, three years since I''ve had a persimmon, and eighteen years since I''ve had a yuzu. How long does it take to grow Kut? Oh, no, it''s actually growing, a Kut tree. Oh, is that so? Yes. When I went to see them, I found several of them. The original inhabitants of this town must have planted them. I picked up some of them. With that, Natsuki pulled out a round nut about an inch long from her pocket and laid it on the desk. They look like round acorns, but they don''t have caps. The shell is ...... not that hard. The shell is not as hard as an acorn, let alone a chestnut.¡¡You can almost peel it off with your fingernail. How do you eat this? Roast them lightly, peel them and eat them as they are or sprinkle salt on them. All right, let''s go pick some up later. There''s quite a lot of them, enough for us to eat for a year, I think. We''ll have no problem storing it. I''m not opposed to picking them up, but we''re talking about work now. Oh, sorry. The wax beetle is, as the name implies, a wax beetle. It''s about ten centimeters long and you can collect its wings. The wax beetle is a beetle that produces wax.¡¡It''s also used to make wax. Both of these materials are used in furniture making, but we seem to import almost all of them. ...... Hmm?¡¡That means they can''t be harvested around here, right? No, it can be harvested here, but it''s deep in the eastern forest. To put it simply, the risk is not worth the reward. Specifically, it is said that you can collect them from the area where the nest of orcs that we destroyed was located, but if you want to collect them there, you need to be able to kill orcs without danger. However, if you can kill an orc, it''s easier to earn money by hunting one. Even if you can get a good price for it, it''s still not enough for two orcs after a full day of collecting. Even Diora seems to have told him not to do this, so it''s quite a feat. Is it the Southern Forest Goblin Slaughterhouse?¡¡You can still find chestnuts and walnuts in the depths of the forest, and if you combine those with the chestnuts and walnuts, you can make a moderate amount of money for about a month. "That''s a bad name. It''s a bad name, it''s called "Operation Cleanup in the Southern Forest. We''ll do the same thing, though. I guess the goblins will be the ones getting cleaned up. In the meantime, I''ve been told that there are some jobs that can be done by magic bag holders that can earn money in any season, but ...... Diora says that she doesn''t recommend them. What''s that? We cut down trees in the foothills of the mountains north of town. The furniture industry in this town was originally developed from the famous wood from that area, so it''s very valuable. It is said that a single piece of good wood can be worth more than 100 gold coins, or even 1,000 if it is not good enough. However, you need a magic bag to carry it, and there are strong demons around. Since you''re cutting down trees, you can''t just pick them up like you would medicinal herbs or mushrooms. It takes time to cut down a tree, and the sound it makes attracts demons. You need to be able to fight and protect yourself during that time. But at that price, isn''t it a request that a high ranking adventurer would accept? It''s not a bad amount of money, but if you''re a magic bag holder of that rank, you don''t need to come to this city to earn money, you can earn it in other ways. It''s not that it''s not worth it, but it''s not attractive enough for you to move your base here. The town of Raffan is located in the countryside, so it is not very attractive to adventurers. The demons in the vicinity of the town seem to be weak and safe, so it''s probably not a bad place to live, but it''s certainly not very exciting. From my point of view, it''s a pretty attractive town when there''s a fishing spot within a day''s walk. I heard that there are dungeons in this world. It seems to be more popular among adventurers. More importantly, it''s more adventurous to attack dungeons than to carry wood! "Dungeons are great!¡¡I want to do it too. Me too!¡¡I want to play dungeons too. - Me too! Dungeons and dragons are a classic! I shouted at the information Yuki presented to me. I''m sure it''s nothing like the game, but there''s a part of me that yearns for it. I''ve been to a lot of dungeon cities. I could go to a dungeon, but not a dragon.¡¡I''d probably die if I met one. "Well, I''m not saying you can''t, but you''ll have to train harder. We''re only two adventurers in rank. "Yes, that''s true. Haruka''s words made me calm down. I''m interested in attacking dungeons, but my life is more important. I want to see dragons, but I don''t want to fight them. I''d like to see dragons, but I don''t want to fight them." "Then, for the time being, we''ll go to the southern forest to pick berries and kill goblins. We nodded at Haruka''s words, as we had no other choice. It''s okay to be idle in the winter. If you''re not in the mood, there''s something to be said for defeating demons. By the way, what about Tokuoka and the others? As the future plan was decided, I brought up something that had been bothering me, but Haruka and the others nodded their heads as if they didn''t understand it. What are you going to do? "You left some kind of throwaway line. I think you said something like "remember me"?¡¡If I''m not mistaken. If I''m not mistaken, he didn''t mean that Yuki couldn''t remember his name, so he said, "Please don''t forget my name. If I were in Japan, I wouldn''t have to worry about it, but somehow, those people seem to have loose morals, both in their behavior and in their tone of voice. When I was in Japan, they didn''t seem like the type to act like that. But they''re not that strong, are they?¡¡They were bragging about moving to the southern forest in a month, but it seems they weren''t hunting orcs. "Right. There is a part of me that worries if he has any strange skills, but since he doesn''t have any so-called cheat skills, I don''t think we need to worry too much. As the evil god said, there are some mine skills, but so far I haven''t encountered any cheat skills. You''ll be able to find out the location and strength of the enemy, so if you''re targeted by an overwhelmingly strong enemy, you won''t be able to escape in time and you''ll die. And considering that the skill was 10 points per level, while most skills cost 5 points per level, it''s no wonder it''s a bit powerful. But it''s also a pain in the ass to get picked up again. I''d like to avoid meeting him as much as possible, he was filthy and, frankly, smelly! Yuki, that''s harsh!¡¡That''s because we''re just blessed! All too clearly, Yuki uttered words that are extremely damaging when said by a boy from a girl. --No, gender has nothing to do with it. If a girl were to hear it from a boy, it would probably be very damaging. We are able to stay clean thanks to light magic, but without it, ordinary adventurers would only be able to wipe their bodies. There are no public bathrooms in the city. There is also the option of bathing in a well, but that would be very difficult in this season. Considering this, there is room for extenuating circumstances, isn''t there? But still, I don''t think he was that dirty. He wasn''t even shaving, was he? No, no, no. It''s hard enough to maintain a clean-shaven blade. Yeah, yeah. We''re working pretty hard too. To be frank, it''s hard to shave like a razor with a blade sharpened by an amateur. Furthermore, beards are very hard and the blade dulls quickly. We use special blades purchased from Gantz, and Toya, who has the [blacksmithing] skill, maintains them on a daily basis, but even so, in the beginning, we made many mistakes, bled, and had to rely on healing magic. In terms of the frequency of bloodshed, there are more times when shaving than when fighting. It''s very subtle. This is an event that made me realize the value of electric shavers and safety razors. I have requested Tommy to make a safety razor, but I wonder if it will be possible. I wonder if he can make a safety razor. ...... By the way, Nao and Toya''s hair is getting longer. Isn''t it getting in the way? "Honestly, it''s in my way. I want to cut it soon. ...... I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''ve spent that much time here. I''m not sure if there is a barber store in this town, ......? I''m not sure if there are any. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it. You''ll find a lot of people who are looking for a new way to look at the world. Didn''t you notice?¡¡Of course we cut it. We cut them ourselves. Even though they are cutting each other''s hair, Haruka is cutting theirs, and Natsuki is cutting Haruka''s hair under Haruka''s direction. Speaking of Yuki, Haruka says that she feels safer with Natsuki, while Natsuki says, "Why should I ask you to do something when Haruka is here? He said. "Toya, do you want me to cut it for you?¡¡I''ll do it. "Why not?¡¡What makes you think I would ask Yuki to do that? No, it''s just for practice.¡¡If you fail, you can still get a round cut at ....... No, no, no, no. No elves, no beastmen. Of course not, you idiot!¡¡I''ll ask Haruka to do it too! I''m going to ask Haruka to do it too!" Yuki shrugs and shakes her head like she''s upset, but I think that''s more our line. It''s no wonder Toya is angry. What kind of punishment is it to have a beastman with a shaved head and hairy ears? It is a kind of punishment not only for Toya but also for the viewers. Well, I don''t like it either. "Well, I''ll cut it off for you later. I''ll cut it for you later, okay? Yeah, that''s fine. Oh, no. "Oh, no." Yuki protests in a stilted voice. You don''t really want to cut it, do you? You don''t really want a haircut, do you? "Good luck, Haruka!¡¡I''ll leave all the cutting to you from now on! Before he could say all that, he flipped me off with a nice smile. Before I could say anything else, he smiled and flipped me off. There was no way I could cut my hair into a bob like Yuki''s, let alone cut it straight. Do you understand our concerns? Hair is a woman''s life.¡¡Don''t do this to me! "...... is so unreasonable. I''d like to hear this for all the old men who suffer from thinning hair. It''s a little different, but hair is important to them too. "Well, I''ll continue to cut your hair. It''s just that I''m not a professional, so you''ll have to make allowances. I don''t mind as long as you don''t think it''s weird. I''m fine with it as long as it doesn''t get in my way. I''ll be fine as long as I''m not in the way. ...... I know, I know. Then let''s go to the place where we bought it and cut it. If we cut it in our room, it would be hard to clean. Haruka and his friends cut their hair in their room at the inn, but they didn''t have a vacuum cleaner or a broom, so they had to clean up after themselves. If it''s outdoors, you don''t have to worry about it, and if it''s on your land, you don''t have to worry about being seen. In that case, let''s give Nao-kun and Toya-kun a haircut and collect some kutto nuts today. Got it. After that, we moved to a different location, where the carpenters gave us haircuts under the curious gaze of the carpenters, while those with free hands went about collecting kutto nuts. As Natsuki had said, there were about six kut trees growing on the land we had purchased, and they were full of berries, which was an understatement. As a result of collecting all of them, we got a large basket full of kut berries. 108-098 I got a house! The next day, we set out to kill and collect as planned. We quickly passed by a logging site that seemed to have mines, and entered the depths of the forest. There, while collecting chestnuts and walnuts, you will encounter goblins, branch eaters, and spiders. Slash Owl will only attack you if you cut it off at random. Haruka and Yuki also have the [Dagger Technique] skill, so as long as you warn them in advance, the Slash Owl is just a small fish. However, the income was still very low. Chestnuts and walnuts could be picked up in the depths of the forest, where few people enter, but the purchase price was lower than I expected and did not add up to much. In the end, we said, "If we''re going to sell them at that price, wouldn''t it be better to eat them ourselves? So we sold it only once. Compared to the Eastern Forest, there are more demons, so you can get more kills, but the value of what you get is lower than that of Orcs. With the profits from the magic stones and branch eater spider bounties, you can get about 30 gold coins a day. That''s six gold coins per person, which is enough to live on, but not enough to pay for risking one''s life. An average Japanese salaryman would probably earn about this much if he worked a little overtime. Of course, I''m not talking about take-home wages, but about productivity. However, by defeating the demons, I must have gained not only monetary rewards but also experience, which is not a waste, but why do I suddenly smell like a black person when I say, "I gained experience even though the wages were low"? I spent eight days like that. We took two days off due to rain, but other than that, we were in the southern forest every day carrying out the "cleanup operation". This is our house. "This is our house, isn''t it ......? Oh. We finally, finally got it! It''s been a long time. Yeah, it was. It''s been a long time since I''ve been in this world. Hey, don''t play dumb, let''s go in. When Yuki and Toya started their stupid little act in front of the house, I gave them a good laugh, and Haruka and Natsuki also laughed. I won''t say that I haven''t had a hard time, but considering that I got this house only half a year after I came to this world, it''s definitely going well, and I even have the impression that it''s a little "easy" rather than "hard". It''s not that I wasn''t moved when the house was handed over to me, but the appearance of the house hasn''t changed since about a week ago, and I''ve seen it many times during the process of construction, so it feels a little new to me. I''ve been asked to check the interior from time to time, so I know what''s going on. Even if you go inside, you won''t be impressed like the before and after thing, "Oh my god! I don''t think I''ll be impressed. However, I am sure that the house is quite magnificent. The two-story Western-style house with white plastered exterior walls is quite large, and at first glance, it looks like an aristocratic house. The reason why plaster, which is a bit costly, was used was to ensure durability and airtightness, while ordinary people''s houses often have wooden walls. It may not be as airtight and insulated as modern Japanese architecture, but it must be better than wooden walls. I don''t mind so much about the sleeping bear pavilion, but in a poorly constructed building, there would be a lot of drafts coming in. However, since the emphasis is on practicality, there are no useless ornaments, and the difference between a house of a nobleman or a wealthy merchant is immediately apparent to anyone who looks at it. But that''s no problem. We''re just adventurers, and it''s better to be safe than to be seen as having money for nothing. It''s simple, but not bad looking, from my aesthetic point of view. The cost is about 1,100 gold pieces. My budget was for 1,200, but since I had no trouble and didn''t make any unusual orders along the way, I only had to pay for a little more than 500. Considering the other prices and the size of the house, it may seem cheap, but the facilities are so different that it would be pointless to compare it to Japan. Well, even in Japan, you can buy a second-hand house with a garden for a couple of million yen if you''re not in a city, so it''s really a fine line. But I never thought that I would become the owner of a castle in my teens. ...... Although he stopped his little play, he said this with a bit of emotion, and this time Yuki gave him a complaint. No, no, no.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡If I had to guess, I''d say we''re one-fifth owners of the castle. "I know, I know!¡¡I''m in the mood, I''m in the mood! This is a shared house, right? Normally, you rent a house, you share a house. But I didn''t think we''d have our own place in a few months. When we were in Sahlstadt... "Oh, Yuki and Natsuki had a hard time. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one, you''ll be able to get a lot more. I''m not sure if that wage is fair or not in this world, but for us it was pretty close to the limit. But even in Japan, if five people work together for a few months, it''s not impossible to buy a house, if you think about it. If you just ignore the fact that we''re minors and the taxes and all that. When you buy a house, you need to pay property tax, registration tax, fees for all kinds of procedures, and so on. In the event you''re a high school student, buying a house is out of the realm of your imagination, but it''s not an impossible amount of money, as Haruka says, if you ignore a lot of things. Also, if it wasn''t for this situation, we wouldn''t have been able to buy a house together. Normally, it would be too expensive to buy with part-time pay. Shall we go inside, then? "Sure. The first thing you see when you open the front door and go inside is a rather spacious entrance. There are doors on the left and right walls, with the parlor on the left and the restroom on the right. At the end of the hallway is a corridor stretching from left to right, with the kitchen, dining room, and living room on the left side, and four research/laboratory rooms and a laundry room to be used as a bath on the right. In front of you is the staircase to the second floor. The second floor is simple, with five identical rooms on each side. Each room is about 20 tatami mats in size and is rather long. Due to the size of the building, there are two more rooms than originally planned. It is a simple structure in which a square building is built on the remaining foundation, and then divided into appropriate sizes. It is not playful, but it is practical enough. Even if the design is good, if it is hard to live in, it is meaningless. However, there is really nothing in the room, so it is rather plain. In the future, I will have to buy more furniture, curtains, carpets, and other interior items. "First of all, ......, do you want to choose your own room? "Yes!¡¡The floor plans are all the same, so it doesn''t matter where you go. ...... Does anyone have any preferences? The only difference is we''re closer to the stairs, right? That''s about it. There''s not enough difference to actively choose a place. So, I assigned Yuki, Natsuki, Haruka, me, and Toya to the rooms, starting from the far left. I placed Toya and I near the stairs in case there was an intruder, but I don''t want this to be meaningless. The five rooms on the right are all empty. If I can afford it, I''ll arrange it so that it can be used as a guest room, but in some cases it may become a storage room. Are you moving out of the inn and moving in here today? I''m fine with that, but you''ll be sleeping on the floor, there''s no bed. I''ll have to sleep on the floor. It''s not like buying an assembled bed from a mass market store. When we were camping, we slept wrapped in cloaks, and I don''t think that would be a problem for a few days. ....... The bed is made to order, you know.¡¡If you ask Simon or one of the carpenters who built the house, they can make it for you right away. I''d also like to have some cooking utensils. I''d like to have some cooking utensils. I can make some of them with the ones we have in the camp, but now that we have a kitchen. Well, we''ll go shopping for that later. Then we''ll get the necessary furniture. We went out to buy the bare necessities first, and ordered beds, dining room tables, and chairs from Simon. We thought it would take some time to get them because they were made-to-order, but when we asked, he told us that the beds without any decoration could be ready for everyone the next day. Mr. Simon told me that it was not interesting, but even if the bed had a lot of carvings, it would be a hassle to clean. I would like you to recommend such things to the nobility. As long as it is durable and practical, there is nothing wrong with it. Yuki seemed to be a little shaken by the recommendation of the canopy bed, but since Haruka and Natsuki were not interested, she gave it up somewhat reluctantly. I also think it would be better to order a desk and chair for your room if you are going to spend money on them. However, since those items are not essential, I decided to leave them for a later date, and went to buy a futon. Somewhat surprisingly, the futon was delivered two days later than the bed. Apparently they don''t have enough new futons in stock because they don''t sell many new futons for the general public. The price is quite high, but it''s necessary, so I''ll order blankets and pillows for the number of people. The last thing I went shopping for was dishes and cookware. Haruka and her friends bought ceramic tableware and large cooking utensils, which they had refrained from buying until now, without much restraint. A number of gold coins flew out of their hands, but they said, "To eat a good meal! We can''t argue with that. Because Toya and I don''t have any [cooking] skills. It''s not that we are wasting money, and we are not in such dire straits that we need to save. Rather, we want you to do your best to buy and make a good meal. And two days later. Having set up the minimum living environment, we said goodbye to the bear pavilion and moved to our own base, which we had acquired for the first time. 109-099 New Construction Celebration The night we moved into our new house, there was a huge array of food on the table that we had just bought. Crab and shrimp, pork shabu-style hot pot, grilled sweetfish, and pork cutlets. There was no uniformity, but the women had prepared dishes that reminded me of Japan, and they smelled good. "Well, then, Nao, say hello. "Oh, me? Just as I was about to sit down to eat, I was suddenly interrupted by Haruka. I looked at the other members and they all nodded, so I picked up my cup and stood up. We''ve been working hard together and now we have our own house. There have been some dangerous times, but I think the reason why we are still able to live in good health is because we have chosen our work carefully. Let''s continue to work hard. And thank you, Haruka, Yuki and Natsuki, for the delicious food. Cheers! "Cheers! We all chant and sip from our cups. Yes, it''s delicious. It''s juice, not alcohol, but it tastes better than usual, maybe because of the ceramic cup, or maybe because of the atmosphere. What to start with: ...... Put down the cup and look at the table. Everything looks good, but I''ll start with the ...... pork cutlet. Each dish is served on a platter so that you can eat a variety of foods, and then you divide the food onto your own plate. You can then drizzle the homemade inspirational sauce on top. Pick it up with your chopsticks and put it in your mouth. As soon as you do, a rich aroma spreads in your mouth, and when you bite into it, the juices overflow, the crispy batter and the sauce mix together, and your cheeks relax. The sauce was more fruity than the one I had used in Japan, but that was not a bad thing. The thickly sliced meat was very tender and juicy, something you don''t see in most pork cutlet restaurants. How is it? Yuki asked me, a little worried. It''s good. The batter is crispy and the inside is juicy. The sweet and spicy sauce is just right. Did Yuki make this? "Yes. It was the first time I used lard for frying oil. I was a little worried because it was the first time I used lard for frying oil. No, it''s rather refreshing. No. It''s solid at room temperature, unlike salad oil, so that might be a factor. Lard, by the way, is ....... Oak fat. Meat is also oak. By the way, their pork shabu is also oak. That''s Natsuki''s work, though. I don''t have a tabletop stove, so I can''t shabu-shabu it myself, but the pot with the thinly sliced meat and vegetables looks delicious. I took a bowl and took a sip of the soup. ...... Oh, it tastes so elegant. It''s delicious. I looked at Natsuki and she was smiling at me. It''s basically salty, but with just a hint of pepper, and the flavor of the vegetables and meat is exquisite. If you enjoy the meat and vegetables with the soup, you can eat as much as you like. So, Haruka, go to ....... I''m in charge of grilling. I''m in charge of grilling. Shrimp, crab, grilled ayu fish, and so on. I also baked some bread for you. Haruka noticed my gaze and pointed to the bread in a basket at the end of the table. Hmmm... Since Toya is picking at the crabs and shrimp in silence, I might as well try the bread. I picked one up from the basket. ...... It was soft. The bread sold around here, even the soft ones, are quite heavy, but this bread is quite light. But this bread was quite light, almost as light as the bread sold in Japan. I used natural yeast and did a second fermentation. It''s not bad. It takes a long time, so I don''t want to make it too often. I took a bite of the bread, watching Haruka chuckle. Oh, it''s soft. The crunchy bread sold here is delicious, but soft bread is still delicious. And then there was a faint smell. This smells so good. ...... It''s a yeast made from dried fruits. There''s also bread with walnuts, so try that too. Thank you. As Haruka recommended, I tried the bread with walnuts. This one is also delicious. The aroma of walnuts and the crunchy texture are indescribable. When I first came here, I didn''t think I''d be able to eat so well when I first ate at the food stalls. That''s true. When I first came here, I didn''t expect to be able to eat so well. Maybe that''s the way it is in this world, but those wages are terrible. All of them nodded in agreement to my words. The wages were really the minimum to survive, or rather, to live to work. Haruka and the others did well, didn''t they? I respect you. "Yes. I also tried to change the situation somehow. ...... Because there were three of us. "Because there were three of us: Toya, who could take care of the vanguard, and me and Nao, who could fight with magic without weapons. That''s what made the combination work. It''s because of this combination that our skill sets worked so well together. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... No, I should think that Haruka adjusted it so that it would mesh? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. He can heal, has otherworldly common sense, has auxiliary skills, and has long range attack skills. It''s a wonder that he doesn''t have any close combat skills, and if it weren''t for me or Toya, he''d have a hard time in that regard. ....... I look at Haruka and she is smiling at me. Hmmm. "Hey guys, can I ask you something while we eat? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m thinking of reporting to the guild about the destruction of the orc nest. I see. Orcs. It''s a good thing that the number of Orcs stocked in the magic bag has been greatly reduced, isn''t it? Right. There''s no need to drag it out unnecessarily. I generally agree with you, but before that, why don''t we go check the orc nest again?¡¡It''s been a while since our last visit, and if the orcs have taken up residence again, ...... There is a possibility that it will be considered a failure ...... or even a false report. Has it been ......2 weeks since you eradicated the nest? It is certainly possible that some orcs have emerged from the depths of the forest if it has been that long. It seems that the orcs we destroyed were only some of the orcs that built nests in the shallow parts of the forest, and that there are many more orcs living in the deeper parts of the forest. According to the data. After all, the purpose of the request to kill orcs is to prevent orcs from appearing on the roads. It is impossible to completely eradicate them from the forest. We have the orc leader''s magic stone, but we should follow up on it. So let''s go check it out tomorrow. We nodded in agreement to Haruka''s suggestion. It''s been a while since I''ve been in the eastern forest. But it would be useful if the orcs came out in moderation. Orcs are much tastier prey than goblins, both in terms of taste and money. "Oh, let''s keep an orc or two for ourselves. For our own consumption. I agree!¡¡--Oh, by the way, what about the delivery to Aella-san?¡¡If we sell the orcs to the guild, we''ll be in trouble, right? There you have it: ...... Aella''s store has been well received, and I''m sure she''ll be able to run it just fine without us supplying her with meat, but I want to help her out as much as I can. She''s a lovely elf, and more importantly, we owe her for giving us the inspiration sauce. The delicious pork cutlets are made possible by this sauce. There are many other uses for this sauce, and it is truly priceless. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this.¡¡I''m not sure what to do with it. That''s a good idea. It''s a win-win situation for us. Is that okay with you guys?¡¡...... Yeah, let''s do that. The current inventory will probably last for several months, given the amount of products consumed in Aella''s store. In addition, if you tell Aella about the situation and ask her to reduce the proportion of meat dishes, you can extend the time a little longer. There will be orcs once in a while, and now that we have a house, we don''t need to carry around unnecessary magic bags. You can keep the materials you might need in your magic bag in the house instead of selling them. As for the future remuneration, I think we should split half of it into common expenses and half to each of us. Until now, the policy had been to prohibit wasteful spending and to use everyone''s money efficiently, in order to stabilize our lives, but now we had some stability. According to Haruka, we should take this opportunity to manage our own money by ourselves. "Hmm, what is the scope of common expenses? "Well, the common expenses include all the things you need for adventuring, including weapons and armor, food, house repairs, and furniture for the common areas .......¡¡For clothes, you''ll need to pay ...... for your daily wear and underwear. You can also furnish your room on your own. Hmmm, ...... underwear and clothes, the rest of the money is free to spend. That doesn''t sound like a problem at all. You''ll have to save up, though. "Yes, I think that''s a good idea. I don''t plan to be so extravagant. "Me too. I don''t plan to be that extravagant." "I''ll probably only spend it on clothes and the occasional meal. Haruka sighed and opened her mouth as Toya said this comfortably. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡Just in case, Toya. "Oh, you''re not even 20 years old and you need to worry about your retirement? ...... In Japan, pensions and insurance premiums are automatically saved as part of the social system, but here, it''s all your responsibility. Haruka confronts the sniveling Toya with the reality of the situation. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. My mom also said that the insurance premiums are expensive, but if you look at the medical costs in the United States, if you''re not careful, just one hospitalization can pay for a lifetime of insurance premiums. As for the annuity, it is not so bad if you consider it as an accumulation type accident insurance. If you are injured in an accident, you can receive a disability pension for the rest of your life if you have paid the pension. In addition, there is a portion paid by the national treasury, so it is actually a loss if you don''t pay because the amount you get is small. However, the amount of money you will receive is not large, so if you do not save properly, you will have a hard time making a living. Needless to say, this is the world we live in. There is no social security system, so if you don''t calculate the necessary funds systematically and save everything by yourself, you will have a very hard time when you can''t work anymore. If you are not careful, your retirement will not exist. You will die. I mean, even in Japan, you''d have to have a lot of money saved up for retirement. It''s nothing like that here, you know.¡¡Unless you want to retire halfway through your life. I get it!¡¡I get it! I get it!¡¡I''m not going to waste my money! In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. If that''s the case, fine. You''re going to get a bride with beast ears, aren''t you, Toya?¡¡I told you before, you have to save up for her. "Oh, yes!¡¡That''s it!¡¡We have to give her a good life!¡¡I''m going to be a savings demon! I''m sure you have no idea what I''m talking about, but I''m sure you''re fantasizing about a happy honeymoon," said Toya with a disheveled smile, while the women looked on with disgusted expressions. It''s a good idea if it motivates you. ...... Will there ever be a day when Toya can get a cute wife? In this world where life is hard, the emphasis is on the ability to make a living, rather than love, in a way. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this. There is a big possibility that the range of our activities and the range of activities of young women in general are out of sync. If you can''t find a wife, you might have to buy a slave: ....... In this country, they are not slaves in the strict sense of the word, so they are contracted to take care of the debt, but that in itself is not something to be blamed. Rather, the person who lent the money is sure to get it back, and the person who was subcontracted is grateful because he will not be forced to work and die. What happens after that depends on each person, but as long as there is money, things tend to go well. In the end, it''s probably because they can afford it. Even in the original world, there are other countries where people marry for a living and have many children for their retirement. Even in Japan, if you go back in history a little, there was a time when there was nothing wrong with taking on a prostitute, in fact, it was respected. In other words, it is just a difference in culture and time. Incidentally, the adventurers who can buy slaves and marry them are the successful ones. Most of them grow old and die without marrying, or they die without even growing old. There is no such thing as a leisurely and elegant retirement. ...... Hmmm, I can''t imagine getting married just yet, but should I save up some money before I say anything about Toya? 110-100 Revisited, Oak Nest Our first morning in our new home. After breakfasting on the leftovers from last night''s party, we headed for the Orc''s nest in the eastern forest. It had been a long time since we had been in the eastern forest, but the leaves had fallen off the trees and it looked like winter. Confused by the slightly changed scenery, I arrived at the Orc''s Nest and found that it had been left in the same state as the last time I visited. After confirming that there was nothing that responded to [Search enemy], we split up to investigate the surroundings. "What do you think? There''s nothing to worry about. All the huts have been burned, so all that remains is a cinder in the center of the nest. Perhaps it was because we burned the remains of the dismantled orcs along with them, but there was no sign of other beasts scavenging for leftovers. The only difference I can think of is that the grass is sprouting. Thanks to the several rains that have fallen since then, the site of the nest, which was completely covered with soil, has become quite green. There was nothing special here either. "No. No new orcs here. That''s a little disappointing. We can''t get any new meat. It seems that Natsuki likes the orcs because they provide usable meat and fat at the same time. It may be that vegetable fats are more expensive than other foods in town. I''ve seen them for sale, but if you wanted to make tempura with them, you''d have to pay a very high price. Or perhaps I should say that the oil sold in Japan is very cheap if you consider the trouble of making it. Rapeseed oil is made by growing oilseed rape, collecting the seeds, and pressing them, right? You can get less than a handful of seeds from one oilseed rape. If you grow and press the oil yourself, how much work does it take? Even the sesame oil squeezed from those tiny sesame seeds looks like a lot of work. ....... Well, let''s just be happy that nothing happened. What should we do?¡¡Do we turn back now? It''s a shame we''ve come this far without a harvest, isn''t it? But the fruit is almost gone, isn''t it? Lately, we haven''t been able to pick up many nuts even in the southern forest. Of course, it''s not only humans who are after nuts. There are also squirrels and other animals that fight for the fallen nuts. They also need to save them for the winter. Of course, that doesn''t mean that we should shy away from them, but unfortunately, you can''t pick up what you can''t find. "......, uh, firewood? "Firewood. We''ll need it. It''s not an inn. We need firewood because we''re not in an inn. We don''t have a gas stove, so we basically need wood for heat. We can live with it for now, but when the weather gets colder, we''ll need it for heating. The problem is that you have to dry the wood for a long time before you can use it. Well, if the need arises, there is a spell called "Heating Worms" that can withstand the cold, but it will be necessary to reapply it from time to time for Natsuki and Toya, who cannot use fire magic. As for the stove in the kitchen, I want to change it to a magic tool as soon as possible. It was in Aella''s store. What about heaters? Would you like to use a magical tool for that too?¡¡You don''t have a problem with magic, do you? Even if you can''t use magic, everyone has a certain amount of magic power, so even ordinary people can''t use magic tools. In fact, since they do not consume magic power, they can use them more easily than those who can use magic. Of course, the total amount of magic power is much greater for those who can use magic. But since we have a fireplace, we might as well use it. Oh, a fireplace. There''s something nice about a roaring fire, it gives you a warm feeling. There''s a fireplace in the dining room, but not in your room, right?¡¡Is that okay? Fireplaces are installed only in the dining room, living room and parlor. They are not installed in laboratories or private rooms. Considering the frequency of use, the cost of installation, cleaning, and fuel, there is little benefit. Hmmm, isn''t it better to gather in the dining room or living room during the cold season?¡¡We don''t spend all our time at home, and if it''s cold, we can use the Worms heating system to keep us warm for a while, right? If we all turn on Worms before going to bed, we won''t feel the cold until we get back to our rooms and get under the covers. "Now that you mention it, do we really need to get a stove? Natsuki and Toya are the only ones who don''t have access to their own heating systems. The only ones who don''t have their own heating system are Natsuki and Toya. Natsuki can use it whenever he wants, and Toya has his own fur. No, I don''t!¡¡Only the ears and tail have fur! Oh, really?¡¡I''ve never seen it before, so I thought it was ....... I''ve never seen it before, so I thought I''d check it out." Yuki laughs and says something silly, but I''m pretty sure she knows what she''s talking about. I''m sure you''re aware of that, but I''m not sure if you''re aware of that. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m sure you''ll be pleased with the results. You''re going deep into the forest now? You''re going to expand your search there, aren''t you? That''s true, but ...... the further we go into the forest, the more the demons are distributed, right? Yes. If the base of the mountain is divided into three layers, the first, second and third, then this area is near the end of the first layer. The guild has designated this first layer as a buffer zone, and when a group of Orcs appear here, they send out a request to kill them like this. From our point of view, we thought we had gone into a lot of detail, but it seems that the guild''s classification is still in its infancy. Well, maybe that''s the way it is, since goblins do appear in the area. And it seems that the guild of the city of Raffan is basically not going to touch the second and third levels. It seems that the main reason for this is that it does not affect the safety of the city or the roads, and the danger of the area is not balanced by the profit to be gained. As a delegate of Rafan, I would like adventurers to go and get the famous tree in the depths of the forest, but I can''t offer a reward that is worth the danger, and as a guild, adventurers who are willing to work for a low reward are likely to die, so I caution them not to enter. However, the guild does not forbid adventurers to go into these areas, so they are free to do so at their own risk, but there are few adventurers who go into these areas even after being stopped by the guild. So there''s no information on the second and third levels? "No, they''re investigating. According to the guild''s data, there are three types: the sculpted ape, the bound viper, and the ogre. "Scalp Ape?¡¡That''s a weird name. ......? Well, ...... said that when they were first discovered, they were making a lot of noise with their human ''it''. "...... Oh. Scalp, by the way, refers to the scalp. Scalp Ape is a bit tricky. They are about the size of a gorilla, and they generally surround their prey in groups of 10 or more, attacking with clubs and throwing stones. In addition to their gorilla-like appearance, they are also very strong, and a normal human being can be seriously injured by a bare-handed blow. When the prey is weak, it will grab the head, arms, and legs, swing them around, and slam them into the ground. Seriously, ...... their numbers and the intelligence to use their tools are a threat. Yes. It''s important not to get surrounded by them anyway. Just being surrounded by 10 or more of them and having them throw rocks at you at once is enough of a threat. And with the arm strength of a gorilla. In some cases, you might want to prepare a shield. The Bind Viper sneaks up from the trees and uses its long torso to choke or suspend you, but like the ...... Branch Eater Spider, it may not be as dangerous if you spot it first. A huge snake, about five meters long, creeps noiselessly from the tree tops. If you don''t have an enemy spotter, it can be quite a threat. But even if you can find it first, it''s not a small fish, because it''s hard to hit. "Toya''s attacks are ineffective? No, no, no. I can stab with my sword, okay? No, no, no.¡¡Can you reach it? Again!¡¡I haven''t even killed a single Branch Eater Spider! I''ve never killed that many Branch Eater Spiders in the first place, but the top shooters of Branch Eater Spiders are Haruka, who uses a bow. Haruka''s sniping was quite impressive, as if she were piercing a needle, and she was able to kill them without fail even when they were hard to see due to the thick branches of the trees. Incidentally, I had no kills either. I refrained from attacking with magic, since it was in the forest and the proof of defeat might be burned. The Bind Viper''s hide is tough, so I don''t think it will be as tough as the Branch Eater Spider. You may be able to smash its head with a good ...... maybe, but it may be more effective to use Haruka and Yuki''s small swords to cut through it. It sounds like a pain in the ass. It''s a good thing that they appear alone. "Ogres are genuinely strong. They''re slightly smaller than orc leaders, but they''re much faster and stronger. I''d recommend running away from it, but it''s probably too fast for us. It''s best to rely on Nao''s [Enemy Search] to avoid encountering them. It''s impossible to be much stronger than the orc leader. If they''re that strong, they''ll be easy to spot even with [Spotting enemy]. I''m sure. If you don''t know, you can go to ...... and if you''re not good, you''ll die. The pressure is on. As for other animals, the most dangerous ones are vipe-bears, so you don''t need to worry about them. There are also wolves, but they don''t usually dare to attack humans, just like they didn''t attack me when I went fishing. So it''s the demons that are the problem. If there are no demons, there is no difference between the forest of the original world and the forest of ......?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ve heard of them. I forgot to mention that. There are some non-monstrous snakes and poisonous insects. But they can be treated with Haruka''s light magic, so I don''t think they''re much of a threat. --But without magic, they''ll die. "Oh, I see. ...... I was told I would die easily. I think I read that some kinds of bites are dangerous. There is no serum, you know. There''s no serum, and transport is limited. Isn''t there some kind of ''antivenom''? If it''s a game, it''s in the realm of alchemy. There''s no such thing as a cure-all for anything, because there are different poisons for different things. Of course, Japan doesn''t have such a convenient thing, and we need to find a corresponding serum right away. Of course, we don''t have such a convenient thing in Japan either. In our world, you would die before you could get it, and it is more likely that you would never make it back to the city. However, since we all know that poisonous snakes are dangerous, people who go into the forest use sturdy boots to protect themselves, and it is said that accidents such as bites do not occur very often. 111-101 How do we live? Well, from what I hear, it''s not safe to go any further, so what do we do? We''ll go. We haven''t done any fighting today, so we''re not in bad shape, right? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what to do. This is not just about whether we go now, but also about what we do in the future. Over the past few months, we''ve been able to save up a fair amount of money, haven''t we? Haruka said with a serious face, and we both thought about it. This time, with half of the money pooled as party funds, the amount distributed to individuals was more than three million Japanese yen. This is the result of working for about three months after purchasing a house separately. Even if you take into account that the period of time you can work as an adventurer is limited, you should be able to save enough money to live on for the rest of your life if you continue to fulfill the same level of requests as before. If all you want is to live safely, you may not need to take any more risks. Hmmm ...... is this a turning point in your life? You can make a good amount of money at your current level. If you''re going to live a moderate life in this city, I don''t think you need to push yourself any harder. If you''re not extravagant, you can save up for retirement. There was a slight risk to his life, but he would have no trouble hunting orcs now, not to mention vipu bears and task boars. We can harvest the fruits of the dindle. I haven''t done any spring or summer work yet, but I''m sure I''ll have some source of income. You can also catch fish and crabs if you travel a little further. If the social situation does not change, it is almost certain that we will be able to live a fairly secure life. Everyone seemed to understand this, and there was silence for quite a while. Yuki was the first one to speak up. I want to ...... still work hard?¡¡What is my limit at this age?¡¡A point of arrival?¡¡I think it''s too early to decide. Of course, if you''re asking me if I want to bet my life on it, I''m a little torn. It was Toya who spoke up next. I feel the same way. I want to be better so that my wife and I can have a good life together. I just don''t know if I should let you guys go along with it, and I don''t think I can get by without leaving the party. ...... To put it crudely, Yuki is too young to retire, and Toya wants more money. He''s also aware of the dangers, so he''s hesitant at the same time. ....... What about you, Natsuki? I think we all need goals in life. Yeah. I think you can have goals like getting a bride with beast ears like Toya, but I don''t have any goals like that. No, that''s something you don''t need to learn from. If Natsuki were to say, "I''m going to get a cool groom! I''m going to be sick. "What should I do? What should I do?" When you think about it, the first thing that comes to mind is to become a prominent figure in your profession. And now I am an adventurer. "What should I do? I hadn''t thought about what kind of job I would have in the future, but getting a job isn''t the goal, it''s the start, if you think about it. If you think about it... "I''m going to be a ____ in the future! is nothing but a child''s dream. It''s how you set your goals after you become one. I''m sure Natsuki never imagined that she would become an adventurer when she was in Japan, but I guess her stance is to work as hard as she can now that she has become one. On the other hand, what about me? I''m not sure what I''m going to do, but I''m going to do my best. I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results, but we''ve only just begun. I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... Serious. I think it''s okay to be more appropriate. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s not a bad idea to live in that house with Nao-kun all the time and relax. "What, me? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Yes. If you keep doing the same thing you''ve been doing, you''ll never have a chance to meet young girls, right?¡¡Have you met anyone in the last few months? Let''s see, ....... Young girls themselves, I hardly ever see them. ....... There are no young, beautiful receptionists in the adventurer''s guild, and I don''t see any adventurer''s groups with pretty girls. There are no young beautiful receptionists in the adventurer''s guild, and you don''t see groups of pretty girls adventuring. ...... Oh, I met Aella. What?¡¡I''m sure she''s a lot older than you.¡¡I''m sure she''s quite a bit older than you. She''s trained at other stores and has saved up enough money to build that store. For a moment, Natsuki looked at him as if to say, "There it is! I''m sure you''re not the only one. That''s true. In general, the wages paid to apprentices are not very high. I wondered how many years of apprenticeship it took for him to accumulate enough money to build such a large store. Right?¡¡See, see, you have no choice. Or are you not satisfied with me? No, I''m not unhappy with you. ...... Does living together mean marriage? It''s true that if you''re going to do the same thing every year from now on, you''re not going to have many opportunities to meet girls. But that doesn''t mean that you have to go out and pick up girls on the street or desperately look for a marriage partner. If you think about it, Natsuki is ideal because she is friendly and has Japanese values. ......? We''re already living together in a new house. This is already practically-- "Hey! Haruka interrupted me and whispered something like that to Natsuki. "Don''t ignore me and Yuki! "What? At Haruka''s protest, Yuki looked behind her and said, "Me too? What? It''s okay. There are no young girls, but there are plenty of young men at the Adventurer''s Guild.¡¡Haruka and Yuki should be easy to find. "You know what?¡¡Out of the question! That''s right!¡¡You''re the one who has to go to the guild and ask for help. I''ll pass. I don''t think I''d fit in. Then don''t suggest it to me either! The women are screaming at each other while I''m ignored. --Yeah, ......, you''re good. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. When I turned my head towards him, he grinned and said something stupid. "Nao, you''re popular, aren''t you? No, it''s a process of elimination. There''s no one else. Adventurers are basically dirty. If you''re a high rank adventurer, it might be different, but if you''re a low rank adventurer with no money and no access to Purify, there''s not much you can do to keep your body clean. Their hair and beards grow long. Even Tokuoka and the other adventurers I met the other day were like that. The other adventurers are no exception. It must be uncomfortable for the women who like to keep clean to even come near him. Other artisans, such as Ganz and Simon, are relatively clean, but they are married and their ages do not match. Furthermore, Haruka and the others seem to feel that the men who approach them are troublesome because they were often picked up in Japan. They would not be looking for a son-in-law on their own. And Toya has clearly declared, "I''m getting a bride with beast ears! You''re not serious. "You''re not serious, you''re not even twenty yet. I don''t think so. ...... In the meantime, Haruka and her friends, who have lowered their voices a little, are saying things like, "The early bird gets the worm," "This isn''t Japan," and "Life is long. "Hey, guys!¡¡Hey, you guys! Discuss and decide these things in private!¡¡Now is the time to decide whether to proceed or not.¡¡What about Haruka and Nao? "I was going to go along with everyone else, so either way is fine. I was going to go along with everyone else. I''ve been trying to fit in with everyone else, so I''m fine with either. I''d like to live a long and prosperous life if possible. I''m not opposed to it either, as long as we proceed with caution as before. With Haruka and Natsuki around, you won''t have to worry too much. When I said that, Yuki rolled her eyes and pointed at herself. "What about me? Yuki is classified as a Toya in my mind. I''m sorry. Oh, no! Yuki stumbles back with her hand over her mouth, somewhat deliberately. I''m the one who''s upset!¡¡I''m not that unthinking, am I? In the beginning, you wanted to make a request. "I don''t remember ....... When I pointed this out, Toya quickly looked away and said something like that. But I remember it well. When I was earning money gathering herbs and hunting boars, Toya wanted to take down goblins. But Haruka stopped him and he gave up. I''m a man myself, so I can understand how you feel. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Especially you, Toya and Nao, focus on spotting. Try to avoid all but single enemies. But if it looks like an ogre, leave immediately. That means we''ll be avoiding all but the Bind Viper, right? Yeah, something like that. If I''m lucky enough to find one of those scarp-apes, I''d like to fight it. "As expected of Haruka. Always the cautious one. "I''m the type of person who kills bosses by hitting the ''fight'' command repeatedly. I would have been killing goblins for months if I could have gotten a solid level. "Level up and hit them physically". In a way, it''s the safest. If the enemy is stronger than you expect, you have insurance in the form of magic, items, and skills. I''m the type of person who levels up a fair amount and ends up keeping all the disposable attack items and high quality healing potions like elixirs. Oh, I''m the same as Yuki. I''m the kind of person who just goes in, and if I lose, I think of a new tactic, and if that doesn''t work, I level up. Ugh, I can''t keep up with the conversation. ...... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to hear that. Natsuki, who was left alone in the conversation, complained with a slightly annoyed expression, to which Yuki nodded her head. Haruka and Yuki would sometimes play RPGs if we suggested it, while Natsuki would only occasionally play games with us. We didn''t have a game console, and it was a little difficult for us to recommend Natsuki to play. After all, she was a young lady. We know her family isn''t that strict, but it''s not something we''d dare recommend. I don''t know if we''ve really improved our physical strength.¡¡I think our endurance has improved. ...... Toya, can I stab you? What the hell? No, I just want to make sure the knife won''t stick. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. You and I are on the same level, right?¡¡Even with the increased strength, it''ll probably still sting! I''m not sure what to do. Then we''ll have to get a civilian to stab you. What kind of kill order is that? I call out to people on the street and say, "Could you stab this person for me? I''ll give you a knife. ...... Yeah, that''s something to report. I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... Okay. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure it''s not the same thing. I''m sure there''s a difference, right?¡¡Here. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. We all look at it. ...... It''s a little red, but there''s no injury or peeling of the skin on the hand. The tree trunk is quite uneven, and he hit it with such force that it is in this condition. By the way, you don''t have any scars on your hands anymore. ...... Oh, that''s me too. In the beginning, if I forgot to wear gloves, before I knew it, I''d have a scratch or two on my hands. I don''t get blisters on my hands anymore. "I don''t get blisters anymore," she said, showing me her beautiful palms. He showed me his palm, which was beautiful and soft, without any blisters. "Um, Nao-kun, ....... "Oh, I''m sorry. No, no. ...... I''m not sure what to do. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the best results. It''s definitely a beautiful thing. "Yes. As a woman, it''s nice to know that your defenses and muscle strength are not reflected in your appearance. That''s true. I would have quit being an adventurer if I was told that my appearance would be based on my strength. I can''t say that when it''s life or death, but as a woman, I can''t help it. I also don''t want to see muscular Natsuki and his friends. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I had to. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one.¡¡We don''t have much time if we''re going to report on the orc extermination today, right? "Yeah, I guess so. Are you sure you want to go north for now? I think that''s a good idea. The further northwest we go, the stronger the enemy will be. The forest around this area extends from the northwest of Rafan to the east along the mountain range, and continues towards Sarstat. The demons are weakest along the road to the east of Rafan, where we first entered the forest, and the strength of the demons varies in concentric circles from there. In other words, the danger level is higher along the forest to the north of Rafan than in the slightly deeper part of the eastern forest. Okay, Toya, take the lead. Okay, Nao, you take the search. We regrouped and started walking north. 112-102 Deep into the Forest I''ve grown an [Enemy Search] skill, by the way... It wasn''t until a while after they started walking that Toya mentioned this. "Oh, really? "Yeah. I can see more now than ever. He looked back at me and gave me a smug look. ...... No, no, no. If Toya becomes too powerful, I won''t be able to do my job. I''m sure it will come in handy when you''re camping. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. Yeah. I didn''t know how to do it. I didn''t know how to do it. - Why don''t you just copy it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Whoa, another threat to my position? That''s right. I''ve been able to recognize the enemy''s presence for some time now. Me too. I can still sense their presence, though. Seriously?¡¡I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to. A little bit of a cheat, [enemy spotting] was the point of my appeal. I''m sure it will help raise the overall level of the game, but it''s a bit complicated. No, no, no, it''s not like Nao can see enemies that are over 100 meters away. Yes. I''m sure you''ll find it very useful. But in terms of skill structure, Natsuki is more suitable for scouting. Nao is a bit half-hearted, isn''t he? Yuki, you shouldn''t have said that. ....... You can''t tell me the truth, but it will hurt you. I''m sure you''ll be able to tell me what you think, but I''m not sure what you think. Weapon combat, magic, scouting. All of them are above average in the party, but if things continue as they are, Yuki is right, we''re going to end up with a half-baked lineup. Hmmm, should I focus on one of them? No, from my point of view, it''s like, don''t tell me Yuki.¡¡You''re below average in everything you do, aren''t you? "That''s right. I''m basically just copying stuff, and most of it is level one. No, that''s exactly what I''m talking about.¡¡Toya! I put my hand gently on Yuki''s shoulder and smiled. "Na, Nao, ....... I said to Yuki, who had a worried look on her face. "You''re so half-hearted, Yuki. "You''re going after me! I''m sure you''ll agree that this is a great idea. I''ve been wondering the same thing. Well, if you don''t want to be poor at dexterity, you have to narrow your focus or work harder than others, right? "Work harder than others?" ...... We still spend a lot of time training, don''t we? That''s right. In other words, no matter how hard you work, your position in the party will not change. If I train spear and magic for the same amount of time as Toya trains only swords, the difference in level will naturally increase. On the other hand, I don''t think it''s right for me to focus only on spear or magic. It''s kind of a waste of time when you can do it. ....... It''s not very useful then. "That''s fine, even if you''re not very good at it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it.¡¡You don''t always have to work with five people, you know. That''s right. If you think about the possibility of splitting up and exploring, I''m sorry to say it, but I think Yuki is ''easy to use''. In fact, Toya could use a few more skills ....... "Oops, a boomerang just flew in. I''m not the only one who thinks this, but I made my character as a complete warrior type. ...... I recommend the beast-eared ninja-- oops, chatter''s over. Enemy responding. What, you''re going to stop there?¡¡What, you''re going to stop there? Toya, who was walking in the lead, turned around and stared at me with a surprised look on her face, but I quickly ignored her and continued speaking. "There is one response. I''m not an orc, what do you want? You''re ignoring me? Toya, shut up. If there''s one thing you know, it''s how to fight. Haruka, you''re a terrible ....... What direction? That way, maybe 80 meters?¡¡I think it''s a Bind Viper. I''m not sure what to make of this. If Scalp Ape''s information that they are basically swarming is correct, and there is no other reaction in the vicinity, this is probably a Bound Viper. There is also no possibility that it is an ogre, but the strength that I can sense from the [search enemy] is not overwhelmingly stronger than an orc. I''m sure it''s a good idea, but I''m not sure if it''s worth it. I think it''s fine, but will you be okay?¡¡Strikes don''t work well, do they? That''s what I''m trying to make sure of. Accepting Toya''s suggestion that he should cover her if she was in danger, he set a course toward the Bind Viper. As I approached the last ten meters or so, Toya seemed to be able to see it, looked back, and nodded. It looks like they''re up in the trees. I can''t see him yet. Be careful, okay? Sure. He stepped more cautiously, until he was about a meter away when suddenly a long, thin object grew out of the tree. It was about 20 centimeters in diameter. The dark green snake stretched out about two meters at once and tried to entangle itself around Toya''s neck. However, it was not difficult for the wary Toya to dodge it, and she quickly dodged to the side and swung her sword. It''s hard!¡¡It''s hard! The snake''s body bent as if it had been struck by a flexible cord, but it did not seem to take much damage. The evidence of this is that the Bind Viper is trying to shrink its body and return to the tree. "What do we do? "Please! The one who asked was Haruka. The one who answered was Toya. At that moment, before you knew it, an arrow was shot from Haruka, who had her bow at the ready, and it pierced the Bind Viper''s eye. I''m not sure what to make of this. ...... No matter how short the distance and how big the snake''s head is, its eyes are only about two centimeters long.¡¡I''m not sure I''d be so shocked. While I was astonished like that, the situation was moving. Natsuki''s spear pierced the mouth of the Bind Viper, which opened wide the moment the arrow struck it, and it was sewn to the tree. I immediately joined the fray and tried to thrust the spear into its head, but... It''s so hard! The skull of the Bind Viper is harder than I imagined. Natsuki''s spear pierced through the snake''s oral cavity and into its lower jaw, but my attempt to pierce its skull was repelled by the tougher epidermis and bones than I had imagined. "Me! Toya slammed the sword down on my behalf. Toya''s sword was less effective on the body, but a blunt instrument works well on hard things. With a dull crunch, she crushed the bind viper''s head, skull and all, and stained the tree trunk with a spray of blood. The force of the blow was quite impressive, but the fact that Natsuki had quickly pulled out his spear a moment earlier was nothing short of brilliant. If he hadn''t, the spear might have been broken. As you can see, Haruka''s arrow was shattered along with it. Did you do it?¡¡It''s not the ...... flag, is it? No, you''re not going to come back from this, no matter what. The body of the Bind Viper hangs limply from the tree, its head completely smashed. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. ...... It''s so long. "Yeah. Toya, can you hold that for me? Yeah. When the two of us stretched it by its tail and head, it was at least four meters long. Compared to this length, its body looks thin, but it''s still as long as my thighs. "Toya, what kind of material can you get from a Bind Viper? "Oh, I don''t remember. Skin and meat. ...... Is the meat edible?¡¡It was really hard. Toya looks at the Bind Viper as if she''s a little confused. I also tried to hit the body with the handle of the spear, but it came back with a bang, bang, bang, as if I was hitting a rubber tire. At least it doesn''t look tasty. The skin looks tough, but ...... Yuki, can you cut it? I''m not sure.¡¡Wait a minute. I''m not sure what to make of this. I tried to stab it with my spear, but it seemed to be tougher than orc skin. My sword had no effect on the body. Do I need a sword that can cut? "It''s a snake, so Toya''s weapon that can crush its head is important. Unless you can cut off the head in one fell swoop,......, can Natsuki do it? I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure it''s because of the skills he had originally acquired. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... Haruka, can I borrow your little sword? I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of that. It was a brilliant move, but it only resulted in cutting off about half of the body. The result was only half of his torso, but it was still a bigger cut than Yuki''s. "Huh. At least it''s impossible with this little sword. This is the result in this state, so in battle, ....... It''s going to be difficult to cut off the backbone. It''s true, this spine looks hard. A cleaver might be able to push through it with centrifugal force and weight, but ...... Tommy might be able to make one for you if you ask him, but I doubt you''ll need it. In a forest, wielding weapons seem to be a bit incompatible. If you''re talking about the Bind Viper, you don''t need it, do you? Yes. It''s basically just one, and the spear sticks. And Toya is there to stop it. And we have magic. "Well, we''ll try magic next time, but for now let''s dismantle it. The advantage is that it seems to be easier than the others. With Haruka''s words, we split up and began to dismantle it. After collecting the magic stone from the head, we split open the belly to remove the organs and bones. I feel like I''m handling an eel. I''ve never done it before. I''ve never done it before, but the average person doesn''t have the opportunity to do it. ...... It''s good to separate the bones. When Natsuki made a slit from head to tail and pulled the bone, it connected and slipped out. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. ....... The color of the flesh is quite ...... subtle. I thought it was white. I thought it would be white. It doesn''t look very tasty. The meat of the Bind Viper was red. Tuna is also red, so I guess it''s not abnormal, but ...... I don''t think I want to eat it. I''m not sure I''d want to eat it. The oak seems to be better in terms of pure taste.¡¡It seems to sell for about the same price, though, because there are fewer of them in stock. The skins, on the other hand, sell for a lot more. The skin is quite beautiful, isn''t it? ...... Speaking of which, is there anyone who doesn''t like snakes? I''m not sure if you''re a fan of snakes or spiders, but I don''t see anyone showing any signs of dislike for them in this battle. Incidentally, I am not good with caterpillars. If they appear as demons, I will burn them with magic from a distance. I''m not very good at them, but when they''re this big, it''s more of a problem than anything else. ...... That''s true. Spiders are a different story. It''s a matter of judgment to a certain extent. At first, I thought I was going to throw up when I took it apart. --All right, it''s done. Haruka, with Toya as his assistant, rolled up the skin and put it in the magic bag, then cut the remaining meat into appropriate sizes and put it in the bag. The rest of the meat was cut to the appropriate size and placed in the bag. "Well, let''s explore some more and go home. If possible, I''d like to kill the Bind Viper again, this time with magic. Okay. Let''s find it. Perhaps it was because we were deep in the forest, but the second Bind Viper was easy to find. The search for the second Bind Viper also revealed a Scalp Ape, but we avoided it and fought the Bind Viper with magic. It was easily defeated. The ordinary Fire Arrow had little effect, but the Fire Arrow, which was capable of blowing off the head of an Orc, easily penetrated the head of the Bind Viper. The only problem was that the Bind Viper was basically on a tree branch, so using the "Fire Arrow" would blow off the branch along with its head, causing a bit of damage to the surroundings. It''s not a big problem because it won''t spread the fire, but it would be smarter for Toya to crush the head if she can afford it. But if there is room, it would be smarter for Toya to crush the head. However, it''s great to know that if we don''t mind the damage, me, Haruka, and Yuki can finish off the Bind Viper in addition to Toya. --But on the other hand, Natsuki, who is the only one who doesn''t have an effective attack, looks a little frustrated and is showing a strange motivation. I''m sure you''ll be fine. ......? 113-103 Ranked Up After leaving the forest, we hurried back to the town and headed for the guild. After killing the second Bind Viper, we were about to return when we found two Orcs, which threw us off schedule a bit. It wasn''t difficult to avoid them, but considering that the period of expensive purchase of magic stones would end if I reported the destruction of the orc nest, I didn''t want to miss it. I could also secure some meat. I hope it''s not too crowded. ...... We''re still good, right?¡¡The adventurers escorting the woodcutter won''t be back for a while, right? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. If that''s the case, it would be better to report it normally. The adventurer''s guild I entered was rather quiet as usual. It seemed that they had managed to avoid the busy times. Diora, who was sitting at the counter, immediately noticed me, smiled, and called out to me. Welcome back, everyone. I''m back, Mr. Diora. Delivering the goods as usual. Yes, in the back, then. Diora urged us to go to the back warehouse. Since I''ve been delivering only Orcs lately, I''ve had less and less chance to handle them at the counter, so I''ve always had to move here. As expected, the orc meat is too big to be placed on the front counter. Haruka and his team have been delivering orcs consistently lately, haven''t they? Isn''t the orc nest about to be wiped out?¡¡Mmm-hmm. Oh, good timing. I nodded to Diora, who laughed jokingly. Yes, actually, the eradication is over. "Hmmm ......?¡¡What? Eradication? You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. We nodded again in response. I''m not sure what to make of that. "I can''t say there weren''t any that we didn''t kill, but we also killed four orc leaders and destroyed their nests. Four orc leaders? Yeah. That''s the magic stone. When we arrived at the warehouse, Haruka placed four orc leader demon stones on the counter, along with about ten normal orc demon stones. Next to them, we also laid out orc pelts. Of course we keep the meat. Wait a minute. ...... Indeed, it looks like an orc leader. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. But I''m more interested in the tool. ....... "Mr. Diora, what is that thing? Toya asked me. It''s a magic stone.¡¡This is a magic tool to measure the magic power of magic stones. It doesn''t know the name of the demon, but since there are only a few types of demons around here, it shouldn''t be too much of a problem. It seems that there are more sophisticated devices that can even determine the name of the demon, but since the purchase price of the demon stone is determined by the amount of magic power, there is no practical problem. Incidentally, Toya''s [Appraise] can also tell you the name of the demon, but I don''t know if it''s the same for demon stones that Toya doesn''t know. There are 4 orc leader magic stones and 12 orc magic stones. ....... It''s true. It''s not something that a rank 2 adventurer would normally be able to do. You''ll be able to get a lot more than just a few. It''s not like we just attacked them out of the blue, we reduced them little by little. You''ve been bringing in orcs before, haven''t you? It is true that we have brought in about one orc nest. But I didn''t expect them to be enough to kill an orc leader. ...... If it''s a normal orc, it''s strong enough for a rank 2 party to kill it, but if it''s an orc leader, the difficulty level goes way up. In the case of the guild''s request to destroy the orcs, it is normal for people to be injured or even killed in the defeat of the orc leader. "By the way, what about high rank adventurers? "High rank adventurers are amazing. ....... I can cut down an orc with one hand while humming a song. As you can see, only a few orc leaders can do that, though. Oh, so there are people who can cut down an orc while humming to themselves? The level of the adventurers was much higher than I had imagined. Of course, there are no such people in this town. But when we were late in eradicating a nest of orcs and an orc general broke out, we paid a lot of money to bring them in. The commission for such a high rank seems to be enormous, and as a result, the deputy was made to take responsibility and was removed by the lord. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. And then there''s the orc pelts. I''m sure you can''t bring back the meat. "......... Of course I have it, but I''m not going to talk about the capacity of the magic bag, so I keep silent. In terms of unit price per volume, fur is more expensive than meat, so I guess Mr. Diora did not think it suspicious. ...... Yes, your assessment is complete. I''ll give you your reward, please go to the counter. Also, I''ll be upgrading my rank, so could you please meet with the branch manager? "Oh, you''re moving up in rank? Yes. It is indeed unwise to leave Haruka and the others who eradicated the orcs at rank 2. They have no behavioral problems. Please wait for a moment. In other words, if they have behavioral problems, their rank will not be raised even if they are strong. We waited for a few minutes for Diora to leave the warehouse. She came back and led us to the third floor of the guild, where we stood in front of the back room. It was a nondescript door, but since we were here, this must be the branch manager''s room. "Chief, are you coming in? "Yes. Ms. Diora knocked on the door, and opened it just in time to hear or not hear the answer, and went inside. The room I followed her into was not particularly luxurious, just an ordinary room. The shelves on the left and right walls were filled with crates, and the floor underneath was also piled with crates, making the room rather chaotic. At the back of the room, there was a desk, and sitting there was a man who was well into his prime. His hairline has receded a bit, but his well-trained body suggests that he may have been an adventurer. Are these the promising adventurers Diora is talking about? Yes. They have the confidence and recklessness of youth, and they do their work well. The chief, who had been looking at us with a slightly cautious gaze, nodded and leaned back in his chair. Hmm ...... Well, if that''s what the Vice President decides, I''m not opposed to it. I''m Marks, the head of the adventurer''s guild in the town of Raffan. I know this will be a short time, but I look forward to working with you. These words sounded a bit throwaway, but I guess that''s what you get when you''re dealing with low-ranked adventurers. Anyway, I didn''t know that Diora-san was the vice leader. I''ve heard he''s an officer. ....... "Branch Chief!¡¡You should have greeted me better!¡¡It''s a rare adventurer who''s willing to settle in this city! "...... What? He''s already bought land and built a house in this city. Right? Yes, it was completed the other day. You''ll be able to get a lot more than just a house. I''m sorry about this. There are many adventurers who leave the city when they reach rank 4 or so. There are no suitable jobs for their rank. "No? No. If you have a magic bag like you guys, you can make money from Orcs, but if you don''t, it''s hard to make money. ...... You can get a job as a woodcutter''s guard at rank 1 or 2. It seems that the next job after this is not available in this city. In terms of combat rank, Orcs are about right, but Orcs in this area usually don''t come out near the streets, and you have to go deep into the forest to hunt them. So if you don''t have a magic bag, you won''t be able to bring back the materials and earn money. That''s why I''m counting on you, Haruka, Nao, Toya, Natsuki and Yuki. Mr. Marks shook our hands and patted us on the shoulder as he called our names. Even though it was the first time he had met us, he hadn''t mispronounced any of our names, so he must have remembered our features and names, even though he didn''t seem interested. He seems to be a bit of a brainiac, but he is quite capable. However, as I reported earlier, Haruka and her team have already eradicated the orcs in the eastern forest. ...... That''s right. As a guild, we''re sorry that we can''t introduce you to any suitable jobs, but ....... If you can go to the north woods and cut down some trees... I''m sure you''ll be able to find a job in the guild that suits you. "Chief!¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I know, I know, I know. It''s just a hope. If you can at least make your way to the foot of the mountain range, I think you can get by with just an escort, even if you''re rank 4 or 5. The branch chiefs are aware that the lack of jobs for those ranks is causing adventurers to leave the town, and they''ve been looking for a solution for some time now. The town''s representative is also worried about the shortage of trees that can be harvested deep in the northern forest, and in addition to requesting guilds to purchase trees, he is also willing to subsidize the development of a logging-friendly environment. However, they don''t have enough money to bring in high-ranked adventurers from the outside just to clear a path, and they don''t have enough adventurers who meet the requirements to do so internally. In addition, the adventurers who grew up in the town would leave as their ranks increased because there was no work for them. Inevitably, the branch chief''s plan has been stagnant for a long time. "Well, I''m sorry, but it''s impossible to build a road through the northern forest. When Natsuki said this hesitantly, Marks nodded, laughing. Of course, I know that, and I''m not going to ask you. Diora will kill me. "Branch Chief ......? Diora looked up at Marks with a smile on her face. Her eyes are not smiling at all. Ms. Marks shook her head in panic at that look. "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.¡¡Yeah, I think that''s great. "Right, sir?¡¡Isn''t it disgusting that he''s offering you a job you can''t do? Of course! In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, please do not hesitate to contact us. I''m not sure what to make of this. This is the first time I''ve ever seen such a thing. You guys just stay in this town and move up the ranks if you can, that''s all. If there are successful adventurers around, more adventurers will stay in town. Marks-san laughed, but Diora-san interrupted him. I don''t think it will work out that way. In the end, it''s because of the lack of work. I''m sure Haruka and the others will get along just fine, but the rest of the adventurers are ....... "Don''t be so sure, Diora. To be honest, I''m at a loss. We''re in a bit of a pickle, don''t you think? Mr. Marks sighed and sat back in his seat, looking a little tired. You can expect all you want, but please don''t put pressure on Haruka and the others. I know, I know. But you know, ...... Diora, do you have any ideas? It''s your job to think about it.¡¡Please don''t complain to your subordinates. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with that. I''m not sure if it''s okay for us to leave. But then Haruka called out to Diora. "Um, are we ready to go? Yes, of course. Yes, of course. You can all go downstairs to the counter. "Oh, I''m sorry. I''m sorry. Just do your best as long as you can. With a wry smile and encouragement from Mr. Marks, Diora led us out of the room. 114-104 Its troublesome again I didn''t think you''d go all the way up to rank four. I thought it would be at least one rank higher, but you raised it to two. After that, we returned to the counter on the first floor and received our guild cards with our ranks updated to four, along with the proceeds from the sale of magic stones. We thought we were going to get rank 3 when they said they would raise our ranks, but we all got rank 4. According to Diora, "There is no rank 3 adventurer who can destroy a nest of orcs with one party. Since we didn''t go in and destroy them all at once, I think that''s a bit of an overestimate, but I''m honestly happy that my rank has gone up. "But rank doesn''t really matter, does it? Yes. No. It''s just a quantification of the guild''s trust in you. As expected, when you reach rank 7 or above, everyone respects you and your social status becomes quite high. At rank 3, you''re no longer a rookie, so you''re no longer underestimated as an adventurer, but at rank 4, you''re not as respected. However, it''s not easy to become one, so if you''re an adventurer, they''ll at least give you a glance. For a party like ours, with so many women, it might be a good way to avoid some trouble. But there''s one more thing, you can enter dungeons from rank 4, so if you want to go to dungeons, it makes sense. The one who added that was Yuki. I''m not planning on going to dungeons at the moment, but I''d like to at least try it once, so considering that, is it a good thing that I became a rank 4? But is there a dungeon nearby? There aren''t any nearby. The towns famous for their dungeons are pretty far away. It''s not like there aren''t smaller dungeons. Well, it''ll be a while before we get there. You''ve built a house. Well... It''s a shame to leave your new house for a long time. We left the guild and walked for a while, talking like this. Suddenly, someone called out to me from behind. "Mr. Shidou! It was Yuki. When Yuki turned around at the sound of a familiar voice, a man came running up to her. I''m sorry I got a little excited the other day. May I have a word with you? I looked at the man with a smile on my face and clapped my hands. "Are you in the rocks? Perhaps he was tired of being called smelly by the ladies the other day, but today Iwanaka had shaved off his beard. However, he seems to have made a few mistakes in shaving, and the scars on his face are a little painful, and there are many unshaven areas. It''s hard to get a good shaving knife, and there is no mirror that can give him a clean shave, so in a way, it''s unavoidable. Yes. I was in a rush the other day and didn''t get a chance to say hello. ...... What?¡¡You clearly ignored me and Toya, right? I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. "Yes. I''ll get right to the point. I have a suggestion, why don''t we move to the south together and have a joint party with you guys?¡¡From now on, there will be fewer requests in this city. With the work you''re getting, it''s going to be hard to make ends meet, you know? With a good smile, he said something strange. You failed to take in the women, so now you want to include us? He changed his tone and attitude from hard-negotiation to soft-negotiation, but it doesn''t make sense in this situation. He''s already distrusted you. Even his seemingly benign smile smells fishy. "Huh, you ignored us last time, and now you want to join us? "Right?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. No, no, I was going to talk to you later. Well, it wasn''t like that, was it? I know. Besides, our party is stable at five, so there''s no point in adding more people. We can do a good job with just the five of us. Are you sure?¡¡If we don''t, we''ll spend the rest of our lives doing trivial jobs in this town! Iwanaka opened his mouth as if in a panic, but the premise was wrong in the first place. Why do they think they can get to the top? ....... I think it''s a good idea if you can live a stable life. And I don''t think my job in this city is beneath me. What? Iwanaka looked surprised at Yuki and Natsuki''s words, but most jobs are like that, aren''t they? It''s not uncommon for Japanese salarymen to spend their entire lives working in the town where they got their job. The only difference is that you can travel easily thanks to the development of transportation, but unless you are a transferee, you don''t change the town you live in very often. If you can finish your life with a normal job in this dangerous world, you can be classified as a successful person in a sense. In the first place, Iwanaka-kun and the others don''t seem to be very strong, so there''s no advantage to teaming up with us, right? "Yes, we may be a little outmatched right now due to our initial skills, but the three of us actually all have experience doubling skills! Iwanaka suddenly said, and we all looked at each other. Is that the reason for your confidence? Of course we were thinking, "All of them have that mine skill?¡¡Seriously? However, Iwanaka seemed to have misunderstood something and smiled a little more comfortably. The first time you use the experience doubling skill, you''ll probably lose to the other transferees in skill level. But in the long run, you can certainly surpass them. If you plan ahead a bit, this is a skill you should take even if you have to push yourself. Perhaps because we looked at each other, Iwanaka looked at us with an expression like, "You guys didn''t get it anyway, did you? He looked at us with an expression like, "You guys didn''t get it anyway, did you? And I even have a [Skill Copy], you know? --Don''t laugh, don''t laugh, don''t laugh!¡¡Good luck, my facial muscles! I hurriedly averted my gaze from Iwachu''s smug face, as it might cause me to burst out laughing. The ones who haven''t changed their facial expressions are Haruka and Natsuki, who have always had somewhat of a poker face at school. Yuki''s cheeks are trembling, and Toya is holding his face in his hands, looking serious, but in reality, he''s trying hard to swallow a laugh. I''m sure that with the skill copy and experience doubling skills, you''ll need at least 150 points, right? It''s a shame that this is the only way to use it,......, because the results in the rocks were good, so it''s understandable that you have a lot of points. It''s a shame. We may be behind you for now, but in the future we will certainly (...) pull ahead of you. Yes, overwhelmingly (????). ""........." I''m the one who''s going to be standing over you. You''re walking in front of us now. But our steps are wider than yours, and it is already certain that we will overtake you. Iwanaka, who was in his own world, didn''t even seem to notice the subtle expressions on our faces. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. ....... I feel a little sorry for him when he''s like this. But then, as if he was pleased that we were listening in silence, he looked at us and smirked in a disgusting way. But a leader needs to be able to use people. You may not be able to rise to the top, but you can be useful as my subordinates. If you don''t join the party now, you''ll regret it.¡¡After we''re strong, there''ll be plenty of people to go around. Yes, even women. --What the hell, you''re talking down to me. The little sympathy I felt for her was gone. It seems that Toya was the same way, his expression changed from a dumbfounded grimace to a fierce smile, and he put his hand on his weapon. "...... Huh?¡¡So you''re saying we should take care of it while we can? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. His grades were good, but he was an idiot, wasn''t he? Before overtaking him, he said, "I''ll overtake you sooner or later. "Even if we''re adventurers, the guards will catch us if we draw our weapons! "Oh, yes. --By the way, you know what?¡¡By the way, do you know that there are no items in this world that can check your criminal record? You''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in this article. "Yes, yes. It''s a shame there isn''t an award or punishment box in your status to check when you enter the city. "No, really. I bet they don''t even know there''s been a murder outside the city. Maybe. By the way, deep in the woods, the bodies of demons disappear quickly, eaten by something. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site and find out more about it. Then he slowly retreated and ran off with the words, "You''ll regret this! and ran away. It was quite a brilliant escape. I admire his decisiveness and gracefulness in not sticking to the story. ....... "Well, they''re the ones who''ll regret it, aren''t they? That''s right. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡How dare they come together like that? I''m not sure if the three of them have always been close, but I wonder if they migrated to the same place, or if they met in this city and formed a party. ....... They may have been brought together because of their similarities, but what are the odds of that? I''m not sure what the odds are.¡¡It could be that the people who took the experience doubling skills didn''t have enough points left to take the other mine skills, and as a result they are still alive. I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. It''s completely a bad choice. "What a waste. He was better than me. Oh, by the way, Toya didn''t take the Double Experience, even though he doesn''t have the Help. It''s only 50 points.¡¡It''s too risky when you don''t even know where you''ll end up. If you don''t win the first battle, you''re going to die, so you should be able to fight to some extent, normally. I think Toya has 120 points? If you want to get the double experience, you need to get the skills you need, such as combat skills, within 70 points at most. In a way, it was fortunate that there were no points left to get [double experience] if he made a configuration that would allow him to survive. "Even if you have [10x experience], it''s pointless if you can''t beat the first enemy that comes out, that''s for sure. Right?¡¡There''s too much luck involved, like conveniently encountering a small fish and successfully killing it to level up. We made it to the town without any problems, but if we had appeared in the forest like Tommy did, it would have been very risky without any weapon skills. In that light, perhaps Iwanaka and the others were reasonably lucky. "What about Yuki didn''t take it? "Me?¡¡Because I had a bad feeling about it. 120 points for a 10x growth rate is obviously too cheap. Oh, I admire your intuition, but ...... You got the skill copy, right? Forget about it~. It''s useful now, isn''t it~? I hold Yuki''s head as she attacks me with a pockmarked, pathetic face, and chuckle. It''s true that in terms of skills alone, you''re currently the best among us. I''m sure that won''t change in the future, and I can do everything in my own way. We are a bit poor in dexterity. But he was halfway there, wasn''t he? I thought he was coming to make peace, but he was completely fighting with me. What did he want? As if to change the subject, Yuki said, shrugging her shoulders in disgust, and Toya nodded widely. "You know... You know, maybe he''s just a naturally condescending guy who doesn''t mean to pick a fight? "No way, that can''t be him. I denied it, but Haruka shook her head. You can''t be sure. I''ve seen glimpses of it in him since he was in Japan. I don''t think he''s the type of person I''d want to be friends with. I had little to do with him, but Haruka, who was an honor student, had many opportunities to get involved with Iwanaka, who was also a committee chairman. Her evaluation based on this experience is that "we can''t be friends". As long as Haruka says so, it must be the same for us. Or rather, judging from the way he has been treating us so far, I can see that he is not in his right mind. Probably because she came to another world and got a strong skill, she lost her grip. You should have realized by now that it''s not such a good skill. ...... Well, in a way, it''s convenient for us. I don''t know about the other two, but after what happened the other day, they''re not in their right minds, are they? Yes. It''s a little tricky. Fortunately, if they have the experience multiplier, I don''t think they''ll get any stronger than us, unless we skip training. ...... It''s not just about simple strength,......, that''s troublesome. I think we''re stronger than them at this point, but it''s hard to be constantly vigilant . If you think about the possibility of being taken by surprise, you have to be ''okay with being stabbed with a knife'' in order to stay alert. Moreover, the attack is not something s*xy like a love affair. It''s just a thug. I''m sure you''re not going to attack me on the street, are you? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. We''ll be in trouble with you two. "Don''t worry about it. It''s not that big of a hassle. It would be worse if you walked out alone and got attacked. I know. If he''d just attacked me in an obvious way, I could take care of him. "Oh, Toya, you''re so extreme! "Oh, you''re so extreme!" I teased, and Toya looked a little disappointed. "Well, didn''t Nao think so too? ...... Well, I won''t deny that I thought it would be refreshing to get a little hands-on. Out of town, if possible. I don''t think you can fight back too hard in the city. The problem is outside the town, but ...... we can make it deep in the forest. They won''t be able to get in. And even if they do, they''ll probably just disappear. As expected of Natsuki, he was quite merciless. The fact that she is smiling is even scarier. ...... By the way, is it man-made? I''m not going to do anything until they do something, that''s for sure. I know, right? Hahaha. I''m not going to do anything until they do something. I''m not sure what to make of this. This is a great way to get the most out of your time and money. ".......... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. In the town of Laffan, there is a day laborer. In the town of Laffan, there is an area where there is an inn for day laborers and low rank adventurers. The room where the three of us were staying was in one of those inns that are a little better than the worst. It was a small room with barely enough room for three bunk beds. The room was so small that people could barely pass each other in the little space that was left, let alone the furniture. "Shit! Iwanaka closed the door roughly and sat down on the bed with a thud, swearing as if to throw up. I guess we don''t need to hear the end of it. Couldn''t you have at least brought Shito with you? Maeda and Tokuoka looked down at Iwanaka from their beds and opened their mouths in frustration. Maeda, you go ahead and do it. How can you take out just one person out of five? Iwanaka sprawled out on the bed and spat upwards. I can''t just drag him out of the city. I''ve finally found you, and it''s not going well. You can''t just bring them into your room. The three of them found Haruka and the others at the guild. I was hoping that I could lure one of the women out of the guild, but as you can see, the result was not good. It''s foolish to think that Iwanaka, who is not a very good talker, would be able to attract just one person who has a negative impression of him to their territory from the start, but if he could understand that, he wouldn''t have acted that way from the start. They also threatened to kill me if I messed with them. What?¡¡Shidou? No, Kamiya and Nagai. Not directly, but... They said they can''t crack down on crime outside the town. That''s true. In this world, there''s no one outside the town, and if someone goes missing, they''re just assumed to have fallen prey to a demon. They won''t even be investigated. It''s the same for us. We''ll just have to kidnap him outside the town. ...... Can we win?¡¡Just the three of us? Tokuoka and Maeda pondered over Iwanaka''s words. "We may be outnumbered by ......, but we have more experience, right? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡But their skill level is higher than ours, isn''t it? Judging by their reaction, I''d say yes. If we''re going to kidnap them, we can''t just kill them. A limb or two. ...... I don''t like the idea of being missing a limb. I don''t have that particular proclivity. As far as Tokuoka and the other three know, Haruka and the others moved to the southern forest later than they did. In other words, they have been doing simple jobs such as collecting herbs for a long time, and we believe they have little experience in combat, but even so, their high-level combat skills should not be underestimated. If he was stronger, he could kill Kamiya and Nagai and make them ours. "Tokuoka, you''re getting 10 times the experience, right?¡¡Hurry up and level up. If I could, I would. This world doesn''t have a clear level system, does it?¡¡You can''t even get skills from killing goblins. You can''t see experience or character level, so it''s hard to understand. To tell the truth, all three of us allocated so many points to experience doubling skills and qualities that we couldn''t get any real combat skills and had a hard time killing even one goblin. I still managed to kill a few goblins, but I didn''t feel like I was getting any stronger by doing so. We can''t see your character level or skill level, can we?¡¡We can only see your skill level. ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. ...... What do you mean? I''m not sure how this world works, so let''s consider two patterns: character level system and skill level system. Let''s start with the former, the character level system. It''s like the classic RPG, Dragon Quest. We''ve just killed a goblin, but it''s the weakest demon in the game. In Dragon Quest terms? "Well, it''s a slime. Iwanaka nodded to Tokuoka, who answered immediately without even thinking. Yes, sir. In Tokuoka''s case, he has now killed several dozen slimes. Will my level go up? I don''t remember exactly, but I''m sure there are a few.¡¡I don''t remember exactly, but I''m pretty sure it took me a few battles to level up. Yes, it does. But only if you''re level one. Huh? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. We''ve reached the age of maturity in this world. Is our level one? ...... Normally, it would be much higher. Yes. Let''s say it''s about 10. In that case, can we raise our level by killing a few dozen slimes? No, not really. Do I need hundreds, maybe even thousands? Yes. Even if 1 experience is multiplied by 10, it''s only 10. It''s not much. Besides, if it''s so easy to get stronger by killing dozens of goblins, what are the adventurers in this town who are middle-aged or older? The town of Raffan has a certain amount of middle-aged and older adventurers, like the ones who were yelling at Tokuoka and the others. The number of goblins they have killed is probably not in the hundreds, as they take the initiative in hunting them down when escorting them in the southern forest. In spite of this, he is still living as a lumberjack guard in this city. Iwanaka thinks that it is strange that they are still in this town if they can easily improve their level and become stronger. Iwanaka''s grades are good, so he can think about that, at least. One more thing, the skill level system. You can see your skill level in your status. Since you can see the skill level in the status, I think this is more likely. It is thought that the skill level will increase with the accumulation of experience through training, etc. ...... Tokuoka, how much sword training have you done since you came here? "Ahhhh, not much. Iwanaka nodded as Tokuoka scratched his head and replied. That''s right. How long does it take for a complete amateur to be able to cut a living thing?¡¡Even if it takes about 10 months to become somewhat proficient, you''ll still need to train for a full month. I thought I could make a harem with 10 times the experience!¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. The training is ten times more efficient, so why don''t you take it seriously?¡¡If you have time to go out and buy women frequently... "Idiot, you can do it once for less than a large silver coin.¡¡There''s no reason not to go! As Tokuoka said, you can buy a street prostitute on a street corner around here for as little as the cost of one meal. However, since they also make their money by making a lot of money, they will do it in the dark back alleys, on the ground, or if they are not good, they will do it standing up. Street prostitutes are cheap, but they''re dirty and their faces are ...... dark, so they''re still good. You''re buying too much too often. You''re buying too much too often. You need to put up with it for a few days and pay a little more. "Why don''t you guys at least go to a whorehouse? Iwanaka sighed in exasperation, but Tokuoka looked at him and snickered as if he were an idiot. Iwanaka sighed in disgust. How many times have you done it, Iwanaka?¡¡You''ve only been there a few times and you''re empty-handed. "Ugh ......, that''s true, but it''s the same for you guys, isn''t it?¡¡If I had some money, I''d go out and buy a street whore. d*mn. If you could have pulled Shidou, it would have solved the problem. So the three of us share?¡¡That''s a hell of a lot better than some street whores. Sorry to disturb you, Kamiya and Nagai. Yeah. Without them, it''s just the three of us. The numbers match. --Who do you want, Iwanaka? I''d go with Azuma. He''s always ranked ahead of me. He''s been an eyesore. I want to make him squeal. I''ll go with Furumiya. I''ll go with Furumiya. I can just imagine the distortion on his smug face ...... hehe. So I''m Shidou?¡¡Well, I don''t mind little guys like that. I''m not sure if you''re aware of this, or if you just don''t care. "Well, the more time that passes, the better off we''ll be. Let''s just find the right opportunity. "Yeah, I guess so. The three of them looked at each other and smiled disgustedly. 115-105 Lets prepare a laboratory Since we bought the house, Haruka, Natsuki, and Yuki have basically been in charge of preparing the meals on a rotating basis. There was some discussion about whether Toya and I should do it too, but once we had cooked and eaten, we were unanimously assigned to clean up. There''s nothing ...... I can''t figure out. Literally, it was a unanimous decision, including me, ????. It''s not that I can''t cook at all, but that''s only in Japan. A spoonful of soup stock is enough to make a delicious soup, and mixing ingredients with seasonings and stir-frying is enough to make a real dish. This was in such an environment. If I had at least curry roux or yakiniku sauce, I could have been in charge sometimes. Incidentally, these are two of the most versatile seasonings that I personally rank high. Haruka and her friends are also lacking in seasonings, but their cooking skills are different. They have made up bouillon and consomm¨¦, dried fish to make dashi (soup stock), and are fed delicious food every day. Today, after such a delicious breakfast, we were having a cup of tea during our break. "Hmm... It was delicious again today. Thank you, Natsuki. Thank you, Natsuki. When I thanked Natsuki for making breakfast, she put the teacup in her hand on the table and smiled at me. She smiled as she placed the teacup in her hand on the table. "But isn''t it hard to cook all this every day?¡¡It takes a long time, right? Today''s breakfast consisted of vegetable soup, freshly baked bread, thick-cut bacon-like meat and fruit. In Japan, this breakfast would be a bit skimpy.¡¡In Japan, it would be a bit trivial, but here, it would be quite difficult to make it. It''s not that hard. I made a lot of bouillon and consomm¨¦ with Haruka and the others and stored them in my magic bag. The bacon is homemade, too. The bacon is also homemade. It''s good that we can prepare it in large quantities without worrying about it going bad. Yuki got some wood chips from Simon, a carpenter, and smoked some salted oak meat. It''s okay, but there''s room for improvement in the amount of salt and herbs. No, it''s pretty good.¡¡You know, Toya? Yeah. It''s smokier and juicier than any bacon I''ve ever had. It''s kind of expensive. Yeah?¡¡I think it''s because the meat itself is good. ....... But it was good. Yuki''s cheeks relaxed as if she was relieved to hear what Toya and I thought. It''s really great that you can make it for the first time and it tastes like that. Is it because of your skills? "Hey, can you make sausage? Hmmm, that would be difficult without a mincing machine and tools for stuffing the intestines. ...... Yuki shook her head in annoyance at Toya''s request. Like bacon, he knew how to make wieners, but it was difficult to make them without special tools. It''s been a while since I''ve had a wiener, but I haven''t seen any since I came here, so there''s a possibility that they don''t exist. I''ve been wanting to eat wieners for a long time, but I haven''t seen them since I came here, so they may not exist. By the way, I''ve got a couple of days'' worth of bread in my magic bag, so all I have to do is bake it. I don''t have an oven, so it''s a little tricky. Oh, so that''s what the magic bag was for. A little while ago, Haruka asked me to make a magic bag using a wooden box instead of a cloth bag, but this is a special bag that does not include any space-expanding or weight-saving functions, but only does its best to delay time. I''ve heard of "storing food in the kitchen," but that magic bag would be able to keep bread in its original state for several months after the second fermentation. I mean, don''t you think it would be better to store freshly baked bread in it? "That''s ...... what you said, isn''t it? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand what I mean. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Why did you decide to leave it in the second stage of fermentation in the first place? I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Then you can just take it out of the freezer and put it in the oven and have fresh bread. ...... That''s what drew me to the idea. It''s boxy and looks like a refrigerator. "It''s boxy and looks like a refrigerator. In Japan, freezing is also used for long-term storage at home, so Haruka''s idea is understandable. "When I think about it, this magic bag-or should I say box-shaped storage? With this, I don''t have to cook every day, I can eat freshly prepared meals. It''s a bit tricky, but it saves firewood, so it''s not a bad idea, right? That''s good. If you stock a large amount, we can easily eat it when we get hungry, right? In this world where there is no instant food that can be prepared in three minutes, it takes a lot of effort to prepare a hot meal. But with the (Natsuki-named) storage unit, all that trouble is solved. You don''t even have to worry about the expiration date. Of course, this is only possible if you have someone to cook for you. It''s even more convenient than a refrigerator. ...... Do we need to make one? Oh, Haruka, you were going to build a refrigerator? Yes. You had one at Aella''s place, right?¡¡I thought that would be useful. ...... The refrigerator at Aella''s place. It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual products and services that are available. They are very expensive, and even the small ones are not affordable for the average person. It''s not that we can''t afford it, but Haruka, who can use alchemy, was planning to make it herself. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. That''s right. Even if you want something cold, Haruka is the only one who can cool it with magic, right?¡¡Nao might be able to manage it if she tries hard enough, but ...... she can''t right now, can she? "Oh. I don''t even have level 1 water magic. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m going to be able to do that. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. You''re right, it''s better to have a refrigerator and freezer for easy access. Yeah. So, I think I''ll go set up the lab facilities today, what do you think? Haruka wanted to take this opportunity to buy some alchemy-related tools that were difficult to collect while living at the inn, and make some magic tools. One of them is a refrigerator, and she is also thinking of some other things that will make life more convenient, such as a clock or a magical tool for boiling a bath. Incidentally, Haruka is capable of producing warm water with her magic, but if she relies only on it, she will not be able to keep the water hot, and since the magic power consumption is much greater than that of simply producing water, it will probably be difficult to fill a full bath tub, even with all of her magic power. I don''t see any reason to disagree when you say bath. "Oh. I''ll support you in any way I can. Naturally, Toya and I are suddenly very motivated. It''s not necessary, thanks to the Purify, the innkeeper did not even wipe the body with hot water to save money. This keeps the room clean, but it''s getting a little chilly and I''m feeling the need to take a long soak in the warm water. Yuki and the others seemed to agree with me and nodded deeply. I have no reason to disagree with you. I have no reason to object either. I''m sure that the potions made with alchemy are more functional, but if you also improve your pharmacy, it might be useful in some way. Generally speaking, if you use magic to make a potion, it is classified as alchemy, and if you don''t use magic, it is classified as pharmacy. Although medicines made by alchemy are more effective, the field of alchemy includes not only medicines but also magical tools, so there are fewer kinds of medicines being researched compared to pharmacy. In addition, medicines made by alchemy are expensive, so unless there is a serious problem, the medicines used by the common people are those made by pharmacy. In our case, it doesn''t matter because we can have our relatives make it for us, but if you have a disease for which alchemical medicine doesn''t exist, it would be worthwhile to ask Natsuki to raise the level of [pharmacy]. Then, let''s set up the lab with alchemy and pharmacy for now. Is there anything else you need? "Kurosmithing... Toya''s comment was dismissed out of hand by Haruka. I can''t do that. It''s not built to hold a furnace, so give it up. If you insist, we''ll have to build a separate room. ......? I don''t know what to do. There''s no soundproofing. Hmm, you''re right. It''s kind of a hobby, maybe I''ll do some blacksmithing? Toya nodded his head, a little disappointed, but I guess he agreed with my words. However, it would be too noisy to do wild smithing in the garden, so I would like you to enclose it with a sturdy wall before you do it. It won''t be too difficult if we use earth magic. I think one of the rooms should be used for sewing, what do you think? That''s a good idea. All you need is a big table. Yuki''s suggestion was immediately met with a nod from Natsuki. We''ve been relying on the women''s sewing skills for our clothing lately, so we have no qualms about it. You can knit anywhere, but a large table is useful for cutting cloth. Let''s buy one, then. Come to think of it, all three of us have been knitting something in our spare time lately. Is it okay to expect a little more?¡¡It''s getting a bit cold, and a sweater or something from a girl might be more than just practical. No, I''ve already had clothes made for me many times, but a sweater is a bit special, isn''t it?¡¡I''m sure men would agree with this feeling. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. I''m not sure if I''m going to get one. I''m not sure if I''m going to get it. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to use the site, please do not hesitate to contact us. While Haruka and the others bought tools for alchemy and pharmacy, our job was to get bath tubs. In this world, where private baths are not common, bath tubs are not sold anywhere, so the only way to buy one is to find someone who can make one and order it. However, the structure of the water heater that Haruka told me about was just a square box that was submerged in a bathtub, so there was no need for any difficult work, as long as you could make a tub big enough to hold a person, the hurdle was quite low. The only thing you need is a hole and a plug to drain the water, but that''s all. "Let''s see where we can find a barrel maker, shall we? "Nao and the others had a big barrel, didn''t they?¡¡Where did they buy it? Oh, yeah, we bought one for making dried meat. I bought it at a grocery store, maybe I should ask there first. "But why do you need to be so particular about the tub?¡¡Why don''t you just have a regular square tub made? "What ......?¡¡That''s right, isn''t it?¡¡There''s no need to move it. How did we end up with a tub? I''m not sure. As I recall, the first idea was that since there were no rental apartments with bathrooms, we should try to get a bath in some way. And I thought that if there was a large laundry room, I could put a tub there and use it as a bath, so I should look for a place with a laundry room. That''s why I had a large laundry room added when I built my house. ...... Now that I''m thinking about it, why didn''t I just order a regular bathroom?¡¡I don''t know if you have any experience building bathrooms, but I feel like if we had told you what to do, it would have been fine. For durability, it would be better to use stones or blocks rather than tubs. "Hmm, did we fail?¡¡--If it''s made of blocks, Yuki, can''t you use your earth magic to make it? I don''t know.¡¡I don''t know, maybe Nao is better than me.¡¡I don''t think I can make dice that elaborate. I have continued to practice in my spare time since then, and now I am able to make a decent looking 12-sided die. I don''t know whether the rolls are evenly distributed or not, but it took me a lot of effort to make it, and I feel that my ability to control magic has improved a lot thanks to this work. I don''t have any use for the dice, though, so they''re just lying uselessly on the dining room table. But I''m only level one. Yuki is up to level 3, right? You know that level doesn''t really matter, right?¡¡Nao can use level 2 magic with a little practice, right? Hmm, I don''t know. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Basically, the problem is magic power and its control. It''s how much you practice the spell you want to use that matters. At the moment, I don''t have much need for level 2 earth magic, so I''ve been focusing more on making dice, or even blocks, rather than practicing level 2 magic. It may be possible to do it if you try, but there''s not much motivation to do so, since there''s not much point in raising the level on the status bar. However, it is true that the spells of each level are listed in order of difficulty, so it is meaningful enough as an indicator of my current level of proficiency, and it is also a good guide for the next spell I want to learn. What do we do?¡¡Shall we make our own bathtub? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to do it.¡¡I''d love to have a wooden bath like a cypress bath, but I''m worried about mold and mildew. "Oh, a housewife''s point of view. But I understand why. Although the cleaning of the house is basically supposed to be done by hand, the women who usually use the common areas are in charge of the kitchen, so by a process of elimination, it is highly likely that Toya and I will be in charge of cleaning the bathroom. If this is the case, ease of cleaning is quite important. From my point of view. In addition, since there is no mold remover, it would be difficult to deal with mold once it grows. Cleaning can be done with magic, but wood rots. "Cleaning might be manageable with magic, but wood rots, and there''s no guarantee that there''s a wood as good for bathing as cypress. If it''s the same wood as a barrel, it''ll last longer. ...... I''ve heard that oak is used for barrels and boats, but cypress is used for baths in Japan. Of course it has a good fragrance, but if oak is resistant to water, it would be nice to have a bath made of oak in Japan. However, I have never heard of such a thing. There may be other factors, such as availability, but the environment of a bath seems harsher than that of an ordinary barrel. You have to fill it with hot water and dry it every day. If you pay a lot of money for a barrel and it soon rots, gets moldy, or warps and leaks, your wallet will be damaged. ...... So, let''s go back and try the experiment. Yeah. If it doesn''t work, you can always order it then! If it doesn''t work, we''ll just order it then! That''s a good one. 116-106 Tubs with DIY! Material Edition When we got back to the house, we started experimenting in the corner of the yard. I''m not overly confident enough to try to build a bathtub, so we started with blocks. It''s not good for water to seep in, so imagine glazed tiles. ...... Making the surface slippery is not a problem, as I have tried to do so when making dice. It''s not just a matter of hardening the clay, it''s a matter of melting the surface. ...... completed. "Oh, it looks good!¡¡It feels good to the touch. Yuki picks up the block and smiles as she caresses the surface. Yuki picks up the block and smiles as she caresses the surface, "It''s the part that touches your bare skin. The bottom of the tub needs to be non-slip. An open-air bath made of natural stone would be nice, but it''s not suitable for daily use. It''s hard to clean. The natural stone bathtub is not suitable for daily use because it''s hard to clean. Besides, Yuki is right, a seamless bathtub would be better for daily cleaning. How''s the waterproofing? Yuki put the block in the tub of water she had prepared for checking. I peeked in from the side, but there were no bubbles coming out, and when I pulled it out of the water, the water ran clear. It looks fine. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, functionally, if we could mold the same thing in a tub the size of this one, it''d be fine. ...... But? Bad color! You''re right! I nodded in agreement with Yuki''s powerful argument. The color of the finished block is earthy because it was made from local soil. The color of the blocks is earthy, and if you look at it from a favorable point of view, it''s beige. I''m not saying that there are no such bathtubs, but my image is that white or light pastel colors are more bathtub-like. I''m not saying there are no such bathtubs, but my image is that white or light pastel colors look more like bathtubs. I''m not sure if it''s possible to make it look like a porcelain bathtub. Yuki, you''re being absurd. That kind of thing is made of white ceramic stone with colored glaze on top of it, right?¡¡It may not need firing because it''s magic, but we don''t have any pottery stones. I see. ....... I see. ...... I''ll have to isolate the brown component from the soil around here. ...... What is the brown component? Brown. ...... Iron? I''m sure you''re wondering what the components of soil are again. You can say that it''s a rock that''s been weathered into smaller pieces, and there are many different compositions of rock and many different compounds in it. ....... I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡Can''t you make pottery stone or something? "...... Oh, that reminds me. I''m not sure if you''re aware of this, but I''m sure you''re aware of it. Well, actually, I had forgotten about it until now too. "But what are the ingredients of pottery stone? "Well, I think it''s quartz and white mica or something like that. ......? "Quartz is silicon dioxide, SiO2, right?¡¡What about mica? You''re asking me that?¡¡I think it''s an oxide of aluminum, but I don''t remember. I''m not proud of it, but I''m not as good as Yuki and the other three in school. I''m not proud of it, but my school grades are not as good as those of Yuki and the other three, and I''m sure Yuki remembers better than I do about miscellaneous things like chemical formulas. Aluminum Oxide...... refractory bricks are made of alumina, right?¡¡It''s also whitish, so is it close? I''m sure Haruka can answer that question. ...... But do we need mica?¡¡I''m not sure if silicon dioxide is good enough. We don''t want to make porcelain. We don''t want to make porcelain, we just want to mold clay to make a bathtub. We don''t need to knead it into clay, we don''t need to fire it, and we don''t care what kind of clay it is as long as it has a beautiful color. It doesn''t matter if it''s durable or not, quartz is not bad in that respect. Quartz is not bad in that respect either. "That''s true too. Silicon dioxide ...... silica sand. Is it going to work?¡¡...... "Create Earth"! As soon as Yuki chanted this, there was a pile of white sand on the ground that she could scoop up with both hands. "Wow, did you succeed? Yuki''s eyes rolled back in her head, as if she couldn''t quite believe the result, and she picked up a pinch of white sand and twisted her head while inspecting it. I observe it, but I''m not sure if it''s really silica sand ...... or silicon dioxide. It looks like it, though. However, if "Create Earth" can produce silicon dioxide, can it also produce various metallic elements? Or is it possible to create any substance that can exist in the soil, such as iron oxide for iron?¡¡If this is possible, ....... "Hey, could this be used to make gold? No, I''m not sure about that .......¡¡If the category of "earth" in "create earth" is "material that exists alone in the earth," then it may not be impossible, but if it can be done easily ......, then it is really "alchemy. It''s not impossible. You can''t do that, can you?¡¡Hahaha. Yeah, yeah. If that were possible, earth wizards would be very rich. Hahahaha. We looked at each other and laughed for a while. Then, with a straight face, they looked at each other and nodded. "But it''s free to try, right? "Yeah. If you can do it, it''s a win-win. Literally. Okay. ...... "Create Earth"! I''m not sure I can do it, but I''m going to do it. But then he immediately paled and shook his head. I can''t do it!¡¡Stop!¡¡Abort!¡¡This is no good!¡¡Oh, no, no, no, no! "Are you okay? Yuki wobbled and almost fell, but I hurried to support her. I''m having a hard time. ...... Sit down for now. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. From the symptoms, it was probably caused by consuming a large amount of magic power at once. It makes me feel sick, doesn''t it? It doesn''t make me lose consciousness, but that''s because I can''t maintain magic in such a state. If you are able to push down such a physical condition with your willpower and exert your magic power to the limit, you might be able to faint from overuse of magic, but it would be impossible for an ordinary person. I''m going to lie down. Give me your lap~ I don''t mind, but do you want to go back to your room at ......? I''ll be fine, just get some rest. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure how rare this magic is.¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m sure there''s no such thing as a good way to make precious metals. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a good thing that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Incidentally, according to Haruka and Natsuki, the percentage of gold contained in the ground is several hundred million times higher than that of silicon. In other words, if Yuki''s hypothesis is correct, it would take several hundred million times as much magic power to produce one gram of gold as it would to produce one gram of silicon. As a matter of course, it is almost impossible to prepare such magic power. In addition, silver and even copper are a few thousand times more expensive than silicon. Yuki succeeded in creating silica sand relatively easily, probably because it was silicon dioxide. Aluminum seems to be surprisingly abundant, and since it was relatively easy to produce, it would be utilized later, but that is another story. Well, take a break. I''m going to try to make something with this silica sand. "Yes, please~ In general, the only way to recover magic power is to either take a rest or use a potion. I think Haruka and Natsuki are in charge of the potions, but they don''t have them yet, so all they can do now is rest. I put Yuki, who has gone limp again, on my lap, picked up some silica sand, and tried to make dice, as usual. "...... Mmm? It''s a little harder than regular dirt. It''s a little harder than regular dirt, huh? In the palm of my hand is a slightly whitish translucent six-sided die. You can make it properly, but the amount of magic power consumed is a bit more than when you use ordinary clay. It''s just a feeling I have. But it''s neat, isn''t it?¡¡It''s beautiful. Yuki said as she held up the die I handed her to the sky, but I was a little dissatisfied. If this is silicon dioxide, it should be completely transparent if it''s made properly, right?¡¡The cloudy white color is ....... I think it''s possible that the soil I made was not completely silicon dioxide, but in a way, if you think of it as a bathtub, isn''t this enough?¡¡A transparent bathtub is kind of like a ...... bathtub, isn''t it? "...... Yeah, that''s for sure. I''m not sure what to make of it. It looks like it has boiling water in it. From a practical point of view, it would be better if it is not visible from the outside. "Now we have to figure out how much silica sand we''ll need. ...... What size bathtub do you think is best? "If you want to be economical, go for a unit bath size, but if you want to be extravagant, go for a size that can fit two or three people. For me, I want a bathtub that I can get into if I bend my legs lightly. If the cost is the highest priority, it should be the size of a drum, but the purpose of a bath is to relax the body and mind, as long as there is "purification. A drum bath may be interesting once in a while, but for daily use, it is out of the question. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to make your own. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. The only one who can produce water at the moment is Haruka. I''m sure I could learn the water magic with some training, but when I''m tired after coming home from work, it''s going to be tough to get enough water to fill up a large bathtub. Still, the cost would be much less than pumping water from a well or boiling water with wood. If you don''t have that much magic power, you can do without a bath, right?¡¡If you just want to get clean, you can use ''purification''. "Well, you know. You don''t have to take a bath every day. I''d take a bath every day if I could. I agree with you, but it''s not necessary as long as you don''t need to wash your body. If that''s the case, should we build a large bathroom even if it''s difficult to build? "Yes, let''s try to build a big bathtub! "Thanks. Then let''s calculate the amount of silica sand we need. Yuki got up and started to draw a rough plan and formula on the ground. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. The formula he wrote down was simple: subtract the volume of a 1.5 x 2.5 x 0.5 meter rectangle that was 10 centimeters less than the thickness of the rectangle, and multiply by 1.5. The answer is about one cubic meter. That''s about 100 buckets. Seeing the result, a bead of sweat ran down Yuki''s cheek. The silica sand Yuki just made is less than a third of a bucket, so if he were to make it at the same rate, he would have to use Create Earth over 300 times. ...... is quite a lot, isn''t it? That''s right. Good luck, Yuki. I tap Yuki on the shoulder to encourage her. I patted Yuki on the shoulder to encourage her. She looked back at me with a smile on her face. "Nao, of course you will help me, right?¡¡You''re not going to ask me to do it alone, are you? "Yeah, but I''m only level one, right? You don''t have to level up, but you have to be able to use Create Earth, right?¡¡No, I''d rather be able to use it. I can understand why you would want to do this, but you''re being very reckless with a straight face. Well, I can''t really leave it up to Yuki, so I have no choice but to do it. As it turned out, after an hour or two of practice, I was able to produce silica sand. I was able to use "Create Earth" to produce mere "earth" right away, but when I limited myself to only silica sand, the difficulty increased, and it was a bit long from there. After about an hour of trial and error, I succeeded with Yuki''s advice, "If you imagine the chemical formula and structure, it might work. After about an hour of trial and error, Yuki''s advice, "If you visualize the chemical formula and structure, it might work. After that, we moved to the laundry room and continued to make silica sand, but Yuki was useless because she was out of magic, and I had used a lot of magic in practice, so by the time Haruka and the others came back, the amount of silica sand we were able to make was less than ten buckets. At this rate, it will take some time to complete the bathtub. 117-107 Tubs with DIY! interval The day after the lab was set up, Haruka and Natsuki retreated to the lab immediately after breakfast. Toya started training by himself, while Yuki and I continued to work on generating silica sand. But it''s too much trouble to do it all at once, so I poured all my available magic power into it, used Create Earth only once, and then we both took a nap in the morning. It''s not that we''re slacking off, because we can''t do anything without recovering. We woke up in the early afternoon and used "Create Earth" again, and at this point, the amount of silica sand had reached the required level. I suppose it''s partly due to familiarity, but the reason why I was able to produce the required amount in just one day is because, according to Haruka, "considering the amount of silicon and oxygen in the earth''s crust, silicon dioxide is probably the easiest to produce. However, her magic power was again empty, so she took a nap. I worked hard to recover my magic power until Haruka woke me up to tell me dinner was ready. I had a lot of work to do. When dinner and cleanup was over, we all took a break. Some items were lined up on the dining room table. "Announcing today''s results~ "More and more, puff-puff~ Title call, Yuki. Music, me. There''s one look that sticks out like a sore thumb at us. It''s Haruka. "...... What''s that? No, we don''t have anything to present yet, so we thought we''d be the ones to liven things up. Huh? Yeah. We''re in the prep phase. If it goes well, we''ll get the results tomorrow. If it doesn''t, we''ll lose everything we did yesterday and today. If the bathtub fails, there''s still a chance it can be reused, but it''s less damaging if you''re prepared for the worst. Yeah. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Hi, Haruka is next! Haha. ...... That''s a start. I''m sure you can guess what it is. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. You can find a lot of people who are interested in this type of product. It''s just an ordinary clock that I made as a test, so it''s bulky.¡¡You can put this one on the fireplace, but the real thing is this one. Avoiding the clock to the side, Haruka then placed a palm-sized clock in the middle of the desk. It''s a little bigger than the pocket watch I imagine, but it''s small enough to fit in my pocket. If you''re going deep into the forest, I think you need a watch. It''s convenient to know the time even when it''s cloudy. I could tell the time by looking at the sun, so I hadn''t been inconvenienced by the lack of a watch, but if we were going deep into the forest, we would need to take into account the time it would take to get home. Even if you can prepare lights with magic, it is still dangerous to move through the forest at night. If you''re planning to stay overnight, it''s probably different, but in that case, you''ll need a watch to know when the guards change. How is it powered? Magic power. It''s powered by a magic stone that stores the owner''s magic. Does that mean I can''t use it? The only one of us who can''t use magic, Toya, asks, but Haruka shakes her head in denial. No. This is because it is powered by the magic that people naturally release. Even Toya has magic power, you know. And you use it to strengthen your muscles, right?¡¡That''s magic too. Oh, I see. There are four types of magic tools: those that work with natural magic power, those that work with magic power that people naturally release, those that work by deliberately pouring magic power into them, and those that work by forcibly taking magic power from them. The first three are the same as they are, but the last one is not a "cursed magic tool", it''s just made so that people who are not used to manipulating magic can use it easily. This is the type of grimoire that most of the general public use, since it is almost risk-free and can be used by anyone. However, they are more costly to make than those that are intentionally poured with magical power. I''ve been making potions for a while now, but I don''t have much ...... to show for it. I''m not sure if it''s because I''ve been practicing, but my skill level has improved. I''ve been making medicines for a while now, but I don''t have much to show for it. A simple wound potion, a restorative, a stomachic, an antidiarrheal, and an antidote for the poisonous insects in the eastern forest. There were other medicines he had made as practice, but he didn''t seem to need them, so he didn''t bring them to the lab, just put them on the shelf. We don''t need the other medicines right now, but the antidote should work, right? No, it''s an antidote for bugs, so it''s not really useful for us. ...... Hmm? See, if an adventurer can''t stab a kitchen knife, do you think a mere insect can? I don''t think so. Unless it''s a demon. We can''t deal with demon venom yet. We don''t have the raw materials, and the demons of the Eastern Forest aren''t poisonous. Bind Viper is not poisonous either, right? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out why I don''t suffer from insect bites despite my frequent trips to the woods. In space-time magic, there is a very useful magic called "Sanctuary" that can be used to repel insects, but maybe it''s useless ......?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. But the pharmacy is now level 3 ......, not level 4, right?¡¡It''s a shame that there''s not much point in having that much. Yes, ....... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. There is also the possibility of selling the medicine she made, but the disadvantage caused by that would be greater than the profit. If I had to guess a situation where it would be useful, it would be in a plague or a large scale disaster, where magic power cannot keep up, but although it may sound heartless, there is no need for it. You can probably help someone you know with magic, and forcing yourself to help many others will only do little good and a lot of harm. If we were heroes in a story, we would help others with free love, but we put our people first, and others second. We''re willing to help others to the extent we can, but only if we can ensure our own safety. I can''t allow Haruka and the others to get hurt for the sake of others. Call me heartless, but that''s my stance. Well, the best thing is not to get caught in a situation where such a choice is necessary. "Since you''re here, Natsuki, why don''t you try learning [alchemy]?¡¡It''s mainly potions. I''m interested, but can you ...... do it? You can handle magic power, so you should be able to handle it.¡¡I''m interested, but I''m not sure if I can do it. That''s true, too. ....... Let''s give it our best shot. I''m not sure what to make of it. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it for a lot of things. In particular, Natsuki has a high level of [pharmacy], so she might be able to make some good potions with it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I don''t know. What about the bath water heater? It''s a simple design, but I haven''t made it yet. It''s much simpler than the clock, so it should be ready tomorrow. "Well, I guess I''ll be able to take a bath tomorrow for the first time in a long time! Yuki smiled and emphasized that it had been a long time, but wasn''t she forgetting something? "Yeah, if we don''t screw it up. Yuki averts her gaze a little and swims her eyes at me as I confront her with reality. If we don''t fail. Yeah, it''s okay, it''s okay, it''s okay. "What?¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be fine. It''s size is size. Also, I''m going to make it a little more beautiful. Here''s a sample. With that, I rolled a die made of silica sand onto the desk. Haruka picked it up and nodded her head. "Is this ...... glass?¡¡It''s a little cloudy. "It''s silica sand that''s been hardened with earth magic. It''s a bit like glass, but it''s better than an earth-colored tub, right? Is it safe?¡¡If it''s glass, it might break or something. ...... I nodded hesitantly to Natsuki, who seemed a little worried. I think it will be okay because it will be quite thick. If possible, I''d like to use heat-resistant glass, but ...... that''s impossible, right? I don''t know the principle of heat-resistant glass. I think some kind of substance is mixed in, but I only know about crystal glass and uranium glass. I wonder why they can make beautiful glass even though they are mixing poisonous substances like lead and uranium. However, it may not be a simple metallic element, and I don''t know the proportions, so I couldn''t make it even if I were asked to. The heat-resistant glass is mixed with a substance that inhibits thermal expansion, but since it''s bath temperature, I don''t think that''s a problem.¡¡If anything, it''s more likely to chip if you hit it with something. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. If you make it yourself, you can just fix it when it breaks. ...... That''s true. If I were buying one, I would be against it. If I were to have a glass bathtub made, the price would be ridiculously high. In Japan, there are acrylic bathtubs called "organic glass", but I don''t think they sell glass bathtubs. As for the bathtub, I''ll have to try it. --Did Toya spend the day training? No, Tommy came to visit me around noon. Tommy came to visit me around noon. I was free too, so I went to kill some goblins. When I asked him about it, he told me that he hadn''t been able to go fishing last time, but now that he''d been given some fish to share, his fishing fever had returned. In order to be able to follow him next time, he started training to be able to kill at least a goblin. Today, as a part of this training, he came to ask me if I had time to follow him. So, how did it go? "Tommy''s strong. Tommy''s got a lot of power. He was swinging a battle hammer and smashing goblin heads.¡¡Well, the first time he did it, he was so powerful that his head popped off and he was covered in flying debris, making him miserable. Toya laughs at the silly gag. In the beginning, he wouldn''t have had time to laugh, but he''s become quite tolerant. Incidentally, Tommy seemed to have stood there stunned and thrown up after the first time. Well, he recovered relatively quickly, so I guess he can handle it, right? "I see. Toya, I''m not saying no, but be careful, okay?¡¡Don''t go too deep into the woods. I know. I''ve also gained the [Spotting] skill, so I''m better at finding goblins. I''m sure you''ll be able to find some of them. If there was any merit to it, we could all train Tommy, but he''s a blacksmith by trade. I''m sorry to say this, but it''s a waste of time when you''re not even in the same party. Tommy''s not going to be a full-fledged adventurer, so I''m sure he''ll be fine with someone who has some free time, like today. 118-108 Tubs with DIY! Completed edition The next day, Yuki and I were facing a mountain of silica sand in the laundry room. Toya went out again today, apparently to keep Tommy company. Natsuki and Haruka are working on alchemy in the lab. Now, I''m going to turn this into a bathtub. ...... Let''s try to give it a rough shape first. "Right. The more magic we can save, the better. The silica sand that was in a suitable pile is spread out into a square shape and flattened. Then, the edges were raised slightly to form a simple box. This is not clay, so you can only get a rough idea of the shape, but it is easier to grasp the image of the bathtub than a pile of sand. What should we do from here? ...... We can''t use magic at the same time, can we? "No, you can''t. I think two people casting spells on the same object will repel each other. In the case of Ground Control, you manipulate the target soil by infiltrating it with your magic power. If two people try to do this at the same time, it is only natural that the other will interfere with the other''s magic and prevent it from penetrating. If so, either one of you should make it all at once, or do it 50/50. ....... Yuki, can you do it? It''s not easy, is it?¡¡I''m not sure. I''m not so sure either.¡¡Yuki, can you help me with the molding? The process I use to make dice is two-step: compacting the soil into the shape of a dice, and then compacting it so it doesn''t fall apart. The latter consumes more magic power, but the former is not easy either. "Well, can I fail? "Well, you''ll have to try. I nodded to Yuki, who looked a little anxious, and encouraged her. "Let''s go, then!¡¡"Ground Control"! Yuki held up her hand to the silica sand and chanted this, and the grains of sand began to move and gradually took the shape of a bathtub. With that, Yuki''s forehead began to sweat. ....... No, no, no! When the shape of the tub was complete, Yuki exhaled loudly. No, no, no, no, I can''t do it this size. No, no, no, no. It''s perfectly formed.¡¡Are you okay with this? Even though Yuki stopped the magic, it didn''t seem to collapse, and from the looks of it, the size and thickness of the surrounding area were exactly as expected. There''s no glassy sheen to it, so it''s probably just been hardened with the Ground Control, but it might be easier to just let it congeal. However, Yuki looked at it from different angles and twisted her head a little. I wonder if I should make the edges a little smoother and the side walls a little more slanted.¡¡In public baths it''s vertical, but at home it''s a bit slanted, right?¡¡If you''re going to lean against it, it''s more relaxing that way. "I see. Well then, let''s modify it a little and try to fix it. Please!¡¡I want to take a bath today! With Yuki''s expectation, I put my hands on the bathtub and cast a spell. The size of the tub is so large that I can feel my magic power diminishing rapidly just by letting it penetrate. --I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m not sure what to do. This is a great way to make sure that you''re getting the most out of your money. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "Hmm. How''s it going?¡¡Feeling good? "Yeah, yeah!¡¡It''s smooth, it''s hard, it''s perfect! Yuki replied with a big smile on her face after touching and stroking various parts of the tub. I touch it too, and it''s hard and smooth, and I don''t mean to praise myself, but it looks good. "...... what? But then, as if Yuki had noticed something, she raised her voice and tilted her head. I have a bad feeling about this. "What''s wrong? There''s no drain, is there? ...... Oh, sh*t! I totally forgot!¡¡You''ve got to drain the water after you use it! I hurriedly made a hole in the bottom of the tub, and also adjusted the bottom at a slight angle so that the water would drain easily. "Phew. That''s it! I smiled and gave a thumbs-up, and Yuki gave me a slightly dumbfounded look, but there was nothing wrong with that. It''s not a problem.¡¡If you can do it after it''s hardened, does that mean you can repair it if it cracks or chips? Yes, I think so.¡¡The difficulty of the operation is the same as before the hardening. I worked on it as quickly as I could, but it seemed to be able to deform without any problem, whether it was still silica sand or after it was hardened into a glassy state. If it can also deform metal, it should be easy to make pots and pans, right? Now all we have to do is make a stopper. Can we fill it tonight? "If only Haruka had made a water heater. "I''m looking forward to it! Yuki smiled. I can''t believe it. No matter what my concerns were. Haruka had completed the water heater. It was a long box, about the size of a pail, and all you had to do was pour magic power into it and then submerge it in the bathtub. Fortunately, our bathtub was also well received by everyone. Now that it''s finished, it''s natural to want to use it. After finishing dinner a little earlier than usual, we started preparing to take a bath. We plugged the drain and Haruka poured water into it with the water magic method. After filling the bathtub with water without much trouble, she set down the water heater that I had poured magic power into. All she had to do was wait for half an hour and she would be able to enter. Who wants to go first?¡¡Or should I say, one at a time? It''s a bath, but it''s just a soak, so why don''t we all take a bath together?¡¡--Of course, separate men and women. After saying "everyone," Yuki glanced at Toya and added, "Of course. Seeing Yuki, Toya opened his mouth with a slightly annoyed expression. I understand!¡¡So, let''s split up into men and women and ...... ladies first, okay, Nao? I don''t mind. I''m going back to my room. Call me when everyone is out. Okay. Sorry, Nao. It was a lot of work to make this. Don''t worry about it. Yuki worked hard, too. Nao, I''ll eat first. Oh, go get warm. I left the women who were getting ready to take a bath and retreated to my room. Pop. What, all of a sudden? No, I just thought I''d take a bath and put some SE in it. What''s that? After a while, the women got out of the bath, and we were in the bath by the same time. I soak in the bath alongside Toya, who says something strange, and stare up at the ceiling. How long has it been since you''ve taken a bath? I haven''t taken a bath since I came here. ......3 It''s been about a month, right? That''s about right. ....... Now you''re almost ready to live. Yeah, I guess so. It''s different from Japan, of course, but you can now live a life without much dissatisfaction. Of food, clothing, and shelter, housing is no longer a problem with the completion of this bath, and clothing can be made by Haruka and his team. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own website. If you need ice, just ask Haruka. ...... Yes, it''s a shame that we''re so reliant on the ladies, but we''ve definitely become civilized enough to live our lives. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. It was originally a laundry room. The floor is pebbled and the walls are white. The floor is pebbled, the walls are white plaster, and there is a door to the room and a door to the backyard. The room faces north, so it''s a little dark even in the daytime, but it''s bright enough since we''re taking a bath at night and there are light bulbs floating near the ceiling from Haruka''s "light". If you''re using it as a normal bath, you''ll have a lot to complain about, but since we''ve already used Purify beforehand and are just going to soak in the hot water, it''s not too much of a problem. The garden is large, and it''s not difficult to create an outdoor bath using magic, but ...... management is. You can make rocks with earth magic, and digging a hole is easy. If you want to make a bath, you can use one. If we wanted to, we could make it in a day or so. However, if you think about how often you will use it, its practicality is quite delicate. If it were the only place available, we would use it, but we already have a bath indoors. It''s a hassle to go outside to take a bath, even if it''s only once in a while, and it''s hard to clean the dirty outdoor bath. Even so, I have some doubts about whether it''s worth it. I guess I''ll put it on hold for now. How did it go with Toya?¡¡Didn''t he go with Tommy to kill the goblins today? It''s not a goblin extermination, it''s a training, it''s not about extermination. I''m getting better at it, you know?¡¡I''m somewhat proficient with the battle hammer. I didn''t get hit by any flying debris except at first. Tommy, who had no combat skills, apparently learned battle hammer skills from Gantz. He also does some running to build up his stamina, and it seems that he is training diligently, though not as diligently as we are. "So, do you want me to take you fishing next time? "I''d like to if I could. The problem is how to handle the magic bag. ...... In the case of Tommy, he can''t use the excuse ''I''m borrowing it from someone I know'' like Diora, so he keeps the existence of the magic bag a secret. If Tommy was the only one in town, it wouldn''t be a problem for him to know, but there are some troublesome guys like Iwanaka. But how can you not use it when you''re going fishing? I know. I''ve got a lot of stuff in my magic bag, so it''ll probably be a while before I go fishing again, but if I do, I want to make sure I have as much as I had last time. As a countermeasure, we could go on a day trip with just me, Toya and Tommy.¡¡If we start early in the morning, we can fish for a few hours on a day trip. "Is that a possibility?¡¡There aren''t many strong demons around there. Tommy won''t be able to take off work for several days. Oh, that''s right. Last time, we spent days trapping with baskets, but Tommy''s real job is to be a blacksmith''s apprentice. It wouldn''t be good to keep him company during that time, and it wouldn''t be safe to send him home alone. There should be no problem, but if he is attacked by a demon and dies, he will not sleep well. I don''t care if he''s in the middle of a rock or something, but Tommy is a friend of mine. ''Well, then, when Tommy''s good enough, I''ll make a suggestion in that direction. Yeah. He''ll be happy. Toya nodded his head. 119-109 What is a famous tree? "I think I''ll head deeper into the forest today, what do you think? Haruka said as she ate her breakfast after her daily routine of early morning training. This policy was shared by all of them, and no one in particular spoke out against it. "The basic policy is to cut down a famous tree from the northern forest, right? "Yes. That''s the best way to make money in this town, right? As the head of the guild I met the other day said, the city is basically peaceful, so the adventurer''s guild doesn''t post many requests with good rewards. We could have gone after some random demon, boar, or other beast, but that would have been the same as before. So we decided to go after a famous tree deep in the northern forest. Diora was against it out of concern for our safety, but it wouldn''t be a bad idea if we didn''t force ourselves to go and cut it down and make it our future goal. But do you know what kind of tree would sell well?¡¡I can at least tell you what kind of tree it is with my appraisal. I think you should go ask Simon about that.¡¡He''s a carpenter, he knows what he''s talking about. Right. Well, let''s stop by Simon''s place before we go to the forest. I don''t think we''ll have to cut it today. We agreed to Yuki''s suggestion, and after breakfast, we headed for Simon''s workshop. On the way, we went to Gantz''s store and bought an axe, a saw, a machete, and some hacksaw, which he said we would need in order to chop down the tree. It would be nice if I could use a sword to cut down the tree, or magic to do it, but that''s impossible. --No, we could use wind magic to chip away at it, but it would probably be faster to use the axe. We''ve gotten a little stronger, but we''re still far from masters. Looking forward to the future. ......? The first time I visited Simon''s workshop. Simon''s workshop, which we visited for the first time, was quite a big workshop. It has a workshop as big as three ordinary houses, and a lumber yard as big as two houses next to it. I thought it was just a small craftsman''s house, but the way it looked, it must have a number of apprentices.¡¡In fact, he might be a very powerful man. I was a little surprised at the appearance of the workshop, but Yuki, who has been here several times, didn''t seem to mind as she opened the door and walked in. Hello~. Simon-san, are you there? Inside the workshop, there were many pieces of furniture that were still being made, making it difficult to see what was going on. The workshop is crammed with furniture under construction, and visibility is poor. Yuki''s voice rang out, and there was a reply from afar. Oh, I''m here. I''m here. Give me a minute. "Yes. I hadn''t had a chance to see the workshop before. I waited for a while at the entrance, observing it with interest, until Simon approached, weaving between the furniture. It''s Yuki and the others, isn''t it? What''s wrong with the house? Haruka shook her head in denial as Simon asked with a slightly sullen expression. No, there''s nothing wrong with the house. The house is fine, I''m quite happy with it. Thank you very much. "Heh!¡¡That''s good. It wasn''t a bad job either. What is it then?¡¡You want to order some furniture? We looked at each other, and then Yuki spoke up on behalf of us. Actually, I''m thinking of going to the north forest to cut some trees. Actually, I''m thinking of going to the north woods to cut a tree, but I don''t know what kind of tree would be best, so I was hoping you could give me some advice. "The North Woods?¡¡I''m sure you''ve got a lot of money, and I know you''re good at what you do, but it''s not safe.¡¡It''s not like we''re going anywhere soon. It''s not like we''re going anywhere anytime soon.¡¡It''s not like we''re going anywhere soon, but if we don''t find a tree that will pay for itself when we get there, it''ll be a waste. I know what you mean, but some of the higher ranking guys have been there before. For more than ten years now, trees have not been cut down in the northern forests, and the price of the best trees has only gone up. So, if you can get it, you''re sure to make a lot of money, and there have been times when high rank adventurers who don''t normally come to this town - though it seems they were at most rank 6 - have gone to cut it. But they didn''t go so far as to cut it down. However, even if they had no problem cutting down the logs, it was very difficult to bring them back. It takes a lot of people to drag a log through the forest, where there is no proper path, and dragging such a thing around naturally attracts demons. The number of adventurers and haulers needed to deal with this would be quite large, and if they had to distribute the wood among them, it would not be a good deal for the high-ranked adventurers, no matter how much the wood sold for. Inevitably, this would be done only a few times, and the high-ranked adventurers would soon leave the town. So, the main problem is the transportation method. And we have the means to solve that: magic bags. If we could just cut down the trees and put them in the magic bag, it would be much easier, if not easier, to return home than dragging the logs. When I explained this to Simon, he nodded his head in agreement. He nodded his head in agreement. The reason he nodded is because even if there is no problem in carrying the logs, there is still the problem of how to deal with other monsters. I see. It would be nice to have a tree from that forest, but ...... I''ll show you. Come on! Simon took us to the wood yard next to the workshop. In a corner, in a locked, sturdy shed, there it was. Many pieces of wood were placed against the wall. At first glance, they look like ordinary logs, but on closer inspection, ...... they are still ordinary logs. Are these expensive?¡¡Really? We''re still one of the biggest workshops in town, but this is all we have left. There''s almost no market for it, so there''s no plan to increase it. "Well, Simon, I don''t really understand what you''re looking at. I asked him hesitantly, and he smiled and nodded. I asked him hesitantly, and he smiled and nodded, "Maybe it''s hard for a layman to tell. But it''s definitely different. The wood around here is unique, hard, with fine wood grain. It''s great for furniture. It is beautiful in its solid state and suitable for carving. On the other hand, it is too good to be used for building materials that can hardly be seen from the outside, and even in the days when it was usually cut from the northern forests, it was only used for floorboards in the residences of aristocrats. This is what I made into a board, do you understand? While saying this, Simon picked up a plank from his side and held it out. The size is about 50 x 100 cm. If you were to use it as is, it would probably be a small table or something like that. It''s beautiful, you know?¡¡And it feels good to the touch. Yuki stroked it and made subtle comments, but as a man who can''t tell the difference, I felt the same way. I can tell by the way it taps that it''s hard. The blackish, fuzzy grain of the wood seems to have a certain flavor, but is it ...... expensive? I''m not sure what to make of it. Yes, you guessed it, Natsuki. Being born into a rich family is no mean feat. This is pretty amazing. Isn''t it pretty expensive ......? "Oh, you know what, girl? It''s a beautiful piece of wood, so I thought I''d use it for the top. It''s not often that you find a piece with a pattern like this. Perhaps happy that someone understood, Simon grinned and pointed at the board, but no one but Natsuki had any idea what he was talking about. No, of course, I understand that it''s totally different from a piece of wood you can find anywhere. As we twisted our heads, Simon smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I can''t blame a layman for not knowing. I''ve never had any luck with it. I''m sorry. Can a craftsman tell me which trees will sell for a good price? "No, even a craftsman can''t tell by looking at the trees that grow. The only thing you can tell for sure is the species. I see. It''s natural that you can''t tell the wood''s principle until you cut it. It has an epidermis. And if it''s just the type of tree, we have Toya''s [appraisal], so we don''t have a problem. The most popular tree is walnut, but any kind of tree in that area will sell well. The thicker the trunk and the further into the forest you cut it, the better the price, but the tougher the demon will be. "You don''t have to be so choosy. But why are the trees around there of such high quality? I don''t know. I don''t know. But I heard there''s a lot of magic around there. I''m thinking it''s because of that. Magic, huh? ...... Well, maybe that''s why we couldn''t cut down the trees because there were too many strong demons. It''s not going to work. You''ll be able to get a lot more than that. But that''s to be expected. Even in the natural world, there is a difference between places where magic is strong and places where it is weak, and in general, it is in places where magic is strong that many demons appear. In this case, it was thought that the magic power affected the growth of the tree, but the effect could not have been limited to the tree, and the number of demons must have increased as well. I understand. Also, where do you think is the best place to sell the wood you cut down? I''m not sure what to do with it. Haruka asked, and Simon pondered a bit. In the first place, the lumber market is run by a union of woodworkers and carpenters and a union of lumberjacks, and there is also the reason that they don''t want adventurers cutting down trees without permission in the southern forest where they are systematically logging. If they cut down the trees without thinking, the forest might disappear, so it is unavoidable considering the protection of forest resources. One way out is to have the adventurer''s guild buy the wood and sell it to the lumber market, but this is a system almost exclusively for adventurers who have cut down trees in the northern forest. However, this system is only for adventurers who have cut down trees in the North Woods. Because of the fees paid to the guild, cutting down trees in the South Woods will not make you much money. If you trust me, I''ll buy it from you.¡¡If you don''t trust me, I''ll buy it from you. It''ll be better than going through the Adventurer''s Guild. "Well, yes. If it works out, I''d appreciate it. Oh, I''m counting on you... but don''t overdo it.¡¡It''s no fun to see young men die. Yes, thank you. We thanked Simon for his concern for us in a rather clumsy way, and left the workshop with some more advice on choosing a tree. 120-110 What about deer? The wood was interesting, but in the end it looks like all we can do is cut the thickest wood we can deep in the forest. We all nodded to Natsuki as she left the workshop. After all, it is impossible for a layman to judge whether or not a tree can be sold at a high price, except for the type and thickness of the tree. I''m sure you can make more money by cutting down as many trees as possible than by searching around. I''ve been told that walnuts are popular, but I guess I don''t need to worry too much about that. I was told that walnuts are popular, but I guess I don''t need to worry too much. He also said that even twisted and twisted trees have their own taste and can be sold at a high price in some cases. "Hey, Natsuki. As for me, I don''t really understand the value of that famous wood. Wouldn''t it be better to have a beautiful board with a uniform grain instead of that dark and fuzzy one? "Yes, I agree with you. We nodded in agreement with Haruka''s words. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. I''m not going to say all of them, but there are some that find value in the rarity of fine wood. You see, even a dirty toy can be expensive if there are only a few of them, right?¡¡The material and functionality of it are different from the price, right? "Yeah, there are some trash items that fetch amazing prices. If I were you, I would definitely sell it right away. It''s worthless if you don''t know about it, isn''t it? I don''t mean to say that they are trash, but in the end, many antiques are worthless without a background. Even for paintings, there is no such thing as universal value, and there are artists like Van Gogh whose paintings did not sell properly during his lifetime. In fact, many famous paintings are more valuable after the artist''s death, which is a difficult thing. The scarcity value - that is, the value is secured by the indescribable fact that the number of paintings will not increase if the artist is dead. But the wood here is a little different, because it seems to have a different function. It''s hard, isn''t it?¡¡Will it be hard to cut? We had prepared saws and axes, but the truth was, none of us had ever chopped down a standing tree before. We''ve sawed boards and chopped firewood with an axe, but that''s about it. I''m not sure if it will work. Can''t you use your magic to cut things in a jiffy, Haruka? Toya, you''re being absurd. It''s hard enough for you to cut down a tree with your sword. Haruka sighs in response to Toya''s recklessness. Well, I guess that''s impossible. Needless to say, Toya''s sword is almost a blunt instrument. It is not suitable for cutting at all, and even if it is a cutting type of sword, it is impossible to cut down a tree that is thick enough to be used as wood. There is a spell called "Air Cutter", but it''s a level 5 spell and I can''t even imagine how many times you can use it to cut down a tree. Haruka''s current wind magic is level 3. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. If you use it a lot, you might be able to cut down a tree eventually, but there is no advantage to using magic to that extent, and if you run out of magic power, you will lose your strength, which is a completely bad move in a dangerous forest. It''s a bad idea in a dangerous forest. "If the enemy wasn''t so strong, Tommy would be the best choice. He''s got a battle hammer. No, we can''t take someone who might die if he gets hit. We''ve rarely been hit, but we''ve still been hit a lot. But we''re still safe, thanks in part to our expensive armor. On the other hand, I don''t know much about Tommy''s armor, but I''m sure he doesn''t have as much money as we do. If you''re a dwarf, you''re not going to be able to evade quickly, and you''re going to need to be able to survive an ogre attack at the very least. ...... No, we haven''t encountered an ogre yet, but... Maybe it''s the ogre that''s the problem. Bind Vipers don''t swarm, so if you find them first, you''ll be fine. I haven''t fought a sculpted ape yet, but I''ve heard that they''re not too strong, even though they''re annoying to swarm, so I don''t think they''ll hurt me too badly. I''m curious to see how strong they are. Also, Simon said that there will be deer, though briefly. A deer. I''ve never seen one before. Do you think they sell them?¡¡Antlers, meat, and skin? I know that there are deer in the northern forest, but their habitat seems to be near the mountains, so I haven''t encountered any so far. Now that it''s winter, I don''t see any boars anymore, so if I could hunt deer, it would help a bit. ....... Oh, that''s right. Wait a minute. Toya stopped, took out a book from his magic bag and started to look something up. When he looked at the cover, he saw that it was titled "The Beast and Demon Demolition Book". "What''s wrong with that book? "What''s wrong with that book?¡¡I bought it the other day. See, unlike you guys, I can only fight, right? It seems that he bought the book with his own money after receiving a share of the funds from Haruka. It''s hard to deny that Toya can''t do much, but she''s standing in front of the enemy, and that''s enough for me. He''s the reason why I haven''t been injured in the past. Well, I don''t mean to deny that ambition is a good thing. There was a deer ....... As Yuki said, antlers, skin and meat. I''m not going to deny that ambition is good. I''m sure you''ve heard of chamois leather. It''s a soft leather used for cleaning watches and glasses. "Oh, chamois leather, ....... I hammered at Natsuki as if I remembered, but I had never heard of chamois leather before. I''ve never heard of chamois leather. Yeah, it''s a different level. "The caveat is that ''if you don''t cool it down immediately, the meat tends to smell, so I suggest you soak it in the river. "I can''t soak it in the river, but I can cool it. I can cool it down. Haruka nodded and looked at the book Toya was holding. We have the advantage of being able to do things that are impossible for ordinary hunters. We can''t get as much meat from a deer as we can from a boar, but how does it taste? "Well, it says here that if you treat it properly, it tastes good. Haruka, who was looking at the book, answered Yuki''s question, but it means that if the dismantling is not good, it will taste bad, right? What happens to the price when you buy it? Can a professional judge that? But it''s good to know that there are other things to sell. It''s not that easy to go deep into the forest. That''s true. As an afterthought, we''ll have more variety in our meals. I said that I was looking forward to it because I had never eaten venison before, but Natsuki smiled a little annoyed. I''ve never cooked venison before. ...... Haruka, do you have any? There is no way. What do you expect from me growing up in a very normal family? Yuki doesn''t have any ......, does she? Yes. Because Natsuki, who has the most potential, doesn''t have one. You''ll have to rely on your [cooking] skills, right? You can''t find venison in the average supermarket. It''s rather strange to hear that you have cooked it before. I guess it''s the same with wild boar and oak, but if you cook them the same way you cook pork, they''re fine. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡She''s a pro. That''s a good idea!¡¡Let''s take some venison with us and go ask her. Haruka nodded at Toya''s suggestion, her face glowing. After buying the house, the number of times I go to eat at Aella''s restaurant has decreased, but she continues to deliver meat, so it''s not difficult to ask her when the opportunity arises. However... But that''s only after we get the venison. "...... Well. That''s a long way off. Well, let''s go to the woods. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll be able to get the most out of it. I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. With that, Natsuki gave Toya five half-empty bottles of the nutritional drink, and the rest of us three bottles each. The liquid looks a little greenish, but I wonder if it''s a potion. Did you get it right? Yes. It works, at least. You can pour it over the wound or drink it, but it''s quite bitter. About as bitter as Chinese medicine is said to be. I see. I twisted my head at Natsuki''s understandable and unfathomable analogy. I don''t remember taking any herbal medicine. The only one who nodded was ...... Toya. He looked so uncomfortable. "Toya, do you understand? Yeah. --Do you know?¡¡You know, Chinese medicine is prescribed as granules, but you officially dissolve it in hot water and drink it.¡¡The one I drank was so ...... bitter that the pharmacist said it was bitter. Toya, perhaps remembering the taste of that time, looked a little distant and curved his mouth into a crooked shape. It is said that herbal medicines are supposed to be taken for a long time, but Toya finished the prescribed amount and stopped taking it after that. I''m not good at powdered medicine either, so I might not be able to take herbal medicine. I don''t have the opportunity to take herbal medicines in this world, but potions do exist. If possible, I don''t want to drink it. At any rate, I understand that this potion is bitter. So, what''s the point of drinking it? If it works just by pouring it on, there''s no need to drink it, even though it''s bitter. When you drink it, the effect lasts for a while. If you want to heal a wound quickly, it is better to take it. You can choose according to the situation. Basically, I or Haruka will heal you with magic, but if it''s dangerous, don''t hesitate to use it. "...... Oh, thank you. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. You should avoid battles where you can''t afford to use your magic. 121-S010 Tommy Fishing (1) That day, while I was resting in my room after returning home from my master''s place, there was a knock at my door. I opened the door, thinking that there should be no one coming to visit me, and found Toya standing there. "Huh?¡¡You''re back?¡¡You went fishing, didn''t you? "Yeah, just now. So, I''ve taken care of Tommy and brought him a souvenir. Here. In the bucket that Toya held out to me, there were two very nice landlocked salmon. They''re frozen to a crisp, but... "Wow, that''s amazing!¡¡It''s not easy to catch fish this size! The normal size is about 20 centimeters. But the landlocked salmon that Toya caught was 1.5 times that size. It''s got a nice body and looks very tasty. I like it. It must have been a good catch. If you caught it, does that mean the hook worked? Thankfully, yes. But I''m not sure if the hooks were good enough. ...... Toya nodded, but smiled. If you''re willing to share two fish of this size, you must have caught a good number, right? I don''t know.¡¡You caught them, didn''t you? We did catch some, but they were so easy to catch. Of course we caught them, but Haruka and the others caught them too easily. In a way, it''s not enough for those who like fishing. You mean you don''t need any skills to fish? That might not be fun for some people. There are fishermen who enjoy playing with the fish and don''t care about catching anything. Some fishermen release their catch and don''t take it home. I''m the type of fisherman who eats what he catches.¡¡I''m the type of fisherman who eats what he catches. How dangerous was it?¡¡Is it enough for me to go? "There was no danger this time, but it doesn''t change the fact that I can''t take him out easily. Tommy is free to become an adventurer and go at his own risk, but not if we take him with us. Toya smiled a little, as if troubled. After all, I can''t trust my life to someone else''s, can I? I don''t want to die for the sake of fishing, and I don''t think Toya and the others will sleep well if I die. Even Haruka, who seemed a little cold to me, doesn''t really seem like that kind of person. I guess I''ll just have to be strong enough to not slow them down. "Hey, Toya, what do you think I should do to become stronger? "Hmm?¡¡Are you going?¡¡In Tommy''s case, muscle strength is not a problem since he has the skills and forges every day. The rest is endurance, agility and fighting experience. Well, why don''t you start by running every day? I heard that Toya and his friends try to run a long distance before breakfast almost every day, except on rainy days. Haruka''s policy is ''just survive'', so they focus on escaping rather than on killing the enemy. But I''ve never escaped before!¡¡Hahahaha. "Well, does that mean you''re strong? I asked Toya, who was smiling cheerfully, but his answer was a bit unexpected. No, no. We just stay away from anything that looks dangerous. It''s best not to get into a situation where you have to run away, right?¡¡Always fight only those who are lower in rank. It''s like bullying the weak. Hahaha ....... But you still make a lot of money, don''t you? I''m not sure what to make of this. Perhaps that''s Haruka''s policy. If you simply want to be safe, you can work in the city or collect medicinal herbs, but you can only earn enough to live on. I didn''t make much, but the first job I took was still a good deal. Even so, it''s hard to keep up with my gear when I''m staying at this inn. On the other hand, Toya and his friends have been staying at this inn since the beginning, and they are well equipped and are adventurers. ....... What do you think?¡¡I''m not in trouble with money now, but ...... of course it was hard at first.¡¡My first weapon was just a stick. "Oh, really? Just a stick?¡¡Really? You fought demons with a club?¡¡What kind of challenger are you? Yeah. I couldn''t afford to buy a real weapon. Looking back, was that the most dangerous time?¡¡...... No, not really. For what it''s worth, Haruka acts with a huge margin of safety. If you think about it, everyone starts out with only 10 large silver coins. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. I think it''s great that Haruka managed to get by and stabilize her life right away. She''s a bit on the cautious side, but it''s working out for her. ...... You mean you''re not in any danger? ...... No, not at all. We''ve fought some tough enemies. I think Nao was the one who was in the most danger. Is that so? Yeah. I''m the one who stands in the front, but I''m a strong character, right?¡¡On the other hand, Nao is an elf. If you want to compare them only in terms of physical sturdiness, you can use the same method as I did. If we compare only physical strength, it seems that Natsuki and Yuki are probably better than Nao. In terms of race. At the time, he only suffered a broken arm, but if the timing had not been right, he could have been in serious danger. I guess being an adventurer is not an easy business. It''s not an easy business. Then I added running to my daily routine. The way I ran with my shortened arms and legs was not very cool, but I agreed with the opinion that "running away is the most important thing", so I kept on trying. Occasionally, I would meet Toya and his friends, but their speed was much different. Even though they seemed to be running lightly, their pace was very fast and they were easily left behind. It''s true that if there''s such a big gap between them and me, I''m completely slowing them down. Haruka and the others wouldn''t be able to accept the fact that I''d be too slow to escape in case of an emergency. As a rough guide, they say that I should be able to run a full marathon at an Olympic level, but that''s quite absurd. There''s no way an ordinary person can do that. --I thought about it, but Toya and the others say that they have enough strength to fight even if they run at that level, so I can''t complain. In addition to training my running legs, I also worked on my fighting skills. I didn''t take any offensive skills, and I''m a complete novice, so I chose a battle hammer as my weapon, since I could use my strength and blacksmithing skills a bit. As a dwarf, I had a hard time deciding between the axe and the battlehammer, but my master told me that the battlehammer was easier to handle than the axe, so I decided to go with the axe. First of all, the battlehammer has the advantage of being durable and almost maintenance-free. You can wash and wipe it lightly after use, and it will not break even if you hit the ground or a rock by mistake. And it is effective even against hard enemies. I''ve heard that a goblin is not a problem even if you just swing it with force, so it''s perfect for me. What''s more, the best factor in my choice was that my master said that he could help me with the battle hammer. Since then, I''ve been learning how to use the battle hammer from my master during my lunch break, and I''ve been doing it without fail. I''m trying, but after a certain amount of training, you want to actually fight, right? But I''m not sure about going alone. So, here I am, at Toya''s house! They moved in a few days ago, and I had asked them about the place before I moved out of the inn. ....... I asked them where they lived before I left the inn, but they said, "......, isn''t this too big? The place we were told was a huge lot. It was a huge plot of land, and I could tell right away. It was much bigger than the surrounding houses, and the houses on it were big enough, but compared to the land, it looked small. This is the right place, isn''t it?¡¡Is it okay if I enter? To prevent unauthorized entry, the site is tightly surrounded by a wall, and there is a magnificent gate at the entrance. The gate is bolted from the inside, so you can''t open it, and there is no doorbell, so you can''t call out. No, the door itself is like a steel fence, so if you stick your hand in, you can open the bolt. ...... Is this a good idea? I''m not sure if this is trespassing or not. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Then you can''t blame them if they kill you. Seriously. Well, actually, killing them can be troublesome, so unless you really intend to rob them and break in with a weapon, you''ll only be seriously injured if you''re unlucky. I really don''t know what to do. ...... It would be nice if you could leave the gate open or at least install a doorbell. As I was peeking inside the gate, I saw a figure waving a sword in the distance. Toya-kun! I couldn''t let this opportunity pass me by. I grabbed the gate and shouted loudly, and Toya seemed to have noticed me and stopped his hand to come closer. What''s up, it''s Tommy. Are you here to play?¡¡You can come in now. I smiled at him as he wiped sweat from his face with a hand towel. I can''t get in, it''s closed. There''s no doorbell. Wouldn''t it be a problem if someone came to visit? "Oh, sorry. Toya unbolted the gate and invited me to enter the premises. As I could see from the gate, there was a rather large house in front of me, but the rest of the place was a rather rough garden. The view was not very good, so I was lucky to see Toya. We don''t have a lot of people coming to visit, but do we need a doorbell? "I think so. Or should I call out at the gate? Actually, you''re the only one who''s been to my house. I''m sure you have more acquaintances than I do, but none of them seem to be the kind of person who would come to your house unexpectedly. But that''s the way it is, isn''t it?¡¡In this world, people basically work every day, and there are not many events like ''going to a friend''s house for a visit''. "So, Tommy, what do you want?¡¡It''s okay to say ''I''m here for fun'', but it''s usually work time, right? "Yeah, I''m taking the afternoon off this afternoon. I''m taking the afternoon off today, and I was wondering if you could accompany me on my ...... impudent request to go kill some goblins. Goblins ...... I see, so you''re making an effort to go fishing. Yeah. Of course, I also want to be able to defend myself a bit. Of course, I also want to be able to defend myself a little. But you know what? But you know what? Even if we say we''re going out, we''re really asking you to guard us, right?¡¡It''s not like we have any advantage in killing the goblins. "Ugh ......, is that what you think? I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event that you''re planning to go out and defeat the goblins, you''ll want to do some research beforehand. What I found out was that there was no money to be made from killing goblins. Only magic stones are profitable, and they cost only about 250 rares. In the early days of the game, but now, I don''t think that killing goblins will do Toya and his friends any good. So, what I''m saying is, "I''m afraid to go alone, so I''d like to go with you as an escort. So what I''m saying is, "I''m afraid to go alone, so I want you to escort me to Loja. Normally, I would have paid her and asked her to escort me. It''s no good, right? "No, I guess not. Normally, I wouldn''t ask you to pay. We''re adventurers. Of course. I''d feel bad too if someone said, "You''re my friend, so make me a sword for free. If you think about it, you should pay. Yeah. Okay. Then... "Fine. I''ll go with you. What? I''ll go out with you for free. I was dumbfounded by what he said, but he repeated it again. 122-111 Oops, tea! By the time I reached the same level as last time, I had encountered three battles. Three goblins, two orcs, and one bound viper, all of which took only a short time to fight, but it took some time to clean up, so about two hours had already passed since we left the town. If we only wanted to get the wood, we could have entered the forest from the north of the town, but there was a high possibility that a strong demon would suddenly appear. Therefore, I plan to enter the forest to the east as usual, go north, reach the foot of the mountain, and then return to the west. But orcs are common this deep into the forest, aren''t they? Yes. It is said that the orc nests that we destroyed were made by orcs that overflowed from deep within the forest. But it''s good for us. Orcs are very useful. Orcs may be a threat to ordinary people, but to us, they are a convenient source of meat and pocket money. In other words, they''re a super-competitor of task boars. They also seem to target ordinary hunters, so if you can consistently hunt Orcs, it might be better to let the Task Boars go, and not hunt them as much. However, if you move your activity area from shallow forest to deep forest, the possibility of encountering task boars will decrease. On the other hand, it should be easier to encounter vipu bears, but they''re not very efficient, so I''m not too happy about that. "Oh?¡¡Isn''t this a tea tree? "Tea tree?¡¡Does that mean tea leaves? As we were walking further in, Natsuki stopped and pointed to a tree that was only a little shorter than I was. The tree was covered with green leaves, but I had never seen a tea tree before, only tea plantations from a distance, so I couldn''t identify it. I don''t know what a tea tree looks like.¡¡It looks like a sasanqua, but ...... you see, it has light pink flowers. "...... Yes, it does. I''m pretty sure the tea tree is white, but the flowers look more like a tea tree than a sasanqua. Natsuki tilted her head at the flower Yuki pointed to. The leaves are also closer to the tea tree, aren''t they?¡¡The veins and the thickness of the leaves. The veins and thickness of the leaves. No, there are also whitish sasanqua flowers. Haruka joined in the discussion, and the women began to discuss. Halka joins in, and the women begin to discuss the matter. Toya and I look at each other and shrug. "Hey, Toya, you know what? I don''t understand. Don''t ask me, I can''t even remember the sasanqua, let alone the tea tree. I know. Neither do I. I''m not even sure I can remember the tea tree. The tea tree, but the sasanqua was planted in our yard. ...... "Sorry. The flowers are beautiful, but I have no idea of their names or varieties. I guess that''s what happens when you''re not interested. By the way, there was a small sasanqua at Nao''s house. "By the way, there was a small sasanqua at Nao''s house. Oh, so that was the sasanqua. I remember the red flowers blooming. But I''m not even sure when it was blooming, but if it''s blooming now, does that mean it was blooming near winter? I don''t think it bloomed in spring or summer. ....... By the way, according to Haruka, both the sasanqua and the tea tree are in the camellia family and are close in variety, so it''s not strange that they look alike. "The sasanqua is also written in Chinese characters as mountain tea. "So, mountain tea, ......, maybe the leaves of the mountain tea tree can be made into tea? "Well, I don''t know.¡¡I don''t know, but ...... it''s more of a tree now. So, Toya, try it. What do you think? At Haruka''s urging, Toya looks at the tree. I also tried to use [Help], but the result was ''evergreen broad-leaved tree''. The result was ''evergreen broad-leaved tree''. Since I was able to determine walnut trees from which ordinary people collect nuts, it must not be a tree known to the general public. Let''s see, ...... seems to be classified as a ''chanoki'' tree. "Oh, yeah. Okay, let''s dig it up and take it home. "Oh, really? Haruka nodded happily at the answer, while Toya looked surprised. "Of course. "Of course. Yuki and Natsuki agree, right? "Yes. Barley tea is not bad, but I also want to drink regular tea. "Herbal tea has a nice aroma, but it doesn''t taste very good. As Natsuki mentioned, our drinks are basically barley tea and white water. As we don''t drink alcohol, we tried to find tea in the town of Laffan, but unfortunately we couldn''t find any, so we decided to make barley tea using barley, which is easily available. Barley tea made by simply roasting and boiling barley is easy and tasty, but it is a bit lacking. I have also tried herbal teas using several kinds of medicinal herbs, but the taste is not so good. Juice is not something you can drink in this city where sugar and fruits are expensive. If I had access to green tea or black tea, I''d drink it too. ....... If we dig it up, does that mean we can plant it in the garden? Of course . If I didn''t have a magic bag, I would have given up, but since I do, why not?¡¡It''s better than coming here to pick tea when it''s sprouting. That''s true. There''s no way I''m gonna be able to pick tea around here. --No way. Let''s dig. Fortunately, it''s not a very big tree. It would be a full day''s work if I had to dig it up by hand, but with the help of earth magic, it would not be so difficult. "Then dig up the area around ...... the bottom of the longest branch. It should be about a meter deep. The area indicated by Natsuki is quite large. If it was a normal replanting, there would be no need to dig so large, but since we were moving to a completely different environment, and thanks to the magic and the magic bag, there would be less work to dig up and transport. Even if it''s a little wasteful, it''s better, Natsuki said. Since Natsuki, who seemed to be the most knowledgeable among us, said so, there was no reason for us to object. "Then, Yuki, dig from that side. "Okay. For those of us who have built a glass bathtub, digging a hole is not so difficult. The soil was quickly pulled aside and a hemispherical trench was formed. However, we could not move it as it was because the roots were intertwined with the surroundings. As expected of a forest, there are many roots. Tonya, please cut the roots protruding from the trench. Oh. Using the machete and saw that Toya had brought for logging, he quickly cut the roots for a few minutes. Finally, he finished digging up the tea tree. I''ll just have to put it in my magic bag. ...... It looks heavy. I''ll use Light Weight, and Toya can lift it. I can make it much lighter for a short time. Yes, that would be great. Then we''ll unroll the magic bag. The difficulty of magic and the consumption of magic power are simply proportional to its power and duration, so if the duration is limited to a few tens of seconds, it is not difficult to make this tree light enough for Toya to carry by himself. Haruka and the three of us unfolded the largest magic bag we had, and I applied the Light Weight to the tree with great force. Toya, now! Oh!¡¡--Oh, light! As soon as I call out, Toya lifts the tree with its huge rootball and quickly throws it into her magic bag, even though she is surprised by its weight. I''m not sure if I''ve used too much magic for nothing. Yes!¡¡Now we can drink tea in the spring! "Oh, you can''t drink it right away? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time and energy, you''re going to want to make sure that you''ve got the right equipment. It''s springtime to pick tea. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. What time is that?¡¡Early summer? "No, no, no. When is that?" "Early summer?" Touya asked, and Yuki pondered and counted. I''m sure you count from Risshun, right?¡¡Let''s see, it''s around the beginning of ......5? "Yes, that''s right. That''s around the holidays. We can pick them until the end of summer, but this time of year, ...... no, if you can tolerate the taste, maybe you can? Natsuki became a little more serious and nodded her head. Tea is usually made from the sprouts, right? The leaves on the tree were too hard to be made into tea. "Natsuki, are you actually quite unhappy? No, it''s not unbearable, but when you have enough to live on, ...... It''s not that I don''t care if it''s just water when I''m eating or not, but when I can eat good food, I start to think about tea too. Natsuki used to drink a lot of green tea. I used to buy green tea from the vending machine. Even when we went out, green tea was served. Oh, by the way, at Natsuki''s house, we were served Japanese sweets. And green tea as well. It was a delicious Japanese snack that I would never have been able to eat at my house, where I usually only eat buns from the supermarket. I was distracted by the sweets, but the green tea must have been good, too. It''s fine, I like it!¡¡To be honest, getting the tea tree was the best thing I''ve done lately! By the way, how does it compare to balay crabs and crustaceans? Ugh. ...... Tough choice. I pointed out, and Natsuki was at a loss for words. Shrimp and crabs have played a major role in improving the quality of our food. It is a favorite of all of us because it adds depth to the flavor even if you simply add it to the soup, and naturally Natsuki likes to eat it as well. For me, who can put up with just water, crab and shrimp are by far the best, but Natsuki seems to have a problem with them. Well, that''s fine. To be honest, I''m getting tired of barley tea too. That''s right!¡¡I''d like to find a few more bottles if I can. ...... Isn''t one bottle enough? Since you''re here, don''t you want to make some tea?¡¡I think I can make green tea without any problems, but I think black tea requires a lot of trial and error. Also, I''d like to have some matcha green tea. Green tea and black tea are made from the same leaves, but matcha is grown in a different way. Is it just me, or is matcha a bit much? I''d love some tea, but matcha?¡¡It won''t be good without some sweet treats, will it? I can''t deny that, but a good matcha is delicious on its own. I can''t critique good matcha because I''ve never had it, but I do know that it''s expensive. I know that it is expensive, which is synonymous with the fact that it is difficult and time-consuming to make, and it is not something that Natsuki can easily make. I was going to point it out, but I felt something trapped in the [search enemy], stopped speaking, and focused my attention. "Mmm ......, this is ....... Sorry, I''m surrounded. What?¡¡You''re surrounded by enemies?¡¡Seriously?¡¡They''re not responding, not to me. Toya looked surprised at my words, and I nodded. "Yeah. I thought they were working alone because they''re over a hundred meters away, but I think they''re working together. There are several reactions that are gradually approaching from over 100 meters away, centered on the point where we are now. The fact that we didn''t pay much attention to them backfired because it was normal for a certain number of them to always be trapped due to the increased range of the search. I knew that they were getting closer, but I didn''t expect them to work together at such a distance. "You mean they''re working together, right, Scalp Ape?¡¡Do they have the intelligence to work together at such a distance? Is it because they''ve been here for so long? Is it impossible to escape? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... is difficult. If you try to get between them, you''ll probably end up fighting. There are currently more than 20 of them that we know of through [Searching for enemies]. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always ask for help. This is the first time I''ve fought them, and there are more than I expected. In addition, I''ve already expended more magic than I expected in gathering the tea tree. Yuki has not used the "Light Weight", so she consumes less magic than me, but her original magic power is still less than mine. It''s not a perfect situation. This is a little ...... bad, isn''t it? 123-112 Scalp Ape, Seriously Too Much I''m sorry. That was my fault. Don''t worry about it. If it wasn''t for Nao''s spying, I wouldn''t have noticed it until right before. You still have some time left, right? Haruka smiles at me, and I feel a little lighter. You''re right, it''s not time to rush yet. It''s not perfect, but if you think about it, the situation isn''t that bad. It''s just that my magic power is a little low. "Ah. A few more minutes at the current pace. "Then there''s no point in waiting here. It''s better to set up in one corner of the perimeter. Right. If we''re going, we should go in the direction we came. Natsuki was right, it was too dangerous to go into the unexplored area, so we started walking back the way we came, with Toya in the lead. After a few tens of seconds of me indicating the direction we should go, Toya nodded to me and moved even faster, as if he had seen the Scarp Ape in the search range. And then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw ...... a gorilla that could be described in one word: stylish. It was slimmer than the gorillas I''d seen at the zoo, but clearly different from the chimpanzees, and looked like a gorilla who''d done some weight training and toned up. However, its body hair is a light brown color, so it is distinctly different from a gorilla. There were three of these sculpted apes walking on the ground. In each of their hands was a club made from a slightly modified tree branch, so they must be intelligent to some extent. They must have noticed us at about the same time we found them, because one of them let out a loud "Whoa, whoa! One of them let out a loud cry that echoed through the forest. "Could this be a call for a mate? "That''s a good possibility! As far as I can tell, the nearby sculpted ape''s movement speed has increased. d*mn it, let''s hurry up! I''ll take the right end! At about the same time that Yuki said this, a Fire Arrow shot out from Yuki''s outstretched hand to the rightmost Scarp Ape. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and what you can do to help. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll do fine. Yes! With that voice, Toya and Natsuki quickly approached the enemy. I stopped next to Haruka, who stopped a short distance away, and Yuki, who was a little ahead of me, came back with her eyes on Toya and the others. If there were only three enemies in front of me, I would have gone in for cover, but there are at least a dozen more approaching, and considering their ability to call out to their friends, there is a possibility that more will come. I think we should save our magic as much as possible. Natsuki and the others seem to be all right, right? "I guess so. It looks like they can''t be cut down as easily as the goblins. The Scarp Ape tried to block Toya''s slashes with his club, but was easily pushed back and had already been hit several times. It won''t be long before she inflicts a fatal wound. On the other hand, Natsuki''s attack with the spear was more than he could take, and he cut off his arm halfway with his first blow - oh, it went right through his head. It''s over. It was a little unexpected that one shot of the Fire Arrow couldn''t take care of it. ...... "Sorry, probably my fault. I was running, so I didn''t aim well. Thank you for your help, Haruka. It''s the role of friends to follow up. Haruka smiled and shook her head at Yuki''s apology. However, Yuki said that it was because he was running, but perhaps it was because he was moving faster than the orcs and his target was smaller. Even though a mere cudgel won''t protect you, it''s useless if you can avoid it. Do I need to train to increase the speed of the Fire Arrow in the future? But for now, we have to deal with the friends that Scalp Ape called. "Yuki, that side, they''re coming!¡¡Two of them! Got it!¡¡I''ll take care of one for now. Behind Yuki, who had stepped forward with a small sword, I also set up my spear to protect Haruka. The picture doesn''t look so good with me hiding behind Yuki, but I hope you''ll forgive me for being a long shot. Two Scarp Apes came out from behind the bushes at about the same time. And we attacked them almost simultaneously. Yuki went around to the right side and slashed at its neck, while I thrust my spear at its torso, near its heart. With a heavy thud, the tip of the spear pierced almost to the base. At the same time, the body of the protruding Scarp Ape lost its strength and collapsed to the ground. Apparently, he was lucky enough to be thrust into the heart. Yuki''s neck is still bleeding, but she''s still moving. If you leave her alone for a while, she might die, but that''s not going to happen. "Yuki!¡¡Three more from behind! "What?¡¡What?¡¡It can''t be helped! Yuki looked a little troubled by my words, but just as she was about to step in to save herself from being covered in blood, an arrow shot from behind me pierced her head beautifully this time. Thank you again, Haruka! Forget that, Yuki, they''re coming! As I grasped with [Searching for enemies], three more are coming through the bushes. If you look towards Natsuki and Toya, you''ll see that they''re engaged in a battle with five Scarp Apes to the left of Haruka. One by one, Natsuki and the others would be able to kill them quickly, but with five of them working together, it seems to be difficult, and they''re having a little trouble. Hmm!¡¡--There aren''t enough of them! According to the [Search for Enemies] response, there were already three of them approaching. As I looked in the direction of the reaction, I saw one of them climbing up a tree and two others picking up a stone below it. I toss the stone up into the tree, and the Scarp Ape grabs it and throws it with a swing of his arm. Fast. Is it as fast as a batting center? Seriously! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it. I''ve got to get out of here! I''ll be back!¡¡Thank you! Don''t worry about it. But I could use a baseball glove, you know? I''m wearing a leather glove, but it''s not cushy enough. In the event you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out what to do. In addition, its "squeak" sounds like it''s laughing, which is quite nerve-wracking. Long-range attacks are troublesome. Don''t lick it! After confirming that Yuki had managed to keep the Scarp Ape at bay, I swung the stone in my right hand as hard as I could and threw it at the Scarp Ape. At the moment it leaves my hand, I apply "heavy weight" to the stone. The stone flew out with a speed that almost made a noise, and without even allowing Scarp Ape to avoid it, it smashed into his face with a gurgling sound, scattering his brain plasma behind him. "Ooh, that''s pretty ....... The power of his improved physical ability, baseball throwing form, and "heavy weight" was no joke. It is said that stone throwing killed the most number of people in the old wars. No, you can''t compare magic and physical ability, because they are different. But something is bothering me... "Nao!¡¡Help~ Oh, I''m sorry! I didn''t have time to think about it right now. Yuki, who was dealing with three of them, had inflicted a few wounds on the Scarp Ape, but they were far from fatal. A few of Haruka''s arrows were also sticking out, but they didn''t seem to be head shots because they were moving around. I quickly grab my spear and fire a fireball at the Scarp Ape, who was picking up a stone, and attack the Scarp Ape in front of Yuki with my spear. The Fireball, which is a level 3 fire magic, is accompanied by an explosion when it lands, so it looks flashy, but if you use the same magic power, sniping with the Fire Arrow is more powerful. However, it is a useful spell for checkpoints and when there are a lot of small fish. Yuki and the others'' fight tipped the scales when I entered the fray, even if only briefly. When one of them was stopped by my spear, Haruka headshot it again. If there were two of them, Yuki would have no problem. I took a step toward the scarp-ape that hadn''t reacted to the fireball, and thrust my spear at the body I saw behind the cloud of dust. He did it twice. He seemed to resist slightly, but the power of the fireball was unexpectedly high, and he was almost dead. I''d like to take a break, but there are four more of them coming! "Who''s free? "Sorry, I can''t! Three more are coming! Oh, come on, Toya and the others have eight! They killed two of them, but still six. No pressure. I''m almost there!¡¡I''m sorry!¡¡Haruka, please! I got it! You and Hulka will get four. Two more for a little farther. A little tough. ......? Nao, I''ll attack with magic from the left! Got it! Haruka and I will fire one Fire Arrow at each of them. That put them both out of action for the most part. If we had more time and magic power, we could increase the number of them, but this is the best we can do at the moment. While I''m spearing one of them, Haruka fires another "Fire Arrow" at it, but this time it''s not fatal. At that point, two more animals entered the fray. "Oh no! I succeeded in taking out the one in front of me with my spear, but one of them tried to run backwards beside me, and my left hand went out as quickly as I could. Definitely a bad move. Scalp Ape grabs my arm. I try to pull my arm out as fast as I can and-- "! There was a resounding thud. Stifling a scream, I took a half-reflexive step forward and slammed my elbow into Scalp Ape''s face. I forcefully pull my arm out of his slightly loose hand and thrust out the spear in one hand. --shallow! I''m not sure what to make of that. But even so, it succeeded in making the Scarp Ape take a step back. Immediately, he thrust his hand at its face. "Fire Arrow! Speed first. It''s probably less than half as powerful as the one you normally use against Orcs. But at close range and in close proximity, the "fire arrow" was powerful enough that, while it couldn''t blow its head off, it did succeed in severely caving in its face and killing it. "Nao!¡¡It''s okay if you pull it out! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it," he said, holding a small sword in his hand. I see. Haruka can fight in melee too. Sorry, one of them please. Yeah! To be frank, my left arm hurts. I don''t think I can even use a spear properly in this condition. I passed through the uninjured one and took on the one that had been hit by Haruka''s magic. To be honest, it''s tough to handle a spear with one hand. If this is the case, I should have bought a small sword. ...... It''s not only the fact that you can''t handle it with one hand, but also the fact that you can''t handle it when it gets close to you like in this case. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this before, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. If there is only one enemy, you can adjust the distance to avoid being approached, but in a battle like this, it is difficult. But that''s not a problem against a wounded man. The left hand is mostly just a handhold, but even so, it''s not a problem against a scarp-ape that''s already lost its footing. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be fine with ...... Haruka? "Yes, one of them. When I turned around, I saw that Haruka was just about to put an end to the sculpted ape. You can find several cuts on the arms and legs, which suggests that they were carefully cut down and killed. Yuki''s is ...... Haruka, can you cover me?¡¡Two more are coming. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡It''s really nasty! I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. And two more are approaching Toya and the others. The Scarp Ape that Toya and the others are dealing with is already down to three, but they must be getting tired. It would be hard for them to take on two more right now. "Let''s try a little harder! I fought back the pain echoing in my arm and took a step toward it with all my might. 124-113 Its troublesome to clean up In the end, the total number of Scarp Ape we killed reached 29. Their corpses were lying all over the place, and it was truly a scene of the dead and dying. Isn''t that too many?¡¡No matter how many. That''s right. ...... I wonder what they''re eating. It''s a big body and there are a lot of them in this group. I''m not sure if common sense applies to demons, but can they survive on a hunting lifestyle? I''m not sure what the right number is, but I don''t know. Anyway, Nao, are you hurt? Yeah, it''s my left arm. Can you fix it? I smiled and held up my left arm to Haruka, who approached me with concern. To be honest, it hurts a lot. It''s probably a cracked bone, you know. If you break a bone by grabbing it, how strong is your grip? I''ll do it. I''ll do it. I''m not using magic. Natsuki takes my arm and uses Cure to heal me. The pain goes away from my burning arm. That''s magic. "Thank you, Natsuki. "You''re welcome. You''re welcome." Natsuki smiled and cast another spell on Toya. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. The first thing to do is to collect the ...... magic stone. How much is the Scarp Ape''s magic stone? It''s 1,200 rare, I believe. It''s a lot cheaper than .......¡¡It''s less than half the price of orcs. I thought it was a pretty nasty enemy, but if you look at it by itself, it''s not that strong. But as a group, they seem to be more dangerous than orcs. I was able to survive because I noticed the encirclement and attacked first, but if I had been surrounded and attacked by more than 20 of them at the same time, there''s a good chance someone would have been seriously injured. But there are so many of them, so what?¡¡There are twenty-nine of them, so that''s ......34,800 rare. What about the other parts? Well, wait a minute. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''re going to need to be able to pay for it. It was a lot of work. Nao had to literally break her bones! Cracks, cracks. Maybe he didn''t break it. And it was my fault, so don''t say too much. I don''t think I should have put my arm out there. It''s because I don''t have much experience in combat, I guess. Basically, I''ve only been in battles where I can die safely. Hmm, considering the size of the enemy, would it have been effective to use a foot strike? Would they have consumed it themselves?¡¡I heard the meat tastes bad and the skin is almost useless. If we were poor, we''d try to eat it somehow, but we don''t need it. We have a delicious meat called oak. Yeah, we''ll have to dispose of it. We don''t need bad meat. Everyone nodded at my words. In this world where entertainment is scarce, a good meal is vital. And then there are these corpses. ...... It''s really not a good idea to leave all this stuff around, is it? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find the right one for you. The animals and demons of the forest will dispose of the corpses, but I have never left more than ten corpses at a time. Moreover, as Natsuki said, the corpse of a Scarp Ape would have the volume of two or three goblins. There is a possibility that this level of corpse will be disposed of quickly, but if it is left behind, the result will be a large number of rotting corpses. We will have to go this way in the future, and we want to avoid it. So, are we going to bury it?¡¡All this? It''s hard to dig a hole in the forest. "Are you serious? I agree with Yuki, who gives me a look like "Really? Since I can''t ask Toya to dig a hole with a shovel, it will be me and Yuki who will dig the hole. As you can see from the transplanting of the tea tree earlier, even if you remove the soil with magic, the roots that grow there will remain. Grass can be moved along with the soil, but the roots of a tree growing from a distance cannot. But you can''t just leave it here, can you?¡¡You could put it in a magic bag and throw it around the forest. ...... Wouldn''t that be ...... annoying? I''m sure you''ve heard of it. If it''s handled well, it''s good, but if it''s not, it''s quite annoying. I know it''s a lot of trouble for Nao-kun and Yuki, but why don''t we just bury the tea tree in the hole we dug up? That would be more practical, though more troublesome. Let''s collect the corpses. Well, that''s what we''ll do. Having come to a conclusion, we walked around the battlefield, picking up the corpses of the scarp-apes and throwing them into our magic bags. It was a bit tedious, but not too difficult, since we didn''t have to carry the bodies. After collecting the bodies, we went back to the place where we had dug up the tea tree, and Yuki and I dug a deep hole in the ground. Because of the trees around us, it''s hard to expand the size of the hole, so we just dig deeper. Because of the amount of scarp-apes, we dug the hole to a depth of over three meters. At the same time, the other three took the magic stones from the scarp-apes and threw the corpses into the hole that had been created. The deep hole was being filled with corpses. "Oh, that''s the one I killed with a rock? "You did this with a rock?¡¡Almost his head is gone. ....... I don''t care how much [muscle strength] you have, it''s still going to be this powerful?¡¡By throwing rocks. I used heavy weights, so it''s not pure muscle power. That''s right, I felt something strange when I was there. What caught your attention? The speed at which you threw the stone: ......? Yes, it was fast, but it was fast enough to be visible, and considering that there is [muscle strength], it''s not that abnormal. In terms of simple velocity, I think the pitches of professional baseball players are faster. Then, to what ......? But how did you manage to pinpoint it when it was so far away?¡¡Was Nao any good at baseball? No, he''s just average. I''m not sure what to make of that. You were just as good at ball games as the other members of the club. With Toya. Oh, yeah, we were both good at sports, weren''t we? If you call that normal, other people will look down on you. Yuki and Natsuki agreed with me. You''re active, right? It''s not that I''m a bad athlete, I''m not saying that I was a bad athlete, but I don''t think I was outstanding. It''s different from the baseball team that practices every day. As I said before, even Toya would have no trouble hitting the ball from that distance. No, I just threw it. "What?¡¡What? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. What I''ve been wondering is why you got hit. I told you that I used Heavy Weight back then, didn''t I? Yes. And yet the stone flew right where I aimed it. Yeah. What''s wrong with that? "What''s wrong with that?" "I aimed at it, so it''s natural, right? I shook my head, though Yuki''s gaze told me otherwise. I shook my head. "If I say it''s strange, it''s strange. If you say it''s not strange, it''s not strange. I thought Heavy Weight was a spell that increased the gravity on the target. The women nodded their heads in agreement, as if they understood my words immediately. ...... Oh, that might be a little strange. But if you throw it straight at them at head-scratching speed, it won''t affect them much, will it? No, but if you throw it with the same feeling, it won''t hit where you aim. No, but if you throw with the same feeling, you won''t hit the target. "What do you mean? "It''s a physics problem. What happens if the gravity on the object increases when you do oblique projection? If the gravity increases, the thrown stone should deviate from my expected trajectory, but it did, so... "Heavy weight" is not gravity. Maybe. It was also more powerful than I expected, so you''re increasing the mass?¡¡How is that possible? It seems nonsensical to ask for a scientific basis for magic, but I am curious about it. "Nao, do you know ''E=mc^2''? "It''s the theory of relativity, right?¡¡It says that energy is proportional to the square of mass and velocity. It is very famous. Probably, there is no high school student who does not know this. In traffic accidents, it is sometimes brought up in the form of ''if you increase the speed, the damage increases by the square of the speed''. Yes. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. "......? When you give energy to something, its mass increases. In other words, it is possible to increase the mass of an object by giving it magical energy externally. From a scientific point of view. "I see, you''re right! I hadn''t been aware of it, but as a mathematical expression, it is true. But even if I were to give a scientific explanation for that part, the ''magical energy'' would be too versatile, and many things would be ruined. "So, Nao. "So, Nao, does it mean anything to you that ''heavy weight'' is not gravity, but an increase in mass? No, it doesn''t.¡¡You know, like when I crushed the head of a sculpted ape with my rock throw. In a way, it''s a revolution in flying tools. In a sense, it is a revolution in flying tools. In the extreme, a flying tool is how you accelerate a projectile. If the mass is increased before acceleration, it is meaningless, but if the mass can be increased after acceleration, it is possible to produce a higher effect with the same energy. For example, if the mass of an arrow can be doubled immediately after shooting it with a bow, the power of the arrow will be doubled while the distance remains the same. No, because the air resistance does not change, it would be slightly more than twice as much. Since the duration of the "heavy weight" is only until impact, isn''t this quite cost-effective? I''ve been trying to convince myself of this, but.... I''m sure it''s great, but can you use magic to target that moment?¡¡But if the magic is cast before the arrow leaves the bowstring, it''s useless. I can use Heavy Weight, but it''s hard to cast it on something you can''t see. I think the best you can do is throw stones, which you can adjust yourself. "Ugh. ...... It was a full blown blow. At normal fighting distance, the time it takes for an arrow to leave the bow and reach the enemy is less than a second. No matter how much preparation you have done in advance, it is undeniable that it is extremely difficult to see it and cast a spell in less than a second. No, it is possible if you can apply "heavy weight" to a fast-moving target at a distance of 10 meters or more. ....... I''m not saying it''s impossible, but it would take a lot of practice. I''m not saying it''s impossible, but it would take a lot of practice. A stone thrower might work, but that''s none of our business. Stick with ....... I thought I''d found a low-cost, useful magic. I''m sure stone throwers are useful enough.¡¡You don''t need an arrowhead, so it''s very low cost. It''s true, but the distance I can throw a stone is limited. Should I practice throwing stones with a sling? 125-114 What can be more money is good "Well, let''s not discuss the science of magic again, shall we?¡¡It doesn''t make much sense when you have the uncertainty of magic in your theory, does it? "...... Well, yes. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I didn''t stop my work as I spoke, and soon all the bodies of the Scarp Ape were thrown into the hole, which turned into a giant earthen bun. There are bloodstains all around, so there is a possibility that they will be dug up by wolves or something, but that''s when it happens. If you eat it clean, I won''t complain. Well... I''m kind of tired, but it''s only noon, isn''t it? Haruka claps her hands to change her mood and uses Purification in a fluid manner. He then checked the time on a watch he had taken out of his pocket and said with a slightly annoyed expression. When I looked at the watch, I saw that it was only a little after noon. It was a little early to be leaving. The problem is that we''re not getting much for our fatigue. It''s important to take it easy, but ...... for now, the smell of blood is a little thick in here, so let''s just go ahead and have lunch. Yuki took out a hamburger as she said this. The buns and patties were all made by Yuki and his friends. Yes, we can eat them while walking. Yuki hands them out to everyone, and we walk off with them. Then, out of nowhere, we all took a bite of the hamburger. "Yeah, it''s good! Haruka and the others smiled happily as I gave my honest opinion. Thank you. It''s worth the trouble of making mincemeat if you say so. "Yeah. Isn''t there a mincer in this world? If you use a knife, the minced meat will be uneven. It''s delicious, though. Yes, I know you''ve been struggling. I knew he was struggling because I heard a ding ding ding ding ding from the kitchen and went to check what was going on. "Why don''t you ask Tommy to make it?¡¡He''ll take care of it, won''t he? Toya, that''s a crazy idea. ...... Tommy had helped me with the shovel and the knife, but the mincer was a whole different ball of wax. I only have a vague idea of its structure, but it''s not something that can be made easily by blacksmithing, like gears or spirals or something. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use earth magic to transform metal rather than blacksmithing.¡¡...... I can''t do that. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to try. I''ve never used one before.¡¡I''ve never used one before. ...... Haruka, can you make a food processor or something?¡¡I''ve never heard of it. "What, me?¡¡I know, ...... it''s not impossible, but you''d need a knife, so maybe I can get Tommy to help me figure it out? Haruka thought about it for a bit and came to the conclusion that it could be done, nodded and said that. Toya raised her hand and interrupted him. If you can build a simple furnace in the garden, I can help you.¡¡I''d like to do a little blacksmithing. I''d like to do a little blacksmithing." "Wild blacksmithing, ...... is a good idea. With Yuki and Nao around, we could build a simple soundproof hut. Yes, we can at least build an earthen wall. The "Earth Wall" magic itself is a level 4 earth magic, but it is nothing compared to making a bathtub. It''s not a problem if you take your time, unlike in battle. Now all we need is a simple roof on top of it and we''ll have a hut. That''s fine!¡¡Nao, Yuki, can you help? Nao, Yuki, can you do that for me? ©¤ Sure, I''ll do it soon. When Toya looked happy, Yuki readily agreed, and I nodded. Being able to make my own pots and pans would be useful and worthwhile. If you have a lot of pots, you can keep them in the storage room in the kitchen. But this hamburger is really tasteless if the only ingredient other than the patties is pickles. Yes, that''s... Maybe it''s the time of year, but they don''t sell tomatoes. It''s summer, right? Tomatoes? Do you think they''ll have raphane in the summer? I don''t know. Tomatoes started out as a garden variety, right? And by the way, I don''t think they''d taste so good if they weren''t bred. Hmmm, there is a possibility that even if they existed, they would be too foul to be eaten. If we had tomato ketchup, we could have a wider variety of meals. Well, that''s a story for next year. Other raw vegetables, like ...... lettuce. Raw vegetables, yeah. We''ve talked about it a little bit, but we''ll talk about it some other time. We don''t have that much room right now, do we? "Oops, you''re right. There was no response to the search, so they ate while talking leisurely, but still, this was deep in the forest. But this is the depths of the forest, so you can''t be too careless. I''m not sure what to do now that my stomach is full.¡¡Do you want to go a little further? After making sure that everyone had finished their burgers, Yuki collected the cloths that had been wrapping the burgers and put them away. Each of us took a sip of barley tea from our water bottles and took a breath. I guess we should earn some more money. Nao, any good reactions? "Sounds good?¡¡That''s a difficult thing to say. It''s not like I''m going to die a scarp-ape. I don''t think so. In the first place, there''s no reaction from the Scarp Ape, perhaps due to the fact that it killed so many of them. There are ......1 binding vipers. And there''s another one to the north at ........ "Nearby is a Bind Viper and something else I can''t quite place. It looks like an animal, maybe a deer. I don''t see any Bind Vipers for sale yet, but they''re not that expensive, are they? I think they''re cheaper than orcs. I think they''re cheaper than orcs. Each one shouldn''t cost more than 30,000 rares. The magic stone itself is more expensive than orcs, the meat is the same, and the skin is more expensive. However, the amount of meat that can be obtained is less than that of Orcs, and as a result, it is a little cheaper. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. If you compare them on their own, the Bind Viper is clearly stronger, but it is a good sucker because it poses little danger as long as you can prevent surprise attacks. And even more of a sucker is the Orc. However, if you are an adventurer who does not have a magic bag, you may have a different opinion. On a per-weight basis, Bind Viper skins are pretty good. Scalp Ape is also excellent in that you can get a lot of magic stones at once without taking up much space. If you are willing to go through the trouble of fighting and cleaning up after yourself. You can sell it for a good price.¡¡It''ll sell for a good price, right? Wait a minute. Let''s see... 9,000 for the horns and skin, and between 10,000 and 20,000 for the meat, depending on how it''s processed. We looked at each other as Toya answered, looking at the book. "About the same as a Bind Viper, right? It''s not so bad if you think of it as an animal.¡¡They''re easier to hunt than demons. Deer, you know. The problem is that Toya and Natsuki have no way to attack. They are not going to come at you unawares like the deer you see at tourist attractions, and their main attacks will be with bows and magic. The only thing left is how to get close to them without them noticing. Let''s give it a try then. Nao, can you take the lead? "Yes, sir. I also have [Stealth Foot], so I think it''s a reasonable decision. After a while, I was amazed at the sight of a deer. "......... "Oh, really? ...... Is that the right scale? When I heard the word "deer," the first thing that came to my mind was the kind of deer that strolls around Nara Park. I''m not sure what to make of it. A few of them at the same time would not be a problem. --But what I saw in my mind''s eye was no such thing. It was about three meters long, with legs thicker than Haruka''s torso, and a head taller than Toya''s. On top of its head, a huge horn sits. In size, it is a giant moose, but in appearance, it is more like a Japanese deer. Blowing its head off without question from a distance might not be a problem, but it doesn''t seem to be an optimistic opponent. At the very least, if you were to be hit with its horns or kicked with its feet, you would be seriously injured. Who said, "You can''t get more meat than a boar? Who said you can''t get more meat than a boar?" "I didn''t know they were that big!¡¡It''s bigger than a vipe-bear! Yuki whispered in protest to Toya''s blurting, but I was just as guilty as Yuki, because I had imagined the same thing. I mean, who would have imagined that size? "Toya, didn''t the book say what size it was? "No, it''s not an illustrated book, it just tells you how to dismantle it. By the way, as long as you avoid the corners, you can blow its head off like you did with the orcs. It''s useless. Is that good information?¡¡Well, if you can kill it without getting too close, that''s all the better. We consulted for a while at a distance from the deer. In conclusion, it was decided that I would take the lead and go behind the deer, while Haruka and the others would go around the front and follow up in case my attack failed. I''m off then. "Be careful, please. Even a Japanese deer can be killed by an antler shot. Oh. If it comes at you, just run. I might be able to kill Toya if I fought him head-on, but I''m not in charge of hand-to-hand combat. I had no intention of pushing myself. I parted company with Haruka and the others, and slowly approached the deer to get behind it. The deer was munching on leaves, but its ears were twitching, so I wondered if it was alarmed. After a while of trying to make as little noise as possible, the deer suddenly stopped eating, looked up, and looked around. I hurriedly stop moving and hold my breath. The deer is looking at ...... the front. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if they''re more likely than me, given their numbers and skills. But it''s no fun being outrun. I hurriedly resumed my movement and moved to the back of the deer. I approached it little by little, and when the distance was less than 10 meters, I fired the Fire Arrow. It was a surprise attack, so of course I didn''t shout any spell, but the deer felt the heat and tried to look back at me, but it was too late. The "Fire Arrow" pierced the back of the deer''s head, gouging it halfway. Because of its huge size, it did not completely blow off its head, but it was still a fatal wound. The deer did not even move and collapsed on the spot. 126-S011 Tommy Fishing (2) But on one condition. Of course!¡¡Good! I was relieved to hear that. He has helped me a lot in the past, so to say that I owe him nothing is indeed distressing, or perhaps I owe him too much. Well, it''s hard to say, because I was expecting that too. I''m glad you''re here. ....... Well, good. First of all, I''m the only one who''s following you. Haruka, Nao and the others are busy. No, that''s not a problem. It seems that Toya and the others are the top adventurers in this town. I''m pretty sure they''ve reached rank 3 or 4, so the escort fee should be reasonably high. It''s great that such an adventurer is willing to accompany us for free, even if it''s only one of us. The reason why I was able to reach such a high rank in such a relatively short period of time is probably due to the fact that I got the skills first, but I guess it''s also due to the fact that I''ve been training and working diligently. I also have some connections with adventurers because I run a weapon shop, but I don''t think most of them are as serious as Toya and his friends. In fact, most of them live a momentary life, drinking until they earn enough money and then going to work. I want to ask, "Are you an Edo-ko? but the impression I get is quite different. It''s not so much that they are good-natured, but more like they are unthinking. What will he do when he gets old? But aren''t you busy, Toya?¡¡What are Haruka and the others doing? Oh, they''re making things?¡¡Well, now that they have a house, they can use their production skills. Oh, I see. ...... I''m the one who took the blacksmithing skill, but the production skill is not as useful as it seems. You might think that it would be useful and make your life more stable, but if you don''t have the right environment, it is completely useless. I was introduced to blacksmithing by my master, but most people don''t have access to a furnace or the ability to purchase raw materials. Even if I manage to make a weapon, there is no way to sell it. You can take them to a weapon shop and they will buy them, but it''s impossible to make money with that. This is true even for weapons that you can tell the quality of by looking at them, so it goes without saying for potions. It''s not easy to find out the effect by [appraising]. So, Haruka-san and the others all have production skills? Yes, they do. Nao is a little different, but ...... something like that. I don''t know much about the skill structure of Haruka-san and the others, but is it alchemy or something like that? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to make your own. I wonder if they''ll let us use them once we get good at making them.¡¡I can''t use healing magic. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to. "......?¡¡Toya, you have the blacksmithing skill, right? We used to make shovels together. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had to deal with this. ...... Why should I go to the trouble of setting up the equipment and doing the blacksmithing when you and Gantz are here? I''m sorry about that. I''m not sure what to do with it. No, I was told that blacksmithing was too noisy, so it would be the same without Tommy. Well, if I feel like it, I''ll go to the corner of the yard and do some blacksmithing. No blacksmithing in the house, indeed. Fortunately, we have a big garden," said Toya, looking around the large garden. It''s true that with such a large yard, if we work at the end of the yard, the sound might not echo to the main house. There are a lot of trees. However, I don''t think you can make much with a field forge. ....... If you want to do some blacksmithing, why don''t you come to my store?¡¡If you want to do blacksmithing, why don''t you come to my shop? If you are Toya, I''m sure your master won''t be too picky. ...... "Hmmm, ......, no, let''s not do that. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s more useful for the party members to be wielding swords like this than for me to be improving my blacksmithing skills. I let out a sigh of admiration as Toya smiled at me. Maybe the strength of Toya and the others lies in the fact that they all play their roles like this. It''s bad to compare them, but Tanaka and Takahashi, who died early on, went in without consulting each other. In the days leading up to that, I thought we were doing reasonably well, sharing roles. ....... The skills themselves were mines, but the last part was a result of my own actions. Huh. ....... And one more thing. There''s a good chance I''ll be ordering a lot more complicated stuff from you in the future, but good luck making it. And one more thing. Although it took a lot of time and effort, it was quite interesting, and I was quite satisfied with the result. Since then, I''ve been going through a lot of trial and error, trying to make something better - not something close to a real Japanese sword, but something practical that won''t rust without much care and won''t break when hit by hard objects, but I''m still not satisfied. But I haven''t been able to make something satisfactory yet. There are special steels such as white iron and yellow iron, so I think it is not impossible, but at present, the blade is quite thick, and it is heavy and difficult to handle when it is the length of a Japanese sword. I''m sure Toya can handle it, but I''d like to make something that even a woman like Natsuki can handle. Incidentally, when I asked my master, he replied, "If you spend enough money, you can make it in no time. It''s not something that is used very often, but it seems that fantasy metals do exist. I''m very interested in it, but if the cost is a few thousand gold coins, it''s not something I can afford. There''s a possibility in that direction, but I think it''s more of a practical item. We''re all focused on improving our standard of living right now, aren''t we? "...... I see. It''s a good thing you''re moving into such a nice house. It''s a great house that you can see from the outside, and I honestly envy you. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything that might be of interest to you. I''m not sure if it''s the previous innkeeper, but I''m not dissatisfied with the Bear of Slumber. When you live alone, you have to cook, clean, and do everything by yourself. I''m not proud of it, but I''m not a good cook. If I lived in Japan, where everything is available, I wouldn''t have any trouble, but here, I think I can only cook at the level of a bad street vendor. What kind of food do you cook, by the way? I''m not sure yet, but ...... Haruka and his friends had a hard time making mincemeat the other day. Cooking utensils? This is the first time I''ve ever seen such a thing. I''ve made a pot and kettle, but that''s pretty complicated, isn''t it?¡¡You know, the kind where you turn the handle and it makes minced meat with a swoosh? No, I haven''t decided to order one yet. ...... I just thought that if I had one, I could eat hamburgers more often. "d*mn, a hamburger made by a girl. I''m jealous! The food I''m eating is the food my bear father cooked! ...... No, it''s delicious, though. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''ve been to Aera''s restaurant on occasion, so I''ve eaten meals prepared by beautiful girls. But I want to eat the food made by Haruka, Natsuki, and Yuki, too! It''s a treat to eat a hamburger made by a beautiful girl who kneaded it with her bare hands. I want to eat the food made by Haruka, Natsuki and Yuki! We can''t cook, and to be honest, it''s a big help. No, whether it tastes good or not, it has value before that, you know? Of course I won''t say it, but... I don''t want to be treated like a pervert. I understand. I''ll accept a little recklessness. In return, you can invite me to dinner once in a while at ......? I don''t know that I''ll be ordering any cookware. ...... Well, I''ll just ask. Is that okay? Yes. If it''s a possibility, then yes. If there''s a chance, I''m grateful for it. Yes. I''ll think about it now, in case I get an order. If I can make it well, I might be able to sell it to other places. Well, more importantly. We should get going. Which do you prefer, the South Woods or the East Woods? Well, I''m not sure. Which is better? It''s easier to find goblins in the South Woods, but ...... The best place to find goblins is in the southern forest. What''s the problem? You might run into a mine, you know. "Mines... your classmates? "Mines - classmates?" I asked, and found out that Toya and his friends had met them a while ago. The first time they met, they recruited Haruka and the others, ignoring Toya and Nao, and of course they were rejected. The next time, he apologized and said, "I have a skill that doubles your experience, so I''ll be stronger than you. I''ll be stronger than you. Wow, that''s not good. I thought experience doubling slowed down your growth rate. "Yeah. Other than that, there are no other disadvantages, so you can get by if you take it seriously. ....... When I look at these guys, Tommy''s initial response seems so cute. "I''m sorry about that. I''m embarrassed to admit that I said something as if I deserved help. I didn''t think about what I could do, I only thought about getting help. In spite of that, I ended up getting a lot of help from them. ....... I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. That would have been natural. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. You''re lucky enough that you weren''t left for dead with no reason to help you. Especially since they didn''t even know I knew them before I regained consciousness. Well, it''s a good thing Tommy was so understanding, but those guys seem like a pain in the ass. They''re going to follow me around. I''m sorry to hear that, ....... Really. If they attacked me straight away, I''d beat them back, but they''re so half-hearted. Well, that''s extreme, Toya. No, it''s not safe, this world. In Japan, a missing person would definitely be a crime, but here, it''s not. Especially in our case. That''s ...... true. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. If it were me, there would be no point in kidnapping me, but in the case of Haruka and the others, there would be the risk of kidnapping and confinement. I''m not sure if Toya''s fears are unfounded. Then it''s better to avoid the southern forest. Yeah. If I''m the only one with a full team, I won''t have much room to spare in case of emergency. As he said this, he glanced at me. He seems to be telling me that I''m slowing him down and that he might not be able to protect me. And there''s no doubt about it. We haven''t even had an actual battle with a goblin yet. ''...... No, is that even possible?¡¡I''m alone, and if I''m not careful and they attack me-- "Let''s go to the East Woods!¡¡To the east! I interrupted Toya''s words and insisted. Even though there was no reason for me to be attacked, I couldn''t stand it if someone attacked me while I was attacking Toya. I owe you a debt of gratitude, and if you ask me to help you, I won''t say no, but please don''t dare make me attack you. Really?¡¡I''ll do it then. You can find them in the eastern forest if you walk for a few hours. A few hours ...... and you''d be surprised, goblin. That''s true. We won''t be able to use the roads without worrying if they''re all over the place. I remember when I first came here, I survived for several days in the eastern forest and didn''t encounter any goblins. Considering that, if we can find them in a few hours, it''s probably better than nothing. "Well then, let''s head for the Eastern Forest. Are you ready? "Yes, sir. I''m ready! Finally, my first battle. I replied strongly to Toya''s words, and got into the spirit. 127-115 Eat deer and snake (1) Well done. As soon as the deer fell, I also walked up to Haruka and the others who came out of the bushes on the other side, saying. It''s a big one, but it''s still an animal. I think they''re more cautious than demons. They seemed to have noticed us. I wonder if I could have ...... managed it? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "The goal is to kill it. There''s no need to push yourself, right? "Yes. There''s a chance you''ll get hurt by a counterattack. I could die just by getting kicked by this foot. The foot Yuki was pointing at was really thick when I looked at it again. The hooves were so big that I couldn''t even reach them with my palms open, and the thought of being kicked up with such thick muscles was terrifying. Even a normal horse can easily fracture its ribs, so this would surely mess up its internal organs. "Hey, let''s take it apart as soon as possible.¡¡Didn''t you read that the longer it takes, the worse it tastes? "Oh, right. Let''s hang it up first. Toya called out to me, and I hurriedly climbed a nearby tree. Fortunately, there were several large trees in the vicinity, so it was not difficult to find a place. I lowered the rope from the top of a solid branch, and Toya tied it around the legs of the deer. After making sure of this, she passes the rope through the branch and descends. Then he pulls the rope to suspend the deer, and preparations for dismantling are complete. But you know what? If I want to hunt deer, I need a pulley. A simple branch is pretty heavy. "Well, yes. If you can, use a dynamic pulley. If not, use a regular pulley. The less friction, the easier it will be. This time, Toya and I pulled it up with Yuki''s help, but it was quite heavy. If we hadn''t been told that it would taste bad if we didn''t drain the blood properly, we would have just dismantled it while it was lying on the floor, but since we were told that it would be cheaper if we were bad at dismantling it, we had no choice but to do it. I''ll cut off the head first, then. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The cervical vertebrae were not a problem. It was a brilliant technique. The blood that flowed out of the cut pooled in the hole he had dug below it. "Next, the entrails. You''re going to throw these away, right? "They say it''s not inedible, but it looks like a hassle, so just throw it away. Oh, and be careful not to damage the organs when you split it open. Okay. I can''t reach ....... Is that so? Haruka is trying his best to reach it, but the body part alone is about three meters long. You can''t reach the top of it if it''s hanging down. Let''s see, there''s some kind of foundation at ....... Nao, carry him. Yes. You can''t say no to a disgruntled Haruka. He climbed up on my shoulders and used a dismantling knife to crack open the belly. He then removes the entrails and drops them into the hole, washing the contents with water he magically produces. Next comes the skin. The bigger the skin, the higher the price, so don''t tear it. No, it''s better to do it again.¡¡When you''re done draining the blood, let it cool and we''ll deal with it when we get home. If we leave it hanging, I''ll have to carry it on my shoulders again. That''s fine in itself, but it''s definitely hard to work with, and if I mess up, I''ll lose the skin. "That''s true, too. Well then, next. Toya nodded at my words, and traced the page of the book with her finger to confirm the procedure. Let''s see. ...... It also says that the best way to cool it down is to throw it in the river, but that''s impossible. Once it stops bleeding, we can use Haruka''s magic to cool it down. "Yes, yes. After a while, when the blood stops coming out, Haruka cools the entire deer with her magic. Haruka''s magic can be used to freeze the deer, but she doesn''t cool it down that much in case she has to skin it. All that was left to do was to unfold the magic bag underneath and lower it from the branch, and the dismantling process was complete. Saw off the horns from the severed head and put the horns in the magic bag. Throw the head into the hole and cover it with soil. The dismantling procedure is not difficult, but it is a bit tedious. Yeah. The size is a problem. I don''t want Nao to have to carry it on her shoulders every time. Orcs are big enough, but in the case of deer, they need to be drained well in some way or they will taste bad. You need a sturdy tree to hang it from, and if you try methods such as immersing it in a river, you''ll have to move quite a bit. It''s also troublesome that the bag is out of reach of Haruka''s height - or anyone else''s, for that matter - when it''s hanging. You can also throw it into the magic bag right after it dies.¡¡If you take it home and set up a scaffold, you can easily dismantle it, right?¡¡Since time is almost at a standstill, the meat won''t lose its flavor. I''m sure you can, but ...... is it worth it?¡¡The cost of building a shed? You know, we could use Nao and Yuki''s earth magic to build a demolition shed. "It''s not impossible, but ...... It''s not impossible, but I think Yuki and I can make a bathtub. But only if we build a shed. I''m a little concerned about the smell. We can''t leave unnecessary things here like we do in the forest. That''s a problem. If we do it, we''ll have to dig a very deep hole and bury it. Well, let''s think about that after we see how profitable it is. We have to take into account how much we can sell it for and how often it appears. Well, okay. Well then, let''s go straight home. After Haruka and Natsuki cleaned our bodies with their magic, we headed back to town. I''m not sure what to say. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the web site, you can call us at the web site. Now that I had the bind viper and deer meat, I decided to make a reservation at Aella''s restaurant and ask her to teach me how to cook them. Welcome! The person who greeted me with such a voice was a woman of about 20 years old, whom I had never seen before. She was around 20 years old and I had never seen her before. She smiled and said, "We are closed at this time. She smiled at me and said, "We don''t have much time left until closing time, is that okay? "Oh, no. I''m here on business for Aella. ....... My name is Nao. To the manager?¡¡Please wait a moment. I watched the woman go towards the kitchen and looked around the store. As the woman said, the restaurant was not full, probably because it was not long before closing time, but more than half of the seats were occupied. The clientele was mainly women with a calm demeanor, as I had planned. As I was observing the restaurant from my position near the counter, Aella came running up to me from the kitchen with a happy smile on her face. "Nao-san!¡¡It''s been a while! "Well, we met a few days ago, right? But you left as soon as you delivered the meat, didn''t you? I smiled at Aella, who puffed up her cheeks a little and looked unhappy. Thanks to the acquisition of the house, Haruka and her friends are now able to cook, and thanks to the storage room, they are able to store freshly cooked food. As a result, there are few opportunities to eat out, not just at Aella''s restaurant. I''m sorry, but we''re adventurers ourselves. By the way, who''s the lady over there? "Oh, you''ve never met her before, have you? She''s a friend of mine from my training days. She''s a friend of mine from my training days. She''s been busy, so I asked her to come. The woman who greeted me bowed and introduced herself. It''s nice to meet you, I''m Luce. You must be the ''Nao'' that Aella was talking about. I''m Nao. I''m Nao. I''m indebted to Aella. When you were in training, were you also a chef? No, I was a waiter at the restaurant where Aella worked. I moved here because Aella promised me a higher salary than the previous restaurant. Oh, you pulled her out for a pay raise?¡¡Not because we''re friends or anything. Luce-san smiled mischievously at my words. "Nao, friendship doesn''t make your stomach growl, you know. "Oh my God, Luce. You''ve only received almost the same amount. And yet you moved all the way out here. You know, it would be a shame if this store went out of business after we moved in. It seems that Luce is a tsundere. It seems that Luce is a tsundere. She is saying that back to Aella, who is complaining, but she is probably hiding her embarrassment. Luce looks older than Aella, but in reality, Aella is older than Luce, right? Either way, I''m sure they''re very close. But Aella, can you leave Nao alone? "Oh, Nao, I''m sorry. So, what happened today? Luce pointed out, and I hurriedly turned to Aella and told her what I wanted to do today. I was wondering if I could get a reservation. I got some new meat, and I was wondering if you could cook with it and teach me how to cook it. "New meat? Yeah. I''ve been up in the north woods lately. I hunted a bind viper and a deer. ...... I see. I understand!¡¡But I''m a little booked up, so I''ll be available today or at ....... "The next available appointment is in five days. Luce immediately followed up on Aella''s thoughtfulness. Looking at her, I could sense that she was more than just a simple waiter. I hope that with her, there is no danger of being cheated again ....... If it weren''t for the incomprehensible skills of her classmates, I''d feel a lot more at ease. Can you do that today? Yes. I''ll be waiting for you. Yeah, I''ll see you later. I left the restaurant with Aella-san, who seemed to be looking forward to cooking with the new meat. 128-116 Eat deer and snake (2) About an hour later, I met up with Haruka and the others and visited Aella''s store again. After introducing Luce to Haruka and the others, who were meeting for the first time, I asked them to start cooking the meat. Let''s start with the deer. The taste of deer changes depending on how it is processed. ...... Excuse me for a moment. ...... Aera cut a thin slice of meat from the venison block, smelled it, sprinkled salt and pepper on it, lightly grilled it, and then snapped it. "...... Yeah. It''s very well processed. There''s almost no odor, and it takes very little time to cook. Then let''s make several kinds. Aella is quickly carving the venison into pieces. Helping her were Haruka, Yuki, and Natsuki. I, Toya, and Luce are also observers. "By the way, Luce-san, what do you cook? Luce-san smiles at my question. I''m an eater. I''m an eater. I had Aella. ...... I can''t help it when I''m around people who are good at cooking. Even if you make it yourself, it''s not the same. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to understand what I''m saying. You''re right!¡¡I''ve followed the procedure and I''m sure I''m using the same thing. ...... It''s the little differences that count, isn''t it? I''m sure you''re right. ...... Oh, and by the way, am I allowed to join you?¡¡It''s not like I''m going to help you cook. Of course. I''m a friend of Aella''s, and luckily we have plenty of meat. Thank you very much. After Aella''s introduction, Luce was about to leave, but we stopped him. We had more meat than we could possibly eat, but we also knew that Aella would be taking care of us in the future, and that it would be good to be friends with Luce. Well, the main reason is that I just want to get to know her honestly. We don''t have many acquaintances in this world. Brown-eye meat should not be overcooked, or it should be slow-cooked to make it tender. If you cook it halfway, it will be tough. Dried meat can also be tasty if you cook it right, but it requires a bit of finesse. "Is this the deer from Brown Acre ......? Yes. That''s what I think it is around here, isn''t it? I explained the characteristics of the deer we had seen to Aella, who nodded her head. She nodded and said, "It''s a brown stag. Generally speaking, the younger the animal, the better the meat. The one that Nao and his team killed was quite large, but considering its age, the meat tasted amazing.¡¡It usually smells worse than this. They must have been very good at it. The way we bled it out and cooled it would be hard for a normal hunter to replicate, and the magic bag kept it fresh. In that respect, I guess you could say we were good at it. I''ll make one stewed dish and two grilled dishes for now. I''m sure Haruka and the others will be able to apply what they''ve learned. Aella-san started with the stew first, and while it was simmering, she quickly prepared two grilled dishes. She was a pro at what she did. She is still quicker and more brilliant than Haruka and the others who seem to be better than us. Come on, try it. We all tucked into the venison dishes on the table. Despite the fact that it was said to be prone to hardening, the dish was not at all like that, and there was no odor. It tasted different from task boar and oak dishes. This is something else. It''s delicious. I thought venison would be more difficult to eat. "I''m a chef too. I''m a chef, so I try to make it taste good. Aera-san smiled happily at my comment. Aella-san smiled happily at my comments. She was as skillful as ever, but I couldn''t tell her how her cooking methods differed from Task Boar''s. But Haruka and the others are nodding their heads and listening to Aella''s advice, so I''m sure they''ll do a good job. I''m sure they will. The stew will take a while to cook, so let''s wait a while. ...... Next, let''s go to the Bind Viper. "The Bind Viper looks a little strange, doesn''t it? The meat of the Bind Viper, taken out of the magic bag, was cut into pieces about 50 centimeters wide. Looking at it, Haruka has an indescribable expression on her face. The skin was removed before cutting it into pieces, so you might not recognize it as a snake unless you were told, but to those of us who knew it was a snake, it was a part of a snake. It''s not a major ingredient. It''s not a major ingredient. But the soup made from the bones is very delicious. "From the bones? Yes. It''s very simple. Open the Bind Viper, put the removed bones in a pot, and boil it continuously while removing the lye. At this time, you can add some herbs if you like. When the bones are soft enough to break down, strain the broth and season with salt to make a delicious soup. I threw away the bones and organs of the first one I killed when I dismantled it, but after that I just cut it into pieces. This time it worked. I didn''t think the bones had any value. So books are not always reliable. The process is simple but time-consuming, so few people make it at home. It doesn''t make much difference whether you make a large amount or a small amount, so it''s basically something you eat at a restaurant. Oh, in that case, can you process all the bones of the Bind Viper I have at once? Yes, of course. --Luce, give me a hand. Yes, yes. After a while, the two of them came back with a skeleton that was big enough to hold Aella. I''ll be back. ...... Please throw the middle part of the bone into this. All right. The four of us split up, and the bind Viper was quickly disposed of. Aera set the skull on the stove, filled it with water, and lit it. She also took out some herbs from the refrigerator and put them inside. This will take about three to five hours while removing the lye. Wow, that''s a lot of work. Is that soup really expensive? It''s more expensive than other soups. Bind Viper bones are not so easy to find. We also need firewood to cook it for a long time in a normal restaurant. Yuki must have meant that it was expensive because it took a lot of time and effort, but Aella''s reply was that the ingredients were expensive. Come to think of it, labor costs are relatively low in this world. This may be advantageous for us as wholesalers of materials, but it also has the disadvantage that the commission for an adventurer is not very high. Therefore, it is more profitable to collect and sell meat than to accept requests. Of course, this is only possible if we are able to carry a large amount of goods and meat. Now, finally, the meat of the Bind Viper. It''s a bit tough ...... and springy, so it''s not to everyone''s taste, but it''s quite good when sliced thin and grilled. It''s a bit tough and elastic.¡¡There''s not much fat, though. "Wow!¡¡Seseri! I like parsnips very much. I was a little reluctant to try it because it was a snake, but I might as well try it. "Well, it''s not the kind of meat you can eat a lot of, because it''s very elastic. If we were to consume it ourselves, it would be more difficult to dispose of than the bones, in a way. Even so, Aella cooked the meat quickly, slicing it thinly and frying it with salt, and presented it to us. We picked it up one by one and put it in our mouths. The texture was chewy and elastic. The texture is similar to that of bird parsley, but as Ms. Aera said, it is a little different from bird parsley in that it has less fat and is a little lighter. But still, it''s not as bad as I thought, because the flavor comes out when you chew it. If I had to pick a weakness, it would be its elasticity. Even though it is sliced thinly, it takes a long time to eat, and your jaw gets tired. You certainly can''t eat a lot of this, can you? "Yes. I''d like to have a small amount. It doesn''t taste bad. Everyone agreed that it was best to eat only a small amount, but Toya was the only one who disagreed. I like the texture. I like the texture. "What?¡¡I think it would be tough even for a beastman. Would you like to try cooking it on ......? Yeah. Please. Aella, who rolled her eyes at Toya''s opinion, cut the meat into steak-sized pieces and started to grill it. The only thing that smells good is the smell. ...... Is that thick enough to eat? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''ll take it!¡¡It''s ...... crunchy, but it''s ...... good. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I don''t think I can do it. ...... I guess we should sell most of the Bind Vipers. How about you, Aella? "We don''t have that many ...... since the variety of dishes is limited compared to Orcs. I''d appreciate the bones, though. No, no, no. Don''t worry about it. I can sell them to the guild. I waved my hand at Aella, who looked a little annoyed. The guild will buy it without any problem, so there is no need to sell it to Aella. "Speaking of which, what was the purchase price of the Bind Viper? "It was about the same per weight as an Orc. Instead, the meat per animal is much less than that of orcs. The magic stones cost a little more than the orcs, and the hides a lot more. In total, they were bought for about 20% less than the orcs. So, as far as we are concerned, orcs are more efficient than us. If you are an ordinary adventurer who has a hard time taking things home, you might be better off using bind vipers, which can be earned with less bulky skins and magic stones. Isn''t it something you would actively hunt for? No, it''s not. It''s not that I''m going to avoid it when I encounter it, but I don''t think I need to go out of my way to find it." Aera smiled at our opinion as she came back from the kitchen. We''re not going to avoid it, but we don''t have to hunt for it.¡¡Maybe you''ll change your opinion? "Hmm?¡¡What do you have in mind, Aella? "Well, that''s for later. I''ve made some venison stew. We''ll also have some Bind Viper meat. The stewed venison presented to me looked like beef stew, and the venison in it was so tender that it fell apart with a spoon. The venison in the stew was so tender that it fell apart with a spoon. The flavor was very good, similar to a rich beef stew. It goes well with the bread served with it, but you may want to serve it over rice as if it were hayashi rice. If you take your time, it will become as soft as this. It takes a lot of work at home, though. I don''t cook, but if you cook it for more than an hour, it must be troublesome. And if you are cooking with wood, the cost of fuel is not unreasonable. If you have a pressure cooker, you may be able to shorten the cooking time, but unfortunately I have never seen one. Even if I were to have one made, it would be difficult to find the gaskets and safety devices. The Bind Viper is fried in a sauce with herbs. ...... Yeah, I like it better when it''s thin. The nice crunchy texture is a little similar to the famous stir-fry using small intestines of beef in Japan. It is cut into small pieces so that it is easy to eat despite its elasticity. It is also a dish that makes you crave for rice. The last dish was a soup made from the bones of the bind viper. Since we ate a lot of meat today, I added some lightly chopped greens. What came out was a cloudy white soup. The soup came out white and cloudy, with green vegetables scattered on top to accentuate the flavor, but that was the only ingredient. It was certainly just right for my stomach after eating a lot of meat. I scooped up the soup with a spoon and took a sip. It''s ...... good. The taste is gentle, but tasty and deep, with no smell at all. There is a slight herbaceousness in the nose and a light saltiness. The taste is not complex or distinctive, but it''s still addictive. ....... This is more than I expected. Are you sure it''s just the bones of a Bind Viper? Just herbs and salt. I just sprinkled the greens afterwards. The cooking method is so simple that I could do it myself if I had the time. The cooking method is so simple that even I could make it if I only took the time. ....... It''s definitely worth hunting down a Bind Viper for. "Right?¡¡Well, if you remove the bones, the purchase price goes down a bit. Aera-san smiles at that. The Bind Viper we sold to the guild this time was meat with the bones removed, so it seems we could have sold it for a little more if the bones had been removed. Even so, Orcs seem to make more money. ...... This soup is a shame, but I don''t want to lose money. I guess it''s better to hunt them when you encounter them. If you''re hunting for soup, your income will decrease. I don''t want to force you, but if you bring your bones to us, we''ll buy them at a higher price than the guild.¡¡It''s hard for Halka and the others to spend hours just to make soup, isn''t it? That''s true. I don''t mind cooking, but I''m tired when I get home and after training. ...... It''s a little slow, isn''t it, this soup? I want to eat this soup too, but I can''t ask Haruka and the others to do it. And the meat. That steak was delicious. That''s only Toya. Maybe the others can''t bite off that steak. But no one seems to be opposed to selling the bones of the Bind Viper to Aella. It''s good, right?¡¡We''ll be able to drink this soup without changing our income. "Yes, sir. Besides, you don''t have to pay a lot for it. You can keep the soup for us. Yes, of course. Nao, I hope you will come and eat with us! After that day, every time we hunted a Bind Viper, we brought it to Aella''s store and were treated to soup. 129-117 Cut a huge tree (1) The next day, we gradually expanded our search deeper into the forest. The Bind Viper had been a bit of a challenge at first, but after Natsuki got Tommy to make him a custom-made cleaver, it was a piece of cake. We were surprised to see that Natsuki was able to cut off the head of the Bind Viper that was growing so fast. To our surprise, Natsuki simply said, "I''m better with a naginata than a small sword. In fact, Yuki and I could have used our magic to kill it, but Natsuki seemed a little frustrated that she didn''t have any effective means of attack. As for the scarp-apes, they weren''t much of a problem once you got used to them. Each one is weak, so if you cover each other and kill them in turn, there is little danger. The only one that was a bit of a nuisance was the one that occasionally tried to throw rocks at us, but if the members who could attack from a distance were on the lookout for it, it was easy to destroy it first. It''s not an enemy I''d like to encounter too often, though, as it''s still a pain to clean up and not much money to be made. The deer that I had been wondering what to do with - the brown auk - I had hunted quite a few of them, since each one was almost as profitable as an orc, and they were relatively abundant near the mountains. Dismantling them was a hassle, but if I had prepared a pulley and a stepladder in advance, I could dismantle them in the forest without much trouble. Thanks to these efforts, we continued to earn as much as before, despite the fact that we tend to earn less in the winter. To be honest, we were very grateful for this, since our savings had been greatly reduced by the purchase of the house. After a week of going deeper into the forest, we finally reached the area where the famous tree was growing. If we had pushed ourselves a little, we could have gotten there faster, but our goal was to cut down the tree here. It was not the end of the road. Of course, the sound of the axe would be loud, and if there were many demons in the area, it would attract them. That''s why I''ve been searching a bit cautiously, like I''m trying to get rid of some demons. "Well, any tree around here can be sold for a good price, right? Simon said he wanted walnuts, but ...... he also said thicker ones were better, right? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Hmm, so that''s a walnut. It''s hard to tell just by looking at it unless there are fruits growing on it. If you use the help function, you can tell. But many of the trees are pretty big, aren''t they?¡¡It''s not uncommon to find trees about 50 centimeters tall, and even over a meter. Toya is referring to the diameter of the trunk. Some of the trees are so big that I couldn''t even reach half of them even if I hugged them, so I guess you could say there are a lot of huge trees. In Japan, where forestry has been flourishing, there are not many places where trees of this size grow. In some places, such as sacred forests and sacred mountains, there are still some huge trees, but in other places, they have been turned into lumber. It''s a shame to cut down such a big tree, isn''t it? "I agree. I wonder how many years it took for it to grow to this size? Many times longer than our lives, I guess. We look up at the huge tree and think about the passage of time. But it was Toya who crushed our sentimentality. But you''re going to cut it down, right? "...... Well, yeah, but... You''ve come this far, and there''s no option but to leave without cutting. There is no option but ...... to leave without cutting. You''re right, Toya is right. Let''s at least cut at intervals so as not to cut too much. That''s right. If we thin out the larger trees, it will give room for the smaller ones to grow. It''s like thinning. Fortunately, there is no one else coming to cut the trees but us, so we don''t have to worry about depletion of resources. But there used to be logging in this area, right?¡¡I don''t see any traces of it, do you? Come to think of it, I don''t remember seeing any stumps. I heard that there was a lot of logging going on, but I didn''t see anything when I was walking around. I don''t think they were digging up the stumps every time they cut down the trees. It was Toya who answered my question. It was there, you know.¡¡It''s pretty decayed, but there''s not much left. I''m pretty sure there''s another ...... around there. Toya pushed through the underbrush and showed him the remains of a stump. It was less than a meter in diameter, but still quite large. There was little left of the stump above the ground, and the part that was buried in the ground was also quite decayed, and would probably be assimilated into the ground in a little while. There is grass growing from the stump, which I would not have noticed if you had not told me. "How did you notice that, Toya?¡¡I thought stumps were supposed to stay up for a long time. ...... No, I don''t know what time the stump is. I don''t know about you, but I''m pretty sure it''s been more than 10 years since any trees were cut out of this forest. Is this normal? I don''t know, but I''m pretty sure it''s been more than ten years since the trees were cut down from this forest. "There are some strange things here and there, in this world. You know, like inspirational sauce. ...... It''s definitely a degradation threat. Honestly, I''m surprised it''s not bioterrorism. I mean, if you think about it, how fast does a tree stump decompose, that''s no big deal? Well. Let''s cut the tree. Toya, do you know how to cut a tree? Simple enough. First you cut a catch on the trunk in the direction you want to fall. Then you cut from the other side, a little above the catch. Finally, drive a wedge into the tree to fell it. Before knocking it down, shout, ''It''s going to fall! Something like that. "Yes, it''s more important than you think, the shouting. A tree this size can kill you if you get trapped under it. It sure looks heavy as hell. If you think of a sumo wrestler doing a body press from dozens of meters above the ground, you can understand the threat. ...... No, it''s worse than that because it''s so hard. Broken bones at best, death at worst. I don''t want to test its strength, no matter how much our physical abilities have improved. But it''s difficult for an amateur to knock it down in the right direction, so I think it''s better to pull it with a rope. ...... It''s dangerous for the person pulling it. You can use a pulley for that.¡¡We have a long rope. The pulley I bought to dismantle the deer and the long rope I bought to climb the dingle tree . You don''t need to be in the direction of the fall to pull the rope. I left it at the inn after the dindle collecting season was over, but since I got the magic bag, I have been carrying it with me. The rope seems to be important in case of an accident. You might say that I should have carried it before, but a strong and long rope is very heavy. More specifically, tens of kilos or more. I don''t know what it''s made of, but it''s some kind of natural fiber. There are probably synthetic fibers that are a little lighter and stronger, but as long as there are none, there''s nothing we can do. That''s a good idea. It''s unlikely that a fallen tree will accidentally hit the pulley. ...... That''s a flag, isn''t it?¡¡Haruka. This is a dynamic pulley, so it cost a pretty good deal. It''s a little more complicated than that, but if a fallen tree hits it and breaks it, your wallet will suffer. We can''t be sure that it won''t hit the tree, since it will be placed in the direction of the fall. However, it is better for the pulley to break than for it to hit us. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. You''re right. --But isn''t the biggest problem the thickness of the tree?¡¡Is this thick enough for an axe? The axe we bought had a blade length of about 20 centimeters. On the other hand, the tree we''re trying to cut is a huge tree with a diameter of over a meter. Rather than chopping, it was more like grinding. Considering the space for the axe, it would have to be cut into a very large wedge shape, which would be quite difficult. We all looked at the axe that Toya had taken out and compared it to the tree, and twisted our heads. How do you cut a tree of this size in the modern world? The one I saw before was using a huge chainsaw that was about my height. Yuki''s question reminded me of a scene I had seen in the past where a huge tree was being cut down. At that time, I was using a crane as well, so I can''t refer to it at all. "Chainsaw ....... Can''t Haruka make one? You mean with a magic tool?¡¡I''m not saying it''s impossible with research, but I''m not too keen on the idea. So it''s a giant, joke of a saw. The one with the weirdly large blade. You mean the big saw?¡¡It''s got big jagged edges, but the blade is only on the tip, right? I heard that the large jagged edge is for easy discharge of sawdust. In the first place, it''s a saw for lumbering, not for felling. If it''s a saw, it''s a double-pull saw, right?¡¡Two men pulling from both sides. I didn''t buy that, did I? No, you didn''t. I thought I could get by with an axe. ...... When I actually arrived, I found that there were more giant trees than I had imagined. If it''s just a few trees, but if you have to chop down a lot of huge trees of this size, you''ll honestly feel faint with your current axe. "Hmm, Haruka, can''t you use magic like a water cutter to cut it? I thought I told you before that it was impossible. I thought I told you before that it was impossible." Haruka gave a curious look at Toya''s question. Water cutters are a magic that was once discussed about a month ago and concluded to be impossible. That''s what it is, isn''t it?¡¡You can only cut nearby objects because the high pressure of the water hits the air and diffuses. "Yes. That''s why when you cut a tree, it''s better if you can cut an inch or two around the trunk.¡¡It''s not really suitable for cutting large trees. "Yeah, so I figured it out. So I thought, if I make a thin pipe with magic power and pass it through it, it will reach farther without spreading. Oh, my!¡¡Toya, you''re a genius!¡¡--What do you mean?¡¡I don''t know how hard it would be to make a thin pipe that can withstand such high pressure with magic power. ....... It might be hard to understand since you don''t use magic, but it''s quite difficult to use magic in this world, you know? I''m not sure what to make of that. And I agree with her. The customization of magic is quite difficult and requires a lot of practice, especially if you want to use it quickly. That''s why I like to use the Fire Arrow. However, it seems that Toya did not understand the feelings of these wizards. It''s not like Haruka to give up without even trying!¡¡You can do it!¡¡I''m sure Haruka can do it! "...... Your irresponsible expectations are heavy. I''m not sure what to do with it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. "What?¡¡Me? When Haruka suddenly spoke up, Yuki pointed at her and rolled her eyes. How high are you now? I''ve got to level 2, but I don''t use ...... much. I''m not sure what to make of that. Fire magic is sufficiently powerful, and fortunately, there are no fire-resistant demons, so there is no reason to use other magic, and there are few opportunities to use it. My space-time magic is also rarely used in battle these days, and since I''ve made a magic bag, I don''t have a chance to use it except during training. Rather, magic in general is very active in my daily life. I can bathe easily, stay clean, not have to worry about the cold, and not get wet in the rain, all thanks to magic. It''s not flashy, but it plays a very important role. The water jet is a level 1 spell, isn''t it?¡¡Why don''t you just try it? "Water jet" is not as good as a high pressure washer as it is. ....... Don''t expect too much, okay?¡¡I''ll try to make the pressure as high as I can. I''ll try to get the pressure as high as I can," Yuki said, bringing her index finger close to the tree trunk. "Mmmm ...... ''Water Jet''! A thin stream of water shoots out from Yuki''s fingertip and gouges the tree trunk. Yuki continued to shift her fingers little by little, but ....... Yuki continued to shift his fingers little by little, but ...... would come in handy for peeling the bark off the tree, wouldn''t it? If you look closely, you can see that only the bark has been gouged. The trunk itself is unscathed. I heard that sometimes a high-pressure washer is used to remove the bark from wood. The bark is indeed clean. And the trunk is still clean. Yuki, can''t you try a little harder?¡¡Keep the amount of water the same, but squeeze it thinner. I can''t, I can''t!¡¡I can''t do it, I''m at my limit!¡¡It''s over! The water stops flowing out of his fingers, and Yuki exhales, "F~~~. The width of the shaved bark was about forty centimeters along the circumference of the trunk. This is not very efficient in terms of magic power ......, but the bark can easily be cut with a saw, so it is meaningless. If you can at least cut the trunk, it''s worth a little more. ...... If you think so, maybe you should try it too.¡¡You can use it even if you don''t have any qualities, because you''re an elf! I''ve never practiced water magic. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if there is anything you can do to help. On the other hand, she had never used water magic before. However, Haruka has dabbled in three systems of magic and alchemy, and Yuki has dabbled in four systems of magic and alchemy plus pharmacy. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''ll do my best to be positive. "I look forward to your diligent efforts! In response to my vague answer, Yuki pointed at me and said sternly. Yes, I''ll do my best. As long as time permits. 130-118 Cut a huge tree (2) But what to do at once? Fire burns, earth strikes, and wind is ...... I believe there is an Air Cutter, right, Haruka? I''ve been thinking about what I can use with magic and all I can think of is that kind of magic. I''m not sure what to make of it. But that''s a level 5 magic. I''m only level 3 in wind magic. "Oh, so you can''t use it? "No, I can use it. But just in case. As for wind magic attack spells, there is "Concussion" that can be used at level 3, but to be honest, the power of this spell is not very high when used normally. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. This is why Haruka has been practicing the Air Cutter, which seems to be more powerful. I''m not sure what to make of it. As far as the magic in the grimoire is concerned. I think they all have their advantages if you can customize them. Fire magic is very useful, but it has no mass in its attack. In contrast, the earth magic "Stone Missile" has mass. The latter may be more effective in some situations if the opponent is wearing heavy armor. Even the "Water Jet", which simply sprays water, can turn into a dangerous magic if the water it sprays can be made into boiling water. Although it is difficult to change them. "Can you cut this tree with the Air Cutter? I''m trying to make it more powerful so it can at least outperform Nao''s Fire Arrow. ...... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to make of it. Let''s use it for now. It''s dangerous, so stay away from me. ...... "Sickle Wind Air Cutter"! As soon as Haruka said this, a line appeared on the tree trunk. As soon as Haruka said that, a line appeared on the tree trunk, and as I got closer, I saw that there was indeed a cut in the bark. I couldn''t see anything, but the spell seemed to have worked. "Oh no, this magic. I can''t see anything. ....... It''s fast, and if the enemy uses it, you can''t avoid it. If I could feel the magic, I''d be able to see something. ...... Oh, and what about you? Well, about an inch, huh? The width of the slit is less than a millimeter, so you can''t see it, but when I inserted a leaf from a tree that was growing around, the depth was about that. This is the depth of the slit in the main body, excluding the thickness of the tree bark. It is not very deep, but unlike Yuki''s magic, the cut is solid. "Oh!¡¡That''s amazing!¡¡It''ll cut through in a hundred uses! "No, the hardness of the core is different from that of the periphery. Besides, you can''t use it a hundred times, no matter what. That''s true. Judging from its power, it should consume about the same amount of magic power as my more powerful Fire Arrow. You can only use it a dozen times at a time, at best. You''ll have to combine them. Why don''t we use the saw and the axe to cut the perimeter first, and use Haruka''s magic to cut the parts that the axe and saw can''t reach?¡¡If it doesn''t work, we''ll have to come up with another plan. "Right. If we take our time, we''ll lose the day. Let''s start with the ...... roping. Nao, please. Okay. I take the rope out of my bag, climb up the tree, and tie it a little higher than the middle. I tie the rope to the pulley and place it in the direction where there is room for the tree to fall. Then, with a light tug, tie the end of the rope to another tree to keep it under tension. Now let''s cut the catch. Good luck, Toya. Sure I will!¡¡All right!¡¡Come on! The sound of an axe slamming into a tree echoed through the forest. Toya hums a song that is probably named after the most famous lumberjack in Japan, and chops away at the trees in rhythm. Perhaps because of his physical prowess, it was nice to see the wood being chopped away. But the sound it makes is also loud. Nao, any sign of the demon? No response so far. Okay. Keep your eyes open, okay? Of course. With so much noise, you''d think that demons would immediately gather, but that wasn''t the case. You can see the presence of demons in the wide range of the search area, but there is not much change in their movements, on the contrary, the reaction of what seems to be a deer is moving away from here. The brown stag, which I''ve already hunted several times, is very cautious for such a huge body, and it runs away when I approach it from the front. In contrast to task boars and vipu bears, which are also belligerent animals. ...... Huh, who wants to take over now? Toya wielded the axe for about an hour. After an hour of hard work, Toya put the axe on the ground and leaned on its handle, took a breath and said something like that. Thanks to his efforts, about 20 centimeters of the trunk had been gouged all the way around, and about a third of the trunk had already been cut off at the base. However, the remaining part of the tree is more than 50 centimeters in diameter, so it''s not going to get any worse. Even if you want to switch, there is no one who looks as good with an axe as Toya. "Nao, you''ve got muscle strength, too. You can at least swing an axe. I can do it, but if I push too hard, it will consume my magic power. My [Strengthening] skill is at level 2. But since this is a skill that uses magic to increase your physical abilities, the amount of magic you use will consume your magic power and affect the magic you can use. Since Toya doesn''t use magic, her self-healing and consumption are almost balanced, so she doesn''t have much of a problem, but this is not the case for other wizards. The one with the least impact is probably Haruka, who has the [Strengthen Magic] skill, but on the other hand, Haruka has the lowest base strength. If you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask for help. I''m sure it''s reasonable.¡¡It''s certainly appropriate. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. But then Yuki jokingly shouted an accusation at her. I''m a feminist. I''m a feminist, you know. I''m a feminist, in the proper sense of the word. If you''re talking about equal rights for men and women, you should be able to do what you''re good at regardless of gender. Unfortunately, the only person I can beat in pure muscle strength is Haruka. "But we''re the ones who cook, right? "Ugh. If you want me to do it, I will. ...... I''m not sure what to do with it. You don''t have to do it. I don''t want to eat bad food. I don''t want to eat bad food. In fact, it''s not too hard thanks to the pantry. That''s why you can make leftovers. What makes it different from a regular refrigerator is that it keeps the food fresh. By the way, I leave the cleaning and laundry to Haruka and Natsuki. No, ......, that''s not an option, is it? If you want to clean, of course I''ll help. But the truth is, cleaning and laundry can be done with a single shot of Purify. If we can''t use it, there''s nothing for us to do. Of course, if you have any complaints, you can let me know. ...... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. It''s not a problem for now.¡¡It''s not that I''m a drunk, I''m serious about my training and my work. You know? "Yes. In fact, I think we''re getting along pretty well as a community. That''s true. We don''t have any trouble, do we? I''m not sure if it''s because we don''t have any room to complain, but we haven''t had any problems, even though we''ve been living separately. Although Haruka was close enough to the others that they could freely come and go from each other''s houses, the other three must have had very different lifestyles and living standards. In spite of this, we never had any quarrels. This is not to say that there have been no conflicts of opinion, but each of us has been able to compromise a little and keep things in line. I''ve heard that there''s a lot of trouble in roommates and shared houses, and considering that, we''re really lucky to have this group. I''ll try my best then. I''ll try my best, though I''m not as good as you, Toya. Can I borrow your axe? "Oh, wait a minute. I''ll use the Air Cutter to cut it down first. I''ll use the Air Cutter first. After stopping Natsuki, Haruka inserted her finger into the socket and released the "Air Cutter" from there. It''s not as powerful as cutting with an axe, but every time Haruka uses the spell, you can hear the sound of a "swoosh," and the cuts are indeed getting deeper little by little. Haruka checks the depth of such a cut every time she uses a spell, and sometimes nods her head. What are you doing with that? "I''m trying to figure out how to use magic most efficiently. I''m trying to figure out the most efficient way to use magic. Obviously, for the same amount of magic power, the narrower the width, the more powerful it is. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. ...... Is that it?¡¡You should be careful, because you''re about to fall. "Oh, really? Yeah. The width of the gap is increasing and decreasing slightly. It could just be the wind shaking it, but we don''t want it to suddenly fall over, so let''s keep the rope tight. "Right. We''ve never cut a tree before, have we? I pulled the rope connected to the pulley again and tied it back. When I look up at the tree, I can see that the tip of the tree is slightly bent in the direction of the rope, but I''m not sure if I can control this huge tree with this rope. I''m next, aren''t I? I''m next, aren''t I?¡¡I''ll cut it from here. Thanks to Haruka''s hard work, the depth of the cut on the receiving end had reached almost the center of the tree. Natsuki slammed the axe into the opposite side of the tree. His hips were so impressive that it was hard to believe it was his first time, but it didn''t quite match his appearance. Tohya was perfect. It might be even better if you brought ...... Tommy or something. He''s a dwarf. I''m not sure if Yuki felt the same way, but he opened his mouth with a subtle expression on his face. With Natsuki''s appearance, I''d like to see her use a cleaver. Yuki, I agree with you, but in reality, it''s impossible. The naginata that Tommy made is pretty good at cutting, but it''s still a realistic weapon. "Huh. ....... Yuki, if you say so, you can use your alchemy to create a fantasy weapon for me, okay? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure if you can do that, Haruka. I''m not sure if I can do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. ...... Well, fantasy weapons are more the domain of an alchemist than a blacksmith. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. "Oh, that''s right. So you''re talking about orichalcon and other fantasy metals as well? At least I don''t see how to make it in my alchemy encyclopedia. Besides, what can be done with the performance of metals?¡¡Cutting down a giant tree with a cleaver? "It''s a fantasy metal, you know? In a way, the mysterious weapon Yuki mentioned is romantic, but I''m not sure if it''s possible in this world. This world is quite realistic. You might be able to make a cleaver that won''t break even if you smash it, but whether it can cut is another matter. It would have to be a fantasy phenomenon. "If you''re only thinking about chopping wood, it''s more realistic to make the axe huge and increase its mass. Although it might make it impossible for anyone but me to use it. It''s all physics. It''s true that the current axe seems a bit small when I see how Toya handles it. The area that can be cut at once is also too small, and a larger axe would be more efficient. But then, increasing the speed would be more powerful than increasing the mass, right? Oh, you mean that? Yes. Because energy is proportional to the square of mass and velocity. Unless Toya can handle a heavier axe without changing his swinging speed. So you''ll hold off on the heavy axe? Oh, no. I think an axe with a wider blade and a longer handle would be more efficient. You can also use centrifugal force. The axe I''m using now is an ordinary axe that you can find at home improvement stores. The axe you''re using now is an ordinary axe you can find at a home improvement store. If you can handle it, as Natsuki says, a huge axe like Halbert''s might be better. By the way, Natsuki, do you want to switch? "Oh, no, I stopped because it looked like it was about to get dangerous. It might be better to use the scissors. Oh, you think so? Yes. Yes, it''s making a little noise. When Natsuki told us this, we all listened carefully and found that every time the wind blew, there was a slight sound coming from the trees. I see. I see. There''s still a lot left, but let''s try to get it in. I''ll see what I can do.¡¡Nao will drive in the kusabi, and I''ll keep an eye on things. Okay. After making sure that Toya and the others had the rope in their hands, they hammered several crowns into the slit. Every time I hit it with a thud, the wedge would sink in. ....... How''s it coming, Haruka? "How''s it coming, Haruka?" "Is it leaning a little ......? I''m about to run out of room to hammer. ...... It''s a felling wedge, but it''s a bit small for a tree of this size. The head is already buried in the slit. We''ll just have to use the ...... "Air Cutter". It''s hard to take out the wedge now. Haruka inserted her finger through the crack in the wedge and fired the "Air Cutter" at the center of the tree. This time, I check the surroundings. And just as Haruka released the "Air Cutter" for the second time, it all happened at once. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. ...... You''ve got plenty of time, dude. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Crack, crack, crunch, thud. Fortunately for us, the tree had fallen right where we wanted it to and was lying on the ground with the sound of its branches snapping and the low rumble of the earth. 131-119 Cut a huge tree (3) I''m not sure what to make of it, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It''s true. And it''s not like this tree is particularly big. ...... We chose this tree because it is a walnut tree, but there are many trees around that are thicker than this one. The dindle tree that had brought us blessings in the beginning was especially huge, but it''s hard to say, because even a tree that grows normally around here has the potential to become a ''giant tree of the region'' in Japan. So, what''s next, branching? "Well, yes. If there are branches, they won''t fit in the magic bag, so we''ll have to cut them off. Toya holds up the axe, and Yuki also picks up the saw. Because of the size of the tree, a single branch could be as thick as a tree trunk. If we take our time, we will lose the day. But our thoughts were not on the matter, and my search for the enemy received a response. Huh, ......, looks like we have a visitor. Was that too much noise? If it''s just the sound, I''m sure the sound of me cutting it off was loud enough. ...... I wonder why? What?¡¡By chance?¡¡What''s the enemy? This reaction is a sculpted ape. I can feel the hassle and the mass of reactions coming together. That''s the trouble with ...... post-processing, isn''t it? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to leave it here, considering that I''ll be logging here in the future, or if I''ll have to collect it and bury it on the way back. Perhaps because of the large number of sculpted apes that attack at once, I once left a corpse there after I killed it and returned home, only to find that it was still there when I went back later. Fortunately, the temperature was not too high, so the corpse was not decomposed, but I had to deal with it. Since then, I''ve been burying scarp-apes after defeating them. Digging holes has become much easier thanks to earth magic. Leftovers from dismantling orcs and a few goblins will disappear in a day or two even if left unattended, but the number of scarp-apes seems to exceed the processing capacity of the forest. Let''s make this quick. Fortunately, Nao has plenty of magic power, right? "Yeah. I''ll give you a big hand. As the sculpted ape came into view, we all took up our weapons. We were all armed. The swarm of Scarp Ape was easily destroyed in a short time, and all of them were stored in my magic bag. Each one of them is weak, so once you get used to them, you won''t have much trouble killing 20 or 30 of them. The problem is that you can only sell magic stones, so you can''t make much money. "This means I have to drop branches from the ones I cut, right? While I was walking around collecting the corpse of the scarp-ape, the work was still going on, but the branches themselves were large and needed to be cut down further, so it was not a smooth process. We had one axe and one saw in our hands. Haruka and Yuki had small machete-like knives, but they could only cut off a few centimeters of the branch. They are a little short on hands, or tools. "Why don''t we just leave the branch and go back to ......? Yuki suggested, a little disgusted, but Haruka shook her head and denied the suggestion. It''s a waste of money. The branch is thick enough to be used as wood. "That''s true. Since we cut them down, we should use them as efficiently as possible. Hmm, I wonder if the thin branches can be used for firewood and ...... smoking?¡¡It''s walnuts. I''m not sure what to make of it. Smoking ...... is good. It''s so elegant. It''s a good idea to have a smokehouse in the garden.¡¡In this world, people won''t complain if you burn it in the garden. Oh, in Japan, ....... Yeah, in Japan, you can''t even have a bonfire, it''s a bit cramped. Smoked fish is delicious!¡¡I''ve only eaten commercially smoked food. I''ve only ever eaten smoked salmon, smoked cheese, and the like, but I like the flavor of smoked food more than I thought I would. In Japan, we would have to buy ingredients from supermarkets and it would cost a lot of money, but nowadays, we can get a lot of meat and fish if we want to, and we can collect chips like this. Above all, as a way of using one''s leisure time, smoking is not bad in that it is both a hobby and a practical use of one''s time. Especially in this world where entertainment is scarce. I think I''d better buy another axe or two when I come back next time, though, and leave the smoking aside for now. In the meantime, cut it down to fit in the biggest magic bag you can find. I''ll collect them. All right. It''s too big for firewood, but there''s no time. I spread out the magic bag I made to carry the oak on the ground, and collected the branches that were cut into large pieces and threw them into the bag. We all continued to work like this for less than two hours. Finally, all the branches were cut off and the huge tree was transformed into a piece of wood. "Well, do you want to put the whole thing?¡¡Into a magic bag? Toya''s axe had chopped off the thin end, but it was still over twenty meters long. Considering its volume, it would probably weigh more than ten tons. It will fit, right? "It should, right?¡¡What about the weight, ......? Even if we reduce the weight by a factor of 100, it will still weigh more than 100 kilograms. No, I don''t know exactly how much I can reduce it. "You had a lot of orcs in there. Didn''t they weigh that much at their peak? Come to think of it, there was a time when we had over fifty orcs in there. Considering the fact that I didn''t feel much weight even then, the weight reduction is not even a hundredth. The more important question is, can you lift this tree? Certainly. The magic bag in this world does not just touch the object and poof! You don''t have to lift it completely, but you do have to shove it into the bag by yourself. It is because of this limitation that we made a magic bag with a large mouth so that orcs can be pushed into it. I guess I''ll have to lift up one side of the bag and cover it with the bag from the base. The weight of the bag will be affected by the weight of the bag, so as long as we can lift up the base of the bag and cover it with the bag, we can ignore the weight of that part. The weight of the bag is affected by the weight of the tree, so if you can lift up the base of the tree a little bit and cover it with the bag, the weight of that part will be negligible. ...... No, shouldn''t you start from the thin end?¡¡Once it''s in the bag, you don''t have to think about balancing it, right? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''re right. I''m not sure what to do. You can also use a rope to lift it up with a pulley if you need to. If you can''t, we''ll try that. In the meantime, can you help Toya and ...... Natsuki? Okay. Toya and Natsuki move to either side of the top of the tree and put their hands on the trunk, while Haruka and Yuki set up their magic bags on the other side. Let''s go, then. Yes. Toya and Natsuki nodded to each other and lifted the tree trunk, and Haruka and the others put the bag on the tip. Don''t move toward the base of the tree. Haruka and Yuki had no problem simply supporting the bag, but Toya and Natsuki had to walk sideways while changing the position of the bag, which seemed to be a bit difficult. Natsuki, are you okay? "Yes, it''s not as heavy as I thought it would be. It''s a little hard to hold and move around, though. I guess so. There''s got to be a better way. ....... ...... Why don''t you put a log underneath it?¡¡If you lift the back of it and push it, it will go into the bag. Oh, Nao, you''re so smart! That''s a good idea, but will the log roll on this uneven surface? Well, you could use a ...... board under the log, or even a roller. How about using rollers like the ones used to unload trucks? It''s a board with countless rollers lined up, and you put the load on it and rattle it around. It doesn''t affect the condition of the ground. One or two rollers would be fine, but if you could make one with a wider width, you could put it under a fallen tree and push it into the bag at once. I think I can do that. You''ll need a sturdy shaft, bearings, and bearings, though. That''s not a problem, is it?¡¡If it works well, you can use it for a few minutes at a time, right?¡¡I don''t think durability will be much of a problem. Tommy will do fine. --Nao, help me lift the base. Yeah, I got it. While we were discussing how to improve the efficiency of our work, the bag was being packed and most of the tree was disappearing into the magic bag. As I neared the base of the tree, where the weight was heaviest, Toya told me to join him and I lifted the tree and threw it into the bag. "Well. I''m a little tired. I''d really appreciate it if you had some tools like Nao said. "What?¡¡You''re forcing Tommy to do something he doesn''t want to do again? I don''t think it''s an unreasonable request. ...... Well, I''m sure he''s been helpful in many ways. Should I think of something to thank you for? I''m paying you handsomely. But still... I mean, you''ve given us exactly what we want, without having to explain any of the details. Despite the minor differences, Tommy''s knowledge is similar to ours. Therefore, it is easier to communicate with him than with Mr. Gantz. For example, if you ask for something like a Japanese sword, Gantz would have to explain what a Japanese sword is, but Tommy would not have to. By the way, when I went to order the naginata, I heard that Toya had asked you to make a mincer for him. At Natsuki''s words, Toya shook his head with a surprising expression on his face. I''m not asking you to do anything.¡¡I was just saying that it might be useful. I just thought it might be useful. You solved that problem by building a food processor. Yeah. Just the other day, Haruka and Toya had completed the food processor in their spare time. No, to be precise, Haruka did most of the work and Toya just made the blades as Haruka told her to. In addition to making hamburgers, the magic-powered food processor is already being used to chop vegetables and fruits for the inspiration sauce. If you''re going to order a roller, you might as well give something back. "Well, I''ll just make some time and go fishing with Nao. He said he wanted to go fishing. By the way, he said he trained for it. Just for fishing?¡¡But in this world where entertainment is scarce, maybe that''s the way it should be. ...... Yeah, right. That''s good, isn''t it?¡¡It''s not too dangerous for the three of us there. Haruka nodded, and Yuki looked up at the sky and warned us. "Hey, guys. It''s a good idea to talk about it, but don''t you think it''s time to hurry up?¡¡It''s getting late. We looked up at the sky and saw that the sun had gone down and it was turning into the evening sky. It''s also true. Will there be time to process the scarp-ape? "It''s too much work in the woods. Let''s do it in the meadow. It''ll save time. Okay. Let''s go home then. As if hurried by the darkening sky, we left the forest, dug a hole in the grassland, buried the Scarp Ape after removing the magic stone, and returned to the town of Raffan somewhat quickly. 132-S012 Tommy Fishing (3) This was the first time I had visited the Eastern Forest since Toya and the others had saved me that time. It''s not only that I didn''t need to, but I also didn''t want to go near it because of the danger I was in. ...... No, I was just in distress, I didn''t encounter any danger in the sense of encountering demons or anything like that. Now, we''re going for goblins today, so we''re going to have to go pretty deep. Are you sure you''re strong enough? Yes!¡¡I''ve been running every day. Okay. Good. Follow me. I followed him for about an hour, walking a little faster than usual. Finally, Toya stopped. There are three goblins about 20 meters away, maybe. Can you handle them by yourself? "I don''t know. I don''t know, but I''ll try. Can you follow me in case of danger? That''s what I''m here for. I''ll take care of it. I nodded vigorously and started walking in the direction that Toya pointed. I try to keep my footsteps as quiet as possible, and after about 10 meters, I see my opponent. That''s the goblin ....... He''s short, about the same height as me now that I''m a dwarf. He had a thin torso, grayish-green skin, sharp claws, and a long, thin, reptilian face. I''ve heard of them, but I''ve never seen one in person. Perhaps my sneaking up on him was a good thing, but he hadn''t noticed me yet. The sound of my heart beating loudly and my hands almost shaking. --I can do this! I made up my mind, grabbed my battle hammer and started running. A goblin noticed me running towards it and turned around. But by that time, I had already swung the hammer. "Yeah! I swing the hammer down as hard as I can at the goblin''s head. Boom! With a dull, watery sound, the goblin''s head disappears. And the liquid splashes down on my face. "Huh? For a moment, I stand stunned, unable to understand what has happened. Right after that, the body of the headless goblin falls to the ground with a thud. "Don''t just stand there! The goblin that was swinging its claws at me was about to collapse. At the same time, its head, which had been flying through the air, also fell to the ground. At its side was Toya, holding a sword in his hand. "Kill at least one more! I can''t.¡¡Yes, yes! I struggled to hold back a surge of anger and confronted the goblin that was threatening me. Even though we''re about the same height, the reach of a bare handed goblin is different from that of me with a battle hammer. "Don''t worry. I''ll be fine! I swung the battle hammer as hard as I could and slammed it into the goblin''s torso, and with a crushing sensation, the goblin''s body was blown away and thrown to the ground. The goblin''s body was blown away and he was thrown to the ground. I mean, that''s overkill. The goblin''s body was blown away and he was thrown to the ground. As soon as you see the goblin fall, all the things you''ve been holding back come pouring out of your mouth. Tommy, I know what you''re thinking, but if you''re not careful, you could die. "I''m sorry. Tommy, I know how you feel, but if you don''t relax, you''ll die. The liquid on my face is disgusting. "Well, what can you do? Wash your face for now. I gratefully washed my face with the water and wiped off the spatter with a hand towel. When I looked around, I saw something grotesque again, and a sour taste welled up in my mouth. "Ugh. ...... Huh?¡¡Are there more of them? A closer look at my surroundings reveals that the number of fallen corpses is for five. Because there were three of them at first. ....... There were two more. Well, technically, I''ve been aware of it all along. I was hoping you could die. ...... Apparently, while I was throwing up, Toya killed it. I hadn''t noticed that ...... "Don''t relax or you''ll die" was a literal warning. It''s true that if it weren''t for Toya''s follow-up, I might have been killed as usual. ....... Thank you, Toya. "Well, I came along for the follow-up. That''s the hobgoblin, by the way. When I looked in the direction Toya pointed, there was a headless corpse. You can find many different types of hobgoblins in the market. From what I''ve read, they''re much tougher than goblins, but I guess it doesn''t make much of a difference to Toya. I''ve already killed it before I even noticed it. After this, we need to get the magic stone. Can you ...... do it? Um, the goblin''s magic stone is in the head, right? "You''re doing your research, aren''t you? Yes, in the lower part of the brain. Let''s give it a try. As he said this, Toya thrust his sword into a lying goblin''s head, split it in two, and removed a small stone from it with the tip of his sword. He washed it with water, picked it up, and threw it at me. "Whoa! I received a small stone about the size of the tip of my little finger, blackish and shiny. It was black and shiny, like obsidian, if you were looking for something close. That''s 250 rare. That''s pocket change. We''ve been neglecting it a lot lately. It''s enough for two days'' worth of food, but it''s a bit ...... delicate. In my case, Toya was able to follow me, but usually there is a certain amount of danger. It''s a little better. A little better. The goblins that he kills will be the ones that will be in danger. The three goblins he killed all had their heads chopped off. One of the goblins I killed had its head splattered, and the other was lying on the ground with its torso caved in. So, Tommy, let''s try! How can you do that without hesitation, ......? Familiarity, I guess. We didn''t collect the demon stone at first because it was too hard to crack his head open. I''m not sure. It''s a bit far from being a humanoid ......, but cracking open the head of a living being is pretty tough. But you have to do it, don''t you? I pulled out my knife and faced the head that Toya had rolled for me. "Ugh. ...... "Tommy, it''s just meat. It''s not like you''re going to break a fish''s helmet.¡¡Think of it as the same thing. "I see. ......! That makes me feel a little better. It''s not uncommon to cut a fish head in half with a knife, and there''s no shortage of blood spattering in the process. Think of it as the same thing. "Okay! I grabbed my knife back and thrust it at the goblin''s head. The goblin''s demon stone collection is now underway. Once I had made up my mind, retrieving the goblin''s magic stone was a piece of cake. Four goblins and a hobgoblin. A total of 1,600 rares. Toya gave me all of them to celebrate my first kill, so not bad for a few hours of work. Of course, I understand that this is not something I can do by myself, so don''t make the mistake of thinking that I can do it too. If it weren''t for you, I wouldn''t have been able to find it in the first place. Well, I''m going home for the day. It''s going to get dark soon. Oh, yeah, that''s right. ...... Are even you and Toya in danger at night? You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. No, goblins are no problem. --As long as we ignore you. Let''s go home! I don''t want to die yet, so I immediately propose to return. I don''t want to die yet, so I suggest we go home. Toya smiles and nods at me. "Yeah. Well, we''ll probably be fine, but in any case, we don''t have any lights, do we?¡¡If Haruka and the others were here, they could handle it with magic, but I can''t use magic. I can''t use magic, so I won''t be able to collect the magic stone when it gets dark. I see. Without a magician, we''ll have to prepare for that. And water and everything else. It''s going to be a tough adventure without them. Perhaps because he was planning to leave in a few hours, Toya had only a small bag with him today. He didn''t collect anything other than the goblin''s magical stone, but he would have had to bring back meat and skin. Considering this, the presence of a wizard is very helpful, even if it means skipping props such as water and torches. Well, that''s none of Tommy''s business, since he''s not going on an adventure. So how did it go?¡¡Try fighting. Well, it''s going to take some getting used to with the ...... splatter, but it wasn''t as strong as I thought, was it? Well, yeah. The combination of [Strengthening] and a hammer seems to be quite an offensive force. The head was blown off in one shot. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. "Ugh, ...... too much force? It''s better than going easy on yourself and getting hit back, but if you don''t want to be covered in ...... flying debris, you might want to consider it. You might want to consider the location and direction. The second goblin, aimed at the torso, was killed with a single blow, but there was no blood spatter. So, is it a bad idea to smash the head from above? But only a goblin would be able to do that. Orcs wouldn''t be able to shatter a head like that, I don''t think. Besides, Tommy is too tall to reach the head. No, I have no plans to fight orcs! My goal is to fish and learn some defensive skills. I want nothing more than that. I''m not going to force myself to break goblin heads if I can live just fine with blacksmithing. I don''t need it if I''m going fishing. So, what are you doing tomorrow?¡¡If you can get a day off, maybe we can spend a day together. Oh, yeah? They''re going to keep working tomorrow. After that, I don''t know when I''ll have time. I know that you and your friends take time off from time to time, but it''s for rest and relaxation. I can''t ask them to stay in the forest with me at that time. So tomorrow would be a great opportunity for me. ...... Today was pretty tough. So, if you want to miss this opportunity, you can go to ....... "I''ll have to talk to my master about this, but if I can get some time off, can I come along? Yeah. I''ll be training in the garden tomorrow, so if you get a day off, come along. I thanked Toya for his casual answer and we returned to the town of Laffan. 133-Make 120 sauces! Tingzu (1) The roller we ordered from Tommy said that it would take a few days to complete. We were rather surprised to hear that it would be ready in a few days, so we took the opportunity to take a few days off. We decided that it would be better to wait for the completion of the roller than to force ourselves to go and cut the tree and have another hard time. Fortunately, we had enough reserves that we didn''t need to work too hard. What we are going to do on such a rest day is as follows. "Let''s make some sauce! It was Yuki who announced this to us at the breakfast table. What''s wrong with you, Yuki? I was just thinking. I thought... Inspirational sauce is indeed delicious. In this world, it''s kind of amazing. But I''m tired of the same taste!¡¡I need a change! "Hmm. I see. The inspirational sauce that we use now is used in cooking quite often because of its convenience. No, it''s not really that versatile, but in a situation where there are no other options and we tend to have a lot of hamburger-like bread due to the lack of rice, it goes well. Haruka and his friends also made tartar sauce, but since eggs are not as readily and cheaply available as in Japan, it''s not something we can use often. "Hey, do we need that too?¡¡I don''t think Nao and I can make a good sauce. I agree. We can''t cook much, so how can we make something as noble as sauce? Of course I understand. That''s why I''m asking you to make an inspirational sauce. At Yuki''s words, Toya and I looked at each other and twisted our heads. "......?¡¡Then nothing will change, right? I''m sure you''ve heard of it.¡¡I thought it would be more varied if each of us added something unique. "Wow, Yuki, that''s quite a good idea, isn''t it?¡¡That could be interesting. "Right? With Haruka''s agreement, Yuki''s face became smug. But it might be a little interesting, indeed. The current inspirational sauce, which is similar to okonomiyaki sauce, is tasty enough, but if there are more variations, the diet will be richer. This is especially important in this life where there is little entertainment other than eating. Can I have Natsuki? "Yes, of course. I''m looking forward to it. ...... Since we''re here, shall we make two kinds each? That''s right!¡¡If we make a lot, we might be able to make something tasty! We''ll need ten jars then. I''ll have to get some smaller ones. ...... Apparently, the decision to make the sauce itself has been made. Since I don''t have any jars on hand that can be conveniently used for making sauces, I''ll have to go to the store where I went with Aera-san to stock up. It was decided that Haruka and I, who had been to that store before, would be in charge of it. So, let''s go over the rules. Put a scoop of inspirational sauce into the jar that Haruka prepared, throw whatever you want into it, prepare it today, and perform it the afternoon after tomorrow. You can throw in whatever you like, but be sure to keep a record of it. If it''s good, you''ll have to recreate it. The cost of gathering the ingredients is limited to two gold coins for each of the two sauces. Any money you spend will come out of the common fund. You can try to make it, but can you do it in a couple of days? Let''s use the food processor. As long as it''s small enough to be liquid, it should be fine. Yes, I think so. It took me about a week to chop it by hand. The sauce used in Aella-san''s restaurant, even in that huge jar, was made into sauce in a week. Considering that, I think it''s possible. "You''re free to use whatever you want, but we''ll keep it a secret until it''s done. It''s not funny. Oh, but you have to put something edible in it. That''s a must. Yuki holds up a finger and looks at me and Toya, but of course she does. I eat, and I spend money. --I don''t know if we''ll end up with something edible. In terms of taste. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to eat as a result.¡¡It would be a pain in the ass to meet them when you''re out on your own, right? There were guys like that, too. I don''t know. Honestly, I don''t care about them, so even their names are vague. That''s okay. They seem to have left town. "Oh, really?¡¡It seems like they''re sticking with Haruka and the others. ...... There''s less work this time of year, right?¡¡It seems like he was forced to do it because he couldn''t take it anymore. The main work that can be undertaken in this city is the escort of logging operations in the southern forest, but the work of this escort decreases in the winter. It is said that the quality of the wood is better cut in the winter, but lumberjacks are classified as a high-income occupation in this city. Therefore, they don''t need to work in the cold winter months. Of course, there are some lumberjacks who work diligently, but there are fewer of them than in the spring and autumn, which inevitably means less work for the guards. Newcomers and untrustworthy adventurers are the ones who suffer the most. If there is a surplus of adventurers, lumberjacks are likely to go with adventurers they know and trust. That''s why they moved to a town in the south, where there was plenty of work to be done even at this time of year. This is what Haruka heard from Diora, so I''m pretty sure it''s true. If you don''t have a lot of savings, you won''t be able to spend the winter in an inn. Incidentally, it is said that summer is the hottest season, and the quality of the trees is not good for cutting, so the work is the least. It doesn''t matter to those of us who don''t have to guard lumberjacks, but I guess this is another reason why adventurers don''t stay in this town. So let''s split up and head out to get materials. Nao and I will go buy the jars and put them on the table in the cafeteria, so you can collect them later. "Yes." "Yes." "Yes. I''m not sure what to say. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to buy a lot of things. I''m not sure what to do. For now, let''s think about getting away from the current taste of okonomiyaki sauce. The okonomiyaki sauce I knew had dates to give it that sweetness, but the sweetness of the inspiration sauce comes from the potatoes, right? The first thing I should do is to avoid adding potatoes. I''m not sure what I didn''t put in last time, ...... but I don''t think there were any root vegetables. I''m sure you can find some. I don''t know. Let''s put together one kind of root vegetable. And a few inexpensive spices. Root vegetables are also relatively cheap, so the ingredients I bought for the first jar cost less than two large silver coins. "Shall I add ...... the shop''s recommendation for the other one? I think there is a large element of gambling, but it will be interesting. I immediately called out to one of the stalls I saw. "Auntie, what do you recommend? Auntie, what do you recommend?" "I recommend all of them. "We recommend all of them, but this one is especially good this time of year! The woman, who looked like a farmer''s aunt, held out a vegetable that looked like an onion. ...... Yes, it''s also called onion in [help], so it must be a similar variety. It''s sweet and tasty, even if you just roast it whole and put salt on it! Oh, well, give me three of those, please. Thanks!¡¡One silver coin! Yeah, cheap. They''re bigger than my fist. I paid for them, picked them up, and went to the next store. There''s a lot of leafy greens here. I suppose it''s unavoidable to some extent, but they''re all a little wilted. If this is the case in winter, it will be difficult to eat leafy vegetables in summer. A young boy is working as a shopkeeper here. I wonder if he is selling on behalf of his parents. Hello. Can you tell me what you recommend? "Recommendations?¡¡Well, that''s a good one, isn''t it? The boy pointed to a pile of vegetables in a box in the corner. They look like celery. When I picked one up and smelled it, it smelled a little different from celery, but a little stronger. For [help], please visit ...... "Beleaguered"?¡¡It''s a little different from celery. Are you sure you''re not selling this? "What are you talking about, bro?¡¡No, it''s not! The boy denied it in a hurried manner, but it was obvious that there was a lot left compared to the other vegetables. The smell is a bit peculiar, so it might be hard to sell. Children may not like it. "Could it be that ...... is your meal if it remains unsold? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... I don''t want to have to eat all the belleojis anymore! Yes, it''s very common. Well, if there''s any left over, you''ll have to consume it yourself, since you harvested it. It''s not something that can be stored for a long time. Ha-ha-ha!¡¡Beleaguered plants are easy to grow, just sow them in a corner of the field!¡¡It''s in every store this time of year. The lady next to me entered our conversation with a laugh. It''s easy to make, and it''s in season, so farmers grow it as a side dish and sell it in the stores. I looked at her store and saw that she also had them. She knows that they don''t sell very well, so there are only a few of them. She said, "I understand, but I can''t buy this much. It''s too much to use as an ingredient for inspirational sauces, and even if it were to be used as an ingredient for regular cooking, I don''t cook, so I can''t buy a lot of it. That''s fine!¡¡Just a little less!¡¡I''ll give you a discount. "Hmm, if you insist. I feel a little pity for the boy who bows his head as if pleading, and I decide to buy some baleage. I don''t like celery either, and the thought of being forced to eat that every day is ....... I don''t know the market price of bereozi, but the boy sold me the amount that I could barely grab with both hands for two silver coins. The lady next to me laughed at the situation, but that was for the boy who forced her to sell it, right? It wasn''t to me who was sold at a high price, was it? Well, even if the price was a little high, it wouldn''t be a big problem if it was only two silver coins, so I didn''t mind. After visiting about six more stalls like that, and buying one item recommended by each store, I returned to my house. When I went to the kitchen, I found Natsuki there. Welcome home. I''m home. Is it just Natsuki? Yes. Yuki seems to have finished cooking, but Toya and Haruka haven''t come home yet. I see. That''s because it took me and Haruka a while to buy the jar. I''m a little concerned about Toya being late, but I''m sure he''ll be fine, from a safety standpoint. I don''t trust him, though, because he might buy something problematic. Next to Natsuki, who was steaming something on the stove, I took out the materials I had bought and washed them. Do you want me to help you? Are you sure about that? Yes, I''ll just wait for a while. I point to the steamer and ask, to which Natsuki nods and helps me wash the vegetables. I''m curious about what they''re steaming, but I''ll leave it for the day after tomorrow. I should probably keep it a secret too, but ...... I guess there''s no need to be so strict. It''s not so easy to wait until each work is done. I''ll just keep secret which one I''m going to put in which one. Can I use the food processor? "Yes. I''ll be a little longer. Natsuki smiled and handed me the food processor, and I went to the cafeteria to roughly chop the vegetables and throw them into the processor until they were chopped into juice. I put them in the two jars on the table and add a scoop of inspirational sauce at the end. Mix well and cover with a lid, and you are done. All that''s left is ....... I looked around and saw two jars lined up on the desk by the window. On the sides of the jars, the words "Yuki A" and "Yuki B" are written in charcoal. I see. I''ll follow suit and write ''Nao A'' and ''Nao B'' next to them. I''ll just wait for the day after tomorrow. I''m looking forward to seeing what the other four will make, if not my own. The next day, we all went to work on the wood. The next day we all went into town to buy tools for cutting wood. The large axe with a long handle and a wide blade, which Toya was going to use, had already been ordered by Gantz yesterday, so today we were going to buy the other tools. We had already bought our weapons from Mr. Ganz''s store, but he himself had told us that there was a store specializing in lumberjack-related tools, and had introduced us to it, so we were on our way there. Do I need to buy three more axes? We''ve already ordered Toya''s, and with the one we have, we''ll have enough for everyone. Right. And the saw?¡¡...... Oh, is that it? The store was located near Simon''s workshop, in a corner where many woodworking related workshops were gathered. Inside, the walls were lined with axes, saws, crowbars, and other objects. What are those crowbars used for? "That''s for rolling logs. My question was answered by a man who came out from the back. He was a middle-aged man, a little younger than Mr. Gantz. He was a stout man, and I guessed he was a blacksmith too. "Hmm ......, you seem to be an adventurer, what do you want? "Three axes, and a saw. Would it be better to have a large one that can be pulled by two people?¡¡And a ...... wedge? Yeah. The one I have now is a little small. The one I have now seems a bit small." "I''ve used it, and it seems to me that if you''re dealing with a tree of that size, it would be better to go at least two sizes larger. Considering that there were even bigger trees, it might be better to go bigger. Why not a hatchet?¡¡If you''re planning to chop down trees in the south woods, you might not want to do that.¡¡You''ll get into a lot of trouble if you make enemies with the lumberjacks in this town, and you won''t be able to sell what you cut. Oh, that''s okay. It''s not the south woods I''m cutting. So, the North Woods?¡¡If you''re an adventurer in this town, you''ll think about it at least once. ...... The shopkeeper then turns sullen. If you know the situation in this city, it seems that anyone who can cut wood from the north forest will get rich. "Just so you know, if you come back to return it, we''ll take it back at a second-hand price, okay? The shopkeeper nailed us, as if there had been such adventurers in the past. In the past, there have been such adventurers, or shopkeepers who nailed it to us. The shop sells tattered old clothes and rags that look like garbage, so they are very thorough. It''s okay. The axe I had was not enough, so I came to buy it. Is that so?¡¡Hmm ......, have a look around. If you have any questions, just ask. Let''s see, ......, is there any point in choosing an axe? Well, when you''re chopping down a tree, a heavier, larger axe is fine, but when you''re chopping branches, I wouldn''t recommend it. "Why is that? I''m here to buy an axe for chopping branches. I came to buy an axe for chopping branches. If the tree moves, it''s dangerous, right?¡¡If you lose your aim, you could get hurt. "I see, I see. If the tree moves at the moment someone swings down the axe, it could slip through and hit your leg. A tree as big as that might not move much, but you should avoid the danger. If possible, I recommend using a saw instead of an axe. This way, even if the tree suddenly moves, the blade will only break. "A saw? That sounds safer. It''s best to hold the tree firmly in place, as cutting off the branches can throw you off balance. ....... I also use a crowbar to keep it from falling on the person I''m working on. Apparently, there is a certain amount of danger involved in mere pruning. There was no problem last time, but it would have been scary if that huge tree had come tumbling down. In some places, I had to crawl underneath the tree to work on it, and if it came at me from above, I might be crushed. Now that I''m stronger, I''m sure I won''t be killed by something like that, but there''s nothing wrong with being careful. We took the shopkeeper''s advice and looked around, and ended up buying three hatchets instead of a regular axe. In addition, we bought four saws, a large wedge, and two crowbars, and left the store. 134-121 Lets make sauce! Tanzu (2) Are you sure this is the right place? Yes, sir. Here''s what it looks like... When we came back from the store, Yuki and I were working on two buildings in the corner of the yard. One is a smokehouse. Under the guidance of Natsuki, who knew the structure, we built another small hut with earthen magic next to Toya''s blacksmith''s hut (though it was only about three tatami mats and had a small furnace) that we had built the other day. I don''t care about earthquake resistance standards. If there is an earthquake, there is a big possibility that it will collapse, but we are not going to live in it, and the roof is so thin that it will not hurt us if it falls down. If it were us. From what I''ve heard from my acquaintances in this town, they only know about earthquakes, so the possibility of one happening is almost zero. And even if it does collapse, it can be easily rebuilt, so there''s no reason to bother. It looks good. It can be used for cold, warm or hot smoking. "Wow, there are so many kinds of smoked food? Yes, they are all different and interesting, aren''t they? The other is a wood yard. The trunk of the tree can be sold as is, but the branches need to be processed, whether they are to be sold as lumber, firewood, or chips for smoking. This is a building for that purpose. This one is a little larger, but it''s just a hut, so there''s nothing worth mentioning. For the time being, I just pile up the cut branches in the shed. These will be dealt with when you find the time to do so. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó "Inspirational Source," "The "Inspire source, launch, launch~!¡¡Puff, puff, puff! After lunch, we were relaxing and taking a break. We were taking a break after lunch, and Yuki was the one who stood up and let out a blaze of fire. I hope so.¡¡--Wouldn''t that be nice? I laughed at her as she nodded her head, saying something like that. I smiled at Yuki, who nodded her head and said, "You''re acting all weak, Yuki.¡¡No prize for you? "I don''t have anything to offer!¡¡Haruka~, do you have anything? Haruka~, do you have anything to offer?" "I don''t know if I can say that, ......, but I don''t have anything to offer. --How about Yuki granting the winner''s one wish? Well, that''s not too expensive!¡¡But just me? I''m the one who came up with the idea. Yes, that''s true, but... At least, the winner can ask one of us to do it. It would be sad if I won. ...... Well, that''s fine, isn''t it?¡¡Is that okay with you guys? Yeah, it''s a good idea. No one will say anything strange, and it will be a sideshow. Natsuki and Toya nodded their heads as if to say, "Okay. Who''s up first? When the two jars of sauce that each of us made were lined up on the table and many small plates had been prepared, I looked around at everyone and it was Haruka who answered. I looked around at everyone, and it was Haruka who responded, "I think it could be anyone, but let''s start with me.¡¡Let''s start with A. Haruka took a little bit of the sauce from the jar with the lid open and passed it around to everyone. The color is ...... black. It''s darker than the others. It''s also more viscous. Scoop a little of it up with a spoon and take a bite. "Sweet!¡¡What the hell is this? What is this?" The taste was so different from what I had imagined that I couldn''t help but exclaim. I had imagined it to be sweet and spicy, but this was pure sweetness. It''s like molasses. "It''s like molasses, though it has a slightly different flavor than sugar. "What did you put in it, Haruka?¡¡Sugar is expensive, isn''t it? Haruka''s response to Yuki''s curious expression was something unexpected. "Actually, I only put potatoes in this. And only one kind. I''m sure the potatoes give it a sweet taste. ....... I''ve heard that potatoes bring out sweetness, but this is more than I expected. It''s not exactly a sauce, but with sugar being so expensive here, it''s got a lot of uses. It''s delicious just as it is, though! It''s more peculiar than sugar, but it''s a valuable sweetener. It would be difficult to simply use it as a sugar substitute, but if it''s made from potatoes, it''s easy to use. I hope Haruka and the others will make sweets with it. It seems to be a success. Next, B, this. This one smells bad even before you eat it. It''s still black in color, but when you lick it, you''ll see that ...... it doesn''t have much taste. It has a slight sweetness, but the smell is strong. It''s also a little pungent. It''s tangy and not very tasty to say the least. This is a sauce with garlic and green onions in it. It''s a sauce with garlic and scallions. ...... You can use it like a flavoring oil. It''s the kind of seasoning that, when mixed together, can take a dish to the next level. I''m not a fan of garlic, but I''m not a fan of garlic. Well, garlic is like that, isn''t it? It doesn''t taste good when eaten as it is, but a little bit of it in a dish gives you a strange appetite, or maybe it''s not enough without it. At any rate, it seems to be a success. The ingredients are simple but effective, as expected of Haruka. I think I''ll go next.¡¡I think I did pretty well, don''t you? Yuki distributed both A and B together. The color of ...... A is light brown, B is darker than that, and both are light. Let''s start with A. It''s ...... kind of fruity? "It''s not quite juice, but it''s ...... something like ...... hmm. "It''s not quite juice, but it''s something. It''s a little like yakiniku sauce. "Oh!¡¡Exactly like that. It tastes like a diluted version of yakiniku sauce. "Tastes like it''s been diluted. ...... A bit of a mistake, isn''t it? While licking the sauce himself, Yuki sighed with a sullen face. It''s true that it''s a little thin to be used as a sauce for grilled meat. But if you boil it down, will it be good enough? Wouldn''t it be tasty if I mixed it with the previous inspiration sauce? Yes, it would. It''s good to have a variety of flavors, don''t you think? Hmm, yes. But the real deal is B!¡¡Try it! I licked B as Yuki confidently suggested. --Mmm! "This is Worcestershire sauce!¡¡It looks like Worcestershire sauce! It looks like Worcestershire sauce! "Hmmm, looks like this one worked!¡¡I tried my best to find ingredients similar to Worcestershire sauce and put them in. I did my best to find ingredients similar to Worcestershire sauce and put them in!" This time Yuki was satisfied with the taste and licked the sauce herself, smiling broadly. "...... Wait a minute, Yuki. So you got tomatoes to make Worcestershire sauce? "Yes!¡¡I found some! What?¡¡Then can you make ketchup? I like ketchup a lot. I want you to make it if you can. No, I don''t know.¡¡I found some dried tomatoes at ......? "Dried tomatoes ...... might not be impossible to make, but ...... Haruka twisted her head a little reluctantly at Yuki''s answer. I''m not sure if you know how to make tomato ketchup, Haruka?¡¡I''m not sure if it''s tomato puree, but I think it''s hard to make it taste like that. ...... That''s true. I understand tomatoes and sugar, but the other spices are difficult. I think it''s mostly those two, but a few spices can be decisive. The topic of sauces turned to ketchup, and as the two began to argue, Yuki snapped and poked Haruka. "Hey, hey, do you want to talk about the sauce I made instead of ketchup? "Yeah, it''s good, isn''t it? I''m not sure what to do with it. I thought a lot about it.¡¡I put a lot of thought into it. But it tastes just like that. You know? "Well, yeah. It''s a normal sauce. It''s like a derivative of the existing sauce, so there''s not much surprise. Haruka asked us to agree, and we nodded in agreement. It''s good, but there''s no surprise. It''s just a sauce, right? If anything, it feels like it''s too late, since we already have the okonomiyaki sauce, which seems difficult to make. If I''m honest, I think I can make Worcestershire sauce even if I don''t have an inspirational sauce. "d*mn, ......, I tried so hard! Both of Yuki''s sauces were not unexpected. I can''t deny it, but it''s pretty bad, Natsuki ....... I can''t deny it, but it''s pretty bad. So, I''m next. I used something a little unexpected. I''m not sure how well it will work. The two sauces that Natsuki handed out as she said this were even lighter than the ones Yuki had made. They were light brown in color and had a transparent feel to them. The color of A is slightly darker? Just put a little on your finger and perk it up. "Huh! "Wait, is that soy sauce? The one who screamed was Yuki. I didn''t scream either, but my first impression was that it was soy sauce. When I tasted it again, the aroma was a little different, and the taste was definitely different from soy sauce, but it was similar enough to be replaceable. It turned out better than I expected. I didn''t think it would work, but ...... What are the ingredients in this? Just wheat and salt. It''s too dry as it is, so I steamed it and then mashed it. Is it possible to make something more interesting by using specialized ingredients without thinking about the details? The only thing that was unique was the potatoes that Haruka made. "Oh, this one looks like miso! "B is beans. B is beans. I boiled them, mashed them, and added salt. Toya licked the B one and shouted. I licked it too, and sure enough, it tasted like miso. But the sauce is a complete liquid. It''s not miso dissolved in water, but a liquid like soy sauce. I feel quite uncomfortable because of the image of miso. "This looks good for ordinary cooking, but it''s hard to use it like morokyu. "Well, ......, for example, how about soaking dried okara in it?¡¡Don''t you think it would look like that? That''s a good idea. That sounds like a good idea. It would add a lot of variety to the dish. Thankfully, there would be more soy sauce-flavored and miso-flavored dishes in the future. But I didn''t expect to be able to find soy sauce and miso. The ingredients are similar, except for the short fermentation time, so it is not impossible, but it is ...... lucky. I''ll go next. It''s hard to give out after seeing Natsuki''s magical. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that my idea just happened to work out, so don''t worry about it. I''m not sure if I''m right or not. I opened the lids of the two jars and gave them a good stir. A is a ...... kind of light and thin? B smells good with those strong smelling vegetables. The thickness of this one is normal. I was nervous because I hadn''t tasted it myself, but I divided it into small plates and handed them out to everyone. What do you think of ......? "It''s too light!¡¡It''s a little sweet, but it tastes like a watered-down sauce! Yes, it''s not sweet and salty, it''s sweet and salty. It''s all over the place. It''s an inspirational sauce that you can put just about anything you want in it. It''s an inspirational sauce that you can put just about anything in. For the time being, the A sauce was not well received by Toya, Haruka and Yuki. And Natsuki, you don''t have to force yourself to find a use for it.¡¡Just dismiss it as normal. I didn''t think it was good either. Nao, what did you put in it? I put mainly root vegetables. I put some salt and spices in there. Root vegetables? Like radishes?¡¡Is it because it''s too watery?¡¡Radishes and turnips are mostly water. That''s why they''re too thin. Maybe it would have been better if it had been dried, but at any rate, it''s a failure. The other one is ...... Oh, this one is pretty peculiar, but it''s good. "Really?¡¡...... Oh. The other one is . The smell of the bereage I bought from the boy is quite strong, but not inedible. You put in vegetables with a very strong smell. It''s a little peculiar, but if you use it for something like yakisoba, it might go surprisingly well. The sauce itself isn''t bad, you just need to cut down on some of the strong-smelling vegetables. Oh, I guess I shouldn''t have added all the bereage. Oh, you put them in?¡¡They sell a lot of it this time of year, and it''s cheap. We don''t buy it because it has a strong taste. Nao doesn''t like celery, so I thought she wouldn''t like beleaguered celery. "Well, it''s not the kind of vegetable I would normally choose. I only bought it because I chose to buy the recommended one at each stall. Incidentally, the spices I put in the vegetables were also recommended. I didn''t choose expensive ones, so the total cost of the two ingredients was less than three large silver coins. That''s why I added the bereage. But it''s good enough to use if you adjust it. "Yes. It will be a good sauce if we can adjust the peculiarity of the bereage. Oh, I knew A wasn''t good, even if I adjusted it. Yeah, I knew that. Okay!¡¡I''ll take the prize. The concept is Zero Yen Diner! You''re suddenly starting to sound a little anxious, aren''t you? Have you been looking for something to throw away on ......? No, I can''t negotiate like that, can I?¡¡I gathered it myself. In the woods. I think that''s what they give you for being on TV. ...... In the woods? It''s not that cold, but it''s winter. There must be a limited amount of food available in the forest. ...... I''m getting even more worried. "Well, just try it. Hey, what the hell? No, it''s just a little unexpected. Well, it''s okay, I only put in edible food. Toya swirls the jar around and hands out the sauce in front of us. It''s green. Green. It''s green. "Green. We all say the same thing. But I''d be lying if I didn''t say that first. Everything I''ve seen so far has been brownish, to varying degrees. In fact, I used to think that inspirational sauces made everything brown. But this source, while not as bright as ......, is distinctly green. The difference made everyone uneasy, and they looked at each other, not touching the sauce. "...... who do you go from? "You''re the creator here. Me?¡¡I don''t think there''s anything you can''t eat. ...... The next thing you know, Toya is licking the sauce off his face. The next moment, Toya was silent for a moment, then opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue. I don''t know what you mean. I don''t know what he''s trying to say, but I know it''s not good. ""Yes." But you can''t stop tasting it, can you? He didn''t lick it as Toya had done, but dipped his finger in a little bit and licked it. "Hot!¡¡Bitter!¡¡Bitter! And nasty! Contrary to expectations, there is no foul smell, but if I had to describe it, it tastes like bitter coffee with persimmon juice and horseradish dissolved in it. I''m not sure what to make of that. "Toya, did you just throw a bunch of wild plants in there without draining them because they were edible? "I washed them, then mashed them in the food processor. I washed it and mashed it in the food processor. It''s true that you can eat wild vegetables, but you need to remove the scum before you eat them, or make them into tempura without worrying about the scum. Many of them are too sour in their raw state. Putting them all together in a blender is an outrageous ....... I''m concerned about the pungency. Did you find a plant that looks like horseradish? "Yeah. I found it growing wild, so I put all the leaves and roots together. Don''t put it in there!¡¡Don''t put it in there! You''d better save it for something normal! I can find chili peppers, but I haven''t found any horseradish-like spices yet. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use it as a substitute for the chili pepper. ...... That''s true too, isn''t it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. "I give you credit for discovering horseradish, but this source is dead. Out of the question. Well, what can you do? I don''t want to eat it either. And it''s free, so it''s not a waste. Let''s go next, next. As he said this, he opened the lid of the other jar and stirred it, but then twisted his head again. "......? "Again?¡¡Again? No, it''s okay. It''s not green this time. Then what color is it? "Well, it looks like this. The plate was filled with a translucent yellow liquid. Compared to the sauce in A, it was still close to other inspirational sauces. ....... Just eat it, Toya. "Me again?¡¡No, I know what you mean. ...... No, I understand what you mean. He didn''t just lick it off, but dipped his fingertips in it and licked it off. Then, after looking up and tasting it for a while, he twisted his head with a curious look on his face and licked the spoon he used to take out the sauce. "Toya, what do you think? "Well, it''s hard to describe. It''s not bad, is it? We looked at each other and each took a sip of the sauce. ...... This is definitely a problem. Is there a ...... that doesn''t seem to have a taste? Is this ...... ''flavorful''? "Oh, yeah, that''s it!¡¡Toya, what did you put in this? "This?¡¡This is some kind of mushroom from the forest. There''s only mushrooms in it, nothing else. I suppose you can judge whether it''s edible or not by [Appraisal], but this is quite a challenger. So that''s why. I''ve heard that the sockeye mushroom also contains a large amount of flavorful ingredients, and I wonder if there were any such mushrooms in the mixture, or if the ingredients were amplified. It''s not a sauce, but it could be used as a seasoning. It''s a chemical seasoning. Like "flavor enhancer" or something like that. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Chemical seasoning ...... is not good for you, is it? It''s not that bad.¡¡There are some false rumors about it, but it is a chemical synthesis of inosinic acid, glutamic acid and other flavorful ingredients. ...... No, brewing is closer to it.¡¡It''s just a matter of extracting it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea or not. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. That''s right. If that''s not good enough, then it''s not good enough for amino acids to be produced by aging or fermentation. If you use it well, it''s good for your health. It''s good for your health if you use it well, because the flavor will make your food taste better even if you use less salt. "Well, I think it would be best if you could make a good soup stock without using such things, but isn''t it too much to ask busy people to do that? For Haruka and her friends, who were still students in Japan, meals were not something they cooked every day, so they did not have the opportunity to use them, but they did not deny using them. The food Toya made this time is like a mushroom soup, and she will probably use it as needed. Well, as long as it tastes good, I have no objection. I wish you all the best. Now that everyone has been announced, let''s have a vote by raising our hands at ....... Anyone who thinks that Natsuki is the best! At Haruka''s words, all hands went up immediately except for Natsuki. This is a no-brainer. Me and Toya are out of the question. Haruka''s sauce is not really a sauce, and Yuki''s is a little unfinished on one side. On the other hand, Natsuki''s sauce was both ready to use and tasted more like what we were used to. More than anything, it was nice to have more variety in our cooking. Me? "No problem. Honestly, I appreciate the soy sauce. I wanted to make teriyaki, a meat dish that goes well with bread, but I couldn''t do it without soy sauce. Salt and pepper is boring for the meat. I thought Yuki''s yakiniku sauce wasn''t bad, but it needed a little more flavor. I''d like to try the pork chops or the spare ribs. I''m looking forward to it. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I''ll use the right to ask again sometime. Natsuki was happy to receive praise from everyone. I''ll use the right of request some other time." Receiving praise from everyone, Natsuki smiled happily and replied. I''m not sure when I''ll be able to use the right to ask for help, but it hasn''t been decided that it will be used against me, and I don''t think Natsuki will have to worry about it. If Toya had gotten his hands on it, there was a good chance that I would have been forced to do something strange, saying that it would be difficult to use it on the ladies. Next, the ranking of cost performance. Naturally, Toya is at the top of the list, Natsuki is next, unexpectedly me and Nao are about the same, and Yuki is the worst by far. "What?¡¡Such a ranking... It''s not a punishment, but just in case. Yuki, you spend too much. It''s only natural that Toya, who hasn''t spent any money, is at the top. Natsuki''s food is also cheap because it''s only wheat and beans. I thought Haruka would be cheaper because one of them only has potatoes, but he was about the same price as me. I wonder if the garlic was more expensive than I thought, or if I used cheaper ingredients. Yuki, on the other hand, seems to have spent just shy of two gold coins. B was cheap except for the dried tomatoes, but A cost me a lot. Fruits are expensive. Just look at the ding dong. It''s a luxury item. A...... sauce for grilled meat. It''s a shame we don''t make it. It''s a shame not to make it." "You can make it when fruit is cheap, or you can tolerate that level of luxury. There''s enough to last for a while with just what we made this time, and I don''t think we''d have a problem with two gold coins. Even though it is expensive, it is only less than two gold coins. The size of the jar is about 1.5 liters, which is enough for five bottles of regular sized yakiniku sauce from the supermarket? If you think about it, it would be a very expensive sauce, about ten times more expensive than what we normally pay, but considering how little we earn and how little money we have to spend, it''s an acceptable price. But teriyaki or ...... teriyaki chicken ...... makes me want raw vegetables. Thanks to the Inspire sauce, I can now eat a good hamburger, but I''m not eating enough raw vegetables. I haven''t had any raw vegetable salads, and I want to do something about that. And it was my girlfriend who overheard my words. "Oh, raw vegetables, huh?¡¡Well then... 135-122 Raw Vegetable Conference "Continuing with the raw vegetable meeting~~!¡¡Puff, puff, puff~! Yes. It''s Yuki. She stood up and made that declaration. It''s d¨¦j¨¤ vu. "We''ve been in this world for quite a few days now. I think it''s time we had a serious discussion about raw vegetables! He put his hands on the table and declared strongly. We looked at each other to see what was going on, and Haruka sighed before opening her mouth. I''m not sure if that''s something we should be discussing seriously.¡¡I don''t mind the discussion itself. I''d like to discuss it in a relaxed manner then! Then I''d like to discuss it in a relaxed manner!" Yuki reiterated and sat back in her chair. Then she puts her hand to cover her mouth and speaks in a whisper. What should we do to eat raw vegetables? Is that ''han-nari''? He seems to have calmed down. "The reason you refrained from eating raw vegetables in the first place was because you were afraid of parasites, right?¡¡Do you have a solution for that? "Not just parasites, but pathogens as well. My question is annotated by Haruka. "Can pathogens be transmitted via ...... vegetables? Yes, for example ...... norovirus. There have been cases of people spreading the virus by eating food cooked by patients, right? Well, there was a case of food poisoning from a salad. I''m not sure if it''s possible to get pathogens on vegetables, but I''m not sure it''s impossible. I think it''s safe to wash them in clean water, but I don''t know much about this kind of disease. I know it''s unlikely, but if I had been sick when I first came here, I would have lost my money and my life would have ended.¡¡That''s why I refrained from eating. ...... In the event that you are sick, the disadvantages would be too great, so it seems that you have banned raw vegetables. But now, even if I fall asleep for a while, I won''t be stranded on the street, so I don''t have to think about this. Of course, you have to wash them clean. The victim in that case is Yuki. In that case, the victim would be Yuki, who has the lowest [Robustness]. What?¡¡Me?¡¡I don''t like it, I''ll get sick! Yuki shouted at Toya''s words. It seems that the "Han-nari" period is already over. Well, it''s okay, because I feel very uncomfortable. At least as long as we eat the food we make, the risk is about the same as getting food poisoning in Japan, I guess. The risk of food poisoning in Japan is about the same, maybe even lower, because we are more robust.¡¡It''s an acceptable risk, I guess. I don''t think so.¡¡I think it''s a risk that should be tolerated." "Really? Yeah, ......, and then there''s the parasite problem? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I don''t know if there''s a deworming pill in this world, but I feel really bad about this, even before the health issues. I definitely don''t want to become a host. Besides, there are parasites that are even scarier than Earth''s parasites. In a fantasy sense. I''m pretty sure that parasites on vegetables are caused by the use of human feces as fertilizer, right? "Well, to be precise, it''s a matter of disposal. You ever heard of a manure pit? I''ve never seen one, but I''ve heard of them. I''ve heard stories of people falling into manure pits, but I wonder if there''s anyone alive who''s actually experienced one. In a way, it''s already a historical event. Yes. First of all, the reason why they have it is because they don''t just throw it away, they put it in there. Then it ferments and generates heat. The same thing happens with horse manure and compost. The heat kills parasites, so when it''s ripe, it''s fine, basically. "Basically? It''s no good if the temperature drops during the process or if you add new manure later. The compost made from horse manure or cow manure sold at home improvement stores is sold after the plant pathogens, grass seeds, and insect eggs have been killed by heat under controlled temperature and time. It is said that it takes a few months at less than 70 degrees Celsius, so it would have been difficult for people in the past to do the same. But do they use human waste as fertilizer around here? "......?¡¡Isn''t it normal to use that kind of fertilizer? I twisted my neck at Toya''s fundamental question, but Natsuki shook his head. No, not really. I don''t remember when, but there are stories about foreigners who came to Japan and were surprised to see how well they used manure to increase their harvest. I was wondering the same thing. I''ve never seen it collected here. By the way, there was a story that in the Edo period, the sale of human feces was not a small income for tenement landlords. On the other hand, I''ve never seen anyone collecting and transporting it in this town. I''ve never seen it collected and transported in this city. "Or, for that matter, incinerated by alchemy in the toilets of the inn?¡¡I mean, the toilets at the inn are incinerated by alchemy? There''s a good chance they don''t actually use it. If that''s the case, I''m relieved, but I''m a little worried because I don''t know ...... what''s going on. I''m sure you''re right, we don''t know much about this world yet. The "common sense of the other world" that Yuki and his friends have is not that universal. In Japan, there are nine years of compulsory education. In Japan, there are nine years of compulsory education. Many people study for many more years and have a large amount of information as common sense, but this is not the case in this world. The content of "common sense" that ordinary people can obtain is surprisingly limited. "Well then, based on the information so far, please give us your opinions. I raise my hand, though I''m not sure if it''s an opinion. Yes. "Yes, Nao. Yuki nominated me. How about using Haruka''s [Dry] to completely dry it out?¡¡You can almost completely deal with parasites, right?¡¡I''ll water it down and eat it. "Mm-hmm. Drying will kill most parasites. The downside is that dried vegetables have a different texture. I guess you could say they''re fresh, though. Right. Kiriboshi-daikon, for example, is not cooked, but it already has a texture that doesn''t feel like a fresh vegetable when it''s been soaked in water. I think it''s a good preserved food. It''s light and lasts a long time. "Conclusion. Dried vegetables are useful even though they are not fresh vegetables. But it doesn''t matter to us who have magic bags. What else? I was cut to pieces. Well, considering the starting point of wanting salads, lettuce for hamburgers, etc., I guess it''s natural to reject it. Yes. Okay, Natsuki. Why don''t we just wash them well, peel them and eat them? That works for vegetables that can be peeled. The problem is with leafy greens. They can''t be peeled. Conclusion. That''s fine for all but leafy greens. Hmm. Then we''ve got cabbage and lettuce and the like. Okay. Yes, Toya. I''ll take your word for it. No!¡¡That''s not a plan. I''ll be the one who suffers the most! It''s obvious. It''s a violent argument that throws everything we''ve been discussing out the window. However, it is not insulting that Toya and Natsuki seem to be fine. Perhaps impatient with Toya for saying such a stupid thing, Yuki now raises her hand. "Yes! "Yes, Yuki. We''re going to have a vegetable garden!¡¡As long as I grow my own food, wash it and eat it, it''s okay, right? A grower with a face. That''s a good thing. We''re on our own. We have a big garden, we can grow a little field without any problem. It''s not a bad idea, but the downside is that it takes time. Isn''t there some kind of magic that speeds up the growth? At least not in the grimoires I have. Yuki, why don''t you develop some earth magic? Is that the scope of earth magic?¡¡More like light magic to promote growth. Hmm. You''ve got a point. Haruka, what do you think? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. That sounds quite difficult. I would rather recommend that you use the method of purification that Nao mentioned earlier. "Oh, did I say that? "You did. "You were saying that we could use purification to remove parasites and their eggs from vegetables. I think it''s not impossible, because it can even remove stains from clothes. Hmm, I seem to remember you saying something like that. If that''s possible, then we can easily eat the vegetables we bought. "Also, you know that there is a level 5 light magic called Disinfect, right?¡¡If you use this, you won''t have to worry about pathogens. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with that. "Well, Haruka?¡¡It''s the kind of information that makes all of our discussions pointless. I told you. I told you. "Something to seriously discuss. So you''ve always been able to eat raw vegetables. ......? Haruka shrugged her shoulders and said nonchalantly, while Yuki looked as if to say, "What? I''m not sure what to make of that. You can''t use disinfectant yet, you know.¡¡It''s a great way to get rid of parasites, but you can''t take the risk of getting sick. While I was staying at the inn, it was ''sickness = being on the street''. Especially in the beginning. And I only found out about Disinfectant relatively recently, after I bought a light-based grimoire. It''s a bit of a gamble for a while. I don''t know if it really works. If I could get sick from eating a few raw vegetables, I''d already be sick, I think. I''m the one in danger!¡¡I''m the one in the most danger! The most dangerous person is me! Yuki''s argument that "a little bit of water won''t kill you" is terrible, but Toya just smiles and points at Natsuki. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "It doesn''t matter, it''s very important that I''m in danger! I understand how you feel. No one wants to get sick. And since there are no proper hospitals, getting a bad disease is death. "Well then, let''s wrap it up!¡¡Haruka, please learn "Disinfectant" as soon as possible!¡¡This is the end of the raw vegetable conference! With Yuki''s half-hearted summing up of the situation, the delicate and tedious meeting ended, whether it was meaningful or not. 136-123 Logging for the second time (1) It''s always better with vegetables. I couldn''t get any lettuce, so I just made cabbage. We don''t even have tomatoes. The next day, after a day off from the fresh vegetable meeting, we went back to the forest to cut down some trees. The roller we had asked Tommy to make was completed yesterday, and we had already sold the wood we had cut down the other day to Simon. Our lunch today was a hamburger with shredded cabbage and a hamburger. As a result of the somewhat sluggish meeting on raw vegetables the other day, we thought it would be a while before we could actually eat it, but as expected of Haruka. In just one day, she was able to use "Disinfectant". Of course, it wasn''t that her magic skills had suddenly improved. She had already reached level 4 in light magic a long time ago, and the only reason she hadn''t reached level 5 was because she hadn''t learned the level 5 spells listed in the grimoire. Apparently, Haruka had been practicing the level 6 "Treatment" spell, which can cure illness, in preference to the "Disinfect" spell. In a world where doctors and hospitals are unreliable, this is certainly a very important spell. It seems that she is "almost there" in terms of response, so I hope she will do her best. "Nao, let''s get started.¡¡We can''t take it too easy, can we? Wait a minute. Give me a minute. I quickly finished the remaining hamburger, drank some water, and got up. I had already identified the trees to be cut down today and had an early lunch before the work. As before, I climbed up the tree, hung a rope at the top, came down, set the pulley and pulled the tree. I set the pulley and pulled the tree. "How much will this one go for?¡¡I wonder? "If it''s just the thickness, it''s about one and a half times the size and a lot longer. I looked up at the tree with a wry smile on my face as Yuki said this with happiness. But I can''t help but understand Yuki''s feelings. The wood that I sold to Simon was worth over 400 gold coins. That''s more than twice as much as the more efficient Dindol per person per day. Considering its difficulty and the fact that it requires the possession of a magic bag, it''s not a crazy amount, but it''s definitely a very good way to make money. It sold for a very high price, but how much would it cost in Japan? If you''re talking about domestic timber, you won''t normally find trees of this size on the market. The last tree was about 20 meters long. This one is even thicker, 1.5 meters in diameter and over 20 meters long. In Japan, old shrines and temples used to have pillars that were over 20 meters in diameter, but these days there are no huge trees left that can be used for lumber, so if one were to burn down, it would be difficult to rebuild. In other words, it''s priceless? In the past, a piece of high quality wood could be sold for more than ten million yen, maybe even more. Wow, ...... shrines and temples, it would be a disaster if there was a fire. It''s a cultural asset that can''t be undone. But if you think about it, 400 gold coins is cheap. ......? Well, we just cut it down, we didn''t plant it or take care of it. ...... Oh, ...... that''s for sure. It''s not like forestry, which takes decades to grow, where you''re just taking what grows naturally. It''s a bit ridiculous to compare the two. Hey, Toya, how''s the new axe? How''s the new axe?¡¡The weight is just right. While we were talking, Toya was beating his new axe against the tree, saying, "Enyakora, enyakora, enyakora. The combination of Toya''s strength, the weight of the axe, and the centrifugal force of the axe was clearly different from the previous one, and the axe was able to chop down the tree in one go. However, if the diameter of the trunk increased by a factor of 1.5, the area to be cut would more than double. It''s not an easy thing to cut down. "Well, it cost a lot of money, so we should get our money''s worth. Custom-made axes, rollers, and various logging tools. Even excluding the magic bag, the investment was more than 100 gold coins. It would be a shame if I didn''t make enough money to justify it. It looks like a good axe, but the downside is that no one but Toya can handle it properly. It''s heavy. It''s heavy. It''s not impossible for someone other than Toya to wield it, but if you ask me if I can wield it continuously, it''s quite difficult. I would probably need to take a break after a few minutes or so, and it would affect my fighting. It is too risky to do so in a situation where you never know when a demon will attack, let alone in a safe place. As a result, the axe is difficult to use except for Toya, who has some leeway. "Hmm, I''ll take a break. It was about half an hour later when Toya stopped his work. Unlike last time, this time he was working on the receiving end first, but the new axe worked so well that the receiving end was already almost finished. I''ll do it again while you take a break. "Wait a minute. I''ll take care of this. I stopped Haruka who was about to start working on it when Toya sat down away from the tree. The one who looked at me strangely was Yuki. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. "Hmmm, we''ll see. During the four days off, I wasn''t just making sauce. I was working hard to achieve the magic Yuki had told me about. Secretly! However, the "Water Jet" itself is only a level 1 spell. I was able to use it right away, but it''s only a high-pressure washer, just like Yuki''s. In order to be able to cut wood, you need to do something more. "Water jet! "...... Oh?¡¡...... Oh!¡¡...... Oh!¡¡It''s cutting, it''s cutting! "Hmmm, what do you think? Although the name of this magic is "Water Jet", it is not a simple water magic, but a combined magic with earth magic. In the beginning, he had tried to make the nozzle smaller to increase the water pressure, but as expected, there was a limit to what he could do, so he changed his policy to adding abrasives to the water jet. It took a lot of effort to activate it, probably because of the two attributes of water and earth, but the effect was dramatic. "Abrasives?¡¡You mean like diamond dust? Bollocks!¡¡If I use something like that, my magic power will be depleted in an instant!¡¡It''s silica sand, silica sand! I know when I made the bathtub that the amount of magic power consumed by the Create Earth depends on the rarity of the item being made. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, please feel free to contact us. Silica sand. Not a bad choice. It''s harder than most metals. Is that so? Yes. It''s quartz, so it''s harder than iron. The only drawback is that it''s still got a short duration. Shoo! I heard an unpleasant sound. I stopped the spell as soon as I could. At that moment, Haruka shouted. "Toya!¡¡Pull the rope!¡¡And Yuki and Natsuki! At Haruka''s voice, Toya immediately jumped onto the rope connected to the pulley and pulled the slack rope at once. While doing so, the "creaking" sound became louder and louder. Haruka, on the other hand, comes closer to me and inspects the trunk. "Nao!¡¡It''s not balanced!¡¡Cut this one too! As Haruka hurriedly hits it with her "Air Cutter", I also release my "Water Jet" at another location as she instructs. After a few seconds of this process. A few seconds later, the tree''s slope suddenly increased and it fell to the ground. --Somehow, it managed to reach its target. Seeing this, we all looked at each other and let out a big breath. "...... Huh. That was a little rushed. "Oh. ...... Sorry, my bad. I checked the stump and bowed to everyone. As Toya cut the opening, I used the water jet to cut the other side of the stump, where there was no cut, from left to right. Originally, the other side of the receptacle should have been cut in a balanced manner, but only the left side was cut a lot, and the balance was slightly disrupted. Yeah, it looks like that. If it''s so powerful, you should move it quickly and repeatedly from side to side instead of slowly. "Well, I was a little surprised, but I guess it turned out okay.¡¡Now that I know how powerful Nao''s magic is, I''m sure I''ll be able to work faster next time. "It''s only our second time. We''re amateurs. We didn''t have time to say, "We''re going to die. They all follow me on ......, though Toya is different. But if he hadn''t, he could have been seriously injured. I should have examined it more carefully and not gotten carried away because I did it a little better. ....... I''m sorry. But you got it done pretty quickly. Nao, how much magic do you have now? "About half. There''s enough left for a normal battle. To put it another way, that''s how much I have left after pouring in all the magic I can spare. It''s also unexpectedly fast for me, but if you consider the safety margin, you can''t use this spell to cut straight through. If Yuki is able to use it, with Toya''s strength and my Air Cutter, she should be able to cut two of them in a relatively short time. "I might be able to do it twice, once in the morning and once in the afternoon. If you don''t encounter too many demons, that is. Considering the recovery of magic power, if you eat lunch and rest for a few hours, you may be able to do it with a margin of safety. Of course, if you''re attacked by a demon, that''s a different story. "It''d be great if I could get four of these a day, wouldn''t it, earning money? If you sell four of them, you''ll earn more than a thousand gold coins. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that," he said, but Natsuki looked a little skeptical. It''s great, but if you do it every day, I don''t think Simon can afford it. It''s true that you can''t hold too much inventory. You can''t keep too much stock. It''s a high quality material, so it''s not something you can sell very often. But it was Yuki, who had known Simon the longest, who dismissed such concerns. I think it''s safe for the time being. I''m sure that the entire city of Laffan doesn''t have enough wood from this forest, so they''ll be reselling it to other companies. ...... The lumberjacks'' guild won''t like it if we do it too loudly, though. I''m sure we''ll be competing for a certain amount of the pie. The price range is different from the lumber from the southern forests cut by the lumberjacks, but it is hard to say whether they can be completely segregated. The availability of high quality wood may lead to the use of high quality wood in areas where ordinary wood has been patiently used in the past. Not only that, but if the budget of the entire furniture workshop is constant, the more high-quality wood is purchased, the less room is left for the purchase of ordinary wood. This would be a problem that the lumberjacks could not ignore. Well, I don''t want to get into a confrontational relationship with you to make money, so maybe you should talk to Simon about it. "Yes. Fortunately, there''s no need to rush to make money right now. That''s right. In our case, just selling one bottle would be enough to cover our living expenses for a year. For those of us who are able to provide food, clothing, and shelter for ourselves, most of our money is actually used for the things we need for our adventures. Aside from land and buildings, our only major purchases are weapons, armor, and grimoires. I don''t usually spend much money. If I choose to live a leisurely life, I already have enough money to live on for the time being. You''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this kind of thing. I''m not sure about that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing in the future. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''ve been here for less than half a year and I think it''s too early to start looking for a marriage.¡¡If you get married, Toya, will you quit being an adventurer?¡¡At your age, are you going to live off the money you''ve saved up? "That''s the point, isn''t it? If possible, I''d like a partner who can be an adventurer with me. ...... Unfortunately, I haven''t seen any beast-eared adventurers in this town that would tug at Toya''s heartstrings. There are no beast-eared adventurers in the city, and almost no female adventurers either. If Toya really wants to get married, she''ll need to change her environment. "Do you want to raise ......?¡¡Orphans? "Project Light Source?¡¡It smells like crime, man! I can''t help but comment on the strange things Toya has said. Haruka and the others are not saying it directly, but they are giving Toya a subtle look. "Call me a philanthropist. If you raise a lot of girls, maybe one of them will say, ''I''m going to be my brother''s wife! I''ll be your brother''s wife! "Oh, so you''re more sane than I thought, huh?¡¡I thought I was going to have to take in a girl I liked and brainwash her. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''d like to have a discussion with you about your perception of me, ....... No, we don''t need to discuss it. That''s what I know. I demand that you change your perception! I''m sorry, but I was thinking the same thing. I''m sorry, I thought so too. Because that''s why you''re a beast. When I glanced at Yuki and Haruka, they were nodding slightly, so I guess they were thinking the same thing. But it seems to be quite feasible, except for the point of ''how many beastman orphans are there to take in? "Yeah, vicious. If you take them in and raise them, there will be children like that depending on how you treat them. It''s not the result, it''s the purpose that is ...... pretty bad. "Yeah, that bad?¡¡In this world, it''s not a bad thing for orphans to be taken in as marriage partners. ...... Apparently, Toya had done her research beforehand. In this world, where social welfare is not in place, the most important thing a marriage partner needs is economic power. If you say, "As long as I have love," you will easily starve to death. Since ugly rich people are more popular than cool poor people, it is normal to marry more than one person as long as you have enough money. In particular, it is very difficult for orphans to get a decent job, so being taken in as a marriage partner or heir is said to be quite a winning combination. Is that how it is, Haruka? Yes. The first thing a man needs is financial strength. Secondly, character. Appearance comes second. It''s the other way around for women, but if a woman has economic power, they''re similar, so it goes both ways. So men who only have their looks to show for themselves are going after women like that. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m still at the age where I want to dream about love. ....... 137-124 Logging for the second time (2) "Well, let''s shelve that for now. More importantly, there''s been a subtle reaction from the enemy. "Did the demons come close again?¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a pain in the ass to have to fight every time you kill one. I hope it''s Orcs instead of Scalp Ape. Nao, what? "No, I said it''s delicate.¡¡If I knew, I would have told you. What''s subtle about it is, first of all, its movement speed is slow. It doesn''t change its speed before or after the logging, and it''s approaching slowly. In addition, it reacts alone, and for a demon that lives in this area, it seems quite weak. "Weaker than a goblin? No, it''s a stronger reaction than that.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m pretty sure the reaction to demons is proportional to the magic power contained in the demon stone, or to put it more simply, the selling price. In other words, the higher the price, the stronger the reaction, and the lower the price, the weaker the reaction. Normally, the stronger the demon, the higher the price of the demon stone, but there are also some troublesome opponents depending on how you fight them, so you can''t be too careful. Incidentally, animals such as task boars and vipu bears react differently from demons, so you can distinguish them. I don''t know, a new species?¡¡...... Okay, let''s go check it out! ...... We''re not sure it''s going to be here yet, are we?¡¡There''s a chance they''ll finish their work before we get there. If it comes while we''re working, we''ll be in trouble. Let''s get rid of it first instead of waiting. Hmm, it is true that a preemptive attack is more advantageous. Since we don''t know what we''re up against, we can''t say that there is no possibility of damaging the wood we''ve cut. What do you think? I''m curious about the new demon, aren''t you? Yes. The only demon I haven''t encountered in this area is the ogre, but it''s not that strong, is it? Natsuki asked, and I nodded. Ogres are said to be much stronger than Orcs. If it were such a demon, it wouldn''t have such a subtle reaction. So it''s a demon we don''t know about. I''m curious too? We all agree? Then I guess we can''t stop going. I don''t know. I think that''s slime. Isn''t it?¡¡It''s kind of squishy. I can see all the magic rocks, can''t I? You can see the magic stone in full view. But the color is like muddy water, and it doesn''t look tasty at all. I didn''t know there was slime around here. I didn''t see any information about it on ....... "How do you defeat it?¡¡Are they actually strong? It seems to be proportional to its size.¡¡The easiest way is to destroy the magic stone, but then you won''t get anything. ...... There seems to be no material. And then what? It''s best to just pop out the magic stone. If you put too much pressure on it, it will break, so use moderate pressure. There''s also a way to defeat it with magic. That''s easy. I''ll do it. Then I''ll--" Natsuki grabbed Toya''s hand tightly as he held up his sword. Hmm? No. The sword will be damaged. Slime can dissolve almost anything. It seems that even the weakest slime has the ability to dissolve and digest almost anything, although the speed of dissolution varies. This level of slime is only a problem if you wash it immediately, but it would not be good to damage the expensive sword. For this level of slime, a branch on the ground is sufficient. Natsuki wielded his hatchet and made a stick about a meter long, and handed it to Toya. Here you go. "Oh, hey. --Hey! When Toya shook the stick lightly, the magic stone inside the slime flew away with the pieces of slime. When Yuki saw this, she shouted, "Ah! Yuki saw this and hurriedly chased after the magic stone. The slime that had lost its magic stone trembled for a little while, but it soon lost its shape and spread out on the ground. "Toya, you''re putting too much pressure on it! "Sorry!¡¡It was softer than I thought. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. But while Toya is amazing at hitting a magic stone that is no bigger than the tip of a fingernail, Yuki is also quite good at chasing after it and picking it up. It would be hard to find a stone of that size lying around in the forest. By the way, how much does this magic stone cost? The slime''s demon stone can be bought for as much as you want. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. I''m not sure what to make of that. That may be true. It''s true that the response to the [Searching for enemies] was more than goblins. If you take that into account, the price is going to be about that much. When Toya hears this, he has a look of disappointment on his face. "What, that price for not smashing a goblin''s head?¡¡That''s insanely good, slime. It''s definitely good to get magic stones without the gloom. It''s weak. That is, if you can get the magic stones out of it. Toya did it easily, but it''s not that easy, it''s smaller than a golf ball. No, that''s true. You need to be able to swing a stick and accurately hit the magic stone, which is only 1/10th the size of a golf ball in terms of volume, and not lose sight of it as it flies away. And it''s in a forest. If you can afford it, you might want to set up a catcher''s mitt behind you. Moreover, even if you hit it well, if you put too much effort into it and the magic stone shatters, you will get nothing. It would be easier to kill it with magic, since it would leave a magic stone on the spot, but the reality is that not many adventurers can use magic, so it may not be a good deal. If there are a lot of slimes, we can use magic to kill them all and make some money. ...... It''s going to be difficult. They don''t seem to swarm much. It''s not like we''re going to get 300 rares for this. If we cut down a tree and go home, we''ll get 400,000 rares. It''s not worth the effort to hunt slimes. But... "It would have been three days'' wages for Yuki when she was in Sahlstat. "Geez. That''s right!¡¡"Oh, my salary is too low! "I was right! We went to pick her up, and I guess you could say we were recruiters. Well, in Yuki''s case, she has successfully changed jobs and is now earning money, so I guess we can call her a success. You can say that you are a success because you have successfully changed jobs and are earning money. Let''s get back to it and keep working. Yes, we should!¡¡There are more than a thousand slime trees growing all around us. There''s no time to rest. There are more than a thousand slime trees growing around us. ...... That''s a good point. It''s certainly worth it, though. "Okay!¡¡Then I''ll come back early and make a lot of money! Yes, yes. I''ve achieved my goal of confirming the identity of the new demon. It turned out to be just a slime, but the fact that we could confirm it was significant. We went back to the logging site with Yuki in the lead and resumed our work. "Don''t worry about it. "Don''t worry about it. Just go ahead and cut. This was Simon''s answer to our question about whether it would be bad to cut too many trees from the north forest. He said that he was not concerned that it would affect the lumberjacks. Even if we sell some of the wood from the north to the market, the price difference between the wood from the south is obvious. Therefore, there is little possibility that the customers who used to buy furniture made of southern wood will move to furniture made of northern wood, and the demand for southern wood is unlikely to decrease. On the other hand, there is also no need to consider the possibility that people who want to use northern wood have to put up with southern wood. It is the aristocracy and the rich who want to use the best wood, and they are basically vain. Either they can''t use cheap wood as a substitute, and won''t order it if it''s not available, or they have to pay a lot of money to use the few remaining northern woods. If we supply them with northern wood, the furniture factories will be able to take on work they couldn''t before, and the whole city of Laffan will improve. Even if the supply is a bit large, there is a high possibility that each workshop will increase their stockpile in consideration of the past cases where the supply was suddenly cut off, so there will not be a glut in the market. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. ...... Hmm?¡¡Is that too much to ask for a daily basis? If you''ve got a six-day week with two days off, you''ve already got a third of the week off, and since you''re also off depending on the weather, you''ve got about half of the week off. It''s a pretty relaxed job. However, the income is more than enough. Even if we divide the proceeds among the five of us, we can earn more than the annual income of an average person in one day, so we can''t stop laughing. Well, even that income is not enough for the average person''s yearly income, considering the need for new equipment. There is no shortage of money at the moment, but considering the future, we can''t afford to waste it. And so the seasons passed, and at some point the wind in the forest began to feel warm. 138-S013 Tommy fishing (4) I said I wanted to take a full day off today after yesterday''s half day off, but Master gave me permission, saying, "I have little to teach you technically, so do what you want. I quickly got ready and went to Toya''s house, where he was training in the garden, just like yesterday. He seems to be earning a lot of money and should be more relaxed, but I guess his diligence is what keeps him earning and safe. "Toya! I called out to him from outside the gate, and he looked at me, put his sword away and wiped his sweat with a hand towel from his pocket. "There you are. Are you ready? I''m ready. I''m ready. When I replied, he nodded and walked out of the premises, carrying a backpack that had been left at his side. Considering that yesterday he was carrying only a small bag and a weapon, his luggage had increased considerably. You''re heavily armed today, aren''t you? We''re going to be in the forest all day, right?¡¡You''re going to be in the forest for a day, you''re going to need lunch, and you''re going to need to bring back some food if you encounter something other than goblins. I''ll need a backpack. Lunch: ...... Oh! Oh, no. I forgot. I''ve learned my lesson from yesterday, and brought extra hand towels and water, but no food. Sorry, can I go buy some now? "Hmm?¡¡Haven''t you prepared anything?¡¡I''ll share it with you.¡¡I''ve got enough for one person. Really?¡¡I''d love to! Is that homemade by Haruka and the others? I thought about it, but I can''t ask that, can I? Oh, no. You don''t have to be so greedy, I''ll share it with you. Oops. I''m sorry. That was a little close. I was so close that I couldn''t help but lean toward him, so I hurriedly moved away. I don''t want you to lose your share. Let''s go, then. We''ll go to the same place as yesterday, the East Forest, right? Yes! I gave a strong reply to Toya''s question, and we headed for the East Forest. The second battle was more intense than the first. The second battle was much more calm than yesterday. I didn''t overexert myself and spew brain plasma, nor did I relax and overlook the enemy. Even with Toya''s support, I was able to kill three of them in one battle, which is pretty good for the second day, don''t you think? After two more battles, I had killed a total of twelve goblins. I was attacked a few times, but thanks to [Iron Wall Lv.2], I didn''t suffer any injuries. I guess the weakest goblins in the world aren''t much of a threat, even at my level. I''m sure it''s the weakest demon in the world, so it won''t pose much of a threat to me.¡¡You must be hungry by now. "Oh, yeah, sure. Yes, by all means! We sit down in a little clearing in the forest to have lunch. We sit down in a little clearing in the forest to have lunch, though I haven''t brought any, so I''ll have to ask Toya for some. "Here. It''s simple but patient. Toya handed me a hamburger. It''s like a McNulty''s hamburger in that it has very few ingredients, but the volume is far greater. One of these burgers would have been enough to fill me up. It looks delicious!¡¡Did you guys make this? We took it from the kitchen, so I guess so. ...... Eh, is that okay? If you bring it without telling me, it''s not good. ......? It''s not a problem at this level. ...... Maybe. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''ll ask Toya to take the responsibility, and let''s eat it right away. I''ll eat it. ...... It''s delicious! It''s a shame it''s cold, but the bun, the hamburger, and the sauce are all pretty good. At least, it''s better than McNulty''s hamburger. And that level is the highest level in this world, in this city. Absolutely. You''re really good at cooking, aren''t you, Haruka? Did you get the skill too? "Hmm, I guess so. It seems they were good at it to begin with, but they also have skills. Oh, really? Cooking-related skills may be the most useful. In the case of blacksmithing, you can''t get an apprenticeship that often, but in the case of cooking, you can get hired as a cook in a diner, and running a food stall is much more likely than owning a store with other production skills. It''s not that difficult to become a popular restaurant, especially when you take into account the culinary situation in this city. Well, Tommy''s right. I''ve hardly used my [blacksmithing] skill at all. "Haha, ...... is right. If it weren''t for you, it would have been a dead skill. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life. If it weren''t for that, I''d probably still be working a day job to keep my nails lit. By the way, is this hamburger the reason why Toya said he needed a tool to make mincemeat? Yeah. They were using knives, but it looked like a lot of work. I bet they did. I''ve never done it before, but I know how hard it is. The meat itself is not even sliced. The meat itself is not even sliced. You have to cut it into thin slices, cut it into small pieces, and pound it. ....... If you make a lot of them, it''s quite a painful process. And you are eating the hamburger steak that you took such pains to make. Well, I don''t know if I can make it well, but I''ll try my best to make mincemeat. So, what are you going to do this afternoon? ...... Tommy, how did it go?¡¡How did you feel about fighting the goblins? Yeah, I guess. It''s not that strong, is it? It''s like the weakest demon in the world. Ah, so that''s how you feel. ...... Upon hearing my answer, Toya scratched his head in annoyance. It''s not that I''m wrong, but ...... Tommy, don''t ever think of coming here alone to kill goblins, okay? Is it really that dangerous? The attacks aren''t too strong, and five ...... or even four of them won''t be a problem. Dangerous, I suppose. --"Well, Tommy, I''ll follow behind you this afternoon, so why don''t you try walking by yourself? I''m not sure if I looked unconvinced or not, but Tonya suggested that. Alone or ...... alone, I remembered that I had wandered around here, parting with the two men in question. Um, how far back are we? "A few dozen meters. I can help you if you''re in danger. ...... Okay. I''ll try. If something goes wrong, you''ll take care of it, right? Yeah, I got it. Let''s go! He smiled and slapped me on the chest, and I started walking deeper into the forest with a bit of anxiety. It was a long walk from where we had lunch. It took me about an hour to walk from the place where I had lunch. I didn''t have my watch with me, so I couldn''t tell for sure, but I walked a good distance, but still no enemy appeared. Every now and then I looked back and saw Toya''s figure hiding in the distance. When he notices that I''m watching him, he waves his hand as if to say, "Shoo! I''m not sure if it''s a good thing that there are so few demons in the world. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''ve heard that it''s dangerous to go deeper into the woods without thinking, so I have to be careful there as well. "Where are the goblins? Gun! A sudden shock hits my head. You''ll need to have a good idea of what you''re doing. --What?¡¡Attack! As you try to regain your grip on the battle hammer, you''re hit in the right arm. Your arm relaxes, and you drop the battle hammer. I look around and see three goblins! d*mn it, when did that happen? As you crouch down to pick up the battle hammer, your head hits the ground again. You quickly cover your head with your hand, and their arms, back, and legs. He was hit with a wooden stick. As I swung my arm to shake it off, the club hit my head again. I fell to the ground. Then the wooden club comes down again and again. It hurts. "To, Toya!¡¡Help me! I shouted, fearing for my life more than the shame of being defeated by a goblin, but all that came back was silence. "Toya-kun? He was too far away to notice! Oh no, no, no! I protected my head with my left hand while I searched the ground with my right hand for the battle hammer. There it is!¡¡There it is! I grabbed the battle hammer with my right hand and swung it around, but there was no way I could hit it that easily if I swung it blindly. He was hit in the right arm several times again, and lost the battle hammer. --It''s really bad!¡¡At this rate, ....... Just as I was beginning to think that, the attacks suddenly ceased. "Yeah, ....... I looked up fearfully and looked around to see three headless goblins lying there. And beside them was Toya, holding a sword. "Well. Did you feel the fear of goblins and surprise attacks at all? What do you mean, "scared?" ...... Toya!¡¡He said he''d help me. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I saved you, didn''t I?¡¡Before you got seriously hurt. "What? I have bruises and bumps all over my body, but I''m sure I''m not fatally injured. This is probably due to the fact that he has an iron wall, but if he had been left unattended, he might have died. Gao against a goblin: ....... I''m not sure what to say. That''s ...... If I''m honest, I can''t say that I didn''t feel that way. I think it was unlikely that he would ignore Toya''s advice and go into the forest alone, but if Toya''s schedule had been inconvenient for a long time and he hadn''t had a chance to go into the forest, ......? I''m not sure if I''d have been able to make the decision to go to the forest by myself. In fact, the reason we''ve been able to stay safe so far is because we rely heavily on Nao''s [enemy spotting]. Even if your opponent is a little lower ranked, it''s pretty bad if you get hit by surprise. Like Tommy just did. "Yes, ....... That was a close call. The goblin was not strong enough. The goblins weren''t very strong, so I didn''t get hurt badly, but if there had been even one hobgoblin in the mix, there''s a good chance I would have been killed easily. First of all, I don''t go into the forest alone either.¡¡Even in the shallowest parts of the forest, you may encounter dangerous enemies. I told you before.¡¡The encounter with the vipe-bear. Right. Yes, I''ll never go in there. Even with Toya, Nao, and Haruka, the vipu bear was said to be quite dangerous. I''ve heard that even rookie adventurers in a party can be killed, and I''m pretty sure I''d be killed if I met one by myself. And since I met them in a shallow part of the forest, ....... "Well, that''s a relief. At any rate, this level is enough to go fishing in the upper reaches of the Noria River. If you want to get stronger than this, you''ll have to join a guild. Well, I guess it''s hard to be a blacksmith and work at the same time. I hurriedly shook my head when Toya said that. No, that''s enough. To be honest, I don''t think I''m cut out for it. I was feeling a little good about having killed the goblin with relative ease, but I guess I''m not cut out for fighting. If this is enough to get me to go fishing, then that''s good enough for me. I guess I''ll just have to practice with the battle hammer every now and then to keep my skills sharp. Well, I''m off. I don''t know when I''ll have time to go fishing again, but I''ll call you when I do. Yes!¡¡Yes, by all means, please! "Yes, by all means!" I said strongly, and Toya smiled and nodded. I''ll have to get my hooks and fishing gear ready by then!¡¡I''m looking forward to it. 139-S014 Tommy Fishing (5) I''ve graduated from being an adventurer. I''ve been working on a prototype of a tool for making mincemeat for a while now. The shape of the tool requires casting instead of forging, so I''ve been grinding wax and making molds every day. I''ve been working on it almost all the time, but since it doesn''t compete with my master''s work, he has rather encouraged me to work on it. Well, if my master and I were both making weapons all the time, there would be an oversupply. As for me, my ideal is to be a "blacksmith known only to those in the know" who makes a very small number of ultra-high-performance weapons, so I''m grateful to have other profitable products. I think it''s the right decision to seek a different direction from the master in order to set up store, since I know Toya and his friends well in this town. That''s why I''m working hard on the prototype, but it''s not looking good. The only thing I know is that minced meat comes out when you turn the handle. I don''t know what''s inside. It probably has a blade inside, and if you turn it around, the blade will chop the meat into small pieces, but I don''t know how to make the mince come out. ....... One day, after a long period of trial and error, Natsuki-san and Nao-kun visited the store. It''s been a while, Tommy. How are you doing? Thanks to you, I''ve been able to live a decent life. What''s today? Weapons orders, sir. I want a cleaver that is as strong as the small sword you made for Haruka and the others.¡¡Can you do that? - No, no. Considering the centrifugal force, I''d say even more than that. So it''s like that little sword. I was able to make it both strong and sharp, but I was not satisfied with the weight and shape. It is too thick to be called a small sword and lacks elegance. A naginata has a large blade, so that part is not a problem. It''s going to be very heavy. Are you okay with that? Yes. This body is different from the one I had in Japan. This body is different from the one I had in Japan." Natsuki smiled. She''s still as beautiful as ever, but in this world, looks don''t equal strength. I understand. What about you, Nao? I''ll be guarding Natsuki, I think. Didn''t you hear from Toya?¡¡Didn''t Toya tell you there''s a mine wandering around? Oh, by the way... They''re like floating mines. Oh, that''s a good one, huh?¡¡So I''m a minesweeper then?¡¡A guy like you could be my classmate. ...... Too many people are in trouble, aren''t they? Hahaha ...... I myself have a hard time agreeing with Nao and the others just because they bothered me when I first met them . But it''s also hard to deny. If you can put people who have taken [skill robbery] in the "troubled people" category, then surely more than half of them will be in the "troubled people" category. ....... I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do. ...... No, I think I should have three of them.¡¡What do you think, Natsuki? "For close combat?¡¡I think it would be better for me and Toya to have them. I heard in detail that Nao and Natsuki, who use long weapons, find it difficult to attack in tight spaces or when the enemy is right next to them. If it was one on one, they could just keep their distance, but if it was multiple opponents, or if they had to pull back and the attack would go to the rear guard, they couldn''t do that, and there were some dangerous situations. He said that he sometimes used a knife for stripping, but that was dangerous, because it was sharp but not strong. I get it. Are you sure you want the same one as last time? No, it''s a spare, so it''s a little shorter. Can you put it behind your hip so it''s out of the way? Yes, that''s fine. The shorter it is, the smaller the width of the blade will be, and the lighter it will be. It''s a little bit longer than a stripping knife, I guess. It''s meant for close combat, so I guess it''s more like a survival knife. This one will be ready in a few days, but the cleaver one will need a little more time. ......1 Can I have it in about a week? "No problem. Give me a good one, please. Yes, of course! I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. ...... Of course, I don''t mean to cut corners when Nao asks me to do something, but I''m a man, I can''t help it, right? I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not going to cut corners on what Nao asks me to do, but I''m a man. Oh, that''s right. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Food processor!¡¡It''s true that you can still make mincemeat with it. The structure is simple. I''ve seen a food processor before. I''ve seen food processors before. The structure is very simple: just turn a shaft with a blade attached. If you put a handle on it instead of a motor,......, it won''t be fast enough? I''m sure you can find a way to make it work. I''ve been trying to figure it out. ...... Well, Toya did say that he hadn''t decided to order one, but... So you don''t need any special tools to make mincemeat? "A mincer?¡¡No, if you can make it properly, a mincer is more valuable because it can make minced meat of uniform size. That thing is called a mincer. But it''s worth it, or. I''d like to make one, but the structure is ....... Natsuki-san, do you know the structure of a mincer? "The structure?¡¡Yes, at least. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Wow, he can really do it all. He''s too good. Are you going to use this spiral to send the meat to the back? "Yes. For example, if you turn the head of a wood screw, it goes into the back, right?¡¡It''s the same thing. The blade at the end chops the meat, and the size of the minced meat is determined by the size of the hole at the end. Do I need a gear?¡¡You can''t just attach the handle directly to this spiral piece. The gear ratio amplifies the force, so it''s necessary to make it compact. You can replace it by increasing the length of the handle, though. So it''s a matter of physics. "Yeah, but in this world, everyone has strong arms. If you don''t consider that it will be used by weak women, it might be okay without gears. That may require some experimentation. The performance of the user would be different, but the type of meat to be minced would also be different. I''ll just have to try it out. If the handle can be stretched a little and it can be used without gears, that''s better for cost reduction. Tommy, can you make it?¡¡Structurally, it''s not the kind of thing you can make, is it? "It''s a casting. You make a mold and pour molten metal into it. ...... Oh, I had an image of a blacksmith beating metal, but is that a part of blacksmithing? It''s cheaper to make daily necessities there. Mr. Ganz doesn''t do much of that. We have a lot of cast iron cooking utensils, you know.¡¡They''re a little heavy, though. I didn''t know that. ...... I don''t use it everyday, so I didn''t notice. That''s understandable. I also had an image of a blacksmith as someone who hits with a hammer. Perhaps the impression of a swordsmith is too strong for Japanese people. It may not be easy, but I''d like to make it if I could. "It may not be easy to make, but I''d like to if I could. If you mince it and mix it, even scraps of meat will be easier to eat. I''d like to make it too. I think hamburger steak is easier to eat between bread. It''s hard to bite into a piece of meat if it''s just roasted. ...... Toya will eat it regardless. I''m not sure if it''s because he''s a beast or not.¡¡I do have a hidden knife, though. The last time Toya shared a hamburger with me, it had hamburger meat in it, but it took a lot of time and effort to mince the meat, and sometimes the meat was just cooked. That''s why they are making a food processor. ...... Yeah, I''ll do my best to develop one and give you a mincer. I''ll do my best to develop a mincer for you. I''ll be back in a few days. I was quite satisfied with the small sword and the naginata that I delivered a week later. The naginata, in particular, did not distort even when I slashed the log with all my might, so it is unlikely to break. It would be a traumatic experience if someone died because of a broken weapon I made, so durability is important. After that, I started to make the mincer, but it was a series of difficulties. There were two problems. The first is to make a uniform spiral. If the axis is off, it''s out of the question. It will interfere with its surroundings and will not turn. Of course, it is not enough to have a straight shaft, but the size of the gap with the outer frame and the shape of the spiral must match well, or the meat cannot be fed. Even if we managed to solve this problem, there was one more problem waiting for us, that of strength. The metal used for ordinary castings is not durable enough, and the shaft often breaks after several times of use. Moreover, in the case of hard meat, since a great deal of force is applied, it can be easily twisted off. Even though white iron is the best material for strength and rust prevention, it cannot be used for casting as it is due to problems of melting temperature and fluidity. Although I received an order for a dynamic pulley in the middle of the project, it took a long time to develop, and in the end, I completed the mincer only after relying on my master''s help and getting advice from a blacksmith who was good at casting. It''s a pity that I couldn''t finish it on my own, but the mincer I gave to Natsuki and his friends was a gift, so I guess it''s all good. He had already finished the food processor a long time ago, but there are some dishes where it''s easier to use a uniform size mincer, aside from hamburgers, so it seems to be working well. If possible, I''d like to try that dish too. ...... I can''t tell you that, though. I think we''ve gotten to know each other well enough to be friends, but I don''t have the iron face to barge into a friend''s house and say, "Let me eat! I think we''ve become friends enough to be called friends, but I don''t have the skinny to barge into a friend''s house and ask for dinner. "Hey Tommy, what''s your name? "Hey, Tommy, what time is your day off? That''s what Toya asked me when he came to visit me that day. "What?¡¡Basically, no? There''s no concept of holidays in this world. If you have a regular day job, you won''t be able to save any money if you take time off. Even the money you work so hard to save will disappear as soon as you get sick, so it''s a hard world to live in. I also work every day, except when I go with Toya to kill goblins. I''m making a lot more money than I did when I was a day laborer, but I need to save up to open my own store someday. Oh, I see. I thought I''d go fishing. "What?¡¡You guys are going fishing again? We''ll have to arrange a vacation somehow! I''m sure Master can help, but if we miss this opportunity, who knows when we''ll be back? All the training we''ve done to defeat the goblins and continue to do is just in case we go fishing! No, it''s not that we''re going, it''s that Haruka and the others want us to take you with us. No, it''s not that we''re going, it''s that Haruka and the others want to take you with them." When I asked about it, I found out that it was only Toya and Nao who were going fishing, and that their main purpose was to take me with them, not because they wanted to. It seems that Haruka and the others had heard that Toya''s words were the reason for developing the mincer I gave them, and they told me to go if I had given them hope. "Oh, I''m sorry about that. I felt a little bad because I was trying to thank them for everything they''ve done for me. But it would be a lie to say that I had no expectations. "Oh, no, you mean you''re taking me with you? "Yeah, you got three seconds to get ready! Okay, here we go. --Three seconds was a joke, but three days later, my first fishing trip in this world went ahead. Unfortunately, it was a one-day fishing trip because I was not sure if I would be able to stay overnight with just Toya and Nao since I was not much help to them, but we left Laffan early in the morning - well, midnight - and thanks to our continuous running, we were able to reach our destination by early morning. I was able to reach my destination by early morning and caught enough fish. As Toya said before, I was surprised at how easy it was to catch fish, but it was certainly a lot of fun. Since then, I have been able to accompany Toya and his friends on their occasional fishing trips. 140-125 New threats? "Hmm?¡¡Another demon. ...... Slime again?¡¡There''s been a lot of them lately. It''s been a few months since we started logging in the northern forest. We''ve been killing scalps and apes that have been attacking us frequently since the beginning, as well as orcs from time to time, but lately we''ve been encountering slimes more frequently. In the past, I''d only seen one slime a day, but now I was often dealing with several in a single logging session. They are not a serious threat in themselves, but we can''t leave them unattended because we don''t want to get our feet stuck in them. But fortunately, I haven''t encountered any ogre so far. Is it luck, or is the encounter itself an exception? No, it''s not a slime. Maybe it''s a monster I don''t know. "Oh, an ogre at last! "I wouldn''t be so calm. I''d say it''s stronger than a hobgoblin, but weaker than an orc. I see. But you''ve never met an ogre, have you?¡¡With the amount of demons we''ve encountered so far, it seems like there should be adventurers coming around here to harvest them. "It''s a matter of frequency. Even with a logging and transportation speed as fast as ours, we still get attacked by demons every time.¡¡In our case, the time it takes to cut down the trees is much shorter than usual, not to mention the hauling with the magic bags. In addition to Toya''s high physical abilities, I, Haruka and Yuki are now able to use magic suitable for logging, so we can cut down even huge trees at a considerable speed. Another advantage of using magic for felling is that it makes less noise than using an axe. If you use an axe, the sound will probably echo in kilometers. Then there''s the Bind Viper. For us, they''re small fry nowadays, but they can be quite dangerous if you can''t detect them. They''ve been known to fall victim to the hauling of downed trees. It''s hard to make a day trip when you''re hauling them. In addition, we are already one of the best in the city when it comes to fighting ability. We''re already the best in the city when it comes to fighting ability. ...... Normally, people leave LaFang when they become strong, though. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. By the way, we are the best in terms of combat power, but our rank as adventurers is still 4. It seems that we''re still ranked high in Rafan, but our recent tree cutting business is not reflected in our achievements as adventurers because we don''t go through the adventurer''s guild. I thought we were talking about a new demon.¡¡Don''t you have to go? "Oh, that''s right. I think we should go check it out. What do you think? Yeah. It''s not a good idea to wait around. From the response of the spotters, it seems that the enemy is not very strong, but in case it is a difficult enemy to deal with, it is necessary to run away. In such a case, the advantage would be to go for confirmation rather than waiting for the opponent to come. "Well then, Nao, show us the way. "Okay. This way. It took a few minutes for me to switch my logging tools into weapons and move in the direction of the response. The enemy I saw was, in a way, very fantastical. "...... skeletons, right? Yes. It has no tendons or muscles, but somehow its whole body is connected. No, is that the point?¡¡It''s probably connected by some kind of Coulomb force or something. A skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton, a skeleton. They were rusty, but they still had their swords and shields. There were three of them. "Spears aren''t very good against that thing. It''s too scrawny. My cleaver is ...... adequate. My sword is best suited for that. It''s almost a blunt instrument. I''ll just observe for now, okay?¡¡I think I can get away with this little sword, but there are only three of them. If you''re talking about blunt weapons, there''s an iron bar in your magic bag, but you don''t need to use it. If they appear frequently, you might want to consider getting a hammer, flail, or some other skeleton-friendly weapon. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. "Okay. Once the plan was decided, all that remained was to execute it. Toya was the first to jump out, followed by Natsuki. The skeleton''s reaction to Toya''s move was slow. Just as they were about to prepare their swords for Toya, Toya''s sword swung down on the first one, instantly shattering it from skull to collarbone. The second skeleton managed to catch Natsuki''s attack with its shield, but the skeleton''s bones were too thin for the centrifugal force of the attack. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for, but it''s not always possible. "Wow ...... is it more fragile than I imagined? It''s more about Natsuki''s physical strength. These days, even bind vipers can be cut into rings. ...... I know. It doesn''t look any different. The first time he encountered a Bind Viper, he had a little trouble cutting it off, but nowadays, the moment he finds one, Natsuki''s cleaver flashes and slices off its head. The quality of the weapon and Natsuki''s skill may have had an effect, but his simple strength must have improved as well. However, this does not mean that Natsuki has become macho, but rather that he is affected by the [Strengthening] skill and the level that increases by defeating demons. It''s not like his arms are thin or anything. I''m sure you''ve seen the skeletons on ....... I''m not dead yet. She''s a skeleton, so I think she''s dead, but I don''t think we killed her. Toya, on the other hand, seems to have stopped moving. After shattering the upper half of the body, Toya struck another blow, perhaps shattering the pelvis, and the skeleton stopped moving. On the other hand, the one that Natsuki attacked was still moving its head and lower body. Seeing this, Natsuki frowned and hit the skull with a stone-pelting blow, then crushed the leg bones and the pelvis in half. It''s pretty messy! It''s a bit of a pain in the ass!" Toya said, but then, realizing that he wasn''t very strong, he struck the remaining skeleton with the belly of his sword, shattering its bones and killing it in an instant. It''s not strong, but ...... it''s definitely a bit of a pain. I was wondering what would happen if he had a sword and shield, but ...... it''s useless if he''s that weak. "Sure. What''s the point of a shield if the arm that catches it comes off? You can''t use your shield to catch and attack, so it''s almost pointless to have it. In the event that you have a lot of money, you may want to take a look at the following tips. If you''re looking for the best way to do this, you''re going to need to look at the following: ...... Demon stone. ...... Where was it? Maybe in the skull? The magic stone that Toya picked up after fishing through the shattered bones was bigger than he thought. I thought it would be smaller than that, given its strength, but it''s probably a little bigger than a sculpted ape. If it''s in your skull, it''s not going to be easy to crush. ...... There''s a chance you might crush it by mistake, though. That''s true. But it''s ...... not a good idea to worry about it and attack. It''s okay.¡¡Even if it shatters. We don''t have that much money. Yeah. Fortunately, it looks like you didn''t break any of them this time. He stood up and put three magic stones in his hand. It seems that none of his attacks hit the magic stones, even though he was attacking very roughly. If it''s not broken, then there''s no need to worry about it.¡¡Behind you! Toya''s reaction to hearing my voice was swift. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. "No! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. What the hell is this? What was there was something translucent, like a black mist. If I had to describe it, I would say it was something humanoid wearing a black robe. But it had no legs, no hands, and the part of its face that was in contact with the light was just darkness. I think I can see something glowing behind it, but it''s all translucent, so it''s a bit vague. "Undead with a skeleton connection? Toya shouts and swings her sword again, but it only passes through the haze. As the miasma approaches Toya, his knees nearly buckle and he jumps back in panic. "When I touch it, I kind of lose my strength! "Toya, get back!¡¡Fire Arrow! He unleashes a spell that has served him well in the past, but it slips through the fuzz and sets the tree behind him ablaze. "No! "Fool, Nao!¡¡EXTINGUISH FIRE! The one who immediately followed him was Yuki. Yuki immediately followed up and extinguished the flames in an instant. "Sorry!¡¡I''m not sure what to do. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Nao, what about Holy Fire? Can you use it?¡¡It''s level 7! I shouted back at Haruka, who said something absurd. It''s an attack spell that seems to be effective against the undead, but it''s only level 7 in the grimoire. Although the skill level displayed in the status does not necessarily correspond to the level of magic that can be used, the level in the grimoire is proportional to the level of difficulty. It''s not a spell I can use yet, and I haven''t practiced it because I didn''t expect to meet an undead. Moreover, this demon appeared out of nowhere without even being caught in my search. It couldn''t be just a small fish, could it? I don''t have any magical weapons that would be effective against the undead, nor do I have any kind of holy water. I''m unprepared for this. "d*mn it!¡¡We''re retreating! I shouted as I looked at the haze that was slowly approaching. 141-126 What I forgot Wait! We were about to start retreating, but it was Natsuki who stopped us. Purify! Why now?¡¡It was only for a moment that I thought so. The light that Natsuki released went into a black haze, and the next moment, it was hard to describe, "GIGGY! It was hard to describe. The next moment, it was hard to describe.¡¡Purify! I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''ve been so impressed with your work. I remembered this, exhaled heavily and sat there with my hand on my forehead. I forgot that it was originally used to purify the undead. You remembered it well, didn''t you, Natsuki? "No, I forgot about it until just before.¡¡But I only remembered it when Haruka mentioned Holy Fire. That''s it? You''re right, that''s the domain of light magic. That was a complete mistake. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what the enemy was.¡¡I''m not sure. I know it''s undead, right?¡¡That''s why the purification worked. It''s a Shadow Ghost. According to the appraisal. I don''t know the details. But when he touched me, I felt like I was losing strength or something was being sucked out of me. ...... I felt so bad. I''m not sure if it''s a drain or something else, as my knee was about to fall off. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. The fact that we don''t know the details is probably due to the specifications of this world''s [Appraisal]. "Shadow Ghost, huh. Nao, did you get any response from the search? Oh. ....... I felt something was wrong, but I didn''t understand it until a moment ago. I''m sorry. No, I''m not blaming you.¡¡I''m not accusing you of anything, but from now on, it''s better to assume that there are demons that can get past Nao''s [search]. That''s right. It''s not only Nao''s fault, because I also had the enemy spotter and didn''t notice it. I felt some discomfort, so I think there is a possibility that I will be able to notice it as my level increases. ...... In a sense, the fact that there are demons out there that do not have the ability to use the [Enemy Search] that has guaranteed our safety up until now is a threat. This is a great way to make sure that you don''t get caught up in a situation where you''re not sure what to do. In fact, even Toya, who was able to sense the presence of enemies to some extent even when she didn''t have the [Spotting] skill, didn''t notice the shadow ghosts until I found them. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. "Right. Take care of it then. Yes. If [Hiding Style] is a skill to eliminate signs, then [Searching for Enemies] is a skill to detect them. If we train together, we can improve our skills. Or, to be honest, it''s dangerous not to. The Shadow Ghost didn''t turn out to be fatal, but I''m afraid that a ghost-type demon might attack and kill me instantly. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡I''m not sure. I don''t know about that.¡¡I''m not sure about that. In a way, purification is the magic we''re best at, right? That''s for sure. It''s definitely the magic we''ve been most useful with. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything you like. The magic stone can be found at ....... It''s a little bigger than a skeleton. In addition to the skeleton''s magic stone that Toya had just dropped on the ground, he picked up a magic stone that seemed to have fallen from the shadow ghost and compared it to the skeleton''s. Looking into the stone from the side, it certainly seems to be a little larger. But even though it was a hollow shell, he was able to keep the magic stone. ...... Thank God! I''m especially grateful that I don''t have to clean up after myself and the skeleton. I''m glad that you don''t have to clean up after the skeletons. But I didn''t expect the undead to show up. Is there any information about undead in this area? No. ...... From what I''ve seen, the only demon I haven''t encountered is an ogre. Well, that''s just from the booklet in the guild. It''s not a complete list, is it? It''s not exactly a complete list, is it? In the first place, the forest around here is an area that has not been visited by adventurers for a long time. It''s not surprising that the distribution of demons has changed. But I''m still a little worried about the fact that we have no means of attack other than Haruka and Natsuki. It wasn''t a problem this time, though. That''s true. If there are that many of them, it''s not a problem, but if there are a lot of them, it might be a bit of a problem. ....... We''ll think of something when we get back to town. Aside from Toya''s physical attack, Yuki also had no means of attack, as my Fire Arrow had no effect on her. In addition to the Holy Fire, there are other spells that may be effective except for light magic, such as the Holy Water, which is a water magic, but it is also level 7 according to the grimoire. Even if it is level 7, it is more difficult than the Holy Fire because it is not used regularly. There is no such thing in wind magic, and there is a spell called "Burying" in earth magic level 7, but it buries the enemy in the ground, and there is no description of how it works against undead. In the first place, burying an enemy seems to be useless against skeletons and zombies, but not against ghosts. I wish there was a better way to do this. ....... The day after our encounter with the ghosts, we found ourselves in the middle of the night. The day after our encounter with the ghosts, we split up to explore the town of Laffan. Our goal was to find some way to attack the undead or find some kind of countermeasure. I don''t have any particular idea, and I thought we could find something if we searched together.¡¡But where am I going? But where should I go? ...... Toya is likely to go to the weapon shop. Toya is the one who is closest to Gantz for some reason. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡No, but we''ve already read that part. I don''t think there''s anything new to be found there. Do you think Haruka should go ask Diora? I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of this. And I''m ....... I''ll just walk around. There''s a chance, maybe even a billion chance, that we''ll find a holy weapon or some other magical item that works against the undead. But there are no stalls in the town of Rafan that sell suspicious weapons or items. In the game, you''ll find the usual merchants with hoods and stores in the back alleys. It''s not a ...... game. I don''t see how that kind of business can work in this town. After walking along the main street, I went to a place I don''t usually go. "There are stores around here, too. ...... Once we decided on a store, we didn''t dare to explore other stores because our needs were limited, but it was natural that there were many stores outside our usual range. Nevertheless, the main streets and the central square of the town are definitely the commercial centers, and the stores located outside of these areas may be considered to be a little out of the mainstream. For example, there was a tableware store that Ms. Aera took me to. They sell only pottery, not things that ordinary people use for their daily meals. The tableware used in popular restaurants is basically made of wood and sometimes metal, and only the rich or a few items such as vases are needed by the general public. It is not something that can be sold frequently, and it is not suitable for a store in a busy area, which inevitably means a place with high rents and land prices. I''m not sure if there are clothing stores, but there are stores that look like grocery stores. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to suit your needs. I''m not sure if this is the kind of store for the average person, because it usually costs a lot of money to make new clothes, but Haruka and her team are making them for us. But I guess I''ll go into the grocery store. There''s no point in walking around. I''m not sure what to expect from a mere grocery store, but I''ll pick one that looks a little shady and go inside. ............ Hmm. Well, that was a mistake. The interior of the store I entered was far from being a way to fight off the undead, it was more like a way to summon the undead. This is definitely some kind of black magic or something like that. Welcome. What are you looking for? Heeheeheeheehee. It was an old woman with a black hood over her eyes who approached me, confused. She has a mysterious laugh that matches the atmosphere too well. "The undead... "You want to summon the undead?¡¡I wouldn''t recommend it for a beginner, but if you insist... No, no, no. I''m trying to kill it. What''s ......? You''ve got the wrong idea. I''ve got some kind of protection against the undead. When I responded, the old woman suddenly became despondent and pointed to a corner of the shelf. As I approached, I found a piece of parchment with a suspicious pattern on it. I have no idea what is written on it, but it has an atmosphere. It''s there, but ....... "Does this work? "Well, none of the customers who bought it came to complain that they died while holding it. That just means that if you die, you can''t come back to complain, right? It''s not as if this talisman has any effect, at least not to my senses. You''re an adventurer, aren''t you?¡¡At least this store doesn''t have what you need. I mean, what do they have at ......? Rich people like this kind of stuff. It''s all about the atmosphere. An old woman laughs, shrugging her shoulders, making the suspicious atmosphere fade. Does that mean that all this stuff is just for looks, but doesn''t really work? It''s like the s¨¦ances that used to be popular in the West. Maybe it''s a little different here, where ghosts actually exist. ....... If you are troubled by the undead, you should go to a temple. The nearest one is a short walk to the left after you leave the store. Well, thank you very much. ......? Come on, let''s go. --Come back when you get a chance to visit a rich man''s house. You''ll be glad you did. Hee hee hee hee. Finally, I said goodbye to a surprisingly kind old woman who laughed suspiciously again, and I left the store. I''m not sure if I''ll really appreciate the products of this shady store, but I''ll come back if I get the chance. I got some advice. Left, right? I hadn''t been involved in religion since I came to this world, but come to think of it, the undead are churches. No, the old woman said temple. When I hear the word "temple," I tend to think of Greek things, but Shinto shrines are also temples, aren''t they? In this world, a place to pray to God is called a temple, not a church. "...... here? After walking for a while, I found a rather magnificent building made of stone. It looked like a mixture of a Parthenon-like temple and my image of a stone church. There is no symbol like a cross on the wall, but it looks different from the other buildings around it, so it must be a temple. Is it okay if I go in, ......? Feeling a little uncomfortable, I went inside and found a woman there. She looked to be in her early twenties. When she noticed me coming in, she smiled softly and approached me. She said, "Welcome. Are you praying? "Um, ...... yes. I don''t suppose you''re asking me to teach you how to fight the undead. To be honest, I don''t even know what kind of gods are worshipped here, but it would make a good impression if I at least prayed. It''s good. Now, please come forward and pray. "Yes. As the woman suggested, I went to the back and found a statue of a god. It was probably made of stone. The size of the statue was slightly smaller than an adult male, and it looked a little younger than the male deity. In front of the statue, there was an object that resembled a box often seen in shrines. Yes, it is a money box. Gently looking inside, I found some coins inside. And behind me, there is a smiling woman, probably a priest. --I can''t not let her in, can I? After some consideration, I took out a large silver coin from my wallet, threw it into the money box, and put my hands together. The next moment, my vision went completely white. 142-127 First Login "First login bonus~~! That''s what I heard after my vision turned white. "What about ......? "Well, you guys are really far away from religion, aren''t you? There are more than thirty of you, and you''re the first to come to my temple. You''re the first of over thirty people to come to my temple, though most of them died quickly. Ha-ha-ha. As usual, my vision was blank and I couldn''t see anything, but the content of the words that followed made me call out in fear. "Um, could it be the evil god? ''Yes, I told you my name was Evil God. But in this world, I''m known as Adversus, so I hope you''ll remember me. "Ha, ha. ...... I''m not sure if this is the temple of Adversus, or the temple of the evil gods. Yes, this is my temple. The only other temple in this city that is not mine is Belfort''s, so I was expecting someone to come sooner. I thought someone would come sooner because the only other temple in this city besides mine is the Belforg''s.'' Belforg is another god, judging from the context. If that''s the case, it''s not surprising that we who have shifted around Rafan would come to this temple. If we''re willing to pray to the gods, that is. In our age group, we don''t have much to do with religion, except for weddings and funerals. ...... In the first place, I hadn''t even been aware of the existence of temples until just now. It may be that in times of trouble, we ask for help from God, but when we were in dire straits, it was more about making money than anything else, in our case. Probably because for most Japanese people, God is not something that can actually help them. It''s like. Well, I suppose it''s possible. What''s the point of a god if he can''t affect this world? I''m not denying that there are moral values and peace of mind that come from religion. "I''m not denying it, but that''s mentally young, isn''t it?¡¡I''m not denying it, but that''s being mentally young, isn''t it? Can''t you think and act for yourself? This is a very serious statement, but I certainly agree with it. Even if the words are adorned, in the end it is religion that lies at the root. For example, food. You can eat this animal because it''s allowed by the commandment, but you can''t eat that animal because it''s forbidden. The religious view that cows and pigs are allowed to be eaten would be ridiculous from the viewpoint of religions that regard cows as sacred, and the argument that eating whales and dogs is pitiful is just ego. I don''t want to eat dogs myself, but if you ask me, "Well, what''s the difference with cows? I don''t have an answer to that question, so I can''t really tell others not to eat them. If it is a sin to take a life for food, it may be said that carnivores are sinful creatures. I''m sure you''re right. There''s no God involved. Hahaha ...... Well, there are still people who deny the geocentric theory and the theory of evolution. But is it okay for God to say that? "We have influence in this world, you see. If we do something stupid, we can say, ''Heaven''s punishment~! And we can do that. "Can you do that at ......? "Yes, we can. Because he is God. God, wow! I wonder if there are any worldly benefits in this world. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. It''s more about the first login bonus. These things are popular, aren''t they?¡¡It''s called a gacha, right? You know a lot about ......, don''t you? Well, yeah. I''m going to give you some good abilities. I''ll give you something good.¡¡That''s what I''m talking about. Ugh. ...... I''m fascinated. But there''s a pitfall with this god: ....... There''s no such thing. There is no such thing. You''re right, God. You don''t have to say it out loud to know it. "This is my sanctuary. This is my sanctuary." "d*mn, I can''t think of anything crazy. I''m not enlightened, and I don''t have the dexterity to control my thoughts. I''m not enlightened and I don''t have the dexterity to control my thoughts.¡¡I was only showing normal skills. What you think are mines are just balancing. It''s impossible for an unusually powerful skill to have no risk whatsoever. There''s no denying it. ...... It''s not normal for the gods of this world to treat us unusually better than the people who live in this world. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always ask for help. If there is such a good deal, you should immediately raise your eyebrows. If there is such a good offer, you can invest by yourself without solicitation. This is true even if the story is presented by God. Even on Earth, there is no shortage of myths that sound like that. If you get greedy, you will get into trouble. I mean, most of the Japanese gods are relatively sane, but most of the basic gods are messed up. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. "Oh, those are bonus skills. You can''t just say to people who have lived in peaceful countries, "Feel the presence of death! You can''t just say, "Feel the presence of death!¡¡I don''t want you to die right away, either. I see. ...... has certainly helped me. I''ve been using it for a while now. It''s not really useful. ...... I''m not sure if that''s true.¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. That''s ...... true. It''s just that we didn''t take advantage of it. We are not martial arts masters, and it is impossible for us to measure the strength of our opponents. This is true even for humans, so it goes without saying for demons. If you know how strong they are before you fight them, you can choose to run away. "You can''t escape from the Demon Lord! It''s too late for that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re getting yourself into. It''s useful.¡¡How do I get it? "Experience. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Oh, you''re very serious about that. But in a way, it makes sense that as you gain experience and knowledge, you will come to understand. I''m not sure if I''m the only one to get this bonus.¡¡My friends can get it at ....... "Well, this is your first login bonus, so... I don''t think I can give it to everyone.¡¡It''s like a thank you for coming to my temple. "I see. ...... Is it really a thank you?¡¡There''s another pitfall: ....... "Oh, you''re doubting me, aren''t you?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡But this is really a thank you. It''s not that great. You know, game balance?¡¡Something like that. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll want to look at the following.¡¡It''s a little shabby, though. ''It''s a shoddy ......, but I''ll take it.'' I''ve been working hard on this for a while, and it''s hard for me to be the only one. It''s better to have a little something for everyone, right? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to do. So, what would you like ......?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. Ten percent!¡¡I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea.¡¡But... But... "Well, aren''t those the mines from the character makeup ......? I''m not sure what to make of this. No, this is purely for uploading. There are no pitfalls. There are no pitfalls. That skill can be useful too, depending on how you use it, you know.¡¡Because I''m fair. --Unfortunately, no one else noticed. I knew there was a loophole. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the future. I''m not sure what to make of this. Yes, it does. I told you at the beginning, right?¡¡It''s a world with levels and stuff. But you can''t check it, can you? Yes, that!¡¡If you come to my temple, you''ll see that "Nao is currently level 13. I was going to say, "Nao is now level 13 and needs 2,580 experience to level up," but no one showed up! He says this with a hint of irritation. It''s not like it shows up on the status screen, you can only see the required experience in the temple or something, it''s like an old game. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to think.¡¡I''m not sure if this is true or not. I don''t know. Your current level is 13. You''ve been an adventurer for less than a year, so you''re doing pretty well. Seriously?¡¡You really have a level? I knew there was such a thing as a level, but now that you''ve said it outright, I feel it. Wow, I''m so happy. When you can see the results, it really motivates you, as a gamer. By the way, when I come to this temple, can I always check? "Yes, you can. You can, but you''ll have to pay the proper offering. At least one silver coin. But for the sake of the faithful, I''d like you to spend at least one large silver coin. It''s a hard world!¡¡God . I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. If you want to come more often, a piece of silver is fine. I don''t measure my faith by offerings. No, I believe it exists, but I don''t know if I believe in it or not. ....... I''m sure you''re not the only one. Even if you pay the offering, it''s not going to go into the pockets of the gods if it''s used by greedy priests to spend on luxury. ....... It''s okay, it''s okay. The use of the offerings is clean. There will be divine punishment. Oh, so it takes guts ...... or stupidity to do injustice in this world? Then maybe the religions of this world are okay to believe in (if you can believe in God). The risk of cheating in the eyes of God is too high. At least for me, it''s "Heaven''s net is wide open and nothing is left out. In this case, it''s working capital for an orphanage. "Orphanage? Yeah. It''s behind this temple. Well then, you might as well try your best to make an offering. The social security system in this world seems to be poor, so hypocrisy may be worthwhile if it helps the orphans. Oops, it''s about time. Next time we won''t be able to talk as much as we did this time, but please come back and invite your friends. I''ll show you the levels every time. See you! "Oh, ......! The end of the conversation was abrupt. The end of the conversation was abrupt. As soon as Mr. Adversus said that simply, my vision rapidly returned to normal and I recognized myself with my hands in front of the money box. 143-128 Organizing information "Well, it''s not a dream, is it ......? I couldn''t quite believe what I had just experienced, so I checked the status: ...... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: Naofumi Race: Elf (18 years old) Status: Healthy Skills: [Help] [Spear Talent] [Magical Qualities, Space-Time System ¡¾Spear Art Lv.4¡¿ ¡¾Dagger Art Lv.1¡¿ ¡¾Stick Art Lv.1 Evasion Lv.2] [Iron Wall Lv.2] [Strength Lv.2 Magical Barrier Lv.1] [Vikadaten Lv.2] [Stubbornness Lv.2 Eagle''s Eye Lv.2 ] [Stealthy Footsteps Lv.2 ] [Trap Knowledge Lv.1 (Spotting Lv.4) (Detecting Lv.2) (Space-Time Magic Lv.4) ¡¾Fire Magic Lv.4¡¿ ¡¾Water Magic Lv.1¡¿ ¡¾Earth Magic Lv.3 Deconstruction Lv.2 ] Benefit: [Experience Slightly Increased ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The benefit column has been added! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. It doesn''t say 10%, but "a little bit" is very honest. However, as usual, there is no indication of level or experience, so I guess I''ll have to come to the temple to check, as the gods said. Um, what''s wrong? Oh, no, it''s nothing. I smiled and shook my head at the priestess, who called out to me from behind, as if my behavior was suspicious. "I see. Oh, thank you for the gift. It''s not much, but ...... I''d like to ask, can we get some holy water here?¡¡I''m looking for a solution to the undead. I''m not sure what to make of that. Undead? ...... Holy water is difficult. There are only a few priests who can make it, and it''s not ...... available here. That''s right,........ It''s a shame. And if you''re going to use it in a fight, it''s not really suitable. Oh, really? Yes. It is true that it is effective when applied to the undead or worn on weapons, but it requires a large amount of ....... I asked him for details, and he told me that if you sprinkle it directly on the undead, you can repel them to a certain extent, but if you put it on your weapon and attack with it, you will have to reapply it every few attacks, and you will need a lot of holy water. I''ve heard that the price of holy water in general (although he didn''t explicitly say how much, only for priests) would definitely be in the red. Basically, adventurers who don''t have magic weapons or can''t use light magic seem to avoid undead, right? So it''s usually difficult to deal with the undead? Yes. If a place is affected by the undead, a priest may be sent from the temple. ...... That''s not our problem. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It''s not like we can''t handle it. Thank you for talking to me. "No, I can''t help you. May God bless you. I couldn''t say yes, I''ve been blessed, but I bowed to her as she prayed to me and left the temple. I''m not sure what to say. "All right, let''s get to the results, shall we? Who wants to go first? That evening, just before the sun went down, everyone came home, and we had a debriefing session before dinner. I''ll start with you. I went to look for a magic weapon that would be effective against the undead, but I couldn''t find it at Gantz''s place. --Or should I say, nothing that could be used properly. There was a dagger, but it was hard to use, right? Toya had been to Gantz''s store, after all. He seemed to have found a way to use it, but it would be difficult to fight a full-scale battle with a dagger, so it was out of the question for now. I''ve been to a few other stores that Gantz introduced me to, but ...... they seem to be hard to come by in this town. Are you an adventurer? Yeah. We don''t have any high ranking adventurers, so we don''t stock expensive weapons. Even if they do, they can''t sell them, so they''re sent to other towns. If you have an alchemist, they can make them for you. ...... As he said this, Toya looked at Haruka. Haruka nodded in response to his gaze. I''ve been trying to find out if I can make a magic weapon. As a result, as Toya said earlier, I found out that you can use alchemy to make them, but there are various materials you need for that. When I say alchemy, I don''t mean that the alchemist alone makes the weapon, but that the materials pre-processed by alchemy are given to the blacksmith, who uses them to make the weapon. Then the alchemist post-processes the weapon, and the magic weapon is completed. The raw materials for the weapons we use now, such as blue iron and yellow iron, are also supplied by alchemists, so it must be something like that. I tried to look for those materials in this town, but unfortunately, they don''t seem to be available. I''m afraid there aren''t any. It seems that the blue iron and other materials are imported from other cities. There aren''t many alchemists in Laffan? There are not enough alchemists in Laffan? In the case of magical weapons that require post-processing, there''s no point in importing just the raw materials. It would be possible to make them by sending the weapons to another town for post-processing, but then it would be better to import magic weapons from the beginning or go out to buy them. If you want to do this, you should import the raw materials and let Haruka take care of the processing. I tried to gather information from the guilds. First of all, there have been no reports of undead appearing in the past. As far as Natsuki has been able to find out, there have been no reports of undead in the southern forest or even in the old records of the northern forest. Diora also confirmed this, so at least as far as the guild was aware, there were no undead appearing in this area. However, undead can occur naturally, so it''s not impossible. As for countermeasures, except for purification with light magic, attacking with magic weapons, using holy water, and fire magic''s ''Enchanted Fire'' seem to be effective against physical undead. I can use the Enchanted Fire since I''m level 4. I''ve been steadily improving my level of fire magic, and I''m up to level 4, but I haven''t used it in actual combat yet because I haven''t encountered any enemies that would use Enchanted Fire. The duration of the effect is only enough for one battle, and now we don''t need to increase the attack power of the weapon unless we encounter an orc leader. What about non-corporeal enemies like ghosts? "Enchanted Fire doesn''t seem to have much effect. With the exception of Holy Fire and Holy Water, neither does any other magic. "So I have no way to attack? No, I don''t. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. But neither Haruka nor I can use it yet. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. If I had to guess, I''d say it''s cool to have a weapon that glows slightly. Instead, it is said to be highly effective against undead. I said that Natsuki can''t use it, but the Sacred Weapon is a level 5 spell, and Haruka is currently level 4, and Natsuki is level 3, so with practice, she should be able to handle it relatively quickly. I didn''t think I''d need it until now, but I guess I should practice. "Yes. Yes, I''m planning to do that too. Incidentally, the "Disinfect" spell that Haruka learned to eat raw vegetables is also a level 5 spell. You can find a lot of different types of spells that can be used in a variety of situations. Both of these spells seemed to be beneficial, so Haruka seemed to prioritize them. "I''m next. I''ve gathered some rumors from people. The first is that holy water is effective against the undead. Everyone else''s faces lit up with questions as Yuki said the words in a pompous manner. And the one who said it on behalf of all of them was Haruka. You knew that much, didn''t you? "Well, well, don''t panic. The important thing is the next. I''m sure you''ve heard of a town called Kergu, just south of Laffan on the highway.¡¡There''s a rumor going around that if you go there now, you can get holy water for cheap. The holy water that I was refused at the temple? I''m sure it''s useful information, but how can such a pinpoint rumor be so convenient? Most people don''t really need holy water, do they? It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find any useful information. I''m not sure what you''re talking about.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. "Well, it usually doesn''t. It''s not something that would be talked about. I also wondered about that, so I gathered some information, but it seems that the one that supplies holy water at a reasonable price is a newly established new religion. As soon as we heard Yuki''s words, we all frowned in disbelief. We all frowned when we heard Yuki''s words. "...... new religion. I don''t know, that word doesn''t have a good image, does it? "Yeah, I know. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. In Japan, at least, there are probably only a few people who immediately have a positive image of emerging religions. Of course, there are legitimate religions, but there are too many malignant ones. --But there are too many vicious ones. But can you even create a new religion? I''m not sure what to make of this. Maybe it''s because the major religions are too strong to be a problem. I''m not sure what to make of this. Well, even if they are tolerant, there are still taboos, and I don''t think we should get involved. I don''t get involved in new religions. --I''m not going to get involved in a new religion.¡¡According to the common sense of this world, God is real and there is divine punishment. "Is that so? Natsuki questioned Haruka, who had made it clear. The same goes for me and Toya, but Natsuki doesn''t have the common sense of the other world, and his knowledge of the parts that are not explicitly stated is a bit weak. Yeah. At least, people in this world believe in it. There are oracles, and d*mnation actually happens, right? Not by accident, not by fiction? No. Priests who cheat in the temple are struck by lightning with pinpoint accuracy, or burn up in human ignition, or something like that. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. It''s not the same as calling a natural phenomenon such as a disaster a "divine punishment," but if that''s the case, there''s little room for doubt. In fact, in my case, I''ve met God. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m not sure why this new religion is attracting so many followers, but the name of the cult is ''The Order of the Holy Satomi''. "...... Wow! I don''t want anything to do with it! I don''t want to get involved!" Everyone frowned, and Toya spat. The name itself smells like a minefield. It''s also possible that there is nothing to do with it,......, but it''s almost impossible. I''m not sure if there''s any one named Satomi ...... Satomi? I don''t know.¡¡I don''t have a first name except for my close ones. ...... I think it''s a girl''s name. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this in the future. The one who opened her mouth was Yuki, who was the best communicator among us. I think Takamatsu-san''s first name was ''Satomi'', right?¡¡I don''t remember the kanji, but... I don''t know if this lack of intelligence is the source of my communicative power. I can''t even picture the face of the person I''m talking to when he tells me his last name. I can''t even picture the guy''s face when he says his last name. I don''t know. On the other hand, as expected, Natsuki and Haruka seemed to remember the name. "Takamatsu-san is a rather plain-looking girl, isn''t he? "Yes. I think she was reading a magazine in her seat during breaks. I didn''t know her well because I wasn''t involved with her. When he said that much, I was finally able to dig it up from my memory. I don''t remember talking to her properly, but she seemed to be a quiet girl with long black hair. I''m not sure if that Takamatsu is a religion ...... or a debut in another world. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of that. We don''t know yet, but it''s very possible. It just so happens that a new religion was founded at the same time we arrived, next to our town, and its name just so happens to be Satomi. --I think we can call it inevitable. I''m not sure if Takamatsu-san is really involved with this cult, but does the holy water they produce have any effect? "I don''t know, but it seems to be selling well.¡¡Why? I don''t know why, but I think they''re doing something shady with the skills they gave me. ...... Maybe it was Takamatsu who cheated on Aella-san? That''s a possibility. It seems that Aera-san has accepted the consultant for some reason. I don''t know what kind of skills he has, but he seems to be quite troublesome. I really don''t want to get involved. ....... But it''s a neighboring town. There is a capital city at the end of the town where the lord who rules this area is located, and it is the biggest city in the vicinity. Perhaps it is difficult to stay away from it at all. Also, additional information. There''s some corn in the southern town. Corn. ......?¡¡Ah!¡¡Oh, by the way, we have a vegetable garden. Yuki said smugly, and for a moment I thought, "So what? But then I remembered that we had talked about it a few months ago. We had a vegetable garden area and flower bed when we got the house, but it was still empty. Partly because it was not a good season for planting, but also because the general store in Laffan did not sell seeds for flowers or crops. If you look hard enough, you might be able to find them, but I didn''t look that hard, because I thought, "Normally, you don''t plant seeds in winter. However, according to what I heard at the grocery store, farmers keep their own seeds for the next year, and not buy them at the store. Except for crops that are sold as seeds, I was told that the best way to get seeds is to negotiate directly with farmers. Furthermore, when it came to ornamental flowers and ornamentals, there were almost no common people who grew them. They had to buy them from aristocratic stores or go to the grasslands or forests to collect them themselves. That''s why Yuki''s enthusiasm for "gardening! Despite Yuki''s enthusiasm for gardening, our flower bed is still a wilderness. Hmm, I wonder if it''s okay if I don''t get involved in a new religion?¡¡I want to get some materials for alchemy, not to mention corn, so I might as well go to Kerg. It''s good, right?¡¡I think it would be interesting to visit another town. Yes. You might be able to get some new weapons. And maybe even a spell caster. By the way, I couldn''t find any magic activator. An activator that helps you use magic. I''ve been looking for one after it came up in a previous conversation with Gantz, but unfortunately we couldn''t find one that suited our tastes. There were some that had subtle effects, and some that were expensive and wand-shaped, but the former were not worth spending a lot of money on, and the latter were difficult to use since we all used weapons as well. Fortunately, we were not in dire straits, and as a result, we decided to hold off until we could find a ring, necklace, or bracelet that would not get in the way. Well, I guess I''ll be going to Kerg soon. Last report, Nao. Do you have any new information? "Yes. I''ve got something for you. I give a smug look to Haruka, who gives me a not-so-excited look. I''m probably the most surprised and the most useful. I waited until Haruka and the others, who were giving me quizzical looks, were ready to listen to my confident look, and then I opened my mouth in a pompous manner. I''ve met God. 144-129 Bomb remarks (unexploded?) ） I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡Are you tired?¡¡--This is not a good time to learn how to recover mental strength. ...... "No, no, no, seriously, seriously! It''s also a great way to get the most out of your business. But all I get is a worried look from her. The members of the group seemed to think it was just a joke, but my insistence made them uneasy. Nao-kun......, you''ve been under a lot of stress for some time now, haven''t you? I''m not sure if you''re getting enough sleep at night.¡¡When you start hallucinating, it''s pretty serious. ...... No, seriously, don''t worry!¡¡I''m serious!¡¡See, you guys met God, too!¡¡Before you came to this world!¡¡And now you''re talking about d*mnation. That''s right, isn''t it?¡¡God is alive in this world, isn''t he? Yuki clapped her hands as if she had just realized what I had said. No, there is no Nietzsche in this world. It''s not impossible, and Toya and the others nodded their heads in agreement. "Actually, I came by the temple. I was wondering if I could get some holy water. I told them all what I had just experienced. I told them all what I had just experienced, which was indeed the story of how I came to be here. The detailed explanation may have cleared up their doubts, and Haruka and the others nodded their heads, somewhat surprised but satisfied, with happy expressions on their faces. You can check your level and experience?¡¡It''s a great idea! "Yeah. Yeah, it''s nice to know what you''re getting. Although it''s a bit ...... expensive to have to pay every time. Well, it''s definitely going to an orphanage, so that''s tolerable, now. When I first came here, it would have been a very painful expense. He said he''d give me a silver coin if I came often, but in the beginning, even a silver coin was important. The first few days were a real tightrope walk. But the first login bonus... I like ........ Is there an anniversary event or something? "No, I don''t think they''ll go that far.¡¡I''m sure it''s not going to go that far. But Nao-kun got something that works for everyone, right? But Nao got something that works on everyone. "Well, I''m the only one in the party, right? I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t confused. I knew I wanted to have amazing abilities. But I knew we would be fine, but I didn''t want to risk the disadvantage of us not getting along because of it. That''s why I got the [Slightly Increased Experience] benefit. Even 10 percent is better than nothing. "It''s useful if you have it, but it''s a fine line if you don''t. That''s why they call it game balance. Instead of killing 11 orcs, you only need to kill 10. ...... Yeah, it''s subtle. At least, it''s not a useful ability that makes you stronger all at once. If this has an effect on your normal training, it will probably make you remember things a little better. The effect of 10 minutes of training is 11 minutes. ...... It''s not so subtle. No, I''m grateful. I did put in some money, but it was basically given to me by Loha. Well, I can see why Nao is so smug, that was useful information. It had nothing to do with the undead. "Ugh, that''s true. --No, it had nothing to do with the fact that holy water is not so easy to get. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m sure it is if you don''t have any special skills. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. If you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''re going to want to make sure you''re getting the most out of your business. If holy water is valuable enough, a skill that adds high value to water would be quite useful. If done well, it could be more profitable than Toya''s [Kurosmithing] skill, if I do say so myself. I don''t know what to think, so let''s put it aside for now and all go to that temple tomorrow. You''re wondering about levels and experience, right? I agree!¡¡I''m curious too! I don''t think they''re all that different, but I''m curious, too. Then tomorrow we''ll go to the temple and get ready to go to Kerg. The discussion ended with Toya''s words, and the topic moved on to dinner. The next day we started early in the morning. The next day, he had brought everyone early in the morning to the temple he had visited yesterday. The next day, he brought everyone early in the morning to the temple he visited yesterday. This is the temple of Adversus, not of the evil god ......? I nodded at Haruka''s words, but kept my voice quiet. Yes. But from now on, it''s best not to talk about the evil god. It''s like a major god. I know. It would be dangerous if the priest hears about it. Then let''s be consistent with Adversus-sama from now on. Everyone nodded at Yuki''s suggestion, even though she said, "It''s a little hard to say. Even though he - or rather, the main god(?) Even though he - or the main deity (?) - called himself that, his followers would not be happy to be treated as evil gods. In fact, if we were radical believers, we might be subjected to the Inquisition and ostracized. There is no need to cause unnecessary trouble over a mere term of endearment. Even in a country that is tolerant of religion,......, it is precisely because it is tolerant that acts that undermine the faith of others will be severely criticized. When I entered the temple with Haruka and the others, I found the goddess who had taken care of me yesterday there. From what she was holding in her hand, I guessed that she had been cleaning the temple since early morning. "Oh, you''re ...... here again yesterday, aren''t you? I''m sorry to bother you. My companions wanted to pray too, so I brought them. That''s good. God is always watching over you. I bowed my head to the priest who nodded his head with a happy expression, walked in front of the statue of the god, and threw money into the money box. The same as yesterday, a large silver coin. Haruka and the others follow suit and throw in a large silver coin. The priest who was watching them called out to them with a slightly puzzled expression. I''m very grateful, but there''s no need to be too hard on yourself.¡¡The most important thing is how you feel. God does not discriminate based on the amount of your donation. No, the god told me to donate. --If you come often, you can give silver coins. No, it''s the least we can do. You run an orphanage, don''t you?¡¡It''s the least we can do to help the less fortunate children. The one who smiled and responded without hesitation was Haruka. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡What a wonderful thing to do!¡¡You must be blessed by the gods. I''ll be praying for your safety too, if I may be so bold. We felt a little uncomfortable with the priest praying on his knees as he said this, but we also imitated him in our prayers to the statue. "Nao is now level 13. She needs 2,320 experience to level up to the next level. We heard the same voice as yesterday. However, there was no response to my question in my mind, and it seemed that it was really just telling me my level and experience. I don''t remember the details. I don''t remember the details, but I think they said 2,500. ....... I haven''t hunted any demons since then, and the only thing I''ve done is my daily training. So does that mean I can get some experience from training? While I was thinking about this, the other members seemed to have finished asking me about my level and experience, and each stood up with a slightly surprised and happy expression on their faces. I followed suit and hurriedly stood up. I''m sorry to have disturbed you. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. No, you are welcome to come anytime. You don''t have to make a donation, you can just pray to the gods. "Yes, thank you. I thank you, but I don''t plan to come when I can''t donate. If we don''t donate, they won''t tell us our level and experience. That''s our only goal. Sorry to the priests, but we don''t believe in any gods. We said goodbye to the priest who saw us off with a smile, and left the temple. After a short walk, Toya opened his mouth happily. "Hey, how did it go?¡¡I was level 13! "Me too. I was 12. I was 12. Is it because I joined later? I''m the same as Natsuki. Haruka and the others had trained before coming to Sahlstat, so maybe that''s the difference? You can say that there is no difference at level 1. As the level goes up, it will be the same. In general, in games, it is natural that the amount of experience required increases as the level increases. Even if we don''t reach the same level, we don''t plan to attack at the very edge where it would be a problem. Safety first. That''s it. 12 and 13. You''ve been an adventurer for about six months, right? Yeah. I don''t know if this level is good or bad, but it''s nice to have a rough idea. Oh, by the way, someone said that I''m doing well considering how long I''ve been here. Is that so?¡¡Then I guess it''s not so bad for an adventurer of this rank?¡¡It''s a pity we can''t compare ourselves to other adventurers. The other adventurers can''t check their levels like we can, so I guess it can''t be helped, but in the end, our levels are just a relative evaluation among us, and we can''t tell if we''re stronger than others. If I had to guess, I''d say it''s the [inspection] that God pointed out. You may be able to make a pseudo-level evaluation, because you can make sensory judgments as to whether you are strong or weak compared to yourself. If you''re a classmate, you may know your level. ...... I''m sure your classmates will be able to tell you your level, but " Natsuki smiles in annoyance as he says this. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I can''t help but wonder if it''s worth sharing this information with the classmates I''ve met so far. If it were Tommy, we could tell him, but since he''s already a blacksmith and not an adventurer, it wouldn''t make much sense. However, if Tommy has a gamer''s mind, he will enjoy just knowing his level and experience, so it would be good to teach him when he has a chance. Well, to be honest, I don''t want to be called ''no good. I''d be pretty upset if someone told me I was slacking off too much. We''re working pretty hard, aren''t we? "Compared to the adventurers you see in this town, yes. But it''s no use looking down, Toya. That''s Natsuki. You''re so serious!¡¡But it''s true, isn''t it? But it''s true. Saying, "There are people who have worse grades than me," only fills you with vanity, it doesn''t mean anything. The high achievers have a different mindset. I guess I''m different from those who compromise by saying, "Well, I''m above average, so it''s okay. Even so, I made an effort to avoid getting red marks. Or, more accurately, was I being made to work hard?¡¡Haruka and the others. Now, I know we''re supposed to be getting ready to go to Kerg, but ...... what kind of preparation do I really need to do?¡¡What am I supposed to do? "It usually takes about three days to get from Laffan to Kerg by carriage, so you''ll need to pack some food and check for regular flights or travel on your own. ...... Haruka slurred his words as he thought about it. We don''t need food in our case. The same goes for a change of clothes. I''m not sure what to do. We can get water with magic. ...... No need to prepare, right? Magic bags and magic, very useful. "Then we''ll just have to see if we can get regular service. But if it''s only three days by carriage, it''s faster for us to run. We don''t have any luggage. We''ve been training hard, and our running ability is nowhere near that of an Olympic marathoner. Moreover, since we can put all the luggage we need to carry in our magic bags, we can run with just one body. Even if he rode a horse, let alone a carriage, he would probably get there faster than if he ran on his own feet. So, what do we do?¡¡Are we leaving?¡¡Now. There was no one who disagreed with those words, and as a result, we changed our plans and left Laffan later that day. 145-130 Kerg (1) About three days by carriage. That may sound like a long way, but in reality, the speed of the carriage is only a little faster than an adult walking. The journey is a bit rough, and we stop every few hours to rest. When the sun goes down, we sleep. With such a leisurely pace, we didn''t have much distance to cover, but we kept running, except for a break for lunch, and arrived at the town of Kergu at dusk that day. Considering the amount of time we had spent running, it must have been quite a distance, but I was amazed at myself for being able to do it. Maybe it''s the result of daily running, but we''re not human anymore, are we? By the standards of the original world, of course. It''s a big city, indeed. Yes, it is. It looks bigger than Laffan. We walked through the gates a bit quickly, as the town is closed to visitors after dark, and we were looking for an inn in the town of Kerg. It''s not likely that you''ll be able to find a hole in the ground like the Bear Pavilion, and you''ll want a comfortable inn, even if it costs a bit more. ....... It''s a good idea to ask at the guild. "But it''s definitely crowded at this time of night. Oh, that''s true. It''s evening. This is the time of day when most adventurers come after work. What would happen if an unfamiliar adventurer showed up and asked for a good place to stay? Our gear was still mainly chainmail, and Toya was the only one who looked strong enough to be recognizable. And the women are all beautiful. It''s unlikely that anything will happen. "...... is all I can do. Shall we ask at the stall? Yeah. I hope it''s at least a little bit good. Let''s just get a simple skewer or something. As long as we hear about it, we can''t afford not to buy anything, but it''s a little ...... difficult to say whether we can eat the same food that we ate at the stall on the first day, since we''ve been eating so well lately. But it''s a shame to throw it away without eating it, and there''s no way you can throw it away if you have to return the bowl. So let''s split up and listen to what each other has to say. You are responsible for disposing of your purchases. "Yes, sir. It was dinner time, and there were many food stalls. We split up into groups and picked out some of the most interesting items from the stalls. Simple is best, right? Preferably just grilled meat with salt. It may not be delicious, but it''s not inedible. I looked around and spotted a stall run by an elderly woman. There, she laid out thin slices of meat on a griddle, fried them briefly, put them in a bowl, and served them with a fork. The only seasoning was a sprinkling of salt. Yes, simple. Nice. "Auntie, give me one. "Sure!¡¡Do you want some bread? Oh, no, just the meat. Here. Two silver pieces. Hmm. Is that so?¡¡The meat poste at Aella''s place is 15 rare. I took the bowl in exchange for the money and tried it. Whoa! "What do you think? It''s good. I thought you only used salt. The lady smiled at me with a surprised expression on her face. "There''s a little secret spice in it. That''s the secret. The meat was a little tough, but thanks to the thin slices, it didn''t bother me that much. The meat is a little tough, but the thin slices don''t bother me that much. It''s still juicy because it''s fried quickly, and the slight taste of salt gives it a nice flavor. It''s a winner. In a town with food stalls of this caliber, you might expect the same from the accommodations. I finished my meal quickly, and while returning the bowl, I asked for information about the real thing. Auntie, it was delicious. I''m also looking for a good place to stay, do you know any?¡¡I don''t care if it''s a little expensive, I just want a place with good food. I''m looking for a good place to stay.¡¡I know it''s a family affair, but it''s not so bad. Yeah, no problem. Can you tell me about it? If the aunt''s sister can cook this food, the inn''s food seems to be reliable, and since the inn is run by her family from the beginning, there is no need to worry about being ripped off. After I heard the name and location of the inn from the lady, I thanked her again and left the place, waiting for everyone to come back. "How was it? "How was it? It was Toya who opened his mouth first, sighing at Haruka''s words. I''m out. I bought the skewers, and they were not inedible, but the meat itself smelled bad. No, Haruka is talking about the inn, right? "Yeah, I''ve heard that one before, but I wonder... ....... How can you trust an innkeeper with good food recommended by a bad street vendor? I couldn''t help but agree with Toya''s sarcastic words. It''s true. And if the innkeeper''s food is good, it means he thinks his own food is bad and is selling it. Fortunately, the innkeeper Toya mentioned was different from the one I had heard about. I think I got it right.¡¡It was pretty good. I didn''t cook. I bought the ingredients. Me too. I also have a magic bag. Natsuki and Haruka were clever in a way. They are smart in a way, though they can''t judge an innkeeper by the taste of his food. And each of them mentioned a different innkeeper. Is it a coincidence that Yuki''s innkeeper is the same as the one I asked about, or is there a connection between good food? I wondered if it was a coincidence that the inn Yuki mentioned was the same as the one I had asked about.¡¡I guess we''ll have to choose that one. That''s right. In the case of Haruka and I, it''s a store, so we could have mentioned an innkeeper we do business with. Yeah, there''s no need to choose anything else. Let''s go there. The inn I was told about was located in an alley off the main street. The Bear Pavilion was also in an unnoticeable location, so I wondered if a good innkeeper would be located in a slightly inconspicuous place.¡¡Or does a good innkeeper have to be a good innkeeper to survive in a low profile place? It''s not bad looking, is it? Yes, it is. It''s a fairly new building. Yuki led the way inside, and the woman sitting at the counter immediately approached us. "Welcome. Are you staying here? Do you have a room for three or two? "Yes, that''s fine. One night? One night for now. The price the lady told us was more than twice as much as that of the Bear Pavilion, but it was not particularly expensive, considering that the Bear Pavilion was particularly cheap and that Kergu was more urban than Laffan. The room we were shown to was rather small in size, but it was cleaned well and the facilities were relatively new, so it was quite comfortable. The dishes served for dinner were a little different from those of Kumatei, but they were tasty enough. While the food served at the Kumatei was a bit thickly seasoned, which would be liked by drinkers, the food served at this inn was a bit lighter, but with a spicy aroma that stimulated our appetite. Haruka and his friends said they preferred this kind of food, so it could be said that this kind of food is popular among women. It looks like we can stay here for a while. I was thinking of rushing off to do some errands. "Well, yes. I was thinking of staying at the Sahlstadt Inn. Don''t remind me! Don''t remind me!" Natsuki immediately interrupted me. You''re right, I don''t want to be reminded of that inn either. I want to forget the taste of the food I ate there, but it was so shockingly bad that it''s hard to forget. But it''s a problem if you''re away from home too much, isn''t it? I''ve got a security system in place, and I don''t keep anything expensive at home. At these words, Toya''s face instantly turned sullen. "That thing that Haruka and Yuki made? ...... In the past, Haruka and her friends, who were told by Toya that it would be inconvenient without a doorbell, used alchemy to create a security system at the same time as the doorbell and installed it in the house. Toya, the toughest of us all, was the test subject at that time. The experiment was only painful and not injurious, but it was a very hard experience because it was designed to repel intruders. Incidentally, I heard that these are installed on the walls and gates of houses, and that there are more deadly ones installed on the buildings themselves. Specifically, the kind that will kill you if you are not careful. To be honest, I''m afraid of a malfunction, but I guess we''ll just have to trust Haruka and the others. But storage units are quite expensive, aren''t they? Oh, that''s true, they are expensive. But it''s not really suitable for stealing, is it? It''s huge, you know. The only other things in the house are furniture, a bed, and a futon, because he carries everything else in his magic bag. The only other things in the house are the furniture, the bed, and the futon. It is quite inconvenient to have no bank or any other institution to deposit money. So, what do we do tomorrow? First, let''s clarify our purpose. We''re going to buy some alchemical materials to make a magic weapon, right? Yes, we are. But if there''s a good weapon on the market that works against ghosts, I''m willing to buy it. Agreed. The question is, how do the other weapons compare to what Gantz-san makes? I wonder how good they really are? Not bad, right? Tommy has a [blacksmithing talent] and his [blacksmithing] skill is level 3. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. At the very least, there aren''t many adventurers in that town who can afford to pay more than we can. If you want to make money, you should open a store in a town with higher-ranked adventurers. Well, you can look around the weapon shops for that. I''m more interested in the magic activator. Yes, I''d like to have enough for everyone but Toya, if possible. Yes. It''ll help with the healing process. Fortunately, so far there have been no injuries worse than broken bones, but even now that Haruka and the others have raised their magic levels, they are still unable to heal the missing parts. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to get the best results, you can call us at the web site. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, it''s possible that you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. And then there''s ...... the holy water, which I''m not expecting. If the holy water available in this city is from the Order of the Sutomie Saints, it''s almost pointless. There''s almost no chance that proper holy water is available in large quantities here when it''s not available in Rafan''s temple. "Yeah, I guess you''re right. I guess I''ll just leave this one alone. The holy water itself seems to be difficult to use in battle. The cost and effort would be ridiculous if you had to drip holy water on your weapon every time. If you want to use it, you should scatter it to the undead and run away while you can. I''d like to stop by the Adventurer''s Guild, too. It''s bigger than Rafan''s, right?¡¡I''m curious to see what they have to offer. "The guild? I''d like to see their archives. Rafan''s archives are at ....... Yeah, ...... is a little poor. It might have been a good effort considering that it was handwritten, but the amount of information was a bit too much for a reference room. It''s not a bad idea to read it in this guild, considering Toya''s [Appraisal] skill. I''m not sure if they''re going back to Rafan now that spring has arrived. Haruka suddenly said, and I thought for a moment, "They? I thought for a moment, "They?" and then came up with "Back to Laffan. "Tokuoka and the others?¡¡I haven''t seen them. If they''re making good money in the city, there''s a chance they won''t come back. ...... It''s better they don''t come back. Oh, that''s harsh. I agree with you. I''m sorry, but those guys are not the kind of people you want to get along with. If they behaved normally, I wouldn''t have to confront them, even if they have land mines. So there''s a chance they''re in this city. For efficiency''s sake, it''s better to search separately, but it''s better to avoid ....... It''s only when you do that that you run into trouble. This is a so-called flag. I don''t know their level, but I don''t think they''re weak enough for a long-distance Haruka to overrun them by herself. They can''t even use magic in the city. Natsuki might be able to do it, but if they were all together, there wouldn''t even be a fight. They''re a bit chicken-hearted. So tomorrow we''ll go to ......, and we''ll go around town for about three days and look for things. Is that okay? The day''s discussion ended with everyone nodding in agreement to Haruka''s suggestion. The next morning we went to the inn. The next morning, after hearing a lot of information from the lady at the inn, we first went to the weapon shop. The town was bigger than Laffan, and there were several weapon shops, but the quality of the weapons in the stores was not very good. I showed them the weapons I had and asked, "Do you have anything better than this? Most of them shook their heads, and the ones that came out were not suitable for our fighting style. And they''re expensive. We found a few magic weapons, but considering our history, it seemed safer to simply prepare the materials and have Mr. Gantz make them for us, so we didn''t bother with them. It''s a big town, but honestly, it''s a disappointment. Either Mr. Gantz is great or this town is pathetic. ...... It''s the former. There are a lot of adventurers in this town. Yeah, right. We''re lucky, aren''t we? I''m sure I''ve contributed a good deal, but I''ve also taken care of them, so I''m definitely indebted to them. I''m sure he''s been a great help to us. "So, the next step is alchemy. You have a few stores, right? Yes. There weren''t many decent stores in Laffan, so I''m expecting something. That''s right. There were a lot of things in the book that we couldn''t make because we couldn''t get the materials! It seems that there were almost no stores for alchemists in Raffan, because there was no need for them without alchemists. The fact that there were several stores in Kerg meant that the population was large. "Well then, to the alchemy shop-- Thank you for your patience!¡¡We will now begin the distribution of holy water! It was a voice that echoed around the area, interrupting Haruka''s words. 146-131 Satmy Communith "Holy water distribution? While we were twisting our heads around at the strange words, people were gathering, and where we heard the voices, a crowd was quickly forming. What the hell is that? That''s the Order of the Sutomie Saints. Frankly, it''s annoying. ...... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure what to make of that. "It''s definitely a distraction when that many people gather. Can''t you crack down on them? No, no, no. I''ve heard that some people upstairs have become believers as well. It''s not exactly illegal, so the guards don''t want to get involved. It''s true that what they are doing is the same as a food stall. It''s just that people are gathering in large numbers. We change the location every time, so it''s a little better. ...... While we were listening to the uncle, the "holy water distribution event" seemed to be very successful, and we could hear the voices of the vendors. "A bottle of holy water comes with a voting ticket, and a set of ten bottles comes with a handshake ticket! "......, the sales style is reminiscent of some idols. Compared to that, holy water is still consumable, but ......1 you don''t need 100 bottles for one person. I''m not sure if it even works in the first place. There is no use for it. So, the holy water is sold and then thrown away somewhere? "Oh, girl, you get it, don''t you?¡¡I''m troubled by the fact that so many people buy it and then just throw it away. It''s a nuisance. People gather around, but they don''t shop around, and the only ones making money are them and the workshop that makes the bottles. The only ones who are making money are them and the workshop that makes bottles. That''s right, if you put all your money into that, you won''t be able to afford to buy anything else. Moreover, it would be the neighbors who would have to clean up the discarded items. It''s annoying as hell. Yeah. By the way, what are handshake tickets and voting tickets? Oh, you know... According to the old man''s explanation, the Satomie Order is a religious organization with a saint named Satomie at the top, surrounded by beautiful girls called ''saints''. And as the name suggests, handshake tickets and voting tickets allow you to shake hands with the saints and vote to decide the order of the saints. --It''s a system I''ve heard of before. "Well, does that mean that the saint named Satomi will be decided by the vote? No, that would be ''Hall of Fame'' indeed. If that''s changed, it won''t be the Order of Satomi, will it? Sure. Well, it seems like they don''t even have to vote for Saint Satomi. Is she that popular? Yeah. It''s crazy. The ones I''ve talked to are definitely believers. We all frowned at that statement. That''s definitely a weird skill to use. Moreover, from what I''ve heard so far, it''s almost certainly the work of a classmate. Takamatsu is almost certain to be involved. Other classmates may also be involved. By the way, if I have a handshake ticket, can I shake hands with Saint Satomi? "She''s treated differently. You can shake hands with the saints around you with a regular handshake ticket. I''m sure you''ve heard that you have to collect 100 tickets for Saint Satomi? If you are really popular, you may have no choice due to time constraints, but the quality is quite poor. But you know a lot, don''t you, Uncle? But you know a lot, don''t you?" "Well, if you have a lot of ''hanpukai'' going on around you, you''re bound to get some information. I''m not happy about it. The man sighs tiredly. "If you want to draw lots, this is the place!¡¡Ten handshake tickets will give you eleven chances to win! "Is this a gacha? Toya raised his voice at the sound of the salesman''s voice. But I understand the feeling. You''re getting into that side of things. I wonder if they''re going to start advertising, ''10 free raffles if you join! I wonder if they''ll start advertising, "10 free raffles if you join! "...... What''s that lottery for? "Well?¡¡We''ve never done that before. ...... I''ll go check it out. Seeing that the uncle had no idea and twisted his neck, Toya walked up to the group of believers and came back a moment later. Welcome back. I''m back. That was quite a tough mess. With a wry smile on his face, Toya told me that the lottery contained. One ticket gets you a handshake with Saint Satomi. A ticket to have the saint of your choice call you by name. A ticket to spend an hour with the saint of your choice. Voting ticket A ticket to spend an hour with the saint of your choice. Apparently there are five types of tickets. The second and third tickets can be collected to make you a Saint Satomi. However, as far as Toya could see, only one ballot ticket came out, and the rest were all holy water vouchers. That''s over a hundred times, so it''s pretty low. I wonder if he''ll be okay?¡¡I''m afraid I''m going to go bankrupt ...... because I''ve spent too much money and I might fall into slavery or something. I''m not sure I''d go into debt to buy one, but if the reason people are attracted to it is because of the skill, I can''t say it''s not a possibility. In the event that you have a gambling addiction, it is a kind of disease, and if you have gotten into gambling, you are in danger. I also got him some holy water. You said you didn''t want it. Toya held out five bottles of holy water. The five bottles were small enough to fit in one hand, and he could have easily shared them with the people around him. All you need is the ticket that comes with it. Do you think it''ll work? It looks like ...... it''s just water. Toya opens a bottle, puts it in his palm and smells it, but it doesn''t smell like anything and he twists his head. I tried to touch it, but it was just water to the touch and smell. I can''t bring myself to lick it, but if you''re asking me if it''s effective against the undead, ....... I''m not sure.¡¡Ladies, do you need holy water?¡¡You seem like adventurers, or are you undead?¡¡Honestly, I wouldn''t recommend using that, okay?¡¡Even if the temples of this city put all their strength together, they can''t make holy water that can be dispersed in such large quantities. Of course. In the first place, the Order of the Holy Satmy has never claimed that the holy water is effective against the undead. We were stunned for a moment, unable to catch up with the words that were said with a wry smile. What?¡¡No, no, no, you''re right. If so, then this holy water is ......? We thought that because it was holy water, it would be effective against the undead, and indeed, the holy water sold there - well, the holy water distributed there is not labeled as being effective against the undead. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the future. "Wow, ...... is so gray. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. After meeting Advaistris, I found out that there are temples of five gods in this world, and Advaistris is one of them. The holy water that can be shared in those temples is indeed effective against the undead. That''s why you would expect the same holy water to have the same effect, but the Order of the Sutomy Saints itself has not stated anything in particular. But aren''t Japanese supplements even more gray?¡¡For example, they say ''for those with high blood pressure'' or ''to support Honyara'', but they sell them without stating that they are effective. "Oh!¡¡That''s right!¡¡And then there''s the little message that says, "This is my personal opinion. If it''s a personal opinion, what does it matter what I say? They sell things that have no scientific basis. Yes, there is!¡¡Yes! The holy water here doesn''t claim to be effective, but they advertise it as effective without any evidence. There are other logical leaps that don''t make any sense, like, "It''s a substance that works when injected, so it must also work when eaten. Shady professors and papers are also a staple. That''s the only thing that seems to give them credibility. "Yes, yes. If you just want to write a paper, anyone can write it, and there are journals that will publish it if you pay for it, so whether it''s correct or not is another matter. I''m not sure if I''m right or not. I didn''t know what he was talking about, but he was out of the picture. I didn''t understand it, but I guess there are scam-like stories like this all over the place. By the way, do you have a plan to deal with it? We looked at each other as the uncle asked. We looked at each other and said, "That''s something the government needs to do. There''s no point in trying to explain to people who are being deceived. "They won''t listen to what other people have to say. It might be a little different if the family could convince them. ...... Is there a problem, the Order of the Sutomie Saints? Some. But it''s difficult because there are so many followers. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Moreover, the number of followers seems to be increasing, and it is slowly affecting the sales of various places. "It doesn''t mean you''ll make more money. If you buy holy water, it''s natural that your consumption of other things will decrease. The most affected are probably the bars. It''s probably the bars that are affected the most, but not so much because of the regular food. I can live without drinking, but I can''t live without eating. But in the long run, it will definitely affect the economy of the whole town. It depends on how the money collected by the Order of the Saints of Satomi will be used. ...... In a sense, it is inevitable that the economic structure will change. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m not sure if you''re based in Rafan or not.¡¡The Order of the Saints is growing steadily. ...... But if it''s going to spread, it''s more likely to be in Pining, not Rafan. It has a large population. Pining is a territorial city, so it is more urban and has more people than Kergu. Of course, it''s not as big as Raffan, so if you''re thinking about the size of the market (?), you should choose Pining. It''s not as big as Rafan, of course, so if you''re thinking about market size (?), you should choose Pining. Should we say that we are ...... fortunate? We''d like to see something happen before that happens, though. "We''d like to see something happen before that happens," said the man, sighing wearily again. We agree with you. We hope that the situation will be resolved soon, or at the very least, it will be completed within Kerg. --Not much to look forward to, though. We bought a few items from his stall as a thank you for listening to us, and left. 147-132 Kerg (2) "That looked pretty nasty, the Order of the Sutomy Saints. "Believers ...... are dollar geeks, mostly. There are some powerful people there, right?¡¡No way, does it include the nobility? "The powerful dollar geeks ...... are out of control. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. No, not that much. ...... Does that mean you have something against them? I''ve had some trouble with bad manners before, Natsuki. I know it''s just a few of them, but it''s really bad for your image. Yuki''s words made Natsuki shake his head with a wry smile. It is true that minor hobbyists tend to be looked at in that way. In fact, it is only the individual who is at fault. "I think its influence as an original religion is limited in this world where God exists, but ...... No, dollar geeks are a religion of sorts. The problem is that the Order of the Sutomy Saints sucks up an inordinate amount of money. To some extent it can be absorbed as a kind of economic activity, but if it becomes an irresistible skill-based money collection system, ...... Will there be greater social distortion? Yes. The result will be social unrest, increased slavery, and worsening public safety. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing and how you''re doing it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what to do with it.¡¡It''s not going to do any good if we get involved. "Well, I guess so. I''m not sure what to make of this. It has not been determined yet that Takamatsu-san deceived Aella-san, though. But there is no advantage to getting involved. Let''s finish our business and return to Rafaan. If she tries to come to Rafan, then we''ll have to think about it. "Well, we don''t have to be responsible for the actions of our classmates, do we? If we dare to be responsible, it would be Adversus, but since it would be a ''does a knife kill'' kind of argument, we can just say that Takamatsu himself is responsible. So, let''s head to the alchemy store as originally planned. "Oh, corn. "Oh, corn. It''s ...... dry. In the middle of going around some alchemy stores, Yuki stopped to say so. The corn was piled up in baskets at the stall. It was not the corn with ears and skin on it that you see in supermarkets, but a pile of neatly peeled corn, slightly smaller in size. "Oh, by the way, you mentioned corn and flower seeds. Do you want to buy some? "Yes. But will they still sprout if they''re dry? Corn seeds are dried and crinkled, so I think they''ll be fine.¡¡If they''ve been heated and then dried, they won''t sprout. I''ll go buy some then! I was also a little curious, so I followed Yuki to the stall. There are so many different colors. Yes, in Japan it''s yellow or white, but around the world there are many different colors. Red and other warm colors, but colors like blue are a little unappetizing. ...... Well, it''s hard to get used to. I think I''ll just buy the yellowish one and go home. I''ve heard that when you cross-breed, the colors get mixed. By the way, I once heard a farmer say that in order to grow pure white corn, you have to be far enough away from the yellow variety to prevent its pollen from flying. Corn with yellow and blue grains mixed in ...... color and taste may be different, but the appearance is also important, right? "Are you guys buying? I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. A merchant, perhaps? He looked a bit frail for a farmer. He asked, "Well, how do you eat this? As expected, Yuki had never used dried corn before, so she asked the shopkeeper. If it''s regular corn, you can boil it and eat it, but if it''s dried corn, you can grind it into ...... powder and eat it in tortillas?¡¡No, the only thing I know is that tortillas are made from corn flour. Oh, you don''t know?¡¡Well, they''re not eaten as much as wheat around here. These grains are taken off the cob and cooked with soup, or ground into flour to make bread. It tastes so different from wheat, doesn''t it? Is it a crop that doesn''t grow in this area? No, I don''t think so.¡¡I don''t think so. I think they just don''t grow it because it''s not eaten.¡¡I mean, there are places nearby that grow it. So, you''re a hawker? Yes, he is. He goes around to the towns around here. What you see here are crops he bought in other towns. I see. Well, give me ten of each of these three. From the pile of corn, Yuki selects three yellow ones and points to them to order. Hi!¡¡Do you like the yellow one, sister? Well, it looks better when it''s yellow, doesn''t it? Is that what it is?¡¡Doesn''t red look good?¡¡It tastes a little different from yellow. The merchant twisted his head as he filled the bag with the corn he had ordered. If you say it''s just a stereotype, you''re right. Red beans are usually red, dark purple is a common color in fruits, and eggplant is purple. On the other hand, yellow and white fruits usually look like they are not properly ripe. It is just a matter of the familiar corn being yellow. Yuki understands this, so she smiles and opens her mouth. It''s just my personal feeling. Besides, if it''s a dark color, it might get colored when you put it in soup or something. Most of them are white inside, just the skin. ...... Well, do you care about the color of the skin?¡¡You can get a little color. He twisted his head a little, but I think he understood Yuki''s point. He nodded, threw one of the colored ones into the bag, and held it out. He nodded and threw one of the colored ones in the bag and held it out. "Are you sure?¡¡Thanks!¡¡I''ll come back for more when I get a chance. Yeah. I open a store around here sometimes. When we came back from buying corn, three other people were just coming back from buying something from the stall. I was carrying a sack that I could hold in one hand, but Natsuki was carrying a sack that she could hold in the other. But Natsuki has a bag that she can hold with one hand, and it''s big enough to hold a few kilos of rice. Did Natsuki and the others buy something too? Yes. They were selling rapeseed, so we bought that. Rapeseed. ...... So-called oilseed rape. You want to press oil?¡¡We certainly don''t have vegetable oil. We have plenty of fat from animals, so we didn''t have a chance to buy it. It''s true that lard is a bit on the sticky side, and it would be nice to have salad oil. Yes, the rape blossom field is nice. It''s a big garden, so it''s worth seeing!¡¡And you can plant them in places other than flower beds! They were not for eating, but for viewing. It seems that ornamental flowers are not sold very often. It might be easier to plant crops that can also be enjoyed with flowers. I guess I''ll just have to get them myself. If you go to the forest at the right time of year, you might find some lilies. If it''s a bulb type plant, it''s easy to transplant. "Lilies, that''s good, too. Bulbs don''t require much work. Do you have any tulips? There might be natives, but I''m not sure about .......¡¡In that forest. I don''t remember seeing many flowers. ...... I don''t remember seeing many flowers in that forest, but I don''t remember being aware of them either. It''s possible that you simply didn''t see the flowers because you didn''t have time to love them, but is it that convenient for you to see them in the forest? I don''t remember if there are tulips or not.¡¡There may or may not be tulips, though. In Japan, it''s bad manners to pick wild flowers, but here it''s probably okay. Natsuki and Haruka seemed to have noticed. I looked at Toya and asked, "Did you notice? I''m not sure if that''s a difference between men and women''s awareness or not. Recently, I''ve been collecting herbs only for my own consumption, so I don''t have many opportunities to pay attention to plants. So, are you done with the flower seeds? "I''ll buy them if they''re available, but I don''t need to look for them?¡¡Is that okay? I guess so. It''s just a hobby, that''s all. Okay. Let''s go to the alchemy store. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a good idea to have a little more time to think about it. This is the first time I''ve ever been to an alchemy shop. There are four alchemy stores in this town, as far as we could tell. We went to these four stores to buy the materials we needed. We got all the materials we needed at the second store, but since we had some money to spare, we planned to visit all the stores to buy more materials and to look for magic activators. However, he was not able to find a magic trigger until the third shop, and then, hoping for a ray of hope, he asked the same question at the fourth shop. "Do you have a magic trigger? "No. The owner, an old woman, replied in the same curt manner as in the previous stores. But there was more to the shopkeeper''s words. That''s the kind of thing you deal with in a weapons shop, isn''t it?¡¡Why are you asking me here? "Oh, no. I''m not looking for weapons, I''m looking for rings and things like that. Do you have any idea what it is? I asked at the weapon shop I visited in the morning, but all I got were wands and staff-type activators, no rings. If they were still very effective, I would have bought one, but they looked too delicate and were very expensive. If you''re going to buy them, you might as well spend your money on normal weapons and armor, and you''ll have a better chance of survival. The other members of the group were of the same opinion, and in the end, they did not buy any of them. Not the weapon type?¡¡I think that''s a little difficult. Is that so? Activators don''t come around very often. Not many magicians can make them. You also need precious magic stones. It is alchemists who make the triggering body, but the number of alchemists who can actually make it is quite limited. Even the triggers that we rated as subtle are quite difficult to make, and that seems to be reflected in the price. I see. ...... By the way, where''s your grandmother? "Me?¡¡I can''t do it. She wasn''t good enough. The shopkeeper shakes his head and sighs. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You can get it at a local store, and it''s just about the same. "Just a feeling? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out if you''re using a certain level of high quality magic stone. The reason why he felt it was too subtle when he saw it in the weapon shop was because it was indeed too subtle. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. We''re not going to be doing any "that little bit can mean the difference between life and death! We know that we have experience. By the way, what is the level of high level? "At least the level of a phantasm--a gryphon or something like that. I''ve heard some eyebrow-raising stories about dragons being able to consume half as much magic power, or being able to use magic one or two levels higher. That''s great. If you''re in the market for a brand-new pair of shoes, you''re in luck. The only problem is that it''s ''spiteful''. "How can it be spiteful? No, no, no. There''s no such thing as a magic stone activator in circulation. It would be a national treasure. Even if it''s made of phantasmal magic stones, it would be auctioned off in the capital. Incidentally, if it were to be auctioned, it would be a story of pure gold coins flying around. Pure gold coins -- as the name implies, these are gold coins of pure gold that are not normally in circulation. Ten gold coins are worth a large gold coin, and a pure gold coin is worth 100 large gold coins. The size of the coin is said to be as huge as the palm of your hand. I don''t know, because I have never seen one. Basically, it is a coin for stockpiling, so it is almost impossible for ordinary people to see. It is pure gold, but if it were circulated normally, it would be easily scratched and shaved, and would be very useless. With our current savings, we could get our hands on it, but I don''t think we''d be able to compete in a ''fly-by-night'' auction. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you can afford. ....... I''m not sure what to do. It depends on the item. There are some that you can buy without having to pay pure gold, but there are not many in circulation. So it''s difficult to make them yourself. If you''re at that level, the need for the activator is already low. I understand. Thank you for everything. Thank you for everything. Come again. 148-133 Kerg (3) I think it''s better to give up on the activator. It was Haruka who said this as she walked out of the store. The other members of the group may have thought so as well as me, and they all nodded in agreement with Haruka''s words. It''s not practical to collect enough money to win the auction, and if you have that much money, it would be more meaningful to spend it on something else. It''s a shame. "Yeah. I had high hopes for it. I thought it would come in handy if I could use three Fire Arrows at the same time. ...... In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. However, it is quite difficult to hit different targets with them without fail. It is possible to hit a single target, or three targets that are extremely close to each other, but if the targets are in different locations, there will be a considerable discrepancy in the landing position. I was hoping that I could do something about it with a projectile, but it seems to be useless, at least for something that can be easily obtained. Well, I''m going to practice making one, but if I make it myself ......, it won''t hurt too much, even if the effect is only a little. I''ve got the materials I need. Is that part of the reason you bought so much? Yes. Yeah, I was doing some research. It''s a shame we had to sell the Orc Leader''s magic stone. "So, out of all the ones we''ve killed, Oak Leader is the top one. What''s next? "In terms of purchase price, I''d say the Bind Viper. A little more expensive than orcs. That one, ......, isn''t very strong, so I don''t think we can expect much from it. If you can kill it with a single sword, you have to say it''s a little delicate. However, there are no demons that are stronger than that one, and for that reason, forcing yourself to go and kill it would be a fallacy. The purpose is to improve our safety. Even if it''s useless now, we can practice it and make it when we get a good magic stone. "Right. --So we just go to the guild and that''s it? Yes. I''m not sure I''ve achieved my goal. It''s okay. We''ve got the materials for the alchemy. We''re a little halfway there in terms of time. ...... Well, let''s go. I''ll be there. It was earlier than the most crowded time of the guild, but there were many adventurers at the guild in Kerg. The guild building was large and had a lot of staff, so it wasn''t as crowded as it should have been, but it was very different from Rafan. When we entered the guild, there were a few people looking at us, but fortunately there was no one in particular who wanted to get involved, so we went to an empty counter and called out to the lady at the reception desk. Yes, in this guild, half of the employees sitting at the counter are women. It''s not that I have anything against Diora, but I can''t help but be a little curious about young girls, can I? "Hello. Do you have a reference room? Yes, we do. Only adventurers are allowed to use it, so let me check your guild card. Yes, sir. When we all produced our guild cards, she checked each one and nodded. Thank you very much. The reference room is over there. Please handle the documents with care. If they are damaged, you will have to pay for it. "I understand. The room she led me to was indeed the reference room. Specifically, there were books lined up on the bookshelves - only about ten books. Still, it was better than Rafan''s, where there were only a few books on the desk. There are a lot of books, but some of them are the same as ....... There are only eight different kinds. But that''s twice as many books as Rafan, and they''re books. The ones at Rafan were more like handmade booklets. But it''s nice to have the same book. It''ll save me a lot of time. "That''s true. Now, the ones who need to read the book the most are Toya and Yuki, how long do you think it will take them to read it? I can read ...... today, and tomorrow ...... the day after tomorrow. What? How fast can you read that?¡¡There are eight books. Toya sounded surprised at Yuki''s words, but Yuki flipped through the book and nodded. It''s okay. There aren''t that many pages compared to the thickness of the book. The paper is thick. That''s ...... true, but I''ll have to wait until the day after tomorrow, maybe even the day after tomorrow. Then we can stay here at ......3 and read until the next day, and return to Laffan in four days. Is that okay? Haruka nodded in response to Toya''s somewhat unsure words, and suggested that they do so. Without any particular reason to disagree with that suggestion, we each picked up a book and started reading. I picked up a book about demons, and although it had more demons than Rafan, there were still a lot of duplicates in the neighboring towns. Still, it was quite interesting and I took my time reading through it. In the end, I spent the rest of the day reading until nightfall, and the next day I stayed in the library from morning until late at night. The next day, I stayed in the reference room from morning until late at night. Since there were not many people using the reference room, there was no trouble, and by noon two days later, everyone except Toya had finished reading all the books. How about you, Toya?¡¡Are you going to finish it today? I can''t!¡¡I''ve still got more than one book left.¡¡You guys are reading too fast! Yuki finished the book yesterday, as she declared, and so did Haruka and Natsuki. I also finished it this morning. But that doesn''t necessarily mean that Toya''s reading speed is slow. Toya takes too many breaks, you know. Even when we''re reading, he sometimes leaves the room to ''refresh'' himself, right? Yes. Toya has a hard time persevering, and gets up and leaves the room every hour or two. He said he was ''gathering information'', but when I saw him, he looked like he was making small talk with the lady at the reception. We''ll go with you today, but tomorrow you''ll read by yourself.¡¡We''ll help you prepare for your departure. "Well, there''s nothing much to do to prepare for departure, is there? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. You can read a book in this room all by yourself. I''m sure you don''t need much preparation, but it doesn''t make sense for us to be here. You''ve already finished it. You''re right. Let''s take another look at the market tomorrow. Maybe we''ll find something interesting. It''s fun just to look. Toya bit her lip in frustration as the women talked. I know I can''t help it, but I''m jealous! "Then do your best to read it. It''ll be better if you finish it today, right? Nao, you know I can''t do this, right? Yeah. This guy! Ha-ha-ha, it''s your fault for skipping class! It''s not that I''m jealous of your friendship with the receptionist. I''m not jealous of the receptionist, I''m just saying that she''s a good friend of mine. The next day, he went to the archive alone. The next day, after seeing Toya off to the reference room, we went to the market. We split into two groups and went for a walk. I was paired with Haruka. The market is much bigger than the one in Rafan, and there are a lot of things to see. Basically, it''s mainly food, but there are some interesting folk art items as well. I wonder if we need them in our daily lives, but why do we feel like buying them? You can buy it if you want.¡¡It''s my money. "No, ......, let''s not do that. I''m not sure what to do with the money, but I''m not sure I want to spend it on something I don''t really need. Especially since what I was looking at was a carved wooden figurine. I wondered if it would sell well in this morning market-like place.¡¡It would be like selling wooden bears at the local supermarket. Isn''t this the kind of thing that would be sold at a souvenir shop in a travel destination, when people are so excited about their trip that they are loosening their purse strings? At the very least, I don''t think it''s something that should be bought together with food and sundries that are necessary for daily life. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you." "......" I just remembered that once, when you were selling backpacks, Haruka was screaming, "Unemployment income! I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡What happened to that? I don''t think I made such a fuss.¡¡I don''t deny that I was a little happy, but... This is a great way to get the most out of your business. But I know that Haruka was smiling happily as she made the backpack. But back then, we didn''t have as much money in our pockets as we do now, and I don''t think we had a choice. Unemployment income has a nice ring to it, doesn''t it? Especially the "unearned" part. I do get some of it from time to time. I use it for common expenses like food. "Oh, really?¡¡I''m sure Haruka''s pocket money will do just fine. I''ve had a lot of help from everyone. And it''s not that big of a sum nowadays. ...... No, if you look at it on its own, it''s plenty of money. The amount of money that Haruka told me was enough to make a normal living, but now our main job is to cut down famous trees. To be honest, the amount of money we can earn from this is enough to make us feel like we''re not worthy of defeating demons. Of course, when I find one, I have no reason to overlook it, and I kill it and sell it to Aella''s store, but in terms of efficiency, logging is by far the most efficient. But that will be over in a little while, won''t it? Oh, you mean that? According to Mr. Simon, who is a buyer of famous trees, "Trees cut down in the summer are of lower quality, so please avoid them if possible. However, he will still buy them if we cut them down, but we are tired of doing the same thing all the time, so we are going to suspend our work in the summer for now. --No, the main reason is the heat. Even now, when it''s still relatively cool, we get sweaty when we''re cutting down trees. We all agreed that we didn''t want to do this work under the blazing sun in the summer. We all agreed that we did not want to do this work under the hot sun in summer. What should we do in the summer?¡¡"What are we going to do in the summer, when it''s too hot to hunt in the forest? "I''m going to try to make a Cools spell one of these days, but it''s pointless while we''re on the move if we''re thinking about Worms. "Right. If I had to guess, I''d say Resist Heat, but even if it stops you from getting hot, it won''t stop you from getting hot. After using it during the winter, I realized that the spell "Worms Heating" does not make the person it is cast on feel warm instead of cold. It is a spell that warms the air around you, and while it is effective in a room or tent, it is almost useless when you are walking. It is effective in a room or a tent, but it is almost useless when you are walking. If you move, you will leave the area immediately, and if the wind blows, the warm air will spread. It seems that it is possible to consume a lot of magic power to constantly warm the air around you, but there is no way you can fight in such a situation. The same would be true if we created a similar spell called "Cools". It was cold in the winter, but it was almost snow-free around here, and the logging work was physical labor, so there was not much of a problem. "Well, if it comes to it, we can always take a vacation in the summer. We have some savings. Hmmm, I feel kind of guilty, but we''re in the age group that has summers off, aren''t we? We''re adults in this world, but if we were in Japan, we''d still be in high school . It''s not a punishment to enjoy summer vacation. It''s not that we''re not punished for enjoying our summer vacation, but it''s also that we''re the only ones who get to have fun while everyone around us is working hard. ....... We can go to a summer resort and work, but ...... we''ll figure that out later. "Yeah. We''ll have to talk about it with all of you. Is it only me who expects to meet new people with the words ...... of a summer vacation job at a summer resort? Well, the reality is not so dreamy, I guess. 149-134 Kerg (4) "Hmm?¡¡This grain?¡¡I''ve never seen it before. At the end of the market. At a stall in a less crowded area, there was a triangular brown grain for sale that I had never seen before. It could have been some kind of seed or nut, but the way it was sold made it look like a grain. I don''t think they sell nuts by weight in big squares. "This is ...... soba. "Oh, that''s soba!¡¡Let''s buy some. I want some. I never had a chance to see buckwheat noodles, so I didn''t notice them. It''s going to be hot, so I want to get some soba. As long as there is something like soy sauce, there is no need to hold back. If Yuki is good at making udon, I''m sure she''ll be good at making soba. It''s a lot of work to make this into flour.¡¡You have to remove the buckwheat husk, grind it in a millstone, and sift it. Nao, can you do it all? "Uh-huh, I see. ...... Flour is available in the market, so you don''t need to take care of it. I was wondering if I should just stick with somen instead of soba. As I was wondering, a rather timid-looking man working at the store called out to me. He said, "Um, if you don''t mind, could you buy some?¡¡I''ll give you a discount. When Haruka heard the price the man offered, she rolled her eyes in surprise. I''m not usually in charge of food shopping, so I didn''t understand, but according to Haruka, it''s less than half the price of the same amount of wheat. "Why is it so cheap? "It doesn''t sell well, in this town. We don''t have a habit of eating soba noodles. This man comes from a cold village a little far from Kergu, where there is not much good land and buckwheat is easy to grow. However, buckwheat noodles, which have the image of a destructive crop, are not very popular and do not sell well in Kergu. Therefore, they usually consume buckwheat noodles in their own village and do not come to sell them, but this year, other crops were not doing well and they had no choice but to sell buckwheat noodles. After explaining this, the man sighed in annoyance. "Even if soba is a little cheaper, wheat is still more popular. ...... "Well, if you don''t usually eat buckwheat, you''re probably right. It''s hard to handle. ...... Do they eat it as it is in your village? Yes, we peel them and then boil them. Do you think it tastes good?¡¡Is it like porridge? I don''t even think I want to eat it. ...... Soba noodles may have a lot of nutritional value, but I don''t know. What do you think? It''s cheap and you can buy it at ...... but what should you do? If you want to buy it, you need to make a special tool for it. We can''t just tell Nao and the others to do it by hand. We?¡¡No, well, maybe we''ll be in charge. If Haruka and the others are in charge of the cooking, they will have to do at least the preparation if they are asked to do so. Will they use a stone mortar to grind it?¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use a stone mortar or a wooden mortar. Is it possible to use a wooden mortar to grind rice, or to remove buckwheat hulls?¡¡I''m sure you don''t want to peel them off one by one by hand, do you? No, I''m not saying that. --No, you''re not. Okay, Uncle. I''ll buy them in bulk. What?¡¡You sure?¡¡There are quite a few. The uncle shouted to Haruka, who was a little troubled. The uncle was right, there were still three large bags piled up in the stall. One of them was about the size of a bale of straw. Although Toya and the women have been eating a lot since they came here, it would take a long time for them to consume this amount. It''s not like they eat soba every day. As for me, one summer''s worth of soba is enough. ...... Or do I need New Year''s Eve soba too?¡¡Well, even so, a bag of soba should usually be enough. But only this time. We don''t live in this city. That''s great!¡¡Thanks!¡¡So, where do you want me to take it? Oh, no problem. I''ll bring it back. I''ll bring it back." He thanked the man with a smile, paid for it, and Haruka carried one of the bags. I''m in charge of the other two, aren''t I? Yeah. I''ll use my muscle strength to carry the two bags on both shoulders. --It''s heavy! This thing must weigh over 100 kilos. I''ll put them in my magic bag as soon as I''m out of sight. After saying goodbye to the man who dropped his jaw at Haruka for carrying the bags so lightly, we quickly moved to the back alley and threw the buckwheat noodles into the magic bag. But the cold village is a lot harder than I thought, isn''t it? "Yeah. It wasn''t a lot of money, but I guess ...... cash is hard to come by? If you just want to eat, you have to be self-sufficient. Hulk paid less than a week''s wages for an average worker. We can make that in less than a day. Unless you live a life where you don''t spend a lot of cash, it''s going to be very difficult to survive. I''ve heard that many adventurers come from rural areas, and it makes sense to me. After a few more hours. We bought some foodstuffs that Haruka was interested in, and after a quick lunch at a food stall, we headed to the Adventurer''s Guild, where we were to meet Natsuki and the others. When we entered the guild, there were only a few adventurers, and Natsuki and the others were still nowhere to be seen. Hello, Nao. You''re the only one here today. ...... The person who approached me was the receptionist, who I''ve become good friends with over the past few days. She must have stood out a bit, since she was a partygoer who came into the reference room every day without taking any requests. "Yeah, we''ve already read everything. "You''re all very studious, aren''t you? There are many adventurers who don''t read materials if they don''t need them, or even when they do need them. It''s a shame to have a library. Yes. Some people can''t read, so there''s nothing we can do about that. ...... We''ve included a lot of diagrams, though. "Oh, so that''s why. It was certainly easy to read. Even if you can''t read the text, it should help you a little. Incidentally, the literacy rate in this country is not very good, with half of the population being able to read, and less than 20% of the population being able to write without difficulty. By the way, I heard you''re coming back to Laffan tomorrow. ...... From Toya?¡¡Yes, that''s the plan. If you don''t mind, I was wondering if you would accept my request. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "...... to take down bandits? Yes. They seem to be popping up with Rafan lately. But this is a request from the guild, isn''t it?¡¡Why would the guild want to take down bandits? If you look closely at what Haruka said, you''ll see that the client is indeed a guild. I could understand if the client was a lord or a merchant, but the fact that the adventurer''s guild would send a request to take down the bandits is a bit puzzling. The guild is an organization for adventurers, not a public safety organization. I can''t say this out loud, but it seems that the bandit is an adventurer. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. I''m sure you''re not the only one. If the bandit is likely to be an adventurer, the guild will kill him. It''s not in the guild''s best interest for the adventurer''s reputation to be damaged. Oh, more solid organizational management than I expected. As I thought at the time of the guild ranks, the rules seem to be based on the best interests of the guild as a whole. Unlike artisans, adventurers are a profession that can be taken up by anyone, so if they don''t tighten up on that, they could become a group of misfits. "But why us? But why us?" "Because you''re going back to Raffan, but also because you''re rank 4. There aren''t many rank 4 adventurers in this town either. Is that so? Yes. There are many of us, and we have plenty of jobs, but there aren''t many difficult jobs in this city. I thought that I would go to this city after graduating from Raffan, but it seems that there is not much difference in the level of difficulty of requests in this city. It''s true that the requests posted on the website didn''t seem to be too difficult. There are a lot of them, so you won''t have any trouble finding work, but at least for us, we don''t seem to be able to make more money than Rafan. But taking down bandits, ...... what do you think, Haruka? I''m not sure if they''ll attack us, but I''m not sure we''ll find them. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to take advantage of it.¡¡In addition, the reward itself will be paid based on the number of guild cards collected, so even if you don''t find the hideout, you will still get the reward. According to the information currently available, the number of bandits is around 10. They''ve attacked the merchant''s carriage several times. They should have been active when we moved from Laffan to Kerg, but we didn''t see them at that time. Either they weren''t there by chance, or they didn''t see the point of attacking us when we were running with a small group. --Probably the latter. But would they attack us on foot?¡¡It''s not worth it to go hunting in the mountains without a clue. "Well, ...... will lend you a carriage from the guild. You can return it to Rafan, and we can give you your reward there. How about that? That''s a good deal, isn''t it? You can return it to Rafan and you can give him the reward. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡I''ll have a decision for you by the end of the day. Yes, of course. I look forward to working with you. In the event you have any questions concerning where and how to use the site, you can contact us at the web site. 150-135 Defeat the thief (1) "Taking down bandits?¡¡That sounds like an adventurous request! The five of us, including Natsuki and Yuki, gathered in the reference room. Toya was surprisingly enthusiastic. The other party seems to be an adventurer, too. I''m not sure that''s what you mean by ''adventurous''. Taking down bandits? ...... I''ve never dealt with humans before. I don''t mind humanoid demons anymore, but ...... I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good opportunity. I think it might be a good opportunity. If they can attack me in a straightforward manner, I think it might alleviate some of the hesitation and stress afterwards, since I don''t have to hold back. Are Natsuki and the others against it? Not really. I don''t want to kill anyone, but unless you''re holed up in Rafaan, there''s a good chance you''ll be attacked, and it''s a risk you can''t take. I feel the same way, I guess. The most important thing is our own lives. So you''ll take the job this time, right?¡¡--Yes, then let''s do it. Toya was the only one who actively agreed, but there was no active opposition, so in the end they decided to take on the task of defeating the bandits. If you think of it as helping people, you will feel a little less guilty. ...... No, it''s not really something you should feel guilty about. If a bandit is caught in this country, he will either face death or forced labor. Even if the latter is the case, he will die in the end, so he is just leaving the act of killing to others. If I had to guess, it would be more socially valuable to capture them alive without killing them, but for this request, I have the impression that they don''t care if they live or die - or rather, they want to be killed. The guild probably doesn''t want the fact that an adventurer has become a bandit to be made public. The guild may feel a little uncomfortable about it, but it cannot simply blame them for sending out requests to take down the bandits at their own expense. It takes a long time for the country to act against a few bandits, and the sooner the damage is done, the more important it is for the people around. By the way, Toya finished reading the book, didn''t you? Yeah. Sort of. I''m not sure how much he remembers, so I''ll leave that to his [Appraisal] skills. But now you''re free this afternoon, right? Yeah. We''ll leave tomorrow. Got it. You guys have been going around the market this morning, right? Yeah. Haruka and Nao were alone. Did anything good happen? The only good thing was that we found ...... soba noodles. Yuki, can you make soba? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Soba?¡¡I''ve never made soba before. ...... "Oh, really? I''ve bought quite a few. The process itself is not that difficult, so I''m sure you can make it through trial and error. ....... When I looked around for someone else, an unexpected person raised his hand. I''ve done it before, you know.¡¡I''m not very good at it. "What?¡¡Why Toya? Because my father was a bit into it. He doesn''t usually cook. I see. That makes sense. It sounds like your uncle''s hobby. Buckwheat noodle making. ...... Prejudice? I''ll have to ask Toya to teach me. If Yuki and the others can make it, we can count on them. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Haruka and the others have the cooking skills. But we bought a lot of buckwheat, what else can we do with it? The only other uses for buckwheat flour are ...... buckwheat noodles and galettes. It''s not something you eat very often, is it? It''s not something you eat very often, it''s just..." "Hey, Haruka, maybe you bought too much. You can put it in your magic bag and it won''t deteriorate, you can say it''s not a problem, but you have to buy it. ....... It''s not a problem, but I''m not sure if I needed to buy it. I''ve been thinking about it for a while.¡¡I''m thinking of donating them to an orphanage if I can make them well. It''s hard to use soba noodles as they are. "Donation? That''s not bad. Oh, I didn''t know Haruka was such a generous person. I didn''t know you were such a philanthropist." Haruka shook her head at my teasing remark. It''s not that good. You''re looking for profit. It''s not that good. "...... I see, that''s one way to look at it. I think there is a little bit of embarrassment, but as long as God is real, there may be a point to cheating. Besides, a good deed is still a good deed, even if it is calculated. Did Natsuki and the others find anything interesting? "I had a good time looking around the market, but I bought a few spices, I guess.¡¡I thought I''d plant some in my garden. Unlike the buckwheat noodles I found, Natsuki and the others didn''t find anything of interest in the area they looked around. The only thing they bought were spices that they hadn''t seen in Rafan, because they could just buy them in Rafan if they were ordinary ingredients. There are some things that are useful to have in the garden. Laurels, herbs... Laurier. Yes, it''s useful. Do we have it here? I''m sure it grows wild somewhere. ....... If you can find one nearby, you don''t have to plant it. You can just pluck the leaves and let them dry for a while. But Natsuki''s house is Japanese style, so it''s unlikely that she''ll be able to plant many herbs. Did you plant anything? In my house, we have sansho. We used to make tsukudani with the berries. Sansho. It''s nice, isn''t it, the smell of sansho? The women were happily talking about spices. If it''s a spice that can be easily grown in the garden, it''s cheap to buy it at the market, but if you only use it in small quantities, you might as well go to the trouble of buying it ....... We don''t cook, so you can do whatever you want with it. Hey, Toya. No, I''ve heard of bay leaves. I don''t know how to use it. I know how to use it, if that''s what you''re asking!¡¡You put it in curry, right? When I confirmed this, Haruka and the others nodded with a slight expression on their faces. "Well, you''re not wrong. It''s not just curry, though. It''s often used in dishes where meat is cooked. Stews, pasta sauces. Japanese food doesn''t usually use it. I see. I was under the impression that bay leaves were equivalent to curry, but I guess I''m just a novice who doesn''t cook. I guess I should leave it to you. "Well, I don''t care what it is as long as it tastes good!¡¡Hey, Nao. No, you''re right, but... I''ll help you if you need it. I''ll help you out if you need it.¡¡Well, I might expand that area, so I''ll ask you then. Okay, I''ll do the heavy lifting. I''ll be making blocks, huh?¡¡Let me know when you''re ready. Thanks to the earth magic, I can now make beautiful blocks, and the frame of the flower bed is solid. Compared to the effort of picking up stones, making blocks with magic is now a piece of cake. After that, we told the lady at the reception that we would accept the request, but at that point we realized that none of us had ever controlled a horse before. As a result, Toya couldn''t go out in the afternoon, and had to spend half a day with us to learn how to drive and take care of a horse. The next morning we left the inn. The next morning, we had left the inn, rented a carriage from the guild, and left Kerg. Although the lecture was a bit tame, there was no problem in getting the trained horses to walk along the road, and the carriage was heading for the town of Raffan. It would have taken us three days to get home by carriage instead of the one day it would have taken us if we had run, so it would have taken us a long time, and the reward we would have gotten would not have been much better than what we were getting now. In addition to gaining experience, there is also the fact that I took the job because it would help people. I hope they''ll come out soon. "It''s hard to stay alert, you know. But now the portable toilet has finally come into its own!¡¡We''ve been making them for a long time, but we haven''t been using them. I clapped my hands when Yuki said that with a bit of happiness. "Oh, that reminds me, we talked about that. Did you finish it? "Yes, I did. The results have been fed back to our toilets, haven''t they?¡¡Hot water flush function. Oh, yeah, they added that a while back. Oh, yeah, they added that a while back." "Oh, by the way, the toilet seat got warmer at the same time. The toilet had almost no complaints to begin with, but it became even more comfortable after those functions were added. And the toilet seat is something I was thankful for. It was wintertime. I hadn''t had to use it before because I wasn''t staying overnight, but this time it would be useful for the location, right? "Yeah, I guess so. I don''t know if we''ll be able to stand in a place with such good visibility. Yeah. I wouldn''t mind pissing myself. The last time I stayed overnight was when I was fishing, and I made a simple toilet to cope with the fact that I wouldn''t be moving around for a few days. Even if I had an attack while working, the forest would have blocked my view to some extent, and unlike before, there would have been several women present, so we would have been able to watch each other''s surroundings. Recently, she has become more open-minded and no longer uses the blindfold cloth. I guess Haruka and the others have become more accustomed to this world. "So, how much have you achieved, and what features do you want? "First of all, the odor control and hot water flushing functions are the same as the ones we have at home. We use the same ones. This is because of the magic bag. I wouldn''t be able to carry it around without it. "I see. The magic bag has made it easier for you. In Japan, the only portable toilets that people can carry are very simple toilets (?). In Japan, the only portable toilet that people can carry is a very simple toilet. If you want to make something decent, you can''t do it without a magic bag. I compromised on the sound insulation to some extent. It would be dangerous to block out the sound from the outside, and it is possible to block out only the outside from the inside, but it would have cost too much. Maybe half the cost?¡¡So, Toya, Nao, don''t listen too closely! "I won''t! We''re not the kind of perverts who enjoy listening to a girl go to the bathroom. We''re not perverts who enjoy listening to the sound of a girl''s toilet. Well, we don''t want to be unable to hear the warning when a demon attacks, so I guess it''s a reasonable function. As for the blindfold, I decided to use a board. It''s safer to be able to see your surroundings, but it''s also uncomfortable. If it''s just me, I can let the others take care of the perimeter. "Yeah, it''s good, isn''t it?¡¡Even if it''s like a magic mirror, it''s still uncomfortable. You can''t calm down and hold your ground if you see them standing right next to you, no matter how many of these members you''re dealing with. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you, but if you''ve built a private room, I hope it''s a proper private room. Lastly, what to do in case a demon runs into the room? "A barrier. Sounds difficult, but did you do it? Sort of. But it consumes a magic stone every time it attacks, so it''s not very fuel efficient. You can''t use goblin level, you need at least a hobgoblin magic stone, so every time you get attacked, 600 rares disappear. Moreover, the amount consumed cannot be adjusted, and one stone is emptied each time. The same is true for more expensive magic stones. It would be nice if we had a lot of hobgoblin stones, but we don''t encounter many of them these days, so the next best thing is the scarp-ape stone, which is 1,200 rares. This one is 1,200 rares. It''s a bit painful for just catching one attack. In addition, one attack is one attack, whether it''s a light attack or a heavy attack. ....... This is going to be a real pain in the wallet if you don''t protect your toilet. Yeah. So basically, try to avoid being hit by attacks. By the way, you can only set up to ten magic stones, so make sure you take care of them before they''re consumed, or you''ll end up embarrassing yourself. "It''s okay, I guess. Unless you have a stomach ache. You don''t usually go to work in that situation. Fortunately, or should I say thanks to [stubbornness], so far we haven''t gotten sick, and we haven''t experienced any stomach upset. We have been taking care of our health to a certain extent, and thanks to Haruka and her friends, we have been eating Japanese style food, but considering the risk of getting sick in this world, we are sure that we have been helped a lot. But how did you make it?¡¡You made it with Haruka and Yuki, didn''t you? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure if it''s because of my alchemy. I''m not sure if it''s really that hard to do.¡¡I was able to get by with applying and combining things from the book. Besides, we didn''t mass produce it, so we didn''t consider the cost. Especially the barrier part. The other parts are not very efficient either. It doesn''t really matter for us because we get the magic stones ourselves, but for normal people, it would be too costly. No, normal people don''t need a toilet like this. That''s true! Only adventurers, and female adventurers at that, would want a toilet like this. They could be sold to wealthy merchants and noblemen, but considering all the trouble they''d have to go through, I doubt it would be worth it. Well, it''s good that it''s easier to set up camp, isn''t it? Yes. It''s a bit safer to camp along a road like this, but ...... It''s not good for toilets. The visibility is too good. If we didn''t have portable toilets, we''d be in trouble. I agree. I wouldn''t feel comfortable digging a hole to do my business here either. If you can let go of your sense of shame, you can see 360 degrees around you, and it''s safe. If you like that feeling of freedom, you might like it too. --Not for me, though. Well... Haruka, who had been smiling at Toya''s words, clapped her hands to change her mind and turned serious. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. This is the first time we''re facing an enemy with wisdom. "Yes, it is. The enemy this time is a ''wise enemy,'' that is, a human being. Up until now, I''ve fought Orcs and Scarp Apebels, even though they had some wisdom. It''s not only the confusion of fighting humans, but also the possibility that they will use their wits to attack you that sets them apart from other demons. Haruka reminded us of this, and we tightened our expressions. 151-136 Defeat the thief (2) "Hmm?¡¡This is ...... It''s been about half a day since we left Kerg. After finishing lunch, I started moving again, and I saw a curious reaction in my [Searching for enemies]. It''s not a demon. --I see. So this is the reaction of a hostile human. We were all dressed in hooded robes so that no one would recognize us as adventurers, and only one of us was sitting on the leader''s platform. The other four are hiding in a covered cart so that they cannot be seen. Toya is currently in charge of the driver. Since this is only a half-day lecture, there is not much difference in skill, and we are taking turns every few hours. I gathered everyone behind the leader''s podium and called out to Toya so that he could hear. We''ll be waiting for you about 200 meters from here. Twelve of us. Oh, you''re here already? Thank God. Toya responded in a slightly relieved voice and slowed the carriage a little. Twelve people. ...... If it''s just me, Nao, and Yuki, there''s a good chance we can kill half of them. ......? If we can catch them by surprise, that is. If we can catch them by surprise, we''ll be able to avoid their fire arrows. "...... if you''re careful? Toya thought for a moment and then answered. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to take advantage of the fact that you''ll be able to get a lot more out of it. .... I think there''s a way for the three of us to fireball each other without aiming for a kill. ...... If you can keep them together, you can take away their fighting power. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. This is a little inconvenient when aiming at demon materials, but for humans, the burn condition is a very effective behavioral distraction. The drawback is the psychological aspect of ''what is the humane thing to do? The difficulty is the psychological aspect of "What''s the humane thing to do? And it seems that Natsuki was the same way. I''d rather have the Fire Arrow than the Fireball," he said. I''m not sure I''d be able to finish off a person suffering from burns, let alone an attacker. "...... I see. That''s true. Then let''s go with the Fire Arrow. Then Yuki will take two from the right, and Haruka will take two from the center. I''ll aim for any hidden enemies, and if there are none, I''ll take the left. If the surprise attack is successful, the rest can be done as usual? Haruka thought for a moment, nodded, and called out to Natsuki and the others. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m sure we can handle it with our numbers. If we''re good, we can cut them in half with a surprise attack. Depending on the distance between us when we face them, there''s a good chance we can kill the remaining six with magic alone. But Toya immediately dismissed our words with a shake of his head. No, we''ll kill them.¡¡You can''t just leave it to Haruka and Yuki and expect me to observe. ...... I''ll do it too. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time. I''m sure you''re right. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll help. "Stop!¡¡Hey!¡¡If you want to save your life, leave your pack behind! Looking at the response of [Searching for enemies], it seems that all of them have come out and blocked the way, defenselessly. It''s a good thing that the area between Kergu and Laffan has been safe so far, and unless they''re carrying something expensive, they don''t have adventurers to guard them, so they''re probably letting their guard down. According to the information from the Adventurer''s Guild, these bandits also killed a merchant after stealing his goods. The guild was informed by an adventurer who happened to be in the vicinity, but if not for that, it would have taken some time before a request was made to kill them. Incidentally, the adventurer who reported the incident to the guild did not help the merchant who was being attacked, but ran away, which is not something to be blamed, since one would not normally go to the aid of a group of bandits without a contractual relationship. It''s only a few people who have heroic aspirations, people who overestimate their own abilities, or people who are really incredibly talented. The guys who came here with Tommy seemed to have done it, but the results were so bad that I''d classify them as ''overestimating''. Not very smart. "Thieves? "Bandits, huh?¡¡Bandits? What else could they be but bandits in this situation?¡¡You all right?¡¡Yeah, yeah. The bandits laughed and made fun of Toya''s who-knows-what, but as long as they heard that, they were fine. In our case, it''s literally a "kill shot," so a misfire would be very bad. So I was sure there was no mistake, but I asked him to ask. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website to see if you can find any useful information. "Fire Arrow! The bandits were slow to react to the sudden change in situation. Six bandits fell with their heads blown off, almost without reacting to the six Fire Arrows that were released. "What? "Magician? While the bandits were surprised and confused, the situation was moving. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. "Toya!¡¡Bow, left! At my words, Toya turns to face the remaining bandit with the bow on his left, and the three of us wizards fire arrows at the other three. The bandits had recovered from the initial shock to some extent, but the speed of the Fire Arrows that each of them fired was faster than using two at the same time, and even though there was a slight discrepancy in where they landed, they definitely reaped their lives. "Hold on!¡¡Wait! "What? The last bandit was about to say something, but Toya just moved his eyebrows a little and drew his sword, separating its head from its body. The last bandit was about to say something, but Toya just moved his eyebrows a little and swung his sword to separate the head from the body, and as soon as he retreated, the body fell to the ground, blood spurting from the neck. He looked around, but when he saw that there was no one else moving, he let out a breath and lowered his sword. It''s a good job. It''s a good strategy. "Yes, it did. The presence of adventurers must have been unexpected. This is a peaceful area, so I think they were planning to take the cargo from the less vigilant merchants in a short period of time and disappear before they could be defeated. The presence of the bandits would be discovered sooner or later, but by killing the merchants instead of letting them go, they would be able to extend the time. Luckily - or unluckily from the bandits'' point of view - they were discovered early enough to be killed before they could escape. "Hmm ......, let''s clean up the mess for now. That''s right. You can''t leave a human corpse unattended, let alone a demon. There are 12 headless corpses and 3 heads that have been separated from their bodies. Both Toya and Natsuki had hunted down the heads with precision, so they were lying on the ground without much damage. I gather them all up in one place. By the way, Toya, that last guy said something about ......? Did you hear that?¡¡It''s no big deal. It''s just a guy I know. See, there''s the head. The head, which Toya grimly rolled away, was dead with its eyes wide open. Yuki looked away when she saw the head, and Haruka and Natsuki also paled a little. For a moment, I couldn''t tell from the stubble and the hair that had grown out of it. ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. "Looks like. I haven''t seen him in a while, but I wonder what happened to him during the winter. ....... I''ve been away for a while, but I don''t know what happened during the winter. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find any useful information. I''m sure that even if he had become a bandit, he would still have had a hard time reconciling the fact that he had taken a classmate into his own hands. "So the other two are one of these, huh? The other two heads are different, so there is a good chance that I, Haruka, or Yuki took care of them. When I looked into the pockets of the bodies I had collected, I found that all twelve of them had guild cards, and two of them had names that looked like Tokuoka and Maeda. These guys also didn''t have their last names registered, and I couldn''t remember their first names, but Yoshiro and Noriyuki are almost certainly Japanese. If they were Japanese with Iwanaka, it was most likely those two. It is more natural to think that he broke up with them after that and teamed up with another classmate. I think I could have made a living if I worked hard. ...... You couldn''t do that. You''ve got a tendency to say and do things like, ''In this world, we''re the ones. As we talked, Toya and I collected weapons from the bandits'' corpses, and we also collected their wallets. We could have sold the armor if we had stripped it, but it was all worn out leather armor, so we left it. "Sorry, you two. Well, I guess that''s what men do. I''ve been taking care of the cooking and other things in my daily life. We are not paranoid about equal rights for men and women, so we naturally divide our roles to some extent. In everyday life, the women tend to be in charge of things that require a lot of work, so it''s almost an unspoken agreement that Toya and I will do our best in other things. Especially now, Yuki is not looking well, so I have Natsuki resting at a distance. As for me, perhaps because I was dealing with a bandit, I don''t feel too bad about killing a former classmate, but the raw head is still a bit stimulating. I don''t want to touch them if I can help it, so I roll them around and collect them, though I feel sorry for the Buddha. --I don''t care if he''s a bandit who killed all the merchants. I''m sure he''s not a Buddha. But the quality of the weapons is bad. It''s mostly scrap metal. The bandits had some decent weapons, but they weren''t special iron like our yellow iron, but swords made of ordinary, or rather poor quality iron that hadn''t been cared for. There are many of them that have rust on them, and even if you took them to Gantz, he would probably only give you a couple of bucks for them. Well. If you melt them down, you can at least make a pot-kettle, but-- Stop. I don''t want to cook in a pot made out of that. I agree. If you''re gonna take it home, you''re gonna have to sell it. That''s impossible. Oh, yeah. Yes, sir. Toya nodded, confused by the stronger-than-expected refusal of Haruka and the others. I''m not sure what to make of it. In the event that you''ve got any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. It''s not a normal place. But if you are in an area with a lot of magic, you won''t be able to tell. I''ve seen skeletons in the north woods, so if you leave them there, they might turn into zombies. "Ugh, zombies. That''s even more disgusting than skeletons. Skeletons don''t smell bad, but zombies definitely do. I don''t want to fight them if I can help it. If there are fast zombies, it''s even worse. I think I''ll just burn ...... these guys. They may have fallen into the hands of thieves, but they''re my countrymen. I''ll cremate them. ...... Well, if you bury them in the ground badly, they can become food for wild animals. It''s better than being dug up and dragged around. Besides, I heard that cremation is used as much as possible in this country to protect the undead. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. ...... It''s pretty hard to burn, isn''t it? It''s a lot of fire. The fireball is quite difficult to burn. Do you want me to throw in some firewood?¡¡If you want, I can go find some. It''s also kind of useless. ....... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s a shame to use the firewood you''ve collected to incinerate criminals, and if you''re going down this road, you won''t have to worry about demons. Even if I can''t use magic, it won''t be a big problem. "Haruka, Toya, get away from me. I called out to the two of them, and got far enough away from the pile of burning corpses that I could work my magic into it. If I were in battle, I wouldn''t have time to do this, but now it''s no problem. I feel that I have about half of my total magic power. The "fireball" that I put all of my magic power into was bigger than I expected, about a handful of pounds, and it slowly flew away and hit the pile of corpses. Gosh! At that moment, a huge pillar of fire rose up, and my bangs, which were standing quite a distance away, flew softly in the hot air. ...... Whoa! A few seconds later, when the fire had died down, all that was left was the charred earth. There was no trace of the dead body left behind. ...... Nao, that''s a bit much, isn''t it? Mmm. ...... more powerful than I thought, huh? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to do. It''s hard for grass to grow if it''s still burnt. I''ll use earth magic to lightly turn over the soil. There''s nothing wrong with that. No problem. I think Toya and Haruka are giving me a subtle white stare as I clap my hands and say that, but I''m sure it''s just my imagination. 152-137 Find Ajito! (1) I''m sure you''ll be pleased to hear that. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be able to make enough money without becoming a bandit if you''re the kind of person we''re struggling with, don''t you think? That''s right. Even if you can''t cut down famous trees like us, if you can kill orcs easily, you won''t have trouble eating. It''s possible that he wanted to make some money, but I don''t think he could make that much by attacking merchants passing between Kergu and Laffan. The only luxury goods that pass between Laffan and Kergu are furniture, which is not a very good target for thieves. No matter how high quality the goods are, furniture is bulky and difficult to dispose of even if you do acquire it, since the number of buyers is limited. On the other hand, groceries, which are easy to dispose of, are not worth much. If you''re lucky enough to hit a merchant who''s going to Rafan to buy high quality furniture, you''ll be able to get a good amount of cash, but if you have a lot of money, you''ll probably hire guards, so it won''t be that convenient. By the way, are we looking for the bandits'' hideout? Well, ......, I''ll have to talk to them about that. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. Yuki''s complexion was looking much better now that the bandit''s body was gone. Yuki, are you okay? "Yes, I''m sorry. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I can''t help it. I''m okay for now, but I don''t know what will happen when things settle down. Are you okay, Natsuki? "Yes. If I were alone, I would have been depressed, but I''m with everyone. That''s true. If we cross the river together, there''s nothing to be afraid of, right? I know it sounds a little inappropriate, but that''s part of it. It''s a little bit inappropriate, but that''s part of it. - Having other people who are going through the same thing makes you feel less anxious. Yes, we should talk to each other about our concerns. Just talking about it can make you feel better. Yeah. Right. Yuki nodded and I agreed, and the other two nodded as well. I don''t know if it''s because I used magic, but I think I killed ...... people. Maybe even classmates. Hmmm ....... I glanced at Toya, who was also glancing at the spot where I had burned the bodies. In order to change my mood, Haruka changed the subject. So, now we were talking about whether or not to look for the bandits'' hideout. ...... Maybe there are no remnants? "Oh, yeah, I guess so. It would be easier to find them if there were remnants, because there would be spotters. If there are people, we can find them if we get close enough. If not, the only way to find them is to follow their footprints. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you.¡¡You''ll probably need a wagon to carry what you took or to sell it somewhere in the future. I see. Horses are good for money, too. Horses!¡¡Horses would be easy to find. It''s not an enemy, but ordinary animals can be spotted by the [Enemy Search] if you''re careful. In the beginning, I made a lot of money by searching for task boars with this. So let''s split up and search around here. After a few minutes of searching, we scattered around the area. Yuki was the one who found the ruts. There was no proper road there, but the ruts in the grass were clear and led deep into the forest. The distance between the trees in this area was relatively large, so it was possible to drive a horse-drawn carriage into the area if you pushed yourself a little. Therefore, the bandits might have built their hideouts in this area. We''ll have to leave the wagon, right?¡¡It''s on loan, and we can''t leave it behind. ...... Toya, will you stay? "Me?¡¡...... I don''t know. If anyone is going to stay, it''s going to be me. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that," he said, pointing to himself and nodding thoughtfully. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. There is also a way to divide the group into two or three, but in case there are still enemies in the hideout, the more people the safer. In other words, there was no other choice but Toya. Sorry. "Well, have a safe trip. Toya waved us off as she walked toward the parked carriage, and we started to follow the rut. There seemed to be no particular camouflage, and we continued to follow the ruts for about ten minutes without any problems, although they sometimes bent due to the vegetation in the forest. In the range of my search, there was a reaction different from that of the animals in the forest. "This looks like a horse. There''s five of them. Any sign of people? Not anywhere near. Is this where they''re headed? It''s a little off from where the ruts are heading, but it''s a little crooked, so it''s probably right. "Well, we didn''t lose the ruts, so let''s keep going. It''s not too far off, is it? "Yeah. I don''t think we should ignore the ruts and go straight. Then we''ll keep going. We followed the ruts for another five minutes. A slightly open area came into view, and the response of the spying horses could certainly be felt from there. It looks like that place. There was a single shack with very amateurish workmanship. It was of a reasonable size, but it looked as if it would blow away in a storm. Nearby, in a fenced area, there are five horses and two covered wagons parked nearby. They were probably stolen from a merchant. I spotted them with some caution, but still no response. It''s possible that they''re hiding, but given the strength of the bandits, it''s unlikely. There''s no sign of the rest of them, is there? Yeah. Well then, let''s check the hut first. Haruka opened the door of the hut, but immediately groaned and said, "Ugh! What''s wrong? "What''s wrong? "...... stinks. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "...... Oh, I see. I was relieved, but at the same time satisfied. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m pretty sure that''s ...... That''s not good!¡¡This is bad!¡¡It''s pretty bad! Natsuki and Yuki, who were a little behind, also approached the entrance and immediately retreated, holding their noses. And Yuki, your vocabulary is pretty bad. "Oh well. I''ll go in, you guys check the carriage over there. Thanks, ....... No problem. I''ll go in and you guys check the carriage over there. If you''ve got Toya, you can play rock-paper-scissors with him. ...... No, it would be a pity to let the beastmen go. I''m sure you''ll have a great time. I covered my mouth with a cloth, picked my nose and went inside. ...... Wow. It''s filthy. I guess he didn''t have the skills to make more than one room. The hut was only one room, and there were dirty cloths and furry things scattered about, as if they had been sleeping together. There seemed to be enough space for twelve people to stretch out and sleep, but apart from the stench, it would not have been very comfortable. There is a water bottle in one corner, and a hearth-like structure has been built. ....... You should at least clean it. ...... As with the floor, the surrounding area was also dirty. If they hadn''t gotten sick from this, then the strength of those bandits must have been top-notch in a way. There doesn''t seem to be much here. I looked around the room, kicking things around in the corners, but all I found was garbage. If I use the purification process, I might be able to sell them as rags, but I don''t even want to go through the trouble. "Burn it all. ...... Oh? You''ll be able to use your spear to spear away a pile of bags in the corner of the room - probably containing vegetables or grain - and you''ll find a sturdy box with a lock hidden behind it. When I lifted it up, it was heavy. "Bingo. ......? I had given up thinking that the carriage outside was the only place I could find anything of value, but it seemed to be there at least. I looked around the room one more time, made sure there was nothing else of interest, and exhaled loudly as I walked out of the cabin with the box. 153-138 Find Ajito! (2) "Phew! Hey, guys. Something happened to ......, didn''t it? Yeah. Just this one. What about you? Better than I expected, I should say. One of the wagons was loaded with metal, like magic iron. Or should I say "luck of the draw"? For us. I feel sorry for the merchant who may have been the victim. Well, even though the bandits had it, it was originally taken from the merchant. It''s a pity, but if it weren''t for that kind of perk, most adventurers wouldn''t take on the task of killing bandits. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... Oh, Nao, thank you for your help. Nao, I''m sorry?¡¡I''m sorry, it''s just some groceries and a few sundries. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it on the web. I was not expecting much, and I think we did pretty well with the magic iron.¡¡Now all we need is this box: ...... Natsuki, can you open it? "Wait a minute. --This is the first time that the [unlocking] skill is useful. It''s ...... open. That''s fast. Either the lock is crappy or Natsuki''s skill is amazing. It only took about 10 seconds for the lock to open after taking out the tool. I thought I might smash it if it didn''t open, but it seems I didn''t need to worry about that. But it''s not as useful as you might think, isn''t it, the [Unlock] skill? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the following tips to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it.¡¡--Oh, no, it was a bit irreverent to say "useful". No, it wasn''t. I''m glad. Thank you very much. No, not at all. ...... I felt a little embarrassed by her happy smile and looked away. "Well, well, well...?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Good vibes, no. ...... That''s right. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s the first skill, but I''m the one with the problem. I guess so. Right. Right. What the hell?¡¡That''s terrible!¡¡Wasn''t that the part where you were supposed to follow me?¡¡Wasn''t it? No, you weren''t. "No. Haruka and I nodded our heads in agreement. Natsuki, the only one who didn''t agree, only smiled. "I''ve been betrayed! I''m not sure what to make of that. You''ve been messed around with by [Skill Copy] so much. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. It''s good!¡¡I''m good!¡¡I''m going to open this box!¡¡Now let''s see what''s in it! Yuki, who didn''t get any follow-up from anyone, regained her composure and opened the lid of the crate that Natsuki had unlocked. Looking over Yuki''s shoulder, I peered into it. ...... gold coins, I see. There are also a few large gold coins. Or should I say, in order. Inside the box was money. When I took it out and counted it, there were a dozen large gold coins and a few dozen gold coins. It was a lot of money, but it was nothing more than a lot of money. During the winter, we earned more than this in a day. Not a bad reward when you combine it with the iron. The commission itself is not very promising. Haruka said as she repacked the gold coins from the crate into a bag and stored it in her magic bag. This time, the commission will be paid based on the number of guild cards collected and their rank, but an adventurer with the rank of bandit can not expect such a high reward. The reward is based on the number of cards you can collect, so to a certain extent it is unavoidable, but if you don''t get anything good, it''s not worth it. What are we going to do with this hut? Let''s burn it. We don''t want it to become a home for bandits or demons. Disinfect the filth, you know? ......, something like that. Haruka nodded her head with a bit of a dumbfounded look on her face at the way Yuki said it. Well, it sure was dirty in there. The people who complained about the filth have already turned to ash. No problem. So let''s get the horses on the wagon and get them moving. Before we do that, let''s put the wagon in a magic bag. Before that, let''s put the baggage in the magic bag. Especially since the magic iron is heavy. That''s true. It looks like the carriage is made up of ......2 one horse and one horse. What did they do with the carriage that the other two horses were pulling? You''re right, there are two horses left. The harnesses used to pull the wagon were placed on the back of the wagon, but there were only three of them. You mean they rode horses? Did they have saddles then? ...... No, I don''t think so. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a saddle in the shed. I''m not going to go in there again. ...... No, there was no saddle. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that. You don''t ride bareback on a ...... horse, do you? It''s a shame, because we do have saddles and stirrups in this world. ...... That''s a shame. I''ve always wanted to ride a horse. No, even with a saddle, isn''t it dangerous for an amateur to ride without supervision? I think he''s physically capable of it.¡¡The horses here are more sturdy and sturdy than thoroughbreds. I''m not sure if Yuki wanted to try it, but she said something in agreement with Haruka. It''s true that the horses used here are not like the ones you see in horse races, with thick legs and slightly smaller body size. If anything, they are closer to the image of Hokkaido-bred horses. With his current body, even if he were to be knocked off, he is unlikely to be seriously injured. ...... There is no such thing as a bareback horse. I''m not sure if you''ve ever ridden a horse before, by the way. I''m sure you have. I''m not sure if I''ve ever ridden a horse, but I''ve ridden a well trained horse in a controlled environment. So it''s not something I can say with pride that I can ride. ...... Oh, that''s rich. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Except for tourist farms. --I''ve never ridden a horse, but I''ve ridden a camel. At the Tottori Sand Dunes. It''s a useless experience. But now that I think about it, the Tottori Sand Dunes are sandy beaches, and have nothing to do with camels in the hot desert, right? It''s a bit easy to think that camels are camels because of the sand, isn''t it? I''m sure you''ll be able to get a saddle before you ride one. But whether or not we should keep them ourselves is a ...... question, I don''t know. I think adventurers should have a carriage, but it''s not very practical. That''s true. We have magic bags to carry our stuff, and we can move faster if we run by ourselves. If we take it easy, there''s a slight advantage in terms of fatigue, but it''s not a very comfortable ride, is it, a horse-drawn carriage? More than you think. It has zero suspension. So far, we''ve spent half a day riding around in a carriage rented from the guild, and the ride has been uncomfortable to say the least. There was no suspension between the wheels and the back of the cart, and when I sat down, the unevenness of the ground echoed directly on my buttocks. I had no choice but to sit on a blanket that I had in my magic bag, but it was more comfortable to stand. I wish they would introduce a strap. If a horse-drawn carriage is to be introduced, it should at least be equipped with plate springs, otherwise I cannot bring myself to use it. "Considering the maintenance cost, isn''t it ...... worth it? We don''t go far in the first place, do we? ...... Yeah. We''ll figure it out when we need it. The problem of the carriage was shelved when the fundamental problem was encountered. Horses are too big to be kept as mere pets. "So, Nao, can you tie them up a little further away? Okay. I had enough reins and hammers for the horses, so I attached them to the two horses that were not going to be used for the carriage, and took them out of the fence and tied them to a tree some distance away. Thanks to the course I had taken at the guild yesterday, I could do this even though I had never ridden a horse before. In the meantime, Haruka and the others attached the horses to the carriage, and then helped me put the luggage in the magic bag. Then I moved the lightened carriage to the place where I had tied the horses. Let''s do it then. "Yes! The three of us, except for Natsuki, threw the fireball into the hut, which opened its door, and with a bang, the hut immediately burst into flames. Oh, it''s burning well. Yes, it is. The house was drying out quite nicely, and the shape of the house was collapsing as fast as it could. Don''t look at me, you two. Let''s take down the fence. Oh, yes. The fence that used to hold the horses was also kicked down and thrown into the wreckage of the hut. I also threw in a moderate amount of "fireballs," and within half an hour, the fire had burned down to the point where only a few coals remained. There must have been an urn in the hut, but it must have been shattered when the fireball was thrown in, and there was no trace of it. That should be enough. Now put it out. ...... "Extinguish Fire". Yeah, there''s no need to worry about fires now. The fire was extinguished in an instant, and Haruka looked at it with satisfaction. "That magic is really useful, isn''t it? That''s true. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I can do it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. In the case of "fire extinguishing," the fire will be extinguished within the designated area, but when you use water magic to extinguish a fire, what you are doing is the same as spraying water with a fire engine. In actual fires, even if the fire has been extinguished, there are still sparks that may ignite later, just as if you were spraying water very carefully, but there is no need to worry about that with ''extinguishing''. Let''s go back, then. We''ve kept Toya waiting too long. Yeah. I think he''s bored out of his mind. No, I think he''s training, isn''t he? It''s possible. Yes. He''s more serious than you think, you know. We took more time to get back to Toya than it had taken us to get here, struggling a bit to maneuver in the unfamiliar forest. 154-139 Return to Lafan Welcome back. How''d it go?¡¡It looks like you got a lot out of ......, huh? The carriage we left behind was parked some distance away and the horses were unhitched from the carriage and taken to the side. The carriage they had left behind was parked a short distance away, and the horse was unhooked from the carriage and tied to a tree on the side. "Well. As you can see, there are five horses and two carriages. We had some money, so it wasn''t a bad way to make money. "I see. Well, that''s the kind of benefit you want. You''re killing people. The way you say it bothers me a little, but I can''t deny it. Then there''s the satisfaction of having helped people. If it''s only about money, it would be easier for us to kill demons. "Well, for now, let''s just be happy that we got the job done. Toya, can we leave now? "As soon as the horses are hitched, yes. But first, I need to be cleansed, okay? At Toya''s request, Natsuki, who was standing beside him, quickly applied the purification and cleaned Toya from the sweat and dust. Toya thanked her and quickly attached the horse to the carriage. The carriage was to be driven by one person at a time. ...... Would it be all right if the horses were strapped to the back of the cart? It will be fine. The horses are smart enough to follow us. Well, let''s do that. It''s going to be a little bit of a long ride, but we''ll do our best. Right. The working hours will be tripled, but it''s not a big problem because it''s not so easy being in the back of a truck. In the beginning, Toya and Haruka took over the role of the guard, and we started to follow the road to Rafan. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. The toilets that Haruka and his friends had made for us that night were excellent. At least, it was better than the temporary toilets we had used in Japan. The only drawback was that it was too big for an ordinary adventurer to carry, but we had magic bags and enough space in the grasslands, so that was not a problem. We could set it up as long as we could find a flat area of half a tatami mat, so unless we were camping in a very strange place, it would not be impossible to use it. But there are only two days left. It''s going to be a bit sluggish, isn''t it? We''ve got more wagons than we know what to do with. Well, yes. We put up with the uncomfortable carriage and just go slowly. If this was going to continue for two more days, I could understand Toya''s feelings. But we can''t just leave the carriage we borrowed from the guild, and it would be a shame to throw away the one we got from the bandits. I guess I''ll just have to find something to pass the time and be patient. Dinner''s ready. But I just took it out of my bag. But it''s fresh, so it''s all right. Our camping style is to sleep in the back of the wagon, without using a tent. The only thing we did was to build a fire, but we just took out the cooked food from the magic bag and put it on the foldable table we took out from the magic bag. When I feel like it, I boil tea in the fire, but I have several kinds of hot and cold tea in my Magic Bag, so I don''t need it. When I''m alone, I have no one to talk to, so I''m bored. Well, the scenery doesn''t look much different. Since there are three carriages for five people, there are inevitably times when I ride alone in the carriage, depending on the rotation. It didn''t happen when I was in charge today, but it''s true that you can''t chat with people when you''re alone. What?¡¡You mean when you''re riding in the carriage? "Yeah. You''re not busy, are you? I was chatting with Natsuki and the others. ...... I was practicing magic manipulation, I think.¡¡Fortunately, or perhaps not, the carriage is not so uncomfortable that it makes you want to sleep. This afternoon, Toya and Yuki were the only ones in charge of the Gosha. Yuki had been spending her free time alone training. This could be said to be an advantage of the carriage, which requires almost no operation if you just let it walk along the road. Even if you fall asleep at the wheel, you''re not likely to hit anything. Horses don''t run into obstacles without thinking, nor do they dare to go off the road. It is equipped with a collision avoidance system. What would be more dangerous would be to fall asleep and fall off the platform, but I don''t think any of us can sleep in this vibration, so we don''t have to worry about that either. I can''t use magic. ...... "No, why don''t you try?¡¡Even if you can''t use it as magic, it might make sense to use a magic weapon. "I see. You have a point!¡¡You can do things like [Strengthen Muscle], so it''s certainly not pointless! I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Okay. That way we can get home early. I''m not sure what to say. The remaining two days were not particularly noteworthy. If I had to say something, I would say that even though it was training, we couldn''t go on forever, and we had a lot of time on our hands during the trip. On the other hand, taking care of the six horses was quite a challenge, but I can only think that it was a good experience. ...... However, there is no doubt that all of us lost a lot of motivation to keep horses. It''s not as easy as owning a cat or a dog, so if you really want to own a horse, you need to be prepared. Before entering Raffan, I put the things I had in my magic bag back on the carriage and headed straight for the guild. We lined up the carriage at the carriage yard attached to the Adventurer''s Guild, left Toya alone to watch over the carriage, and headed into the guild. It was mid-morning when we arrived in Raffan, thanks to the smooth journey and the empty carriage. The guild was deserted. What?¡¡It''s Halka and the others. It''s been a while. "Good morning, Diora. As usual, it was Diora who greeted us. There is no young receptionist as usual, but since we have been working here for a long time, we feel at ease when we are greeted by Ms. Diora. I''ve come to ask you to handle a request I received in Kerg today. ...... Kerg?¡¡...... Oh, you''ve been out of town, I see. Yes, I understand. I understand. Diora frowned a little when she saw the request form that Haruka took from her. It''s a shame that you''re a bandit and not an adventurer,....... So you''ve accomplished it successfully? Yes. 12, unfortunately, all of them were adventurers. They had guild cards. Diora checked the guild cards on the counter and sighed deeply. They were all registered in Raffan. I guess things didn''t work out for you after you moved to Kerg. ...... "I think you''re just not serious enough.¡¡I don''t think so. Also, it''s okay for us to take what we get from the bandits'' hideout, right? Yes, in principle. Diora''s words were somewhat unclear, and Haruka nodded her head. I''ve heard that too, but are there any exceptions? What about in principle?¡¡Is there a problem? "Legally, there is no problem. However, if the item is related to an influential merchant or nobleman, they may ask for it back. ...... I see. So even if there is no legal problem, there will be trouble. Fortunately, I''ve never experienced an arrogant nobleman in my life, but the appearance of troublesome nobles and corrupt merchants is, in a sense, standard. In fiction. "Yes. If you sell everything you find to the guild, they''ll take care of everything else. So it''s safer for adventurers. But it will be cheaper for you? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do it on my own. If you have the ability to go it alone, you can dispose of it yourself. ...... It is quite troublesome.¡¡It''s a lot of work. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. Perhaps he was speaking from that experience. If that''s the case with the backing of the guild, it would be very difficult for us, who are less experienced than Diora and have no backing, to handle it on our own. If you ask me if what we got this time is worth the effort, I would say no. It''s just a thing that can be bought with money, and we are not in such financial trouble that we need to spare a little profit. I''m not happy to have a bad relationship with a strange place over such a thing. We looked at each other and nodded, and decided to sell all our goods to the guild. The reward for killing the bandits, the wagon, the horses, and the cargo. Because of the sheer volume of goods, it would naturally take some time to evaluate them all. If you want to get into details, I should probably follow you around and ask you how much you''re worth, but I''ll trust you to do that. We decided to sit back and wait in the guild. It wasn''t until about an hour later that Mr. Diora arrived at our door with a heavy bag. Thank you very much for your patience. It was more than I expected. The sound of money jingled from the bag that Mr. Diora placed on the table. I''m sorry for the victims, but fortunately, yes. The merchant''s resourcefulness includes whether or not to take the safe route and whether or not to hire an escort, so I don''t think you need to worry about that. At the very least, Haruka and her team prevented any new victims from occurring. As with adventurers, the idea in this world seems to be that you are responsible for your own actions. If you want to travel safely, hire an escort at a reduced profit. If you want to make more money, do business in dangerous areas or hire less guards. It is your life that is bet on, and the world of merchants is quite serious. Here are the rewards and the purchase price. Shall I explain to you the breakdown of ......? "No need. I trust you. Okay. Thank you very much. Okay, just the total. Round up to the nearest 1.68 million Reais. "Oh. You''ve been to ...... a lot, haven''t you? Yeah. The magic iron is the big one. The wrought metal mixed in with the other metals was also worth a good amount. That''s more than the price of our house. But when you consider that it''s about the same as our current equipment, adventurers have a very expensive business. You can''t blame them for using the magic iron and wrought metal that they sold at a high price, and then adding the blacksmith''s skills to it. Haruka-san and the others, will you be staying here for a while? Well, I haven''t decided what I''m going to do yet, but I plan to. We''re planning to do something else soon. Oh, I heard you made a lot of money over the winter.¡¡I would have been happy to go through the guild. I''d have been happy to go through the guild, but now I''ve got a connection with Simon. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. --It''s okay, though, because we''re making a good amount of profit from the demons alone. Normally, it''s difficult for adventurers to sell wood in the market on their own, so guilds take over for them, but in our case, we had an acquaintance named Simon. In our case, we had a friend named Simon. It may not be fun for the middleman, but it is very profitable for both parties. I can see no reason not to do it. However, I felt that they might resent us a little, so I tried to keep them from knowing about us as much as possible. ....... What we did is pretty well known? Natsuki must have been curious about that. She asked Diora, but Diora shook her head. No, it''s only known to a few people. I know that Natsuki-san and his friends are bringing in demons from the North Woods, and if wood from the North Woods is flowing at the same time, it would be obvious, right? It''s easy to figure out, isn''t it? No problem. The guild won''t leak the information to anyone else. Well, don''t worry too much, I don''t think anyone would normally mess with us.¡¡It''s not safe for adventurers to be operating in the North Woods. The way you say it, Diora, it sounds as if it''s not "dangerous to mess with them" but "dangerous for us". I can''t believe I''m saying this, but we''re a lot safer than a bad adventuring party.¡¡As long as they don''t do anything crazy. Dangerous? ...... Well, if something happens, we''ll fight back. We''ll fight back. Like you''ll never recover. --Yuki''s words subtly lost their credibility. But, Diora, is it possible that you are dealing with someone out of the ordinary? But, Diora, is it possible to have an unusual partner?" "There are foolish people everywhere. ...... Just as there are adventurers who fall into banditry. If it becomes too famous, there is a possibility that there will be fools who think that there is some kind of magic that allows them to operate in the northern forest? Diora-san nodded her head with a troubled expression. It''s not Diora''s fault, but it would be troublesome. I''m just fighting demons as usual. As for transporting the wood, ...... well, that''s the thing. If they attack you, it''s okay to do it, right? I''d be grateful if you could take it easy on me, but ...... if you want to avoid trouble, it''s best to do it quietly and unobtrusively. "Oh, ......, thank you for the great advice? There is no such thing as a "crystal that can easily reveal a crime", so if there are no witnesses, it''s ok. God is real, but he doesn''t seem to be involved in it. I got the impression from talking to Mr. Adversus that he doesn''t intend to be so lenient. Well, it is difficult to say whether God should decide what constitutes a crime, or whether it should be determined by the social contract. Even in the original world, there were countries that looked to religion as the standard for crime, and there were many countries where morality was based on religion, let alone law. To some extent, people should be independent as human beings, and if they cross the boundary that is non-negotiable as a god, they will be punished by heaven. It seems that if a person embezzles offerings, he or she will be punished by the gods, and perhaps the gods are strict about the acts of using them. The Order of the Saints of Satomi seems to have no problems at the moment, but if they were to claim to be the saints of the real gods, they would be punished by the gods at once, wouldn''t they? The guild has high hopes for Haruka and the others. You''ll have to be good at it, right? "Uh-huh. I understand. ...... In the event you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. 155-Story: Supon Nabe It''s a cold winter day. We were groaning in front of something that had been bothering us for a long time. A thing with a flat shell, four legs, and a long neck. Yes, a spoon. Fortunately, we were able to transport it alive, as reptiles are not subject to the magic bag regulations, and it took us several days to remove the mud. The only thing left to do is to cook and eat it. ....... No one has ever cooked a spoon before, have they? "No! Natsuki is the only one who''s ever eaten it. Of course I don''t know how to cook it either. I don''t know how to cook it either. It looks pretty awful, but it''s Japanese people who have the guts to eat it. I only have a hazy knowledge of the subject, but ...... let''s give it a try. Natsuki removes the spoon from the vat and places it on the cutting board with a ''thump''. The width of the shell alone is more than 40 centimeters, but our cutting board is also big enough for our spacious kitchen, so there is no problem. Normally, if it were too big, it would be too heavy and inconvenient to wash, but Haruka and his friends are strong enough and have ''purification'', so they made it a custom-made size for ease of use. It''s pretty big. Wouldn''t it be better to start with a smaller one? No, I thought it would be easier to see the internal organs. Oh, that''s true. It is said that most parts of the snapping turtle can be eaten, but since it is not a mammal, it is difficult to understand the parts. Especially when they are small. The other one is just a little smaller. "I see. After all, we only caught two. I didn''t go out to catch any sponges, I just happened to find two. If they are tasty, we should consider catching them in earnest. Well. Now let''s get to work. ...... Nao, please hold the sponges for me. Got it. I''ll hold the shell of the spoon on the cutting board for Natsuki. He took out a knife and grabbed the threateningly outstretched neck of the snapping turtle and pulled it out. "Eeee! "Aaah! Despite the cute voice, the head is cut off with great force. Blood spurts out. ""........." I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s more graphic than mammals. "You don''t want the blood, do you? I''ll just throw it away. "You don''t need the blood, do you? I''ll just throw it away." It was Toya who stopped Natsuki from turning the sponges upside down in the sink. I''ve heard that you can drink the blood of sponges. I''ve heard that you can mix it with alcohol, but we don''t drink alcohol, and it doesn''t taste very good.¡¡Would you like some? "What, it''s not good? Then I don''t want it. No, what kind of blood tastes good? ...... Blood smells fishy and it''s not something you eat. Even when you kill something, it''s important to know how to drain the blood. However, blood is sometimes mixed in with sausage making, so it may not necessarily taste bad. ...... Some people say that breast milk is blood without hemoglobin. Breast milk: ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. What?¡¡Nao, are you interested? "I''m afraid I don''t have any yet. I''m sorry, but I don''t have any yet. - Oh, no, I just thought, ......, I don''t remember tasting breast milk!¡¡Yeah. When Yuki looked at me with a smirk on her face and Natsuki laughed, I hurriedly made an excuse. It''s true that I didn''t have any unpleasant feelings. The reason why my eyes fell on Natsuki was because she had the largest bust among the three. Yuki''s is a bit more modest, and Haruka''s is a bit smaller than Yuki''s, probably because she became an elf. Haruka is a little smaller than Yuki, probably because she is now an elf, but she doesn''t seem to mind, because she said, "It''s easier. I don''t remember what breastmilk tastes like, but it doesn''t seem to be very tasty.¡¡I don''t remember what breast milk tastes like, but it doesn''t seem to taste that good. It seems to contain a lot of lactose, but even though it''s called sugar, it''s not very sweet. No, Haruka, if you explain it calmly, it''s ....... If you can get it to come out, I''ll let you have it. You''ll have to take responsibility then, though, won''t you? You''ll have to be responsible for ...... that, no!¡¡We''re talking about sponges now! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I almost said something funny. I''m sure you''re right. Now that the blood is gone, let''s continue. Natsuki laughed and put the spoon back on the cutting board. Since it had already stopped moving, I stood back and watched from behind. Next, we''ll remove the shell. Next, we''ll remove the shell. Tommy''s knife seemed to be sharp enough, and it sliced into the carapace in a roundabout way. "This should get it. ...... Good. It''s done. When Natsuki removed the shell, she saw the spoon''s internal organs. There was so much in it that I couldn''t understand what it was. What part of it do you eat? Basically, you can eat most of the internal organs.¡¡I thought the bladder and gallbladder were off limits. The bladder can be dangerous if you''re not careful. When we dismantle our prey, we have to be careful with the digestive organs, especially the bladder and intestines. If you hurt them by mistake, urine and feces will leak out. ....... In the beginning, when we were not used to disassembling, we made mistakes and discarded a large part of the body. However, since our usual prey is large in size and mammals have an easily understood digestive system, we soon got used to it. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡You can trace it back from there. ...... Is that it? Maybe that''s it. Let''s get rid of the intestines, too. The intestines are supposed to be edible. ...... Well, I''m a little concerned, so let''s dispose of the digestive organs. Cut a slit in the empera ....... It''s hard to say what a beautiful girl like Haruka and the others are saying as they stand forehead to forehead, pointing at the somewhat grotesque internal organs of the snapping turtle, but it seems that the bladder has been confirmed. Thanks to his advanced [dismantling] skills, Natsuki was able to remove the bladder and intestines without any particular failure, and put them in the leftover food container. Next is the gallbladder. The gallbladder ...... is where the bile comes out. That''s the organ connected to the liver. ...... That''s the liver. It''s big. The gallbladder is ...... this one. It''s a different color. What Natsuki took out was a smaller organ than he expected. It''s round and black. The rest is edible, so let''s cut it up. "We can eat the rest, so let''s cut it up." Crunchily, she cut off the legs, the empera, and sorted the organs. A lot of unfamiliar things are lined up on the cutting board. After that, we''ll wash it with water and ......, and we won''t need the claws. I''ll throw those away, too. While rinsing the pieces, Natsuki also trimmed and discarded the toenails. Yuki points to one of the organs and asks a question. What''s this yellow thing? "That''s probably eggs. I guess it''s the time of year they were caught, but they''re pretty tasty.¡¡They are good as they are, but they are also pickled in salt. "Oh, so they''re eggs. ....... So all we have to do is cook them? No, the shells and legs need to be boiled and the skin removed. If you don''t do this, they smell bad. Is that so?¡¡But you know so much, Natsuki. You''ve never handled one before, have you? No. Yes, I know a little bit about it, but I can still do it well thanks to my dismantling or cooking skills. Boil water, put the shells and legs in it, and quickly run it through the water. If you pull up the shell and pull the skin off, it will peel cleanly. Even so, it doesn''t look so good. Now the preparation is complete. The next step is cooking. First, an earthenware pot. This is important. What Natsuki took out was a slightly large, slightly shallow earthenware pot. It was at least a size larger than the one we used at home. We were a family of three, and considering that there were five of us, plus Toya who was a big eater, we would need something like this. Do you have a clay pot? I did. I bought it at the same store where I bought the jar of instant sauce and some plates. There''s not much demand for them, but they''re available. Why can''t you just use a regular pot? I heard that by using the same earthenware pot to make sponge casserole over and over again, the flavor soaks in and becomes more delicious. That''s what they say. "I see, so you have to nurture the pot. It is impossible to do this with the iron pot we usually use. It''s like that. They say that a well-grown pot tastes good even when you just boil the water. ...... Is that true?¡¡I''ve got my eyes sealed, so I don''t think it will soak in too much. What''s the point?¡¡I''m not sure what you mean by "eye patch". I''m not sure what to make of it. Before using an earthenware pot, you cook porridge or something to fill in the gaps in the pottery. To prevent cracking. But we don''t have any rice... Natsuki nodded and responded to Haruka''s gaze. This time I used flour. It''s supposed to last longer. I haven''t really experienced it myself. I''ve never bought an earthenware pot before. "That''s right. I''m sure most high school students don''t have the opportunity to buy an earthenware pot, and I''m sure they don''t have the experience of ''I forgot to seal the eyes and it broke easily. I''m going to make soup from the shell and bones. "Let''s make soup from the shells and bones," said Natsuki, filling an earthenware pot with water, putting it on the fire, throwing in the shells and bones, and simmering them. I heard that it''s good to make the soup hot. They use coke, but fortunately, our stove is a magic tool, so we can make it very hot. Fortunately, our stove is a magical tool, so we can make it super hot. We waited for a while. The water in the pot gradually becomes cloudy and fat begins to float to the surface. When the soup is good, you can throw away the shell and bones. After seasoning with salt and herbs, add the meat and organs. ......I would like to have some sake when I cook. That''s right. You can''t really use wine with Japanese food. ...... If it''s just alcohol, you can distill it, but that''s useless. I think he makes good enough food, but he''s not satisfied with the seasoning. But I can''t make sake, you know. We have potatoes and barley, so I think we can get away with shochu. ...... Can shochu replace cooking sake? I''m not sure what to do. Please prepare chopsticks and plates. Okay. As we moved to the dining room to prepare the dishes, Natsuki arrived with a pot. The earthenware pot was quickly placed on the potholder Yuki had laid out. To be honest, it doesn''t look very good. The offal and the legs sticking out like a sinking wreck are a little off. If you haven''t heard that it''s good, you might be a little hesitant to extend your chopsticks. If you don''t like the taste, you can add some soy-sauce-like inspiration sauce. Let''s eat. "''Itadakimasu''. We agreed with the smiling Natsuki, but didn''t reach for it right away. However, it was a high class dish, and Natsuki made it. I''m sure you can trust the taste. ....... I''ll start with the meat. It takes a bit of courage to start with your hand, so you choose an unidentifiable piece of meat. Pick up the meat from the pot and snack on it. "Mm-hmm, ......, pretty light? "Yes, it is. Yes, it has a good flavor, but it''s easy to eat. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''d like to have the emperor with vinegar and soy sauce ......, though I''d really prefer ponzu. I''m not sure if they sell yuzu or sudachi. What Haruka uses is a soy sauce-style inspirational sauce mixed with wine vinegar made from white wine. In this area, where red wine is the norm, it''s almost impossible to find, but I happened to find it and bought it, though it was a bit expensive. I found it by chance and bought it, though it was a bit expensive. After dipping the emperor in vinegar and soy sauce, Natsuki''s cheeks relaxed. I''m sure it''s because I''m not used to it, but it looks a little delicate. "Wow, this soup is really good! Really!¡¡It''s so simple. ....... It''s a feast in itself! After hearing what Toya and Yuki had to say, I scooped up a ladle of soup, transferred it to my plate, and drank it. I scooped up a ladle of soup and drank it. "...... Oh, it''s delicious. If we had rice, it would be delicious as porridge. ...... Too bad. It''s a shame, but it''s good enough to be a soup. Yes, that''s true. But I''d like to try the porridge made with this soup. "If it''s this good, I''d like to eat it from time to time. ...... It''s quite difficult to prepare, isn''t it? Yes, it''s a bit of a hassle compared to the amount you can eat. You can eat a lot of meat more easily with orc or something. You have to cut it up, remove the unwanted parts, boil it, and remove the skin. It seems a bit troublesome compared to Orcs, where you can just split open the belly and throw away the internal organs. Orcs also need to be skinned and the edible parts removed, but even a single liver provides more edible parts than this spoon. The time and effort required is completely different. If you think of it as ......[dismantling] with Yuki and I helping, can Toya and Nao do it too?¡¡If we process it all at once and store it, we can ...... No, there''s no point in worrying about it, right?¡¡You can''t catch that many. Sure, there''s only one left, but ...... You''re right, there is only one. We stared at the dwindling pot with some disappointment. It looks bad, but it tastes good. d*mn that ...... guy. Next time we go, why don''t we get a trap for the sponges? That''s a good idea. They''re reptiles, though, so we''d better be careful or they''ll suffocate and die. ...... The trap we used last time to catch eels and crabs is completely submerged, so if a spoonbill gets into it, it will suffocate to death. It''s hard to imagine, but sponges do drown, don''t they? I''ve seen sponges sometimes rise to the surface and breathe, but that means that even if they are placed at the bottom of the river, they need to be placed in large baskets or nets with the tops above the surface. ....... It seems to be quite difficult. And even if I try my best to make it, I don''t know whether it will work or not. Last time, I saw only one fish, and the other was a spoonbill that I caught because it was caught in my search. --If it doesn''t take one, should I try to capture one directly by using [Searching for enemies]?¡¡For the sake of a good suppon hot pot . That''s what I thought as I looked at the soup that had turned into nothing but soup in a short time. 156-140 Gardening (1) We came back home from the guild, the first time in days, to freshen up the house. We checked the security system, but there was no problem, and fortunately there was no intruder. However, I wonder if it was my imagination that Haruka and Yuki looked a little disappointed that they couldn''t do the experiment. Afterwards, we had dinner at home for the first time in a while, and had a relaxing tea time after dinner. Do you have any plans to do anything this afternoon? It''s not really time to work, so I''m going to do some gardening today. It''s spring and I want to spruce up my home. I agree!¡¡I agree! It''s such a big garden! Natsuki immediately agrees with Haruka''s suggestion. It''s true that it''s spring, the season when flowers are in full bloom. The buds on the trees in the garden are beginning to swell, so we may be able to see some flowers in a little while. This is my first spring, so I don''t know what kind of flowers will bloom. "But if you think about what to plant, it''s more like a vegetable garden than gardening, isn''t it? "That''s true. Especially corn. I have corn, rapeseed and herb seeds on hand. It''s not a plant that you can enjoy flowering. It''s not a plant that you can enjoy flowering. I''m not really interested in gardening, but I am interested in vegetable gardening. By the way, I heard that corn needs a lot of fertilizer. ...... Is that so? But before that, the soil in this garden is not very fertile, is it? Yuki told me, and I looked at the ground in the garden. The place we usually use for training has been trampled down and the grass is gone, but in other places, plants and trees are growing normally, so I guess they can grow. However, whether it is suitable as a field is another matter, and as an amateur, it does not look like a good soil. My image is that blackish soil is good soil, but the soil here is more brownish. It''s better than the soil of school grounds or other places, though. Yes, ......, in the long run, if you don''t add fertilizer, the land will lose weight. I think there''s some kind of composting wizardry on ....... "Does it even have that?¡¡It''s in the Alchemy Dictionary. Oh, garbage disposal is a very important issue, isn''t it?¡¡If you leave garbage in the city, it will cause rats and insects, and it can also be a source of plague. If you think about it, don''t you think it''s natural that there''s a demand for magic tools that can dispose of garbage cleanly? "......, that''s what you say, isn''t it?¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. It''s a little surprising, because it''s such a lowly magical tool, but even our toilet is a great magical tool. It''s only composting, but it''s still composting. "But it''s a composting bin, not an incinerator like a toilet? Hold on a minute. Let''s see. ...... Haruka, who had brought an alchemy encyclopedia with her, studied it for a while and then nodded. There are both, but I think composting is the way to go. Why? First of all, quantity. First of all, the amount of waste produced in the toilet and the amount of other waste. If you compare the two, the latter is usually larger, right?¡¡If you try to incinerate it completely, it will cost a lot of money because it consumes a lot of magic stones. In this world, the amount of trash produced is obviously less than in Japan, but it is still more than the amount of trash people produce in their toilets. It would be very difficult to incinerate all of them by consuming the magic power of the magic stones. Next is effective use. The garbage produced here is basically all compostable, so we can sell it to the farmers and pay for the magic stones, and it consumes less magic stones than incinerating it, so it''s a win-win situation. The downside is that it''s bigger than an incinerator, but it''s not so big that it''s a problem, is it? It''s true that food waste is a bit much. The amount of trash itself is small because there is no such thing as plastic packaging, but for some foodstuffs, there is clearly more waste than in Japan. The reason for this is, of course, that there are many parts that should be disposed of at home. This is different from modern supermarkets, where the food is completely prepared and you can cook without a knife if you want to. It''s so convenient. You don''t need to buy fertilizer?¡¡We produce a lot of waste from dismantling demons, and if we wanted to, we could make compost as much as we wanted. We can make compost if we want to." "Yeah, tons of it. ...... This will make it easier to deal with sculpts and apes, huh? It''s a lot of work to fill in the blanks because there are so many of them appearing at once. No, you can''t just throw a bunch of sculpted ape bodies into something that''s too big. And if you''re going to throw the whole thing in, not just a few small pieces of trash, it''s going to be a very bad thing.¡¡To put it simply, it''s a composting machine with a shredder. "...... Ugh. I''m imagining it. That would certainly be evil. "But if you grind up the bones and compost them, they might be a good component. It contains phosphorus. Oh, by the way, you sow bone meal, right? Oh, I see. In a way, it makes sense to compost the whole thing. Even I know that the three elements of fertilizer are nitrogen, phosphate, and potash. I don''t know about the rest. Phosphorus is fine, but what about the other fertilizers? Potassium is easily found in ashes from burning trees and plants. For nitrogen, you can plant beans, but oil cake is also high in nitrogen, so you may be able to use rapeseed. But if you add compost, you won''t need as much nitrogen. You know a lot, don''t you, Natsuki? Yeah, well, a little? A little? If you are a gardener, is it natural to know about gardening? Well, I don''t know, so I just follow. Let''s split up and work together, shall we? How about Toya plowing, Nao building blocks to expand the area a bit more, Natsuki planting, and Yuki and I making compost? I don''t know, just pick a spot and we''ll do it. Yeah, sure. Thank you for the instructions. At Haruka''s suggestion, we split up and start working. Compared to building a bath, building a proper stone block is easy. Rather, it is more troublesome to level the ground and arrange them neatly. But that was until I realized that I could directly raise the ground with "Ground Control" and turn it into stone. Since even the part buried in the ground is made of stone, it is firmly fixed and does not move, making it perfect as a curb. After I finished making the curb, I helped Toya to plow and Natsuki to plant seeds. Then I helped Toya to plow and Natsuki to plant seeds. By the time we finished sprinkling water, it was getting late in the day. The sun was setting by the time we finished sprinkling water. "Good work, all three of you. As we were taking a break in the dining room after Natsuki had purified us, Yuki and Haruka came into the dining room with drinks in their hands. I''m so tired. Farming is different from normal training! "It''s quite a big garden, isn''t it? How about you, Haruka? We''ve finished ours. You saw us working on it, right? Yeah. Yeah, I saw you working on it, but it''s finished? Well, why don''t we take a look? I need to explain it to you. Haruka and Yuki led the way to the kitchen, just outside the back door. The composting area there was much larger than I had expected. It was a rectangular shape, about 150 centimeters high, one meter deep, and two meters wide, with a flip-up lid at the top. There was a small door at the bottom, through which the finished compost could be taken out. It''s pretty big, huh? Yuki proudly tapped the box and said, "It''s a big box. It''s the size of a large restaurant. It also has a shredder so you can process the bones. It can only process about five hundred pounds at a time, so just throw it in, close the lid, press the button, and start processing. It takes about half a day to a day to finish processing. It''s dangerous, so don''t go inside, okay? Haruka briefly explained how to use the device, opening the lid and showing the buttons. The precautions should go without saying. There''s no way I''m going to get inside this thing. I won''t!¡¡I don''t think so!" "I mean, can it really handle scalp-apes? We might be able to get half of them, but those things come out about ten at a time. But don''t you think we should at least put a lock on the lid?¡¡I know it''s unlikely that kids will come to this house, but it could happen. Oh, yes. There''s always the possibility that a child might enter the house just for the fun of it. Oh, I forgot about that. I''ll add that later. I''ll add it later." To my point, Haruka nodded her head with a look of realization on her face. You never know what a child might do. In terms of danger, the security equipment installed in the house is evil enough, but it is said to be non-lethal, so it is safer than this compost, which will surely kill you. --Well, it''s really only ''just in case''. By the way, one goblin''s magic stone can handle about a ton. Is that ...... cheap or expensive?¡¡Is it cheap or expensive? I remember hearing once that the cost of garbage disposal is about 40 yen per kilogram. I don''t remember. 40 yen or ...... In my area, garbage bags were charged, but considering the price of a bag, it was a little more expensive than that. ......?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. The goblin''s magic stone was 250 rare, right? "Only if you sell it to the guild. I think it''s more expensive to buy. Oh, I see. If you double the price to 500 rares, that''s 0.5 rares per kilo: ....... That''s cheap. But the 40 yen you''re talking about includes all kinds of garbage, right?¡¡If it''s just the so-called food waste, the cost would be much lower, right? ...... Indeed, some garbage is troublesome to dispose of, isn''t it in Japan? It sounds good to say "recycling," but some recycling is almost certainly pointless. For example, food trays. The cost of detergent and water to wash the trays, the cost of purifying the water, the cost of setting up collection boxes, collecting the trays, and transporting them to the recycling plant. Considering the weight and volume of the trays, the fuel used to transport them alone is probably more than the oil used for the trays. It''s true that sometimes we do things that are pointless. Collecting pull tabs, collecting plastic bottle caps, etc. ...... In the old days, pull tabs would come off the cans and it would be dangerous to throw them away, but nowadays, there are hardly any such cans. But nowadays, such cans are few and far between, and it makes no sense to collect them. If you want to collect pull tabs, you should collect aluminum cans themselves. In fact, the pull tabs you collect have only value as aluminum. Incidentally, there is recycling in this world as well, but it is for metals and glass. Since they have normal value, there is no strange collection system, and you can take them to a store and they will buy them as resources. The rest is food scraps, wood, and ceramics, which can be disposed of by burying, burning, or composting. In a sense, it is very eco-friendly. But you don''t need to worry about the magic stone for this one. With a little modification, it can use its own magic power, so the running cost is zero! That''s great!¡¡That''s great! It''s easy on the wallet too! Yuki insisted, banging on the compost again, and Haruka took over. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡The more magic power you put into it, the faster the processing time will be! That''s convenient!¡¡But it''s expensive, isn''t it? No!¡¡It''s only the cost of materials! Oh, my goodness! What is this little play? ...... The sudden start of Yuki and Haruka''s little play left me and Toya dumbfounded, and Natsuki, with a wry smile on her face, put a damper on it. It''s the material cost that''s the problem, isn''t it?¡¡How much was the initial cost? ".......... Haruka and Yuki are both silent at Natsuki''s words. I see, there was that cost, wasn''t there? The running cost is almost zero, but that doesn''t mean the total processing cost is cheap? But the more you use, the more the amortization of the initial cost will be spread out, so the cost won''t be that ...... high, right? "Well, yeah, well, not that much? There are no labor costs involved, so it''s not a problem.¡¡Yes. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a great way to improve your alchemy and you''re not in need of money. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life. 157-141 Gardening (2) I''ve improved it. The next morning, Haruka left her early morning training alone. The next morning, Haruka left the early morning training early and was fixing the composting system she had made yesterday. I''ve added a key and a bio-reactor as well. If there''s a living thing in there, it won''t move. A fail-safe. I don''t think we''ll have a problem without it. ...... I don''t know what the future holds, but there''s always the possibility that someone will get married and have a baby, right? Marriage, huh. I don''t know about the future, but there is a possibility that someone will get married and have children. And from the child''s point of view, this compost is a good item for hide-and-seek. Even if the door is locked, a child who lives in this house can easily take it out. If you think about it, it might not be a waste. By the way, we''re using the magic circle from the magic bag, so anything that fits in the magic bag is excluded. Magic Bag ...... means that you can move fish even if they are still alive. Yes. If you eliminate them completely, even if they contain insects, they won''t move. That''s not very practical. It wouldn''t be able to handle the dead leaves and branches we collect in the garden. So, why don''t we go hunting so we can test drive it?¡¡Maybe we could go hunting for a sculpted ape. "Test run ......, I know what you''re thinking ....... It''s natural to want to run it once you''ve built it. And since the only things in the magic bag are things that have already been processed, there are no things that can be thrown in there. Haruka, why don''t you look for a magic weapon first?¡¡I can go hunting whenever I want, but the weapon will require more time and help from Gantz-san, right? "Hmm, that''s true, isn''t it ......? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to get the most out of your time. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡You can hunt with me, Nao, and Natsuki while you''re making them. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Goblins or something like that would be fine. Oh, no pressure. I''m sure it''ll be fine, but there''s no need to go and kill a scarp-ape when there are so few of us. The only thing you need is materials for a test run, and non-monstrous task boars and brown aukes will do just fine. "So, metals for magic weapons?¡¡What kind of metal is that?¡¡Isn''t it magic iron? "You know that magic iron, the blue iron and yellow iron we use in our weapons, as well as black iron, white iron, and red iron, are all alchemical metals, right?¡¡And the metal that is a little better than magic iron is "attribute steel". This is where they start using it for magic weapons. By the way, the famous mithril and adamantite were also listed. It didn''t say how to make them, though. Oh, ......, that tickles my boyish fancy! "It''s more of a second childhood thing. But it sure sounds like something I''d like. I''m a boy myself. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I don''t need to be told that the etymology is wrong. I don''t think it''s that easy to get, you know?¡¡The book I have only lists attribute steel. It''s not like you have mithril ore to make it with alchemy, right?¡¡Hmmm ...... In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. Is the base metal different for mithril?¡¡I''m curious, but it''s not something I can do anything about at the moment. "Attribute steel is a metal with attributes? Yes. Fire, water, wind, earth, and light. It''s a metal with attributes of each. Light is the most effective for our purpose of fighting the undead, but other metals can do damage as well, so you can choose the one you like best. In addition, we need the help of a wizard who can use that magic to create it, but as far as we''re concerned, that''s not a problem. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. You don''t need to worry about finding wizards. I''m not sure if there are any other weaknesses besides undead? If there are advantages of attributes, you should take them into account. If there are some undead monsters that can only be affected by certain attributes, it would be too costly to change weapons every time. It was Natsuki who answered my question. It usually doesn''t seem to have much of an effect, but for demons that don''t have any substance, like ghosts, it seems to be important. The chances of encountering them seem to be slim. So, since there are five of us, should we split them up? What do you think?¡¡I think it''s better to have more light. It''s the ghosts that are the problem now, and we can make our own attribute steel. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. That''s right. I have the best chance of hitting it. What about me and Yuki? ...... Yuki, what do you think? Well, ...... if I''m going to use it, it''s going to be a dagger, right?¡¡If that''s the case, I''d prefer something other than light. ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Well, if you have a weapon that is effective against the undead, you''ll have to fight in close combat. And with a dagger, you have to get pretty close. If it''s just skeletons or ghosts, but if there''s a possibility of zombies or something, you''d certainly hate it. On the other hand, I use a spear, so it''s a little better. All right. I''ll take the light. The rest is up to you. Thank you. --Haruka, Natsuki, what should we do? After some discussion, Yuki and the others decided that Haruka would use fire, Yuki would use water, and Natsuki would use wind steel. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to say. The meeting with Mr. Gantz was over quickly. Basically, it was just a matter of changing the materials, and the shape of the weapon would be based on the one we were currently using, so there was almost no need for a meeting. Once the meeting was over, Haruka and Yuki went back to the house to work on making the attribute steel, while the three of us headed for the forest. Our target was hobgoblins, but there was also a straggling orc walking around, so we hunted that as well, and ended up with six hobgoblins and an orc by noon. It''s not a lot of money, but there''s no point in sticking around, so I just went home. At home, Haruka and the others were waiting for me, having already finished delivering the attribute steel. It took you a while, didn''t it?¡¡They said the weapon would be ready in three or four days. The hobgoblins are a bit of a pain to find. I went to the North Woods out of habit, but if I wanted to find hobgoblins, I might as well have gone to the South Woods. I couldn''t find any in the north woods, so I moved to the east woods and had to search a good deal of ground there as well. More importantly, will it be ready in three or four days? "It''ll take about a day, plus the alchemy that needs to be done after it''s finished. The reason it''s shorter than expected is because Tommy will be helping out, not just Mr. Ganz. Tommy. I haven''t seen him lately, but I wonder if he''s gotten better. I haven''t seen him in a while. I''d rather do a trial run on the compost. You brought it back, didn''t you? "Of course. That was the purpose of my visit. But why don''t we have lunch first? Sure. I''m pretty hungry. I''m fine with whatever you''ve got. Sure. Yuki, Haruka, let''s eat first. It won''t take too long if we make something from scratch. Haruka and the others agreed with Natsuki''s words, and we quickly finished our lunch. It''s easier than instant food, because you can take it out of the storage and eat freshly prepared food right away. Cleanup is also a snap. If this were available in Japan, it would be a great ally for the busy mothers of the world. The only drawback is that, unlike instant food, it requires someone who can cook to stockpile it beforehand, but in our case, Haruka and the three of us are good cooks, and they cook quite frequently, so we never have trouble even when we are hungry. I''m very grateful for that. ...... Well, sometimes Toya eats something that looks like a main dish, and Haruka and the others get mad at him for messing up their plans. I''m not sure.¡¡I''ve been thinking about it, and I''m trying to make sure that I have a few small plates, small bowls. I don''t want to be the only one without a main dish at dinner. Well, let''s give it a try. It''s probably fine. ...... We haven''t run it yet. After lunch, we moved to the backyard and came to the composting area. He had already checked the composting system with nothing in it, but since this was the first time he had actually used it with food scraps in it, he was a little worried. Anyway, unlock the door, open the lid, and throw in ...... Toya, the hobgoblin. "Here we go. Toya casually replied, taking the headless hobgoblin corpse out of his magic bag and throwing it into the compost. Let''s get rid of the orcs while we''re at it. "Yeah, sure. If we all work together, we''ll be able to dismember an orc in no time, and all the unwanted parts will be in the compost. Then close the lid, lock the door, and turn on the ...... switch. Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch. The moment Yuki turned on the switch, an indescribable sound echoed out of the compost, and all of our expressions hardened. "This is ....... I don''t want to imagine what''s going on in there. I was expecting a certain amount of noise, but it''s pretty graphic. It seems to be working fine, but the sound is terrible. It seems to be working fine, but the sound is terrible. The sound is quite annoying to the neighbors. I don''t care how much you use it for business, are you really using this thing? No, they don''t usually throw whole goblins in there. This one has a reinforced shredder part. You can''t crush them as it is. Haruka denies Toya''s question, and Yuki adds. It''s not going to break, is it? Haruka dismisses Toya''s question and Yuki adds, "It won''t break? If it''s too hard to break, it will just come out. Is that so? That''s a relief. Because the structure of the shredder is different from that of mechanical shredders, it is said to be maintenance-free, requiring no lubrication or blade replacement. The only thing you have to do is remove the compost, or it will clog up. In the meantime, since this is a test, Natsuki and Nao, can you try pouring in a lot of magic power?¡¡You don''t have any plans today, do you? Yeah, that''s good. Here? I put my hand on the spot that Haruka specified and poured magic power into it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. If you pour in three times the standard amount of magic power, the processing time is cut in half, and if you pour in three times more, it''s cut by a quarter. So twenty-seven times is an eighth? No, after that, double it, half. You can inject up to 144 times. In that case, the process will take less than half an hour. By design. I don''t think there''s any need to rush it, but ...... let''s give it a try. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure if that''s enough or not.¡¡Now we just have to wait. The processing time is about a day if you fill it to capacity. In this case, it''s not that packed, and I''ve poured a lot of magic power into it. If it works according to the specifications, it will take less than 20 minutes to complete the process. I took a break with a cup of tea. A "ding! sounded from the compost. Looks like it''s done. Haruka opened the bottom door of the compost and stuck a shovel inside. Out of the compost comes a black soil ......?¡¡Or should I say fertilizer? It''s freshly made, so it''s a little warm. It''s a little different from my idea of compost, isn''t it? "Maybe it''s because I didn''t add any branches or leaves?¡¡I don''t know, but I feel like if I put too much of this in my compost, I''ll end up with too much fertilizer. Nao''s image is more like humus, isn''t it? Well, humus is more of a soil conditioner than a fertilizer, so I guess it''s a little different. Well, I don''t understand. Well, I don''t understand. At least I can''t use it as soil to plant seeds. Well, it seems to work fine, so I guess the trial run was a success. Now we need to try it out. "Let''s start with less. Under Yuki and Natsuki''s guidance, we applied the compost to the flower beds and vegetable garden. You can''t just scatter it around. Dig a trench a little bit away from where you planted the seeds, put a small amount of compost in it, and cover it with soil. Since the seeds will not be consumed by themselves, you can put them at the base of garden trees as well. Last year, it produced very tasty nuts, so I''m hoping for the same this year. However, I don''t want them to die, so I don''t consume as many as I should. ...... quite a bit left over, huh? The amount of compost is less than half of what we put in, but we still have about 200 kilos of compost. Even though we have a large garden, we only use a small portion of it for flower beds and vegetable gardens, so we used less than half of it. For the time being, I should make a magic bag for compost and store it there. We can''t use the compost if we leave it in there. That''s true. But it''s a luxury, isn''t it, the Magic Bag? We can make our own. "We can make our own," Yuki says with a slight chuckle, and Haruka also chuckles. It''s not easy to buy a magic bag, even if you have the money, and it''s hard just to get one, but now we can use one for each purpose. But now we can use one bag for each purpose. It''s too much trouble to embroider everything, so depending on the use, we can only write magic circles with ink, but in exchange for the deterioration of performance, the production time can be greatly reduced, so we can use them in a very luxurious way. So-called "producer''s privilege. It is often heard that the producers of crops and fish catches, which are precious and expensive in the world, are so common that they eat enough of them. I''m sure other people are jealous of this, but ...... it''s convenient and I have no intention of restraining myself from now on. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. ...... It was only natural that the amount of compost produced would be out of proportion to the amount consumed, and the day would come in the relatively near future when we would have to worry about disposing of the accumulated compost. 158-142 Getemono (?) Lets eat We''re running low on fish and crab, aren''t we? It was at the breakfast table that Yuki mentioned this. It was Toya, the most frequent eater among us, who reacted loudly. "Really?¡¡Isn''t this a big deal? "I wouldn''t go so far as to say it''s a big deal, but it''s a problem. Crabs are delicious in soups, miso soup stock, or just eaten on their own, and in a city where you can''t buy fish, the landlocked salmon and char we catch are the only fish we can eat. Since then, Tommy and I have gone fishing a few times, but since it was a day trip and more for leisure than food security, we didn''t catch any crabs and the number of fish we caught was not very large. I would like to keep a stock of fish for variety of meals. It''s been about six months since I went fishing. We ate the sponges in the winter, but didn''t we leave the eels and the giant prickly fish behind? Yes. Actually, I''ve already eaten the soupon. Natsuki made a good job of it. We didn''t have enough of them to begin with, but the taste was so much better than we expected that our stock was already zero. That''s right. I had put it on hold because we didn''t have soy sauce, and I forgot about it. You can make kabayaki now. You can make kabayaki now." "Eel is always kabayaki!¡¡...... I''ve never had any other dish. After I came back from fishing, I had talked about eel for a while, but since I couldn''t think of a dish that would be tasty without soy sauce, I had neglected it for a while. There was a suggestion that we could try "Kabayaki" (broiled eel), but it was abandoned because we couldn''t think of a dish that would be tasty without soy sauce and wasabi. But the idea was abandoned. I don''t think there is anything wrong with eating eel with salt, but Japanese people have too strong an image of eel as kabayaki. Incidentally, catfish is usually cooked and served as fried fish. They have no peculiar taste and are delicious. If you want to go fishing, you should taste eels first. If it''s good, I''d like to catch some more. If it''s not good, it''s useless. "But can you handle it?¡¡But can you handle it? The eel and the giant salamander. The eel, not to mention the giant salamander, is too much for an amateur, right? I think I can manage it. If we separate them by parts, we can find out if they are edible or not, right, Toya? "...... maybe? I''m not sure, but I''m sure. In most cases, if it is cut neatly, the appraisal can determine whether it is edible or not, but this depends to some extent on the level of the appraisal, that is, on Toya''s knowledge. But that doesn''t mean that you can''t understand what you don''t know. Appraisal is a skill that is not as useful as "knowing 10 things by asking 1", but it is as useful as "knowing 10 things by asking 1 to 7". Incidentally, task boars and the like are also displayed as "beasts (edible)" in [Help], but this seems to be limited to major items that even ordinary people know about. For example, the Bind Viper. If you check the Help menu, you will not see the word "edible. This is probably because the meat of the bind viper is not major enough to be commonly sold in butcher shops. The problem is with the giant salamander. The eel can be discarded except for the meat and liver. "Let''s eat the bones!¡¡They can be made into rice crackers, right? Yuki''s eyes lit up with anticipation as she added, "I''ve never had it before," to which Natsuki chuckled and nodded. I''ve never had it before. I''ll add the bones, too. I''m not sure what to do. It''s free money, so it''s okay if you don''t want to. That''s right. Nao and Toya are ...... waiting for a moment. Nao and Toya will be ...... waiting for a bit. We''ll call them in to taste ...... the poison. As the three of them walked into the kitchen, Toya and I looked at each other. I''m not sure about the eel, but the big salamander. I''m worried. I''m sure it''s tasty if cooked properly, as long as the nobles want it for a few dozen gold coins. I''m not sure what to expect. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m so excited about this. I trained in magic while reading a grimoire, and Toya trained in muscle training - or rather, muscle strengthening - which can be done without slamming around. It may seem strange that there is nothing else to do in one''s free time but train, but it can''t be helped since there is no entertainment that can be done easily. I have never seen a comic book, let alone an entertaining novel, and there are no board games or card games on sale. Now that I have more money in my life, I can make my own. ....... I''ve never seen the kind of hard paper used for card games, and if I were to use it, would it be a wooden board?¡¡I''ve never seen hard paper like that used in card games. If it''s something you can make easily by yourself, it might be something like ...... mahjong.¡¡I can make dice with earth magic, so it would be easy for me to make tiles. It''s a bit of a hassle, though, because of the number of tiles. Hmm, this might be a good idea. --If we can get enough players. Toya can play, but have Haruka and the others ever played mahjong before? As I was continuing my training, thinking about such trivial things, Natsuki called out to me. "Both of you, please come here for a moment. "Whoa!¡¡Did you do it? Toya hurried to the kitchen, followed by me, probably feeling anxious but also happy to be eating eel. As I entered the kitchen, my nostrils were softly tickled by the delicious aroma of burning soy sauce. A small plate with a piece of broiled eel on it was presented to Toya and me. First the eel. Here you go. "Bon app¨¦tit! I''m not worried about this one, so I''ll just take a bite. --Yeah. It''s good. Very good. The meat is fatty but not greasy, soft and tender. And the sweet and spicy sauce goes well with it. I wouldn''t have known it wasn''t soy sauce if you hadn''t told me. "This is amazing!¡¡I want it on rice! "I agree. I want to go on a journey to find rice. When I can eat Japanese dishes, I want to eat rice. You may want to seriously look for it. Next is the big salamander, but I haven''t cooked this one yet. Check it out, Toya. Oh. On the table, there was a large Sansho fish, neatly arranged. They are so neatly lined up that it''s a little surreal. Looking at them, Toya pointed out, "This one is edible, this one is not," but there were almost no parts that were not edible. It would be better if the criteria for edible were not "it won''t kill you if you eat it" but "it tastes good". ....... "But you did a good job on it, didn''t you? In fact, it wasn''t too hard to handle the eel.¡¡I don''t know if it was the cooking skill or the dismantling skill that did it. I''m not sure if it''s because of my cooking skill or my dismantling skill, but I''m pretty sure it''s because of my cooking and dismantling skills. It''s a lot smaller than the big ones you usually kill, but I guess you could call this dismantling. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web. My concern was also felt by Natsuki. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''ve never had a big salamander dish, so ...... let''s give it a try. "Well, yes. Let''s simply saut¨¦ it and taste it. Natsuki cut up the parts of the giant sansho fish little by little, and Yuki and Haruka sauteed them. If you only see Yuki and Haruka cooking, it''s a normal dish, but Natsuki''s dismantling process next to them makes you lose your appetite. "Here you go. "The only seasoning is simple salt!¡¡Savor the taste of the ingredients. In the event that you''re in the market for a brand-new pair of shoes, you''re going to want to take a look at this kind of shoes. The ...... smell is not bad. Yeah, it''s not fishy or anything like that. It looks fine. Yeah. It''s whitish meat. ...... After you, Toya? No, no, no, Nao. Don''t tell me you can''t eat Haruka and Yuki''s food? I''m not going to say that I can''t eat ....... But it takes a lot of courage to see them in their original form. Then I''ll have this one, and you can have that one. Oh! I took the part of the body that Haruka cooked and pushed the part of the organs that Yuki cooked to Toya. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it will be less damaging if it does happen. --Well, there are many kinds of organs, so we''ll probably end up eating them. I stabbed the meat with my fork and threw it into my mouth. "...... Oh! Something unexpected. I was expecting it to have a light taste like chicken meat, but it was much juicier and tastier. The meat is not overflowing with juices, but every time you bite into it, the juices seep out without being greasy, and it''s delicious. In addition, the faint smell of the meat is a nice accent. It''s not the sansho scent that I imagined from the name ......, but it''s also the smell of meat in a way.¡¡But it''s good. If it is too strong, it will be a disadvantage, but if it is too slight, it will be an advantage. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. I''m sure you''ll agree. "......?¡¡I''m not sure what to say. He groaned and twisted his neck. From the look on his face, it doesn''t seem to be bad. ....... What do you think? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡No, it''s good if you say it''s good. It''s like eating fish liver or something like that. But it''s not something you eat a lot of, is it? "Motsu is a kind of delicacy. "Motsu is a kind of delicacy," he said, "like "karasumi," "salted squid," and "konowata. All of them are eaten only a little. Foie gras is sometimes eaten as a steak, but it is too fatty to be eaten with gusto. Whether it tastes good depends on how you cook it, doesn''t it? "I see. I see." "The other parts are similar to ....... Encouraged by Toya, I tried some of the other motsu, but it wasn''t all that great. At the very least, a few dozen gold coins for this is a bit excessive. "Well, the price of ...... food, or rather the price of high quality food, is different from the taste. Just because something is rare doesn''t mean the price is proportional to the taste, even in Japan. Yuki chuckles at my comment and says something like that. To some extent, good food is expensive, but expensive does not necessarily mean good. And there are things that taste good even if they are cheap. If you ask me which is better, caviar or horse mackerel tuna, I''ll say the latter. Of course, if the horse mackerel is fresh and fatty, but honestly, if it is not rare, I think it is more valuable than tuna. For my taste. Natsuki, who must have eaten a lot of good food, smiles at my words. Foie gras and truffles are delicious, but they''re not something you want to eat every day. They are only delicious when eaten only once in a while. I agree with Nao-kun when it comes to daily meals. So you think it''s better to sell the giant salamander than to eat it? I think so.¡¡I think so. - I think it''s okay to eat it once in a while. I don''t know if I agree with that.¡¡Unless there''s a really good way to eat it. If there''s no other good food, or if there''s something to sell, it''s a shame to eat it ourselves. At least from my point of view, it was not the kind of food I would want to pay tens of gold coins to eat. "I see. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''ve been able to help you out with this. ...... I''ll taste it and figure out how to cook it, so please wait a bit. We waited again. We waited again for a while. What Natsuki and his friends made was a hot pot. They used a pot for sponges that they had obtained before, and made it look like a sponges pot. We don''t think we''ll be eating it in the future, so we made it light to bring out the flavor. If you season it too strongly, you won''t even be able to tell if it''s a giant salamander or not. I think that''s a good idea. ...... I''ll take it. There were two pieces of what looked like large Sansho fish legs sticking out of the pot, but for those of us who had experienced the suppon hot pot, that was no problem. We picked one up and bit into it. "...... Oh, it''s pretty good. "The broth is much better than I expected. I wonder if the spuds would be better? Motsu is good, too. But it doesn''t taste like a hot pot made with dozens of gold coins and hundreds of thousands of yen. No, what kind of taste is a hot pot worth hundreds of thousands of yen? You can eat fugu crap if you pay 10,000 yen. I''ve never heard of a nabe dish costing hundreds of thousands of yen in Japan, unless you put in some high quality ingredients for nothing. I''ve never heard of a hot pot dish costing hundreds of thousands of yen in Japan. Are you going to spit out rays of light from your mouth? It''s a complete aristocrat''s indulgence. ...... Hmm, isn''t it all about vanity? I''m sure you''re right, it''s just like Yuki says, ''I''m awesome for being able to get such a rare ingredient''. Even as she said this, Haruka and the others'' cooking skills were not undeserved, and the contents of the pot were dwindling as fast as they could. And after eating, the conclusion was: ....... Catch as many eels as you can! Sell the giant salamander! Sell the giant salamander! Suppon is delicious! It''s a pity there''s no rice, but kabayaki is delicious, isn''t it? 159-143 New Equipment After all the tasting, we headed out to get some food, and the results weren''t too bad. As usual, we caught a lot of ordinary fish with hair hooks. We were able to secure a good amount of eels by setting more traps for them. As for the sponges, which we had originally planned to catch with traps, we ended up catching them by hand. Aside from small ones, large ones can be detected by [searching for enemies] with some effort, in fact. Unlike eels, you can catch them with your bare hands. There was no need to make a troublesome trap for them. I did not actively catch the giant salamander, but the selling price was high, so I caught it when I found it. After a few days of relaxing and securing food, I came back to Raffan and found that the weapon I had asked Gantz to make was finished. It was on schedule, but as usual, he worked fast. The new weapons this time were Toya''s sword, Natsuki''s naginata, my spear, and Haruka and Yuki''s small swords. Due to the frequency of use and cost, the subweapons of each of them have not been changed. Haruka''s main weapon is a bow, but since it''s not something that can be done by changing the material to Attribute Steel, I''ve decided to put it on hold for the time being and ask Gantz to continue considering it. I''ve had a few of the arrowheads replaced with attribute steel made, so I think I can secure some attack power with those. The balance should be the same as the current weapon, but check it out. The small dagger is ...... a little thinner? When Haruka received the sword, she compared it to the one she was currently using and twisted her head. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do with your time and money. I''m sure that''s the one Tommy was working on. Attribute steel is stronger than magic steel or blue steel. Still, it''s stronger than anything we''ve ever made. On the other hand, mine and Natsuki''s weapons are the same size, only lighter in weight. The strength is increased by the amount of material used, and the increase is greater than that of the small sword. The weight of Toya''s sword is also important, so we haven''t changed it. It''s a little bigger, but you can handle it, right? Yes!¡¡I can handle a little difference. Yeah. It''s natural to have a weapon you''re good at, but if you can''t fight with it, you''re not a good adventurer. It''s a shame for an arms dealer, but there''s always the possibility of losing a weapon. Gantz-san nodded deeply at Toya, who lightly waved the sword he had received and grinned. As Gantz said, as an adventurer, you should always consider the possibility of losing or damaging your weapon. That''s why we have subweapons. It''s a big advantage to have a magic bag so that you can carry a decent weapon instead of an unreliable knife. Well, if you have trouble with it, bring it back. I''ll adjust it. Normally, we can''t make any adjustments until after the alchemist has finished with the post-processing, but you guys-- "Yes. I can do it myself. Haruka nodded in response to Gantz''s gaze. This time, Haruka and Yuki post-processed the weapon to complete it, but of course, if you adjust the weapon after this process, it will be useless and you will need to process it again through alchemy. Normally, it would not be easy to adjust the weapon because it would cost money to do so again, but in our case, it is not necessary. You may need to pay a little bit of money for the materials, but that''s about the extent of it, except for the time and effort of Haruka and the others. But you guys are the best in the city at weapons, I''m afraid. Is that so? Yeah. If you can afford it, you''ve got the best steel weapons in the city. You can''t buy better weapons than that, can you? No. It''s not that you can''t get attribute steel, but it takes a long time for it to arrive even if you order it in this city.¡¡--There''s no one to buy it in this town in the first place. Even if you''re dealing with Orcs, you''re over-specified. This time, the price we pay to Mr. Gantz is several hundred gold coins. This is because we brought in a material called Attribute Steel, and if we had purchased it normally, it would have cost us well over a thousand gold coins. It is indeed quite expensive. Even though weapons are more expensive than other things, it''s enough to build my house. But even so, if we can''t buy more weapons, we''ll have to go to ....... Can''t you just go to another town and buy one? Mr. Gantz smiles and shakes his head at my question. It''s possible if it''s a special item, but it''s unlikely to be sold normally. The most likely place is an auction, but it''s pretty expensive.¡¡You don''t even use it, but the aristocrats will bid on it just to look good. I don''t know. ...... In the game, it''s as if the most powerful weapon was sold in a store in the town at the beginning of the game. Rafan is the first town for us. However, it would be more strange if the weapons available in different towns differed greatly despite the distribution. Especially in a game where the king, the center of the country, sells only weak weapons, it is too strange. "Is it so hard to get better weapons, Mr. Ganz?¡¡You can bring in your own materials. ...... As a blacksmith, I don''t want to say it''s impossible, but it''s not going to be easy. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''re frustrated that you can''t say you can. I''m not sure what to say, but I''ll try. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. Even if you have handled them, you are definitely a top-notch blacksmith. --I wonder why he is in this town? Why am I in this town? "Well, you can wait until you get it. You''re a raccoon, aren''t you? That''s true. I haven''t even used this weapon yet. As Toya said, we don''t know how to get more metal than the Attribute Steel, nor do we know how to make it ourselves. There''s no point in thinking about it yet. "Besides, shouldn''t you guys be improving your armor more than your weapons?¡¡Why don''t you put on some real armor? Gantz pointed out, and we looked at each other''s outfits. It''s just a simple piece of armor on top of normal clothes. At least that''s what it looks like on the outside. What Gantz is suggesting is that we should use full body armor instead of partial armor. I''m not troubled by chainmail at the moment,......, but I don''t want to make it harder to move. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. However, it is possible that by the time you are in trouble, it may be too late. But chainmail has its weaknesses, doesn''t it?¡¡It is less effective against the bite and impact of thin fangs. And your arms and legs are unprotected. As Gantz pointed out, chainmail is quite strong against slashes, but it is not very effective against attacks with thin weapons that pass through the chains, or blows from clubs. The cushions under the armor can mitigate some of the blows, but since it is only cloth, it is vulnerable to piercing attacks. Furthermore, the chainmail that I am currently using is of the vest type and only covers my buttocks in the back and my groin in the front. I have partial armor on my knees and shins, but I can''t expect any protection other than that. I can''t get rid of the chainmail because of its ease of movement. ...... Is there any better way? If you''re willing to spend the money, you can buy new chainmail with attribute steel and make something to cover your arms and legs. In addition, the material of the armor should be changed, and the boots and gloves should also be updated. In other words, chainmail with long sleeves and long pants. Even though it is lighter than ordinary metal armor, chainmail is also metal. I''m not sure what to do with it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. As for the boots and gloves, they are not particularly good and are used by ordinary adventurers. They are durable and easy to use, but they are cheap. The same is true of the armor. It is made of cotton and linen and is quite ordinary. There is nothing special about them. Boots and gloves are certainly something to think about. "Armor, ......, is there any good material for that?¡¡Alchemy? I''ll look into ....... I wish there was a material that was extremely shock absorbent. Something that won''t crack even if you drop an egg on it. And if it''s comfortable to wear, that would be great. It''s still good for now, but I''m worried about the summer. The thinner the armor, the less cushioning it provides, and the thicker it is, the more heat is trapped. I think it''s better than plate mail, which would kill you if you were in the sun, but I still want to be comfortable. "But, Gantz, isn''t attribute steel not very resistant to rust? Yuki was the one who raised such a question. The chainmail I''m using now is made of white iron, which has properties like stainless steel, so I don''t have to worry about it rusting even if I don''t take care of it, but if it were made of regular iron, it would easily rust unless I oiled it. And since the properties of attribute steel are similar to those of iron, it is said that rust will appear if left unattended, though not as much as iron. There is a way to take care of it, but my recommendation is to coat it with white iron. It costs a lot of money. It''s like plating. No, it''s more like a thicker coating than plating. If the plating is too thin, the chains will rub against each other, and it will come off easily. I think Toya should wear full body armor over her current gear, even if it''s leather. You''re a beast. You''re a beast, you''ve got the physical strength to do that.¡¡There''s also the possibility that you might have to use your body to catch an attack.¡¡Nao can''t do that, right? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s a bit of a jerk. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that.¡¡Of course. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. In fact, I''m not that weak. I''m not the type of person who can take an attack with my body. "And that shield. You should get a new one. It''s not very good, and it''s getting old. It''s dangerous. I''ve been wondering about that lately. Gantz''s eyes lifted when Toya said something fluent. And then the angry voice echoed. "You idiot!¡¡If you''re worried about it, then deal with it!¡¡You''re a blacksmith too! "Yes!¡¡Sorry! I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with that. No, I''m a customer. ...... Well, I guess it''s uncouth to point that out. We ended up spending the rest of the day discussing equipment and taking measurements. The women had almost stopped growing before we came here, and I hadn''t changed much as an elf, but the situation was a little different for Toya, who had become a beast. He had only grown slightly in height, but his chest plate had thickened since the last time he had purchased chainmail, and his current chainmail had become a bit tighter. I''m not Gantz, but it''s true that you should deal with it, but since it cost more than 100 gold coins ...... and probably close to 200 for Toya''s, he was hesitant to replace it in just over half a year. It is true that even I would be very hesitant to throw away 2 million yen worth of clothes in 6 months. It seems that they will take a trade-in, but since chainmail is made to fit the body, it is difficult to sell used items, and they will be heavily discounted. But this is a matter of life and death. There''s no need to save money on that. I mentioned this to Toya later, but it seems that Haruka and the other three had said the same thing to him, and he regretted it, so I guess he''ll be okay from now on. However, the value of the new chainmail could reach 1,000 gold coins. In fact, the payment will not be that much because we will provide the material for it. ...... 10 million yen clothes...... No, are you sure you are okay with this?¡¡I''ll keep an eye out for it. Save your money and die, because it''s really pointless. 160-144 Kitchen garden (1) As a result, I decided to order the chainmail, for which materials are readily available. However, since chainmail is labor-intensive - to put it simply, it''s a pain in the ass - the delivery time seems to be quite long. I decided to have Toya''s shield made of attribute steel as well, and ordered this as well. This should be done relatively soon. As for the other parts of the shield, it is not so easy to make, as it requires good leather materials. I could have made a better one than the current one if I had the leather of the orc leader that I died before, but I have already sold it and don''t have it. It''s not an easy thing to get, so I left it to Mr. Gantz to figure out what to do. As for the under armor, it is more in the category of sewing and alchemy, so Haruka and the others will think about it. When asked what they wanted, I told them that I wanted something that wasn''t too hot if possible, but I''m hoping that ...... alchemy can help. Now that we have a lot of money to spend on this project, let''s make the last spurt. That''s right. We''ll only be able to cut down a few trees this season. Even though we''ll provide the materials, we''re sure to lose thousands of gold coins. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m a poor man or because I''m a poor woman. I also bought a new weapon. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. ...... Well, I''d like to see you come out for a bit. When you get something new, you can''t help but want to try it out, right? Especially shadow ghosts . You may be able to feel the effects of other demons, but if you''re going to use it, you want to experience being able to defeat an enemy that had no effect on you at all. At the same time, I want to test the results of my training in [Searching for Enemies]. Natsuki''s [Concealment] and my [Searching for Enemies] have trained each other, and our levels have risen. Perhaps now we might be able to detect the Shadow Ghosts. --It took us about a week to finish the logging. The skeletons appeared once, but the shadow ghosts did not show up. I''ve been enjoying my latest obsession. One thing I''ve been enjoying lately is watching the growth of plants in my garden. When I walk around the garden after my early morning training, I am happy to see that the corn and rape blossoms are growing fast. The green leaves on the trees in the garden are increasing, and the herbs are sprouting, but it''s good to be able to see clearly how much the corn and rape flowers have grown. However, Yuki and her friends seem to have some doubts about the growth. "Hey, the corn is growing fast, isn''t it? "Oh, you think so too?¡¡The rape blossoms seem to be growing like that, too. We planted corn and rapeseed a little over a week ago. The corn and rape seeds I planted a little over a week ago sprouted and grew quickly, and are now about 15 centimeters tall. I thought they would grow pretty fast, but they seem to be growing too fast for Yuki and her friends. "I only watered it when I planted it. ...... It''s pretty strong, isn''t it? Yes. Is it the variety? I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not, but it''s a good thing. The only maintenance I''ve done is to pull out some weeds. Even so, they are growing well. Does it usually grow more slowly? "From my point of view, I''d say half ...... or even a third of this. It''s possible it''s because they haven''t been bred to be that way. ...... Native species. It is possible that even if you sow a garden seed, the target flower will not sprout, but only the weed will grow rapidly. Yuki twisted her head and nodded her head with an ambiguous expression, as if she was not convinced by Natsuki''s words. It''s true that there are abandoned farmlands, and there are also places where you can find horsetails and silver grass growing all over, so it''s not impossible if the conditions are right. If this is normal in this world, food production will be easy, right? "There is a possibility of fast growth but low yield, right? Yeah, that''s possible. If you haven''t improved the breed. By the way, how many stalks of corn can you get? One. Four or five?¡¡When I asked, Yuki''s reply was heartless. "...... What?¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure. I''ve grown sweet corn in Japan, and that''s what I''m talking about. There are many fruits, but if you don''t thin them out, they don''t grow to the size you see in stores. By the way, the thinned corn is called "young corn," which is used in dishes such as "eight treasures. "Really? I was surprised that I could get only one corn from a corn that I had an image of growing very big, but I was also surprised that the young corn was really corn. I thought it was just young corn in name, but it was something else. Corn takes up a lot of space, but the yield is small. If you grow it in your garden, you can harvest it in one go. ...... It''s fresh and delicious, though. They say it''s a pity that the amount of corn harvested is small compared to the amount of time it takes to grow it and the area it occupies, and that it can be eaten in an instant. On the other hand, it is said that you can get a lot of peppers from a single seedling, close to a hundred if you''re lucky, but the joy of harvesting them is a little less pleasant. Just the peppers. I understand how you feel. I''m not a child who says, "I hate green peppers! I''m not the kind of kid who says, ''I hate green peppers,'' but they''re not the kind of vegetable I''d enjoy eating. Yuki, if this is a normal growth rate, it''s fine, but if it''s not, then what''s causing it? It''s the compost. I just planted it. I don''t think it''s possible that it''s growing faster because it''s not getting enough water. Right. If it only grows faster, then there is no problem. ...... Yuki says simply, and Natsuki agrees. Natsuki agrees with Yuki, who says simply, "Since we didn''t do anything else, we''ve almost identified the cause. Let''s do a control experiment for now. Soil mixed with compost and ordinary soil. Does it make a difference? "Oh, I''ll make a flowerpot then. The conditions should be the same. I''ll also check if the amount of compost makes a difference. Nao, can you help me? Okay. I''m going to help Yuki make a flowerpot with soil magic, and Natsuki is going to fill it with soil from the garden and mix in compost in different proportions. Yuki plants ten rapeseeds in the pot. You plant ten seeds? Because there are differences in germination rates and growth of different seeds. I chose seeds of similar size, but you need a certain number to get an average. I see. If you only have one seed, it may not germinate, if you think about it. The reason why they use rapeseed instead of corn is because they can plant more of it. Well, I can''t wait to see the results! Yuki smiled as she placed the watered flowerpots on the sunny wall of her house. It''s going to be a while before we see the results, but we''ll see. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó One week later. The first corn I planted was already above my waist height. That''s crazy. Yeah. Yeah. I guess it is. I can understand why it''s growing so fast, only half a month after planting the seeds. But let''s fertilize for the time being. "But for now, let''s fertilize," said Natsuki, digging a hole in the side of the corn plant and burying the fertilizer. Normally, they don''t fertilize at such intervals, but considering the degree of growth, not the passage of time, it seems that the plants are big enough to need fertilization. This one is probably close to the original, and I''m sure it can grow without fertilizer, but let''s try to grow it the same way we grew it in the past. In her vegetable garden, she fertilized three or four times before harvesting. Do I need to do it often? Yes. Yes, because corn is a fertilizer eater. It needs to be fertilized in order to make the fruits bigger and sweeter. At this rate of growth, you might want to fertilize about once a week. Is that how it is? Perhaps?¡¡There''s always the chance of failure. ...... Well, we''re not farmers, so it doesn''t matter, right? Even if all the trees die, we won''t be in need of food. It''s not a big problem, but if it''s an annual plant, you can just plant it again. It''s not a big problem. The one in the flowerpot is also ...... clearly different. Yeah. Obviously the fertilizer is making a difference. Yes, honestly, it''s crazy. Rape blossoms planted in flowerpots last week. The one without fertilizer has only sprouted a few buds, while the one with fertilizer is over 20 cm tall. The concentration of fertilizer does not seem to have much effect on the growth of the plants, and there is no difference within the range of the experiment. So there is no difference in the amount of fertilizer? No, I think we used too much in the biggest pot. Yes. The second one is a bit affected, too, isn''t it? Hmm?¡¡Is that so?¡¡It looks fine. Look at this leaf. They''re a little curly, aren''t they?¡¡Probably from too much fertilizer. If you ask me. But to a layman like me, it''s really a matter of opinion. If you hadn''t pointed it out, I wouldn''t have noticed it. But your tolerance is much higher than I thought. "Yes, it is. Considering the amount of fertilizer I used, I thought half of it would die. Will it die if I use too much fertilizer? Yes, it does.¡¡Yes, especially with chemical fertilizers. This compost needs only about the same amount of fertilizer as a chemical fertilizer, yet it has little effect even if you use a lot. Is it slow-acting? It''s too fast-acting to be called slow-acting. ...... What''s that supposed to mean? In a word, it''s a very useful fertilizer. I don''t really understand it, but Yuki put it simply for me. Yes, if it''s useful, there''s no problem, right? "It''s too easy, but you''re right. If it''s slow-acting, you can reduce the number of times you need to add fertilizer, so you might want to experiment with it. But if it''s so effective, you won''t be able to consume as much. If we don''t, we''ll just keep accumulating. It would be better if I didn''t make them. ...... "It''s a waste of time to make a magic tool, isn''t it? --Hmm?¡¡What about this one? Next to an unfertilized flowerpot. Next to the unfertilized pot, there was another pot with only a few buds. Did I make two of these? Oh, that''s from the fertilizer available in the city. I added them later, so they''re a day apart. If there''s not much difference, does that mean our fertilizer is more effective? That''s right. Strangely enough. It''s not strange. It''s the ingredients, I''m sure. Well, I can''t think of anything else. The difference between the fertilizer sold in the town is whether it is made from leftover food or the corpse of a demon. To be honest, this result makes me wonder if it''s safe to eat crops grown with this fertilizer. 161-145 Kitchen garden (2) Two more weeks. In our vegetable garden, there was a very fine corn crop. "It''s too early. It grew many times faster. "Yes. What I''m worried about is the taste and the safety. Well, let''s just pick it, shall we? Sure. Put it in a magic bag immediately after harvesting. Even sweet corn loses its sweetness quickly if left unattended. Got it. This variety is not expected to be sweet by nature. We should be careful about that. Harvesting corn is very easy. Just hold the seed and bend it downward. We didn''t plant a lot of corn, and it only takes three people to harvest it. The appearance of the corn is comparable to that of corn sold in Japan, and even better than the ones we bought in Kerg. When we boiled one of them in a pot, it looked quite tasty. If you look at it this way, it''s a great success. ....... "......Who wants to eat first? "This is the role of Toya, isn''t it?¡¡I''ll go get him. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get it. I''m sure you''ll have a lot of questions.¡¡It is possible that even if Natsuki doesn''t have a problem, other people won''t? That''s right.¡¡So, Natsuki''s proposal is rejected. I see. Is ...... okay? No, I don''t think it''s a problem in the usual sense.¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. Yes, our normal diet is demon meat. The meat is used to make fertilizer, and it''s too late to say anything about the crops grown with that fertilizer. It''s just that they grow too fast, and it''s creepy. It''s not necessary, but it''s an insurance policy. Did you harvest the corn? "Oh, it''s a nice crop, isn''t it? Without going into details, I called Toya and, just in case, Haruka to come with me. Oh, I''ve boiled the water, you can eat it now. Here. Oh, thank you. It''s a little hard on the skin, but it''s also a little tasty.¡¡The skin is a little hard and a little powdery, but sweeter than I expected. Oh, well, that''s good. Oh, that''s good.¡¡You don''t have any for me? Yuki pulls Haruka''s hand away and gently asks her if she has any. Then a look of understanding spread across Haruka''s face and she looked at Toya as if she were looking at something a little pitiful. No, it''s not mean that you didn''t inform Toya, okay? I was just trying to get her honest opinion without prejudice. Toya didn''t even notice us looking at him, and ate the whole corn in a short time. "Yeah, it was good. I could make a lot of this.¡¡What''s wrong? Is there a problem with ......? Problem?¡¡...... Hey, I don''t see any other signs of corn being eaten.¡¡Haruka didn''t eat it either. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You''ve noticed? You''re right, I did notice!¡¡What is it?¡¡You''re experimenting on me? That''s not very polite. I didn''t want us all to get sick to our stomachs, so I asked you, the hardiest of them all, to take the lead. Same thing. - Well, it''s a fair point. Tell me first, I won''t refuse. Stopping in mid-sentence to complain to me, Toya sighs. I guess he understood that it was a rational decision, but he was not satisfied with it. I wanted to hear your evaluation of the taste. If you ate it with suspicion, you wouldn''t be able to get an honest opinion. That''s understandable. I''m sorry, Toya. I was going to do it myself. No, if you''re going to do it, it''s better if I do it, so don''t worry about it. I was going to do it," he said, sighing again and shaking his head. We''ll eat tomorrow, then. If you''re not feeling well, talk to Haruka. Okay. I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m sure you''ll be fine. Your status is still ''healthy''. "...... Oh, yeah, didn''t we have a feature like that? I forgot that you can see such things in the status. That''s a relief. "Maybe. The status "state" is quite interesting. It seems that the status is quite reliable. Fortunately, Toya was still alive and well the next day. He didn''t seem to have any upset stomach, and we tasted the corn with no worries. The taste was just as Toya had said. Not as sweet as sweet corn, but sweeter than most sweet corn. The slightly powdery taste reminded us a little of potatoes, which was a new texture for corn. According to Natsuki, it''s a little bit like Flint corn, but I''ve never tasted Flint corn, so I don''t really understand the analogy. But I''m sure it''s delicious, so I expanded my vegetable garden a bit and planted some more corn. At this rate of growth, I should be able to harvest two or three more crops during the normal growing season. But even if we expand the garden area a little, we''ll still produce far more compost than we consume, right? Yes. It''s a very good compost and we should sell it. That''s the only way to reduce the amount. The amount of compost continued to increase day by day. The amount of compost is increasing day by day. We don''t have to worry about magic bags, but recently we have been throwing all the demons we have defeated directly into the magic bags and dismantling them when we get home. The advantage of this is that it takes less time to dismantle. The advantage of this method is that it takes less time to dismantle, so the search process goes faster, and there is no need to worry about the smell of blood attracting other demons or to be cautious. Besides, it''s much easier to dismantle in the house than in the forest. The result is more compost that we can''t use up. But how do you sell it?¡¡But how do you sell it? You have to emphasize that it''s not like regular compost. In a way, I don''t mind paying a low price because I''m disposing of unwanted materials, but will it bother existing ...... companies? Farmers may be happy, but those who are currently selling compost would not be happy if they were sold high-performance compost at the same price. I don''t know if there are any compost specialists, but if they make a living out of it, they will certainly be resented. On the other hand, if they make a living out of it, they may try to destroy the competition by dumping, but since they don''t intend to go that far, they may not sell it cheaply. "Well, she''s the one for times like this. We looked at each other and nodded in agreement at Haruka''s words. "So you want to sell the fertilizer? I''ve come to ask you, Diora, because you''re in trouble. "Yes. Do you have a better idea? A fertilizer that grows many times faster - if that were true, it would sell for sure. ...... Oh, I can give you a sample, can''t I?¡¡If you know any farmers, ......". Haruka suggested this to Diora, who looked at him somewhat skeptically. We thought it was crazy too, so how can we believe it without actually using it? I understand. Can you give us a few bags?¡¡I''ll have a few farmers I know try it. Thank you. Thank you. No, no, no. If it''s true, it''s great. But ...... you''re adventurers, aren''t you? It''s just a byproduct of growing a few crops in the ...... garden. It''s true that you can grow some vegetables in that garden. But I''m sure you make enough money that you don''t need to grow vegetables in your garden. He looked at us with a dumbfounded stare, and we smiled. In fact, if we could kill even one demon for the time we spend in the vegetable garden, our profits would be higher. But that''s not what vegetable gardening is all about, is it? You can''t calculate the cost and labor of the harvest. It''s a waste of time. This is that, this is that? It''s a hobby. Most adventurers can''t even afford to pay for a day''s lodging, but you and your friends are so elegant. Thanks to you. It''ll be a while before you see the results of your fertilizer use. ...... I don''t mind. If you could let me know what price is appropriate and how much farmers can afford, that would be great. All right. I''ll ask him. I''ll ask him. It''s been about a month since I provided Diora with the fertilizer samples. It was about that time that she told me the results, somewhat excitedly. What the heck is that?¡¡It''s really growing three times faster than before! "Oh, so it worked. And what''s the price? It works too well. To be honest, it''s difficult to price ....... If you consider the yield, it''s 30 times cheaper than ordinary compost. The farmer said he''d buy it for that price. The value of the fertilizer explained by Ms. Diora was much higher than I had imagined. First, the effective use of land. A crop that can normally be grown only once can be grown three or four times, which greatly increases the yield. The amount of work required to grow the crop will increase, but it will not simply triple or quadruple, so the profit will increase significantly. Next, pest control. Just because the growth rate of plants has tripled, it does not mean that the growth rate and movement speed of insects will also triple. By simply taking the same measures as before, the damage can be reduced by a factor of three or less. The advantages go without saying. Especially in this world where labor costs are low, there is no reason not to spend more time and effort if it will increase the yield. The only disadvantage is water, as the plants grow so fast that rainwater alone is insufficient and irrigation is necessary, but this is not a problem in this region where water is relatively abundant. But more than that, it could also be a strategic asset. Strategic goods? Yes. There''s a relative surplus of land here, but in places where there''s not much land suitable for cultivation, this fertilizer would be of tremendous value. So, there''s a possibility that we might get sidetracked. ...... I see. If more food can be grown on less land, it will be a force multiplier. In the modern world, population is not simply proportional to national strength, but in this world where people fight with swords, the larger the population, the stronger the national strength. So we shouldn''t sell it? "No, I''m afraid it''s too late for that. We''ve already given it away to a few people. ...... Diora raised her eyebrows in annoyance. If there are already a number of people who know about the effects, even if you keep quiet about it, it will probably leak out from somewhere. If that''s the case, there''s not much point in stopping the sale now. I don''t think it''s going to be that bad, but maybe the government will ask us to disclose the manufacturing process. If that''s the case, well, ...... Yeah. It''s not like we''re going to make a fortune out of it. Okay. I don''t mind disclosing it if it gets me in trouble. Is that so?¡¡But for now, I''ll make some moves on my end. With a slightly surprised look on her face, Diora said this to me. You can count on me. "Thanks, Diora. How do you think I can sell it? You said you''d go anywhere to buy them if they''d sell them, but it''s hard for you and Haruka to deal with all of that, isn''t it? Well, maybe we can make a ...... vending machine. "A vending machine? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. It''s not surprising that there are no vending machines in this world. In addition, there are no unmanned vending machines. The security and morals of this world are not that good, so if you leave it unattended, you can be sure that it will be stolen. "A magic tool that makes a certain amount of fertilizer come out when you put money into it? "I didn''t know such a thing existed. I''ve never heard of it. No, it''s not in the book.¡¡I was thinking of making one. I was thinking of making one. ...... Come to think of it, Haruka-san is an alchemist. That''s great. Then it won''t take much effort. In our case, we are not at home most of the time. We''re not at home most of the time. The price is about ten times as much as ...... regular compost, right? That''s good, isn''t it?¡¡As long as we make a moderate profit. When I agreed with Haruka, Natsuki and the others also nodded. In all honesty, it''s enough to sell the compost in moderation, since it''s a problem that needs to be solved. You can sell it for more?¡¡We can sell it at a higher price. "No problem, I can make a good profit. --Can you give me some vegetable seeds or something in exchange?¡¡I want to grow them in my garden. That''s a good idea. I''d like some leafy greens, if possible. Fresh produce is hard to come by. All right. I''ll collect the seeds. That vending machine?¡¡Let me know when it''s ready. I''ll let the farmer know. Please. It should be ready in a few days. Because it was a simple structure that sold only one type of product, the vending machine was completed in just a few days, just as Haruka had said. It was powered by human power. Only the counterfeit money part is powered by magic stones, but the part that pumps out the fertilizer is powered by people who come to buy it and turn the handle. Roughly speaking, it is a large capsule toy vending machine. We hollowed out a part of the wall outside our house and installed it. The instructions are well illustrated, and the farmers seem to have no problem understanding how to use it, and the sales volume is steadily increasing. The vegetable seeds that I had asked Diora for were also successfully obtained, and are now growing in the garden at a steady pace. Thus, we have a new source of income and fresh vegetables. 162-146 New demon (1) Along with the vegetable garden, we were also exploring the forest. As the head of the adventurer''s guild had said, there were really no requests that we could make in Rafan at a decent level. So what should we do? After discussing it with everyone, we decided to hunt demons. There are orcs deep in the forest, and we can make some money with other demons, so there''s no reason not to do it. There was no other choice, though. It''s getting a little hot, though, isn''t it? It''s getting a little hot," complained Toya as they explored the forest. It was a little early to be calling it early summer, but even so, as he walked through the forest in his gear, the temperature was starting to make him sweat. Naturally, if you move hard in battle, you will sweat to a certain extent. The only saving grace is that you can easily cleanse yourself with "purification". Yes. This time of year, it might be a little tougher in the summer. If that happens, do you want to go on vacation somewhere? "Vacation ......, a highland villa to get away from the heat, or swimming in the ocean? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that, but in this world, that would be an insane luxury. No one can afford to travel. There are some mountains nearby, but they are said to be very dangerous, so it''s unlikely to be a relaxing getaway. Even if you build a villa, it will probably be destroyed soon. A vacation home may be a good idea, though. "A summer home. But in a way, we have a pretty elegant, if not ...... white work environment, don''t we? I wouldn''t say we''re black, but we''re ...... white? I don''t know. It''s not that early in the morning. It''s not so early in the morning and you can be home before the sun goes down. We have a day off once a week, and we can take extra days off if we want to. No boss to bother you. When it gets even hotter, you can take a vacation off work. Sounds pretty cool, doesn''t it? That''s what I hear. But doesn''t it depend on whether you include training in your job? I go to work a little late, sure, but I train almost every day before breakfast, and after I get home as well. I have nothing else to do and it''s partly for my own safety, but if you consider it a job, the working hours are quite long. But even if I had gotten a job, I wouldn''t have been able to go on vacation, would I? Traveling for that vacation is a deadly business. And by the way, a job where your life is on the line every day is pretty black, right? And there''s no workers'' compensation or insurance. There''s no paid maternity leave, either. It''s a job that smells like black. If you change the term "voluntary training" to "voluntary activities," it becomes even more black. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. "...... Well, yeah. Toya said something unusually good. "Unusual? We nodded in agreement, letting Toya''s protests slide. Well, actually, I don''t think it''s that bad, myself. No mental stress, right? No boss, no colleagues. No bosses, no coworkers. - And by the way, it''s healthier too. No gym needed. ...... Hmmm, to sum it up, if your current job doesn''t bother you, it''s kind of white-ish, isn''t it? In fact, if you put aside the danger of life and anxiety about the future, you can enjoy your life to a certain extent, so I''m not complaining too much. If I had to say something, it would be the lack of entertainment and the fact that I can''t read the rest of the book I was reading in Japan, but I guess there''s nothing I can do about that. "Oops, enemy sighted. "What? Skeletons. Skeletons again. ...... Too many lately. There were five skeletons found in the search. Move towards them and deal with them quickly. The skeletons weren''t much of an enemy to begin with, but the effects of the weapons made of light attribute steel were so great that Toya''s sword could kill them with a single blow, and my spear could easily kill them by breaking a few bones. There''s nothing to strip, but eight gold coins for the magic stones alone isn''t bad. No need to dismantle it... Shadow Ghost! "Mmm, there it is! Toya swings his sword at the spot I pointed to. At the same time, I hear a "whoosh" sound, and the magic stone falls. "Ugh! If we can find it, it''s a small fish. Yeah. Thanks to his training with Natsuki, he had recently become able to find the Shadow Ghosts before they appeared. This is the fourth time I''ve had to kill one, but it''s not a bad way to earn money since I can kill them easily like now. But that''s only if you have attribute steel. It''s a dangerous creature without light magic or magical weapons. Physical attacks don''t work on them, so you have to run away. When we first met it, it was definitely dangerous. The first time I encountered one, it was definitely bad, but Natsuki reminded me of purification, so I was able to manage. But haven''t you been seeing a lot of skeletons lately? Is this the kind of area you''re talking about? Different areas, yeah. Perhaps because we have penetrated deeper into the forest than the area where we were logging, the distribution of demons has also changed. The first to decrease was the sculpted ape. This is not a problem at all, as it is a troublesome enemy. If I had to say there was a problem, it would be the decrease in the amount of raw materials for compost, but this has been solved by another method described below. On the other hand, the number of skeletons and slimes has increased. Both are small fry, so there is no problem with them, and they are much easier to deal with than sculpts and apes. Orcs, like goblins in shallow areas, are also a welcome sight. Hunting a few of them is enough to make money, and dismantling them yields a lot of unwanted parts, which I use to make compost instead of scarp-ape. As for the brown ape, which I used to hunt for a while, I don''t bother with it now. They seem to be used as food for orcs. If we hunt them too much and there''s a shortage of food, orcs might appear near the roads, and from the point of view of those of us who make money from orcs, we don''t want the number of orcs to decrease too much. In the first place, Orcs are more useful than Brown Eyed Peas, so there is no reason to hunt them. Speaking of which, has anyone been to the temple since then? I''ve been there. Twice. That''s a lot!¡¡I''ve been there once. I''ve been there once." To Haruka''s question, Toya and I raised our hands. Yuki and Natsuki are shaking their heads, which is probably normal, considering that less than a month has passed since then. No, I was just curious to see how much experience I could accumulate. The reason I visited the church so often was to find out how much experience I could gain in a day. As a result, I found out that in the current area, I could gain less than 1,000 experience per day if I worked hard. However, it does not mean that I will change my behavior, and I think it would be dangerous to do so. It cost a lot of money to make the offerings. But if it''s used for the orphanage, it''s not a waste, so it''s okay. By the way, my level went up by one. Oh, really?¡¡So we''re the same? I guess so. I don''t think there''ll be that big a difference. The experience is pretty evenly distributed, right? It''s hard to tell because it doesn''t show the log like in the game, but considering that there''s not much difference in our experience, it''s probably not different. If it was only the last attack, or if the experience was distributed based on the amount of damage, there would have been more of a difference. So, what''s wrong with the temple? "No. No. I just thought that if you leveled up, you''d feel it.¡¡Just wondering. You don''t seem to feel it ....... You don''t feel any change, even though you seem to be getting better. But you''re definitely getting stronger. The orcs had a hard time at first. That''s true. Now you might be able to cut them down with your cleaver. I won''t do it, though. It''s true that this weapon is much more powerful when you pass magic through it. Not only can it kill undead with ease, but it can also deal more damage than ever to other demons. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do, and how you''re going to do it. I''m not sure if I can do it.¡¡"Hmmm, can I do it? I can cut with something that looks like a blunt object. "No, don''t do it.¡¡You''ll ruin the meat. Until now, Toya''s sword attacks had been of the smashing and tearing type, but now that she was attacking through magic, she was able to generate something called "sharpness". Therefore, it might be possible to slice an orc in half if you wanted to, but you would be a failed adventurer if you did so. Slicing an orc with a single blade would only look flashy, but it would lower the value of the fur, and more importantly, it would ruin the meat. When dismembering, it is important to remove the organs without damaging them, but what happens if you cut them in half? Yes, the meat will be covered in filth. You may still be able to eat it if there is a "cleansing" process, but you will feel terrible. The best way to finish the meat is to chop off the neck at the beginning of the encounter. I''ve heard that if you stress it, it loses its flavor. If you must, do it with a scalp-ape. Yeah. You don''t need anything but a magic stone. No, it''s not like I want to do it, okay? That''s fine, but ......? Strong enemy response to search. I''ll raise my hand and tell them to stop. I raise my hand and tell them to stop. Even though they''re chatting, they''re all very firm about it, and they all immediately stop and raise their weapons. "What?¡¡Orc leader? "Oh, fine meat? When we came to the deeper part of the forest, I was surprised to see orc leaders walking around. Compared to Orcs, there were far fewer of them, but I still encountered them on rare occasions. However, since there is basically one orc leader and several orcs in a group, they are no longer much of a threat now. If we can get rid of the orcs before they approach us, we can face the orc leader with just a few of us, and their previously hard skin can be easily cut through with magic weapons. From our point of view, it''s just like high quality meat that we can get now and then, as Toya said. It''s better than orc meat, so it''s the basic meat for cooking these days. It''s a bit of a luxury. This would not require much caution, but my spotters were reacting differently than the orc leader. No, not ....... I know it''s stronger than the orc leader, but ...... "No way, orc captain?¡¡I might be able to kill him now. ...... I''ve read that the approximate strength of an orc captain is four orc leaders. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. That''s not true either. The enemy is alone. No cronies. The orc leader has orc cronies with him. It is unlikely that the orc captain is acting alone. So the conclusion is: ....... Augur, I suppose. "Finally. What do we do?¡¡What are we going to do? It''s not a bad situation. We''re not too tired. We could play it safe and try to raise our level even higher, but if we pull out now, we''ll have to move our activities to a slightly shallower area to avoid encountering the ogre. However, we were hesitant to take the easy way out, since the document said that rookies would be outmatched. However, the situation was not waiting for us. What?¡¡Oh no, they''ve noticed us!¡¡And it''s fast! The enemy in the search response suddenly started moving at high speed, and was approaching us at a very fast pace. I thought I had kept a sufficient distance, but it seems that the range of the indeterminate name auger was much wider than I expected. "Oh my god, are you serious? The closer it got, the more Toya could sense it. He readied his sword in the direction of the approaching ogre, and Natsuki readied his naginata beside him. Immediately after that, a demon of about the same size as an Orc, or slightly smaller, appeared in front of him. However, its appearance is more human-like, with a tight body and two horns growing out of its head. It looks like a gorilla mixed with the image of a Japanese demon. In his right hand, he holds a rusty broadsword. "It''s an ogre! It was Toya who shouted that. Perhaps he was appraising it. The ogre ran at Toya in the blink of an eye, and just as he was about to collide with her, he leapt into the air. "What? A tree on the side of the road was used as a springboard for the rear guard. That is, our side. --This thing has the intelligence to attack the rearguard first? Orcs, and even Orc leaders, did not have the intelligence to attack the rearguard first, avoiding enemies who were holding weapons in front of them. Nevertheless, this ogre aimed for the rearguard first. Tactically, he was right. But what the ogre miscalculated was that there was no such thing as a pure rearguard among us. The spear I thrust out as quickly as I could was repelled by the broadsword, but at about the same time, Haruka''s arrow pierced his left shoulder and Yuki''s small sword sliced his left leg wide open. "G-Gaaaah! A resounding scream. I pulled back my spear and tried to give chase to the ogre, who landed on the ground, losing his balance, but the ogre jumped back. Don''t you dare! It was a simple leap, and with one leg injured, the leg strength to jump nearly two meters high was unbelievable, but it was a bad move. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. A dull thud sounded. Natsuki''s naginata fluttered further. "Huh! "Aah! The head flew into the air and fell to the ground with the body spewing blood. 163-147 New demon (2) "Hmm. I was in a bit of a hurry, wasn''t I? He took a sigh of relief as he brushed the gore from his cleaver. I didn''t think you''d ignore me. Sorry. I didn''t think you''d ignore me. I''m sorry," said Toya, apologizing, as if he knew he was in the wrong as a vanguard. "Well, it can''t be helped, it''s my first enemy. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. No, that''s not true. It''s not a problem because we are all capable of close combat, but what if we had been asked to escort them?¡¡You can''t just get killed because you''ve never met the enemy before. "Well... I didn''t mean to underestimate him either, but I couldn''t react quickly enough. It''s not that we didn''t anticipate it, but it was quite unexpected. In addition, he was skilled enough to repel my spear in the unstable air. He was an enemy not to be underestimated. It''s more of a threat than the Orc Leader if you''re dealing with more than one. ...... Or even on its own?¡¡It''s hard to surround them because they are small and quick. Yes. If you''re just looking for simple speed, Slash Owl was fast, but it just jumped straight at you. Speed. "Speed? ...... Hmm? I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea or not. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. I''m not sure. I''m just guessing, but isn''t [Skilful] agility and [Shunzoku] running speed? I''m not sure if Toya had thought of that, but he answered my question right away. But ...... hmm? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to do this. "Oh, nice analogy. That''s exactly how I feel. Haruka summed up Tohya''s reply in a nutshell. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I don''t know if demons have any skills or not. "Yeah. I don''t know if the demons are skilled or not, but they were approaching fast, jumping up and down. And it had a weapon, though it wasn''t a proper ...... weapon. Yeah, a broadsword. Yeah, a broadsword. Toya picked up a broadsword that was lying nearby and tapped it. I''m not sure what to make of it. It wasn''t made by an ogre, was it? The adventurer''s lost and found ....... No, he took it, probably. An adventurer who fights ogres must have a certain quality. It''s only of moderate quality. I''ll probably never use it, but I''ll take it home and sell it. I don''t want to leave it lying around and have it become a weapon for other demons. Toya unrolled his magic bag and threw the broadsword into it, along with the neck and body of the ogre he had chopped off. How much does an ogre cost, by the way? "An ogre is just magic stone and skin. It seems that the meat is edible, but it is hard and unpalatable, so it cannot be sold. The magic stone itself can be sold for more than the orc leader, but the overall value is higher for the orc leader who can also sell meat. Yuki asked with a slightly excited expression, but frowned a little when Toya replied. I don''t understand. What''s the point of defeating them? "Even if there''s no point, they''ll probably approach us. Even if there''s no point, they''ll probably approach us, considering the situation. It''s an annoying demon. --Do we all need to improve our stealth and concealment skills? I see. That''s a good idea. If everyone''s skills improve, there might be fewer cases like this where someone notices you from a distance and attacks you. I''m not denying that, but I want revenge. I want to get revenge. I want to be able to kill him one-on-one. "Yeah. Well, that''s good, right?¡¡It''s not like it''s going to be easy to get up there, and we''ll probably run into it again. Well, the next time he comes out, we''ll stay back and let Toya handle it. Yeah!¡¡I''ll leave it to you! "I''ll take care of it!" Toya declared emphatically, and slapped him on the chest. --But the ogre seemed to be a casually rare monster. It''s not surprising that he hadn''t encountered one before, but he couldn''t find one, not even when he walked around the area. Naturally, we didn''t encounter the ogre again that day, and it would take a few more days of searching before Toya could fight again. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this again. It''s been a week since we killed our first ogre. Our search area extended to the northwest of the town of Laffan, deep into the forest. A few days ago, I finally had a chance to fight the ogre again, almost alone, and although I struggled a bit, I was able to kill it without getting hurt. I haven''t encountered an ogre since then, but I think it''s a good thing that I found out that even if I were to encounter two ogres at the same time, I should be able to kill them without much trouble. Isn''t the number of encounters with the undead increasing lately? "Oh, you think so too?¡¡It''s good that they''re small fry, but they''re not very good. As Toya and Yuki mentioned, the percentage of demons encountered in this area was becoming more and more skeletons and shadow ghosts. Still, there are more non-undead demons than undead demons, but if they continue to increase at this rate, the situation could turn around. And the biggest problem is ....... I''m not sure what to make of that. "Zombies, huh?" ...... Everyone frowned at my words. I have a certain level of tolerance for gore due to the necessity of disassembly, but I''d rather not see a moving corpse. "Nao, is that what it is?¡¡Is that a flag? You know what they say, if you talk about it, a shadow will appear. ...... Haha, no way. I''m not sure what to make of it, but it''s too good timing. It''s right on the edge of the search range. I''m not sure what to make of this. What?¡¡What is it, Nao? Just tell me. There''s a new enemy. And two of them. I''m going to give Nao the title of second class flag architect. "Okay, I''ll give Nao the title of second class flag architect. I''m not happy!¡¡I''m not happy! What''s a second class? It''s a thankless flag. By the way, the harem protagonist has the first class. Don''t make up weird titles for me! "Don''t make up weird titles for me!" "And by the way, I wanted to have a Type 1. Is there a certification exam going on somewhere? Don''t be ridiculous, both of you. Do you have the distance to spare? Oh, yeah, yeah. I don''t think an ogre would see us at this distance. And by the way, we don''t know that it''s a zombie, do we? But it''s two places, right?¡¡Since it''s Nao, I''m pretty sure one of them is a zombie. Yuki, what do you mean, "because it''s Nao"? What do you mean, "because it''s Nao"? Yuki shrugged her shoulders and said that, and I sighed. I sighed. "That''s some trust you have there, dude. "Well, yeah. So what are these two places like? One of them is pretty strong. Probably more than an ogre. My words caused tension between Haruka and the others. I''m sure the fact that there is an enemy stronger than the ogre in this area has given them some sense of danger. But this one is alone. The other one has multiple ......5 between 8?¡¡The reaction is not that strong, but it is more than ...... skeletons. I''m curious about the stronger enemy, but the zombies are probably more than one. You''re assuming that there are already zombies. I don''t think so. ...... No, I think it''s more likely myself. There''s a skeleton. We have to go, right? It''s not like we''re being asked to do anything, so I''m sure there are ways to avoid it altogether. ...... That''s not exactly what we''re going for, is it? That''s right. We''ve decided to go as far as we can. Well, if we avoid it here, we''ll probably be hunting orcs for the rest of our lives. I don''t like that for some reason. There''s no progress. ....... I don''t want to become a famous adventurer, but I want to get to the point where I''m satisfied. I''ll just check it out. If it doesn''t look like it can fight, we can just run. If I don''t confirm that it''s not a zombie yet, I''ll have to worry about the type of enemy the next time I get caught in a search. There is also the possibility that it is actually a completely different kind of monster. ...... might not work. I hope I can escape. I hope you can escape. What if it''s a fast zombie? "Fast zombies ......?¡¡You think a zombie is going to run after you like an athlete? Athlete running with a rotten body. I''m going to change my job to a skeleton while I''m running. "No, no, no, that''s not even close. What if it walks on four legs and jumps around like a beast? "...... Is that a zombie?¡¡That''s a far cry from the zombie I know, or even the one I imagine? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. "It''s more like an alien or something. Are zombies like that? "No, I don''t know. No, I don''t know. I''ve just seen such a movie before. Well, even if they''re zombies, you can still get rid of them if you''re cleansed, right? I''ll do my best. But if they''re really fast, Toya, good luck. Okay. You have to stay in the area of effect. Geez, really? When Toya heard Haruka and Natsuki''s words, he frowned. In fact, if they''re approaching slowly, you can use Purify to wipe them out, but if they''re moving like Toya says, it''s hard to use Purify unless you stop them one by one. In addition, if Natsuki, who is in the vanguard with Toya, uses magic, then Toya will be in charge of stopping the zombies. --And maybe me. Let''s hope it''s not a fast zombie. But it will be. Deodorant ......, or deodorant?¡¡Or you''ll want some kind of NBC hazmat suit, if you''re going to be encountering them too often. No, you can''t operate with that on. Endure. I don''t know if I can make it, but I don''t think I can fight in those rumpled clothes. If I were to make one, it would have to be a gas mask. I have a good nose, so strong smells are hard for me. You can make clothespins. You want me to pick my nose with that?¡¡No way. ...... Well, I''ll just have to live with it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. 164-148 New demon (3) We started to move towards the hypothetical zombie group for a while. About halfway there, Toya frowned and opened his mouth. There''s a bad smell in the air. I''m pretty sure that''s it. Can you smell it already?¡¡I don''t know what it is. What about you? I don''t either. Yeah. You''re a beast, aren''t you? Of course, so am I. If you compare it to the response of the spotters, it''s definitely downwind from the wind direction. ....... Is that the smell of rot? Yeah. It''s possible that the demon''s carcass is rotting. ...... It''s very rare, but you can find the carcass of a demon or beast in the woods. So it is unlikely that Toya would mistake the smell of decay, but decay does not necessarily mean zombies. By the way, it is quite smelly, so I usually try to avoid it as soon as Toya senses it. It''s really annoying. --Well, we were partly responsible for that. These days, though, we take it all home and turn it into fertilizer. Well, we have to keep going. You have to be patient. I know. I really need a pair of clothespins or something. After a while of listening to Toya''s complaints, I could smell the rotten smell in my nose. When I looked at Haruka and Yuki, they were frowning, so I guess they could sense it too. And then the enemy came into view. "...... is what I thought it was. I''d be surprised if it wasn''t a zombie. But it looks like a classic zombie. It''s just that it looks like a classic zombie, because it''s walking around like it''s dragging. What I saw was a nauseating sight. I don''t want to go into detail, but it was a corpse with its entire body rotting, dripping some kind of liquid, its arms hanging limply at its sides, and its legs dragging. Seven of them. The smell was bad, but so were the looks. The only saving grace is that, perhaps because they are demons, there are no insects around. If there had been maggots, I would not have gone near them, and would have burned them from a distance, even if it would have been a waste of magic power. I can''t. I can''t get close enough to it to fight it. My life depends on it. I agree. Toya, can you fight? Not if you can help it. I don''t care how much they clean me up afterwards, I don''t want to be exposed to its rotten juice. It''ll definitely splatter if I hit that thing with Toya''s sword. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s good if our weapons die easily, but considering the possibility of them crawling up to us even if we cut off their heads or legs, we want to avoid close combat if possible. If you think about fighting skeletons, you might be able to kill them relatively easily with a weapon that uses light attribute steel,......, but I don''t want to try that too much. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. Oh. You''re not aware of it at this distance. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s probably inferior to goblins, not to mention ogres and orcs. I''d like to take a look at their physical resistance, ....... Haruka slurred her words as she said this. It seems that it''s hard to say, "Go ahead and attack me," to that thing. I''m sure you all don''t want to get too close. Haruka''s bow doesn''t need to be close, but its effect is a bit subtle. It''s rotten, so it''s likely to go straight through. I''m sure you''re right. ...... Would you like to throw a stone?¡¡I''m not really using it much, but I do have a throwing skill. I''m sure you''ve got that skill, by the way. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out how to do it. Considering that I haven''t even bought a throwing knife, you can see how I''ve been treating it. Incidentally, I''ve never seen anyone practicing throwing knives in their daily training, although three other people besides me and Toya have acquired them. It might be useful in a battle against other people, such as a battle in the city or taking down bandits. ...... We don''t get a chance to do that. I''ve only been to a bandit strike once, but it was from the other side, and the raid on the hideaway was empty, so there wasn''t even a battle. Nevertheless, it is beneficial to have more moves, and I might as well practice it. It''s kind of cool to throw a knife. Well, that''s a story for when I get home. --Nice to meet you. I picked up a reasonable stone that I saw and handed it to Yuki, who hadn''t found it yet. Oh, thank you. I''ll throw them at the same time. Three, two, one...! Natsuki counted down and the stone flew away at the same time. The palm-sized stone strikes three zombies, crushing one''s head, puncturing one''s torso, and removing one''s legs. Wow, that''s pretty powerful. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. "Nice control...? The head is the target, right? The torso and legs are on ......? Sorry. I was aiming for the torso too. Yuki said. I didn''t know who hit where, but it was probably Yuki''s stone that hit the leg. No, there''s no problem in terms of verification. It''s more unusual for Natsuki or Haruka to hit the head so accurately. The distance between you and the zombie is farther than a baseball pitcher''s mound, and hitting the zombie in the head with an unshaped stone at that distance with high power and accuracy is amazing, even with the benefit of ...... skills. If you are a pitcher, you will be able to pitch perfectly straight. You do seem to react to attacks. Yes, it does. The zombies that had been moving in the direction of the day after tomorrow changed course toward us and began to creep toward us, but their progress was very slow. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. It''s the same as the ...... skeleton. The head is the same as the skeleton''s. "The magic stone must be in that position. The torso is useless. The body is useless, unless you break the spine. In terms of impeding movement, the legs seem to be effective. The speed is fast enough to be able to examine it at leisure like this. If you just want to kill them, you can crush all of their heads as long as you have the right stones. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. ...... Let''s purify it for now. I''m sure you can kill it with physics, but if you''re thinking about recovering the magic stone, you''ll have to go to ....... I''m sure. I''m not sure if I can pick it up from that carrion. ....... Then Purify. Natsuki''s magic is activated, bringing the entire zombie into its sphere of influence. Immediately, the zombie''s corpse (?), which was missing its head, turned to dust. The corpse of the zombie with the missing head turned to dust, and the zombie with the hole in its torso and the zombie with the missing leg followed suit. But the four zombies that hadn''t been attacked were still writhing around, their bodies crumbling. Natsuki frowned at them. "Purify! But that lump of carrion quickly disappeared with Haruka''s magic, which was cast for good measure. All that remains is the magic stone. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It seems to be stronger than skeletons in a way. That was the result for the same amount of power. "Is it because there are so many parts to be cleansed?¡¡Bones plus carrion. Maybe. Anyway, here''s what I think: ...... What do you think? Keep up the good work! Toya smiles and pats Haruka and Natsuki on the shoulder. He doesn''t want to fight. Well, I can understand that. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It''s okay, though. In fact, even if you do kill it in close combat, you''ll probably need to purify it. Both for those who fought and for the remaining carrion. "Yes. Then it''s better to purify them from the start. We''ll have to pick up the demon stones. Yes, seven in all. I''ve got them. How much do you think they cost? The magic stones Yuki picked up were about the same size as a skeleton. However, they were slightly stronger than skeletons in terms of search response, and according to Natsuki, they were a little more difficult to purify, so they should be worth more. [Appraisal]. --I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. This is also a benefit of going to the temple and praying?¡¡This stone is 1,900 rare each. I don''t know.¡¡I''m not sure. [Appraisal] is a skill that has a level. ...... The skill may mutate. It is possible that the skill may mutate, but is it more natural to think of it as a benefit from leveling up? It''s useful, so I''m grateful. A little over 13 gold coins in total. The benefit to time spent fighting is good, undead. The fights aren''t very exciting. "Only if you have Purify. "Only if you have Purify," Haruka adds with a wry smile. Purify is great because it clears up the mess in an instant and you don''t have to feel dirty. It would be a nightmare without it. But rejoice, Toya. I''m sure the other one will be just as crunchy. Judging by the response of the spotters. "Hmm. Well, we''ll have to fight some stronger enemies to level up. Okay, I got it. Toya said and slammed her chest. He didn''t even know what was in store for him. ....... --No, it''s not that serious, but... 165-149 New demon (4) With the zombies out of the way, we headed towards the new reaction we had found. The enemy was moving faster than the zombies, but still not running around at the same speed as the ogre, so it was easy to catch it. However, the enemy we actually saw was much bigger than we expected. It''s huge!¡¡(What the hell is that? !) "Oi!¡¡(No matter how you look at it, it''s too chewy!) (No matter how big it is, isn''t ...... too tough?) What I saw was a huge bear ...... walking leisurely through the trees. The size of the bear could be compared to that of an African elephant. One leg alone is as big as a human torso, and the face is quite fierce. It looks like a bear, but it''s so huge that I''m not sure if I can really call it a bear. But if you check the [Help], it says "Dahl''s Bear". --Hmm?¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a proper noun or not. (Hey, Haruka. (Hey, Haruka, when I used [Help] and looked at that demon, it showed up as ''Dahl''s Bear''. "Really?¡¡...... Really. I wonder why? I''m pretty sure the first time I looked at Task Boar in the Help section, it said "Beast (Edible)". It''s a skill without a level, and I thought it would never change. ....... Is this a service of Advaustris?¡¡I''m not sure. I''m not sure if it''s possible, but from the impression I got from that conversation, I can''t say it''s impossible. ....... I''m not sure what to say. (Hey, that''s not what I''m talking about right now. He looks like he''s in trouble. (If he hit me with his arm, I''d be minced in one hit.) (Normally, yes. Now we just need to find out how effective the level-up is. ......) (It''s too risky to try. What do we do?¡¡Do we fight? At Yuki''s words, we looked at each other. Thanks to the good visibility, the distance between us and Dahl''s Bear was still about 100 meters. Either our detection skills are not very good, or our [Hidden Form] training is paying off, or maybe he''s aware of us but doesn''t care. I guess we can escape now. But then you won''t know what you came here for. You''ll do it, right? "I told you it would be crunchy. So, as usual, we''ll start when we''re in magic range. I waited in the shade of a tree for Dahl''s Bear to slowly approach, and as usual, the battle began with magic and arrow headshots. But what happened then was different from the usual. Aaaaah! The roar of Dahl''s Bear echoed through the forest. My Fire Arrow was nearly drowned out by it, and Yuki was knocked down by a swinging arm. "What? I''m not sure what to say. Yuki and I were unconsciously speaking in unison. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it. No, that''s what would have happened under normal circumstances. He was firing a Fire Arrow that could have wiped out the head of an orc. In reality, however, Dahl''s Bear did not show any signs of pain, and its fur did not look particularly charred. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. You can''t pierce it at this distance?¡¡What kind of strength is ......? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. To be honest, I didn''t expect this result either. In the event that you have a lot of money, it is possible that you will be able to buy a lot more than you need. If you can hunt, you can make good leather armor. You can afford it, Natsuki. To be honest, I''m not sure if the sword will penetrate. To be honest, I''m not sure my sword will pass. That''s what the sword is for. Toya and Natsuki take a step forward, sword and naginata at the ready. If Toya''s sword doesn''t get through, it will make a great material for leather armor, but there is a high risk that we will be hunted before we can be hunted as material. Dahl''s Bear started to run towards them. "Fast! His gait was unimaginably light. Even though he was about the size of an African elephant, he didn''t seem to have the weight of an elephant, and there was no earth tremor. Its movements are so light that it could have jumped onto a tree branch. --Of course, if he actually did that, the tree would be easily snapped. We were so close to colliding with the vanguard. At that moment, our magic flies again. "Fire Arrow! "Fireball! The one who fired the Fire Arrow with more magic than before was Yuki. And then I hit him with the "Fireball", which I don''t usually use, with a lot of magic power. "Goooooooo! The roar echoed again. At the same time, an arrow shot by Haruka flew into his mouth, and his roar was cut off in the middle. DOGA, DOGAN! I''m not sure if the power of the magic has decreased slightly. My "Fireball" struck Dahl''s Bear''s head, causing a large explosion, and Yuki''s "Fire Arrow" struck the base of his left arm, shaving off the flesh in that area. Then, after the Fireball explosion had cleared, there was Dahl''s Bear, with his left eye severely damaged. "Really? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of this. In spite of being shot in the mouth by Haruka, it does not seem to be a fatal wound. But at least he must have succeeded in taking away some of his vision. Daryaaa! "Hey! Both Toya and Natsuki immediately timed their attacks and slashed at the same time. However, Toya''s strike was firmly blocked by Dahl''s Bear''s upraised right arm, and was unable to cut through its fur. On the other hand, Natsuki slashed from the left side of the Dahl''s Bear, and thanks to Yuki''s magical support, she slashed the Dahl''s Bear across the shoulder, causing blood to spurt out. "Hard!¡¡--"Hard!¡¡I''m not sure what to do. As soon as Toya shouted, Dahl''s Bear leapt up and swung his right arm at Toya''s sword. Toya quickly took one hand off her sword and caught the attack with the buckler on her arm. He was only able to hold on for a moment. Her body lifted off the ground and slammed into the trunk of a tree many meters away. "Toya! What? The sight made me break out in a sweat, but although I couldn''t speak, I could see that Toya''s body was moving, and I felt relieved. I would have gone to the rescue immediately, but the situation didn''t give me the time to do so. I took up my spear and stepped forward. I can''t leave the front line to Natsuki alone, and I can''t send Yuki and Haruka, who only have small swords, to the front. And then, he would use a little too much of his magic power for skills related to strengthening his body, such as [Strengthening]. If you do this, you can dope your body even more than normal body enhancement, but your magic power will decrease rapidly, and you won''t have time to use magic. Furthermore, there will be after-effects after the battle, but I can''t turn my back on it. As an elf, I don''t have the endurance or strength of Toya the beast. If I die while conserving my magic power, it will be a disaster. "Nao-kun!¡¡At the same time! Oh! If it were a small monster, attacking at the same time would probably interfere with each other''s attacks, but at this size, there''s no problem. And for the opponent, it''s difficult to handle simultaneous attacks from the left and right. Moreover, he has a wound in one of his eyes and arm. You''d need something like a mind''s eye to be able to handle both attacks. --But the eye and arm wounds are on Natsuki''s side. I can''t help but complain in my mind when I see his right eye glaring at me with a glaring hatred and his powerful right arm. No matter how doped up I am, there''s no way I can take that arm. What I need to do is hit and run. I''m going to go around to the side with Natsuki and attack. Darl''s Bear moves his face toward me, as if he''s still concerned about me having a healthy eye. Perhaps he can''t see out of his left eye completely. But Natsuki is not one to let such an opportunity slip away. Natsuki attacked at the moment when my gaze was completely cut off, and I also tried to check him. Is it the difference in the sharpness of the weapon or the magic power in the attribute steel? The cleaver that Natsuki wields cuts through Dahl''s Bear''s fur again and damages the large blood vessel near its neck. Blood sprayed high into the sky. Natsuki moves to the front to avoid it. Aah! Dahl''s Bear screams at Natsuki as he comes into view, but his voice is a little less forceful than the first. "Get back!¡¡Fireball! From behind me, Yuki aimed at my right eye, which was still intact. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. "Huh! I aim for the right side of his neck. I stepped in quickly and thrust my spear wide, slicing the neck wide open. Then I dodged the swinging arm and jumped backwards. Blood spurted from both sides of his neck as he was blinded. He''s swinging his arms around like crazy, but they''re not hitting us. I exchanged glances with Natsuki, then stepped back even farther, weapons at the ready, on the lookout for Dahl''s Bear. However, despite my vigilance, the Dahl''s Bear, which had been forced to bleed profusely, gradually slowed down, and then slowly collapsed to the ground and stopped moving. 166-150 New demon (5) "Oh, no. ...... Yes,......, it was much stronger than I expected. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. I also exhaled, and I stopped the magic power that I was forcibly using to strengthen my body. At the same time, I use my spear to support my knees, which are about to collapse, and I slowly approach Toya. Next to her, Haruka was treating her with magic. "How are you doing? "For a second there, I thought I was going to die. --I thought I was going to die for a second. - I''m sorry, we can''t let the tank collapse. Whether Toya is a tank or not is debatable, but don''t worry about it. I''m glad you''re okay. He smiles, keeping his tone as light as possible as he bows his head with a pathetic expression. To put it bluntly, it would have been a shame if the vanguard had collapsed in that situation, but there was no need to push Toya, who was feeling sorry for herself. She survived somehow. How''s your injury? "We treated it, but it was pretty bad. Your arm was shattered. The claws of Dahl''s Bear must have hit her hard. The buckler on Toya''s left arm had been completely split into four pieces and was lying on its side. In addition, the leather basket and the arm part of his clothing had been shredded, revealing the chainmail he had been wearing underneath. The chainmail itself had some scratches, but fortunately it did not appear to be broken. "It''s a good thing you''ve updated your chainmail. If you hadn''t, you would have lost an arm. Not long ago, the chainmail had been remade using attribute steel, and everyone was now wearing long sleeves and long pants. Considering the fact that the previous chainmail was a vest type, it is fortunate that the arms are intact. It''s true. It was quite expensive, but it was indeed chainmail of attribute steel. It has proven to be a good defense, though it shouldn''t be used as much as it is. A chainmail made of attribute steel costs several hundred gold coins to make. It is a very expensive piece of armor. As with weapons, you can make it stronger by pouring magic power into it, so if you''re aware of your defenses before you''re attacked, like Toya was, you can expect a significant increase in defense. However, this is actually a subtle weakness. It''s not a problem in normal combat, but it''s a problem when you''re hit by surprise. Since you don''t expect to be attacked, you can''t strengthen it, and you will be inferior in defense. However, it is still stronger than ordinary chainmail made of white iron, so it is well worth it. How did it go over there?¡¡I didn''t have time to watch the whole thing. Somehow. I''m not hurt, but I could have been if I''d made a mistake. At that level, you''re either seriously injured or unharmed. --I think I''d be dead or alive. I pushed myself a little too hard. I''ll have sore muscles tomorrow. ...... Oh, strengthening?¡¡Are you okay? For now. The time was short and ......, but I''d like to go home immediately. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''re going to need to be able to pay for it. However, as a side effect, you may not have time to use magic that can normally be used while fighting, and you may experience muscle pain and sluggishness after the battle. It''s not something that can be used on a daily basis, so it''s definitely a good idea to raise your skill level normally. I can''t do that. I can''t do it. ...... It''s not the most admirable method. You''ll be out of the fight afterwards. As of now, the only one who can, or rather cannot, dope is Toya. This is probably because of his skill in handling magic power. I was the first one to do it, but the others who could use magic were able to do it relatively quickly. Incidentally, I ended up suffering from sore muscles and lethargy for almost a whole day, but Haruka and the others, who had been watching me, cancelled the doping immediately after I became able to do it, so it had almost no effect on me. I don''t blame them for feeling a little uncomfortable, do you?¡¡I''m not going to say it out loud, but... "Okay!¡¡Now that I can move, let''s take care of that thing. Yeah. Well, the blood seems to have drained off nicely. The blood that flowed from the veins damaged by me and Natsuki was so large that it formed a large pool on the ground. He stood up, avoided the pond, approached the corpse of Dahl''s Bear, and punched it. It''s a big bear, though, isn''t it? "It really is. I wonder how many tons it weighs? It was about Toya''s height even when it was dead, and Yuki, who was a little smaller, would have had to look up at it. It''s not going to be easy to lift. I''m sure you''re right. ...... With its size, it''s going to be well over five tons. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to make of that. No, oak meat doesn''t even cost 100 yen a gram. And by the way, we have more than just meat. It''s pretty good orc meat, and it sells for about seven reais per hundred grams, but considering what I paid for vipu bear meat, bear meat is probably cheaper than that. It''s pretty big, and you can probably get about five tons of meat from it, but can you sell it ......?¡¡This demon? I''d like to think so, since vipe bears can be sold. ....... I just remembered that we haven''t met any vipu bears lately, have we? Weipu Bears don''t usually come out near the roads. The first time we encountered them was shortly after we arrived here, and it was an incident that made us feel our lives were in danger. Since then, we''ve only encountered a few of them when we were picking mushrooms, and we haven''t seen any more since we entered the depths of the forest. This was in spite of the fact that I had heard that this area was their habitat. I thought you said they live deep in the forest.¡¡I haven''t seen any of them around. ...... Could it be because of this? Haruka pointed to this, which was of course Dahl''s Bear. I''m not sure if I can call this a bear, but it is a bear by name. If we think about the territory, we can''t say that there is no possibility of competition between bears and vipu bears. In other words, if this Dahl''s Bear is the distant cause of the vipu bear we encountered at that time, then ....... This is the second time I''ve been almost killed by this thing? It''s a bit of a tug-of-war, but I suppose you could say that. It''s a long way from where we encountered it.¡¡If it''s a territorial issue, did ...... you get kicked out? The Dahl''s Bear invaded the area of the Vipu Bear, which used to be deep in the forest as its territory. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to buy a lot of things. I''m not sure about that, but let''s get rid of Dahl''s Bear. We don''t have much time, do we? No. Toya and Nao are not well, we should hurry. Even though Toya''s injuries have been treated with magic, magic is not so versatile that it can heal her instantly. There will be some discomfort and fatigue for a little while after she is healed. Naturally, you will be inferior to normal in terms of combat. Not to mention mine. Even though it wasn''t that long, I pushed myself pretty hard, and I''m sure my muscles will start to ache after a while. I''m currently on a time-limited activity time, like an alien from some planet. So, let''s throw the whole thing in. We''ll use the biggest magic bag we can find. It''s a good thing we have one for giant trees, really. It''s pretty scary doing all that dismantling in here. If the smell of blood attracts me and I get a second helping of Dahl''s Bear, I''m usually dead. I hurriedly spread out a magic bag next to Darl''s Bear and tried to roll the body on it, but . It''s too heavy! I push as hard as I can, but the flesh only changes its shape a little, and it doesn''t move a muscle. "No, you can''t. It''s tons of weight. I thought I could just roll it over. ...... You can''t roll a log, but you can''t roll a hunk of meat. We''ll all do it. Right. All right! All five of us worked together to push the corpse of the Dahl''s Bear, and it managed to roll over and sink into the magic bag. It''s always a strange sight. All that was left to do was to fold up the magic bag and put it away in my backpack. Then, let''s hurry up and go home. Nao, basically avoid fighting. If it''s just a single orc, we can keep our distance. Understood. If we avoid enemies that can be easily defeated and take the long way around, we might run the risk of encountering stronger enemies. If too much time passes, I''ll be in trouble. But we''ve grown up enough to be able to judge them as orcs. ....... Feeling a little deeply moved, I turned on [Search for Enemies] at full speed and started walking to the front. And we returned safely to Raffan, kicking away the skeletons we encountered along the way with the magic of Haruka and the others in an instant. 167-151 Finally, tea? When I arrived home, I found that my muscles were sore as expected. Haruka and her friends took care of me as I lay in bed moaning from the evening until the next morning, but I didn''t have to try to take care of Simo, did I? It took me a long time to get to the bathroom, and I almost cried in a different way when Yuki brought me a urinal that she had made up with earth magic. But I made it. No problem. I''d rather you pick me up and take me with you if you have time to make something like that. That would be pretty pathetic, but it''s possible with my current physical abilities. Incidentally, this muscle pain can''t be cured by light magic. I don''t know why, but Haruka and Natsuki think it''s because I''m forcing the magic to flow. In the first place, it''s not just muscle pain, but also general fatigue and mental exhaustion, so even if only the muscle pain goes away, there''s nothing you can do but sleep. After all, doping is just doping. It should not be used except for emergency evacuation. ....... ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó What''s this ......? The one who looked up at the corpse of Dahl''s Bear in the garden and said with a stunned expression was Diora. The next day after the muscle pain that had tormented me. We were about to dismantle the Dahl''s Bear when it occurred to me. Can we just dismantle it? There is no mention of Dahl''s Bear in Toya''s book on dismantling beasts and demons, so we don''t know how to dismantle it. I suppose I could dismantle it just like a normal bear, but it would be quite sad if I wasted some valuable parts. It would be a shame to waste the valuable parts. I thought about taking it to the Adventurer''s Guild, but I''m sorry to say, but it''s only the Adventurer''s Guild of Rafan. There was no room for a monster of this size, and it would be impossible to even take it out. Above all, we all agreed that we didn''t want to do such a thing when we knew it would definitely stand out. That''s why we forced Diora to come to ....... Wasn''t it worth it? It''s the first time he''s seen a Dahl''s Bear. I''ve never seen a Dahl''s Bear before. Do you know what it is? The name is ...... what?¡¡What? This thing existed?¡¡In the North Woods? Yes, it''s been there. I didn''t know they lived in that area. ....... I thought about it when you hunted down the ogre. ...... I''m not sure what to make of that. What did they think of us?¡¡I''m subtly curious, but the fact that he doesn''t know about Dahl''s Bear means that-- I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out where the cash is, right? Was that a waste of time?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be able to find out more. I''ll be sure to look into it, so you''ll have to wait until tomorrow - no, a few days! A few days," he reiterated, being very realistic. Well, we have a magic bag, and the one we made recently has a "slow time" attached to it, so a few days is no problem. In the beginning, we didn''t have the "Slow Time" on our large magic bags, and we didn''t need it just to carry the wood, but the difference in the performance of the magic bags makes it difficult to choose which one to use. In case I accidentally put some raw food in the magic bag without the "slow time" feature, and if I don''t notice it for a few days, the bag will become a "sealed rice cooker," which is common in ...... living alone. However, I did not remake all the magic bags, but basically reused all of them. The most troublesome part of making a magic bag is the embroidery of the magic circle, so if you release the magic power contained in it and re-apply it, you can update the magic bag according to your skill at that time. That''s why we sometimes update our magic bags, and I''m sure that this will lead to a modest improvement in our skills. ...... I think. I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure you''re not going to do any training today, are you? I think it would be better. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. I was generally feeling better, but there was no point in pushing myself too hard in training. We should rest until we were fully recovered, and Haruka and the others seemed to feel the same way. We don''t have Toya''s armor, so let''s take a break for a while. "Right. Do you want to order armor for Toya? If you''re going to use Attribute Steel, yes. I''ll have to buy a buckler and a helmet. The buckler is a total loss and needs to be replaced, the left hand basket is half destroyed. It''s not a problem for the right hand basket, but now that you know there are enemies like that, you might as well rebuild this one with attribute steel. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m going to have a meeting with Gantz-san. I''m going to have a meeting with Mr. Ganz. Then I''ll go have a meeting with Gantz-san." We watched Toya walk out of the gate with raised hands. He''s probably happy to be wearing his new armor. ...... We''ve got some free time until Toya returns. It is Haruka and Yuki''s job to make the attribute steel, but they can''t start work until Toya and Gantz finish their meeting and decide what they need. So, why don''t we go pick some tea?¡¡It''s almost time for the new tea. "Oh, by the way, you planted a tea tree, didn''t you? Haruka clapped her hands in response to Natsuki''s words. I had forgotten that I had transplanted about five tea trees to a corner of the garden a long time ago. They didn''t look much different from other shrubs, so I didn''t pay attention to them. ....... I completely forgot about them. Natsuki, have you been taking care of them? "I haven''t done much in the way of maintenance. ...... And then I was led to this place. "It''s pretty well maintained, isn''t it? It was neatly trimmed, and part of it was tied to a gorza-like structure on top of a girder to provide semi-shade. As I recall, Natsuki said he wanted to drink green tea, and I guess that was the solution for green tea. I just did it easily. It''s growing well, thanks to the fertilizer, and all I''ve done is prune it and give it some shade. I think that''s enough. ...... Well, I can help with the picking. I''ll help you with the picking. Yeah, yeah. But where do you want me to pick? "Oh, yes. This part. With Natsuki''s guidance, we all picked the tea. There are only a few trees, so it''s not too hard, and we can still get enough for our drinks, so I guess this is the right amount. As an event to feel the early summer, picking tea may be a good idea. If there were more, it would be too much trouble. How many times will I be able to pick tea?¡¡"How many times can we pick tea?" "With that fertilizer, I''m sure we''ll be able to pick the fourth tea. --"Oh?¡¡I heard some strange words. "Isn''t ...... tea a one-time thing? What?¡¡Oh, yes. The tea we''re picking now is the first tea, the so-called new tea. In the case of black tea, it''s called first flush. Usually, it''s second, third, and then autumn. You can harvest about four times. With that fertilizer, ......? They grow pretty fast, so you might get twice as many. "Oh, double ....... Double four times is eight times. ...... Isn''t that a lot of work? Matcha, Sencha, Hojicha ...... If you''re good, you might even be able to make black tea or oolong tea. I''m not sure what I can say to Natsuki, who looks very happy as she quickly picks the tea leaves. There was nothing I could say. I just plucked the tea quietly. Yuki and Haruka seem to be smiling a little, but they have no intention of complaining about Natsuki''s hobby. But Natsuki, do you know how to make tea?¡¡You seem to know how to make green tea. "Yes, I know how to make green tea. Yes, I know how to make green tea. I''ve even seen it made. I only know how to make black tea and oolong tea. Well, I''m sure you can make them with a few experiments. "Really?¡¡Do you need any help? No, it''s not too much, I think I can handle it. If it''s too much, I''ll ask you. All right. It''s tea we drink, so don''t hesitate to ask. Okay. Thank you very much. The tea picking itself was over in about an hour, but unlike us, Natsuki immediately moved on to the processing work. I didn''t know this well, but the main difference between green tea and other teas is whether or not they are heated immediately. So Natsuki dried about half of the tea he picked in the shade and steamed the rest immediately to make green tea. I was watching from the side, but Natsuki said, "If you''re not busy, can you help me? Natsuki asked me if I was free, and I decided to join in. But I just helped Natsuki with the heating and cooling, using the "heat" and "cold" magic, while she was rubbing and spreading the tea leaves, but she said that it was very useful. But according to Natsuki, it was useful enough. All that was left to do was to heat it up and the sencha was ready. "It''s kind of ...... easier than you think. ...... No, it''s quicker than you think, isn''t it? Yes, because unlike black tea, it does not require fermentation. Hojicha can also be made by simply roasting it, so it is not difficult. Of course, it requires craftsmanship to make a delicious product. That''s the difference between a professional and an amateur, so it can''t be helped. What about matcha?¡¡The tea leaves that we divided along the way are the matcha leaves, right? The tea leaves grown in the shade were treated separately. Basically, they were treated in a similar way. ....... I''m not going to use matcha for a while. We don''t have a millstone for grinding tea leaves, and we don''t have any tea utensils. The lack of a tea whisk is fatal. ...... Oh, you mean like the whisk? Yes, that''s right. Without it, the tea is not as good as it should be. No, that''s hopeless, isn''t it?¡¡Isn''t it hopeless to get it? There is no possibility that it exists somewhere in this world, but it would be very difficult to obtain. And even if I were to explain it to you and ask you to make it, it would not be easy to imitate. It''s not easy to copy. Homemade ......?¡¡No, that is indeed ....... Natsuki muttered, and frowned. It''s a very delicate bamboo craft, and even the dexterous Natsuki would be unable to do it. Well, I think it''s fine to try it as a hobby, but don''t overdo it, okay? "Yes, I understand. Yes, I understand. It''s only a hobby, so I''ll do my best to keep it in moderation. I''ll do my best to keep it in moderation." Natsuki smiled, but I guess Natsuki is the type of person who gets absorbed in her hobbies. If you take into account her skill with the naginata and such. At least, it wasn''t like she was doing it for her health because she was weak. You might want to pay some attention to him. The tea that came with dinner that day was the first green tea I had had in a long time. It tasted at least as good as the green tea I used to drink, and Haruka and the others praised it as good, but Natsuki seemed to be slightly unconvinced and twisted her head. It''s good to be ambitious, but comparing the tea you made for the first time today to the high quality tea leaves that Natsuki was probably drinking is not a good idea. However, if Natsuki is that kind of person, he might even make his own tea whisk one day. I wonder if I should at least make a millstone out of clay magic and give it to him as a present. ......? Incidentally, Natsuki''s teas, including the black tea and oolong tea that he finished a while later, were much more popular than I expected, and when I served them to my acquaintances, they asked me to share them with them. As a result, the tea would be used as a gift in the future, and our workload would inevitably increase. ...... We had no way of knowing this at the time, but we simply savored the nostalgic taste. 168-152 Sell Dahls Bear The next time Diora visited our house was three days later. Until then, we didn''t really go out of town, but made attribute steel, tea, and a millstone for green tea. I was in charge of the millstone. I thought that since normal millstones are made of granite, there would be no shortage of silicon dioxide, or quartz, for my millstone, but the brilliant Haruka argued with me here. "Why don''t you just use silicon carbide? And. "What''s that? I''m sure it''s not my fault. I''m sure it wasn''t my fault. I asked him about it, and he told me that it is the third hardest material on earth, after diamond and boron carbide. I don''t know how it ranks in this fantasy world, but I am sure that it is hard enough to be used as a mortar. The structure is a compound of carbon and silicon. While oxygen and silicon are abundant in the soil, carbon is scarce, so charcoal is used to supplement it. When I used "Create Earth" in that condition, I succeeded in creating silicon carbide. Success: ......? Probably successful. Because it''s a black and silvery substance that''s very hard. Could it be diamond?¡¡So I got some charcoal and tried again, but all I got was a thin sheet. When I showed it to Haruka and the others, they said, "Isn''t that graphene? but they said that we had no use for it. If we were to buy it in Japan, it would be very expensive, but we can''t afford it. Incidentally, silicon carbide can be used to make diamond-like jewels, depending on the manufacturing method. When I asked Haruka and his friends, "Is jewelry something you want? They said, "I don''t have a chance to wear it ......", but I got the feeling that they might want it, so it might be a good idea to practice in their spare time. Anyway. The silicon carbide stone mortar did its job well, and succeeded in grinding a good-looking matcha. Even after grinding for a while, the millstone didn''t break down, so I''m sure it will last for a long time. However, when Yuki saw it, she said, "Wouldn''t it be easier to automate the process? But Yuki, seeing this, said, "Wouldn''t it be easier to automate it? It''s true that you could make a millstone that works automatically if you made it into a magic tool, but it would have no flavor. Since there is only a small amount of green tea to drink, it is better to grind it slowly by hand. Yuki gave me a subtle look as I emphasized this, but Natsuki understood and was happy with my gift of the millstone, so there was no problem at all. It''s not like Natsuki was looking out for me ......, is it? By the way, while we were working on our production, Toya had a little free time on his hands. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time to spare, you may want to take Tommy out to kill some goblins, but right now he''s at Gantz''s store making shields for you. As you can imagine, I can''t take Tommy out. Even if he wanted to do production like us, Toya could only do blacksmithing. She is a little too weak to make weapons and armor for Gantz and the others. Instead, Toya was making ordinary pots and pans in the forge in the corner of the garden as a diversion. It is not particularly well made, the only difference is that it is square and has a handle - or rather, it does not have a handle. The only difference is that it is square and has no handle. In fact, this pot is specially designed to be used in the storage room, where food can be kept almost in its original state. In order to save time and effort in cooking, and to be able to eat whenever we want, we usually cook a large amount of food at a time, and store it in small portions in the pot. However, if you want to stockpile a large number of different kinds of food, you will need a large number of pots and pans, and if they are round and have handles, it is difficult to fit them without gaps. For this reason, Toya created this square pot (?), saying, "It''s a storage container that is hardly used for cooking anyway, so it''s just fine. It holds about 10 servings of soup. The first size holds about 10 servings of soup, and each half of the pot has a second, third, and fourth size, designed to fit snugly on the shelf of the storage room. Since size 4 is enough for one person, it is easy to eat when you are hungry. Therefore, when Toya has some free time, he is supposed to make more pots. I''ll leave it at that. We invited Mr. Diora into the living room and served him a cup of freshly brewed tea when he came to visit us after several days of production activities. Diora, thank you for coming. No, no, no, it''s my fault for not answering you the other day!¡¡Don''t worry this time, I''ve done my research! It must have taken a lot of effort to find out, because it took about three days. Diora puffed out her chest, took out a small note, and opened her mouth while looking at it. Almost the entire body of the Dahl''s Bear is available for purchase. "All of it? Yes, everything. The skin that withstood our magic is excellent for leather armor, and the large, sharp claws can be used as weapons. The meat is quite tasty for a bear and sells for a good price, and the organs are also sought after for medicinal purposes. Some of them need to be fresh, but we keep them in magic bags, so it''s not a problem. But ...... Diora slurred her words and took a sip of her tea to catch her breath. Then she looked at him in surprise. "What is this tea?¡¡It''s so good! "Thank you very much. I couldn''t find the one I used to drink, so I made it. Natsuki smiled a little happily at Diora''s praise, and said something like that. I helped out a bit, shortening the fermentation process with Accelerate Time and using magic to heat and cool it, but Natsuki did all the work, so it''s safe to say it was his work. Green tea, oolong tea, and black tea were all made to look like that, but the tea I served Diora was one of them. I didn''t know what kind of tea was drunk around here, so it was a bit random, but judging from the fact that Diora sipped the tea without any resistance and praised it, she must have drunk something that looked like tea. You made this yourself? ....... It''s amazing. I''ve never had tea this good. "Really?¡¡I don''t think it''s ready yet. No, no, no, not at all!¡¡Only rich people drink tea to begin with, but this is the best I''ve ever had! I thought it was just a tea made by an amateur, no matter how much it was made by Natsuki, but it was rated higher than I imagined. Of course I thought it was good, but I wasn''t confident enough in my own taste to evaluate it. ....... I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not a good cook or a good pharmacist. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. But that doesn''t mean you can''t drink what you''re served. ...... Diora frowned as she remembered the tea. As the vice-chief of the guild, I guess he has to deal with nobles and rich people. I don''t know the etiquette of this world, but I guess it''s wrong not to eat what you''re served. If it smells musty, there must be a problem with the manufacturing process or transportation. Yes, I think so. If the quality is that bad, I think it would be better not to serve it, but some people are vain. I''m sorry for your loss. I''m sorry for your loss. ...... But it''s ...... amazing that Natsuki-san made this. I''m jealous. She sipped the tea again and swallowed it slowly, savoring it. One sip, two sips: ....... Mmm. I helped make that tea. It''s certainly nice to get a compliment, but... I''ll wrap up the tea for you, Diora, so you can continue with your story about Dahl''s Bear. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. I''m sorry!¡¡In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the following web site: ....... The reason he was somewhat slurring his words was because of this. The Adventurer''s Guild also has a magic bag that can store materials, but it''s not that big. The meat of a giant Dahl''s Bear would weigh several tons. And the unit price is a bit high. If it were a big town, it would be possible to sell it, but considering the population of this town, there are not that many buyers, and it would be risky to buy it at normal prices. The same is true for the other parts of the body, and considering the trouble of selling them to other towns, it seems difficult to buy them at the standard price. But you wouldn''t have known that if I hadn''t told you, would you?¡¡We don''t know the purchase price of Dahl''s Bear. "No, no!¡¡I''m honest with adventurers. That''s my motto! As expected of you, Diora. You''ve got that down pat. It''s a little hard to believe that she''s using her guild employee privileges to buy - or even sell - dildos cheaply. "Well, what if we store it in our magic bags and keep it in small batches? "Well, if that''s the case, we have nothing to say. We can buy it at the usual price. And as for the skins, we''re not going to sell them. ...... What?¡¡All of them?¡¡There seems to be a lot of interest in Dahl''s Bear skins. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a great way to make your own armor. In fact, the weakness of the leather armor in relation to the chainmail is proven by the fact that Toya''s baskets were easily torn off. The decision was made to update the rest of the armor, including Toya''s, when good leather was available, and there was no way to give up on the good Dahl''s Bear leather. In response to Haruka''s explanation, Diora looked around at all of us, looked up and pondered, and after a few moments, opened her mouth somewhat reservedly. I''m sure there''s more than enough armor for everyone, given the size of Dahl''s Bear, right?¡¡If you have any left over, you can sell it to me. "Yeah, sure. If you have any left over, it''s fine.¡¡You know? Yeah, why not?¡¡There''s no point in keeping it. When you think about it, Dahl''s Bear''s body is noticeably larger than the demons we''ve killed so far. A single leg is about the size of a man, so even if you made a full body armor out of it, it would probably be too much. In addition, since we are basically partial armor, we probably wouldn''t consume even half of it. You may want to keep some of it in case of breakage, but if you can, try your best to replace it with something better before it breaks. There are better leathers than ......, but they are stronger than that. ....... It''s hard to imagine. ....... So, after we make it, we can use the leftovers. Of course, that''s fine!¡¡Thank you very much! Thank you very much!" Diora thanked him happily and bowed her head. Well, the price Diora offered was quite a good one, and it was in our interest, so there was no problem. In the end, the sale of the Dahl''s Bear was divided into several parts. We get a good price, and the Adventurer''s Guild gets a good price and a good commission. It''s a win-win situation for both parties. As an added bonus, our adventurer''s rank has been increased by one to 5. It would be difficult to raise our rank under normal circumstances, since we''ve only completed a small number of requests, but there are no suitable requests in Raffan to begin with, and we recently defeated a bandit at the request of the guild, and for good measure, we killed Darl''s Bear. Under these circumstances, the branch manager decided that there was no problem in raising the level of the guild, but that it would be a bad idea not to. According to Diora, "The guild wants to keep the best adventurers. Considering the amount of money we make, she feared that even if we had a house in this town, we might leave the town if our rank didn''t improve much. I don''t have any plans to do so at the moment, but it''s not worth it to get ......, so I asked him to raise my rank honestly. The only benefit of being a rank 5 is a little bit of respect from your peers, though. 169-153 A child who doesnt need space-time magic? Even with Dahl''s Bear in hand, Toya''s armor was not yet complete. This was partly because Haruka and his team needed to make the attribute steel, but the main reason was that they had to make not only the buckler but also the gauntlets. The damaged basketballs were made of leather, and there was some talk of using the same leather, but considering Toya''s arm, which was shattered by Dahl''s Bear, we agreed that we should make metal gauntlets using Attribute Steel, even if it cost a little more money and time. If it''s a shattered bone, it''s not so bad, but if the arm is gone, there''s nothing we can do. There was no reason for us to spare a little time and money now. Inevitably, we were all free to spend our time as we wished, but I had some free time after I made the millstone, so I was examining space-time magic for the first time in a while. I thought it would come in handy, so I spent some points to get it, but so far, it hasn''t been very useful in battle. In the beginning, I used it to slow down the enemy a little, but after that, I haven''t used it at all. The reason is, of course, that it is too ineffective. Of course, they are not ineffective, but if you are in a battle where the outcome depends on that level of support, you have already lost. It''s not a "proper level" for us who put safety first, and it''s a battle that we should avoid now, even if it was when we were in trouble with money. In the beginning, we used some space-time magic in battle, but now we use it only rarely and experimentally. I only use it to practice so that I can use it in case of emergency. As for direct attacks, there are some spells that can be used, but fire magic is much more useful. For example, the level 3 "Pressure Field". "Crushing enemies sounds cool, right? But if you want to make it powerful enough to crush the enemy, you''ll be out of magic power, and even if you force yourself to do it, what will you do afterwards? And even if you force yourself to do it, "What then? The picture would look terrible, and it would not be well received by the ladies. Furthermore, they would not be able to buy the crushed meat, which would affect their earnings. It would be much better to use fire magic to blow off the head. Recently, I''ve managed to use the level 5 "Plane Shift," but it''s also too difficult to use. To put it simply, it''s a spell that can divide any space and cut off anything in that space, but it takes me a long time to figure out the different spaces that I''ve divided and activate it, and I can''t really use it on a moving enemy. It''s a spell that can slice through stone if you get it right, but if you''re not in the right place and it goes off where your allies are,......, you''re in trouble. It''s a good idea. Moreover, it consumes a lot of magic power, so it has no advantage over fire magic. The only thing that is useful at the moment is Sanctuary. It''s a spell that can prevent enemies from entering a designated area, but for those of us who don''t camp, it''s used to keep the bugs away. The level of the spell prevents you from being bitten by ordinary insects, but it''s a good spell because insects are annoying just flying around. It''s a shame, though, that it doesn''t help you warm up the air around you with Worms. Another spell that blocks air is the level 5 spell "Isolation Field", but this is a spell that requires a bit of caution. With this spell, it is true that the air warmed by Worms will not be able to escape, but in other words, there is no air flowing in and out, and if you use it all the time, you will die of suffocation. If you use it all the time, you will die of suffocation. There are also spells such as "teleportation" that can be used at higher levels to expand the dream, but if you only look at its usability at the moment, it is not as practical as other spells. But if you only look at its usability at the moment, it''s not as practical as the other spells. Then again, it''s not as if the points I spent were a waste. That is the existence of the magic bag. Being able to create them at will is a huge advantage, and it''s no exaggeration to say that they are the foundation of our lives. The only reason we make more money than other adventurers is because of this ability to transport. But this is only possible with the help of alchemists. If it weren''t for Haruka, I think space-time magic would have become quite useless. Thank you, Haruka. Seriously. But I''d like to upgrade her to something more useful. I''m a little sad that even though I have the ability to use space-time magic, it''s not used as much as fire magic, which I don''t have. In the event that you''re not able to use it all the time like fire magic, you can at least be able to rely on it when you need it. So, Haruka, can you give me some advice? What?¡¡What is it? I''ll explain it to you. When I explained it to her, she nodded her head. I see. I''ve skimmed through the grimoire of space-time magic, but ...... that''s not basically magic used in battle, is it? That''s what I feel too. But you have to push it and do something about it! I''m not sure what you''re talking about.¡¡...... I''ll think of something. Sorry, thanks. To be honest, if you have no use for it until you can use the transference relation, you will not be able to keep the motivation to level up. I''m not sure what to do with it. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to make use of it for a lot of things.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. You can''t do that. You can''t distinguish between friend and foe if they''re in the same area. It''s a space-based system, so it targets everyone and everything in that area. Therefore, even if you attack from outside the area with a long-distance attack, your movement will stop once you enter the area, and the effect will be quite limited. Well, it depends on how you use it - for example, you can shoot arrows repeatedly from around the target area, and when the arrows accumulate, you can break the spell, and a lot of arrows will rush in at once, but it''s not a method that you can use in everyday combat. Hmm, that''s not as useful as I thought. Isn''t it possible to stop time around you and only you can move? That''s a cheat. That would be a cheat. In this world, that would not be easy to do. If it were possible, it would be only for the best in the world, not for a novice space-time wizard like me. Metaphorically speaking, in terms of worldview? No, I think that god would have a few more mines in him. For example, ......, I can move, but my clothes don''t move. I''m afraid I can''t say it''s impossible, considering the [skill robbery] thing. In that case, what would happen?¡¡Will I be naked if I move too much?¡¡No, you won''t be able to breathe when the material doesn''t move. ......? I see. If you think about it, the fact that you are the only one who can move is fatal in another sense. I think you don''t have to use it in battle, since it works with magic bags. ...... "No, no, I want to level up. I want to use it in some way to motivate me to do so. "I think training is basically boring repetition. ...... Well, let''s think about that for a minute. I''m not sure what to do. I''m going to take out a grimoire on space-time magic and hand it to her. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. You can use it to slow down the enemy''s movement. ...... You can''t move the area as the enemy moves, so it''s a bit tricky. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use it as a substitute for the other two.¡¡It was difficult to make it move faster with Light Weight, right? "Oh. I''m not sure if it''s just for movement, but if you do it in combat, you''ll lose your balance without a lot of practice. Even if you step with the same force as before, the speed and distance you move will be different. It may be usable with practice, but after trying it myself for a while, I found it quite difficult because of the large dissociation from my normal senses. It would be a bit inefficient to spend a lot of time training for something that is not going to be used regularly. If you use the Heavy Weight on an enemy, it may increase the damage from bodily harm, right? "Right. Unless you make it so they can''t move. Couldn''t I just use it on my weapon? I can adjust the timing of the activation, but I can''t conveniently deactivate it. For example, you can apply "heavy weight" to a weapon the moment you swing it, but you can''t cancel it, so your body is taken away. In other words, it is like swinging a huge hammer. You will lose your balance, and since you can''t control it, you might even hurt yourself if you are not careful. In addition, since you have more energy than your own muscle power, when you attack, the repulsive force will be greater than you can imagine, and you may hurt your hand. In fact, when I hit the ground with "Heavy Weight", it hurt like hell. The only way to prevent this is to train your body, but if that''s possible, just use a weapon with a weight corresponding to your muscle strength at the time. ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. If you''re going to use it, it''s going to be a dry run. In addition, if you can afford to use magic while fighting in close quarters, using fire arrows is more effective than using heavy weights to take you by surprise. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s a good idea to use heavy weights when throwing rocks, but I''d rather not use them as a regular means of attack. But I don''t want to use it as an attack method. However, it''s hard to deny that it''s low-cost and reasonably effective. I didn''t mean to imply that it''s a bad idea, I just said that it requires a lot of practice. Since then, I''ve given it some thought. It seemed to work reasonably well. The attack power of an arrow is, simply put, proportional to the strength of the bow. In other words, the speed at which the arrow is launched. The tension of the bow and the mass of the arrow determine the speed, so what if the mass can be increased by "heavy weighting" once the arrow is accelerated and the speed is determined? On the other hand, what if we can increase the velocity by reducing the weight of the arrow? Energy is proportional to the square of the velocity, so if halving the weight of the arrow doubles its velocity, that alone will double its power. Of course, the speed of an arrow is related to air resistance as well as the mass of the arrow and the tension of the bow, so halving the mass may not simply double the speed, but it is certain that increasing the speed is more efficient. In addition, the lighter the arrow is, the farther the attack can reach, which is also valuable. If you try to make a "fire arrow" fly the same distance as a bow and arrow, it will be very difficult in terms of magic power, but if you use "heavy weight", it does not matter because you are not flying the magic itself. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It''s just a matter of timing the magic. ...... You have to cast it the moment the arrow leaves the string, right? No, if you can capture the speed of the arrow, you can cast it before the moment it hits the enemy. That''s quite a difficult question to answer. If it''s right after it''s fired, it''s too fast to catch, and if it''s too far away, it''s too hard for magic to reach. If you''re throwing it by yourself, like a stone, it''s easier to time it. ...... I guess I''ll just have to practice. You''re right. It''s well worth it if you can do it, so let''s give it a try. With Haruka''s help, I practiced for several days. The method of applying "heavy weight" to the arrow had somehow reached a practical level. But that doesn''t mean I succeeded in seeing the arrow and casting a spell on it. It would have been best if I had been able to do so, but after practicing for a while, I decided that it was impossible to do so overnight, so I decided to use countdown as the next best solution. Haruka would shoot the arrow at the same time as Zero, and I would use my magic in time with it. It took a lot of practice to get the two of us to work together in less than a second, but we managed to increase the power of our magic with the same accuracy and distance. The only drawbacks are that it is unlikely to be used with anyone other than Haruka, and that it can only be used if there is at least enough time to count down. Inevitably, you''ll only be able to use it before the battle starts, but it''s still worth it to have one more way to attack, don''t you think? It''s also better than throwing stones in terms of distance and appearance. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. When I heard the word "dried noodles", I thought "instant noodles? I thought about it for a while, but it seems that they can''t make ramen noodles themselves because they can''t get enough brine. It''s a pity. However, I heard that sodium carbonate can be used instead of brine, so I''m looking forward to that in the future. However, since there is a magic bag, I thought, "Why not use fresh noodles? But according to Natsuki and his friends, "fresh pasta and dried pasta are two different things," let alone udon. As for me, I''m in the position of being fed delicious food, so if they say so, I have the sense not to say anything that would kill their motivation. There is nothing I can do to help them, so I''ll just give them my honest support, albeit only in words. They were inspired by my support, and completed the udon noodles with relative ease. To be more specific, they simply cut the udon into thin strips and dried them with the magic of "dry". The process is the same as for fresh noodles, and is very simple. However, although we have made it, we don''t think we will have much use for the dried udon noodles. Because it is better to boil fresh noodles normally, and there is no problem to store the boiled noodles in the magic bag. If I had to think of a use for it, it would be as a gift. If I had to think of a use for it, it would be as a gift. On the other hand, pasta was a difficult task. The reason is that the flour used for the pasta is completely different from that used for the bread and fresh pasta that Haruka and her friends usually make. Pasta is made with durum semolina, which means coarsely ground durum wheat. The difference between durum wheat and ordinary wheat, or even the wheat commonly used in Japan, is its hardness. It is easy to distinguish it from ordinary wheat because of the difference in the hardness and color of the grain, but it was difficult to find in the market. But instead, they were able to get it at a very low price, so I guess I should call it a blessing in disguise. The reason why they are so cheap is that they are not popular because they are not easy to use. It is not very good for making bread, the staple food of this area. But it is still cultivated because it can be grown in hotter and drier areas than ordinary wheat. But is there any pasta in this world?¡¡I guess there is no ....... If there were, this type of wheat would be in demand. Well, thanks to that, we can eat pasta cheaply. But the two of them seemed to have gotten carried away, and by the end of their vacation, they had accumulated a huge pile of dried noodles. In addition, there was a home-use noodle-making machine (a magical tool) sitting beside them that looked like something I''ve seen before. Well, dried noodles can be stored for years as they are, and I have a magic bag, so I don''t have a problem with it. ...... I was a little fed up with having noodles every day during the vacation, so I feel like refraining from eating them for a while. 170-154 Is Dahls Bear a Horse? Our vacation ended up lasting about a week. It seems that it takes a lot of time to make a custom-made gauntlet, and that''s how long it took Mr. Gantz to make it. In fact, he wanted to use Dahl''s Bear''s leather to make new armor, but apparently tanning is not an easy process. Since I didn''t have any particular contacts, I asked a company contracted by the guild through Diora, but it would take at least a month before the leather could be used for armor. I was told that it would take at least one month before it could be used as armor material, and that it would take at least two months if the work was done carefully. This is a very expensive material that I have acquired. We decided to take our time and restart the project when Toya''s armor was completed. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure if we''ll be able to continue where we left off today.¡¡Or do we need to rehabilitate after a long vacation? I''m not skipping any training, so I don''t think I need rehab. ...... As you can see, Dahl''s Bear is a no thank you for a while. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand what I mean. I agree with you. It''s been a while since I''ve felt threatened by an enemy. I don''t think an enemy of that level is going to be a common occurrence.¡¡In game terms, Darl''s Bear is an area boss. "Right?¡¡If they were regular MOBs, I''d die. It''s a ...... nightmare when several of them show up at once. A few of them should only appear in sets of orc-sized enemies. My main concern is that this is real life, and they don''t care about game balance. I''m not sure about the territory of demons, but considering their size, I''d like to think that we won''t be encountering them ...... for a while. Haruka''s wishful thinking. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Yes. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''m not sure what to make of this. But if that''s the case, the math doesn''t add up. Orcs, for example. If they were to feed on hunting and gathering without agriculture, they would need a very large feeding ground, and it would be difficult for hundreds of them to survive, at least in a forest the size of the North. But the reality is that they do exist, and the forest is not completely devoured and bare. As for how they survive, the most popular hypothesis is that they are powered by magic. Demons live by eating magic power, not haze. This is complemented by the fact that there are many demons in places that are said to have a high level of magical power, that there are skeletons and ghosts that do not eat at all, and that demons exist even in environments without food, such as dungeons. But there is still a limit to how much you can take, and if you exceed that limit, you''ll find yourself in a different area than usual, like the orc nest we eradicated. It''s hard when the area bosses are ...... repopulating. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. You''ll be able to avoid them by using the [Search] function, unlike the ogre, so it shouldn''t be a problem. "Right. Then let''s get ready and go to the north forest. I''m not sure what to make of it, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure.¡¡But first, why don''t we go to the temple?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Oh, you''re right!¡¡After killing such a strong enemy, we can expect a little more. Let''s go now! "Let''s go right now!" Toya said happily, and I had no reason to disagree. Besides, I feel a little hesitant to go to the temple without my weapons and armor on. So, before heading out of town, we decided to head to the temple together. I''m not sure what to say. When we visited the temple of Adversus, we were greeted by the usual female priestess. We had already been here many times, so she seemed to remember our faces, smiled and bowed to us, saying "Thank you for everything. We also returned the bow and proceeded to the altar. Then, we threw in a large silver coin and clasped our hands together. At the same time, you hear a voice. "Nao is now level 17. You will need 11,190 experience points for the next level up. Whoa!¡¡He''s gone up two levels at once! The last time I came to ...... was a few days before the vacations, after I killed the first ogre. If you think about the fact that the level at that time was 15 and the next required experience was less than 20,000, then the ogre, dahl''s bear, skeletons, zombies, etc. that I killed after that would give me about 50,000 to 60,000 experience. As expected of such a powerful enemy, it seems to be quite a tasty catch in terms of experience - or even monetary income. If I can kill another one, I''ll be able to level up again. ...... I might seriously want to request a repop. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of these in the marketplace. But I have enough sense not to mention it here. There is ...... something about the way Toya''s mouth is twitching in a happy way. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. The priest behind you is going to think you''re weird. After bowing to the priest again and leaving the temple, it was Toya who first spoke up, as if to explode. I''m 17 now!¡¡I''m up 3!¡¡Isn''t that awesome?¡¡Hey!¡¡Hey! Calm down. They''re probably all the same. I''m four. I''m 17. I''m catching up, I guess. I''m the same!¡¡I''m so happy! Hmm?¡¡My level is the same now, but I think it''s gone up too fast. I''m not sure if you''re here to check your level or not. I''m not sure if you''ve been to the temple much.¡¡I was level 15 when I killed my first ogre. Am I the only one who goes at least once a week? Isn''t Toya the only one who seems to care about levels and experience? "I''m that guy. I like to save up and level up all at once!¡¡That''s what I like to do. Well, he''s probably just leveling up because he''s not checking. Well, I can understand your feeling. It feels good when you get a big boost, doesn''t it? I come here on my days off when I have time, I guess. I''m the same. It''s expensive. When do you come here, Nao?¡¡You don''t go out much, do you? Me?¡¡I''m on a jog. It''s open early in the morning. I go jogging every morning to build up my strength. As each of them ran at their own pace and distance, they probably didn''t notice if they strayed from the path. It was not that they were keeping it a secret, it was just that the time of jogging was convenient for them to go to the temple which was far from their house. I see. Is that why I couldn''t see you sometimes when I was jogging? "It''s too much trouble to come all the way here just for this. It''s not too much trouble to come here just for this. The location of the temple is on the outskirts of the town, in a strange place, or ...... to put it simply, in a place where land prices are low. If not in the middle of town, it could be in a better location. ...... Could it be that the Adverstices are not very popular? I''ll stop by from time to time. I''ll stop by from time to time too.¡¡If I could see the status, I''d be more motivated. "That''s true. I''d like to be able to check my status, even if it''s not a number, but just a scale from A to F. That''s right. It''s interesting to know the level, or rather, it motivates me, but it doesn''t answer the fundamental question, "Is this level strong? But it doesn''t answer the fundamental question, "Is this level strong? In the first place, ordinary people don''t have (or can''t check?) levels. Therefore, we cannot compare them, and we do not know how strong the current level 17 is. Since we don''t know the maximum level, an absolute comparison is impossible. 17 at the maximum level of 100 is completely different from 17 at the maximum level of 1,000. If I ever meet God, I''d like to ask him about that. "Meeting God, huh? If I said that in Japan, I''d be recommended to see a psychotherapist. Nao has seen God, and we have heard God''s voice, so it''s not impossible. Well, if we can meet someone, we''ll tell them we''re hoping for the best and head for the forest ...... for today. We spent a lot of time there. Well... It''s a long way from here. Now, you can enter the forest directly from the north of Laffan, but you''ve already explored quite a distance to the northwest, so even if you want to ''pick up where you left off'', you''ll have to walk quite a distance to get there. My current concern is that I may not be able to continue my search properly unless I stay overnight. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó Fortunately, I should say. Fortunately, there was no replacement when we reached the place where we fought to the death with Dahl''s Bear last time. It''s a bit of a shame in terms of experience and earning, but I suppose we should consider ourselves lucky, since we wouldn''t have been able to deal with them if they were operating in packs. But you know what? I''d like to have some kind of demon book. That''s right. There are a lot of enemies outside the guild''s scope of research. In the archives of Raffan''s guild, there was even an ogre. There was no mention of skeletons or zombies, not to mention Dahl''s Bear, so I''d have to say there was a lack of information. What about that demolition book you have, Toya? What about that demolition book Toya has? And there''s no Dahl''s Bear in it, so it''s a bit sketchy. The bookstore in Raffan didn''t have it. ...... They can order it for you, but it''s difficult to check the contents. I don''t even know the price. It''s true. There is no guarantee of quality, you know. Haruka also nodded deeply at Natsuki, who sighed with a troubled expression. In addition to the fact that the books sold in bookstores are basically used books, there is no proper publisher, so the quality of the contents varies. When we order a copy of "The Demon Book", we don''t even know if it contains the information we need. It''s not cheap, and the risk is too high. "Do you have any at SearleStat ......? "There have been bargains, but that town is smaller than ...... Rafan. The bargain was a three-volume set of grimoires on space-time magic. Well, there''s no chance, and it''s possible to make a day trip if you run. You might want to take a look. Then there''s Kerg. Let''s see if we can find it next time we''re there.¡¡I don''t think we''ll run into many new demons, though. ""........." We fell silent at Toya''s words. If I had to put my feelings into words, I''d say, "This guy set a flag! That''s how I feel. Did he forget the last time a zombie came out? And then, as if he was waiting for me to say that, he responded to my [search for enemies]. As promised, it was a reaction that I had never detected before. 171-155 Crocodiles? All right, I''ll give the title of second class flag architect to Toya! What? Last time I raised the flag, it was me, but this time it''s Toya. I made the title myself, so please accept it respectfully. Did ...... come up? "Brilliant. Fortunately, it doesn''t seem to be as strong as Dahl''s Bear. What?¡¡Seriously, a new demon?¡¡No joke? No joke. Well, I''ve been thinking about the possibility. Considering that Dahl''s Bear had appeared, there was a possibility that the distribution of demons in this area was different from the area where Scarp Ape had been. With that in mind, it wouldn''t be strange if a different kind of demon appeared. It''s not strange, but it''s not gratifying. "Well, what the hell!¡¡It''s never dull when there''s something new. We''re going to kill it, right? Toya, take it easy. You don''t look that strong. I don''t think I''ll mind. ...... I looked at Haruka and the others as I said this, and they nodded, a little hesitantly. I''m sure we''ll run into each other soon anyway. I''m a little concerned about the blanks, though. It''s a good thing, too, because there are some zombie and ogre-like responses along the way.¡¡It''ll help you get used to the idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you get back into the swing of things. That''s right. So let''s go that route, shall we? "Right. I hope they''re good enemies. Income wise. Well, the stronger the enemy, the higher the cost of materials, so we can expect a little more. Maybe. As usual, I don''t want to get close to the zombies, so I have them easily dealt with by magic, and the ogre, after some fighting, is also easily killed. The ogre, which is said to be a powerful demon in Raffan''s adventurer''s guild, is not much of an opponent for us now if we only have one. Then we went to the enemy that responded to our search. There were four. We approached cautiously and found a crocodile-looking creature. About three meters long. Its girth was so thick that an adult could reach it with his hands. If you look at the "help" page, it''s listed as a "killer gator", so I guess it''s a relative of the alligator. Oh, and by the way, there''s a "see through". I keep forgetting to use it. --I forgot to use it when I was using Dahl''s Bear. Well, ....... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Killer Gator Status: Healthy Skills: [Bite] [Poison Fang] [Water Magic ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It has magic! It has magic! I mean, I can see quite a bit of information! The main reason why I usually tend to forget about the ¡¾Insight¡¿ is because it''s almost useless when you''re dealing with a demon for the first time. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use it for the first time or for the second time. You can get a sense of its strength, but it''s only as strong as the strength you can see with [Search Enemy], so it''s almost useless to me, who basically uses [Search Enemy] while moving around. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not a fan of the idea, but I''m sure it''s because I''m not a fan of the idea. With humans, I can get a good amount of information, but I guess that''s because I have a base of knowledge. I''m not sure what to make of this. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "Nao, what''s wrong? "No, I tried to do some "spotting", but I was surprised that I got more information than I expected. --Oh, your "see through" is now level 3. Is it possible that the increase in information is thanks to this? "Well, ...... hasn''t really changed for me. I''m still at level 2. Level 2, huh? And that demon uses water magic, right? I''m also curious about the ...... [Detection] skill, but it''s the first magic-using demon. Is the magic ...... strong? I don''t know that much about it. But the demon itself shouldn''t be that bad, so I''d like to kill it before it uses magic if I can. Oh, and it''s poisonous. Hey!¡¡That''s pretty important. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. I gave her a thumbs up and smiled. It''s okay. It''s not a problem as long as you don''t get bit by the poisonous fangs! "That''s true, but ...... hah. Well then, be careful not to get bit, and good luck. Yeah. In fact, as long as you''re not careless, you should be fine. This time, the opening is from Haruka''s bow. I''ve been practicing for a while now, so I''m going to use my "heavy weight" to attack. The arrows from Haruka''s bow were no different than usual at first glance, but after they pierced the enemy, they were different. "...... Wow, that''s evil. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. As usual, Haruka''s arrow pierced the killer gator''s eye with a brilliant display of skill. At that moment, the eyeball exploded and the arrow went straight through and two-thirds of the way into the head. The killer gator''s legs jerked for a moment. The creature stopped moving. At about the same time, Natsuki and Toya, who were flying out with arrows, attacked the two killer gators. Natsuki''s attack sliced through the side of the killer gator, but it didn''t stop it from breathing, and the gator went on a rampage, wagging its tail wildly, forcing Natsuki to take a few steps back. Natsuki was forced to retreat a few steps. Toya attacked the killer gator in the head, but it only made a rather dull sound, and the killer gator didn''t seem to take much damage. But it was a bad move. It opened its mouth too wide. It''s only a good target for Yuki. The "fireball" jumps into it. The killer gator suddenly closed its mouth, but it was already meaningless. The killer gator''s belly swelled with a thud, and the killer gator shuddered, then stopped moving, blood dripping from the edge of its mouth. There are only two left--! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Toya dodges it in a panic. This is the first time I''ve ever seen such a thing. You''re moving too slow!¡¡Fire Arrow! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. In the event that you have any questions regarding where by and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. That''s it!¡¡Aim over there! I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you out. They were moving so fast that Natsuki was having trouble attacking them, but I attacked the one that was safe, and they both went on a rampage. I attacked the safe one, too, and the two went on a rampage together, forcing Toya to retreat and watch. "Sorry. But that one''s going to die sooner or later, that one. Natsuki''s attack had torn open the belly between his front and back legs, and every time he flailed, more and more stuff came out. Blood and guts and all that. ....... Yeah, it''s gross. On the other hand, the one I attacked is bleeding profusely, but because the hole is small, it hasn''t reached the point where its internal organs spill out. It''s hard to attack! Even so. ...... Well, Toya''s weapon is not a long one, so I can understand. I moved to Toya''s side and held up my spear to poke the killer gator. The upper armor is fine, but once you avoid it, the skin is not so hard. After a few attacks, the killer gator''s movements gradually slowed down and eventually stopped moving. "Hmm. The other one is ...... wow! The killer gator was already dead, after all, but its body had been cut in half at the tail. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. How well did you cut it? Yes. It was a little hard, but once you let the magic flow through it, it was fine. Nao-kun took care of that. It seems that the reason why he was unable to attack was because the two animals were in close proximity. Indeed, the tail of the killer gator was quite thick, and if struck with it, it could break your bones. The hesitation to approach is understandable. I''m not sure what to do. There is one that seems to have been mangled by Yuki''s fireball, one that I punctured with my fire arrow and speared repeatedly, and one that had its side slashed wide open and its tail severed. Neither of these corpses were very pretty. In contrast, the one I killed with Haruka''s bow was almost undamaged. One of its eyeballs was missing, but that was all. "To be honest, it went better than I expected," he said. Alligators have small brains, and I didn''t think a headshot would be enough to take them out. ...... Is that so? Yeah. It''s only the size of a cookie.¡¡So I wasn''t really expecting it to destroy my brain from the eye socket like an orc would. That''s because they''re demons. ...... I''m sure you''ll find out when you dismantle them. Yeah. Well, let''s get rid of it for now. Yeah. It''s a big demon, but it''s not much bigger than Dahl''s Bear. Toya and I picked it up and threw it into our magic bag. By the way, is there a Killer Gator on there? "Well, there''s ....... The most popular is the skin. The skin is the most popular part. The meat is light, flavorless, and easy to eat. The standard price is 11,000R for the magic stone, 48,000R for the skin and 15,000R for the meat. ...... What?¡¡Isn''t that a lot better than an ogre? The information Toya read from the Beast and Demon Demolition Reader was unexpectedly good. In the case of the ogre, 10,000 magic stones and 40,000 skins. Meat cannot be sold. Aside from the magic stones, I know that the purchase price of a demon as a whole depends on whether or not it has a use, which is a separate issue from its strength, but it''s a bit complicated to make 1.5 times as much money as an ogre with that kind of strength. If you ask me which one is stronger, I''m almost certain it''s the ogre. ....... I''m not sure if the killer gator is stronger overall, looking at the purchase price of the magic stone alone, let alone the other parts. "How about it?¡¡I''ve been using magic for a while now, and maybe that''s why my magic stones are worth more? The magic ...... was quite powerful, wasn''t it? If you look at the area where the magic hit, you''ll see that the ...... ground has been gouged about three meters and five centimeters deep. Is this a water jet? I don''t have any other magic, but it wouldn''t be this powerful if I used it normally, would it? No. Normally, it would stagger you if it hit you at close range. It''s like a fire hose.¡¡If you''re in an unsteady position, you might get blown away. If you''re able to find out the magic level of a demon with your Sightings, it''s best not to take it for granted. That''s right. We can also use magic that is not in the grimoire. This is especially dangerous in the case of demons, because they seem to specialize in one thing. But it''s nice to find a demon that can make money. That''s for sure!¡¡Four of them, that''s almost 300 ...... gold coins! Hopefully. I don''t know, the skin''s scratched and all. Oh, there you have it. Well, even if it goes down a little, it''s still a lot of money. If you include the demons you hunted along the way, you will surely earn more than 300 gold coins. That''s an unbelievable amount of money for one day. If I keep hunting at this pace, my annual income will be at the level of 100 million yen or so. "Okay, okay!¡¡I''m getting motivated!¡¡Let''s keep up the good work! As Toya thrusts his arms up in the air with joy, we continue to hunt until rather late that day, and in total we obtained nearly 1,000 gold coins and magic stones. 172-156 Cave (1) The next day after returning from the hunt, I took the day off again. Partly because I was tired from hunting until a little late, but the main reason was the dismantling of the large amount of prey I had acquired. Although not dismantling them on the spot saved us a lot of time, it was a bit troublesome to do it all at once after we got back. Of course, it is more efficient than dismantling in the forest, both in terms of space and the use of well water. Another reason is the distance and time constraints. If it were nearer, I could go for a quick hunt after dismantling, but at the current hunting ground, I might end up losing the day just by traveling. So, it may be time to leave home a little earlier in the morning and hunt a little later in the evening to rest each day, or to consider a full-scale overnight hunt. I''m not sure what to do. The atmosphere of the forest is changing, isn''t it? It''s a little darker, or ...... more shady plants, or ...... more shady plants. It''s cooler than I thought it would be, thank goodness. At my suggestion, we''ve been exploring the forest every other day for a little over a month now. Our nominal income was increasing steadily, but the season was getting hotter and hotter, and it was getting a little hard to wear underwear, armor, chainmail, and clothes and leather armor on top of that. If there was one thing I could take off in this situation, it would be the clothes I was wearing over the chainmail, but I don''t recommend taking it off, because the light reflection from the chainmail would bother me, and the sound of metal clashing would easily come out, and if exposed to direct sunlight, it would easily heat up. If you think of the hood of a car, it is easy to understand that it is suicidal to go out on a sunny day with a plate mail. Unless you''re wearing a surcoat, you''ll burn to death, no pun intended. Haruka and Yuki are researching ways to make the armor have a temperature control function, so I''m hoping they''ll be able to figure it out by the time summer comes around. Very serious. At this rate, I''m going to have to take a real vacation during the summer to keep my strength up. Incidentally, the reason why I''m only earning "nominally" is because Diora refused to buy it from me, saying "Please don''t do this. The magic stones can be bought as usual, but the other materials are not easy to process, so I''m holding off on them. Since we have a good supply of meat, we have the largest stock of skins. It seems that the capacity of the tanning workshop has been exceeded. We haven''t finished the processing of Dahl''s Bear yet, and I guess this is unavoidable in a town the size of Raffan. If you have a chance to visit another town, you may want to sell it to the adventurer''s guild there. Does the change in vegetation also change the types of monsters that appear? "I don''t know.¡¡I think there are more undead types. As Yuki said, the proportion of undead has been increasing since we moved further into the forest. They are still skeletons, zombies, and shadow ghosts, but they seem to have gotten a little tougher. For some reason, they have weapons. The weapons remain even after they are killed by the Purification, but they are mostly scrap iron and leather trash, so they don''t benefit us much. Other enemies include ogres, killer gators, and orcs. The newer monsters are the Forest Hide Spider and the Stub Burrows. The former is a dark green spider over three meters long, and when it first appeared, the women screamed in horror. I suppose it was partly because it got past my [search] and suddenly came down from the top of the tree, but I guess it was because it was a spider. I was also a little creeped out. The latter was a rabbit about 50 centimeters long with long, sharp fangs. The latter was a 50cm rabbit with long, sharp fangs. It jumped out of a hole it had dug in the ground and tried to tear off my legs with its huge fangs, but I was able to detect it beforehand with my [Searching for Enemies], so it wasn''t much of a problem. Moreover, it looked too fierce and not at all cute, so Natsuki and the others just chopped off its head without a care in the world. However, its meat was delicious and its fur was beautiful, so it could be sold at a high price. Undead, there''s nothing I can do, so I''m kind of bored. "Oh, you can fight if you want.¡¡You can fight if you want, but stay away from me afterwards. Jesus Christ!¡¡No, I don''t want to fight a zombie either. The smell is too strong. It''s not easy being a beastman, is it? You know what I mean?¡¡I don''t want to fight zombies either. When I asked him about it, he said that in Toya''s case, the sense of smell may have an effect on the effectiveness of his [spotting] skill, but unlike me, his accuracy is much lower when he has his nose plugged. It''s a little strange that even demons outside the range of sound and vision are affected. It''s a little strange that even demons outside the range of sound and vision are affected.¡¡I got a hit on a place with a lot of undead. "Ugh. How many? ...... Over 50 of them. ...... Seriously? Seriously. "You''re kidding, right? I nodded deeply to Toya, who gave me a look like, "You''re kidding. It''s true. Relentlessly. Judging by their reactions, not all of them are zombies, but there are definitely a lot of them. If they''re all here, does that mean there''s something there? Maybe. I can only detect the reactions of demons and creatures, not the terrain. Unfortunately, if you don''t see them, you can''t know what the situation is. As long as your line of sight is clear, you can use the¡¾Eagle Eye¡¿skill to see from a great distance, but this is a skill that I have hardly used since I started working in this forest. The trees block my view. It might be useful if there was some kind of clairvoyant magic, but there is no such magic, at least as far as the general public knows. But in a way, it''s a good thing, isn''t it?¡¡If they were undead, we could still get our hands on them, but if there were fifty or so ogres gathered, it would have been suicide for us. That''s right!¡¡I''ll be relying on Haruka and Natsuki, but they''re the easiest to deal with out of all the demons around here! I see. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... Do you want to go check it out?¡¡It''s not as dangerous as it sounds. That''s what we did. I''m not sure what to do. "Wow, there''s so many of them ...... Yuki shouted, half in surprise, half in disgust. As expected, there was a large number of undead at our destination. One-third zombies, two-thirds skeletons, and a few ghosts. It didn''t smell that bad because of the direction of the wind, but Toya, who had a good sense of smell, had been picking her nose for a while now. "Oi, Skelton Night is here. Toya, who has a very good sense of smell, has been holding her nose for some time now. I also hurriedly [break] down the skeleton and found ....... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Skeleton Knight Status: Healthy Skills: [Sword Art] [Shield Art ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ...... Is it right that the undead are ''healthy''? Oh, no, it''s not . I''m not sure if this is a good thing or not, but it''s a good thing. Some of the other skeletons with swords were labeled as Skeleton Soldiers, so they must be tougher than the skeletons we''ve seen so far. But even so, if you can trust your "see through" skills, they don''t seem to be much of a threat. I wonder if the undead are ''healthy''? Oh, it seems that Haruka was caught in the same place as me. I''m sure you''ve heard of them.¡¡"Isn''t it ''healthy'' the way they live - or die? "It''s fine, it''s just that the damage isn''t done. No, Toya, why don''t you take your hand off your nose? You''re not going to be fighting with one hand, are you? ...... Well, yeah. I''m curious about that cave. In the back of the place where the undead are hanging out, there is a rock wall with a cave opening in it. It was a little creepy in combination with the rather gloomy atmosphere of the area. "Nao, are there any undead in there? "I don''t know. I don''t think there are any near the entrance. ...... As far as I can tell, I can''t detect any enemies, but it''s not that I can''t detect them, it''s just that I can''t seem to find them. If it were a simple distance, the range of [Search] would be deeper, but perhaps it is not a simple distance because of the location of the cave. The undead are wandering around the entrance of the cave as if to protect it, but the general tendency is to have a higher level of skeletons in the back, skeletons in front of them, and zombies in the outermost part. You can''t really purify that much at once, so we''ll focus on the zombies. The skeletons and ghosts that were omitted from the target will be approaching, so I''ll ask the three of you to deal with them. "Understood, Ryokai. Toya with his sword, me with my spear, and Yuki with his nostalgic iron bar. My weapon and Yuki''s are for use against skeletons that are useless even when cut. Iron rods are sometimes useful, aren''t they? They''re strong. Let''s go, shall we? "Purify! With that, most of the zombies, a few skeletons, and a shadow ghost disappeared. At the same time, the undead went into battle stance. They were quicker than I thought. A skeleton soldier and three normal skeletons came in a set, slipping through the slow-moving zombies and approaching us. Are they going to work together? He stopped picking his nose once the battle broke out. Toya lunges at him with his sword. But it''s pointless, right? "Yes! It may be a form of Forman Cell, but with only one of them having a decent weapon, there is little point in working together. It''s a good idea to take a look at a few of the things that are available. In the meantime, Haruka and her team unleash their second purification, and the remaining zombies and half of the skeletons disappear. And then...! In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. The same attribute steel is used for the pike, so I''m sure it''s effective, but the amount is different. With a few slashes through the magic power, the Shadow Ghost easily disappears. As long as you have this weapon, you are a small fish. Yuki hasn''t been hit by the ...... ghost. Yuki also has a small attribute steel sword on her hip, but she''s using a regular steel rod. I thought I might need backup, but it looks like there are no ghosts left. The only ones left are the ...... Skeleton Knight and Soldier. There are four Skeleton Knights and seven Skeleton Soldiers to protect them. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. "Purify! The third Purify. The third purification. Haruka and Natsuki''s spells overlapped, and the last skeletons in the area were shattered at once. 173-157 Cave (2) "...... What?¡¡Wasn''t it just now that I was going to take on the Skeleton Knight?¡¡Wasn''t it? No, it wasn''t. It''s a dreaming mistake. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Poor Toya. It is true that there is no need to push yourself when you can easily kill yourself,......, but it is a bit pathetic. "I''m sorry, Toya. I was already chanting. ...... No need to apologize, though. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were you. You can''t help but notice that the way Haruka and the others handled the situation was not wrong as a tactic. It is only natural to minimize the risk of injury in a real battle, let alone in training. There''s not going to be any additional ...... in the cave. But this cave looks pretty big. Is it a stronghold of the undead?¡¡The undead seem to like dark places. Haruka throws a light into the cave and peers into it. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. How is it, sir?¡¡Considering the fact that they were armed, could it have been a bandit hideout? Is it possible that the bandits were destroyed for some reason and turned into the undead ......? It''s possible, isn''t it?¡¡But it''s a very big bandit gang, isn''t it?¡¡I don''t know if it has anything to do with the undead we''ve killed so far, but there were about 60 of them here alone. "Sixty-seven if you count the ghosts. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. If you think all of them are skeletons, that''s more than 100 ...... gold coins. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. You''ll have to put up with the smell, though. But if you''re a bandit group, don''t you think you''re a little too far off the beaten path?¡¡They may be good at staying undetected, but they''re not good at their job. ...... I don''t know the detailed geography of the area because maps aren''t easy to find in this world, but the closest road we know of connects Rafan and Sarstat. Is it a good place to spend almost half a day to get there? Or is this about as far as it is possible to go? If we build a hideout too close to the attack site, it will be easy to be found, and there is not always a convenient place to build a hideout. And here, you can hide in the forest and travel close to the road, so in a way, it might be a good location. There is also the possibility that they are ...... mercenaries or irregulars in the army.¡¡These swords and shields are old, but they look good. Toya, who was collecting weapons dropped by the skeletons, tapped one of the swords and said something like that. As he said, the sword had little rust, and even to my untrained eye, it looked reasonably well made. There were other swords similar to it lying around, so I picked one up and examined it. The material is not ordinary iron. Judging from the lack of rust, it''s probably white iron. The price of an ingot is about ten times higher than that of ordinary iron, so it seems to be a rather expensive sword. ....... --I''m not sure. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. If you look closely, you can see some kind of pattern on the base of the sword, near the hilt. There are some Japanese swords that have dragons carved into them, but from the shape of this sword, it seems to be a crest of some kind. Oh, I have one on my sword. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. Of the swords we found, three swords that appeared to be made of white iron had emblems engraved on them. This is most likely ...... the property of some nobleman or his private army. I think a scabbard would give us a little more information. ...... Unfortunately, no scabbard was available because the skeleton was holding the sword without it. It might be lying around somewhere, but most likely in a cave? "Whoa. Trouble? Yuki raised an eyebrow, and Natsuki nodded deeply. If you sell it, you''re in trouble. You can either melt it down and turn it back into a material or store it in your magic bag. But this is white iron, and our furnace won''t melt it.¡¡If you get me a new one... I''ll keep it. I know!¡¡I knew it. I know." Haruka replied with a biting tone, and Toya nodded, a little dejected. In fact, if Toya really wanted to, she could use the remuneration being distributed to build a workshop as good as a full-time blacksmith''s, but with almost no need for it, she can''t bring herself to do so. It would be a lot of money to invest as a mere hobby, and it would only be used once a week at most. But there were many undead who didn''t have weapons,......?¡¡A lot of undead with no weapons,......? private armies of nobles and a lot of ...... workers?¡¡Could this be an abandoned mine? "I see, then ....... If you''re a soldier or a bandit, even if you''re a lowly one, you probably have a weapon or two. But only a few of the undead we''ve fought have had weapons. Most of them were unarmed zombies and skeletons, and there were quite a few of them in total. If you think of them as workers in the mines, their numbers make sense. "This cave is certainly man-made, isn''t it? It''s obvious that the ground is flat. Well, it''s usually uneven, if it''s a natural cave. As Natsuki pointed out, the ground of the cave, illuminated by the light, was prepared for easy walking. I don''t know much about it, and I''m sure there are differences in degree depending on the way the cave was formed, but I''d say it was either dug that way or flattened out afterwards. "What are you going to do?¡¡Do you want to go in? "Well, ......, let''s go in for a little bit. If it''s too deep, we''ll turn around right away. You''re not prepared for this. Okay. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll want to take a look at the website. With that in mind, it would be best to just take a quick look around. We entered the cave with Natsuki, who has scouting skills, in the lead. After a short walk inside, the passage became a little wider, so that four people could walk side by side. Fortunately, there was no sign of the enemy at the moment. It seems to be certain that human hands are involved. Natsuki, who was walking in the lead, pointed to a wall illuminated by a "light". There were traces of some kind of tool, indicating that this place had been dug by human hands. If possible, a bandit''s hideout would be nice. Why? They might be hoarding something, right?¡¡If it''s an abandoned mine, don''t you think they''ll just find ore? But it''s been a long time since they turned undead, right?¡¡And if someone had killed them, they would have already taken the treasure. I''m sure you''re right, he''s dead, so it''s ...... unlikely that it''s an epidemic. When a disease breaks out, they''ll abandon their hideout. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure if it''s an epidemic.¡¡Should we bring in the canaries? "Geez. Volcanic gas wiped out ......? Not necessarily volcanic, though. Carbon dioxide will kill you. Do you have a gas detector?¡¡It''s a magical device. Hmm, I don''t know.¡¡I don''t know. It might be useful in the mines. I think it might be possible. ....... Haruka, do you remember? I think there was ....... It''s pretty thick, so I''ve only skimmed it. That must be the alchemy encyclopedia that Haruka bought. I''ve seen it myself, but it''s all handwritten, and it doesn''t have an easy-to-understand index, so it''s not easy to find what you''re looking for. This is true for all the books I have, but the readability varies greatly depending on the writer. Thanks to God, I don''t have any problems in reading and writing, but thanks to this ability, which is in a sense very powerful, I can understand the strength of the habitual characters at the same time, and it takes me a long time to read them. In fact, it would have been easier to translate the text into Japanese without asking any questions. ...... I really feel grateful for easy-to-read print. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡Gas is a bad idea, right? Yes, ...... that might be a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. Considering this, it is not so easy to say, "It''s okay if it''s just a little bit," or "Let''s go back if it looks bad. Then it might be just right. Look, look. There''s a fork in the road. When I looked at the end of the cave, I saw that the path split in two at the end. We had walked a few hundred meters from the entrance to the cave, considering the time. "It''s deep enough to have gas, but it''s not good to go without mapping, is it? "We don''t know where we''re going. Let''s go back. Okay. Well, it doesn''t look like a bandit''s hideout, not at this depth. No. It''s too deep for bandits to dig, it''s useless. It''s too deep for bandits to dig, it''s pointless. The mine is almost abandoned. The treasure at ...... doesn''t look too promising. We sighed, made a U-turn, and walked towards the entrance. By the way, do you think we should report this place to the guild? "To the guild?¡¡Why? Because it looks like an abandoned mine, but it''s a mine, right?¡¡Aren''t mines usually controlled by the state? ...... That''s true. If we do something wrong and they say we''re stealing, we''ll be in trouble. Yes. I think we should ask them about it. Well, in a way, mining is a strategic commodity. In addition, there is a high possibility that some nobleman was digging the mine. ...... I hope it won''t be a problem. ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. 174-158 Preparation for exploration (1) An abandoned mine? Yeah. Deep in the northwest woods. Stop! After returning from the forest, we were going to ask Diora about the abandoned mine after exchanging the magic stone, but the moment she mentioned the location, Diora interrupted Haruka with a rather strong tone. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. "Gentlemen, over here for a moment. We were taken to another room by a rather stiff-faced Diora. It is said that this room is used for requests that are not to be heard, but this was our first time to use it. There was a table with about ten chairs around it, and it was dimly lit with no windows. Ms. Diora turned on the light and sat down on a chair at the back of the room and invited us to sit down. Please have a seat. "Oh, is it really a problem? Yes, it''s a little bit. Diora smiled at my words as if she was slightly troubled. It''s an open secret among the old-timers of this town, but it''s a bit of an ugly story for the nobility. ...... Diora told me that the cave was definitely an abandoned mine. The problem, however, was how it came to be so. Normally, the owner of a mine is the lord who governs the land, but he is required to report the amount of metal mined and the amount of ore mined to the government. Failure to do so is severely punished in terms of taxes and restrictions on exports to other countries, but the Viscounts, the lords of this region, hid the mine. However, as long as it was hidden, they could not dispatch workers on a large scale. So what to do? The alternative was to use criminals. They sent criminals to do the mining. In the beginning, they were able to get by with that, but in the field of mining, and in a situation where they couldn''t even get proper engineers, the rate of wear and tear was high, and they gradually ran out of manpower. As a result, people began to treat minor crimes, or even crimes that could not be called crimes, as serious crimes in order to secure manpower. Fortunately, however, this did not last long. The lord and his son, who had gone to inspect the mine, did not return. Since the project was conducted in secrecy, only a few people knew where they had gone missing, and those who did kept their mouths shut because of the circumstances, but after they had been missing for more than a month, an investigation team from the government arrived and exposed the truth. But the extraordinary crackdown on crime came to an end, and the younger brother of the lord who had become an official in the capital took over as viscount. ...... So you''re saying that the mine is the abandoned mine we found? That''s the most likely scenario. Were there any undead? Yes, there were. The reason why that place is not currently being developed as a mine is because it is a stain that the Viscount family would like to forget, there are undead in the area, and the amount of mining is not expected to be that high. On the other hand, if the reserves were large, the amount of manpower required and the amount of shipments would be too large to be deceptive, and the profits would be greatly increased. But it''s gone that far. ....... The amount of demons has increased and it has become inaccessible. ...... Are you sure it''s a bad idea to go in there? No, it''s an uncontrolled area, so there''s no problem. Even if Haruka and the others dig without permission, they won''t be able to complain. But I think it would be better if they didn''t, because digging is dangerous. That''s true, if amateurs get their hands on it, there''s a chance it will collapse. By the way, what can be mined there? Rumor has it that it''s mithril. "Mithril? Diora''s words echoed in our voices. We leaned forward, but Diora stepped back a little and smiled at us. You''ve got a good appetite. You can''t blame him for wanting to be an adventurer. I''ve already got the steel weapon. I''d love to have a mithril weapon. I don''t think there are many adventurers in this town who have steel weapons. But that''s just a rumor. At least, I don''t think there''s enough to make an industry out of it.¡¡If they could be harvested in such quantities, the government would have been forced to develop them. Mithril weapons - or, more accurately, weapons made of alloys containing mithril - are so powerful that they can affect a country''s power if they are not used properly. Because it is such a metal, if a promising mine is found, the government will force the lord of the land to develop it, even if it means lending money. If you think about it, it''s easy to see why the abandoned mine is so important. So I don''t think there''s much of an advantage to going in there, do you want to go to ......? Diora asked me, and we looked at each other. It''s not a bandit''s hideout, so you can''t expect to find any hidden treasures. We can''t easily mine for ore like in the game, and even if we do, we can''t expect to find much of it. If there are any undead left, you can get magic stones, but their value is not that high, and you can''t sell weapons that are drop items. --What''s the point of going into an abandoned mine if it''s so dangerous? I don''t recommend it, but if you do, I have a request for you. ...... With that, Diora left the room and returned with a request form. This way, please. The request form on the table was browned and quite old. We all looked at it together. "Recovering a family heirloom sword? "Yes. The Viscount I mentioned earlier, Viscount Nenus, has a family sword that has gone missing. It is thought to have been in the possession of the head of the family who went missing in the mines, but for various reasons it has not yet been recovered. Didn''t the Viscount go missing a long time ago? Yes. It''s been several decades. ...... I see. I thought it was a very old request form. Doesn''t the current Viscount himself go to collect them?¡¡He''s got a private army, doesn''t he? The current Viscount is the nephew of the Viscount who caused the problem, but both of his predecessors were decent people. ...... It was fortunate that the Viscount''s brother, who was working in the capital, was very good and had come to the capital half-heartedly, so it was clear that he was not involved in any wrongdoing. However, what the former Viscount had done was, if done improperly, a crime of treason. The former Viscount''s actions would be considered treason, and even though he was missing, he would be penalized somewhat, and such a house would not be expected to receive support from other houses, or those with some kind of agenda. In addition, there is an unusual crackdown on the people, and the territory is in shambles. In such a situation, there was no room to recover the heirloom sword. It seems that the plan was to recover the heirloom sword after the territory had been rebuilt to some extent, but by that time another problem had arisen. ...... The other problem was that the demons in the area where they had been cutting down the trees had become stronger, making it more difficult to obtain the trees. The abandoned mine is located in a deeper place than the area where the wood was cut down, and it is difficult to reach with a weak arm. Even if he wanted to use his private army to retrieve the wood, unfortunately, the skills of the private army held by the viscount who caused the problem were limited. Rather, if he was skilled enough to retrieve the sword from the abandoned mine, he would have prioritized making it possible to cut down the famous tree, so the former Viscount, who was a decent nobleman, focused his efforts on that. As a result, even now that he has been replaced, he has yet to recover the heirlooms. "It would be possible if we hired skilled adventurers, but the Viscount is the type who would rather develop the territory if he can afford it. He''s a good man, isn''t he? Yes, he is. He''s probably a good lord for his people. He''s a good lord for his people, though he''s a bit underestimated by the other nobles. So, is this reward worth the effort? The reward written on the request form is 300 gold coins. It''s an unbelievable reward among the requests you can get from this guild, but it seems a bit low for a reward for entering an abandoned mine and collecting it. A sword owned by Toya would cost more than 300 gold pieces. Since it''s a family heirloom, it must be valuable in its own right, and considering the danger, the benefit is small. "Yes. Therefore, you can accept our request if you can collect it. If you think about the possibility of not being able to find it, ....... Diora''s words were slurred, and she smiled wryly. Normally, this type of request would require a thorough search, and if you still can''t find it, you don''t have to pay a penalty, but it''s difficult to search every inch of an abandoned mine, and considering the request fee, it''s not worth it at all. Considering the fact that it had been sitting in salt for decades, it would take a lot of luck to actually find it. "If it''s as light as that, can I try it? I''m up for it. It''s cool in an abandoned mine. ...... I see. It''s going to get hotter and hotter as summer approaches, and it''s going to be tougher to work in the forest. Considering this, it might not be a bad choice to kill the undead in the cool of an abandoned mine, even if it means making a little less money. If you say so, there''s no reason to oppose it. I agreed with Toya, and Natsuki and the others didn''t say anything against it either. I understand. If I''m lucky, I''ll try to find it. Thank you very much.¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. It doesn''t look good for the Adventurer''s Guild to be stuck with unfulfilled requests for decades. This request was left unanswered because the fee was lower than a reasonable price, but if the request is more than a reasonable price, the guild may send an adventurer to handle it. I see, so it''s cheaper. More than fair price. We''re good adventurers for accepting such a request, aren''t we? --"By the way, Diora-san, can you help me with something like this? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s the one with the crest on it that has been decided to be kept dead. I''m afraid to say that at this time. ....... This sword is ...... the emblem of the Viscount Nenus family. I''ve been having trouble dealing with it, but I was wondering if the baronial family could purchase it for me? Yes, it''s made of ...... white iron, so the sword itself is still very usable. It will be difficult to get a high price for it, but you might be able to get a store price for a weapon of this level. Can I ask you to negotiate the store price ......?¡¡To be honest, it''s hard to even sell them to the average arms dealer. For the store price of a white iron sword, you can expect to get about 40 to 50 gold coins. The three swords I picked up this time would be worth 150 gold coins. That''s not bad money. I''m sure it is. It could be a source of trouble. All right, sir. Leave it to me. In return, I''d like you to collect the sword, if you can, okay? Got it. It depends on how big the abandoned mine is, but I''ll try my best for a while. The benefits are at least as great as the simple benefits, but it''s a request from Diora, who has been a great help to me. I think we should do our best. Of course, only to the extent that our safety can be ensured. 175-159 Preparation for exploration (2) The next day, we began gathering tools to tackle the abandoned mine. Natsuki made a large quantity of easy to eat food and stocked it in his magic bag, while Yuki and Haruka used alchemy to make a gas detector and a direction finder. The gas detector detects harmful gases and alerts the user with an alarm, something that could be obtained in Japan. However, unlike a magnetic compass, a direction finder does not use a magnet to tell the direction. I''m in charge of buying rope, blankets, charcoal, long sticks, large cloths, and other miscellaneous items that might be useful. Even if I don''t know if I''ll use them, I can throw them in my magic bag and they won''t get in the way, and our current financial situation is not so bad that buying such miscellaneous items will shake us. The remaining Toya was in charge of making a simple foldable sleeping platform that looked like a deck chair. Sleeping directly on the cold and damp ground of the cave is not a good way to recover from fatigue, no matter how many sheets and blankets you spread out. Therefore, I looked for a suitable foldable sleeping platform, but this was not available. It would be very convenient. When I asked Mr. Gantz about it, he said, "You can''t sell it because you can''t carry it. Magic bags are rare, and adventurers who have carriages can sleep in them. As far as I''m concerned, it''s easier than sleeping in a carriage, and if the folding mechanism can be made well, it can be carried in the space between carriages, so I think it will sell well. Thus, Toya, who shares the same image as I do, has decided to start making it. To be honest, I feel that the number of days I can stay at the hotel depends on whether I can make this well or not, so I really hope that Toya will do his best. In the meantime, I was informed that the tanning of the skins of Dahl''s Bear, which I had ordered before, was finished. Since it was urgent to have more armor, we decided to suspend our work and go to the store to order more armor using it. As usual, we went to Gantz''s store to place the order. It may seem strange to order leather armor from a blacksmith, but Mr. Ganz''s store is a weapon and armor shop. Mr. Gantz himself can work with leather to some extent, and it is said that he cooperates with specialized craftsmen to make difficult parts. However, the leather of Dahl''s Bear seems to be quite difficult to work with. "This guy has brought in something outrageous again!¡¡I''ve never seen Dahl''s Bear leather in the flesh. Can''t you? I''m not saying it''s impossible. I''m not saying it''s impossible, but ...... it''s not a job I can do alone, so it''ll take some time. I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find the right one for you. In fact, Gantz-san''s usual work is too fast. "Well, how long will it take to get everything together? "Oh, boots, gloves, and partial armor for all of you. Well, I can''t say for sure, but it will take more than ......1 months. What? Sorry, there are only a few craftsmen who can handle this level of material. No, I''m surprised it took so long. You know? Yeah. I thought it would take longer. Basically, all leather products are hand-sewn. Considering the durability of Dahl''s Bear''s leather, I wondered how hard it would be to sew it. It''s only natural that it would take a long time for a professional craftsman to do it. "Right. Then I''ll take your measurements. If you have any detailed orders, tell me then. That''s what I call custom-made. The measurements for the boots and gloves were quite detailed, and they seemed to be made to fit us perfectly. The boots I''m wearing now were made with simple measurements, so they are custom-made, but considering that it took much longer than the boots I was wearing at the time, they must have taken very detailed measurements. As for the current glove, it was not even a simple custom-made glove, but a glove I bought from a selection of ready-made ones, so I''m looking forward to seeing how the new one will be used. Okay, I''m done. I''ll call you when it''s finished. Just be patient. The measurements alone took several hours. It took me a few hours just to take the measurements, and I also took some time to tell them what I wanted, so even though I came in the afternoon, the sun was already setting. I don''t mean to complain at all, but we were certainly a little tired. We thanked Mr. Gantz and went straight home that day. We thanked Gantz and went straight home that day. Three days after our visit to Gantz''s store for measurements. Finally, we were ready to dive into the abandoned mine, and we were leaving the town of Laffan. Incidentally, the most time-consuming part was to make Toya''s bunk. This was due to the repeated trial and error to make the folding mechanism and the ease of use, as well as the need to prepare enough for all of us. However, the way to the abandoned mine was relatively smooth. Perhaps due to the large number of undead we had killed last time, we encountered only five skeletons before reaching the abandoned mine. We encountered a few other demons as well, but it took us almost no time at all to get there. There didn''t seem to be any undead hanging around in front of the abandoned mine, and it was possible that they were already out of stock. Now, we''re going to enter the abandoned mine. ...... Will Natsuki be leading the way, like last time?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one of these, you''ll be able to get a lot more. However, my suggestion was denied by Natsuki himself. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. "Right. Natsuki should be in the front, and Toya should be close to him, diagonally behind. Okay. That way, I can get in front of you if you''re in danger. To be honest, I don''t know. "Honestly, I don''t know. The last time I went in, I didn''t detect anything, but I''m not sure if there were no enemies or if the detection range has been narrowed. ...... Mmm. ......, we''ll have to be extra careful for a while. Please. Maybe it''s not as if they can''t be detected within the range of possible surprise attacks. ...... I''m not sure if it''s a sixth sense or a seventh sense, but it''s a principle that I don''t understand, so I can''t say for sure. I''m sure it''s a comprehensive ability of various senses, considering that when Toya''s sense of smell was restricted, the range of his [search] became narrower. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡Which one of us will do it? "Yuki, can I ask you a favor?¡¡I''m the bow. ...... I''m the one with the bow. Okay. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Yuki took out from her magic bag a kind of drawing board on which a direction finder was fixed, and set her home-made graph paper on it. With this, he fixed the azimuth and the number of steps per square and started mapping. I''ll do my best, but don''t expect too much, okay? "As long as I can find the way, I''m good. "Yeah, yeah. If there are differences in elevation, it will be very difficult. It''s very difficult to draw a map when there are gradual bends and up and down slopes, even if it''s something easy to understand like the old 3D dungeon type RPGs where every floor is the same height, stairs for up and down floor movement, and right angles for turns. If you have a GPS logger or something like that, it might be useful. ....... Incidentally, there are no alchemy tools that can do auto-mapping, right? There''s nothing useful like that. It''s impossible to make one, but it''s possible to set up a separate reference point? Haruka stopped short of saying "impossible" and thought about it. If such a thing were really possible, it would be useful not only for exploring abandoned mines, but also for walking in the forest. Hmmm, if we can set up two base stations in advance and make a magic tool that can measure the distance from them, ...... "The problem is how to plot the measured distance on the paper. The problem is how to plot that distance on paper. It''s hard to do manually while moving. ...... If you want to record up-and-down movement, you need three base stations. ...... Both of you, think about that when you get home. Right now, it''s this way, right? Natsuki interrupted Haruka and Yuki, who put their heads together and began to think, and pointed to an abandoned mine. I''m sure you''re right. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. This one, Toya, can you put it around your shoulders? Haruka looked up at Natsuki''s warning, took two small magic tools from her magic bag, about the size of an elementary school burglar alarm, and handed one of them to Toya. What about that one? "This one goes on my ankle. Toxic gas can build up below or above you. Toya, you''re the tallest. The best thing to do would be to wrap it around your head like a headlamp, but you''ve decided against it because of its appearance and the fact that it gets in the way. The best thing to do would be to wrap it around your head like a headlamp, but he was reluctant to do that because of the appearance and distraction. Toya''s nose and mouth are above his shoulders. As a natural consequence, if it is a light gas that accumulates above, as Toya says, it will have already been inhaled by the time it is detected. Don''t worry. It should be sensitive enough that it will detect the gas before it reaches a concentration that would affect the human body. "Gases aren''t exactly separated by weight. Otherwise, how can air be a gas mixture? I see what you mean. Toya nodded his head as if he understood Yuki''s explanation. Gases are more fluid than liquids, not to mention solids, and even if the air were completely sealed and unaffected by wind, it is unlikely that the air would completely separate into layers of nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. The same goes for toxic gases, which are unlikely to be separated into clean layers in a cave environment where we are moving around. "Well, what if there was a gas that you couldn''t breathe in at all? Why don''t you go to ......? Then you give up. Oi! I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. You can''t do anything about it, can you?¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. If there''s no room, we''ll be abandoned!¡¡--No, well, if you really can''t afford it, you can''t help it. ...... I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with that. I can''t help it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. "Well... If the two of them are okay, then the first to fall will be me or Toya, considering that they can heal some poison. No, you don''t have to worry that much, we can detect normal poisonous gas, right?¡¡You know that, don''t you? You built it with me. "Haha, I''m just kidding, just kidding. If that detector doesn''t work, we''ll probably all die together, so I won''t miss you, okay? Yuki winked and gave a thumbs-up. Maybe it''s true, but what about that too? I don''t like the idea of it. I''m not going to be the undead, even if I have to give up dying. I agree. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Part of the zombie was exposed, right? It''s not like there''s a code of ethics, and it''s not like they conveniently left the clothes on or put a mosaic over it. I''m not going to say where, and none of us ever mentioned it, but ...... if it was just you and Toya, it would have definitely been a topic of conversation. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to be a skeleton or not, but I''d hate to be a skeleton via a zombie. Everyone, let''s not say anything too sinister. Let''s not speak too ominously. That''s true. Well, it was always a mine, so it won''t be a problem. No, I think that word is already a flag. ...... If I say that, it might actually happen, so I''ll keep my mouth shut. Are you ready?¡¡Let''s go in then. With Haruka''s words, we started to enter the abandoned mine, with Natsuki leading the way. 176-160 Abandoned mine (1) We made it to the point where we turned around last time without any problems, but the speed was slower than last time. The reason was the mapping. Yuki is struggling with the azimuth gauge, and it seems that the slightly curved pathway is quite difficult to draw. A square is 20 paces on a side, and if you walk diagonally, it''s about 28 paces. ...... Ah, but it depends on the angle. ...... He seems to be mapping with a sense of about 10 meters per square, but just listening to his mumbling, he seems to be having difficulty. Even so, he seems to have gotten a better sense of the situation and has increased his speed, but it''s still much slower than walking normally. At this rate, it seems that the range of exploration will be affected by Yuki''s mapping speed and her patience. I don''t think I could last an hour. We''re going to have to take breaks quite often, aren''t we? Well, mapping is nerve-wracking, so it''s probably for the best. When I whispered to Haruka, she nodded her head as she watched Yuki scratching her head and trying her best. However, it would be difficult to take turns mapping with someone else. Their stride lengths are different, and their senses of angles and so on are also not the same, so there is a high possibility of inconsistency. We''re at the end of the road, which way should we go? This is where we turned back last time. If there is a fork in the road, then mapping is necessary, so I turned back, but there is not much difference between the two roads, and there is nothing to guide me. "Take whichever you want. We don''t have a clue. Then we''ll take the left. Why? What do you mean? Toya responded to Haruka''s words without pause, and I asked him why, but he said it was just a hunch, no reason at all. Well, it''s not worth bothering about, and there''s no reason to oppose it. We''ll go in the direction Toya has chosen. The abandoned mine is an artificially dug hole with no unnatural unevenness, making it easy to walk through. The slope tends to go down gradually toward the back, but the slope is quite gentle. But there are no pillars in this tunnel, right?¡¡Is it okay if it''s not supported? "It''s pretty hard to the touch, so it should be fine.¡¡But it must have been hard to dig, because it''s mostly rock. I wonder if that''s why they brought in so many workers.¡¡If you''re falsely accused and forced to work hard in a place like this, you might understand why you become undead. I don''t know how much labor it takes to develop a mine like this, but we''ve killed at least 100 undead so far. To think that those people were forced to work, dig these mines, and then die: ....... Feeling a little chilly, I rubbed my arm. "Nao, what''s wrong? What''s wrong, Nao?" Perhaps wondering what I was doing, Haruka approached me. No, it''s just that I feel like a lot of people died here. "Nao, are you scared~? Yuki said with a teasing smile, but I don''t like it, do you? I don''t expect anything in particular to happen, but the crematorium, the graveyard in the middle of the night, the feeling of death, the feeling of . "Don''t worry, Nao. Ghosts are common here. "......, of course. I''m not sure if that''s something to be relieved about, but it''s certainly a situation where you can''t say ''I''m afraid of ghosts''. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I understand the feeling, but... I''m going to cleanse you, so don''t worry about it. You''ve already killed a lot of undead, but you''re still sensitive in a weird way, aren''t you Nao? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Our women are too tough. --No, I''d be annoyed if someone said, "Oh my God, that''s scary! I''d be annoyed. If you think about it, it''s probably a good thing. Back to the topic at hand, the reason why there are no pillars supporting the ceiling is because of magic. As the digging progresses, it seems that the surrounding area is hardened by earth magic to prevent collapse. It''s like a shield construction method. So there''s no need to worry about collapses? It is a very safe construction method used in modern tunneling. If it''s earth magic, it can be solidified without any joints, so it''s probably safer. But didn''t Diora say that they couldn''t get any specialized engineers to work here?¡¡It was top secret. ............ I''d better be careful. No shoddy work, ever. Yeah. Nao, if it looks dangerous, use earth magic. I''m busy mapping. Okay. Natsuki, let me know if there''s anything you''re worried about. We''ll take precautionary measures. Yes, sir. I don''t want to be buried alive. We can use earth magic to get out of here if we have to. Still, the less danger, the better. Even today, I hear that accidents involving burial alive in mines occur frequently in China, so you can never be too careful. I speared the walls around me, checking for fragile parts as I walked. It''s changing a bit, but is it ...... a trial dig? I don''t know. After a while, there were tunnels on either side of the road, but they were less than ten meters deep, and we could see the end of them by light. The depth of the tunnels is less than ten meters, and you can see the end of the tunnel with a light. You wouldn''t normally dig a tunnel with such a complicated shape, would you? What about it?¡¡Isn''t it possible that the tunnel will naturally become more complex as we dig for the vein? "I see, there it is. The goal is not to dig a passage, but to dig out the ore. And those veins don''t always run in a straight line. With that in mind, Natsuki had a point. Maybe that''s why the first path curved gently. Oh, it looks like a dead end. ...... Hmm. We''re about eight hundred meters from the fork. Since there were no enemies, Yuki, who had been mapping, was probably the most tired of us all. She stopped, exhaled, counted the squares on the map, and said. "Good work. Are you okay?¡¡If you want, we can rest here.¡¡It''s just a little wider. The end of the dead end passage had been widened to the size of a small room. However, there were only a few pieces of wood on the ground, so it was hard to tell if it had been used for some purpose or not. I imagined that there would be a little more trash on the ground, but I wondered how they were mining. No, I''m fine. I''m tired, but it''s only mental, and I won''t need mapping when I come back. "Really?¡¡Then let''s go back. We went back to the fork in the road without taking a break, and took the right road this time. There were some long side roads stretching out on both sides of the road, but basically it was the main passage and the side roads, and it was simple enough that you wouldn''t get lost without a map. After about an hour''s walk from the first fork in the road, I got my first response from [Searching for enemies] after entering the cave. A skeleton. Distance is about 100 meters ahead. "Good. So the spotters are working. It''s a little short, though. The range is much shorter than outdoors, but it''s still enough for practical use. This is a great relief. "Indeed, if you listen carefully, you can hear a rattling sound. What should we do?¡¡Save the magic? "Yes. There''s a good chance that there will be a lot of undead, so let''s just kill them as usual. If it''s zombies, I''d like to see them die by purification, but if it''s just a few skeletons, it won''t be much trouble. There were only five skeletons that showed up, and they were easily destroyed by the two vanguards and me. Will there be more of them?¡¡At the rate we''ve been going, we''re honestly not going to have time to make any money. I don''t know about that, but wouldn''t it bother you if they came by too often?¡¡Like when you sleep at night. "......, sure. It''s not good. Toya is right about the money aspect. But the purpose of our trip is to get away from the heat and recover the Viscount''s heirlooms. Even if we fail, there is no penalty, and if we are successful, we may be able to connect with a powerful man. This country seems to be one of the better ones, but even so, it seems to have a kind of humanitarianism, so the more you remember, the safer you will be. To be honest, I''d be more comfortable if I didn''t have to deal with them at all. "Oh, by the way, there''s an earth magic called ''Seek Earth'', right?¡¡Nao, can''t you use that to find mithril? "No. You can''t find it if you don''t know the metal of the target. The "Seek Earth" spell is also used to find mineral deposits, but if the magician doesn''t know what kind of response the deposit will give, the spell is completely useless. If you don''t know the shape and texture of the object, you won''t be able to find it. "What about gold, silver, copper? That''s no good either. The best you can do is iron, but what''s the point of picking up ore with low content? If you''re poor, that''s one thing, but nowadays... I took the opportunity and tried to use it. I could understand the reaction of iron, gold, silver, etc., but unfortunately, the minerals I could detect here were not in sufficient quantities to be economically viable. Well, it''s not practical to mine them by yourself, is it? Yes. In the original world, the average gold content of a gold mine is three grams per ton. Oh, really? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Yes. Even if you refine a dump truck full of pure gold, it will only be the equivalent of a few gold coins. "Wow, that''s a lot of work. The gold coins that we usually use in this world are ''coins that contain gold'', and the gold content is quite small, but listening to Natsuki''s words, I understand that this is natural. A large gold coin may contain half of the gold, but even so, the cost of production and the value of the coin may or may not match. ....... I think it would be difficult to dig for gold by hand, but I wonder if magic or alchemy could cover that. "Nao, can''t you use magic to extract it directly from the ground, like zumo-momo? "That''s absurd, Toya. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. What happens when you try to collect elements with low content? I''ve already experienced that when I made the bath. --Oh, I see. As long as you collect ores with high content, you can extract them with "Create Earth". Then refining will be easy. Maybe that''s how they refine it in this world. Come to think of it, what''s more rare, mithril or gold? Mithril, I guess. Considering the amount in circulation. I mean, it''s not pure gold, but it''s still in circulation. Wow, so mining mithril ore is even harder. ...... Tohya frowned at Natsuki''s answer. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than gold, even if all of your tunnels are filled with mithril ore, you''ll only have a handful when you refine them. ...... Yeah, it''s still impossible to recover mithril ore. I was faintly hoping that I might be able to get my hands on some mithril weapons, but... I guess I''ll just have to save up and buy one. 177-161 Abandoned mine (2) We went around the corridors blindly and continued our search until evening, but all the enemies we encountered were undead. The total number of undead we encountered was less than thirty, and the profit we made was very small. Of course, we didn''t find any heirloom swords, and we didn''t meet any skeletons with emblematic swords that could be bought for a good price. The results were not so great, but I guess it was one of the results of getting used to exploring caves. Well then, let''s get ready to camp. Yes!¡¡I''m looking forward to seeing those bunks you made. Oh, you should be. It''s practical enough! One of the cul-de-sacs, at the end of a slightly wider passage, is where we''ll be camping tonight. At the end of one of the wider passages is our camping place for the night. "Look!¡¡Look at the level of reproduction! Toya spreads his hands out like a bang, but I, who was relatively free compared to the women, was already watching. I was the one who came up with the idea, and I consulted with him about it. It was about 60 centimeters wide and almost two meters long, a little narrow but still large enough to be a bed. The frame is made of steel, but not tubular, so it''s a bit heavy and inconvenient to carry around, but that''s not a problem for us. The sleeping area is wrapped with a strip of cloth to ensure a certain degree of flexibility. In addition, the backrest angle can be changed from fully flat to 90 degrees, so that it can be used as a comfortable chair when on guard duty. What do you think?¡¡Pretty good, huh? While Toya proudly showed off his work, the women sat on the cot and tried to sleep on it. It''s not bad overall, but it''s ...... I think it might be better to use a piece of cloth for the seat ...... and the sleeping area. Yeah. A little unreliable?¡¡It looks like a deck chair you''d find by the pool, but you''re not going to use it wet, so you don''t need this gap. "Oh, yeah. ...... Oh, yeah. ...... It would be better if the height of each leg could be adjusted. If the ground is uneven, it will be a bit uneven. As he said this, Natsuki moved some of the bunks. Indeed, it is a little rickety. If the ground is soft, there won''t be much of a problem, but if it''s rocky, like here, you won''t be able to adjust it, and it might bother you while you''re sleeping. Ugh, ......, I''ll do my best. The smug look on his face at first was gone, and he looked down with a sigh at the relentless criticism. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure it''s very good, of course.¡¡It''s just that I told you what I want you to improve. Yes, yes. It''s a world of difference from sleeping on the ground, I''m sure! The structure is not bad, so if we can improve it, we might be able to market it. You''re sure?¡¡Yeah, I''ll try my best. I''ll try my best." Toya recovered from Haruka and the others'' congratulations - although the ending of the sentence was too subtle to be called congratulations - and regained his cheerful expression. No, well, I''m also involved in the development, so I''m responsible for that, too. I''ve been using it for a while and it seems to be fine. ...... Well, product development is a process of actual use and improvement. No problem!¡¡Let''s try again next time! But it''s nice not to get cold from the ground, really. There are no insulating sheets for camping. No. Adventurers just put down a cloak or some waterproof cloth. What about the tent?¡¡Should we spread it out?¡¡I don''t think we''ll have to worry about dew. Why not?¡¡If it''s cold, we could pitch a tent and heat the inside with Worms. ...... It''s not that cold. The temperature in this tunnel is less than 20 degrees ......15 degrees Celsius, I think. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. Even so, with two blankets per person and the hooded cloak we bought earlier, we should be able to sleep just fine. Then we need to prepare for ....... Yuki looked around and nodded her head. Is that it? We''ll just take the food out of the magic bag. ...... Do you want to make some charcoal and have some tea? That''s the only thing we have to do, isn''t it? After tea and food, let''s take turns sleeping and get ready for tomorrow. To be honest, it''s too early to go to bed. Considering that it was still early in the evening, it was very early to go to bed, but considering that we would be sleeping in two shifts, it would be difficult for each of us to get enough sleep if we didn''t start sleeping around this time. If you sleep six hours in two shifts, you need twelve hours. This may seem inefficient, but considering safety and continuity, it is unavoidable. For a short period of time, it may be possible to reduce the number of hours of sleep, but it will be useless if you become distracted and get injured. Don''t forget to use the sanctuary to keep the bugs away. You never know what''s out there. Thank you. I don''t like the idea of bugs falling on me while I''m sleeping. ...... I wonder if that''s the point of the tent in the mine? I''m not sure if Yuki''s words brought this to mind, but Haruka said it with a serious expression on her face. There is no physical damage because there is no bite, but the psychological damage from the insect falling on your face is a critical hit. If a bug accidentally enters your mouth, it is lethal. Mentally. "Don''t worry. I can play a bug with Sanctuary. I''m really counting on you, okay?¡¡If a bug fell on me, I wouldn''t be able to control myself. What do you mean by that? I don''t really want to know. Fortunately... Fortunately, I didn''t find out anything about Haruka''s inability to control herself until the next morning. It is natural that I had set up a sanctuary, but there was no attack by demons, so I was not woken up in the middle of the day. I had a quick breakfast, didn''t bother to boil any tea, drank the stock in my magic bag, and left early. No change in policy for today, right? Yes. Yuki will have a hard time. No, don''t worry. I''m getting used to it. I think I can go a little faster than yesterday.¡¡If you walk at a normal speed, the mapping won''t be able to keep up. Just as Yuki had said, his hand movements were much smoother than when he first started drawing the map. The map he showed us was also quite good. The map he showed us was pretty good, though I wasn''t sure if it was correct or not, but it was useful enough to keep us from getting lost, so there was no problem. "However, even if it''s not complicated, if there are so many side streets, it might be better to mark them with ....... "Oh, sure. It''s confusing to know what road you''re on, isn''t it? I''m always walking in new places, but when I''m going to dive again, I''m going to have problems figuring out where I am when I compare it to the map because the tunnels have no distinctive features. So, let''s mark the wall. Let''s just mark the wall with ...... ''1A-5E''. Yuki takes out a wax stone from her magic bag and writes "1A-5E" in large letters on the wall. I thought that chalk would be easier to use than wax stone, but unfortunately they didn''t sell it. Limestone seems to be available, and if you use it frequently, you might as well make your own. What''s the meaning of that symbol? "It''s just an idea, but the first one is one layer--I don''t know if it''s easy to separate the layers, but it''s there. A is the first layer of this grid. The next one, 5, is the fifth from the top of the paper, and E is the fifth of the eight horizontal sections. It''s the same as the one on maps sold in Japan. For a spur-of-the-moment idea, you have thought out the rules well. The number of horizontal divisions is smaller than that of vertical ones, probably because the paper used is long and narrow. This makes it easier to keep track of the locations and to compare the wall markings with the map, rather than having to write the numbers in order. Furthermore, since the map also shows which wall has been marked, there is much less risk of getting lost. It''s quite well thought out, isn''t it? It''s just an imitation of a standard map. It''s good, right?¡¡I wish I had a spray can of paint so the markings would be more legible, but ...... is the way to go. Paint and a brush would be fine, though, so long as you keep it in your magic bag and don''t worry about it spilling. Paint. I haven''t bought that yet. I''ll get some next time. I wonder if they sell paint that can be used on the walls of the cave. Fortunately, the walls here don''t seep water, but I still think it would be difficult to write clearly on the walls unless we use oil-based paint with organic solvents. Oh! "What? Suddenly, Yuki shouted, and we all turned to look at her, thinking, "Wow, an attack! We all turned around at the same time. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m sorry. It''s not a big deal, but I saw that you added the [Mapping] skill to your status, so I just went ahead and ...... "Don''t scare me. I thought you were going to backfire. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to try. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. But [mapping]. Is it because of that skill that your mapping has gotten faster? "Probably. In the current situation, it''s a very useful skill! Yuki said, smiling happily. And just as he said, the [Mapping] skill was quite effective, and as time went by, Yuki''s mapping speed gradually increased. 178-162 Abandoned mine (3) It''s been seven days since we entered the abandoned mine. We had explored quite a bit of the area, but still hadn''t found the sword we were looking for. Yuki was now able to map the area almost as fast as she could walk, so we were making progress in our search, but even so, the abandoned mine was still too large for us to cover everything. And the deeper we went, the more undead we encountered. The number of undead we encountered increased as we dove deeper. If we assume that all of these people were forced to work, how many people would be killed? But fortunately, they don''t seem to wander around too much, and by camping out a little further back from the area where we''ve cleared out the undead, we haven''t been attacked in our sleep so far. Another thing that has been helping me in my quest is the simple bed that Toya made for me. Thanks to this bunk and the six hours of sleep I get every day, I am not too tired the next morning and can explore for a long time. However, living without sunlight for seven days was a bit stressful. We had no urgent work to do, and on the eighth day, we decided to return to Laffan. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó The morning after we returned home, we took a break from our early morning training and all of us woke up rather slowly. While we were exploring the abandoned mines, we were able to get a relatively comfortable sleep thanks to a simple sleeping pad, but we were still somewhat cautious, and we were using cloaks and blankets. Therefore, I realized once again that it was good to sleep at home, where I could sleep on a firm futon without worrying about being attacked. The Bear Pavilion was a good place to stay, but I felt more at home in my own house than in an inn. After having a rather late breakfast, I went to the adventurer''s guild to get some magic stones for cash. I had also acquired two more white iron swords with emblems, so I went there to dispose of those as well, but... "Sorry, sir. We''re having a bit of a problem. ...... With a slightly troubled look on her face, Diora bowed to us. He told us that the negotiations regarding the sword he left with us last time have not progressed at all. It''s been a week or so, so you can say it''s not a problem. ...... Diora, who seems basically competent, said, "Not at all," so there must have been some problem. What''s going on? Actually, there''s a bit of a problem in the town of Kerg right now. ...... According to the details, the town of Kergu was in a state of confusion due to the Order of the Holy Satomi, and Viscount Nenus was busy dealing with it, so he was not in a situation to negotiate. It''s not a good idea to go to a bargaining table when you''re that busy. ...... The Order of the Sutomie Saints. Ms. Diora, can I ask you what the problem is? Well, ...... to put it simply, the town''s security is deteriorating due to too much money being collected. As a result of doing business like some idol, they sucked up more money than the limit even from commoners with little disposable income, and a lot of people got lost on the streets. The damage was not only limited to the commoners, but there were also several noblemen who leaned on their ransoms, and some even resorted to fraud to raise the missing money. (It''s kind of like a vicious new religion, isn''t it?) It''s more like that. That type of business has been a powerful medicine for the immunocompromised people of this world. --No, there''s more to it than that. "It''s probably bad because they''re abusing their skills. It''s not just that. Aella is also being deceived. ...... No, it''s not confirmed. (It''s not confirmed, but it''s confirmed, right?¡¡(In terms of probability.) It''s not impossible that there are other people with the same type of skills, but if you think about the time when he disappeared after tricking Aella and the time when the Satsomayor cult started its activities, there''s a good chance it''s the same person. But if there''s a problem, why don''t we just crack down on the cult of Saint Sathmie? "That seems to be quite difficult. It''s not like the cult itself is doing anything illegal. ...... Oh, ...... that''s what it''s ...... going to be. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It does not matter how they got the money to do so, it does not matter to the cult. However, the problem is that some skills are used as a means to make people spend that money. ...... You can''t prove that. You can''t prove it.¡¡You''re a lord. So. This world does not have a clear rule of law. Up to a certain point, if the king or lord says no, it''s decided. If it is too unreasonable, it can become a problem, but in this case, it is only a ''ban on certain businesses''. If there is a reason, it is unlikely to be a problem. ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. There are a lot of commoners involved in this. ...... I see, of that abandoned mine. It''s hard to take strong measures because they have a history of forcing criminals and sending them to the mines. There are still people living who experienced that era, and if you crack down on commoners with vague charges, you might cause an overreaction. What we are doing is selling holy water. What I''m doing is just selling holy water. That sounds difficult. Yes. People who have embezzled money, but others are just in debt or have lost their homes. As a result, public safety deteriorates. ...... If they get lost and commit crimes, we can catch them, but that''s not the root solution. If you want to make a profit in the long run, you need to consider the long term revenue. If you''re looking for long-term profits, it''s probably counterproductive to squeeze too much out of your followers, but in that case, are you thinking of moving your base to another location? --In that case, are you thinking of moving your base elsewhere? It''s like locusts. I get it. Don''t worry about negotiating the purchase of the sword until we get settled. Thank you very much. So ...... I''m very sorry to tell you that ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find the right one for you. "...... fertilizer? Haruka twists her head at Diora''s words. The fertilizer that I sold from the vending machine was casually selling well, and I had stocked up quite a lot of it, but when I came back this time, it was almost empty. I had added some to the stock, but since I was mainly selling undead, whose corpses could not be recovered, I didn''t have much stock left. Considering the volume of sales, it''s understandable that people would want to know how to make them, but from our point of view, it''s almost like waste disposal, and the price is moderate, so the sales themselves are not that big. I don''t think it''s something that the deputies would care about. ....... Apparently, the unbelievable effects of that fertilizer have been reported to the Lord Deputy ....... Do you really think that''s such a big deal? No, he wouldn''t normally do such a thing. The secrecy of our products is an important part of our business. But this time, the timing was a little wrong. Confusion in the city of Kerg. This is the cause. Most of the food in this town is imported from other towns, and it is transported through the town of Kerg. The town of Kerg is in turmoil, and it is unlikely that it will be resolved soon. There is also the road via Sarstad, and it is possible to avoid the kergue, so it is unlikely that food transportation will be completely cut off, but even so, a decrease in transportation volume and a rise in food prices are expected. The best way to deal with this is to increase food self-sufficiency, but farmland cannot be increased so easily, and neither can the number of people engaged in farming. It seems that what caught his attention was the fertilizer we sell. It could solve both problems and be effective in a short time. It may not have an immediate effect, but the mere fact that it can be produced even if transportation is cut off will be useful in deterring unnecessary hoarding and relieving anxiety. This is something that a politician should not overlook. Normally, the guild would protect it, but ...... Difficult this time? Yes. It''s a request for disclosure, but it''s an order. By the way, can I refuse? I can, but I wouldn''t recommend it. I''m sure you''ll get your money''s worth, and I think it''s better to just accept the favor. Diora looked a little troubled and gave us such advice. If Diora, who knows more than us, says so, then it must be true. We don''t want to force a confrontation with the powers that be, and we don''t really care how that fertilizer is made in the first place. ....... "I''m going to disclose something, is that okay? It''s okay.¡¡It''ll be a problem if we can''t sell our stuff, but that''s not likely, is it? I agree. But what do you think?¡¡I don''t know if it''s actually useful. ...... I know. It''s not like it''s a big secret. Is that so? Diora looked at me strangely and nodded her head. It''s true that if you know the effect, you''ll wonder what kind of secret there is. If I had to guess, I would say that the compost, which saves time, can be substituted with any ordinary material. The only difference is the raw material, but whether you can get it or not is another matter. Yes. So, I don''t want you to say, ''It was useless! I don''t want you to say, ''It wasn''t useful!'' ...... "That''s okay. I don''t think that will cause any trouble for Haruka and the others, because he is a decent man. Really?¡¡I hope so. I''ll let him know that Haruka and the others have given their consent. I''ll call you later. ...... We''ve been to an abandoned mine ...... and I''m not sure if I can comply right away ....... I''m going to take a few days off from today. "A few days? ...... I understand. I''ll get back to you as soon as I can. Thank you. Well, I''ll try to be flexible, but I can''t expect you to be on call all the time. I understand. I''ll do my best to get back to you as soon as possible. 179-163 Abandoned mine (4) As Diora had said, the response was quite prompt. The next day, while I was leisurely watching Toya improve the bunk, a messenger from the guild came and asked me to come to the guild first thing in the afternoon. I did as I was told, ate lunch, and visited the guild, where I was taken to a room I would not normally enter. The room was furnished with high quality Laffan specialty furniture, as if it was a place to receive guests. After a few moments of waiting, a middle-aged man entered the room, looking a bit pompous - not in terms of his attitude, but in terms of the atmosphere. As Haruka and Natsuki stood to greet him, we hurriedly stood up and bowed. I''m not sure what to say. The man smiled and took a seat, and we sat down again as he asked us to. "Nice to meet you. I''m Joseph Fader, Raffan''s deputy. My name is Natsuki. This is Haruka and Yuki, as well as Toya and Nao. Each of them bowed as Natsuki introduced them. Normally, Haruka would be the one to negotiate, but since they were dealing with a high-ranking person, Natsuki, who was used to dealing with such people, was in charge. Diora said that since he was an adventurer, he would be tolerated as long as he didn''t do anything rude, but I guess it''s better to make a good impression. In fact, I was also told that it would be better if a man, specifically Nao, negotiated with her, but I wasn''t sure, so I asked Natsuki to do it this time. With her good looks, I''m sure she can handle the gender difference. I''m sure she can handle the gender difference. I''m sorry for the trouble I''ve caused you. "No, sir. It would be a great honor if our knowledge could contribute to the peace and stability of this city. Natsuki also said something that was (probably) not in his mind when the deputy said something low and calm. I''m sure you think it''s nice to have peace, but I''m sure you don''t think it''s an honor. Well, all he has to do is say it. There is no need to be aggressive. "Well, well, well. Thank you very much. However, as the governor of this town, I can''t take advantage of your kindness. I''ll give you this, though it''s a small gift. "Thank you, sir. Natsuki accepted the small bag on the table. I don''t know how much is in it, but if it''s gold, it''s a good amount, right? I don''t think it''s silver coins,......, but I don''t know. It is a very useful knowledge depending on how you handle it, but how do you value it? And how will they react to us, mere adventurers? It''s a delicate point. At least he doesn''t coerce us into disclosing our skills, though I think he''s a decent officer, as Diora says. However, disclosing how to make it is fine, but that doesn''t mean it will be useful. Are you okay with that? "Yes. It''s my job to figure it out. All right. Well then... Then, I''ll explain how to make our fertilizer. However, it''s nothing difficult, since all you have to do is throw the demons into a normal compost made with alchemy. I see, so it''s made from demon waste. That''s what an adventurer with a magic bag would do. Did you know that I have a ...... magic bag? Yes. Did you know that I have a magic bag? - Yes. You supply a lot of meat for a party of adventurers. I''m not sure what to make of that. He must be very competent to have done such a thorough investigation of a mere adventurer. Or did you do your research beforehand? I''m not sure how many of them there are, but they''re not enough to affect the food situation in this town,......, are they?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. I''m not sure what to make of it. That''s impressive for someone so young. It was only possible because we reduced the number of orcs little by little. I don''t have the strength to plunge into an Orc''s nest from the start. "No, no, it''s enough that you can destroy an orc''s nest by any means. It would be great for the deputy to have such a skilled adventurer settling in this town. Come to think of it, there was a story that the previous deputy was ousted for failing to deal with the orcs. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. "But I see. If you''re as good as you are, you won''t have any problems with demon corpses. But considering the magic stones needed for composting, isn''t that a loss? "We''ve modified the compost a bit there. Instead of using magic stones, it uses its own magic power to crush the bones of the demons so that they can be processed in a short period of time. "So you''re processing the bones as well. Where did you get the compost? We made it ourselves. That''s why we can keep the cost low. The deputy''s eyes widened in surprise at these words. He didn''t know that they could do alchemy. "Oh, alchemy too. Is it possible to order it?¡¡Of course, I''ll pay you a fair price. "Yes, of course. Not in large quantities, though. ...... How much can you process in a single composting unit? It''s a rough estimate. The deputy nodded his head and thought about it for a moment. I see. The remaining problem is how to obtain the corpse of the demon. Well, ...... make ten of them and deliver them to me. "Ten? ...... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I understand. So-- Then, after deciding the details of the composting price and delivery date, the deputy stood up with a smile and held out his hand. We had a very good talk today. As I said earlier, this town could use a good adventurer. I look forward to working with you in the future. "Yes, thank you as well. I have no intention of leaving this comfortable town for now. After shaking Natsuki''s hand tightly, he held out his hand for us to shake as well, and left the room. Natsuki watched him go with a smile on her face, and as soon as the door closed, she let out a big breath and sat back in her chair as if she had lost her strength. I was so nervous... Tatsuki let out an uncomfortable voice that I have never heard before, and fell down on the desk. I thought she looked very dignified while she was talking, but it seems she was actually nervous. It was unusual for Natsuki to be so nervous. Based on population, you must be at the level of a Japanese mayor or mayor at best. In terms of population, yes, but the law doesn''t protect us here, so we''re not on the same level. I see. It''s all up to them. I''ve heard that''s not the case, at least not in this country. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the following. The actual problem is that there have been such things in this territory in the past. If you''re a storybook hero, you might be able to solve the problem by force, but we''re only the top adventurers in this town, and we have to live with our heads down. Of course, if there is a level of unreasonableness that we can''t tolerate, we''ll probably have to abandon the town. But at least that person seemed somewhat trustworthy. That''s a good thing. That''s true. I''ve gone to a lot of trouble to build a house in this town, but I can''t live in peace if I can''t trust the man at the top. I can''t live in a town where the laws are changed at the drop of a hat, or twisted according to the deputy''s mood. By the way, how much did they pay you?¡¡You didn''t seem to negotiate with them. "Considering the profit to be made from fertilizer, I thought it would be better to make a loan than to negotiate unnecessarily. The price is like 100 ...... gold coins. It''s not bad. Natsuki looked into the bag and nodded lightly. Considering that it was not much of a secret, it was probably a large enough price. Considering the fact that he gave it to the deputy before asking him about it, and didn''t say anything about it afterwards, I guess you could say that he is a man with a big heart. A hundred gold coins. That''s not that much money for us, but it''s a lot of money, normally. It''s less than a third of what I made during the week I was in the abandoned mine, but it''s probably enough for half a year, based on the average income of a commoner in this world. Well, we''re not going to make money from fertilizer, so it''s just a little spending money. We can''t afford to buy food. Yeah, right. --By the way, I was just thinking, shouldn''t we have a party name or something?¡¡In a situation like this, it would be more convenient for people to know our party name than to remember us by our individual names. I see. I was a bit curious when I introduced myself this time. It would probably be more memorable to introduce myself as "I''m Nao, a member of Honyarara", and I think people would remember me better than my personal name. It''s not a bad idea, I thought, but Haruka looked at me delicately. It''s not a bad idea, I thought, but Haruka seemed a little sensitive about it. "Is this a situation where we shouldn''t think it''s painful to name the party ...... ourselves? I''m not sure what to say.¡¡Yeah, I know what you mean. I don''t want to blush when I say my name. It''s not easy. I don''t want to be embarrassed to tell people my name. On the other hand, I don''t want a name that won''t leave much of an impression. Is it necessary for adventurers to have a certain amount of self-expression, even if it''s considered to be a midlife crisis? As we were talking about this, the door to the room opened and Diora walked in. Everyone, I see your conversation went well. Yes, thanks to you. I''m relieved to hear that you''re not being unreasonable. "Compared to the last one, this one is much more capable. He understands that adventurers of your rank are very valuable in this town. You need not worry. I see. I''ve been properly compensated. Natsuki lifted the bag of gold coins and showed it to Diora, then put it away and stood up. We also got up and left the room together. "Oh, yes. Diora, do adventurer''s parties usually have a name? "A party name?¡¡Well, some do and some don''t, but once you reach a certain rank, there are almost no people who don''t have a name. Oh, Yuki-san, do you have a party name too?¡¡The Adventurer''s Guild recommends it. The reason why the guild recommends it is because it is easier to gain fame as an adventurer if you have a name that is easy to remember, and it is also easier for the guild to ask for your name. As for us, we''re not really interested in nomination requests, but Diora says that it''s better to have a name to avoid trouble if you have some fame. It''s like, "They''re the Marumaru of Honyara, don''t mess with them. But what kind of name do you think would be best?¡¡Ms. Diora, what kind of name do you want? "Whatever you want.¡¡Well, a newly registered party would be laughed out of the room if they named their party ''Dragon Slayer'' or something like that. It''s only natural if you don''t have a track record. In our case, ......, ''Ogre Killer''? I don''t like that one bit. Let''s use a more beautiful name! "That''s also abstract. Ms. Diora, what kind of name are you going to use? "It''s really up to you. ...... You can name it after a natural object or a weapon, or you can name it after your goal. The Dragon Slayer is one of those names, but if it''s a big word without much ability, it''s ...... Diora laughs at this. Thank you. Thank you, I''ll think about it. Yes. But if you''re Nao and the others, you can say big things, right?¡¡You''re the type of adventurers who will succeed. "Is that so?¡¡By the way, what is that type? The type of adventurer who does not have these qualities is the type of adventurer who is not overworked, who works hard, who knows himself, who is not underestimated, who is not arrogant, and who is prepared. If an adventurer can''t do these things, he won''t make it to the top. "I see. I''ll keep that in mind. I''ll keep that in mind." All of these things are basic, but I think you should be more careful when you''ve reached a certain rank. I think the most dangerous time is when you think, "I''ve gotten a little stronger, haven''t I? That''s when it''s most dangerous. There''s a cautious Haruka, and I''m sure she''ll be fine. ...... Is it possible to name the party after such a mindset? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s a good idea to have a name for your party if you''re as old as Haruka and her friends. Please let me know if you decide. I''ll register it with the guild as well. "I understand. I''ll think about it. If I''m not careful, it''s a name that will be with me for decades to come. There was no easy way to decide, so we left the Adventurer''s Guild on hold. 180-164 Abandoned mine (5) The decision on the party name was quite controversial. Or should I say "stagnant" rather than "confused"? We continued to discuss it after we got back home, but we couldn''t come up with a good idea. If I had been a few years younger, I might have been able to come up with a name that would have blown things out of proportion in many ways, but at my age, I already know what "black history" is. Yes, a history that should never be repeated. ....... It''s a good idea to have a party name that you can at least say without blushing when you get a little older. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do in order to get the most out of your time here. ...... Well, I asked Diora about some of the names of the current parties, and there were a lot of names that we were a little - well, a lot - embarrassed about, so I guess we don''t have to worry about that much externally. I guess we don''t need to worry about it, but this is our emotional problem. In the end, we decided on "Clear Mirror and Clear Water," based on Diora''s suggestion that we make it into something like a motto, keeping in mind the type of adventurer who succeeds. I also considered words like "humility" and "prudence," but I didn''t want to be lambasted by other adventurers, so I settled on this one. I''m still far from the state of mind of a clear mirror, but I''ll do my best to reach it. After the name of the party was decided, Haruka and Yuki started to make the compost. They needed ten of them, each a little larger than the one we use at home. Since it would take a considerable amount of time for the two of us to make the compost, what the other three, including myself, were doing in the meantime was hunting demons. We were asked by a deputy to increase the supply of fertilizer, even if it meant raising the price a little. As far as we are concerned, we are making a good profit at the current price, but the request from the governor was in effect a request to raise the price. In other words, he wants to raise the price of fertilizer to a level where even adventurers without magic bags can make some profit, because the quantity we supply is too small. It seems that the government is willing to support us to a certain extent, but the price of the fertilizer we are selling is still too high. Well, there is no good in defying the government. We decided to raise the price and put a sign on the vending machine. We put up a sign on the vending machine, stating the facts as they are: "We have decided to raise the price at the request of the authorities. We don''t want you to complain to us. I guess the fertilizer is cost effective enough, since there was no particular drop in sales even after the price increase. Thanks to this, we had to work very hard to defeat the demons, but even with Haruka and Yuki out, we had two vanguards, me as a wizard and a middle guard, and someone who could heal, so we didn''t have any problems, and we finished delivering the compost and defeating the demons in about ten days. I''m not sure what to say. So, today we''re going to start exploring the abandoned mine again! It''s the first time I''ve been cooped up in my house for this long, so I guess I''m a little slow. While we were defeating the demons, Yuki and Haruka were busy making compost, except for some training time. This is why it has been quite a while since the two of them have engaged in actual combat. I''ve delivered ten compost pots, but where are we going to put them?¡¡Normally, I think a few in the adventurer''s guild would be enough. ...... "It looks like the guild has five of them, okay?¡¡Also, it looks like they''re putting them on wagons and taking them to the south woods. We only heard about it because we were in the north forest, but it seems that they are stationed near the logging operation in the south forest, and they are buying the corpses of demons there. This way, they don''t have to bring the corpses back to the town, so they can easily get the cooperation of adventurers. I see. Then we need more than one. Even that composting machine doesn''t finish processing in an instant. The compost can dispose of a large number of corpses in a short period of time, but even so, if many adventurers bring in their corpses, the compost will need to be replaced every day, or even every half day. But if you''re managing it well, you''re safe. We won''t have to work as hard. "Fertilizer monsters are not very profitable. A demon that can use corpses as fertilizer is a demon that has few places to sell it. Orcs, for example, can be sold for their meat, so most of them become meat, and only bones and inedible parts are thrown into the compost. On the other hand, goblins, sculpts, apes, and other demons that have no use for anything other than magic stones can produce large amounts of fertilizer. These monsters are not very useful to hunt. Even if we raised the price of fertilizer a little, it would only be within the margin of error from our point of view. Even so, the demons that we had to throw away are now worth money, and if you are a novice adventurer, it will help you make a living. We didn''t have much trouble ............ when we were starting out, did we?¡¡Not to that extent. --Good luck to all of you. "But this is an abandoned mine. But this abandoned mine is a lot bigger than I thought. Yeah, I wonder how long ...... it is in total. As they head towards the place where they stopped exploring last time, Haruka looks at Yuki''s map and twists her head. The distance they could explore in a day was not that long, as they were mapping and dealing with demons, but it was still large enough that they could dive for seven days and still not finish their search. Considering the fact that there are buried tunnels here and there, it seems that they must have been digging on a very large scale, but how could they not have been discovered? Eventually, it was discovered when the head of the family went missing, but the fact that he was able to keep it a secret until then was probably due to the slow communication of information. Now, this is the first place you''ll be entering, so be careful. Got it. It''s been a little over half a day since we entered the abandoned mine. We didn''t meet any demons on the way, and since we had already made a map, we returned to the previous location smoothly. From there, we started to explore again. ....... I don''t know if it''s my imagination, but the road seems to be widening around here. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bit of trouble with the whole thing. It''s a good thing I''m a good fighter. I''m sure you''ll agree. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. Especially since Natsuki''s naginata seemed to be a bit cramped, it would be nice to have a wider passage. But it wasn''t all good. Up until now, the distribution had been zombies, skeletons, and the occasional ghost, but gradually different monsters began to appear. A giant bat attacked us from above. It was dangerous to say the least, since it made little noise and was somewhat difficult to detect, but it was still easier to recognize than the Shadow Ghost. Furthermore, Toya''s ears seemed to be able to hear the ultrasonic waves emitted by the bats, so he was not taken by surprise. A night snake crawled up to her. It looks like a normal snake, about a meter long, but its body color blends in with its surroundings, and it waits there motionless, making it very difficult to find. It is very difficult to find, even though its location can be determined by searching. Since we knew that it had the skill of "bite poisoning" from the "Lookout", we took precautions to deal with it. Well, if you know the approximate location of the snake, you can deal with it the moment it moves, so it''s not a big problem. Incidentally, I later found out that the snake''s venom was quite powerful and fast-acting, and that antidotes were not available in Rafan, so its bite was quite dangerous. Moreover, it can bite and pierce an ordinary boot. ....... But we have the Cure Poison, and if we switch to boots made of Dahl''s Bear leather, it seems that we will not be able to stand up to them, so it is not much of a problem. Kevan Kobold is about the same size as a goblin. Some lore has it that some Kobolds are pretty, but the Kobolds of this world are unfortunately ugly. ...... Or perhaps I should say, fortunately. If they were pretty, they would be harder to kill. They look like a mix of a ...... goblin and a weasel. It seems to be surprisingly dexterous, and has a spear made of stone tools, but unfortunately it lacks skill and strength. Even if it tries to attack us with it, it will easily break if it meets our weapon, so it seems like the weapon is dragging us down. It''s nice that the demons have changed and don''t stink, but it''s not so profitable. ...... Oh. It''s a good thing the demons aren''t smelly anymore, but it''s not very profitable. ...... According to Toya''s [appraisal], the purchase price of the demon stone is 1,100 rares for the Giant Bat, 400 rares for the Night Snake, and 800 rares for the Kevan Kobold. The most indescribable of these is probably the Night Snake. If you can find it, even ordinary people can kill it, so there''s no way around it, but magic stones are cheap, and there are no materials to be obtained. The meat is edible, and the venom glands can be used to make antidotes, but I wouldn''t dare to eat the meat of a small snake, and collecting the venom glands is a hassle because you have to kill the snake without crushing its head. Kevan Kobolds are almost the same as goblins. Except for the magic stone, they are used for fertilizer. Giant bats can be eaten for the flesh of their bodies, and the skin of their wings is said to be a delicacy, so you can make some money from them, but you can make many times more money by killing orcs and killer gators. The advantage of the cave is that it doesn''t seem to be too hot in the summer, but it''s not the best place to work. "Yeah. I don''t know if I''m willing to make less money or put up with the heat. ...... I haven''t experienced a summer around here yet. I haven''t experienced summer around here yet." "However, it''s a little hot in the forest even at this time of year with my current gear. I don''t want to think about what it will be like in the middle of summer. "By the way, what''s the status of the development of the ''Cools'' magic? I''ve got something that looks like it.¡¡See? Yeah. It has the same caveats and drawbacks as Worms, though. At Toya''s question, Yuki and I looked at each other and nodded. Since we are weak people who grew up in a civilized society, we didn''t want to experience a summer without air conditioning, so we tried very hard. As a result, we had succeeded in developing the magic of "Cools", which is a little more difficult and consumes more energy than "Worms", but seems to be reasonably useful. However, in our poorly insulated house, the room will soon become too hot after just one use, and only Yuki and I can continue to use it. Haruka could probably do it with practice, but Toya and Natsuki can''t use magic themselves. If we want to be efficient, we all have to stay in the same room, which is a bit inconvenient. Incidentally, it wasn''t that cold in the winter, and we could get by with heavy clothing, so it wasn''t too much of a problem. It''s the same as the "Worms" heating system, which is useless in well-ventilated areas, so it''s also quite limited in its use during the adventure. It''s possible that if you go deeper, you''ll find other demons, but ...... how far is this abandoned mine?¡¡This abandoned mine? "It''s deep enough to have been dug secretly. Considering the fact that the number of undead is decreasing, it seems like it might be coming to an end soon. ...... "So it''s impossible to have a cool place to relax in the summer. It''s a shame. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I think it''s a good idea to have a long summer vacation, which Japanese people can''t take. I''m sure you''ll agree. Despite Haruka''s prediction, the search for the abandoned mine continued after three days. The number of encounters with the undead had decreased further, and they had recovered two swords with emblems, but they still hadn''t found the sword they were looking for. The enemies were still weak, and his earnings were correspondingly low. If we don''t find the heirloom sword, we''ll lose a lot of money. Then, on the fourth day, when we were all getting a bit lazy. It appeared in front of us. "......, hey, that''s ''that'', isn''t it? "Oh. How did it get here .......? It''s not like it was left here before the mine was abandoned, is it? It''s too clean for that. Normally, the fittings would be rusty. So there''s no such thing as a bandit''s hideout or ......, is there? It''s too deep. Come on, let''s open it!¡¡There might be something good in there! It was a treasure chest, the kind of thing you see in games but never actually see in the cave. --It was a treasure chest. 181-165 Dungeons? (1) "Toya, stop! When Toya tried to approach the treasure chest, Haruka hurriedly stopped her. What? I''m sure you''re not the only one. Yeah. A treasure chest in an abandoned mine is suspicious no matter how you look at it. It''s suicide to try to touch it without thinking about it. No, no, treasure chests are dungeons, and dungeons are treasure chests. No, no, no, treasure chests are dungeons, dungeons are treasure chests, so it''s definitely obvious that we''re in a dungeon. It''s too short-sighted.¡¡There''s always the possibility that someone put it there. It''s not impossible that someone put it there! I''ve thought about it a bit, but that doesn''t mean I think treasure chests equal dungeons. "Considering the route we took to get here, that''s a negligible probability, right? Unless there is no other way to get in here. "...... I see. Another way in and another way out. Considering the large number of undead and demons on the path, it seems difficult to place a treasure chest in this location, but if there is another way in or out nearby, it''s a different story. But if there was another entrance nearby, it would be a different story. In fact, considering the distance we walked, there could even be another entrance in a more convenient location than the one we used. "No, but why would we leave it here?¡¡It''s not safe. There are no banks in this world. Besides, if it''s a lot of money, it''ll be bulky. We carry almost all our money with us, but ordinary people can''t. In this world, property is currency, precious metals, and jewelry. The currency is all in coins, so it''s quite heavy, and even our wealth is difficult to carry around without a magic bag. However, it is also dangerous to leave them at home. The security situation is not so good that we can say that we are safe if we lock our doors. Therefore, people like us, who are away from home a lot, don''t leave anything valuable at home. But what about those who don''t have a magic bag, but still have some money? Jewelry and ornaments are used for this purpose. Compared to coins, the unit price per weight is higher and they are more convenient to carry around. If you have an acquaintance who you can trust, there is no need to worry. Otherwise, it is quite risky to get involved in jewelry, which is difficult for a layman to distinguish. Of course, we didn''t touch them. It seems that Natsuki can be a bit of a connoisseur of gems, but whether his standards match those of this world is another matter. There is no reason to take a risk when there is no need to. Another method used is to hide it somewhere. Simple methods include digging a hole under the floor of the house and burying it, or hiding it somewhere that only you know about. A wardrobe or a safe deposit box is only worthwhile if a certain level of security is ensured, and these days, I''m soberly realizing the value of a bank that can keep my money safely even if there is almost no interest. Incidentally, we also have a certain amount of money hidden away in case we have to abandon all our belongings and run away. Again, starting out almost penniless is tough,......, isn''t it? If you''re good enough now. But if you don''t want to have to do the hard work, don''t bother buying it. Even if you''re young. So it''s either someone''s stash or a treasure chest in the dungeon. ...... Okay, let''s open it. Just wait. I know what you''re thinking. He stops Toya when she tries to touch the treasure chest again. By the way, in this world, at least outside the town, there is no crime of misappropriation of found property. So even if this is someone''s hidden treasure, there''s no problem if we find it and take it. ....... A treasure chest is a trap. Shouldn''t we consider the risk? "Well, it''s common knowledge that the chests in the first part of the game don''t have traps, right? No, that''s a game thing.¡¡It''s not like it''s a dungeon in the first place. Well... If someone hid it, you can''t deny the possibility that there is a trap. I think it''s fine if Toya disarmed the man. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one, you''ll be able to get a lot more. I don''t want to damage anything inside ......, so maybe I shouldn''t do that? If people set it up, I don''t think it''s ...... I don''t think it''s a good idea to protect your treasure by damaging it. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''ll check it out. I''ll check it out for now. Of all of us, Natsuki is the only one with both [Unlock] and [Trap Knowledge] skills. I have [Knowledge of Traps Lv.1], but it''s not enough to check the treasure chest. We stand back a bit and watch the situation. It may sound a bit heartless, but if we make a mistake and the trap goes off, we won''t be able to save everyone if they all get hurt. In a sense, it is a natural measure. They watched like this for a few minutes. Natsuki stood up, twisting his head a little. "How''s it going? It''s not locked. No traps, I think. That''s a bit vague, isn''t it? I didn''t find any traps that I know of, so... I didn''t disarm it. I''m only level one. You can''t prove it''s not there. Okay, Toya, can I open it? What''s the matter with you?¡¡I''m more worried now than I was before Natsuki checked. I smiled and urged Toya to open it, but he showed a different hesitation. At first he seemed optimistic that he would be fine, but Natsuki''s subtle attitude seemed to have stirred his anxiety. I''m sure you''ll be fine.¡¡I''m still skilled, after all. --This is the first time I''ve checked the traps in the treasure chest. I''m getting more and more nervous, aren''t I? Here, take the ten-foot pole. Use this. I pulled out a three-meter long stick from my magic bag and gave it to Toya to hold. It''s a tool that''s saved the lives of many adventurers since ancient times. --In the game world. And then we all, except for Toya, got even further away from each other, as if to show that we were on the same page. "I''ll do ......, okay?¡¡I''ll do it, okay? Do it now. I gesture "Go, Go" to Toya, who wastes no time in checking over and over again. Toya compares my face with the treasure chest several times, then, as if giving up, extends his arm and pokes the chest with the end of a stick. No response. As if relieved by this, he shook the box again to make sure nothing happened, and then slowly pushed the lid open. With a clang, the lid of the treasure chest opened. A few seconds passed. Seeing that nothing happened, Toya let out a deep breath. Then he cautiously approached the treasure chest, peered inside, twisted his head slightly, and stuck his hand in and pulled out something. It''s a ...... sword, right? Yeah. It''s just an iron sword, you know? That''s a rather subtle result, isn''t it? It''s not so bad that it''s trash, but it''s not worth much either. If you sell it, you might be able to get a few gold coins, but it won''t reach ten. If you convert it to demon stones, you will get only a few of them, and even though it is a "treasure chest", you will feel disappointed. Shouldn''t it be renamed "box" instead of "treasure chest"? But the possibility of it being a dungeon has increased considerably. Is that so? Yes. Because do you think a normal person would hide a cheap sword in a place like this? Unlikely. If there was such a person, he would be a trickster. And it is highly unlikely that such a person would exist in a world where there is no room to spare. On Earth, there might be someone who hides treasures and makes treasure maps for fun. A dungeon. If that''s a possibility, we need to be on the lookout for traps. Natsuki, can you help? Yes. I''ll do my best. Okay. If it''s a dungeon, there''s more danger along with the possibility of getting treasures. When Halka asked him to talk, he nodded with a mysterious expression. It''s been four days. Four days after that. We widened our search, but we didn''t find any other entrances or exits. Instead, we found another new treasure chest, and the possibility of a dungeon was getting higher and higher. Incidentally, the item from this treasure chest was a subtle wound healing potion. The reason why it was so subtle was because it was of the same or slightly inferior level compared to what Haruka and the others had made. I was able to determine its effectiveness through [Appraisal], but if it''s as good as the one Haruka and her team made, I feel safer, so honestly, I don''t need it. If I didn''t have a magic bag, I would have left it behind because it would have become a burden. As for the traps I was worried about, I haven''t encountered any so far, and my fears were unfounded. According to Toya, "There are no traps in the beginning, right? However, it seems that the dungeons of this world are not "trap-free in the shallow levels," so we can''t rest assured at all. It would be a burden on Natsuki, but he would have to continue on his way with caution. And the next day. We had finally encountered what we were looking for. A group of skeletons had gathered in a large area. Over fifty skeletons, four skeleton knights. And one Skeleton King. The skeleton king was holding a sword with a very expensive ornament on it, which seemed to be the heirloom that the Viscount family was looking for. I''ve been encountering less and less undead lately, but as if to make up for it, there are a lot of them. Apparently, it''s the real deal. Yeah. I''m not sure if it''s luck or bad luck that it''s almost the last one. ...... We''ve been making our way through the side streets and such. Looking at the map Yuki had drawn, there were few places left except the hall where the undead we were looking for were. There were a couple of other paths, and there was a possibility that there were more paths leading to the back of the hall where the undead were, but we felt as if we had wasted our time. It''s okay, though.¡¡If you think there might be a treasure chest, you''ll end up going the other way as well, right? "Oh, you''re going?¡¡Even if there is a treasure chest, it will probably be a trash item. "I don''t want to miss it, even if the chances are almost zero. Somehow! I can understand why you feel that way. Even if you think there''s no chance, it''s better to go through the trouble than to be left with something that makes you feel a little uncomfortable. I''m not opposed to going to check, so I''ll just focus on the task at hand. Fortunately, it doesn''t look like he''ll be coming out of that hall. Yes. I don''t know why, but I think it''s a ...... tactic. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. In addition, since we are illuminated by the light, we should be quite conspicuous. Even so, they don''t come out of the passage and attack us, perhaps because they think they''ll be at a disadvantage. It is true that, considering the difference in numbers, it would normally be more advantageous to wait in the hall. ....... Yes, normally, yes. 182-166 Dungeons? (2) "Purify! The battle begins, as it should, with Haruka and Natsuki''s magic. There is no choice but to use this magic against the undead. It''s a good idea to wait for a small group of people in a large area, but when it comes to a large number of undead and a small number of people who can use light magic, it''s quite the opposite. If they don''t approach us, we can safely cut them down by continuing to use Purify from a distance, so there''s no point in approaching them. In addition, since they were waiting for us in a very dense group, it would be very easy for Haruka and the others to use magic. The first spell melted more than a third of the skeletons, and just before the second spell was about to take effect, the skeletons finally started to move. But that''s not a good response. If they rush in, they''re just sitting ducks, to put it bluntly. The two Purifyers fly at the group again, and the skeletons fall to the ground. It''s a clean sweep. In the case of the group we fought at the entrance to the abandoned mine, they had begun to move immediately after the first spell was cast, and they approached us in a somewhat scattered manner. Compared to that, this was clearly a tactical error. It was obvious that the vanguard hadn''t fought at all, and there were only four Skeleton Knights and a Skeleton King left. Could it be that the Skeleton King is an idiot? "I don''t know, maybe it''s just a matter of his body. "I see. It''s based on a stupid aristocracy. I don''t know if that''s true, but if it''s worse than when Skeleton Knight was in charge, I can''t deny that possibility. Let''s go, then! The one who jumped out was Toya. It is possible to use Purify, but there are only five of them left. We should play some part in this. In an instant, Toya crushes a Skeleton Knight and approaches the Skeleton King, and Yuki and I follow her. To prevent the Skeleton Knight from heading towards Toya, I would control the two with my spear, and Yuki would take care of one. The knights are a little tougher than mere skeletons, but for those of us with a certain amount of experience, we can manage them by force. By the time I had somewhat forcibly crushed the head of one and decapitated the other, crushing their rolling skulls, Yuki had naturally finished off a skeleton knight as well. And the Skeleton King had also disappeared, leaving behind a magic stone and a sword as well. What a little fish. "What a little fish. Even though he''s a king. I''m not sure what to make of this. I think it''s better than being too strong and unruly, but I don''t understand the feeling. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. The moment I was about to say that, there was a rattle in the air, like something collapsing. I''m not sure what to do. When I hurriedly looked in the direction of the sound, I saw that part of the wall had collapsed, leaving a dark hole in the ground. It''s not a collapse ......, is it? The timing is too good--no, too pinpoint. There''s a slope going down. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out by yourself. It''s possible that the wall collapsed because of the battle, but he didn''t use any fancy magic, nor did he bang on the wall. In addition, there is a path that conveniently leads to the back of the dungeon. ...... If you think about it from a game perspective, the path opened up because you killed the boss. "Is this what a dungeon is like? Haruka and the others all shook their heads at my question. "We don''t know much about dungeons. We don''t know much about dungeons, at least not as far as we know. Yes, yes. My common sense only covers a few things. I''ve asked around and done some research, but I don''t have much information ....... In the event that you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. The only information he has gathered is that "dungeons can have unusual environments" and "treasure chests appear". There seems to be a part that says that it is ecologically impossible for demons to exist without food, but this is true not only for dungeons but for demons in general, so it seems that it is difficult to distinguish whether it is a dungeon or a cave inhabited by demons. If there''s a treasure chest, it''s almost certainly a dungeon. ....... If you''re a branch chief, you might be able to ask for more information, but we don''t have the kind of relationship where you can casually ask. "I''m a little curious about where we''re going, but we''re going home, right? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to talk to him, but I don''t feel like I can. Yes. It''s already been a week, you know. The schedule was for a week to ten days, but the timing was just right. I was a little curious about the new area, as Toya had said. I''m a little curious about this new area, but we''ll see. Oh, but I''d like to check out some of the side streets, if that''s okay with you? I''m fine with that. I don''t mind. I''ve got plenty of food and stuff. The upgraded bunk was more comfortable than the first one, and he was less tired than before, probably due to the fact that he had gotten used to it. So, no one particularly objected to Yuki''s suggestion, and we spent another day or so completing the missing parts of the map. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó It was a little after noon when we returned to Laffan. We ate lunch at Aella''s store for the first time in a long time, and then headed to the adventurer''s guild. "Hi, Diora. I found you. Welcome back. Congratulations! I walked over to Diora, who greeted me with a smile, and placed the heirloom sword I wanted on the counter, along with the six swords with crests I had collected. Compared to the other swords, which were more utilitarian, the heirloom swords had more ornamentation on the scabbard and looked more expensive. However, the sword itself is made of white iron like the other swords, and the decoration is within the range of practical use, so the value of the sword is not that high. However, the fee of 300 gold coins for a month''s work is a little low, considering the amount of money we usually earn. It''s not a deficit, but ...... yeah, we''ve become extravagant(?). We''ve become extravagant(?). I''m hoping that if I can get a good handle on the emblematic sword that I collected with it, I''ll be able to make some money. I''m sure you''re right. ....... I''m sure there''s no mistake about it, but I''ll have to check with the Viscountess Nenus before I can pay you your reward, is that okay? You can''t blame them. You don''t even know if it''s real or not. The Kergs are still unsettled, so it may take some time. ...... If you want, I can write you a letter of introduction, and you can negotiate with Haruka and the others? No. I''ll leave it to the guild. I''ll leave it to the guild. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that our party''s name is "Meikagami Seisui". At Diora''s suggestion, Haruka immediately shook her head. We don''t want to negotiate with the nobility either. We can talk to them in a normal and polite manner, but I don''t know if that''s enough when dealing with nobles here. I don''t want to cross a dangerous bridge when I can sell some favors to them. It would be better to sell my name a little. Is that so?¡¡Well, if you''re good, you might be able to get some protection. ...... "No thanks. A little good impression is enough, for now. All right. I''m willing to negotiate for other swords as well. Oh, and just so you know, the Viscountess will deduct her commission from the purchase price of all swords except the one you requested. "I''m sure that''s true. Of course, I don''t mind. It''s a little irregular, but like other materials, the guild buys them and sells them to others. If we can''t sell it, and it''s hard to negotiate directly with the Viscount, it''s only natural that we get a commission. What do you know about Kerg''s prospects? To put it bluntly, I have no idea. I''m sure the lord would like to keep it as quiet as possible. ...... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. So far, the only impact on the rest of Kergu has been a slight delay in the shipment, but if the shortage of food in this city becomes apparent, ...... You''re saying it would be more damaging if we didn''t take strong measures? Yes. The town''s furniture industry has been generating a modest amount of tax revenue. Not to mention the support of the people, will it have an impact on the industry? It''s not a democratic system, but it goes without saying that it''s easier to rule a lord who is supported by his people or a lord who is not supported by his people. By the way, what is strong-arming? "Well, ......, the Order of the Sutomy Saints, I believe. They''ll be crushed by force. Those involved will probably be executed. We looked at each other at Diora''s simple words. In Japan, they would say it was a suppression of religion or something, but this world is not so easy. They are already disturbing the peace of the town. The reason why we have not reached that point yet, despite the fact that we could be crushed at any moment, is because of the stain of the previous generation. Don''t they understand that they are walking on thin ice? --I wonder if they don''t understand that they are walking on thin ice, and because they don''t realize it, some of them get carried away and fail. Someone should be able to steer the ship, but if the saint''s skills are brainwashing, she may not be able to make such a decision. "I see. I think it''s best to stay away from Kerg. "Right. Armed adventurers tend to be looked at a bit harshly at times like this. If you are the protagonist of the story, you might be scrambling to clean up the mess because your classmates are involved, but basically, we turn our backs on such things and secure a safe zone. We have no intention of jumping into a minefield. Whatever our classmates do, it''s not our responsibility, and we should wait for someone else to solve it. If I had to guess, I''d say it''s probably Adverstice''s fault, but she didn''t instigate it, and in the end it''s her own quality, yeah. If she did not do anything wrong, but in reality, she is disturbing the public order, we can not protect her. How''s the fertilizer going, by the way? It''s going well, sir. In this town, the distance between the hunting grounds and the town is relatively close. It seems that the Lord Commander was thinking of it as an insurance policy, but since it seems to be profitable, he''s going to continue regardless of the situation in Kerg. It''s true that the work of adventurers in this town may be just right. Most of the adventurers are on logging escorts in the southern forest, so bringing the compost there will make it easier to collect the demon corpses and reduce the distance the adventurers have to carry them. The adventurers can earn some money, and the farmers can produce more crops and increase their income. Even if the deputy doesn''t make a profit from the fertilizer sales, the tax revenue will go up as more crops are produced, so there is no problem. So, it''s a win-win situation. If I had to guess, I''d say that we, the developers, don''t make much profit, but that''s okay. We''re adventurers by trade. I''ll just be satisfied that I contributed to the development of the town. 183-167 Woven On the way back from the guild, I dropped by Gantz''s store and found that the boots were already finished. The leather armor and other armor seemed to be in the final adjustment stage, and would be completed in a few more days, so I could probably use the new armor for my next job. At any rate, Mr. Gantz said, "Try on the boots," and we put on the boots he gave us. "Wow!¡¡These fit so well!¡¡It''s not like any other boots I''ve ever worn. "This is more than I expected from ....... Yuki, who had quickly changed into her new boots, stepped into them and sounded surprised. Haruka also nodded, bending and rolling her ankles. The boots we had been wearing so far were trekking boots that covered the ankles a little, but these boots were lace-up boots that covered the knees. In spite of this, the moving parts of my ankles and toes are not constrained and are not affected by strenuous movements. They are truly one-of-a-kind, made just for me, and they hug my feet nicely. The only drawback is that they are lace-up boots, so they are quite cumbersome to put on, but this is unavoidable because you don''t want them to come off by any chance. They''re made from the wooden pattern of your feet. Well, as soon as you grow up, you won''t be able to wear them anymore, but I''m sure you guys will be fine. Although my race has changed since I came here, it is true that the size of my feet does not change that much at my age? In the original body, the growth period seemed to be over, but with elves, ...... no, it''s probably about the same. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Especially in our case, we walk long distances and over uneven terrain. The laces are made of Dahl''s Bear leather. I don''t think they''ll break easily, but I''ll give you a spare set each. Thank you, sir. Let me know if you have any problems. An undercarriage malfunction can be fatal. Yes, sir. We thanked Mr. Ganz again and left the store. Incidentally, the boots were made of Dahl''s Bear leather and cost 25 gold pieces per pair. I thought the price was pretty good, but Natsuki said that even in the original world, expensive leather boots would cost more, so the price might be reasonable considering the low labor cost and the fact that we brought in our own materials. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you get through the day. This is the first time I took a bath in a long time. After returning home and enjoying a bath for the first time in a long time, we ate some of the food we had stored and had a relaxed discussion in the living room. This living room was originally going to be a western-style living room with sofas and chairs, but this is a house full of Japanese people. In a relatively short time, the plan was changed. Although the sofas and chairs are still there, the room is completely off-limits to foot traffic. There is a carpet in the center of the room where you can freely roam around. There is also a storage room in the corner of the room where drinks, snacks, and light meals are stored, and you can eat and drink without leaving the room. It''s quite a comfortable space, and all of us usually gather here when we''re not busy. Especially Natsuki and Toya can''t use their own magic to control the air conditioning, and it''s too much trouble for us to keep using magic by ourselves, so gathering together is more efficient in many ways. It''s been getting a little hot lately, so Haruka and the others are working on a prototype gosa. When it is completed, they plan to spread it instead of a carpet. There are also air-conditioning devices available, but they are made to order and take a long time to make, and it''s a bit of a hassle to make them ourselves. At present, we don''t have much trouble, so we just leave it at that. I''m planning to take about three days off this time, is that okay? Is that because of the armor for Dahl''s Bear? Yes. So if it''s not finished, we can either extend the vacation or pick it up at ....... Hmm, that''s good, right?¡¡But what''s the next step?¡¡Are we going to go to the other end? The "beyond" that Toya refers to is the area where the Skeleton King was in the dungeon (presumably), and the slope that appeared there. Or we can explore the forest. ...... If you''re only looking to make money, the forest is probably the better option, right? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. There is a difference of more than 10 times even if you compare only the magic stones. Of course, the strength of the monsters is completely different, but considering our current skills, the monsters in the abandoned mine are in some ways too easy, so we are a little concerned about using them as our main target. We probably won''t be able to expect much in terms of experience either. So far, I''ve gotten the impression that the amount of experience gained from a normal fight is roughly proportional to the purchase price of the magical stone, so this prediction is probably correct. The important thing to remember is that even if the relationship is proportional, the experience is not constant. Is that hard to understand? For example, at level 10, you can get 100 experience from enemies with 100 rare magic stones and 1,000 experience from enemies with 1,000 rare magic stones. That''s how it works. In other words, the experience gained from the price of the magic stone is predictable, but if the enemy is too weak, no experience will be gained. Even if we kill a goblin with magic, the experience will be equivalent to ...... "I practiced magic". But hey, it''s hot in the woods. ...... The one who complained about my opinion was Toya. The time I returned this time was just before noon, so it must have been out of the hottest time of the day, but even so, the temperature was still high enough to make me sweat when I fought. Considering the fact that the temperature will be on the rise for some time to come, it is understandable that Toya wants to avoid the forest, and I agree with her. That''s what I''m struggling with. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information about dungeons and demons in ...... I''d certainly like to have a book on dungeons, and one on the demons we''ve been talking about. If you''re looking for a lot of books, Kergu is probably the place to go, but ...... it''s not a good idea to go there now, and the town beyond is difficult. The town beyond Kergu is called Pining, and it is the capital of Viscount Nenas'' domain. Naturally, it''s the biggest town in the area and probably has a wide variety of books available for purchase, but we should think a little about whether we should avoid Kergu and go for that town or not. We don''t know the extent of the chaos in Kergu, but we can''t deny the possibility that people will be wary of us just because we come from that direction. Diora asked, "Do you want to negotiate with Viscount Nenus yourselves? If you have that letter of introduction, things might go smoothly, but on the other hand, you''ll have to deal with the hassle of ''negotiating with nobles''. We should consider carefully whether or not we should go to Pining. "I''m going to look for it in the bookstores in this town for now. ...... Do you want to go to Sarstat? "Oh, there. I''m hoping for a few bargains there. It''s a place where you can get a grimoire of space-time magic for cheap. "It''s about to get hot, and although it''s not exactly a summer retreat ......, how about going for some leisure and fishing as well?¡¡Instead of a vacation. "Fishing and water sports ...... sounds good! I didn''t say water sports......, well, yes. There was no reason to disagree with Natsuki''s suggestion, and their vacation in this town was reduced to one day. The plan to go out the day after tomorrow was easily approved. By the way, do we have to report to the guild about the dungeon?¡¡It''s almost a dungeon, right? We looked at each other as Toya said, as if remembering. "Report? We weren''t told that we needed to report anything when we signed up. We were never told about the dungeon. Maybe it''s because there aren''t any near here. The only explanation Diora gave me about adventurers was about their rank. I wonder if dungeons are actually that important? But didn''t she say that you need a rank to enter a dungeon? Yes, rank 4 or higher. In guild-controlled dungeons, that is. In other words, if you''re not in a guild-controlled dungeon, you can freely enter ......? We all looked at each other, but none of us could answer, only twisting our heads. After all, a group of people with no knowledge can never become Monju. There is no point in discussing it. The next time you go to the guild, I''ll tell Diora about it. I''m sure he''ll tell you what you need to know then. That''s what it comes down to. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó The next day we were free to go. Toya, Haruka, and Natsuki went to the bookstore, Yuki went to buy food, and I went to the temple alone. As usual, I threw in a large silver coin and asked for experience. --Hmm, one level up. I didn''t kill many strong enemies, but there were a good number of them, so I guess that''s why. Thank you for everything. I turned around to go home, and there she was, the beautiful priestess that I often see in this temple. As I turned around to leave, I saw a beautiful priestess who was often seen in this temple. She greeted me smilingly, probably because I frequently visited the temple and paid her an offering every time. I''ve seen you around a lot lately. I''ve been seeing you around a lot lately. hahaha ...... I think it''s because of the blessings of Adversus that I''m alive and well. Seriously. If it wasn''t for the skills and level ups, I probably would have died right away. If it weren''t for those things, those of us with no connections would have been day laborers for a long time and probably would have died in middle age. But the priest, perhaps surprised that I, an adventurer, had said such a thing in such a serious manner, rolled his eyes and raised his voice. "Well!¡¡I''m sure your faith will reach the gods. "Oh, I''m sorry? I''m not that religious - well, I believe in God, but I don''t know anything about his doctrine, so I''m not sure if I''m religious or not. What I want is worldly gain. So I was going to give him a vague Japanese smile and just fade away. ....... Hmm?¡¡Why am I in the orphanage behind the temple? No, it''s not that I was distracted by the soft touch of the sister''s arms holding me tightly. You know, if you pull it out by force, you might hurt the sister, right? I''ve been working out for a while now, and I''m pretty strong, too. --Yeah, I lied a little. I can''t deny that I followed her because she was a beautiful woman. If it had been a male priest, I would have just left. However, it''s not a lie that I was a little interested in the orphanage. I think it is a barometer of the state of security and governance. If it''s too bad, I''m not sure I''ll be able to settle here. ....... So this is an orphanage. ....... How many children do you have? There are currently 23. The orphanage we were taken to was about the size of two slightly larger detached houses in Japan. It was probably bigger than my two houses, but definitely smaller than Natsuki''s. The garden, or playground, attached to the building is large enough for running around, but the rooms seem to be small. The building itself is a little old, but from the outside, it does not appear to be fatally damaged. The building itself is a little old, but it doesn''t look fatally damaged from the outside. How much money does this place have? The money we receive from our lord and your generous donations. That''s how we make ends meet. ...... Not much to spare, he said. The building we entered was old and in need of repair, but considering the fact that it was being repaired, it was not too bad. "Shin Kancho-sama~! As I was being led through the orphanage, a little girl came running up from the other side of the corridor, noticed me, and hurriedly applied the brakes. She looked up at me and cocked her head. The little girl looked up at me and tilted her head. You will find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their lives. "This is the man who donated to ....... The priest who tried to introduce me, ...... no, the chief priest?¡¡I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I have. I mean, why did they bring me here? I know you probably want donations, but ...... did you think I had faith? Did you think that if you saw the current state of the orphanage, people with faith would give you money? I''m not sure. Thank you very much. The girl bowed her head in a polite but lispy manner. I looked at the chief priest without thinking, but he quickly averted his gaze. I''m not sure if I''d want to give money to someone who showed me this, rather than have an adult ask me for a donation. ...... Isn''t that a little cruel? I''m sure the chief priest sensed my feelings, and as if in a panic, he called out to the girl without looking at me. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. "Oh, that''s right!¡¡Brother Koro and Brother Jay are fighting! Well, well, well. That''s not good! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. For a moment, I thought about turning on my heel and going home, but it was difficult because Remy was glancing back at me as I walked away. A child''s gaze is not fair. I gave up and followed him, and we arrived at the dining room. In a large room, two boys of about seven or eight years old were rolling around on the floor, fighting with each other. Some children were watching from afar, some were playing in the corner of the room as if they didn''t care about it, and some were making noise as if to agitate them. Many children, both boys and girls, were gathered in the room. As expected, when the children who had been playing along noticed the chief priest''s appearance, they panicked and said, "Oh no! But the two who were fighting each other didn''t notice, and they were still engaged in a battle. No, even though they were fighting, it didn''t look like a serious fight, more like a joking match. Then, the Chief Priest''s thunderbolt strikes them. "Hey! "!¡¡Oh no!¡¡Run! What were they fighting about just now? The two of them said the same words in unison, and then quickly broke apart, both of them running away together into the depths of the orphanage. Oh my god, those two are ....... I''m sorry to bother you. Oh, no. That''s what kids of that age are like. I think they''re fine, don''t you? At least they have the energy to fight. However, he doesn''t seem to have enough food, and he seems to be having a hard time finding clothes, so if he gets too energetic and tears his clothes, the chief priest who is taking care of him will be in trouble. Especially in this world, clothes are so expensive that they can become assets if they are not well taken care of. In Japan, casual second-hand clothes are only worth their weight in gold. Oh, I''m sorry. My name is Ishka, and I am the head priest of this temple. My name is Nao. I''m an adventurer based in this town. You must be Nao. Please come in. After leaving the cafeteria, I was led to the orphans'' bedroom. The reason I didn''t go home was, of course, because I was interested in the orphanage. My arm was firmly grasped by Ishka again, but I had nothing to do with her. The room was about six tatami mats with two triple bunk beds. A room for six people. That''s six rooms. Only four of the rooms are occupied now, but in the past, there was a time when two people occupied one bed because they couldn''t fit in this room. Fortunately, since Ishka has been in charge of the orphanage, all the beds have not been filled. ....... Are all the orphans in town here? At least all the orphans that are identified are collected here. The area where we live is one of the unsafe areas in Laffan, but we haven''t seen any orphans like street children so far. There are no slums, and even if the area is unsafe, there is no danger of being attacked just because there are some bad characters (mainly adventurers) walking around - well, not as far as we are concerned. Most of the people in this town are in the noble professions, and there are almost no adventurers with children of any rank in this town. Thanks to you, this town is just barely getting by, but it''s still not easy. I wish more blessings for you and for these children. I wish more blessings for you and for them. And behind her, Remy-chan and the others are also staring at me. Yeah, you''re asking me to guess, right?¡¡I understand. But, "blessing"... I''ve come to believe in the existence of God since I came here, but I still don''t believe in the framework of man-made religions, and I don''t intend to in the future. However, I have received some ''benefits''... I got the benefit of increased experience. I don''t really feel it, but I don''t think God would lie about it. ...... No, I want to believe it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. I''m not sure how much I can do, but I''ll try. It''s not a lot of money, but it''s worth it. It''s not a lot of money, but it will add up to something. But the amount of money I gave Ishka seemed to be more than she expected. His eyes widened a little and he bowed deeply with a softer smile than before. Thank you very much. I will take your kindness very seriously. Ah, five gold coins is a lot of money for an adventurer based in this town. But if it''s for the sake of the orphans here, I don''t think this amount of donation is too much to ask. If I continue to be an adventurer in the future, there''s a good chance that my children will be taken care of here. --I have no plans to get married, though! I''ll stop by again when I get the chance. ...... Don''t get your hopes up too high, though. "Of course. If you could just share some of your spare time with them, that would be enough. But when a combo of a cute kid and a beautiful chief priestess comes along. But if the combo of a cute kid and a beautiful priestess comes, I''m afraid I''ll be forced to donate a little. Especially if you become friends with the kids. Yeah, let''s get out of here. I told Ishka that I was free and left the room. And then Remy, who was attached to the chief priest, waved me goodbye and I left the orphanage. --Well, I''m sure I''ll be involved in the future. As long as there is such a thing as "level", we can''t keep our distance from the temple of Adversus. 184-168 River play (1) Instead of five gold coins, I got a virtue. While I got 5 gold coins instead of virtue, Haruka and the others who went to the bookstore didn''t seem to have much success. There were a few books on demons, but not the ones we needed, and the books on dungeons had been sold just a few days ago. I thought, "What bad timing," but when I asked about it, I found out that dungeon-related books are actually hot sellers, and they sell out sooner than expected when they come in. The reason for this is that adventurers in this town, after improving their skills to a certain degree, either move their home base to Kerg or travel a bit farther to a town with dungeons. Adventurers who can afford it buy books to learn more about the dungeon. They are expensive, and not everyone can afford them, but if you are an adventurer who travels across the Kerug to a town with a dungeon, you should be able to earn that kind of money. If you don''t, it''s reckless to enter the dungeon. Fortunately, the adventurer who left Rafan this time seemed to be a cautious adventurer. Fortunately, the adventurer who left Rafan this time seemed to be a cautious adventurer, which is what prevented us from going in this time. However, it seems that they did not completely miss out on anything. All three of them bought several books for both hobby and practical use. We have grown up to be able to buy books with our own pocket money. The next day, we ran to Sahlstadt. The next day, we ran to Sahlstat and went straight to the bookstore. Because of our previous experience, we didn''t feel like eating here, so we planned to finish our business by noon and go upstream to have a barbecue for lunch. Hello. I''m looking for a book about demons and a book about dungeons. ...... Wait a minute. The shopkeeper, who was approached by Haruka, immediately stood up and started to pick up books from the bookshelf behind him. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a great idea. ...... No, it''s possible that the stock hasn''t moved enough for him to remember. For now, I''ll leave the negotiations to Haruka, and Yuki and I will rummage through the wagon sales. Even if there are no second loach, there might be some small fish that can be eaten. We choose a book with a relatively intact binding and look inside. ...... It''s a bit delicate. I don''t care about the personal histories of noblemen whose names I don''t even know. I guess they made it for bragging rights, but ...... what''s the point? The rest of the books are just as likely to end up on the shelf. It''s not going to work out that way. Yuki, do you have anything good? "Well, there are no good books. There are no decent books that are worth a lot of money, but there are some that are worth a lot of money. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more than just a book. I see. If it''s a book and has value, why would it be here? We''re dealing with a professional book dealer. It''s not that they couldn''t judge the value of the book, it''s just that they decided that a bargain like the last one would not sell here even if they knew it had value to some people. Following Yuki''s lead, I checked out the raggedy books, and indeed, some of them seemed to have some significance. However, if I''m not careful, important parts may be left out, so it''s dangerous to judge a book by reading it only at the beginning. This is probably a case of taking out only the necessary parts and selling off the rest, right?¡¡This is a bit malicious (?). A little malicious(?). "Did anything happen to you? Well, a little, I guess. Haruka and his staff have finished checking the books, and there are two books and eight books on the counter. The two books are about dungeons and demons that you might be willing to buy, while the eight books are ones that Haruka and his team have decided are not worth it, at least not for us right now. On the other hand, we picked up seven books. The seven books we picked up are ones that we judged to have some value, though it''s not easy to describe them as "books". Each book is 1,800 rares, for a total of 12,600 rares. Normally, it would be unthinkable to pay 12,600 rares, or more than 120,000 Japanese yen, for this, but we can only think of it as a difference in prices. If you''re looking for the best of the best, you''re going to have to go with the best. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased with the results. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... How about 33 gold coins for these two books and that? Is that cheap?¡¡In the event that you''re not sure of the price of the book you''ve chosen, we don''t say anything about it and look at Haruka, who was the main negotiator. I''m sure you''re right. ...... Yeah. Good. And. I''m sorry. After some thought, Haruka nodded and paid for the book. We left the store and headed upriver, out of town. Our destination was the same fishing spot as last time, but on the way, we stopped at a large riverbank and started to prepare for the barbecue. The basic preparations were done before we left home, so all we had to do was to gather some stones, make a hearth, throw in some firewood, and wait for the fire to start. So, how much did you get off the price? "Well, three thousand six hundred rares. This one, ''What is a Dungeon'', is 13,000 rares. This one, "A Study of Demons," was 11,000 rares. As we poked at the still-burning firewood with sticks, we talked about what had just happened, tea in hand. Yuki was reading a piece of paper as soon as she could, so she must have found something that caught her interest. "It''s a little cheaper than the demon encyclopedia I have now, isn''t it? I believe Toya said something about 20 gold coins. Compared to that, "A Study of Monsters" is thinner, but also about half the price. These were more like academic papers. In terms of practicality, it''s a bit ...... So they discounted it because it was hard to sell. "Yes. I think you can get some knowledge, but it''s not as useful as a demon encyclopedia. Well, I still think there''s a point to appraisal. If the [appraisal] skill reflects one''s own knowledge, it would certainly be useful to deepen one''s knowledge by reading papers. "What about ''What is a Dungeon''? "This is more of a discussion of dungeons than a general knowledge of them. It seems to be more about why they exist. It''s probably not a ''fact'' but a ''prediction'' or a ''guess''. Dungeons have not been well researched and are currently in a state of flux. What is generally known about dungeons is merely what is empirically thought to be ''probably correct''. The book I bought this time seems to be one such theory, but since it is sold in the form of a book, the author must have a certain amount of money, and if he has money, there is a high possibility that the contents of his research can be trusted to some extent. There is also a possibility that it is just a rich aristocrat who has no time to write about his fantasies, but since there is no publisher, we have to accept this as a risk. What about Yuki and the others?¡¡It looked like a bunch of dirty papers. "Ours was just a reference, I guess. Pharmacy, alchemy, all sorts of stuff, you can look through it in your spare time. "I see, got it. We waited for a while, each reading a book as we saw fit, and when the wood had reached a fire, we stopped reading and set up the grill. We set up the grill and tuck into the grilled meat. In addition to salt and pepper, there was also a modified yakiniku sauce - the one Yuki had made based on the inspiration sauce - and it was delicious as usual. It was a pity that there was no rice. After lunch, we quickly moved to the fishing grounds and started fishing to secure food. There''s not much to say about this. We have been here many times before, but it seems that the fish around here are not slack, and we can catch them easily. We are very grateful for that. The purpose of coming here is to catch fish, not for sport fishing. I hope you will continue to be naive. It had been four days since I started to secure fish and shrimps like this. The temperature rose from the morning, and by noon, it was very hard to keep a line in the water. We all wore straw hats, but that was not enough to stop the sun from burning ......, but it was still a little hard. I guess it means that summer is approaching in earnest. "Hey, Haruka, isn''t this weather nice? When I said this while looking up at the sky, Haruka also looked up at the sky and put down her fishing rod, having already secured enough. "Yeah, right. Well then, let''s call it a day and play! "I''ve been waiting for you! "I''ve been waiting for you!" shouted Toya happily. It was not difficult to catch fish here, so in a sense it had become a task, and he must have been bored. If it were more difficult, it might be more interesting to play games with the fish, but for those of us who want to eat ...... fish, that would be a hassle. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea. "You two, don''t peek. "No peeking! We''re going to change our clothes. I''ll leave you to it. The women moved to a tent that was somewhat cramped, but could fit three people, and began to change into their swimsuits while talking amicably. Some distance away from them, Toya and I also changed into our swimsuits. There was no one watching us, and since we were men, we didn''t pay any attention to it. Normally, playing in the water in a place like this would be dangerous for ordinary people, but considering our [Searching for Enemies] skills and the strength of the enemies we encountered, it was no problem. We haven''t encountered any demons in the past four days, and even if they do appear, with three wizards, we can destroy them without using weapons. Even without armor, the attacks of goblins are not much of a problem. In the beginning, even goblins posed a certain threat. ...... This is the result of hard work. But straw hats ...... don''t look good on elves. Is that so?¡¡I don''t know. The only thing I''m wearing right now is a straw hat and a trunks-type swimsuit. I''m sorry to say this, but I think it''s a bit unbalanced for a beautiful elf. Incidentally, Toya is also dressed in the same way, but his outfit is much more appropriate. You look ...... good, don''t you? He has a well-built, inverted triangle body and a straw hat. You look more at home on the beach or in the fields in the middle of summer than you do as a warrior. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡Look at this physical beauty! "Hmmm! He''s not a muscle fetishist. I don''t think this guy had a muscle fetish. ....... I''m sure you''ll be proud of the results of your nearly a year of hard work and training. I don''t have that much muscle, probably because of the difference in our species. I''m generally toned, and my abs have a hint of a six-pack, but I''m not as muscular as Toya. Well, he''s well-balanced, so he''s fine in my opinion. Sorry to keep you waiting. Just then, a voice called out from behind us. 185-169 River play (2) "Are you done changing? ...... Oh. When the three of us came out of the tent, we were all wearing the same one-piece swimsuit. It is not a tight swimming suit, but a slightly looser school swimsuit, and the color is the same as our swimsuit, a dark gray with a hint of navy blue. The color is the same as ours, a dark gray with a hint of navy blue. The color is the same as our swimsuit, a dark gray with a hint of navy blue. It may look a little unrefined, but the material that all three of them are wearing is good, so it doesn''t lack glamour at all. It''s a pity I don''t have a camera. Everyone looks pretty good. But it''s not the ...... separates type, is it? I mean, if there''s a fight, you can''t risk wearing a bikini. That''s true. Normally, magic will take care of this, but if you have to fight with weapons, you won''t have a bikini. Haruka is slender, but Yuki and Natsuki are of normal size. I''m sorry, Nao. I''m sorry, Nao, but I can''t live up to your expectations of polori. I''m not expecting it! Yuki shrugs her shoulders, shakes her head and says something funny. I really wish you''d stop making crazy accusations. I wasn''t thinking about ...... that at all, was I? That''s right. It''s better if I can''t take it off, right? "Oh. Oh. ......? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. You can''t take it off, can you? "Hey, Haruka, Yuki, Natsuki. Nao has a school swimsuit fetish! Who said that? It''s a good thing that I''m not the only one with a fetish. d*mn. Haruka and Yuki look at me like I''m playing a prank. I''m sure you''re right.¡¡I didn''t know that. We have separate pool times. "You''re a boy, Nao. No, he''s not! At least I don''t have a school swimsuit fetish or anything like that! Well, you can look.¡¡You can look, Nao. "Oh, no, ....... I looked away from Natsuki, who was blushing a little and looking at me shyly. I''m a man, of course, and I can''t say I''m not interested, but... I''m a man, of course, and I can''t say I''m not interested, but... "Why this color in the first place?¡¡It looks more like a school swimsuit. "It''s not like a school swimsuit. It''s too transparent. This is a dark color that''s easy to dye, right? Most of the clothes worn by the common people in this world are made of raw cloth that has not been dyed. The reason for this is, of course, cost. The reason for this is, of course, the cost. It takes a lot of time and effort to dye bright colors and other colors as well. For this reason, not much dyed cloth is used in the daily wear of the common people, and the color of the clothes is a barometer of wealth. The clothes Nao and the others are wearing, we dyed them ourselves. "We had some tea leaves, so we used them. We had some tea leaves, so we used them. I had never dyed anything with plants and trees before, but I heard that all you have to do is to soak the cloth in a liquid made by boiling tea, and then soak it in a liquid made from rusty iron. It''s easy. If you just want to dye it. However, if you want to dye a pattern, you need to use batik, tie-dye, and other techniques, so it is not so easy. Also, it''s relatively easy to dye black and brown, but it''s difficult to produce vivid colors. Come to think of it, the clothes you made me didn''t come in red, blue or green, did they? That kind of color requires a specific plant. ...... The two girls looked disappointed, after all, they wanted clothes in beautiful colors too. Instead, it seems that it''s easy to produce black, brown, and yellow colors using random plants gathered in the forest. Colorful cloths are also sold, but they are quite expensive, so they haven''t bothered with them. You can make dyes with alchemy, so I think it would be a good idea to try. But, Haruka, the materials for that are quite expensive, aren''t they?¡¡It''s not like you can spend a lot of money on something that has nothing to do with practicality. ...... I''m sure. I had to dye this swimsuit, as expected. You don''t want it to be transparent. Not only the women, but also the men. Incidentally, using dyed cloth is said to cost more than 100,000 yen per piece of clothing. In the case of Haruka''s group, they can make their own dyestuffs, so theoretically they can make them a little cheaper, but if they have to dye the amount of cloth they use individually in many different colors, it''s not worth it. The time cost is not worth it. If you want to dye all of them in one color, as in the case of this swimsuit, it seems to be better. ....... However, since you have a certain amount of money to live on, I think you should at least buy some cloth in your favorite color. I wonder if Yuki and Natsuki are still suffering from the trauma of their first life. By the way, why do all the girls have the same swimsuit?¡¡You can do whatever you want with that one, right? "Well, they don''t stretch much, so there''s only so many shapes you can make. And at our age, it''s not like we can wear frills and stuff. The reason why school swimsuits used to have that shape is because the material was not as good as it is now. That''s why I used that as a reference. It is said that they used a slightly higher quality fabric that stretched more than ordinary cotton, but even so, they could not make a swimsuit that would stick to the body as tightly as a modern swimsuit. As a compromise, they came up with a swimsuit that looks like the old school swimsuits that Haruka and her friends are wearing now. I''ve never actually seen it, but I''ve heard that it''s called "old school" in some circles. Toya''s and my swimsuits are made of ordinary cotton. It has no elasticity and is tied around the waist with a string. There''s no need to use expensive materials, and that''s fine, but you''re supposed to wear a supporter underneath. This ...... is to keep your p*n*s from dangling. I don''t think Haruka and the others are familiar with it, so they probably didn''t notice it. Well, it''s not much of a problem, just a little uncomfortable. "Hey, enough about swimsuits, let''s go for a swim. It''s too hot in the sun! "Yes, it is. Well then, let''s go. The reason why I feel hot even though I''m wearing light clothes is probably because the sun is strong, as Toya said. We moved a little bit from the place where we were camping and fishing. The river is a little wider, and the current is slower. We don''t see many fish, so it''s a good place to play. "Whee, it''s cool. I take off my hat, dip into the water up to my shoulders, and exhale. The water is clear and the temperature is a little low. The water was clear and the temperature was a little low. It would probably cool me down if I stayed in the water for a long time, but it was just right for me now that I was sweating so much in the heat of the sun. Toya looked at me like I was a fool. You''re an old man in a hot spring, aren''t you? You''re an old man in a hot spring. You''re here with other young people, so you should be cackling more. "Your way of talking is not youthful.¡¡Why are you doing this? There''s an opening! Whoops! My lazy face is washed by the cold water. The one who interrupted my elegant moment was Natsuki. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. "Hmm... Take your time. As I slowly try to stand up, a wave suddenly crashes over me from the side, sweeping me and Toya away. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s not that bad, is it?¡¡It''s much easier to control water with water than with magic. Normally, a water jet is a magic that sprays water created by magic, but it seems that it can also be used to manipulate river water. He is quite dexterous. Magic is not fair!¡¡Toya, help me! Yeah! In terms of physical strength, Toya is the best. The two of them waded through the water and headed for Haruka and the others, but then - boom! The two men were swept away again by a wave that hit them from behind. I see!¡¡That''s how it should be done! I heard Yuki''s voice as I was swept away. "d*mn, there''s another one who can use water magic! "Nao, you can''t fight me? "I''m a hardworking magician! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. If it''s a space-time spell that I have the ability to use, it''s impossible for me to suddenly control the water in the river with a water spell that I haven''t used much. "Oh, so you can interfere with the magic. Like jamming. "That''s impossible too!¡¡That''s because technically you''re not manipulating water. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. If you are using magic to move water, it is not impossible in principle to interfere with that water with my magic, but Haruka and the others only used magic for a moment to create a wave. The rest is a simple physical phenomenon. The rest is a simple physical phenomenon. To put it simply, if you do something to the pitcher after he throws the ball, the ball will not stop in midair. That''s not fair, you guys! I''m sorry, Toya. I''m serious about playing, too. ...... Pfft. Haruka replies with a serious face that looks a little melancholy, but then blows up in the middle. I''m not sure what to make of it. If you take into account the difference between men and women, the balance is good, but the number of wizards is overwhelmingly disadvantageous. But as expected, Natsuki''s light magic would be useless for water play. However, both Haruka and Yuki have a higher level of water magic than I do, so it''s impossible to compete with them. Then... I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Nao, what are you using? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. And the water that Natsuki scooped up and poured over her fell to the surface without reaching us. I''m so heavy! I used "Heavy Weight" and "Pressure Field". Of course it hurts to be hit by heavy water, and since there is no need to fight in close quarters, there is no problem in using the "Pressure Field" to apply the load. The only drawback is that the distance the water flies is shortened when it enters the pressure field, but that''s not a big problem. "Good job, Nao!¡¡That''s great, that''s great! It''s a great way to make sure you don''t get caught in the middle of the action. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. All three of them are soaking wet and are unable to fight back. "Hahahaha!¡¡How about that! Isn''t it mature to be serious? Don''t worry, we''re adults here, but in Japan we''re still kids. It''s good to be a kid again once in a while, isn''t it? "......, if this happens! Just when I thought Haruka had disappeared behind Natsuki and Yuki... I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do. A chunk of ice flew past me as I fell down in a panic, hitting the rocks behind me and shattering the ice. --The ice shattered with the rock fragments. The force of the impact stopped Toya''s hand from splashing water on me. You can''t do that!¡¡I''m not going to be able to do that. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Well, rejoice, it''s your first magic. I''m breaking out in a cold sweat! Of course, he had made adjustments, but a collision without armor would surely result in bruises. No matter how advanced I am, my body is not as hard as a rock. I don''t care how much I''ve improved, I''m not as hard as a rock. "Really?¡¡In a snowball fight, you use icy snowballs that are hardened to a crisp. It''s the same thing. No, it''s not! It''s all about defense. We''re only wearing swim shorts. You''ll be able to get a lot more than just a pair of shorts. The first time you use it is when you''re playing, it''s wrong. "All right, all right, let''s calm down. Let''s not use magic on each other. This isn''t cackle-worthy at all. In addition, unlike the snowball fight that Haruka used as an example earlier, there is no rule that says if you collide with someone, you''re out. If things continue as they are, I can imagine them splashing water on each other for as long as their physical and magical strength lasts. It''s no use. Let''s do it without magic then. Thanks. Haruka and the others were the first to use magic, but they had enough sense not to mention it. The rest of the day was spent relaxing and cackling. After that, we had a relaxing time, splashing each other with water and swimming in the river. We spent the rest of the day playing until the sun went down, and then we cleaned up the encampment and got ready to leave. We left the camp when it was a little cooler, and drove all the way to Laffan, returning home later that day. 186-S015 I want to be impatient! Nao asked me to make her a bathing suit. She wants to play in the water in the summer. But it''s not just about playing in the water, you''re definitely expecting it, right?¡¡You''re expecting to see us in swimsuits. Well, I don''t mind, but... I''d be shocked if he said he wasn''t interested. "First, we need swimsuits for Nao and the others. What do you want? Here in my sewing room, there are three women gathered. Of course, Nao and Toya are shut out. We need to measure you, you know, your figure. Just wear shorts. I''m sure Nao and the others don''t expect us to make boomerang pants. The only thing to watch out for is Toya''s tail. It''s just like underwear. We''re actually in charge of making Nao''s underwear. "I can''t believe I''m making men''s underwear! It''s not like there are any women here who would say something stupid like, "I can''t believe I''m making men''s underwear! "Well, the only difference between swimsuits and trunks is the fabric. I think you should make them a little looser and stretch the hem. The waistband is also threaded, so you don''t have to worry about it shifting. I don''t know what to make. ....... Which fabric should I use? ...... If it''s the same cloth as trunks, it will become transparent when wet. It should be thick and have a good texture. "Is this okay?¡¡What do you think? "Yeah, I think it''s good. When I showed her what I had picked up from the shelf of cloths, she simply nodded without picking it up. "Haruka, you should be more interested. You can make any swimsuit you want. I don''t care about men''s swimwear.¡¡As long as it works. Well, it''s true that I don''t appreciate men''s swimwear, but... You like them, don''t you? Well, let''s just get it done. We''ll need to dye it. Yeah. I think the fabric is good, but it needs more dyeing. The fabric I chose was a light navy blue. The fabric I chose was a light navy blue, but I thought a darker color would be more appropriate for the image of a swimsuit. Specifically, to distinguish it from trunks! I''d be embarrassed if they looked like trunks. I''ll take care of that. I''ll go look for some other fabric. Haruka and Natsuki began to work crisply with their own hands. I''m going to leave them alone and look for some fabric for our swimsuit. In this sewing room, I have purchased a variety of fabrics, but ...... there are no synthetic fibers, as expected. There are some that are close, but unfortunately they are not as stretchy as modern swimwear materials. It is thin, stretchy, not transparent, water-resistant, and moderately water-repellent. The fabric of a bathing suit is quite sophisticated, isn''t it? I usually don''t pay much attention to it. Maybe this one? I chose a jersey-like fabric. If it''s stretchy and not transparent, it''s the only choice. Incidentally, this is also a material made by alchemy, but I bought it instead of making it myself. You can read about how to make them in the alchemy encyclopedia, but it''s useless to get all the equipment. The alchemy of this world is a technology that is a mixture of science and magic, so it is quite versatile. Whether it can be done by individuals or not is another matter. The drawback is that it is difficult to fully automate. Chemistry can be mass-produced automatically by building a plant, but alchemy is like a cottage industry, since human hands are always involved in some parts of it. Also, energy sources. Basically, it''s a magic stone, so it can''t be used without a stable supply of it, and the manpower needed to make it - specifically, the number of adventurers - inhibits industrialization? If you look at alchemy encyclopedias, there are many useful things that have been developed, but the chances of them spreading to the average household are pretty slim. Aside from the high cost of the device, for example, if you were told that the cost of electricity needed to use an air conditioner for a day is 3,000 yen, you wouldn''t say, "Okay, I''ll buy one," would you? The most important problem is that there are few people who have that much magic power. On the contrary, magic tools are widely used by nobles who have money and adventurers who can prepare their own magic stones, and some magic tools with cost advantages are also used by the general public. For example, toilets. I''m glad this isn''t one of those places where people just dump their filth in the street. Yuki, did you find any good materials? "Oh, yeah. "Yuki, did you find a good material?" "Uh, yeah. I think I''ll use this for the front, this for the lining, and this for the cup. While I was absentmindedly thinking and choosing fabrics, Haruka and the others were already sewing up Nao''s swimsuit. The shape is simple and I have a paper pattern of the original trunks, so it''s very quick. Yes, it''s a bit expensive, but ...... it''s okay. "Yes. If you dye them properly, you won''t have to worry about them becoming transparent. It''s a little unrefined, though. The fabric is too thick. You can''t make a good impression in a bathing suit with this, can you? ...... Yes, it''s what''s inside that counts, right? I''m not sure if this is a good idea.¡¡I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. "One piece is the only choice. Oh, my God, you don''t have a choice? Yuki, do you want to get naked?¡¡There''s always the chance of a demon coming to get you, right? Yes. Waving a weapon in a bikini is not ...... It''s a possibility, but it''s almost zero. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You can''t deny that Haruka has a point. You can''t make a cute swimsuit out of this fabric, so let''s go a different route here. "Well, well, well, here it is: ...... I drew a quick illustration and showed it to Haruka and Natsuki. ...... Is this an old school swimsuit? "Yes, it is. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Oh, I didn''t know that.¡¡So, Yuki, do you understand the structure of this? Vaguely?¡¡Just my imagination. I''ve never seen one before. That''s okay. I don''t think it''ll come off. Okay. Well, the pattern is... And for a while. The three of us consulted with each other and made up a pattern for the swimsuit, and then each of us cut a piece of cloth for ourselves and started making it. Unlike Nao and her friends'' underwear, our swimsuits are quite troublesome. Its shape is complicated and it doesn''t have much elasticity, so we have to make it fit our body exactly, and we also have to add lining and cups. Hmm?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. ...... Oh well, I''m a guy. As I sewed my own swimsuit, I looked at Haruka, who was also sewing a swimsuit. I''ve been living in the same house for a while now, and I''m still curious about Haruka and Nao. I''m sure you''ll find a lot of people who''d like to know more about this. ......?¡¡You know what?¡¡It''s not like we''re brother and sister, is it? I''ve never had a childhood friend who lived next door to me, so I don''t know much about that. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. Well, it''s confirmed that Haruka likes Nao. I don''t see any progress at all, even though they''re living together now! The distance between them is the same as when they were in Japan! Wouldn''t it be nice if, before you know it, you can''t see each other? Most of the time, I can see one of them! I saw Haruka sewing a swimsuit with a serious face again, and secretly called out to Natsuki. (Hey, Natsuki. I''m not sure what to say. Well, I think ...... it''s not so bad. We''ve got a house, and with our current skills, we have a relatively stable income. Yes, it''s much more stable. Two days off a week, enough to take long vacations and still be able to save. The only problem is ....... What?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. ...... I guess I didn''t word it right. I''m not sure what to say. The land and buildings are ours, but if the lord asks us to leave, that''s the end of it, and our income comes from the magic bags. If someone else comes to Rafan with a magic bag like ours, we''ll be competing with them. "Well, of course. Do you think it''s possible? It''s unlikely at the moment. The current lord is a decent man and the town of Laffan is rural and unattractive. If you have enough magic bags to carry orcs and wood, you can make enough money in a more urban area. The famous dungeon city seems to be a good choice. "Wait, wait, wait, wait! Interrupt. I''m changing the direction of the conversation! I''m going to change the direction of the conversation!¡¡It''s a love story, isn''t it?¡¡Three girls in a room?¡¡With no one of the opposite s*x present!¡¡And they''re sewing swimsuits to go play with boys!¡¡Why are you going in such a serious direction! "Huh. ...... Yuki, is that the situation now? Situation, huh?¡¡You just said you''ve got more time. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Haruka?¡¡You just don''t want to be followed, do you? "...... what are you talking about? What''s going on with you and Nao?¡¡I''ve been impatient with you since we were in Japan!¡¡We''ve been in a situation where we''ve known each other since childhood, lived next door to each other, and it''s too late! I''ll tell you what. I''ll be frank. "What are you talking about?¡¡I''m not sure what you''re talking about. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m so excited about this. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m sure you''ll understand. So, what do you think? To Natsuki: ....... There''s nothing going on at ....... Why not?¡¡We were neighbors before. Now we''re under the same roof. Why isn''t there any progress? It''s difficult!¡¡It''s not easy once the distance is established. ...... No, no, no, no, I understand. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll agree. And I don''t want ...... to get pregnant. It would be scary to have a baby in this situation. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡Why are you suddenly flying there?¡¡I''m not sure what to say.¡¡Why can''t we just hold hands, go on a date, and then kiss? That''s a huge jump. You''re talking about a rapid-fire, roller-coaster love? I don''t like it when things get tense, but I also don''t like it when we suddenly have to spend more time alone in a private room. As a roommate, I don''t like it! We hold hands and go on dates all the time. ...... Yeah, yeah, we do. They were. I don''t know if Nao sees it as a date or not. We haven''t kissed yet, but ...... if I confess to Nao and she presses me, I can''t refuse. If we end up going that far. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Maiden! "A maiden! I know. I knew that. I''d be shocked if someone told me I wasn''t a maiden. Seeing Haruka''s condition, Natsuki nodded her head in agreement. But it''s true that childbirth is uncomfortable. Even in Japan, where medical facilities are well-equipped, it can be scary. You''re serious!¡¡And you''re so quick!¡¡Don''t you have any more sweet and sour things to do in the preliminary stages? I mean, if you''re doing this and that, you might as well step in it, right?¡¡There''s no parent to complain. You''re a young man running wild! But here, we''re adults. ...... No!¡¡Don''t say that now! I''m imagining things! If Haruka and Nao are alone together in the future, people will only look at them that way! Even if they were just training normally, if they were red-faced and sweating, I''d think, "Could it be after the fact? But if I can''t fight, I can''t fight. But actually, if I can''t fight anymore, it''s not good for the party, is it? "What, are you going to continue this story? "Really?¡¡I''m not sure what to do with it. Yuki said she wanted to talk about love. "This is a love story?¡¡Isn''t that a step or two too far?¡¡Isn''t this a step or two beyond Zecky and into chick lit? I don''t think I''d enjoy it if it went that far. In terms of love stories... But it''s important, isn''t it? "But it''s important, isn''t it?" "Shall we create a maternity leave system for ''Meikyoudousui''? "What''s that? A guaranteed share? That''s fine, but... No, a birth control system so that pregnancies don''t overlap?¡¡If it''s just one, it''s fine, but if there''s more than one, you won''t be able to work. ...... If you call it a ''maternity leave system'' in Japan, you''ll get punched out. You can''t avoid being labeled black. But it''s realistic. I know it''s unlikely, but if the three of us were to get pregnant at the same time, our income would be cut off for over a year. In Japan, you can work during your pregnancy, but there is no way you can fight with a child in your belly, and you''ll definitely be around the baby for a while after delivery. There is no powdered milk with adjusted nutritional value, and there are no convenient diapers. Instead, there is magic, but only Haruka and Natsuki can use it. On the other hand, there is a way to hire a nanny, but ...... that costs money too. Even if you save up properly, there is still a lot of uncertainty. Yes, you need to adjust. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I think you said something about targeting Nao. Haruka pointed this out, and me and Natsuki looked at each other. I don''t think so, but I think being Nao''s partner is the safest place to live in this world. I think so. It''s best if you know each other. I''ve heard that differences in values are a major hindrance to family life. Do you have romantic feelings? Haruka''s question made us ponder a little. I''m not sure if I like him or not.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I like you the best of the opposite s*x, though I''m not as ...... subtle about my burning love as Halka. I''m not sure I would have even confessed to her if I had stayed in Japan, let alone gotten married, and there''s no such thing as ''I can only see you'' or anything like that, so there''s always the possibility of a change in policy if you meet the right person. But I don''t think there are many people who have more money than Nao, and who are more secure. I''m not saying Toya is a bad person, but she''s ready to get a beast of a wife, and I don''t know if she can get along with that person. On the other hand, Haruka and Natsuki are safe. They''ve been together for a long time. Peace of mind is very important. Haruka looked a little dumbfounded at our answer. "You''re both terrible. I mean, we''re not on fire! "Yes, yes, it''s been smoldering for a long time. I''ll give you some air, and we''ll get the fire going. "I see. I see. So our messing around with Nao is sending wind, not salt. That''s what I''m talking about, Natsuki. That''s none of your business!¡¡I''ll give you two the word "annoying"! Well, I don''t want things to get too heated. I don''t want you to get too excited, or you''ll cross the line. Shut up. Yes. Scary! You looked like you''ve killed somebody before. --Oh, you''re not kidding. You have. Including me. Huh. ....... I know it''s the right thing to do, but it''s still depressing to think about it sometimes. Of course, if you leave them there, innocent people will be killed, and that''s what adventurers do. ...... A little bit, I want to tell you to do your job, soldier. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do. But more importantly!¡¡We were just talking about Yuki and Natsuki!¡¡Isn''t there anything more like a nice encounter or a prince on a white horse? The Shiro Horse Prince ......? Marriage is a calculation. I''m sure the young ones don''t understand that. ...... Haruka, let''s see what''s really going on. I''m sure you''ve heard that income is the number one requirement when you reach a certain age. ...... But isn''t that what people around Alaska think?¡¡In fact, Yuki, are you lying about your age? I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. If you go to King''s Landing, you might be able to meet the prince, but you''re not childish enough to yearn for a Cinderella story. It''s only in elementary school that you can be so naive. I don''t think it''s so easy to manage the obligations imposed by marriage just by "liking" someone. I don''t know much about it. I''m sure there must be something worse than a war between wives and mother-in-laws swirling around. Isn''t there a real danger of death?¡¡That''s the world. No, my mom and grandma were close, though, right? What about Natsuki?¡¡What about Natsuki? Unless the moratorium lasts until college or something, it''s not that kind of world. You have to change your way of thinking. This way too? ...... Well, it''s true that there''s an old saying, ''A husband is healthy and a wife is good at home. No, I''m not that naive, and I do want to go on normal dates and stuff. But I don''t have the "guts" to marry someone from here. But I don''t have the ''guts'' to marry someone from here. Even in Japan, marrying someone whose identity you don''t know is frowned upon, but here it''s even more so. Marriage is also about the connection between families, so there is no way that a family would agree to marry someone who can''t even tell you where they were born. The risk is too high. If you still want to get married, you must be liked enough by the other person to overcome those risks, or the other person must be in a similar situation. At this point, the so-called civil servants and craftsmen are excluded from marriage, leaving only adventurers and lesser suspicious people. You know how difficult it is to fall in love, don''t you? You know how difficult it is to get married, right? I see, you two are the type who look for practicality in marriage. ...... I wouldn''t go so far as to say ''practical'', but it would be less troublesome if you were married at least in a token way. Yeah, yeah. It''s fine while you''re still an adventurer, but when you retire and settle down, there''s a lot of trouble if you''re a single woman. Prejudice and all that. Even in Japan, if you''re middle-aged and single, there are times when people look at you delicately. In this world, it''s even worse. If you are a stranger, I''ll tell you. If you''re a stranger, I don''t have to tell you, do I? Because there''s no such thing as a slow life alone in the country. If you''re not good, it''s a thriller. Of course, I don''t deny the possibility that I''ll fall in love with someone in the future, but ...... is Nao a keeper for now? That''s terrible!¡¡That''s the worst thing I''ve ever heard!¡¡Don''t tell that to Nao! Oh, keep is the wrong word, sorry. I''m sorry. It''s not like I''m two-timing you. And it''s not a lie that Nao is the one I love the most right now. Haruka raised her willow eyebrows and hurriedly made an excuse. I don''t mean to disparage Nao, but with Haruka, I feel that a friend-like partner is enough for me. I don''t mean to disparage Nao, but with Haruka, I feel that a friend-like partner is enough for me. I think we''ll probably be able to get along for a long time if we do that. Am I being cold? But, you know, there are celebrities who get married and then get divorced before they know it. They get divorced and then they get married again. And then they get divorced again. The media is giving out information with no hope or dreams, as if it is a negative campaign against marriage. I think that''s probably contributing to the decline in the birth rate. "Besides, don''t you want me to be too aggressive and push Haruka out of the way? And if I''m too aggressive and push Haruka away, won''t that be a problem? "Ugh. ....... That''s a bit of a problem, but ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. It''s a good idea to take a look at your own personal life. I''m not sure if I''m similar to Yuki, because I think that once you''ve come here, you should be able to separate the two. And there are a lot of people around me who got married without any particular relationship, you know?¡¡And even so, they seem to be doing well in their own way. I''m not sure if that''s the case around you, Natsuki.¡¡It''s a rich old family. Yeah. There are a lot of arranged marriages. Most of them don''t marry for love, but rather if they feel that they get along well and can make a good marriage. Is that what it means to be an adult?¡¡Is that what it means to be an adult? ...... Sure, there were people I knew who only cared about the conditions of their marriage partners. That''s what it''s all about, isn''t it? I''m sure you''re not the only one who can''t get married because of simple likes and dislikes. Yeah, yeah. I''m sorry. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you like. Yeah, I guess so. .........?¡¡I''m not sure what you''re talking about. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. If you don''t want to attract Nao''s attention, you should at least be a little curious about her. For the sake of my life plan! 187-170 Food shortages? It''s been a week. When I visited Gantz''s store again, I found that the rest of the armor had been completed. When I put it on and made the final adjustments, I found that it was made of high quality materials and was easier to move than ever. Since it was to be worn over chainmail, it was designed to be supple and shock-absorbent, yet it would not be cut by inferior blades and was sufficiently resistant to stabbing. Handcuffs, shin guards, knee pads, etc. emphasize hardness. Although they are made of the same leather, their properties seem to vary greatly depending on the processing method and auxiliary materials, and this one has such a high level of protection that it doesn''t hurt at all even if you hit it with a hammer. The glove is the one that has become the most useful in a humble way. The glove is made to fit each person''s hand perfectly, and can be used for detailed work that would have required taking it off in the past, and its blade resistance is such that there is no problem grabbing an ordinary knife. Considering the fact that the other armor is only for insurance purposes and is usually useless, this glove will be the most useful. I''m sure it will wear out, but I still have some Dahl''s Bear leather on hand, so I can have it made again. I was quite satisfied with the boots I received last time, but the only drawback is the cost. The total cost for all of us would be enough to build a house. This is despite the fact that we brought in the leather for Dahl''s Bear. As usual, weapons and armor are really expensive. However, it''s not worth the cost of your life, so you''ll just have to live with it. I''m not sure what to do. "Hmm, the price of food is going up a bit. On the way back from Gantz''s store, we went to the market to buy some food for the next exploration. As we peeked at the stalls, which seemed to be fewer in number than usual, Yuki said with some annoyance. "Is that so? I usually leave the grocery shopping to myself, so I don''t know much about the market. I sometimes carry the luggage, but it is not unnatural to carry a certain amount in a magic bag, and Haruka and the others are strong enough, so there is not much point in following them. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Well, I''ve talked to a few people and they say that the price has gone up a bit because of the slowdown in imports. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. According to what Haruka told us, the deputies have been taking measures such as releasing stockpiles and increasing the production of crops using the fertilizer we provided, but they still can''t keep up. In addition, they seem to be restraining merchants from buying up all the goods they can, and if it weren''t for them, the price would have risen even faster. It may not be good if we consider it as a free economy, but if the ruler is decent, this kind of political system can function effectively in times of emergency. In Japan, people would just say, "What are the legal grounds? In Japan, they would just say, "What are the legal grounds? But what a mess. ....... We should take the opportunity to buy some of this stuff. In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at our own web site. No, we can''t just go on a buying spree at a time like this. "Yes, you''re right. If we buy more than we need, it will only spread confusion. If we buy more than we need, it will only spread chaos. That''s right. Most of the shortages that occurred in the Tokyo metropolitan area during the earthquake were caused by that. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''ve seen that too. Even in Japan, where distribution is well developed, this causes shortages. In this world, where the movement of goods takes much longer than in other countries, serious food shortages may occur. We, who can procure some of our own food, should refrain from doing so. But then Haruka shrugged lightly and laughed. I''m not going to worry about it, I usually buy everything I need. Is that so? Yeah. All crops are cheapest when they are in season, right?¡¡For those of us with magic bags, there''s no reason not to buy in bulk during that season, don''t you think? I asked him about wheat, rye, and vegetables, which he said he had about a year''s worth in stock. In this world where storage facilities are not well developed, the best quality is right after harvest. As time goes by, the quality of the food goes down and the price goes up. As long as you have the money and can store it safely, there is certainly no reason not to buy it. As for meat and fish, it goes without saying, the only thing we don''t have is summer vegetables. We only started stocking up in late autumn. "We started stocking up in late autumn," he said, "when we had enough money and knew we could afford a house, so we started buying what was in season. Fortunately, the price of summer vegetables hasn''t gone up too much. Since the main production area of summer vegetables, which cannot be stored for long, is around this town, the price of summer vegetables would normally be unaffected or even decrease due to the effect of fertilizer. Even so, the price has gone up a little, apparently due to the rising prices of other foods. Well then, I guess I''ll just buy something not too expensive and go home. "Right. We have a vegetable garden. We''ve got potatoes and melons. Because of the fact that I leave my garden unattended while I''m hiding in the dungeon, what I''m growing in my garden right now are sweet potatoes and cucurbitaceous plants like pumpkins and chives. Thanks to the use of the fertilizer I mentioned, the leaves are overgrown, but compared to other summer vegetables, it''s easy to leave them alone without much problem. Of course, if you want to make something beautiful, you''ll have to do something else, but if you don''t care about the shape or size of the plants, you''ll be able to eat them. I wonder if the fact that pollination is not necessary means that there are more bees than in modern times. By the way, it''s time to harvest the melons. The next time I come back, it will be too late, so let''s harvest them when I get back today. Are you going to pickle them? Yes. Yes, partly. The vegetables that look like shirouri are eaten in soups around here, but Natsuki is going to pickle some of them. He complained that he didn''t have any sake lees or nuka, but I wondered if pickles were a hobby for a former high school student. What about pickles? For those of us who don''t worry about preservation, there seems to be no need to make pickles, but for Natsuki, texture and taste are more important than preservation. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to get the most out of your home. Oh, and by the way . There was a campaign at the guild to strengthen the purchase of meat. "Hmm?¡¡Haruka, what time did you go to the guild? I stopped by this morning. I stopped by this morning to pick up the license fee for the backpack. ...... Oh, yeah, there''s one of those. He stopped by to pick it up on his way to his morning run. The backpacks are selling well, and Hulka''s share is apparently a decent amount for the average person, but considering our current income, it''s a small percentage. It''s just a little bit of pocket money that we get every now and then when we remember. "And the ''Meat Buying Campaign''?¡¡What''s that? That''s right. As a way to solve the food shortage, they are buying animals and demons that can be used as meat at a slightly higher price than usual. Diora has asked for our help. ...... It''s hard to know what to do. Once you''re in the dungeon, meat is ...... I don''t know what''s down there, but it''s all small stuff at the moment. As Toya said, so far the only monsters that have appeared in the dungeon are those that are not suitable for collecting meat. If you want to kill Orcs, Killer Gators, Bind Vipers, and other demons that produce a lot of meat, you''ll have to explore the forest. ....... The only problem is that it''s hot. That''s right. That''s why we''re going into the dungeon. The Kerg thing is also a bit bad timing. If it was in the fall, you could choose to increase the amount of hunting. ...... No, it''s still better? If it was around harvest time, the amount of wheat stored could have been reduced. It might have been difficult for the town, which relied on imports. But it would have been the same if Kerg hadn''t been dealt with by then. What are you going to do?¡¡I''ve not been contributing much to the guild lately, so I think it might be a good idea to ingratiate myself a little here. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s not too happy about it. Halka probably doesn''t want to work in the heat of the day in the woods, drenched in sweat. Oh well. ....... We''re making a lot of money by cutting out the guilds in the wood trade. If you sell to the guilds, you can make a lot of money. It''s just that they are dealing directly with the furniture makers, which in itself is a perfectly acceptable practice, but it doesn''t give the best impression. We don''t have any requests that we can take on - or more accurately, we don''t take any requests because we don''t have anything worth taking on, and even though we''re high ranking adventurers in this town, our contribution points to the guild are pretty low. But we sold a lot of Dahl''s Bear meat, didn''t we?¡¡By the ton. Yeah. We did contribute to the meat sales, didn''t we? It''s true that we only sold meat directly to the butcher in the beginning, but since then it''s always been through the guild. The only exceptions are the items used by Aella''s store, so I guess you could say we''re making a good profit. In reality, it''s largely because it''s a hassle to sell large amounts of meat to various butchers, but that''s also the role of the guild. In fact, the guild''s role is also that of a butcher. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, please do not hesitate to contact me. I''m not sure what to make of it. He wants to finish harvesting his vegetable garden before going into the dungeon. Since they grow so fast, they might miss the time to pick them after returning from the dungeon. We had no reason to disagree, and the decision was left to Haruka and Diora to negotiate. In the end, we ended up eating. In the end, we decided to cooperate with the campaign to increase the purchase of meat. There were two reasons for this. The first reason is that Diora asked us to cooperate with her, since we have a high rank. It''s not obligatory to cooperate, but if you''re trying to raise your rank, you should cooperate in this kind of situation. If you just want to get stronger, you can fight and train regardless of the guild, but the power of the Adventurer''s Guild can''t be underestimated, and the high credibility of the rank is useful in many ways. But the power of the Adventurer''s Guild is not to be underestimated, and the trustworthiness of rank is useful in many ways. In a sense, it is the last lifeline for those of us who have no family in this world. If you have a high rank, your position will be stronger than that of a lowly noble, so you should raise your rank as much as possible. There is no guarantee that there will not be unreasonable nobles in the future. The other reason is that in exchange for accepting the job, the adventurer''s guild will order a book on demons. These books are used by the Adventurer''s Guild, and are not easily bought at bookstores. They are quite expensive, costing 80 gold coins for a set of three books, but they cover most of the demons currently known, so they are a coveted item from our point of view. We were told that it would take a long time to order it, but it would be better than us having to search through bookstores. Above all, it''s nice to know that the contents are guaranteed. So we are going to devote ourselves to meat hunting for about ten days. However, the heat is unbearable, so we have to change our living hours drastically. First of all, they would wake up after midnight. It is too early in the morning to call it morning. We used to train from the time we woke up until breakfast, but instead we headed for the forest in the still dark. When the sky started to whiten slightly, we started hunting in the forest. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always try to find it on your own. Natsuki also has night vision, and even Yuki, who is the least night-visioned of the three, can see well enough at dawn to have no trouble in battle, so there are few problems. After hunting until around ten o''clock, we returned to the town and sold the meat to the adventurer''s guild. I did some light farming, had lunch, and took a nap. In the evening, when the weather is a little cooler, I get up and do the exercises I couldn''t do in the morning, take a bath to work up a sweat, eat dinner, and go to bed early to prepare for the next day. The purpose of moving the time was to avoid the heat, but there were many things to be gained from fighting in the dim light, and even though the demons were weak, it was not a waste of time. Incidentally, Toya and I were the main players in the "light farming" during this time. At first, the women enjoyed harvesting, but with a large garden, more labor than most people can provide, and effective fertilizers, our vegetable garden was a bit out of the frame of a home vegetable garden, and a bit too much. When the "joy of harvesting" had run its course and the work had become simple, the women were no longer involved in the harvesting, and the work was divided between me and Toya, while Natsuki and the others processed the vegetables into pickles and other dishes. To be honest, the unfamiliar farm work was a bit taxing on our bodies, but it was bearable if we thought of it as a form of training, and since we couldn''t cook, it couldn''t be helped. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. ...... It was a little hot, but... Ten days later. We were told by Diora that we had received enough cooperation from her, so we left the meat purchasing campaign and resumed our dungeon conquest. 188-171 Traps We decided to head for the dungeon, but we woke up very early that morning as well. Since it was already full-blown summer, we would have exhausted our strength on the way to the dungeon if we were active at the same time as before. Even though we were relatively lightly dressed, we were still wearing underwear, shirts, pants, armor, chainmail, jackets, and leather armor. It''s quite hot. And the biggest problem is the under armor. Other clothes can be made thinner, but the armor, which is designed to absorb shocks, is useless if made thin. In the winter, it is very good as a warm clothing, but in the summer, it is terrible. Even in the modern age, there are thin, stab-resistant materials, but shock absorption is not so easy, and there is nothing we can do about it. Well, we were lucky to find the dungeon, weren''t we? "Yes. Compared to other adventurers, that is. It''s a bit chilly in the dungeon with light clothing. My normal gear is just fine. It''s very good for exploring in the summer. There''s not much work in Rafan in the summer, is there? No, because the lumberjacks don''t cut down many trees. The lumberjacks don''t cut much wood. ...... To be precise, it''s not that they don''t have any, it''s that they don''t want to. One reason is that it''s hot, but the main reason is that it''s not the best time of year to cut wood. Wood cut down in the summer, when trees are growing well, is not of good quality. Therefore, the main work in the summer is to maintain the forest by cutting the underbrush. This town manages the forest in a humble way from a long-term perspective. This work is not popular among lumberjacks or adventurers hired as guards, because they are forced to do it. Well, I can understand how they feel, but whether or not they take it seriously will affect their credibility. The adventurers who take such troublesome work seriously will be the ones who can take on jobs even in the winter when there are few requests. I hadn''t been to the dungeon in a while, but it hadn''t changed much, except for a slight recovery in the number of undead. However, unlike the undead we had killed in the past, they did not have weapons, so perhaps the undead this time were purely demons created by the dungeon. Or maybe they were in the forest when we last visited, and came back from the outside after that. It would have been nice to see a skeleton knight with a white iron sword every now and then, but unfortunately, until we reached the place where we killed the skeleton king last time, all we saw were ordinary skeletons and zombies. There''s no change in ....... The Skeleton King is not back, and the corridors are still the same. I guess it''s not like a boss room or anything. If it was a game, you could enter a boss room and not be able to leave until you killed the boss, or the boss would repop after a while. But here, there was no repop, not even a normal skeleton, and there was no change in the path leading down. But I still have a bad feeling about this. It''s hard to say for sure. ...... No change. ...... It was Natsuki who looked into the path leading down and said something ominous. After returning from the dungeon last time, Natsuki had already told me that he didn''t know what was in there, but there was a good chance that there would be a trap. So, I''ve made preparations for that. First, food. Considering the possibility of common traps such as ''rocks falling down and blocking the passage'' or ''walls collapsing or pitfalls making it impossible to return'', I brought as much as possible, including food I had bought, harvested, and cooked. In concrete terms, I have enough to keep me in the dungeon for a year. Even if something unforeseen happens, I have the spirit of "if I''m not in a hurry, I can handle it. Next, tools. In addition to the shovels and hoes I already had, I bought additional pickaxes, ropes, and other things I thought I could use. I think I can manage to dig a hole by magic, but it is better to be careful. I''ve gathered these things without thinking that they would be a burden, referring to books and the like, so there should be a lot I can do even if something happens. Okay, well, let''s get off. "Wait a minute. Before that, let''s camp around here. It''s still early in the evening. It''s early in the morning. Haruka and Yuki stopped Toya, who had said this casually, perhaps because he was prepared. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. It was hard to notice since we were in the dungeon, but looking at Haruka''s watch, it was definitely time for us to take a break. "Oh, well, what can I do? I don''t know, it''s killing me. We''re going somewhere new. We''re going to a new place, we should be prepared. He was a little disgruntled, but he knew that Haruka and the others were right, so he sighed and began to prepare the camp. I''m not sure what to say. The passage leading down was so narrow that it was difficult for two people to stand side by side, and it was less than two meters high. The slow but sure path to deeper levels was longer than we expected, and we walked for more than three minutes. And then we arrived at a cave that was no different from any other. It was like a rather large room, with only one passage, the one we had come down, and one more. There is no enemy response. As a dungeon, I was expecting something a little more dramatic, but alas, it was not to be. The lack of change makes me wonder if it''s really a dungeon. But you don''t want to be in an unusually hot or unusually cold environment, do you? That''s true. If it''s comfortable, I''ll be happy. In the dungeons that have been found so far, as Haruka mentioned, there are some insane environments where you descend the stairs and suddenly find yourself in a scorching hot space. There are also unusually large spaces, brightly lit spaces for some reason, and spaces that reproduce the natural environment outside. According to one theory, the levels in the dungeon are connected to other worlds. I''m not sure how accurate this theory is, as it was introduced in a book I bought the other day, but it seems to be a common occurrence that the area of the dungeon does not match the size or terrain of the ground. However, there is also space-time magic that allows you to create magic bags, so it seems a bit excessive to make a sudden leap from there to the ''other world''. But there was no trap, was there? I was pretty nervous about it. ...... I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sorry. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... "If it''s not there, it''s not there. There''s no need for civil engineering. To be honest, the passage was much longer than I expected. I don''t want to have to dig this up. I''m a little concerned about the inaccuracy of Natsuki''s trap detection, but I''d rather say I''m glad it''s not here. "Well, of course. Well, let''s move on. Yuki, I know this is a lot of work, but can you do the mapping again? "Okay. Thanks to your skills, it''s much easier now, so don''t worry about it. After confirming that Yuki had taken out the mapping tools, we were about to leave the room when... ZDODODOD!!!! A dull, heavy sound echoed from behind us. What? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. Time difference. ...... I''m glad I won. ...... It''s hard to say that I''m happy to have won," said Natsuki with a subtle expression. This is a great way to get the most out of your business. No, no, no. It''s completely buried. I approached after the noise subsided, but the situation was clear even before I looked in. I didn''t even need to look in to see what was going on, because the collapsed earth was right there. I asked Haruka to send the light into the corridor, but after about ten meters it was completely buried to the ceiling and there was no gap. We''ve been down the passage for several hundred meters, and it''s too convenient to think that the collapse is only a small part of it. A trap to block the passage. It''s within the realm of possibility, though. ...... Yuki also looks up at the passage and sighs in annoyance at the unexpectedly wide area of the collapse. It''s a pain in the ass, but should we dig it up? "No, ......, why don''t we just keep exploring? I thought about Toya''s suggestion for a moment, and when I shook my head, he looked a little surprised. "Are you sure? We have plenty of food. We can produce water with Create Water. There may be another way out. Considering that, isn''t it a bit of a waste of time? "That''s true. If it were a normal cave, we would be worried about the air, but if we think of it as a dungeon, we can eliminate the possibility of suffocation. I see, in a cave there is the problem of air. If it''s a dungeon, there''s no problem with that.¡¡Maybe. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. I can''t use this magic because I haven''t practiced it. Also, unfortunately, I can''t take a bath, but I can endure that with Purify Air, and I have a toilet. In other words, as long as you can endure the environment of the dungeon, there is no immediate danger to your life. Well, we have enough food left after a few months of exploration, so let''s let Nao do her best until then. Me? After a year of training day and night, you should be able to make the transition, right? What an absurd request! Of course, there is a spell called "teleportation" in space-time magic. This spell itself is classified as a level 6 spell and is not that difficult to learn, but there is a limit of only one person who can be transferred with this spell. In order to transfer all the members of your party, you need to learn "Area Teleportation," which is one level higher. As I''ve already raised my ¡¾Time and Space Magic¡¿to level 5, it would certainly be possible for me to learn it after a few months of training. It''s fortunate that I have enough time to watch over the camp. However, it is more difficult to be able to transfer far away than to be able to use transfer magic. Even if you can use "teleportation", at first you can only fly within your field of vision. With other types of magic, such as fire magic, any level of magic can be used to a certain extent once it becomes available, but space-time magic is completely different, and most of the time, just being able to use it is almost useless. It''s a long way from there. In a sense, it is different from other magic because it is said to be "rare" or "difficult". I''m not sure what to do, but I''ll try. ...... I''ll try. You''re sure about this?¡¡If we can''t dig up this passage, Nao''s magic will be our lifeline. ...... Is there any way to make it easier to use? There is a transfer point, ....... It''s a kind of grimoire, an item that makes it a little easier to transfer to it by placing a transfer point filled with my magic power. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. In other words, it''s useless in the current situation. Because it''s not in place. The teleportation itself was still in the practice stage, not yet at a practical level, so I hadn''t thought about the transfer point. Now that I think about it, I probably should have asked Haruka to help me set one up at home. ...... No, my home is too far away, so it would be pointless. You''ll be fine, Nao. Yes. I''m sure Nao can do it. Hang in there, Nao!¡¡I''m rooting for you! I''m rooting for you!" Haruka said matter-of-factly, and Natsuki believed me with a gentle smile. Natsuki gives me a thumbs up and smiles at me. I''m glad that you trust me, but... But the expectations are heavy!¡¡--But you''re on my side, Yuki! "Hahaha, how can a space-time predisposition be a match for elven Nao? I''m not sure what you''re talking about. I''m not sure what you''re talking about. I''m sure you''re right if you''re only looking at the status aspect, but Yuki is a lot more to the point than you might think, and she has the same qualities as you. And above all, it''s mentally tough for me to train alone. I''m stuck in a dungeon right now. I can afford it, but I have limited food. The pressure of whether or not I can get out of there is on my shoulders alone. Wouldn''t it be nice to have a little company? No, I think you should. In fact, you should. With this feeling in my eyes, I clenched my fists and smiled. "You''ll go along with my training, right? Yes. Good. It seems that my sincerity has been understood. --I''m sure it was just my imagination that Yuki''s gaze was on my fist instead of on my eyes. 189-172 2 tiers We started exploring the second level - we called it that for convenience because we went down the hill - and other than a slight feeling of unease that we wouldn''t be able to return, there were no problems. We had a normal bed to sleep in, good food, magic to keep us clean, and moderate exercise. There was one complaint about the lack of sunlight, but it was tolerable. I wouldn''t say it was stress-free, but considering the other adventurers, it was a luxury. At the very least, it''s much better than working a day job and living in the same inn where Tommy was staying in the first place. He was still training in space-time magic with Yuki, but he wasn''t in too much of a hurry at the moment. If all the paths were dead ends, I would be mentally trapped, but it seems like there are still a lot of areas to explore. Besides, according to my knowledge of dungeons so far, there is no such thing as a dungeon that is too unreasonable. In this case, there are other passages, or you can return to the dungeon if you meet certain conditions, or something like that. In a sense, dungeons are fair, though the reason is not well understood. There are some questions as to why they are designed that way, but we live in a world where gods exist and there is magic. We have to accept it as such. From our point of view, we are grateful. Well, we were in no hurry and proceeded to explore carefully, but there was not much change in the dungeon even after entering the second level. The only thing that had changed was that there were no more undead, but the giant bats and other enemies were still there. The enemies are still the same. They are all weak to us, and there is no change. However, the fact that there are enemies that give you meat is an advantage in a way. When the time comes, you can eat them and survive. On the other hand, it would have been a disaster if there were only undead. I don''t want to eat rotting human flesh and bones even if I''m starving to death. It was on the twelfth day of his search that he noticed a change. "Hey, Toya, your relatives are here. "Who''s my relative? This is the first new enemy reaction I''ve found in a while. I waited for them as they approached rather quickly, but they were a pack of wolves - or should I say a pack? --It was a pack. A group of five wolves, led by a slightly larger one, were running towards us, but as soon as they were within range of the light that Natsuki had flashed slightly ahead of them, they relaxed their legs as if in alarm. The sound of footsteps was very slight, and its body hair was black. His body is lost in the darkness of the dungeon. If it hadn''t been for [Spotting enemy], I wouldn''t have noticed it until I was very close. With its movement speed, it is quite a troublesome enemy. Immediately check its status with the ¡¾Scanning¡¿ skill. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Howling Wolf Status: Healthy Skills: [Bite] [Claw Strike] [Roar ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "These guys have the [Roar] skill... Gah! Before I could finish, one of the Howling Wolves let out a roar. Before I could say anything else, one of the Howling Wolves let out a roar that stopped our movement for a moment. Gwaah! Toya immediately shouts in return, and the Howling Wolves are visibly frightened. We''re related after all! No! The voice that Toya shouted in response was probably [Roar]. This skill of frightening the opponent is not popular among us, and we don''t usually use it. It doesn''t affect us as allies, but it''s simply too loud when used near us. Especially in a dungeon like this, it is very noisy. But the main reason why we don''t use it much is not because it''s unpopular with us, but because it might attract demons if we shout in the forest. Even if you can kill the enemy in front of you a little easier, it''s not worth it if they keep coming after you. If you want to gain experience, that''s one thing, but if you want to cut down a famous tree, it''s just a hindrance. They''re coming! Even though they were frightened, they probably didn''t have the option of retreating because they were demons. Five of them started running at the same time, with the first two heading straight for Toya and Natsuki. And the other three... "What? A near-vertical wall. The three Howling Wolves run as if they were attached to the wall. The aim is to flank the ......2 people! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It would be easier for each of us to take on one of them at a time. I immediately stepped forward and blocked the Howling Wolf from moving towards Natsuki. Ignore Toya. He has a shield, so he shouldn''t be a problem. I was a little surprised by its quick movements and somewhat tricky use of the wall, but it''s only a wolf. Normally, the [Roar] skill might be troublesome, but as long as Toya can counter it, it doesn''t matter much to us. The two that came at us from the front were quickly cut down, and the three that tried to attack us from the sides were killed by us, unable to do anything after they had blocked one blow. It was a new enemy, but it was no problem, right?¡¡We didn''t have time to do anything about it. We didn''t have time to mess with them, unless they took us by surprise. The magic stones are 1,800 rares, so that''s their level. It seems that Toya took out one of the demon stones and tried to appraise it. In terms of the value of the demon stone, it is less than a zombie, so its simple strength is probably not that great. Compared to the other demons that appear in this area, it''s a fair bet. The only condition is that you have to be able to deal with surprise attacks. If it sneaks up on you and stops your movement with a [Roar], it will be dangerous. At the very least, it would be difficult for an adventurer of the level of the woodcutter''s guard in Rafan. But I''ve never used it before, is [Roar] more useful than I thought? The Howling Wolf''s [roar] stopped my movement for a moment. However, in a battle, that moment could mean the difference between life and death. As for the Howling Wolf, it can probably be countered if you are prepared, but if it is used unexpectedly in a critical moment, it may be fatal. And the reverse is also true. No, it''s not that easy, you know.¡¡It''s not so easy to use [Roar] in close combat. If you use it at the start of a battle, it''s fine, but the more you shout, the more your breathing gets disturbed. Maybe it''s like how you guys use magic while fighting? "I see. That might be difficult. It''s not just about shouting, but also about some kind of pool of magic power (?). It''s not just shouting. Even with magic, it is quite difficult to use it while moving your body flamboyantly. If it were easy, I''d be fighting with a spear and attacking with the Fire Arrow. But it''s worthwhile to have some stiffness at the beginning of the battle. Hmm, yeah. ...... And the fact that it''s only useful in a few situations doesn''t change that. Yes, we may have to put up with the noise, but the problem of attracting demons is the same. In the beginning, when we were hunting Task Boar, there were not many demons around, so we didn''t have many problems. Even the Weipu Bear, a powerful enemy back then, was classified as an animal. They don''t go out of their way to attack people. On the other hand, demons, as if attacking people was their purpose in life, would come closer to people. The other problem is where to train them. No matter how big our yard is, it would disturb the neighbors if we did it there. Dog noises can be a problem for the neighbors. That''s not a dog! Yeah, they''re more annoying than dogs. To Toya''s protest, Yuki nodded her head and said something terrible. But the fact is, it''s more annoying than a dog''s bark. It''s not a skill that can cause psychological damage. It is a skill that can cause mental damage. If you hear such a voice early in the morning, you might want to file a complaint or two. Well, let''s leave it to Toya to decide what to do. But no training in the yard. I want to get along with my neighbors. We''re buying a house. Yeah, yeah. It''s not easy to move. ...... Okay. I''ll think about it. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who can''t deny what Haruka and the others have said. I''m not sure what to do. We had been exploring for another 10 days and had encountered several new enemies, but they were all not very challenging. Inevitably, the value of magic stones was low, and we earned little money per day. The mapping is going well, and we''ve already drawn as many as the first layer, but we haven''t found any treasure chests, so there are no bonuses. We were getting a little bored with the exploration, because the enemies were weak and we couldn''t expect much in the way of experience. We were getting a little tired of exploring. "But from a game perspective, this dungeon is unbalanced. It was while we were collecting the Ripper Bees scattered in the corridor that Toya started to say this. A ripper bee is a bee monster about 50 centimeters long, with a magic stone of about 800 rares, but its translucent wings can be sold for a reasonable price, making it a slightly more efficient monster in this dungeon. It flies in flocks, so you can hunt many of them at once, but it has poisonous needles, so it''s not as easy as you might think. However, the poisonous stinger can''t penetrate even a glove made of Dahl''s Bear leather, so from our point of view, it''s not too much of a threat as long as we''re somewhat careful. "Balance, what? Yuki stopped collecting and nodded her head, apparently not understanding the meaning of Toya''s words. I''m not sure what you mean by "balance".¡¡In games, it''s usually the other way around, right? That''s true. It''s not simply a matter of level. It''s not a simple matter of converting levels, but it''s not possible in a game to explore a forest with strong enemies and then enter a dungeon where the enemies are suddenly weaker. "That''s because it''s not a game. There''s no point in balancing a game, and no one does. I dare say it''s God, but he''s probably not involved in any of that ...... stuff, right? I''m sure you''ve heard of it. It''s territorial, isn''t it? "Dungeons are basically independent. It seems that demons can come out of dungeons, but not the other way around. I''m still reading the book, but according to Natsuki, who has read all of "What is a Dungeon", demons can live in ordinary caves, but there have been no confirmed cases of demons living in the surrounding area living in dungeons. On the other hand, there are cases of demons overflowing the dungeon, which would be a good nuisance for the demons living in the area. The reason why this is so is not known, but it can be used to determine whether something that looks like a cave is a dungeon or not. In other words, if there is a demon that is obviously weak when it enters the cave, then it is likely to be a dungeon. Of course, there is also the possibility that the demons in the area simply don''t like to roost in caves, so we can''t say for sure. I see. Well, it''s a shame that you''re not making enough money, but with the way you''re trapped, it''s probably for the best. He then sighed in annoyance and continued with his words with effort. But my biggest complaint is that the Howling Wolves aren''t even remotely cute!¡¡And there are no baby wolves! ...... No, what did you expect from a demon? What did you expect from a demon? I''ve come to a different world and I''m not enjoying it one bit! Well, the only demons that are docile are dead demons. Of course, wild animals are also very cautious. And Toya is not so perverse as to pet a dead wolf. Ideal and Reality: ....... Should I have requested the tamer skill? ...... I don''t know how you feel about that. ....... I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. In addition to the demons that will attack you without exception when you meet them, even task boars, vipe-bears, and brown-eyed bears, which are classified as animals, will not take to you easily. In a sense, Dahl''s Bear was a giant fluffy thing, but there was no way she could enjoy it with life and death at stake. If Toya wanted to enjoy her fluff to the fullest... If Toya wanted to fully enjoy his fluff, he would have to raise his level so high that he wouldn''t be hurt by bites and scratches. That''s the only way. ...... I''m not sure what to make of that. But even if you do get to touch it, it''s not quite the fluff you want. It''s not like he''s pining for me. Perhaps the best way to enjoy fluffiness is to get a big dog in the original world. 190-173 Marbling meat It''s been over 30 days since we were trapped on the second level. Still no sign of a way back. Normally, this would be a stressful party, but we were having a good time. --A party is a party, but it''s a yakiniku party. It''s so good! "That meat is already looking good. Nao, don''t just eat meat. Eat your vegetables too. These vegetables are very bitter. Yeah, I know. When the food is lightly seasoned, the bitterness is a little distracting. Today''s dinner is a leisurely yakiniku party. The reason for this is this afternoon. I had my first encounter with a demon. It''s called "Pickau" and it''s about 50 centimeters long. It looks like a short-legged metabolic cow, with a sharp knife-like horn on its head. It attacks by rushing with its horn. Its attack method is to use its horn to lunge. However, it was still not much faster than Stub Burrows, and we all ducked and cut off its head, killing it instantly. It was a little cute to look at, so Haruka and the others were saying "cute~" at first, but when it attacked, we beheaded it without hesitation. No problem. What you get from a pickaxe is horns and meat. The horns, which look more like black ore than animal horns, can be sold for a good price. The meat, according to the book, is not very popular because it is fatty, and the amount of meat you can get from one animal is small due to its small size, so it is not a good source of income. As usual, I was planning to throw the corpse into my magic bag and dismember it after I returned home, but Haruka suggested I try it for a change. We had been eating ready-made food, but after more than a month, it was undeniable that we were getting into a bit of a rut, and there was no one to object. Compared to bats and the like, it''s a demon that I don''t feel any reluctance to eat. And it was a big hit. It was certainly greasy, but it suited the Japanese palate, which likes marbling. It seems that my metabolic figure was not a coincidence. According to Tatsuki, it tasted "almost like marbled high quality wagyu" and was quite tasty when grilled on the teppan. It is indeed too fatty to eat in large quantities, but if you grill it over a charcoal fire, the fat will drain off and it is also delicious. The only drawback is that ....... You can''t get much meat out of it, right? Yes. They''re so small. When you remove the organs, skin, subcutaneous fat and bones from a 50-centimeter-long pickerel, you get surprisingly little meat. The marbled part of the meat is even more limited, and Toya, who is a big eater, could eat the whole animal by himself. If you want to eat it from time to time, you have to hunt a good number of them. The meat from non-marbled areas is also tasty as ordinary red meat, but the selling price is not so high. If you can''t sell it at a very high price, why don''t you keep it?¡¡There are other uses for red meat. "Yes!¡¡I''d like to have some marbling, but only once in a while. What''s there to say against it? Pork is good, but so is beef. So it was unanimously decided to keep the Pikkau meat. It''s peaceful even though we''re locked up. By the way, how''s the transition going? Just when I thought it was peaceful, I was asked. "I can now travel to a certain distance, but it''s tough to go back to ....... Normally, you would learn the "Teleportation" and then practice the "Area Teleportation" in that order, but the biggest problem is that you can''t experiment to see if you can actually transfer outside the dungeon. What if I''m able to successfully get out of the dungeon with "Teleportation"? There are three problems. Since it is difficult to specify a place that is difficult to imagine as a destination, there is a high possibility that I will not be able to come back here. If I can''t come back, it will be impossible to rescue me by magic once the experiment is over. And even if I could, I don''t know if I can make it back to LaFang by myself. And even if I could, it was unlikely that I would be able to gather enough people to rescue him. Even if I were to send a request to the guild, there are few adventurers in Rafaan who are better than us. Where''s Yuki? "Me?¡¡I can''t use it as well as Nao. I''ve been practicing with her, but... As it stands, I''m only capable of moving to a corridor a little farther away by myself. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. The problem is that it''s hard to experiment beyond that. It''s dangerous to go too far alone. So now I''m practicing "area teleportation," which is a rudimentary method of transferring within sight with Yuki in tow. I''m not sure if that''s good enough for a month. Space-time magic seems to be a difficult magic to learn. ...... Yes, it is difficult, you know? So no pressure, thank you. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea.¡¡You guys are practicing magic too, right? Yeah. There''s only so much training you can do in silence. There''s only so much we can do in the six hours a day we''re on guard duty. The only thing we can do during that time is to train without making noise, read books, etc., because the other members can''t sleep if we''re slammed with training. So, most of the time, including mine, is spent training magic. Basically, I''m training in light magic. ...... I don''t know if I''m doing well. I don''t know if I''m doing well, I''m just sort of getting a feel for it. Haruka and Natsuki looked at each other and chuckled as if troubled. "What do you mean? You see, you can''t really see the effect, can you?¡¡You can''t actually see the effects of it. "Oh, you need someone to cast it on. Level 7 "Remove Curse", level 8 "Cure Addiction", level 9 "Cure Insanity", level 10 "Regenerate". None of these have any effect when used on a healthy person. The effects are invisible. ...... By the way, I''ve used Recover Mental Strength, Resist Disease, Bless Breath, and Recover Slumber on sleeping Nao-kuns, have you noticed? "Oh, really?¡¡I didn''t notice it at all. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I don''t know, but is that why I don''t feel irritated when I''m trapped? Yeah, that could be it. It''s not that our mentality is strong, but if you think of it as a magical aid, it makes sense. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to go home for a month, but that''s a pretty extreme situation to be in. But those are level 6 or 7 magic, aren''t they?¡¡Are you able to use them now? "That''s why I''m still practicing. I don''t even know if I''m doing it right. Recovery magic isn''t just about activating it. As is the case with all magic, there is a considerable difference between "activating" and "using" light magic and space-time magic. For example, "Regeneration". Depending on your skill level, the effect can range from "healing a slightly chipped finger" to "regenerating a missing arm". The same way my "Teleportation" varies from "can be transferred within sight" to "can be transferred to home". Therefore, even if you have reached [Light Magic Lv.10], you can hardly say that you have mastered light magic. And by the way, what is Toya doing?¡¡You don''t have anything to do, do you? No, I''m not sitting around idly either.¡¡It''s true that I can''t use magic, but I read books and do muscle training, you know?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m so excited about this. It''s kind of hot, though, when someone does it next to you. What the hell?¡¡I''m trying so hard not to make a sound! I''m struggling not to make a sound! "Because you''re standing on your head, doing push-ups and smiling.¡¡Isn''t that disgusting? Oh, that''s a little ...... I don''t know if I''d like it if someone did that next to me. I''ve thought about that too. I didn''t say it because I''m trying so hard. ...... Ugh. ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to try. I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find a way to make it work, but I''m sure you can. "No, you know what?¡¡Isn''t it nice to be able to do something you couldn''t do before?¡¡I couldn''t do that on my head over there. "M...... As a man, I can understand that. But it seems that Natsuki and Haruka could not sympathize. I used to fly Purify on a regular basis so that I wouldn''t smell like sweat. "Oh, me too. "Oh, that''s why you did that?¡¡I thought both of you were very thoughtful. ...... Toya is even more depressed by the two''s unreserved words. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure what to say. "Cure Insanity". With those words, Toya''s head lit up dimly, and he looked surprised. "Oh, ......, I feel better now. I''m not sure if that''s a good thing or not.¡¡That magic. "It was an experiment, but it seems to have worked. --It works on mental health, after all. If it''s effective against mental illness, even if it hasn''t reached the point of insanity, then it''s also effective against emotional ups and downs. I think it''s unlikely that we''re going to have a full-blown mental illness ourselves, but it would be worth it just to get rid of the anxiety and fear. Are you saying all those words just for the sake of this experiment? No, I meant it. No, I mean it." "You don''t actually think I''m hot? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time. I''m not sure. I''m just half joking, Toya. The experiment is the main thing. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. It''s not a magic that I would normally have much use for, but since I''m stuck in a confined space right now, I''m practicing hard. I''m practicing hard so that I can recover if someone gets confused. I''d like to think we''d be okay, but in panic movies, the collapse starts with the stressed-out person. Oh, yes. Horror movies, suspense movies. "I can''t stay here! In horror and suspense stories, people who say "I can''t stay here!" and become alone or run away get killed, or act strangely and put others in trouble. So far, we haven''t had any problems, but the situation is like a panic movie. There is no possibility that someone will become delirious and desperate. In such a case, Haruka and the others decided to make fun of Toya as an experiment to see if they could use Cure Insanity and if it would be effective in calming down the mind. I don''t want you to suddenly turn into a beast. Only a beastman. No, I won''t! Nao, if you''re going to attack me, you have to do it in order. What do you mean, "order"? What do you mean, "in order"? - Well, of course, first you have to confess, right?¡¡...... What did you imagine?¡¡I wonder? I didn''t imagine anything! It''s not that I don''t like it, but I do. I''d be lying if I said I didn''t have those feelings, but honestly, I''m not sure I''d want to get into it, because I''m afraid it''d be too awkward if I ended up with or broke up with someone. We''re meant to be together. Fortunately, we''re still young, and adventurers marry late - by the standards of this world - so we can afford to put it off. The situation may change when each of us becomes independent. "You''re a wimp. I thought I heard something, but like a hard-of-hearing protagonist, I pushed it to the back of my mind. 191-174 Plenty of marbled meat It was six days after the grilling party that the situation changed. You''re at the door ....... "Yeah. It''s an unnatural door. A metal door slammed into the wall of the cave. It''s about three meters high and two meters wide. Only the perimeter of the door is reinforced with blocks, but to say the least, it feels very strange. It looks like a dungeon in a way. That''s true. There''s not a single treasure chest in this level. Yeah, that''s true, isn''t it? Honestly, I was like, "Huh?¡¡Isn''t this actually a dungeon? "Are we going in right away? "Are we going in right away?¡¡It feels like a boss room. I think I''d rather fill in the map first.¡¡If this is the so-called boss room, I think we''re almost there. It is possible that there is no boss, but ...... Nao, can you search beyond this door?¡¡I''m not sure. I don''t know. ...... I''m not sure. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how you can get it. But I can''t say for sure that there are no enemies. I''m sure you can figure that out by filling in the map. Yes. If there''s nothing on the other side, there''s a good chance there''s a boss. Well, let''s try a little harder. I did my best. About a day and a half. No results. Just the usual killing of demons, filling in the map, and discovering that everything was a dead end. Then I came back to the door. "If there''s nothing here, it''s kind of a scam, isn''t it? Haruka shrugs as Toya stares at the door and smiles. I don''t mind if it gets you home. It''s a bit of a letdown, though. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you may want to check with your doctor. There are no traps in the room. There''s no lock on the door either. Would you like to check it out, Nao? ...... Well, I guess I''ll just do it for practice. Natsuki, who was checking the door, told me to approach the door too. It''s easy to forget, but I also have [Trap Knowledge Lv.1], right? I thought it might give me some experience, so I checked the door, but ...... all I could find out was that there were probably no traps. Just as you can''t prove that there isn''t one, I''m not sure if I''m using it well enough. ....... I''m not sure if it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Are you ready? After confirming that I had backed away, Toya put her hand on the door. Everyone nodded, and the door slowly opened. "Oh! Who was the one who shouted with a mixture of joy? A huge pickaxe appeared in front of us. According to the help, its name was "Tyrant Pikkau," which sounded brave, but was somewhat subtle. It is two times bigger than a Wagyu, while maintaining its stocky body shape. It sits in the back of a room that is large enough for such a huge body to run around in, and stares at us. It''s a demon that lives up to its name, and it''s powerful enough, but it''s also somewhat charming because its appearance hasn''t changed. However, the horns on its head are quite vicious. Even the leather armor made from Dahl''s Bear might be dangerous if it were to charge at you with its horns. But it doesn''t matter, and Toya shouts with joy. "Marbling, marbling! "Hey, don''t let your guard down! "Hey, don''t let your guard down!" I warned Toya, who looked like she was about to drool, probably imagining the amount of marbled meat she could get from her huge body. Considering the strength of the enemies in the area, I''d like to think that the Tyrant Pickau isn''t unusually strong, but there''s no such thing as game balance, so I guess I can''t be too careful. I think we can sell skins in this size. I''m sure the tongue would be good, too.¡¡Piccau''s tongue was too small to be cut into rounds. It seemed that Toya was not the only one who was taking it easy. "Both of you, that''s literally a guess.¡¡Let''s think about it after we kill it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to say. As if it had been waiting for that, the Tyrant Pickau raised its voice and began to run. It''s fast enough, but not so fast that it''s a threat,....... The short legs are unavoidable, and the inertia created by his huge body prevents him from stopping or changing direction quickly. I''m not sure if it''s a pig or a cow. While saying such unreasonable things, Toya dodged the rush and swung her sword. The sword slammed into Tyrant Pickau''s neck, but the subcutaneous fat in that area was quite shock absorbent and withstood Toya''s attack well. Of course, it may have caused some damage, but it was far from fatal. "Pork tenderloin! "No, it doesn''t matter! It''s true that the thickness of the neck and the amount of fat is similar to pork tenderloin. If I had to guess, I''d say it was Pikkau Toro. Piccau Toro is fatty in nature. It''s not good for you. Squeak squeak! I guess he couldn''t take the attack on his neck. The Tyrant Pikkau stopped in his tracks, stomping on his foot bellows, and shouted angrily at Toya. "Good for you, Toya. I hear you''re a cow. No, I don''t think so. ...... Pfft! It''s only a beast. It was obviously a bad move to look away from the most dangerous one, Natsuki, and pay attention only to Toya. The cleaver that Natsuki wielded was not as sharp as the one Toya had. The cleaver was sucked into the neck on the opposite side of the neck from where Toya had cut him, and swung out without much resistance, causing blood to spurt out of it as Natsuki quickly retreated. The next moment, the Tyrant Pickau collapses to the ground as if crouching, making such a sound: "Gyu, gob, gobo, gobo....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not.¡¡At least, it''s weaker than the orc leader. ...... I''m sure it''s just as well, since Toya''s sword didn''t go through it. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. As I found out when I took out the demon stone later, Tyrant Pikkau was 6,000 rares at the purchase price. In other words, its potential is close to that of an Orc Leader. It has armor that can''t be fatally wounded by Toya''s sword, sharp horns, and a rushing power that comes from its mass. In our case, we were able to kill it easily because we had the weapons and technology to cut its head off, but depending on the situation, it could be quite a powerful enemy. We''ll just collect the meat in the magic bag and go to ...... the way forward? As if we were waiting for it, a door appeared at the end of the long, narrow room, as if we were looking around a room the size of a school gym. As if waiting for me, a door appeared at the end of the long, narrow room. "Oh, it''s like a fantasy! Yes, as Toya said, it was quite strange. It looks similar to the door at the entrance of this room, but the size has been greatly reduced to the size of a normal door - the size that a person can normally walk through. There''s no ...... trap here either. There''s no key either. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea or not. Yeah, ...... probably not. I don''t know the key, so I''ll leave it to Natsuki. Do you want me to open it? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. Haruka says, a little unsure. Well, we just killed what looked like a boss. But I know another pattern. "There''s also a pattern with stronger bosses. Yes, the kind where you fight the mid-boss and the last boss in succession. "Hahaha, he''s the weakest of all the bosses! That''s the pattern. --I don''t know. But you don''t have the option of not going in, do you? Yeah. We could go back to see if that path is passable. ...... It''ll probably take more than a day to get back there, even if we run. Yuki made a disgusted sound at my words, and the rest of the team shook their heads. The fact that it took more than 30 days for the mapping was no mean feat, and even if there were no enemies along the way, it would still be a long way to the first level. But it''s only a day, right? "Yeah. There were a lot of side roads. Do you want to look at the map? If you follow the map Yuki spread out on the ground, you''ll see that ...... it''s closer than you think if you don''t get lost at all. On the other hand, there are a lot of dead-end side streets that are quite long. And there are no treasure chests at the end. If this were a game, there would be complaints. ...... Again, this is a nasty dungeon, isn''t it? I don''t know. I''d like to see at least a few treasure chests in there. It''s not like you can get rare items from demon drops. If you think about it, isn''t this a pretty sad result in terms of rewards for the past month or so? All we have to do now is see what''s ahead: ...... I hope it''s good. It was Toya''s job to open the door. With some anticipation, we pushed the door open. 192-175 What are your rewards? I opened the door and found myself in a much smaller room than the one I had been in before. It was a horizontal room, less than ten tatami mats in size. At the end of the room, you can see a staircase leading down, and on either side of it, a treasure chest and a suspicious magic circle. There''s a treasure chest, isn''t there? Yes. It''s nice to have a reward after spending so much time exploring. Wouldn''t it suck to come here and find a mimic? I''m sure that''s ...... okay. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Let''s check it out for now. Right. Natsuki and I checked, but there was no sign of a trap. It doesn''t even seem to be locked, and with a little bit of anticipation, I open it with caution, and ....... "This is all ......? Given the strength of Tyrant Pickau, I wasn''t expecting to find an overflowing treasure trove of gold and silver, but all I found in the chest, which looked like it could hold a fortune, was a small pendant. The pendant was about the size of a thumbnail on a metal chain. A pale blue, almost light blue gem was fixed to the metal base. I''m glad for the treasure, but it''s a bit shabby. Anyway, Toya, please appraise it. Let''s see, it''s a ...... corundum pendant. Corundum? It''s a kind of sapphire. Well, technically, sapphires are a type of corundum. Rubies are a type of corundum. Yeah, I''ve heard that before. The color changes depending on the type of impurities, right? And is it expensive? I don''t know what it costs. It''s probably expensive. But with this pendant, you can feel the magic. ...... It''s got to have some kind of effect. I don''t know. I don''t know," he said, "but Toya''s [appraisal] doesn''t seem to be able to tell us that much. I''m not sure," she said. "Will I be cursed if I wear it? That''s a possibility. But I think the odds of it having a positive effect are much higher. Of course it''s worth more than just a trinket.¡¡For an adventurer of the right level, it''s more than worth the last month or so of work. If you''re at the right level for this dungeon, you should be able to defeat enemies that are more than goblins and less than orcs. If five adventurers of that level work for more than a month, can they earn about 100 gold coins? No, we''d have to do well to earn that much. For our level? "...... might be a little cheaper? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It also depends on the effect of this pendant. It''s not a problem if it''s a curse, but if it''s a good effect, we could make a lot of money. I''m pretty sure the Adventurer''s Guild can look into it. Yeah. I''m not sure if Rafan can handle it. It seems that any adventurer''s guild will accept appraisals, but in reality, there are few occasions when an adventurer''s guild in a town like Raffan needs an appraisal. In such a case, even if the guild accepts the appraisal, it will take a long time to get the result. By the way, how much is the appraisal fee?¡¡Are you sure it''s not the same as the purchase price? It''s not that kind of a rip-off, is it? It''s too hard for adventurers to make a profit even if they sell the item after appraising it. Well, if that''s the case, asking the appraiser for an estimate of the appraisal fee will give you an idea of whether or not the item is worth appraising, but not making a profit. I don''t remember the exact price of the appraisal, but I believe it was a flat rate.¡¡I don''t remember the exact fee, but I think it was a flat rate. That''s true. That''s harsh. ...... The appraiser is also a professional. Even if it''s a cheap item, it''s going to cost you as long as you appraise it. So let''s leave the pendant for now. Next is the magic circle. The magic circle is on the opposite side of the stairs from the treasure chest. It was painted on the floor and was about two meters in diameter, and if you looked closely, you could see that it was glowing slightly. Its effect is unknown, but it seems to be similar to space-time magic. If you think about it, if you get on top of it, will you be able to return home?¡¡I think so. ...... It''s not like it''s a trap when you can see it so clearly. ...... I''m not sure if it''s a trap or not. I''m sure there are cases of this in dungeons, so it''s probably safe. "Sometimes you get sent to a deeper place, though. "That''s not okay! There is a possibility that it''s just a shortcut, without any malicious intent. It''s a bit of a problem for those of us who want to go home. You can''t go down that staircase ......, right? "No. No, I don''t think so. Think about what happens when you go down from the first to the second level. Haruka chuckled as if troubled by Toya''s words. Even if we go forward, I''d like to go home. I agree with you. I need some time off. We still have some food left, but there''s not much left that''s ready-made, so it''s going to take a lot of time to cook. That''s not a bad thing, but it will put pressure on your search time and rest time. ....... If you want to be on top of things, you should go back and check what''s going on in that passage. The problem is that it''s too far away. This magic circle is an acceptable risk. ...... Majority vote. "Who wants to go back there? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. Then she looks around at all the faces, but no one raises their hand. Next, we don''t need to take a vote on ...... for the magic circle. Since there is no option to go on, you can either go back and check, or take the risk of entering the magic circle. It''s a good idea to take into account the fact that there is no guarantee that the path will be open when you go back, so you can''t help but choose the magic circle reluctantly. So, let''s all hold hands and go in at the same time. If we are sent to different places, it could be a problem. "Right. I don''t think it''s that bad. If it were a game, I could judge that it wouldn''t be that difficult because of the strength of the enemies, but there are many things I don''t understand about the dungeons in this world. Then, let''s do it! I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. ...... Hmm?¡¡Nothing is happening. . ......... dud? As if waiting for Haruka''s words, the magic circle suddenly emits a strong light. In the blink of an eye, your vision turns white. I close my eyes because of the glare. Then, a few seconds later. A few seconds later, I opened my eyes again, and what I saw was a green forest and sunlight. This is the entrance to the ...... abandoned mine! I looked around and saw a familiar scene. It was the square where I had fought with skeletons and zombies a while ago. We were standing in the same spot where the Skeleton Knight had camped. Looking back, we see the entrance to an abandoned mine. --Or should I say the entrance to a dungeon now. Yay! "Huh. ...... This is the first time I''ve ever seen such a thing. "Oh!¡¡The sun after a long time!¡¡New air!¡¡I''m loving this heat right now! Toya looks up at the sky, opens his hands and breathes in. It''s the height of summer in the calendar. The temperature is so high that even standing still makes you sweat. In the event of a battle, he would probably be sweating like a waterfall. Even so, the sense of freedom of being safely out of the dungeon seems to be quite great. We all let out sighs of relief and shouts of joy. In the dungeon, we didn''t complain to each other, but I guess we were still under stress. All of us are smiling sincerely for the first time in a long time. It''s a relief, but it looks like the magic circle was a one-way street. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site and see if there''s anything you need to know. There are no traces of the place we came from, and nothing will happen to us if we stand there. In other words, if you want to go to that place again, you''ll have to walk through the dungeon again for several days. ...... That''s a pain. If the path hasn''t been restored, then you won''t be able to get back in. ...... It''s not a problem, is it?¡¡If it was a normal cave, this would be a dungeon. Yeah. The traps in the dungeon seem to come back, and if you can''t get in, it''s not a dungeon. I don''t really understand this existence, dungeons. It''s not the same as a game dungeon, but there are still mysterious parts to it. You need to know more about it. If you want to dive in earnest. Yes. We should also prepare more food. It will give you a different sense of security. Yes. Can we continue after we get rid of those problems? After more than a month of confinement, no one said, "I want to explore as soon as possible! There was no one who said, "I want to explore as soon as possible! We nodded in agreement to Natsuki''s suggestion, and walked quickly towards home. 193-S016 Disciples Daily Life I got an order from Haruka for something dangerous. It''s a big metal box with a roller with bumps on it. I jokingly asked him, "Are you going to use it for torture? He smiled and said, "Hmmm ......". That''s really bad. But it wasn''t that bad. When I consulted my master, he simply said, "It''s a composting part. Seriously? Does the compost of this world come with a shredder? Doesn''t it take time to make compost in an eco-friendly way? Fortunately, we had some in stock at the store''s warehouse, so we delivered it right away. It seems that there are occasional inquiries from restaurants. This town is surprisingly clean. The price was quite high, but I guess Haruka and her friends are making a lot of money. After a while, another order came in. And this time 10 sets. Master was puzzled. It''s not easy to make them, so we usually keep them in stock, but he said, "How can we make ten at once? He said. I''ve been making them slowly since I sold the last one, but I haven''t even finished the first one yet. When I said, "I see, you''re having trouble replacing your inventory," he punched me. Unreasonable. It was a witty joke. Tommy''s the only one. Hmmm. ...... Yeah. No commentary. Well, the deadline''s a little tight this time. But he can''t say no because he''s backed by the town council. Hang in there, Master. --But then he simply said, "You''ll be in charge of six sets. I thought, "Why do I have more sets than you? I thought to myself, "Why do I have to do more? I heard that the strength of the roller is important, so I hit it hard. I pounded and pounded, sparing no time for sleep. After finishing about three pieces, I noticed that the master was desperate. Master''s desperation is lacking. "Why? I thought, "Why?" It seems he subcontracted the work to a subcontractor. I see. He said the exterior parts were simple and could be made even if his skills were lacking. Do you have one for me?¡¡Oh, no?¡¡Do it yourself?¡¡Yes, sir. I worked hard and finished the job in about eight days. It was hard work, but I got a nice bonus from Master. Is that good? This is enough to buy a small house. I''m single, and I don''t want to change my living arrangement. Well, I''d really like to use this bonus to invite Toya and Nao for a drink, but unfortunately, they won''t go out with me. As for alcohol. I''m not good with ale. Once you get used to it, it''s quite tasty, I think. He''s willing to go out for dinner, so I''ll invite him to a place I''ve recently found that serves good motsu stew. For today, I''ll have a drink at the Bear Pavilion as usual. "Hey, it''s Tommy. Long time no see, man. When I returned to the inn, I was immediately approached. "Hey, Mr. Bread. Good evening. I''m a little busy with work. ...... Let''s have a drink first. The trick to drinking quickly at the Bear Pavilion of Slumber. The trick is to go to the counter and buy it yourself. If you wait for your father to come, you won''t be able to drink for a long time. I wish they would hire more people, but I can''t complain if I think that the reduction in labor costs is reflected in the taste of the food. Incidentally, if you become a regular of a higher rank, they will come in and pour for you. Of course, you have to pay for it. I hadn''t gotten that far yet, so I paid at the counter, took the mug from my father, and went to the table. "All right, cheers! I gulped down half of my drink in one gulp, and exhaled. "So what is it?¡¡Did you get an extra job? Yeah. I''m on a tight deadline. Do you get that kind of work at Bread''s place too? No, not really. We''ve been leaning towards the high end lately. You''d have to have a rush job or something to get it to another town, right? Mr. Bread is a middle-aged woodworker. He is a middle-aged woodworker who specializes in fine craftsmanship. He spends a lot of time carving the surface of the furniture, so if you''re like me, you can''t do it in a hurry. In one week! In a week! If I could make weapons like works of art, I might be able to do the same. ...... I guess I have a long way to go. Is the furniture business doing well? The good is good. The economy is booming like never before in recent years!¡¡We''ve got a lot of wood that''s been in short supply. We''ll probably have an uninterrupted supply for a few years. Oh, really? My store doesn''t deal with many of them because they are in a different genre, but we do make furniture-related hardware once in a while. But sometimes we also make hardware for furniture, though the detailed decoration is done separately by metalworkers. Our store often receives orders for tools used in woodworking. We are a weapon shop, but the tools we sell make up a larger portion of our business than you might think. There are not many adventurers who buy expensive weapons. Rafan has... You know what it''s like when I tell you that Toya and his friends are my biggest customers. What?¡¡Tommy''s here today? It''s been a while. Mr. Andrew. Yeah, it''s all settled. With these words, Andrew-san, who works for the Adventurer''s Guild, sat down at the table with me and Bread-san. He was about fifty years old, and in this world, he would be considered a grandfather. Like Mr. Bread, he also frequents this bar for drinks, so I''ve become acquainted with him. How is Andrew these days? "He hasn''t changed a bit. The adventurers in this town are just a bunch of laggards or half-retired. Just when you think they''ve gotten a little better, they''re gone. They dream of making a fortune. ...... Oh, the adventurers you know are different. To be honest, I think you''d be more successful if you just left. ...... Why are you still here? Andrew shrugged his shoulders as he sipped his ale. It seems that young people want to go to the city, and even if they have to force themselves a little, they will leave the city. On the other hand, I don''t think Haruka and her friends are very interested in ...... the city or anything like that. If it''s a sightseeing trip, it''s probably just an "old city tour" for us. I''m not sure if I''d be more successful as an adventurer in another city. "Of course not.¡¡Look at the jobs in this town. It''s just right for a rookie, but there''s nothing great. You can make a lot more money in the labyrinth city if you have the same skills. As for connections to the nobility, it''s almost impossible to find anyone here except the Viscountess Nenus.¡¡That family is not bad, but ...... It''s not a bad place to be a ruler, but unfortunately it''s not a very powerful one, and the money isn''t great either. It seems that they are not the best people for adventurers to seek connections with. You''re a special case, aren''t you? Your friend is a special case. The wood supply, that''s them, right? Do you know ......? They''re from Mr. Simon''s office, but you''d think they''d be a little more discerning. Some of them are jealous. ...... Well, no problem. Anyone who doesn''t know what it means to make enemies with the woodworkers in this town is a mole. If you mess with Haruka and the others and disrupt the supply of fine wood, there will be retaliation. No one would be stupid enough to do something like that. That''s it in a nutshell, apparently. That''s a relief. But I''m indebted to Toya and the others, so I should at least say something to them. I don''t think the cautious Haruka and the others are aware of it, but just in case. I''m not sure if you''re aware of it or not, but I''m sure you''re aware of it. Oh, yes. Yes, I am. I''m not quite there yet, but... d*mn, I wish my boys could hear that!¡¡You''re not much good, but you''re all talk. You''re not that skilled, but you''re still inexperienced. Mr. Bread never brings craftsmen from the same workshop to this store, so I''ve never met him, but I heard that he has three apprentices. He usually complains about their skills when he gets drunk. Well, that''s what I do when I drink. I don''t know how good they really are. Incidentally, when I asked him why he didn''t bring me out for drinks, he said, "You idiot!¡¡You''ll lose your seat! You''ll lose your seat! Well, Kumatei is a hole-in-the-wall kind of place, you know. If I hadn''t been introduced to it by Toya, I wouldn''t have known that there was an inn here. I can understand why you want to keep it a secret. Yeah. There''s not a lot of room. They don''t even know how to take care of their tools!¡¡When I was young, I spent most of my time sharpening them. Mr. Bled. I''ve heard that story before. Drunks. Same story over and over. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. ...... Oh, that''s not right. I was talking about Tommy. You''re not going to get a wife, are you?¡¡I''m sure Gantz wouldn''t object to that. Hi ha ...... Oh, no, there''s a tribal problem ....... "Oh, that''s a problem. There''s hardly any dwarves in this town. You don''t have any in your hometown?¡¡With the money you''re making now, you can''t afford to bring them in, can you? There weren''t any, I''m afraid. ...... I''m not from a dwarven community. It''s a good thing that you''re not from a dwarf settlement, because the female dwarves in this world are a little bit stocky, but they don''t have beards, fortunately. I have the impression that with the change in race comes a change in tastes and other things, but I don''t think I would want to marry a woman with a beard. Of course, she''s not a loli, so some gentlemen won''t be overjoyed, and she won''t be mistaken for a human child. Andrew, do you have any adventurers? "Dwarves?¡¡There are no dwarves in this town, are there?¡¡I''m not the contact person, so I don''t know much about them. I''ve never seen a female dwarf myself. I''ve never seen a female dwarf in person, and there are adventurers in the store, but most of them are human. "So, Gantz is going to take care of them? That sounds like a lot of work. Mr. Bread pondered with a difficult look on his face. But in this world of teacher-disciple relationships, do you need to be like a matchmaker aunt? Is that how it works? That''s how it works. As I recall, you don''t have parents, do you?¡¡Then it''s your duty as a master to take care of your apprentice''s wife. "No, but I''ve only been here less than a year. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. "...... Oh, yeah, that''s right, isn''t it?¡¡I forgot about it because you''re so good. I''m not sure if that''s a good thing or not.¡¡It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web. I''m not sure if I''m happy or annoyed ...... with my wife''s care ....... I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. There is no partner! And what about the different races, that''s also difficult. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m originally human or because I think Haruka and her friends are cute and could be the target of a romance, but they''re in the minority as far as Dwarves go. The opposite is also true. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not as tall as humans, elves, or beastmen. ...... Is it because of my height? It''s not that there aren''t couples of humans and dwarves, of course, but they are in the minority compared to other races. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Well, well, there will come a time!¡¡Don''t be discouraged! Don''t be discouraged!" My pondering caused Mr. Bread to think, "Oh no! I''m sure you''ll be able to find a way to make it work. I''ll be on the lookout for dwarf adventurers, too. That''s right!¡¡I''m sure we''ll meet at some point! It would be difficult for me to find a dwarf girl, even if I were a master. Dwarves seem to have a slightly longer lifespan than humans, so let''s take it easy for a while. Yeah. Let''s drink for now. I stand up, mug in hand, to order another ale. --But in less than a year, that prediction would be overturned. ...... Of course, I had no idea at the time. 194-176 Return Report On the day we returned home from the dungeon, we finished our bath and dinner in a few words and went to bed early. It was the first time in a long time that I didn''t need to take any precautions, so I slept like a baby and woke up the next day near noon. When I woke up, Haruka and Natsuki hadn''t gotten up yet, and even Yuki and Toya had just gotten up a little while ago. They spent the rest of the day sluggishly, and it wasn''t until the next day that they started to move normally. Although they didn''t say it out loud, all of them must have been under a certain amount of stress. When you think about it, going into a dungeon with a party of people you don''t know well is quite a risk. If it was between us, "getting attacked" would be a joke, but in a normal situation, or in a trapped situation like that, ....... Well, I don''t plan to bring in any new members, so it''s none of my business. So, what are your plans for today? Let''s go to the guild first. I''m sure you''re all wondering about that pendant.¡¡And I haven''t seen Diora for a while, so she might be worried. "Oh, that''s right. Diora would be worried if she hadn''t heard from you for over a month after you said you were going to the dungeon. About forty days? It is highly possible that he is worried about you because you told him that you were going to explore the dungeon with the report of its discovery. If you think about it, you should at least show your face. Incidentally, it is said that reporting the discovery of a dungeon itself is ''recommended but not obligatory''. The reason why it is not compulsory is that it is difficult to confirm that it is a dungeon, and there are various problems involved, such as the manpower problem of the guild. I don''t understand it. After that, we''ll dismantle it, right?¡¡We''ve got a lot of them. The downside is that it''s not very profitable. Most of the demons I killed in the dungeon were thrown directly into my magic bag. I have a simple demolition shed in my yard that I built with earth magic a while ago, and there''s a compost bin nearby, so there''s no reason to dismantle them in a place that''s difficult to work with. The only exception is Pickau, who was dismantled for eating. The only exception is the Pickau, who was dismantled for eating. So, let''s go to the survival report and appraisal request. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó "Haruka-san!¡¡And everyone!¡¡You''re safe, aren''t you? I''m not sure what to make of this. As soon as we entered the guild, he jumped out from the counter and hugged Haruka, who was in the front. Ugh, I''m in pain. ...... "Oh, I''m sorry. But I was really worried about you.¡¡Are you okay? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll be able to understand what I mean. We had a few problems, but we''re fine, as you can see. "Thanks in part to our advance preparations, though. You can never be too careful in a dungeon. The reason we were able to explore with a relatively relaxed mind was because of the cots and food we had prepared in advance. If we hadn''t been prepared, we probably wouldn''t have died, but the situation would have been quite dire. "What happened? I briefly explained what had happened in the dungeon to Diora, who asked with concern. Well, there wasn''t any big event, we just couldn''t turn back and it took us a long time to return. Still, Diora listened to our story with a nod, perhaps curious that there were no dungeons in the area. It''s a dungeon, you can''t be too careful even if the enemies are weak. But it looks like a difficult dungeon to handle. "Is it? Yes. Normally, we would announce the dungeon when we find it, but most of the adventurers in this town can''t reach it. If they run into an ogre on the way, they''ll be wiped out. "That''s what happens when you''re an adventurer guarding a lumberjack. Toya nodded at Diora''s words. In order to get to the dungeon, you have to go further than the place where they cut down the trees. It would be a bit difficult for an adventurer who deals with goblins and the like. And for adventurers who can get to the dungeons, the monsters in the dungeons are too inefficient. Isn''t that true for you too, Haruka? Well, considering the time it took, it''s not very profitable. The enemies that appear in the first and second levels of the dungeon are weak, the purchase price of magic stones is low, and the materials obtained are delicate. It''s true that there''s no reason to go to the dungeon at all. However, in our case, we want Pickau''s marbled meat, so we''ll probably continue to go hunting without regard for profit. In addition, when you enter the second level, you''re suddenly locked in. An ordinary adventurer would probably be dead.¡¡The other thing to consider is whether or not the trap will work again and again. If it''s a dungeon, it''s probably not. If it''s a dungeon, it''s probably back to normal, but if it''s still there, it''s impossible to get to the second level. If it''s a dungeon, it''s probably back to normal, but if it''s still there, it''s impossible to go to the second level, and we won''t be able to get marbled meat. If there were more treasure chests, it would be better, but it took a long time - two months in total?¡¡It took me that long to find three chests. And two of them are pretty cheap, aren''t they? "Yes, sir. They are an iron sword and a potion, so even if you put them together, they won''t be worth more than ten gold coins. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to get a lot more than that. In addition to the family heirloom sword, the skeleton knight''s sword was made of white iron and would cost no less than 50 gold coins to buy. Some adventurers may want to go to the dungeon if such a thing has fallen, but we''ve been all over the dungeon, and the chances of finding more are pretty slim. So unless you find something amazing, the only people who will go into the dungeons will be adventurers like Haruka and the others who like things. What do you mean "picky"? ...... We only chose dungeons because we don''t like the heat. "Adventurers like you, Haruka, if you don''t like the heat, you take a vacation, usually. You''re making enough money, aren''t you?¡¡It''s not like we''re adventurers who are starving. While the rookies have to work almost without a break to make ends meet, the high-ranked adventurers seem to be leading a more comfortable life. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or a bad thing. If I had to pick a good point, I would say that there is a magic circle for returning home. It''s a pretty big place, so it''s convenient to have it. "That''s true. I was worried when I entered the magic circle, but now that I know how it works, I can use it without worry. That dungeon is huge. Even if you have a map, it will take you a few days to get past the second level. You can''t earn money on the first and second levels, so even if there are places to earn money on the third level and beyond, you''ll need at least a week''s worth of expedition. Even those of us who are known for our love of things can''t bring ourselves to go there except during the hot summer months. If the dungeon is really lucrative, I''ll set up a transfer device. Can you do that? It''s not that easy, is it?¡¡It would cost a lot of money. According to Diora, there are times when space-time wizards and alchemists are mobilized to create a transfer device that will take you to a specific level of the dungeon. However, since it is necessary to call in rare space-time wizards, and the installation and maintenance costs are quite high, it seems that such devices are not installed unless the dungeon is very profitable. Well, that''s not really a problem in Rafan. The location of the dungeon is bad, and the enemies and treasure chests are not very good. There''s no advantage to diving them, and since there''s no advantage, they won''t be maintained. In some cases, dungeons can contribute to the development of a town, but in this case, ......". Are you saying we should just leave it? I think so. The dungeon will probably not even be announced. Newly discovered dungeons are generally perceived as a great risk, but also a dream of getting rich. Furthermore, dungeons that are not under the control of the Adventurer''s Guild can be entered regardless of rank, so even low-ranked adventurers may have a chance. Normally, it would be suicide to enter a dungeon with such a rank, but dreamy adventurers tend to focus only on getting rich and turn away from the risks. If a poorly informed and unskilled adventurer goes into a dungeon, he is likely to die before he even reaches it. So that dungeon will probably be left alone and only be mentioned in the adventurer''s guild report. That dungeon - well, we need to name it. Shall we all name it?¡¡We''re the first to discover it. "Huh?¡¡The abandoned mine was already known, right? Yes. Yes, it was known as an abandoned mine. But it was you who discovered it as a dungeon. What does it matter?¡¡It''s not used very often. The naming rights of the dungeon will be given some consideration to the first discoverer. Since adventurers don''t get any benefit from reporting dungeons to the guild, this seems to be recognized as a kind of reward. It''s an honor because it leaves your name behind, but ...... it''s not really relevant to us. We want to make a name for ourselves so that we are not underestimated, but not so much that we want to go down in history. --No, in this dungeon, it doesn''t matter either way. What do you think? I don''t know. ...... The majority of us felt that it didn''t matter, but some of us thought it was a good idea, so we discussed it lightly. "Well, I''ll see you at the dungeon in the summer. It was decided in a very matter-of-fact way. "Was it cool at ......? Yes. Yes, it was cool enough for me to be well equipped to fight at this time of year. And that''s what we went to the dungeon for, in our case. You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. It really is probably only used for reports. I understand. I''ll put the documents together then. And the appraisal of the ...... pendant? Yes. You''ll take care of it, won''t you? It may take some time, is that okay? Since there are no dungeons nearby, there are few requests for appraisals in Raffan, and if it is an advanced item, it will take time. I''m sorry. How much do I owe you? Let''s see, Haruka''s rank is 5, so it''s 1 ...... gold coin. Does it depend on your rank? Yes. To be honest, most of the time we end up in the red, so the guild doesn''t want to waste money on appraisals. To my question, Diora told me with a wry smile, rank 3 and below is worth 10 gold coins, rank 4 is worth 3 gold coins, rank 5 and 6 is worth 1 gold coin. Rank 7 and above is a flat rate of 5 large silver coins. To put it in simple terms, it seems to say, "What low ranks bring in is worthless. It is useless to appraise such items at a loss. This is the guild''s way of telling you not to bring it in. The reason why there is a flat rate for rank 7 and above is because at that level, the items are only worth about 5 large silver coins or a fraction of a coin, so there is no point in charging too little. Even though it''s a service for adventurers, it seems to have been thought out. "I see. --About this pendant... "Oh!¡¡It''s more beautiful than I expected. The jewel is also large. ...... When Haruka took the pendant out of the magic bag and showed it to Diora, Diora looked a little surprised and took it. Can you sell it for a lot? "Yes. It will be worth a lot of money as an ordinary accessory. Besides that, there are some other benefits. ...... Wait a minute. Ms. Diora went back into the counter and came back with a thin, palm-sized box-like object. It''s a little dusty since it''s rarely used. Diora wiped the black metal box with a handkerchief and drew a double circle on it. Please place the pendant in the center of this circle. Yes. Haruka did as she was told, placed the pendant and waited for a moment, then the circle glowed dimly. What is this? This is a simple way to judge a magic tool. If it''s just an ordinary accessory, it''s a waste of money and time. If it glows like this, there''s a good chance it''s at least some sort of magical tool. We had sensed the magical power and judged it to be more than just jewelry, but as expected, the Adventurers Guild had the tools to judge. As Diora had said, she had no use for it. It''s very useful. So you''ll take care of the appraisal? "Yes. I''ll take care of it. However, it is said that the result of the appraisal can range from a few days at the earliest to a few months at the latest. It''s a pity that I can''t do a quick appraisal, but I have no other choice. Hmm, it would be nice if the [Appraisal] skill was a little more useful. 195-177 Kerg mayhem (convergence) Oh, by the way, the Kerug mess is safely contained. ""What?" We had just finished our business and were thinking of going home when, as if suddenly remembering, Diora-san told us about it. About a week ago, I think. It seems that the lord has finally dispatched an army to suppress it. The problem of food will disappear once the disturbances in Kerg are over, but from our point of view, it''s a little complicated because we have some involvement. So, are you completely finished? The resistance was quite fierce, and there was some damage, but it seems to be basically under control. However, the ringleader has not been caught yet, and he is wanted. See, there''s another wanted person there, right? I looked in the direction Diora was pointing and saw a piece of paper stuck to the wall. When I got closer, I saw that it was a bounty hunter''s wanted list. The subject was the representative of the Order of Saint Sathmie, Saint Sathmie. The bounty is a thousand gold coins. The head of a somewhat large bandit group would be worth about 200 gold coins, so it is quite a large sum for a bounty hunter. It''s hard to get in and out of the town with such a large number of sketches. In this world, there are many places that are uninhabited, so it is not impossible to live self-sufficiently in such places if you have the ability, but since demons are common, the necessary "ability" is also quite high. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, please contact us at ........ But I don''t remember this face, do you?¡¡Are you a bad sketch artist? No, it''s a skill.¡¡You''ve changed your appearance, maybe. Oh, that''s a possibility. We gather in front of the handbill, whispering to each other. We''re not close friends, but we know each other, so we''re a little curious. "So it finally went down. "''Life or death''? That''s pretty bad. It says, "Because of his inexplicable abilities, he should not be listened to, and he should be stunned, gagged, or blindfolded if he is to be taken alive. It is said that a bounty hunter who is not dead or alive can be taken literally by the head, but if there is enough room, he is often taken alive. This is because there is no way to identify the individual with certainty, and if you kill the wrong person, the person who brought the bounty on his head will be arrested for murder. On the other hand, if the person is still alive, he or she can be given extenuating circumstances, and if the other party has a reason to suspect him or her, he or she can be acquitted. Because of these reasons, bounty hunting is not so easy in this world, and you don''t see many people doing it. A bounty hunter''s bounty is like a request from a guild, and several parties go together to kill it. Considering that, this wanted list for the saint Satomi is quite unusual. "The charge is ...... ''Causing Disruption to Society''? "That''s it? It seems that she has been doing some very foolish things and taking money from the people. Mr. Diora commented on the ambiguous way of writing. It seems that Viscount Nenus warned him several times, but instead of accepting it, he strongly opposed it. Oh, that''s not good, is it? Yes. Yes, you have smeared the lord''s face. ...... In Japan, even if something is legally gray, if it is not black, you can''t be arrested. For example, fictitious billing. Sending a postcard with fictitious billing is not a fraud by itself. It becomes a scam only when the victim is victimized, but it is difficult to catch the scammer because the victim may not be aware of the scam or may not be able to tell others. However, since the deceived person may not realize that they have been deceived or may not be able to tell others, it is difficult to detect. This is the rule of law. There are no laws and no penalties. But this world is different. If the lord of the land says "no," then it is "no. It can''t be overturned unless it''s a big deal. Perhaps the Order of the Holy Sutomie has misunderstood that. But even so, it seems that the lord was restrained in his response. In addition to the past problems related to the abandoned mines, there were also nobles and large merchants involved in the cult of Satomi, so it seems that they could not easily take steps to suppress it by force. This is the reason why the Order of Saint Sathmie took a strong stand, but perhaps because the person standing at the top is not from this world, they finally made a decisive mistake. It seems that Saint Satomi has claimed to be a ''living god. That completely changed the tide. In a world where gods are real, calling oneself a god poses a very serious problem. An "apostle" or an "agent of God" is barely acceptable, but a "living god" is completely out of the question. There are many problems, such as being too irreverent or antagonizing many religions, but the biggest problem is d*mnation. Like God, it is real in this world. Depending on the god who imposes the divine punishment, the extent of its influence varies, and in the past, there have been cases where the people around have been greatly involved. In other words, it is acceptable to cause some damage to the surrounding area through forceful suppression. The Viscount, who had been taking cautious measures, seems to have moved at once. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, it''s possible that you''ll be able to find a great deal more information on the web. I see. ...... The prize money is big, but not enough to dare to go and get him. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''ve already killed people like Tokuoka. But that was because they attacked us as bandits and we didn''t recognize them. Of course, if someone close to you is harmed, there is no limit to that, but Aera, the presumed victim, has recovered well and her store is doing well, and in a way, I got to know her through that, so I personally don''t hold a grudge. "Well, I don''t think I''ll be coming to this town, and I don''t think I''ll be getting involved with the people of Meikagami... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find a way to get your hands on it. Because of this matter. It''s already been two months since we got the heirloom back, but it seems we still haven''t been able to confirm it. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website to see if you can find any useful information. As for Diora, she thought that it might give Viscount Nenus a bad impression if she brought the swords in a confused situation, and that it was not good for her to carry a large number of swords in a turbulent Kergu. It is true that with more than ten swords made of white iron and bearing the emblem of the Viscount Nenus family, if you were questioned, you might go straight to jail. The situation has settled down, and we''re planning to send it to the pinning of the territorial capital. Our original job was to deliver the heirloom to the guild. The adventurer''s guild is responsible for confirming the authenticity of the heirlooms, so the guild will pay for the work of showing them to Viscount Nenus in Pining to confirm their authenticity. This time, Diora has asked us to do the work, and is paying us for it. While you''re at it, why don''t you try to negotiate the purchase of the other swords?¡¡I''m sure Viscount Nenus can get them for you, as long as you don''t try to rip him off. As long as we don''t go through the guild, we won''t have to pay any commissions, and our earnings will probably increase, but the question is, who will negotiate with the nobleman? The question is who will negotiate with the nobles. I think Toya and I will go without ....... We''re not really used to negotiating. Yuki is shaking her head, and Haruka and Natsuki are smiling like they are in trouble. We''re only high school students, after all, and our life experience is... I''m not sure I''m going to be able to negotiate with the nobility ...... to be honest. Do you know Viscount Nenus, Diora? "Yes, sir. Yes, I do. I can write you a letter of introduction if you want. ......? That''d be great, but ...... I''d be grateful if you''d accept. Viscount Nenus has asked to see you once and thank you for your service, and you can be sure that Haruka and the others with the magic bags will be able to transport you. What should we do? What should I do? It''s quite a quandary. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. ...... can I talk to you about something? Yes, of course. Would you like me to leave you alone? No, I''m fine. --What do you want? What do you want me to do?¡¡I don''t think it''s a bad idea, sir. I don''t think it''s a good idea for you to stay away from the nobles. If you''re going to live in seclusion somewhere, but if you''re going to live in a civilized world. It''s a good idea to consider the possibility that you might get involved with them and be forced into trouble, but there is also the possibility that you might be able to rely on them for power in times of trouble. ....... After considering all of this, we came to the conclusion that... All right. I''ll take care of it. Can you get me a referral? "Yes. He''s not very good at negotiating with nobles, so I''ll try to make it as easy as possible for him. That''s Mr. Diora. Competent. He''s got an itch that needs to be tended to. The guild''s vice-chief is no mean feat. However, if you think about the guild''s profits, it would be more profitable to ask someone other than us to transport the items and act as an intermediary for the sale, so this may have been a loan to Viscount Nenus in addition to a profit-making scheme for us. I''ve been waiting a long time for the payment of the reward for the discovery of the family heirlooms, perhaps this is a quid pro quo? --No way, it''s not ...... related to the fact that it''s Dindol season in a little while, is it? I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Please wait a moment. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. We quickly put them away in our magic bags and spent the next few minutes chatting with Diora about dungeons and the Order of the Holy Satomi. No, to be more precise, it was the women who were chatting, and Toya and I were mostly listening, but Diora was at work. There were a few other guild employees, though not many. Even though it''s a free time, if such chit-chat goes on for an hour, it''s a little awkward for us, and we start to worry about the stares. So Toya and I forced Haruka and the others to end the conversation because lunch time was approaching, and we left the Adventurer''s Guild a little too quickly. We left the guild. We left the guild and headed to Aella''s store. The purpose of our visit was to have lunch at Aella''s store for the first time in a long time, and to deliver the meat. We were so tired yesterday that we forgot that we hadn''t had any deliveries for over a month. I don''t have a clear contract with him, but it would be annoying to have the delivery interrupted without prior notice. When I showed up at the store, as expected, we were almost out of meat, and Mr. Aera was so happy to see me that he hugged me. It seems that they had been purchasing meat from the butcher shop in town, but due to the Kerug, the amount of food distributed was low, and they couldn''t purchase too much. We stuffed a lot of meat into the refrigerator, which was completely empty, and also gave away some of the demons we had hunted in the dungeon as souvenirs. We thought the Pickau, which we personally liked, would be a bit of a disappointment, but the giant bat was unexpectedly well received. Aella seemed to be familiar with it, and I heard that its feathers - or was it its membrane? --He said it was a delicacy. She let me try it, and the crispy texture was interesting, and it was certainly more delicious than I expected. It''s not the kind of dish that you want to eat in large quantities, but Ms. Aera insisted that it goes well with alcohol, so I guess it''s good as a snack. The taste was a little strong. But we don''t drink, so we don''t know much about it, and when Aella-san, who looks like a beautiful girl, told us, we felt a bit uncomfortable. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. However, ...... I do wish they would keep their knowledge of the Ripper Bee''s cooking to themselves. I''m in the mood. 196-178 Orphanage (1) After lunch and tea time at Aella''s store, we headed to the temple. I hadn''t been able to visit the temple for quite a while because I was trapped in a dungeon, and the enemies I killed were basically just small fish, but there were a good number of them. This visit was made in the hope of improving my level a bit. As usual, when I entered the temple, which was not very popular, I found Ishka sweeping the floor. It''s been a while. Hello, Mr. Ishka. Hello, Ishka-san. She noticed us as soon as we opened the door and approached us, smiling happily. I also smiled and returned the greeting, but my companions gave me a slightly disturbed look. What about me? Haruka''s voice was a little stiff as she asked. I don''t have any ulterior motives. I''m just happy to make the acquaintance of a beautiful woman. I''ve known a lot of old men in the past, so it''s okay to tilt the scales a little towards the ladies, right? This is the head priestess of the temple, Miss Isiaka. You''re in charge of this temple and the orphanage behind it, right? "Yes. My name is Ishka and I am in charge of the temple of Lord Adversus in this town. Even though I am the head priest, there are only four other priests. He smiled a bit annoyed. I''ve never seen another priest, by the way. ...... I''ve never seen any other priests. I do most of the work in this temple. The orphanage ....... You''re right, taking care of children is a lot of work. Natsuki nodded as if to say, "That''s true. I''ve heard that it''s hard to raise even a few children of your own, and if you have many more than that, you''ll have a lot of trouble. Some of the children may be older than others, but the age of adulthood is low in this world, and I think they will leave the orphanage by the time they are useful. I believe the current number of children is-- You have 23 children, right? How do you know so much, Nao? The one who looked at me suspiciously again was Yuki. But before I could give Yuki an excuse, Ishka told her the reason. She said, "Nao-san, I took you to an orphanage once before, and you made a donation. "Oh, Nao is doing such charity work? Yes. I''m sure that you will be blessed by the Lord Adversus. Ishka smiles benevolently and clasps her hands together. I''m not sure what to make of that, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ....... I''m not sure if I''m wrong or not, but I''ve been told by my main deity that ...... I should pay an offering. I see. ....... I''m sure you''re not wrong. "Well, we''re here to pray, aren''t we? Oh, I''m sorry, I didn''t mean to disturb you. Please. Ishka bowed and left, and we went to the altar. As usual, I threw in a large silver coin, closed my eyes and prayed. Nao is now level 19. He needs 31,920 experience to level up to the next level. Okay, that''s one up. The amount of experience required is increasing, but it''s not fixed for each demon, so it''s only a guide. Basically, the stronger the demon, the more experience you get, but the more times you fight the same demon, the less experience you get. This may be because you can read the pattern and it becomes routine. On the other hand, you can gain experience more consistently through daily training. Perhaps it is because our skills are improving and not becoming routine, or perhaps it is because the mock battles with Toya and the others have a modest effect. And it is thanks to God that we can see such results in numerical values. Yes, I can see no problem in paying a little offering. I nodded my head and opened my eyes, and as if I had been waiting for it, Ishka came up to me, smiled, and opened her mouth. "Nao-san, if you don''t mind, why don''t you visit the orphanage again? What? Is this a trend where I''m being asked to make an offering again? I don''t mind donating a little bit of money, but if I had to donate every time I came to the temple, it would be hard on my wallet. I was about to refuse the offer with an innocuous reason, but before I could open my mouth, there was someone who showed interest. "An orphanage? Yes. It''s behind the temple. Would you like to visit it? As if in response to Natsuki''s question, Ishka invited others to join her. The others seemed to be interested as well, and started to follow Ishka''s lead. Now I have no choice but to follow behind her. It''s a good thing I didn''t get my arms wrapped around her like I did last time in front of Haruka and the others. I don''t think I''m ...... a bit disappointed or anything like that. I''ve been to the orphanage a second time. The second time I visited the orphanage, the children''s voices echoed, unlike the last time. A large garden in front of the orphanage. There were many children running around, or playing in the sand in the corner. And there were four adults standing watching over the children. Two men and two women. All of them are young, maybe not much older than us. These four are probably the priests that Ishka was talking about. I hadn''t paid much attention to them last time, but the children ranged in age from junior high school to babies held by female priests. This is the orphanage: ...... The orphanage takes care of the children until they reach the age of 15. But we don''t have much room, so some of them leave as early as 12 years old. According to the system, children can live in the orphanage until they reach adulthood, but the subsidy does not increase with the number of orphans, and the more orphans there are, the more difficult it becomes to run the orphanage. The more orphans there are, the more difficult it becomes for the orphanage to operate. The children who grow up here understand this, so they strive to become independent as soon as possible, and this leads to them leaving before they reach adulthood. Of course, there are some children who stay until they reach adulthood, but those children also have some kind of job and contribute their wages to the orphanage. It''s not easy, is it? Yes. But this is a good town. But this town is a good one, at least there are not too many orphans on the streets. Some towns have ....... He slurred his words, and Ishka''s face became a little gloomy. The only other towns we''ve seen are Sarstat and Kergu, both of which are in the territory of Viscount Nenus. Therefore, the situation of the town is probably not that different, but we can imagine that the situation will change when the ruler changes. From the way Diora spoke, it seems that Viscount Nenus is a decent nobleman, but there are probably noblemen who are not decent, and perhaps Ishka has seen a town ruled by such a nobleman. Thank the gods for dropping me near a good town. "Oh, that''s you!¡¡Hello! The first person who noticed us approaching the orphanage and called out to us was the little girl we met last time. She seemed to be drawing something on the ground, but then she threw away the tree branch she was holding, stood up and bowed to us. You are ...... Remy, right?¡¡How are you? Yes!¡¡I had a little trouble with my food. But I''m back to normal! "Yes! When I looked at Ishka, she looked a little troubled. We are affected by the rising price of food. ....... Thanks to Nao''s donation, we were able to get through it. ...... Oh. ...... It seems that the effects of the Kerg fiasco were also felt in these places. It seems that the price of food, which had risen gradually before we entered the dungeon, had finally risen to about 1.5 times the price. Even though a single family could manage to endure it, an orphanage with a large number of people would be affected by the increase, and as a result, the amount of food they ate was reflected in the price. I''m fine now, you know?¡¡Fortunately, the value of food has returned to normal since yesterday or so, so we''ve managed to ....... The quality is a bit lower, but ...... The mayhem in Kergu had stopped about a week ago. It took a few days to get from Kerg to Laffan, so the price settled down a few days after the cargo started arriving. It seems pretty fast, but the lord may have taken some action. However, the orphanage was not completely back to normal because they had to cut back on their reserve fund when the price went up. "Oniichan, can you give me some more food? "Huh? Remy said unexpectedly, and I turned around to look at Ishka. But she did her best to look away. "Ishka-san, ......? No, no, I was just explaining that we can eat thanks to Nao. ...... Oh-ho-ho. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I drop to my knees, look at Remy, and ask, "Remy, what did the Chief Priest say to you? "Well, he told me to be careful!¡¡"Well, he told me to be careful! He said that I could eat a lot of people''s food. Remy replied with a lisp, tilting his head from side to side as best he could. The "something" part is probably a word like "donation" or "support" or something like that. At least, it seems that Ishka didn''t make him say those words. "I see. Yeah, I guess so. I''ll give you a little bit of food. "Wow!¡¡Yay!¡¡--Thank you very much. I''m sure you don''t understand what I''m talking about when I say "offering", so I pat her on the head and say something like that. Remy-chan was jumping up and down with a happy smile on her face, but then, as if she remembered, she said a few words of thanks and bowed her head. --Didn''t he say this to you the other day?¡¡Are you teaching her that? I looked at Ishka again, but I couldn''t make eye contact with her. "Ishka-san, ......? I''m just trying to teach her to say thank you properly.¡¡Yes. She waved her hands in the air and denied it, but it seemed suspicious. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. 197-179 Orphanage (2) Nao, how much did you donate last time? Five gold pieces. "I see, that''s enough to cover the cost. With the prices here, food that is not considered a luxury item is surprisingly cheap. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not proud of it, but the most I''ve ever donated in Japan was 1,000 yen. However, considering my current wallet situation, I feel like I could give a little more. ...... I don''t know if I''ll be able to make money in the future, so I''ll just visit from time to time and give a little. As we were talking about this, other children who were playing around noticed us and came running up to us. "Who''s that? "Pretty! "An adventurer!¡¡He''s cool! Hey, tell us about your adventures! We''re going to a dungeon or something, aren''t we? We''re not wearing any armor now, just our clothes. We didn''t look like adventurers when we first came here, but now we look like adventurers, or maybe it''s simply because we have weapons. --Well, it''s the weapons, I guess. Most people don''t carry weapons. It''s too cumbersome to carry around a long weapon, so Toya uses her sword, and we use only a small sword. Even so, we can kill an orc, and it won''t be a problem in the city. "Weapons!¡¡Show us your weapons! Me too, me too! No, it''s not safe. You hold the hilt of your sword and keep it away from the outstretched hand. As a man, I understand, but it''s too dangerous to let him touch a sword that''s so sharp. Toya''s sword is also somewhat sharp since he started using the attribute steel, and it would be dangerous for a child to hold it. However, it would be a pity to leave him with nothing. Just show it. I pull out a small sword out of the reach of a small child and show him or her the blade. "Wow, that''s amazing! "Cool! It''s shiny! I want one! I want it!" They look up at it enviously, but no child would reach for it easily. Weapons are common in this world, so they understand the dangers to some extent. In particular, the small sword that we are holding is slightly different from the swords that are commonly used, and it seems to be sharp, which may be unusual. The glittering eyes and respectful glances from the children tickled me a little, but they were children. Not only that, there are also children who try to play pranks. One such child walks up behind Natsuki with a smirk on his face. By the way, Natsuki''s casual clothes today are a skirt. There aren''t many options for a kid to play a prank on Natsuki. --Should I warn her?¡¡Should I be careful? I''m not sure. While I was thinking about this, things were moving. A boy runs into Natsuki''s butt. What? I''m sure he can''t see her, but if that''s all he can do, he''s no good as a vanguard. And boys. If you''re going to take me by surprise, don''t scream. My perk is ...... gee gee gee. The moment the boy''s hand reaches for her skirt, Natsuki''s body moves quickly. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. This is a great way to make sure that you don''t get caught in the middle of the night. He then grabbed the boy by the collar, spun him around, and dropped him on the ground with a thud. "What?¡¡What? You can''t do that.¡¡You can''t do that to a boy. Natsuki pats the boy''s head as he sits on the ground and smiles at him. If it was just to stop him from falling, he could have just grabbed him by the collar, but Natsuki threw him lightly as a punishment. The boy looked up at Natsuki and was stunned, not knowing what had happened, but as he understood the situation, a look of joy appeared on his face. "Wow, that''s amazing!¡¡What the heck!¡¡Do it again, do it again! Do it again! Do it to me! Do it to me! "What did you do?¡¡Oh, my God! It seemed to have the opposite effect on the curious child. As the kids gathered around, Natsuki looked annoyed, but also a little happy. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. This is no good. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not going anywhere today anyway. I''m sure you''re right.¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Natsuki said, "Come here, please," and led the children to a grassy area some distance away. Most of the children who followed her were boys, but there was also a lively-looking girl in the mix. There is still no difference in body size between boys and girls - or rather, girls are still larger than boys, and the gender gap is not yet clear, so there is little discomfort, but it is unusual to see that other girls are not very interested. After seeing the children off, Ishka bowed to us with a bit of apology. I''m sorry, the children. No, it''s fine. No, it''s fine. As I said, I don''t have anything special to do today. She''s quite fond of children. My first impression of Natsuki was that she was crisp and a little hard to get to know, but in fact, she had taught small children at the dojo and was quite fond of children. However, I''ve heard that she tends to be distant from kids she''s never met before, but the kids here don''t seem to care about that at all and gather around Natsuki, so I guess she''s enjoying herself in her own way. I''m sure you''re right. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Yes. I am Haruka, the one who took the children over there is Natsuki, and... I''m Yuki. I''m Toya. Hello. I''m Ishka, and I''m the head priest at the temple of Adversus in this town. And ......, you guys, come here! I''m the head priest at the temple of Adversus in this town. I''m a priest who works here. Introduce yourselves. "I''m Kane, apprentice priest. Sidney, my apprentice. Seira, assistant priestess. I''m Angier, full priest. It''s nice to meet you. The four of us bowed together, and we introduced ourselves again. Two of the apprentice priests are younger than us, about middle school age. The assistant priest and the one who called herself a full priest were girls. No, Angel-san is not a girl, but a woman. I''d say she''s a few years older than us. Ishka is probably no older than 30. All in all, the personnel of this temple seems to be quite young, is that so? I had an image of the chief priest and the others being old. These four are usually in charge of the orphanage, but occasionally they are assigned to work in the temple, so you may have a chance to see them there. I wonder if it is really occasional, though. I''ve been to the temple quite a few times, but I''ve only met Ishka. I''ve never met any of the other four. "Haruka~. So you''re going to stay here with the kids today, right? Yes. You can leave if you don''t want to. Hmm, maybe once in a while.¡¡I don''t think I could keep up my strength every day. I''m not sure I''d be able to keep up my strength if I had to do it every day." Yuki said with a laugh, and Haruka and the other four priests laughed. They must be having a hard time with the powerful children. The last time I was here, the kids were fighting. "Well then, if you want to hear about our adventures, gather around here~ "Yes! Yuki took a few kids who answered and headed for the shade. Then, I''ll just play with them. He says this, but in fact, he''s working with the kids while he''s talking. He may be an easily recognizable warrior, but he is also a rare beastman. He struggles to touch her tail, but the child is no match for Toya''s body language, and even when surrounded by several people, he laughs and dodges, or lightly strokes her with his tail. Even though he has had a tail for less than a year, he is quite dexterous. And the most popular ones are me and Haruka. The kids who were less interested in adventure stories and exercise - mostly girls - stayed behind and gathered around us. It is easy to forget that I am now a rare and beautiful elf. I don''t get many chances to show my elven side, but I''m good looking. I don''t have any girls coming up to me, though! --Oh, no, they''re coming now, but they''re too young. You can marry her if you want. I''m in trouble. You''re skipping too many steps. This is probably the second time we''ve met, right?¡¡I don''t remember. By the way, Remy is still with me, probably because Ishka is nearby, and unlike the other members, she has met and talked with me before. I was expecting the boys to come closer to Haruka, but they seemed to be interested but shy, and only glanced at her from a distance. The girls, on the other hand, were not shy and said, "Pretty! or "Wow! The girls, on the other hand, are unrestrained, clinging to Haruka, saying things like, "Pretty! How can you be so beautiful? I think it''s hard to ask that question because it''s a tribal thing, you know? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to say. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it in the following article. Then, all I had to do was listen. It''s useless to expect me to be a good talker. I feel that Haruka''s gaze on me is slightly cold, but it''s no problem. If I leave it to Haruka, who has solid management skills, she will be able to organize the kids in a good way. After playing together until the evening, we each gave Ishka a donation of three gold coins on our way home, and left the temple. I was completely taken in by her intentions, but the children were cute, and if I thought I had gained some virtue, I wouldn''t have minded a small donation. In this world, God is real. It is possible to get some worldly benefits if you are virtuous. I''ll be back. The next day, I spent a few days dismantling all the demons that had accumulated in my magic bag. There were too many demons that had not been dismantled, and the fertilizer vending machine was empty, so we dismantled them all at once. Because of the quantity, everyone''s [Dismantling] skill has been upgraded, but I don''t think there''s much point in upgrading it now. We''re already feeling the increase in processing speed, which is great if you''re working while adventuring, but in our case, we can work at our leisure in a safe place. We sold all the items we got from the dismantling to the adventurer''s guild. We kept for ourselves some marbled and lean meat from Pickau, a small amount of magic stones for alchemy, and a few giant bats that were unexpectedly delicious. The amount of money we spent on the meat was quite reasonable, but considering the time it took, I''d say it was worth it. Still, the marbled meat I got made me feel a little better. The amount of meat we got from Tyrant Pickau was quite large, so we will be able to eat A5-ranked marbled meat (judged by Natsuki) whenever we want for a while. After the dismantling was finished, we replenished the vending machine with fertilizer. There were many parts of this demon that could not be used as material, and the fertilizer that was produced was also in large quantities, so it looks like we won''t have to worry about running out for the time being. It seems that the fertilizer sales system set up by the deputies here will continue even after the war in Kergu is over, and there is no need for us to supply it, but the original purpose was to dispose of the waste. The price we have set is a little lower than the price the deputy is selling it for, so it will continue to sell in moderation. The next day, after all the miscellaneous work was done, we went to Kerg to carry out our request. At that time, Diora gave us an important information, "There is a report that there is a missing person case in Pining, so please be careful. ...... Why would she put such information in this scene? It''s called a flag, isn''t it? But I can''t cancel it now. We left the town of Laffan feeling slightly uneasy about the future. 198-180 Kerg Mayhem (Current) The town of Kergu, where the mayhem had occurred, was visibly damaged. Even just a short walk into the town, we could see collapsed buildings and burnt ruins everywhere. The expressions on the faces of the people walking around the town were somehow dark, and the aftereffects of the mayhem still seemed to be lingering. This was a lot more suppressed than I thought ......, but was there a lot of resistance? It seems so. I thought it was just a matter of suppressing religious sites. ...... I was under the impression that it was just a forced search of some buildings and the arrest of those involved, but from the looks of it, there may have been quite a few riots. Although not many times, I have passed people who looked like soldiers several times, and there is no doubt that there are quite a number of soldiers in the city even now. This is the kind of thing that makes me think that religion is ...... It''s the incitement of believers that''s evil. I think you are free to believe what you want, but please don''t use it as an excuse to cause trouble for others or as an excuse for bad behavior. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. It''s a good thing we''re heading to pinning as soon as possible. I''m not sure what to make of it, but it''s a good idea. I guess so. Let''s try to get out tomorrow. But for now, why don''t we have lunch? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to get the most out of your time. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s because of the conflict, but I can''t find most of the stalls that were lined up when I came here before. So, we had to go to a restaurant, but it was quite crowded, probably because of the lack of stalls. I want to choose the best place possible. ...... We''ve been in this world for almost a year. We''ve been in this world for almost a year now, and we''ve come to understand the criteria for choosing a restaurant. First of all, it is important not to choose a place that is too cheap. Cheap places may have "reasonable" taste, but that''s only for the people here, not for us. Many of the foods are a little hard to eat. Unfortunately, "fast, tasty, and cheap" is almost impossible. The Japanese gyudon chain is an anomaly. ...... No, gyudon is not that good, is it? It''s not as good as the cheap set meals that are available around here, but the memories may be a little beautified. Well, we can''t compromise on "good taste", so the rest is "fast and cheap". This is easy. If it is expensive, it is fast, if it is cheap, it is slow. Basically, this is the relationship. Of course, there are restaurants that are popular even if they are expensive and you have to wait in line. The other important thing is the staple food. In order of preference, white bread, potatoes, black bread baked that day, and black bread baked some days ago. Up to the day''s black bread, it''s okay to eat. If it''s freshly baked, it''s not so bad. Shiro bread is quite good. If there is a cafeteria where you can smell the bread baking, it will be your first choice. Well, it''s hard to get fresh bread for lunch. Kuro bread from a few days ago? Hahahaha, not that one. If you choose that, you''re out of luck. "Toya, sniff out the good stuff. Goo! It''s not a dog, but ...... it smells a little like baked bread. He said he wasn''t a dog, but he honestly wandered here and there and pointed to a diner. The diner was a busy place and stood out from the rest of the crowded restaurants. He peeked inside from behind the people waiting to enter the restaurant. "Whoa!¡¡Hey, look at that! "What''s that ...... price list? "What''s that, a price list? I pulled Haruka''s hand and pointed to the back of the store, where I found several price lists. There were several price lists, one for "white bread", "mashed potatoes", "cut potatoes", and "black bread". Underneath, it said that black bread was "no extra charge," and that the extra charge increased for cut fries, mashed potatoes, and white bread, in that order. The answer I can get from this is that you can choose the main dish of your set meal! That must be it! There''s no reason not to choose this place! "Right! Yes. It''s cheap. The food looks good, too. We don''t have enough meat, but we can add ....... Naturally, there were no objections. Even though it was a little past lunch time, we waited for a while before entering the restaurant. We all ordered the set meal with white bread. Only Toya ordered extra meat, but that''s usual. The beastman is a little fuel efficient. ...... No, it has a lot of power, so poor fuel economy is not quite the same thing. SUVs and trucks are used for different purposes. There is no point in comparing fuel efficiency with the distance you can drive. Fortunately, I''m making enough money that I don''t have to worry about fuel bills. Now, in this type of restaurant, it may take a while to get seated, but once you order, the food is served quickly. This time, too, I didn''t have to wait long for my set meal to be served. It took a little longer than the other customers who ordered at the same time, perhaps because I chose white bread. "Oh, this bread is a little warm, isn''t it? The bread I picked up was slightly warm and had a nice aroma. The image is that of a round loaf of French bread. It''s a little harder than most bread in Japan, but not as hard as black bread, which can make your gums bleed if you''re not careful. Yes, it is. It''s not freshly baked, but I wonder if they re-bake it a little before serving it. The black bread is left uncooked, I guess. I guess they leave the black bread as it is. Overcooking it would make it hard. The side dishes served with it were not bad. The side dishes served with it were not bad at all, in fact, considering the price, they were quite good. As I was enjoying my meal, I looked around and saw a wooden board with a menu written on it. In addition to the staple food choices mentioned earlier, there were other things hanging on the board that you would expect to see in a typical Japanese diner. In my mind, it looks like a restaurant in a TV drama where the actors eat all the food. That kind of atmosphere. If it had a blackboard, it would be an iron plate. Since many people here can''t read properly, many restaurants for locals do not have menus, but for us at first glance, having a menu makes it easier to order and gives us a good impression. The number of items on the menu is limited, probably due to the need to preserve ingredients. ....... "......? I was looking around the restaurant when something unexpected popped into my field of vision. That''s ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. What, Nao? ...... Oh, isn''t that Mr. Umezono? I''m sure you''re right, aren''t you? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your business. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡You guys are--! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and what you can do to help. I''m not sure what to say. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, please do not hesitate to contact us. We looked at each other and twisted our heads. Yuki and the others weren''t with us at the time, but we told them what had happened, so their reaction to Umezono''s words must have come as a surprise to them. What''s wrong?¡¡You seem to be quite straightforward. I''ve heard that you''ve been quite abusive to Haruka and the others. It was Yuki who spoke up on behalf of our questions. I think they decided that it would be better if it wasn''t Haruka who was the most repulsive to Umezono. I''m sorry. I couldn''t afford it. We don''t have any money, and things haven''t been going well. At Yuki''s words, Umezono made a series of excuses with an embarrassed expression on her face, her mouth agape. "Hmm. I''m not sure if I understand it or not.¡¡I''m sure you can understand. But we were with Natsuki, so we could live with it. I didn''t think it would be so disheartening to be left alone. If you don''t have money, you''re in trouble, and if you do have some, everyone around you looks like an enemy who''s out to get you. ....... Seriously, I thanked my parents. Plum garden covers his face with one hand and sighs heavily. I don''t know how you feel. Even on Earth, if someone asked me to walk alone in Brazil or Mexico, I''d be pretty scared. I may be biased, but I have heard that the murder rate is 100 times higher than in Japan! or "Even police stations are attacked! or "Even police stations are attacked!", it seems like a very dangerous place. It may not be that dangerous to the locals, but that is the way it is when you are in an unfamiliar place. It is even more so when it is a different world. Well, Laffan is not that bad a town. It''s not that bad even in the bad places we know. ...... No, it''s dangerous for a woman to walk alone. But if that''s the case, you shouldn''t have been so aggressive back then. I''m not sure if it''s the same thing.¡¡I was so stressed out! ...... No, well, I was still in a better place then. It was even worse after that. In the event that you''re in a position to make a decision on what to do, you''ll be able to do so with the help of your own personal consultant. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to do. I don''t know if it''s okay to talk about it.¡¡You threw away your work at the store. "Oh, it''s okay, it''s okay, it''s okay here. When Umezono glanced back at us, we saw a man peeking out from the kitchen. He smiled and waved to the man, who smiled lightly, barked at us, and went back to the kitchen. Hmm? Oh, oh, oh?¡¡What''s this? But we can''t throw away too much work, can we? Do you guys have time?¡¡If you have, stay a little while. I''ll buy you some food. Oh, yeah. Yeah, sure. We''ve got some things on our mind, okay? Yuki nodded to Umezono, who shrugged and pointed to the food on the table, and asked us. We had talked about leaving town early, but we weren''t in such a hurry that we couldn''t take some time off, so of course we nodded in agreement. Thanks. I''ll see you in a bit. We watched her go back to her work as a waiter. "...... looks different from last time, doesn''t it? When I twisted my head to see the unexpected reaction, Yuki thought for a moment and shook her head. Hmmm, he was like that when I was in Japan.¡¡He doesn''t listen to others, but he''s got a sense of leadership.¡¡He also seemed to be a bit selfish, so he might be the type of person that people like or dislike differently. That''s a pretty tough image to have, isn''t it? Toya frowned, as if remembering that time. Well, I can''t deny that I was pretty annoyed at that time too. The rivalry with Haruka was obvious. ...... No, it was obvious. I don''t know why.¡¡I didn''t really care about it. I''m not sure why? I didn''t really care." Yuki and Natsuki chuckle as Haruka twists her head. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why.¡¡As much as I''m aware of it. "Even if you''re a pretty face, people won''t like you when you''re not. Even if you''re pretty on all sides, people still hate you. Maybe Natsuki has had such an experience. It''s just an image, but girls seem to have a hard time with groups, or factions, or something like that. However, it is not so easy for boys to be liked by everyone if they are good-looking, good at studies and sports, and cheerful. If you are a member of the opposite s*x, you may be disliked by the same s*x because of backbiting. ......? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... No, I don''t think so. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. I don''t know what''s going on in your mind, but I''m pretty sure no one has ever shown it to you. I don''t know if this is the case with girls. But if someone likes Haruka, Natsuki or Yuki, they might not like you. --Yeah, socializing is hard. Maybe you''re just a little overwhelmed by all the feelings you''ve been holding inside. Stress. When a person is depressed, they may suddenly start crying or get angry when nothing is wrong. I see. I guess it can''t be helped if you think of it as an illness.¡¡The situation is what it is. Well, I don''t want to think too much about the stressful situation when I''m alone. I really don''t want to think too much about the stress state I would be in if I were alone. I don''t know how Haruka and Toya recognized me when I was in my first human soul state. It was because of the three of us that we were able to remain relatively stable. I don''t want to think about what I would have done if I had been left alone. I think the reason he hit Haruka and the others was because he wanted to take out his stress on the weak. ...... The problem is that Haruka wasn''t in a weak position at all when she came here. I''m sure you''ll agree with me.¡¡We were barely in a position to go look for Natsuki and the others. At least we weren''t in a situation where we would dare to help someone who was aggressive towards us. No cheat is not the same as no threat to us. In the event you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out how to do it. If you think about it, in a way, it is still easier to deal with someone like Umezono who is directly outspoken. We can choose not to get involved with them because they have bad intentions, or we can just eliminate them. The problem is with people who are friendly at first, but then betray you. This is bad because it''s hard to cut them off when they are friendly. Of course, if they''re really friendly, there''s no problem, but ...... you can''t tell. Furthermore, if there is a person who doesn''t show up in front of us and tries to surprise us from the shadows, it is quite dangerous. That''s one of the reasons why we were trying to avoid meeting our classmates. I''m glad that Mr. Umezono is okay.¡¡I didn''t want to take the risk to save her, but it''s not like I wanted her to die. "Well... As long as he lives a decent life and doesn''t turn to crime. We''re from the same town. From the looks of it, Mr. Umezono seems to be all right. The expression on his face as he walked around the cafeteria as a waiter was different from when I met him in Laffan, he was smiling a lot and his eyes were full of life. "Is it that?¡¡Is it a man? I can''t deny that possibility. Well, you''ll have to explain that to me. We laughed at Yuki''s sly smile and waited for her to finish her work, eating a little more slowly. 199-181 Unexpected encounter (1) It was well past noon when Umezono came to see us again, and the seats were starting to become empty. Even after we finished eating, the seats were still full, so I suggested that we leave and come back later. I suggested that we leave and come back later, but he said, "I''ll get settled. In fact, not long after Umezono said that, one or two seats started to open up, so I didn''t feel too bad about it. "Here you go, drink this, drink this. What was in the cup that Umezono brought to me as she said that? "Is this wine? Haruka smelled the cup and tilted her head slightly. "Yes. But it''s very young, so it''s mostly grape juice with no alcohol. That''s better, isn''t it?¡¡Or have you become a drinker?¡¡If you prefer ale, that''s fine too. No, we don''t drink much. Thank you. But is it okay?¡¡It''s a little expensive, isn''t it? Don''t worry about it. It''s our way of saying thank you. It depends on the quality, but wine is generally more expensive than ale in this neighborhood. It depends on which you prefer, but for us, wine is still easier to drink. Even so, we don''t dare to drink it, and fortunately, in this area, well water is available for drinking, so we tend to drink water more often. Nevertheless, since it was served to me, I took a sip. "Oh, it''s pretty good. "It''s pretty good, isn''t it?¡¡It''s usually a little thinner, but it''s a bonus. It tasted like watered-down grape juice, just like Umezono said. It tastes like watered-down grape juice, and in fact it is. I''ve heard that some places that serve inexpensive wine even serve it with more than half water added. In this case, they served the wine without diluting it too much because it was an apology. It''s not particularly tasty, but it''s still tasty enough in this world where fruits are quite expensive. "Oh, by the way, you can call me Yasue. That''s what I call myself. Yasue?¡¡Didn''t you once say, ''I don''t like it when you look old! Didn''t you once say, ''I don''t like being old! Yuki tilted her head curiously at Umezono - or Yasue, as she added. That''s Yuki. As expected of Yuki, she has a wide range of friends and is very knowledgeable. At Yuki''s words, Yasue looked slightly uncomfortable, turned away, and scratched her head. Oh, you remember?¡¡When we were in Japan, right? Yeah. Yasue sounds like an old person''s name, doesn''t it? "Well, I can understand your feeling. But it''s not a bad name, is it? It''s just my impression, but it certainly has a "Grandma Yasue" feel to it. Names inevitably go out of fashion. However, it is better to have a name that is too elaborate and absolutely unreadable at first sight, or a name that makes you want to say, "That''s a bit of a joke! But I think it''s much better than names that are too elaborate and can never be read at first sight, or names that make you want to say, "That''s a bit of a joke! Yes, it''s the name my parents gave me. When I came here, I really understood the value of my parents, and I want to keep at least one of their names. They died too soon. ...... Yasue responded with a slightly embarrassed, yet sad expression on her face. "Well, we all died before our parents did. "Well, we all died before our parents did, and it''s not my fault, so I''ve just let it go. "Yeah, you''ve got to let it go. ...... We''ve talked about it a few times, not in group counseling, but we''ve talked about it. As for us, all of us have no siblings, although two parents are still alive, and it is not hard to imagine that our parents are quite depressed. However, there is nothing we can do about it, and we have come to the conclusion that we have to ask our parents to do their best. In many ways. It''s true that, because of my age, I''m going to have an older baby. ...... Yeah. I''m not sure if you can send a letter to her, but even if you do, she''ll probably think it''s some kind of malicious Oreole scam. By the way, you guys are adventurers now, aren''t you?¡¡What did you name your party? "Well, we decided to call ourselves ''The Clear Mirror''. We don''t get to call ourselves that often, though. When Haruka said the name she had chosen a while ago, Yasue looked a little surprised. It''s not really a party name, is it?¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Of course, we have our reasons.¡¡First of all, we don''t want to get carried away ourselves. We''re still a little high ranking. I often think that I am stronger than I used to be, and I want to remember the prudence of those days, though not my original intention. Among the words that came out of these thoughts, I chose "clear mirror" to avoid being underestimated by other adventurers. It''s a little different from what I had in mind, but I chose it to warn myself, so there''s no problem. Incidentally, other words such as "perseverance and perseverance", "contemplation and meditation", "deliberation and decisiveness", and "self-reliance" also appeared. After much hesitation, I somehow ended up choosing a four-letter idiom. ...... Toya''s idea of "self-reliance" is a little different, isn''t it? In a way it''s our primary goal, but it''s so far out of concept that it''s the first one to drop out . The others also fit the concept, but were not good party names, so they were dropped. I see. I''m sure you''ll understand, since there are adventurers here who don''t look very strong but have a big attitude. Another reason is to appeal to your classmates.¡¡The name of the party and our name will become famous in the future, classmates who are in a bad situation may come to us for help. This is mainly the opinion of Natsuki and Yuki. As you can see from their situation in Searlstadt, it''s quite difficult to get out of a tight situation if you don''t have a large amount of money at the beginning. In the beginning, we couldn''t afford to help them, but now, it''s not difficult to lend them enough money to buy some equipment. Of course, depending on the other party''s attitude, we will throw them out, but we also think that after almost a year since the transition, the deadly mines will have been weeded out. When I briefly explained this, Yasue let out a sigh as if she was a little dismayed. "Huh~. You''re so kind. I''m only thinking about being happy with my husband. I think that''s fine. We only thought about it because ...... we had a little trouble in the beginning and now we have some money. Yes, yes. We don''t really need to help alumni find jobs, you know. We can escape if we have to. It''s not like back then when it was difficult to even leave the city, but now we have the money and means of transportation to move to another town. We don''t dare to look for our classmates, but if they ask for help, we can at least help them. This is because we can afford to do so now. It may be hypocritical, but I think it''s okay. We''re not human enough to reach out to others when we''re in pain. I see. I see. ...... And now... I''ve got a question for you. ...... You know, ...... I''m not sure what she''s trying to say. I understand what she''s trying to say, but I think it''s hard to say because of the content. She glanced at us, specifically at Haruka, but couldn''t continue to speak. "Can I ask you something first?¡¡Who was that guy back there? I''m not sure if Yuki saw this, but she smiled at me and asked me the same question. I''m sure it was to change the heavy atmosphere and make it easier to talk, and not just because of Yuki''s curiosity. ...... Probably. "Oh, uh, he''s, uh, ...... my husband. "Oh, he''s ...... my husband?¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Isn''t he your lover? "Well, yeah, well, you know?¡¡He saved me when I was in a very bad situation, and after that he was kind to me even though I said some pretty terrible things to him. ...... Well, you know what?¡¡I''m sorry. It seems he was bonded to me. Oh, so that''s why you''re calmer now? I don''t know.¡¡He''ll protect me. ...... hehe. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. I don''t know what it is, but there must have been some kind of romance. "Yes, thank you. So, what do you want to ask me? "Oh, yeah, that. --Sorry!¡¡I''m sorry. I lied to you. The change in atmosphere made it a little easier to talk, and Yasue boldly clasped her hands together and bowed her head as if to worship us. "Oh, you mean the skill? "Yeah, the skill I told you about, that was a lie. I actually had a copy of the skill. I was also afraid of getting sick, so I had [Robustness], [Pharmacy], and ...... [Slightly Attractive Appearance] and [Beautiful Skin]. It seems that it''s a little hard to say that you''ve tweaked your appearance, so you whisper a little at the last part, Yasue-san. Yeah, well, I get it. You can''t help it if you''re a girl, right? However, I think Haruka said at the time that she only had a [Skill Copy], but she had more than that. It''s not that strange, since we now know that there are quite a few omissions in the "lookout". "I bet. "Oh, you noticed that, didn''t you?¡¡It''s only natural that I would say something like that at the end. That''s part of it, but I could see it before I said it with my "see through" skill. I see. You knew. ...... I''m just an idiot. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sorry about that, because we tried it too. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s ...... Yeah, I get it. I understand. At that time, I felt like everyone was an enemy except me. When the situation is bad, it''s really hard on your heart. I don''t even know if I can trust my classmates because of their skills. ...... Yasue nodded deeply in agreement with Haruka''s words, without complaining. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. Yeah. I''m really sorry, but can you tell me about it?¡¡My cooking is not improving at all. His food is delicious, but I want to make it for him too. ....... This is probably because of the [skill copy], right? Well, yeah. I''m not sure. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of that. That''s not going to work, is it? You''re not angry, are you? It was my fault. How could you be a saint to be nice to an aggressive person in that situation? Only my husband would do that! Hmph, hmph. Yasue smiled loosely, as if she remembered some good episode. Well, if you''re happy, that''s fine. It''s much better than being jealous. And I''m not in too much trouble at the moment. It doesn''t interfere with my daily life. Oh, but I''m sorry, but can you teach me the [cooking] skills?¡¡After all, you want her to eat your homemade food, don''t you? I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll help. I''m sure you''re right. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll do fine.¡¡You can teach the others, but if you don''t have a copy from us, it''s pointless. "Oh, that''s okay. Most of them were copied from Azuma-san at that time. Hmm, that''s okay. Oh, and please refer to me as Haruka. The others will be Natsuki, Yuki, Nao and Toya. Hmm, what?¡¡Did you change the name of Nagai-Toya? Yasue looked at each of our faces as Haruka introduced us, then twisted her head around to look at Toya. You remembered well, didn''t you?¡¡My real name is Tomoya, but that''s just to avoid any trouble with my classmates. I can change it back to Tomoya now, but I''m used to it. I''m used to it." "Oh, some of my classmates are troublesome, too. Some of my classmates are troubled, like Satomi Takamatsu. Yasue nodded deeply at Toya''s explanation, and then mentioned the name. "Oh, so you''ve noticed? Of course I noticed. It''s too easy to say Satomi and Satomi. And the way you do business.¡¡I live here. I''ve seen her in person. "Was it her? I live here, so I''ve seen her in person." "Was it her?" Haruka confirmed, and Yasue nodded, thinking for a moment. I think so. It''s a bit of an exaggeration. I''m not sure if I can speak for others, but I''ve taken [a slightly attractive appearance] as well. I can''t speak for others, but my eyes are drawn to it, and ...... it''s a little dangerous. The husband who was with me also ...... got a little beat up, didn''t he? Oops. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. Well, what can you do when your husband has his eyes on a woman other than you? Besides, it would have been very bad if he got involved with the Satomi Order, so even though he was a bit violent, it was a wise decision in the end. It would have ruined the town and ruined our business. The suppression did cause some damage, but for me, it was a real relief. In fact, you could have done it sooner. Looks like you''re thriving now, huh? Judging from the situation when we came in, it was definitely a thriving restaurant. The restaurant was bigger than the Kumatei, where we used to stay, and there were two waiters other than Yasue. His food is so good!¡¡There are a lot of soldiers stationed here, and some of the restaurants aren''t open for business yet. It''s a good time to be here. But they haven''t caught Satomie yet, have they? That''s the problem, isn''t it? Honestly, I hope they catch him soon. I don''t know if it''s true or not, but he''s going to collect a lot of money, and with that money-- Yasue glances at me and Toya, blushes, and clears her throat. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had it.¡¡That''s what I''m talking about. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. I''ve never been to a host club, but I''ve been to a few. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You don''t want Yasue to help Takamatsu-san, do you? The same goes for Natsuki and the others, right?¡¡If you''re a good friend of mine, you might have gone to stop this before it happened, but you didn''t. ....... First of all, my ...... life and my husband''s life are more important than my classmates who have become criminals. "Well, I agree. I agree with you. Criminals deserve to die. No mercy. Even if it''s a classmate. That''s right. After all, it was my husband in this world who saved me. Good people are good. Bad people are bad. That''s all there is to it. ...... Yeah, really, that''s all there is to it. For us, Satomi is the one who most likely cheated on Aella and caused mayhem in Kergu and some confusion in Raffan, but since Yasue lives in this town, she probably sees the direct damage to herself and the people affected. In that light, it was understandable that she had a complicated expression on her face. "Well, why don''t you let the soldiers take care of Satomie? They''ve been patrolling so much. I don''t mind teaching you [Skill Copy], though. In return, you can teach me how to use ....... Huh? (If you''re married, you''ve done everything you can, right?) "Well, ......, yeah, but... "Then please. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I get it. But why? (Because I want to know what''s going on in the world. From someone who knows about both. (Well...) We don''t have that kind of connection. (Oh, yeah, that''s right. That''s what happens when you guys get together. In my case, I have a mother-in-law. (That''s a bit of a relief, isn''t it? But weren''t you worried?¡¡(About marriage?) (I did, but I fell in love with ....... ......? (Oh my god, there''s a girl! There''s a girl!) After Yasue raised her voice, the women began to talk in a whisper, but it''s not the right time to get involved. I know. Just because we overheard them, they would complain even if we weren''t at fault, so Toya and I were sensible enough not to pay attention to them. I distanced myself from the women who had started to get strangely excited, and until the chatter was over, Toya and I relaxed and chatted. 200-182 Unexpected encounter (2) In the end, Haruka decided to stay here to teach Yasue her skills, while we went to find a place to stay. This time, Haruka will teach her [Sewing] and [Cooking] skills, and if there is enough time before we leave the town, she will add Toya''s [Swordsmanship]. As for the other skills, we agreed to teach them when we come to this town or when Yasue comes to Raffan, but it''s not clear if we''ll actually teach them since they''re not really necessary for living in the town. Furthermore, magic is not a subject that can be taught, because you need to be good at it to use it. Yasue was a little disappointed about that, but she''ll just have to live with it. We were headed to Kel. We went to the same inn we stayed at the last time we visited Kergu. We chose this inn because we had no complaints when we stayed there before, and the lady at the inn was pleased to see that there were many vacancies, probably because the situation in the town was not so good. I asked the lady, who seemed to be in a good mood and smiling, to reserve two rooms for me, and asked her where the bookstore was. Going to the bookstore was one of the main purposes of my visit to this town. I''ve asked Diora to order books on demons, but I''ve only gotten one book on dungeons, and there might be other useful books. At the very least, she should have more books than Rafan, and there''s no reason not to stop by when she''s on the way. So I asked the lady to tell me what she knew, but unfortunately she said that there was only one bookstore in Kergu. I was a little disappointed, but I could say that I didn''t have to get lost. On the way to the bookstore, I collected Haruka from the diner. It wasn''t long before we returned, as we had just secured a place to stay, but unexpectedly, in that short time, Yasue had already mastered the skills of [cooking] and [sewing]. It was a very short time, considering her experience with Yuki, but perhaps this was due to the effort she had put in. The cafeteria was open at night, so even if she hadn''t been remembered, Haruka had planned to collect her, but she was lucky that it had gone so smoothly. I told Yasue the location of the inn we had taken, and we headed straight for the bookstore. On the way to the bookstore, which was a little outside of town, we could see the remains of some destroyed buildings and people sitting listlessly in the corner of the street. We''re not on the side of justice. Trying not to look at them too much, we walked quickly past them, and our destination came into view. "Oh, isn''t that it?¡¡Isn''t that it? Yuki, who was walking in the lead, pointed to a store and tilted her head when she found something. "What is it? Yuki ran up to the store and looked at the flyer on the entrance of the store. On it was a large sign that read, "50% off!¡¡On sale! on sale! What the hell?¡¡A discount sale at a bookstore?¡¡And in this world? It''s no wonder Yuki raised her voice. I''ve never heard of a sale in this world before, and I''ve never seen a flyer before because not many common people can read. Moreover, most of the books are one-of-a-kind luxury items. They are not the kind of things that are usually sold on sale. "But a bookstore can have flyers? That''s right. People who can''t read don''t come to buy. I don''t know why, but we''re lucky. In this world where books are expensive, a fifty percent discount is a huge deal. We thanked our luck and opened the door to enter the bookstore. The structure of the store was no different from other bookstores like Raffan''s, but what caught our attention was the large number of books piled up on the counter. The bookshelves at the back of the store and the towers of books piled high around them. The towers were standing tall with some space between them, but the space was barely enough for one person to pass through. In all likelihood, the number of books on display does not match the size of the store. It is a little bigger than Laffan''s, but the volume of books is far greater, reminding me of the long-established used bookstores I used to visit. Of course, this was in Japan. Welcome! A middle-aged man greeted us with a happy voice. A middle-aged man greeted us with a happy voice and a smile that made me want to squeeze his hand. Needless to say, he was obviously overstocked with books. There are a lot of books here, aren''t there? "Yes. There has been a problem for some time now with the influence of the Order of the Sutomie Saints. ...... In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a great deal of information on the web. I''ve heard that. It''s not so bad if they are pouring their living expenses into it, but they end up selling off their household goods, works of art, books, and other things that could be worth money, and use them to buy holy water. Some people even gave away their houses. Considering that ordinary people do not own books, the influence of the Order of the Sutomie Saints must have spread to the wealthy and aristocracy. It seems that the large number of books here were sold by such people. Wow, ......, it''s even worse than I imagined. "Yes, it''s a good thing that I was able to beat the price, but as you can see, it''s a mess. ...... It looks like you''re having a hard time finding a place to put it. Yes. Moreover, there are still many people who come to sell them for different reasons. ...... When the Order of the Saints is gone and you come back to yourself, it doesn''t mean that the money you invested in holy water will come back. There are a lot of people who have not yet reached the critical point who are willing to sell off what they can in order to make money. However, selling expensive furniture in the parlor would not look good when guests came, and if you were a nobleman or a big merchant, it would be a little bad for your appearance. Books, on the other hand, are not a necessity of life, and it is difficult for others to know when the number of books has decreased. Therefore, the amount of books brought in seems to be inevitably increasing. "So, it''s ''on sale''? "Yes. We are running out of cash. If you buy a lot, we''ll give you a discount. Sure. ...... So, first, could you bring me a book on dungeons? Okay! The books stacked on top of each other seem to be categorized, and without hesitation the clerk piles them up on the counter, don, don, don. The five of us just kept checking them. The books we liked the least were piled up next to each other. Next, check out books on magic at ....... So I checked out books on alchemy, demons, herbs, and other miscellaneous topics. Most of the magic-related books are almost identical to the grimoires I have, and many of them have been dropped. Some of the books related to demons have been ordered by Diora, so all but a few have been dropped as well. Even so, I ended up with a stack of more than 50 books. "What kind of books can I find at ......? "Entertainment, historical ...... and autobiographical novels - simply put, novels in which a nobleman embellishes his achievements. The first two, but the last one is ....... Do they sell? "It almost never sells. You can''t say to a nobleman, ''I don''t want your trash,'' so I''ll buy them, but most of them end up in your wagon. I also have a diary, but it''s the same. While smiling wryly, the clerk pointed to two waist-high towers, saying, "This area is almost like that. It seems that even if you put them on the wagon, they are almost always unsold. "Autobiography or diary? ...... Natsuki muttered thoughtfully, but even if they would be valuable as historical materials in the future, they would certainly be almost trash in the present. In particular, diaries are either shame play or harassment for the person who wrote them, though the aristocrat who sells them is also an aristocrat. There is a possibility that the diary is written on the assumption that it will be read by others, like the Sarakyu diary and other Japanese classics. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It''s a good idea.¡¡We can''t sell them, but they take up a lot of space, so we''d appreciate it. The shopkeeper shouted happily at Natsuki, who had unexpectedly said something. The shopkeeper shouted happily at Natsuki, who unexpectedly said, "It''s hard to dispose of it if it''s not in a place where the nobleman can''t see it. Certainly, the nobleman would not feel good if his ancestor''s autobiography was thrown away as garbage or burned. However, I wonder if it is worth our while to take it back. (What are you going to do with the diary, Natsuki?) (It''s of some value to learn common sense. Besides, there aren''t many books to read, so it''s a good way to pass the time, isn''t it? (As entertainment, yes. Well, I''m not against it. Natsuki is a book lover, but in this world, books are not so easy to get. Or perhaps I should say that they are not easily affordable. If you go to a bookstore, you can find a certain amount of books, but buying one will cost you a lot of gold coins, so even we can''t afford to waste money on buying books that aren''t worth much. On the other hand, this is a good opportunity to get them at a very low price. In the end, we added a number of books from the entertainment and historical genres, and also took in a bunch of books that were considered garbage. Even excluding those "half-trash" books, the total number of books we bought was close to 100, but it seems that the shopkeeper was not lying when he said he would give us a service at the beginning, and the total amount we paid was just 500 gold coins. It was a huge amount of money, but considering the value of the books, it was rather cheap, and the clerk seemed to be happy because he didn''t lose anything. We left the store in a win-win situation. We left the store in a win-win situation. "Well, that was a good buy. In fact, he sold it to me at a discount of more than 50%, so I saved more than 500 gold coins. It''s like getting two pieces of wood. But that''s a hell of a lot of money if you consider that I spent five million yen at one time to buy the book, in Japan. You can''t blame them, they''re worth different things. Five hundred gold coins. It''s a big amount of money, but should I consider it a gain or a waste of money? ...... No, it should be considered a win-win. It is true that I bought more books than I needed, including entertainment ones, but we don''t usually waste money. We don''t drink, we don''t smoke, we don''t gamble, and of course we don''t go out in the streets, nor can we. Except for the necessities of adventure, we spend most of our money on groceries. If you think about it, it''s acceptable to spend money on entertainment books. I think I''m going to need a bookshelf this time. If you put them in a magic bag, they won''t deteriorate, but they''ll be hard to find. It''s hard to remember that many books. The books I''ve bought so far are not more than 20 books, so I can quickly take out the ones I want, but this time, each of us has to share in the selection, and there are so many. This time, however, each of us has chosen our own books, and there are many of them. As for the books that we have checked out ourselves, we probably don''t know what others have chosen. "By the way, was there any book that particularly caught your interest? "I''m interested in alchemy. The book I have now is mainly about how to make things, but I found a book about more fundamental theories that could be used for some applications. To make it easier to understand, if the "Alchemy Encyclopedia" I have now is a book of recipes, the book I found this time seems to be a book of explanations of why to add the seasonings. Until now, Haruka and her friends have been making things that are not in the alchemy encyclopedia, but they have basically been making them by combining things in the encyclopedia. However, if they read this book, they may be able to create magical tools from a more fundamental design. I''m looking forward to it. "I''m interested in books about cooking. It''s not direct, but it might expand my repertoire. The book that Natsuki mentioned is not a recipe, but a book that describes the origin and characteristics of ingredients. So far, I''ve been buying ingredients from the market in town, but that''s because I don''t know the ingredients that exist in this world. I can''t look for something I don''t know, nor can I order it. However, if you read the book and understand the ingredients in this world, you can go to another town to get them. This may seem like a waste of time for a mere foodstuff, but in this world where entertainment is scarce, it may be a good idea to go sightseeing. "What do you recommend? Toya stopped dead in her tracks. When I looked at him, I saw two children lying on the ground in the corner of the street. Their clothes were badly torn and dirty, and they were lying on the ground, not moving. I''ve seen people sitting listlessly on the side of the road many times before, but this is the first time I''ve ever seen them fall over. It''s the first time I''ve seen a stranded person in this world, or even in my original world. This is unusual in itself, but what caught my eye more than anything else were the ears on the heads of these two people that were different from those of normal humans. The Beastman....... Victims of mayhem: ...... Yeah. The two children were beastmen. Basically, there is no discrimination against sub-humans such as beastmen and elves in this area, but that doesn''t mean that there are many sub-humans living here, and unfortunately there are few opportunities to see them. Even in Rafan, where I''ve been living for almost a year now, I''ve only met a few. As for elves, I''ve only seen Aella. How is it possible that the first clear victim of this mayhem is such a rare beastman? ...... No, maybe it''s because we''re beastmen. We''ve never been discriminated against, but we''re not ''weak'' by any stretch of the imagination. What if we were vulnerable and in a bad situation? This is ...... terrible ....... As Toya approached the children, he let out a stern look. If you look closely, you can see that the two children have severe burns on their bodies. The smaller of the two children had burns on his right arm and shoulder, visible through his torn clothes. The larger child had burns on the left side of his face, neck, and possibly on his body. There''s no sign of medical attention, so that''s probably the cause of death. Could they have been in a fire? d*mn it!¡¡...... Let''s at least bury him. It is unclear if the reason for the lack of treatment has anything to do with the race, but as a beastman, he could not overlook it. Just as the cloth was about to be covered, the child''s ears twitched. 201-183 Kerg mayhem (aftermath) What the...?¡¡He''s alive!¡¡Haruka, heal him! Toya pulled his outstretched hand away, looked back at Haruka and shouted. But Haruka didn''t move immediately and asked Toya. "Toya, what are you going to do with them after you''ve healed them? "What? "Judging from the situation, they either have no parents or have been abandoned. Even if we heal their wounds, it''s doubtful they''ll survive, and if the burns are that bad, they''ll never recover. "Mmm. ...... It''s already been a week or so since the Kerug mayhem had died down. If he had a guardian, he wouldn''t have collapsed here, and it''s unlikely that his injuries would have remained intact. There is no need for you to be responsible for them, and it might make some sense to just heal the burns. ...... I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not sure. In fact, there is nothing to do with these children and us, if you just heal your injuries and say goodbye, there is no problem. ...... It is a bit vexing. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. "Ugh. ...... I''m sure you''re not the only one who''s had this problem. I don''t understand!¡¡I don''t care what it is, just fix me up!¡¡I''ll take the responsibility! I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. "Yes, yes. I''m going to take responsibility! Then I''ll use Resist Disease, Cure Treatment, and finally Purify. Natsuki, who was watching, also cast a few spells. I''m not sure if that''s enough magic, but it''s not enough to make the kids feel better, and they don''t seem to be moving. Toya picked up the larger child, but as Haruka had said at the beginning, the burns themselves had healed, but the scars were still on his skin. I picked up the other one, but his complexion was not so good either. I could feel his pulse, but he was unconscious and unresponsive. "Shall we take them back to the inn for now?¡¡Toya. Yeah, I guess so. Let''s just get him better. Nao, can you take care of the kid over there? Yes, sir. They put aside their plans for the future and decided to bring the child home. In Japan, taking a child home without permission would be a serious matter. Even in this world, it is a problem if the child has parents, but in the case of an orphan, it is quite delicate. However, at least in this situation, it would be considered as helping others. We followed Toya''s footsteps and started walking. It''s a little surprising, though. I would have thought Haruka or Natsuki would have tried to help right away. "What?¡¡I don''t see my name here. When I mentioned my doubts about Haruka''s lack of immediate action when asked by Toya, an unexpected objection came in. When I questioned why Haruka didn''t move immediately when Toya asked her to, I got an unexpected objection. "Oh, yeah. Yuki too. But, you see, Yuki doesn''t have any healing magic. "Is that so?¡¡Are you thinking that I''m not as kind as Haruka and the others? No, no. I never thought about it. No. I hope so. I shake my head, Yuki looks at me with a slight scowl, but nods. Haruka smiles a little at us and opens her mouth. If we were in Japan, we would have helped her right away - no, in Japan, we would have called an ambulance. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m sorry. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. "Well, yes. In Laffan, you don''t see street children, and there are some decent orphanages, but they are run by the temple. There is no state system to protect the children. "It''s fine to help these children, but... "In the future, if we go to other cities, there may be places that are unsafe and full of orphans. What are we going to do then? You can''t help all those poor children. We can''t help everyone with their injuries and illnesses, even if we wanted to. We''ll go bankrupt. Our money and magic power are limited. Time and magic are limited, and it''s not only orphans who get sick or injured. Old people, adults, poor people... It is impossible to help everyone, and it would not be ''fair''. If we are talking about ''fairness,'' then it would be ''fair'' to not help anyone. Well, I don''t really care about that. I don''t think it really matters, because you can save a child even if you save it because it''s cute. I don''t think you need to think about ''it''s not fair that I can''t help you if you''re not cute''. Life is a race for survival. It''s the same to have the ability to make money and to have the ability to get help. Because you''re pretty, because you''re affable, because you''re capable. In the extreme case, it''s because you''re lucky. It sounds harsh. Yuki nodded her head in agreement with Haruka. It''s not fair because you''re pretty, it''s not fair because you''re lucky. It''s true, it''s no use saying that. "Originally, life was about survival of the fittest. That''s how we evolved. If you think about it, modern humans may be a little distorted. In the case of animals, the fastest and healthiest individuals survive. In the case of bacteria, those that have acquired drug resistance survive. In the case of insects, those that are resistant to pesticides survive. The ones that survive in this way leave offspring and acquire characteristics and resistance as a species. But what about modern humans? Diseases and disorders. Congenital and genetic traits. Individuals that would otherwise be eliminated are socially and technologically overcome to survive. Regardless of the merits or demerits, this is what modern society is doing. This may be one form of evolution, but from a simple biological point of view, it may be called degeneration, and from the opposite point of view, it may be said to be preserving diversity. In other words, if we lose our social nature, we will become extinct? I think so.¡¡It''s pretty simple. Multi-drug resistant bacteria are emerging and pathogens will continue to evolve, right?¡¡The moment technology can''t keep up, or socialization is lost, humans who stop evolving without survival of the fittest will be defeated by pathogens and go extinct. It''s not impossible, is it? It''s not funny. We don''t get resistance and we leave behind genes that are not good for survival. Even if that''s what kills us, is it still human?¡¡Is that the limit of our species because that''s how we evolved?¡¡The end of evolution? This may be the difference between humans and other animals, but I don''t know if it''s the right thing to do in the long run. Genetic manipulation may be the solution, but it may be difficult while there is religion. "So, these kids got a way to survive by being ''beastmen''? No, even if they were human, I''m sure they would have healed their injuries. Huh? After what you said to Toya? But we can take him to the prison or leave him at the orphanage or something. Something like that. There''s no reason to help her. Well, ...... you''re right. If you want to help the same child, even if it is an emergency such as treating an injury, you would want to help the child you met at the orphanage in Laffan rather than the orphan you happened to see. Acquaintances and strangers. A person who chooses a stranger is rather untrustworthy as a human being. Well, if Toya wants to help, I''ll help her. "Right. I don''t see any reason to oppose it. As for me, it depends on what kind of kids they are. If they''re bad, I might kick them out. In the event that you have any questions about the way to use the site, please do not hesitate to contact us. I''m not sure about ....... I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. That depends on Toya''s decision. He didn''t participate in our conversation, but hurried on to the inn. I stared at her back. I brought back two kids. At first the lady of the inn looked at us with a quizzical expression as we brought back two children, but when we told her that they had fallen by the wayside, she gave us a pained look and immediately changed our room for two to a room for four. The woman had experienced the mayhem of this town firsthand, so she must have understood the situation right away. She immediately brought the children into the room and put them on the bed, but they still didn''t seem to wake up. Toya stared at them for a while, and then opened his mouth as if he had made up his mind. "Hey, these two. Can I let them live with us? By "let them live with us," you mean take care of them until they become independent? Yeah. Well, it might give you some trouble, too. ...... Yeah, that''s good, isn''t it?¡¡If Toya is responsible for it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. "...... is good?¡¡I thought Haruka didn''t like hypocrisy. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡Why? "Well, you see. You know, you were critical of me raising money to get a transplant overseas. Oh, that''s because I just don''t like that. For example, if you want to donate money for activities to make it easier to get a transplant in Japan, I think it''s okay to donate. But getting a transplant overseas means taking away opportunities for people in that country, and in some countries, there are worse stories, right? And when I say "some countries," I mean... You mean like using organs from death row? Yeah. And it''s not just the death penalty, it''s also the death penalty for non-criminals. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Furthermore, if you say, "He died of disease in the camp. But we won''t return the body," which is black in any way. Overseas transplants, which may support such acts, are quite dangerous. Of course, from a parent''s point of view, their child is the most important, and I think it''s fine that they want to help even if they have to pay a lot of money, but relying on donations from others to do so is... I understand that. For example, if you get cancer and you say, ''I want to have the latest medical care, so please donate,'' people will say, ''I lost my parents to cancer, too. I lost my parents to cancer too. If it''s a transplant, why are you raising money? And... "Yes, yes. If you want to create a fund for cancer treatment research, or for drug development for the treatment of intractable diseases, I think you can collect donations. But to say, "I want to help only my own children," is a bit ....... Of course, that''s just my opinion. But I would like to help them if I could. I''m not sure if I can help you, but I would. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡You''ve got the parental skills to do that kind of promotion, and you''ve got the contacts to advertise it on a large scale. In a way, it''s also a valuable asset that can be exchanged for money. Haruka, you are so cynical. What do you think, Nao? I think it''s simpler than that.¡¡I''m more simple. Don''t complain about it after the accident. If you''re sick or in an accident, you can''t just ask for help without paying for it. I was still in high school, so my parents were in charge of my illness, but I did have insurance for bicycle accidents. I was still in high school and my parents were responsible for my illness, but I had insurance for bicycle accidents. If you want help in case of emergency, you should bear the cost in normal times, and if you don''t want to bear the cost, you should take care of it yourself. If you are sick, you don''t need to buy insurance as long as you can manage with your own funds, and if that means you die without the latest treatment, that''s your fate too. If you don''t like it, just buy insurance. In a sense, insurance is a way to help each other without the instability of donations. It''s a little strange to say, "I won''t help you, but you should help me. "Where''s Toya? Me?¡¡I''m willing to help my family, you guys, even if it costs me my life savings. What do I care if you don''t?¡¡--No, more accurately, I''d help anyone I could and wanted to help without it affecting my life. Like these kids. If I had come to this world, I would have abandoned them. Selfish, I know. "I see. I guess we all think a little differently, don''t we? Well, we''ve known each other for a long time, but we''re still different people. Even so, we''ve been together for quite a long time without having any differences, so I don''t think the five of us have that big of a difference in values. But you don''t have a problem with Nao and the others helping these two, do you? I agree with Haruka. I agree with Haruka, as long as Toya takes responsibility. We can afford to take care of our children until they reach adulthood. We can afford to take care of our children until they come of age. Fortunately, the world is not like Japan, where it costs tens of millions of yen to educate one child. The financial burden will not be so great. The other thing is the time and effort required for education. If you need help, you can ask Ishka, who runs the orphanage, for advice. "You did it, Toya. You''ve done it, Toya. The Hikaru Genji Project is finally underway! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do with your time. "......... Oh?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to understand. I''m not sure if you''ve noticed. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "No, because we''re in such a state? No, because they''re in such a state. Their clothes are tattered, and the burns are so bad, it''s not like they''re gender neutral. Nao, have you noticed? "...... of course. I didn''t notice. Or, more accurately, I didn''t care about it. I didn''t exactly notice, but I was a little older, and my hair was shorter. She kind of looked at me like, "Really? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. But if you''re a girl, you''ll want to heal this burn mark. Haruka, Natsuki, can''t you do something about it? But Haruka has a difficult expression on her face, despite Toya''s best wishes. It''s not the Light Cure that does it, but the Cure that does it. ...... If you can heal it, would it be with Regenerate?¡¡Or maybe you can get rid of it by cutting it down to the dermis and then healing it with Cure. ...... "Ouch, ouch!¡¡It hurts just to hear it!¡¡Regenerate, please do something! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. Just thinking about it makes me sick, too. Even if the pain can be managed with anesthesia, I''m afraid to do it, or at least I can''t do it. "Well, I''ll try. I hate to say it, but it''s good for practice. Yes, it is. It''s usually hard to tell the effect of magic. It has no effect on a healthy person. But the fact that it is classified as a level 10 light magic is not a surprise, and because of the magic power consumption, it is difficult to practice using it over and over again. Therefore, it was decided to take the time to heal him little by little, while also practicing. 202-184 Circumstances of the sisters (1) "Ugh ......, what is this place? It was after dinner was over when the girl opened her eyes with such a faint voice. It was Toya who immediately stood up. We were about to sit up, but we exchanged glances, sat down again, and sat on the empty bed to watch. It would have been quite scary to have a bunch of strangers looking down at the bed you were sleeping in. If there were lights on the bed, the picture would be that of an abducted and altered person. Can you talk? "Yes. ...... Can you? The child asks Toya, kneeling on the side of the bed, in a quiet voice. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. He doesn''t suddenly get up just because he''s a little fidgety. "Don''t be so alarmed. I''m just picking you up. I just picked you up," he said, pointing to the bed next to him. "Me!¡¡Me! I wonder if "Me" is the name of the other child. The other child''s name is probably "Me", and he is looking at Toya with a mixture of strong caution and a bit of doubt, as if relieved that the child is there. Toya, you''re not reassuring me with that tone. Don''t worry, I''m not going to hurt you, so don''t worry. If I wanted to, I wouldn''t have bothered to heal your burns. The girl looked at Haruka with a surprised expression on her face for a moment as she interrupted the conversation, but then quickly ran her hands over her body as if in a hurry. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to try. Unfortunately, it left a mark. "No, thank you. I''ve been in pain for over a week. ...... Ugh. ...... Yeah. You did great. Haruka approached the girl, who was lying on the bed and began to shed tears, and wiped her tears with a handkerchief. But it''s been a week. ....... It''s been a week or so since I''ve had a burn on my fingertips, and it still tingles. Considering that it was a large area of my body that was burned, the pain must have been tremendous. Rather, I am amazed that you survived. The other child has been healed, so drink this for now and get some sleep. Natsuki supported the child''s back to wake him up, and Haruka took a drink from the magic bag and brought it to his mouth. At first, the girl looked at him strangely, but when she sipped some of it, her eyes widened in surprise. "Sweet ....... She let out an involuntary gasp, then quickly put her hand on the cup and downed it in one gulp. Oh, it was delicious. "Really?¡¡I''m glad. Haruka offered them a glass of fruit juice that she and Natsuki had made while they were sleeping. It is a mixture of several summer fruits that are available at this time of the year, and also a blend of herbs that will help you recover your strength. It was specially made to replenish calories and to give children a bitter medicine to drink. Even without the medicinal herbs, the price of this juice is much higher than that of a normal meal, so it is not something that ordinary people can easily drink. Fruits are quite expensive, even when they are in season. "Well, go to bed. I''ll talk to you tomorrow. "Yes, ....... Natsuki laid the child down on the bed again, pulled the covers over her, and it wasn''t long before she started to hear him breathing. We both breathed a sigh of relief when we saw her sleeping face, which looked a little more peaceful than before. "Everything okay? "Yeah. Sorry, thank you. Well, I didn''t think Toya could calm a child down, so that''s okay. Haruka smiles a little and replies to Toya''s apology. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. ...... Or should I say, from the girl''s reaction, she was surprised by Haruka''s good looks? I''m not sure what to say. By the way, it is quite difficult to say which of us is the most popular with children. ...... Toya was popular with the boys at the orphanage, but I''m not sure if I''d like him when I woke up and saw him. He is good-looking in his own way, but he does not have a kind face. Haruka, as I''ve already mentioned, has become an elf and has become a little too human-like in her beauty, while Natsuki, while fond of children, has a dignified appearance and is not the type to make you feel at ease. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the following web site: ....... If the other person is fine, I have no problem with that. As for me, I have no comment. It is difficult to evaluate myself objectively. I don''t think the girls at the orphanage would shy away from you, judging by their reactions. ....... But you''re a polite girl. In that situation. I was expecting her to be more distraught given her age and appearance.¡¡I thought she''d be more upset. "Yeah. Ten years old or less, maybe. I''d say you''re pretty mature if you think about it. Normally, if you lose consciousness on the street and then wake up surrounded by adults, you would be confused and distraught, or if you were a child, you would start crying. Maybe it was because Haruka said he had healed her burns and she was in fact no longer in pain, but it was amazing that she could thank him so calmly in that state. I was a little worried, but from the looks of it, even if I have to take care of her, I think I can handle it. Yeah. But that''s up to them. You have the option of leaving. "Ugh. ...... I know, right? If you''re independent, that''s better. Toya looked relieved, yet a little disappointed, but in reality, I think it''s highly unlikely. If it wasn''t, he wouldn''t have collapsed on the street without being able to be treated. "Well, that''s only if we hear from her tomorrow. Maybe she''ll be able to move tomorrow. Yeah. It''s not something we should decide on our own. It wasn''t long after that that the other kid woke up. She was almost crying at the incomprehensible situation she had been thrown into when she woke up, but when she saw that her sister - she said "big sister" herself - was sleeping in the bed next to her, she calmed down immediately. She calmed down immediately. Perhaps because her burns were a little less severe than my sister''s, she was able to sit up on her own, and when I offered her some juice, she gulped it down happily. When I offered her a glass of juice, she gulped it down happily. She even asked for another glass with a cute smile, so she might be more brazen than my sister. However, he seemed to get sleepy immediately after finishing the drink and fell asleep on the bed. When I asked Haruka why she was sleeping so well, she told me that it was mixed with sedative herbs. The herb itself does not induce sleep, but if you are tired, it may help you fall asleep. It seems that they put it in because the situation might make them excited, but of course it is not only for that, but also to make them sleep well and recover their strength. The juice itself may be nourishing and the other herbs may also have an effect. In fact, they look a little better, and their shriveled animal ears look a little healthier,......? I''d like to touch it a little, but I''ll hold off until I''ve recovered my strength. I''m sorry. I''m sure you''ll agree. The next morning, the two of them woke up at about the same time we did. To be precise, they must have been awakened by the sound of us waking up, but since they were awakened by such a sound, they must have had a good sleep, or maybe they were too nervous to sleep. Considering the effect of the medicine, I would like to think the former. Are you okay to get up? "Yes. Yes, I''m fine. When my sister was about to answer, I heard a cute sound. The sound came from ...... my sister''s stomach. Oh, ....... As if inspired by the sound, my sister''s stomach also made a "kuruuru~" sound. At the same time, my sister''s face turned red. My sister doesn''t seem to care about the sound of her stomach, and is smiling. "Hmm, before we talk about anything else, let''s eat! "Food! Hey!¡¡No, I mean, we don''t have any money. ...... Thank you for fixing my injuries. ...... After scolding the younger sister for raising her voice in happiness, the older sister slurred her words. But I don''t care what she says, I pat them both on the head and lead them out of the room. Don''t worry about it. It''s nothing to feed a child. ...... I''m not taking the opportunity to touch your ears or anything, okay? No, that''s a lie. But it''s not natural to focus on the ears when patting the head, so I just touched them. Yeah, animal ears. And their hair is nice and fluffy, too, these kids. It was quite dirty when I found it, but the magic of purification has cleaned it up. Their fur looks a little damaged, so I''m sure it will look even better with better care and nutrition. "Toya, go get Haruka and the others. We''ll be in the cafeteria. ...... Oh. I sent a slightly disgruntled Toya off to the next room and took them downstairs to the cafeteria. We woke up at the same time as we usually do our morning practice. I was a little worried that the cafeteria would be open, but fortunately, it was already lit. According to the woman, mornings are especially early this time of year, and many people leave just before the sun rises, so they prepare their meals earlier than that. I heard that it is common to travel as far as possible before it gets too hot, and to take a rest in the shade during the hottest time of the day. In our case, it only took us a few hours to get from Laffan to Kergu, so yesterday we left right after breakfast and passed through the gates of Kergu before the noon heat. We hadn''t been to Pining yet, though, so maybe we should think about that and plan accordingly. As I waited for the two children to take their seats, first Toya and then Haruka came down to the dining room a few minutes later. Normally, we would have breakfast after morning practice, but since there were two hungry people there this time, we decided to have breakfast first, and ordered the same thing for seven people, including the two hungry people. At first, I wondered if the kids would be able to finish it. But my fears were completely unfounded. As expected of beasts, or perhaps they hadn''t eaten properly for such a long time, the amount of food they both ate was unbelievable for children. While the younger sister was stuffing herself with food from the very beginning, the older sister was reserved at first, but after we told her not to hold back and let her eat, she seemed to have gotten over it and took Toya''s additional order and ate more than one serving. It was not as much as Toya''s, but it was certainly more than Natsuki, who was surprisingly a healthy daredevil. I wondered how he managed to fit so much into his tiny body. Everyone finished their meals and took a break. We all went back to the room, had a cup of tea after the meal, and started to talk again. Thank you again for your help. The older sister bowed politely, and the younger sister hurriedly bowed in the same way. Cute. I also like the way her ears move slightly, as if she''s nervous. I want a sister like her. Will you give it to me?¡¡I don''t think so. Okay, she''s mine. Then so will she. While I was thinking such stupid things, they looked up and started to introduce themselves. "I''m Mary, and this is my sister. I''m Me! I''m Mitya. Mary is 9 years old and Mitya is 7 years old, but in these countries, the year of birth is one year, and the age is added on the new year, so there is at least a year difference between the two of them than what we think, or almost two years if they were born at the end of the year. In other words, both of them look like they are in the early grades of elementary school. Mary seems to be more robust than that, but perhaps that''s because she has a younger ...... sister. "I''m Haruka. "I''m Natsuki. I''m Yuki. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sitting next to Haruka, but Natsuki, who''s sitting next to me, opened her mouth first, so I''m the last in line. I''m Toya. Please call me Toya. I''m Nao. You can call me Nao. Nao!¡¡And Haruka, Natsuki, Yuki, and Toya!¡¡I remember! She accepted my words half-jokingly and confirmed the names with a smile, pointing and checking. Then, as if she was really honest, she called out Toya. "Hey, hey!¡¡Mee!¡¡I''m sorry, Toya-san. I''m sorry, Toya." "Oh, you can call me that if you really want.¡¡--Or you can do what Nao and the others do. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. I''m not sure what to make of that face. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "......". So, are you going to tell me why Mary and the others were lying in the middle of nowhere like that? I''m not sure if he noticed me looking at him or not, but he gave a deliberate cough and went back to his story. I''m not sure where I collapsed because I was in a daze. ...... The reason I got hurt like that was because of the commotion that happened the other day. The Order of the Sutomie Saints. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. 203-185 Circumstances of the sisters (2) Mary and Mitya are beastmen, a rarity in this area. They were born and raised in the town of Kergu. However, by the time Mary was old enough to remember, her mother was already gone, and she and her sister were raised by their father alone. As you can see from Mary and her family, her father was also a beast, and he used his strength to earn money by working on the ground. His income was a little more than that of a normal human, but not enough to raise two children, but certainly not enough. In such an environment, Mary leads a reasonably peaceful life, taking care of the house as a mother. However, these peaceful days were thrown out of gear a short time after the Order of the Sutomy Saints began to spread in the town. The landlord of the house that Mary and her friends were renting was an ordinary person who did not say anything to them as long as they paid their rent. The landlord of the house I was renting was an ordinary person who never said anything as long as I paid my rent. He bought a lot of "holy water" and gradually began to have money problems. So the landlord took the shortcut of selling the property. Unfortunately, Mary''s house was among the properties that were sold off. Unlike in Japan, where there are no excessive laws to protect tenants, the person who bought the house was a bit problematic by Japanese standards. The rent was suddenly and drastically raised. If you can''t pay, you have to leave. Rumor has it that he wants to demolish all the buildings in the area, including Mary''s house, and build another one, but Mary and her family can''t just leave without being told to do so. Mary''s father was draining his savings and looking for another place to live while he was paying the rent, and that''s when the Kergu Mayhem happened. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó The two people who were at home that day felt disturbed and closed the door of the house to keep quiet. The sound of disturbance echoed from outside. The father was at work and not at home. Mary was trembling with anxiety, but she didn''t notice it until it was too late. And by the time she noticed the anomaly, it was too late. When she opened the window, the fire was right in front of her. I rushed to the back of the house with my sister, but the other houses around us were also engulfed in flames, and it was already too late to escape. In addition, the fact that the door had been locked tightly was a disaster, and something collapsed, which may have been a propping rod, preventing Mary from even opening the door. In the meantime, the flames spread to Mary''s house and the walls began to collapse. Mary shields her sister from the flames, but both of them are stuck between the collapsing walls. Then their father jumped in. He had already sustained numerous injuries at that point, but he forcibly put his hand into the burning rubble, dragged them out, and threw them out of the house. I don''t remember much after that, to be honest. The only thing I remember clearly is that the house collapsed before my father could come out. The only thing I remember thinking about was how I was going to get my sister out of there. ...... As if remembering that moment, Mary turned her head and let the tears fall in drops and drops. As for Mitya, now that the pain of his injury is gone and his stomach is full, he may have a little more room to breathe, and in the middle of his story, he started crying, "Otousan ....... She''s now tired of crying and is sleeping peacefully in Natsuki''s arms. I know what''s going on now. You did your best. I''m sorry. I''m sorry. Haruka held out a handkerchief and hugged Mary, and she began to cry silently. I, Toya and Yuki, who were left with a rather heavy story, looked at each other and were speechless. I''m in trouble. I don''t have enough life experience to say something nice at a time like this. ....... I''m going to go get some tea. I''m sure you can''t stand that kind of atmosphere, but Yuki gets up and leaves the room to replace the tea that has gotten cold. "Oh, ......, I wonder if there''s anything good in the tea ....... He turned his back to me and started to put his hand into the magic bag in the corner of the room. "Well, ......... I looked at Natsuki and Haruka, but Natsuki only smiled. I looked at Natsuki and Haruka, but Natsuki just smiled. Haruka looked at me like she wanted me to sit quietly. That''s right, you should just sit down. If you look at the person next to you, you''ll see a slightly pointy animal ear. Is it wrong to touch it?¡¡...... No, right? I can read the air like that. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to do. Yuki''s hot tea and Natsuki''s homemade honey cookies with nuts, which Toya had found, were placed on the table, and the discussion resumed. Mitya, who had been asleep, woke up with a twitch of her nose when the cookies were placed on the table, and was now happily eating them. I can''t help but think that she was crying just a moment ago, but in this world where death is so close at hand, there must be a part of you that can''t survive without this level of toughness. It''s not that I don''t mourn death or anything like that, but it''s a problem of another level. Here, without reserves, it is impossible to even spend days in vain in grief. Most of the common people who live on their daily bread will starve to death if they do that. I''m sure Mary and the others have seen such people and lived through them. Just as common sense differs from era to era, it goes without saying that it differs from world to world. "Mitya, is it good? "It''s delicious! The honest words and the smiling faces make us feel warm and fuzzy. However, we can''t go on with our conversation even if we are relaxed. Haruka corrects the course and asks Mary. "So, just to confirm, Mary and the others don''t have anyone in particular they can rely on, right? If they had someone they could rely on, they wouldn''t be lying there, but when Haruka checks, Mary nods, as expected. I''m not sure. My father never told me about any of his relatives, and I had a normal relationship with the neighbors. ...... Mary doesn''t assert that he didn''t help her, but she slurs her words. It''s not easy for ordinary people to afford to take in another person''s child, and it would be difficult for them to cut back on their own lives to do so at the level of "neighbors" who are not their relatives. On top of that, judging from what I said earlier, the neighbors were most likely burned down, and they probably didn''t even have time to care about Mary and the others. If you guys want, we can help you, though? I need your help! Hey! Hey!¡¡I''m so sorry! In response to Haruka''s suggestion, Mitya, with a cookie in her mouth, raised her hand and responded without pause. Mary scolded Mitya, bowed to us, and pulled Mitya to a corner of the room. And so the conversation begins. (Mee, that''s what your father said!¡¡(Mee, you know what your father said, all good stories have an ulterior motive! (Haruka is a good person!) Although we are whispering, we are in the same room. (Haruka''s sister must be a good person!)" I whispered, but my high-powered elf ears could hear me just fine. Not to mention Haruka, who is smiling slightly, and Toya, who has better ears than us, but also Natsuki, who has been upgraded to a higher level, and Yuki, who is subtly moving her mouth with a grin. It''s funny, so I won''t point it out. (I trust my instincts, but I still have to be careful! (But there''s nothing we can do. If we don''t, we''ll probably die. (......) "Me, I don''t want to be sick or in pain. (Ugh ......) "(And the cookies are delicious!) (And the cookies are delicious!) - (And anyway, I want you to be quiet while my sister listens to you, okay? (...... understood) Mitya nodded, a little frustrated. ( Okay.) After reassuring her, Mary returned with Mitya, sat her down in a chair and sat herself down again. I''m sorry to keep you waiting. I''m sorry to keep you waiting. ...... Why are you helping us? "Why ......? We looked at each other and thought again. Why did you want to help Mary and the others? I could give you a reason, but in the extreme... "Because you saw it? Mary gives me a quizzical look as I say this. But it''s true. If I hadn''t happened to be on our way home at the time, we never would have met, and I never would have thought to help her. There are probably other people in trouble in Kerg, but we are not saints enough to look for them and help them. Oh, and by the way, your ears. See, you''re a beast like Toya, isn''t that unusual? Mary''s gaze grew suspicious as Haruka added, pointing to her. But it''s also true. If it didn''t have beast ears, it might not have caught Toya''s eye. I doubt it. No one would take in a child for that reason. I know how hard it is to raise a child. I know how hard it is to raise a child. ...... Your father had a hard time. Not only did he look at me, he said it clearly. But the sister does not care about her sister''s condition, perhaps because she was told to be quiet, she even reached for the cookie in front of her sister and silently brought it to her mouth. But Mary was happy to eat it too, so there was only one cookie left. After eating it, Mitya''s eyes were fixed on our cookies that were still left. Noticing this, Haruka smiled and casually moved the plate in front of Mitya, and answered Mary''s question. Haruka smiles and casually moves the plate in front of Mitya. To be frank, it''s not a lot of money for us to feed Mary and Mitya until they are adults. If you were asked to take in a child in Japan, you would probably hesitate, but here, you don''t have to pay for education and medical expenses, which are a large percentage in Japan. Ordinary injuries and illnesses can be healed with magic, and there are also medicinal herbs for natsuki. Furthermore, there are no luxuries such as games or smartphones that are available to the average child, so there is no need to spend money on those things either. You don''t live in an inn, so you don''t have to pay for housing once you return to Raffan. Haruka and the others can make their own clothes, and the cost of food, which might be a little more than that of humans due to the fact that they are beasts, will not be a big burden for us since we can get our own meat. Considering our own cost of living, it won''t cost us much if we just let them live a normal life. I''m not going to let you live in luxury, of course. ...... In terms of money, Toya''s allowance should be enough to cover it. Toya, you''re amazing! Oh. Isn''t that great? When Mitya looked at him with respect, Toya had a proud expression on his face. But when he continued, his expression froze. "Yes, it''s amazing!¡¡I want you to ''heal'' me! 204-186 Circumstances of the sisters (3) "Me? Toya, when did you ....... I didn''t know you''d already completed the Hikaru Genji plan. ...... I can''t believe you''ve already completed your plan. It''s not too early to tell. At least Mary''s ....... No, they''re both the same. I didn''t do it!¡¡I didn''t do anything! I''m not doing anything! Toya desperately shakes her head at Haruka and me. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. We were sleeping in the same room last night, and while I was asleep, Mitya and ....... I''m sure you don''t, but just in case, right? I don''t know. If you find a good man with money, get him to ''palm'' it. "Dad, ....... Mary has an indescribable expression on her face when Mitya says that. I''m not sure if I should call it a good education or just too much too soon. "Well, Mitya, do you understand what I mean? You''re going to feed me! He looked at Mitya and asked him calmly, and that was what Mitya answered. It''s not wrong. And that is a very important factor in deciding who to marry in this world. First of all, before looks and love, there is worthiness. A man who does not earn money has no human rights, but he cannot get a wife. On the contrary, a man who earns a lot of money can get a wife. Yes, even more than one. Rich men are more popular than ugly men. The world is kind to people other than beautiful people. In a sense, it is equal, but in a sense, it is very severe. By the way, it goes without saying that if you have the same money, you will be more popular with beautiful people. ....... I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Mary, what should we do?¡¡Of course, if you think it''s suspicious, you can just leave. "I can understand your suspicions. We''re not going to force you to do anything you don''t want to do. But we can''t wait to make a decision. We''re in the middle of a job. Mary pondered over the words of Haruka and the others, which were quite simple. A stranger suddenly said, "I''ll help you. If a stranger suddenly says, "I''m here to help you, follow me," it is normal to be suspicious. In fact, you should be suspicious. Of course I''d be suspicious too, but I wonder if Mitya is a bold person, or if she lives by her instincts like we were talking about earlier, and she''s forcing my sister to make a decision. The only people who can take chances are those who can make split-second decisions. "Ugh. ...... Well, if you''re going to help us, what should we do? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s not really a job, but it''s not really a job that needs to be done either. You can use magic to help you clean your house, which is usually a pain in the ass, and it would be difficult for you to cook as well as Haruka and her friends, who have the same skills. In the first place, there is the matter of taste and preference. If I had to find a job, it would be tending the garden or gardening, as Haruka says, but neither of these are essential. The garden is just a hobby, and the maintenance of the garden is not a problem because almost no one visits it, we are the only ones who see it, and we are out most of the time. Chores: ...... Is that all?¡¡I''ve got a face like this and a poor body,....... I''m not sure if she thought it was too convenient, but she said that and glanced at Toya and me. So you work at night. I''m not sure if I''d be able to handle a child of Mary''s age. She was burned, so she was out of my league as far as appearance was concerned. Toya seemed to feel the same way, and smiled. Don''t worry, I won''t do that. Think about your age. You will find a lot of people who have been in the business for a long time. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡At least not for us! I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m not sure what to say. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. ...... No, well, I don''t deny that there are people who are not normal. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. But at least, Toya and I are different. In the first place, don''t we need to make them work? "Toya, that''s no good. It''s not good to simply feed them. There''s no school, and you''re totally NEET. NEET, "Not in Education, Employment or Training". Not studying, not working, not training. It is debatable whether a person of Mary''s age can be called a NEET, but considering the fact that she is already of school age in Japan, it is not wrong to say that she is not in school. However, Haruka''s insistence that they should be allowed to work probably has another purpose. From our point of view, we may feel sorry for them and want to help them, but from Mary''s point of view, they are not our relatives and they are being fed without any work. It''s easy to imagine how uncomfortable that would be. The fact that they are useless means that it doesn''t matter how long they are gone, because they can be removed at any time. If you work a little, you will feel a little more comfortable, and you will be able to express your opinions a little more easily, if not selfishly. "Just so you know, if you follow us, we''ll be moving to Laffan. That''s where our home is. If you stay in town, we''ll at least send you to an orphanage. Ugh, orphanages are not ...... ...... Not so good, is it?¡¡The orphanage in this town is not so good? I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure if it''s the same in Kergu, but I''m sure it''s not the same in Rafan. I know a kid from the orphanage, but he doesn''t have much money. ....... There seems to be a lot of people, and considering this time, ....... We''re beastmen. ...... "Oh, money, huh. And with all the turmoil, the number of people is increasing, isn''t it? Even if there is no wrongdoing, as long as it is run by donations, there is nothing to be done if the donations are small. I''ve heard that there is support from the lords, but it''s probably not enough. Moreover, there are probably many children like Mary who have lost their parents due to the recent turmoil, and if that happens, the number of children entering the orphanage will naturally increase, putting pressure on the operation. Furthermore, Mary and her friends are rare beasts. There is no clear discrimination among the adults, but children, even those of the same species, can be bullied for the slightest thing. Beastmen, with their distinct differences, can be easy targets. "Sis, ...... I understand!¡¡Please let me work! It''s not that I''m not a good person. It''s good to know that you are willing to work. It is a good thing to have a desire to work. In Japan, this would still be a moratorium period, but in this world, adulthood is early and independence is early. According to Ms. Ishka of the orphanage, Mary will start working in a few years. If Toya is going to support her, then she has to work to earn a living. Yeah. That''s good. I was worried about leaving her out in the city now that we know each other. That''s right. Well then, let''s extend the stay as soon as possible. Mary and the others will need some time to recover their strength. Oh, no, I''m fine!¡¡I can walk!¡¡I''m feeling much better than I thought I would. Hey, Mee? Yeah!¡¡I''m fine! You are? It''s true that the color of your face and the movements of your body make it hard to believe that you had collapsed and almost died yesterday. Maybe it''s the magic or the special juice? But I''m worried, so let''s stay another night. I''d like to try some magic. "...... Oh, Regenerate? Haruka''s gaze fell on Mary and Mitya, or to be more precise, on their scars. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not going to be able to use it until after I''m done with my errands for the day. I''ve already been to the ...... bookstore, so I guess the only thing left to do is buy some clothes for Mary and the others. You''re right, these clothes are not good. ...... The original clothes that Mary and her friends wore were tattered, so now they are wearing Yuki''s clothes, which are the smallest of all our clothes. To put it bluntly, it''s too big. It''s not something you can walk around in, but it''s not something you can walk around outside in. However, the clothes we usually wear are handmade by Natsuki and her friends. You''re not going to make them this time? It''s hard for us to make them in a day, even for us. That''ll have to wait until we get back. Let''s just buy one for now. I''m sure you''ll like it. We would have liked to take Mary and the others with us to buy clothes to fit their bodies, but we couldn''t take them out dressed like that, so we left them to guard the inn and went into town. We went to a few second-hand clothing stores and bought durable clothes. They were not cute, but Haruka and her friends said, "I make my own cute clothes! They said. In fact, all the clothes we wear are made by ourselves and are well-made, and the personal clothes they wear on holidays are at least distinct from the clothes worn by the common people walking around. In this world where entertainment is scarce, they are probably making these clothes partly as a hobby. The cloth used is reasonable, and the cost is quite high, but it is said to be "cheaper than good old clothes" because it does not require sewing costs. As long as the price is reasonable, we are not in a position to say anything about it. Incidentally, the clothes we bought for Mary and the others this time were more expensive than the second-hand clothes we first got in this world, but it seems that the disturbance had an effect on this. Many people, like Mary and her friends, had their houses burned down, and these people inevitably lost their clothes along with their household goods. The economic principle is that if there is an increase in demand and a shortage of goods, the price will go up. We were also forced to buy used clothes at a premium. The way Haruka and the others looked so unhappy, if they could have gotten some cloth, they would have started making clothes instead of buying them. Unfortunately, the price of cloth has gone up here in Kerg, and we don''t have any cloth that can be used for clothes. Even though we can carry a lot of stuff in our magic bag, we still keep unnecessary things at home, and sewing cloths are stocked in our sewing room. The clothes I bought this time are not very cute, even from my point of view, and Haruka and her friends are not very happy with them, so they will probably have to make new clothes as soon as they get home. 205-187 Kerg Mayhem (End) It was when we were walking from the thrift store to the inn, complaining a bit. "Mr. Shidou! A voice suddenly called out to us, making us tense. When we turned our gaze to the owner of the voice, there was a person with a dirty robe covering his entire body and a hood covering his face. No matter how you look at it, it''s a suspicious person. No, from the content of his call, I know that he is almost certainly a former classmate, but there is a high possibility that he has a landmine, so there is no problem calling him suspicious. I don''t think there are any really bad classmates left by now, but the situation in Kerg is what it is. The person in question pulled up his or her hood a little bit, but as soon as Toya saw his or her face, he or she moved. The moment he saw the face, he moved. In the blink of an eye, he stepped in front of the person and slammed his fist into her stomach. With a dull "thud," her body bent into a curve, and she floated in the air for a moment. And then, without even uttering a sound, she weakens and collapses to the ground. "Quick ...... I''m sure you''re aware of that. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at our own web site. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s possible that you know her - well, she called Yuki''s name, so it should almost certainly be Satomi Takamatsu, but even when you see her face, you can''t connect it to the Takamatsu you vaguely remember. I''ve been here for more than half a year now, and I''ve had some pretty intense experiences, so it''s hard to remember anything that doesn''t matter. ...... You don''t look like this, do you? I don''t think I''ve ever seen anything like it. I knew what to expect when I saw the wanted list. ...... Is it the ''attractive appearance'' skill? At least she''s a beautiful girl. But Toya, you hit him pretty hard, didn''t you? You can''t blame her for being a little dismayed. I hit him like I was scooping him up from underneath, so hard that his body floated in the air. "But I don''t have the skill to knock you out with a blow to the neck. "Of course you don''t. Is that a concussion? If you think about it normally, yes. But if you hit him with that kind of force, you''ll get whiplash if you''re not good. The best thing to do would probably be to choke him off like in judo. It is less likely to cause damage. But if you use the wrong amount of force, you could die. Natsuki says something very realistic. People are not stunned by chloroform as in the story, nor can they be tongued in the neck. If you want to deprive them of consciousness in an instant, it would probably be more effective to make them inhale carbon dioxide. If you want to take away life as well as consciousness, that would be different. Right?¡¡So it''s not my fault that I punched him in the stomach. No, punching someone in the stomach and knocking them out is not so bad, is it? It''s not my fault I punched him in the stomach. I was just thinking about the devastation in this town and what happened to Mary and the others. "Oh, ....... I couldn''t help but agree with him. Yuki and the others nodded in agreement and looked down at the fallen Takamatsu. You can say that this child is the cause of the problem. ...... Putting aside the pros and cons of starting a religion, what happened afterwards was not good. I''ve seen something about how to make money in a new religion, and the trick was to keep the amount of money you take in below a certain percentage of your income. The trick is to keep the amount of money taken in below a certain percentage of one''s income. If one takes in too much, the lives of the believers will be ruined, and this will become a social problem. Even if one makes money in the short term, the source of income will cease to exist in the long term. Takamatsu misjudged the situation and failed to take appropriate action. He was not without blame for the death of Mary''s father and the severe burns on the girls. But even if we catch them alive, they''ll probably kill us. Even if you use the wrong amount of force, ...... Toya mutters something quite scary, but it is undeniable. Even though they are acquaintances, they are not close enough to take the risk of helping each other, and unfortunately, what they did was too problematic. If we harbor him, we will become criminals. If we wanted to be merciful, we could cut off his head right now in his unconscious state, but we don''t have the right to get our hands dirty. It would be better to just hand him over and forget about him. ...... Shall we capture him for now? It''s a little depressing, but it can''t be helped. Yuki and the others gagged and blindfolded the unconscious Takamatsu, and tied his hands and feet with rope. The ropes were then tied around his hands and feet. Toya then carried him up. "Let''s just deliver it to the Adventurer''s Guild in this town. We don''t want to get in trouble, do we? "Yeah. Let''s just get it there. Right. We''ll become criminals if we''re forced to help them escape. We don''t know what Takamatsu''s skills are, but we know it''s best not to get involved. We hurried to the adventurer''s guild to finish what we didn''t want to do. I hadn''t been to Kergu in a while. The adventurer''s guild in Kerg, which we hadn''t visited in a long time, seemed to be as busy as ever. The town was not so lively, but there were many jobs for adventurers in this situation. In particular, there were many day jobs available due to the demand for reconstruction. When we walked into the guild with a suspicious-looking cloth, we drew a lot of attention, but to be honest, it was a good thing that no one was bothering us. Most of the adventurers whose livelihood is in the hands of the guild are basically well-behaved. --At least not in the presence of guild officials. It''s only natural, because if you''re watched, you won''t be able to move up in rank or get good paying jobs. We ignored the stares and headed for the counter. "Well, hello? We laughed at the receptionist who greeted us with a bit of annoyance, her gaze wandering between our faces and what Toya was carrying, and then pointed to the handbill on the wall. I''ve brought you that. "That ......?¡¡Huh!¡¡Did you get it? The receptionist was stunned for a moment, as if she didn''t understand what I was talking about, and then immediately raised her voice in surprise. "Yeah, well... I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡I''m sure it was Nao-san and Toya-san, wasn''t it?¡¡I''m sure you''ve heard of them. The receptionist had a look of disbelief on her face, but when she saw our faces again, she said our names as if she had just realized them. "Oh, you remember me? This is the girl who used to hang out in the archives when I came to Kerg, and we became friends. I remembered her because she was one of the few people I knew, but she was one of the many adventurers who came to the city, and it was months ago, so I thought she had forgotten about me. ....... It is the role of the receptionist to remember those who seem to have a promising future at a high rank!¡¡I''m glad to hear that you were able to defeat them safely. I''ve received your report. Besides, Nao-san is an elf. I''m not very good at remembering faces, but I think it''s quite impressive. The fact that I''m an elf, which is rare in this area, may have an effect on me, as my sister says. ....... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do. So, can I have this one? "Oh, I''m sorry. Let''s go to the back. Pointing to something Toya was holding, I urged her on, and she led us away from the counter and into the back room. The stares of the other adventurers hurt a little, but it''s probably not jealousy, like, "You''re making friends with our receptionist! It''s probably not because they''re jealous of us, but because of the rewards we''re getting. If you''re an adventurer based in this town, there''s no way that you haven''t seen that handbill, and you''ll probably remember the amount of the reward. I don''t want to think that there are adventurers who would just attack me out of the blue, but it might be a good idea to be careful. "Please wait in this room for a moment. I was led to a small room that at first glance looked like an interrogation room. There was no furniture and it was quite dim. When the lady operated the wall, a light came on and illuminated the room, but the impression was still the same. Even with just the five of us and the receptionist in the room, it felt a bit cramped, with Takamatsu - or rather, Saint Satomi - wrapped around us. As we lowered the mattress into the corner of the room, she left the room and came back with two men. I don''t remember seeing her the last time I was here. ...... Maybe not. I don''t think so. One was a strong man, and the other was an old man. There were nine of us, and one of us was a macho man, so it was pretty cramped when we were all in the same room. I''m sorry. It''s just a precaution. I''m sorry, but I''m just being cautious. What do you mean, "beware"? "Well, he''s a wanted man, isn''t he?¡¡This room is pretty solid, you know. "I see. Haruka replies and looks around the room. The room looks like a prison. There is no furniture in the room. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. "This is William, the head of this guild. The one behind him is Silas, my bodyguard, but you don''t need to remember him. You don''t have to remember." "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.¡¡It''s Ketra. The macho man who was introduced as Silas protested the introduction of the receptionist, who was apparently named Ketola, but Ketola shook her head nonchalantly. There''s no chance of me getting involved with you. In fact, please don''t get involved. I don''t want you to have a strange influence on promising young people. That''s a pretty harsh thing to say, Ketola. I''m sure Silas is right to be angry. But perhaps he''s in a weaker position than Ketola, Silas doesn''t say anything back and just smiles. "Well, well, well. I''m sure you''ll be fine.¡¡Cyrus. "Yes. At William''s urging, Cyrus approached the screen in the corner of the room and pulled off his hood. He then removes the blindfold, nods, and puts the blindfold and hood back on. There''s no doubt about it. This is Saint Satomi. At these words, the branch chief breathed out a sigh of relief. There must have been some problems in the situation where the central figure of this disturbance had not been caught. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own web site. But how did you find it? It''s a good thing I found you by accident. It''s not that I was looking for it, it''s just that I stopped by this town on my way to make a request. Haruka replies honestly to his words of admiration. In fact, Satomi just blew herself up, and if she hadn''t called out to us, we wouldn''t have noticed. The reason for her defeat was that she either misjudged Toya''s boldness or overestimated her skills. Maybe she thought she could just talk her way out of it. Luck is one of the qualities of an adventurer. Silas, you stay here and keep watch. You''re going up. Leaving Silas in the small room, we went to the branch chief''s office, apparently. We walked upstairs and found the room a bit cluttered with various documents. The branch manager sat down on a chair at the back of the room, letting out a voice suitable for his age, "Come on. Now that we''ve identified ourselves, let''s pay out our winnings. Ketra. "Yes, sir. Here is your prize, one thousand gold coins. Thank you. He took a leather bag from a shelf in his room and presented it to us. It''s a lot of money, but it''s also a familiar amount now. It was a leather bag that could fit in the palm of your hand, but it was all metal and as heavy as if you were holding a dumbbell. I, who was close to Ketola, picked it up and put it in the bag. My bag, which obviously didn''t look like it had any weight in it, made the branch chief look a little curious, but he didn''t say anything about it. "Didn''t you guys take care of the bandits before? Yes. Rafan has informed me that you have successfully completed the task. It''s hard to believe that the branch chief would be aware of a single adventurer''s request, but he may have heard about it from Ketra beforehand. These and other achievements are worthy of raising your rank, but your current rank is ....... "Well, you were rank 4 then, right? Yes. Now it''s rank 5. Ketola-san''s memory is incredible. Haruka nods and tells him his current rank. It''s too early to be rank 6. What is the name of your party? "I''ve named it ''The Clear Mirror''. ...... I''ll keep that in mind. You can count on me if you need anything. I''ll help you in any way I can. That''s one way to get paid, I guess. Well, the power of the organization is not foolproof, and it''s not bad to have a connection. "Thank you. "Good, good. Good adventurers are the guild''s treasure. Keep up the good work. Whether it was because his concerns had been addressed, or because he thought we were "quality adventurers," as he said, he was in a good mood as he left the room. Then we went downstairs and out of the guild. "As expected of a high-ranked (????) adventurer!¡¡Thank you for your hard work! For some reason, Ketra-san saw me off with an emphasis on "high rank". I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. ...... Oh, I see. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to hear that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. To attack such a person, you must be a fool, or a fool who is confident in his skill. It''s unlikely that a normal high-ranked adventurer would attack you. A thousand gold coins is a lot of money, but it is enough for a high rank adventurer to earn, and the risk is not worth the return. If the adventurer is an idiot, he can simply turn on the adventurer, and it is the idiots who are confident in their skills who will have problems. If they are just overconfident, there is no problem, but if they have a high level of skill but have a behavioral problem that keeps them from rising in rank, that is a problem. I''d like to get out of this town before I get into trouble. 206-188 Plays? (1) So, let''s experiment with regeneration, shall we? "Let''s see, ......? After returning to the inn and finishing lunch, we gathered in our room. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. What is regeneration? It''s a magic that not many people use, so it seems that Mary didn''t have any knowledge of it. In the first place, there are almost no beastmen who can use magic, and there are only a few human wizards. It''s not surprising that she didn''t know about it, since ordinary people rarely have the chance to see magic. To put it simply, that burn mark, that''s a magic that might be able to heal it. What, you can heal it? I want it to heal!¡¡My poor sister! We had tried not to talk about it, and Mary and the others hadn''t said anything, but the burn marks on the girls'' bodies - especially Mary''s prominent face - were very painful to look at. In the event you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, you can call us at the web site. I''m sure you''ll be fine. You may be able to fix it. I''m still happy ....... I''m not sure what to say, but I''ll try. I''m sure she felt guilty that she was the cause of Mary''s severe burns. I''ll try. Then I''ll take care of Mary, and Natsuki will take care of Mitya. For now, let''s just do the face part. Mary, are you ready? Yes!¡¡Yes, please! Mary sits in front of Haruka with a determined look on her face, and offers her face to him with her eyes closed. Her ears are trembling slightly, as if she''s very nervous. There''s no need to be so strenuous. ....... Okay, then. "Regenerate! As soon as she hears Haruka''s spell, the burn on Mary''s face starts to glow slightly. A few seconds later. And then...!¡¡Hahahahaha ...... The light subsided as soon as Haruka let out a ragged breath, but the scars on Mary''s face had not completely disappeared. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of it or not, but I''m sure you''ve seen it. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and what you can do to help. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I know!¡¡It''s very hard to use magic that''s too big for you! After Yuki''s failed attempt to make precious metal with earth magic, I tried to do the same. The result was, of course, failure. I almost collapsed just like Yuki. But Haruka''s Regenerate is working. ...... Could it be that our magic at that time was also generating precious metals on an invisible level? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. But it was effective enough, wasn''t it? Yes!¡¡My sister is much cleaner now! Really?¡¡Really? ...... Mary touched her face with her hand, not being able to see it, and her cheeks relaxed at the difference in texture. I guess so. Maybe one or two more uses and you''ll be back to normal?¡¡Not today, though. I don''t have the magic. But at this rate, I should be able to heal pretty quickly. The results were better than I expected, I said, but Haruka shook her head in annoyance. It''s not that easy. It''s not that easy. You''ve just healed an area the size of your palm.¡¡If you use it once a day, it will take a few days to heal that area. You can''t see much because of her clothes, but Mary has extensive burn marks on her body as well. ...... I remember when you said it was a wonder you were still alive. I''ve heard that if a person burns about 30 to 40 percent of the surface area of their body, it can be fatal. In other words, the extent of Mary''s burns must have been about that level. Considering the fact that she survived for about a week in that condition, is it the life force of a beast, or is it the strength of her will to protect Mitya? I haven''t heard the details of how he survived, but either way, it''s extraordinary. "At this level of healing for burn scars, regrowing a finger, much less an arm, seems like a long shot. For now. I''m sure the efficiency and the amount of magic power will increase as you become more proficient, but surely regenerating just a few millimeters of the surface of the skin is not enough for Haruka''s condition. In addition to the skin, the muscles, blood vessels, and bones also need to be regenerated, like in the case of the arm, how difficult would it be? "Hmm, that''s the thing, isn''t it?¡¡Maybe we should do it little by little, like this treatment.¡¡One millimeter a day. ...... That''s so surreal. It''s so surreal. An arm that grows a millimeter a day. Haruka frowned at Tohya''s analogy. "And at that rate, it would take several years, wouldn''t it? And at that rate, it''s going to take a few years to heal," he said. "And if you consider that the surgeon who can use Regenerate is going to be tied up for that long, the cost of treatment is going to be very expensive. In fact, I don''t know at what level a sorcerer who can use regeneration can heal a defective part, but even Haruka, who is an elf and has a background in light magic, is like this. It''s definitely a very difficult magic. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get it. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Mitya, please give me your hand. Yes! Perhaps it was because she had seen Mary''s condition. I''m not sure if it''s because I''ve been watching Mary, or because Mitya doesn''t seem to be in the mood. I''m not sure what to say. This time, Natsuki targeted the area on the back of Mitya''s hand. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. "...... Huh~. This is not enough? It''s all about training. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. This is a rare behavior for Natsuki, who doesn''t show much sloppiness in front of me and Toya, which probably means she''s exhausted. "Thank you, Natsuki! "No, no, no. Tomorrow, I''ll fix you up nicely. In response to Mitya''s honest thanks, Natsuki responded with a smile on her slightly tired face. From my experience, it will stay like this for a few hours. When you use up all of your magic, it''s hard to move. If you want to heal her, you''d better do it before you go to bed. However, I was thinking of staying at the inn until Mary and the others'' scars heal, but that''s just not possible. It''ll take too long. "Don''t worry!¡¡I''ve recovered my strength and I''ll be able to walk tomorrow. Me too!¡¡I can run too! It''s true that they can''t move at the pace of Mary and the others, but walking at that pace would be troublesome, so someone would have to carry them on their backs. It''s hard to believe they were half-dead the day before yesterday. The magic and medicine may have had some effect, but I think it was the strength of the beastmen''s vitality. "Then let''s leave tomorrow as we originally planned. Is there anything Mary and the others need to do in this town?¡¡Say hello to your acquaintances. ...... I''d like to mourn my father if I could, but I don''t think it''s too ....... It may be too late. Your house burned down about a week ago. ...... If a fire breaks out in Japan and someone burns to death, the fire department and police will inspect the scene and preserve the burned remains, and of course the body will be preserved and returned to the bereaved family. However, the situation in this world is a little unique. First of all, the treatment of the dead body. When someone dies, their corpse is cremated. The main purpose of the cremation is to prevent the body from becoming undead, and the body is basically burned without leaving any trace of bones. It is said that undeadness is not a rare occurrence, but it is inevitable because it would be a problem if it were to happen. It is said that the best way is to cremate them with Holy Fire, but only a few people can do that. Most people will collect firewood and cremate the body. However, the amount of wood needed for this is quite large, and if there is not enough fuel and the bones remain, they are crushed by hand and then buried. As for the burial, only a few rich people and aristocrats would have individual tombs, and the ashes of the common people would be thrown together in a common cemetery set up in the temple, and that is the norm. From the point of view of modern Japanese people, the treatment of corpses is generally crude. Mary and her father had already been dead for about a week after the fire. It might have been different if the house they lived in had been their own, but it was completely rented. Moreover, from what I heard, the quality of the landlord was a bit poor. It would be better if the remains were recovered and buried in a temple, but if not, they may have been crushed with the rubble and disposed of properly. Shall we go there for now? "Yes, please. Please do. Haruka and Natsuki will be staying at home, right? Yes. Please. I''m having a hard time with this. Me, too. I can''t use this unless I can get some rest. At least not in combat. Probably not, no matter how good you get. I got my arm blown off in combat! But I can use Regenerate to recover and continue fighting! You can''t do that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re up against. "What about Mitya, ......? Go! The one who immediately responded to my hesitation was him. But there are good reasons for hesitation. It''s not so bad if you''ve already collected the body, but if you''re not, you might see your father''s skeleton or burnt corpse, or worse, even a decomposing corpse. Should a young child be exposed to such things, no matter how close they are? Mary is young enough, but she can''t help it if there is no one else. I think she''ll be fine. I''m sure she''ll be fine. ...... It''s the time of year. I''m not sure what to make of it. Simply put, it''s summer now. What would happen if we left the body there for a week in such conditions? I don''t like to imagine such a situation. Naturally, people living in the vicinity would do something about it before it happens. If it''s ......, then the five of us, not including Haruka and Natsuki, should go. "Yes. Please. With a slightly gloomy expression, Mary nodded stoutly. 207-189 plays? (2) We were on our way to our destination, guided by Mary, when Toya suddenly left us. He said, "By the way, I promised to teach Yasue [swordsmanship]. I''m going to go now. It''s true that he''s scheduled to leave tomorrow, so I guess it can''t be helped, but what about leaving ...... a potential wife (my own fantasy) behind? Well, that''s what happened. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. If I had to use a metaphor, I would say it was like a back alley in a downtown area where it is difficult for fire trucks to enter. A corner of such an area. A number of buildings were burned down and a large space was created. A lot of rubble still remains in the vacant lot, and people who look like day laborers are collecting it. Mary, is this it? Yes, I''m here. ...... There''s nothing here. ...... There''s nothing here. ...... Mary and Mitya look around with a sad expression on their faces. "Excuse me, can I have a word? "Hmm?¡¡I''m working, as you can see. The one who approached the adventurer in the middle of his work was Yuki. The adventurer looked back a little unhappily, but when he saw Yuki''s face, his cheeks relaxed a little. The target was a young man, so Yuki would certainly be more likely to listen to him than I would be to talk to him. It won''t take long. Didn''t any bodies come out of here? "Bodies?¡¡I''ve heard that some bodies have come out. Yeah, what about them?¡¡What happened to them? The man thought for a moment and then Mary asked him to hurry up. The man''s voice startled him a little, and he glanced somberly at Mary and the others'' burn scars before answering quickly. He said, "They''ve all been collected and buried in the temple. In the nearest temple of Lord Westhimir. The man politely told us the location of the temple of Westhimere. He probably understood the situation from Mary and the others'' behavior. He seems to be a good person, despite his appearance. Thank you very much. But why only here ......"? On the roads I''ve taken so far, there are only a few burned houses, but none as densely burned out as this one. There are many flammable houses in this area, and it may be that the fire just spread by bad luck, but it is not as if the houses were made of straw. Nevertheless, the difference between this area and the rest of the city was clearly large. "Hey. There''s a rumor that the landlord who owns the building here set it on fire himself. ...... Huh? The adventurer''s words may not have been the answer Yuki was expecting, but something unexpected came out of his mouth. We were surprised, but the adventurer shrugged his shoulders and continued. There''s a rumor that he saw the landlord at the fire. It''s just a rumor. Are you going to investigate ......? No. What the...!¡¡I''m sorry. I''m sorry. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. The adventurer didn''t seem particularly bothered by this, and shook his head with a wry smile. It''s simple. It doesn''t make sense. We''re burning to death together. "Well, that''s ....... "Even if I find it suspicious, I can''t ask him, and I don''t have the head to lose. There''s no time for that in the first place, according to the lord. Arson is a felony even in this country, and it is usually executed without argument. But what if the suspect is dead? It''s a waste of time and money, so leave it alone. If there was a nobleman among the victims of the fire, there is a possibility that the whole family of the perpetrator will be beheaded, so there will be an investigation, but the dead are just commoners. That is the general view. Since there is no one to punish, the ruler will put more effort into reconstruction. On the contrary, he is an excellent ruler in a sense, because he has put a large bounty on the Saint Satomi, who is the cause of this disturbance and could be a disaster if not caught. Of course, there may be some menial issues, but apart from the feelings of the victims, it is realistic. You''re right. ....... Thank you very much. Thank you. ...... I know you have a lot on your mind, but stay positive. In the end, the adventurer said to Mary and the others, and went back to work. "Mary, Mitya, are you okay? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. ...... Yes. Can I come by the temple? Of course. Is it that way? The adventurer told her to follow the path, and within ten minutes she saw the temple she was looking for. It was the first time I had visited the temple of Lord Westhimia, but it didn''t look much different from the temple of Lord Adversus that I usually visited. The statue of the god in the center was different, but without it, I would not have been able to tell the difference. In terms of size, it is not much different from the temple in Rafan. The only difference I can think of is that there is no priest in the temple. For a moment, I thought, "Don''t we have to worry about money thieves? For a moment, I thought, "Don''t I have to worry about money thieves?" But when I thought about it, in this world, divine punishment is real. But then I thought about it. As usual, we threw in some money from ......, or more than usual, and prayed. --Yeah, nothing special. That''s normal, but in the temple of Adversus, you can hear voices all the time, and it makes you feel slightly uncomfortable. We finished our prayers quickly, and Mary and Mitya continued to pray for a while, but they got up after a minute or so. "Are you done? "Yes. Thank you very much. "Thank you. Mary and Mitya smiled a little and thanked me, as if they had recovered to some extent. This is like a kind of visit to the grave. In the case of the common people who do not have individual tombs, they pray at the temple where they are buried like this, or at the temple of the same god in another city. But there is no temple of Lord Westhimir in Rafaan. There are two temples in Raffan, one of Adversus, which we usually visit, and one of Belforg, which I''ve never been to. I''ve only passed by the temple of Advaistris, but there was not much difference in appearance. "It''s all right. Your father wasn''t a follower of Lord Westhimir. Really? Yes. He was more flexible than that. If he was buried because he was a follower of the god, or if he was buried in a temple chosen because it was close to the god, then it is not so important. In other words, in a case like this, it doesn''t matter if Mary and her friends are going to pray in the temple of another god. However, it might be a good idea to bring them to this temple at least once a year to visit the grave. In the Japanese sense of finding meaning in remains. Oh, this place also has an orphanage in the back, doesn''t it? After finishing our prayers at the temple, we went outside and heard the noisy voices of children. Perhaps it bothered her, but Yuki turned around and said something like that to me. I looked back and saw the building behind the temple in front of Yuki''s eyes. "Yeah. It''s a bit strange to call it ....... The size of the orphanage he could see was not much different from the one in Raffan, but the presence of people he could feel from it was very different. The sound of children screaming and crying, running around, adults shouting, there was no room to spare. There was not a single priest in the temple, perhaps because they were busy with the orphanage and did not have the manpower to help us. Mary and Mitya stare at the orphanage. What are they thinking? "Mary, if you want to go to the orphanage... "Yes!¡¡Please take me there! Please! I''d like to ask you a question," I said, but Mary and the others interrupted me by shouting. Well, that situation, which can be felt from the outside, would not be very comfortable, even before the race. Besides, if you don''t feel comfortable in our home, you can make a small donation to Rafan''s orphanage and leave it to them, though it may be a bit irresponsible. There''s no need to jump to conclusions. "I see. Shall we go home then? You''re leaving! So says Mitya, taking my hand. I''m not going to leave you without doing that, but I don''t need to let go. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. 208-190 To Pining (1) The next morning, after an early breakfast, we left town. It takes a few days to get from Kerg to Pining by carriage. It would have taken us a few hours to get there, but we had Mary and the others with us. Normally, we would have chosen to take a carriage, but for us, it would have been quite a hassle to spend two days for a distance that could be reached in a few hours. If it was a request to kill bandits or a sight-seeing trip like last time, that would be one thing, but for us now, transportation is a means, not an end. So we chose to go on foot as usual. That''s why Mary and I are going to run with Nao and me on our backs. "Well, we can run too, can''t we? You''re getting better! At Toya''s words, Mary nodded her head and Mitya ran around the area, tapping her feet, before coming back to me. As she said, she certainly looks healthy, and her speed seems to be that of an adult human male, but our running speed is not that fast, and we need endurance. You''re getting better, but you''re a long way from pinning. You''re feeling better, but pinning is a long way off. "Mmm, okay. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m sure you''ll understand. Nao, can you also detect the demons? Okay. If you get tired, Nao, we can switch. The plan is for Toya to carry Mary for the rest of the trip, and for Natsuki and I to take turns carrying Mitya. Yuki is not in charge due to her size, and Haruka is not in charge due to her physical strength. We will take turns taking a break every 30 minutes, and will arrive at the pinning site by noon. Shall we go then? You''re going! Yes, please! Mitya shouted cheerfully at my back, and Mary, though reserved, clung tightly to Toya. Then we started running, Haruka, Yuki, Natsuki, Toya and me in that order. We were in the back because of the wind. When you''re running at high speed, air resistance has a very subtle effect on you. Wow!¡¡You''re fast!¡¡It''s so fast! Mitya is very excited. It''s a lot faster than a bicycle, so I can understand why she''s excited. "Mitya, don''t move too much. "Oh, I''m sorry. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. Also, it is tiring to run smoothly to reduce the up and down movement as much as possible. However, if I were to run normally, the vibration would be so great that Mitya would not be able to keep up. I''m trying my best, but Toya, who''s running in front of me, is moving much more smoothly than I am, and he''s a beast of a man. "Mitya, if you get tired or sick, don''t hesitate to tell me, okay? "Okay! I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''ve been so impressed with your work. I was asleep. It''s a good thing I''m so handy, because I''m sleeping with a tight cling. "Me!¡¡Wake up! "Squishy ......?¡¡Are we there? Mitya let out a sleepy voice as Mary shook her, looking dumbfounded. "Rest!¡¡You''ll be bothering Nao-san! I''m going down to ....... Huh~ I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. "Thanks for your help. Are you okay? "Yeah, I''m fine. I''m just tired of trying not to shake it. I smiled at him and stretched my back. It''s a little hard for me to move my body freely when I think about the comfort of the ride. "d*mn it!¡¡Nao-san, you should have shaken him a little. You should have shaken him a little. Everyone else is running, and you''re lying there all alone! Mary raises her hand and tries to hit Mitya on the head, but Mitya runs behind me to get away from her sister. I''m not running, and neither is your sister. It''s not helping to stay awake. That''s ...... true, but... It''s all about feelings! Well, well, well. Well, I don''t mind if you stay awake, because I know you don''t have a problem with my running. If I had to put an onomatopoeia on it, I''d say "pfft". She quieted Mary down. Mitya held on tightly even when he was asleep, and he hardly moved, so it was easier to run than expected. In fact, it would be worse if the ride was so uncomfortable that she vomited. You''re right. You''re not being selfish, so why not? Yeah, it''s usually tiring to be carried on your back for a long time. Yes. Mitya looks ...... fine, but let''s take a break for a while. After getting off of me, Mitya immediately woke up and walked around curiously. Natsuki and the others laughed at her, sat down in the shade of a tree, and began to prepare tea. "Is that so?¡¡If you all say so. ...... She sits down next to Haruka and the others and watches with interest as they arrange the items. Haruka and her friends had laid out a tea and some kind of snacks that looked a little high in calories. Normally, eating such high-calorie foods every 30 minutes would make you fat, but in fact, there is no problem at all. Even if you increase your running speed and stamina, you still need energy and water, so nutrition and hydration are essential. So we eat a lot more than we did in Japan, but fortunately it doesn''t seem to have a negative impact on our weight because we exercise accordingly. In addition to the snacks, a sandwich was prepared for Toya, a meat lover, and we were ready to go. Shall we eat, then? "Yes. Mee!¡¡Come back here! Yes! All right! Mary called me, and Mitya, who had been crouched down on the ground some distance away, observing something, came back and sat down next to me. I wiped my hands with a wet towel passed around from Toya next to me, and wiped Mitya''s hands as well. Is it a kind of stereotype that wiping with a wet towel makes me feel cleaner than the magic "purification"? "Thank you!¡¡Can I eat it? "Yeah, eat whatever you want. Yes! Oh, me! I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. You can eat it too, Mary. Thank you for the ....... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Unlike us, Mary and her friends aren''t running, so it seems a bit wrong for them to eat sweets every time. ...... Well, they''re growing up, and there are exercise machines in Japan that mimic horseback riding. You may be burning some calories just by riding on the back of the machine. As long as I don''t eat too much and get reversed on my back, I don''t have a problem. "Hey, Mary. I was just wondering, what kind of beasties are Mary and the others? "What, us?¡¡My father says they''re feline beastmen. "Oh?¡¡Is that so? When Mary answered Yuki''s question, Toya looked at her with a strange expression. I''m not sure. ...... something? "Uh, no, yeah. It''s nothing. I was a little curious, so I asked Toya in a whisper. (What''s wrong with you?) "No, my appraisal says it''s a tiger. (...... really?) Yeah. I''m sure. I also tried to use my appraisal, but my appraisal only shows that I''m a beastman, it doesn''t show what kind of beast I am. Toya''s is "Beastman (wolf type)," but I guess that''s because I already know that from Toya. Incidentally, I have heard that it is common that even the person who is a beastman cannot determine what kind of person he is. Dogs and wolves, cats and tigers. There is not much difference in the characteristics of beastmen. In addition, since miscegenation is progressing, it is common to have a second generation inheritance. However, in many cases, it is only when the parents tell us about their ancestral roots that we find out about them. In the first place, when we were in Japan, the only reason why we answered "Japanese" was because our parents told us so. Even if you had foreign blood, you would not be able to recognize it if it did not show in your features. (Well, they''re similar, so I don''t need to point it out.) "Right. Maybe the father didn''t understand it either. In fact, I can''t tell the difference between the ears and tail of a tiger and a cat if they are the same size. If they were the same size, I wouldn''t be able to tell the difference between a tiger''s ears and a cat''s tail, unless they had distinctive tiger-like stripes. When two beastmen marry, they are supposed to be of one of their parents'' lineages, but when a tiger and a cat get married, even their parents probably can''t tell. Well, I guess it doesn''t really matter if you don''t care about it. At first, when I asked Toya if she was a dog, she got upset. At first, when I asked him if he was a dog, he got angry and insisted that he was a wolf. When I asked her if she was a dog, she got angry and insisted that she was a wolf. ...... Considering Mary''s father, ordinary beastmen might not care much. But considering Mary''s father, ordinary beastmen probably don''t care much about it. I guess their daily lives are more important than worrying about it. By the way, we were able to leave the city without any problems, but what happens when we enter?¡¡Mary and the others. They don''t have guild cards or anything, do they? When we go in and out of town, we can get tax exemptions by showing our guild cards. Mary and her friends are not adventurers, and they are too old to register. But Mary and her friends are not adventurers and cannot register because of their age. If they look like adults, they can be taxed, but that''s not a problem for Mary and her friends now, usually. If you have a proof of age, you can use it to get a tax refund. If you don''t have anything to prove your age, then you will be judged on the subjective basis of ''how old you look'', and if you have a few silver coins in your hand, you can be flexible to some extent. "Well, even if they give you a hard time, you can just pay them. It''s cheap now. "Yes, it is. It''s not much to argue about. Rafan was paid one large silver coin, so Pining, ruled by the same lord, would probably be the same. We don''t have the pale sense of justice to fight with the gatekeepers over something as petty as that. If you''re going to bribe someone, I''d feel a little uncomfortable, but even if you don''t have to take it, it''s a tax. Are you sure you want to do this? Yes. I''ve decided to take you into custody, so I''ll pay for whatever you need. Thank you very much. You''ll have to work for it, though. Haruka smiled at Mary as she thanked her. 209-191 To Pining (2) After that, we took a break and set off, stopping three more times on the way, arriving in Pining roughly on schedule, still in the morning rather than the afternoon. As expected of a capital city. It''s a big city. It''s not overwhelmingly big, but it''s bigger than Kerg, let alone Rafan. That is Pining, the territorial capital of Viscount Nenus. Naturally, there are a lot of people coming in and out of the city, and there is a short line of people at the gate waiting to be examined. At the end of the line, Toya and Natsuki put Mary and the others on their backs. "Hey, Toya! "You look tired, or rather, stiff. "I''m not tired, but my body feels stiff," Yuki said, to which Toya responded by rubbing his arms and back. Even if the weight is not a problem, it''s a little hard to move freely, isn''t it? Since it''s a person on my back, I can''t run wildly. Especially Toya, who, unlike me and Natsuki, was in charge all the time. Every time we took a break, I tried to unwind him, but he must have been exhausted. On the way back, it would be better to let Mary and the others run a bit, or extend the rest time a bit. Thank you very much, Toya. "Oh, don''t worry about it. He''s just a kid. Toya stroked Mary''s head as she bowed her head. Mary smiles, looking a little annoyed at her shaggy hair. "Hey, you should treat a girl more carefully. Yuki swats Toya''s hand away and uses a brush from her bag to fix Mary''s hair. But my eyes didn''t miss the happy expression on Yuki''s face as she touched Mary''s ear. "Thank you, Natsuki! "Yes. Thank you, Mitya. Natsuki pats Mitya on the head, calmly. The queue was moving fast, and while we were doing that, our turn came. We all presented our guild cards to the gatekeeper in charge, and he said, "Oh. He just glanced at Mary and the others and let us through. Apparently, rank 5 is rare enough for the gatekeeper to take a little notice. Mary, who was with us, seemed a little surprised, and after walking through the gate for a while, she asked us. "So, Haruka-san, are you a rank 5 adventurer? Yes. That''s amazing! That''s awesome! Mary and Mitya looked up at us with sparkling eyes, and we looked at each other. I know it''s not low, but enough to be respected?¡¡I thought, but Mary told me that in Kergu, there are adventurers who are respected even at rank 4. It seems that rank 5 is at least a rank that two ordinary people would consider ''amazing''. "I think it''s a rank you can attain if you''re serious and steady. Haruka-san, solid people don''t often become adventurers. ...... I agree. Mary points out a fundamental point with a snap of her fingers, and we can''t help but agree. Even if a solid person becomes an adventurer for the sake of expediency, many of them will probably be day laborers who take dirt jobs. Accepting a request for a higher rank involves a lot of gambling and risking one''s life. And yet, in the case of the adventurer''s guild of this world, in order to rise in rank, not only combat prowess but also a certain amount of decency is required, so there may be a certain amount of respect. But in our case, we don''t take on too many requests from the guild. "Is that so?¡¡But if that''s the case and you''ve reached rank 5, then ...... is as good as it gets! He looked at me with even more respect, making me feel slightly uncomfortable. I''m not sure if it''s because of my connections or because of Diora''s ....... In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask for help. "Well, we''d better get a place to stay first. Shall we rely on the guild this time? "Yes, we should. It won''t be too crowded at this time. I took Haruka''s words to change the subject, and looked around. For convenience, adventurers'' guilds are often located near gates. ...... Isn''t this the gate? When I couldn''t find the guild after a short search, I asked someone who was nearby, and he told me that the adventurer''s guild in this town is located near the center of the town. This is because the town has four gates, east, west, south, north, and south, and none of them are used frequently, so it is easy to use no matter where you enter. I headed towards the center of the town as I was told, and found the Adventurer''s Guild building right away. It''s pretty big! Toya said, looking up at the building, which was twice as big as the one in Kerug, with four floors. As Toya said, the building was twice as big as the Kergu, with four floors. In Rafan, almost no one goes in and out of the adventurer''s guild at this time of day, but here, while we were watching, people were coming and going, albeit sporadically. Shall we go in then? "Yes. Mary replied a little nervously. Mitya is squeezing Yuki''s hand next to her. Well, I understand how you feel. We''ve just had a couple of big guys with weapons walk in. We were also a little nervous when we first joined the guild. Yuki also smiled kindly at Mitya, who looked up at her with a bit of anxiety, and took her by the hand. I''m sure there''s nothing crazy in there that you need to worry about.¡¡I can''t comment on the appearance of ....... I can''t deny that many of them are a bit powerful due to their work. I chuckled as I opened the door to the guild and stepped inside. For a moment, he looked at me, and I thought he was going to leave, but then he looked at me twice, and all of a sudden his eyes focused on me. Hmm?¡¡Is it because I have a child with me? --I thought, but most of the eyes were on me and Haruka, and to a lesser extent Yuki and Natsuki. Elves are rare, aren''t they? A few female adventurers, and even some male adventurers, looked at me, making me feel slightly uncomfortable. In Rafan and Kerug, there were fewer people, so it didn''t bother me as much. I guess Yuki and Natsuki are just looks. They''re cute. I wonder if they don''t come to pick up girls because of the guild staff''s eyes or because Toya is keeping a close eye on them. Toya''s the only one who looks strong enough to be in our party. Well, it''s hard to tell if you''re just looking. We try not to mind the stares and head for the counter. I''d like you to recommend a place to stay. I''d like to find a place to stay for less than a gold coin a night. The receptionist, who glanced at it, nodded and took out a map of the town. I understand. If you are looking for a place that is safe and has a good reputation for food, you can find it here at the 2nd street, 1st pavilion. If you''re looking for convenience and distance from the guild and the gate, the Fountain of the Ages is the place for you. It''s named after ......, isn''t it? Yes. Yes, because it is located at the southernmost part of 2nd Street. It''s an inn with a good reputation among women. Got it. Thank you very much. After thanking him, I left the guild quickly. It''s a little uncomfortable to be the center of attention, even if you don''t seem to get involved in the usual way. Escaping the stares, we exhaled together and headed for the recommended inn. With little room for discussion, we chose the one at No. 1 Pavilion on No. 2 Street. The deciding factors were safety and the reputation of the food. Since there were many women, safety was important, and the taste of the food went without saying. The name of the inn was convenient in a sense that you could find the place just by hearing the name, and in a sense it was a trivial name, but when I actually used it, I understood why it was recommended, and it was not a bad inn. The rate was seven large silver coins per person per night for a four-person room with breakfast and dinner. Considering that the Bear Pavilion in Rafang is less than three large silver coins, it is quite expensive, but there is a difference between the countryside and the city, so it is not a simple comparison. So let''s go make an appointment at the lord''s mansion for now. "Yes. What should we do? Of course none of us have any experience with that. Of course I asked. I''ve already asked him. He told me to give the letter of introduction I got from the guild to the gatekeeper and tell him where the inn is. As expected of Haruka, she has no clue. Who''s going? I don''t care who you are, but let''s go to ...... and have lunch while we''re there. Well, all of us. If you ask, lunch will be served, but this is the capital. I''m a little curious about the restaurants around here. We all changed from our traveling clothes to normal clothes and went to the lord''s mansion. It is relatively close to the lord''s house, and you give a letter of introduction to the gatekeeper standing in front of the gate and ask him to give you a message. Perhaps it was a good thing that we told him that we were from the Adventurer''s Guild, but he didn''t seem particularly suspicious of us in civilian clothes, and accepted our letters of introduction. After that, we headed downtown to check out the restaurants. ....... Do you want to rely on Toya''s nose again? I don''t mind, but I can''t be responsible for it. If you choose a place that''s a bit expensive, you should be fine. ...... What do you think?¡¡You may want to eat something a little different. We''re in a different city now. The kergue was a success, so maybe it''s okay to fail at least once. In Kergu, I followed Toya''s nose and went to a restaurant that was probably under Yasue''s supervision, and it was good enough considering the price. ...... Well, the fact that I could avoid the black bread was a big reason for that. You can''t expect much in the way of specialties, but ...... Mary, do you know anything about it? I''m sorry. I don''t know. I''ve never been out of Kerg before. ...... I''ve never been out of Kerg before. I''ve heard that ale is delicious! "What? "Mee, Mee, how do you know about that? "A lady in the neighborhood told me. When Mary asked in surprise, Mitya replied matter-of-factly. The aunt''s network. Children don''t seem to be listening to what adults are saying, but in fact, they are listening very attentively and remember things very well. Mitya, how did you know that? "Heh, it''s no big deal. It''s not a big deal," he said, smiling shyly at Haruka''s praise and squirming. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. We don''t drink ale, though. But we don''t drink ale, so you can buy some for Tommy. Then we''ll go with your instincts and sense of smell. Okay. Okay. ...... It''s not impossible to eat there if you choose a reasonably clean restaurant with a slightly higher price range. In the beginning, I had the same feeling as when I was in Japan, and chose the cheapest restaurant, but here, if you choose the cheapest restaurant, the food will just be bad. But here, if you choose a cheap restaurant, the food is just plain bad. It''s not often that you hit the jackpot like a bear in a nap. So that was the restaurant that Toya chose. Mary, Mitya, how was the food? It was delicious! It was really good. But, I mean, are you sure?¡¡It was pretty expensive. ...... Well, it was a little expensive, but it was acceptable. The food we ordered was in the range of one to two large silver coins. It''s a bit expensive for a commoner''s lunch, but it''s enough for three to five meals, so it''s not too expensive. The problem is, if you don''t pay this much, it''s going to be a little tough. That''s right. I mean, it''s not bad at all. You''ve got a bit of a taste for it. I make my own ....... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. It wasn''t that good. "It was so good! Mitya twisted his head in wonder, but Haruka and his team''s cooking skills were not to be underestimated. They also have the knowledge of cooking and seasoning to suit our palates. In addition, the knowledge of cooking and the seasoning that suits our taste buds, as well as good ingredients such as Inspire sauce, which ordinary restaurants would not use due to cost. The food produced by these ingredients is, quite frankly, better than what my mother used to make when I was in Japan. The only thing that frustrates me a little is the lack of variety due to the limited availability of ingredients, but when I eat out like this sometimes, I realize that it is a luxury concern. Still, dissatisfaction is dissatisfaction. ....... I''m not sure how long I''ll have to wait, but if the food at the inn isn''t very good, maybe I''ll cook for myself? I''ve brought some things with me, so I can manage for a month or so. ...... I''ve brought a certain amount of food with me, so I can manage for a month or so. You''ll have to make your own food, but fortunately, that''s not a problem with the Magic Bag. "Well, since we''ve come all the way to the capital, I think we can splurge a bit and eat for lunch. I guess. It won''t cost you as much as a vacation. If you keep walking around, changing restaurants at random, you may eventually come across a good restaurant. It all depends on how long you are going to stay. 210-192 Dont you work? Viscount Nenus contacted the inn unexpectedly early in the evening of that day. It would be five days before he could spare the time. He told us to visit the mansion in the morning of that day. He also gave me an invitation, which would allow me to enter the gate of the mansion. But that''s a long way off. Well, it''s early, isn''t it?¡¡Considering the current situation. When Toya was a little frustrated, Yuki said the opposite. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. ...... Oh, there was that thing with Kerg. You seem to be busy cleaning up after yourself. I''m glad to hear that you''re doing a good job, as a resident here. It''s true that I don''t want to live under a lord who deals with disturbances in a perfunctory manner. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or a bad thing, but I think it''s a good thing. However, since the disturbance itself had occurred, the fact that he didn''t seem to be particularly competent was a little worrisome. "Five days from now, that''s four whole days of free time. That''s a long time to spend idly. If it were one or two days, I could choose to kill time by wandering around the city, but four whole days is a bit long. I''ve had enough of bookstores, haven''t I? "I''ve already bought a lot of stuff in Kerg. We''ve already bought a lot of books in Kerg, so even if we go there, we''ll probably read the ones we have first. Haruka nodded at Yuki''s words. I haven''t read a single book yet, so even if I went to the bookstore, I wouldn''t be able to decide what books to buy. "And then there''s the ...... guild''s archives? I don''t think it would be that much of a substitute, but even if we were to read ......, wouldn''t a day be enough? Natsuki reluctantly agreed with Toya''s suggestion. But even if Natsuki is right and we have a bigger archive than Kerug, I don''t think it will make that much of a difference. We''ve already ordered materials on demons from Diora, and the only thing we have to do is to read materials on the geography of the area. In that case, there are few options left. A request? Like an adventurer. "Yes. But it''s hot outside, and I don''t want to take on too much. I wish I could find a job that wasn''t so hot. That''s impossible. Unless there''s a convenient dungeon. As we were talking about this, I noticed Mitya looking at me strangely. "Mitya, what''s wrong? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m not sure what to say. "Don''t you work when it''s hot, Haruka? "What? Did your father go to work every day, even in the middle of summer? ""........." In a way, it''s a natural question, and we''re all silent. ''It''s too hot to work''. It''s as if it''s a tropical island where it rains and you have the day off. This would not be possible in a normal occupation. When Mary saw us, she pulled Mitya''s hand as if in a panic. I''m sorry. Mitya, don''t say anything funny. There''s a difference between being an adventurer and a normal job. As if following Mary''s lead, Haruka answered Mitya''s genuine question. You''re right. ....... You know, Mitya. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Yeah. That''s why it''s important to recover after each job and take on the next job in perfect condition to be safe. Is that so?¡¡But there are people who work every day. But some people work every day." Mitya nodded her head, but Haruka nodded deeply and continued. That''s what happens to adventurers who can''t earn enough money to rest. In other words, those adventurers are in danger because they can''t afford it. I see.¡¡My sisters are high ranked, so they can work with ease. Haruka''s explanation made me smile and nod. You''re right. It''s not wrong. It''s not wrong, but why does it make me feel like I''ve rounded up a child? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. I''m sure you''re right. You can decide whether or not to accept the request after considering the efficiency and other factors. As you can imagine, no one in this situation would say, "I''m not going to the guild because it''s too hot. Although it seemed to postpone the problem, we agreed to do so for the time being, and then headed to the inn''s dining room for dinner. The dinner served there was not particularly delicious, but fortunately it was good enough to eat. At that price, if the food had been bad, I would have been tempted to change my lodging. However, the taste of the food itself was generally better than that of Kumatei, which is a subtle point. While the food tended to be gut-wrenching at the Bear Pavilion, the food at this inn was a little lighter, more to the liking of women, but even taking this into consideration, even Haruka and her friends said that the food at the Bear Pavilion was better than the food at the Bear Pavilion. The overall price is a bit high, but I guess we have to accept it as a city price. When I think of Sahlstat, I can forgive a few things with a big heart. The best experience I got there may be the guts to put up with a little food. I''ll be back. The next day. We visited the adventurer''s guild as we had decided yesterday. The time of day was the same as usual, when there were fewer people around. Mary and the others stayed at the inn. They were planning to work, but they couldn''t bring two non-adventurers with them. I thought about giving them a book to pass the time, but the truth was that Mary and the others could not read. Well, to be more precise, Mary could read numbers and a few words, but she was not able to read a book at all. Not surprisingly, considering the literacy rate and age of people in this country, the ability to read and write is quite important - or rather, an advantage. Even if they want to be independent from us, their ability to do so will make a big difference in the range of jobs they can do. So we gave Mary a simple book we had, and Mitya a list of letters that Natsuki had made quickly, and told her to practice. Shall we buy some picture books on the way home? "Yeah, sure. If we''re going to take in a child, it''s our responsibility to educate him. And maybe some books on how to read and write?¡¡I hope they sell them. ...... You might want to ask Ishka what kind of education she provides. If you ask her what the orphanage is doing before they become independent, you can get an idea of the kind of education they need to provide. Well, that''s our job for now. "Right. I''m going to check the archives for now. Then I''ll go there. Then we''ll see what we can find. After seeing off Natsuki, who was heading for the archives with Toya, we went to the bulletin board where the requests were posted. There are a lot more requests posted on the big board compared to Kerg''s. ....... It''s a lot of work. And the rewards are pretty subtle. ...... I''m sure they can take on anything that looks good. I''m sure you''ll be able to take on anything that looks good. From my point of view, it doesn''t seem like adventurer work, but considering that the adventurer''s guild also provides day laborers, it''s probably not so strange. However, the rewards are quite low for what''s left at this time. "It''s better to train than to do these things. We''re not so poor that we need to make a small fortune, you know. Besides, I don''t think we''re going to be taking orders on the street. Yeah, that''s right. Haruka nodded her head in agreement with my words, but Yuki twisted her head. "Hmm?¡¡Why?¡¡It''s true that I don''t have any work to take on. "Before we left LaFang, Diora-san flagged us down. "There''s a missing person case in Pining. Don''t you think there''s a good chance you''ll get caught wandering around town? I want to say that''s ridiculous, but I can''t deny that ...... I''m sure you''ll find a lot of people who''d like to know more. Most of the time it''s just my imagination. Yeah. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. If it were so easy to divide, there would be no way to sell charms. By the way, I asked people in this town, but at least there was no gossip about the missing person case among the general public. Even though I didn''t hear about it directly, I can''t think of anything immediately, so it must be a very limited case. That being the case, I was wondering how Diora knew about it, but as expected of the vice president of an adventurer''s guild. If we all work together, I don''t think we''ll have any problems, but for now, we''ll prioritize requests outside of town. Okay. But the ...... rewards are low, and there are almost no ...... requests with rank restrictions. Yeah. Even though it''s a territorial city. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything you like. Considering the time constraints, it is indeed impossible to accept these requests. In the first place, this is also not very profitable. If you want to work without worrying about the heat, hunting orcs is the best and most stable way. In the case of escorts, there is no guarantee that there will be a battle, so it is probably safer than going hunting. ....... ...... Yeah, there''s no need to push it, right? No, but when ...... Mitya talks to me like that, it makes me feel like I need to work. I agree with you, but what are you going to do?¡¡Collecting herbs now? There is no such thing as a proper demon hunt ....... It''s near the capital. Even in Rafan, which is in the countryside of this territory, it was necessary to go deep into the forest to hunt for demons that could earn money. For safety''s sake, the demons in the area should have been defeated. Let''s just go to Natsuki''s place. Yeah. You might be able to kill some time there. So we headed for the archives, but the room we entered was not very spacious, and the materials were not very extensive. It was larger than the Kerg and had more books, but the expression on Natsuki''s face as she flipped through the books was not very bright. What do you think? Most of them don''t make sense to read. Most of them aren''t worth reading. Books on demons would be worth reading, but I''ll be able to buy those when I get back to Rafaan. However, a book on the geography of the area might be a good read. Natsuki smiled and returned the book to the bookshelf. The bookshelf was lined with dozens of books, but judging from the spines, many of them were the same, and the variations were not much different from the ones in Kerg. By the way, this is the geography book I''m reading right now. There are about three more books. What about you? "Not much to go on. At least, I don''t expect to make any money with the requests that are posted now. Natsuki took out three books from the bookshelf and presented them to us. I answered Toya as I took them. Haruka and Yuki also took the books from Natsuki. I asked if Natsuki was okay with it, but she said she had already finished it. I don''t think she had more than a few tens of minutes to read the book, but it made sense when I opened it. There are relatively many illustrations and not many sentences to read. "This means I''ll be free this afternoon. "Right. So, what shall we do? "Well, why don''t you talk to the lady at the reception desk?¡¡She might have something for us. How about that?¡¡Unless you''re as close as Diora. ...... We''re not even allowed to say we''re new here. I''m not sure what to make of that. But this is the second time I''ve come to this guild, and I''ve never taken a commission. Even if our rank is a little high, it will be difficult to get special requests from them. If not, let''s just take a break and do some sightseeing.¡¡There''s nothing wrong with taking a break. You''ve worked hard all winter to earn your money. "...... Well, that''s true. I''m going to go to work when I get back to Laffan anyway. I''m not sure if you need to force yourself to think about ''showing Mitya the back of a working adult'' at this stage. I''m still in the middle of a request, if you will. It''s not that I''m usually lazy. 211-193 Request and picnic (1) Is this a good request? Yes. I was hoping to find something that would be rank appropriate. After an hour or so, we came out of the reference room and, as Toya had suggested, asked the receptionist for advice. We came out of the reference room in about an hour, and as Toya suggested, we approached the receptionist. Yes. You remember me, don''t you? Of course I remember. Rank 5 is rare here, but it''s a party that stands out above all. And that was yesterday. Not that I was aiming for it, but the person I approached was the receptionist I asked about the location of the inn yesterday. She smiled and turned her gaze to Haruka, me and Toya. I''m sure Natsuki and Yuki have a good enough appearance to stand out, but I guess they''re not as bad as the rest of us who stand out from the crowd. How much work do you do, by the way? "How much ......? We look at each other and think. We looked at each other and thought, "How much should we take on if we can get paid? We''ve made a lot of money over the winter, haven''t we?¡¡We averaged no less than 300 gold coins a day. "Three hundred? The receptionist raised her voice at Toya''s words. It''s not as if there is such a job, so Haruka corrects him. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea.¡¡Some of them haven''t been redeemed yet, but I''d say five or sixty. ...... That''s in gold coins, isn''t it? Yes. But in Kergu, you caught a bounty hunter and got 1,000 gold pieces. It was you who caught him? Yes, by accident. We got lucky. ...... Why don''t you just have fun and live happily for a while? The receptionist''s answer was throwaway. No, well, in a way, that''s what adventurers do. You''ve got a lot of money. Why did you come here in the first place?¡¡If you can make so much money, there''s no need to move to another city. "No, I''m here on business. No, I had to wait four days for a client. "Then let''s wait for that long. Yes, that''s an acceptable argument. However, four days is still too short a time, in terms of days. "Well, then, is there any place in this pining that would be good to see? The Adventurer''s Guild isn''t here to give you sightseeing information. ...... But I found something good! The receptionist looked a little troubled by Toya''s recklessness, but she quickly thought of something, got up, went to the bulletin board, and came back with a request form in her hand. "I know it''s not much for a rank 5 adventurer to ask for, but I think this is kind of nice, don''t you? We all look at the request form on the counter. "...... to investigate a water source? "Yes. This is a place that is usually off limits. I heard it''s a very scenic and beautiful place.¡¡I''ve never been there, though. "I''ve never been there," he said, "but I''ve been asked to investigate the cause of the water pollution. The location of the investigation is a few hours away from Pining, and the fee is 15 gold coins. Moreover, this is a request with a rank 3 restriction. It''s not a high rank, but it''s cheap compared to the market price for a restricted request. However, it has the added value of allowing you to see places you normally wouldn''t be able to. Even so, it is still not a request for a rank 5 adventurer. The ale made with this water is very popular, but there seems to be a problem with the water lately. We need to solve the problem before the brewing starts, but we can''t take care of it. Because the fee is so low? Well, ......, yes. The receptionist averted her gaze at Haruka''s blunt words. If water is important to you, I think you should pay a fair commission. ...... You need to be paid fairly for your work. Dumping can be a problem for others. Yes. If you accept a job at an unreasonably low price, it will eventually turn out to be detrimental to the industry as a whole, and even to the person who orders the work. It is impossible to continuously sell a product that costs 100 yen at 100 yen, so the only way to reduce the cost is to lower the quality. In the case of adventurers, you can either cut corners on your work or use low-level adventurers. In other words, the reputation of the adventurer''s guild will be damaged. Of course, I''m well aware of that, but this brewery has a very good reputation, so I thought I''d do something about it. I''m sure you''re aware of that, but this brewery has a great reputation, and I''d like to do something about it. "Because the ales are good? Of course that''s part of it. But even if the reputation of the ale increases, this is a good place that stubbornly does not raise the price and provides it at a price that the common people can drink! The receptionist''s words became more forceful. The receptionist''s words were full of energy. She may have been one of the beneficiaries. You''re a craftsman. You''re not very good at business. I can''t deny that. In recent years, various costs have risen, but they are not reflected in the price, which seems to put a lot of pressure on the business. ...... That''s what you''re getting for your fee? Yes. I don''t mind that type of craftsman, but it''s a little tricky when the effects of it fall on you. However, we''re not struggling financially. ....... What do you think? "We have some time, and if the scenery is good, we might as well go sightseeing.¡¡It''s out of town. I don''t see any reason to object. If it''s that kind of work, we can take Mary and the others with us. Yeah. It''s not as if I''m actively in favor of it, but no one is against it. Haruka and I looked at each other and nodded. "All right. I''ll make an exception. "Thank you very much!¡¡That''s really helpful. If we lose that brewery, ...... The receptionist looked seriously relieved. Is that the kind of ...... thing you''re talking about? "It''s a rumor. They are craftsmen, for better or worse,........ If you can''t get good quality water, there''s a good chance you won''t be brewing. So, it''s time to go to ....... We don''t usually drink ale, so we didn''t know about it, but if you ask me, the ale made in this pining is not famous enough to be accepted in other countries, but it is known as a regional brand. There was a good reason why Mitya had heard of it. And among the many breweries in Pining, the brewery in question was one of the best in quality. However, the brewery is run by craftsmen who care about quality. In order to make a good product, they are very particular about the ingredients and the water, but if they cannot get the right ones, they will not brew. In the past, when branding was not so advanced, it would have been possible to get away with it, but nowadays, "pining ale" has a certain degree of fame, and many people seek it out. Inevitably, other breweries will increase their shipments, which in turn will increase their purchases of raw materials. The result is a shortage of raw materials, which leads to higher prices and a shortage of labor. Even so, other breweries steadily improved their performance by adjusting the quality of raw materials, changing the production area, and reflecting the changes in product prices, but the brewery in question stubbornly continued its old ways. But the brewery in question stubbornly continued with its old ways. Naturally, it lost out on raw materials, lacked manpower, and ran out of money. ....... The reason why the brewery still exists is because of the support of the general public and their old relationships. He may be an excellent craftsman, but he''s a terrible manager. I feel sorry for the people involved. The receptionist also sighs at Natsuki''s disgusted words. ...... can''t deny it. You can''t deny that is a great place to drink good ale at a reasonable price, and that''s a big part of why people support it. I don''t think it''s worth it if it goes under. Even if we do it at a reasonable price, it won''t be worth it. That''s true. Even if we save some money, it''s only temporary. Unless we change the way we do things, we are likely to go out of business soon. I think you should at least raise the price to match the quality. That''s not for us to think about. "That''s not for us to think about, because it''s your choice if you want to ruin a long-established business. "Well, you know, ....... I think it''s a shame. "I would like to see a long-established sake brewery or a long-established Japanese sweets shop remain, but I would never buy anything from them. When I was in Japan, I was a minor, so the former was a matter of course, but even for the latter, I never had a chance to buy and eat expensive Japanese sweets, and for my palate, sweets from convenience stores were enough. It''s just nostalgia, and I have no desire to pay for it. It''s probably going to be under the umbrella of some brewery, but it''s a shame to lose that taste. ...... Since it''s a long-established brewery, it would affect you a lot if it went under? Yes. But if you accept the job, I think we can make it through this year, so maybe something will turn around. I don''t think so. ...... Natsuki laughed at the words that she herself did not seem to believe. If the problem lies with the management, there is nothing that can be done about it unless that is changed. I know, but... --Now, let''s move on to the job description. The receptionist smiled back and, as if to change her mind, went on to explain the nature of the job. The purpose is to investigate the water source used by the brewery. The source of the water is a pond deep in the forest, which is off-limits to the public, and we need to find out the cause of the strange odor in the water. We were given a map of the area and a permit allowing us to enter the forest. The deadline is within one month. However, in exchange for the low fee, the contract said that even if the cause of the problem could not be found as a result of the investigation, the request would not fail and could be cancelled. Of course, in that case, we would not get any remuneration, but from our point of view, it did not matter much. We don''t want to work for free, but we''re not experts, and we''re investigating. If we had been told to find out the cause of the problem, we would not have accepted the request even if the fee was a little high. And so, the next day, we set out with Mary and Mitya to investigate the water source, half as sightseeing. 212-194 Request and picnic (2) East side of the pinning. I walked out of the gate, enduring the heat for about half an hour. I could see the forest ahead of me. The forest looks more like the south forest than the north forest in Laffan, and it seems to be more or less inhabited. In front of the forest, there was a simple fence. It was quite poor, about waist high. It was quite old and some parts were rotten and crumbling. It is useful in the sense that it marks the boundary, but as a fence, it is completely useless. It looks like the land in question from here. There''s a fence. I can usually get over it. Yuki said as she jumped over the fence. "Me too!¡¡Me too! Me too! Me, me! Mitya follows Yuki and jumps over, followed by Mary. The fence is a little high for Mitya, but he can easily jump over it, so he is very athletic. The rest of us also climbed over the fence and entered the forest. This entire forest is the private property of the brewery. ....... It''s pretty big. "Including the mountain behind it, to be exact. And it''s not private land, it''s land that''s been granted exclusive use. It seems that the land itself is owned by Viscount Nenus, and the brewery in question has only been issued a permit by him. But that, on the contrary, seems to be a factor that makes people hesitant to enter. Needless to say, the psychological hurdle between breaking into a private home of a commoner and breaking into the home of a nobleman is naturally higher in the latter case. In a place like this, there would be no one to blame, but without our entry permit, we could not legally complain even if we were suddenly beaten to a pulp. Most people wouldn''t think of going in. Phew, it''s pretty cool. In the woods. "Yes. It''s like bathing in the forest. Once we entered the forest, the surrounding temperature became noticeably cooler. The tall trees blocked the sunlight, and as we walked through them, a cool breeze blew through from time to time. As a matter of course, the locations of the roads marked on the map were well maintained, and the rest of the area did not look dense. This looks like it could be used as a tourist spot. "Yes. It looks like a well-maintained hiking trail. Not if you consider the purpose. Originally, this forest and its hinterland were protected in order to obtain good water. The forest and its hinterland were originally protected to obtain good water. I don''t know what they''re doing to maintain it. Even the path we are walking on was built to carry water, not to be a walking path. From my point of view, it seems wasteful to set aside so much land just to get water, but this is a world where there is a surplus of land. But in this world where there is a surplus of land, there is not much of a problem in that respect. However, the cost of maintenance is also putting pressure on the brewery''s finances, as it requires manpower. How could they be so particular? "Anyway, if we walk down this road, we can get to the water intake ...... pond, right? "According to the map, yes. It''s a little bit uphill. ...... Shall we walk there? It''s been a while since I''ve had this kind of leisure time. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time to spare, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. Of course, I''ve been keeping an eye out with my [enemy search], but so far there has been no reaction from the demons. It may seem strange, but this is normal. It seems that the area around Raffan is unique, and there are actually fewer demons in the forest. However, it seems that one out of every three forests is inhabited by demons, and there are dangerous creatures like Weipu Bear even if they are classified as animals, so it''s hard to say that most forests are safe. "Well, we''re only half playing today. Just take your time and walk around. "Yes! Mary and Mitya replied happily, looking around as they walked. For these two, who have almost no experience of going out of town, it must be an interesting experience to be able to walk leisurely through the forest. Following them, we walked along the path leading from the forest to the mountain. We walked along the path from the forest to the mountain. About an hour''s walk from the foot of the mountain, we came to a mortar-shaped hole, about 200 meters in diameter. Looking down from the edge of the hole, we saw a pond with a diameter of about 30 meters at the bottom, and the water was a deep shining blue. The water was very transparent and clear, but still so deep that I could not see the bottom clearly. ...... beautiful. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It seems to me that there''s something wrong with the water, but since they''ve been using it to make ale for so long, it''s probably not a problem. It looks really bad, though, with its sapphire blue color. "Wow!¡¡It''s a beautiful blue! "It''s so blue! Mitya and Mary are running down the path that leads to the pond. Toya followed them on foot. If it was in the forest, I would have rushed to stop them, but there is no response to the [search enemy], the vegetation in the mortar is slightly different, the trees are sparse, and the visibility is good. If you fall down, you might get hurt, but there is no need to worry about demons or anything like that. This hole could possibly be a crater? You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. It looks like the mountainside was blown away by the eruption. Like the H¨­ei crater on Mt. Though on a much smaller scale. Wouldn''t that mean that the pond is a volcanic crater with water gushing out of it? Do you think that''s possible?¡¡I don''t know much about geology, but... I don''t know much about geology, but..." Haruka answered my question while twisting her neck. I don''t know much about geology either, but I do know that lakes can form in craters. But if you think of it as volcanic, the blue color makes a little more sense. Is that so? Yeah. Water without microorganisms can become that color. It happens on Earth, too.¡¡But that''s because it''s hotter. ...... That looks like normal water, doesn''t it? At least it''s not steamy. Other causes, such as high acidity or high alkalinity, might make the water uninhabitable for organisms or plants and clean (only in appearance), but I don''t think you can use such water to make ale. On the other hand, if the water is poisoned with something we don''t understand, that would be even worse. "Let''s just go down there. We''re here to investigate. Right. The four of us followed Toya and the others down to the side of the pond, where Mary and Mitya were playing in the water, with Toya standing behind them watching. Seeing them together, we relaxed a little. It''s a good thing we brought her, isn''t it? "Yeah. Mary hadn''t shown any signs of crying since she met us, but her expression was often stiff. It was only natural. She had suddenly lost her father, who was her protector, and was left alone with her sister, whom she was supposed to protect. No matter how much we said we would protect her, her anxiety would not disappear. But after spending time with us for the past few days, she seems to have forgiven us a little, and her expression has become a little softer, and she is smiling happily more often today. "Hahaha, it''s cold!¡¡It feels so good! "Nao-san, the water is really cold! It''s a little cooler in the forest, but it''s still summer. It''s still hot as usual. I crouched down by the pond and put my hand in the water, it was so cold that it made me sweat. It''s cold!¡¡But it feels good. It''s blue! It''s blue, but it''s not blue! The water is blue, but it''s not blue!" Mitya curiously nodded his head as he scooped the water into his hands. The water is not colored. Is that so? Really?" "Yes. The reason why it looks blue is ....... The water looks blue from above, so the question is understandable. We also wonder why it looks so blue. In principle, we understand that it is due to light, but to explain it, we have to go to ....... "Natsuki, pass. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I can explain.¡¡I can explain it to you, but it takes a lot of scientific knowledge to understand it. ...... There are certainly many things that need to be explained, such as the principle of color vision, the wavelength of light, and the absorption of light. There are certainly many things to be explained, such as the principle of color vision, wavelength of light, and absorption of light, etc. It would be difficult to explain them simply to a child who has no knowledge of such things. "Well, Mitya-chan. The reason why this pond looks blue is the same reason why the sky looks blue. Well, let''s see... ...... I bet there''s a blue ceiling all the way up high! In a way, it''s a very childish answer. In a way, this is a very childish answer. Since it looks blue, it is natural to assume that there is something blue. A ceiling. Not exactly. The air and water here are actually a very pale blue color. When many, many of them gather, they become darker.¡¡So you could say that the air that is gathered in large numbers is the ''blue ceiling''. "Oh, really?¡¡It''s amazing! Mitya sounded surprised at Natsuki''s explanation, and Mary nodded in admiration as she listened. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to try to explain it in a way that''s easy to understand. ....... I''m not sure if that''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. (Ordinary colors are reflected, so the principle is a little different from diffusion, but it''s hard to explain to children. (There''s also sunset, so it''s not exactly the same thing. ......) "Haruka, Yuki, if you have a better explanation, I''m all ears. I''m not sure if you can hear our private conversation, but Natsuki said this with a nice smile, but Haruka was silent for a moment and then quickly changed the subject. Now, let''s investigate the pond. I''m sure Haruka can explain exactly what she means, but it''s a bit difficult to explain it to a child, especially when you have to break it down so that a child in this world can understand it. At the very least, I can understand that it is not something that can be explained in a short time. And there''s nothing I can say, since I passed the explanation to Natsuki. Huh. ....... Mitya, Mary. Strictly speaking, my explanation is a little different, but it''s very difficult to explain exactly. If you really want to know exactly what''s going on, study hard. If you really want to know exactly what it is, study hard, and you may find out. Really?¡¡Hang in there. "I understand. Mitya and Mary nodded obediently to the precautionary line that Natsuki had put up, but I wondered if they would be able to understand it through the studies of this world. I''m a little curious about that, but if it leads to a desire to learn, then I guess it''s possible. No matter, I''m now investigating the pond. "It''s quite a strange pond, isn''t it? When I looked into the pond again, I found that it was so deep that it plunged down sharply from the shore, and I could not see the bottom. Even so, the transparency is high, and we can see at least 20 meters deep, which is quite deep. Because of its high transparency, you feel as if you are looking into an empty hole rather than looking into a pond, and the deep blue color gives you a sense of fear that you might be sucked in. Of course, I know that it''s no different from swimming in a place where you can''t get your feet on the ground. ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. It looks like. Yuki, a little dumbfounded, scoops up the water, spills it, and looks at the clear, sparkling water. It''s fine to touch. I don''t have a problem touching it, and I don''t know if it tastes ...... good. I squat down, scoop out some of the pond water, and take a sip. It''s very cold and tasty, what''s wrong with that? Nao, are you okay? I''m sure you''ll be fine. If it gets bad, Haruka, please? We''ll fix you up, but what about ...... Toya? Let''s see. ...... Hmm, maybe a slight bad smell, huh? I also drank some water, and then tilted my head slightly and said, "I''m not sure. I took another drink of water and ...... couldn''t tell at all. I can only detect it with my sense of smell. ...... In other words, the craftsmen at the brewery felt it, right? That''s right. --He''s a really good craftsman. But not as a manager. It''s hard to imagine that his sense of smell is as good as Toya the beast''s, and his sense of taste is ridiculously sharp. ......? No, it''s not impossible that the craftsman is a beast. So let''s say the smell is the problem. What could be the cause? I looked around, but I didn''t see anything obvious. It would have been better if there had been some obvious trash on the ground. But, of course, there was none. "This is probably spring water, right? Nodding at my words, Yuki pointed to a corner of the pond. There''s also a river, but it''s too small to sustain this pond. There''s only one river that flows into this pond, and it''s too small to be called a stream. There is also no river flowing out of the pond. The outlet for the water would have to be inside the pond. Volcanic land has a lot of gaps. If the water is supplied and discharged by the cavity created by the volcanic activity, it is possible that the water is so clear even without rivers? But then, ....... If the cause is the spring water, there''s nothing we can do about it, right? Yes, it is. At least we''re not talking about the water this year. Haruka agreed with Toya who said in a dumbfounded tone. Haruka agrees with Toya. Mary hears her words and asks curiously, "Really? "Is that so? "Yeah. Water from a spring is water that has been gushing out for several years, decades, or even a hundred years. So even if we find out the cause now, it will be a long time before the problem is corrected. "Oh my God! I was relieved to see Mitya raise his hands in surprise, but if that was in fact the cause, then it was serious. If it was caused decades ago, it would be difficult for us to find the cause, let alone solve it. 213-195 Request and picnic (3) "Toya, do you smell like a spa or something?¡¡If so, I''m completely out of my depth. In response to Haruka''s question, Toya thought for a moment and shook her head. You can''t move a water vein, as you know. But ...... maybe not?¡¡I''ve never been to a hot spring before, so I don''t really know what it smells like, but it doesn''t smell like sulfur. I don''t even know what it tastes like. I don''t even know what it tastes like." "Well, technically, it smells like hydrogen sulfide. Other hot springs I''ve been to are simple carbonated springs or iron-containing springs?¡¡The iron-containing springs have a little smell. You don''t often get the chance to drink hot spring water. I remember drinking it at Arima Onsen and Gero Onsen, but it didn''t leave much of an impression on me. ....... It''s not that it didn''t taste good. I''ve never been there, but according to Natsuki, there are places in Arima Onsen and Gero Onsen where you can drink hot spring water. I''ve never been there, but according to Natsuki, there are places in Arima and Gero where you can drink the hot spring water. Well, if the taste is strong enough to leave a vivid memory, it''s not suitable for drinking. In conclusion, I can''t say that the water vein is the cause, but I can''t say that it isn''t either. Hmmm ...... As I was pondering what to do, I heard a cute sound, and all eyes were on Mitya. I''m so hungry. As Mitya patted her belly in an embarrassed manner, our faces relaxed as well. Come to think of it, it''s almost lunchtime. As adults, we can hold back to a certain extent, but Mitya and the others are still children. They need to think about their food and strength. Shall we suspend the investigation and have lunch first? "Yes, we should. We''ve walked a long way and Mary must be hungry. Yes, a little. ...... Mary''s voice was quiet, as if she still had reservations. "Don''t be afraid to say, ''I''m hungry. Let me eat! You can say, ''I''m hungry, feed me! No, no, no. ......! "Toya, you''re making it harder for me to say it. Well, if you''re hungry, you can just say it. Let''s go. Yes, yes. Since there were no trees around the pond, I pushed Mary to move to the shade of a tree a little further away and laid out a sheet. Haruka and Natsuki laid out a number of dishes on it. "Wow, there''s so much! "Great ......, you eat this much for lunch? If it was a normal request, it would be much simpler, but today we are having a picnic as well. If you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your time with your family and friends, you''ll want to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time with them. I had consumed a lot of food the last time I was trapped in the dungeon, so these must have been newly stocked dishes since then. "Come on, sit down, sit down. Let''s eat. We sat down on the seats, and the food was handed out to us. The food tasted familiar to us. ....... It''s so good! The snacks were good, but the food was ....... I think I''m losing a little confidence in my cooking skills. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m not sure what to do. It''s the first time I''ve ever eaten real food. This is the first time I''ve eaten food prepared by Haruka and the others since I picked up Mary and the others. I''ve had a few tea cakes and snacks when I''ve taken breaks, but other than that, I''ve had food served at the inn and at the restaurants in town. Since the food tasted better than those professionally prepared dishes, Mary, who was supposed to help with the cooking as a "chore", must have been a little concerned. "Don''t worry about it. I''m just asking for your help. "Yes, yes. I''ll teach you. I didn''t know how to cook when I was little. We all did when we were little. Yeah, I know!¡¡I''m looking forward to it! Mary smiled and bowed as the women followed her. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the best way to get the most out of your home. If that happens, will there be an option to become a chef in the future? ......? I''m not sure what the future holds, but it''s good to have more options, isn''t it? It''s a good thing, isn''t it? I''m sure you''ll agree with me. It was about half an hour after lunch when Haruka stood up and said so. We, who had been lying down to rest, also stood up and stretched. To be precise, it was me, Toya, and Mitya who were asleep, while the rest of us were sitting and drinking tea. "Well, let''s get on with it then! "Good luck! Toya got up and headed for the pond, followed by Mitya. Mitya didn''t have to do anything, but he held up his ears and flicked his tail. But seeing that she was so motivated, I didn''t dare stop her. I quickly cleaned up the rug with Haruka, and followed Toya. Then we all went around the pond to look for problems, but there was nothing that we could ...... see. There was no grass growing for about a meter from the shore of the pond, and the inside of the pond was like a bedrock, with no water plants or even sand accumulating. There is no garbage on the ground, no dead animals floating in the water, and so on. If we exclude the possibility that the spring itself is the problem, then the only thing left is the creek that flows into it. It looked clean to me, too. ...... But if that''s not the cause of the problem, we''re almost out of luck, so we go to the creek again and get some water. Toya, what do you think? "...... Oh, it smells pretty bad. Maybe that''s what''s causing it. It stinks! This time, Toya didn''t even have to take a sip, he just put his nose near the water and answered immediately. Mitya imitated Toya and shouted. I try to do the same, but ...... I still can''t tell. "How can you be so sure? I asked the other beastman, Mary, who also nodded as soon as she scooped up some water. "Well, yes. If you put your nose close to the water, you can tell. I''m sure the beastmen can tell right away. The client didn''t have to go through the trouble of asking the guild, he could have just brought in a beastman he knew. Maybe, but what if he didn''t know any beastmen? Maybe, but what if we didn''t know any beastmen? - Well, then we''d have to pay for some part-time work and get some suitable beastmen. That''s what we''ll do. Besides, when they come here to fetch water, they seem to bring guards with them, so we can''t be sure that they are safe. When we came here, we were not attacked by anything in particular, but it is said that sometimes we encounter dangerous animals. If that''s the case, it''s probably a good idea to ask for help from an adventurer. The source of the smell is upstream from the creek, in the mountains. The stream flows over the outer rim of the crater-like mortar and comes from the top of the mountain. There is nothing special in sight, so we walk up the stream, occasionally sniffing the water. Then we crossed the outer rim into the mountains and went through the forest for a few hundred meters. Toya stopped, as if he had found something. It''s here. "Here? We looked at where he was pointing and twisted our heads. It looks like a normal stream. ....... Yeah. It smells the worst. Hold on a second. He took out a shovel and dug out the bottom of the creek. The bottom of the creek was filled with coarse sand, and as he dug, a hole began to form. Eventually, it came into view. "Oh, it''s sewage slime! It was Mitya who shouted out when she saw it. A few gray to black, murky colored slimes? It''s hard to tell because it''s all jumbled up, but there''s something like that buried in there. "Sewage slime?¡¡Could it be that it pollutes the water?¡¡That slime? No, it''s not. On the contrary, it was supposed to clean the water. Its official name is ...... What was it again, Toya? "Me?¡¡...... Oh, I see. Well, it''s Clear Slime. He must have remembered it when Natsuki asked him. I''m not sure if I remember it clearly or not. The [Appraise] skill, which works even if you don''t remember it clearly, is still useful. Of course, Natsuki''s ability to quickly retrieve memories without the skill is more impressive. It looks like sludge, but it''s clear ...... I''ll clean up the dirty water. But that''s the cause, isn''t it?¡¡It has a subtle smell. I''m sure I can detect a slight odor in this situation. This smell must have contaminated the water in the pond. I suppose so. In the end, it should be clean, as the name implies, but since it occurs in a dirty place, it takes in dirt and debris. ...... This is man-made, isn''t it? It''s a slime that doesn''t grow in clean places. You''d have to get it from somewhere else. The goal is to contaminate the pond, but ...... it''s not so clear. That''s true. You don''t usually notice that kind of pollution. You don''t throw anything into the pond, you don''t dump garbage around here, you just bury clear slime. Would this level of pollution make enough of a difference to be noticeable in Yale? I don''t think I would be able to tell. ...... I don''t understand the purpose. If it''s meant to be a harassment, it must have been effective, since we''ve been asked to investigate, but it''s a bit half-hearted. "Well, if we kill this thing, the request is complete-- Stop!¡¡Don''t do that! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure.¡¡Why not? Our job is to investigate the cause, not solve it. It''s not a solution. No, well, yeah, I mean, ...... I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡There is a slime that shouldn''t normally be in a place like this. Moreover, you have to hide it. Well, it obviously has a purpose. Right?¡¡Then there''s no point in killing the slime here. It might kill you again. ...... Oh, I see. If we''re going to do a lot of research, it''s better to leave it here. Unless there was a dangerous demon, we can leave this slime alone, right?¡¡Preserving the crime scene is important, you know, for criminal investigations. "That''s true. Nodding in agreement, Toya put the clear slime on the shovel back into the hole, sanded it appropriately, and buried it again. He wondered if the slime could survive in this state, but since it had survived so far, there was no problem. Slimes have a strange life. So, shall we just mark this place on the map and go home? "Right. I think that''s all we need to do. There are some parts that are not entirely clear, but the rest is for the client to think about, and the request itself is completed successfully. We had a picnic in a forest full of nature, and I felt refreshed. Mary and Mitya are feeling a little brighter and better. We returned to the pinning with light footsteps. We went back to Pining. So we found the so-called "sewer slime" in this place. If the smell of the water is a problem, this is probably the cause. The day after we came back from the pond, we went to the guild to report. We had put off our report until today because we had returned to the inn late yesterday due to our lazy day. Sewage slime......, that''s certainly not right. I understand. I''ll consider the request complete. Thank you very much. The receptionist seemed to understand that there was a difference between "investigating" and "solving" and "defeating" and paid the request fee without complaining. "Certainly. I''ve received it. The receptionist seemed to understand that this was not the same as "defeating the enemy. If it is a natural phenomenon, we can just fix it, but if it is man-made, even if we fix it once, there is a possibility that it will happen again. There is also the possibility that the next time it will be in a more obscure way, which would be an unwelcome situation for the receptionist who seems to favor the brewery in question. However, it is hard to say which is better, because a natural phenomenon is a natural phenomenon, and it can be impossible to solve. What do you have against this client? It''s not exactly a grudge, but it''s ...... off the record, okay? The receptionist told me in a whisper that another company in the same industry was targeting the brewery. Although the brewery is not financially viable, its name value and the fact that it has been granted a monopoly on the pond are very significant. If they can get it under their control, and if they can get a decent manager to run it, they are sure to make a lot of money. Right now, there are a number of people waiting under the tree for it to ripen and fall. So that''s what''s keeping it from being fatally contaminated? It''s very possible. If we fail this term, it will be decisive. The receptionist also smiles in annoyance at the slightly dumbfounded Haruka. In such a critical situation, a normal person would ignore the unnoticed contamination and work hard at brewing, but it is the craftsman who cannot do that. In my opinion, there is no point in destroying the brewery because of it. ....... It''s not for me to say, of course, but what about annoying the people around you with your obsession? I don''t know if making ale is something you should be so obsessed with. I don''t know. It''s part of what made Pining''s Ale what it is. ...... I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... I guess it''s great when it works, but when it doesn''t, it''s all hell. Japanese companies are pretty much screwed by that. It is obvious that high quality is good, but even if the quality is a little bad, it will sell if it is cheap. There are many such products. For example, ale, no matter how good it tastes, if only a small percentage of people can feel it, it is over-quality. I think sabotage is wrong, but ...... hmm, I can only say good luck. If this was Aella''s store or someone she knew like Gantz or the Bear of Slumber, she''d do everything she could to help, but she''s never met him and we''re not really interested in his ale. I think it''s going to happen.¡¡That''s the honest truth. I don''t know... I''m not sure.¡¡I''ll crush it! I''m not going to say something like that. It''s not our job to do that. Hahaha ...... That''s right. Thank you for your help this time. Thank you very much. The receptionist thanked us with a complicated smile, and we left the adventurer''s guild. I''m sorry to be a fan of Yale, but I don''t think it''s a good idea to get involved in something that''s already proven to be a lot of work and little benefit. 214-196 Negotiations with the Duke of Nenas After a little more than a day of playing in the streets of Pining, it was time for the appointment with Viscount Nenus. Today, Mary and Mitya are staying at the inn. There would be no danger, but there was no way I could bring them without them being part of our party. I showed the gatekeeper the invitation that had been sent to me the other day, and he let me go straight into the mansion, where I waited for a while in the parlor. Since I was in charge of the negotiations this time, I was a little nervous. In terms of simple suitability, Natsuki is the most suitable person for the job, and I had left it to her in the previous negotiation with the deputy, but this is not a common practice, so I tried my best. In this country, there is a gender gap, not to the point of being male-dominated, but to the extent that people wonder why a woman is in charge of negotiations when a man is. If they were in a position to negotiate on equal terms, the difference would not be a big problem, but in this case, due to the difference in their positions, there is almost no room for negotiation. The risk of displeasing a nobleman, even the lord of the region where he lives, for a small amount of money is too high. In some stories, there are protagonists who talk with nobles as equals, but unless they are so good that they can be crushed by force of arms, equality is unthinkable. If that''s the case, it''s better to have a man in charge. In that case, it would be me or Toya, but if the choice was between the two, it was unanimously decided to be me. This is simply a matter of appearance. If Viscount Nenus doesn''t like beasts, he''ll probably like me more because I''m better looking. On the other hand, there is a possibility that he will be jealous of my appearance, but we''ll just have to think about that when the time comes. I waited in the parlor for several tens of minutes. The door opened and in came an elderly man who looked like Viscount Nenus, an elderly man who looked like a butler, and three people who seemed to be his bodyguards. We all stood up and greeted them. I''m sorry to keep you waiting. "No, sir. Thank you for your time. Actually, it''s not much of a wait, is it? The time of the appointment was vague, mid-morning, but this was unavoidable, as few people had accurate watches. We came here right after breakfast, and considering the circumstances, I''d say he gave us a pretty early time. I''m Joachim Nenus. Please have a seat. Yes. We did as we were told, and sat down facing Viscount Nenus, who looked at each of us in turn as if he were observing us, and then twisted his head in surprise. He looked at each of us and twisted his head in surprise. You''re younger than I thought, aren''t you? "Uh, yes. We''re still young. ...... What should I say in this situation? Of course, you can''t say "I''m not young," because you are actually young. Of course, "Don''t underestimate me just because I''m young" is also out of the question. Inevitably, my response was rather vague. Viscount Nenus understood my annoyance, and shook his head with a wry smile. It''s not that there''s anything wrong with that, or that I''m doubting you. The adventurer''s guild has been in touch with us. So, the sword our family requested? "Yes. This is the sword we found. I took out of my magic bag the finely decorated sword that I got from the Skeleton King. I was about to place it on the table, but stopped myself. --If I leave it like this, it will scratch the table, right? The butler, who must have noticed my hesitation, quickly stepped forward and took the sword from my hand. Thank goodness. The table in front of us was a very expensive piece of furniture, as expected from a domain famous for its furniture. It would be a shame to damage it by placing a sword on it. I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... What do you think? After a short inspection of the sword handed to him by the steward, Viscount Nenus handed it back to the steward. It''s a good idea to take a look at your own personal life before you make a decision. Perhaps he had never seen the sword before, considering how he had inherited his title. On the other hand, the old butler was probably a servant of the Viscount Nenus family from long ago. Seeing that he was able to make a judgment right away, he probably had seen it before. I''m sure of it. I''ll confirm it''s the one you requested. "Thank you. Thank you. Please sign here. I spread out on the table the request form that the guild had given me. If you sign here, you will receive the original request fee, 300 gold coins, in addition to the transportation fee. "Very well. Viscount Nenus picked up the pen that the butler beside him offered, quickly wrote his signature on the request form, and presented it to us. "Certainly. I''ll take care of it. I took the request form and put it in my bag. That completes the first objective. Phew. ....... Exhale softly. "Thank you for your help. I had almost given up hope that it would ever come back. ...... "Yes, you''re in luck. Ha-ha-ha. It''s not just luck, is it?¡¡If that was all that was needed to recover the money, I would have sent my men there. That''s a hard one to answer. Even if it were true, there''s no way you could answer, "Because we''re stronger than your soldiers. Of course, I don''t know the actual strength. "If it''s ......, then I''m afraid you have the blessing of Lord Adversus. "Huh?¡¡Are you a follower of Adversus?¡¡If so, maybe we should tell our soldiers to believe in it as well? I''m not much of a believer, but I do go to the temple from time to time to pray. "Oh, I see. In Japan, religion is often frowned upon, but here, God is real and is given a certain amount of importance. So I tried to say something like that. ...... Is this a success?¡¡Failure? In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. I''m not sure what to make of this. Oops, you told me not to bother you too much. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Oh, yes. Do you mind if I offer it to you? Yes. Yes, of course. After confirming that Viscount Nenus nodded, Toya took out the sword with the emblem of Viscount Nenus from the magic bag and piled it up on the floor next to the table. At first, Viscount Nenus was relaxed, saying, "Oh, a magic bag," but when the number of swords exceeded 10, his expression became a little sullen, and by the time he had more than 20, his complexion had become a little pale. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that all of these swords bear the emblem of the Viscount Nenas family. ...... Let me check, shall I? "Of course. Go ahead, check it out. Oh. Hey. At the urging of Viscount Nenus, the three guards who had been waiting for him began to check the bottles one by one. There are certain places you should look. All they had to do was check for the presence or absence of a coat of arms, and they didn''t have to wait very long to complete their checks. Of course, everything is crested. Unless Toya makes a mistake and pulls out a different sword, there is no way anything will be rejected. It''s obvious to us, but Viscount Nenus exhaled with a bit of annoyance. It seems to me that all of these swords are indeed from our family. So how much do you want for them? "These are all made of white iron and would cost no less than fifty gold coins if bought at an ordinary weapon shop. However, I think Viscount Nenus has a lot of things on his mind right now. So, how about 40 gold pieces per weapon? This price was decided after consulting with Diora as well as Haruka and the others. It''s a little low considering the added value of having a noble family''s crest on it, but even this is enough to make a profit. In response to this price, Viscount Nenus raised his eyebrows in surprise. "That''s pretty cheap. You''re adventurers, aren''t you?¡¡I thought you''d charge more. ......? I''m sure you''ll agree. It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web, as well as the information that''s available. If you just want to know the value of the sword, you can sell it to a second-hand arms dealer for around 30 gold coins. However, considering the added value of the sword being emblazoned with the Viscount''s crest and the Viscount''s prestige, Diora said that she would pay at least 50 gold coins, but numbers are numbers. In addition to that, our discussion led us to the conclusion that it might not be a good idea to withdraw too much cash considering the reconstruction of Kerug. Viscount Nenus nodded in agreement, perhaps sensing our intentions in the word "situation". I see, you''ve come through the Kerg. Your spirit is not bad. I understand. I''ll take you in. "Thank you. Considering that I''ve been trapped in the dungeon for more than a month, I''m inclined to want more, but 40 gold coins per bottle is still a profit, and if I''m going to live here, it''s better to be remembered by the lord. If you take into account the non-monetary value, I think you can consider it a large surplus. Viscount Nenus looked around again at us as we bowed our heads in thanks, and a slightly amused expression appeared on his face. You guys are quite a distinctive party. Not bad at all. I''ll keep that in mind. Thank you, sir. I wonder if he was referring to the composition of the party. Well, an elf and a beastman, that''s unusual. As Viscount Nenus left the room, we stood up again and bowed our heads to him. The guards also left at the same time, and the butler remained behind. The guards leave at the same time, leaving the butler behind. "Please wait a moment while I go get the money. "Yes, sir. The butler, who seemed to be very capable, was really capable. We were given a leather bag of gold coins and left Viscount Nenus''s mansion in no time at all. I''m going back. "Okay, let''s go home!¡¡I miss my bed at home! "Yes, I do. That house has become my home. I feel at home when I come back. For me, that house has already become that. No matter how good the inn is, it''s still different from home, and I feel safe there. It''s a little hot, but we''ll leave soon.¡¡It''s a little hot. "Yes. Shall we stay in Kerg for one night and return to Laffan tomorrow? The business at Viscount Nenus'' residence went smoothly, so we were still in the morning. If we leave now, we can have a late lunch in Kerg. We can have lunch and a nap in the shade somewhere before it gets too hot and arrive at Kerg in the evening. It would be too hard for Mary and Mitya to return to Laffan by the end of the day, let alone us. So let''s get out of town. Right. In my free time yesterday, I had already visited the parts of Pining that interested me. I also bought some famous ale as a souvenir. We met up with Mary and the others at the inn and headed straight for the gate. On the way, Mary turned around and stopped in her tracks. "What happened to the ...... ale brewery? I''m just curious. The building of the Adventurer''s Guild was in Mary''s line of sight. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll be able to get the most out of it.¡¡I don''t know if they''ll tell you. Are you sure? I''m just going to go in and ask around. If they''re too busy, you can give up. Yes, of course. When we entered the Adventurer''s Guild with Mary and the others who nodded happily, we found the receptionist who had brought us the request sitting at the counter, looking bored. I wondered if she would talk to me only about the client, but she didn''t seem to have any problem, so I greeted her and asked her a few questions. That? It seems that the lord is going to investigate that. You''re quick. ...... It''s only been two days since we reported it. I''m sure the lord is busy, but he''s moving fast. I''m not sure what to make of it. But at the same time, I''ve learned of the poor state of the business there, so it looks like the lord will be sending someone there. To put it simply, he was saying, "How can you not be able to run a business properly when we have granted you privileges? It is said that they will take away the management rights from the artisans in question and let them concentrate only on sake brewing so that they can protect both the brewery and the taste. As a result, the price of their ale will probably go up, but ...... there''s no way around it. It''s been too cheap for too long. Will the artisan be satisfied?¡¡And? I''m sure they''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡He can concentrate on what he loves. He was rather bothered by the fact that he had to do something other than brewing, so if you can send me someone who can take care of that for me, I''ll be more than happy. According to the receptionist, he would be happy to accept. So you''ve settled in well? Yes. Thanks to you. I''m glad I wasn''t bought by some strange party. However, depending on the lord''s investigation, there may be some breweries that will be shut down. ...... There will probably be no problem. He''s a good man, Viscount Nenus. I don''t know how he compares to others, but he''s not a bad ruler, at least not in the one year I lived there. There was a disturbance in Kerg, but that was a bit of a special case, and other than that, Rafan and this pining are generally safe. I don''t hear any absurd stories, and if you work hard, you can live in this territory without any problems. Mr. Adversus is doing a good job in a humble way. "Are you all going back to ...... Rafan? "Yes. There''s no need for us to work here. Haruka affirmed to the receptionist, who seemed to remember that we were based in Laffan. I see. Are you looking for an escort request today?¡¡For a rank 5 adventurer, the request fee is not very high. ...... Is it still cheap? Yes. Thanks to Viscount Nenus, this territory is relatively safe. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. ...... Ah, there was a bandit riot between Kergu and Raffan a while ago, but that was quickly cleared up as well. ......That''s right. We took care of it. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you have. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I sent out a request to kill them, but one of the adventurers immediately agreed, which was a big help. The guild''s reputation would have been ruined if we had let it go unchecked and the military had to deal with it. Yes, the guild''s reputation is important. I''m sure they don''t know that we''ve defeated them. We nodded and looked at each other and smiled at the receptionist''s words. The receptionist twisted her head slightly in wonder at our situation. "Can I help you? No. I was just wondering how the guild is doing. That''s right!¡¡We work day and night to protect the reputation of the Adventurer''s Guild and, in turn, the reputation of adventurers!¡¡But there are many people who don''t understand that. They want us to raise our ranks, they want us to offer lower prices for purchases, they want us to give them better requests, and so on. ....... This is why you can''t raise your rank or get a good job! I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡That''s why your rank has risen. But that''s not the case for the majority! Adventurers, because of the nature of their work, tend to be roughnecks. Many of them think that they can get by with hard work. I know you''re too stupid to understand, but that''s why--! It seems that the receptionist has pushed some button that should not be pushed. The receptionist seems to have pushed some button she shouldn''t have. Since I had come to ask for information that was not directly related to my request, it was hard to say "I''ve asked what I wanted to know, so goodbye. In the end, the fact that it was a slow time of the day made us spend a lot of time with them. In the end, the receptionist''s boss came over and gave her a good beating on the head to stop the conversation. ...... After leaving the guild, Mitya''s comment, "It''s hard being an adult," strangely stuck in my ears. 215-197 Home and New Family The "missing person incident" flag that Diora had raised when she went was neatly broken, and (at least in the pinning) we had returned safely to Laffan without incident. The first place we went to with Mary and Mitya, who were visiting Lafan for the first time, was, of course, our house. This is our home. When Haruka said this to them in front of our house, they were stunned for a while, but then they immediately raised their voices in surprise. I''m not sure what to make of it. "It''s so big. ....... Is it safe to enter this place? No, no, this is our house. As a former nobleman''s house, the grounds of our house are quite large. It''s understandable if you feel a little intimidated by the walls and the gate. "On the other hand, the building is a little small, though. Compared to the garden. We opened the gate and went inside to see our house. Yuki pointed to it, but Mary immediately shook her head. It''s still many times bigger than our house. When we went to see the house where Mary and her family lived, their house had completely burned down, so we didn''t know how big it was, but based on the surrounding houses, it was probably a one-story house with only two or three rooms. Compared to that, our house was a two-story building with 18 rooms, so it was spacious, but a little small compared to the size of the site. Back then, we didn''t have as much money as we do now, and building a big house was just for self-satisfaction. It would be a complete waste of money. Let''s go inside first. There are five spare rooms in the guest room ...... that Mary and her friends can use, but do you want to use them ......1 one at a time?¡¡Or-- I want to be with my sister! One room is enough for the two of us!¡¡I''d rather have it in a corner of a warehouse or something! Mitya and Mary said in a panic, but Yuki laughed and shook her head. You can''t live in a warehouse, you know. But we don''t have a bed. Shall we go buy one? The floor will be fine as long as we have blankets. We''d be uncomfortable with that. We''re like a family living together, so don''t be shy. Not when they''re kids. Taking in a child and letting him sleep on the floor is complete child abuse. If you want to do such a thing, leave the child to an orphanage. It is our responsibility as adults to take care of the child''s life and educate him to some extent. When I explained this to her, Mary nodded, a little confused. ...... I understand. I''ll do my best to work hard for you! "Yeah, good luck with that. "Yeah, good luck. The garden is a mess. The garden that I could see from the window was overgrown with grass. The combination of summer and weeds is quite outrageous, since weeds are growing even in the area we use for training, which is quite hard-packed. Anywhere else, it''s a no-brainer. Especially bad is the area of the vegetable garden. The area is rich in nutrients and the soil is soft, so it''s all over the place. At the sight of this, Mary also smiled dryly. Ha ha ...... Yes, it looks like a lot of work. It''s a big place, though. It''s a big place, so it''s okay if it''s not too big, just enough to show that it''s inhabited. It''s a bit of a mess, the exterior ...... The path from the gate to the door of the house was paved with earth magic before the summer, so it is not damaged by weeds, but other than that, ...... the weeds are doing a wonderful job. If the house is thought to be vacant, thieves could damage it, and even though I don''t have much in it, I don''t like the idea of it being ransacked. Of course, it is not easy to break into the house because it is equipped with a security system, but it would be disgusting to find the dead body of a thief lying in the yard. I don''t even want to imagine what will happen to the corpse in the summer ....... Oh, by the way, you have to register two security devices, right? Yes, we do. After that, we''ll need to buy some household goods for the two of them. ...... Shall we go shopping now?¡¡Once we get settled at home, we''ll be too lazy to go out. You know, we don''t-- Yes, stop. Don''t be shy. Didn''t I just say that?¡¡I''ll buy the necessities. I won''t accept any objections. Yuki''s words were a bit forceful, but perhaps it was better that way. It''s hard for us to make a living if you''re so reserved. "Um, ...... yes. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. And you can be as selfish as you want. In return, we''ll tell you exactly what we approve and disapprove of. We don''t want you to be a hoarder, so I''ll tell you that first. I don''t know if this is the right thing to say to you, Mary, but we''ve never raised children before. Fathers and mothers may become parents through trial and error, but this is a different culture from the one we lived in, and it''s not like we can use our own parents as a reference. We don''t have any relatives or neighbors, and we don''t have anyone to talk to ....... Maybe we should go and talk to him. It''s okay!¡¡My father was rarely home, and my mother was gone for as long as I can remember! It''s okay! Mary and Mitya say sad things with strength. Maybe I''m just trying to say that children grow up without parents, but I''m sure the father, who was doing his best to raise his child, may be in tears up in the sky. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that Mary is very strong compared to her age in Japan. She seems to have basically taken care of everything at home by herself. She said, "Well, we''re going to live together in a different environment, so let''s talk and get along. Both of you. Okay. Okay. Then we split up and went shopping. Yuki and I went to order the beds and chests, which unlike furniture stores in Japan, there was almost no room for choice, while Haruka and the others took Mary and Mitya to buy the other household goods. Fortunately, the bed was in stock and could be set up that day, and the chest of drawers would be delivered in a few days. Of course, I ordered it from Simon''s place. I guess they were willing to be flexible for us, their customers (mainly sellers, not buyers). We had to order a futon because they didn''t have any in stock, but this was not a big problem since we didn''t need a comforter at that time of the year and we could sleep just fine with a blanket and a sheet on the mattress. Haruka and his friends came back soon after buying what they needed, so Mary and her family''s living environment was set up relatively smoothly. That night, for the first time in a long time, we enjoyed a bath, which we hadn''t had during our trip. It was the first time in a long time that we enjoyed a bath. I''m not sure what to say. A high rank adventurer can live such an elegant life. It was about a week after their return to Raffan that Mary mentioned this to him at breakfast. "Elegant, huh? "It''s amazing!¡¡The food is completely different! Haruka''s question was answered with a smile by Mitya, who happily tucked into her breakfast. I''m not sure if it''s our food that suits her taste, but she''s been eating very well since she came to this house. Although Mary was afraid of Mitya''s behavior, she herself ate more than one serving when we recommended it, so there was no problem in terms of taste in our life together. But you know, the food is Haruka''s skill, right?¡¡The ingredients themselves are usually bought at the market. If I had to guess, I''d say that the inspiration sauce is a big part of it, but the food without it is also delicious. Compared to the beginning, Haruka and her friends'' cooking skills seem to have improved even more. Their skill level has probably increased, but they have also gotten used to our ingredients. Even though the inspirational sauce is versatile, it is still boring by itself, so this is a great help. Thank you. Well, I didn''t buy anything expensive. Mary knows that, doesn''t she? That''s ...... yes. Usually, yes. But it''s still a bit expensive for me. ...... Mary''s job includes not only tending the garden, but also helping with the cooking - and even the shopping, so of course she knows the prices of ingredients. She occasionally buys expensive ingredients, and other items seem to be of a slightly higher grade than what Mary and her friends were buying, but she doesn''t buy anything extremely expensive. If I had to guess, I would say that the quality of the meat and fish might be better because they are shipped directly from the place of origin, but that''s about it. But I take a bath every day. Even though it''s hot. "That''s because it''s your identity. "Yes, it is. Haruka answered immediately, and Yuki and Natsuki agreed immediately. For me, a shower is fine in the summer, but when it gets cooler, I miss the bath. It''s not so popular with Mary and Mitya right now because of the hot weather, but I''m sure they''ll wake up to the feeling in the winter. However, I can understand why Mary refers to the bath as "elegant". In order to take a bath, you first need a lot of water. Although water is relatively plentiful in this area, it is still necessary to fetch water from a well, and most people''s houses do not have wells, so they have to use a communal well located some distance away. In other words, it takes a lot of effort. In our case, we have a well in our house, so the labor of transporting the water is much less, but it is still very difficult to pump up enough water for a full bath, and if we hadn''t been able to produce water by magic, we wouldn''t have thought of taking a bath every day. Next, the cost of heating water. For the average person, that would be the cost of firewood. This is also relatively inexpensive in this area, but even so, a large amount of firewood would be needed to heat enough water for a full bath. None of these are things that ordinary people can afford every day. We have solved this problem with magic and magical tools, so we don''t spend so much money that we can be called "elegant". ....... It''s a bit of a waste to say that it consumes magic stones, but you can get those yourself. And it doesn''t look like he''s out working. ...... I''m not sure what to make of that. Oh!¡¡Yeah, right. Sorry. In the event that you''ve got any questions concerning where and how to use the web, you can contact us at the web site. You don''t have to worry about it. I had a lot of work to do. We didn''t want to leave Mary and Mitya at home, so for the past week or so, we''ve been at home without doing any work, but it''s not like we''ve been lazing around. I made some clothes for Mary and Mitya. I went to the Adventurer''s Guild, submitted a request form signed by Viscount Nenus, received a reward, and received the book on demons I had ordered. Yuki and Haruka (to be precise, Tommy seems to have had a lot to do with it) made a magic tool for grinding soba noodles, and made soba noodles with the resulting flour. While Mary and her friends were tending to the garden, I re-tilled the vegetable garden area and sowed the appropriate seeds. I bought some picture books and taught Mary and Mitya some letters. I tried to teach them math. In addition, I continued my daily training as a matter of course. Since I didn''t have much time for training while I was traveling, I spent more time on this than usual. But it''s true that we didn''t go out to work, and it''s no wonder that Mary feels ''graceful'' when she sees us at home all the time. "Well, if I become an adventurer, will I be like you? By "like us," do you mean build a house, go to work occasionally, and eat well? Yes. You don''t have to be extravagant. We just need to wear clean clothes, live in a nice house, and eat a full meal. We both ponder Mary''s question. It''s a very solid wish, but it''s a bit difficult to answer. Our success is partly due to the skills we received from Lord Adversus, partly due to our diligent training, and partly due to the fact that we have been able to do our jobs to the best of our ability. Then there was a bit of luck. The fact that we had the job of harvesting dindol at the right time, and the fact that Haruka and I were elves, helped a lot. The money we got at that time was very important for our equipment and our life. In other words, if we can secure the initial funds and hone our skills to a certain degree before becoming adventurers, we have a good chance. ....... "Does Mary want to be an adventurer?¡¡It may look elegant when you look at us, but most adventurers lead a hard life, you know? Yeah, I know. But I don''t know what I''m going to do when I grow up. ....... Is it impossible for me to be an adventurer? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to be an adventurer, but I''ll take care of Mitya until she comes of age, so you don''t need to worry about that. ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. It''s a good idea to get a job in this world, as I thought when I introduced Tommy to Mr. Ganz. Or perhaps I should say "how to get a stable job". Short-term jobs and day jobs can be found at the Adventurer''s Guild. However, most of them are manual labor jobs that do not require much skill, and the wages are inevitably low. According to Ishka at the orphanage, the children at the orphanage also have a hard time finding work, so they teach them letters and math so that they can have a better chance of getting a job. However, it is the places where such skills can be utilized that require trust, and it seems that nepotism takes precedence over high ability, making it quite difficult. Even so, because of the credibility of the temple, it is said that if a child has good behavior at the orphanage and is capable, he or she will be adopted to some extent. On the other hand, the trustworthiness of ...... us is still low. If you are an acquaintance with whom you have built a certain level of trust, but if you are not an acquaintance, "introduction by a rank 5 adventurer" is still not enough. In the first place, the only acquaintances I have who do any serious work are Gantz, Aella, and Simon. It would be impossible to get another adventurer to join Ganz, and Aella and Simon would be useless if Mary and Mitya are not interested in cooking or woodworking. I think it depends on the stage before you become an adventurer, don''t you think?¡¡If you can''t fight properly when you become an adventurer, you''ll have to get a cheap job to make ends meet, and then you won''t have time to train. In the end, you''ll be destitute. "That''s true. At the very least, they should be able to kill boars and hobgoblins. If you can kill a vipu bear if possible, you will be much safer, and if you are less injured, it will be easier to save money. If you can''t save money, you can''t get proper equipment. We started out without magic bags and had to make do with backpacks, and we could live for days just hunting a single task boar if we didn''t splurge. In fact, even a goblin can earn more than a day''s work if he does well. The innkeepers that Natsuki and his friends were working at paid very low wages, but it seems that there are many jobs at that level, and it''s quite difficult for a rootless day laborer. "Hmm, if you want, I can train you. Are you sure? Mary looked pleased at my suggestion, and Natsuki and the others nodded in agreement. I''m not sure if I''m going to be an adventurer or not, but being able to protect yourself to a certain extent is probably a good thing. "By all means!¡¡Oh, but won''t it interfere with your work ......? If you participate in the morning and evening drills, you''ll be fine. You''ll have to practice on your own while we''re gone, though. No problem. Please! In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. "Me too!¡¡I''ll do it too! I''m not sure if you''re ready for this.¡¡Let''s see, she''s ......7 years old? If we take into account the difference in the way of counting age, she is barely old enough to start compulsory education in Japan. If you think about it, Yuki has a good point, but my sister seems to have a different idea. If possible, could you take care of Mee?¡¡There have been kids around Mee''s age who have joined the apprenticeship program. Is that how it works ......? Well, in this world, children who work do work. If you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll want to take a look at this website. I''ve heard that if you do too much muscle training when they''re young, it can affect their growth, so you should be careful about that. I''m sure. Mitya, if you don''t do anything half-heartedly, we''ll accept it. But if you slack off or do something without listening to our instructions, that''s it, okay? I know!¡¡Master, please! "Master? Haruka''s head twisted at the sudden reference to him as master. "Me, where did you learn that word? "My apprentice told me. The girl who took me on as an apprentice told me that if I don''t call her master when she teaches me, she''ll get angry. Is that how it is with apprentices? But still... I don''t know who you''re talking about, so we''ll just keep doing what we''re doing. Okay. Nao-chan! I''m sure you''ll have a great time. Yeah, that''s good, ''big brother''. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for.¡¡It''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. They''re not ready yet. You can''t do magic with Mary and Mitya because they''re beasts, but if you can strengthen their bodies, that''s a big advantage. You can train skills such as swordsmanship as usual, and compensate for the lack of physical abilities by strengthening them with magic power. If you can do something like that, you''ll at least be better than the average adventurer in Raffan, right? I know it won''t be that easy to use, but if you work at it diligently, you might be reasonably skilled by the time you come of age? I''ll do my best! I''ll do my best! Mary and Mitya raised their voices in unison. They are still children, but will they ever go on an adventure with us? I''m looking forward to it, but I''m also a little nervous. ....... It''s a little bit complicated, because going on an adventure means having to kill demons and other creatures. But that''s about it. We should also resume our work soon. As if to change the mood, Haruka clapped her hands and raised the fundamental issue. "Well... It''s been a while since I''ve had a real job. In the pinning, one thing was ripe that was ambiguous whether it was work or leisure, but apart from that, I haven''t worked in weeks. If I don''t get back to work soon, I''m afraid I''ll get lazy. I''ve got plenty of reserves. Besides, one of the reasons I didn''t go to work was out of concern for Mary and Mitya''s mental state, but even though it hadn''t been long since their father died, their condition was more stable than I thought. Considering that they had also been burned to death, they would normally need counseling. ...... Are they not originally prepared for this? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. But before we resume our work, ...... Haruka paused, smiled, and said, "Let''s have a welcome party! Let''s have a welcome party! 216-198 Welcome Party ""Welcome party ......?" Mary and Mitya twisted their heads at Haruka''s words. We''ve heard glimpses of it before, so we''re not confused. I''ve been here for about a week now, and ...... I''m not complaining, but... I was just wondering if Mary and the others didn''t fit in. In that case, I was thinking of sending them to an orphanage here in town. Wouldn''t it be awkward if we had a welcome party or something? Yeah. If Mary and the others felt uncomfortable living in our house, we could leave them in Ishka''s care. The day after we came back to Raffan, we had talked about having a welcome party, but at that point, we were afraid that if we had too big a party, it would be difficult for them to express their dissatisfaction with us. It''s not that we don''t fit in, it''s just that ......! The food is good! The food is good!" Mary shook her head in panic, while Mitya commented on the food. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Oh, don''t worry, I''m not going to kick you out. I just wanted to make it difficult for you to stay in this house. "Yeah, yeah. Oh, and if you feel more comfortable living in an orphanage, just let me know.¡¡I think this orphanage is a lot nicer than the one in Kerg, and I know the person in charge and I''ve donated money, so I think I can manage. I''m not complaining!¡¡In fact, there''s not much work to do. ...... I can eat every day and sleep in peace! I''m not complaining! No, well, food, clothing and shelter are important, so in a way, Mitya''s words may be the best words. Well, we''ve been living together for a while now, and we''ve figured out that it''s not a problem. We''re going to celebrate Mary and Mitya''s healing as well. Yes. They''re all healed up. Yes. The burn scars on Mary and Mitya, Haruka and Natsuki continued to apply Regenerate every day, and yesterday they were all safely removed. Since both of them would be unable to move for a while after using the Regenerate, they used it once a day before going to bed at night, so it took a little time, but as they got used to it, they were able to understand the area that could be completely healed with one spell, and became slightly more efficient. Even so, the area they could heal at one time was only slightly larger than my palm, so it would be a long time before they could regenerate the missing parts. Ah!¡¡Once again, thank you very much. I think it''s a miracle that you''re still alive. ...... Thank you very much. I''m a girl. I''m glad I could fix you. It''s a miracle that she''s alive. I''m glad I could fix you up. Don''t worry about it. "It''s nice to meet you! "It''s nice to meet you! The sisters bowed their heads in response to Haruka''s words, and we also responded. I''m sure you''ll agree. "Well, speaking of welcome parties, what would you like to have for dinner? We pondered over Haruka''s words. We were thinking about Haruka''s words. ....... I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what I''m going to do, but I''m going to do it. Steak and sushi. I''m not sure if I''m a poor person or not, but that''s the way I see it. You can''t really eat snow crab, can you?¡¡You can''t eat snow crab, right? Oh, fugu. I''ve never had tecchiri, either. I''ve never had tecchiri," said Yuki, shaking her head in annoyance at Toya''s words. I''ve never had tecchiri either. If it''s a hot pot, I''m sure the spoon hot pot would be a treat. "We ate it during the winter, so we don''t have any in stock. It''s hot now, and it''s not the season for hot pot. ...... In fact, if you are talking about expensive food, a kaiseki meal, a course of French cuisine, or even just tempura at a good restaurant will cost you a good amount of money, but if you are asking me if it is a feast, I have some doubts. I''m not sure if I''m the only one who thinks that "expensive is expensive" doesn''t mean "expensive is expensive". What about Mary and Mitya? It''s a treat every day! Me too ...... yes. I''ve never had anything better than what I''ve had here, so ...... If you don''t know what I''m talking about, you don''t want to know what I want to eat. You can go to Aella''s restaurant if you want. ...... I''m sure Aella will be able to provide us with some dishes we don''t know about, but... "Looks like they''re getting booked up fast. I sometimes come by to deliver meat and make small talk, but it seems that things are going so well that it''s hard to get a reservation. Since it''s a laid-back type of restaurant, the turnover of customers is low and it doesn''t seem to be too busy, but there are almost no empty seats during business hours. It seems that he and his friend Luce are doing well. After all?¡¡It''s hard to make good food again, so let''s play with ...... impact. "Impact? Hmm, how about a whole roasted task boar? Whoa!¡¡Whole roast?¡¡All you can eat? I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best in the market. I''m not sure what to make of it. You can eat as much as you want. "It''s amazing!¡¡My dreams are expanding! It''s a great way to get the most out of your life. You''re right, I''ve never had a whole roast before in my life. It''s as unlikely as cartoon meat. There''s no reason to disagree with ......, or rather, how can you disagree when you see that Mitya? And although not as overt as Mitya, Mary''s face was also drooling. I''m not sure if the fact that she is a tiger beastman has any effect on her. Toya also said that she liked meat more than before. If you want, you can roast something else, but ...... task boar is a safe bet. If you want to make a big impact, go to ............. No, that''s too much to ask. Toya started to say something, then fell silent. He shakes his head. Orcs are one of the most delicious things we hunt, but roasting them whole, weighing hundreds of kilos, is just too impractical. To skewer it and turn it, we would have to prepare it as if we were making potato stew with a crane, as seen on TV. In addition, no matter how good Haruka and the others'' [cooking] skills are, I don''t think they''ll be able to cook it very well. Other demons that can eat almost the entire body include the Bind Viper and the Killer Gator, which have enough impact, but their impact is so strong that it reduces the appetite. I can eat them if they are cut, but they look like snakes and crocodiles. Piccow looks pretty good roasted whole, but it lacks impact because of its small size, and if you''re going to use Piccow meat, you might as well make a different kind of meal, like sukiyaki. In that light, task boar is a reasonable choice. But you don''t have any task boar in stock right now, do you? "No. Oak is better for simple taste. We hadn''t been hunting for task boars recently, so we didn''t have many, but when we did, we didn''t eat them ourselves, but sold them. So, we''ll go hunt them ourselves. We''re going to ...... make some sweets for the first time in a while. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure.¡¡You use sugar? Yes, we haven''t decided what we''re going to make, but I''m sure we will. I''m so excited!¡¡I''m so excited! The welcome party is beautiful! "Sweet treats: ...... Mitya waved her hands and even her tail in happiness, while Mary''s tail was moving happily, though she wasn''t waving her hands. Perhaps sweetness is justice after all. Sugar itself, though not white sugar, can be found in this town. However, the price is more than ten times higher than that of Japanese sugar, so it is not something you can buy easily. We usually buy it, but we try to conserve the amount we use. In a way, it may be good for our health, but at about three large silver coins for one kilogram, it is not easy to use. I know that a teaspoon of brown sugar in a cup of tea is not so expensive, but I am in a mood. I don''t put it in tea, because it is similar to brown sugar and it changes the taste of tea. It seems that the image of the price we get when we hear "three large silver coins for one kilo" is quite different from the image ordinary people get, and it seems that people living at the level of Mary and her family can''t afford it, or buy a little once a year. Even if the price of sugar is 3,000 yen per kilogram in Japan, a spoonful of sugar costs about 10 or 20 yen, so an ordinary family would probably say, "Well, I can''t afford it. I guess. I think the difference comes from the fact that in this world, wages are low and it doesn''t take much money to make a minimum living. On the other hand, luxury goods are relatively expensive, so the joy of the Mityas is not so exaggerated. Then, let''s get ready. Tohya-kun and Nao-kun, please take care of them. I''m not sure what to say. We have a good feeling about the task. It only took a few hours for us to hunt down a good task boar, but since the meat needed time to mature and soak up the seasonings, we actually had a whole roasting party for the task boar ......, as well as a welcome party for Mary and Mitya. The welcome party for Mary and Mitya was not held until the next day. We made a roasting table in the garden with blocks made of earth magic, and put a task boar on a spit. The task boar we hunted this time was a little smaller than 1.5 meters due to the fact that it had to be roasted whole, but it still weighed nearly 100 kilograms before it was roasted. The edible parts alone, excluding the bones, are not enough for seven people to eat, but that''s not a problem because we have magic bags that keep the food from spoiling, and we''re having guests over, so maybe we''ll be able to consume it. ...... I don''t think so. I''m not sure if I can. It was Toya and I who set up the grill, but Yuki did the actual grilling. He burns the charcoal under the grill, turns the skewers around, and grills them slowly over a high, distant flame. Incidentally, the blocks for the grill were made by me, but the skewers and other metal gimmicks were made by Toya, all of which I made after hunting down the task boar yesterday. Whole roast, huh? "Yeah. Whole roast. That''s all I have to say. Haruka and Natsuki are in the house making other dishes, while Toya and I, with nothing better to do, sit in chairs under the shade of the tarp and watch Yuki cook. Mary and Mitya are sitting in front of the grill, staring at the task boar as it bakes little by little. Their tails are wagging in unison, which is rather cute. "Even if you two stare at it that long, it''ll take a long time for it to burn. Just the smell of it makes me happy! Mitya responds to Yuki''s giggling with a smiling face. It''s true that Mitya is right, and the good smell wafts down to us. Whenever the fat drips onto the charcoal, the smoke rises with a sizzling sound, and it is very appetizing. But then... "Hey, is this going to cook? The task boar was sliced open at the belly and fixed to the skewer in a slightly widened shape, but it was still quite thick. If you think about the time it takes to grill a chicken, this meat is many times thicker than ......? It''s a charcoal fire, so it has a far infrared effect, but it''s not easy. In fact, if you want it to taste good, you might as well cut it up and grill it, right? I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... It''s true, but if you do that, you''re negating the whole concept. I''ve heard that if you want to roast the whole thing properly, you have to roast it for more than one night. "One night? At Toya''s words, Mary and the others all shouted in despair. Well, no matter how many coals you use, the heat will escape, so it''s not surprising. It''s not very wild, but if you''re going to make a delicious whole roast, you might as well build a large stone oven. I don''t have that much time, you know. I don''t have that much time. I think it''s more practical to eat it while scraping off the burnt surface.¡¡If you try to cook the whole thing, the fat will fall off and it won''t taste as good. It''s like a kebab. That sounds delicious, doesn''t it? I''ve seasoned it well. Mary, Mitya, would you like to taste it? Are you sure? Yeah. Just a moment. Yuki put the knife in the place where the meat was nicely browned, put the shaved meat into the plate, and handed it to them. I''m not sure how much of the meat I''ve shaved off, but I''m sure it hasn''t gone down too much. "It''s good!¡¡It''s delicious! It''s delicious! After piercing the meat with their forks and filling their mouths with meat, the two of them flapped their tails and loosened their cheeks. Seeing them like that makes me want to eat too. Yuki, give me a piece. "Oh, I''ll have a slice, too. "Oh, I''ll have a slice, too. I can''t help it," he says, and I take a bite of the meat he''s so honestly cut up for me. "Wow, this is quite ......". It''s not just salt, is it?¡¡You can eat this without getting tired of it. The meat is not heavily seasoned, but the herbs seem to be used, and it tastes good enough on its own. The meat was so juicy that it was dripping with juice, and I felt like I could eat a lot of meat. The sauce is also available, but if it''s enough for me, I''ll be full before I get tired of it. "Oh?¡¡You''ve already started? When I turned around at the sound of a voice from behind me, I saw Haruka and Natsuki holding trays with food on them. We''re just tasting. But as you can see, we''ll probably be eating the whole roast as we cook it. Do you want some, Haruka? "Let''s put this down first. Nao, help me. Yes, yes. We''ll help you put the food you brought on the table under the tarp. There''s a lot of meat, so we''ve kept the other dishes small. If there''s not enough, I''ll make more. "No, there''s more than enough. Haruka and Natsuki brought drinks, soup, vegetables, bread, and a lot of sweets. There were no fresh pastries, probably because fresh milk was not available, but there were cookies, pies, nuts, and other things that people don''t usually eat. In addition to Toya, Mary and Mitya also ate an unimaginable amount of food for their bodies, but even so, there was no way they would have enough. In fact, there would definitely be meat left over. All of them, except for the three of them, would not be able to consume even two kilos of meat. In other words, Toya and his friends have more than 10 kilos of meat per person. ...... Unless your stomach is a magic bag, it is physically impossible. Okay, we''re good! Okay. Let''s start with a few words. Well, let''s start with Nao, shall we? Me? I? Wouldn''t it be nice if you could say something beforehand? Even if it''s just my family, I''d like a little time to think about it. Well, okay. I''ll make it easy for you. Let''s see. ...... We''re meant to be a family. As long as we live together, we''re going to have quarrels. There will be times when we disagree. There will be times when you feel dissatisfied with your partner. In such cases, you should express your feelings honestly. Don''t expect them to "understand" you. There is no need to worry. As a family, we''ll protect you. We''re not going to irresponsibly abandon our family. --Welcome to our home. The welcome party started like this and continued until late at night with the participation of guests Diora, Aella, and Tommy. 217-Jade Feathers (1) You never know what''s going to happen in life. I never thought I would die in a car accident. I''ve known people who''ve been in accidents, and I''ve heard that the odds are much better than dying in a plane crash, so I didn''t think it would ever happen. ....... No, it''s not true. I thought I was fine. No evidence. Well, I guess you''re wrong. Hello. I''m Yoshino Kitamura. But ...... is dead. That''s shocking, but the information that followed was more shocking, and I can''t even get sentimental about it. Evil god?¡¡A transference?¡¡What''s that? What is it? ...... Oh, it just showed up. Hmmm... You allocate points and choose what you can do. You can use 145 points. This is similar to creating a character in ...... Table Talk RPG. I''ve done it before when my brother made me play with a bunch of people. A little bit. I thought it was a bit of a hassle, but I never thought it would come in handy in a life-altering situation! Thank you, big brother! I''ll be reborn with gratitude in my heart! I''ll be reborn with gratitude in my heart! You live well and be filial to your parents. I''ll forget about the s*xually explicit content on the computer I got as a hand-me-down! I''ve been thinking of using that as an excuse to beg for money someday, but it died without ever being used. ...... Oh, no!¡¡If my brother or mother sees it, they''ll think I collected it, right? --Yeah, let''s forget about it. I''ve named the folder "My brother''s blackmail stuff" so I''m sure they''ll understand. Okay. Let''s forget the past and make up a character. Well, in this kind of situation, it''s best to specialize in one thing, right? If you make a character that can do everything, you won''t be able to use him at all. Because other characters can do it better. If you make a character who can do everything, you''ll have no chance to use him/her. So, I''m going to focus on one thing. I''m going to choose ......, and I''m going to choose something related to healing. I used to want to be a doctor. I won''t go into the heartwarming story of why I wanted to be a doctor. I''ll spare you the heartwarming story of why I wanted to be a doctor, but it''s not so easy to become a doctor just because you want to. When you get to high school, you are shown the reality. Until junior high school, I was the type of person who was a little bit smart in my class, but once I entered high school, I was just average. I was a little bit smart in my class until junior high school.¡¡Isn''t this too much to ask? And then I came back to myself. But no! Now, tuition is free! No donations! And by the way, no studying required! --Isn''t that right?¡¡It''s a skill. That''s why. A doctor. And doctors probably make a lot of money, right?¡¡That''s what I thought. Kuro work environment? I''m sure it''s only for doctors in big hospitals. I''m sure it''s only the doctors at the big hospitals. ...... Oops, that''s not relevant now. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use the word "doctor" or "pharmacology". No, no, no. I thought there was magic. Wouldn''t it be great if you could heal people quickly with magic? If there were such a doctor, he would probably make a lot of money, right? I wouldn''t hesitate to pay tens of thousands of yen if there was a doctor in Japan who could heal a broken bone in an instant. This will work, right? Yes, it can. This could be easy mode. --What do you mean?¡¡I can''t raise the level of the light magic. The text is grayed out. I wonder if this is it? Is that the "Light Magic Qualities" on the side? Is this a requirement? I need 10 points. ...... Okay, experiment. Hmmm... I see. You need the qualities and 5 points per level. I need 60 points to get to level 10. There''s no reason not to choose this one: ...... Oh, no. From level 4, the point requirement increases to 10. It increases by 5 points at levels 6, 8, and 10. To get from level 9 to 10, you''ll need 25 points. That''s a total of 140 ...... points to get to 10! Wow, ...... is just about right. You can do it, but ...... it''s a bit of a waste, isn''t it? If you have 25 points, you can get another magic to level 3. It''s a good idea to have a level 5, 7, or 9 to break the ice, but the problem is you don''t know what kind of magic you can use. The problem is that I don''t know what kind of magic I can use. 5 is a bit half-baked, so I reject it. 7 or 9: ....... If you choose 9, you have 30 points left. I''m a one-point-focused person, so it''s possible. But it''s a different world and ...... dangerous, isn''t it? I''m not sure if you can build a clinic in a safe city and keep it full. Oh, no. First you need money to build a clinic. We need to make some money first. I don''t know what kind of world you live in, but even if you rent a house in Japan, you need to pay a deposit, key money, and rent. You can''t just start a business and you need money to live on. Also, ...... is a good place to start. If you are afraid of slave hunting, you should be able to use weapons. So we''ll need light magic at level 7. That leaves us with 70 points. Okay, okay. That''s a lot of room. We''ll use the remaining points for weapons. I think the easiest is a blunt weapon. It''s easier to get than a sword. Let''s see. ...... Oh, there''s a "one-handed blunt weapon". Maybe this skill will allow you to use a mace or something? I''ll take that. Also, add [Strengthen Magic]. If you run out of magic and can''t heal, you''re useless. Oh!¡¡If you''re going to deal with the sick, you need to take measures to prevent yourself from getting infected. The rest should be [Medicine], [Pharmacy], or ...... [Pharmacy]. For the extra 5 points, let''s choose [Common sense in other worlds]. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure if this is what you''re looking for. ...... [Light Magic Qualities (10pt) [Light Magic Lv.7 (65pt) [Magic Enhancement (10pt) [One-Handed Blunt Force Lv.2 (10pt) Stubbornness Lv.2 (15pt) Disease Resistance (5pt) [Poison Resistance (5pt) Pharmacy Lv.3 (20pt) ¡¾Common Sense of Another World (5pt) That''s it. All that remains is to wait. I wanted to use this time to take a good look at the other skills, but I can only see the skills I can get with ...... my points, this system. Now that I''m down to zero, I can''t see anything but the skills I''ve acquired. There''s a way to unlock it once, but you don''t want to mess with it and have it suddenly shut down, so be patient. I couldn''t see it, but I wonder if there are skills that require more than 150 points. I''m going to be moving on soon.¡¡It''s time to move on! I''ll be assigning any unused points at the time of transfer, so be careful! When I was waiting for a while, the evil god said something like that. Even if you don''t have enough time, you can still get some relief, right? But I didn''t want to be caught unawares, so I made the right choice. That''s me. I have to finish my work before time. I''m not sure what they''ll take from me, but I''m sure they''ll take from me.¡¡If you know what I mean. I don''t know. It''s not all of them at once, is it? This is not good. I didn''t see that coming. Even if I want to build a clinic and make money, I''ll have to save up for it first. My skills are only useful if I have someone to fight for me! Okay!¡¡Growl, my Sixth Sense! Cupid! Mmmmmmm, okay, there it is! (No legs, but) DASHUU! (No hands, but) I''ll grab the desired human spirit and hit the other one! Just in time! "Well then, have a good life this time, everyone! And as soon as the evil god said that, the area went completely white. The next time my vision returned. The next time my vision returned, I felt a familiar presence beside me, and I shouted out. "I''m Wina~~~! "Shut up! "Oh, sorry, sorry. --Who''s that? I turned around, thinking it was my best friend, Kaho Kawabuchi, but what I saw was someone I didn''t expect. The below-average height of the person ...... looks like Kaho. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of that. No, really, who are you? Oh, my God. You must''ve dragged her here. It''s Kaho, Kaho. Of course!¡¡But what''s with the tone?¡¡I can forgive you for the cosmetic surgery, but you don''t talk like that, do you? This is a characterization. This is characterization. If your character is not strong enough, you will be easily dismissed like an NPC. If you have a strong character, even if you fumble, the GM can casually save you. Utaho''s brother and my brother are friends. Just as I joined a tabletop RPG just to see how many people I could get, Utaho was invited by her brother to join. Incidentally, compared to me, Kaho seemed to be more active in the game. "So the evil god is the game master? "That god seemed to be a trickster. He seems to give blessings to interesting people. Ugh!¡¡I can understand a little bit!¡¡But isn''t that too much of a character?¡¡That magnificent ...... fox ears?¡¡In addition to your magnificent fox ears, you have a coy tone. "Don''t call me rude!¡¡--Don''t call me that! It''s role play, role play. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea. I''m not sure if that''s true. I don''t know. "Well... I''d like you to refrain from conversations that I don''t really understand.¡¡Or, please explain it to me. Ah, I''m sorry, Sae. Sae is not human either! The other person I hit was Sae. Her real name is Saeko Yamamura. The atmosphere that I felt from both of them was the same as usual, so I didn''t feel strange at first, but if you look closely, you can see that Sae is no longer a human, but an elf. Both of you are putting too much effort into your appearances!¡¡You''re both putting too much effort into your appearance, you''re making me look like the opposite! I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. It''s inevitable. You can''t help it. Every woman wants to be beautiful at least once in her life. I''m not sure how you know that.¡¡How did you know what to do? My sixth sense kicked in!¡¡I mean, are you going to continue with this characterization? I will continue. Now that we know that God is real, it might be useful. Hmm, I can''t necessarily deny that. Well, okay. It''s not a big deal. Besides, you can''t deny he''s kind of cute! 218-Jade Feathers (2) "Now, before we get started, let''s teach each other our skills. That way we can set a course. "Right. The three of us are together now. We can''t afford not to work together. Well, then, I''ll start with you.¡¡I can see something. Sae tilted her head and brought her hands in front of her face as if she was searching for something. "What is it? Can''t you see it, Yoshino?¡¡It''s my name, my age, and the skills I just chose. My skills, I thought, and then they were displayed in front of me. Is that what you call a character sheet? If you want to show it--oh. Sure enough, it appears. A list of the skills you just chose. But it doesn''t seem to have any ability values. A little disappointing. "Oh, you have this feature? "Well, yeah. It looks like you can just check your skills at ....... "This will help those who have forgotten their chosen skills. In my case, I don''t have enough to forget. I don''t have enough to forget. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Magical Qualities, Fire] [Magical Qualities, Earth] [Fire Magic Lv.8 Earth Magic Lv.4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ...... Too much. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure how many points I need for this. As you can see, I changed my race to Elf, so I need 150 points in total. That''s more than me!¡¡You''re more than me! I thought I was specializing, but this makes me look more like a jack-of-all-trades! "Isn''t this what a wizard is supposed to look like?¡¡I don''t have the confidence to fight with a sword, so I thought it would be easiest to just shoot magic from behind. I thought all my classmates would be transferred together. No wonder. And with such a high level of magic, they won''t slow you down. It''s like a game, only with a more balanced party!¡¡There''s too much gambling involved! If people who don''t play games simply think of ''warriors'', ''wizards'', and ''monks'', they''ll end up like this. If you only think about fighting, you might be able to say that it is possible. ....... I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Common Sense in Other Worlds] [Attractive Appearance] [Great Sword Qualities [Great Sword Lv.8] [Strong Arm Lv.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I can''t believe I''ve been able to do this. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it. "Couldn''t you at least not take [Attractive Appearance] or lower the level of [Great Sword] by one? "You can''t be half-assed. You can''t be half-baked. You can''t lose to anyone in certain situations. A character like that can play an active role. You''re talking about a game, right? In this world, where it''s not a game, there''s ''everyday life''. I''m not a fan of this kind of thing. I''m a bit of a one-trick pony myself. ...... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Common sense in other worlds] [Magical qualities, light-based] [Magic enhancement [One-Handed Blunt Force Lv.2] [Robustness Lv.2] [Disease Resistance ¡¾Poison Resistance¡¿ ¡¾Light Magic Lv.7¡¿ ¡¾Pharmacy Lv.3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to do. The balance is good. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. But it helped that Kaho specialized in close combat. If Utaho had also specialized in magic, Kano would have had to fight in front of her. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m worried about the lack of someone with high defense, but I''ll push Kaho to the front there and do my best to recover . It''s a little guilty on the outside, but it''s not like the wizard is going to be in the front. But no one has taken [Skill Robbery] or anything that looks unusually powerful, right? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. You can''t get such a powerful skill from someone who calls himself an evil god, can you? The only thing I can think of that seems powerful is that it''s going to be your downfall. That''s what I''m talking about. "You want ...... power? The only people with dangerous skills are either the protagonists, the enemies, or the ....... It''s usually not a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I don''t want to be the protagonist with all the trouble. It''s scary that you can''t say, "I''m too game minded. I''m afraid of meeting God or something. I''m afraid I can''t say that I''m too game minded." "Is that what you were talking about, the right amount of character depth?¡¡It''s quite a tightrope. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... A little bit, overwhelming healing ability is amazing!¡¡I''ve been thinking about it for a while now. I''m not sure what to say. But fortunately, the balance of the party composition is not bad, right? If I were to classify them simply, I''d say warrior, monk, wizard. But fortunately, the balance of the party is not bad. Well, yes, it is. But if you have Kano, the other two can get by with whatever skill set they have. "Hmm, you''re sure? I''m sure you''ll be able to manage a relatively normal party with two warriors. Three monks with the same configuration as me can fight and heal just fine. If two of them are wizards who are completely rear-guarded, I''ll have to step forward, which will be a little difficult, but I think I can manage. If they were all warriors like me, that would be something I could handle. The problem is Sae. Oh, I''m not good enough? You''re not bad, but it''s a little hard to be an adventurer when everyone is like Sae. It seems to have overwhelming firepower, but if it gets close, game over. Sae might be the one who was most in danger in case she was transferred alone. She seems to be more useful in warfare than as an adventurer. On the other hand, it helped that Kano wasn''t a fully specialized type. I think I was a specialized type. I thought I was specializing, but ...... I was trying to balance things out a bit. When I was making up my character, I was thinking about these two people. Of course, the main reason for specializing in healing is my own preference, but I knew that Utaho would choose direct combat because of her personality. We''ve played tabletop RPGs together before. Sae, on the other hand, doesn''t play games, and she doesn''t seem to be into cutting or punching, so I expected her to be a wizard or an archer-like long-distance attacker. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that.¡¡Fortunately, there are no people around here. We are professionally balanced. We are professionally well-balanced. But that''s just the top. We have no idea what we can actually do. Fortunately, we''re in a meadow somewhere. We can see a street nearby, but there''s no traffic. It seems to be safe for the time being. However, according to my "common sense of the other world", it seems that demons are usually roaming around outside the town, so it is very important to verify the combat power. In addition to that, the only one who seems to be able to fight in any way is Sae, which is also a bit scary. So, I''ll start with you. The most powerful ones I have are ...... fire magic level 8, "Fire Jet" or "Explosion". "Explosions!¡¡I''m fascinated. "Then I''ll try that one. Oh, and in case you''re wondering, it''s pretty far away. Yes, sir. --Explosive Flame! With those words, a shining yellow sphere the size of a baseball flew out of Sae''s hand. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Boom! That was outrageous. A burst of light and an explosion. It instantly created a crater about 10 meters in diameter and sent dust flying up to a considerable height. ""........." The power of the explosion was beyond our imagination, and we all fell silent. At the same time, Sae lost her balance, or perhaps she swayed and sat down on the ground. Sae, are you okay? Yes. But perhaps the magic power?¡¡It seems that most of the magic power is gone. Sae tried to stand up while saying that, but she fell on her butt again and put her hand on her forehead. It is true that considering the power, the magic power consumption seems to be large. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡It''s a tough one. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not sure if I''m next.¡¡But there''s nothing you can do about it. ...... After coming here, I naturally understood the magic I could use with my current level of light magic. But the truth is, light magic has no offensive magic whatsoever! In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡So, I''m next. ...... Needless to say, right? I''m sure you''ll be fine. ...... Yes, verification work, thank you!¡¡...... Wow. Verification results. Sae''s magic is powerful, but she can''t shoot many. There''s nothing me and Utaho can do when the enemy comes out. ...... Hey, isn''t this a little bad?¡¡We are. It''s bad. It''s not good that we don''t have any weapons. No, Sae has a way to use a number of weaker magic, right?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "Here, take this as a blunt instrument. I accepted his offer, but it was a mere branch, a mere branch that could not even be called a club. I''ll give it a shake and see what happens. ....... ...... is a terrible picture. I''m not sure if this is a suspicious person or not. "Oh, here''s the cure. Oh, you want to do your treatment here? Yes. No?¡¡I''m a little low on cash. No, you''re out of town. You can do whatever you want. ...... Yes, sir. He''s suspicious. We''re in a small town at the end of the road. In front of the gate. The look from the gatekeeper hurts. Of course it does. Not poor ......, but three girls in normal clothes. I have a cudgel with me. They are a human, an elf, and a beastman who looks like a child. If there''s a gatekeeper who wouldn''t be suspicious, I''d like to see him. No, we''re having a little trouble. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "...... I''m not doubting you, but I had a bruise the other day. Can you take a look? It''s a good thing I''m not the only one with a bruised arm. "Yes, yes. I''ll leave it to you. It''s a small price to pay for a single Light Cure to gain credibility. It''s a good experiment, in a way. "Light Cure. The bruises heal as quickly as the spell is cast. Seeing this, the suspicious gaze of the gatekeepers eased at once. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a great way to make some extra cash on the road,......, but few adventurers come to this side of the gate with injuries. ...... Is that so? Yeah. If you''ve been through here, you''ll know that there are almost no demons, right?¡¡Only a very unlucky person would get hurt coming from Laffan to this town. If you''re going to do this, you might as well do it right across the river, right outside that gate. Looking in the direction the gatekeeper pointed, I could see a landing place at the end of a straight road. I see, this town is a ferry port. The other side of the river is more dangerous than this side. Well, we''ll make more money over there, right? As long as we''re safe outside your gates. Thanks for the tip. "Thanks for the cure. Don''t worry about it. I feel like, ''Tillalalalalalalalalala. Yoshino got some good information! Next Mission! Get to the other side of the river with as little money as possible. That''s the part. We had 30 large silver coins given to us by the evil gods. In front of us is the gatekeeper with a friendly smile on his face. In the back are Sae, who doesn''t have any common sense, and Kaho, who is clearly not suited to negotiating with adults. --This is going to be a tough negotiation. I muttered inwardly and wiped the sweat from my forehead, which was not even flowing. 219-Jade Feathers (3) "Oh, my God!¡¡He''s completely healed!¡¡That''s five large silver coins, right? "Yes. A macho man bends over in front of me, looking happy. I want you to leave me alone, it''s too hot. But I don''t say anything about that, and I take the money with a smile. Thank you. Now I won''t have to miss work! "Thank you very much. Thanks again. ...... My clinic was moderately busy again today. Yes, a clinic. Outside the east gate of the town we''d arrived in, Sahlstat. That''s where my clinic was. A neat building with mud walls and only two rooms. I made it myself. The building is my own work. The reason why this is happening goes back to the first day. I paid my taxes, made my guild card, and crossed the river. When we reached the gate on the other side, we had only 1,200 rares left in our hands. If we stayed at the inn, it would be gone in a day. What happened to the mission to save money? We failed, of course. Because you''re all working, right?¡¡You can''t bargain. So, what did we do? We camped out. Outside the town. The earthen wall Sae built with her magic was the original form of the current hut. I have fond memories of sleeping under a blanket while biting into a loaf of hard black bread in an enclosure that could barely fit three people. By the second day, we had one blanket per person, and with the branches that Utaho had broken from the forest, we had a roof that looked like a thatch roof. In this way, we gradually enhanced ...... our lives, and at some point, we didn''t need to take the trouble to get accommodation in the city. I looked at some of the lodgings in Sarstad, and they were quite expensive. You have to prepare your own meals, but it''s quite comfortable now. Utaho and Sae bought machetes and saws, and have been working hard in their spare time. But of course, there are some drawbacks. The most important is safety. We''ve been running the clinic here for over a month now, so people know that there are only three women. And in such a situation, some people might think of trouble. Well, the unfortunate thing for the offender was that we had already earned enough money to buy a greatsword at that time. You know what happens when a [Great Sword Lv.8] wields a great sword: ......, right? I''m not sure what to do. By Utaho. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s okay to let a rapist die. Of course, I didn''t treat him and left him outside the clinic in that condition. The next day, I told the details to the gatekeeper who came to ask about the situation, and he took me away. If such a thing happened several times in a row, in addition to the information that ''there are only women'', the information that ''it would be bad if you mess with them'' would spread as well. After about half a month of peace and quiet, I received an invitation to become an adventurer: ....... So far, I''ve turned them all down. Speaking of physical condition, I have no problems with this life, but Kaho and Sae are sometimes sick, probably due to the unfamiliar environment and food. Perhaps this difference is due to the presence or absence of the [Robust] skill. They are careful to boil the water, but they are eating unfamiliar black bread, using seasonings they don''t understand, and eating river fish they''ve never eaten before. If you don''t have an iron stomach, you''re bound to have an upset stomach. Of course, if you get sick, I''ll treat you with my magic as needed, but I''m not always next to you. If you suddenly feel a rumble, you may not be able to get out of the rain in time (figurative expression). If it weren''t for Purify, a lot of things would have gone wrong with me as a girl, yeah. It''s a good thing there are no boys. For both our dignity. I''m healing quickly, so it won''t be that bad, but it''s not like I''m going to be full of energy right away, and I need to rest for a day or so. It''s okay because I''m earning a little money and I have a cabin where I can rest, but without this, it would have been pretty hard. I think it would have been pretty bad if I didn''t have any strength or healing magic. The moment you get sick, it''s over. I wonder if we can go to a temple or something to get help? Another problem for us was the food. I was never a good cook, but I''m sure Utaho was pretty good at it. But ...... honestly, it''s not very good. I''m not sure if this is because I didn''t take the [cooking] skill or because I''m cooking with wood in an earthen hearth. ....... It''s probably the latter, right? I''m sure if you had a gas stove or something, you''d be able to eat a little better. Oh, the lack of seasonings is also a big factor. You can''t get much seasoning other than salt, and when you do, it''s all unfamiliar herbs and stuff. But it''s still better than eating in the city. The cheap black bread is not to my taste, so Utaho makes a naan-like dish, which is much tastier and easier to make. Most of our meals consist of this naan and a large bowl of soup. And the occasional grilled meat. This meat is... "Are you done with your work, Kano?¡¡Then go hunting! That''s what Kaho said as she walked into the clinic. Yes. In fact, the meat we''re eating is not homemade, but hunted by ourselves. It''s very expensive to buy, so it''s a tall order for us who don''t even have our own equipment yet. It''s a treat only for those who are lucky enough to hunt. There are also fish for sale along the river, but I bought some ......1 once and learned the hard way. I hope we can hunt today. Then call Sae. I heard you. The one who came out of the back room saying that was Sae, who was ready to go. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m a bit of an idiot. The equipment of Utaho and I is similar, the only difference is that she has a cheap big sword and I have a mace that is slightly better than a club. All I had to do was to carry a bag on my back and I was ready to go. We left a sign in front of the house and went into the nearby forest. "Hunting is quite difficult, isn''t it? It''s hard to find animals. "We''re amateurs. We''re amateurs. We''re not like hunters. ...... If only they could find them - or rather, if they could find them and fight them, they would probably be no match for most animals. But it is difficult. We are not very skilled, so we walk through the forest looking for animals from downwind, relying on Utaho''s nose, but first of all, it is difficult to find them, and if we approach them normally, they will immediately notice us and run away. Task boars are the only animals that will come at you if the situation calls for it, but they are in the minority. I''ve never been able to catch a bird or a rabbit. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s a no-brainer. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find the right one for you. You''ll be able to do it very well at ....... "We''re sitting ducks for the guild. The guilds are suckers for us, and they will make less money if they can dismantle us. We''ve killed four task boars so far. We knew how to bleed them, so we did that before taking them to the adventurer''s guild. ...... I feel like we''re getting a discount on them. I''m not sure what to make of it. So I''d really like Utaho to be able to dismantle it, but unfortunately the guild staff won''t kindly tell me how to do it. Even so, I have no choice but to bring it to the guild, so I do. As Sae said, I feel like I''m being used as a sucker. "Demons are easier in a way, aren''t they? They don''t run away. "Yeah. If you get close to them, they''ll come to you, and all you have to do is hit them with this. I can also work with demons. ...... But I''m still getting used to collecting magic stones. It''s not a bad idea to have a demon if you don''t want to have a full dining table. In the event that you have a lot of money, you can use it to buy a lot of things. If you''re a poor person, you have no choice but to try your best to collect the magic stones, no matter if you throw up or not. --Well, it was better than I expected. I''m not sure if it''s because of the common sense I''ve acquired? There seems to be no guild requests in this town, and there''s not much in the way of weapons or armor. Maybe we should get a head start and move to another town. That''s right. My mace is like this. I bought it as a mace, but it just looks like a club with three iron rings embedded in the end. If you were to ask me if it was a club or a mace, I would classify it more as a club. It has the bare necessities of life. It''s going to be winter, so I think we should make up our minds soon. "Hmm, I guess so. My clinic doesn''t make much money either. ...... It''s a good business because there''s no money to be made, but the number of people who come to Sarstat is limited, and the town''s population is small, so there aren''t many customers. The town''s population is small, so there aren''t many customers. Maybe the townspeople don''t know us, or maybe they don''t trust us. We''re not paying for lodging, so we''re making a living, but it''s not good, is it? What should we do?¡¡What should we do? We don''t even have armor. Should we just go to another town? "Well, we''ve bought the necessary tools for a camp. I think I can handle the combat side of things. ...... "Putting experience aside, I don''t think there are many demons out there that our skill level can''t handle. That''s right, considering the adventurers that come to Sahlstat. After this town, there is a town called Kiura. I heard that the road to there is quite dangerous and there is a certain risk of being attacked by demons. But the adventurers who come to me for treatment don''t seem that strong, and in fact, the rapist who misunderstood me was easily beaten by Utaho. On the contrary, there is more room to earn money as an adventurer in Kiura, where there are many demons, than in Sarstat. At least, there''s no such thing as going to the guild and not getting a request form. By the way, the town on the opposite side of the road we came from is called Rafan. But that town, like Sarstat, is not a good place for adventurers to make money. It''s much better than this town, but if you''re as good as we are, Kiura is better, we concluded. The source of this information was obtained from an adventurer who came to my clinic. Also, I''m a little curious about my other classmates. ...... In the past month or so, I''ve walked around the town of Sarstat in my spare time and haven''t come across a single person. We were attached so we were able to transition together, but maybe those who weren''t were sent to a much larger area. There is a possibility that we can meet in Kiura, but ...... it''s a long shot, isn''t it? It''s not like there''s anyone I really want to meet, though. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure how I''ll be able to live in the next town without a large amount of money. "Well. In Kiura I would like to rent a house in the city at least. I''m attached to my house, but I prefer a wooden house. Considering that winter is coming, our current house will be a bit of a challenge. So maybe this was a good opportunity. Now I need to hunt task boars as soon as possible to make some money. I''m not sure if I should say fortunate or not. Fortunately, I''m not sure if I should say fortunately, but our hunt was successful that day. In a way, it was a great success. In a way it was a success, but in a way it was a disaster. Why? Because the task boar we met was a father and son! A task boar and his wife rushed at us, trying to protect their child. The Task Boar and I beat them to death without mercy. And then there were the four Uri-boars that came at us with their tiny bodies. We beat them to death without mercy, even if they are children. ....... If you let them go because they''re cute, you''ll never be able to hunt them, in reality. The only thing I can say is: ...... The meat of the gourd was tender and delicious. Thank you for the meal. 220-Jade Feathers (4) Oh, orc-eaters. They are?¡¡Unbelievable. ...... They''re tall enough to cut an orc in half, right? I heard they cut off three orc heads at once. I heard he burned up a giant orc with one magic shot. As soon as we entered the Adventurer''s Guild, we heard such gossip whispering. Hello. I''m an Orc Eater. ...... Yeah. Reluctantly. I never wanted a nickname, but if I was going to have one, I wanted it to be cool! I went to the guild counter as usual, trying my best to keep such gossip out of my ears. "Hello, Miss Saara. "Hello, Orc Eater. When I called out to the familiar receptionist, she replied with a little laugh. "Stop it, sirrah. Our party''s name is ''Jade Feathers''. Please spread the word over there! This party name has no deep meaning. There is no deeper meaning to this party name. We were forced to name our party to counter the unwanted spread of the two names. We simply saw a jade-colored bird feather fall in front of us at the time, that''s all. "Yes. Catching such a pretty maiden and calling her an Orc Eater is just plain bad taste. I completely agree. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this in the future. I''m not sure what to think. It''s been a little over three months since we moved from Sahlstat to Kiura. Our life as adventurers has been going well, to say the least. We were able to rent a small house, Utaho''s greatsword was upgraded to something a little better, my mace was reclassified to metal, and Sae''s staff became something a wizard would have. I''m also wearing leather armor, though it''s not that good, so I should be a proper adventurer in appearance. We''re rookies in terms of experience, but it''s different when you have skills. We haven''t met any of our classmates, but I''m sure we''ll meet them at some point in our lives. Maybe they''ve moved to another country or somewhere far away. At any rate, our lives are stable, so we don''t dare to go looking for him. It''s too dangerous to move across the country. By the way, the main reason why our lives have stabilized is because of the orcs. Yes. The demon that caused us to be given the unwanted nickname "Orc Eater". There are quite a few Orcs living around Kiura. Because of this, the most important job for adventurers based here is orc hunting. The town of Kiura''s main industry is selling the orcs that adventurers hunt to the guilds and exporting them. The supply of Orcs is quite large, and the Baron Ornick who rules the town is sometimes called the Orc Baron, or maybe not? I''ve never met him, but I feel a bit sorry for him. Not only is he called that, but his real name itself is ....... So of course we''ve been hunting Orcs since we came to this town, but why are we called Orc Eaters? There are probably two reasons. One is that we literally eat orcs in public places. We hunt orcs, right? And then you have to dismantle them outside the city, right? But I''m still not very good at dismantling them, so I can''t dismantle them neatly. As a result, we end up with meat that cannot be made into a proper carcass. This meat can also be purchased, but it is treated as scrap meat and is sold for only a few dollars. So while we were practicing dismemberment, we were eating a lot of scraps on the grill. On the side of the road. It tasted even better than I had imagined, and I think I ate a little too much of it without caring about what others thought. Especially for someone like Utaho, who consumes a lot of meat for such a small body, it''s not hard to understand why she got that nickname. I''ve often invited adventurers who passed by to eat with me. But lately I''ve gotten better at dismantling things, and it''s gotten colder, so I don''t barbecue on the side of the road. Another reason is that we are hunting so many orcs that we are devouring them. At first, we hunted one orc, dismantled it, brought it back to town and sold it, but this took a lot of time to go back and forth. So, when I had some money saved up, I asked a blacksmith in town to make me a rickshaw. Thanks to this, I was able to bring back all the Orcs even if there were more than one. Some adventurers seemed to be copying the idea, and the blacksmith thanked us, but unfortunately it did not lead to any income for us. If we had done it right, we might have been able to get some sort of patent income, so we failed. The other reason might be that we are three women hunting orcs easily. For us, orcs are pretty easy to deal with, but it seems that adventurers around here usually need about six people to deal with them. Yes, what the adventurers said about being cut in half or charred is true, I regret to say. The incident where Utaho got excited about the new big sword and Sae failed to adjust the power of the magic. The case was a complete failure because it was no longer sold as meat. Of course, it''s not like that now, but ...... had a strong impact. If you don''t sell your name in something else, it might be difficult to make "Jade Feather" famous instead of "Oak Eater". I''ve been working on this for a while now. Today, after selling three Orcs to the Adventurer''s Guild, we were returning to our rented home with about 100 gold coins in our hands. Thank you for your hard work. "Good night. We''ve made a lot of money this time, haven''t we? We''re getting better and better at this. One at worst, three at best. That''s the result of our hunting. If we go to work one day, we take one day off, so even if we exclude expenses, each of us earns about 200 gold coins in a month. With this amount of money, it is possible to save enough even if you spend a little on luxuries. We are able to work at a leisurely pace and live a life with less dissatisfaction than we expected. However, to other adventurers, I seem to work too much, which is partly the reason for my nickname "Orc Eater. However, I think that taking more than half the month off is too lazy, so I plan to maintain this pace. I guess you were right to make a specialized character! Yes, it was. Even I can die easily. Well, yeah. ...... has a slight disadvantage. The disadvantage is, simply put, the same thing as the first Sae. I didn''t notice it when I was using simple healing magic or when I was hunting boars, but I lacked stamina anyway! No, I don''t use advanced light magic, so it doesn''t matter much, but Utaho did some acrobatic moves against an orc and got chopped in the neck, and then she was useless for a while. It''s as if her body can''t keep up with her skill level. I''m not sure if this is what you''d get if you put a Formula 1 engine in a mini car. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I don''t have much motivation, though. I''m not sure what to make of it. You can get by with refraining from any flashy moves, even if you lack stamina. I''m not fat, but I feel like I''m being put on a diet. It''s a simple training that''s needed. If you''re going to be dealing with strong enemies that require high level movement or a large number of enemies that require the ability to take over, you can''t avoid it. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. I''m not sure, but the Fire Arrow is looking good. But I haven''t had much to do lately, have I? To tell you the truth, since I came to the town of Kiura, I''ve had very little to do. My mace isn''t powerful enough because I''m basically only dealing with Orcs, and if I''m dealing with Orcs, both Utaho and Sae die easily, so I don''t get hurt. I was thinking of earning money from the clinic, but of course it''s obvious that you can''t just open a clinic in the city, you need permission from the lord. And of course, there''s no way you can get permission from someone you don''t even know. In other words, my dream of making some money with healing magic was easily cut short. In battle, yes, but outside of that, it''s useful enough, isn''t it? That''s right. I can''t live without her. Well, we''ve lost our daily skills, haven''t we? In the case of food, clothing, and shelter, the first thing you need to know about food is that renting a house has given you a decent kitchen. It''s not that I''ve forgotten what I knew when I was in Japan, but the only thing I can get my hands on is salt, and it''s hard to get the heat just right, so... The other four. Sugar, while expensive, is available. However, it has a very different flavor from white sugar, so it cannot be used in the same way. As for vinegar, wine vinegar is available. At a good price. But none of us had ever used such vinegar before. The vinegar we had was rice vinegar or grain vinegar. Not to mention the other two, soy sauce and miso, right? If you can''t get the ingredients, it''s really useless to have some knowledge. I''m planning to buy a magical stove in the near future so that I can at least control the heat. For clothing, I''m having new clothes custom-made for me. Ordinary people seem to sew their own clothes to some extent, but ...... we never sewed outside of class, so that part is destroyed. No, I can do wave stitching, though, right?¡¡Yeah, that''s about it. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m going to be able to do that. It''s good to save up and build a house of our own choice,'' the three of us said, discussing our imaginary floor plans. It''s free to imagine, and there''s no entertainment in this world. If I had to pick one thing that is more convenient than the original world, it would be cleaning and laundry. Both are done in an instant with my "cleansing". Also, bathing, ......, we all honestly want to take a hot bath if possible. If there was no "purification", it would have been more difficult, so I think it''s a luxury to complain. In fact, it''s not an exaggeration to say that "purification" is my raison d''etre these days -- no, it''s an exaggeration. That''s an exaggeration, right?¡¡I hope I''m exaggerating. ...... Well, I''m proud to say that I''m the most active person in my daily life, aside from the cooking that we all do. I''m proud to say that I''m the most active person in my daily life, even though I''m not useful in battle. By the way, both Kaho and Sae haven''t been sick lately, have they? In the beginning, they had frequent thunderstorms in their stomachs (metaphorical expression), but lately, I don''t have to use the "treatment" anymore. It''s definitely a good thing, though, because it protects my dignity as a maiden. ....... I''m not the same as I used to be, you know.¡¡The other day, I finally got [Robust Lv.1]! "It''s more than ''finally'', it''s ''finally''. I hope you''ll get used to it after you''ve been sick to your stomach so many times. I''d like you to get used to it." The smug look on Utaho''s face was followed by a slightly tired expression on Sae''s. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. That''s what''s called ''building up a tolerance'', isn''t it? "Ugh. It''s a little bit like that. ....... But that''s what it is, isn''t it? It''s hard to live without it when you''re living here. I regretted that I should have taken at least [Robust] when I first started. In normal games, characters don''t get stomachaches. Maybe there''s no such thing as a "I drank raw water and got a stomach ache" computer game?¡¡I don''t know much about it. Also, some foods don''t go well with others. For example, freshly squeezed olive oil is not good for me. It was good when I was eating it, but after a while, I had to put it all back. ...... That was painful. Since then, I''ve been more careful with olive oil. Oh, but maybe this body will be okay? I don''t see any olives. Oh, by the way... When I went to the guild the other day, I overheard that you can buy some unusual bags. It was Sae who said this as if she suddenly remembered. "What kind of bag? Simply put, it''s a backpack. ...... Oh, I''ve never seen a backpack before. We''re using a backpack so it''s not too much of a problem, but it''s more convenient than a backpack, right? "Perhaps one of your classmates made it? I don''t know about that. I asked him, but he wouldn''t tell me. Well, I suppose he did. I''m sure you''re right, but it could get you into trouble. Utaho nodded, a little disappointed but satisfied. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. If it looks good, you can buy it at ....... How much was it? "It was 24 gold pieces. It''s not even ...... expensive?¡¡Considering that it is sewn by hand, ......? I thought for a moment that it was expensive considering the price of bags sold in Japan, but if you consider the fact that it is all hand sewn, it actually doesn''t seem so expensive. Especially for a backpack, there are many places to sew. Even in Japan, brand-name bags are more expensive. I agree. It''s not necessary if you''re going to keep your job here, but if you''re thinking of going away or getting another job, it''s better to have one. I''d like to buy one too. If you keep doing the same thing, you''ll never grow. Well, you''re right. My fighting skills won''t improve if I''m always fighting Orcs. ...... I''ll just order it then. You don''t have any in stock, do you? I don''t know, but it''s probably on order. After a few months of living here, you get used to the world. Furniture, clothes, and other things that require a lot of work are usually made to order. Some of the items that sell in large quantities are kept in stock, but 24 gold coins are quite expensive. I think they are made to order. I guess you can find out by asking at the guild. Sure enough, when I went to the adventurer''s guild the next day, they told me that the backpack was made to order, and that it would take some time before it was delivered to me. It''s true that it would be difficult to use the same backpack for the elementary school sized Kaho and the adult sized Sae. Thank goodness. Since we were not in a hurry and had some money to spare, we ordered backpacks for the three of us on the spot. We didn''t actually receive them until about a month later. From then on, Jade Feather began to take on requests other than orc hunting. 221-Peripheral maps, monetary value, etc. Map This is a map showing the location of towns. The topic of neighboring countries will appear at the end of chapter 7. Even if you don''t know about them, it won''t affect you too much. In terms of size, the Kingdom of Rhenium is about twice the size of Japan. Map of the relocated area The relocated country and its surroundings Money Unit: Rare Copper coin = 1 rare, almost uncirculated. Silver coin = 10 rares, about the size of a 1 yen coin. With holes. Large silver coin = 100 rares, about the size of a 100 yen coin. Gold coin = 1,000 rares, about the size of a 1 yen coin. Large gold coin = 10,000 rares (10 gold coins), about the size of a 100 yen coin. Shiro gold coins = 100,000 rares (100 gold coins), about the size of a 100 yen coin. Gold and silver coins are alloys with smaller amounts of gold and silver. Since copper coins are generally not in circulation, retail prices are usually in units of 10 rares. When merchants deal in gross units, they sometimes give a unit price of one rare unit. Large gold coins cannot be used at stalls, and white gold coins can only be accepted at very large stores. The unit price of a loaf of bread is about 10 yen per rare, but this is just a rough estimate because prices vary greatly from region to region and labor costs cannot be compared. For example, if you use apples (or other fruits), the price would be about 1 yen per rare. A family of four can get by with five gold coins for a month. 222-199 Work resumed Now, we''re going to go to work today, but Mary and the others will stay home, okay? Yes! The day after the welcome party, Mary gave a good answer to Haruka''s question. It might be a long time, a few months. Of course.¡¡Do adventurers go away from home that long? She was about to nod her head of course, but the unexpected information contained in Yuki''s words made her nod her head curiously. It depends. Last time, I was trapped in a dungeon for about a month. "Trapped in a ......?¡¡A dungeon ......1 months ......? Mary was confused by the additional information given to her. I''m sure you''re not familiar with dungeons around here, but it''s probably hard for you to imagine being trapped for a month. In fact, we would have almost died if we didn''t have our magic bags and preparations. It happens, doesn''t it? Adventurers. ...... Oh, are you sick of being an adventurer? I don''t mean sick of it. I mean, I can''t imagine ...... I see. Yeah, well, that''s just the way it is. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You can''t really feel it until you experience it, and that''s about it for now. I''ll be back in about a week this time. The problem is that sometimes things don''t go as planned. The problem is that things don''t always go according to plan." Yuki''s words were meant to reassure, but Toya mixed them up. Haruka slapped Toya on the head and followed up. If you have any problems, talk to Tommy, the blacksmith who was at the welcome party yesterday, or Diora from the adventurer''s guild. I''m sure they won''t be too hard on you. I understand. Here''s your living money. I''ve put in a lot of money, but use it in case we don''t come back for a long time, okay? Yes. Mary took the small bag that Haruka had given her, looking a little nervous. There are about 100 gold coins in the bag, so if they don''t spend extravagantly, they can live for a while - if Mary and the others live at the same level as in the past, they can live for a year. And they don''t have to pay rent. --To be honest, leaving a 9-year-old and a 7-year-old alone for days at a time would be considered neglect in Japan. However, Mary seems to have been doing the housework by herself even when her father was around, which is not so strange in our common sense. There are children who go out to work even at the age of nine, so it may be better to give them enough money. I don''t think thieves will come here very often, but ...... if they do, lock yourself up and stay indoors. It''s probably safer than running away. Yes. It''s a nearly lethal trap. No thief will be able to get in without it. Feel free to use the potions if you need to. You know where they are, don''t you? Yes. While we''re gone, you''re free to spend as much time as you like in the garden, as long as you take care of it. The rest can be found at ....... Mary smiled at Haruka''s attention to detail. I''m fine. It''s okay. Please go. "Really?¡¡Is it okay? Haruka is more worried than you think. Yes. I''m not a small child. Mary puffed out her chest and thumped her chest, but to us, she was a small child no matter how we looked at her. I''m sure she''s very strong considering her age, but... "Well, Haruka. I don''t know.¡¡Mitya can help her sister too, right? Of course I can! In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at this kind of a lot more. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. I''m not sure if you''ve noticed this, but Haruka''s cheeks turn a little red. I''m sure you''ll understand. Then let''s go. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea to have a good time. This is the first time we''ve done this job in a long time. This time, we were going to challenge the third level of the dungeon. As usual, we chose this job because of the lack of good jobs in Rafan''s adventurer''s guild, and also because of the coolness of the dungeon. It''s probably not the most lucrative, but it''s a lot better than wandering around the depths of the forest in a sweat. Another purpose is to try out the "transfer point". Having learned our lesson from the last time, I - and Yuki - practiced our space-time magic very hard. As a result, we were able to use "area teleportation" reasonably well, but we were a little worried about the distance and the amount of transfer. By setting up a transfer point, it becomes a little easier, but even so, if the entire party is transferred, it may not be able to reach one kilometer. So my magic power is almost depleted. Yuki is a bit inferior to me in terms of magical power due to her race, but she is also able to use it to some extent. If Yuki can bring one of them with her, even if he''s not on the same level as me, the number of people I have to transfer will be drastically reduced from five to three, and even if that''s not possible, the burden will be lightened if Yuki herself can travel by "teleportation". This would allow us to travel more than a kilometer, but according to the map, it''s impossible to travel to the entrance from anywhere in the dungeon. The only realistic way to do this would be to set up transfer points above places where the level is likely to change, or to take shortcuts through places where there are likely to be detours, so that you can come back even if there is a collapse like the last time. If you have a transfer point, you can transfer without worry. On the other hand, if you don''t have them, it is dangerous to move far away. The spell itself has a certain amount of correction function, and if you are in a dangerous place, the result will be the failure of the transfer, but in rare cases, if you are very unlucky, you may find yourself in a stone. According to the grimoire of space-time magic. According to the grimoire of space-time magic, unless you''re a beginner and have very bad luck, it''s almost impossible, but it''s quite scary. Given this, it is essential to set up a transfer point. Incidentally, I have made five of these transfer points. Since they are like beacons, they need to be replaced from time to time. It is supposed to last for about a year, but after that, it will be completely useless. Of course, it can be revived by changing the magic stone, but it can also be used as a little help even when the so-called "so-called" battery is dead, so it is not useless. I''ve already installed one at home, and I''m planning to install the other three at the entrance of the dungeon, on the slope that collapsed last time, and on the stairs leading to the third level, so I''ll only have one spare. If there is a staircase to the fourth level, I plan to place it there, but I don''t know if I can reach it this time. I don''t even know if there is a fourth level or not. It''s so hot, I''m tempted to ask for a transfer to the dungeon entrance. "Don''t be absurd, Toya. I''ll get stuck and it''s too far away. As I headed towards the dungeon, Toya complained about this, and while I agreed with her on the inside, I denied it with my mouth. Even if I were the only one who could "teleport," and even if I had already set up a transfer point, I probably wouldn''t succeed. Besides, the game we hunt along the way is important, right? It supports our income and our food. We had quite a bit of meat in our magic bag, but with all the time we''ve been out pinning, the time we''ve been stuck in the dungeon, and the fact that we haven''t been killing many orcs lately, it''s not exactly a plentiful supply. Because of this, the meat I''ve been supplying to Aella has been a mixture of various kinds other than task boars and orcs. Basically, they use the meat for their early morning meat poste and lunch, and it''s good that they can eat a variety of meat without getting bored. Of course, this is only possible thanks to Aella''s skill in cooking all kinds of meat. By the way, what are the chances that you can travel from your house to the dungeon? Hmmm, when my level doubles, it might be possible. That would take years, wouldn''t it? I haven''t improved much lately. I''ve been going to the temple as a matter of habit, but I haven''t fought many strong demons lately, so my leveling up has slowed down. I''ve been doing some training and mock battles, and I''m up to 20, but ......40 is a long way off. Fortunately, I have a long lifespan, so it''s not impossible if I continue to be a serious adventurer. ...... When Natsuki and the others retire, Haruka and I will probably retire too. "Well, what can''t be done, can''t be done. Here, Toya. The meat is here. Go get it. "Here we go. Toya responds lightly, draws her sword, and heads off to deal with the orcs. Come to think of it, we''ve grown up quite a bit. We''re no longer nervous of orcs. "So where is the transfer point? Now, where to set up the transfer point: ...... We came to the entrance of the dungeon while killing demons at random. Yuki and I walked around the area looking for a place to put the transfer point we took out of the magic bag. The one at home is randomly placed in the middle of a spare room, but that''s not the case here. The size of the transfer point itself is a board about 50 centimeters long and wide and 3 centimeters thick. You can step on it a little, but if you hit it with a weapon or a stone, it will break. Considering that there are demons roaming around, you can''t put it in a bad place, and if it''s not on a somewhat flat surface, you might lose your balance and get hurt when it comes back. Hmmm, should we bury it?¡¡If we bury it here, and harden it with earth magic, and then lightly cover it with dirt, it will be safe and look natural, don''t you think? Yuki then showed me a large square in front of the dungeon entrance. This is a place where skeletons used to hang out. The transfer point itself doesn''t have to be on the ground, so it''s possible. ...... No, is it a pretty good idea? "Yeah, that''s a good idea. There''s no good place for it. I don''t like the idea of it being destroyed, but it would be fatal if it were moved to a strange place. If it''s thrown in the river, it could drown the moment it''s transferred. "Right. I immediately dug out about 50 centimeters in the center of the square and set up a transfer point at the bottom. Cover it with soil and harden it with earth magic. Cover it with more soil. You won''t even know it''s there in a few days. It''s summer. It''s summer. The grass will be greener in a week. Now you can see where it''s been dug up, but I don''t think anyone''s going to come here and dig it up. Are you done? Yeah. Thanks for waiting. Let''s go in. Haruka and the others had been waiting in the dungeon where there was no sunlight, but they seemed to have come out when they saw that we were done. It''s too hot to just do a little work. Yuki wiped off her sweat, drank some cold tea from her magic bag, and handed it to me. I took it, drank it, and moved into the dungeon where there was no sunlight. I''m using magic, so it''s not so bad. I used Ground Control to dig and fill the hole, but it was hot enough just to be in the sun. If we were in the forest, the trees would have blocked some of the sunlight, but since the area in front of the dungeon was a square, we were completely exposed to direct sunlight. "Okay, our destination is the slope to the second level. Let''s make it quick. "Right. There aren''t many good demons in the first level. We followed Toya, who had started running, and headed for the small room where the slope to the second level was located. Perhaps because we hadn''t been here for a while, the number of demons had increased significantly, but we ignored the ones we could ignore and pushed on, arriving at the room a little past noon, earlier than expected. When I looked into the slope that had been blocked by the collapse, there was no sign of the collapse. I suppose I should say, "...... is indeed a dungeon. I''m not sure if it''s going to be blocked again when we get down there. What do you think?¡¡I don''t know how much it costs to run a dungeon, but it seems like it would cost a lot of money, don''t you think? If we assume that dungeons are operated by magic power or dungeon points or something like that, then Natsuki is right, this path or trap?¡¡If we assume that dungeons are operated with things like magic power or dungeon points, then as Natsuki says, this path or trap? Moreover, if the system works every time a party descends to the second layer, and returns to the original state when they go outside, then only one party can enter at a time, and the system seems to be inefficient. ...... Should we set up a transfer point first? Yes. That way, we can come back quickly. It''s not far from the bottom of the hill to this room, so even if I use Area Teleportation by myself, it won''t be enough to get stuck. "Well, let''s dig a hole. It''s a bit tricky. "Magic doesn''t work that well. As you would expect in a dungeon, there is not much impact on the surface, but if you try to use the "Ground Control" to control the depths, the amount of magic power consumed will increase. This may be because the dungeon doesn''t want you to take shortcuts by digging through walls, but it''s a bit troublesome. Digging by hand is not a problem, but the ground and walls of the dungeon, except for the shallow areas, are like solid rock, so it''s quite a challenge. Well, I can get by with a little bit of brute force, whether it''s magic or brute force. With Yuki''s help, I made a hole just barely big enough for the transfer point, and placed it at the bottom. Fill it with excavated soil and harden it. ...... Yeah, it''s working fine. I was a little worried about whether it would be a problem to bury it in the dungeon, but the transfer point responded properly. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and what you can do to help. 223-200 deeper Everything okay? I went down to the second level and looked back at the bottom of the slope, but there was no change in the path. I walked past the point where the last collapse had occurred and out of the room, but there was no sound of a collapse coming from the slope. Apparently, there was no need to worry about being trapped this time. Is this a one-time thing?¡¡Or is it detecting a party? I don''t even want to think about how sophisticated ...... is. It''s a fantasy. It''s a fantasy. The second layer of demons includes Pikkau, so it''s a bit tastier in a double sense for us. The main purpose is meat, because it can be sold at a higher price than the other monsters in the second layer. After a bit of overhunting for beefy meat, we headed for the stairs leading to the third level. On the way, I saw that the Tyrant Pickau had come back to life, so I took a good portion of that as well. The thick slices of lean steak from the Pickau were delicious, so it was no surprise. If it comes back in a month or so, it might be a good idea to come back occasionally. No ...... treasure chests? There is nothing in the place where the last treasure chest was, and the empty chest is gone. It''s a good thing that the magic circle next to it, where you can transfer to the ground, is still there. It''s hard for me to get to the ground from here now. I guess the treasure chest is not coming back. Like a reward for the first kill? Maybe. Then I''m tempted to hope, but ...... hasn''t given me any results yet, right? I''m not sure. At the welcome party, Diora said, "Please give us some more time. The pendant you found last time has been left at the adventurer''s guild, and the results have not yet been reported. It takes more than a month to appraise a single treasure, which is quite a hassle, but it seems promising and I''m looking forward to it. However, if a lot of treasures are obtained in this dungeon in the future, I would like to see some improvements. If you have to wait for a long time every time, it''s really ......?¡¡I''m not sure if this is a problem or not.¡¡It''s just a matter of mood. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website to see if you can find anything you need.¡¡Given the time frame. "Unless the appraiser''s job was full or something, yes. We''re leaving it before we go pinning. ...... Toya, I want to upgrade my appraisal. I''d like to know if it''s possible to appraise that type of special item?¡¡I''m not sure. I''m reading a book, though. In the large number of books he had bought, there were books on items and how to identify them, but because there were so many of them and they were not organized as instructional books, it seemed quite difficult. However, unlike me, Toya has the assistance of the [appraisal] skill, so I have a little bit of hope for her. ....... I''m sure you''ll have a great time. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... At any rate, just try to read books. If that doesn''t work, give up. "Right. I''ll give up then and collect more books. I have no money to spare for [appraisal]. At Haruka''s words, Toya seemed to swallow a stick for a moment, then nodded with a resigned expression, "I''ll try. Yeah, I know it''s a lot of work, but good luck. I think it''s very important to be able to appraise items. But I''m wondering how to place the ...... transfer point in this room. You can''t dig a hole. ...... The floor, walls, and ceiling of this room are covered with stone blocks, making it difficult to dig a hole. You can use earth magic to your advantage, or you can use a pickaxe to remove the blocks by force. ...... I''m not sure if the transfer point you''ve embedded can be used safely. It''s a dungeon. The transfer point that I buried in the ground by digging a little bit worked, but if it''s under a stone block, if the dungeon has a repair function, it might be disabled. The ground was dirt where Tyrant Pickau was, but it''s hard to transfer when he''s back. It''s too risky to go into battle in an unprepared state right after the transition. In a way, Tyrant Pickau is a sucker, but he''s strong in his own way. If he is attacked unprotected, he could die. Even if we know that he was resurrected after a month, we don''t know the interval between resurrections, so he may actually be resurrected in a few days. If that is the case, you will meet each other when you return. I''ll leave the transfer point here for now, and go downstairs. If the way back is blocked, how about we just transfer back, and if there''s no problem, we''ll go back to collect the transfer point and then continue on? How about we try that: ......? There were no other suggestions, so I placed the transfer point in the corner of the room and carefully descended the stairs, keeping an eye out for traps. The stairs were long enough for two people to walk side-by-side, perhaps a little longer than the first floor of a normal house. At the end of the stairs, we found a room similar to the one above, but twice as large. There was nothing but the stairs we had come down and one door. We all move away from the stairs and wait for a while, but ...... nothing happens. Is there any tendon? Tendon is ...... not as effective as a trap if you do the same thing. Well, it''s good that it''s not too much trouble. For now, let''s leave the room once. It is possible that there is a time difference. Following Haruka''s words, I went out the door of the room and came back, but the stairs were safe. Apparently, there really is no trap. We went back up, collected the transfer point, and went out of the room again. The passage was made of stone blocks, just like the room we came down from, with walls and flooring made of stone blocks. It''s a dungeon. It''s easy to map, isn''t it, with this structure? The passages are straight, the bends are right angles, the width of the passages is constant. Surely it''s much easier to map than the first and second levels. The problem is the strength of the enemies. ...... Let''s proceed with caution. Nao should be on the lookout for enemies, and Natsuki should watch out for traps. The rest of you keep your eyes peeled. "Got it. The third level is the first, second and third levels. The third layer was much more dense than the first and second layers. It''s not so bad if you''re standing still, but as soon as you move, you''ll encounter the enemy, and you''ll have to fight them repeatedly in short intervals. That being said, the difficulty level is not much higher than the second level, in fact it is not. The strength of the enemies themselves is only slightly increased, and the most important thing is the presence of small rooms that are frequently found. Up until now, we''ve been resting in the safety of our Sanctuary and searching for enemies, but it''s a bit difficult for ordinary adventurers to do this. In this level, however, there is a small room with only one door. Once you''ve checked inside and secured your safety, you can rest in relative peace simply by guarding the door. If you take that into account, the difficulty level may be lower than the second level. Another thing I didn''t expect was the size of the third level. We were expecting it to be as large as the first and second levels, but we didn''t find the stairs leading down until two days after we started exploring. It was on the third day that we completed the entire map. In terms of simple size, it''s less than half the size of the second level. This trend continued into the fourth level, and although we were unable to fill the fourth level by the scheduled return date, we were able to find the stairs to the fifth level. In spite of the size of the map, the number of treasure chests we found was high. We found five chests on all three levels, and another five on the fourth level. It''s not a huge number, but considering that there were two chests on the first level and one on the second level, it''s not an exaggeration to say that it''s a huge increase. However, the items inside were still a little delicate. Half of them were potions, and like the ones we found in the first layer, they were inferior to the ones Haruka and the others had made, wound potions and antidotes. I''m not sure what to make, but I''m sure it''s something that can be used in this dungeon. And since we are not hit by any poisonous attacks, we have no use for it. What''s more, if you don''t enter this dungeon, you won''t be able to sell the antidote in the town of Raffan, and even if you bring it to the guild, you''ll only get a couple of bucks. The remaining five items are an iron ingot, two daggers, and a shield. These are all things that can be easily identified by Toya''s "appraisal," which saves you the trouble of asking for an appraisal, but also means that they are not worth much. ....... In the end, we went home without much success in our search. I''m not sure what to say. Welcome home! "I''m home! Mary and the others greeted us with big smiles, and we greeted them back. We don''t feel lonely since Haruka and the others are here, but it''s nice to have someone to greet us when we get home. I''m so relieved that you''re home safe. I''m glad you''re home. We looked at each other and nodded at the relieved expressions on their faces. We were in the middle of exploring the fourth level, so it was a bit of a halfway point for us to return, but we thought that Mary and the others would be worried if we suddenly overshot our schedule, so we chose to return, and it seemed to be the right decision. Did you have any problems while you were away? "No problem. Oh, but Mr. Diora asked me to visit the Adventurer''s Guild, though it''s not urgent. Diora-san is at ......? Haruka tilted her head a little curiously when she heard that Diora-san, who is not usually a visitor, had come to visit. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure. It''s about time you finished your appraisal. You''re right. I''ll see you tomorrow. Nothing else? No. I''ve been tending to my garden, training and studying. Looking around, it is true that the garden seems to have been tidied up quite a bit. At least, there is not a lot of weeds in the area visible from the front. It''s looking pretty good. You did a great job. Good job. "No, of course not. Mary shakes her head, but her cheeks relax a little with happiness. "Me too!¡¡I worked hard too! "Well. Well, thank you too, Mitya. "Heh. I patted her head and she smiled shyly as she jumped up and down. Are you eating well? "I''m fine. I made my own food and ate it. Before going out, Haruka and the others had prepared the food and put it in the storage room, but it seems that they were reluctant to do so, and cooked the food themselves using what they had purchased. They said they were doing it for practice as well. ....... I see. Well then, let''s have a fancy dinner today, shall we? You did it!¡¡Your sister''s food wasn''t very good! Mary''s face flushed red in protest at Mitya''s very honest words. "Mee!¡¡It''s better than it used to be! But it''s not as good as what Yuki and her sisters make. "Ugh. That''s true, but ...... I''m not sure if Mary could deny Mitya''s words, but she was at a loss for words and looked a little frustrated. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Well, well, well. You''ll get better at it, Mary. Will you help me cook again today? "Yes, of course! Mary replied cheerfully, and Yuki and the others were so excited by her attitude that dinner that night was indeed a bit sumptuous. 224-S017 Daily life of Toya (1) On a rest day between dungeon exploration, I went into the city alone. I invited Nao to join me, but she refused, saying, "I''m too tired. I asked Nao to join me, but she refused, saying that she was tired and needed to sleep. Well, it seems he was making something with Haruka and the others, so I guess it can''t be helped. The members have many things to do even in peacetime, but all I can do is fight. The [Kurosmithing] skill that I took as a production skill became almost useless after Tommy''s appearance. Now that I have all the pots and pans I need to fill my storage, I only make extra pots and pans once in a while, and the rest is completely a hobby. I am no longer called upon to make difficult blacksmithing products. I have enough money to order from professionals. By the way, I''ve been making shuriken lately. Not the ones with the spikes, but the stick shuriken. The reason is simple. Because it would be cool to use! If you go to a weapon shop, you''ll find a lot of shuriken. You can find throwing knives and the like in most weapon shops, but I prefer a stick shuriken that looks a little more rugged. We are still practicing making and throwing them, so it will be a while before we show them off. It''s quite difficult. If you don''t think about the center of gravity, when you hit the target, you''ll hit it with your butt, not the blade. If I asked Tommy to make one for me, he could probably do it quickly, but since it''s a hobby, it''s not a problem. Trial and error is what makes it fun. But that hobby is off today. The key to not getting bored is to do it in moderation. "Well, where should I go? ...... It''s a good thing I came out to play, but there are almost no places to play in Raffan. I heard that there are some theaters around Pining, but I''m not really interested in theater. I''d like to go to a more popular theater like Yose, but unfortunately there are none, nor are there any street performances. So, the entertainment for the common people in this town is "drinking, hitting and buying. There is no ...... drinking. You can drink ale if you have Haruka and others chill it for you, but just because you can drink it doesn''t mean you want to. The same goes for wine. If you don''t think "I''m cool and mature enough to drink alcohol," you''d be better off drinking juice. It''s not cool to get drunk on yourself instead of on alcohol. I''ve heard that there are gambling dens in the area where we live, but I''ve never been to one. I''ve never been to a gambling parlor. It''s a gambling place where the parents always win. I''ll buy it. I''m honestly interested in this one. It is said to be the oldest business in the world, and there is an entertainment district even in rural Laffan. "...... Okay, let''s go, shall we? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. If Haruka tells him not to go, he won''t go even if you ask him. Maybe it''s because he''s an elf, but he seems to have a slightly weaker s*xual desire. That''s just experience, right? I twist my neck, making excuses to something. But ......, what should I do? I''ve never been to a s*x shop when I was in Japan, of course. I was a high school student. I was a high school student. Even Diora, the person to turn to in times of trouble, didn''t feel comfortable asking this question. Since she usually deals with adventurers, she might be able to tell us easily, but it would surely be passed on to Haruka and the others. The best person to talk to is ...... Tommy? No, he''s a dwarf. Gantz is a married man, and Simon is ...... already dead. There are a few other guys whose names I know, but they''re not the kind of guys you can ask for advice. But it''s not like I''m just going to barge in. ...... It''s not like I''m in a desperate need to get laid by anyone. It''s not that I''m in desperate need of a "let anyone f*ck me! I don''t want to pay money for a painful experience. Let''s just go to the red-light district. Thinking about it here will get you nowhere. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to think of anything once I get there, so I walked over to the area where they are. I''m not sure what to do. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! I ate lunch at home and came out, so it was late afternoon. It was probably not the prime time for the brothels, but they seemed to be open for business. I walked along the street, looking around the various brothels. I''ve passed by the brothels before, but this was the first time I''ve actually taken a good look at them, because of the way the women were looking at me. There are three main types of brothels that line the streets. The first was a brothel that at first glance looked like a restaurant. However, there are some obvious differences between them. First of all, the number of waitresses is unnaturally large compared to the number of seats. Furthermore, there is a private room in the same building. This is also the case with places such as the Kumatei, where a bar and an inn are combined, but the big difference is that no one stays in the bar part for a long time. They either come out in a short time or disappear into the back with the girls. The bar area is a kind of waiting room. The second is the brothel-like brothel. The second is a brothel that looks like a brothel, with a wide frontage and beautiful women sitting side by side, visible from the outside. --Or should I honestly say that there are beautiful women mixed in? Of course, you have your preferences. ...... Yes. Let''s just say that there are variations in looks and proportions. This type of brothel is the most glamorous because they also tout their wares in their stores. And finally, the third type of brothel is set up as if they don''t allow visitors at first sight. First of all, you cannot see inside. The door is open. The door is open, but there is a thin silk-like material hanging from it, and when the wind blows, you can only catch a glimpse of the inside. This is well done. You can see the face of the prostitute or not. A true flicker! I don''t know what to think, but the girls seem to be of a high standard! But to go in here without thinking is to be an amateur - well, I''m an amateur, but I''m an amateur who thinks a little. I turned around and went into a (very ordinary) bar near the entrance to the s*x district and ordered a drink. The price he tells me is a bit high, but that''s the price of information. You pay the price, take a sip, and call out to the old man behind the counter. "Hey, Dad, I''ve got a question for you, if that''s okay. "Yeah, sure. I know what you want to ask me, though. There''s only one thing people come here for. Is that right?¡¡...... Well, yeah, I guess so. You can''t help but agree with the smirking father. If all you wanted was to drink, you wouldn''t have bothered to come to this place. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what I''m going to ask you when a guy who looks like he''s not used to it (me, that is) walks in. "First of all, the most affordable type. The most affordable type. Prices start at a few large silver coins, but don''t expect much. They won''t even let you in, if that''s what you''re thinking. As the name implies, it''s the first type of brothel I mentioned. In short, there are brothels where it''s easy to get f*cked by hand or mouth and that''s it. It depends on the price and your appearance. If you are older or less good-looking, the service is better, and if you are younger and better-looking, the service is worse. That''s the business and economic principle. It''s a good thing you don''t do anything wrong.¡¡There are scary guys out there. If you don''t want to get in trouble, decide exactly what you want to do and negotiate the price before you buy. I''ve heard that experienced people decide how many times they want to play, what they want to play, and how long they want to play before buying. He also taught me how to negotiate those basics, but ...... that''s a lot of hurdles for a beginner, man. He also told me a crude joke that I should go to a restaurant and fill my stomach, even though I didn''t ask him to. I know what it means, but I''ll never have a chance to use it! If I told it to Nao and Haruka and the others found out, my life would be in danger. The second one is a regular brothel. The second one is a brothel.¡¡You pick a whore you like. This one starts at a few gold pieces. It''s a little expensive, but for a newbie like you, this is a good place to start. Even if you''re not used to it, they''re good at it. You won''t be disappointed and you won''t have to worry about getting sick. Is it dangerous to eat at the restaurant? It''s cheap. That''s what the customers are like. No, it''s not. If I had my [Robust Lv.5], I might be able to fight off STDs, but if I can''t, then I''m in trouble. If I ask either Haruka or Natsuki to treat me, what kind of punishment is that? But I''m too scared to go to a dubious doctor or use drugs. If Nao can heal herself, that would be a solution, but she doesn''t seem to be planning to learn light magic at the moment. Well, that''s to be expected. There are already two wielders, so if they have the time, they''ll train for something else. The last one is the Blue Tower. You know those brothels you can''t see inside?¡¡Needless to say, it''s the most expensive brothel. 10 gold pieces minimum. It''s a bit out of your league, though. The old man looked at my appearance and shrugged his shoulders. ...... No, I can pay. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to afford it. I''ve got about fifty of them with me. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. The service and the quality of the women are perfect, but the problem is the price. But it''s worth it, you know? By the way, are there any beastmen? In the Blue Room? No, not even in the brothel. No, I don''t think so. It''s hard to do business in this town where there are no beastmen. I heard that even if there is no discrimination, there are still a certain number of people who avoid them as s*xual objects. I don''t understand it, but is it like dealing with foreigners? If there was a s*x industry with beasts in Japan, I would have been happy to go to it. ...... I guess that''s how it is in the real world. I''m not sure if I''m the type of person who can''t get excited unless I''m with my own kind. No, I''m not. I don''t think so. Well, don''t worry. At least in brothels and blue houses, you won''t be rejected just because you''re a beast. Oh, so that''s a possibility. You can''t even go to a brothel in a country that discriminates against animals. And then there''s the ''tachinbo'', but don''t get him. Sickness is not so bad, and if you''re bad, you''ll be stripped down to nothing. It''s not likely that you''ll get killed, but it''s not zero. A tachinbo is a prostitute who stands on a street corner and touts. They are even cheaper than a restaurant, and they do their business in the back alleys. If you pay them, they can take you to a lodging house, but it is not recommended because you might lose your virility if you f*ck them in a bright place. I didn''t see anything like that on ......? "It''s still light. They don''t come out until the sun is about to go down. It''s more convenient in the dark. It''s even better when the customers are drunk. It is said that there is a reason why they do not belong to a bakery and work as tachinbo. Incidentally, the status of a prostitute in this world is not low, and if you are a prostitute in a blue house, you may not be as good as a courtesan in Japan, but you are considered to be better than the common people. It is unlikely that it is because they are concerned about their appearance, since they are not despised in ordinary brothels or eating houses, but for other reasons such as their intention to commit crimes, their appearance is particularly inferior, or they have diseases. There are also male prostitutes in the area.¡¡There''s only one, though. I''m not interested in that! It''s gonna be popular, though, isn''t it? I''m not happy. That''s a crazy thing to say! By the way, the male prostitutes I''m talking about here are for men, and there are several for women. I guess it''s the same for men and women. "By the way, I''d like to ask ...... about birth control. I don''t know.¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure what you''re talking about. At least, there was no such convenient magic as "birth control magic" in the magic books at home. It''s not surprising that light magic, which specializes in healing, doesn''t have it, but neither do fire, wind, water, and earth. It could be dark magic, but I don''t have any dark grimoires at home. No, I''m curious. What if it''s your kid? I don''t think so. A store can''t do business if it has a child. Well, I don''t know much about it, but they''re using a combination of methods to deal with it. Hmmm... drugs, not going out to the store when it''s easy to have a baby, that sort of thing? I''m not sure if they sell condoms or not. Oh, and by the way, what about male prostitutes for women? They''re seedless. They use drugs to treat it. Oh, my God. ...... I was a little jealous of that, but now it''s gone. It''s hard because you can''t choose your partner in the first place, that''s for sure. I think it''s the same for men and women. It''s a business, so it''s not so easy. After that, I got some information from the old man about recommended stores, and went out to the entertainment district again. My destination was one of the two blue houses in this town. When I walked past it earlier, I caught a glimpse of a girl I liked. I couldn''t decide whether to go to a regular brothel or a blue house, but I have money and I can''t come here often anyway. Besides, what can I say? ...... The first time is always important, right? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. That''s why I came to the Blue Tower, but ...... I couldn''t make up my mind. I walked around in front of the Blue Tower again and again for a while. I was a perfect suspicious person. But I can''t go on like that forever. Time is limited. My parents aren''t around, and Haruka and the others probably won''t scold me if I go home in the morning, but they''ll definitely ask me why. I don''t have the confidence to cover it up! I can say that with pride. So I need to be home at a reasonable hour. "...... Okay. Let''s go. Let''s go! For the umpteenth time. I whispered to myself, and finally, I took that first step. A few hours later, I saw a beast. A few hours later, a beastman was standing in front of the Blue Tower with a gutless look on his face. Yes, that''s me. ".................. is bad. I''m not sure what to say. ...... Yeah, it felt good. Dreamy?¡¡Even though it was my first time, he led me well. It''s amazing what a pro can do. No, seriously. But the price was a lightened wallet. "High-end" is not an exaggeration! "If I get into this, even I''ll go bankrupt. ......? I''m sure I''ll be making a lot of money with the Rafan, but this is it. It''s not a place you can go to, you know. It''s for the aristocracy, or once-in-a-lifetime for the common people. And then there''s the fool who''s ready to go broke. Of course, I''m not stupid. So... Once a year ........., or even once every six months, I can manage ....... Geez, six months ......, three months ......, no, that''s not good. The experience and the lighter wallet. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. And God only knows when I''ll actually visit here again. ...... 225-201 Gobgob "The appraisal results for the pendant are in. As Toya had expected, it was Diora who greeted us when we visited the guild. Diora put the pendant on the counter and continued to speak. "This was a very powerful anti-magic pendant. "Anti-magic means that it can prevent magic? "It doesn''t prevent magic, it reduces it. If you want to sell it, you can get a pretty good price for it. ...... Hmm. ...... What do you want? What should we do?" Diora asked, and we thought for a moment and shook our heads. It''s better to have it. For safety reasons. For those of us who have a basic policy of "value your life," a little money and the safety of our friends do not balance on the same scale. Even if we had to cut back on our living, we would not have the option of selling them. Is that so? Also, as a reminder, all magic is subject to the effects of anti-magic. The same goes for support and recovery spells, so be careful. "...... Oh, so it''s not just attack magic? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''re right. I''ve never found anything as convenient as that before. In the same way that attack magic usually involves allies, magic tools do not seem to be able to distinguish between magic used by allies and magic used by enemies. It might be a different story if the magic itself could be embedded with an identification signal between friend and foe. ...... Well, in reality, that''s probably impossible. It would be impossible to do so in reality, because it would require the user to be able to make the anti-magic magic tools themselves, and the magic user to have a very high level of skill. It would be much easier to change the method of operation than to do such a sophisticated thing. Incidentally, we have a skill called [magic barrier], but it is not completely selective. If you are willing to accept it, recovery magic will work as usual, but if you are not thinking about it, resistance will increase slightly, and if you are willing to reject it, it will be harder to be affected. The difference between this spell and the anti-magic spell is that you can switch immediately at will. However, it is not possible to resist frontal attack spells and accept recovery spells from behind - at least not at present - so you need to be careful. How difficult is it to ...... keep the front of the body tense and the back muscles relaxed? If you are a master of bodywork, you may be able to do this, but it is probably impossible for us. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, then you''re going to want to take a look at the following tips. But if you are attacked by a different attribute, it has no effect? Yes. However, fire magic is often used to attack, so fire anti-magic tools are sold at a particularly high price. We also use fire arrows as our main offensive magic. You can get enough offensive power with wind, earth, and water magic these days, but you have to get used to it. However, I''ve been thinking about the future, and have been trying to kill my enemies with non-fire magic. Conveniently, I should say, because the enemies in the dungeon are weak. Another weakness, or characteristic, of the anti-magic tool is that it is ineffective if you use magic on ...... contact. ...... So, if I hold your hand directly and use recovery magic, I won''t be affected by the magic tool? Yes. However, this also applies to attack magic, so it is dangerous if there are enemies who use magic on contact. --But if they touch you, it''s a problem before magic. I''d rather stab them with a knife than use magic on them. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that. In fact, it is not easy to fight a close battle while using magic. It''s not impossible, because we have been training to increase the number of hands, but it''s quite difficult to use attack magic on contact,....... In particular, fire magic, if you are not careful, you may end up blowing yourself up. It''s also possible that if Haruka and his team''s recovery magic is greatly improved, they might be able to use it to cut the flesh off the bones in case of an emergency, but with the current regeneration, even if you lose a finger, it''s not easy to heal. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure.¡¡If anything, it''s Natsuki. I''d rather have Natsuki, considering her strength. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to get a lot more out of it. And in our case, with the exception of Toya, there is not much difference in physical ability. And who do you think looks better with that pendant, me or Natsuki? I don''t have to answer that. Right? Another thing to add is that if Natsuki is injured, she can heal herself. In that case, since it''s a spell that you cast on yourself, it won''t be affected by the anti-magic pendant. Then, Natsuki, come on. Are you sure? When I picked up the pendant and presented it to Natsuki, she looked at Haruka and Yuki a little reservedly, but they nodded without any objection. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I understand. Thank you for your time. ...... Since you''re here, Nao, can you put it on? Me?¡¡Well, that''s okay. Wait a minute. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Oh, what''s wrong? I gave up the pendant, but what about it?¡¡I wonder? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be pleased with the results. You can''t help it. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you can do it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Hmm ....... I''m not sure what to say. ...... What are you talking about? "Well, take care of yourself. It''s important to have relationships within the party, okay? Thanks for the advice. I don''t think Natsuki is that serious, so there''s probably no problem ......, right? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡How was it? "Not so good. We found about ten treasure chests, though. ...... As he said this, Toya laid out on the counter the potions and ingots he found in the treasure chests. There are no bosses this time, so there''s nothing to ask for an appraisal. Diora probably knew that at a glance, but after picking up each item and checking it over, she made a troubled expression. I''m sorry you''re disappointed this time. Do you want to buy them? "Not this time, but that''s basically a disappointing dungeon. Please buy it. Yes, sir. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. You can earn more than this in a single day in winter. --You''ll be able to get a lot more than that in a single day in the winter. I am aware that I am being a bit extravagant. After three days of rest, we went to the dungeon again. This time, we told Mary and the others that it might be a little longer, and that they could eat the food in the storage room without hesitation, so we were going to dive longer depending on the situation. Even if we ignore the demons and keep running, we''ll need about two days to reach the fourth level. This means that you have to dive for a long time to have time to explore. Considering this, it is very nice that there is a magic circle at the end of the second level for returning home, but if I were to be extravagant, I would like to have a magic circle at the entrance that can take you to the desired level. If the levels of the dungeon were neatly overlapping, you could skip them with "area teleportation", but they''re off to the side, you know. Of course there are overlapping areas, but the map shows that the stairs to the third level and the entrance to the dungeon are about five kilometers apart in a straight line. Even at that distance, I can somehow sense the transition point, but at present, I can only measure the distance, and it doesn''t look like I can make the transition. However, looking at the map Yuki made, it seems that the top and bottom of layers 3 and 4 overlap quite a bit, so I''m hoping that I might be able to shorten the travel time. That''s how I got to the unexplored area of the fourth level on the second day. After collecting two treasure chests that day, we proceeded to the fifth level, and when the map of the fifth level was mostly filled, Yuki growled at us while showing us the map. "Hmm, maybe there''s a boss up ahead? I don''t know. ...... Oh, I have a feeling that''s where it''s going to be. It''s really just a vague impression, but the map seems to have a boss room. And since we''ve come down three levels since the last boss, it''s probably about time there was a boss-like enemy. But the interval is a bit short, isn''t it?¡¡In the book, it said five or ten levels. In most cases, right?¡¡Sometimes there aren''t any, so it can be short, sometimes. According to our collection of books, which included several books on dungeons, dungeons have strong enemies at every level that must be defeated in order to advance. The interval is often every ten levels. Sometimes every five levels. There don''t seem to be many other cases, but it seems that they do exist. In this case, a boss-like Tyrant Pickau appeared out of nowhere on the second level, so I guess it''s an exception. By the way, just like we''re ducking Tyrant Pickau, you can''t just walk right past him even if you''ve killed him once, and even if you haven''t killed him before, you can still walk right past him if he hasn''t been resurrected yet. You have to kill the boss to proceed, but you don''t necessarily have to kill him yourself. "What do you think the boss is, if there is one? "Considering Pickau, a Tyrant Goblin? Yeah. We didn''t have much trouble, so we didn''t talk about it, but actually, from the third to the fifth level, it was an entire goblin floor. There weren''t many normal goblins, but there were goblin scouts, goblin fighters, goblin archers, goblin leaders, and other goblin variants. From our point of view, they were all small fry, but in a way they were perfect for training, as they attacked us in parties of several different types. The strongest enemies are the goblin leaders. The strongest enemies are the goblin leaders, the generals, and the kings. They didn''t show up, but... "Normally, the boss would be the king. What are the chances he''ll come out with a general or something? If there''s going to be a Tyrant, then it wouldn''t be surprising if there''s going to be an ordinary King. There have been so many goblins in the world, and yet there has been no king. No, a king would be too much, wouldn''t it?¡¡If you think about Orcs, a king is equivalent to more than ten thousand of them, right? "That was an assumption, right?¡¡I don''t think you''re wrong. So, captain, or worse, general? I don''t think you''re wrong. We got ready and stood in front of the door. Leading the way is Toya. He looks back at us, nods, and opens the door at once. "!¡¡Captain 2, General 1, take the right! I''m going left! I''m going to the left!" Toya shouted when he saw the room, and immediately began to move. At the same time, Natsuki also starts running. Just as Toya shouted, there were three goblins in the room. All of them were larger than normal goblins, and all of them had weapons in their hands. The goblin in the center of the room stood out from the rest, holding a slightly larger sword with a metallic sheen, while the goblins on either side held rusty swords. Needless to say, he''s probably the Goblin General. ""Fire Arrow!" The magic flew almost simultaneously. Three flaming arrows headed for the goblin general. Speed before numbers. The goblin general was pierced by the three arrows that arrived in the blink of an eye - and just as he thought that, the sword he was holding swung out sharply, and one of the flaming arrows disappeared. But that was as far as it went. There were three arrows that were released. Even if you cut off one of the arrows, you will not be able to deal with the two arrows that will arrive in no time. One gouged his shoulder and dropped his arm, and the other wiped out about a third of his face. Not surprisingly, the goblin general could not survive in such a state, and he fell forward in the same position as he had drawn his sword, and stopped moving. Almost without pause, the goblin captain that Toya had confronted had his head crushed, and Natsuki''s head was cut off, ending the battle easily. 226-202 Meat Area "Phew. ....... Everyone, are you alright? Natsuki let out a small breath after carefully making sure that none of the three animals moved. No problem. I was a little surprised when they cut off my magic, though. Yeah. I agree. I was a little shocked that it was probably my Fire Arrow that got cut off. To be frank, I''ve never had an enemy that could deal with the Fire Arrow that I used for speed. In the past, he had been able to duck and miss his target, but he had never been able to hit it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I almost did a double-take for a second. Toya, did you even have time to look? Out of the corner of my eye, yeah. That''s what I call a general. The goblin captain that Toya defeated was a little further forward, so it was not impossible to see him. ...... Well, it''s good to have a wide field of vision and a lot of room. It''s a good thing you have a wide field of vision and plenty of room. I''m not sure if it''s better to use two of them, even if it costs more magic. The other thing to do is to increase the speed or consider the line of fire. Instead of shooting straight ahead. If you use two at the same time, you''re less likely to be cut down, but you''re also more likely to be avoided, so ...... training is required. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. However... It was easier to kill than I thought, wasn''t it?¡¡For a general? Well, they''re not generals or captains, they''re goblins. A goblin''s magic stone is 250 rares, an orc is 3,000 rares. That''s a lot of difference, isn''t it? "As a rule of thumb, even if you say it''s equivalent to thousands of goblins, you''re only saying that you sometimes lead that many. That''s what it''s like when you''re alone. I see. The reason the higher species is a threat is because when you encounter them, you encounter a lot of cronies at the same time. It''s true that even if they are goblins, it''s pretty hard to be attacked by them in tandem. A goblin king would have 10,000 goblins?¡¡I''m sure it''s scary when you mix that with variations like generals and entanglements like archers. It''s true that numbers are power. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it by visiting our website. However, with the Fireball, even with some enhancement, it would probably only be able to blow up about ten of them. If it could be enhanced further, it would probably be able to use the Explosion. However, considering the expected amount of magic power required, it will only be able to deal with a thousand of them at best. A level 9 Rain of Fire or a level 10 Firestorm might be able to take on an army, but I''d rather not find myself in a situation where I need that kind of magic. I don''t want to be in a situation where I need that kind of magic. If you can cut off the fire arrow, it might be a little hard to fight with a sword. You can do it too, right?¡¡The sword is made of steel. I think I can, but I don''t have the experience. We haven''t fought many enemies with swords, have we?¡¡Except for each other. Well, maybe skeletons. Aside from training with our friends, we''ve only fought skeletons, ...... and bandits. They were small fry. If that''s what you think, why don''t you try fighting them next time you''re here?¡¡No magic. That might be a good idea. Maybe we can train. It might improve your skills. Yeah, it''s a good idea. As long as you can kill them with magic, you can ensure a certain level of safety, and they might be good training partners. Well, that''s a story for when the boss comes back. We threw the corpse into the magic bag and picked up the two rusty swords and the goblin general''s sword. This sword is ...... garbage. Garbage iron. This one is ...... "Goblin General''s Sword". It can cut magic, so is it worth it? "Attribute steel - our swords can do that, right?¡¡If it''s made of white iron, does that mean it''s more expensive than a sword made of white iron? Whoa!¡¡That''s a little bonus?¡¡That''s great. It''s not a very good name, though. Yeah, it''s a little awkward. Do you want it, Toya? Why not?¡¡There''s no need to use it at all! It looks like a normal sword ......, but it''s a bit shabby, and it''s not as good as the sword we made. It will be sold to the guild as usual. Toya took the sword from Haruka and threw it into his magic bag, and then threw the rusty sword into his magic bag as well. That''s it. Let''s move on. The door has appeared. Just as Toya had said, a few moments after we had killed the goblins, a door appeared in the back of the room, just as it had when we had killed the Tyrant Pickau. I opened the door and found myself in the same room as before, with a staircase leading to the next level, a magic circle, and a treasure chest. "First kill bonus again? I''m not sure if it''s a bonus or not. Natsuki, please. Yes, sir. As usual, Natsuki examines the trap and opens the lid. We peeked in, and Yuki stuck her hand in and picked it up. "As usual, the treasure chest is unnecessarily large. Is it a crystal ball?¡¡It''s cloudy. A milky white pearl the size of a palm - about the size of a dumpling on a spit. Maybe it''s jewelry, maybe it''s an item with some kind of effect. "Toya, can you tell? I''m not sure what it is, but I''m sure it''s something. "Ah, it''s a ''jewel''. I don''t know the details. Sorry. To Diora again. It''s going to take the same amount of time this time, isn''t it? There''s a chance it won''t, but in that case, it won''t be worth much. It''s a good idea to have a good appraiser to help you with the process. The best thing would be to have a good appraiser stationed at Laffan, but that''s not going to happen. But it''s unlikely. Incidentally, the [Help] function, which has been getting less and less use lately, still shows "Pearl". It''s not common knowledge, so I guess it can''t be helped, but it''s a little sad because it consumed a lot of points. --No, it was very useful when I made my character, and it helped me when I first came here, so I guess it was well worth the points. Thanks to my visit to the temple of Advaustris, I can use it to identify the names of demons. In addition, if you look at the pendant that Natsuki is currently wearing, you can see the information that Diora told her, so it''s useful as a reminder, and it''s not worthless outside of demons. I''ll hold off for now. I''m not sure if this magic circle is going to go straight to the exit? I''d say so, given the trend. ....... I''d like to leave a transfer point here for now. Even if the way back is good, the way there is troublesome. For this reason, transfer magic and transfer points are essential. According to Yuki''s map, this location is close to the second level, just below the magic circle. So, considering the straight line distance, it shouldn''t be too difficult to transfer from there to here. --If you can set up a transfer point. Incidentally, it seems to be quite difficult to move from inside a dungeon to outside a dungeon, and vice versa. According to the book, a dungeon is a kind of separate world, and does not actually exist under the ground. Since only the entrance is "connected to the original world," we can check the transition point we placed at the entrance from inside the dungeon, but we can''t look for the transition point directly above it on the second level, for example. This is because there is no "ground directly above". That is what another world is all about. Hmmm, should we try under the stone? "Well, yes. I guess I''ll just have to give it a shot. If I fail, I''ll lose my transfer point. It''s not cheap, but it''s a necessary expense, that''s all. You can make it for the cost of materials. Well, if there are more dungeons of this type, it will be impossible to fill them. The only options are to leave it on the pavement to be lost or damaged, or to embed it under the stone to avoid the possibility of being captured by the dungeon. Incidentally, I heard that the adventurer''s guilds maintain the transfer devices in dungeons by constantly posting guards and constructing sturdy buildings. Considering the costs involved, it is understandable that they cannot be installed so easily. Let''s try to remove the stone pavement. Toya, please. Yeah, I''ll do it. The heavy lifting is Toya''s job. I''m sorry, but it''s inevitable, considering the huge difference in strength between us. Toya pulls out a pickaxe from his magic bag, inserts it into the gap between the stones, which are about 30 centimeters on each side, and jiggles it around. When the stone rises a little, I shove the shovel into the gap. I moved the pickaxe further, shifting the stone little by little. ....... "Here we go! The cobblestone was about 20 centimeters thick when Toya lifted it up and rolled it to the ground. Oh, that''s pretty thick. ....... Well, if we can get one, the rest will be easy. He put his hand into the spot where Toya had pulled it out and removed three more blocks of stone. Beneath them was a flat bedrock. I used a pickaxe to scrape it away, set up a transition point, and put back the soil I had scraped away. Now all we have to do is put it back. "Gently, gently. If you drop it, you''ll break the transfer point. What? After stopping Toya from trying to reattach it, I picked up one of the stone blocks and tried to use Light Weight. ...... Hmm, in this condition, it will work normally? I put the lightened block back in place. "Oh?¡¡Oh?¡¡...... I see. When you put it back, the effect wears off pretty quickly. Maybe it''s like the structure of a dungeon again. I''ll put the rest back in.¡¡Okay? Oh, thank you. Toya carefully put back the remaining three blocks, then tapped them lightly to flatten the surface. "...... Phew. Now it looks like it''s back together. What do you think? The only difference is that there are a few pickaxe marks left on the blocks. I can detect the transfer point without any ...... problem. No problem. I''d love it if it stayed that way. ...... I''m fine too. I''d like it to last at least six months, if not a year. If it doesn''t, I''ll probably have to quit exploring dungeons sooner or later. There''s too much time wasted. That''s true. So far, there''s no reason to enter except in the summer. ...... Well, let''s move on, shall we? Okay. We have no use for this room once we''ve set up the transfer point, and it''s too early to return. We put away the pickaxe and went down the stairs to the sixth level,......, which was a bit unexpected. What can I say? ...... To put it simply, it''s a meat hierarchy. First, the sixth level. This is where the Flame Boar and Flame Peacock come in. To put it simply, they are pork and poultry. The Flame Boar is different from the Task Boar in that it is classified as a demon, and it is a rather nasty demon that breathes fire. ......, but through the nose. The moment you see it, all of you will be able to say, "It''s a nose! The moment we saw it, we all said, "A nose? The shocking and hilarious sight made Toya''s sword muscles go wild for a moment, so it must have had some effect, but his head fell right after that, so it was just a one-shot deal. The flame breath also had a short range, less than two meters, so it wasn''t too scary as long as you knew what you were doing. The Flame Peacock is a bird demon with wings that look a bit like a peacock''s. It attacks by flying its wings. It is a little smaller than a normal peacock, and its wings are only about a meter long, but its wings are flaming red, and when it flies, its wings actually burn. When it appears with the Flame Boar, its long-distance attack is a bit troublesome, but it has a weakness in that it cannot fly unless its wings are spread out, so it is too obvious to be called an attack motion. Its wings can only be cut off with a sword, and its other attacks are limited to poking with its beak or scratching with its feet, making it very weak once you get close to it. It is a mere duck to me and Natsuki, who have long arms. Its name is Peacock. The meat you get is a very intense red even after removing the blood, which is a little strange for a bird, but that''s about it. The meat itself tastes like broiler meat, and Haruka and his friends thought it was very useful. The two birds that appeared on the seventh level were the Frozen Jubois and the Armed Tail Grypt. The Frozen Jubois is a 30-centimeter-long, bouncing rat. It bounces around quickly, not only on the ground, but also on walls and ceilings. Its movement is a bit annoying, but it''s weak because it can kill you with one hit. It''s hard to hit with magic, but it''s durable enough to be easily killed by Haruka or Yuki''s attacks. What makes it special is that it is frozen from the start. When it is fighting, it moves flexibly, but the moment it dies, it becomes stiff. You can''t drain the blood out of it, and it''s difficult to dismantle, so I thought, "Honestly, what do you think? But according to the book, this is a good idea. But according to the book, this is a good idea. First of all, it is better to cook the fish as it is, without thawing it and draining the blood. I tried it grilled, and it was indeed delicious. It''s not that it has no peculiarities, but it is very peculiar in a way, but that accentuates the taste. Unexpectedly. No wonder they don''t need to be bled. And one more thing. It seems that the frozen meat will keep for several days at room temperature if you don''t cut it too badly. Needless to say, this is very helpful for adventurers who don''t have magic bags or can''t use water magic to freeze meat. Is the Armed Tail Grypt a mammal? It is a missile-like creature with a hard armor-covered tail that curls up like a shrimp and flies towards you with its tail. It is propelled by water from its mouth, and sometimes it sprays water directly at you, so it is not to be underestimated. It is quite difficult to cut through it, but I was able to strike it with Toya''s sword in one blow. The drawback is that if you avoid the attack, it will fly far away from you. Although it says it is edible, it is not as rare as the frozen jubois, so it is currently lying in the magic bag. 227-203 Continued Meat Area On the eighth level, we encountered a ripper hair and a big ostrich. They were a rabbit and a big ostrich, both of which were flying at us. The rabbits are slightly larger than jumbo rabbits, and they move rather slowly, but the flies are quite annoying and difficult to see. It is somewhat easier to grasp by sensing its magic power, but it is difficult to avoid if you are not used to it. However, the power is not that great, and even if it cuts through your clothes, the chainmail you wear underneath will only stop it, so if it doesn''t hit an exposed area, such as your face, it won''t hurt you. The Big Ostrich is truly big. It''s a big ostrich with "big" attached to it, so it''s big. Its head is so high above our heads that it almost scrapes the ceiling of the dungeon. Its beak, swung from that height, is powerful enough to shatter the stones on the floor, and its kicks, delivered while running around at high speed, are so powerful that even Toya would be kicked away if he were not careful. Fortunately, however, they do not swarm, but attack alone, so it is quite easy to kill them by avoiding them, aiming at their legs, or cutting off their heads. It is also effective to aim at its neck with the Sickle Wind (Air Cutter), and once you get used to it, you can cut off its head before it gets close and get a lot of meat without much effort. It''s also a great way to get a lot of money for your business. It''s a good thing we didn''t find any treasure chests in this meat level. ...... I''m not sure what to make of this. Now that we''ve got a lot of meat, it looks like ...... that''s over. The boss room, I think. At the far end of the eighth level, a familiar door appeared in front of me. What do you think it is this time? In the past, this has been a pattern, it''s a higher level of the enemies that have appeared in this area. It''s a little scary to think that it''s a higher version of the ...... Big Ostrich. I''m not sure what to make of that. I completely agree with you. I don''t want to think about a higher species of that thing. No, it''s not a big deal in terms of strength, but if that thing gets even bigger, there''s no place to run. No matter where you are in the room, its beak will rain down from above your head. I don''t like that either, though it would take a lot of meat. The overwhelming disparity in body size is nothing to sneeze at. There are two kinds of rabbits out there. ...... What are the odds it''s a rabbit? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use the same name for both. For me, it''s the boar.¡¡For me, it would be a boar, strength-wise. The giant ostrich might be a suitable boss in a sense, but if you exclude it, the next best thing would be the Flame Boar. It''s also a little awkward to have a higher-ranked rabbit as a boss, and a higher-ranked Armed Tail Grypt seems a little too difficult. Even a sword can''t penetrate its armor-covered tail, but if it gets even bigger and harder, even Toya''s blunt sword will have a hard time. All right, are you ready?¡¡The correct answer is ...... "Tyrant Flame Boar". Nao is the correct answer. He was the first to open the door, and stepped into the room. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the following tips to help you get started. Its huge body would be a threat to most people, but to me, who had already defeated Dahl''s Bear, it was just a big body. However, considering that it is a superior species to the Flame Boar, it will probably breathe out breath - through its nose. You have to be a little careful there. I''m not trying to be funny, okay? Let''s do the legs first! Yes! Toya runs to the left of the Tyrant Flame Boar, aiming for its left paw, while Natsuki runs the other way. The Tyrant Flame Boar looks momentarily unsure of which of Toya and the others to deal with as they split up. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in this article. I''m not sure what to do. ...... d*mn, that missed. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do with your time. "Ouch. That''s terrible. Ow. "Gah! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. The screaming is forced to stop. At the same time, Toya and Natsuki slash at his legs, causing the Tyrant Flame Boar to lose his balance. "Your timing and aim are off. --. Haruka used a bow. If you''re a fan of the game, you''re going to love this game. The arrow strikes the center of the right eye and takes away its vision. I''m not used to using the Stone Missile. What? This time, he aimed three Stone Missiles at the eye, and one of them hit the eye. It gouged out his eye. The Tyrant Flame Boar, whose front legs were nearly torn off by Toya and Natsuki''s attacks, fell forward and scratched at his hind legs. "To-Do-Me! The last attack was by Toya. The Tyrant Flame Boar shuddered and stopped moving for the last time. "Hmm. Good work. "That was just a big one. It didn''t even breathe. Toya pulled out his sword, washed the dirt off it and sheathed it. He didn''t have time for that. First his nose was damaged, then his throat. It''s only a breath, and it seems to require a preliminary action of breathing in and out. "It''s pretty self-explanatory, isn''t it, the Flame Boar''s preliminary movements? Once you get used to it, it''s easy to interrupt it. He smiles and says that when he fights Flame Boar, he doesn''t let it breathe out, he just kills it. Even though he was dealing with several of them at the same time, he was able to interrupt them without missing their preliminary movements. In the case of us rearguards, we''re not in the range of the breath, so we''re not affected, and once you get used to it, the Flame Boar is not much different from the Task Boar. You''ve got a lot of meat on your hands again, haven''t you? "Yes. That''s about the size of a brown streak, isn''t it? Task Boar, how many heads? I''m not sure if I can use the meat, but I''m not sure if I can use the motsu. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You will never be short of meat when you are in this area. There are many variations. I''ll ask Aella to teach me how to cook again. Take some meat as a gift. Dismantling and other matters were put on the back burner, the giant Tyrant Flame Boar was stored in the magic bag, and we proceeded to the back room that had appeared. The design of this room is basically the same, with a similar arrangement of treasure chests, magic circles, and stairs leading down. Now, let''s see what the treasure is this time. "Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Is it a ...... staff or a ...... tin staff? After examining the treasure chest, Natsuki took out a 30 centimeter long tin staff. It''s not a practical staff, but a ceremonial one. It was made of metal and had a five-centimeter spherical stone attached to its head. A ''tin staff''. As usual, details are unknown. Not exactly useful, Mr. Appraisal. You''re right. Don''t tell me. ...... I''m thinking it too. I wonder if it would have been more useful if Natsuki had it? Please keep that question to yourself. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea. It''s a fact that can''t be denied, as long as the result is influenced by your own knowledge. By the way, Yuki also has [Appraisal], but she never claims to have it in situations where it is necessary. I can''t imagine that Yuki hasn''t used it, and the information she can get is probably less than what Toya can tell her. As for me, I''d love to see Yuki surpass Toya''s [Appraise] level and play an active role, but since there is no difference in the information she can get - books, etc. - it''s not going to be easy. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to get the most out of your business. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. That''s right. It would be better for the guild to request it at the same time. If it can''t be appraised in Raffan, it will have to be transported to another place, and the cost of appraising one gold coin will be a considerable loss for the Adventurer''s Guild. I suppose the price is based on various considerations, but as a Japanese, I feel a little bad about it. Incidentally, I did some research on the possibility of losing, embezzling, or otherwise cheating on the guild, but it seems that there is almost no need to worry about this. After all, the Adventurer''s Guild is a business of trust. In order to maintain the credibility of adventurers, the guild takes strict measures against any action that would bring down the credibility of the guild, such as sending us a request to kill bandits. If a guild staff member stole or switched out a requested item for appraisal, he or she would be dismissed with all assets confiscated. The adventurer''s guild, however, is much darker than I thought. I''m not sure what to say, but this dungeon seems like a good place for ...... leveling, doesn''t it? "What?¡¡What do you mean?¡¡You can''t get very strong enemies, and you can''t make much money. --The piccau is delicious, and this area provides meat, but you can''t level up, right? Tohya twisted his head and questioned Yuki''s words. But that''s a one-sided view. "That''s for us, right?¡¡The enemies get stronger and stronger with each layer, and even if we don''t make a lot of money, it''s reasonable given the strength of the enemies, and we can make enough to live on. It''ll be useful for leveling rookies. The types of enemies that appear in the game are also very good. Up to the second level, there are weak enemies, the next area has enemies that use weapons, and this area has enemies that use less powerful magic. If you progress steadily... "You mean I can level up in a good way? Hmmm... I''m sensing something contrived here.¡¡There''s a dungeon conveniently located nearby that''s perfect for leveling up. Toya bent his mouth into a crooked shape and looked reluctant. I''m not sure what you''re talking about. It''s the other way around, isn''t it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on.¡¡Advaistris-sama, even if you don''t admit to cheating, you do a good job of casually following up beforehand. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m not sure what to do. It''s a relatively safe area, with few demons, and you can get by with hard work. I''m not sure if it''s the same thing. It''s a relatively safe area, with few demons, and you can get by with hard work. "So this dungeon is a career path for the future?¡¡If you want to get stronger, you have to train here. Is there an aftercareer plan? I''d like to hear about it if I could. But Toya was not quite convinced, and twisted his head. I think the road to the entrance was pretty rough, though. Indeed, it is a tough place for a rookie to approach. If you can make it to this dungeon, you should have little trouble at least getting to this level. In addition, the zombies and skeletons that lived around the first level were not suitable for leveling because they were mixed with some strong ones. However, they seem to be a little different from the demons in this dungeon, and unlike the other demons, they don''t seem to be resurrecting over time. It''s not that there was no place that met all the requirements, right?¡¡If you''re thinking about leveling, a suitable dungeon town might have been fine, but I think they prioritized safety or something like that. It is true that a dungeon town where adventurers gather - a labyrinth city, for example - seems to be unsafe. If you think about it, I''ve never been in danger in Raffan. Even in the area where our house is located, which is said to be a bit unsafe, it doesn''t feel like a slum, and we haven''t seen any pickpockets or hoodlums. There are a lot of good people like Diora, Simon, and Ganz, and I never got into trouble on the streets or at the guild, except for my former classmates. --What a jerk, ex-classmates. We became adventurers, but not everyone wants to be an adventurer, and if you think about it, Rafan is a good place to live without being an adventurer. Yeah. If you think about it that way, I think Advaistris made the right choice. Maybe I should spend a little more money for this. 228-204 Carrithm Area Well, I don''t know what Lord Adversus wants, so that''s okay. What do you think?¡¡There''s still a few days left, but should we move on? Toya points to the stairs with a gesture of ''leave it here''. If we''re going to return home, there''s a magic circle for us to return to, but it hasn''t been a week since we left home. I''ve already told Mary and the others that it''s going to be a little longer, so there''s still time to spare. ....... I think the enemies in this area are good training partners,....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. This way, if they become dangerous, you can remove the restrictions and deal with them, so there is less danger. But the problem is that there''s not much left. That''s true. Basically, they''re coming down in annihilation. Considering the Tyrant Pickau, it will probably repop within a month, but even if we go back up now, there won''t be much left. So we just keep going, right?¡¡Let''s go, let''s go. Yeah, that''s what I thought. But wait a minute. I''ll set up a transfer point. Oh, right. All right, let''s do this again. Just like last time, Toya and I will remove the cobblestones and install the transfer point. Put it back in place, check it out, and ...... will be fine. Also, check the one you set up last time and you''ll be fine. I''m relieved to see that it didn''t become unusable in a few days. Then we started walking again, with Toya in the lead, and descended the stairs to the ninth level, where we found the same stone dungeon as the eighth level. ...... Doesn''t look much different, does it? I guess so. If you don''t tell me, I can''t even tell the difference. Yuki was right, the scene was unchanging and a bit boring. But Toya was a little different, and opened his mouth with a frown. "No, it''s stinky in here. Do you guys smell that? ...... Now that you mention it, what is that smell? I don''t know, it''s like undead, man. There''s a faint smell of it, if you ask me. ......? Is that so?¡¡I don''t know. I''m not sure. ...... I don''t know about that either. ...... Natsuki and Yuki, who are human, can''t smell it at all. I don''t know, but I don''t think so. I''m not sure what to say. It''s a bit of a hassle,......, but it sure smells good. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find any useful information. Yuki and Natsuki, on the other hand, can''t seem to feel it yet, and are twisting their heads. I think it''s a bit unfair, but why don''t we use light magic aggressively on this level and move on as quickly as possible?¡¡It''s pretty hard to smell the undead. Depending on our magic and the amount of undead, I see no reason to disagree. I''m with you. As long as we don''t have to go near them. ...... Toya, who had a good sense of smell, and Natsuki, who often fought in front of him, must have been bothered by the smell of the undead. Well, zombies are rotten, aren''t they? Even when I fought them outside the dungeon or on the first level, I used magic to kill them in preference to zombies. Skeletons are more troublesome in terms of strength, but they don''t smell, so in a way they are easier to deal with. Yeah. That''s what we''re going to do for this level. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó "Boss room. Right. Layer 9 and 10 were fast. ...... No, I finished it fast. There are basically only mook zombies and skeletons. Not even the skeleton knights that appeared in the first level appeared. If you''re an adventurer encountering the undead for the first time, this might be a good opportunity to learn how to deal with them, but for us, we''re already used to them. We even have steel weapons that can kill them with physical attacks. There''s nothing to learn now. So, with Haruka and Natsuki''s Purify mercilessly buying us drinks, and Yuki and I interspersing our magic in between, we proceeded with our search with priority on speed. Fortunately, the undead level seemed to be short, and we reached the boss room in just two levels, but the question was, what kind of boss? The question is, what kind of boss? I hope it''s not a zombie type. ...... It''s a fragile hope, isn''t it?¡¡I mean, there''s so many zombies out there. I don''t know. ...... I''d like to throw up. I''m not going to throw up!¡¡Don''t make me give you a hard time! --No, I want to throw up, I agree with you. The zombie smell is too much. I''ll give Toya the right to open the door to the boss''s room for her wonderful pun. No, she doesn''t have to open the door. She does it all the time.¡¡I don''t mind. Toya laughed at Haruka''s words, but honestly put his hand on the door and opened it. At the same time, the sight of a huge reptile jumped out at him. And of course, it''s rotting. "What? "No way, a dragon zombie? I shouted that there was too much of a difference in level, but Toya was silent for a moment and then continued. "No, don''t worry. It''s a Lizard Zombie. I''d like to say, but I''m not sure.¡¡--I''d say so, but I''m relieved. I''ve never seen or heard of it before, so normally there''s nothing to worry about, but it''s no way it''s stronger than a dragon zombie. It''s about six meters tall and looks like a rather ugly western dragon, but it''s not a dragon but a lizard. Its decay is so severe that it looks like a lizard zombie might change its class into a lizard skeleton while fighting. I don''t want to go near it. ...... As Toya retreated from the doorway, holding her nose, Yuki nodded in agreement and gave up her spot. I agree!¡¡I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to try. "Yes. Purify! The two of them cast a spell on the lizard-zombie that slowly begins to move towards us as we open the door. In the dungeons of this world, there is no mysterious system that says you can''t attack unless you''re inside the boss''s room, so as long as you have the means to attack, you can attack freely from outside the door. Instead, it seems that there is no restriction on the boss''s movement, but with the size of this lizard zombie, it would be difficult to pass through the door. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. It''s pretty exhausting. "Yes. It''s a little hard on the magic, but ...... we''ll take it in stride. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always ask your doctor. If you put twice as much magic into it, it will make your laundry amazingly white. And it''s the same when used on undead. If you use it on a small zombie, it will disappear in an instant, but if you use it on a slightly stronger undead, it will take longer to disappear unless you use more magic. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. But it''s not enough to repel Haruka''s magic. Haruka and her team must have put some more magic into it, because the speed of its disappearance increased dramatically, and the lizard-zombie ended up vanishing without being able to move more than two meters from its original location. In the end, the lizard zombie disappeared without moving more than two meters from its original location, leaving only a slightly larger magical stone lying on the ground. "Hmm ......, that''s a bit tiring, an undead of that size. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. At that level, it''s impossible to fight continuously. "You can only deal with two of them cleanly, I guess. If you work hard, you should be able to handle them alone. "I see. If there are more than three of them, Toya will be covered in carrion. Good luck! As Yuki smiles and gives a thumbs up, Toya points at him with a shocked expression. "Just me?¡¡Yuki, you can handle it too! You can''t use a small sword against it, it''s that big. I''m sure if you use a fireball or something like that, rotting flesh and juices will splatter all over you. "Ugh. ...... It''s not just Toya, but Haruka and the others as well, who frowned at the thought of that scene. The fireball explodes after it hits the target, so Yuki''s point is not entirely wrong. The Fire Arrow doesn''t have that problem, but on the other hand, its penetrating power is too high, and with those lizard zombies, I wonder how effective it will be even if it leaves a few holes in their bodies. In addition, zombies stink when burned. So, in this area, the zombies were basically handled by Haruka and her team''s Purify, while the skeletons were handled by me, Yuki and sometimes Toya. It''s the same for me. "I''m the same way. Until I can use Holy Fire, do I have to rely on Toya? "No, your weapon is a spear!¡¡Of course you can help me! He grabbed me by the shoulders and I smiled at him. "Whoa, Toya. There''s a magic stone on the floor. We have to get it back. "No, what''s with the fake smile? He slips past Toya, retrieves the magic stone from the floor, and heads for the door that appears in the back. I''m glad you''re here. I''m sure this is the end of the undead area. "Answer, answer! I think I hear a voice behind me, but it''s probably just my imagination. I opened the door and peeked inside to find the room I had expected to find. "You did it, Toya. A treasure chest! "You did it. You followed the pattern!¡¡......... That''s enough. I''ll let you get into it when the time comes. Oops, Toya''s saying something disturbing. We''ll have to watch our backs when the big zombies come out. "Well, Toya. We''ll take care of you then. Right?¡¡Nao, you''re kidding, right? "Oh. I''ll do my best. That''s good, but... But it''s gonna be tough.¡¡Beastly. He couldn''t say much more after being appeased by Natsuki, but he sighed and dropped his shoulders. Well, I was joking too. But it''s true that I don''t want to get into close combat with zombies, so I''m going to try to use Holy Fire as soon as possible. I''ll try to use Holy Fire as soon as possible. "Hmm?¡¡Is there such a thing? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure there was ......, right? Yes. Yes, there is. It''s not a sealed type like a gas mask, it''s more like a normal mask, so I don''t know how effective it is. I don''t know how effective it is, but it doesn''t seem to be a big enough thing to be a magic tool, but it''s in the book. In reality, it''s more like a deodorant spray than a mask, and you soak a mask or cloth with it and cover your mouth with it. I want to make one!¡¡By all means, by all means!¡¡If you make it, I''ll pay for the materials with my own money! "I''ll pay for it with the common money. ...... Okay. I''ll make one soon. Thank you!¡¡I love you, Haruka! Yes, yes, thank you. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at the web site. "Natsuki, what was in it? A lamp, I think. I hope this is expensive,......, but I don''t think it''s just a lamp. It looks like an ordinary lamp, but if you think it''s a reward for the first kill, you should expect a little more. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. "This area was out of the way. "This area was an outlier, so it''s not very profitable. The only thing you can get is magic rocks. It''s not that expensive. This is in contrast to the area above where you could get meat and furs in addition to magic stones. "Treasure chests, too. I can''t find much. There were three treasure chests found in layers 9 and 10. There were only three treasure chests found in layers 9 and 10, but this was due to the fact that I prioritized moving forward rather than filling the map. There may be more chests to be found if you look hard enough, but we all agree that we don''t want to kill the undead for chests that don''t hold much promise. Now, should we head back?¡¡We''ve got a few more days to spare, but we don''t have any transfer points left. So far, the method of burying ourselves under the cobblestone seemed to be effective, and we could see the transition points of the eighth and fifth layers from here. Normally, I would like to bury them here as well, but unfortunately I don''t have any. I guess I should go back and get some more transfer points. That didn''t work. If we had one more, we could have skipped the undead area. That can''t be helped. We''ve made more progress than expected. Specifically, the undead area. If it hadn''t been for the undead in the 9th and 10th layers, we would have slowly filled the map and returned at the magic circle in the 8th layer. It''s okay to go back, but let''s take a look at layer 11 first, okay? "Yeah. It seems that the trap was only at the beginning. Since then, we''ve crossed several levels, but fortunately, we haven''t encountered any traps that would cause the passage to collapse. And even if we were to get trapped, there is now a transfer point on the eighth level where we can transfer to, so there won''t be much of a problem. Following Toya''s lead, we also descended the stairs. However, the stairs leading to the eleventh level were slightly different from the previous ones. The previous staircase was straight down and not very long, but the new staircase was slightly curved and a bit long. If the previous staircase was like going down one floor of a department store, the new one is like going up a shrine. If you were to climb these stairs with your old physical strength, you would be a little out of breath. ...... Oh? Eventually, I saw a light shining from the end of the stairs. We proceeded as if guided by that light. And what lay beyond the light was a meadow. 229-205 Isnt that right? "What?¡¡Is there such a thing in the dungeon? "Yes, it is. There were grasslands and forests as far as the eye could see, it was hard to believe we were in a dungeon! Mitya looked up at Yuki with sparkling eyes as she spoke with gestures. It seems that Mitya likes to hear about our adventures, and when we''re relaxing, he asks us to tell him something. Yuki is the one who asks for it most often, followed by Natsuki. As you can see, the reason for this is that they talk with gestures and a sense of realism. We haven''t had many adventures, and I''m not very excited when I talk. Yuki, on the other hand, has a good way of expanding the story, which makes it interesting for me to listen to. "Nao, is it true? "I know it''s hard to believe, but it''s true. I nodded to Mary, who looked a little skeptical and uncertain. Why would there be a forest in a dungeon ......? It''s not that uncommon, actually.¡¡Not that it''s common. According to the book, about 10% of dungeons have hierarchies that recreate environments similar to those on Earth. Not only forests and grasslands, but also lakes, rivers, snowy mountains, volcanoes, and, very rarely, even oceans. However, it is not an image of ''the sky and the sea stretching out forever,'' but rather an image of a part of the sky and the sea cut out by a barrier, and it is said that you cannot proceed beyond a certain point. In other words, it may be a limited reproduction, but it seems that the sea is inhabited by fish as well as demons, so it''s quite mysterious and intriguing. If I can find them in the current dungeon, I''d like to try fishing. I want to eat fish from the sea. Sashimi. Mary, if you want to be an adventurer, you need to study hard and read books.¡¡You''ve got the environment to read. "That''s right. Many books cost more than ten gold coins each, so new adventurers don''t have many opportunities to read them. "Yes, I''ll do my best. ...... Although she said she would do her best, the expression on Mary''s face was rather gloomy, as she was better at physical exercise than studying. Her reading comprehension is such that she can only manage to read simple sentences, so it is still difficult for her to read the slightly difficult books that we are reading. Well, it''s better if she can read. In this country. There are adventurers who can''t even read the guild''s request forms properly. Such adventurers seem to be able to grasp the contents of requests by reading numbers and words, but their understanding is incomplete, and according to Diora, they sometimes get into trouble. So, as an adventurer, being able to read text is a small advantage. But dungeons with forests are rare, aren''t they?¡¡If that''s the case, will Rafan be able to develop like other dungeon towns ......? That''s going to be ...... a little difficult, don''t you think? Yeah, why is that? First of all, it''s very difficult to get to the dungeon. If you''re a ...... rank 5 adventurer like us, you might not have a problem, but if you''re a low rank like the ones in this town, there''s a very high risk of dying before you reach the dungeon. And if you''re a rank 5 adventurer, that dungeon isn''t very efficient. But if you want to make a lot of money, it''s probably better to move to a cooler area, and there are also dungeon cities in this country, so you can make more money there, as well as get appraisals and other support. I''m sure you''ll be fine. I see. Then you can''t become a dungeon city. ....... Oh, but what if we build a road to the dungeon? That would be difficult too. Mary, do you know what this town is famous for? It''s, uh, furniture, right? Yes. The best ones are made from the best wood that can be found deep in the forest. It''s closer to where the dungeon is. If you can lead the way to a place where you can cut down the famous wood, it is almost certain to be profitable. At the very least, it is a more solid policy than the Raffan Town Dungeon Project, which may or may not work. Nevertheless, it has not been done. In other words, it is that difficult for Viscount Nenus to build a road in that forest. Making a path to the dungeon would go without saying. Even before the dungeon, considering the industry of Raffan, he should have taken steps to secure the famous tree even if he had to push himself a little, but considering the fact that he hasn''t been able to do so yet, the financial situation of Viscount Nenus must be quite difficult. If you take into account the turmoil in Kerg, you will not be in a situation where you can "revitalize the town with dungeons". That''s ...... impossible, I guess. I thought that if I bought the land in this town now, the price would go up. ...... We looked at each other in surprise when we heard Mary''s disappointing words. We looked at each other in surprise. "...... Mary, did you think of that on your own? Yes. You know, you can make money by buying land when it''s cheap and selling it when it''s expensive, right? That''s true, but ...... It''s not a good idea for a child to have in Japan, but it''s not a good idea for a child in this world. When I asked her about it in detail, she told me that she had heard a rumor about the landlord who was trying to get rid of Mary and the others, and that the adults around her had told her about it. It seems that the landlord was trying to consolidate the land around Mary and her family''s house and sell it at a high price. Mary is quite a good learner, isn''t she? If I don''t behave myself as an adult around her, Mary might learn something not so good. ......? But, Mary?¡¡You don''t have the money to buy land in the first place, do you? That''s the point, isn''t it? ...... That''s right!¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. This is a great way to make sure you are getting the most out of your time and money. I''m sure you can''t do it." "...... Mary, how rich do you think we are?¡¡Of course we can''t. Building the road itself may not be impossible if it takes a long time, but it''s not very lucrative. In the first place, there is not enough land in Rafan to buy easily. It is difficult to buy something with the expectation that the price will rise. It may be possible outside the walls that surround the town, but if the walls are extended, at best the land will be bought at a fair price, and at worst it may be confiscated. It would be impossible to roll over the land. It''s a kind of urban development. "It''s a kind of urban development. It would be difficult in this country where land ownership is so delicate. It would be unbearable if the aristocracy took away the fruits of our hard work. In Japan, it is common for companies to acquire land in the vicinity and develop it on a large scale, but this is only possible because the ownership of the land is solid. In this country, too, land can be purchased, but there are times when it is forcibly taken away for the convenience of the aristocracy. However, the vagueness of ownership also allows us adventurers to hunt freely in the forest. ....... Mmm, no dungeon towns? Too bad. I thought it was a good idea. I thought it would be a good idea." Mary looked unhappy, but you can''t do what you can''t do. ...... No, you can''t do what you can''t expect a return on. As for me, I''d like Mary to earn more solid money. ...... Why do you insist on a dungeon town? "Because it''s easier to be an adventurer in a dungeon town. From what I''ve heard, dungeons themselves are for beginners. Is that so? We''ll take you there. Are you sure? Yeah. It''s easy. At least it''s easier than making a road, right? I smiled and Mary looked down, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She may have acquired the habit of not relying on others as much as possible from her past experiences, but as long as you have accepted her as family, it is only natural that you will take care of her, so please don''t be shy. I hope you won''t hesitate to do so. You should at least be able to kill a goblin by yourself. "Yes!¡¡I''ll train hard. I''ll do my best to train." Mary looked up and clenched her fists, snorting. "Dungeon?¡¡You''re going to the dungeon, sister?¡¡Me too!¡¡I want to go too! The one who jumped into our conversation was Mitya, who had been listening to what Yuki had to say. When I looked at Yuki, she was smiling as if she was in a bit of trouble. Was this a case of talking too much? When you actually enter a dungeon, especially if you don''t have a magic bag like us, or if you don''t have a magician, there are many hard and muddy parts, but these are the parts that are omitted in stories for children. You''re going to ...... me, you''re not even trained. Do it!¡¡I''m going to kill a demon called Shushu! I''m not sure what to make of that. When I looked at Yuki again, she was bowing her head with her hands together. This is undoubtedly influenced by the "saga" she tells. Yes, I know the feeling. When you see a kung fu movie or something, after you leave the theater, you want to imitate it even though you can''t do it, right? Well, ....... Haruka smiled and nodded to Mary, who looked at us as if she was troubled. You can teach Mitya if you want. You do! But if you do, I won''t allow you to be lax.¡¡You have to get up early in the morning. Will you still do it? Ughhhhh, ...... do it!¡¡I''ll do my best! In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. However, Mitya is only seven years old. I don''t think it''s right to teach her how to use weapons, but it''s a world where even going outside the town is dangerous. Weapons are much closer to us than we think. I get it. Shall I work with you? "Yes! I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one. In the early morning of the next day. Early morning the next day. As Mitya had announced the day before, we had started early morning training with her. Although it was her first day, Mitya didn''t seem to have any trouble waking up early, and she woke up quickly to do light exercises with us, and had already finished her running. It was not hard for me to get up in the morning when I was in elementary school, but when I was in high school, ...... I just stayed up too late. Now I wake up early, and it''s not hard. And, as I thought when Mary joined the training, the physical strength of beasts is not foolproof even for children, and even though we were running a reasonably long distance, Mitya was able to follow us without difficulty and finish the race. In Japan, even a junior high school student would have a hard time running this distance, so perhaps we don''t need to think of her as a small child. Now that Mary is practicing with her one-handed sword, do you have any hopes for Mitya? "Well, I want the same as Yuki''s! "Well, I want the same as Yuki''s sister!" Without much trouble, Mitya chose a small sword. This was probably simply due to the story Yuki had told her yesterday. I didn''t ask why Mary chose to use a one-handed sword, but I think it was probably because Toya, who was also a beastman, was using one. In fact, Mary is more powerful than she looks, so it''s not a bad choice. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. After some thought, Haruka nodded. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it in the marketplace. We don''t even know if Mitya will become an adventurer in the first place. ....... --Well, I guess we''ll just let Toya handle that one. I''m sure. So, Mary, as always, learn from Toya. Yes! Okay. Okay, let''s go. Mary and Toya, wooden swords in hand, begin their basic training at a distance. This is a recent pattern. Toya would have a mock battle with us in the latter half of the morning practice, but Mary would just keep swinging her wooden sword. I''m sure it''s pretty boring, but so far she hasn''t gone rotten, and she''s maturing diligently. I''d like to leave Mitya in Natsuki''s hands, if that''s okay. "Yes. Yes, that''s fine. I look forward to working with you. Natsuki handed Mitya a spare wooden sword that resembled a small dagger, and began to teach him. Yes!¡¡I''m sorry. ...... Hmm. The speed at which she swings the sword is not that of a young girl. You''ll be able to kill a goblin or two in a matter of seconds. The fear of little girls is about to become a reality. "We''ll practice on our own. "Okay. Me, Haruka, and Yuki will practice on our own. The usual pattern is to practice magic and weaponry about half and half. It''s a little boring for basic training, but it''s bearable if you think of it as experience. And today we are still training to increase our survival rate. I''m not sure what to say. "Mee is more patient than I thought. After Mitya announced that he was going to participate in the training, we wondered how long it would last, and it was his sister Mary who replied, but she was not lying. Not once did she whine or complain, even though the training was very boring and not like Yuki''s saga, which was probably laced with embellishments. At some point, early morning training with the seven of us became our daily scene. 230-206 Appraisal Request Again After our early morning training, we visited the adventurer''s guild to dispose of the items we got in the dungeon. The guild was already deserted because we had come after breakfast to dismantle a large number of demon corpses. I''m letting Mary and Mitya help me with the demon dismantling this time, just for practice. If you want to be an adventurer, you need to be able to do this. I thought it might be hard for children to do such a gruesome task, but it turned out to be a groundless fear, as both of them went about dismantling the demons with smiles on their faces and blood stains on their faces. Although their skills were not up to the mark, they were able to dismantle the meat to the point where it was good enough for their own consumption, so there was no waste of their catch. "Mr. Diora, it''s a lot this time. Welcome back, everyone. Is this the ...... dungeon? Yes. I guess the revenue is getting a little better. I called out to Mr. Diora, who always sits at the counter even though he is the assistant manager, and laid out the jewels, tin wands and lamps on the counter. "These are for appraisal. You want three gold coins, right? "Yes, sir. I''ll take them. It''ll take some time. ...... That''s not an option. Please. I understand. After receiving the money, Diora took the jewels to the back of the room. Next, I need some magic stones and furs. Should I go to the back of ......? If you have a lot of stuff, that would be great. Yes, sir. As per Diora''s request, I moved to the warehouse behind the guild and delivered the magic stones first. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to afford it, but I''m sure I''m going to be able to afford it. I didn''t have any expensive magic stones, but I did have a lot of them, so I ended up with about 300 gold coins. Next, we sold off materials such as furs, big ostrich feathers, and meat. There are still some demons left in my magic bag that I haven''t dismantled yet, but I still have more than 100 gold coins. It''s not a bad dungeon if that''s what you''re looking for. ...... Well, it doesn''t solve the problem of getting there and back, though. I think we wouldn''t bother going in if it wasn''t for the benefit of being cool. Oh, but ...... ......?¡¡What''s wrong? No, it''s nothing. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. All of us were intrigued by that place, and it was decided that we would explore it. Even if the weather becomes cooler, this will not change. We don''t know what will happen to the dungeon in the future, but if there are a lot of interesting things to be found, there is a good chance that we will continue to explore it little by little. In the first place, there will be next summer, and the summer after that, and if the transition point works well, we will probably continue exploring for a long time. By the way, Diora, we''ve been out of town a lot lately, how''s Raffan doing? "Well, Diora, we''ve been out of town a lot lately, how''s Raffan doing?" "Before we went to Kerg, the orphanage''s kitchen had been hit by the rising price of food, but we''ve confirmed that it''s gone away. The question is whether there are any other effects. Well, during the Kergu uprising, the rising price of food was a bit of a problem, but it''s already calmed down. In fact, thanks to the fertilizer that Nao and the others taught us, many fresh vegetables are now on the market, and adventurers have a new source of income. Thank you very much. "No, it''s nothing serious. No, it''s not a big deal. It''s something that someone could have come up with. ...... I wonder why people didn''t know about it? I''m sure they would have known, since they normally eat demon meat. ....... In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. So, if you bring back the demons as normal and compost the excess after dismantling them, you wouldn''t have been able to do that, I guess. For example, when the orcs flooded the area, we had to kill them. For example, when the Orcs flooded the area, we killed them beforehand, but usually the guild would organize the killing. In that case, a large number of orcs would have been brought to the town by wagon, and the excess would have been used as compost. Nevertheless, there seems to have been a reason why it was not known. You can''t make that fertilizer unless you take the compost near the hunting grounds, as the town is doing now, or throw the dead animals into a magic bag like we do, and dismantle them by the compost. Moreover, the crushing function of ordinary composts is only capable of crushing small bones, not powerful enough to grind up the entire corpse of a demon, so no one would have thrown the corpse into the compost. We wouldn''t have made compost if we didn''t want to grow a vegetable garden, and we wouldn''t have added such a powerful grinding function if we weren''t sick of burying scarp-apes. With that in mind, it''s no wonder that the fertilizer has been unknown until now. ......? If you think about it on a global scale, there may be people who know about it, but it''s not a world where information spreads easily just by tweeting, and it''s probably not common to publish papers in academic journals or share research results. If you don''t try to spread it, information may be just like that. Then, mass production seems to be difficult, doesn''t it? "Yes. It would be possible to just make it, but it would be unprofitable. ...... For example, you could set up compost near the hunting grounds and transport the fertilizer to the place of consumption. It would not be impossible, but considering the cost involved, the number of places where it could be done would be limited. It would be useless if the increased yield and its selling price do not pay for the labor and the cost of fertilizer. It''s just a convenient fertilizer, isn''t it? It''s better that way, isn''t it? Yuki nodded her head as if she understood and was a little relieved. In fact, I did provide the information and compost as requested, but if it turns out to be very useful or a tremendous agricultural reform, there will be a lot of troubles associated with it. Even if it is just a request to increase the production of compost, there is a possibility that it will make enemies of farmers and merchants, which we would like to avoid. If there is a return on our investment, we can''t expect more profit than this. Thank you very much. I''ll be back. Do you have a minute? Just as we were about to leave the guild, the man who always worked in the warehouse - I don''t know his name because he was around 50 - called out to us. Oh, yes. Can I help you, Andrew? "That''s, uh, that''s your party, right?¡¡The item you asked me to appraise just now, it came out. "What? I thought you said it would take some time. It''s only the lamp, though. The rest is going to headquarters. Oh, so that''s the lamp, is it? Diora nodded and said something like that, but we had no idea what it was. "That? Yes. That lamp is a famous piece of magical equipment, right, Andrew? Yeah. It''s called an insect repellent lamp. When you pour magic power into it, it lights up and keeps insects away from the area that the light reaches. It''s a popular tool among adventurers. "Insects can be annoying, you know. You won''t get bitten if you''re older than a certain level, but they are annoying and unpleasant to be around. In our case, we use Sanctuary to keep the bugs away from the camp, but of course, people who can use this magic are quite rare. It''s no wonder that insect repellent lamps are so popular among adventurers. Not many adventurers have them, though. Most of them are bought by rich people. For adventurers, who are only uncomfortable and don''t get bitten often, insect bites are a real threat to rich people and children who haven''t advanced to the so-called "level". Therefore, it is said to be a very popular magic tool for rich people who have babies or for baby gifts. They can also be made by alchemy, but the ones found in dungeons seem to be more effective and naturally more expensive. So, I''m returning this one. The others will take time. See you later. Andrew said as much as he could, placed the lamp in front of us, and walked back to the back of the guild. "Well, that''s what it looks like, how would you like it?¡¡Would you like to sell it? It''s not essential for us because we have Sanctuary, but it''s useful. This magic is a bit over the top when it comes to repelling insects, so we might as well use this instead. But Natsuki and the others seemed to be thinking of something else. "Shall we give this to Mary and the others? Yes, it will come in handy when we work in the garden. We don''t get stung, you know. It''s just a little annoying. Well, there you have it. I had forgotten about it because I never got bitten by mosquitoes when I came here and weeded the garden, but it bothered me a lot when I was in Japan. If you think about it, this is the perfect tool for Mary and the others who are left to work in the garden. There is no reason to oppose Natsuki''s proposal. That''s very kind of you. I''ll let you know about the other two when the appraisal is complete. We left the guild with Diora smiling at us. I''m not sure what to say. So, Mary, I''m leaving this with you. It''s a very expensive item, isn''t it?¡¡It''s pretty expensive, isn''t it? It''s expensive, but ......, it''s nothing to worry about. The price of an insect repellent lamp from a dungeon starts at 100 gold coins. It''s a bit expensive for us to buy just to keep the bugs away, but now that we have it, there''s no reason not to use it. But now that we have it, there is no reason not to use it, and if we do, we should use it in the most effective way. Well, I''m worried that I''ll break it. ...... "That''s the time. I''m not angry unless you broke it by mishandling it or something. When the lamp is offered to Mary, she backs away a little and looks uncomfortable receiving it, but Natsuki smiles. In fact, since it''s a practical item, it''s bound to break. It''s just something you can''t help but keep on display. It looks like you''ve been working hard in the garden. Also, the heat is out of control, so make sure you stay hydrated. It''s not as hot and humid here as in Japan, and the temperature is more like 30 degrees Celsius, but that doesn''t mean you won''t get heat stroke. The heat itself is bearable if you wear light clothes, but then you have to worry about insect bites. When we didn''t retract the insect repellent lamp, Mary took it as if she had given up. I understand. I''ll use it. Thank you very much. "Okay. Use it well. Don''t use it because you''re afraid of destroying it. Yuki reminded her, and Mary smiled and nodded. 231-207 Harvesting When we get back from the dungeon, we take a few days off. That''s the pattern we''ve been following lately, but as usual, there''s nothing to do and we''re bored. So... "If there''s nothing to do, why don''t we do some harvesting? Natsuki suggested, and we nodded without any particular objection. "So, what are we harvesting? We were divided into two groups: me and Natsuki, and the other five of us. This grouping didn''t have much meaning, we were simply divided into goo and par. Haruka and the others, who had more people, were in charge of harvesting the rape blossoms that had already produced seeds. Despite the shortage of time to enjoy the flowers, the fertilizer is still useful. On the other hand, if you don''t adjust the amount of fertilizer for ornamental flowers, the flowers will soon fall off. We are citrus. We''re citrus fruits. We''re almost ready to harvest. ...... Oh, that''s the one I had a hard time transplanting because it was full of spines. After I transplanted the tea tree, I brought back some trees from the forest and planted them in my garden if they looked useful. One of them is the citrus tree that Natsuki is pointing to now. One of them is the citrus tree that Natsuki is pointing at right now, a rather troublesome tree with long thorns. Fortunately, the thorns don''t pierce the tree, thanks to the defensive power of the tree''s level up, but it was a bit annoying during the work. I guess the fruit came out okay. Perhaps it was a good thing that I had fertilized the plant well, because after replanting it, it did not show any signs of weakening, but still produced flowers and a lot of fruits. The fruit is about one size smaller than a yuzu, about halfway between a kumquat and a yuzu. The color is a little more yellow than the orange of a tangerine. The skin is quite thick when you hold it. It doesn''t look very satisfying, but there are a lot of ...... "I have some peeled here, would you like to try some? I''m not sure what to do with it. I took a bite.¡¡Sooty!¡¡It''s so nasty!¡¡And there are seeds! It''s so sour that it hurts. Probably more sour than a whole lemon. On top of that, there were so many seeds in one bunch that when I chewed it without thinking, it hit my teeth. I was surprised, too.¡¡I was surprised too. Natsuki laughed harmoniously, but a little mischievously. "You''re taking me with you! I''m not a road warrior. I want to have an experience with the person I love. It''s such a pretty girl''s heart. You''re lying! Her smile is cute and she sounds like a girl, but what she does is a girl. But what I do is a maiden. I''m sure that you took her along because you yourself fainted from the sourness. "This can be used as a substitute for lemon juice or sudachi (citrus fruit), but it''s not edible, is it? "That''s a little harsh. If you use sugar, you can make jam out of it. ...... It''s expensive. As I recall, the amount of sugar used for jam is more than the amount of fruit. Considering the sourness of this citrus fruit, I think the amount of sugar should be more than 50%, and if you use unrefined brown sugar, which you can buy around here, it will have too strong a taste for jam. Above all, sugar is too expensive to make jam easily. It would be cheaper and tastier to make jam from 100% sweet fruit, even if the fruit is a bit expensive. Well, let''s harvest the fruit first. They''ll just rot and fall off if we leave them alone. "Right. You won''t get hurt, but be careful not to get a hole in your clothes, okay?¡¡There are spikes. Okay. I''ll roll up my arms. Normally, I would wear thick long sleeves for protection, but the reality is that my own skin is stronger than my clothes. If I wore leather clothes, I would be fine, but I would rather put up with a little stinging than wear something like that in the heat. So we split up and started to pick citrus fruits. "Hmm. "Hmm, we got a lot of citrus, didn''t we? The amount of citrus in the basket must have been more than 10 kilograms. The amount of citrus in the basket was probably more than 10 kilos. Normally, I would be worried about the citrus spoiling, but that can be solved with the magic bag. The question is how to consume them. If it''s good enough to eat, you can share it with your friends, but unfortunately, it''s not that kind of fruit. It has very little pulp. ...... If you break down the fruit, you will find that the ratio of skin, pulp, and seeds is about 3:2:1. This may be due to the lack of breeding, but it is a bit disappointing. This is in contrast to dindol, which also grows wild, but can be made into a dried fruit without any waste. I think it''s more appropriate to use it like a regular citron. ...... With so many seeds, it''s kind of a shame to throw them away, isn''t it? But what''s the use of seeds? Some plants have their seeds roasted and eaten.¡¡Sunflowers, pumpkins, etc. Nuts are basically seeds. "......, isn''t that right? If you think about it, most nuts are eaten for their seed pods. But there are quite a few species that are poisonous. No! No, citrus should be fine. I''m sure you can get oil out of them. But even if you squeeze it efficiently, you''ll only get about 10% of the weight, so it''s not very practical. Collecting the seeds is also a hassle. For oil, there are rape blossoms that Haruka and her friends are harvesting right now, and there are also soybeans, sesame seeds, sunflowers, and other plants that may or may not be available in this area that are convenient and familiar for pressing oil. As long as you don''t have a desire to have oil pressed from this seed, its merits as a material for pressing oil are small. In the end, it can only be used as a garnish for grilled fish or in pots and pans. Can you consume ......? "Let''s share it with Ms. Aella. I''m sure she''ll make good use of it. That''s good. If we serve it in the store, she can consume it. However, I should probably refrain from applying fertilizer to the tree unless Aella specifically requests it. It would be nice if we could plant a dindle anyway, but that''s impossible. It''s almost impossible to grow them from seedlings, let alone transplant them, but we won''t be able to harvest them properly until we''re old. And above all, it would be too much trouble for the neighbors. Even if you don''t think about sunshine rights for such a huge tree, if you grow it in the city, you will be complained about. Let''s just hope that the other trees we have planted will produce something tasty. After harvesting the citrus, we went to harvest the rape blossoms. We had scattered the seeds randomly in the open space of the garden, so when they were in bloom, we had beautiful rape blossoms all over the place, but on the other hand, the area to be harvested was quite large. Thanks to the fertilizer. But on the other hand, the area to harvest is quite large. Nevertheless, if we, who are becoming less and less normal these days, worked diligently, we could finish the harvest in a few hours, and a lot of rape blossoms were piled up in the garden. Thanks for your hard work. "Ah. I''m really tired. Toya, who was supposed to be physically strong, was exercising his hips, as if the middle-waisted harvesting work was hard on his back. I''m sure he''s got the strength to do it, but the midsection work is still hard on his hips. ...... "Toya, stop that. Well, it seems I wasn''t the only one. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. "Oh, sorry, that''s easier. He then smiles and moves his recovered hips again to emphasize... And then... Spaang! I told you to stop that! The movement was interrupted by Yuki''s tsukkomi, who came from behind. I''m not sure what you''re talking about. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡What''s that? I''m sure you''ve heard of it. "Yuki, what''s wrong with that? "This?¡¡I can''t make harisen, so I made a substitute. No, that''s not the point. I asked him why he decided to make it, but his reply was simply, "Because I was bored. ...... Well, I suppose it has its uses. Like now. I''m not sure what to say. (Did I do something wrong?) "Oh. The way you moved your hips was indecent. Mosaic required. That''s it? Toya coyly asked, and I coyly but crisply answered. It might be acceptable if it was only for a man, but it was a little unacceptable in front of a woman and a child of that age. Haruka, can you help me too?¡¡I''m a little tired. "Okay, I''ll call them all. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. This is probably a very extravagant use of light magic for a normal adventurer, but for us, it''s an everyday thing. Well, next is drying. Let''s do it quickly! I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to. This tool is also made by Haruka and Yuki, and is shaped like a cotton candy machine stretched vertically. Insert a stalk of rape blossoms into the center of the tool, pull it out, and the sheath will come off with a bang. The pods are then crushed into small pieces, and the seeds are separated from the pods and transferred to a centrifuge-like colander, where the seeds go into the colander and the powdered pods go out. The last part of the process is like a winnowing machine, where the wind blows away the remaining debris so that only the seeds remain. It''s an amazing tool! Mitya shouted happily as she dug her hands into the coarse seeds and stirred them. "Wow, wow. ...... Mary also stuck a stalk of rape blossom into her magic tool and peered into it with a curious look on her face. "Yeah, it looks good. "Yeah, it''s good, isn''t it? It''s a little ...... hard to get the sheath dust to fly around, but it''s good enough compared to manual labor. I could put a dust collector on it, but I don''t think it would be worth it, considering how often I use it. There''s a lot of variation in the grinding and separation of the sheaths depending on how dry they are. Should we integrate the drying function? Hmmm, so the colander separation is not really necessary?¡¡Oh, but some seeds and pods are still stuck to the colander, so it''s better to have it. While the younger generation is genuinely happy, the creators seem to be a little frustrated. It''s not like we''re selling it as a product, right?¡¡We''re not selling this as a product, are we? "Yeah, well, we''re not farmers. It was a bit of a white stare that was directed at our realistic words. We''re not farmers." "...... Well, yeah, but... It''s kind of a hobby in itself. "But since it''s a hobby, don''t you want to make something that''s good enough? I see. I understand. As soon as you say "hobby," rationality and economy run away barefoot. "Oh, no, if it''s a hobby, you can do whatever you want. Yeah. "Yeah, yeah. We just thought it would be too much trouble for you. We don''t mean to say that it''s a waste of money. In fact, even if it is the same hobby, I am grateful that it is not something as unproductive as ''blowing up in a gacha''. "Sis Natsuki, the box is full! "Okay, okay. Let''s exchange them. While we were discussing this, we didn''t stop our work, and we filled up a box the size of a 50-liter container box. We continued to replace the boxes, and by the time the third box was almost full, we had finished the entire process. The third box was almost full. "That''s a lot of material, ......, and it weighs more than 50 kilos. Can we just put it in the mill? Toya asks Haruka, lifting the container and shaking the seeds roughly. Well, ......, it''s ''purified'' in a way. You usually roast them, right? Yes. Yes. It''s hard to get the oil out if it''s not roasted. So that''s where I come in? Is this the time for me to show off my skills in heating the tea leaves? Well, yes. Let''s start with one batch, about five liters. Yuki divided the rapeseed into a large pot, and I heated it with Heat. The good thing about this magic is that it heats the object, so it heats evenly. You don''t even have to stir it. Occasionally, Natsuki takes the seeds and crushes them with her fingers to check their condition. When Natsuki gives his approval, he stops the heating and transfers the seeds to the oil press. Then switch on the machine and the pressure will be very high. Hey, click it! What the hell is that call? "What''s with the voice?" I had to pause to comment on Yuki''s strange voice. The oil press started quietly, crushing the rapeseed and squeezing out a yellowish, slightly cloudy liquid. Oh, it''s coming out. ...... The amount was about a liter. When the oil was almost gone, the compression stopped, and with a gurgling sound, a disc-shaped object rolled down from under the oil press. Haruka picked it up and tapped it. This is the oil cake. But ...... is a little too much? It''s tickly, isn''t it?¡¡It''s okay, I guess. Okay. It doesn''t seem to have an unusually high level of impurities. I don''t understand it, but it''s okay. The disks are thrown into the compost bin, and the oil extraction continues. In the end, we pressed about 20 liters of oil. We can use it as rapeseed oil if we leave it for a while to settle and remove the impurities. "Now we can finally eat proper tempura. "Ah. It''s true that you can''t fry vegetable tempura in lard. I don''t mind frying pork cutlets in lard, but when I use lard for vegetable tempura or fish tempura, the smell is a little too strong. However, if you buy vegetable oil, it''s not so easy. You can get rapeseed oil itself, just like you can get rapeseed seeds, but it is basically for lighting, not for eating. It is not edible. It is not likely to contain anything strange, but I am concerned about its hygiene. I''m sure there''s some kind of "purification" or "sterilization" magic that can help, but it''s a matter of mood, so I can''t really control it. "Tempura?¡¡Is it good? "Yes. We like it, don''t we? We like shrimp tempura, kakiage, eggplant, etc. ....... I like kisses, but no sea fish. I''m looking forward to it! But it''s going to take a while before we can actually use it as oil. Mitya, can you wait? I can wait!¡¡I want to eat something delicious! Wow, I''m interested too! I''m interested too!" Mitya jumped up and down, and Mary also raised her hand in assertion. I''m interested! I see. Well then, please look forward to it. --I''d like to find some ingredients that are suitable for tempura. I was also wondering if there was anything else I could do to help her. I''m not sure what to do. The sedimentation and separation took longer than expected, and it was more than two weeks after the harvest that we saw the finished rapeseed oil. But the tempura that Natsuki and his friends made for us was very tasty, and Mary and Mitya were very happy to eat it for the first time. As a commoner, I''ve never had tempura before, but I wondered if tempura at a tempura restaurant would be like this. Incidentally, the citrus fruits I harvested also played an active role in the dish. ...... Well, they were only a supporting role. It is just a side note. 232-208 Try to metastasize Two days back at home, we were back in the dungeon early. The reason was to deal with the boss. Our plan was to set up a transfer point before the troublesome lizard zombies returned. After quickly disposing of the demons, I reached the dungeon - the Dungeon of Summer. I''m sure no one will use this name, so let''s just use it. --Shall we put up a sign at the entrance to the dungeon? I don''t think anyone will come. Yeah, the transition point at the entrance is fine. Sounds good. It''s solid, so it hasn''t been dug up, and it''s responsive, so it''s not broken. The problem was that it was buried in the dungeon, under the cobblestones. I''ve confirmed that it didn''t break down in a few days, but will it still be safe now? Ah, I''m going to have to run around kicking those fish again... Nao, can''t you do something? Don''t be absurd. Space magic is difficult. I sighed and protested to Toya, who was looking at the entrance to the dungeon and complaining. If you can easily make a long-distance transfer with a little training, there are more users of space magic - I don''t know if there are, but it''s not for nothing that it''s said to be difficult. It''s not impossible, because the author of the grimoire that I have has made it possible to transfer across countries. ...... Unless the author is being vain. Oh, Nao, that''s the thing. I''ve been studying the map over and over, and I think I might be able to get to the transition point on the eighth level. Really? Yeah. Well, let''s go in and check it out. Yeah, sure. If we can, that''s pretty good news, but it''s hard to detect the transfer point outside the dungeon. We quickly stepped into the dungeon and checked the transfer point on the spot. "Oh, this means we can go to the eighth level, huh? There were three reactions we could sense. One of them is of course the one at the entrance right next to you, but there are two more reactions. Considering the distance and depth, they must be the transfer points on the fifth and eighth levels. The one on the fifth layer is detectable, but it''s a bit difficult to actually fly. Even the "teleportation" of jumping by yourself might fail. The eighth layer is less than a kilometer away, and it''s a perfect distance that "area teleportation" can just barely manage. However, if I carry all of them, I will probably collapse on the spot. Yuki, can you carry one of them? "Well, ......, I think I''m the only one who can be teleported, right? Yuki is a little troubled, and answers with an apologetic expression. No, there''s no need to force it. There''s no need to force it, but it''s me plus three others or ...... Sorry if I fall. "Don''t worry about it!¡¡Even if Nao is down for half a day or so, it''s still faster than getting to layer 8 on foot. I don''t know. I''m not sure what you mean by that. It''s true, but you don''t care enough. He smiled and patted me on the shoulder, and I slammed my fist into his stomach. She doesn''t seem to be holding back at all. "Well, well. If you fall, you can rest for a while. You can recover to some extent with Recover Mental Strength. "Right. In the meantime, Toya will stay awake and take care of you. What?¡¡I don''t get a shift? Since you''re going to work until Nao falls, you''ll do it, right? ...... Oh, if you ask me to do it. In fact, the only person besides me who is capable of searching for the enemy is Toya. If I want to be safe, Toya has to stay awake while I sleep. Well, even if I''m exhausted to the last minute, I''m sure I''ll recover after half a day''s rest, so it shouldn''t be too much of a problem. "Phew ......, let''s go then. Everyone stay close to me except Yuki. When I see that Yuki is a little bit away from me and the other three are gathered near me, I cast a spell. "Area Teleportation"! My vision changes in an instant. At the same time, the magic power is lost from the body at once. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Are you okay? Somehow ....... Let me sit down for now. Yes. I''m not nauseous, but I''m exhausted to the point where it''s hard to stand. While I was sitting on the floor leaning against the wall with the help of a worried Natsuki and Haruka, Yuki followed us to the other side of the room. Yuki, who was on her own, didn''t seem to be as worn out as I was, and although she wobbled a bit at the moment of the transition, she walked on her feet and sat down next to me. You''re really tight, aren''t you? "Yeah. Is Yuki okay? I was teleported. Nao, you''re going to use Mental Recovery, right? Natsuki sat down on Yuki''s other side, grabbed my hand and cast a spell, which made me feel a little less tired, but I still needed to rest for a while. However, this magic is recovering me in exchange for Natsuki''s magic power, and if I use it to recover completely, she will fall into a coma. I have more magic power than she does, after all. Thank you. No, I think it''s just for comfort. Do you think Yuki needs it? No, I think I can manage.¡¡We''ll need Haruka''s magic for the next floor, so save your energy. It''s an undead floor. I hope there aren''t too many of them. ...... Toya came back after checking the room, the stairs and outside the door. The Tyrant Flame Boar is still not back. But don''t worry, you can get some rest. I smiled at Toya as he prepared the bed, and Yuki and I lay down on the bed without hesitation to recover our magic power. We took a nap for a few hours, and when we were mostly recovered, we resumed our search. We headed for the 9th floor. It''s been less than half a day since I entered the dungeon. You''ll need to rest, but the time saved by taking such a shortcut is significant. If we can set up a transfer point on the tenth floor, it''ll be even easier. ...... This time, I''ve prepared about ten transition points, a bit more than the usual number. It''s unlikely that we''ll need all of them, but we''ll need to be prepared since we ran out of them the last time we explored more than expected. Do you think you can jump from the entrance to the tenth floor in one go? "I don''t know. What do you think? Well, from the map I''ve seen, I think it''s possible.¡¡I''m thinking ....... Do we have to try it? Yeah. I think Yuki''s map is pretty accurate, but it''s not like you can draw a 3D map on a computer, and it would be impossible to perfectly match the vertical relationship and figure out the straight line distance across the hierarchy. But it''s a good thing that the transition points embedded under the cobblestones are intact. I thought they would be absorbed into the dungeon like a treasure chest disappearing. I thought the dungeon would absorb it like a treasure chest. If it absorbs everything, I don''t think it''s possible to install such a thing. The treasure chest is from the dungeon, right? You can bring back the treasure chest itself, and it doesn''t disappear when you leave the dungeon, but it''s useless and bulky, so almost no adventurer would bring it back. I''m not sure how it works.¡¡I don''t know if there''s anything about it in the alchemy books. "At least it''s not in the Alchemy Encyclopedia. It''s possible it''s in a book I haven''t read yet. ...... It''s more like a guild secret, don''t you think? "Oh, I know, I know. It is possible that the guild has power because they have a monopoly on it. What about space-time magic, Nao?¡¡There''s something like that, right? I''m not sure what you mean by "like that", you mean "create gate"?¡¡That''s not exactly the same thing, is it? That spell is a spell that creates a gate between two points to continuously transport a large number of people and things. It requires a user of space-time magic to activate the spell, and it continues to consume magic power while in use, and if the supply of magic power is interrupted, the gate will disappear. It''s not something that can keep the gate open for a long time. I''m not sure about that. ....... I thought it would be useful to make one. I can''t use it yet, but it''s probably based on the magic of area transport. The level of space-time magic is 8. It is one level higher than Area Teleportation. "Can you make it with that?¡¡I''m not sure how you can make such a transfer device when you''re struggling to use magic to jump using area transfer. Simply put, it''s the difference between dictated magic and ritual magic. "I see, I don''t understand. "Well, I don''t know." I smiled at Toya, who nodded, and continued my explanation. The relationship between magic bags and extended space is similar. ...... Well, for example, when you''re told to draw a straight line, it''s hard to draw a perfect line freehand, right?¡¡But if you use a ruler, it''s easy. Well, if you use a tool. Yeah. In addition, if you want to draw water from a well, it is much less labor intensive to use a tool than to go down to the bottom of the well and draw water with a bucket, or to use a fishing bottle with a pulley attached, or a hand pump. "...... So you''re saying that ritual magic is more effective because it uses tools? It''s not just tools, but that''s the general idea. In terms of imagery, is there a difference between reciting a spell quickly and writing it down on paper?¡¡You can''t go wrong with the latter, can you? This is why you need to prepare tools and perform rituals in advance compared to dictation, which is almost instantaneous. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to buy a lot of things. In the case of transmutation magic, for example, if you want to place a stone 100 meters away, you can think of it as the difference between being able to use a 100-meter measure and not being able to use a 100-meter measure. On the contrary, if you are an advanced person who can control your own stride in centimeters, you may be able to do something on the level of ritual magic with dictation magic, but of course, this is impossible for me right now. I''m sure you''ll understand. ...... Hmm?¡¡So, if I prepare my attack magic with that ritual magic, it will be much more effective? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. For relatively simple attack spells, the power is directly proportional to the magic power used. If you have a need to use different temperatures for flames, say 1,000 degrees and 1,100 degrees, it may be necessary, but as far as attacks are concerned, it is almost pointless. On the contrary, the stove is made as a magical tool using ritual magic, or alchemy, because it needs to be used in different ways. As for offensive magic using ritual magic, didn''t Gantz-san once show us a bow made of mithril? "...... Oh, I remember something like that. Yeah, I remember something like that. It was unsold. Toya thinks for a moment, then claps his hands. I can''t remember, but I''m pretty sure it cost less than 100 gold coins, which is a pretty good price for a mithril weapon. I''m sure that''s what it is, but to me, it has no practical use. In a sense, it''s an excellent weapon, because it uses ritual magic as its attack magic, so it can be used like attack magic even if you can''t use magic, but it seems that the number of users is quite limited. The magic power used is constant, and the power and speed cannot be adjusted. If that''s the case, wouldn''t it be more convenient to use the Fire Arrow on your own?¡¡You can''t just use it as a bow, because drawing a bow forces you to consume magic power. As an archer, you need to have two bows in addition to a bow that can also fire regular arrows? That''s what I mean. So the target audience for that bow is people who have plenty of magic power, can''t use magic, can use a bow, and don''t need to use regular arrows or can carry another bow?¡¡That''s a pretty limited target audience. That''s going to be a tough sell. ...... It''s a very limited target audience," he said, folding his fingers one by one. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure there was someone who used them since they actually existed, but nowadays, who would buy ...... them? It''s a cheap weapon for mithril, but it''s too expensive to buy as a talking point. I''m sure it was a lot of work to make, but ...... I pity you. I''m not sure how to make it, but I don''t know how to make it. I think it would be a good idea to at least ask Diora-san about it. "Right. It''s free to ask him. I don''t know if he''ll tell me. I''m not sure if he''ll tell me." Haruka responds with a wry smile, as if to say, "Probably not. I''m not sure if he''ll teach me. The more time that passes, the more undead there will be. "Right. All right, Toya, lead the way! ....... It stinks. Frowning, Toya didn''t complain and began to lead the way. Fortunately, the number of undead that stood in front of us on both layers 9 and 10 was unexpectedly small, and all of them were easily erased by Haruka and her team''s "purification". The number of undead that stood in front of us on both layers was unexpectedly small. Do you think they''ll repop in three or four days? "What do you think?¡¡Maybe it''s a resource problem? That''s a possibility. It''s not like we have unlimited resources. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the most effective way to get the most out of your time. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. If we had a fixed amount of resources to use, wouldn''t we allocate them to replenishing the demons and bosses of other levels rather than replenishing the demons of levels 9 and 10, where there are still some left? "Hmmm... It''s like summoning points. Sounds like a possibility. If you can summon as many as you want without limit, we can''t stand it. No matter how small they are, numbers are power. If they keep attacking in waves, we''re in danger. It''s a good thing, too. You can easily repopulate if you leave all but the demons you want to kill alone, right?¡¡It''s a good thing I''m not the only one. ...... That''s one way to look at it, right? I''m not sure what to make of it. If you don''t kill any enemies outside of the meat area, it will be easier to replenish the meat. Well, that''s great for us. ...... Okay, no more lizard zombies. So let''s set up a quick transfer point. "Right. Okay. Move to the back room leading from the boss room, and work with Toya to embed the transition point as before. The transition point for the eighth layer can be found quite close to here, so even if you can''t transfer directly from the entrance, you should be able to transfer from the eighth layer to here without wearing yourself out. Okay, okay. Good work. And now for the main event of the day, layer eleven. With Toya leading the way with a grin and a sword at the ready, we stepped out into the grasslands of layer 11. 233-209 Grasslands in Dungeons It looks like an ordinary meadow. It doesn''t look like it has an end. The front is normal, but the back is a little freaky. Behind you is a huge rock wall. The staircase we came down has a hole in the rock wall that stretches to the left, right, and above until it becomes hazy and invisible. We can''t tell if the wall actually extends that far, or if it just looks like that. There''s some kind of invisible wall at the edge, right?¡¡That''s what I call fantasy. "If you think of it as a biosphere and a high performance monitor, it could be achieved with advanced science and technology. Didn''t they have an experiment to live in space? It failed, though. It seems that it is not so easy to reproduce the natural environment scientifically, and the experiment failed easily despite the large amount of money poured into it. It may be different if we simply want to live sustainably in a closed space, but it seems that further development of science and technology will be needed to create nature. ...... I wonder if it rains in this hierarchy. "If the plants here are normal, it must rain. When I tore off the grass under my feet, I couldn''t tell the difference between it and the normal grass that grows around Raffan, though I didn''t know its name. Strangely enough, the demons in the dungeon seem to be able to survive without food, so there is no possibility that the weeds in this area can also grow without water. ....... The wind is blowing. You can even see something that looks like the sun. ...... When convection occurs, wind and clouds are generated. ...... No, but it must be very wide. ...... It''s okay, let''s go with fantasy banzai. I''m not sure what to make of it. But in fact, it is true. You can''t scientifically explain how dungeons work, so there''s no point in talking about this hierarchy alone. ...... Well, it''s useless to think about it, isn''t it? Yes, yes. You just have to accept what you see, because it''s a different world. It''s the truth. We do magic and stuff, don''t we? Well, I can''t say anything if you don''t. What is magic?¡¡What is magic? Our scientific knowledge is useful in this world, but it''s not a panacea, since there''s a factor called "magic". No, to be more precise, I should say "magic". The thing in our body that becomes the energy for magic is magic power, and the phenomenon that manifests is magic. The thing that floats in the air and is believed to be the cause of the occurrence of magic is the magic element, and the thing obtained from magic is the magic stone. The magic stones produce magic power, and the objects that operate using magic power as energy are magical tools. These terms are not very precise, and ordinary people, including us, do not use them accurately. In Japan, radiation, radioactivity, and radioactive materials are all collectively called "radioactivity". However, the difference between this and "radioactivity" is that there are still many unknowns in the field of magic power, and no definite theories have been established yet. For example, the effects of magic tools. Is this magic or not? There has been a fierce debate between the "it''s magic" faction and the "it''s not magic" faction, and while the "it''s magic" faction seems to be somewhat dominant at the moment, the overwhelming majority is the "it doesn''t matter as long as it works" faction. By the way, we''re more of a "not magic" faction. If you define magic as something that consumes magic power to produce an effect, then according to Haruka and the others, the math doesn''t add up. To put it simply without going into details, sometimes the output is greater than the input. Haruka and his team seem to have assumed that this is due to the intervention of magical elements, but if you use magical elements instead of magical power, is it magic? What is a "magical element" in the first place? What is magic in the first place? In general, I don''t really understand it. You can''t deny that even if you can''t explain it, it''s an undeniable fact that magical power exists and causes phenomena. "Yes. In fact, even scientific civilization does not change this fact. Even if gravitons are not found, gravity still exists, and even if the Higgs boson is found, mass will not change. Maybe a few thousand years in the future, magic particles or something like that will be proven, but with or without them, magic is still possible. For now, we''ll just have to accept this magical environment. So, what are we going to do?¡¡"So, what are you going to do?" "It''s harder to know where to go when there''s no path. There is a wall behind you, but you are free to turn 180 degrees in any direction. But where the stairs to the next level are is a mystery. Is there any enemy response? There is some, but it''s not very threatening. With such good visibility, I wouldn''t be surprised if we could see them. ...... Mmm, [eagle eyes] activated! ...... is always in effect, even if you don''t activate it. It''s a good idea to take a look at it carefully. What?¡¡That''s it!¡¡Wow, great mimicry. ...... What''s going on? I''m not sure what to make of it. The enemy is a small, wolf-like animal. It''s got green fur and it''s approaching slowly. Can you see it? I point to the closest one, the one I can see even without the [Hawk Eyes], but everyone except me just nods their heads. Being able to see it and being able to find it are two different things, as they say. I guess it''s like a ghillie suit in the army. The color of their body hair and the grass around them is very similar, so you can''t notice them unless you know where they are and observe carefully. It hides its dark snout in the grass and gradually approaches as the grass sways in the wind. ...... Oh, I see it. That''s it! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Haruka immediately took up her bow and quickly fired an arrow at it. The distance between us was probably about 40 meters. The arrow flew precisely towards it, but the distance was too great. The enemy, who must have noticed us, jumped and dodged the arrow before it could pierce him. "Ah!¡¡There it is! Wow, I can''t see that one coming. ...... You can''t see it coming. It''s scary when you don''t have a lookout. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. But it''s thinner than I thought. ......? I couldn''t tell when it was in the grass, but when I saw it flying in the air, it was much slimmer than I had imagined. Compared to the howling wolf I encountered on the second level, it''s about a size or two smaller. But for now, I''m going to kill it!¡¡It''s approaching at once! I''m not sure if Haruka''s attack was the trigger, but the enemies that were scattered around the area, including the one that had just dodged the arrow, rushed towards us. It''s hard to tell!¡¡How many of them are there? "12......, no, 13! They''re approaching in a semicircle! There''s a wall behind us, so they''re approaching us from somewhere else. It''s hard to tell in real life, although the search results show it perfectly. That''s pretty nasty! But Haruka is still able to hit the arrow. It''s just that they''re hard to find, but they don''t seem to be that strong, and the enemy is losing the battle just from that. It''s hard to tell where they are! Yes, you might get hurt if you''re taken by surprise. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web, and you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. What the hell?¡¡I''m not sure if this is a chain reaction or not.¡¡There''s more coming. In addition to the first thirteen, there are already a few left, but there are over twenty more approaching from further away. They weren''t strong enough to make me feel threatened, though. Hey, can I go in there? Suit yourself. Yes! I watched as Toya ran off with her sword at the ready, and I readied my small sword. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Once you know, it''s not worth using magic. Each of us cut them down quickly, and in less than 10 minutes, we had a pile of about 40 corpses around us. "Okay, that''s it. "Okay, that''s the last of them. In a way, collecting the bodies was more trouble than it was worth, right? A third of the corpses were scattered far away, thanks to Toya''s single-handed rush. We split them up and threw them into the magic bag. However, the few that were hit by Yuki''s fireball were reduced to pieces of meat, so only the magic stones were collected. On the other hand, the ones that were clean were the ones that Haruka killed with her bow and the ones that were beaten to death with Toya''s sword. The fur was almost unscathed, so it could be sold at a high price. "It''s a pretty color. A little strange. ...... I''ve never seen fur this color on Earth, have you? It''s not very fluffy, but the color itself is beautiful. I''ve never seen furs of this color in town, and I wonder if I could sell them for a good price? Unless it''s a mutation, I don''t think this color is possible. Not like birds. Unlike birds. "...... Come to think of it, birds come in a wide variety of colors. There are even birds with extreme colors. Why is that? Toya twisted her head and said, "Why?" I thought about it again. Yeah, it''s kind of strange. Most of the beasts are brown, and the rest are black and white. It''s so plain compared to the colorfulness of birds. It may be a protective color, but if colorful birds can survive, why can''t colorful mammals? It seems to be a matter of evolution. ....... If the color is conspicuous, herbivores can easily be spotted by their enemies, and carnivores find it difficult to hunt. What about birds? I think it''s because birds eat a lot of fruits, nuts and insects.¡¡On the other hand, there are no birds of prey that have colorful feathers, right? I''m not sure what to make of that. That''s Natsuki. Yuki nodded her head as she listened to Natsuki''s explanation. I don''t know if it''s right or not. I don''t know if it''s right or not, but demons are creatures that exist separately from their surroundings, so this kind of body hair is probably possible. It''s a demon that can live without food. In dungeons, there is no need to worry about being preyed upon, and even outside of dungeons, demons are not often attacked for predation. However, it seems that demons sometimes kill each other in territorial disputes, so it does not mean that demons get along with each other. By the way, Toya, what do we know about this creature? "Glass Coyote. It lives in the grasslands. It''s not very strong, but it attacks in groups. The fur is valuable, but the meat doesn''t sell very well. The magic stone is 1,100 rare. That''s cheap, right? At my question, Toya''s gaze wanders through the air as she reads a description of the beast, a glass coyote. She has already read through the encyclopedia of demons that she purchased from the Adventurer''s Guild, so if it''s a known demon in the encyclopedia, she can answer right away, which is pretty convenient. It is a walking encyclopedia of demons. I''ve read it, too, but I haven''t read it enough to be able to remember it immediately because of Toya''s presence. It''s not so bad if you''re making money per hour, but since the number of monsters decreases all at once, it''s not so great in total. "That''s right. According to my search range, there''s no one left. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Well, let''s put aside the profitability of this level for the moment. Which direction should we go? "Which direction, the meadow or the forest? If your current view is 0 degrees to the left and 180 degrees to the right, you can see a forest about 120 degrees, more than a kilometer away, and everything else is grassland. There are no ups and downs, so you can observe the horizon. Yes, the horizon. The horizon ...... is a wonder in the dungeon. Considering the hierarchy of the dungeons and the size of the dungeons so far, it would not be abnormal to have a vastness where you can see the horizon, but such a large space exists without any pillars. ...... Oh, yeah, I didn''t think about that. I''m not sure if I want to go to the forest or not.¡¡Grasslands seem boring, don''t they? I agree with you. Glass coyotes are a pain in the ass. They''re small fry, but there''s not enough of them. Like Toya, they''re a pain in the ass. It''s mostly work, so you won''t get much combat experience, and you probably won''t get much experience either. I see no reason to object. Let''s head for the forest then. Nao, keep an eye on the enemy. Even if you''re not strong, it''s dangerous to be taken by surprise. Copy that. Glass coyote mimicry is not foolproof. It''s not unlikely that we would have been taken by surprise if not for the spotters. I paid renewed attention to the search and started walking towards the forest. 234-210 Forest on Grassland in Dungeon Oh!¡¡Look!¡¡There''s fruit, fruit growing! Yuki was the one who shouted as soon as we entered the forest. I looked in the direction she was pointing, and sure enough, there was a tree bearing a round fruit the size of my fist. The fruit was light green in color, perhaps not yet ripe. It''s a ...... green apple, or is it a pear?¡¡The shape of the butt. Pears?¡¡It''s kind of plain ........ Are they even ripe? I don''t care if it''s plain. I like pears, okay? I''ll just pick one. Before you can stop him, Yuki jumps up to the top of the tree and comes back with two pears. Before you can stop her, Yuki jumps up the tree, picks up two fruits and returns. I''m pretty sure it''s a pear. It looks like a common fruit because it looks like a [help]. "Are they ripe with that color? They look unripe, but there are some varieties of green pears, like the Nijisseiki pear, that can be eaten in this state. ....... You''ll know it when you try it. So, peel it for me. "Here you go. Yuki and Haruka skillfully peeled and cut the skin and offered it to me, and I took a piece. I took a slice. ...... Ah, it tastes like an icosaur pear. The size of the fruit itself is a little smaller, but I wouldn''t be able to tell the difference if it was served cut up. I''m not an expert on pears, to be honest. I don''t know much about pears. My level is. It''s not bad. It''s not bad. ...... I like the taste of this. I like it when it''s hot and chilled. Yeah. I''ll have to pick some up and go home. It''ll sell. I don''t think it''s worth a dime. High praise from all. And it''s not too badly profitable. Now we just need to find out how many of these trees grow in this forest, and how often they produce fruit. There doesn''t seem to be any seasonal changes in the dungeon, but what about that? So let''s get to harvesting, shall we? But first, we have a visitor. Three of them. They''re getting closer. All right!¡¡Once that''s taken care of, we''ll have a pear-picking party! I don''t know if it''s a party, but I guarantee you it''s free. I''m getting motivated! A few seconds after Yuki raised her weapon with a smile, the enemy revealed itself. A few seconds after Yuki raised her weapon with a smile, the enemy appeared, a grasshopper about 50 centimeters in size. Using its large legs and wings, it uses a tree as a stepping stone to jump up and down. It doesn''t fly very fast, but when it uses a tree as a stepping stone, it jumps very fast. "Forest hoppers!¡¡I''ll take care of one. I''ll take the other one. When Toya and Natsuki move a bit to provoke them, one of them will move in their direction. The remaining one jumped straight at us. Isn''t it too straight? It was fast, but after it jumped from the tree, it just jumped in a straight line. To be honest, I felt uncomfortable when I saw its mouth moving in a crinkling motion, but if I placed my spear gently on the extension of its mouth, it would automatically jump in a straight line. It continued to flap its magnificent hind legs as if scratching algae for a while, but it was of no use when it was skewered in midair. When I saw that it had stopped moving, I swung my spear and threw the corpse to the ground. "Well, that was easy. It''s not too scary unless they surround you and jump on you at the same time, right? It''s a little hard, but only a little. I''m not sure what to make of this. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. But if you aim at the side or something, it might slip on the surface depending on the weapon. "It''s not unbreakable. When Toya returned, she was holding the body of a Forest Hopper, split in two by its head and body. The head was half crushed, so he must have smashed it and torn off its head. Natsuki''s body is also split in two, but it is cut in half in the middle of the body and does not appear to have been crushed. I would call it an excellent cut. Since it''s an insect, you might as well aim for the nodes. ...... I''m not saying this because I stabbed it head-on. The most beautiful one is Nao''s. Tohya, what''s the selling point of this? Other than the magic stone, the hind legs. Back legs?¡¡Those long ones? Yeah. They''re used for jumping, so they''re quite large. It''s about 30 centimeters long when it''s bent. But what are you going to use it for? By the way, they eat. "''.........'' We all fell silent at Toya''s words. It''s not surprising that they eat locusts, so it''s not surprising that they eat the legs of these. ...... Are they even good?¡¡I''m not sure. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I don''t want to eat it.¡¡I don''t want to eat it. I don''t want to eat it, but it''s thick enough that it might be easier to pick out the meat than a crab, but I don''t want to eat it myself. "Let''s collect them. Fortunately, all the legs are intact. "There was no point in killing them cleanly. It was just a coincidence. As usual, the corpses are stored in the magic bag. Fortunately, there is no movement in the surrounding demons. "Well, that''s not important. I''ve got pear picking to do! You''re excited, Yuki? I''m excited too!¡¡Because I haven''t had a real fruit since Dindol! Haruka nodded with a wry smile at Yuki''s strong assertion. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I can. The citrus we harvested was inedible! That was too sour. I''m salivating just thinking about it. ...... It''s a handy substitute for vinegar, though. Basically, the fruits available in Lahu are expensive and do not last long. This is understandable when you consider that even today, many fruits are imported by air. Some fruits are imported by sea, but they are the result of a lot of hard work, such as applying a lot of fungicide, harvesting the fruits while they are still green and hard, and controlling the temperature in containers. It is not something that can be imitated in our world. On the other hand, we have special means of transportation such as magic bags, but if you use such means, you will have to pay a very high transportation cost on top of the originally high price of the fruit, and the price will be beyond the reach of ordinary people. If such fruits were available, we might have bought them, but they would not be affordable for ordinary people, and unfortunately, no merchant would bring them to such a small town if he did not know whether they would sell or not. It''s too risky because it''s a perishable foodstuff that can''t be preserved. Inevitably, the fruits available in Rafan are limited to those that can be harvested nearby, and in Rafan, where there are no orchards nearby, only the few fruits that grow in the forest can be sold in the market. In Rafan, where there are no orchards nearby, only a few fruits from the forest can be found in the market. "Well, I like fruits too, so let''s pick them. It''s not a very big tree, so why don''t Yuki and I pick it? "Yes!¡¡We''ll do our best! When I say it''s not a big tree, I mean it''s not as big as the dingdol and the giant trees we''ve been cutting down all winter. If you look up, it looks like it''s at least six meters tall. I thought pear trees weren''t that big, but maybe that''s because they were pruned for cultivation, or maybe it''s just another world. Even with such a tree, it''s not possible for everyone to climb up and harvest the fruit, so Haruka and Yuki climb up the tree while Natsuki and I pick up the fruit that''s being thrown down and put it in our magic bags. Toya is on the lookout for enemies. However, he may have a certain amount of territory, since the enemies are not approaching him, even though they are within his search range. It would have been more efficient for me to climb the tree instead of Yuki, but Yuki looked so happy picking pears that there was no reason for me to switch places with her. "I got a lot of pears..." "It''s so beautiful... In the end, we had harvested more than 100 pieces. Yuki, who came down in a singing tone, took out some pears and cooled them with the magic of "cold". This is an offensive spell belonging to fire magic, but it has never been used for actual offense, and it has been very useful in daily life since it became hot. Both "Cold" and "Heat" can be powerful attack spells depending on how they are used, but it is easier to simply blow off the head with "Fire Arrow" than to aim for freezing to death or heat stroke. It may be useful in situations where you want to catch someone without damaging them, but since I haven''t had the chance to receive such a request yet, I don''t think I''ll be using it as an offensive magic for a while. Are you going to eat it? "Rather, aren''t you going to eat it?¡¡One per person is fine. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m fine with half. ....... I''ll take it. I''ll have one, too. When Yuki handed us the whole pear, we bit into it and felt the distinctive crunch of the pear and a lot of juice. I prefer pears when they are cold. It was delicious when I ate it earlier, but it was even better when it was well chilled. The slightly light, cold juice moistens your throat. "Ah. Thank goodness for this time of year. It''s a nice gift for Mary and Mitya. "Yes. Mary and Mitya don''t get to eat much fruit, so it''s good. I see. Souvenirs are the best way to increase sensitivity. You''re really thinking this through, Toya. Okay, since it''s such a good idea, why don''t you hand it to him and raise his favorability! That''s the Light Source plan!¡¡Yeah, good food is good for you. Mitya''s a bit of a glutton, isn''t he? "You''re still talking about it? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. There''s a bit of an age difference, but that''s normal in this world.¡¡You don''t get married until you''re an adult, though. In our world, 15 years old is about middle school age. ....... I think it''s a little early, but it''s not a problem. No, I want to fall in love and get married in a normal way. ......?¡¡And besides, they are children, no matter how you look at it. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to do with it. You can''t just say, "I want a beast-eared bride!" and expect to find someone in love. That''s right. You can''t fall in love with someone who doesn''t exist, like a two-dimensional wife. As long as you''re in this country, it''s not impossible that you''ll happen to meet a beast of the opposite s*x who happens to be of the right age, and you''ll be able to have a romantic relationship with them. ...... Yeah, don''t dream about it. It''s reckless to try to fall in love with someone when over 99% of the people you meet are not your target. You can always move to another country, but it would be more realistic to go for Mary or Mitya or both, wouldn''t it? "But, you know, it depends on how they feel.¡¡If I were to confess, it would be hard to say no, right?¡¡It''s hard to say no. I don''t like that. I don''t want to do that." Toya said indecisively, and the women pushed her even harder. If you''re in the right place, you won''t be hated. ....... At least they won''t say they don''t want to marry you. That''s right. It''s not that easy to get married in love, because love and marriage are different ....... This is why polygamy is allowed in this world. As long as Toya is earning money, I''m sure they''ll be happy to marry. This country seems to be doing relatively well, but the average person is just trying to make it through the day. Unfortunately, they can''t afford to fall in love, you know?¡¡That''s why women in this world will gladly marry a man who is kind to them and gives them a reasonably good life. Looks are secondary. "Well, that''s the world ....... Tohya is depressed, but in fact, it is common for women to marry the man their parents decide on, regardless of their own intentions. Even jobs are basically by marriage, and it is difficult to change one''s place of residence freely. However, stragglers who have run away from home because they don''t want to be married, or those who don''t have access to such care, end up as adventurers. The guild is a place where adventurers gather, so they must go through a lot of trouble to maintain discipline. After that, you can go to a country where there are slaves and buy a beastman to be your slave. ...... I don''t want to do that!¡¡It''s like taking advantage of a weakness.¡¡--But if you''re asking me to help a girl in trouble, ...... And make her fall in love with you?¡¡It''s also similar to ...... No, in a way, it''s worse than picking up an orphan, isn''t it? It''s not that I happen to be, but that I help them with ulterior motives. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and what you can do to help. I''m not going to deny it, but it''s a little tough to call it normal love. I don''t know if it will ever happen.¡¡I don''t know if it''s going to happen or not. I''m probably going to be single for the rest of my life. I''m probably going to be single for the rest of my life, thinking, "Someday I''ll meet the beast-eared bride of my dreams. Toya, you''re not a dream girl. That''s harsh!¡¡You''re very strict, all three of you! Even if you''re not a maiden, boys dream, too. "Well, well, well, all three of you. You don''t have to shove reality down Toya''s throat, do you?¡¡There''s still time. I''m sure you''re not the only one. ...... Yes, I know. But you have to decide at least within five years, ...... by the time Mary comes of age.¡¡For her sake. "Yes, yes. If Toya doesn''t marry, we''ll need to find someone for Mary to marry. I''ll think about it. ...... I''ll think about it." Toya replied, looking a little depressed, but I think the outcome is probably set in stone. The two of them seem to miss each other. Nevertheless, real life has been more tumultuous than I had expected. If I remember what happened to us in the past year, I can''t deny the possibility that Toya will have a fateful encounter in the next five or six years. I''ll just have to watch quietly. 235-211 Fruit picking Well, let''s put Toya''s wedding talk on the back burner. The problem is the pears. "Oh, ......, is that right? He was a little unhappy with Yuki''s argument, but he didn''t feel like poking around too much, so he nodded his head a little. I''m not sure what''s wrong with the pears.¡¡Aren''t you glad it''s so good? "Of course it''s good. Of course it''s good. But don''t you think we can find other fruits based on the pattern so far?¡¡Rather, let''s find them, shall we? If there aren''t, we won''t find any. ...... Well, that''s good, isn''t it? You know what?¡¡We''ll have more souvenirs for Mary and the others. ......... Wisely keep silent Toya. Silence is golden, eloquence is silver. I''ll give you that. But I can see Yuki''s point. Isn''t it important to have a souvenir? Not that. I''m talking about the area. There are areas where you get more meat, so there might be a pattern to what you get. Right?¡¡We just have to look for it, right? I like fruit, too. I''m with you. I like sweets, too. It''s only natural. Haruka and Natsuki also agreed with Yuki while smiling modestly. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''ll look for it!¡¡I''m not going to let anyone stand in my way when I''m looking for fruit!¡¡Toya! You mean me!¡¡I''ll do my best, though! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do my best. We started to pick fruits, following the back of Toya, who is always reliable in spite of what he says. The first thing we did was to go in. As it turned out, there were no other fruits in the first forest we entered. Fortunately, our stock of pears had increased considerably, but that was it. The only fruit trees were pears, even though there were other trees growing there as well. However, Yuki''s prediction was not wrong. As it turned out, the eleventh level was a square about ten kilometers on a side, and there was a similar wall and stairs leading down about ten kilometers in front of the stairs we had come down. The walls seem to go on and on to the left and right, but in reality there are invisible walls about five kilometers on each side that divide the levels into squares. This large area was dotted with forests like the one we entered at the beginning, and two of them had apple and grape trees of one kind each. The apples were small and a little sour, and the grapes were unevenly sized and few in number, like mountain grapes. Still, we were delighted with the taste of fruit that we hadn''t tasted in a long time, and we spent our time picking fruit as fast as we could. In each forest, there were demons that seemed to protect the fruit, but they were literally unable to stand in the way of the women who sought the fruit, and disappeared in the blink of an eye. After finishing the fruit picking on the 11th level, we went down the stairs to the 12th level, which was almost the same structure as the 11th level. The fruits we got here were figs and loquat. Under pressure from the ladies, "Where''s the other kind? I surveyed the entire forest twice, but could not find the third fruit. I can''t say for sure because of the time of year, but I think there are two kinds of fruits available in this level. Both of them were smaller than the ones sold in Japan, and the loquat had large seeds and thin flesh, but the number of fruits on a tree was quite large, so we could get enough if we didn''t have to spend much time. On the 13th layer, we found two kinds of persimmons and a plum. However, one of the persimmons was an astringent persimmon. They looked very similar, both a little long and narrow, but one was an astringent persimmon, just like a trap. The first one we ate, Toya, fainted in agony, so we escaped harm. ...... We were not aiming for that, you know? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. But I do not deny that the other four were looking at each other. The shape of the persimmon resembled the persimmon that I knew, and I was somewhat suspicious. I was wrong, however, because there was a sweet persimmon of almost the same shape. The only differences were that the astringent persimmons were slightly larger and the shape of the root was slightly different. It''s hard to notice unless you compare them. Incidentally, I harvested the astringent persimmons as well. You can eat them if you make them into dried persimmons. The plums are about the size of a large plum, and as the name suggests, they are quite sour. It was sour, but I liked the taste of it, so I happily picked it. Aside from me, Natsuki and Toya liked it, while Yuki and Haruka felt that one or two would be enough. The 14th layer was raspberries and blueberries. As usual, Yuki looked around for the other kind, "What''s the other kind? but we ended up finding only these two. The raspberries were about one centimeter in diameter, not much different from the raspberries I knew, but the blueberries were about five millimeters in diameter, and even had seeds, so they were a little difficult to eat. Considering the small size of the blueberries, we can''t deny the possibility that Yuki is right and there is another kind of blueberry that we haven''t found yet, but what can''t be found can''t be helped. Then we came to the 15th level. There was a slight change in this level. In the previous levels, the pattern was the same: a square with a grassy plain, some woods scattered about, and a glass coyote roaming the grassy plain. The glass coyotes had a habit of gathering in chains over a wide area once a fight broke out. It was dangerous to be surrounded by a group of them, but in a sense, it was convenient to be able to deal with a wide range of enemies at once. If you have the ability to deal with them like we do. However, as soon as we descended to the 15th level, we noticed that there was no response from the glass coyote in the meadow. Instead, it''s dotted with reactions stronger than a glass coyote''s. A little caution. There are non-grass coyotes. The reaction is about ...... oak. I think I can kill an orc with no problem, but I can''t be too careful. Yeah. If an attack hits you, you might die ....... The orc that shattered my arm is now a good memory, but it''s also a good lesson. Now that I''m a higher level and my equipment has been updated, I might be able to withstand it, but apart from being able to die easily, I should never forget how scary it is when an attack hits. Except for Toya, there is a part of us that believes that "it doesn''t matter if it doesn''t hit" and "fighting is all about firepower! and "Fighting is about firepower! Even Toya is not a normal tank, but an "evasive tank". If you are a soldier fighting on a limited battlefield, it''s impossible for an adventurer who travels long distances with his gear on to be fully armored. It is not realistic to protect the rearguard while taking a lot of attacks. "What kind of enemy is it this time?¡¡Do they look strong? "Well?¡¡I wish I could see their defenses so I could compare them. ...... Oh, that''s it. Looks like a cow. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I can''t identify them, but if you combine [help] and [detect], you can find out a lot more. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Strike-Ox Status: Healthy Skill: [Charge] [Kick Up ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You can find the name in [Help]. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to. But I''m not that smart. [Appraise] seems to display information even if I can''t remember it at once, so this may be an advantage over [Help]. On the other hand, ¡¾Detect¡¿ shows you the target''s status and skills. However, be careful not to rely on this too much. First of all, the condition "Health". I''ve never seen anything other than "healthy", "lightly injured", and "seriously injured". That''s how easy it is to see. No, it''s because you can tell by looking at it that you can tell it by [detecting]? If you have a skill like [Medicine], it might be different, but at least until now, the condition has never been useful. Next, skills. The caveat here is that the skills that are visible in the [Lookout] are almost certainly possessed, but that doesn''t mean there aren''t skills that aren''t shown. Just as Haruka''s skills in the past did not match the skills she learned from Yasue, it is possible that there are skills that are not shown. In other words, there is a possibility that this Strike Ox can actually use magic. This is quite dangerous, because if you start a battle with an assumption and get hit by an unexpected attack, it''s better to assume various situations from the beginning and fight carefully, and it''s also a good training for when you encounter an enemy you can''t [see through]. Therefore, I basically don''t tell Haruka and the others about the skills I''ve seen in the inspection. The only exceptions are when I see magic skills or other skills that require special attention. The only exceptions are magic skills or skills that require special attention. Although this is the case, the threat level against the opponent is definitely trustworthy. --God said so. In fact, when I fought, there was never any discrepancy between the threat level and the threat level I perceived in the "Sightings". The name is ''Strike Ox''. Do you recognize it? I can''t tell you much without an appraisal. It''s just a black dot to my eyes. The problem is you can''t use appraisal until you see the real thing. It would be useful if Toya learned to use the eyes of a hawk. ...... I mean, Yuki, you''ve learned both. Don''t you get it? Hmm, wait a minute. ...... It''s a bit far. ...... My [Hawk Eyes], Toya''s [Appraisal]. Although her level is lower than both of them, Yuki has learned both of them. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. But the problem is that because she has so many skills, her overall level up is slow. Even now, I can identify it as a cow, but at Yuki''s [Eagle''s Eye] level, it seems to be nothing more than a ''four-legged animal''. Oh, it''s getting closer. I wonder if they''ve noticed me. "At this distance?¡¡Cows have pretty good eyesight, don''t they? They''re demons, though. They can see very well, so it''s not as strange as an ogre that will attack you even if you''re not in sight. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It is also possible that they will attack you, and I can see the cow rushing at me with full of motivation. Oh, I see it. Strike Ox, watch out for the rush. I don''t need to be told to be careful, but from the looks of it. My [Spotting] also shows the [Charge] skill. I''m not sure if it''s getting faster or not, but Strike Ox''s figure is now visible even without the eagle eye. It has two sharp horns, its whole body is black, and it is quite large. It has two sharp horns, and its whole body is black. "This is where I come in. I''ll handle this!¡¡Ground Control! I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s a magic that I''ve missed a lot -- using it in battle. But the result was something completely different from before. Boggity, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump! That time, the magic had been useless to the enemy, only trapping them under my feet, but this time it was spot on. A small hole was made in the toe of the Strike Ox. As he plunged his foot into the hole, Strike Ox lost his balance and, at the same speed, spun around and plunged headfirst into the ground. At about the same time, the dull sound of a broken leg was followed by an indescribable sound from its neck, and its huge body rolled toward us with a rumble of inertia. Whoa! In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. 236-212 I want to eat ice cream "Wow, brilliant. Is he dead? Toya whacks Strike Ox with the belly of his sword. Oh, he''s dead. ...... The first "snap" was enough to make Strike Ox disappear from the search results. It was much easier than expected. "Hmmm, never let a mistake go unpunished. That''s Yugi Shito. It''s been a while since I''ve heard your full name. It''s great to be ambitious, it''s great to be effective, but ...... what''s this feeling?¡¡I feel a strange emptiness. I''m sure there''s nothing wrong with the method. It''s been a long time since you''ve done that, hasn''t it? It''s been a while since I''ve seen you do that," he said, "because there aren''t many enemies who''ll run straight into you, and it''s hard to see your feet in the woods. You can''t see what''s underneath your feet in the woods." Yuki shrugged at Toya''s curious look. It''s true that the timing of this spell is important, and if the battle turns violent, you can''t use it poorly. You can''t use it if you''re in the middle of a melee and you''re in danger of getting your foot caught in a hollow. There''s also pitfalls in earth magic, right?¡¡What about that one? "That''s basically a hole that a person can fall into. If you want to get your foot caught in a pit, "Ground Control" is more suitable.¡¡You have to practice, though, because it''s slower. Basically, when you use "Ground Control" to manipulate the soil, the soil moves like "zzzzz". On the other hand, when you use "Pitfall", the hole will open up with a pop. The latter consumes far more magic power, so it is not wrong to use the former if you just want to roll. However, it will take a lot of practice to make a well-timed step under the feet of an enemy running at high speed. "Well, it''s good that you were able to kill him easily. "That''s true. It''s going to be tough to catch something this big and that fast, isn''t it? Of course. Even Toya would be blown away by the weight difference. You can either fight while avoiding it or use magic to deal with it. You can''t be fooled by its weight and inertia. Toya, what are the details of this creature? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡It says something about ''if you do it right, you can milk it.'' I thought an ox was a bull. It''s often used in that sense, but it wasn''t originally limited to bulls. Originally, the term ox was used to refer to all larger members of the bovine family, including buffaloes. Well, the name doesn''t matter, the question now is: "Milk? "Milk, ......, that''s a bull. I rolled the dead body of the striking ox, hoping for a little milk, but unfortunately, it had a p*n*s on it. No, not if it''s dead in the first place, apparently.¡¡It says here that it''s essential to capture them alive and squeeze them well, as they''ll be too tasteless to drink after death. That''s ...... pretty absurd, isn''t it? I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of people who''ll be able to help you out. But when you''re dealing with a demon, it''s like, ''How impossible can it be? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of it. That''s why they can be sold at a high price. That''s true. This time he died easily, but his strength is still (probably) Orc level. Considering that there are almost no adventurers in the town of Raffan who can kill an orc by themselves, you can imagine how difficult it would be to capture it alive and milk it leisurely. But I do want milk, whether I can sell it or not. You can get cheese and butter, but you can''t get raw milk. "If we could get raw milk, we could cook more and make sweets!¡¡I want fresh cream!¡¡Fresh pastries!¡¡Fresh pastries! Fresh pastries are very tempting, indeed. We didn''t have milk, so we were limited to other sweets. You know, buns are also raw sweets. ......? Natsuki''s words were denied by Yuki, who pointed out modestly. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡A high school girl''s fresh pastry should be fresh cream! Yuki''s statement may be a bit prejudiced, but I can''t deny that the image of fresh sweets is fresh cream. By the way, Natsuki says that most of the wagashi we usually eat are raw confectioneries, because they are raw confectioneries as opposed to dried confectioneries. I''ve heard that dried confectioneries are Rakugan (wild goose) and Sembei (rice cracker), but I almost never have a chance to eat Rakugan, and even if you call Sembei a Japanese confectionery, my feeling would be, "Japanese confectionery? I don''t have a chance to eat Rakugan. I''ve never had a chance to eat Rakugan, but I''ve never had a chance to eat Rakugan. It''s a cheap image. "The expensive rice crackers are quite expensive, you know.¡¡They cost several hundred yen a piece. Seriously?¡¡I understand that it takes a lot of time and effort, but ...... if I have to pay that price, I would rather buy a cake or a donut. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. And I agree with him. I''d rather eat a doughnut than a rice cracker, and sometimes a cake is good too. And ice cream would be nice this time of year. By the way, when you get some raw milk, can you make some ice cream? "Ice cream ...... sounds good. I haven''t found vanilla, but I''m sure green tea would be fine. That''s a good idea!¡¡I''m tired of shaved ice! I asked Tommy to make the shaved ice machine for me, but unfortunately I couldn''t get any suitable fruit, so I just used molasses-like syrup made from sugar. I can''t deny that I''m getting tired of it, just like Toya said. Now if I can just get some raw milk, I can teach Aella how to make fresh pastries! "Yes. When I told her about it before, she didn''t really understand it. You have to have the real thing. It''s hard to explain whipped cream to someone. Explaining whipped cream. It''s white, soft, sweet, and melty. It''s not wrong, but I don''t think it''s enough to describe whipped cream. There is also a way to muddle the waters by telling them about fresh sweets such as buns, as Natsuki said, but I don''t think that''s quite right. "By the way, I''ve been thinking for a while that the ''whip'' sold in supermarkets is not really whipped, is it? "Yes. No matter how you look at it, it''s pre-whipped. "Hmm?¡¡What do you mean? I''ve seen Haruka make cakes before, so I immediately thought of what Yuki was saying, but Toya didn''t quite get it. No, there''s a cheaper alternative to whipped cream that''s made with vegetable fat, but it''s usually called ''whipped''. The name of the product is usually ''whipped'', even though it''s a whipped liquid. ...... So it''s like naming a product after an ingredient?¡¡It''s like selling ground meat with the name ''hamburger'' on it? Well, if you whip it with sugar, it becomes whipped cream, so it''s closer than a hamburger, but that''s about it. Haruka laughed and nodded at Toya''s subtle analogy. Haruka laughed and nodded at Toya''s subtle analogy. "If you write ''hamburger'' on minced meat, I''m sure you''ll get a complaint, but if you write ''whip'', it''s allowed. I wonder what the names are like in other countries. I wonder what kind of names are used in other countries?¡¡I''m sure they don''t just use the same name. "Product names like ''whisking'' and ''stirring''?¡¡That''s novel. It may be innovative and interesting, but I wonder if it will sell. But if we can milk it well, we can use fresh cream as much as we want. ...... My dream is expanding. Fresh cream is so expensive when you buy it. I want to eat ice cream too. I''m willing to help because I want to eat ice cream too, but it''s not going to be easy to actually squeeze it. That''s why they sell ''whip''. But the problem is how to catch them alive, right? "Yeah. You can''t just kill them on sight like you''re doing now because you have to confirm their gender first. Ugh!¡¡I thought I had a chance to use it, but now I''m suddenly useless?¡¡My magic. You want milk, right? That''s right, but... Nao, can''t you find out the s*x of the girl before she gets too close? That''s a tough one, isn''t it?¡¡How can you tell if it''s male or female? A lion can be easily identified from a distance, but a cow''s s*x is ...... difficult to distinguish from a distance. You can tell from a distance if the udder is as big as Holstein''s, but what about Strike Ox? And you can''t see the area well from the front. I''m sure it''s fine.¡¡If you can''t see it before it rushes, you can just avoid it. Besides, Strike Ox has some pretty cool stuff, right? "...... Well, yeah, right? Toya pointed to what I judged to be a bull. I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... I wonder how big he''ll be when he''s healthy? I''m not sure.¡¡It''s a s*xual harassment! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡Except for the presence or absence of this, or the presence or absence of breasts. Professionals may be able to tell them apart by other methods, but I don''t know of any. Some animals can be s*xed by the presence or absence of horns, but cows have horns on both sides, and this strike ox is probably the same. First of all, the orcs, they don''t mind cutting them off when they''re dismembering them. They''ll come at you with a buzzing sound. If you stand right in front of them, you can see them. I know you''re talking to a demon, but I''m asking you to hold back. "That''s true, but... Natsuki, Nao and the others are terrible. Yes, yes. Don''t worry about it, Yuki. Let''s put that away. He then threw the dead body of Strike Ox into his magic bag. He threw the dead body of Strike Ox into his magic bag. He must have weighed about 500 kilos, but Natsuki''s muscle strength has improved considerably. 237-213 Have the milk parted (preparation) "If that''s good enough to determine the s*x, how should we capture them alive?¡¡We can''t use sleep, can we? There is a spell called Sleep, but it''s a dark spell. You didn''t take Darkness, did you? I didn''t take Darkness. I thought it might be a problem. In terms of imagery, it''s hard to say that there isn''t a risk of persecution if you can use dark magic. Especially Adversus, who at first said he was an evil god. In fact, most countries don''t seem to have a problem with the use of dark magic, but since it''s even rarer than light magic, you can''t avoid standing out. The only other magic that could be used is ......''s Stagnant Field, which would have been nice to use on an individual, but it''s space specific. "Stop them from moving and fix their feet with earth magic? Hmmm. If the foot doesn''t move at all, it will be possible to fix it firmly, but if it moves in the middle, it will be quite difficult to fix it with ''earth manipulation''. It''s like using cement. Once it hardens, you won''t be able to move, but before that, you can get out normally, and if you move, you can''t harden. That sounds very difficult. How do they usually do it?¡¡Toya, didn''t you write that down? At least it''s not in the appraisal. I don''t know, but it''s usually out of force, right? I''m not sure, but I''m pretty sure it''s a normal exhaustion.¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. It''s a shame about the ice cream, but should I just give up? When I was thinking that, Yuki raised her hand and suggested. I''ve seen a machine used to cut the nails of cows, but it used to lift the body of the cow with a band so that it couldn''t step on it. Wouldn''t it be pretty safe if we could do that? Haruka paused to think about this, but quickly shook her head. You can''t rush into it, but you can''t ...... stop Toya from moving and then lift her up through the band. We don''t have the time to set up a machine like that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out with two Earth Walls. Earth Wall or ...... can be used successfully? It''ll take some practice. ....... "Toya, I need you to be my test subject. Get down on all fours right there. Me?¡¡...... Well, what can I do? I''m not sure what to do. I can''t tell the ladies to get on all fours, and I need to use my magic, so I have no choice. While watching Toya in this state, I discussed with Yuki. If you put a wall around your armpits and stomach, you can lift yourself up. "Yes. Do you think the height should be normal? I''m going for speed rather than customization. Without thinking about it, the wall is roughly two meters high and about 20 centimeters thick. Whether it is suitable for milking or not, it will take less time to activate than if you customize it. "Right. Toya, you ready? Yeah, I''m ready! Let''s do this, shall we? He and Yuki looked at each other and nodded. "Earth Wall. "Geez! "Oh no, that was a little fast, wasn''t it? A wall of earth rises up and plunges into Toya''s chest and lower abdomen, causing her to scream in pain. I''m not sure what to make of this. "Nuh-uh. ...... No, I''m fine. It''s just a little painful. It''s just a little painful. As intended, his arms and legs were dangling. Since Toya is human, she can probably roll over on her back or bend her arms and paw at the wall from this position, but it''s difficult for Strike Ox, whose arms and legs are hoofed. The only thing he could do would be to smash the wall, but his back foot would not hit the wall, and his front foot would not be as powerful as his back foot. Maybe. Maybe we should just rope him up.¡¡Nao, here''s a prong to hang the rope from. Oh. Oh, hey! Haruka will tie the rope around Toya''s back and tie it to the spike I made in the wall. This will make it impossible for Toya to sit up and untie the rope, since it is on the other side of the wall from where his hands are. By the way, it would be safer if you tied your feet as well. Oh, is that necessary?¡¡Is that necessary now? Over Toya''s protests, Natsuki tied both of Toya''s legs with rope and tied them to the prongs Yuki had made. "Yeah. I think we can milk her relatively safely with this. "d*mn, I can''t really move. I think you''re tying me too tightly.¡¡And do I need to be tied up? Toya flails, but he''s already a carp on the chopping block and can''t resist. "No, no, no, I need to do a proper experiment. No, no, no, we need to do a proper experiment. It''s dangerous if your foot hits your head while you''re milking. That''s true, but both feet are on the outside of the wall on either side. They can''t hit someone working on the inside. Yes, you''re right. The milking position is a little too high. ....... Do you think we should have an automatic milking machine?¡¡Haruka, do you think you can make one? The Earth Wall is two meters high. Inevitably, that''s where Toya''s stomach will be. If it were a strike ox, it might hang down a little more, but without a base, it would be a little too high for milking. However, considering the size of Strike Ox and the length of his legs, the higher the better. I''m a little nervous when my feet are on the ground. If the milk is really good, I might consider getting a milking machine. It will be easier if we can finish the work in a short time. Well, why don''t we try it this way? But the problem with this method is that it requires that we can stop Strike Ox for a short time. It''s up to you to do that. "Right. I''m sure there''s a way to drive her into Texas Gate, but ...... it''s going to break her bones. What''s Texas Gate? It''s a trap for even-toed ungulates like cattle. Simply put, it''s a grating with a large gap in it, like a ...... ditch cover. Basically, it is used to prevent deer and other animals from entering and escaping, but it can also be used to drive them into the Texas Gate and make them unable to move. However, if it rushed at us with the speed of a strike ox, it would almost certainly break our legs, or even kill us if we were not careful. We''d be safe, but that''s not what this is about. Besides, we''d prefer to let the female strike-oxes go unharmed after milking. That way she can produce milk for the next milking. I wonder if it would be difficult to ...... use some kind of drug to put her to sleep instead of sleep inducing? "A fast-acting drug?¡¡If you have the ingredients, you can make a sleeping potion with the pharmacy, but it''s a pill.¡¡It''s not like you''re going to fall asleep right away. ...... Besides, isn''t there a problem with using drugs?¡¡I''m not sure. It''s not like you''re going to sleep right away. ...... I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to think of it as a normal thing when dealing with demons, but the state in which a drug is effective is the state in which the drug''s effects are absorbed by the body. This is the reason why it''s important for you to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Mmmm ...... not an easy thing to do, is it? I''m not sure what to do with it. While we were discussing, Toya protested as she was launched over a mud wall. "Oops, sorry. After a brief apology, Yuki and I released the wall at the same time, and Toya landed on the ground on all fours and untied the rope by himself. "Hmm. I''m a little tired. I''m a little tired, but why don''t we just try the experiment?¡¡Even if it fails and the Strike Ox is wiped out, it can be revived again if left alone for a while. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. While she may seem like she''s treating him carelessly at times, she''s also very concerned about his safety. But Toya, you''re the one who has to catch the strike ox.¡¡Are you sure?¡¡If you miss, it will hurt a lot. Yes. I hope it''s only painful. ...... It''s not ''painful'', it might be ''corpse''. ...... Yuki, you''re worried, aren''t you? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a lot better than a Dahl''s Bear blow.¡¡And with the Strike Ox, if something goes wrong, you can kill it instantly, right? "Well, that''s a relief. I don''t have to worry about a follow-up attack. At that time, Dahl''s Bear was more focused on me and Natsuki than on pursuing Toya, but what if we had been ignored and Dahl''s Bear had prioritized his attack on Toya? It was not unlikely that he would have been killed. On the other hand, if I''m not mistaken in my feeling that Strike Ox is orc level, even if Toya had her hands full and Yuki and I didn''t have any magic, Haruka and Natsuki could have killed him instantly. ......, let''s give it a try. "Oh. If you get hurt, please let me know! --Are you sure you''re okay with this? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It was Yuki who raised a cheerful voice to change our mood. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡Now that we''ve decided on a plan... Now that we''ve decided on a plan, let''s start the operation to secure the milk! "Oooo! Before that... Let''s bury the transfer point here. Right. Oh no... I''ve been working so hard! Yuki''s shoulders slumped when Haruka and I changed the subject as if to interrupt the flow of conversation. But the transition point is important, right? I know that, but ...... It''s easy to fill in. Come on, Yuki, if you''ve got time to complain, you can help. Okay, okay. At the bottom of the stairs from the fourteenth floor, dig a hole in the grassy area, bury the transfer point, and then harden it firmly. Since the presence or absence of this will affect the efficiency of future activities, it cannot be disregarded, and it is much easier to dig a hole than in the past. Incidentally, these "fruit areas" (tentative name) are arranged on the map in such a way that they overlap each other. In other words, the entrances to layers 11, 13, and 15 and the exits to layers 12 and 14 are lined up in a straight line from bottom to top. So, if you put the transition points at the entrances of odd-numbered floors, it will be much easier to move to any level. However, there is one point that is a little strange. When I sense the positions of the 11 transition points, they seem to be only about 100 meters away in a straight line. There are only four layers in between. This means that the total height of the ceiling and the thickness of the ground on each level is only 25 meters. Considering the fact that the height of the 11th layer was 50 meters when I checked the 13th layer, 25 meters for one layer is not too far off. This height itself is not so different from that of the tenth level, but in the actual sense, the ceiling is higher from the eleventh level onward. In fact, you cannot see the ceiling. This in itself is convenient for the transition, and I am grateful for it, but it is still strange. Is the fruit area distorting the space of the hierarchy? I''m not saying it''s impossible to distort space, as I''ve done it myself with a magic bag, but at this scale, ...... it''s a dungeon. 238-214 Have the milk parted (forcedly) "Okay, final confirmation. If the opponent is a female, she will avoid the assault once and Toya will chase after the passing Strike Ox. When the Strike Ox changes direction, Toya will grab the corner to stop it, and Yuki and Nao will lift it up with the Earth Wall. After that, Haruka and I will hang the rope. It''s dangerous to tie his legs, so we''ll tie his torso so he can''t move. Initially, we were talking about tying both legs, but it would be dangerous to catch the legs that would be flailing around, and if we wanted to let them go, we would have to untie them, which would also be dangerous. On the other hand, tying the body to the mud wall is less dangerous and easier to release. If you think it is impossible, speak up immediately. I or Natsuki will take care of it. Safety first. "Got it! That''s how we started looking for the Strike Ox, but we were in a territory, or should I say a territory. While there were dozens of glass coyotes living in the same area, our search confirmed that there was only one strike ox every 500 meters square, and there were never more than one in the same area. If the size of this hierarchy is 100 square kilometers (10 kilometers per side), then the maximum number of animals is 400. However, as in the previous levels, there will probably be other monsters in the forest, and no strike oxen. If the forest area occupies about a quarter of the level, then there would be about 300 Strike Ox. If half of them are females, there would be 150. It seems that female strike-oxes can be milked at any time of the year, so we should be able to get enough milk for our consumption. Ordinary cows would not be able to produce milk if they did not have children, but I suppose that is the nature of demons. However, even a demon can''t produce an inexhaustible supply of milk, so even if you try your best to catch a cow, you may find that you can''t get any because other adventurers have already milked it. Of course, we don''t have to worry about that. There are no adventurers entering this dungeon at the moment. "Found it. We''ll go around gently. Copy that. Based on the spotters'' responses, we can see Strike Ox in the distance. In order to observe it from the side, I ducked down and moved to the side to avoid being noticed,......, but it was quite a hassle because the other side was not sitting still either. The other side can change the angle of its body even by a slight movement, but we have to move more than 100 meters to go around the side. In fact, it would be better to wait without moving. "Shit. It''s attached. "Yeah. Then let''s deal with it. Haruka didn''t ask "what" back, but simply said and stood up normally, approaching Strike Ox. And then, when Strike Ox noticed us, he came straight at us - "bogey, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang! . It was easily killed by Yuki''s magic. It''s a bit of a misnomer to call this situation "magical," but there''s no doubt that it''s very smooth, there are no holes in the skin, and the resulting material is very beautiful, so there''s no reason to object. Another one was processed in the same way, making it the fourth one. None. Let''s do it. "Okay. It''s my turn! We approached the target we had finally found, with Toya in the lead. As soon as we reached a certain distance, the Strike Ox reacted as it had in the past, and rushed towards us. It seemed that this did not matter whether the animal was male or female. When Toya made a slight lunge forward to provoke it, it focused on him. After confirming this, we split up a little behind Toya and waited for him. I''d like some red cloth. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. Toya immediately chases after it. The Strike Ox gradually slows down and changes direction, but he doesn''t realize that Toya is chasing him, and when he turns around, he is surprised to see Toya right in front of him and stops moving for a moment. Toya didn''t miss it. She quickly grabbed the corner and stepped on it. "Yes!¡¡Do it! Yes! Got it! Yuki and I immediately activate the Earth Wall and lift Strike Ox''s body up. "Wow, it''s so high!¡¡I can''t reach it! It''s only natural, when you think about it. The wall that lifted Strike Ox was two meters high. The head of Strike Ox on top of it would be over three meters high. Naturally, it would not be high enough for Toya to reach, and she would be forced to let go. At the same time, Strike Ox would start to flail his head around, but his body would fit tightly between the two walls, and it would not be easy to escape from the top of the wall, which was also very wide. Toya, help me. I got it! Haruka and Toya tied up the upper half of the body with ropes, while Natsuki, me, and Yuki took care of the lower half. We tied him up so tightly that Strike Ox could barely move his torso, and all he could do was slam. He was already a carp on the chopping block. Just like Toya did back then. "Huh~. We made it. "Yeah. It went pretty much the way I expected - I made a mistake when I lost reach, but there''s nothing I can do about it, right? In the middle of lifting it up by the earthen wall, Toya had to let go of her hand, which caused a bit of a fuss, but it wasn''t a big problem because Strike Ox''s legs were in the air at that point. He''s still banging his foot against the wall, but that''s not going to break our wall. Our feet aren''t that long, and the wall is high enough, even at a meter or so. I just don''t know if Toya can hold on to it even at that height. ...... You can reach it at that height, but you won''t be able to power it with your body fully extended. It''s a good idea to keep your head down when Strike-Ox is rushing at you, so the height from the ground is around one meter. In that condition, Toya can sit back and take it with gusto. From there, the head of the heaving Strike Ox, lifted up by a two-meter-high wall of earth, would be at a height of 2.5 to 3 meters. If it were 1.5 meters taller, even Toya''s height would be able to hold onto the corner, but keeping the head still would be a bit ...... difficult. Well, it won''t be a problem. It was a bit of a struggle to get the rope around it because it was so violent, but since Toya helped me, we were able to handle it. "Right. It was easy for the three of us, too. How did it feel to keep your head down? As long as you''re not building up momentum in the run-up to the ...... section, you should be fine. If more than one of them come at you at the same time, you''re in trouble, but as long as they come at you one at a time, they''re not that scary. They''re easy to avoid. It''s fast, but it''s not hard to avoid it if you keep it at a reasonable distance. If they appear in a corridor where there is no space to avoid them, they may be a threat, but fortunately this is a grassland. If it has a territory and acts alone, it is unlikely that it will be swarmed. ...... It may be a reasonable strength for the level of the dungeon, but it is a bit of a disappointment. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I know. --It''s expensive, though. We need a foundation. Nao, please. Okay. "Ground Control. Two meters - a little lower than that because it''s hanging down a bit, so I can reach it, but there''s no way I can milk it like that. I used my magic to create a simple stair base, and also a jar to hold the milk. Thank you very much. Can you get me a cup as well? "Sure. As I made the mugs and handed them to her, Natsuki purified all of them and Strike Ox''s udders, then expertly squeezed the milk into the mugs. The milk looks thick and slurpy, and I''d like to describe it as that. You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. I''m sorry.¡¡It''s even better than I imagined!¡¡You should try it too, Nao-kun! Natsuki waved her hands in the air and held out the cup to me. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Wow, it''s good!¡¡What''s that?¡¡Cow''s milk? As I handed the cup to Haruka, who silently held out her hand, I was surprised to find that the Strike Ox milk tasted even better than I had imagined. I''m not used to warm milk, but it''s so good that it doesn''t matter. I''ve heard that freshly milked milk tastes better, but this is probably not at that level. "We need to make a milking machine for this. We should collect them. It''s like whipped cream: ....... If you''re going to drink it often, you might want to water it down. It''s not like milk. ....... Here''s a phrase. "Thinking of Tara-chine''s haha, I drink her chichi. The cups were passed around in turn, and everyone rolled their eyes in surprise, but then Toya said something strange. "......, what''s going on all of a sudden?¡¡Gag? No, I just saw it and thought something. He was pointing to Strike-Ox''s sagging breasts. It''s definitely a ''droopy tush''. "I thought about it when I took Mary and the kids in. I felt bad for my moms. That''s usually the crime of stoning a man. "......... I thought it was a silly joke, but it was serious. Of course, I''m not saying that I haven''t thought about it. In the beginning, I tried my best to survive, but when I had some time to spare, there was no way I wouldn''t remember my parents. I''m sure it was the same for Toya and the others, but they didn''t dare to say anything about it. There is nothing that can be done about it. "''Already a bone, never to return''. Well, you know. I guess you could say it''s good to be dead. Not half-lost. Of course we can''t go back, we''re dead and of different species. But since we know for sure that we are dead, it''s better than being summoned, transferred, or something like that. If there is no way to return home, a "missing person" that creates unnecessary expectations is quite cruel to the parents who have lost their children, and it can also be an obstacle to finding closure. In our case, we''re dead, so in a way, this is the afterlife. I''m sure my parents will be sad, but a car accident is an understandable event, and I''m sure they''ll get over it someday. Besides, the car accident wasn''t our fault. The percentage of fault is zero because I was just riding the bus. It''s not like I jumped into a truck. It''s not like I ran into a truck. You''ll just have to live with it. We died in an unfortunate car accident. But fortunately, we were given a second life in this world. That''s all. "Oh, I''m going to write something too?¡¡Let''s see, ...... "All I want now is a new brother or sister"?¡¡We were all only children. ....... We were all only children.¡¡I''m sure we''ll get some insurance money, and I''m sure we''ll be able to manage financially to raise our kids. Seemingly having heard our conversation, Haruka and Yuki join in the conversation. Haruka''s words sounded a little dry, but I didn''t know what to do after she died. Haruka''s words sound a bit dry, but it''s true that there''s nothing we can do after we''re dead. It''s just that we have memories, but there is no doubt that we are dead. "Becoming and floating is a memory of gratitude. As for me, I regret that I could not say thank you and goodbye. Nao, can I have another jar, please? "Yes. --I wish I could have said thank you. I made up a jar of the same size as before and handed it to Natsuki. The reason why Natsuki is milking the cow alone is because she is the only one who has milked a cow before. She fills up the whole jar while we are talking for a while, so I would say she is quite skillful. In everyday life, we don''t have the opportunity to say thank you. Even though I''m grateful. You''re right. I wish I could send at least one letter, but even if I could, the recipient would be in trouble. Yuki smiles as she says this, as if she is troubled. I''m sure they''ll just think it''s some kind of malicious prank. Well, I''m done, milking. It''s less than ten liters. Good work. I''ll chill it and put it away. Why don''t you disinfect it while you''re at it? Oh, yeah. It''s safer that way. Haruka took the jar offered by Natsuki, sterilized it with magic, cooled it, and put it in the magic bag. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. So let''s untie her and let her go. We need them to produce milk again. Before we do that, I''d like to mark her so she''s recognizable from a distance. ...... They''re all black, so painting them would be difficult. That''s an issue for next time. In Japan, ranches have nose rings and ear tags, but do they have such things in this world? I''m not sure what to make of this. If I had some white paint, I''d make a cow print. Holstein-esque?¡¡It''s true that it looks like a dairy cow, but that''s a waste of paint. Yuki chuckled as she untied the rope and we moved away. It''s a bit pitiful, but the walls are still there. It''s a demon, and it will probably attack us if we disarm it, and we can''t disarm it until we''re far enough away that it won''t attack us. Even if the earthen wall is not destroyed, it will be deactivated automatically in about 30 minutes, so there should be no problem. Then, stay far enough away from the strike ox for a while to observe it. When the wall collapsed and the strike ox landed on the ground, it was somewhat irritated and took it out on the ground, but after a while it stopped and started to roam around as before. ...... doesn''t seem to be a problem. Good!¡¡Now we can get milk on a continuous basis. But there are limits to milking by hand, you know?¡¡It''s quite tiring. We can''t just leave Natsuki to her own devices, so we''ll have to split up. Or we could just go home. Is there a milking machine in the book? What should we do now, ......? 239-215 Milk efficiently (1) After some discussion, we decided to return. There are three reasons. It''s hard to milk a large amount of milk without a milking machine, we should make a suitable container for milk, and we want to eat ice cream. Of course, the milking machine was the most important factor, but the desire to eat ice cream made from this milk also played a large role. In fact, I said it out loud. So I magically transferred to the 11th floor transfer point, went up the stairs, jumped to the dungeon entrance by the magic circle on the 10th floor, and returned home. When we got back home, we found that we were in a dungeon. When we got home, Mary and Mitya were both hoeing in the garden. They were digging up the roots of the rape blossoms buried in the soil with the three-pronged hoe Toya had made, and gathering them in a corner. When we pressed the oil, we cleaned off the above-ground parts and turned the unwanted parts into compost, but we left the roots as they were. But the roots were left untouched, probably because they could not be sown. It''s so hot, but you''re so vigorous. "Huh?¡¡Welcome back. Welcome back, everyone. Welcome back! When Natsuki approached and called out to them, Mary and the others looked a little surprised to see us back earlier than expected, but they immediately smiled and welcomed us. I''m back. Thanks for your help. I don''t have a problem with this!¡¡I''m fine! As she said, Mitya was very energetic, swinging her hoe with a crunching motion. She may look like a little girl, but her strength is as strong as a grown-up''s. I have to sow the next seed. There''s no need to rush, but ...... do your best as long as you don''t overdo it. Yes! Mary nodded with a smile, happy to be able to do her job properly. I''m not sure if I''m a child or not, but that''s the common sense reaction in our world: if you don''t work, you don''t eat. Conversely, if you don''t work, you don''t know when you won''t be able to feed yourself, and it is normal not to complain. In other words, it is safer to be working. The common people in this world cannot afford to think that the food they eat without working is good. Even if it is your own child, you are usually thrown out. For us, it''s nice to have more rapeseed oil to use for tempura, and Mary and the others were happy with the tempura, so maybe that''s also a motivation for us. Anyway, we have some souvenirs for you today, so let''s go inside. "Souvenir!¡¡Is it food? Yes. I picked some fruits. Fruits! Natsuki''s words were echoed by the voices of both of them, their eyes shining. Even if they are not as expensive as dindol, even ordinary fruits are hard to afford for ordinary people. Especially for two people who seem to have been living in poverty, fruit must have been a great treat. Shall we go inside and eat? "Yes! Mary and the others ran quickly to clean up the hoe. Haruka and the others performed a "purification" on them and went inside the house. The plastered walls of the house are cooler than expected, but it''s still summer temperature. As they walked, they chanted "Cools" to cool down the house. Wow, it''s so cool!¡¡Thank you, Nao! We''re a little hot too. We''re a little hot too." Even though it was no problem, working in the fields under the summer sun must have been very hot indeed. Mitya squinted at the cool breeze. The climate in this area is less humid than in Japan, making summer a bit more comfortable, but it was still a bit hot for those of us used to air conditioning. However, from the perspective of Mary and her friends who lived in a ribbed house, the inside of this house was cool enough. Furthermore, while we were in the house, Yuki, me, and Haruka were walking around with the "Cools" on randomly, so the temperature inside the house didn''t rise much. Therefore, both of us are saying, "This summer is very comfortable! they both say. Well, they''re adjusting the temperature to make it easier for us, which is quite a luxury for two people who have been living in the wild. I have a few gifts for you. Shall we peel some pears today? We moved to the living room, and as we sat down at a random place, Natsuki took out about seven pears from her magic bag. We split up and peeled them, and Haruka put them together and chilled them for us. One pear per person would be a bit much for a Japanese supermarket, but these pears were rather small. But these pears were rather small, just right for a snack. "They''re crunchy, juicy, and sweet! "Wow! They''re cold and sweet! "It''s crunchy, squishy, and sweet!" "Wow~! It''s cold and sweet!" As Mary and the others relaxed their cheeks and slowly chewed, we also relaxed our cheeks and ate the pears. Yeah. Not bad. I can''t deny that they are a little inferior to the pears you can buy in Japan, but these pears are naturally harvested, not cultivated. It would be inappropriate to compare them. What do you mean?¡¡I thought the fruit souvenir was an item to increase Toya''s sensitivity. --Well, Toya doesn''t seem to mind, so it''s okay. It was delicious. It was delicious. ...... Oh, by the way, why did you come back so early this time? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. We got some milk from Strike Ox, so we came back to get it ready for more milking. It was very good milk, would you two like to try some? When Haruka took out the jar, Mitya tilted his head curiously, and Mary frowned a little in disgust. "Milk, sir? Yes. It''s quite good, isn''t it?¡¡Do you want some? I want some! What about Mary? I''m not a big fan of milk," she said, shaking her head. I''m not a big fan of ...... milk. ...... In the event that you''ve got any questions concerning where by and how to use this, you''ll be able to contact us at the web site. ...... It''s so good! It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. Mary looked surprised at the sight of Mitya. "Mitya, are you okay?¡¡You used to hate it so much. ...... What?¡¡I don''t know what it is, but it''s really good!¡¡Yes, you too, sister! I don''t know, but it''s really delicious! At the same time, she wondered, "What? She twisted her head curiously and took another sip or two. "Wow, ...... amazing ...... She looked into the cup as if she had seen something incredible, and was about to put it in her mouth again when Mitya tugged on her sleeve with some frustration. She tugged a little at her sleeve. "Sis, milk for me! "Oh, oh, I''m sorry?¡¡Yes. "Mmm. Oh, it''s gone. ...... Mitya happily tipped the cup back from Mary, but there seemed to be very little left, and the cup was empty after just one sip. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll do it. Haruka, can I have a refill? "Well, yes. Just one more cup, okay? The rest of the milk is used to make ice cream, so there''s not much room left, but Haruka pours a refill into Mitya''s cup, perhaps overcome by Mitya''s expression. Thank you! Mitya thanked her with a big smile, drank half of it, and then said, "You can drink it too, sister! You can drink too! Mary also thanked her and drank the milk, savoring it more than before. This milk is very different from the milk I''ve had before. What milk did you drink before?¡¡What kind of milk did you drink? "I drank goat''s milk. When I was raising Mitya ...... When I asked her about it, she told me that Mary''s mother had died soon after giving birth to Mitya, due to poor postpartum fertility, and that Mitya was raised on goat''s milk, which she managed to find. So Mitya was raised on goat''s milk that she had managed to procure. What Mary drank was either left over or left over. However, the taste was not good, and she had a hard time getting Mitya to drink it. Because of this experience, it seems that Mary has never had a good feeling about milk. That''s why the taste of Strike Ox''s milk must have been so shocking to her. "It''s pretty good, this milk. Even those of us who drank regular milk were quite surprised. On the other hand, Mitya drank goat''s milk before he could remember. It seems that Mitya could drink goat''s milk without any resistance because he didn''t remember drinking it. Goat. Is it bad? I''ve never had it, but I''ve heard that the taste varies greatly depending on the environment in which it''s raised. Is that so?¡¡We were able to buy it because it was cheap, right? Maybe. I don''t know much about goats. ...... I don''t know much about milk, but chevre - goat cheese - can be quite expensive.¡¡It has its own peculiarities. I''ve never had it. Is it good, Natsuki? Hmmm ...... I''m not so sure ....... People who like it seem to like it. Natsuki smiles vaguely with a troubled expression. Well, cheese is just like that. The only cheese I usually eat is processed cheese, which is made to suit everyone''s taste. Speaking of price, this milk is quite expensive, isn''t it?¡¡Toya, how much is it? A cup of milk costs about two to four large silver coins. A cup of milk costs about two to four large silver coins.¡¡Gosh. Geez, geez. Are you sure?¡¡That much! The price is about the same as a slightly expensive energy drink. It''s not a price that you can''t afford, but if you think of it as paying for a mere drink, you''ll be very hesitant. The taste is worth the price, and once you taste it, the hurdle to purchase it will be lowered somewhat, but either way, the price is too high for the average person. But if it''s that expensive, I can understand why you came back. No adventurer should miss a treasure! Ah, yes. Isn''t that right? She clasped her hands in front of her chest, her eyes shining, and I gave her a vague reply. It''s definitely something we can''t miss, but from our point of view, the priority is not to sell it at a high price, but to harvest a delicious product. If the material from the strike ox was just expensive and inedible, there is a good chance that we would have just processed it and not bothered to come back. Well, that''s why I just went back to prepare, so if all goes well, I''ll be back out in a couple of days. I''m sure I''ll be able to collect more milk next time, so look forward to some souvenirs, okay? "Yes! "Yes!" The two replied happily, and we both started to work to achieve the goal of "lots of milk". 240-216 Milk efficiently (2) Yuki will be in charge of making the milking machine and Natsuki will be in charge of making the ice cream. Haruka will be assisting them, and I will be making the milk jars. With nothing else to do, Toya passed the time by watching Mary and Mitya''s training and participating in the farm work in the garden. On the third day after returning home. After everyone had finished their work, we gathered in the cafeteria with our respective deliverables. The first presenter was Yuki. She took out her magic bag and put it on the table. out of her magic bag and put it on the table. What I made is this. Fully automatic milking machine! It looks like a cup with a suction cup attached to the end and a hose extending from the bottom. The shape is quite simple. "Attach this sucker to the nipple and turn it on. Just stick the end of the hose into the container, and it will milk automatically. The only thing you have to be careful about is that it is fully automatic. That''s the only thing to watch out for. In other words, the system does not have a function to turn off the milking when the milk production becomes low, but this is not a problem in practical use. You''re dealing with a demon, it''s not like you can just leave it there. "Oh?¡¡Wasn''t it first made to look like a syringe? No. I tried, but I thought it would be hard to squeeze dozens of cows with it, so I automated it. It was quite a challenge, though. As he said this, he took out an additional syringe, which was indeed a large syringe. The mechanism seems to be very simple, just pull the piston to suction, but if you want to squeeze dozens of cows, or even more than a hundred, it''s going to be very difficult. Good job, Yuki. Next, I was in charge of the container. This is the container I made. I made 2.5 liter bottles for the 7 liters of milk we milked this time. You can use three or four bottles per head. It has a lid. It is made of glass - a pseudo-silica sand, to be exact - and looks like a wine bottle with a thicker body and a shorter neck. The spout is the same size as that of a wine bottle so that it can be easily corked and poured. I thought I could use a funnel to fill the bottle, but Yuki''s milking machine has a hose attached, so I can pour it directly. At first I tried to make a 10-liter bottle, but it was too big to handle and I was worried about its strength, so I made a 2.5-liter bottle divided into four parts. I was also thinking of making a screw-type spout, but I soon gave up on that idea. It''s not impossible to make one, but it would be easier to use a regular wooden stopper, and since we''ll be storing the bottles in magic bags, there''s no need to think about airtightness. I don''t know how many female strike-oxes there actually are, but even if we assume 150, we need about 500 bottles. To be honest, we can''t afford to spend too much time on this. Considering the time and effort required to clean the bottles, it is not advisable to use narrow-mouth bottles, but that can be solved by "purification", so no problem. Hmmm... nothing good, nothing bad?¡¡It''s not interesting. "No, you don''t need interesting things for practical use. I looked at the bottle again, while giving Yuki a nod for her idiotic comment. ...... Well, it''s certainly not interesting. I''m not sure what to make of it. For us adults, it''s not a problem, but for Mary, she''ll need two hands. On the other hand, if you make it a liter size, the number of bottles will increase and it will be troublesome, so this is a compromise. I thought I could just make a big metal one. I thought we could make a big metal one, like a horse-drawn cart. Alpine. "That''s just not very useful. That''s what I thought at first, too. That metal can that comes to mind when you think of milk. But after much thought, I rejected Toya''s suggestion. "Well, of course. It''s hard to pour it into a cup without transferring it, and if you''re going to transfer it, it''s better to put it in a small bottle first. "Yes, yes. In our case, there''s no problem with transportation and cleaning. The main advantage of using metal cans is probably that they don''t break. Glass containers are too fragile to be transported in a horse-drawn carriage, let alone on a paved road. There is also the method of using a leather water bag, but we don''t use it at all since we got the magic bag because of the smell. Well, I don''t mind. I only suggested it because Nao seemed to be bothered by it. Well, you can''t deny it''s a pain in the ass. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. If it''s just for self-consumption, I don''t think we''ll need to produce more bottles, since we''ll have empty bottles when we drink. Depending on who you sell them to, there could be a milk bottle collection system. The last thing we want is our ice cream. Let''s give them a taste first. So we were given two kinds of ice cream. One was a light brown and the other was a dark green. "Can I eat it? "Yes, please. At Natsuki''s suggestion, Mary and Mitya took spoonfuls of the ice cream and put them in their mouths. At the same time, their eyes widened and they screamed. It''s cold, sweet, melty, and ...... delicious! "What is this?¡¡It''s amazing, it''s amazing! This is a great way to make sure that you''re getting the most out of your money. ...... Yeah, it doesn''t smell like vanilla, but it''s really ice cream. It''s like brown sugar ice cream. The green one is ...... green tea flavored. It''s good, but it''s not great. It''s better than H?agen-Dazs, but not as good as the first time I drank Strike Ox milk. Yeah. That''s the problem. The sugar flavor is too strong to make plain ice cream. It''s always going to be a little bland. "Hmm?¡¡Problem?¡¡...... Oh, the brown sugar flavor?¡¡It''s true that matcha also has a strong brown sugar flavor. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not, but it''s a good thing. If you are making strawberry ice cream, blueberry ice cream, or any other kind of ice cream using other fruits, the brown sugar flavor will be a bit of a distraction. On the other hand, if you use matcha green tea, you can mask the brown sugar flavor to some extent, but it is still not completely hidden. "Well, isn''t this fine?¡¡It''s tasty enough. I''d like to try something else, so I''m with you on the refined sugar. That''s how I feel about Toya. Yuki is a little underwhelmed, but... "Refined sugar? Yeah. Haruka and the others have been asking me about it. The sugar available around here is so-called brown sugar, which is basically just the juice from sugar cane with the impurities removed and the water reduced and hardened. At best, it has a rich flavor, but in general, it is difficult to use because of its many impurities. Normally, brown sugar is used to make raw sugar, which is then separated in a centrifuge to make white sugar or granulated sugar. In other words, what Haruka and his friends want is this. Since it has no peculiarity, it is said to be essential for making whipped cream as well as ice cream. You can live without it, but you can''t live without cakes and other fresh pastries. ...... I can live without it, but it seems a bit of a waste, don''t you think? If we put the technical difficulties of refined sugar on the shelf, the remaining problem is cost. If the sugar is refined from brown sugar, the amount of white sugar obtained is quite small, and most of it is discharged as honey. In other words, the sugar, which is expensive to begin with, becomes even less. Although there are some uses for the remaining honey, it is still more difficult to use than white sugar. ...... Well, I''ll leave that up to Haruka and the others. If you can keep the cost of food within a reasonable range, go ahead. "Right. We''re not averse to sweets either. Yes, we don''t mind sweets. If you want to eat a cake, you can eat it. If anything, it is the women who want them most. Even when I was in Japan, I had to go along with those fairs and whatnot. I get it. I don''t think I can get a lot of them because of the cost, but I''ll try. "Right. Well, even though sugar is expensive, you don''t use that much, and considering the value of Strike Ox''s milk, it''s pretty similar. A glass of milk from Strike Ox costs two to four large silver coins. The amount of sugar used is about one or two tablespoons? Even if the amount is cut in half or less by refining the sugar, the milk would still be more expensive. The difference is that you can buy the sugar, but you can get the milk from Strike Ox yourself. ...... Well, you could just sell the milk. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. "Better than this?¡¡It''s amazing, it''s amazing! I''m so glad I came here~ I''m glad I came here~" Natsuki said to the two who were licking the spoon regretfully, as she gently offered them her own ice cream. Natsuki was not satisfied with the ice cream, but Mary and the others seemed to think it was tasty enough, and with a smile and a thank you, they shared the ice cream and ate it up. If there was a sensitivity graph or something, I think Natsuki''s sensitivity would be at the top, not Toya''s. Natsuki, who can be a bit cold to those who are not close to her, has been soft from the start, probably because she is dealing with a child, and she has been cooking delicious food. Since it was Natsuki and Haruka who treated her burn scars, there was no reason for her not to like them. The next two are Haruka and Yuki, who also cook. Haruka has been working with Natsuki, and Yuki has been working with her sisters a lot due to her strong communication skills. The next in line is Toya, and unfortunately, I''m probably the least involved. Even so, I''m not dissatisfied with her, as she''s usually well liked. Toya has the advantage of sympathy with other beastmen, as well as the fact that she watches my training closely because of the weapons I use, but that''s about it. If you think about it, this souvenir can be handed over without cooking, and if you appeal well, it would have increased your likability. ....... This is a great way to make sure that you don''t get taken for a ride by Natsuki, but it''s a long way from being a bride with beast ears. 241-217 Milk efficiently (3) We had finished milking the cow and were visiting layer 15 again. An automatic milking machine, a container, and some white paint to mark Strike Ox. The first thing we aimed at was the previously milked Strike Ox. The goal was to see how long it would take for the milk to recover. If we can get the same amount of milk in a few days or so, then this is a very promising farm. --although it would require exceptional physical strength for a herder or the fighting prowess of a high-ranking adventurer. Strike Ox itself doesn''t seem to be back at ....... Yeah. I don''t see it. It''s just down the stairs. Last time there was a Strike Ox wandering around this area, but so far no targets have been caught in our search. From there, I moved to the area where the last strike-ox was milking. ...... Yes, there it is. I''m not sure if it''s really the same one as last time, but I''m pretty sure I know where it is. I''m not sure if it''s really the same one as last time, but I''m pretty sure I know where it is. Toya, take care of it. I''m on it! Fortunately, Strike Ox does not seem to have the ability to learn. As I turned around, he grabbed me by the corner and pinned me down. Immediately, Yuki and I activated our "Earth Wall", and a rope was snapped around us to block our movement. The only difference I can think of is that the height of the earth wall has been halved to one meter. Yuki and I practiced this together and worked hard to get it to the same height. Two meters is still too high for milking. It''s nice and easy to catch, but it''s kind of stupid, Strike Ox. ...... Well, it''s good because it''s easy. It''s time to use my milking machine. Yuki took out the milking device, attached it to the Strike Ox, turned it on, and with a small sound, the milk began to fill the bottle. The first bottle was filled in about 30 seconds, and the second and third bottles - the total amount of milk that was finally milked was about 2.8 bottles. In other words, about 7 liters, almost the same as the last time we milked. If this Strike Ox is the same animal as the last one, then the amount of stored milk will be fully recovered in a few days. "Oh, fast recovery, huh? If it was the same animal as the last one, it would have fully recovered its milk reserves within a few days. No, it''s normal for a dairy cow, you know?¡¡I don''t know about wild cows, but dairy cows need to be milked every day, so I''m wondering if Strike Ox is okay. There''s no calf in sight. Of course, animals produce milk to raise their young. Even dairy cows do not always produce milk, but only during the period between giving birth to a baby and weaning. In other words, if there are no children, there is no milk, and on the other hand, if there is milk but no children to drink it, there is a possibility of disease, so milking is indispensable. But there are no strike-ox children around, and of course there are no dairy farmers to milk and care for them. ...... is it still a demon? It''s also possible that it''s just a dungeon, though. They don''t care about the ecosystem, do they? Yeah, right. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. They don''t even need food or water, which are basic prerequisites for living things to survive. Now, let''s just mark it and then let it go! Yuki takes out the white paint she brought with her and happily dyes Strike Ox''s fur into a cow pattern, a Holstein-like pattern. But it doesn''t look like a Holstein because it''s just a random coat of paint, but it''s enough to identify it from a distance. Then, I put it on. Well, let''s get out of here. I left Strike Ox flailing around on the mud wall and headed for the next area. From then on, I would find strike-oxes, determine their s*x, exterminate them, milk them, and mark them. It took us quite a while to wade through the 15 layers, and it wasn''t until 3 days later that we finally finished the whole area. How many animals were there after all?¡¡I''m sure there were more than a hundred. "I didn''t count ''cause it''s too much work. But it''s not bad, as far as earning money goes. The milk alone would be worth a hundred gold coins if sold. In addition to that, the meat of the male strike ox that was exterminated, materials such as magic stones, and fruits that can be obtained from the forest as in the 14th layer are also worthwhile. Incidentally, the fruits in layer 15 were plums and peaches. Plums aren''t very popular - or rather, they''re too sour to be eaten in general, so they don''t seem to sell well outside of certain areas, but peaches, on the other hand, sell very well due to the difficulty of transporting them. On the other hand, peaches sell very well due to their difficulty in transportation, but only up to a certain amount. The difficulty in transporting them means that it is difficult to go to other towns to sell them, so even if the supply exceeds the consumption of the area where you bring them, they will not be bought. But fortunately, there is a shortage of fruit in and around Laffan, so the amount of fruit we brought in would not be a problem, but in any case, the fruit available at this level was a little difficult to handle. But when I think about it, it''s the first time I didn''t pick any when I could. Plums have a wide range of ripeness, from green and hard to yellow and soft, all of which can be used to make dried plums, but this time we only had enough for three buckets. We could have picked more if we had wanted to, but as Yuki said, we left them behind this time. Because-- "There''s a limit to how much plum we can consume at home. "Too much ume is bad for you, and we don''t drink ume wine. With other fruits, you can eat as many as you like, or sell them if you have trouble processing them. But in the case of plums, they are not consumed around here, and we can''t eat them as they are, so basically the only way is to make dried plums. We can eat only one pickled plum per meal. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m going to candle them and make juice out of them, but I won''t be using tens of kilos of them. Unfortunately. So, for the first time since I entered this area, I had to do something that made me feel slightly frustrated: ignore the fruits that were ready to be picked. I can''t help but feel like I''m missing out somehow, can I? Speaking of disappointments, the meat at Strike Ox was a little disappointing, wasn''t it? The last time I was back home, I also tasted the meat from Strike Ox, and compared to the quality of the milk, the meat was quite ordinary. It wasn''t bad, but it wasn''t very tender, more like imported beef worth a few hundred yen a gram. Some parts of the meat would be delicious as steak, but my overall impression is that it is a meat for everyday use. "Oh, yeah?¡¡It was good, right? "Toya likes hearty meat. I thought it was a good red meat too.¡¡Maybe it would be better if you aged it. I don''t know how to do that. I think it''s better than marbled meat. It''s hard to eat fatty food every day. Yes. It''s also a good meat for making beef jerky. It seems to be well received by people other than me. No, it''s not that I''m bad either. It''s just that it''s not what I was expecting. What do you mean, "beef jerky"?¡¡Can you make it?¡¡Can you make it? "Yes, yes. I can make it, but I don''t know if I can season it well. ...... If you''re imagining something like what they sell in Japan, you''ll have to go through trial and error. What''s wrong? "Well, I like beef jerky, but it''s hard to find, you know? It''s expensive. Natsuki may have used the term "beef jerky" to refer to the dried meat that is made around here for meat preservation, but dried meat and beef jerky are two different things. Aside from the dried meat made from task boars that we used to make ourselves, the dried meat that you can buy around here is basically just salty and hard. It''s hard to eat as it is, and it''s not something that can be called delicious. What I want to eat, of course, is beef jerky like the ones sold in Japan. Of course I want to eat beef jerky like the kind sold in Japan. ...... dried meat?¡¡What is it? I''m not sure if it''s really the same dried meat, knowing the dried meat I buy over here. I''m sure it is.¡¡Well, you''re right, it''s a bit expensive to buy with your allowance. Even if it was cheap, it would cost about 1,000 yen per 100 grams, and a high school boy would run out of that amount in no time. If you consider that the raw material is beef and it is dried, you can understand the price, but understanding and being able to buy are two different things. It was a little too expensive for me to buy it as a snack with my allowance. If Nao wants to eat it, I can make it. We have a smokehouse that we don''t use often. Seriously?¡¡By all means, please! I can''t tell you how many times I''ve wanted to eat my fill! --If I actually ate it, it would be bad for me. Incidentally, the smokehouse in our house, as Haruka said, is not used very often despite its splendor. The reason for this is that we are away from home a lot, and we have a magic bag that we don''t need to worry about its shelf life even if we don''t smoke it. We only use it for cooking, not for preservation, so unless we are making a very large quantity of food, we can just use the compact smoking tools that Toya made - a simple box that you can buy by mail order in Japan. I usually keep it in the shed. Well, it''s not a waste of time, because I usually keep cured ham or something like that hanging in the shed. It''s not a waste of money, but it''s a very tasty ham with a hint of smokiness. I''m sure you''ll like it. "Well. Well, shall we go in now? After finishing the 15th level, we were resting in front of the place where the stairs leading to the 16th level should be, if the pattern was the same as before. But here was the door to the boss room, which we hadn''t seen in a while. In other words, we were taking our time to recover our strength before the boss fight. Because, judging by the fact that we were in this level, the Orc level Strike Ox. If you compare the strength of Pickau and Tyrant Pickau, the boss here is not to be underestimated. He is at least as strong as an orc leader, and possibly as strong as an orc captain. Fortunately, dungeons in this world are not like "You can''t escape from the boss! So if it looks bad, I''m planning to run away at once. "Right. Everyone, okay? After confirming that everyone nodded, Toya carefully opened the door. Behind the door was the usual boss''s room. And there it was, a demon more than two sizes larger than Strike Ox. 242-218 Not Minotaur It''s a giant bipedal bull. On its own, it looks like a Minotaur, but it''s half man, half bull. This one is 100% beef - or 100% bull. Just as the Orc looks like a bipedal boar, this is also a bipedal bull, but it doesn''t look human because it has hair all over its body, its stance is slightly bent forward, and its face is completely that of a bull. Like orcs, they have front feet that are not hoofed, but are used for grasping things, which is a big difference from cows. By the way, I don''t need to tell you how I knew it was a bull, do I? It''s a little curious because it''s in front of your face, even though it''s retracted to some extent. Bipedal demons need to be a little more humble. "Nao!¡¡How is it? "Probably fine. A threat is a threat. But not so much that it can''t be killed. The name I got from the help was "Madtaur. It''s a little stronger than the Orc Leader. He holds an axe as tall as Toya in both hands and glares at us with a snarl as we enter. What I''m wondering about is... "He might use [roar]. Be careful! Got it!¡¡Soooo--, "Gaaaah! Toya roars and lunges at the Madtaur. The roar only stopped the Maedtaur''s movement for a moment, but it was no less effective. Toya''s response to the attack was slightly delayed, causing the Madtaur to catch the sword in a rather precarious position. However, even in such a position, the strength of the Maedtaur''s muscles could not be underestimated. It was only for a moment that the two sides went at it. The Maedtaur immediately raised his axe and flicked the sword, forcing Toya to retreat. "Tsk. You can''t beat me. Of course not. If he stretched his body out, he would probably be twice as tall as Toya, and the ratio of his arms and legs to his torso would be much thicker than that of a normal cow. Her arms are definitely thicker than my torso, and the weight of the attacks she can unleash from them can be guessed. If it wasn''t for the magic that strengthened it, it wouldn''t be able to fight Toya. Toya, do you need backup? No problem. Let me do it! They''re strong, but they''re only one. It was not as threatening as the Dahl''s Bear, and could be killed by three wizards without a problem. At Toya''s request, Natsuki turned to look at me as if to confirm, and when I nodded, she moved back toward us with her cleaver at the ready. The Marauders were more concerned about Toya standing in front of them with her sword at the ready than they were about pursuing the retreating Natsuki. He is swinging his large axe at Toya, but the rather large attack seems to be safe enough to avoid, and Toya does not take the attack head-on, but instead deals damage little by little. The damage of each blow seems to be greater than that of an ogre, but the attack speed and movement is slower than that of an ogre. It''s the biggest ever, except for Dahl''s Bear, but it''s really ''nothing if you don''t hit it''. I''m not sure if Toya is aware of this, but he''s not in a hurry and is slowly chipping away at his legs, so his movements are getting slower and slower. "Hmmm... Yuki, is there something on your mind? No, it''s nothing serious, but I was wondering if I could use the meat from ...... that arm to make manga meat. ....... No, I''m sure you could! Yes, it''s possible with that thickness. ...... No, it''s not. The arm has two bones. I''d use a thigh. It''s thicker than the arm. Yeah, well, you have two bones in your lower arm. Yes, the forearm has two bones, but the upper arm - are we seriously considering that? It''s true that I''m a little fascinated by it. In Japan, they were rarely made, but they were much smaller and made from imitation molded meat. "That can''t be helped. Even if they sold it, we couldn''t cook it at home, and we couldn''t eat it all. The family is becoming more and more nuclear. Nowadays, it''s said that normal-sized watermelons don''t sell well. Yes, that''s true. It''s hard to cool a large watermelon in a regular refrigerator. If there are any left over, they will overwhelm the refrigerator in the summer. If you don''t have a big family, it''s hard to consume them all. We once got an extra-large watermelon as a bonus when we bought a new refrigerator, but if it hadn''t been for that, there wouldn''t have been enough room for an extra-large watermelon. I mean... No, no, no, don''t talk about watermelons in the same breath, Natsuki. They''re similar, aren''t they?¡¡Even Toya wouldn''t be able to finish a manga-sized piece of meat by himself. That''s right. "It turned out well! It looks like it weighs about 10 kilos, doesn''t it? Oh, that''s right. That''s true. It''s like the manga meat from a certain game ....... Even if it''s not that, it''s probably about the same amount of manga meat. 20 steaks per pound. Yeah, impossible. If you consider that all seven members of my family, Toya, Mary, and Mitya, will consume a large amount of it.¡¡I guess. But then, I wouldn''t be able to fulfill my dream of biting into manga meat. I can''t do it. --No, I have a magic bag, so it''s not impossible for me to eat for days by myself. I guess it''s the kind of dream you want to try, but you''ll fail as soon as you try. As I was talking about this, Toya, who was playing with a Madtaur and GutsGuts, protested. "Hey, you''re talking nonsense when I''m struggling! "Hmm?¡¡Are you struggling? "...... Not really, but... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a bit confused, but of course we haven''t turned our attention away from Toya''s fight, nor have we broken our concentration so that we can intervene with magic at any time. The reason why he is chatting so leisurely is because he seems to have enough time for Toya''s fight. He is not so weak that he can be easily killed, but he is not so strong that a moment''s mistake can be fatal either. All in all, it''s a good training partner. I get the impression that Toya is aware of this, and is concentrating on inflicting damage little by little, not pushing himself too hard. If you''re looking to collect materials, it''s probably better to use magic to kill them all at once, but that doesn''t help you improve your skills. --By the way, I haven''t checked to see if the boss of the fifth layer has been resurrected since I jumped in the transition. If it''s back, maybe I should do some actual spear training there. Teehee! While I was thinking this, Toya''s attack tore the Madtaur''s leg wide open, and its huge body fell to the ground with a loud noise. At the same time, Toya struck back, shattering his right wrist. Then the huge axe rolls to the ground. It''s all over now. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Oh, ...... my thighs are scratched. ...... You''re worried about that?¡¡Are you really going to make it? "Yeah. Well, one leg''s fine. I''m happy to make one, right? Well, let''s face it, a whole roasted thigh isn''t that good, is it? Even though it''s visually impressive. Even when I made a whole roasted task boar for Mary and her friends'' welcome party, they didn''t bite into it, they just scraped it off and ate it with sauce. "Hey, any praise for my safe victory? Once the Madtaur had given up his axe, it was easy. If you keep your head on the ground, you''re asking to be attacked. Toya slammed her sword into the neck, stopping the Maedtaur in his tracks. "Congratulations. Crackle. "Yes, yes. Well done. "Cleansing. I clapped my hands in a matter-of-fact way, and Haruka praised me in a somewhat dismissive way, and cleaned up Toya''s blood stains. I''m glad you''re not hurt. I''m glad you''re not hurt." "But should I be thanking you for letting me fight alone? I''m glad you''re not hurt.¡¡...... Well, it was selfish of me to fight him alone, but... It''s not a problem if you just want to kill the enemy. However, I think we need to be careful with the next boss or the one after that. Yeah. If you think about it, you need to train for actual battle. I don''t think we''ll be able to improve our level if we only deal with small fish. Right?¡¡There''s a limit to how many mock battles we can have between us. We all have different fighting styles, don''t we? Of course, Toya''s sword, my spear and Natsuki''s naginata are handled differently. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to always ask for help. It''s not a bad idea to train against bosses ......, but they don''t revive easily in this dungeon. I guess. I don''t know what the average is, but it seems to take more than 10 days ...... or even a month if you''re not good, so unfortunately you can''t fight too often. Even if you try to fight them one by one to improve your skills, you will need a certain amount of time. Of course, there is chemistry, so for example, besides Toya, only Natsuki and I will be able to fight against the Madtaur, but it will still take a month or two. In the meantime, it looks like summer will be over by the time we get to the ......2 next boss. It''s getting a little cooler these days, isn''t it? So, next summer? I suppose there is a way to continue exploring the dungeon, but the demons are still stronger around the dungeon entrance. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you like. I haven''t found any treasure chests after the 11th level, and the treasure chests so far haven''t contained much except for the reward for defeating the boss the first time (my prediction). It would have been rewarding if there was a treasure chest for every boss you killed, but considering the fact that the chests didn''t return even when the bosses were resurrected, it wouldn''t be wrong to assume that they were some kind of reward for the first kill. Well, we''ll have to wait and see what happens in the dungeon when it gets cooler. Let''s go get the treasure. Let''s go get it. "Well, yeah. As Toya said, there''s no point in thinking about it now. We put the problem aside for the moment, retrieved the corpse of the Madtaur and the huge axe, opened a new door that had appeared, and proceeded to the back. 243-219 Nuts, wasshoi! (1) As usual, there was a treasure chest, a transfer magic circle, and a staircase leading down. Inside the treasure chest was a two-handed sword. It was not the size of a sword that Toya normally uses, which can be used with either one or two hands, but a size that a normal person would never be able to handle without two hands. The length of the blade alone is almost as long as my waist, and it has a hilt attached to it, so it is probably one of the largest two-handed swords in the world. If I wanted to wield it with one hand, I would need to be as big as the Madtaur I just killed. This is another ...... difficult weapon to handle. Toya, can you hold it for me? It''s ...... heavy!¡¡If you hold it with two hands, you can swing it, but it''s hard to use. You can hold it with both hands and swing it around, but it''s not very fast. It seems to be powerful if you hit it, but whether you hit it or not is the question. It is such a weapon. "Oh, but it''s made of white iron. If you buy one, it''ll be expensive. At Toya''s suggestion, I took a closer look at it, and found that there was no rust on it, and it looked like it. Compared to blue iron or yellow iron, it''s hard to tell the difference between white iron and well-polished iron. Toya says you can tell the difference by appraisal. But the problem is that even if you buy it, you can''t always sell it at a high price, right? Yes. If there is no one who can use it, the weapon is worthless. "Let''s have Gantz-san take it back as a material. If it''s white iron, we can sell it for a good price even if we consider it as ingots. "Well, that''s kind of a waste, isn''t it? Tohya objected to Haruka''s honest opinion. But if there is no one who can use it, it is useless as a spare weapon. If no one uses it, it''s useless as a spare weapon. Or do you have a use for it? Is there a use for ...... training equipment? That''s some expensive training stuff, man. Toya thought about it for a moment, and laughed at his answer. It''s true that swinging with it might build muscle strength, but then it''s more cost-effective to just use an iron bar. A white iron rod of this size would normally cost more than a hundred gold coins. "No? No, no, but ...... are you sure you need it? If you''re asking me if I need it, I don''t. ...... When asked again by Haruka, Toya slurred her words. At least for us, it has no practical use. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. This weapon is clearly over-specified for the goblins that will appear. What else could it be used for?¡¡For me, it seems a bit rude to call it a work of art, but ...... everyone has their own taste. "Yeah. It''s a practical item. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this topic. That''s my own impression. But in fact, they were displayed in Natsuki''s house, and also in Western-style houses that are used as tourist attractions, so I guess I''m not wrong. However, I don''t think it would look good in our house, so if you want to display it, please keep it in your room. ...... Well, it''s fine if you want it, Toya. It''s not like you''re hurting for money. I''ve got a Japanese sword on display at my house. I''m not sure I expected Natsuki to agree with me. I thought you were the type of person who thinks that hobbies, ornaments, clothes, etc., but practical items like weapons are just a hindrance even if you have them for nothing. I didn''t keep many useless things in my room when I was in Japan, as I should have done here. Besides, if I need money, I can just take it away then. That''s why you''re so relentless, Natsuki! Call me reasonable. Of course, if you want to use Toya''s pocket money to make up for it, you''re free to do so. "Of course, if you want to cover it with your own pocket money, you''re free to do so. In our party, we basically pay for weapons, armor, and other items needed for our adventures out of our common funds. If you want to use a weapon that you don''t use, that''s a hobby. If it''s a hobby, then of course you''ll have to pay for it out of your personal funds, so if Toya wants to keep this weapon on display, he''ll have to buy it. ....... No, I didn''t say I was going to display it.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You see, we''re not really good against hard enemies, are we?¡¡The only weapon that looks like a blunt instrument is my sword. "I see. ...... I see," said Toya, somewhat annoyed, but he had a point. We haven''t encountered any so far, but if there are enemies like golems, our weapons are a bit inadequate. Haruka''s arrows, of course, and even his sharp little sword are not insane enough to cut through rocks. Me and Natsuki''s long weapon, the stone-thrust, might be a little better, but it''s still not very effective. The best would be Tommy''s hammer or some other blunt instrument. The best thing to do would be to use Tommy''s hammer or some other blunt weapon. Even though we have magic, it would certainly be a problem if Toya, who supports the vanguard, had no means of attack. That''s a good reason to keep it instead of selling it. Why didn''t you just say so from the start? Haruka says that she doesn''t understand, but Toya scratches her cheek a little awkwardly. You can''t know if it will work or not.¡¡It''s hard to say if you can''t use it or not. I don''t think you need to worry about it. I don''t think you need to worry about it. We change our weapons quite a bit. You know? Right. If you buy something for nothing and don''t use it, then it''s no good, but there''s a point in trying, right?¡¡Besides, we''re not buying anything this time. While some weapons have been retired, all of the weapons I have purchased so far have served me well. If you''re buying a weapon you''re not sure you can use - say, a halberd - you may be wasting your money, but it''s not a big deal to try out a weapon you got without selling it. Weapons don''t lose a lot of value unless they''re brand new and unopened, and they''re already used when they come out of the treasure chest. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it.¡¡In addition to that, you have [Sword Talent]. If you think about it, I think you should try a two-handed sword. Yeah. At least, it''s the most likely among us. Good luck, Toya. Using a big sword sounds like a tank. Try to be a masochist. No, I''m not going to be a masochist.¡¡No, I''m not going to be a masochist! ...... Well, I''ll do my best in moderation. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the following article. I''m not sure what to make of this. There was not much change in the scenery as we entered the 16th layer. The main demon is Strike Ox, and the forest is the same as the 15th layer. However, you can only collect one type of chestnut in the forest. This was a bit disappointing to me, but Yuki and others were so excited that they said, "Marron! but Yuki was delighted, so she was not dissatisfied. And since the harvest per area was small, it was more convenient for the women who wanted a lot of chestnuts to have only one kind. They also had to take the time to remove the chestnuts from the chestnuts. The demons encountered in the forest were still insect-type and not very strong, but the battle near the chestnut tree was a bit troublesome. Because the demons jumped with the branches of the trees, the chestnuts would fall down. Fortunately, the chestnuts don''t pierce my current body, and the spikes don''t penetrate my boots, armor, and gloves made of Dahl''s Bear leather, but they do hurt when they hit my face. In addition, the chestnuts and spilled chestnuts under your feet will hinder your movement, and if you step on them, Yuki and the others will get angry. Therefore, Haruka''s bow, which does not need to be moved, was most useful in this battle. The rest of the time, I''ve been saving my attack magic. Since we''re in the forest, I''m mainly using non-fire magic. But the biggest problem is... "We''re out of bottles. Yes, the milk bottle. If there is a Strike Ox, that means there is a cow, and that means there is someone to collect the milk. We had a certain amount of room for the milk bottles, but when we started collecting them in the same way at layer 16, we ran out of bottles halfway around the area. Do you think it''s better to suspend the collection and go on, or to prioritize the collection and return once? Haruka''s words made me think for a while, but I came up with an answer relatively quickly. It''s a shame not to collect them, but if you go back and produce more bottles, you''ll eventually be able to milk them again from the strike ox at layer 15, right?¡¡It doesn''t make much sense, does it? "And you can''t drink it, even with all this. That''s more than enough to last you a year, if you ask me. That''s over 300 bottles that hold over two liters. Even if seven of us drank a cup every day, we''d still have enough. We don''t just drink milk for cooking and sweets. Shall we sell them? Hmm, that''s a good idea, but it''s a lot of work for ...... Nao, isn''t it?¡¡Making the bottles. And me too, by the way. I can get Toya to make a mold for it, but ...... Molds? You know, the kind they use in glass factories. A metal mold that looks like a bottle on the inside and snaps open in two. It would make it much easier to mass produce the same shape. That one. Hey. I can make one for you. Oh, no, even with that, it''s more of a problem if people know you can make these bottles with clay magic. The magic we use to make the bottle is a combination of "Create Earth" and "Ground Control," but the former is essentially a magic for making ordinary soil, and the latter is a magic for moving soil as well. It is generally recognized that the basic use of "Earth Control" is to prepare the ground, to make positions during war, and to make earthenware if you try hard enough. In such a situation, if you tell people that you can make glass (or something like that) containers, I feel that you might get into a lot of trouble. Looking at the history of Venice and the like, the production of glass seems to involve a lot of interests and other things. There is a possibility that this will not be a problem, but the lower the risk, the better. So I guess it''s safer to just order from the glassworks? It''s not easy to make enemies with the union. Vested interests are a very tricky thing to deal with, and if you fight them too hard, people will easily die. The lumber association is powerful in Laffan, but I''m sure the glass industry has something similar. If you''re looking to sell to the adventurer''s guild, you''ll want to consult with Diora. If you want to sell it to the Adventurer''s Guild, they can help you. That''s right. I''m sure Diora will be fine. Diora-san is always there when I need her. A helpful character who will give you a good answer when you ask for advice. Of course, she does provide a certain amount of benefit (as an adventurer''s guild, that is), so it''s not like she''s on your back. Nevertheless, it is necessary to send greetings. Yes, like Dindol, for example. Yeah, I''m pretty sure I''ll be heading out to collect again this year. 244-220 Nuts, Wasshoi! (2) We shelved the milk of the Strike Ox for the time being and continued our search. Since it would be a hassle to get into a battle unnecessarily, we proceeded to avoid fighting the Strike Ox as much as possible, while also training our [Stealth Foot] and [Hide Form]. In the forest on the next level 17, I obtained a Kutto Berry. That''s right, the kind you can pick up in abundance in my garden in autumn. They''re delicious, but to be honest, they''re not what I expected. No matter how hard we try to collect them, the selling price is only enough for a child''s pocket money, so it''s not worth it as an adventurer at all. Even if we were to eat them ourselves, we still had some kut left in our magic bags from last year. So, we just checked the forest and went to the next level without collecting. The 18th level of the forest is walnuts. I worked hard to collect these. I''d already eaten the ones I collected last year, and Natsuki said she wanted to make walnut bread. However, walnuts and chestnuts do not sell well, even if not as well as Kut. The reason is the shelf life. Walnuts in particular, and chestnuts as well, can be stored for a certain amount of time, so there is a certain amount of distribution. They are not cheap food, but they are not so cheap that ordinary people cannot afford them, and they are not so expensive that it would be unprofitable for adventurers of a certain skill to collect them in dungeons. Even so, it''s undoubtedly delicious, so if I see it lying in front of me, I will naturally pick it up. "Hmm, could this area be the nut area? "That''s a possibility. Considering there are eleven to fifteen layers. Personally, I''d be happy with that, but it''s not as profitable. I''m not happy with the lack of challenge in the battles, or the monotony of ...... them. I''m not complaining about the nuts. I agree. I''d rather have cashews. I''d like to try a cashew apple. The nut part is sold, but I''ve never seen or eaten the flesh part (not exactly the same, I guess). I''m just curious, but I''d like to try them. I like cashews, too, but ...... they seem to be hard to eat.¡¡I like cashews too, but it seems to be hard to eat the nut part. "Really?¡¡I know they have an unusual shape. I know that many nuts are troublesome to eat because they are mostly seed pods. For example, walnuts. This is also a bit tricky because you have to remove the surrounding pulp, but it''s not that difficult if you use a tool. You can buy a special tool for this purpose at a normal tool shop. It looks like a small washing machine, and by throwing walnuts into it and rotating it with the handle, it will scrape off the pulp. Once the pulp is removed, all that''s left is a regular walnut shell, which you can wash and dry. If you are strong enough, you can remove the contents without using any tools. Just like the hero of a kung-fu movie I once saw. However, this is not popular with the ladies because the contents often break into pieces. Toya and I were so happy that we crushed it, but he got angry and handed us a thin board-like object, telling us to use the tool. It''s true that you can use it to pry open the walnuts to get them out cleanly, but it''s hard to roast them when they''re crushed, so it only took a moment for me to become a kung fu master. Well, walnuts themselves are sold in their shells, and their distinctive shape is well known. You can even see them in movies. In contrast to walnuts, the only thing I know about cashews is that they look like upside-down red peppers with cashews on the end. If you think of them as the same nut as walnuts, you''d remove the flesh and crack open the seeds. ....... That''s right. Yes, that''s the same as the seed, and the fact that you eat the kernel is also the same. There are two problems. Two problems: cashews are a member of the poison oak family, and it''s quite difficult to get the kernels out. "Gee, poison oak. ...... I don''t know about this body, but when I was in Japan, I didn''t have a strong constitution against rashes, so I''m a little worried. I''d like to think that I''ll be fine because of my "stubbornness" but ....... I''m sure you''ll be fine because you have a pretty hard shell. I''ve never actually done that. I''ve never done it myself, but I''m impressed with how well you can do it. Thin skin ...... walnuts are sold with the skin on, but cashews are peeled, right? Sometimes there''s a little bit left over. Is that by hand? "Yes, apparently. If you look at cashews for sale, you can see that they are all different shapes. Can''t they be mechanized? If you think about it, it is understandable why cashews are so expensive. Eventually, with AI machine learning, there may be a robot that can peel cashews, and the price of cashews may become cheaper, but this is a story that does not benefit me now. "So, even if I find one, I won''t be able to eat cashews to my heart''s content? It would probably take several dozen times as much time to shell them as it would to eat them. Ugh. --"Oh, Haruka, do you have any alchemy golems? I''m not sure what to make of this. There are golems, but only for simple tasks. If you''re going to have to hire someone to do all the details, it''s cheaper to just hire someone, I promise. "Oh, yeah, labor costs are so low. It''s like robotization in developed countries and handicraft in developing countries. It''s as if the advanced golem is a state-of-the-art robot. "By the way, mangoes are also in the poison oak family. "Oh, so you eat mangoes too? Yes. Some people get itchy. Normal people don''t have a problem as long as they don''t eat a lot. You can never be too careful with tropical fruits. I don''t like itchy pineapples either, but I''ve only had the chance to eat a few mangoes, so I didn''t know. Was it good or was it bad? ....... "Oh, by the way, gingko nuts also give you a rash. If you eat a lot of them, you might get poisoned. "Yes. The pith of plum trees is also poisonous, and there are many plants whose seeds are poisonous. When you think about it, a nut that eats its kernels is like ....... Yes, it''s best not to eat anything you don''t know! I''m reasonably satisfied with my food. I''m reasonably satisfied with my food. I don''t need to force myself to eat it. The next 19 layers. What I got was a nut called "Birrell". It resembled a wisteria seed. A pod about 3 cm wide and 25 cm long hung from it, and the seeds were inside. Natsuki said it looked like a seedling, but I didn''t know what it was because I had never seen one before. The pods are quite strong, and it takes about as much strength to pry them open as it takes to crack a walnut shell, but once they are open, you can get about 10 seeds at a time. The size is about the same as a fava bean, the shape is a little like an almond, and the taste is similar to an almond when roasted. The seeds have a thin skin, but it peels off when roasted, so they are easier to eat than almonds with a thin skin. It''s easy to harvest, and it''s popular with people other than me, so it''s a pretty good nut. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who can''t get enough of them. ...... I feel like I''m suddenly eating something I don''t know, but the name of this one showed up in the help section, and Haruka and the rest of the team immediately figured it out with their common sense, so there''s no problem with knowing it. I''m not sure. There was a change in the area when we entered the 20th layer. There''s something ...... slightly different about the reaction. The reaction felt by the [search enemy]. It seems like a strike ox, but the threat level felt is a bit higher. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how you can use it. The difference this time is a little too big to be an individual difference. "Hmm, but it looks like a strike ox, right? That''s the point. ...... The closest Strike Ox can also be seen by Yuki, who has the [Eagle Eye]. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. If so, there is no reason not to use it. "Hmm?¡¡"Red Strike Ox? "Red?¡¡It looks black to me. Haruka and the others twist their heads at my words. You can''t see it in detail with Haruka and the others, but you can see enough of its body hair from here. And that body hair is, needless to say, black. There''s no difference between it and the Strike Ox so far. That''s why I was wondering--. "...... Oh, are the horns slightly red? The horns of the original black Strike Ox. The horns are slightly reddish-black. You have to look very carefully to notice the difference, but there are no other red parts, so this is probably the origin of the name. "Oh, three times the speed?¡¡It''s got horns. "I don''t know if it''s tripled or not, but we''ll have to be careful. "In response to [insert name]. It''s not so strong as to be dangerous, but you can''t deny that if you react to it as if it were a strike ox, you might be taken unawares if you''re not careful. That''s about the difference. "Well, you''ll see. I''ll take care of this! And with that, Toya steps forward. That''s the same position he took in Strike Ox. ....... "Toya likes to raise flags?¡¡Are you stupid?¡¡Are you dying? I''m not going to die. I''ve got someone to protect me! Toya turns around with a smug look on her face and gives him a thumbs up. No, you''re not! That''s not what a vanguard would say!¡¡It''s more your job to protect me!¡¡You idiot! "Yeah, I just wanted to say it. Of course! If Toya really wanted someone to protect her, I would have kicked her in the back. If Toya really wanted someone to protect her, she would have kicked him in the back. ......2 You guys, you''ve been acting like idiots and they''ve noticed. Come on, Toya, step forward. Oh, ......, you''re fast!¡¡Hey! The Red Strike Ox, which had been in the distance, was quickly approaching. It''s very difficult to make an accurate comparison, but I''d say it''s at least twice as fast, if not three times. In the time it takes us to split up, the Red Strike Ox, which Toya has quickly ducked out of the way, runs between us at a considerable speed. Toya hurries after him, but there''s a clear difference in speed, as he''s not right behind him like Strike Ox. But even so, he could catch up if his opponent slowed down to change direction. As in the past, the moment he turns around, Toya grabs him by the corner and holds him back, but... "Oh, oh, oh! You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. "Oh no. This guy is very strong!¡¡He''s got to be wearing spikes or something! Toya shouted impatiently as he slammed his boot into the ground and managed to hold it in. It wasn''t a difference in strength, but a simple difference in grip. If there were some kind of step to stand on, it would be different, but there was flat grass under my feet. Of course, it goes without saying which has a better grip on the ground, the four-legged Red Strike Ox or the two-legged Toya. But there are some things you just can''t control... The next moment, Toya was engulfed in flames. "Noooooo! Toya screamed, jumped away from Red Strike Ox, and rolled on the ground. Haruka reacted immediately. "''Extinguish''! Toya''s flames were quickly extinguished, but Red Strike Ox was on the move as soon as Toya let go. But we didn''t sit idly by and watch Toya and Red Strike Ox face off. "Earth Wall! An earth wall appeared just in front of Red Strike Ox. That''s me. Red Strike Ox plunged headfirst into the wall. The Red Strike Ox makes a dull sound and stops moving. At about the same time, the Red Strike Ox''s legs were lifted up by Yuki''s wall of earth, and it became as if it was standing on its head, its hind legs scratching the sky. The Red Strike Ox wriggled around for a while in this state, but eventually managed to get out from between the two walls and rolled over on its side. "Mmm, Yuki, b*tc*. Let''s do this. "Here we go. "''Earth Wall''. The "Earth Wall" is triggered again, just in time. The rest is as usual. The Red Strike Ox is quickly secured with ropes by Haruka and the others. The only differences are that the restraints require more force than usual, the rope makes a slightly annoying creaking sound, and Red Strike Ox is swinging his head around and spreading flames. ...... Yeah, breath, you can breathe, right, Red Strike Ox? I''m not sure what to make of that. You can''t let your guard down in another way, the [Spotting] skill. You can''t be too careful. It''s not so much that it''s burned, but the tips of the hair are definitely a bit chapped. Her ears and hair are also a bit chapped. I''m sure Toya can''t see it, but... "You should thank Haruka.¡¡You can thank Haruka for making it go away so quickly. ...... Oh, yeah. Thank you, Haruka. No. I''m just glad I got here in time. I don''t want to see your tail and ears all shaved off. Skinheads, but not ears and tails. Thank God. I agree with you. I''ve seen some hairless breeds, but ...... I think hair is fluffier. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll want to take a look at the following tips. I don''t care how fast Haruka''s mind is, it seems a little too precise. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure, but I thought there was a description about breath. "Whaaaaat!¡¡Then you should appraise it beforehand. Shouldn''t you be appraising it beforehand, Toya? Yes, you''re right. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one of these, you''ll be able to get a lot more. If that had been the case, he would have naturally been careful with Breath. Too bad, he deserved it. 245-221 Koitz, its red! But when you''re spitting out breath, it''s hard to hold them off head-on like you have been. Oh. I don''t want to do this anymore. I''ve been taking good care of you, haven''t I? Yeah, I know. Fluffy seems to be okay with her own tail, so I buy a brush and comb it and ruffle it. As he does this, he sometimes looks at Mary and Mitya''s tails and ears. She seems to have given them brushes, but she didn''t say "I''ll comb them" or "Let me touch them". Well, that''s a big hurdle, isn''t it? Even with a human woman, if a man says, "Let me touch your hair" or "Let me comb your hair," he will be treated as a pervert. Unless it''s a lover or a family member. It will take some more time for Toya to get that close to Mary and the others. As for Haruka and the others, they touch her and comb her hair as usual. I''m a little jealous. I''m not sure if I should give up on the milk and just kill it.¡¡The speed and power have increased, but the principle of action has not changed, so magic should not be too difficult, right? It''s a frontal assault. Recently, I''ve been using the Stone Missile to kill Strike Ox. If you stand directly in front of it and fly straight at its head, Strike Ox will not be able to avoid it, but rather will be struck by the stone missile with his own speed added to it. It''s quite energy efficient, and it''s quite easy to defeat in one hit. It''s possible that Red''s skull is harder than Strike Ox''s, but ...... it''s probably manageable. I''m not sure what to make of this, but it says here that milk sells for more than strike ox. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. But if it''s expensive, does that mean we can get better milk than that? "We''ll just have to try milking it at ......, won''t we? Yes. I only have one empty bottle, but I''ll transfer it to the ...... pot. Take out one empty bottle (the one we consumed during break time) and two bottles that still have contents in them, transfer the contents to another pot and clean it with "purification". We used the bottles and started milking them immediately. ....... It''s a little red, isn''t it? Yuki was right, the milk that accumulated in the bottle was slightly red ...... or pink. I''m sure you''ll agree. But no matter how much of a demon it is, it will never be able to milk strawberry milk. So, could it be the color of blood? It''s a little hard to drink when you think about it, but ...... Yuki and his friends usually taste it, right? I''m not sure if it''s just me or if there''s a lot of difference between this and Strike Ox. "As for me, I feel like the regular Strike Ox tastes better, but ...... this one is more expensive, right? "That''s what it says. I don''t know how expensive it is. For me, there''s no reason to buy this one in terms of taste. Some noblemen appreciate rarity, I guess. If everyone but me sipped it, I had no choice but to drink it too. I took a sip and tasted it carefully, but my impression was the same as Yuki''s, to be honest. I can''t tell the difference. "Considering the trouble-- Shoo! Just as I opened my mouth, I heard an unpleasant sound coming from the earthen wall. Immediately after, our actions were swift. Yuki retreated with the milking device and the bottle, and everyone else took up their weapons at about the same time. Not long after that, the earthen wall in front of Red Strike Ox collapsed. But there was no way we were going to sit back and watch that happen. Just as Red Strike Ox''s paws were about to touch the ground, Toya''s sword had already slammed into his head. With a crunching sound, his body lost strength and he crumpled to the ground, half hanging from the earthen wall behind him. We all exhaled when we saw it. I''m sorry, ....... I had more strength than I thought. The wall that collapsed was the front one I was in charge of. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. I had poured more magic into it than I had into the Strike Ox, but I hadn''t expected the earthen wall to collapse in the middle of milking - it was the third one, so I was almost finished. I didn''t expect the earthen wall to collapse. That''s why we were all so cautious. It may seem like we''re talking at ease, but we''re dealing with a demon. Of course, we had discussed how we would react in case of an emergency. It''s no exaggeration to say that we handled the situation without any problems. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use too much magic for nothing. Yuki put away the milk bottle and the milking device in her hands and released the earthen wall that she had built. It''s true that Yuki is right, the optimal amount of magic power - the strength of the earthen wall to allow enough time for milking, painting, and evading for some distance - is optimal, but this time it was a little too short. In other words, I had misjudged Red Strike Ox''s strength, and a mistake is a mistake. Thinking back, I should have assumed that it was strong enough to push Toya back, and that its leg strength was quite high. Well, I failed and got burned, too. Oh, 5,000 rares. Toya took the magic stone from the corpse of Red Strike Ox lying on the ground and checked its value. He put it into the magic bag with the corpse. The difference between the 3,200 rares of the Strike Ox and the magic stone was more than I expected. If there''s that much of a difference, it''s no wonder the mud walls were destroyed. ...... You can handle it, right? Yeah, no problem. With magic. It consumes a lot of magic, but it can be dealt with. The only question is whether it''s worth it or not. The question is whether it''s worth it or not. Whether you actually do it or not depends on the difference between regular milk and this. The more magic you consume, the more you need to rest, and the more difficult it may be to work consistently. The time required for this and the price difference of the magic stones. We don''t know the selling price of the meat, but we can choose to die without milking. If we don''t need Red Strike Ox''s milk, then it depends on the price difference of the milk. If we were to milk Red Strike Ox as well, it would depend on whether or not we could restrain him before he spits out ...... breath. "What? That''s me doing that, right?¡¡It''s too risky!¡¡I don''t want to do it! I don''t want to do it!" Toya stops moving, we lift him up with the earth wall, and Toya leaves. What are the odds that Red Strike Ox will not use his breath during that time? I don''t want to think he can do it in no time, but if he does it again and again, Toya''s cuticles might be in trouble. I''m not sure what to say. You can use Flame Taming, right? "...... Oh! I''m not sure what to do. I''ve never used it before. I forgot about it because I''ve never used it before. Can you use it to withstand the breath? Maybe. This spell, as the name suggests, makes you immune to damage from flames. It is not, of course, ''any flame'', but ''in proportion to the magic power put into it'', but one breath of Red Strike Ox would not be too difficult. Although it was quickly extinguished, it was enough to lightly scorch the tips of Toya''s hair after she was once engulfed in flames. If you have a dragon''s breath on the other hand, even if you put in all your magic power, the effect will probably wear off in an instant. Mmm. ...... can do it. But the next time it burns, I''ll stop you! "Okay, okay, okay. But I''ll have to talk to Diora first. If you''ve gone through all that trouble to collect it and it''s not worth much, it''s not too bright for Toya, is it? "Of course. I''m betting my fur on it. Yeah, he seems to be placing more importance on the fur than I expected. That''s why. We decided to put the milking of the Red Strike Ox on hold and prioritize the search for layer 20. We avoided Red Strike Ox. It was more difficult than expected to go around the forest of layer 20 without Red Strike Ox. The difference in the price of the magic stone was not an illusion, and the detection range was clearly greater than that of the Strike Ox. Thanks to all the training and practice, all of them had acquired the [Stealthy Foot] and [Concealment] skills, but Red Strike Ox still noticed. This is probably due to the fact that most of this level is grassland and there is no place to hide, but thanks to this, we ended up defeating quite a few of them. It''s not a big problem, since I''m sure they''ll have recovered to some extent by the time I come back next time, but it''s a bit annoying to be easily spotted by a demon that seems to be of a lower rank. As long as the five of us are working together, it''s probably unavoidable to some extent, but I''d like to do something about it sometime soon. In addition, we found a nut called Grifoa in the forest of this level. The closest one I know is camellia nut. The flesh is a little thinner and the size is a little larger than that of a camellia, but the fact that the nut cracks open and the seeds fall out is the same. The color of the seeds is a little lighter brown than the camellia I know. It is easy to eat. Roast the seeds well and bite them lightly with your teeth, and the shell will split in two. If I had to pick a nut with a similar taste, I would say macadamia nuts ...... or cashews. They are a little crunchy, a little moist, a little oily, a little less so than cashews, but with a slight sweetness. It is the second easiest nut to eat in the nut area after Birrell, but this one is better in taste. It is easy to collect and easier to process than walnuts. If they are tasty and easy to eat, it is likely that you will eat too many if you are not careful. Even if the nuts are good for you in moderate amounts, eating too many of them may not be good for you in terms of calories and other factors, so you need to moderate your consumption. As usual, the nuts did not seem to sell well, but the taste itself seemed to suit everyone''s tastes, and we all worked hard to collect them. It''s not worth the hourly wage at all. ...... Well, there''s no point in worrying about that. Even if the nuts are inexpensive, we can''t buy them if they''re not sold at Rafan, so we have to collect them ourselves. If you want to eat them. And so, after collecting the nuts in the forest of layer 20, we were now standing at the end of layer 20. Yes, in front of the door to the boss room. 246-222 Education policy? Well, you made it back this time. Yeah. I don''t know if it''s profitable or not yet, but we got some ...... delicious nuts, so I''m pretty happy with that. After a while, we returned home, unpacked our gear and sat down in the living room with a cold drink to catch our breath. What?¡¡What did we do about the boss of the 20th layer? Of course we went through it and came back. I transferred to layer 15 from in front of the door, and flew to the entrance via magic circle. There''s a lot of work to be done before the 20th level, such as researching the price of Red Strike Ox''s milk and considering selling Strike Ox''s milk. There''s no reason to take on a boss if you don''t plan to move on right away. In the meantime, the higher your level, the safer you can kill the boss. If the boss had been a small fish, I could have killed it easily and returned to the 20th level with the transfer wizard, but considering the Red Strike Ox, it would have been foolish to underestimate it. I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t curious to see what kind of boss it was, but we didn''t have the option to just open the door and take a peek inside. In this world of dungeons, you can escape from the boss, just as the boss is not bound to the boss room. Well, if the boss is a giant, it seems you can''t physically get out of the door. "It''s beneficial from a dietary standpoint, the nut area. Even if it''s not profitable. "Yes. Nuts are delicious. Mary and the others loved the various nuts we brought back this time. We''ll take a break with them. The nuts were roasted carefully by Haruka and his team, and tasted much better than the ones we had in the dungeon. "I''ve never eaten nuts like this before. "I''ve never eaten nuts like this before." "This one is crunchy, this one is crunchy. There are so many different kinds of nuts! There are many kinds of nuts around here. These are the kind of nuts that children collect for pocket money, so naturally Mary and Mitya had eaten them before. However, the chestnuts and walnuts collected by adventurers were usually sold in stores around here, but they were a bit expensive, so they never had a chance to eat them. And then there was Birrell and Griffoa. We had never seen them sold in Rafan either. Of course, it was the first time for Mary and her friends to try them.¡¡They were eating them like they were eating too much. Crunchy. Crunchy. Crunchy. "......, Mary, Mitya. I''m not sure what to say. It''s not just me who was thinking this, and Natsuki stopped them with a slightly annoyed look on her face. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡What about ......!¡¡I''m sorry, I ate too much! In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m sorry. I ate too much ......, but I''ll have some more ....... "Hey! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. A ...... I''m not sure what to say. I understand how you feel. I understand. I understand. When it''s right in front of you, you can''t help but reach for it. Nuts. Haruka smiled at Mitya, who was in tears as she held her retracted hand, and Toya nodded deeply in agreement. This is probably our fault. We had roasted all the nuts we had harvested and put them on a platter on the table. As Toya said, even we, who are more mature than Mitya and his friends and have a certain amount of self-control, can''t help but reach for them when they''re in front of us. Most nuts are more than half fat, you know. If you eat too many of them, you''ll become a fatty, puffy person. Yuki laughed and pecked at Mitya''s cheeks, and when she said that, Mitya put her hands on her cheeks and shouted. I can''t have that!¡¡I''m going to be a strong adventurer! But her eyes are still on the platter of nuts. We looked at each other and smiled at the sight of Mitya and Mary, and felt their eyes on us as we put the nuts away in the pantry. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you like. "One hand: ...... At Natsuki''s words, Mitya stared at his hand. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. ...... Me, don''t try to force the pile, okay? "Oh, sister, you''re terrible!¡¡I don''t think so! I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I don''t believe that!" "Mary, you and Mitya should eat the same amount of food on small plates. Do not eat directly from the platter. "Yes, I understand. Boo!¡¡That''s terrible. I want you to believe me! Haruka smiles at the disgruntled Mitya. I understand that you eat too much. But you have to be really careful because there are things that are fine in small amounts but can be poisonous if eaten in excess. "Right. It seems that even less than ten gingko nuts can cause poisoning. I don''t know. When Natsuki nodded and added, Mitya''s expression changed to one of concern. I''m sure you''re right.¡¡It''s a good idea to avoid eating a full meal of these things, no matter how delicious they are. "Mushrooms are also dangerous, aren''t they? I only eat a few, so they''re not a problem. You mean even if they''re not poisonous? Yes. For example, matsutake mushrooms can be dangerous if you eat enough of them to fill you up, right? Natsuki nodded to Toya, who looked a little surprised, and gave him an unexpected example. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Oh, it''s none of the common people''s business. It''s not something you can eat in large quantities, but financially it''s difficult to even eat one. When I was in Japan, I would have. If I had found it in this world ......, I would not have eaten so much. If you think about it, it''s not a mushroom that you want to eat many of. So whatever you eat, do it in moderation. Be careful. ...... Yes, please be careful. We don''t mean to be mean either. It''s like when a child says, "Buy me candy! I feel like a parent who tells a child to be patient. I''m sure it''s quite easy for you because Mitya doesn''t cry out and he listens to you when you tell him. ...... It''s tough being a parent. If you want to collect nuts, we can help you too. "Oh, I want to help too! We both looked at each other, as if we were worried about having eaten so much. I''m glad you feel that way, but I''m not sure if I can actually do it. ....... No, even if I say I''ll help, it''s in the dungeon that I collected the nuts. Yeah. It''s not exactly a safe place. It''s true that it''s easier to collect the nuts with help, but even the demons that appear in the forest seem a bit dangerous to Mary and her friends. Even Haruka, who was originally the rear guard, was able to kill them with a small sword, so small fish are small fish, but whether they can be killed by two adventurers is another matter. I''ve trained them, but I don''t know how well they can fight. ....... I thought it would be a good idea to give them some real combat experience. ...... No, but then again, what about the dungeon? If anything, the enemies in the dungeon are weaker. If you can get there, that is. I couldn''t help but contradict Haruka''s opinion, but when I thought about it, it wasn''t wrong. But when I look at Mary and Mitya''s appearance and age, I''m more concerned about whether it''s okay to let them fight. It may not match our common sense, but they are children no matter how you look at them. "Toya, what do you think? "Hmmm, I don''t think goblins are a problem. They make good sense, don''t they? What about Natsuki? Yeah. He is indeed a beast. He has more physical ability than his age would suggest. I think I can defeat a goblin without any problem. The basic training is done by all of them, but when it comes to individual weapons, Mary is learning to use a sword from Toya and Mitya is learning to use a small sword from Natsuki. If the two of them are fine with it, then there really isn''t a problem. When the three of them agree, it''s almost a done deal, but I look at Yuki. "Hmmm, you two want to fight, don''t you?¡¡Then why don''t you let them try?¡¡I''m sure it won''t be fatal if we''re here. I want to do it! I want to!¡¡I''m going to be a great adventurer! You''re very motivated. Yes, I am. You don''t know what it''s like to be a parent, do you? --No, I''m just bound by Japanese norms. "If you''re so sure, I won''t object, but what about equipment?¡¡You don''t have any yet, do you? When we train, we basically use wooden swords or our old weapons - weapons made of blue iron and other materials. Naturally, the weapons themselves are good, but if you ask them if they are suitable for their bodies, they are not. Mary''s weapon is Toya''s, and Mitya''s is Yuki''s. Both of them have a certain difference in physique. Even so, they are able to handle them to a certain extent, probably because of the high physical ability of beasts. I''m not sure what to do. Mary says this in a reserved manner, but the usability of the weapon has a great impact on the battle. If you''re in the military or in a war situation where you can''t afford it, you should probably use standardized weapons, but if you''re not, it''s safer and more effective to use weapons that are as easy to use as possible. If you can''t afford it, it is safer and more effective to use a weapon that is as easy to use as possible. ...... Hmm?¡¡It''s a bit of a luxury when you think about it. Most adventurers buy their weapons from the weapon shop. In fact, if you are a novice adventurer, you can find a good sword in a barrel at a bargain price and buy it. Compared to that, the swords we were using were pretty good quality, even if they were a bit out of proportion to our physique. What do you think, Haruka? I think you should ask Toya and Natsuki about that. As long as we don''t overdo it, we should be fine. Yes. I think it''s good enough if you''re not fighting on the edge. The two men looked at Haruka and nodded that it was no problem. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. You want to make sure you have good armor, because your life depends on it. It''s better if it''s as good as ours. Yes, sir. Yes, but it will cost a lot of money to get the same level as ours. They''re growing up, and even if we buy them, there''s a good chance they won''t be able to wear them soon. We don''t want them to get hurt, but should we spend a lot of money on something that will only last a short time? I don''t want them to get hurt, but should we spend a lot of money on something that will only last a short time? With so many factors involved, the five of us pondered together, and it was Mary and her friends who approached us with reserve. I''m not sure how much it is.¡¡Our allowance is ......? "Me, I''m trying so hard to save it!¡¡We haven''t spent any of it! I''ve been trying to save my money! I''m not sure if it''s possible. I''m not sure if it''s worth it. "What? Mary and Mitya are treated as family, and we give them some allowance. In this world, it''s normal to help out at home, you don''t get an allowance, and you''re blessed just to be able to eat a full meal, so the money we''re giving them is probably a lot of money to them. The money they are giving is probably a lot of money from Mary''s point of view, but from our point of view, it is a child''s allowance. In fact, it is a child''s allowance for two people who are helping with the household chores. Even if it''s a little more than a schoolboy''s allowance, there''s no way a child''s allowance can buy something more expensive than an ordinary car. Ugh, ......, borrowing a little money is not enough at all. Are adventurers really that expensive? It''s a little expensive, but it''s worth it. The two of them were shocked, but reality is reality. Good things are expensive. The two of them were shocked, but the reality was that the good stuff was expensive. "Wouldn''t it be better if we just gave them armor that ordinary adventurers would use?¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. "...... That''s true too, isn''t it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who can''t help you. We can help you if you''re losing. Yeah, right. Mary and the others can recuperate normally, right? Haruka and Yuki nodded in agreement to my suggestion. It''s easy to forget, but this is the biggest difference between us. They were kicked out of the inn when they couldn''t make any money, and one mistake could cost them their lives. Well, we had the advantage of initial skills. "Is that okay with Mary and the others? "Yes, of course. Oh, no, can they buy it? Yes, at least that much. We started out with ten large silver coins, but I think the reason why adventurers can''t succeed is because they don''t have enough money to start with and they don''t have a leader. When I came to this world and saw the rookie adventurers, I thought that they lacked more skills than I imagined. I''m sure there are many reasons for this, but if I had to sum it up in one word, it would be "lack of room. There are many reasons for this, but I can sum it up in one simple statement: "They can''t afford it." Combat skills are an asset, and there is a price to pay for learning them. With a few exceptions, adventurers are often the third or fourth sons of those who have neither farmland nor family business to inherit. With a few exceptions, it is unlikely that their parents will pay for their education. If you have the skills to fight, you don''t need to become an adventurer; there are other stable jobs such as soldiers. In other words, the only adventurers who have the skills from the start are those who have special circumstances such as uncertain identities like us, those who dare to become adventurers, and those who are lucky enough to have a mentor like Mary and her friends. It seems that the children of adventurers do not become adventurers as often as expected. In addition, those adventurers who have successfully started a family know the real situation of adventurers well and try hard to stop their children from becoming adventurers. We should probably stop Mary and Mitya from becoming adventurers, but unfortunately we can''t help them find jobs other than being adventurers. But we can''t offer them jobs other than being adventurers. But I would like to leave that to your free will. 247-A quiet story: You eat soba. I want to eat soba noodles. ...... It was a hot day when Toya blurted out these words. I know it''s the right time of year, and I''d love to eat some soba noodles, but I don''t think it''s a good idea to mention it while eating the lunch you made for me. As I suspected, Haruka, who made today''s lunch, seemed to be slightly unhappy. "What''s wrong with you all of a sudden?¡¡Are you unhappy with my cooking? "No, the food is good. As usual. But you still have those soba noodles you bought before, right?¡¡It''s time for zaru soba. Don''t you want some, Haruka?¡¡We have soy sauce. It''s not exactly soy sauce, but lately we''ve been referring to soy sauce-like inspirational sauces as simply ''soy sauce''. We''ve come to call it this because it''s too much trouble to call it "soy-sauce-like inspirational sauce" or "soy-sauce-like inspirational sauce" every time, but it''ll probably stay like this until we find the real thing, or until we can make it ourselves. Similarly, "Miso-like Inspirational Sauce", "Worcestershire-like Inspirational Sauce", and "Okonomi-sauce-like Inspirational Sauce" are also called "Miso", "Worcestershire sauce", and "Okonomi-sauce". "Well, we don''t have katsuo dashi or kombu dashi, but we can make it work, can''t we? Mary, who was listening to our conversation, curiously asked a fundamental question. "What is ''soba''? ...... Oh, you don''t know, Mary? I''ve heard that it''s not widely eaten in the Kerg area. And Mitya? When I bought buckwheat noodles, she said they don''t sell well, and they seem to have a strong image of being a rescue crop, so I guess they aren''t popular. It''s not surprising that Mary doesn''t know about it, considering that. When I looked at Mitya, she also nodded her head. "I don''t know. Is it good? "Do we like it?¡¡I''m not sure if I like it or not, but it''s more about the taste of the noodle soup. The noodles may be good or bad, but that''s the first thing. But if you can make mentsuyu, I''d like to eat somen too. In summer. But if you can make mentsuyu, I''d like to try somen. Somen is ...... in a way the most amateurish kind of noodle, isn''t it? I''m not sure.¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡--I''m sure it''s thin and difficult to make. It''s probably the best of all the major noodle types. The cheap ones are made by extruding with pressure, but the hand-pulled somen are made with special craftsmanship. I think it would be difficult for me. I had a feeling that it would be, but I guess it''s still difficult. As Natsuki said, if you just want to make somen that looks like "pushing with pressure", you can do it with a little modification of the home-use noodle-making machine I used to make, but if it doesn''t have the firmness of somen, it still won''t taste good. I can''t tell you the feeling I get when I eat cheap somen. When you eat cheap somen, the feeling of "This isn''t it" is indescribable, so this method is probably not for you. Well, just by watching commercials, it looks really difficult to make somen. At first glance, it looks easy to stretch the noodle between two sticks with two sticks, but I guess that is what is called "looking easy because a skilled craftsman does it". As is the case with many artisanal techniques. It''s a pity, though. I like it a lot. Somen. As I sigh and let out the words, Natsuki looks back at me, and then turns her head. I''ll try my best. I''ll try. It may not take shape right away, though. You said it would be difficult. You said it would be difficult. "Yes. Can you forgive me if it''s not ready until next year or so? Of course. I''m just glad you''re making it. Sure. I''ll do my best! "I''ll do my best!" Natsuki replied with a good smile. With your cooking skills, this could be really promising. We''ll help you too!¡¡"Hey, Haruka. "Yes. That''s a good idea. I''ve been on a factory tour before, so I know just how to do it. Toya looked a little frustrated at their reaction. "Huh?¡¡Isn''t that different from what you did with me? "I didn''t say it was impossible. I just said it would be difficult. You know? Yeah, yeah. I just thought it would take a long time, so I thought it would be impossible this season. Haruka and Yuki looked at each other and nodded to each other. I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Of course not. Hey, Natsuki? Yes. Of course. Of course. Toya. "Of course, of course. ......? They all said "of course", but none of them said "of course what". But before Toya could pursue the question, Yuki changed the subject. But first we have to make soba. We need to make it into flour first. ...... "Shall we make a millstone? I made a millstone to grind matcha green tea, so making a millstone itself is not a problem. Yuki said to me, "Why don''t you automate it? Yuki said to me, "Why don''t you automate it? But Yuki told me to automate it.¡¡It has buckwheat hulls. ...... Haruka, what do you think? What do you think, Haruka?" "Well, it''s a lot of work, so it''s probably less work. Let''s try designing with rollers. Rollers, as the name implies, are a method of crushing buckwheat noodles by passing them between two rollers. By repeating the process of sifting and passing the buckwheat through the rollers, we can finally obtain the flour with the husks removed. Incidentally, the process of grinding with a stone mortar is also repeated, and is more tedious than that of matcha, which can be made by grinding once. Furthermore, the amount of tea used at one time is much less than that of matcha. I would certainly like to automate this process. Do you know how to make magic tools? Yes, at least. There are various magical tools in this house, such as a bath heater and a kitchen stove. I made all of them myself. Mary and Mitya rolled their eyes, perhaps remembering the many magic tools in our house. You guys are amazing!¡¡You can do anything! "Not really.¡¡So, I''m going to make buckwheat noodles very easily, okay?¡¡You can count on me, right? I''m counting on you!¡¡I want to try soba! I''m not sure if the fact that we''re looking forward to it has raised our expectations or not, but when you think about it ......, soba noodles aren''t really that great. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were you. Enjoy the flavor of soba. You can eat it easily even when you have no appetite because of the heat. I hope it will not disappoint you. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m not going to go into the details, but I''m going to give you an idea of what I''m talking about. Of course, Yuki didn''t make it alone, Haruka helped and I helped a little, but it was still fast enough. Incidentally, it seems that most of the mechanism was appropriated from wheat grinding tools bought from the store and the "demon corpse shredder" part of the compost, and the only part newly developed was the part to sift the ground flour. That''s why it seems to have been easy to make, but if you''re told that it''s the same mechanism as making mincemeat out of demon corpses, I''m not sure what to think. ....... However, since it has enough power to crush the corpse of a demon, it can crush soba noodles. We have already secured enough buckwheat flour for our consumption after one night of operation. As for the other tools, we used the rolling pin, the board for cutting noodles and the knife for udon. As for the wooden bowl used for kneading buckwheat flour, we could not find it in the market, so we made it from earthenware. There are many craftsmen who are good at woodwork in this town, so they could have made it if I had ordered it, but the original wooden bowl was lacquered. Unfortunately, I have never seen lacquered tableware in this area, and I am not sure about other paints. I am a little worried about the smell and safety of other paints. I thought it would be better to use silicon dioxide, which is also perfectly waterproof. The disadvantages are that it is heavy and can be broken if dropped, but the same is true for glass balls. But it''s the same with glass balls. And even if it breaks, it can be easily rebuilt, so it''s not a big problem. Well, let''s get to work. Today''s noodle maker was Toya, who had made soba noodles with his father. Today''s noodle maker is Toya, who has made soba noodles with his father, and Yuki, who has made udon noodles, is preparing to do the same. Toya is experienced and Yuki is inexperienced. The latter, however, has [cooking] skills. Which one of them can make it better? ...... Well, I think the result is obvious, but I''m looking forward to it. Today I''ll use 7 buckwheat flour and 3 wheat flour. As Toya said this, he weighed out a cup of buckwheat flour and a cup of wheat flour and put them into the bowl. "You''re not using 100 percent buckwheat flour, are you? When I pointed out that there was a lot of buckwheat flour in the bowl, Toya shook his head in disgust. If you don''t make it well, it will be soggy and not as good as it should be.¡¡If you use the right kind of garnish, you can make it better, but you can''t get good garnish here, and in a sense, if you put in garnish, it''s not 100 percent soba.¡¡So, for amateurs, a little more flour is just right. "So 30 percent?¡¡Not even Nihachi Soba. Yuki followed Toya''s example and said so while adding flour. This one, unlike Toya, weighs out the flour exactly to the nearest gram. "Oh. Flour itself is not of consistent quality. That''s true, isn''t it? Flour available around here is not clearly classified into light, medium, and strong flours. Even durum wheat, which I used to buy when I made pasta, is sold in the same way as ordinary wheat. Recently, I''ve started buying from a specific store, and I''ve been able to get relatively stable quality, but in the beginning, I was even given wheat that had sand in it. That was really bad. Perhaps it was because wheat is sold as food, but even the supposedly all-purpose "purification" couldn''t separate it. It is strange that sand on clothes can be removed. Incidentally, at that time, I changed my mind and solved the problem easily with "Ground Control". Now that I''m a higher level player, I can probably use "Erase Earth," which is available at level 5. In addition, the store we are using now is not cheap because they prioritize quality, but of course there is no one among us who would complain about that. I don''t want to eat crispy bread. But we can''t deny that the quality is unstable, even though there is no mixture. This time, the buckwheat grinder was so good that we might as well buy it before grinding. The next step is to mix the water. Add water and mix everything. "Mm-hmm. I poured in the measured amount of water and roughly mixed the whole thing, and it started to look like it was falling apart in small chunks. Quickly. If it dries out, you won''t be able to stretch it properly, so good technique is important with soba. "Knead the chrysanthemum," he said. He kneaded the raggedy stuff together and kneaded it. "Knead the chrysanthemum and make it navel ...... clean so that there are no cracks on the surface. Finally, crush it from the top to make it look like a rice cake, and you''re done. "Wow! Mitya was glued to the work, which she had never seen before. And Yuki, watching Toya''s work from the side, did the same - or, considering that she was watching, completed the same work more skillfully than Toya. Yuki has nothing to say about ....... Yeah. Let''s stretch it out then. It''s important to expand the circle into a square. It''s like making a diamond. Toya and Yuki are stretching it out on the table with a rolling pin. At this point, Yuki is completely more skilled than Toya. She stretches it out larger and thinner than Toya. Yuki is really good, isn''t she? "Well, it''s thinner and less firm than udon, so it''s a little difficult. Yuki''s technique is excellent, even though she says it is difficult. The edges are clean, and there are no cuts at all. All you have to do is fold and cut. Do what you want. After being overtaken in the process by Yuki, Toya smiles and throws it away. It''s thinner than udon. It''s thinner than udon, so it''s a bit of a hassle. While he was saying this, the soba noodles were being cut at a brisk pace. It looks just as good as the store-bought kind. "It''s amazing, Yuki. It''s stunning. I''m not sure if it''s because of my skills or because I''m used to making udon.¡¡Even Haruka can cut it well, right? You can''t cut it that fast yet. Soba is about half as thin as udon. You just need to adjust the angle of the knife after cutting, so you''ll get used to it. We still eat bread as our staple food, but we get bored with bread alone, and we eat pasta and udon quite often. For pasta, we use the noodle-making machine that Yuki and her friends built, but for udon, we make it by hand. Natsuki and Haruka also make the noodles, and Toya and I help with the kneading, but Yuki is often in charge of the stretching and cutting. Inevitably, she has a lot of experience. Even though there are some differences between soba and udon, I guess his experience is not wasted. "Hey, Haruka. Cut mine. I''ve already done the folding. Why don''t you do it yourself? There are people who can do it better than me, so I''ll leave it to them. I''m not even that good at making soba. I think you did pretty well for an amateur. Well, I understand. Haruka took over from Toya and cut the soba quickly. Haruka was not as good as Yuki, but she had made udon noodles before, so she was better than Toya, who specialized in kneading. "All you have to do is boil it in plenty of water and you''re done. "Yes, sir. Yes, I''m ready. Throw the cut noodles into the water as if you were handling them. Take the boiled buckwheat noodles into a colander, rinse them thoroughly in cold water filled with ice, and drain them. "Sis!¡¡There are so many ice cubes. It''s summer. It''s amazing. There''s also so much clean water at ....... That''s the point of surprise. Well, ordinary people can''t use ice this time of year. There are ice shops in the city run by wizards who can use ice magic, but their prices are too high for the common people. But it still sells. There are people who buy it. So even though the ice shop is only open during the summer, it is said to be able to make enough money to live on with a left fan. All you have to do is to use magic while cooling off with a left fan, literally. As long as you can use the magic to make ice, anyone can do it, and you don''t need much store space. In other words, even if Haruka and I, who can make ice, and Yuki, who can make ice, were to retire from adventuring, we would be quite safe. The only drawback is that if you don''t have stores in different towns, you''ll be competing with each other and making less money. ...... Yeah, well, I guess you have to accept that you''ll make less money. Now, it''s boiled. Let''s try it right away. It''s a pity there''s no condiments. ...... We took the buckwheat noodles on a regular plate to the cafeteria, though it didn''t look good because there was no colander. Then, I handed out the soba sauce that Natsuki had prepared. Itadakimasu". Personally, I prefer ginger with soba, but I have no intention of denying wasabi. I don''t have either, but unfortunately I don''t have either. It would have been nice to have at least one of them, but ...... is not an option. I''ll start with the one made by Yuki at ....... Sip it with a little bit of dipping sauce. ......Oh, the aroma of soba is totally different. I have eaten buckwheat noodles in a buckwheat noodle producing area, and they are no better than that. No, as far as aroma is concerned, it is definitely superior. The fact that this is the first time you have made soba is ...... amazing. Yes, it is. The dipping sauce is not so good, but the soba is very tasty. It''s good enough for a lack of ingredients. I think you''ve done a good job of recreating it, don''t you? Yes. Did you use mushrooms? Yes. And smoked and dried fish. I''d like some ...... kelp. I think it''s a very good mentsuyu, though Natsuki is not satisfied with it. I think it''s good enough. Mary and Mitya followed our example - though they were using forks - and nodded their heads in agreement. "How about it?¡¡Mary, Mitya. It''s not what it looks like, but it tastes better than I expected. Hey!¡¡Mee! Mary scolded Mitya for speaking clearly, but Haruka laughed at her without seeming to mind. In fact, it doesn''t look very good, does it, Soba? It''s a long, brownish thing that you dip in a black liquid and eat. It''s okay, you can be honest with me. But it looks like you liked it. Would you like some Mary? "Yes. Yes. It''s light and good for hot weather. ...... To be honest, it''s a little underwhelming. Right. I''ll get you something else. I''m sure you''ll like it. Shrimp tempura and kakiage, the best match for soba. And deep fried chicken for the meat-loving Mary and her friends. They were probably made from the meat of a killer gator. Yay!¡¡Bon app¨¦tit!¡¡It''s okay! "Bon app¨¦tit! I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll like it. It''s hot and crispy thanks to the storage. The prawn tempura is made of crawfish-like shell shrimp, but there is no inconvenience at all, except that you cannot make prawn tempura with a tail. In fact, it tastes much better than regular shrimp tempura. The kakiage also contains prawns, so it is quite luxurious. After taking a break with tempura, we had soba noodles made by Toya. --Yes, it''s good too, but ...... the noodles are a bit thick. Haruka cut the noodles, so Toya must not have stretched them enough. However, since the noodles were stretched to a fairly large size, it must have been quite difficult to stretch them thinly without tearing them. If you think of it that way, it is well made. Sorry, I''m not very good. "No, no, you''re good enough for an amateur. The handmade soba noodles I got from an acquaintance before were much thicker, and they cut into pieces when boiled. I don''t mean to demean the soba I received, and it was edible enough, but that''s usually the way it is with amateur soba makers. Toya noticed that I was looking at the noodles carefully, and said to himself, "I think it''s good enough compared to that. He wasn''t too bad at it, and it''s a hobby he can be proud of. Your father was quite into it, wasn''t he? "Well, yeah. He had all the tools he needed to make it. He often shared his work with people he knew. I had to go along with it. Incidentally, he had even bought a tool like a cutting machine that could cut noodles at a specified width by simply lifting and lowering a lever. It seems that this was also the reason why Toya could not cut the noodles. Yuki and his friends can cut the noodles as quickly as the professionals, so it is not really necessary, but if you want to mass-produce ......, it may be useful to have it. The buckwheat noodles made by the two of us this time will be gone in this one time, and we will make them many times this summer. I''m sure I won''t have to do it again. Now that I''ve taught you how to do it, just leave it to Yuki and the others and everything will be fine. I can''t deny it. Since Yuki, who was making soba for the first time, was better than Toya, his [cooking] skills were not undeserved. And, as expected, Haruka and Natsuki, who were taught by Yuki, soon became able to make the same level of soba, and just as Toya had said, his turn never came again. By the way, the three of us worked together on the somen, and by the end of the summer, we had completed something that looked like somen ......, and was tasty enough compared to the cheap somen sold around. This was good enough for me, but the three of them seemed to be dissatisfied with the result and said, "We''ll try harder next summer! I heard. In the first place, somen is supposed to be made in winter, stored, and dried slowly. According to Haruka, who has visited the factory. --To be honest, I was getting a little bored with the number of times soba noodles were served this summer, so I hope they''ll keep up the good work. 248-223 Sell milk...... preparation After some discussion, it was decided that the armor to be given to Mary and Mitya would be standard soft leather armor. We went to Mr. Gantz''s store, took measurements for both of them, and ordered them for a total of 30 gold coins. Even at that price, Mary and her friends were in a panic, but that was okay. Even if it was beyond the reach of Mitya and the others'' pocket money, it was enough for a novice adventurer to get by with a little hard work. We can''t just let them fight in plain clothes like we do. After ordering the armor, we sent Mary and Mitya home and headed to the Adventurer''s Guild to consult with Diora. We went to the adventurer''s guild to consult with Diora. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll help. Well, let''s just go to the room over there. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get there. Still, she didn''t ignore us and led us to another room. When we were all seated around the table there, I took out a gift from my magic bag, as well as a consultation fee. Here is the consultation fee. Please pay it. "Oh, are you sure?¡¡This is a pear, isn''t it?¡¡They cost a lot, don''t they? I laid out three pears on the table, slid them toward Diora, and she took them happily. By the way, "Siaspea" is a variety of pear, the same as "Kosui" or "Nijusseiki" in Japan. According to my research, Siaspea is a delicious variety of pear, and as Diora said, it is quite expensive to buy. The same goes for the other fruits we got in the dungeon. Since we find them tasty even though they haven''t been bred, it''s only natural that most of them are quite expensive, even if we don''t know the exact price. No, I didn''t buy it. ...... How much is the market price? You can buy it for around 100 rares in the production area, but in the pinning area, the cheapest you can get is 300 rares.¡¡If you''re a fan of Rafan, it''s not usually in stock. In the first place, it''s a little out of season right now. By the way, in this world, there are magic bags, so if you pay enough money, you can get crops even when they are not in season. In a sense, we can say that the preservation technology is more advanced than that of Japan, but the cost is not cheap. Since the magic bag is occupied for storage, it cannot be used for other purposes such as transportation, and its rarity is quite different from that of a commercial refrigerated warehouse. If you don''t make more money than when you use it for other purposes, you won''t be able to use it for storage, and the amount added to the stored items will be substantial. The amount of money added to the preserved items is considerable. I thought it was a souvenir from somewhere far away, so this is from a dungeon? Yes. You want to sell it? I thought it was a souvenir from somewhere far away. No, no. This is for our own use. We have no plans to sell it. "Oh, no. Oh, really?¡¡They sell for a lot of money.¡¡If you can get it at any time of the year, ...... you can probably get close to a ding dong. It''s a bit tempting when you say it like that. ...... Oh, no, no, no, I won''t sell it. I''ll share it with you, Diora. That''s a bit tempting, but there''s a reason why we decided not to sell it. That''s because once the fruit is harvested, it doesn''t come back to life unnaturally, compared to strike ox, which can be squeezed again in a few days. As Diora said, we can harvest the fruits one after another regardless of the time of the year, but unfortunately, there is a limit to how much we can harvest at a time. We''re the only ones in the area now, so there''s no problem, but if there are a lot of adventurers in the area, it''s likely to be harvested before it''s ready to eat. To put it simply, we don''t want people to know about it. "I see. I see. Leave it to me. "Thank you. Here''s a little something for you (????). Now, three apples were placed in a row. They went straight to Mr. Diora. "Thank you very much. You want to share? "Yes. Yes, this is a sharing, not a hush money or a bribe. No problem at all. This is the real deal. Would you like to try it? Haruka took out the milk from the Strike Ox. She put it in a cup and put it in front of Diora. Diora looked at the milk, smiled vaguely, and pulled her body back a little. I''m not a big fan of goat''s milk. ...... Don''t worry. I''m not a goat. It''s not a goat. ......? I''m not a big fan of goat''s milk. I''m not sure if this is ...... Diora picked up the cup, took a sip, and shouted. This is Strike Ox''s milk, isn''t it?¡¡And it tastes really good. And it doesn''t have a bad smell. ...... "Yes. How did you know that? Yeah, yeah, well, ...... The milk from Strike Ox must be very expensive, but as expected from the vice-chief of the adventurer''s guild. He seems to have a certain amount of money. Well, he''s the kind of guy who buys the high quality fruit dindol, even at a slight discount. "What''s the matter, sir? You didn''t buy it somewhere, did you? No. I found it in a dungeon. I''d like to sell it. What do you think? "Strike Ox, they don''t live around here, so I''ll give you a good price for it. That''s great. But the container is ....... I see. A bottle. If you want, I can order them from the workshop. That''s Mr. Diora. You''re very quick. Are you sure?¡¡It''ll be a lot of work. "It''s not much trouble if you can get it. Most adventurers use leather bags for the convenience of transport, which can get smelly, but this has none of that. It is of high quality. Magic bags are great, after all. Glass and ceramic bottles that don''t smell like milk are easy to break, and it''s a little impractical to take them with you on an adventure. Besides, even if you successfully milked Strike Ox, you''d need time to bring it back. A day or so at room temperature at the earliest, and several days if you''re not very good. This would be a very bad way to handle raw milk. The Magic Bag solves both problems. In other words, freshly squeezed, odorless, high quality milk. It would be very valuable. What''s more, Hulka can cool and pasteurize it. Non-homogenized pasteurized milk is nothing to sneeze at. What should we do about ......? Isn''t that already decided? There is a standard price, but applying it to this would be problematic. We''d like to decide the purchase price by comprehensively considering how much we''ll sell and whether there will be supply in the future. If the rules were followed, the guild would be able to make money by buying them cheaply at the standard price and selling them at a higher price, but I guess that would be unfair to Diora. By the way, what would you sell it for? I''d pay about 40 gold pieces for that bottle, if I were a nobleman. Really?¡¡That''s a nobleman. He''s not half bad. A glass of milk ...... costs 20,000 to 30,000 yen, isn''t that too expensive? --But if you think about it, even the wine sold in stores can cost that much (over 100,000 yen per bottle). It''s not too expensive for a drink, though. I couldn''t drink it - I was underage, after all - but it is a very expensive drink. An earl could easily afford it, and a slightly wealthy viscount would have no problem buying it, at least this much. "What about Viscount Nenus? Oh, ...... I don''t think he''d buy that one, he can''t afford it. With a slightly annoyed smile on her face, Diora shook her head. It''s true, there''s also the recent strife in Kerg. This is not the time to waste money on gastronomy. However, there are some problems when selling at a high price. There are some problems with selling at high prices. First of all, the destination. Even if you can sell it at a high price, there is a limit to where you can sell it. This means that you cannot be sure that you will be able to buy the quantity you want. The other possibility is that if they can be sold at a high price, more adventurers will enter the dungeons of summer retreat, dreaming of getting rich. To reach those dungeons would require a certain level of skill, and the difficulty of milking strike ox and transporting and storing it without a magic bag would make it difficult to imitate. But a lot of money has the power to make you reckless. The adventurer''s guild doesn''t want more people to die needlessly, and for us, it would be sad if someone came into the dungeon and ruined the fruit business that we had just agreed with Diora. "What if I sell it cheap? "Well, at least five gold coins, I guess. I''d like to see at least five gold pieces, maybe ten if you''re considering the impact on others. That''s the range of prices that guilds generally charge. The upper limit is about five gold coins. Our milk is obviously of a higher quality than that, so they''d have a lot of trouble paying the same level of price. I guess it''s natural. If high quality meat and cheap meat are sold at the same price, the cheap meat will be left unsold or demanded to be reduced. Since there are only a limited number of magic bags, the effect is basically limited to the neighborhood, but if the difference is too large, merchants with magic bags may come and buy up all the meat. I see. Okay, let''s say I have 10 gold coins, how much can I sell? "Well, ......, up to 100 a month should be no problem. Depending on the situation, we may be able to sell more, but for now... 100 bottles. A little over 30 strike-oxes. That''s a lot to collect in a day. A thousand gold pieces in a day if you ignore the time it takes to get there and back. 200 per person. Even if you add in the time to get there and back, that''s about 50 gold pieces? Yeah, not bad. Besides, it''s more convenient for us to prevent other adventurers from coming to the dungeon, even if we don''t go as far as ....... It''s okay.¡¡It''s not that much of a burden, and it''s enough to make a profit. "Right. Okay, Diora, that''s it. "All right. I''ll get you a bottle. There''s also a magic stone and ...... this. Haruka took out the milk bottle again. However, the contents were milk from Red Strike Ox. The milk was not highly regarded by us, but according to Toya, it is highly valuable. However, if you think about it, you''re competing with regular Strike Ox milk for the pie, so I''m not sure if it''s worth the trouble to collect this one. ....... What''s this?¡¡Is it different from the milk you just got? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why Haruka took out the milk bottle again, Diora said. If you compare them closely, you can probably tell the difference, but the bottles I''m making are pseudo-glass bottles, so they''re not very transparent. If I get better, I might be able to make beautiful quartz glass, but it''s no problem for practical use, and if I aim for that, my magic power will be diminishing rapidly, so mass production is impossible. When I tried it before, I got stuck for a while just making one glass. Since I am an elf, it seems unrealistic for a wizard to take the place of a glass studio. "It''s hard to tell from the bottle, but this is Red Strike Ox''s milk. "What?¡¡Wait a minute. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. "I beg your pardon. --Are you sure? Ms. Diora looks at the bottle with some suspicion. Well, it''s hard to tell without it. "Would you like to try it?¡¡If you put it in a glass, you can see the difference in color. No, no, no!¡¡No, thank you!¡¡It''s not that expensive! ...... Is it really expensive? Yes, yes, yes, yes!¡¡It''s a lot more difficult to milk a cow than a normal cow. In addition to its power, the biggest problem when milking Red Strike Ox is its breath. Without the aid of magic, you can''t stand in front of it and hold it down, and that alone raises the difficulty level. Adventurers who are able to deal with this will naturally earn more money, which means a higher hourly wage. We use magic to our advantage, but it''s easy to forget that wizards are a rare breed. It''s not that easy to find more than one. That''s why the cost of collecting milk from Red Strike Ox is quite high. And then there''s the effect. It''s very popular with the nobility. "The effects? Oh, you don''t know?¡¡I see. ...... Ms. Diora''s eyes flickered a bit in surprise, and then she slurred her words a bit. "Well, what''s the problem? There''s no problem, really.¡¡It''s just that ...... makes me feel better. When I drink it. It''s like a raging bull. ............ Oh. I see. Does it really work?¡¡We''ve tried it, but no. You''re young. Besides, Haruka-san is a woman. Hmm?¡¡"And you''re a woman"?¡¡So you''re saying that it makes men feel better? ...... Oh, that''s it. What do you mean "energize"? It''s like an energy pill. I understand why Ms. Diora has a hard time saying that. "That''s what sells, isn''t it? "Yes. After all, the aristocracy is always looking for ways to leave children. Diora nodded with a wry smile at Toya, who said this with a slightly impressed expression. I''m sure there''s no such thing as fertility treatment in the scientific sense, and as a nobleman whose family''s survival is at stake, he may be quite desperate in that direction as well. So, how much does it cost? There''s only a limited number we can sell, but it''s at least ten times as high. That much? From my point of view, I can''t help but think that it''s a mere energizer, but considering the popularity of Viagra, I guess it''s necessary for those who need it. But then again, infertility in this world of quick marriages is more of a problem than a problem of standing or not standing. ...... Could it be that it is more than just an energizer? If so, I can understand a little. There are people in Japan who spend a lot of money on fertility treatments. My relatives also spent a lot of money on unknown supplements, health foods, and water in addition to regular treatment. ...... Does this work? It''s not like a placebo. "Well, Diora, is this really going to work? ...... Nao, are you worried about its ...... function? No, I''m not!¡¡I mean, even if you can ...... do it, it doesn''t mean you can do it. Diora looked at me like, "...... at your age? So, I strongly denied it and asked her what she was wondering. She nodded lightly and answered in a slightly blurred way, but Diora seemed to understand. It''s true that you can''t get a hundred different results, but there seems to be enough of a difference that you can feel the effects.¡¡But you have to keep taking it for a certain period of time, so it will cost you a lot of money. Specifically, both the husband and wife must have at least one month. For the aristocracy, it might be a small price to pay for an heir to ...... a house. It''s a little hard to milk Red Strike Ox, but it might be worth it. I''m sure our guild would love to sell it. It''s not something we can sell often, but it can be a handy, if not a trump card against the nobility. As we are under the protection of the guild, it is important that the guild has a certain amount of power, and since it can be sold at a high price, there is no reason to refuse. "Okay. Then I''ll secure a certain amount. "Yes, sir. I''ll be counting on you. As I nodded and promised to collect, Diora smiled and lowered her head. 249-224 Childcare consultation After leaving the Adventurer''s Guild, we headed to the temple to pay our respects as usual and bring some not-so-expensive meat - in this case, the less popular part of the orc - to the orphanage. No milk or good meat. If we were going to give them such things, it would be better to sell them and donate the proceeds. We could also sell the items we gave to the temple. ...... Well, that would be difficult. In terms of etiquette, exchanging gifts for money is not a good idea. "Thank you for everything. No, thank you. No. I''m indebted to you, too. I''m indebted to the temple, i.e., Adversus, but I''m also indebted to Ishka for her help with Mary and the others. If we were to give them a Japanese education, but if we were to give them an education that matched our world, we would be lacking a bit of knowledge and common sense. In this respect, Isiaka has the perfect experience and knowledge. We were very grateful for her help because we were going to take in a child who was not even an adult - by Japanese standards, anyway. By the way, that dried pasta you gave me the other day. That''s good. We tried to make it ourselves, and the cheap wheat tastes so good. I''m glad I could be of some help. Not just a little!¡¡It has helped us a lot in terms of food costs. It''s a daily thing. While wheat is commonly used for baking bread in this area, hard wheat, which is suitable for making dried pasta, is relatively cheap, probably because people are not familiar with it. And between bread and pasta, pasta is easier to make. Making thin noodles is a hassle, but we donated a noodle-making machine, so that''s not a problem. The problem is that you need a lot of water to eat and fuel to boil it, but water is not a problem since there are relatively abundant water sources around here. As for the fuel, the orphanage does not seem to be too much of a burden, since the furniture workshop in Laffan produces a lot of waste wood, which is donated to the orphanage. In the case of the orphanage, they boil a lot of noodles at once, so the boiled water is not wasted. The pasta sauce is not as good as ours, but it is said to be better than the hardened bread. When we bring in meat, like this time, we make a Bolognese kind of sauce with it, which is quite popular. By the way, I have a question for Mr. Ishka: ...... Yes? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. What do you think? "Yes, I do. There aren''t many girls in orphanages, but it''s common for boys. Adventurers are, in a sense, "easy to understand. I guess they are attracted to it. Well, I understand. Adventurers are kind of cool, aren''t they? --I mean, if you look at the successful ones. Most of the people who join guilds are day laborers, and most of the people who do adventurer-like jobs are in difficult circumstances. However, adventurers have the best chance of making it. In fact, orphans with no connections have little chance of success in any other field. It''s a hard world. If I had to guess, I would say that merchants can be successful, but they start out as street vendors or peddlers at best. If you have a small store, you are very successful. The probability of becoming more than that in at least one generation is less than a tenth of a percent. What do you do in such a case? I''ll run it. ......? We make them run and build up their strength. At least they''ll be able to run away from the demons. Oh, we think a little like that. The most important thing is physical strength, no matter what you say. Many children fail at this stage, but even if they don''t, they''ll be of a certain age by the time they get strong enough. "I see. Is that why you limit the age? Yes. Yes. Once you''re strong enough, we''ll beat you up. To show them the reality. The ones who don''t give up will be ...... adults by then. It seems that Ishqa and the other priests have enough skills to protect themselves, and they will teach and train them while showing them the reality. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. Perhaps because of this, there have been no deaths among the children who have become adventurers since Ishka took charge of the orphanage. So it''s a little early for Mary and Mitya to go into battle? No, under the supervision of Natsuki-san and the others, right?¡¡It''s not a problem then. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who can''t do that. Ishka and the others have a wide range of jobs, including managing the temple and the orphanage. In the event you''re not sure what to do, you may want to check with your doctor. Even if they are as strong as goblins, they are not adventurers, but priests. And even if you don''t become an adventurer, it''s good to have the ability to fight. It will give you more options for your future. Is it better to be able to fight? ...... Yes. If you want to apprentice yourself to a craftsman or something,......, no, it''s still better to be able to fight. But it is very difficult to find a job that is safe and can be completed only in the city. In the case of orphans who are not related by blood or land. It is better to have physical strength even if you are a day laborer. In Japan, intellectual strength is more important than physical strength, but in this country, there are few situations where intellectual strength can be used. Useless knowledge is a waste of treasure. Of course, you need to have a certain level of intelligence, but it''s enough for elementary school level. I can''t use chemistry, mathematics, or computers. If you want to use your knowledge from agricultural school, it is also a little bit difficult. First of all, no two crops are the same, and fertilizers don''t contain the ratio of ingredients. There are no tools to measure the pH of the land, and there are no pesticides on the market. Especially in this world, plants seem to be affected by magic power. Considering the effects of the fertilizers we sell. Of course, it''s better to have it than not, but it''s not so easy to make use of it. In other words, the most convenient and flexible ability is "physical strength". As long as you have this, you can get by quite well. This makes sense when you consider that Tommy was a day laborer and could be counted on. "All right. Thank you for the advice. "No, no, no. Please feel free to contact me anytime. I''m sure that your act of saving a parentless child is in line with God''s will. Ishka ended the topic with a smile of compassion and a priestly phrase. I''m sure you''ll agree. A week or so after that conversation with Ishka. We were on our way to the dungeon with Mary and Mitya. Their first real battle was a few days ago. We decided to start with the goblins, and let them die one by one, but they killed them easily, and even collected the magic stone without any trouble. When I was their age, it would have been impossible for me to do so due to my physical strength and skills, but it was amazing that they could do it mentally. It may be due to the fact that I help dismantle demons in my home and death is closer to me, but I don''t know whether to call it reliable or sad that it''s killing me. ....... Well, such inner conflicts notwithstanding, if there are no problems, we can only train the two of them. The place we chose as a convenient place to do so was, of course, the dungeon of summer resort. Of course, the coolness is one of the reasons, but it''s also easier to find demons than searching for goblins in the eastern forest, and since the pathways are limited, it''s less likely to cause any unforeseen problems. With my [Enemy Search], this shouldn''t happen very often, but there''s nothing better than being safe. Besides, in a dungeon, even if all five of us are not following Mary and the others, we can split into two groups and train ourselves. It would be a shame if we were to completely abandon our work and stay with the two of them. "Mary, I won''t push you unnecessarily. You''re not strong enough yet. Mitya, don''t go in head first. It''s a dagger. First priority is to avoid it. "Yes! Haruka and I are in charge of them for now. I''m trying to guide the two of them as they work hard, but I''m also trying to make sure that they don''t get interrupted by other demons. I''m sure that Toya and the others are currently engaged in a slugfest with the Goblin General, since I''m capable of overrunning this area by myself. The goblin general is not a strong enemy to kill, but it can be used as a good training partner if you want to fight it out without magical support. You don''t have to worry about other demons coming, there are places to fight, and the demons are the same. If you want to improve your skills, the demons in the boss room are a good match for you. "Yes, good work. That was good. "Thank you. I''m tired. While I''m thinking, Mary and the others finish the battle. It''s the first time they''ve fought each other, but their fighting style is pretty steady. Of course, this was only after Haruka and I had cleared out the demons that were in the way and created a one-on-one battlefield, but considering their age, it was more than enough. What do you have to say for yourself Nao? "No, I''ll just say that you''re both awesome. They have more strength and muscle power than I expected. With experience, you''ll be able to do well. Mary, as well as Mitya, have strength that you wouldn''t expect from their size, and even though they have already fought several battles, they still have strength left. Considering the fact that they were fighting in an unfamiliar dungeon, I would have thought that they would need to rest for a certain amount of time each time they fought, but there was no sign of that. Is this because he is a beast, or is he unconsciously using his magical power to strengthen his body? I don''t even know if Mary and the others are special because I don''t know what a standard beastman is. Thank you, Nao. Brother Nao, can Me and the others join your brother''s party? What?¡¡Well, I guess so. ...... Yeah, I guess so. Mary and Mitya can''t work alone, so I think they should form a party, but it''s difficult to find a partner for them. There doesn''t seem to be much prejudice against beastmen in this country, but it can''t be said that there are none, and the fact that they are female is also a bottleneck. If you think about it, it''s safe to say that joining our party is safe. ...... The problem is the level difference. I''m not going to say that I don''t like it. I''m not saying no. But at the very least, you should have enough strength to not get in the way of combat. I''m not saying no, but at least you''ll have enough power to not get in the way of combat. Can you do that? I''m trying! Yes, sir! It''s been almost a year since we got here. It might be a limit considering that we''ve been here for almost a year, but considering the difference in starting points and ages, it seems a bit harsh. But still, Mitya and Mary''s eyes lit up and they gave a very good answer. 250-225 Troubled Letters After that, we continued to train Mary and the others, switching the support role several times. Even though we hadn''t set a specific number of days, we thought that Mary and the others would soon get tired of the unfamiliarity of staying in the wild, but in fact, that was not the case. When I asked them about it, Mitya said, "It''s more comfortable than when we were living in Kergu! She said. I''m almost certain that this was due to the comfortable folding beds we had prepared for Mary and Mitya, as well as the full meals we were able to eat. Especially when it came to meat, they were happy to be able to eat meat that they had obtained themselves, since there were too many demons to consume, and even Mary and her friends could kill a picka. Another reason was that we moved to the 15th level where there was a sky when we slept, so it was not dark like in a dungeon. So we spent more than a month in the dungeon. When we came back to our home after a long break, the season was starting to look a bit like autumn. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure if you''ve seen Haruka and the others lately. The adventurer''s guild in Raffan is basically idle except for the busy morning and evening hours. It''s a good thing that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. It''s a great way to pass the time, but it''s also a refreshing change of pace. --They don''t use the name of their party very often, so I have to check it once in a while or I''ll forget it. If you''re at a party of young, hot girls, they''ll give you an exaggerated party name and try to sell their name by calling it out unnecessarily, but these girls have none of that. Maybe the two elves are quite old? I think the three beastmen and humans are just as they look. They don''t show up at the guild as often as the other adventurers, but they''re still the biggest earners in the guild. My salary is partly based on their performance, so I''m very happy. Before the arrival of the girls, all the adventurers left Rafan once they started earning a little money, and the branch chief was in a bad mood, but lately he''s in a good mood. Being a branch chief gives you more authority, but most of your salary is linked to your performance. If you become a branch manager in a rural area, you may lose your salary if you are not good. If you are a newcomer to the branch, you can accept it, but if you come from the city, ...... you are actually a leftover. Our branch manager was a deputy branch manager in Kergu, so he probably got a big pay cut. But that''s all in the past. But that''s in the past. Thanks to Haruka and the others, his salary is probably higher than it was in Kergu. And Haruka and the others don''t seem to be planning to leave this town for the time being. I''m proud of myself for getting them to build a house so early. Well done. Shouldn''t I get a bonus or something? In return, I sometimes receive troublesome consultations, but I can handle them ...... with no problem, and it''s okay because this branch is not busy. I mean, I''m dealing with it, but isn''t it unfair that the branch manager is getting paid more for doing nothing ......? --Next time there''s a problem, let''s have the branch manager take care of it. Let''s do that. Or ask for a bonus. No, well, there are some perks to dealing with Haruka and the others. Sometimes I get to share. The pears and apples I got the other day were very good. It''s almost the season for dindol, will Haruka and others go and pick them this year? It''s a little difficult to make a profit, but we don''t have any new elven adventurers this year, do we? No, not this year. If anything, many of them only come to this town at this time of year for the dindol. After harvesting enough for their own consumption, they leave immediately, so we don''t get much of a share of the harvest. Haruka, if you could show up, I''d appreciate it. ....... In addition, a good amount of milk bottles have been made, so you should come and get them soon. The results of the appraisal of the pearls and tin wand have also been received. Is he still going to the dungeon today? Vice Chief, a letter for you arrived. "Oh, thank you. I was in a daze when one of my subordinates brought a letter to me. Letters are sometimes delivered through the guild''s transport network. The system is available to the general public, but it is not cheap, so not many people use it. The letters I receive are either from the guild, or from my mother. This time-- "Mother? No, it''s actually from your uncle. The letter arrives in my mother''s name, but it''s more of an add-on, and the real letter is from her sister, my aunt. And the main subject of the letter is about my uncle, which is a very complicated letter. But since my uncle is the one who is paying the expenses, my mother is lending her name to him in exchange for taking advantage of his services. My mother''s letters are usually full of unimportant things such as caring for my health or asking me to marry her, so I avoid them and read the letters from my aunt, which are more important. "Hmmm... ...... Wow, that''s quite an absurd request. That''s my uncle. I''m sure you''ll agree that the requests from your uncle are always troublesome - so much so that they make the inquiries from Haruka and the others seem cute - and this time was no different. I wonder what he expects from the adventurer''s guild in the countryside, Uncle. This time, the request was for a wedding gift for Baron Diaz. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. He is a man you need to take care of. The Baron''s heir is getting married and I was wondering if I could prepare a suitable gift for him. The Adventurer''s Guild may have something unusual to offer. Normally, I would have replied, "Just give him a piece of Raffan''s fine furniture," but fortunately, there are good things available now - well, not now, but there are plans to get them. Red Strike Ox''s milk. What could be more appropriate for a newlywed nobleman? I''d like to give you about 100 bottles, so it''ll be a bit of a hassle for you guys, but I''m sure you can handle it if I ask. This is fine, but there''s another problem, right? I want to hire a good and reliable adventurer at a reasonable price. You''re kidding, right? There''s no way you can hire a good adventurer for cheap. And trustworthy is impossible, of course. The Adventurer''s Guild is not a handyman, you know. That''s what I would normally reply. There were no skilled adventurers in Raffan to begin with. But now, Raffan has a bright mirror. I''m not sure if I should call it fortunate or not. Besides, I can understand your uncle''s feelings. The reason why we need adventurers is to attend Baron Diaz''s wedding, but the road between Viscount Nenus''s domain and Baron Diaz''s domain is not very safe. Because of the mountains and forests in between, there are bandits. It''s a problem. And demons, for that matter. It is the fault of Viscount Nenus and Baron Dias for their lack of policing,......, but when it is my cousin who is passing through, I can''t just say, "Too bad. Ilias is like a little sister to me as well. Normally, it would have been better if Viscount Nenus''s guards had escorted her, but at the moment, Kerug is overwhelmed with manpower, and soldiers and adventurers have different areas of expertise. Forests and mountain trails full of demons and bandits. In such a situation, the adventurer would be the stronger. If you have a lot of soldiers escorting you, you may not have a problem even if you''re not good at something, but right now you don''t have enough people to do that. ...... There really are some annoying things out there, like the Order of the Sutomy Saints. --I wish my uncle would go there himself. It''s not that I don''t want my uncle to die, but he can use weapons better than the Iliad. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure he''ll take care of it if I ask him to, but the problem is the reward. As a guild employee and an acquaintance of the girls, I can''t use them at an unfairly low price. On the other hand, from the perspective of the Viscount family, I can''t afford to pay for it. ....... I''d be willing to pay a little for the Iliad, but I''m not. "Other than monetary rewards ......, what can the Viscountess provide that doesn''t cost money ......? Artwork, ......? No, there''s probably not much left. I heard that they released a lot of it after the incident. I heard that they just barely managed to cut down to the point where they could keep up appearances as nobles. My aunt is also having a hard time. That said, I don''t want her to rely on me too much. The Adventurer''s Guild is independent, after all. "Something that the Viscount can provide, that doesn''t cost a fortune, and that will be of value to everyone in Meikyoushui: ...... This is an absurd requirement. When you''re earning that much money, you''re not going to take on a troublesome nobleman''s escort for a little money. ....... The risk of failure is high when dealing with nobles. It''s also a lot more complicated to deal with clients when you''re dealing with noblemen than when you''re dealing with merchants. Many people are reckless. I can''t tell you how many times I''ve wanted to throw away my position as an employee of the Adventurer''s Guild and punch them in the face! Ilias is a good kid who is easy to get along with, but Haruka and the others don''t know that. If you''re looking for the best of the best, you''re going to have to go with the best. In this territory, it would be of some value, but against other nobles, it would be a flimsy shield. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "...... Oh!¡¡There it is. He might be able to take care of that! In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, please contact us. The food they ate when we invited them over was very tasty, and the fruits they got in the dungeon they seemed to want to keep to themselves if possible. It seems that he spends a lot of money on weapons and armor, but it''s necessary for his job, so it can''t be called wasteful spending. In the first place, I don''t think Viscount Nenus has any armor that he can offer to Haruka and the others, so he should choose food. So it''s either alcohol or a dungeon. ...... The other day, I heard that Viscount Nenus had purchased a long-established sake brewery. There are two types of breweries in the world: those that have the technology but have fallen on hard times because of poor management, and those that are just starting out but have been bought out for some reason, although the details are unclear. Neither of these breweries seems to have spent enough money to be called ''bought out'', so if you use the concessions as rewards, you can prepare rewards without using cash. The only drawback is that he doesn''t seem to like to drink much. At the welcome party, there were some drinks prepared, but the girls hardly drank any of them. The other is the dungeon. The other is the dungeon, the dungeon that the people of Meikyokusei named "The Summer Palace Dungeon". The dungeons are managed by the adventurer''s guild, but the ownership belongs to the lord of the land. If a dungeon is built on land that is registered as someone else''s land, the owner of the land may have the right to it, but even in that case, it is not uncommon for the owner to take it away. However, even in such a case, the owner of the land will often take it away. On the other hand, if you are a lord, you can give away the rights to the dungeon to someone else. Conveniently, the dungeon of the Summer Palace is a dungeon with no profit, because if they don''t enter it, there will be no adventurers to enter it, even though the people of Meikagami acknowledge its value. In other words, giving up the rights to the dungeon would not hurt Viscount Nenus. If the people of Meikyokusui are motivated to collect and sell the goods from the dungeon, the guild will be enriched and Viscount Nenus, who receives taxes from the guild, will be enriched. It''s a plus. Of course, in the long run, there is a possibility that adventurers who can go there will grow up in Raffan. ...... In that case, it is possible to buy it back, but it is unlikely. If it were not for that, the felling of the trees would not have been delayed for decades. ...... is still a dungeon. Let''s go in this direction. I started to write a letter to finalize the details. 251-226 Request and international situation (1) We''ve been waiting for you!¡¡Everyone. On that day, we visited the guild for the first time in a long time, and what greeted us was Diora-san with an even brighter smile than usual. You can''t help but notice that Haruka looked a little quizzical at Diora''s appearance. I''m not sure what to say. ...... We didn''t make an appointment, did we?¡¡What can I do for you? "Yes, a few things. First, there''s a milk bottle. They''re in that room over there, and I''d like you to pick them up when you leave. All right. Just fill them up and bring them to me, okay? Yes. Next, I''d like to inform you that the results of the appraisal of the tin staff and the jewel that you requested earlier have come back. After saying that, Diora left her seat for a while, and brought out the tin staff and pearls that she had left with me before, and laid them out on the counter. I''ll let you know. This one is classified as the ''Charisma Tincture''. It is a magical tool that subtly increases your charisma when you speak with it. "...... subtly? Yes, subtly. For example, there is a difference between a person in commoner''s clothes and a person in priest''s clothes. It''s a hard analogy to understand, but I get what you''re saying. A young man saying, "This is really safe. It''s really safe. It''s a really safe drug! There is a huge difference between a young man in a suit saying, "This is a drug that has undergone proper clinical trials and has been scientifically confirmed to be safe" and a gentleman in a suit saying, "This is a drug that has undergone proper clinical trials and has been scientifically confirmed to be safe. Even though neither of them has shown any evidence. By the way, it''s a magic tool in demand in temples. You seem to be able to make a reasonably good case for it. Even if you''re not very good at it? Badly. It''s not that dramatic. It''s a very realistic and dreamless magic tool, because it doesn''t have the effect of ''everyone will follow it''. It''s a very realistic and dreamless tool that doesn''t have a ''make everyone follow you'' effect. ...... What should we do?¡¡We don''t seem to have much use for it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it.¡¡It''s no use having all that cash. I guess. In our case, we don''t have much trouble with cash, but we don''t need to have it either. Some adventurers who move from place to place save their money in jewels for convenience of carrying, but if they don''t do it well, the jewels and cash will diminish each other. In our case, we have a magic bag that allows us to carry a large amount of gold coins without difficulty, but conversely, we can carry bulky items in the same way, so there is no need to convert them into cash. Like the tin cane in this case. I understand. Then you can take this one home with you. The other pearl, this one is called the ''Gift Pearl''. The effect of the Pearl of Beneficence (Gift) that he explained to me was particularly strange compared to the other magical tools that I had acquired so far. If you hold this pearl in your hand and put magic power into it, you will get some kind of benefit. That is the effect of this pearl. The gift could be the ability to use a weapon, a skill in cooking or blacksmithing, or a change in appearance such as height or strength. Among them, there was even a gem that could change one''s gender. Just like the skills we have been given by the gods, they are truly what we call "gifts. It''s a wonder that is distinctly different from any other magic tool we know of in this weirdly realistic world. So, what are the benefits of this? "I''m sorry, sir. I''m sorry, sir, but we don''t know that much about it. What? When I asked for details, I was told that the Adventurer''s Guild could only reliably examine the basic parts of the item, and that I would be lucky if they could examine the details. I guess the guild can''t afford to spend that much money for a single gold coin. Incidentally, it seems that you can ask for a detailed appraisal for an additional fee, but the time and cost required will be greatly increased, and if you''re not careful, the fee will be so high that you won''t make much profit even if you sell it. It''s like a tool shop that''s a real rip-off. However, it seems that the guild is not really ripping off the customers, as they will have to rely on outside experts to investigate. Only a high-ranking priest can find out what kind of benefit you can get from the Gift Pearl. You can ask them to look it up for you at ....... Do I have to pay an offering? Yes. Yes, and it''s quite expensive. If you want, I can refer you to someone. No, I''ll just take it home and see what I can find. All right. Just a word of advice, don''t use it without checking. Not all gifts are appreciated by all people. I''m sure you''re right. The fear of mine skills is something we know all too well, or should I say we know all too well. It may be because we said what we wanted to say, but Adversus showed us a lot of very bad mine skills. Well, it''s only natural that if you get a convenient power from someone who calls himself an "evil god" right from the start, it''s not going to be good for you. If you are lured by a mysterious voice and ask for power, you will be doomed in the end. I don''t know if the being who created this pearl is a god or not, but considering the fact that only priests can check its effects, it''s not unlikely. This time, there''s no way to avoid it with [help], so there''s probably no one among us who would take such a gamble. I''d like to think that they don''t have any robbery skills, but even their attractive appearance would be a problem for me and Haruka if we got it. I''d like to ask two things of you next. The first is a request to collect milk from Red Strike Ox. The first is a request to collect milk from Red Strike Ox. ...... Come to think of it, we don''t get a lot of requests from the guild, do we? Diora knows that there are no requests worthy of our rank in Raffan, so she doesn''t have anything to say, but the only way to use our guild is to freely buy what we hunt. It''s been a year or so, and I can''t even count the number of requests I''ve actually fulfilled. I''ve done very little in that area, so there''s no reason not to help out when I can. "All right. I''ve just got some in stock. Oh, no. It''s a bit large. The bottles I''m giving you will be a little over a hundred. A hundred?¡¡That''s a lot of ...... to collect, but will you be able to buy them? The size of the bottles you made is close to the size of the bottles I made, so if you have 100 bottles, you can probably collect enough to milk 40 cows. It may seem a little difficult, but it''s not impossible. The problem is the price. A bottle of regular Strike Ox milk costs about 10 gold coins. Red is "ten times harder", so if you deliver 100 bottles, that''s 10,000 gold coins. Our house is about a thousand gold coins, so 10,000 gold coins would be enough to build a mansion. The price of 10 gold coins is low considering the quality of the milk we deliver, so it would be more than that if the price is reasonable. There is no problem with the payment. We already know who we''re buying from, and they''re noblemen. When I asked him about it, he told me that it was a gift from Viscount Nenus to his neighbor, Baron Diaz, as a congratulatory gift. As expected of a nobleman. The amount of the congratulatory gift was incomparable. A congratulatory gift worth 100 million yen. ...... Do aristocrats do that kind of thing? No, I''m sure they do. I can only say that there is a difference in values between them and the common people. But isn''t 100 bottles too much?¡¡Even if you and your wife drink one every day, that''s enough for two years. "Haruka-san, it is impossible for a nobleman to give only a limited amount at a time like this. If you want to drink it yourself, you can do so, but if you want to give it to someone else, you have to have enough to waste. You know, Haruka-san, when you are invited to someone''s house and there is only one bottle of wine on the table, it would be difficult to drink, right? ...... I don''t drink wine, but I can understand. I don''t drink wine, but I can understand why. It''s hard to reach for sweets when there are only a few. I see. It''s true that you can reach for a large amount of potato chips, but when there are only a few left, you somehow hesitate. Even the last piece of fried food tends to be left over. Regardless of Diora''s example, considering the aristocracy''s virtue and power relations, it may be necessary to show that you are capable of preparing more than enough food. But Viscount Nenus didn''t have any money, did he? Even if he didn''t have any money, a nobleman would provide money if he had to. Even if he had to borrow money. It may be difficult for the common people to understand. In response to my question, Diora sighed and shook her head. I wonder if it''s like looking for the cheapest restaurant, even if it''s only one yen.¡¡It''s obviously a waste of time. ...... Or maybe not. It''s like comparing Japan''s defense spending to the cost of repairing your neighborhood street. If you have hundreds of billions of yen to buy a ship, you should fix the road in front of your house. Well, that''s nonsense. It''s not worth comparing. Move big money when necessary, but save where you can. Viscount Nenus must be a very capable man. "I don''t have much time, but would you accept my offer? "Yes. I''m indebted to Diora. But do noblemen send food to each other?¡¡I thought they avoided such things for fear of poisoning. I thought they avoided that kind of thing. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. Diora-san laughed and waved her hands in the air. You''re right, you''re right. But if you think it''s okay to kill even if you''re found out, and even if it leads to a conflict, you can''t say it''s impossible. If this is not the case, then the nobles in this country are not on such bad terms with each other. However, it would be nice if there were no feuds among the nobles. As a commoner living in this country. "I don''t want to get involved in conflicts. Peace is best. As long as you don''t get involved with us, you can do whatever you want, but if the ruler does something crazy, it won''t affect the common people. Even this and that in the old days of the Viscount of Nenus have been affected by the unreasonable crackdown on the common people. Hmm, unfortunately, that''s not to say there''s no conflict.¡¡We don''t have many around here, but we do have small conflicts now and then. Any foreign wars? We don''t have any countries at war or clear enemies, but we do have virtual ones. Tensions are not that high. That''s what I''m talking about, Mr. Adversus. He chose not only a safe area but also a country to fly to. He is a god with a sober mind. There''s a high possibility that we, who have been living our lives fluently, would have died if we were sent to a war-torn country. First of all, the country we are in is called the Kingdom of Rainium, and it is a relatively large country in this area. The political situation is stable, and there is no extreme poverty or discrimination based on race, making it a relatively easy country to live in. To the east of the Kingdom of Raynium is the Principality of Austianum, which is allied with the Kingdom of Raynium and has a strong relationship with it through intermarriage. The situation of the country is similar to that of the Kingdom of Rhenium, but it seems that the religious power is a little stronger than that of the Kingdom of Rhenium. However, it is not a religious country, so even if we were to go to this country, it would not be so cramped. I heard that there are some magnificent temples in this country, so if we were going on a sightseeing trip, this country would be our first choice. The slightly larger country to the south and southwest is the Iupiklisian Empire. This country is the virtual enemy of the Kingdom of Rhenium. Although they do trade with each other and do not directly confront each other by force, they are not to be taken lightly. In the event of a confrontation, they do not rush to the use of force, but rather, they are willing to have a little discussion at first. However, there seems to be discrimination against subhumans in this country, and as an elf, I don''t want to get involved with this country. It doesn''t look like you''re going to be suddenly captured and turned into a slave, but it doesn''t look like a country where you can enjoy sightseeing. To the southeast is the Kingdom of Fegley, whose political situation is somewhat unstable. It has a friendly relationship with the Kingdom of Lanium, but it''s more like they''re not fighting each other. Although this country has not yet reached the point of civil war, it is rife with infighting, and disputes between nobles are commonplace. It is said that the Kingdom of Rhenium only sends envoys to each other as a ritual, since it would only cause trouble if they were to get involved. Trade is also said to be almost nonexistent. Normally, a country like this would be destroyed by invasion from other countries, but fortunately or unfortunately, its land is unattractive and its people are troublesome, so the cost of invasion is not worth it and the country is left alone. The people of this country, from the point of view of other countries, have an electorate that has no basis in fact, and discrimination against sub-humans and people from other countries is severe, and even among its own people there is a class mentality that is difficult to deal with. It seems that the Iupiklisian Empire once invaded and occupied a certain area, and tried to develop it by investing capital, but due to the low level of the people, only the capital was consumed and it failed badly, and they abandoned the land and pulled out. The best way to use slaves in the Kingdom of Fegley," he said, "is to expel them. Their mere existence has negative effects and they are completely useless. If you have food to give to slaves, you should sell it and hire imperial people even if it is only one tenth of the number. Because it is such a country, the people''s standard of living is low, and it is not suitable for tourism, in a way different from the Iupiklisian Empire. And the rest. The area from the west to the north of the Kingdom of Rhenium is a blank zone, so to speak. There is no country that can establish diplomatic relations. There is a possibility that we can reach some country if we keep searching, but it''s not easy and costly when demons exist. There are many places in the country that need to be developed before doing so, so there is no reason to do so. Our base of operations, the town of Laffan, is located in the northwestern corner of the Kingdom of Raynium, facing a blank area. Incidentally, I knew the name of the Kingdom of Raynium, but I only learned about the rest of it when I asked Diora. It''s not that I don''t have interest in this kind of information, but it''s not something that can be easily learned. Ordinary people don''t have the opportunity to learn these things, and in some cases, they don''t even know the names of their own countries. In fact, Mary and her friends did not know the names of other countries, and even the name of the Kingdom of Rhenium was vague. The fact that Mary and her friends were able to explain the names of other countries, even the name of the Kingdom of Rainium, was quite impressive. 252-227 Request and international affairs (2) What happens to the adventurers if there''s a war between the nations? As a rule, they are free. There are no compulsory requests, such as when demons attack a town. But you may be asked to help. Requests? Yes. It''s not compulsory, but if you''re going to live in the country, you might as well do it. Well, if someone is taking it easy and not cooperating with you while you are struggling, people will look at you harshly. If you are visiting a country temporarily, you can ignore such things. ...... I have a good number of acquaintances in this country. If you''re in a country that''s in trouble, it''s best to get out as soon as possible. Some countries do not respect the independence of the Adventurer''s Guild. I don''t intend to enter the country, but I think the Kingdom of Fegley is the most right-wing. I don''t want to help the Iupiklisur Empire if they discriminate against elves. I don''t want to help in the war if I can help it, but if the Kingdom of Rhenium is going to lose, then I''ll have to think about it. I don''t want to lose my comfortable country, and if the Kingdom of Rhenium loses, our ally, the Principality of Austianum, will be in danger. Considering the races of me, Haruka, and Toya, the loss of these two countries would be too much of a disadvantage, and finding a completely different country to run away to is not very realistic either. It''s not that easy to get information about other countries. Don''t worry about it. There hasn''t been a war with another country in more than ten years, and even if there were, it wouldn''t affect this territory, which is far from the border. We should be more worried about the demons attacking us. This one is compulsory. Well, I guess we have no choice. Hunting demons is what adventurers do, and it''s our home, too. By the way, this compulsory request doesn''t apply to adventurers who only have day jobs, and even if they do, it''s only for logistical support. And even if they are, it''s only for logistical support. Making them actually fight would only increase their casualties. I get it. Thanks for everything. So, what''s the other favor? Uh, yes. I was wondering if you could take care of my escort request. Escort request?¡¡As Diora knows, we''re not very good at this. ...... Yes. But this time it''s a little different. ...... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. Isn''t such a thing usually done by knights of nobility or soldiers of the realm?¡¡I don''t think it''s something you''d ask an adventurer to do. ......? Yeah. Of course, Viscount Nenus''s guards will accompany you as escorts. But unfortunately, the soldiers in this territory are not very skilled, aren''t they? The Viscount Nenus family is not very wealthy, and in this territory, which is basically peaceful, there is little need to have a strong territorial army, and the number of soldiers is limited. This time, they wanted to hire adventurers to supplement their forces due to the lack of manpower from the disturbances in Kerug, the lack of security along the way, and their specialty in fighting. I would like you all to be on the lookout for and defeat demons and bandits. The direct protection of the daughter will be done by the Lord''s Guard, so it should be relatively easy. I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. "...... Is that so? Yes. At the very least, they are not arrogant aristocrats, so there is no problem if you treat them normally. If that''s the case, you might want to consider ......?¡¡It depends on the reward. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. You can find a lot more information on this at ....... You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. In addition to the fact that they are not very wealthy to begin with, the Kergu riots have necessitated a reconstruction budget, and then there is the wedding of Baron Diaz''s heir. In addition to that, the wedding of the Baron Diaz''s heir is also a big deal, so you need an emissary with a certain status, and you can''t be too generous with the gift. The milk from Red Strike Ox was more rare and valuable than the amount of money, and it was the perfect gift for the wedding. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s a good idea to have a good escort for your daughter, but you don''t seem to have one. I''ve also been told that I can''t afford a good adventurer. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what to do, but you''ll have to pay a fair price. ...... I don''t need a high fee, but a reasonable one. Yes. If you''re a purchaser of Red Strike Ox''s milk, I''m sure you can learn a thing or two. ...... Oh, that''s what I''m talking about. It''s a fair price, but considering that you bought 10,000 gold coins at once, you might want to consider it. I''m an employee of the guild, so I''m not trying to use you for unfair rewards. However, I was wondering if you could give me some advice on what I should pay you. Wouldn''t you all like to have a ''summer dungeon''? ""......?" We all twisted our heads when we heard those words out of the blue. You want a dungeon? What do you mean? Normally, the ownership of a dungeon lies with the lord of the land. We have been assured that the ownership, or more precisely, the dungeon and its entrance area, will be given in exchange for a reward. ...... Well, does that mean we can make that dungeon our private property? Yes. You will have the authority to forbid entry - no, you will have the authority to decide how to handle it. It will be your responsibility to carry it out, though. In other words, you are free to shut down the dungeon, charge admission fees, and collect taxes from what you find inside. But if you want to do that, you are free to do so. However, if you want to do that, you should prepare your own security personnel. Does this mean that we wanted to monopolize the fruit, so Diora-san negotiated with us? How is that possible? It''s possible. It''s not usually done. I heard that land ownership and other rights are related to the interests of the nobility, so they don''t usually transfer their rights completely. Our house is also owned by us, but we have to pay taxes every year, and in some cases, the lord''s will may take precedence and the land may be taken away. Of course, in such a case, compensation is usually given in the form of money, but that doesn''t mean that the common people can do anything about it. However, since it would show an opening to the other nobles, they usually take proper measures. But this time, the reward is a little different. We''ll register it properly, so it can''t be overturned by anyone other than the king. That''s the great ......, isn''t it? Yes. Well, there''s a reason for the location. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a stain that Viscount Nenus would like to erase, and there''s a certain benefit to having it gone. What''s more, we''re the only ones in there, and most of what we get will be sold to Rafan''s guild. As for Viscount Nenus, since he will receive taxes from the dungeon, the revenue will be the same as before, and in fact, if the acquisition of the dungeon motivates us, we can expect more harvest than before. If giving away such a dungeon means that we don''t need to pay for hiring a rank 5 adventurer, it''s not a bad decision. I see. Is that what Diora-san negotiated? "Yes, well, yes. Well, yes, I did. I didn''t want to be asked to pay less, so I tried to reach a compromise. Diora smiled and affirmed Haruka''s words. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website to see if you can find anything that might be of value to you. To be honest, negotiating a fee with a nobleman is a high hurdle for us, and if it is the lord of the place where we live, we have no choice but to accept a little recklessness. If you think about it, the negotiation that Diora has put together looks pretty good. ....... What should I do?¡¡I don''t think it''s a bad deal. ...... "Well, yeah. It doesn''t matter much at the moment, but if there are any adventurers coming that way, it would be great to be able to prohibit their entry. As for the other stuff, the fruits are going to be easy to pick through. Yeah. If they pick it before it''s ready to eat, it''s ....... Also, if the strike ox is killed in vain, we won''t be able to milk it. Even if we bring in adventurers, it''s great that we can set our own rules. I think it''s a good idea.¡¡It''s a good opportunity to visit another town. Yeah, that''s true. We''re not likely to go far unless we have this opportunity. We have a stable life now and we''re not too dissatisfied. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡...... Yeah. Ms. Diora, I''d like to take that job. Thank you very much.¡¡To be honest, I couldn''t find any adventurers I could trust to do the job without your help. Thank you very much. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. You''ve been a great help to me, Diora. I''m glad that I can repay you in some small way. But isn''t there a certain amount of people in the territorial city of Pining? "No, it''s peaceful there too. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It seems that adventurers have little work to do in this Viscount Nenus territory. It''s a good territory if you think there are few problems, but it''s a bit delicate in terms of revitalization. According to Diora, Viscount Nenus is a ''safe lord. And if possible, I would have preferred a party with more women. I''d have preferred a party with more women. How old is Viscount Nenus'' daughter? She''s nine. She''s a little younger than Mary. She''s even smaller than I thought! I thought she would be a grown woman since she was Viscount Nenus'' representative, but is she okay? "Oh, no, Mary is nine years old now. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. Diora''s face showed her surprise when she heard that. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. I think it''s the family environment. I think it''s okay to be a little more childish. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. Yes, at least. It''s hard to get a job without a guardian, though. Will I be registered? Yes, I''d like to sign up. He says he wants to be an adventurer. All right. Do you want me to make one now? Can you do that? Yes. I have a guardian. Guild cards in this world don''t have special functions like ''registering magic power'', so you can make a card even if you are not here. But Diora knew them and knew we were their guardians. So, if we wanted, he could make one for us, but Toya was the one who objected. No, let''s let him make it.¡¡It''s kind of nice to have a guild card, isn''t it? "...... I guess so. Sorry, Diora. Another time, please. Okay, okay. I''ll be waiting for you. Diora nodded her head in agreement with Toya''s words. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I didn''t know what I was doing at the time. And financially, we were on the brink of securing a place to stay for the day. Well, Mary and Mitya''s situation is completely different, and I''m sure they will register as adventurers with high hopes, just like Toya said. I''m sure. 253-228 Bounty Jewels "This is the ...... Gift Pearl. Do you know it? Yes. I''m still the chief priest, you know. After a brief discussion with Diora about the request, we came to the temple of Lord Adversus with the boon bead, of course. The one who saw the pearl and recognized it easily was the Chief Priestess Ishka. He was a friendly person, and I had never seen him as a priest before, but it seemed that his name as the chief priest was not an exaggeration. Is it really so easy to tell just by looking at him? Yes, it may be difficult for our people, but if you are a chief priest, you should be able to. If you ask me how I know, I''m in trouble. Hmmm, maybe next time you find a pearl with this shape, you should bring it here before bringing it to the guild. That way, I won''t have to wait for over a month. "So you can check the effects of this gem too? Yes. Not every chief priest, but if it''s me. Shall I check? Ishka-san nodded unconcernedly at my question. I was told that only high ranking priests could do it, but I guess I should be impressed. I''d love to, but how much is ...... it? Well, it''s usually more than 10 gold coins. ...... Do you need a certificate of authenticity? Certificate of authenticity? Yes. It proves what kind of jewel it is. It is required when you want to sell it. However, once we issue it, we are required to report it to the Temple''s upper echelons, which inevitably means ....... Ishka''s words were slurred and she didn''t say anything clearly, but it was likely that the money she had paid would go to the temple at the same time. If you don''t issue a certificate of authenticity, does that mean that all the money we paid can be used for this temple or even the orphanage? In the event that you are not able to get a certificate of authenticity, then you can use the money to pay for the temple and also the orphanage. No certificate of authenticity, please. Thank you. At Haruka''s words, Ishka smiled and accepted the offering. The amount we paid was enough to get a certificate of authenticity, but if we were going to pay it, we''d rather it be used for the orphanage here than siphoned off to some unknown place. We''ve visited the orphanage several times and have made friends with many of the children. We''re going to use it ourselves anyway, so the certificate is useless. If it''s something we can''t use and we decide to sell it, we''ll need a certificate of authenticity, but ...... that''s about it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. I''ll take care of it then. When Ishka received the pearl from me, she reverently placed it on the altar of the temple. Then she knelt down in front of it and began to pray. I waited for a while, and without any special phenomenon, she finished her prayer, stood up, took the pearl and gave it back to me. I wasn''t expecting any mystical effect, but it was very plain. However, it seems that he was able to judge the effect properly. "This gem seems to have the effect of increasing power. "Power: ......? "Yes. Attack power, muscle power, that sort of thing. He was able to make a judgment, but it was more vague than he expected. I was expecting to get a quick answer like ''you can get sword fighting skills''. ...... No, people in this world can''t check their status and they don''t recognize their skills, so is that it? I''m not sure if I''m the only one who had this question, and Natsuki asked with a slightly troubled expression. You can''t tell for sure that it''s this one?¡¡You were praying earlier, but how do you know? "Well, it''s hard to put into words, but it''s like an image comes to mind. Some things are easy to understand, such as learning to use a sword, but some things are harder to understand than others. This one is still easy to understand. Is that so? ...... No, well, when you think about it, is it any wonder it''s vague? If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always ask for help. Even if we were told that, we could only respond, "Oh, really? That''s all we can say. Since we don''t know how many points our attack power is, we don''t even know the value of "10 points". If your attack power is only 10, 10 points is a lot, but if it is 10,000, it is an error. I get it. At least there is no disadvantage in using it, right? "Yes. Yes, there is. That''s all you need to know. It''d be a shame if I stepped on the first mine I avoided. Thank you very much. "No problem. You are welcome to bring it back anytime. Especially if you don''t need a certificate of authenticity. Ishka said, smiling a little mischievously. What do you think? What do you think?¡¡What do you think of the skills - or should I say, the skills ......? I''m not sure what you mean by that. I''m not sure if it''s a skill or not.¡¡You can''t see the ability value in the status, but maybe it increases the STR (Strenx) in the game. When we returned home from the temple, we placed the Gift Pearl on the dining room table and discussed how to use it. The most effective way to use it would be to use it on ...... Toya to increase her maximum attack power. If you can find them frequently, you can use them in order, but I found only one in a dungeon I dove 20 floors. Moreover, it''s hard to make an easy decision, since the effect of each benefit depends on the gem. The question is, who will use it? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this. ...... Oh? I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one.¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Maybe. "Ugh! I was at a loss for words when Yuki told me the truth. That''s right. I''ve been training the same way, and my level is about the same, but lately my strength is second to none. I have a strong feeling that I''m losing to everyone but Haruka. Whenever I have a mock battle with Yuki and her friends, I tend to lose ........ In the beginning, there was almost no difference between her and Natsuki and Yuki. Is this a race trait? I''m sure you''re not crazy about this, because you''re winning in terms of magic power. ....... I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "You used to be just like me," he said, referring to his time in Japan. Now, I don''t even want to compare him with Toya. He doesn''t look so macho, but he''s got stupid powers. Even when he''s not using magic to strengthen his body, he''s like, "Why is he so powerful? I''m not sure if you''ve heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. But there is a way to strengthen Toya, who has high muscle strength, right? No, I''m usually up. Haruka... You can''t say that Haruka is more powerful than Nao. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. --I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. But as a man. If you''re not careful, you could be overtaken by Mary or Mitya in the near future. No, it''s not just a matter of "if I''m not good enough", it''s a matter of "if I grow up well enough". It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. A high school student who loses to an elementary school student in arm wrestling,......, or maybe a college student in terms of age. --I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. But then again, the more muscle power you have, the better off you are. Can I use it then? Yes. After confirming that everyone nodded, I picked up the Gift Pearl. I''m pretty sure you''re supposed to put magic into it, right? --I''m not sure if it''s possible to use it if you''re not used to handling magic. With such doubts, I poured magic power into the pearl of benefit held in both hands. "Power increased. Whoa!¡¡You can use it, apparently. ......? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll help. I like that. It''s a good idea to leave nothing behind to make ...... it easier to understand.¡¡It also prevents fraud. The fact that there are no empty pearls may indeed be a good thing. There is a way to make similar pearls, but it will cost a lot of money, and it will not be easy to cheat people. Incidentally, I found out later that the certificate of authenticity issued by the temple has a strange function that it disappears with the pearl when it is used, so it is impossible to cheat using it. So, is there any difference? No, I have no idea. But I heard voices. A voice?¡¡Whose? Normally, "hearing voices" would be a bad thing, but in this world, it is a possible phenomenon. Toya didn''t look particularly surprised and asked back. I''m sure it''s not Adversus, at least. I''ve heard this every time I''ve checked my experience, so I''m sure I wouldn''t mishear it. Adversus has a boyish voice, but this time it sounded a little more feminine. I hear voices, you know. I wonder if this is God''s work. "Isn''t it?¡¡I don''t care what else comes out of the treasure chest, this can''t be made by alchemy. It would be a real cheat. If you could, it would be a real cheat. - It would start the legend of the greatest alchemist. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to make it work. I''m sure it would be very useful if it could be created, but this world is not so lenient as to allow such a thing. It''s possible that he''s not a god, but I hope he''s a ...... god. I don''t know if there are any, but demons?¡¡If you use something like that, you''re doomed, aren''t you? No, I just used it, didn''t I? It''s something that priests can test for, and it seems to be in common use, so I think it''s safe. I''m sure it''s okay if it''s a Christian demon.¡¡It''s just that Christianity calls it the devil, but it''s basically God. This is different from Japan, where even gods are localized. The seven gods of good fortune in Japan come in many variations, from real people to gods of destruction. It''s not that they have deep pockets, but that they have no restraint. As for me, I think it''s a good thing if it eliminates unnecessary conflicts. When I look at religious wars. "Well, yes. If Japan had been conquered by Christianity, would Amaterasu have become a demon? I don''t know.¡¡In the case of Japan, there is the relationship with the emperor, so I can''t say that ...... doesn''t exist. It''s a good thing for us that this world is not too religious. It''s a good thing that this world isn''t too strict on religion, because it seems to be so lax that the Adversary, who is normally worshipped, calls himself an "evil god. On the other hand, there is direct divine punishment. ...... Well, it''s none of our business. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''ll be back. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''ve been so impressed with your work. It''s a bit subtle, since it''s not as strong as Yuki''s, but I feel like I was able to give her some face. Well, it''s only a small amount, though. 254-229 Milk (energy agent) collection In the town of Laffan, if you choose the right time of day, you can avoid the tempreture event of "kids getting tangled up trying to register as adventurers". Because there are almost no adventurers in the town. So, Mary and Mitya''s adventurer registration went off smoothly without any events, though they were happy about it. Since we had been in the dungeon for quite a long time last time, we would normally have taken a week off, but considering the deadline for the milk of Red Strike Ox, we didn''t have much time to spare, so we just took a couple of days off and went to the dungeon again. Due to the time constraint, this time we used "area teleportation" in the dungeon as well, and traveled directly to the 20th level. This time, we used "Area Teleportation" to move directly to the 20th level. Since Mary and her friends joined us, we had a little more work to do, but Yuki was able to use it to some extent, so we managed to reach the 20th level on the same day we left. I''m sure you''ll agree. This is the 20th layer? There''s not much change. Not much change in appearance is the characteristic of this dungeon from layer 11 to layer 20. We had brought Mary and the others with us to layer 11 for the camp, but we hadn''t brought them into battle, and we hadn''t let them walk around, so they wouldn''t know the difference just by looking at them. If we had been randomly transferred, we wouldn''t have been able to tell the difference without entering the forest and looking at the vegetation. But if you were to enter a hierarchy, you would be able to tell by the location of the forest. It may look the same, but the Red Strike Ox that appears here is quite dangerous, so be careful.¡¡Don''t make the mistake of moving away from us. If you think you''re in danger, run behind any of us. "Yes! Mary and the others nodded earnestly to Haruka, who held up a finger in a serious manner. I''m not kidding, if Mary and the others were to be hit by the Red Strike Ox, they would die. Normally, it would be better not to bring her, but from our point of view, it is safer to have all of them there to milk her, and fortunately, since the territory is tightly divided, there is little chance of being caught by surprise. If we''re careful, Mary and the others won''t get hurt. How strong is the Red Strike Ox? Well, the average Raffan adventurer ...... can kill a single orc with a party of slightly more skilled adventurers, but it''s two or three times stronger than that. "That much? "My brothers, they''re amazing! We smiled and shook our heads at the two who looked at us with respect. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. It''s not just the area around Laffan, but the Barony of Nenas itself that doesn''t seem to have many strong adventurers. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. It''s okay. I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. But I don''t know if it''s possible to overtake you all. "Then we''ll have to work hard. Don''t let them overtake you. Yeah. I agree. But I''d rather leave that to Toya and Natsuki. We have different fighting styles, and I''m pretty dangerous when it comes to strength. I''ll take care of it. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''ll use Flame Taming on Toya. I''m not sure what to do. I''m a little scared. It''s a little scary, because Flame Taming is not stable. "Unstable" is an understatement. At least tell me it''s hard to measure. For example, if you fire a "Fire Arrow" with 10 magic power into a "Flame Terminator" with 10 magic power, what happens is that the arrow will easily penetrate the resistance. This is because the "flame resistance" covers the entire body, while the "fire arrow" concentrates the same magic power on one point. As an approximation, 10 ''flame resistance'' can only protect you from 1 ''fire arrow''. On the other hand, a "fireball" that spreads to some extent can withstand 3 to 5 magic power. And although it is a high level spell, a spell that spreads over a wide area such as the "Fire Jet" is likely to be able to withstand 10 magic power. As for the Red Strike Ox''s breath, the closest would be this "fire jet". I''m going to start out with a little too much Flame Taming, so don''t worry. Okay. I''m serious, okay?¡¡I don''t want to go bald, do I? No, no, no!¡¡I''ll put out the fire with Extinguish Fire before it burns out! I''ll get out of here before it burns! I''m going to get out of here before it burns down!" Yuki said casually, and Toya protested, but in fact, considering what happened last time, she wasn''t too worried. There was no point in arguing with her, so she decided to call it a day. "Toya, let''s go.¡¡Flame Taming. As soon as I cast the spell, a vague curtain of light will appear around Toya. When this film fades, it''s a sign that the effect is about to wear off, at which point you can use an additional Flame Terminator to continue the effect. So, you won''t be in trouble when the Flame Resistance suddenly runs out of effect.¡¡It won''t happen. "Okay. See, he''s right there. Hang in there! "Whoa!¡¡What''s the pace? What are you waiting for? He pointed to the Red Strike Ox in the distance and pushed Toya back, who reluctantly stood in front of us and started walking towards it. We followed, with Mary and the others behind us, and after a short walk, Red Strike Ox noticed us. The rest is business as usual. Toya dodges the charging Red Strike Ox, grabs it when it turns around and stops it, while Yuki and I lift it up with the Earth Wall. "Oh!¡¡It''s not hot!¡¡But it''s scary as hell! I''m not sure what to make of this. I know it''s scary because Toya''s body is covered in flames, and it looks pretty bad, but... It''s only for a moment. Be patient. Once he lifted her up, he didn''t need to hold her in front of him. Natsuki started milking her, restraining her with the rope as usual. At the same time, he painted Red Strike Ox''s body. The restraint time is shorter than that of Strike Ox. There is no time to relax. There is a way to strengthen the earth wall, but it will consume a lot of magic power, and from what I saw last time, it is manageable if handled quickly. Mary and Mitya, please help me. "Yes! Mary and Mitya assisted with handing the milk bottle to Natsuki and closing the lid. Meanwhile, we''ll hold Red Strike Ox''s body just in case. He''s very strong, so the rope alone is not enough. "Okay. It''s done! At the sound of Natsuki''s voice, we quickly untied the ropes and hurried away from Red Strike Ox. And relatively soon after we were out of Red Strike Ox''s range, the earthen wall collapsed. "Huh. Just in time. Yeah. But it worked, didn''t it?¡¡The breath freaked me out a little, but it wasn''t hot. That''s because I did the magic. Also, if there are four of us holding him, we don''t need the rope, do we? Four people can hold Red Strike Ox front, back, left and right. If we let Mary and the others do the milking and painting, we can focus on holding him down and save time on roping and untying. Not bad, Mary, Mitya, can you do it? I''ll do my best! You can do it! "Then let''s do it. As for the milk, ......, the bottles are a little small, aren''t they? The amount of milk I was able to milk this time was more than half of three whole bottles and a fourth bottle . I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. At this rate, if we squeeze about 30 cows, we''ll have close to 110 bottles, right? Yes, that should be enough. Viscount Nenus would only give 100 bottles as a gift, but it would be too careless to prepare only 100 bottles. Diora also asked me to prepare about 110 bottles just in case they were damaged in transit. From the nobleman''s point of view, he could not say, "I have only 99 bottles, because they were broken on the way to my house. Then, let''s continue hunting with that pattern. Milking with the new pattern was quite efficient and took much less time. No, it''s just that the earthen wall won''t hold if we don''t shorten the time, but it''s a lot easier for us because we don''t have to hang the rope. Now that Mitya is in charge of painting, what is painted on Red Strike Ox''s body has become graffiti, but that''s not a big problem. It''s not a big deal, as long as you can tell the difference. Speaking of distinction, I found it troublesome to determine the s*x. They seem to have a slightly wider range of alert than the Strike Ox, and there have been a few times when I couldn''t tell the difference before they spotted me. In that case, Toya would have to make the decision once he was done with it. ...... There was not much of a problem. The only thing that will kill it is a magic long range attack, but it will be replaced by Haruka''s small sword or Natsuki''s cleaver. It''s an easy demon to kill because it only rushes at you, even though it''s powerful. Even if Mary and Mitya can''t do it. After a few days of hunting like this, we were able to get enough milk to meet our needs. And as an added bonus, my ability to "see through" has been upgraded to include the ability to judge the s*x of a woman. ...... It''s an ability that can only be used in limited situations. 255-230 Family Services So soon?¡¡Thank you very much. When we delivered the Red Strike Ox milk to the Adventurer''s Guild, Diora seemed to be a little surprised that we were able to purchase it for cash so quickly. To be specific, 115 bottles were worth 15,000 gold coins. Each piece cost about 130 gold coins, but this price was apparently based on the quality and quick delivery. Isn''t it ...... amazing to earn 15,000 gold coins in just one week of work? I''m sure it''s not often that they are sold because there are only a few people who will buy them, but even if you count Mary and her friends, that''s 2,000 gold coins per person. A house can be built. I guess I can understand why there aren''t many high ranking adventurers. I understand that we make a lot of money thanks to magic, and I understand that there aren''t many people who can use magic, but we''re still able to make so much money as rank 5 adventurers. Even without magic, if you become rank 6 or 7, you can probably make a good amount of money. If that''s the case, it''s not difficult to save enough money for retirement. If so, it won''t be difficult to save enough money for retirement (?), and you will probably retire at a good point. Those who do not retire are either those who love the adventuring life or those who are too busy spending money to continue earning money. There are many adventurers who spend as much as they earn, so it''s hard to say whether the latter is true or not. I''m going to go take care of the escort request.¡¡When I go to take care of the escort request. "Yes, of course. We''re going to the same place. Thank you, sir. It''ll save on the magic bags. Using a magic bag is the most efficient way to carry more than 100 glass bottles without damage, but even the Adventurer''s Guild doesn''t have many magic bags. But even the Adventurer''s Guild doesn''t have many magic bags, so they can make a request to us without lending out their magic bags. However, they will pay us extra for the use of their own magic bags, so it is a very tasty request from our point of view. As long as we accept the request for an escort, we will need to travel to Pining anyway. Please come back to pick it up on the day of departure. I''ll have it ready for you. I''ll be ready. We had finished collecting milk from Red Strike Ox, and there was still some time before our scheduled departure date, so we had come to the upper Noria River to fish for the first time in a while. Since the weather was getting more comfortable, we had an idea to train deep in the forest, but we hadn''t taken a break for a while, and if we were asked to escort someone, we naturally wouldn''t be able to take a break. The situation is fluid, but taking everything into consideration, it will take about one to two months from the time I leave Laffan until I come home again. Before that, we decided to take a refreshing break. In addition to Mary and Mitya, Tommy is accompanying us this time. However, Tommy, who has a serious job, will be back home in a night or two. A while ago, I told Tommy that he could ask for experience at the temple of Lord Adversus, and he seems to have been training continuously little by little, and now he can go to and from the fishing grounds without any problem. If he hadn''t, I wouldn''t have brought him along this time, so his efforts have not been in vain. "Great!¡¡It''s amazing!¡¡I can catch so many fish! "I can''t believe how easy it is to get fish! This is the first time in my life that I''ve fished and I''m excited about it. No, Mitya is simply happy to be able to catch fish, while Mary is bewildered by the fact that she can easily catch fish that are expensive to buy. In a way, it''s like fishing for money. "You can always catch fish here. "Ah. It''s a fishing ground to be cherished. It''s a good place for us to eat. I''ve heard that women don''t go fishing with men, but Haruka and his friends don''t complain and go fishing with us every time. Maybe it''s because they can catch a lot of fish at the same time, or because they need to secure food, but I''m grateful. For me, though, there are some things that are lacking. There''s not much room for creativity. But then again, Tommy''s fish are huge. It''s all about the hookwork and the size of the hook. My advantage is that I''m a blacksmith. It''s not a big difference, but as Toya said, Tommy''s catches are bigger on average. It''s not like I''m going to make a fish print, so I don''t really care, but I''m happy when I catch a big one, so I''m a little jealous. The rod is a little different, isn''t it? Yes, I''ve made some modifications to the rod in case it breaks. Unlike us who just cut a piece of wood at random, Tommy''s rod has a sense of luxury. When we asked him about it, he told us that he had ordered it from a furniture maker and added some hardware to it. ...... doesn''t mean much, does it?¡¡When you fish here. "Yes, it does. You won''t catch any fish that are too big for the rod to bend, and even if they are a little big, you can easily scoop them up with a tamo net. ....... I don''t know, it doesn''t really matter how you rig it, does it? I don''t know. In fact, it seems like you don''t even need a rod. That''s right. Even if the fish is somewhat large, you can pull it in by holding the line directly and scoop it up with a tamo net. Even a bare tree branch will not give you much trouble. If you have a fishing net, you don''t need much more than a line reel and a hook, like those used for boat fishing. I''m working on a prototype gaff and reel. ...... Do you have any plans to go to the sea? A gaff is a tool with a hook on the end of a stick that is used to pull in big fish, but of course, there are no fish in this river that need a gaff. The same goes for the reel. There are no fish that pull too hard, and if you don''t throw the hook far, it is not necessary. If you don''t have an area as large as a lake, you won''t dare to use it. If you think about it, the sea is probably the best place to use it... I don''t see any. This country doesn''t face the sea. "What!¡¡--I had a feeling that was the case, but I guess it''s true~. Huh. Tommy''s eyes widened in surprise for a moment, but then he let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping, as if he had been expecting it. Even as adventurers, we''ve only just learned about the surrounding countries. There was no way that Tommy, who had devoted himself to blacksmithing, knew much about geography. Incidentally, neither the Principality of Austianum, the Kingdom of Fegley, nor the Empire of Upiclisar have oceans, so if we wanted to go to the sea, we would have to go through one of those countries to the other, but if we wanted to avoid trouble, the Principality of Austianum would be our only choice. But if you want to avoid trouble, the only option is the Duchy of Austianum. I remember saying something like ''Would you risk your life for fishing'' before, but I think sea fishing is really risking your life. Really? I don''t even know what country I''m going through before I get to the ocean. If you''re not careful, you might even get caught and fall into slavery as soon as you enter the country. Right. In the surrounding countries, the Fegley Kingdom might be dangerous. The country itself may be dangerous, but depending on the lord, anything can happen. There seems to be a lot of discrimination. Among the countries in this area, the authority of the lord is originally strong, and the country is in a state of internal conflict. In fact, even the seemingly decent Viscount Nenus of this country was arrested for minor crimes in the previous generation and thrown into the mines like a slave. It''s a very risky world. I don''t mind fighting demons, but I don''t want to risk my life in that direction. That''s right. Well, if it''s safe to go to the sea, I''ll invite you. But don''t get your hopes up. It''s more likely that you won''t. I''m still happy. I''m really counting on you, Toya! I also like to eat sea fish, especially sashimi, so I''m not afraid to ask Tommy out, but ...... seems unlikely. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it if I ever get the chance to travel that far myself. I''m not sure what to make of this. Normally, fishing is a very leisurely activity, but this time, since Mary and her friends were there for the first time, we tried to roast fish on skewers over a fire. Naturally, these two were up for the challenge. "First, please remove the scales. "Yes! "They''re a little slimy. ...... Under Natsuki''s guidance, Mary and Mitya try their hand at cooking fish. They are able to dismantle beasts and demons without hesitation, but the first time they touch a fish, they seem to be a little unsure of how to handle it. After removing the scales, tear open the belly to reveal the guts and remove the gills. "Does it look like this ......? "Yes. It looks good. Wash it clean. While Natsuki instructed, Yuki and Haruka quickly took care of ours. And Tommy is also doing a good job. We stayed out of that and made a bonfire. This is also an important job, because you can''t burn without a fire. Tommy, you''re more experienced than I thought.¡¡Do you cook a lot? "No, not as much as Yuki and the others. ....... As for fish, you know. You can''t catch a fish and not handle it, so ...... your parents. Tommy smiled at Yuki, who looked a little surprised. I''m sure he''s had quite a few of these in his family home. "Oh, I see. Tommy''s mother is not a fish cutter, is she?¡¡They don''t sell many whole fish in the supermarket these days. "No, I think she''s probably better than average.¡¡But when I catch a lot of fish, it''s like ...... But if I catch a lot of fish, it''ll be a hassle. I didn''t have much of a chance to process fish before I came here either. The fish sold in supermarkets are either fillets or pre-processed in trays. Even the whole fish is sold in trays, so you have to ask them to process it for you. "Yes, that''s it!¡¡It''s not easy to get a chance to do that, because it''s definitely cleaner than doing it yourself. ...... Well, that''s why I''ve been doing it so much since I came here. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. The number of fish we''ve eaten so far is in the hundreds, and Yuki and the others have taken care of almost all of them. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one.¡¡Compared to fish in the ocean, it''s easy, right?¡¡In the ocean, you can sometimes catch strange fish and have a hard time processing them. Like what? For example, the major ones like hamo and anglerfish?¡¡I managed to handle anglerfish by looking it up on the Internet, but it takes skill to cut the bones of hamo. ...... It''s not easy to copy. What did you do?¡¡Did you have to endure it? No. I made it into fish balls. In the blender. It''s a waste of time, but it''s smart, right?¡¡Well, then you won''t have to cut the bones. It was delicious.¡¡It''s a little different from what you''d expect from a hamo dish. While Haruka and the others were talking about this, Natsuki''s cooking class was coming to an end. The last step is to stick it on a skewer in a twisting motion, sprinkle with ...... salt, and you''re done. "It''s done! The fish skewers that Mitya and the others held up like a parappa, were well done for their first time. In the meantime, Haruka and the others had finished 13 skewers, two for each of them, but that was a minor problem. Please stick the skewers in a line around the fire. "Yes. Sixteen skewers lined up in a row around the fire. It''s quite a spectacle. As if fish were not enough, Natsuki prepared another fire and made barley porridge there. Incidentally, barley porridge and rice are served relatively often in addition to bread at our house. In fact, I would like to eat rice, but it is not available, so this is a substitute for it. Barley is just barley, but depending on the variety of barley, it can be glutinous or pressed, so it is quite tasty. "Is it ready yet?¡¡Are we there yet? "Me, calm down. ...... How long will it take to eat? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s best to cook it slowly for about an hour. You can easily cook it on a charcoal grill, but if you try to cook it on a skewer, it will take longer than expected. "No, not that much! "What? I can''t wait! We both smiled at Mitya, who waved her hands in frustration. We''ve already reached the point where we''re veterans at skewering fish, so we''ve already factored in that amount of time. Incidentally, the grilled dried fish that Haruka and her friends make for soup stock takes much longer, at least two or three hours, so an hour is still a bit short. "Oh, well. Let''s just eat this and wait for a while. The barley porridge will take a while too. Yuki took out a variety of fruits she had obtained in the dungeon. We''ll wait and see! Mitya immediately changed his attitude and stared at the fruits in Yuki''s hands. After waiting for the fish to be cooked, I tasted the grilled fish with barley porridge. Yeah. If it was just a matter of taste, it would probably taste better cooked in the kitchen, but perhaps it was the effect of the situation that made it taste so good. Mary and her friends also enjoyed the fish with big smiles on their faces, and the deliciousness of the fish made them go fishing again after the meal. Early in the morning of the next day, Tommy went back to the town of Laffan after having breakfast. We, on the other hand, stayed there for another three days, replenishing ourselves with enough fish, shrimps, and crabs before returning home. 256-231 With milk ''Wow, a fish!¡¡Thank you for everything. As is customary after a fishing trip, I brought some to Aella''s store, and she greeted me with a cute smile. She''s an elf and should be older than Haruka, but Aella-san looks younger than Haruka. Is it because of her short height? I''m not sure if it''s because of my height or because of my age. If I had free time, I would certainly go to this store every day. I''m always sorry. I just got some milk from Strike Ox the other day. The waitress, Ms. Luce, who works at the restaurant, looks as if she''s a little embarrassed. She doesn''t do any cooking, but she''s a very capable waiter. "Oh, yes!¡¡I made ice cream with it. I made ice cream with it. Um, sir! Aella-san walked into the kitchen, unheeding to Haruka''s call. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s quite well made, so please eat it and tell her what you think. Aella is very proud of her work. Haruka and the others had talked about how to make ice cream when they had visited the shop before, but they had concluded that it would not be easy for Aella to make it because she could not use the magic of freezing like Haruka. This store has a huge refrigerator, but I''m pretty sure it doesn''t have a freezing function. ....... How did you make it?¡¡Did you buy a new magic tool? "Well, that''s... I''ve got it!¡¡I also used the Yaston fruit you gave me before! Yaston is a citrus fruit with a strong sour taste that grows in my garden. We had been using it as a substitute for yuzu, but we had harvested too much to use, so we had been sharing it with Aella to see what she could do with it. It was then that I found out the name of the citrus. Apparently, it is used as an acidulant that is relatively easy to obtain because it can be harvested in large quantities without much care. It seems that Ms. Aella used it to make this ice cream. "Now, try it. I took a spoonful of ice cream from Aella, who was offering it to me in a bowl. The ice cream was soft and melted easily in my mouth, with a slight sourness and sweetness, and a refreshing citrus aroma in my nose. It''s different from the ice cream that Haruka and his friends made, but it''s also delicious. Oh, it''s delicious. I like the sweet and sour taste. Yeah, I like the flavor of the yaston. It melts so easily! Really?¡¡Thank you very much. Aella''s cheeks relaxed happily as she received praise from everyone. It''s not as sweet as what Haruka and his friends made with brown sugar, and I don''t know how they did it, but I think they put a lot of thought into it. But this is more like a sorbet than an ice cream, isn''t it? Yes, it is. Aella, you didn''t use the milk? Yes. It was delicious on its own, but it was a little heavy. I separated out some of the fat to make it more refreshing. Strike-Ox milk has not been processed in any way, so just by churning it, the fat content separates to make butter. This butter is delicious, and Aella used it to make ice cream after reducing the fat content. It''s a little different from ice cream, but I think it might be more popular in the hot season. "Yes. The one we made is more suitable for eating under a kotatsu in winter. But how did you make it?¡¡You said you couldn''t use ice magic, right, Aella?¡¡That time. That time must have been when we were talking about how to make ice cream. It was about two months ago, when I came to share milk with you. Haruka asked curiously, to which Aella nodded and replied. I remember! "You learned it? Haruka and Yuki''s words echoed Aella''s. "Yes. I wanted to make ice cream! I''m sure Aella can use water magic and she''s an elf, so it''s not impossible, but ...... she''s right. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you get through the day. He prepares food early in the morning and works until late at night if he has a reservation. These days, she''s almost always booked up, so it''s hard for her to find time to practice her magic. ....... I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I can''t use the Ice Sphere to attack. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. "That''s fine. Luce likes ice cream, doesn''t he? Yes, it''s great to eat when it''s hot. Yes, it''s great to eat when it''s hot, but I don''t think you should get so involved that you lose sleep. Ugh!¡¡Shh, I can''t help it!¡¡It''s a new dish! According to Luce, since she heard about ice cream from Haruka and the others, she''s been working on her magic training and making ice cream recipes without even sleeping. This is the culmination of his efforts, and it seems that there were a fair number of failures along the way. Haruka and the others knew the finished product, while Aella had only talked to them a little. It was only natural that they would have a hard time. "Do you serve this in your store? No, we have a problem with the milk supply. And it''s only recently been finished. ...... It''s a bit out of season. The hot season is almost over. Aside from Yaston, Strike Ox''s milk was too expensive to buy normally, so the two of them consumed all of it except for a few regulars who were served. We can sell Strike Ox''s milk wholesale, but-- Are you sure?¡¡Nao! Oh, yeah. I don''t care if you want to wholesale it, but the price is about the wholesale price to the guild.¡¡Can you sell it for a reasonable price? While pushing back Aella, who was trying to eat my words, I nailed her. I''d like to give you a discount, but we''re in business, and it''s not something I can decide on my own. "How much is ......? "This bottle - oh, just the contents without the price of the bottle, 10 gold coins. When I showed her the bottle that I use to sell to the guild, Aella snorted in frustration. "d*mn, that''s expensive!¡¡But it makes sense. But it''s so much better than what I got before. "Oh, that''s what I thought, too. I don''t mind the smell at all. Normally, they use a little flavoring to disguise it. The restaurant where Aella and Luce used to work was a high class restaurant, and they used to buy milk from Strike Ox. But they couldn''t milk the milk directly into glass bottles or send it directly to the source in magic bags, so it was just something for ordinary adventurers to sell. I want to offer it!¡¡I want to offer it, but ...... Aella said, glancing at Luce. I''d like to offer it, but " Aella said, glancing at Luce. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure that''s not in the price range of ...... our store. I''m not sure if Luce is in charge of accounting or not, but Aera moaned in frustration at his words. Compared to other stores in the area, this store offers high priced sweets, but at least it is a store for ordinary people who are slightly wealthy. You can''t pay one gold coin for an ice cream. "Ugh, I can''t eat that. ...... Mary picks up the spoon and looks sadly at the empty bowl. "Oh, yes!¡¡I want you to make it for me, sister Haruka! "What?¡¡You can''t make something as good as Aella''s, you know.¡¡I don''t even know how to make it. I can give you the recipe if you like.¡¡We''ll just enjoy it ourselves anyway. ...... She looked a little disappointed, perhaps because she couldn''t sell the ice cream she had made. But a single gold coin is too expensive, even for an occasional luxury. Even those of us who make a lot of money can''t afford to pay one gold coin for ice cream. --Well, in our case, we can make our own if we want. I''m not sure if that''s a good idea.¡¡...... Hmmm, what do you think? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡It''s a good idea. I''m sorry. I''ve been indebted to you, Aella-san. Yeah. She''s given me recipes for things other than ice cream. Of course I have no reason to disagree, so I nod quickly. Yeah. Aella-san, if it''s okay with you, I can sell them at a discount.¡¡About a gold coin per bottle. However, it will be in excess and irregular. The guild in this town buys 100 cows a month. That''s enough for about 30 cows, and if you don''t consider the dungeon trips, it won''t take more than a day. Even if we sold the additional bottles for a single gold coin, it would still take about 30 minutes to milk a single Strike Ox. Or maybe even less now that Mary and the others had more manpower. Even if you include the time spent walking around looking for them, you can milk one or two oxen in an hour. In other words, you can expect to get about five bottles of milk, so five gold coins is not a bad hourly wage. "What?¡¡Are you sure?¡¡If you have a magic bag, it won''t be a problem to store them, will it? Aella looked around at us as if she was surprised, but we nodded that we were fine. It''s when we''re ready to go to the dungeon that we''ll take that uncertainty into account. When the weather gets cooler, there will be no need to go into the dungeon to escape the heat, but there will be a need to collect the fruit when it is ready to eat. However, there is a need to collect the fruits when they are ready to be eaten, and if you milk them at the same time, it will not take much time. Even if you go harvesting once every two months, you can be sure that you will get more than you can sell to the adventurer''s guild. "Thank you very much!¡¡Then-- "Can we make it a large silver coin or two for one person?¡¡That''s a saleable price. The price is still quite high, but considering the price of sweetmeats, it is reasonable. If you''re working hard, you can probably afford it once or twice a month. "Oh, my allowance is ....... Well, it''s not for kids. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s in a price range that you can afford. When Mitya and the others become a little more capable, we''ve discussed the possibility of sharing some of the rewards in addition to their allowance, but I don''t think that''s possible right now. Mitya, we''ll make it for you. Are you sure?¡¡Thank you! Oh, me too?¡¡Me too? Yeah, Mary, too. Yes! Mary squeezes her hand and expresses her joy modestly, but her tail is wagging happily. I don''t want to get into the details, but you can get milk from Strike Ox on a regular basis, right?¡¡If so, I can show you how to cook some of the other dishes. Are you sure? Yes. In the winter, stews are delicious, so please try making them. Sounds good. Stew. Do you have any other delicious dishes? Yes, I do. A simple one is butter. Fresh butter is delicious, but fermented butter is also delicious. There''s more. When it comes to cooking, there''s nothing we can do. With the women happily chatting, Toya and I, plus Luce for some reason, waited leisurely, eating nuts, until they were satisfied. 257-232 Heavy Billing Bonus (1) "Heavily charged bonus! "What about ......? Such a brainless voice echoed in my head during my morning routine of praying at the temple on my way to run. And at the same time, my vision turned white. "Special bonus for those of you who have paid a lot for ....... "......... I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s not good to just let things flow, I have to say something! "Hey!¡¡What is this? I''m not sure.¡¡That''s why it''s not a heavy ...... charge. It''s a way to thank you for all the donations you''ve made.¡¡You''ve been faithful to throw in a large amount of silver every time, and you''ve done a lot more than that. Well, it''s true that the amount of money I''ve paid to the temple since I''ve come here has exceeded the total amount of donations I''ve made in Japan. In the first place, my financial strength is different from the time when I was a normal high school student. Is it just me this time? "No. "No. This time, I''m paying heavily, so it''s all of you who paid a lot, okay? Finally, they stopped saying "heavy charge". But it''s not exactly a "heavy charge," is it?¡¡It''s not like we''re being charged by God. It doesn''t matter!¡¡It doesn''t matter as long as you know what it means!¡¡I''m not going to get into the details. God is mad at me. I don''t know. I''ll give you a special bonus if you pay me more than a certain amount ...... of money, but that''s a secret, right? It''s not a constant ......, but it''s not just a matter of paying a lot of money. It''s not constant.¡¡I''m sure you''ve heard of it. No comment. But be careful, because if you tell them about this, they''ll lose it. Does that include party members? Of course. But since everyone has a chance, I don''t think we need to worry about them like we did last time. The first time I got a login bonus, I got a benefit that worked for my party members. But I''d better make sure I don''t accidentally leak it. Haruka and the others have been to the temple, and they''ll get the bonus soon. If I make a mistake and ruin it, ....... I''m not sure what to do. I''m sorry.¡¡Can I ask you a few questions? "Questions?¡¡I don''t know if I can answer, but sure. I didn''t want to do it, but they said yes. I''ve been talking to Haruka and the others about what I''m going to ask them next time I see them. ...... You can''t talk to Haruka and the others if you ask them. You can''t tell them about it. --Well, you can ask them what you want to know. Or we can discuss it after we all get our bonuses. "First of all, why did you bring us into this world? "That''s ....... What''s that? It''s forbidden! "............? "Oh, no?¡¡I heard that you can cover up most things by saying this. Who told you that? I''m sure you''re not the only one. It''s a bit old-fashioned, isn''t it? I''m sure I''m pretty. I''m sure I''m pretty. "No, I can''t see you, can I?¡¡Your voice is a little boyish. "The image of God is in everyone''s heart. Think of the prettiest girl you can think of. So he won''t show himself to us. When you were first reborn, you were a boy, right? The statue of the god in the temple was a young male god. I''ve never said anything about a male deity. Don''t believe in idols too much. So, Adversus is actually a goddess? "Well, I don''t know, do you? He''s not going to say for sure. Trickster. But if what she looked like when we first met her is true, she could be a boyish girl, but definitely not a girl with big tits. "Hey, hey, hey, are you done asking questions?¡¡Don''t be so irreverent or I''ll cut off your question time. Oh, I''m sorry!¡¡I''m having trouble understanding the relationship between level and status. "Oh, you can only check level and experience. I guess I was a little unkind about that. And even if you know your level, it''s hard to know how you compare to other adventurers and people in this world. "Well, there''s no such thing as a national test, and there are no statistics on that, so it''s not like we can just tell you. I wonder if it''s fair. The only way to find out is to meet a lot of people, train your eyesight, and feel it for yourself.¡¡I''ll give you a rough estimate, but it''s not impossible to raise your level to around 1,000. I''m sorry. --It''s too far. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. It''s not easy, of course. It''s not easy, of course, but even if the elves'' lifespan is a little longer, you still have to be willing to die to get it. Is that a manageable level? Well, I won''t deny that we''re pretty relaxed adventurers, but... In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it on the web.¡¡You can think of it as being able to use the same magic twice as much. You can think of it as being able to use the same magic twice as much.¡¡Even if you work hard to increase your magic power, it will only be as much as your level? No, it doesn''t. No, it doesn''t. Hmmm, what should I say? If I were to explain it in a way that would be easy for you to understand, I would say that level is the minimum guarantee of status.¡¡For example, if you just keep practicing magic, you can increase your magic power. But you won''t gain any experience and you won''t level up. So you can''t have a high level character with a very high level character makeup? It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if there is anything you can do to help. In the same way, if you continue to kill small monsters, you will gain little experience, but on the other hand, even small monsters can gain experience depending on how you defeat them. It''s all about what you get out of the battle. ...... I see. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure. That''s how it works. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the most out of it. "Almost"? I''m not sure if letting them die will have some effect, or if watching them fight strong enemies is an experience in itself. But God goes on without responding. Of course, everyone has their own tendencies, so it doesn''t mean that you and Toya have the same level of strength. You can think of a level as a person''s overall strength. It is said that the minimum guaranteed value of a status varies from person to person, and not everyone is guaranteed to be above a certain level in every status if they are at the same level. For example, I need to have 100 magic power to become level 10, but Toya only needs 50 to become level 10. Is this the end of the question? "Well, can''t we see the statuses in numerical form on ......?¡¡Like HP, MP, etc. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Just give up, okay? What? What? What about magic power?¡¡It would be useful if you could measure its consumption in MP. "Hmm, not impossible, but ...... rejected. "Why? "Because you guys have too much of an advantage. "......... He is a man of unshakable faith. He''s a god. Try to get a feel for it. It''s not easy because it depends a lot on your physical condition. It''s not easy because it depends a lot on your condition, but if you can figure out the smallest unit of magic you can use, you might be able to get by. Thanks for the advice, but that''s the hard part, isn''t it? It would be like an advanced craftsman being able to grasp a thickness of less than a tenth of a millimeter just by touching it. It will take a long time for me to improve my skills to that level. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''ll probably implement that at ...... when I feel like it.¡¡But don''t get your hopes up. This is a game! --But don''t get your hopes up. I tried, but I couldn''t, guys! "Okay, back to it. Now, back to the heavy payout bonus. Now you can choose from darts, slots, rattles, and a string fishing lottery! With these words, a variety of equipment appears in front of you. Needless to say, slots and rattles. Darts is that. The one that throws the darts at the spinning target. The string-fishing lottery is where you pull a string out of a bunch of strings and get something on the end of it. Some of the lotteries include "All abilities doubled! or "All Magic Unlocked! Some of the items on the line are awesome, some are weird, and some are just plain weird. ...... Yeah, I know. It''s not connected to that thing, is it? There''s no way this god is going to give us a cheat sheet. "Hey. No spoilers. We''ve got a lot of work to do. You know, people don''t like it when you buy all the tickets at the fair. No, I think it''s a scam. It''s a horrible system to exploit children by showing off an expensive game console to attract customers, but you never win the lottery. I was also cheated in the past. It would be a scam if I said "it''s in there", but I''m sure it''s just for decoration. If you think about the price of the lottery, you can tell if it''s in there or not. ...... I was just an innocent child who didn''t know that at the time. But God, you know a lot, don''t you? "Because I am God. The answer is satisfactory. 258-233 Heavy Billing Bonus (2) "By the way, God, are you going to ask me what I want this time at ......? "No. I knew last time was special. I can''t be that picky. No, I can''t listen to your wishes, because it would be a waste of time. That''s your reason? "Now, now, you can choose whatever you like. You won''t regret it! You can choose whatever you want, but it''s all luck, except for the ...... darts. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for before you buy. This is also the same as the "Harem Route! or "Reverse harem route! and "Enter the Sucking Route! and so on. I''m trying to get at "harem", but "reverse harem" and "samaa" are too strong. There is no such situation at all, is there? Unless I suddenly start attending a school. How can fate be twisted? You can''t say it''s impossible, because the other side is God. ....... I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never seen it. Darts is also mostly luck, as the target spins around, but there is room for subtle intervention by your actions. The center, the tawashi, but! I''m going to repeat this because it''s important, but the center is the tardigrade! It''s a bonus! "Um, is this really it? "Always smiling, always clear-headed. We''ll make sure you get what you paid for. "Even the eagle? Even a washcloth. But it''s a good one.¡¡A replica of a high quality tawashi made by Japanese craftsmen. Ah, I heard there are tawashi that cost more than 10,000 yen each... I''m not happy about that. Even if you win in this situation... No slots for now. I don''t like to get my life twisted. There''s some great string fishing, but you''ll never win that. If you don''t win, it''s meaningless. Rattles are completely luck. There is no room for me to intervene. It''s easy to give up because you can''t make a mistake, but it''s scary because you never know what you''re going to get. "By the way, God, do you have any recommendations? "No comment on the drawstring. There are five types of slots: common, uncommon, rare, super rare, and ultra super rare. The odds are that you''ll get all of them, but you know which ones you''re most likely to get, right? Yes, I do. So there''s almost no chance of getting anything above rare? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m not sure what kind of rarity the dubious "root" of ...... is, but I''m slightly curious. The rattle is a good idea. The rattle is recommended in a way, because it contains only one of each thing. You''ll get both common and ultra-super rare slots at the same rate. Oh, really? Then rattle is the only choice. But be careful, there''s a lot of stuff in there that''s not in the other three. Just be careful. Okay, it''s gone. None, none. It''s definitely a minefield, that''s for sure. As you can see, some of the darts are really good, but there are a lot of outliers. I''ll let you throw them, but no do-overs. It''s totally fair. Darts are easy to understand. I like the openness of what you get. You can approximate the odds by the width of the fan. There''s a tawashi. There''s a tawashi, but there''s nothing too peaky about it. Oh, God. Where''s the thin, ''pajamas'' column? "What?¡¡Pajamas?¡¡I''ll give you a pair of pajamas of your choice. They really were pajamas! I''m not a big fan of pajamas, but why pajamas? I don''t get it. I don''t know. Is that another outlier like Tawashi? What?¡¡It''s not pajamas!¡¡It''s Pajamas!¡¡That''s the name of the car, God! My generation never saw it in real time, that''s it! "Oh, really?¡¡I can''t give you a car, that''s for sure. We don''t have a gas station, so we can''t even start it. Yeah, I don''t want to get one either. Just like an ornament? I''m sure it''s a rare thing, so it might sell, but it might also bring trouble with it. "Right. I''ll leave you in your pajamas then. "What?¡¡Can we change to something else? Hmm, I can''t think of anything better, so no. "No? That''s terrible. I''m sure it won''t hit you too hard because it''s so thin. ...... It''s only when it does that it hits you. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. "Practice?¡¡I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it. Come on. As soon as you hear that, the slots and rattles disappear, and a dart appears in your hand. It looks exactly like the darts I know. The flight - the feathers - are made of a plastic-like material, and the shaft, barrel and point are made of metal. I''ve only played darts a few times, but I trust my [throwing] skills. Standing in front of the now-stopped roulette wheel, I aim at the pajamas and throw. With a click, the dart arrow hit the "pa" of the pajamas just as aimed. It went where I aimed more than I expected. Yeah, it''s going to hit something other than a sardine. Looks like we''re set. Okay, let''s do this. Get off me, get off me. "What? It''s like he''s moving away from me, even though I''m not moving at all. Huh?¡¡What do you mean? There''s no way I''m going to let a [thrower] throw at that distance. It''s too easy, right? Wow, they don''t allow you to manipulate the odds with your skills? And the distance to the stopped target is about 10 meters. Is that the same probability as without skill? Or does it take into account how good your darts are? "Well then, here you go! As soon as the target starts spinning, the same dart appears in my hand. No, well, it''s a generous bonus from God, and if this is fair, then I''ll just have to accept it. ...... It''s so far away. ....... It''s not hard to see because of the hawk''s eye, but it''s spinning so fast that you have no idea where it is. The only thing you can see is the tawny area around the center. ...... Well, let''s just take it easy. Even if it''s a tardigrade, it''s better that it''s not negative. Yes, yes. Maybe you should give it to the ladies. They''d love it. No, we''re not supposed to talk about this, are we? "Oh, right. Well, I''ll tell the last person among you to meet the requirements. I''ll tell the last person among you who met the requirements that it''s okay to talk to your friends. That''s very nice. It''s not good to have a skill and not be able to explain how you got it. I''ll go then. "Go ahead. Almost distracted by God''s light words, I threw a dart at the target in the distance. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. --Okay, I''m out of the way! At the same time, the rotation of the roulette wheel slows down, and the target slowly returns to you. Whoa, a place as thin as pajamas. What''s so good about ......? "Lucky! "Lucky? Oh, "Lucky! That''s it. Is that a bonus? I mean, it''s not like you get more throws because you''re lucky? I don''t remember this happening before. "Well, what''s ''Lucky! What does that mean? "Lucky is lucky. It''s a little bit lucky. "Lucky. ...... Did this world have a luck value for status abilities? Didn''t the gods roll the dice? --No, this god is going to roll dice. If it has a bonus value, it might be worth it. "Well, for example, "I got an arrow in my knee! I got an arrow in my thigh!" instead of "I got an arrow in my knee! Or you can get soaked in the rain and not catch a cold, that kind of luck. "That''s pretty shabby luck, isn''t it? You can''t get hit by an arrow or not get caught in the rain, at least. And with that level of luck, I don''t even know if it''s really luck. If you get hit by an arrow, you''ll think it''s just bad luck. "No, no, no, this small amount of luck is important. You said "modest" yourself? It''s the kind of luck that turns 1D100 into 1D100+1. Also, you''re using an expression that only a few people can understand. D100, or a 100-sided die roll, means that a roll of 1 to 100 will result in a roll of 2 to 101. If you roll a 1, you fumble and die!¡¡This is a very nice bonus in a situation like that, but it''s a little empty because it''s not recognizable from the perspective of an ungodly person. "Uh, well, yeah. Thank you? "You can thank me all you want. You should be very grateful, because it could make your life a lot better. "Yes, ....... "See you later. The voice of the gods disappears easily, as if he has no use for me after giving me the bonus. What?¡¡"See you later?¡¡Is there a next time?¡¡Hey! But there was no answer to my question, and the next moment I found myself standing in the temple as usual. My body has not changed at all. But when I checked my status, I saw that in the ...... benefits section, there was a [Slightly Increased Experience] followed by a [Lucky! has been added. ...... Both of these are horribly worded! I''m not sure what to make of this. I sighed deeply, got myself together, and went home as usual, as if nothing had happened. 259-S018 Toyas Daily Life (2) Today, Haruka and her friends went to Aella''s to make pastries. The other day, we were having a cooking discussion at Aella''s store. As a result, instead of having Aella-san teach them how to cook, Haruka and her friends also decided to teach them how to make pastries using fresh cream. I hadn''t really heard about it, so I didn''t really understand how it happened. And of course, Nao and I had to stay at home. I can''t cook, and it''s hard to get into that chattering vortex. In the beginning, Mary and Mitya were also going to stay at home, and Yuki said to me, "Why don''t you go on a date with Mary and the others? However, they were clearly focused on making sweets. So I somewhat forcefully sent them off with a group of women. They could eat a lot of sweets if they followed me. They (and to a lesser extent Nao? I''m sure you''re not the only one who''s trying to get me and Mary together. ...... I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. She''s in the lower to middle grades of elementary school. She''s old enough to be carrying a school bag. You can''t see her as such an object. If a high school student has romantic feelings for an elementary school student, he is branded as a pedophile. For me, it''s "No, Lolita, No, Touch". Mitya is a kindergartener. That''s a little girl. That''s a serious matter. Liking or disliking a girl at this age is a problem before romantic feelings. I mean, I do feel slightly guilty about letting a child of that age fight, but that''s because she wants to, you know. To be honest, I think the reason they want to hook you up is because they feel they can''t touch you. ...... You don''t have to worry about it, though. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ....... I''m not sure if there''s any such thing as wind magic or soundproofing magic. I''m not in a hurry to get married, and I''m hoping to get married by the time I''m 30. --I''m in no hurry to get married. If that''s the case, well, ......? I don''t know, I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. Well, if you think about it, Nao and Haruka were like that too. They live next door to each other. In their case, there''s no age difference, but they''re very devoted to each other. "Nao, do you want to go out somewhere? Nao, let''s go out somewhere. What do you mean "somewhere"? After the women had left, I asked Nao to go out with me since I was on vacation, and she replied in a natural way. There''s no place to play, you know. I''m not in the mood for fishing right now. To be honest, it''s just work. For other things, see ....... "Oh, you mean like s*x? Nao''s eyes widened when I said that. "Wait, wait, wait!¡¡Did you go? "Well, I mean, yeah. I was told not to go. I don''t know, man.¡¡If you get sick... If you get sick... if you end up crying to Haruka, I won''t follow you, okay? I''m sure it''ll be fine. It was expensive. I''m sure you''ll be fine, but I''d expect you to follow up in case something goes wrong. If Nao''s there, Haruka won''t lose her temper. On the other hand, if I take Nao with me, my life might be in danger. "How much did you spend? "Uh, ......, that''s all. I say, and hold up three fingers. "Three gold coins? I shake my head at Nao''s words. Then Nao made an indescribable expression and wiggled her eyebrows. "You''re not going to give me three ...... large silver coins, are you? "No. When I nodded my head, Nao''s jaw dropped and he slammed the table. "Toya, seriously?¡¡Thirty gold coins?¡¡How much did you spend? "Hmm. I thought I''d spent a little too much. But it can''t be helped. When you''re in a mood like that, you can''t control yourself, that''s what men do! It''s not "a little"!¡¡I''m talking about what kind of high class entertainment! No, but I heard that in the old days, a prostitute could spend over a million dollars and not get laid. What''s the comparison?¡¡--No, no, no, is that a comparison?¡¡I''m not sure what the standard is for ....... I''m not sure what to make of that. I don''t know what the standard is. At least, not in theory. I don''t really know what it is. I''ve never been there, so I don''t know much about it. But I''m guessing that there is no s*x industry that offers 300,000 yen for a few hours - or more, considering the difference in labor costs. --I don''t think there are any. ...... Well, good. It''s your money. If this was before we split the purse, I would have killed you half to death along with Haruka and the others. No, I''m not going to let that happen, am I? I''m not the kind of person who would touch the common expenses when everyone else is saving. I''m not going to tell Haruka and the others, but I''m not going to go broke. At least don''t let the money make you misjudge the situation when adventuring, okay? Don''t worry, you won''t be in trouble. I''m not going to take a high-risk job because I want to go to a brothel, and I''m not going to go out and earn money by myself. I know that I am the best in direct combat, but I know that I can only do that with the support of my party members. It''s too stupid to die of ego. But Nao, you''re not going?¡¡I''ll keep my mouth shut. To be honest, I''m not really interested. You''re not?¡¡Nao used to read pornographic books and manga.¡¡You''ve seen pornographic videos, right? Those are just fiction. It''s not the same as actually doing it, right? Well, it''s ......, isn''t it? I don''t want to do it with someone I don''t like, to be frank. You''re dead, man. Are you really a high school boy? It''s not that I don''t want to do it. It''s not that I don''t want to do it. Are you saying you want to f*ck Haruka? "Yeah, no comment. I almost nodded, no, almost completely affirmed, but then said no comment. I''m not sure if this is another one of those chastity things? ...... I have no intention of going. Of course, I''m not going to go, but I''m interested in ....... How did it go? "You''re not interested, are you? "I''m not interested in going. I''m not interested in it in the sense of wanting to go there, but I am interested in the situation of brothels in this world. Academically. Academically, huh? --Well, okay. Same guy. Let''s not get into that. I''ll tell you the difference between a "rice shop", a "brothel", and a "blue house", and the price range, including my experience (although I''ve only been to the blue house). Since it was a good opportunity, I tried to tell the joke I heard at that time, but they looked at me like "wow ......". No, well, it was vulgar, but please don''t look at me like that. It hurts my heart. What do you think?¡¡Are you interested?¡¡It''s pretty ...... good, huh? "No, I''m not going. I thought for a moment that I could make him an accomplice, but he was so determined. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. It''s a good thing I''m not. I''m afraid of what will happen if I force myself on her. I don''t know. Tommy''s a ...... dwarf. Is that too much to ask? No, don''t do it!¡¡Even if you can''t, you shouldn''t!¡¡He''s got a steady job and makes less than us!¡¡Are you trying to bankrupt us? "Right. You don''t have thirty gold pieces. It''s a lot of money that the average person can''t make in a month, and it''s going to melt in a few hours. I don''t know what Tommy earns, but I don''t think he earns more than we do. Okay, well, let''s stop talking about it and go ask Tommy out. No, I mean... Oh, not for s*x, just for fun. Tommy told me the other day about a place that serves great stewed pork chops. "Lunch?¡¡That''s fine, but where''s the ...... talk about going out for fun? That''s the thing. ...... There''s no place to hang out. There are not many people who can afford it. We don''t have anything to do either. ...... Let''s make some analog games. Analog games, like chess, chess, Reversi, cards? Or do you want to go one step further, like Catan or Dipmacy? No, not Catan, but what about Dipmacy? If I were to explain Dipmasy in simple terms, it would be the European strategy game. The rules are simple in a sense, and the game is easy to make as it requires few tools, but it is a game that chooses its players. There is no randomness in the game, and players negotiate with each other to make alliances and sometimes betray each other to increase their territory. If you don''t cooperate, you can''t win, but if you don''t betray at some point, you still can''t win. It''s a game of attrition, depending on how you look at it. You can''t do that with just us and Tommy, can you?¡¡It''s not like the people in these towns have any idea of diplomacy or anything. They don''t even recognize the name of the ...... town deputy. If it becomes popular, it''s going to be scary.¡¡Friendship destruction game. If adventurers played it together, it could lead to bloodshed. In a way, it''s a game that''s all about how to betray your friends. If you''re going to make a game, I think it would be better to make it more casual. Would you make it popular with the nobility? That''s more scary!¡¡"That''s scarier! It might lead to a serious use of force! In a sense, it could be used as a teaching material for diplomacy, but since it''s a game based on betrayal, I''m afraid that if more and more nobles learn from it, the country will become more and more desolate. It''s better to play something simpler. For example, ...... darts or billiards. "Billiards!¡¡I like that!¡¡I''ve always wanted to play billiards. I''ve always wanted a billiard table, but I couldn''t justify putting one in my house. I know what you mean.¡¡Billiards is something I admire, isn''t it? Of course it''s cool, but it''s also fun, billiards. But it''s not easy to play on a high school student''s allowance. But Nao, you don''t have darts, do you? Well, yeah. Darts are pretty expensive too. And ....... And? My parents are gonna be pissed when they see all the holes in the wall. Yeah. I get it. You can''t fight your parents. It''s better if you don''t take it off, but you can''t do it right the first time. I don''t think the plastic ones are any good. "Oh, ...... looks like a toy. It has no austerity. I like the way it sticks out. It''s not the same when it clicks and the score is calculated. First of all, my room is not that big. "I''m pretty sure it''s about two meters away, right?¡¡You can''t really keep that distance, can you? It would be difficult to secure a space to play darts in a room with a bed, a desk, and a bookshelf, let alone an empty room. At least, most high school students in Japan do not. "Then why don''t you make darts? "Oh, we''ll just play billiards for now. I feel like playing darts is like training for combat in this situation. "Ah~...... I can''t help but nod in agreement with Nao''s indescribable expression. In fact, I''m practicing shuriken as well. I''m still practicing. I''m still practicing, but... "Besides, at a distance of about two meters, you''re almost certain to hit the target, now. And I have the throwing skill. As a game, it''s a little delicate. I''m sure there are ways to get more distance, or use shurikens that are a little harder to throw, but then, as Nao says, it becomes a true combat exercise. I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find a way to do this, but I''m sure you can. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you can do it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. "Oh, a backpack. It seems to be a modest seller. Here in Raffan, we are seeing more and more adventurers with backpacks on their backs. According to Diora, the products that are sold in the neighborhood are made here, but if they are sold far away, they are made in the local area. Diora was happy that she was able to "sell my debt to the guilds of other towns," as she was able to provide work for retired adventurers. It seems that there is a lot of conflict, if not feud, between the guilds in the town. I think it''s about 22 gold coins?¡¡Selling price. That''s about it. I don''t know how much of that is Haruka''s share. I don''t know how much of that is Haruka''s share, but considering what I''ve heard before, I''d say about 10%. ...... No, it seems like it wasn''t selling as well as it is now back then, so it might be a bit more. But you''re paying for our food, aren''t you? Yeah. That''s fine. It''s fine. We''re not so shameless as to demand our share just because we''ve expressed our opinions. But apart from that, the sound of unearned income is appealing. But can we afford to have it made?¡¡Didn''t you say that all the workshops are busy because we supplied the wood? They''re busy, but they don''t seem to have any spare time. Is that so? Yeah. You know, furniture made of fine wood is made to order, right?¡¡--Not in the sense of made-to-order, but in the sense of being an exceptional product. I understand. Yes, I do. In terms of made-to-order, even the cheap furniture that people buy is usually custom-made. Sometimes they have parts that have been made to a certain degree in stock, but they don''t have a large selection of finished beds and chests of drawers to choose from. The buyers are also aristocrats and rich people. The buyer is also an aristocrat or a rich man, so they are very particular about the details, but they can''t just make a phone call to check.¡¡It can take a few days to get a response from the next town over, or months if you''re a little further away. So you''re saying that you have a lot of work to do, but you still have free time? If you have multiple jobs going on at the same time, you''ll have less waste, but if you''re dealing with aristocrats, that might be difficult. Even if I''m late because of my own selfishness, they might say, "If you have time to do other work, do this! If you''re late because of your own selfishness, they might say, "If you have time to do other work, do this! It''s just my own image. "Don''t you think it''s a good idea to work in your spare time?¡¡Original products? Well, I''ve heard that when they interview factories on TV, they talk about their own products. Right? But even if it works... The people who buy billiards are rich and aristocratic, right?¡¡Won''t they end up ordering all kinds of custom-made products? They''ll definitely say, "I don''t want it to be the same as the others. I don''t want it to be the same as others. I want it to be more luxurious. This is just my own image. However, Nao seemed to agree with this, and was silent for a moment. "...... No, what about a pool bar? "Is such a fancy bar acceptable in this town?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. Maybe that''s because we''re going to a bar in the middle of nowhere?¡¡I don''t know, but... I don''t know, but I''m sure Simon will tell us if he can''t. It''s free to bring it up. We''re just amateurs. If it''s impossible, he''ll say it''s impossible. You can consult Diora, who can help you in such cases. Well, for now. Okay. Shall we go out to eat? Sure. 260-S019 Toyas Daily Life (3) "Wow!¡¡Billiards, huh?¡¡That''s nice. Please make one. I''ll come and play when it''s ready. I invited Tommy to a stewed pork stew restaurant. When I asked Tommy about billiards, he was more interested than I expected. ...... But it''s good, this stewed pork chop. As you can see, Tommy recommends it. It''s not soy sauce or miso flavored, and I have no idea how it''s seasoned, but it''s delicious, so it''s all good. It has a slight odor, but it''s all in good taste. The black bread served with it is not good, but if you soak it in the stewed pork, it becomes much better thanks to its rich flavor. I can''t afford to buy billiards when I''m living in an inn, you know. How are you and Nao doing? "We still have two rooms left on the first floor of our house. We can use one of them as a playroom, I guess. We haven''t discussed it yet. My blacksmith got kicked out. Front of the house, on the right. There are four rooms reserved there as production rooms (temporary). Two of these rooms are used for sewing and alchemy, but unfortunately, or perhaps rightfully so, my forge, which uses fire, is not allowed to be used, and has been relegated to a shed in the corner of the garden. I''m not complaining, because I know it''s the only way to keep the place safe and noisy, but thanks to this, two rooms remain unused. It''s a large room with plenty of room for a billiard table, or even darts if you feel like it. Oh, but do you know the size of the balls or the size of the table? "No, I don''t, but it''s fine.¡¡If we make it, that''s the standard. ...... Indeed. None of my classmates have a strange obsession with billiards or complain about it, do they? Well, I''ve played it a few times, so it wouldn''t be that far off in size. I''ve done it a few times, so it won''t be too far off. And so did I. I''ve been there with Nao. "There''s not much entertainment in this town, you know. There''s not much to do even on a day off. The only thing I can do is go fishing with Toya and his friends. ....... But you''re okay with that?¡¡As for the money. We''re going to need a lot of money, aren''t we? That much is ....... ...... Oh no. My savings are dwindling right now. Why? Don''t make me say it. How can I be satisfied with just one visit? I''ve set a limit, but it''s an undeniable fact that it''s dwindling. "......?¡¡What''s going on? Tommy looked at me strangely when I raised my voice. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. He''s been going to a brothel lately. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sorry.¡¡Geez, geez. Are you sure? Tommy almost spat out the ale in his mouth at Nao''s words, and looked at me as if he couldn''t believe what I was seeing. I mean, Tommy''s been drinking ale all day. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. He''s a man. I''m not sure if it''s true or not.¡¡I heard it today, too. Oh, no, I''m a dwarf. I don''t go there, but it''s a topic of conversation at the bar. So just know that . So, just for the record... ......1 more than 10 gold coins per trip? I heard 30 gold pieces disappeared in a few hours. "...... Really? I nodded gravely at Tommy, who looked at me with a certain respect. It''s hard to deny. No, that''s what you just said. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. The maximum amount of money that was melted is a ...... secret. I don''t even want to remember. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Slaves. Do you know what it''s like, Tommy? I''ve never seen anyone who looks like that, at least not in this town. I''ve never seen anyone like that, at least not in this town. If you''re good looking, even men can end up in the brothel. You''ll be able to get a lot more than just a few. "Hey, don''t look at me there. I''m not there. I know. Nao, you don''t have to pay me to do this. Don''t talk to me like I''m a pickup artist. I''m sincere. Integrity. ......?¡¡Oh, no, it''s nothing. Tommy coughed, as if he felt Nao''s gaze tighten. Continue talking. If it''s bad, you''re really a slave. Slavery is forbidden in this country, but there are countries where it is allowed. You''ll be shipped off to one of those countries. "Donna Donna? Yeah, dona dona. Probably in worse packaging than a calf. Hmm. There were no human rights!¡¡No. No, actually. It''s all up to the lord. It''s like heaven and hell just across the river.¡¡Fortunately, this one seems to be in good hands. It''s not easy to move. Of course, farmers who are tied to the land, merchants and artisans can not easily leave their land and start a business in another place. In this country, it is possible if you are ready to be naked, but it is not as easy as moving to the next town and commuting by train like a businessman. "Well, don''t worry about Toya. We can take care of your debt if you''re really close to bankruptcy. That''s very kind of you, Nao. In return, you''ll be treated as a pet under Mitya and the others in our hierarchy. Until we pay off the debt. Hideous!¡¡I may have ears and a tail, but I''m not an animal! I''m not an animal, even though I have ears and a tail! But isn''t that what Haruka would say?¡¡I''m not sure what to say. You can''t deny that. I can''t deny that. I''m not sure what to make of this. You''re an irrefutable scum. --No, I''m not going bankrupt. Or do you prefer to be shipped off to the buzzards? No way!¡¡I''m not that into it in the first place!¡¡...... Probably. You can''t say for sure when you''ve already been through it a few times. You can''t be sure when you''ve already been there a few times. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. I don''t want to be that stupid myself. I don''t want to be such an idiot myself. In fact, I''d rather burn him to the ground. You don''t have such a shallow relationship with her that you can simply abandon her. Is that so? That''s how it is. Seeing us nodding to each other, Tommy claps his hands and smiles. It''s a beautiful friendship. Tommy claps his hands and smiles. I don''t think it''s going to be pretty when it comes down to it. In response to Tommy''s mixture of words, Nao said something quite awful, perhaps to hide her embarrassment. But if the situation actually arose, there would be no difference between the situation and Nao''s explanation. What about you, Tommy?¡¡How''s work? It''s going well. I''m just doing what I''m told under my master. I''ve been told that I can start my own business, but I''m not sure if it''s something that doesn''t conflict with my master''s. Going to another town is ...... uncomfortable. I gave the shovel to Mr. Gantz. Yes. You can take the Mincer with you, and fortunately it''s selling well, but it''s not enough to set up a store. The shovel was the price for taking Tommy on as an apprentice, so that''s not an option. The Mincer wouldn''t have been completed without Mr. Ganz''s help, but he gave permission to sell it, so Mr. Ganz is indeed a man with deep pockets. "Mincer is selling well, right? "Yes. Mainly in restaurants. Even scraps and stringy meat can be tasty in their own way. It''s not as popular as it should be in the average household. When butchers start selling minced meat, that''s it. That''s the point, isn''t it? It will continue to be sold to restaurants that consume large quantities, but there is a limit to how many they can produce. Tommy nodded in annoyance at Nao''s point. In fact, very few Japanese households have a mincer, and most of them buy minced meat. In this case, it''s manual (in our case, it''s been modified and powered by magic), so the butcher can''t make too much, but there are ways to do it: sell it in chunks for mass consumers, mince it in small amounts for common people, or set it up in a store and have people grind it themselves. I''d like to get another pillar. ...... Do you have anything? What about the noodle-making machine?¡¡Didn''t you work with Yuki and the others on that before? Nao, that''s like selling a rice cake pounder in America. ...... I see. Even in Japan, the mochi pounder has yet to become a major product. Nao nodded her head in agreement with Tommy''s very accurate analogy. It''s not a good way to sell something that people don''t usually eat, even if you can make it. You might be able to understand the goodness of it if you try it, but it would be hard to make a mere blacksmith promote a food product. It''s probably beaten by home bakers. It''s a traditional Japanese food. On the other hand, home bakeries come with a mochi-making function as an extra feature. Incidentally, I had a rice cake pounder in my house. I also have a home baker. The rice cake pounder steams the rice properly before pounding it, while the extra function of the home baker is a little different. Well, it tastes good either way, so it''s just a matter of taste. Something else: ...... I''d like to see them make an ice cream maker, but I don''t think that would sell. Milk and sugar are hard to come by, of course. ......¡¡Is it possible to get milk, by any chance? Hmm?¡¡Yeah. Well, not exactly milk, but something like it. Wow, I''m jealous!¡¡I''ve never seen it around here. You get it yourself, right? Yeah. I found some in a dungeon a while back. They''re pretty tasty, huh? You sell it to the guild, right? How much is it?¡¡Can you sell it directly to me? Uh, about a liter and five gold pieces, right? Ugh, that''s dungeon stuff. That''s expensive. ...... When I told the price to Tommy''s beady eyes, he choked on his words and sighed. I guess it''s too expensive for a normal person in a serious business. I think it''s okay to share a little bit of it, but considering that I''m harvesting it as part of my job. But it''s a little difficult considering that I''m harvesting it as my job. It''s as if Tommy is giving us the store''s weapons for free. When we ask Tommy for work, we pay him well. We are in a different position than Diora, who has been a great help to us in both private and public life, and Aella, who has been teaching us how to cook. If they come to my house, I can serve them as tea cakes. Haruka and the others wouldn''t care about the details if they were serving it to guests. Nao nodded at my compromise plan. I think that''s about right. If you bring an ice cream maker ...... or a soft-serve ice cream maker as a souvenir, I''m sure Haruka and the others will be happy and let you eat as much as you want. "Soft ice cream?¡¡That''s a good idea. Is it enough to churn it while chilling it? Isn''t that right?¡¡Ah, but ordinary ice cream makers also churn while chilling, don''t they? What''s the difference, ......? I think it''s the frequency of churning.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Basically, I have no knowledge of cooking or pastry. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea to try it out. I''m not sure what to say. "Hmm. It looks pretty interesting, doesn''t it? After a leisurely lunch, we left Tommy and came to Simon''s workshop. There was no conclusion to the discussion about the soft-serve ice cream, but Tommy said he would try to make a prototype, so we were sure he would make something. It may be a success if you open a cafe in the ...... blacksmith shop. Can you do that, Simon? I''m sure you can.¡¡How many years do you think I''ve been doing woodworking for a living? "That''s great. I consulted with Mr. Simon, who confidently thumped his chest, and decided on the specifications of the billiard. First, the balls. We decided to use a piece of wood. Naturally, hard wood is expensive, but when you cut down a famous tree, there are always parts you can''t use. For example, branches. For example, branches are good enough to make billiard balls, but they are too thin to be made into boards. If you use them, you can save a lot of money. Next, the billiard table. This is made of ordinary wood. If we could sell it to the aristocracy, we could use expensive wood for this part, or engrave it with luxurious carvings, but this is just a sample for us and for future sales. There is no point in making it unnecessarily gorgeous. Since the town did not produce any rusha-like cloth suitable for covering a billiard table, we decided to use brown-ake leather softened to look like chamois leather. The size of the table was chosen to be large enough to be covered with a single piece of brown acetate leather. I don''t know the size of a real billiard table, but the Brown Aik is quite big, so it probably won''t make much difference. The cue is another piece of wood. Since there are few uses for thin sticks, the cost of materials is low, even for fine wood. The horn of a task boar is used as the tip to poke the ball. The grip is sometimes decorated with mother-of-pearl inlays, but again, we don''t need them. The aristocracy would probably do it themselves. Basically, everything is made of wood. If we can use the other things we can get in this town, and make them into a second specialty, we''ll have nothing to worry about. By the way, I was told by Natsuki that the billiard table uses stone slabs. ...... I see, that''s what the billiard table is made of. But it doesn''t matter. We''re the standard. The specifications of the billiard table were decided relatively easily, but it would take some time before it could be delivered to our house. Mr. Simon said he could do it, but it was indeed difficult to make 10 balls of the same size, and almost perfectly spherical. Still, the balls delivered to us were excellent, and at least when we played with them, we did not feel that they behaved strangely at all. Instead, the price demanded was quite steep, and it was quite painful for my already damaged wallet, but ...... Nao gave a little more, and Haruka and her friends gave a little more, saying, "We''ll play too. We were able to survive. 261-234 A little rest, and... After we returned from fishing, we spent our days at leisure, doing no particular work until the scheduled date for the escort request came. We spent our days doing our daily training, hobbies and practical activities such as cooking, alchemy, magic, and so on. I spent my days doing such things. Mitya, who looks up to me like a big brother, and Mary, who works hard at her training, are cute, and the vegetable garden, where the fruits of my labors show up smoothly, is interesting. I''ve been here for almost a year now, and I don''t think I''ve ever had a more peaceful day. I''m not sure what to say. ...... Yes, when your pocket is warm, you feel peaceful, don''t you? I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea. Red Strike Ox is the best. Well, the days of peace and quiet will come to an end at some point. --It''s time to get to work. This time, I''ll be traveling to Pining with Mary and the others, so I''ll have a little extra time to spare. We''ll still be running on our feet, but unlike last time, both Mary and Mitya will be running by themselves. In Japan, letting a child of this age run for dozens of kilometers is usually considered abusive, but in this world, common sense and race are different. As you can imagine, she can''t run at the same speed as us, but judging from her daily jogging, she can run without any problems if she slows down. That''s why I came to pick up the milk of Red Strike Ox to be transported to the Adventurer''s Guild, less than a week before the scheduled departure of the escort. "We''ve been waiting for you!¡¡I mean, are you going to make it? "Yeah, no problem, no problem. We''ve got a few days to spare. When we showed up at the guild, Diora came out of the counter in a hurry, as if she was in a hurry. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always ask for help. Well, actually, if we run as fast as we can, we can reach Pining from here in a day. This time, we were planning to stay overnight in Kerg to visit the grave of Mary''s father, and stop by the temple there, but it was still a two-day journey. Even if Mitya gets sick on the way, there will be enough time for him to recover. I hope so. ....... I''m going to give you a bottle of Red Strike Ox milk. I''m not sure what to make of that. They are basically the same as the ones we delivered, but if you look closely, you can see that the lids of the bottles have been sealed tightly with wax and a seal has been stamped on them. Is this a sign of unopened package? "Mr. Diora, what is this? It''s a guild stamp. It''s a kind of quality assurance. If there is a problem, it should not be the responsibility of the person who collected it. That''s very nice. If it''s a common material like demon meat, but if it''s something as rare as Red Strike Ox''s milk, it''s easy to find out who collected it. In the unlikely event that it was poisoned, they could say, "It was in there all along! The guild''s guarantee is only for the buyer. The guild''s guarantee provides peace of mind to the purchaser, while at the same time protecting the adventurer. It is as if they charge a fee. It''s a different kind of security than direct sales. If you think of it as insurance, the fee charged by the guild is a small price to pay. Incidentally, it is said that the sealed product can be stored at room temperature for a certain period of time. I wonder if it is sterilized and sealed like long-life milk in Japan, or if it is handled in some other way. Since there are magic and alchemy, it seems to be possible to do something if you want to. Even though they can be stored, they taste better fresh, so please don''t take them out of the magic bag, okay?¡¡If it does break, please report to the pinning guild. I have a spare one at ....... I wonder if the guild over there will take care of this? We delivered 115 bottles to the guild this time. The amount we collected was much more than that, and at least now we have no use for them, so they''re just sitting in our magic bags. Yes. But it usually takes a day or so, so be careful. Okay. Well, I don''t plan to take it out of the bag until I hand it over, so I think it will be fine. The milk should be given directly to the client, the person in charge of the Viscount family. If you want to request an escort, please show this letter of introduction to the gatekeeper and he will take care of it. Next, Diora handed me a certificate of delivery for the milk and a letter of introduction to request an escort. After showing this to the Viscount, we should follow his instructions. Basically, since the escort is only for the journey to and from the place, they are allowed to act freely after arriving there, but there is a possibility that the client may ask them to do something, so they are told to be flexible. As for Ms. Diora, if she is asked to do something, she would like to accept it as much as possible. However, depending on the nature of the request, she may charge extra. If it is difficult for us to negotiate, Diora will negotiate with us after we return. That''s very thoughtful. That''s very generous support. It depends on the request, but it''s quite common for noblemen. Sounds like a lot of work. Yes, it''s a lot of work, but if you don''t do it, it''s a lot more work later on. ...... Diora''s eyes fell down and a melancholy expression appeared on her face. What is floating in the distance of her gaze? I''m sure it''s not a pleasant memory, at least. Oh, but you''re all safe!¡¡I''m very grateful to you all for being so polite. ...... You can''t be polite to a nobleman, let alone a normal person. That''s fine!¡¡It''s fine! Use that "normal"!¡¡There are a lot of adventurers who can''t be normal. ...... No, most of them can''t. You can''t blame them, considering where adventurers come from. You never go to school, you come to town as an adult or not, and you live among adventurers of low character. There is no chance for them to learn manners in such a situation. On the other hand, the adventurers from the orphanage in the temple seem to be relatively well educated by Ishka and her friends, and they seem to have a good reputation, whether they are strong or not. It''s not unusual for an adventurer to demand the courtesy of a nobleman. If they did, they would certainly be branded as fools in noble society. If you need such a person, you should use your own knight. If you can''t do that, you''re out of luck. That''s quite comforting for us to hear. "Yes, please go ahead and take it easy. As long as the target of the escort is safe, we don''t care about the rest! No, I''m not going that far. But I''ll do my best. Yes, sir. I''ll do my best. The next morning we had an early breakfast. The next morning we had an early breakfast and set off for Kerg. The next morning, we had an early breakfast and set off for Kergu. It was already late summer, but we were going to run, so the cooler the better. Toya was in the lead as a pacemaker, with Mitya and Mary behind her. The rest of us run around her. As long as we''re running on the street, we''re unlikely to be attacked, but it''s a precaution. This time, we can run too! Easy, easy! It''s a little slower than moving on our own, but still fast enough. While running at such a speed, Mary and Mitya were smiling. When they first came to Laffan, they had just recovered from their burns and had physical problems, so we had to carry them on our backs. This time, however, they were able to move around on their own feet, and I guess they were happy about that. Mary and Mitya have been training hard for the past few months, haven''t they? Yes!¡¡Yes, they did! At least they never skipped training when we were at home, and they probably continued training even when we were not there. Otherwise, no matter how much of a beastman they are, we can''t expect them to gain this much strength. The only question now is how long they can keep it up. ....... A few hours later, we were eating lunch in Kerg, despite my concerns. It would take us about one and a half times as long to get there as it would have without Mary and the others. That''s within our expectations. But the recovery is going better than I thought, isn''t it? Well, at least the collapsed and burned houses have been cleared. There''s still a lot of vacant lots. And the soldiers. There''s still a lot of them. I didn''t see many of them when I first came here before the uprising. I''ve seen soldiers patrolling several times before we got to the mess hall. I''m not sure what to make of this. Is there something else to worry about? "It might be something related to the nobles. I''ve heard of some noblemen who have lost their wages to it, and some who have been involved in fraud. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Well, I guess there are some things that are different from our common sense. I wonder if there is such a thing as Japan, where the rights of workers are protected more than necessary, and civil servants who cheat are not easily fired. It seems unlikely under normal circumstances, but considering the fact that there is a lot of nepotistic hiring, it may be difficult to get a job depending on the referrals. But it''s safe to say that there are no security problems. Viscount Nenus, various? "Yes, sir. I didn''t see any street people. Maybe it was just that I didn''t see any, but at least it was definitely better than the situation where a child was left lying on the street with severe burns. "Do you want to get a place to stay after this, the temple? I said, but Mary and the others shook their heads in reticence. We''re fine with that.¡¡We don''t need to stop at the temple. "No. We go to the temple of Lord Adversus to pray. Is that what ...... is for? I''m not sure if it''s because the common people don''t make individual graves or because they don''t have the sense of visiting graves that we do. The remains of the two fathers are supposed to be buried in this temple, but it seems that they pray in the temple (or anywhere else) if they need to. Their mother was also supposed to be dead, but they didn''t even know where her remains were. Well, since you''re here, why don''t you stop by? It would be good to donate a little. This orphanage must be in trouble. "Oh, I see. Okay, then. Do you understand? They nodded at Toya''s words, and after lunch we went to the temple to pray and make a small donation. We had planned to pay the donation together, but both of them, perhaps because they were concerned about the orphanage or because their father was buried there, insisted on paying from their own pocket money and threw it into the money box. I don''t know what the orphanage is like now, but at least I didn''t hear any shouting as we left the temple, so I''d like to think it''s improved. After leaving the temple, we took lodgings and went to bed early, considering the fatigue of Mary and the others. The next day, we woke up early and left Kergu in the morning to continue our run. Thanks to the two of them, who showed no signs of fatigue from the previous day, the journey went smoothly, and we passed through the gates of Pining on schedule that day. 262-Volume 1 Release Commemoration "SS6 Delicious Rice... Nao and Haruka went out on a date. --Wrong. They went out to look for Yuki and Natsuki. "Huh. ...... It''s been a while since I''ve been alone in a room, so I open the window and lie down on my bed, feeling the air slowly flowing. I''m a good friend of Nao and her friends, but I''m still a little tired of being with them all the time. They may not be aware of it, but when they casually and naturally flirt with each other, it''s hard to look away. For me, too. "Go on dates more often!¡¡For my sake! But unfortunately, we don''t have the time for that. Well, thanks to you, I don''t have to worry about where I''m going to sleep tomorrow, thank goodness. Haruka deserves a lot of credit for this. I don''t have a lot of money, but I don''t have to worry about how I''m going to eat. That''s how it is now. I bathe in the sunlight streaming in through the window, my tail wagging lazily as I sleep. "A sleeping wolf with a sleeping bear. Pfft. It''s a peaceful and luxurious time to think such fluent thoughts. But that time was interrupted by the sound of my stomach protesting. "Mmm, I''m getting hungry. I haven''t done anything. I feel like my fuel consumption is getting worse, even though my physical ability has greatly improved since I got this body. The more muscle you have, the more energy you consume, which is natural, I suppose. ...... It seems that you don''t need to diet for sure. On the other hand, if there''s a food shortage, you''re going to die soon. I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure Haruka and the others aren''t coming back. I got up, left the room, and headed for the dining hall. This place has the impression of being more of a local bar than an inn, and it''s relatively empty during the day. I sat down at the counter as usual, and called out to the old man. I sat down at the counter as usual and called out to the old man, "Dad, bread, eggs, and ...... soup. There''s some meat left, you want some? "Oh, really?¡¡I''ll eat it, I''ll eat it! Lucky!¡¡It''s good without the meat, but it''s even better with it. When I first stayed here, I would have held back because of my financial situation, but now I have no reason to refuse. I waited for a while, enjoying the smell and sound of the meat cooking. What came out was a bowl of lightly salted soup and a slice of bread about three centimeters thick. The bread was about two sizes larger than a loaf of bread, and was about the consistency of a slightly soft baguette. A thick slice of bacon-like meat occupied the top of the bread, and a fried egg was placed on top of it. There are no vegetables, but that doesn''t matter. I carefully lifted up the bread so that the fat oozing from the meat wouldn''t spill out, opened my mouth wide, and bit into it with gusto. "Mmm~!¡¡It''s delicious! The fat and saltiness of the plump meat and the rich yolk of the egg. The fat and saltiness of the meat, along with the rich yolk of the egg, soaked into the slightly dry bread, making it very tasty. "Oh! I took a lick of the yolk that was dripping down. The fried egg was seasoned only with light salt, but it tasted good enough on its own, perhaps because of the flavor of the egg itself. I took another big bite and tasted the bread and meat. "This meat is really good, too. It''s the meat you brought in. No, it''s not. The boar meat we''ve been hunting lately. Most of it was sold as is, but some was brought back to the inn and left with the old man. It is used to upgrade our meals and to pay for our lodging. But it won''t be like this if you just cook it. It''s your father''s skill. "Hmm. The old man sniffed without expression, but seemed subtly pleased. Haruka''s skewers are delicious, but my dad''s cooking is also delicious. There must be some secret in the preparation. You can''t get this kind of crispy texture from skewers. And yet, it''s not expensive. Why is the food at the food stalls so bad when the food at the old man''s place, which is not much different in price, is so good? He snorted in frustration as I asked him a genuine question. "Because they''re amateurs, that''s why. "Amateurs?¡¡They run a food stall? Most of them are retired adventurers. Most of them are retired adventurers. They never wanted to be cooks. If you ask me, I''ve heard that food stalls are one of the most common jobs for adventurers who have retired due to injury or age. At least, not in this town. The reason is simple. Based on the taste of the food stalls they ate when they were active, they think, "I can do that kind of work myself. Even if the cost is a little low, if you have the skill, you can make something edible. But they don''t have that. They''re half-baked. That''s all they are." ...... As expected of a man who is a good cook, he had a lot to say about such things, and he spoke at length, which was unusual for a quiet old man. He was a good cook and had a lot to say on the subject.¡¡To get a good meal. No, that''s no good either. Some guys save up some money while they''re still working and set up store. "No!¡¡So there''s no way to avoid bad food? ...... It''s easy. Just eat at my place. That''s all there is to it. That''s all there is to it." The old man grinned. Do you want some more?¡¡We still have some eggs left. "Sure. ...... Luxury is the enemy. But Nao and Haruka are currently on a date. That means it''s okay to splurge a little. Good. "Okay, Dad, I''ll have more of the same. Put an egg on top too! After waiting for a while, enjoying the smell of the food again, the same bread with meat came out. But this time, there were two eggs. I looked at the old man and he nodded his head. We had some left over from yesterday. It''s for you. "Really?¡¡Lucky! I thought eggs lasted a long time at room temperature, but I guess it''s a little different here. But in my stomach, a little old is nothing. Why should I complain about more delicious food? I''ll eat one as it is, and taste the other with the meat on top. I never really thought about fried eggs as something I liked or disliked, but here, where there is not much variation in cuisine, they are quite a treat. Not only the yolk, but also the white part is delicious. We get it from a decent supplier. Oh, really? I don''t know if the taste of the white meat changes depending on how it''s raised, but it''s delicious, so there''s nothing wrong with that. I savored the little luxury with a subtle sense of immorality. --In the evening, when Nao came home, she told me about the common sense story, without thinking about it. 263-235 Meeting and handed (1) Thank you for your assistance. This is ....... Wait a moment. One of the gatekeepers went into the house and returned a few minutes later with the butler he had met during the previous negotiations. He returned a few minutes later with the steward he had met during the previous negotiations.¡¡Please come in. ""Excuse me." The butler led me to a small room with only one table. The only other thing that stood out was a number of wooden boxes on the table. The room was a little plain, but it was appropriate considering that it was not for entertaining guests, but for the delivery of goods. On this side, please. Yes, sir. I took out a bottle of Red Strike Ox milk from my magic bag and laid it out on the table. The butler carefully checked the seals one by one and put 100 bottles into the wooden box on the table. When he was done, he closed the lid tightly and put the bottles into his own magic bag. After checking that all the bottles were intact and the seals were not broken, the butler nodded. "One hundred and fifteen bottles. I did receive them. He then smoothly signed the document I presented to him. Thank you, sir. "No, thank you. No, thank you. I''m grateful to you for accepting my request for escort. Diora-sama is very confident in her recommendation. Especially since female adventurers of high rank are hard to come by. Is that a deciding factor for you? It is a major factor. Unfortunately, we don''t have any female knights who can escort us right now. --The two of you weren''t here last time, were you? I''m not sure if it''s because of the trend of female adventurers, but the two people I was looking at were Mary and Mitya. All of us are young, but Mary and Mitya stand out from the rest. And, not surprisingly, she remembered that they hadn''t been here the last time we negotiated for the sword. "We had them stay at the inn last time. These two can also fight to a certain extent, but their role in the party is more like support. "I see. At that age, ....... I''m sure you''re close in age to your daughter,....... In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at our own web site. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life. Therefore, the decision was probably made that there was no problem. Perhaps. By the way, you will be staying in Pining until your departure, right?¡¡Have you found a place to stay at ......? "No, I came here as soon as I arrived. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out by yourself. The butler smiled a little happily at my response, opened his hands and made a rather unexpected proposal. I''ll get you a room. No, I don''t want to be bothered. ...... I positively refuse. I don''t think I can settle down in a nobleman''s house. The "Niban-dori Ichiban" pavilion, where I stayed last time, was surprisingly good, and the accommodation fee was not a big burden. No, I''d rather you stay there. And if possible, we would like you to participate in the training of our soldiers. Of course, I''ll think of something to occupy your time. We looked at each other when he said that. We had thought that the soldiers would take care of the basic guarding, and we would just be kicking out the approaching demons and bandits, but training together was a bit unexpected. I''m not sure what to do," said Natsuki on behalf of the rest of us. "Why is that? The first purpose is to train together, so that we can work together easily in case of emergency. That''s ...... a good point. If it was a demon, we could probably handle it on our own, but we don''t want any confusion in that case. That''s right. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. We nodded our heads in agreement, but the butler added with a slightly bitter expression. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a great deal more information on the web. I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. I can''t say no to that. You can''t say no to ....... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I understand. If that''s the case, we''ll stay with you until we leave. Thank you. Thank you very much. We will prepare a room for you, so please wait here for a while. The butler bowed slightly as if he was relieved, and then left us in the room. I''m sure you''ll agree. Without much of a wait, we were given three rooms to choose from. The room assignments were me and Toya, Yuki and Natsuki, and Haruka and Mary. I don''t think Mary and the others were on their schedule, and maybe the reason we had to wait so long was to get an extra room. And of course, we were offered not only a place to stay, but also a meal at Viscount Nenus'' house, which tasted neither good nor bad. The food was not bad, but it was a little delicate because the food that Haruka and his friends prepared was better. However, there was no way to complain about it. ....... After a safe lunch, we met our escort targets. Just before the sun went down, we were called into another room and introduced to three women. "My name is Ilias, the eldest daughter of Viscount Nenus. It''s a pleasure to meet you. I am Arline, Master Ilias''s handmaiden. I''m Keturah, Master Ilias''s handmaiden. Ilias-sama has fluffy blond hair and is about 130 centimeters tall. She looks a little more mature than the nine years old that I was told beforehand, but considering that she is the same age as Mary, I can''t help but wonder if that''s about right. But when you consider that she is the same age as Mary, you can''t help but think, "Is this what she looks like? She is very different from the nine-year-olds I know in Japan. Arline is a little older (around 40 years old?). Arlin-san is a slightly older (around 40 years old?) maidservant with a rather stern expression, and Keturah-san is a younger maidservant, less than 30 years old. Ketola is a younger maidservant, less than 30 years old. She has a more gentle smile than Arlin. "Nice to meet you. I''m Nao, of the clear mirror. I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that. Ilias looks a little surprised and curious at Mary and Mitya, but he doesn''t complain about anything and finishes his introduction. I''ve never told you my name either, by the way. My name is Biesel, and I''m the butler of Viscount Nenus. The old butler added his name, and we now knew his name. I''ve never had any trouble with "butler" before, so I didn''t mind, but if we''re going to be staying in this house, it''s better to know, right? I''ll keep that in mind. The people who will be escorting you at this time are Ilias-sama and these two maids. Are these the only three who will be accompanying you? Yes. The rest are soldiers to protect you. You don''t need to protect the soldiers. Also, if abandoning the maidservants will increase Ilias-sama''s chance of survival, then you may do so. We''ve both agreed to that. I looked at them and they nodded with a serious expression. Ilias looked at them with a pained expression on his face for a moment, but without saying a word, he lowered his eyes. "Of course, you two are my most important subordinates. I want you to help them as much as you can. "Of course, sir. I will do my best. However, there was only one child present in the Viscount''s place, and he was still very young. Normally, there would be an adult to support him, but either Ilias-sama is too good, or he is too short of talent to be able to afford it. Or perhaps the maidservant is taking on that role as well? I know it''s not our place to say, but I''m a little curious. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m curious. I''m sure you''ll understand.¡¡Do you two also fight? The two people she was looking at were Mary and Mitya. It''s a good thing that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Yes. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. Well, ...... you''re still small, but ...... Mary is the same age as Ilias-sama. Mitya is two years younger than her. When I introduced her, Ilias''s face lit up. "Well, well, well!¡¡In that case, Mary and Mitya, why don''t you become my friends? "Let''s see, ....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I don''t want to be your friend!" There was no way we could say that in this situation, so we had to ask the two of them to do their best. We nodded lightly, and Mary and Mitya bowed their heads with a subtle smile on their faces. "Yo, please take care of us. Yes, it''s nice to meet you too. --I''d like to ask you a few questions.¡¡I''ve never met a beastman before! This is the first time I''ve ever known a beastman," he said, smiling. I know how you feel. When they were first picked up by us, Mary and Mitya''s hair was coarse and their ears and tails lacked luster. But since they came to live with us, their nutrition and hygiene have improved, which must have had an effect. Now their cuticles are completely restored. He now has fluffy fur that makes you want to pet him forever. However, it is said that it is a little uncomfortable for beasts to have their ears touched by people who are not very close to them. If you compare it to our senses, it''s like having your buttocks touched. If you are a close friend of the same s*x or a sibling, you probably don''t mind it too much, but if you meet someone for the first time and they ask you to touch their butt, even if you are the same s*x, you would be very wary. No, in the case of buttocks, I would be more afraid of the same s*x. If it were me, I would choose to dash away or be annihilated. But it''s difficult to deal with a nobleman. If it''s a child like Mitya, they don''t seem to care much, but if it''s Mary, they seem to care a lot, and their eyes dart between us and Iliad as if they are troubled. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the site, you can contact us at ....... It''s not polite, young lady. Would you suddenly ask a friend to touch your hair?¡¡Oh, no, if you don''t have any friends, you might not know. You don''t usually ask for such things, you know. --Hey, hey, hey. Isn''t half of the dialogue unnecessary? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of this. "That''s terrible, Keturah. But you''re right. I''m sorry, both of you. When we get to know each other better, please let me know then, okay? "Oh, no, I mean, yes. Mary''s words were vague as she puzzled over what to say. But this escort would take about six days each way. Whether or not Ilias-sama would be able to get along with Mary and the others during the twelve-day round trip and the five days before departure would be up to her. Even if Mitya is more fearless than a normal child, she wouldn''t approach a nobleman on her own. If you talk to her in your spare time and gradually close the distance between you, by the end of the trip... Then, let''s go out and play! "What? Master Ilias was much more active than I expected! Ilias-sama grabbed Mary and Mitya''s hands tightly and tried to leave the room. "Please wait. But the maidservant trapped Ilias. But the maidservant trapped him. It was Keturah. "My Master. There is still work to be done today. You can play later. "...... That''s right. As a nobleman, you can''t afford to neglect. What a pity. "You will stay here until our departure. There''s still time. As if to follow up on Ilias-sama''s regretful withdrawal of her hand, Biesel-san said such a thing, but I would like you to follow up on the feelings of Mary and the others, who were suddenly grabbed by a nobleman''s hand and stiffened. Because of their position, they can''t refuse the invitation. "Tomorrow!¡¡We''ll definitely have fun tomorrow! "Yes, yes. Let''s study hard so that we can have time to play! "I''ll be back! Ilias-sama, as if to say "Aisle B Bark!", was pushed out by Ketola, and Arlin-san bowed to him and followed. And then, with a happy smile on her face, Ms. Biesel looks after the back of Mr. Ilias. As there is a difference in age between the two of them, he might be feeling the same way. "Hohoho, excuse me. I''m sorry, but your daughter has never been around people her own age before, so she doesn''t really know how to respond. No, I''m just relieved that ...... you seem to be easier to get along with than I thought. Yes. Mr. Ilias is a good man. If you don''t mind, Mary and Mitya, when you have time, would you like to accompany the young lady?¡¡If the young lady has any problems, please tell Ketra and she will take care of it. "Yes, yes. If it''s all right with you. "Yes? It seems that Mary and the others couldn''t say no after being told so calmly, and they nodded while looking a little nervous. I''m not sure what we''re going to do, but Mary and the others don''t usually seem to be playing around much, so maybe that''s a good thing. A nobleman, even at that age, is very busy. In this world, there is a difference between the nobility and the common people, but there is a difference between studying and literally working. They don''t have time to play normally. Ilias-sama is currently studying in order to act as the lord''s representative, although he doesn''t usually go that far. He seems to have received a certain amount of education on a regular basis, but he is only nine years old. It seems that he is receiving a refresher course for this departure. I see. However, did Viscount Nenus have anyone else who could serve as his representative? The only other member of the family besides the Iliad is the eldest son, who is still a baby. Considering the relationship with Baron Daias, a mere vassal is not prestigious enough. I have no choice. Mr. Biesel gave a small sigh with a melancholy look on his face. It seems that this time it is not so difficult, because all you have to do is to congratulate him on his marriage and give him a congratulatory gift, but even so, having a child of that age as his representative must be a lot of work. It''s tough being a noble. We''re just easygoing adventurers. "Adventurers must have their own difficulties. At the very least, they have to deal with demons that their own soldiers cannot defeat. I''ve heard that the higher your rank, the more work you have to do in exchange for more rewards. ...... I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. He smiled, looked around at us, and said, "If you don''t mind, why don''t you all join the study session?¡¡It''s knowledge that won''t go to waste if you want to advance in the ranks of adventurers. "No, sir, I don''t want to disturb Master Ilias. I''ve been given a job because it''s not a problem if I don''t know the etiquette of the nobility, but it''s too much trouble to learn. Besides, if the number of students suddenly increased, it would be a problem for the teacher. I think it''s more of a plus than a hindrance. Just by having someone to study with, we may be able to bring out the motivation and independence of Master Ilias. Biesel''s gaze turned to Mary. It''s true that having someone her own age around may have a positive influence, but even though Mary has a good sense of fighting, she''s not much of a student. For her age, she says and does things well, but her academic ability is average. It''s not a good idea to be a brainiac, so Haruka and the others are giving lessons to her. ...... She''s doing her best. On the other hand, Mitya is a good absorber and is probably the best in her class in elementary school, but that''s about it. If she were to suddenly join the studies of a noble, she would be confused and unsure of what to expect. And those studies are unlikely to be useful as an adventurer. ...... You''re right. I''ll consider it when the time is right. Yes. Please consider it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that," he said, smiling mildly. 264-236 Face-to-face and hand-to-hand (2) "Gentlemen!¡¡This is the Meikagami Hozui, the group in charge of the Iliad''s escort. Greetings. It''s a pleasure to meet you! Early in the morning of the next day, such a bold voice echoed through the training grounds attached to the Viscount Nenus house. The man standing in command was over forty years old, and in front of him were about thirty young men of about twenty years old who looked reasonably well trained, if not macho. The soldiers lined up in a row are rather powerful, but ...... "rather". In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to use the site, you can contact us at the web site. Only Mary and Mitya would be shaken by that. Well, the two of them are at the back of the three rows of us, so they won''t stand out. "I''m Sazius, the captain of this squad. I''m Sazius, the captain of this squad, and I won''t treat you any differently during training, is that okay with you? Of course. Oh, you don''t have to be polite. You don''t have to be polite, but you do have to understand that I''m going to be rough with you. All right. As long as it''s not unreasonable. I''m not going to some sergeant''s boot camp, and I''m not going to make Mary and the others take it. It might be a necessary training for a soldier to have the guts not to be intimidated by extreme situations, but we''re adventurers. We don''t want to become a waste of time for the sake of the whole, and if we have to save our own lives, we''ll just run away. We don''t want to be part of the army, and we don''t want to be forced to be part of the army. Okay. Okay, let''s start with the prep work. Everyone, circle the perimeter of the training grounds for 500 meters!¡¡Begin! "Yes, sir! The training grounds aren''t that big, but the perimeter is about 400 meters long. Fifty laps around it would be about 20 kilometers. I don''t know how much running the Earth''s military does as part of their "preparatory exercise," but with the physical capabilities of people here, 20 kilometers is not that far of a distance. After the soldier gave a good answer and started running, we also started running. The overall pace was a little slow. For those of us who run every day, it''s no problem to keep up. We continued running for about 10 laps. At first, the group was running together, but by that time, it started to diverge. The leader of the group was Toya, who was the strongest among us. It''s no exaggeration to say that he''s the fittest idiot among us. --No, should I say he''s running at the top? It doesn''t look like he''s in the lead because he''s already two laps ahead of us. ...... But he''s not wrong. The next two are Yuki and Natsuki. They are about half a lap ahead of the other soldiers, but their pace is not that fast, so they look comfortable. Perhaps they were being dragged along at a faster pace, but the faces of the soldiers at the front of the group, who were half a lap behind, looked like they were in trouble. The rest of us were about a third of the way from the front of the group. Haruka and I are running between Mary and Mitya. "Hey, hey!¡¡If you lose to a kid, you''re not a soldier, you know!¡¡The loser gets a fun, fun re-training! "Uh-oh! At the sound of Sagius'' voice, the lagging soldiers picked up the pace, and Mary and Mitya gave me a look like, "Should I go easy on them? I''m going to shake my head lightly and maintain my current pace. I''m going a little slower than usual, and Mary and the others are going a little faster. I don''t know if Mary and the others will be able to keep up this pace to the end, but it''s shorter than the distance they usually run, so ...... might be manageable. I''m sorry for the soldiers, though. By the way, Sazius is running behind Natsuki and the others, so he seems to have more strength than the soldiers at least. That''s how the last ten laps went. The results are in. All the soldiers have been eliminated. Mary and Mitya kept up their initial pace, and only Sazius finished ahead of them. I think that Haruka and I were the pacemakers that helped them finish safely, but the main reason why the soldiers dropped out was that they were caught up with Yuki and the others and disrupted their pace. According to Sazius, he usually runs this kind of distance, but by the time we were halfway through, his chin was already up. Sazius''s reprimand echoed through the soldiers. You guys!¡¡Don''t let the presence of outsiders disrupt your pace!¡¡Do you think the soldiers are going to lose their normality?¡¡Ah!¡¡I''ll give you 50 push-ups on the spot! "Yes! It was you who said something unnecessary in the middle of the game, further disturbing the normalcy of the game, right? Right after that line, we had dropped back a little. We soon slowed down and were able to overtake. Of course, I can''t say anything about that if it''s considered training. "All right, after a short break, we''ll do some pretending. Get ready. After finishing their push-ups, the soldiers dragged their bodies and began to prepare the wooden swords. It was very similar to the first wooden sword Toya had purchased. --I see, so that was for training. It must be cheap. "Sazius, can we borrow it? Yes, of course. We''d be happy to use our own weapons if you''d like. ...... Oh, no, we can''t do that, considering the mock battle that''s coming up. You''re welcome to take it. Thank you. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. Toya took out seven of these swords and handed them out to us. I don''t usually use swords of this size, but when I lightly swung them, I found that they were quite light for being made of wood, and not too difficult to handle. I don''t have any [swordsmanship] skills, but I''m sure I can handle it as an extension of a small sword. After a few minutes, Sazius took the wooden sword and gathered everyone together. "Are you ready to breathe?¡¡Line up!¡¡Let''s start swinging!¡¡One!¡¡Two!¡¡Three! We join the soldiers in swinging our wooden swords. It''s kind of like a club activity, and a little fun. However, we were the only ones having fun, and the soldiers looked quite desperate. Mitya is a little too big to hold the wooden sword, but he still seems to be physically strong enough to do it well. Mary is still small, but she uses a sword the same size as Toya''s, so she is not in danger. Seeing the two of them, Sazius nodded his head in admiration. "Well. Even though you''re small, you''re quite strong. You''re not shaky and your core is well-trained. This is something we do every day, you know. You''re training diligently. That''s what I''d expect from a high-ranking adventurer. If you don''t do it, you die. That''s how it works. If there is no emergency, the situation and position of a soldier who spends most of his time training and an adventurer who spends most of his time fighting and only a small part of his time training will be different. Now that I have some leeway, I don''t train as obsessively as before, but I don''t neglect it. I continued swinging in this way for about 30 minutes. Just when my arms were getting tired, Sazius'' voice ended the swing. Stop!¡¡After a short break, it was time for a mock battle!¡¡The combination is ....... Sazius looks around at the soldiers sitting on the ground and us standing there, and thinks. You can make nineteen pairs if you include Sazius, but even if it''s a mock battle, you''re not going to do them all at the same time, are you? It''s a little scary to have Mary and Mitya fight when we''re not looking, so I''d rather refuse. Toya tells Sazius of a more fundamental problem. "Just so you know, Mary and I are the only two of us who use this type of sword. What?¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I thought the two ...... elves were different. I''m not sure if it''s because I was waving it around without complaining, but Sazius looks around at us with the wooden sword a little strangely. ''Half of us are magicians, that''s our mainstay. We''re adventurers, so we can use weapons, too. "M...... that make it difficult to have a mock battle? I think it depends on the opponent.¡¡If they can handle us - or even if they can handle us?¡¡It''s hard to adjust to a weapon you''re not familiar with. "Yes. There''s a risk of injury if you don''t stop short enough. "I see. Well then, I''ll deal with him first. Why don''t we start with you, Toya? Yes!¡¡All right. Apparently, the mock battle was to be fought one on one, with the others watching. The soldiers, who had been slumped down until now, stood up with their swords in their hands and opened up a large space in the middle of the room, where Toya and Sazius, who were happily holding their wooden swords, moved to. Toya must be looking forward to it, since she''s never had the chance to fight a man before, except for training with us. And so are we. This training seems to be quite meaningful in that it gives her a chance to improve her skills. Let''s go! "Yes! At the same time as the shout, wooden sword and wooden sword collide. After exchanging blows at close range, they quickly move back and hold their swords as if to show each other. Then the two men grin at each other. Not exactly traditional swordsmanship, but strong, right? "Really?¡¡That gives me confidence, huh? They jump in again and begin to sword fight. But ...... Toya is not serious. He is not using magic to strengthen his body, and his fighting style is different from usual. It''s a mock fight, like a kendo match, without the forcefulness. It''s a mock fight, so it''s probably like this, but he''s usually more reserved when he fights with us. It''s not uncommon for us to end up in the care of Haruka or Natsuki after hitting a bone. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "...... d*mn. I''m sure you''re not the only one. It''s not exactly the same as taking it easy, but it''s ...... training, so. If you don''t have anything to learn from each other, what''s the point? Haha, no doubt! The women looked at the two laughing fighters with a bit of dismay, but the soldiers looked surprised and earnestly watched the fight. The fight continued for a minute or so. When Sazius'' breathing became uneven and his movements lacked finesse, Toya knocked his sword away and thrust it at his neck. ...... I''m f*cked. I''m not sure what to do. You''re going to be hired as an escort.¡¡We''re going to be hired as guards. That''s a relief, right? In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, we''ll be happy to assist you. That''s true.¡¡I don''t like it when I lose! I''m not sure what to say. It''s a good experience for me to have fought a legitimate swordsman like you. d*mn. Hey, you and you are next!¡¡Stay strong! Sazius picked up his wooden sword and moved on to designate two of his soldiers to fight in a mock battle. The first time, Sazius said he would take on all of us, but I guess he doesn''t have the stamina to do it all in a row. With a few mock battles between soldiers in between, me, Haruka, and Natsuki took turns fighting Sazius in mock battles. As a captain, Sazius was strong enough, but as it turned out, only Mary and Mitya were defeated by him. Even without the use of magical enhancements, Natsuki was able to win with ease, and the other three were able to win without any problems, although there were a few dangerous parts. It was a shock to lose to three women who don''t usually use swords, and Sazius slumped his shoulders. I don''t think so. In the event that you''re not a fan of the idea, you might want to check out the following: ...... Except for Yuki and Mary, who have strange ways of handling swords, they are strong enough. I''m not sure what to make of it. Mary is learning from Toya''s swordsmanship. That''s probably why the two of them are so decent with their swords. The four of us used swords in a way that was similar to how we used small swords, but we were still able to handle them reasonably well. In a real battle, it would be dangerous to handle a sword that cannot cut and a small sword in the same way, but in the mock battle, it did not affect us much. However, in the mock battle, this did not have much of an effect on him. In fact, this difference in movement may have confused Sazius in some respects. "Now you have another main weapon and even more magic, right?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Sazius smiled at Toya, who had asked him a question that was very difficult to answer. "Me?¡¡Hahahaha. You''re going to ask me that?¡¡Hey. --Well, you know. Viscount Nenus is a peaceful domain with no powerful demons and little strife. After ......, you know what I mean? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m sorry. It''s not that strong. Well, if you were really strong, you''d probably go to a place where you''d be treated better. From my experience of living in this territory for about a year, I think that if you have the skill to kill orcs in a group, you are good enough to be a soldier. Even if the salary is a bit low, the lords of Viscount Nenus territory may not be a bad place to work in terms of safety and stability. I''m not sure if he saw our understanding of the situation or not, but he looked a little bitter, but then, as if he had regained his composure, he let out a breath. I''m sorry.¡¡I''m sorry, but I need you to train these guys. I''m sure you guys will be fine. Sazius said to us, and now he raised his voice to the soldiers. "Hey, you guys!¡¡I''m not going to let you get away with this.¡¡If you''re unhappy that you can''t be part of the Iliad''s escort, kill them!¡¡If we don''t have enough people, we may need to add more. The moment I said that, I felt the eyes of the soldiers glittering. This is either a good sign that Ilias-sama is well-liked, or that he doesn''t like us. "Oi-oi, what are you going to do if I get injured and it affects my request for an escort? You guys are fine, right?¡¡I''m not going to take out my frustrations on your girls, that''s for sure. The girls Sazius was referring to were, of course, Mary and Mitya. I''m not sure if it''s because they are close in age to the Iliad, but the soldiers are strangely kind to the two of them. That''s fine. I''m a weak elf, after all. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Furthermore, from the second day, we prepared sticks of the same size as the spears and small swords we usually used, and began to conduct mock battles with them. According to Sazius, it was a good way to learn how to deal with an opponent who uses such weapons. From our point of view, it was an opportunity for us to experience training against opponents that we normally wouldn''t have, and there was no reason to refuse. However, as expected, we had a hard time with the many-to-one mock battles that began on the third day. ...... It was also a good opportunity. This kind of training is only possible when there are enough people. In the end, we spent every morning training with the soldiers for the next five days until we left. 265-237 Time to study We had said, "We''ll consider it if we can find the time," but as it turned out, we were all going to attend the Iliad''s study session with gusto. When a little girl came to pick us up and said with a smile, "Come on, let''s go! You can''t say no to that, can you? In the background, there was a butler with a gentle smile on his face. ...... There is no point in finding out who is behind this. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. Also, unexpectedly, Haruka and Natsuki were more enthusiastic than I expected. In addition to what Biesel, the butler, had said, "There''s no harm in knowing about it," the reason seemed to be that they hadn''t had a chance to learn about it even if they wanted to. In fact, in this world, even if you want to learn something, it''s quite difficult. Because, first of all, it is difficult to find teachers. In Japan, if you search a little, you can find a variety of things such as low-cost culture schools, cooking classes, music classes, etc., but there are no such things here. Even if you can find a teacher, the required fee is high because it is a professional job. Combat skills can be learned by requesting adventurers, but adventurers with decent skills usually have high ranks, which means high fees. In Rafan, however, there are no adventurers of that rank. In order to improve our fighting skills, we once thought about finding someone who could be our mentor, but we gave up because of such circumstances. Considering this, it would have been very gratifying to be able to gain experience in training with territorial soldiers for free, and to be able to listen to the kind of lessons that the children of nobles would take. Normally. But... Isn''t it a student''s instinct to shy away from the word "study"? --Well, it''s definitely a good experience, so let''s give it a try. "So, in this case, the greeting is-- The class proceeded in an unexpected way. In the room I was shown to was a slightly plump woman in her mid-thirties. I thought she was going to be the one teaching the class, but she wasn''t. After we sat down, the person standing in front of us was Master Ilias. Apparently, she was going to teach us what she had learned so far, as a review for her. The female teacher, whose name was apparently Sidea, basically kept her mouth shut, only making occasional comments and corrections. Well, there are only five days left until departure. At this point, if we haven''t finished our lessons for Master Ilias, that would be a bad thing. In addition, by teaching us (specifically, Mary and Mitya), he would be able to grasp the level of mastery of Master Ilias, and furthermore, it seems that he intends to stimulate his pride of not being defeated by younger students and encourage him to study on his own. --According to what Sidea-san told us secretly with a friendly smile on her face. I understand that the greeting changes depending on the rank of the other party. But what do you do if you don''t know the rank? So, of course, Ilias-sama was the main character, Mary and Mitya were the supporting characters, and we were the mob. We''re the mob. Extras. I sat in the back of the room and listened leisurely. I was wondering how hard it would be for Mary and Mitya to take the brunt of this, and whether they would be able to understand, but aside from Mary''s dizzy eyes, Mitya understood what was being said, and even asked questions at times. Sidea seemed surprised by Mitya''s behavior and said, "She''s incredibly talented. Even if she is the daughter of a nobleman who is educated from an early age, Mitya is just an ordinary child of the city. I had thought she was brilliant when I was teaching her at home, but it seems that she was also quite smart in general terms. By the way, our side is ...... well, normal? Basically, it''s just knowledge, so you just memorize it. There''s nothing that we can''t understand, regardless of whether we can use it in actual situations. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you can use in a real situation. I don''t think it''s necessary. After half a day of taking classes like this, we had a lot of opportunities to exchange some words. I don''t know whether the intention of the person who dragged us to the class was to motivate Ilias to learn or to deepen our friendship with Mary and the others, but after three days, we had become friends to the extent that we could relax and enjoy the tea time together. Naturally, the tea and sweets were provided by the Viscount family, but yesterday, Mitya let slip that the sweets made by Haruka and her sisters were better. Mary immediately silenced Mitya, but Iliad was more interested in her words. "What kind of sweets are you eating? And. We can''t just ignore our client when he says that. That''s why today''s snack was an apple pie provided by Haruka and her team. "Well, well, well!¡¡It looks so delicious! "You guys bake too, right? Ilias-sama''s eyes sparkled as she looked at the apple pies on the table, and Sidea-san looked at us curiously as she took the liberty of joining us. There''s nothing wrong with that, since Ilias-sama only cares about Mary and Mitya, while we are deepening our friendship with her. I''m not very good at it, but... It''s not a great skill, but as an adventurer, you can get materials that are hard to buy. "No, if you say I''m not very good at this, the chef will be in trouble. Sidea smiles at Natsuki''s humility. Well, I''m not Mitya, but the sweets we ate yesterday and the sweets Natsuki offered today. If you compare them, you''ll find that Natsuki''s sweets are definitely more delicious. This is not simply a matter of skill, but also a difference in the ingredients used and the experience of making the sweets. Knowing a recipe with a long history is definitely a big advantage. "Even though you are a nobleman, you don''t eat many sweets, do you, Ilias-sama? Your father is a very thrifty man. He spends on what he needs, but he never wastes money on anything unnecessary or in his daily life. In response to Mitya''s simple question, Master Ilias chuckled and shook his head. This apple pie is made with a lot of butter made from the milk of Strike Ox. If I had to put a price on it, I''d say a slice of it would cost a few gold coins. The sweet and sour taste of the slightly less sweet apples and the rich buttery aroma are indescribable. When I ate it at home, there was even more ice cream on top of it, but not this time. The cost of the ice cream would have been too high for us to eat if we hadn''t been able to prepare the ingredients ourselves. --No, it would be possible to melt dozens of gold coins in a few hours if we had the courage to do so, but we can''t spend that kind of money on a mere snack. In a normal economic sense. Certainly, it would be difficult to buy casually. Oh, since you''re here, please eat it while it''s still warm. Haruka nodded her head in agreement and recommended apple pie to Ilias-sama and Sidea-san. It is a great advantage of the magic bag to be able to provide freshly baked goods even in times like this. I''ll take it without reservation, then. I will. --Wow!¡¡It''s so delicious!¡¡I''ve never had such a delicious pastry before! Ilias-sama took a bite of the apple pie and let out a squeal of admiration, while Sidea-san held her mouth and rolled her eyes, though she didn''t raise her voice. Ilias-sama continued to crunch and crunch, consuming the apple pie on his plate as quickly as he could and smiling as if it were melting. As if lured by such a smile, we also take a bite of the apple pie. --Yeah, it''s really good. The light and crispy texture of the pie crust is completely different from the sweet bread apple pies you get at convenience stores. There is also the characteristic rich buttery aroma. The butter itself is much tastier than what is sold in Japan, and the fact that it is freshly baked probably has an effect. The only complaints I have are that the sugar is a bit heavy and there is no cinnamon flavor, but it would be a bit extravagant to complain about that. ...... Oh, it''s gone. The more I ate, the faster it went away, and before I could finish half of it, Ilias''s plate was empty. When Ilias-sama put his fork in his mouth a little too reluctantly, Sidea-san immediately gave him a warning, and Ilias-sama was disappointed, but he seemed to be more disheartened by the fact that it was gone than by the warning. I can eat it anytime I want, so it''s okay to give it away, but it''s really not good to eat it. But here was someone who didn''t care about that. "Dear Iliad, would you like some of my food? "......!¡¡No, no, it''s fine.¡¡You can eat it. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. Seeing this, Sidea-san nodded in satisfaction. I guess that''s part of education, but after all, being a noble is a bit constricting. There were times when the etiquette of eating was discussed in class, but it was quite troublesome. I learned some of it, but if I tried to do it properly, I would never be able to eat well. But after all this time, are you sure you want to do this?¡¡Are you sure you don''t want to eat the snacks we provided? Natsuki asked Ilias-sama, who put down her fork with regret. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who can''t wait to see you again. If you''re wary of this, we won''t ask you to escort us. Besides, you were all introduced by your sister Diora. Well, I wouldn''t have asked for an escort if I was wary of being poisoned. It would be much easier to kill them during the escort. --But there was one thing that bothered me more. But there was one thing that bothered me more. It seems I wasn''t the only one who was bothered by this, and Natsuki immediately asked back. Diora, sister?¡¡Excuse me, but what is your relationship to Diora? "She is your mother''s sister and my aunt''s child. To put it simply, we''re cousins. I knew from the previous correspondence that there was some kind of relationship with the Viscountess Nenus, but the relationship was closer than I had imagined. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. In the case of the Kingdom of Rhenium, it is the head of the noble family and his or her spouse who are treated as nobles. Their children are not technically nobles, but they are treated as one level below their parent''s title, for example, Ilias is treated as a baron. The influence of the parent''s rank disappears when the child becomes independent and establishes another family, or when the child becomes a son-in-law or a daughter-in-law. If you can successfully marry the head of another family, you can remain a noble, but of course there are more children than heads. In the case of the nobility, polygamy, and in rare cases polygamy, means that the number of children increases along with the status of the spouse, and inevitably most of the children fall into the commoner category. Now, getting back to Diora, her father is the head of a baronial family, albeit a small one, and as an unmarried woman she is treated as a knight, one level below the baron. But here''s where things get a little complicated, because of her position in the family. First of all, Diora''s mother is a concubine, and the Baron''s full wife is not. However, Diora is the only child of the baron''s family. In other words, Diora is the only candidate for the Baron''s succession. In such a case, Diora would normally take a son-in-law to succeed the family, but the problem is his relationship with his wife. If his wife had a child, she would not want Diora to be the heir, so she would not want him to take a son-in-law. On the other hand, if he were to marry and leave the house, there would be no heir, and the baron would be in trouble. Thus, it seems that Mr. Diora has not yet been able to get married despite his age. I pity him. ....... It''s a little bit of a problem for them, because their regular wives are ...... I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. In addition, he told me the age of his regular wife,......, isn''t it a little tough for children? In Japan, she is just barely ...... old enough to have a child, but here she is too old to have a child, according to common sense. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea.¡¡It''s a pity about your sister. Master Ilias waved her hands in the air and complained. Diora, in modern Japan, you would still be at a very young age, but according to our common sense, you are at an age where marriage is a little more difficult. Incidentally, Diora seems to have given up halfway. She is even thinking of taking over the baronial family without getting married and adopting a child as her heir. But there is a high possibility that you will become a knight in the present and a baron in the future, right?¡¡Why is she working at the Adventurer''s Guild? Your sister''s family is a baronial family in name only, with no territory, so there is no work. So, she said that she wanted to secure an income and also find a marriage partner if possible. Adventurers marry later than usual. Adventurers usually marry later. Considering that Diora has been Rafan''s vice-chief for quite some time now, I think we have our answer. It''s hard being a noble. It''s easier to be an adventurer. No, being an adventurer is harder ......, but you get such delicious sweets ......?¡¡Could it be that adventurers are ......? In the event that you''ve got any questions, you can call us at our website. Ilias-sama," Mary said in a panicked tone. No, no, Master Ilias, being an adventurer is very hard work!¡¡There are many adventurers who don''t have enough to eat!¡¡Many adventurers don''t even have enough to eat! Haruka and the others are just amazing! "So, right?¡¡I was a little confused because the story was completely different from what I heard from Diora''s sister. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. I don''t think so, but we don''t want Ilias-sama to become an adventurer. And so, in the five days leading up to our departure, we arrived at the day of our departure without ever leaving the house. 266-238 Departures The morning of our departure. We had gathered in front of the house of Viscount Nenus, along with the lords in charge of guarding us. There would be a total of 20 people accompanying us on this trip, including 10 lords, 7 of us, and Master Ilias and his two maids. In front of the lords in line stood Viscount Nenus, his butler Biesel, and the Viscountess. The carriage will take us from here to Crevilly, the capital of the Barony of Dyas, via Mijara in the southeast, across the mountains. Of course, only Master Ilias and the others would be riding in the carriage, and we would be on foot. "Eckhart and ten others are here! "Yes. Take care of them. Yes. At the risk of my life. The leader of the territorial troops was a troop leader named Eckert, who had just been approached by Viscount Nenus and had saluted him with a bow. As for his strength, he is one level lower than Sazius, but he is stronger than the average territorial soldier. He is the overall commander, but he is not exactly our commander. In the event of an emergency, the territorial troops will surround the carriage in which Master Iliad rides, and we will move freely to destroy or drive away the enemy. Please take care of the Iliad. I''ll do my best. I will do my best." The Viscount walked in front of us and called out, to which I responded with a bow. I can''t say that I''m going to risk my life, but since the target of my escort is not a swarthy old man, but a pretty girl, I think I''ll do my best until I''m about to die. No, I don''t know if I''ll be able to respond properly when my life is actually in danger. But my life is important to me. Professionalism?¡¡I don''t know that word. --Until a year ago, we were just regular high school kids. Father, I''m leaving. Oh. Don''t give the Iliad any trouble. The expression on Viscount Nenus''s face as he approached Ilias in front of the carriage was a little bitter. "No, no. This is one of the responsibilities of being born into nobility. Please leave it to me. The Viscountess approached and gently embraced Master Iliad, who looked a little nervous even as she said this. Ilias is not yet of age.¡¡Ilias is not yet an adult. He''s old enough to make a few mistakes. "Thank you, Mother, for ....... The mother''s words softened Ilias''s expression a little. "Arryn and Keturah, will you take care of them? "Leave it to me. "Then, Mother and Father, I''ll be off! Ilias-sama then got into the carriage, followed by the two maids, and for some reason, Mary and Mitya. --No, I don''t know why, it''s just that I was asked to do so. Thanks to Ilias-sama''s efforts, I got along well with both of them, and that''s one of the reasons, but Mary and the others are not the main force for us. Nevertheless, they were able to fight to a certain extent, so they were chosen as our escorts and talking partners. As for us, we have no objection since it will ensure the safety of Mary and the others. Once everyone was on board and the carriage doors were closed, the whole thing started moving. We''re in the lead. We''ll be traveling at the speed of the carriage to our first destination, Mijara, which is about four days away. Although the distance between the two cities is not that far, it is said that the roads are not very well maintained because Pining is in the territory of Viscount Nenus and Mijara is in the territory of Baron Daias, and there are mountains in between. Of course, this section is the most dangerous. There is a well-developed road from Mijara to Crevilly, the capital of the realm, so it seems to be safe to go that far. I''ve been told that there''s no such thing as a dangerous demon, but you can''t be too careful when you''re hiring a ...... escort. I''m not sure what to say. The first and second days were relatively calm. The roads were not so poorly maintained that it was difficult for wagons to pass through, and the demons that appeared were at the level of goblins. As for the ones near the roads, we exterminated them as soon as we found them, so there was no need for the territorial troops to touch them. It was a little disconcerting to be camped out in the open and to be on guard in three shifts, but if you think of it as camping, you can live with it for a week or so. Thanks to the purification, the main problem would be solved. Incidentally, there were no magicians among the guards, but unexpectedly, Ketra, the lady-in-waiting, was a light magician. Apparently, this was one of the reasons why she was chosen as one of the attendants, and as for Ilias-sama and the attendants, they were kept clean by Ketra''s "purification". As for the food, we were provided with our own as well, but the taste was not so good. So we all enjoyed the grilled meat from the task boar that we provided, although we only hunted the ones that had wandered out of the forest on the way. Not kushiyaki, but Japanese style yakiniku using a net. Skewered meat has its own merits, but it takes a long time to be eaten. On the other hand, yakiniku using a net is very easy. As long as you have a net ready, you can cook a large amount of thinly sliced meat in a short time, and you can also heat up bread. The grocery store didn''t sell nets for large groups of people, so I asked Tommy to make more nets for me, including a spare one, but this was the first time that all the nets I had were put to good use. It was not a very elegant dish, but Ilias, who was eating the same meal as us, didn''t seem to have any problem with it, and he was a very healthy daredevil as Mary and Mitya ate a lot. After that, they seemed to be unable to move, but well, unlike us who had to prepare for a battle, they were under guard, so there was no problem. The situation changed a little on the third day. As we climbed up the mountain, the road became narrower, the road surface gradually became rougher, and the surrounding forest also became denser and less visible. Although there had been holes in the ground, we had been able to avoid them because of the width of the road, but by this time there were places that were difficult to avoid. Finally, a hole about a third of the width of the road appeared ahead of us, and we had to stop for a moment. "Soil runoff from the rain? Maybe. I''m not an expert, so I don''t know. It''s a big hole, about 50 centimeters deep, a meter wide, and 70 centimeters deep. There is a hole in the ground as if it had caved in, as if the soil beneath it had run off. This is ...... quite a magnificent hole. We''ll have to fill it. As we peered into the hole to inspect it, Eckert came over and peered into it as well. We''re also carrying boards to use as a bridge to go over these holes, but Ilias wants to repair as much as possible, at least for the part of the road in Viscount Nenus'' territory. It''s a bit of a hassle, but we can''t ignore the wishes of our client. It''s a bit of a hassle, but we can''t ignore the client''s wishes. We''ll just have to do it," Eckert said as if to stop us from looking at each other. "Well, don''t worry. We''re used to this kind of work, you know. We''ve had some good ones lately. Hey!¡¡Bring it to me! Yes, sir! I called out to the men behind me, who were somewhat happy because they hadn''t had any work done so far, and three men arrived carrying tools to fill the hole. "Oh, ....... Toya couldn''t help but shout out when he saw that. The tool he''s carrying is apparently a shovel. Apparently, the shovel, produced by Toya, Gantz and Tommy, has expanded its sales to the pinning area. "What''s wrong? "Oh, don''t bother doing it by hand, I can fix it with magic. Perhaps feeling embarrassed to claim that he had made it, Toya said something else. "What, ......? Isn''t it? Yeah, this is about right. It''s not a dungeon. Yuki casually replied to Toya''s confirmation. Compared to the walls of a dungeon, soil is much easier to handle, as it allows magic to pass through. With my help, the job would only take a few minutes. Unfortunately, there''s no need for a shovel. "Well, how much magic do you have left?¡¡No, I mean, can you even use earth magic? "I''m an elf, after all. You''re an elf, you''ve got magic. Oh, yeah. ....... That''s what they say about you guys. ...... I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. Hmmm, should we assign them some work? I wondered if I should assign them some kind of task, but I didn''t want them to take over guarding the wagon and letting the goblins die. Haruka taps me on the shoulder and shakes her head, as if she''s noticed I''ve been thinking a bit. I''m not sure what to do. It''s like a bad idea, right? "Yeah, yeah. We''re on the right track, but this is the most dangerous part of the city, right?¡¡We''d better get past it. Yes, sir. We can''t just relax and repair the road. ....... The more leisurely you repair the road, the fewer guards you''ll have. No, I''m not going to force you to do anything at all. Then, Yuki, let''s bury it quickly. Here we go. I''ll make it a little harder while I''m at it. After finishing the simple job quickly, we started to move forward again. ....... I''m not sure what''s going on here. A few dozen minutes into the walk. A few minutes into the walk, there was a reaction in the forest ahead that was different from that of a demon. When I looked at Toya, she also looked at me and nodded, so it can''t be my imagination. Haruka and the others came up to us. "What''s wrong? No, it seems like a bandit reaction. Are you sure? Almost. You''re not camping around here, are you?¡¡You don''t camp out around here, do you? Two or three guys split up on either side of the road, not moving. In Japan, it would be a normal leisure activity, but here it''s almost impossible. Demons are common here. We can do it, but I''ll go to ...... and let them know. Thank you. Natsuki walked back towards the carriage, and soon returned with Eckert. I heard there were bandits? Probably. In the meantime, Ekhart and the others, watch out for arrows and protect the carriage. If they attack, we''ll deal with them ourselves. If they attack, we''ll deal with them." When I said that I couldn''t just shoot magic at them, Eckert replied rather curiously. You don''t have to wait for me to attack you, you can attack me.¡¡You can''t complain about being annihilated when you''re acting suspiciously on the road where the Viscount''s carriage passes. "Oh, really? ......?¡¡Well, yeah, if it looks dangerous, it is. That''s the nobleman. The situation is unexpectedly unreasonable. In Japan, self-defense doesn''t work unless it''s very serious. ....... --In Japan, self-defense is not possible unless it is very serious. It is worse to act suspiciously in a suspicious place, this is common sense. Yeah, we should be careful too. As adventurers, we sometimes hide in the woods and target demons and animals. Basically, as long as you don''t lurk on the side of the road, there''s no problem. Well, that''s what Eckert explained to us, but it''s a little hard to suddenly go on a killing spree when you haven''t done anything, so we decided to wait for their reaction, as we had originally planned. It is quite disadvantageous to be attacked first, but one of the reasons why I chose to do this is because Haruka is able to use the Wall of Wind. This spell is a level 6 wind spell, but she has been practicing it intensively since she was asked to be an escort, and is already able to block arrows from a distance. Of course, it would be best if this magic never came into play, but.... This is a definite. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. 267-239 Encounter (1) The Wall of Wind! At about the same time as Haruka used her magic, the arrows that were flying at us were deflected by it. There were no arrows flying towards the carriage, probably because we were walking ahead of it, slightly away from it. I''m not sure what to make of this. "...... Really? The Fire Arrows flew to different targets, but none of them hit their targets and stabbed into the ground in vain. Or, to be more precise, the aim was accurate, but they were all avoided. Even though humans and demons are different, I was a bit shocked because I was confident in my magic. "Toya!¡¡Don''t let your guard down. He might be quite skilled. Of course! The people who came out of the forest were the five people that I knew in advance from the [search enemy]. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to get a hold of us on the web. --Are these really bandits? I''m not sure what to make of this. But whether they''re bandits or not, it doesn''t change what you have to do. Of the three that came towards us, Toya and Natsuki took care of two of them, while Yuki and Haruka took care of the other two. The two who went behind us were... "Nicholas and six others, take three each! "Got it! Eckert''s voice and the territorial soldiers'' voices responded. Three against one seems to be no problem, but unfortunately, the Lords are not very strong. Just in case, I tried to head back to cover him, but... "Sorry!¡¡Nao, cover me! It was Toya who shouted at me. The man in front of him was about the same size as Toya. The man in front of him was about the same size as Toya. He was handling a slightly thicker shortsword and was half-tossing Toya, who had been able to handle Sazius with ease. Who are you? I said, not expecting an answer, but hoping to distract him at least a little. At the same time, I thrust my spear into him, but of course, he remained silent and easily defeated my spear. Hey, Toya, are you strong? Strong. Technically, you''re completely outmatched. Strength and speed, I guess. Because he''s a beast, he has superior physical strength and speed compared to humans. I''m not sure what to make of this. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. And as for the carriage, three against one has turned into four against one, but no one seems to have left the front line, and they seem to be holding their own. The guy we''re dealing with seems to be controllable as long as it''s just me and Toya, but if someone leaves the front, we''re in trouble. But if someone leaves, it''s going to be a bit of a problem... There''s still the captain Eckert, one of the territorial soldiers, and Mary and the others, but even though there''s no response to the [search enemy], if there''s another team, Ilias is in danger. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Number two, three! "Yes! --Three, two, one, now! Fire Arrow! It may sound like an old saying, but this is the most efficient way to attack a single target. Especially against humans, if you can injure them even a little bit, it will give you an advantage. Pain slows down movement, and even if the enemy has a rare healing magician, there is no way that they can heal him immediately, so if you can get him out of the line of fire even temporarily, it will tip the balance. The three "flaming arrows" are aimed at the enemy that Natsuki is fighting. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. What I really want is for me to be able to leave the enemy in Toya''s hands, even if only temporarily. With Natsuki in the way, I ducked one of Haruka and Yuki''s flaming arrows and cut off another. My "flaming arrows" are coming at the enemy at a different speed. The man tried to deal with them as well, but it was too much for him to do so while fighting Natsuki. He managed to twist around, but the "flaming arrow" pierced the base of his left leg, and from there the rest of his leg was torn off. In the event you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "...... Whoa! I couldn''t help but let out a squeal. It is not bleeding as much as it should be because of the burned out state, but it is still bleeding enough to make you want to call it a bloodbath. But still, it was bleeding so much that I wanted to say "spilling. In other words, it is a ''fire arrow'' with the power to blow off the head of an orc. I''m not sure what to make of that. But if you lose one leg and give up your weapon, you won''t be able to fight Natsuki. --I''m sorry. I''m not sure if it was a bad thing or a good thing that I thought that. The man who had been fighting Toya made a quick decision. The man who had been fighting Toya made a quick decision. He pushed Toya back to create distance, then took out a whistle from his pocket and blew it. from his pocket. At the same time, he began to run, and together with the man who had also left, the man whom Haruka and the others had been dealing with, he took both arms of the man who had lost his legs and carried him up and retreated into the forest. At the same time, the men who had been fighting at the back of the carriage also disappeared into the forest as soon as they heard the sound of the whistle. If I had wanted to, I could have used magic to drive them back, but ...... to be honest, I was upset by the strength they showed, which was more than I had imagined. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. There''s no guarantee that we''ll be safe. Besides, our goal is not to destroy the enemy, but to protect Master Ilias. Just getting rid of them is enough to fulfill our role. There is no reason to take a risk. Haaaa ....... Good work. Are you hurt? I exhaled loudly and called out to Toya, who also exhaled and wiped the sweat from her forehead. I managed. To be honest, it was pretty bad,......, but it seemed like they were fighting with a certain margin of safety. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s not as if he was going to die by any means. If he had come at me with abandon, I think I would have been in a lot of danger, and I would have been saved. "But instead, you let him escape. I don''t mind that. This job is not to defeat bandits. You didn''t look like a bandit in the first place. --How about you, Eckhart? You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. No big deal here either. Four against one, which is a bit pathetic. We''re holding the wagon. That''s good. I could see Master Iliad''s face peering out of the window of the carriage, as if the battle had settled down, but there was not a single wound on the carriage. "Is anyone injured?¡¡Are there any? "Just a couple of minor cuts. Not enough to interfere with combat. No. But we''ll get you fixed up. Oh, yeah?¡¡Sorry. Hey. What?¡¡Thank you, sir! Eckart called out to Haruka''s offer, and the two men stepped forward and saluted. The two men stepped forward and saluted. "That''s about right. Light Cure. The wound closes easily and the bleeding stops. "Thank you very much! I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of people who''ll be able to help you out. Even if it is made of white iron instead of attribute steel, it can cost as much as a car if not more. Incidentally, the rather stiff attitude of the territorial soldiers toward us is probably not unrelated to the fact that we were acting like instructors during the five days of training. In peacetime, we talk to each other quite normally, but now we may be more conscious of the fact that we are on duty. Oh, by the way, there was also a guy who cut down the Fire Arrow. ...... That''s right. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out that he had a weapon with more than just attribute steel. I picked up the sword you dropped. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life. Toya takes it and stares at it. "This is ...... fire steel. Obviously, it''s not worthy of a mere bandit. "And the action. In the end, he drew back vividly, without even saying a word. ...... What do you think, Eckert? "What do you think, Eckert?" "Give me the money! I''m not sure what to say. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. If he was a bandit, he was probably a very well-trained bandit, and his name was probably well known. To be honest, if I were to encounter bandits of that level, I wouldn''t have the confidence to continue being an adventurer, and I would be too afraid to leave the city. That''s why I asked Eckart to talk about it, but he shook his head in annoyance. Sorry, that''s not my area of expertise. Master Ilias, may I? "Yes. May I leave? There is no hostile response, at least not that I can detect. As soon as I answered that, Arin and Keturah came out of the carriage, followed by Master Ilias, Mary and Mitya. "Hmm. I didn''t think we''d be attacked by bandits. It''s not a place where many merchants go. ....... It''s a shame for our territory. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. In fact, there is not much traffic, as the carriage could not pass through without us repairing the hole. So it was a bit puzzling that there were ordinary bandits waiting for us here. As we explained our suspicions, Ilias, Arlin and Ketola looked serious and pondered. 268-240 Encounter (2) "First of all, it''s unlikely that a mere bandit would attack this carriage. There are ten soldiers and five adventurer guards. You would have to be a fool to attack such an opponent with only five men. After a moment of silence, Arlin said. Ekhart was the one in charge of the armed forces in this group, but she would be the one in charge of the entire group. Of course, the nominal head of the group was Master Iliad, but she was too young to be in charge. Of course, Viscount Nenus understands this, so he has assigned her as his trusted subordinate. But there was a group that actually attacked us. "Yes. To be honest, it''s baffling. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m not sure what to make of that. In addition, the Viscount himself, but not the Iliad ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. If you''re not emotional about it, even if Ilias were to be killed, it wouldn''t be that painful for Viscount Nenus. We have an heir, and there will be no turmoil in the territory even if the Iliad is gone. Of course, Viscount Nenus will be furious, but he is a little lacking in character to attack for profit. "Hmm, maybe that''s exactly what he wanted? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to get the best out of me. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. I''m sure you''ve heard of the Kergu uprising, right?¡¡I''m sure there were some noblemen and big merchants who were crushed. In the event that you''ve got any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. I''m sure we''ve destroyed a few noble families in the name of ....... But ......, no. The odds of that are still low. They were ruined by pouring money into religion. There is no way they can afford to hire someone as skilled as Toya and his team. ...... in the usual way. That''s right, it''s a religion. There are other means besides money. ...... "So Viscountess Nenus has crushed the Order of Saint Satomi and captured the guru. ...... As fate would have it, we are the ones who actually caught her, but her custody is probably in the hands of Viscountess Nenus. I''m not asking what happened to him after that, including whether he''s alive or dead, because I don''t think that''s very pleasant. ....... It''s also possible that he was after the Iliad itself. "Me, sir? "Enough to offer Viscount Nenus a deal. For example, an exchange of custody. For example, an exchange of custody. - You could say that you want me to release Satomi in exchange for releasing Master Ilias. However, in that case, there is the problem of whether there will be a place to escape to after the release. In the case of Earth, terrorists would be accepted by delinquent nations, but the reason why the Order of the Saints of Satomi was crushed is because of the reason. Not to mention the surrounding lords, even other countries seem to be very strict. By the way, what happened to Saint Satomi? Oi, Toya, do you want to ask that? I didn''t even dare to ask! No, I''m ....... I''m sorry. I''m sorry," Ilias said, slurring his words as if he really didn''t know, while Arin shook his head firmly. I know, right? I''m afraid that if you''re just an adventurer and you''re blabbing about these things, that''s more scary. I''m afraid that if I''m no longer needed, they''ll simply delete me. But even if I were to be caught, I don''t think your father would agree to such a deal. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it for a lot of things. The Viscount is rightly a nobleman. His family is important to him, but he can''t get his priorities wrong. It''s necessary, and it''s reassuring information for the people who live there. ....... It''s not easy being a nobleman after all. I''m sure you''re right," Mitya murmured. This time, the Iliad did not deny it, and only smiled in annoyance. If a person in power is trying to do their job properly, they will definitely get sick from stress. ....... I''m not sure I''d want to do it, at least not if I had a good assistant or someone who could cut corners. At least I don''t want to do it. I think the best position to be in is to get along with the powers that be and give them a little support now and then. But the people who attacked us weren''t fanatics, were they?¡¡They were pretty calm. ...... I''m sure you''ll agree with me. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Trained from an early age, something like that. But the Order of the Sutomie Saints doesn''t have a history. What do you think? I''m not sure what to make of it. It is possible that it is another matter, although it is impossible to determine with the current information. In some cases, the house itself may not have been the target. ...... What about it? ...... No, not at this time. I''m sorry. Oh, no. ...... Mr. Arlin bowed his head and did not say anything definite. But even if I had an idea of what it was, I wouldn''t feel comfortable saying it. For now, let''s get rid of that thing and move on. I don''t think there will be another attack on ....... I think we''re safe, at least for the group that just came in. ...... I think the probability of an attack without one of us is low, but we can''t be too careful because we don''t know the group. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the future. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó The further along the road we went, the worse the condition of the road became, but since we were already in Baron Diaz''s territory, we hurried on without making any repairs. Because of the attack, we put more effort into guarding the camp that day than usual, but in the end we came up empty. We were only attacked by a few demons, and we arrived safely the next morning. And the fourth day. By noon, we had finished descending the mountain and had reached the plains where we could see the town, but what we saw of Mijara was a little different from what we had imagined. "Is that a ...... slum? At the end of the road, around the gates of Mijara, outside the barrier wall, there was a messy line of buildings that even the word "barracks" seemed to be a better description. They were just lined up in a jumbled and orderly fashion, and there was not even a fence around them. "Is it safe for demons to build a slum in a place like this? "I don''t think so. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea," I muttered, to which Eckert, who was walking beside me, responded. "...... You mean? The lucky ones will be saved. That''s it. I''m not sure if it''s possible to get inside the wall, but I''m not sure if it''s possible. If you don''t have an adventurer''s guild card, you''ll be taxed every time you pass through the gates, so what about the inhabitants of this slum? The guild card is relatively easy to acquire, but if you don''t do your job properly, it will be confiscated. Of course, it''s not just luck, you know.¡¡What do you notice when you observe? Eckart said, and I looked at the approaching slum. The first thing I notice are the buildings. The buildings around the gate can be called "buildings", but the further away from the gate they get, the worse they get, and the perimeter is so bad that it''s ridiculous to even call it a building. Some of them have nothing but pillars and roofs, or even no roofs at all, and are simply boards set up in a gate-shaped frame. If I''m not careful, I might as well have seen an orc''s nest before. The buildings around the perimeter are pretty shabby, aren''t they?¡¡It''s pretty shabby too. Eckert nodded, but urged him to go on. What else? Other than the building, I mean, the people. Perhaps it was because it was a slum, but all you could see were dirty, lifeless people. They range in age from small children to old people. There are people of both s*xes, but men are more numerous. As a whole, they look unhealthy and many of them are injured. Some of them are missing arms or legs, and some of them are so badly decomposed that they are attracting flies. In general, it''s in a pretty bad state, but as far as the periphery is concerned. Are there a lot of old people?¡¡Then there are children and unhealthy-looking ...... people. That''s what I''m talking about. That''s what I''m talking about. ...... Get the slow ones out of here. ......? Maybe it''s bait, huh?¡¡To stop them. If you look closely, even the bodies look abandoned. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. ...... No, there''s nothing to be done. You know the answer to that. You can''t help it if you feel sorry for it.¡¡That''s what this place is for. "...... Oh. ......Oh. But Eckhart is not happy about it. His expression is bitter. Through the slums, our carriage made its way to the gate. The smell of death? I can''t put my finger on it, but it''s a nasty smell. The slum dwellers look at us from a distance, but show no sign of approaching. Maybe it''s because we''re surrounded by noblemen''s carriages, or maybe it''s because all the territorial soldiers have their hands on their hip weapons. In terms of threat level, the ones who attacked us yesterday were probably much higher, but there was a more unpleasant tension in the air. In the midst of all this, a child stumbled out from the shadows of a nearby barbershop and collapsed on the roadside a few steps ahead of us. 269-241 Encounter (3) I almost stopped, but Eckert poked me in the back. "Hey, don''t stop, okay?¡¡If you show any sympathy, they''ll come after you. No, no, no. No, no, no, no, no. They''re the kind of people who''ll cut off a child''s limbs for a few coins. Eckert said with a pained expression as if to spit, but it was true that the left arm of the fallen child was missing from the middle. I thought that the reason why there are so many missing parts among the inhabitants of this place was because they were attacked by demons, but I wonder if that is actually the case. It is possible that they are wounded soldiers, but they are ...... children. It''s disgusting. If it''s a merchant''s carriage, they''ll throw you in front of the horses without a second thought, even if you''re a child. You don''t jump in front of a nobleman''s carriage because he''ll cut you off without question. If you''re a merchant, it''s okay if a child gets run over, as long as the carriage stops. They will stop and ask for charity, and in some cases take it. That seems to be the way of the place. Nao, what do we do? Guarding the Iliad. "Yes. Haruka didn''t say anything more, but she was trying to tell him not to lose sight of that. When she looked at Toya, she saw that he was holding her hand with his mouth in a tight line. I hadn''t seen this kind of slum in any of the cities I had visited so far, Rafan, Sarstad, Kergu, or Pinning. Or is there some other factor at play here? We reached the gates and entered the city with a sense of disappointment, but the immediate area was only slightly better than the slums outside. The sanitary conditions were just as bad, and the air was even more stagnant and smelled nauseating than before, probably because the walls made it difficult for air to pass through. What the hell is this town? ...... The area around the gate on the north side is like this. The area around the inn is completely different, so just hang in there. The town is adjacent to Pining, so they must have been here before. Eckert and the other Territorial Guard looked annoyed, but not surprised. They seemed to have decided on the inn they were going to, and as Eckart led the way, they could see the town becoming more and more beautiful. That''s where we''ll be staying today. Eckart then pointed to a large stone building standing by the river. At this point, the surrounding buildings were in about the same condition as the better areas of Pining. "There''s too much difference in the same city. ...... Eckert shrugged at my exasperated remark. That''s what makes it special. --"Master Ilias, we''ve arrived. The door of the carriage opens and Arline and the other maids of honor step out, followed by Master Ilias. Thank you for your help. "No, thank you, Master Ilias. Ilias called out to the guards and went into the inn, followed by Eckart and five others. The rest of the guards moved their wagons toward the stables, and we went into the inn with Mary and the others who had come down last. The innkeeper appeared and led us to our room. We were assigned a room for the whole party. There were about six beds crammed into the room at rather narrow intervals, as if the room was attached to the guest room, but the room was reasonably spacious, so it didn''t feel cramped. Naturally, the main guest room was occupied by Master Ilias and his attendants, and the soldiers seemed to be using the two surrounding rooms as we were. However, Haruka and Natsuki are supposed to go to Master Ilias''s room as guards when he goes to bed. We don''t have to stay awake in the city, but it''s a precaution. Huh. ...... I didn''t know there was a town like this. "Oh. It''s a nice place, isn''t it, Raffan? When we were alone in the room, I couldn''t help but let out a few words, to which Toya responded with a sincere smile. It''s a hell of a town, isn''t it? Yes, it is. I guess it''s intentional. The town of Mijara is located downstream from Sarstad, and is a river port town built beside a large river. Like Sarstad, the town is built across the river. Even though it is a port, there is not much fishing going on, and it is said that the main role of the port is to collect goods brought from the towns of Pining to the northwest and Django to the northeast, and transport them to the territorial capital of Crevilly downstream. The road from Pining to Mijara crosses the river and leads to Crevilly, but since there is no bridge there, ferrying is also an important task. However, as you can see from the condition of the road, there is little trade between Pining and Mijara at present, and most of the goods are brought from Django. The goods from Pining will be gathered in the towns on the west side of the river, and the goods from Django will be gathered in the towns on the east side of the river, and the towns on the east side will inevitably be more developed. ....... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. The closer you get to the river, the smoother and more beautiful the surroundings become. And if you look across the river from your room, you can see a beautiful cityscape that cannot be compared to this one. Compared to here, the tumultuous Kerg looks like a town without any problems. I look at the other side of the window, the side where the slum used to be, but of course I can''t see anything on the wall. "Nao, don''t tell me you''re going to help the kids in the slum, okay? "No, I won''t. And ...... we''ve already talked about that, haven''t we?¡¡Hey, Toya. Okay. Mary and Mitya, that''s what we''re made of. Yeah. ...... This place is worse than I thought. Yeah. There''s a difference between what you know and what you see in ...... real life, isn''t there? In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it for a lot of things. And that since we can''t help them, we need to abandon them. If it weren''t for them, the shock I received in this town would have been much greater. We''re so lucky. We''re lucky to have been picked up by Haruka and the others. "Well, to be honest, I wasn''t sure if I wanted to help Mary and the others. Well, to be honest, I wasn''t sure whether to help Mary and the others or not, but I think it was Toya''s decision. I think that''s natural. In fact, no one from the town was willing to help us, and a badly injured child is just a distraction. That''s normal. In this world, from our point of view, children are treated very poorly. For example, a farmer. The eldest son, who inherits the farmland, is raised carefully, and the second son is treated reasonably well as a backup. But after that, they are left with nothing. There is no land for them to inherit and no work for them. It''s not so bad if they''re given some money and taken out of the house, but if they''re thrown out naked, or if life becomes difficult, the children are cut off. Such things are common. If there was slavery, people could be sold into slavery, but in this country there is no slavery, and children are not worth money. In this case, it is difficult to judge whether the lack of slavery is a good thing or a bad thing. Because of such treatment, it is unlikely that a stranger - or even a person who is somewhat close to a stranger - would be able to pay tens or hundreds of gold coins for medical treatment in order to save a seriously injured child. It is not a kind world where women and children are protected because they are women and children. A father protects a child and dies in its place. It may sound like a good story, but in reality, he loses his mainstay, and the remaining children die of hunger. Abandoning a single child is the right thing to do. Such is still the state of society. The rest was Kerg, right? If I''d seen Mary and the others in this town, I wouldn''t have done anything. "That many people. There''s nothing we can do about it. ...... It''s too much. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I don''t think a little bit of money is going to help, but maybe we should donate a little more to the temple? I think that would be best avoided. Mr. Arryn: ...... We were interrupted by Mr. Arryn, who suddenly opened the door and walked in. I''m sorry, sir. I''m sorry I came in without permission. I overheard something that caught my attention. No, that''s all right, but ...... why? I''m sure you''ve all been distressed by the sight of the slums. ...... Yes. It''s not advisable to intervene, even half-heartedly. You may have heard that Baron D¨ªaz is much wealthier than our family, and then there''s this. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website to see if you can find anything that might help you. You can''t or won''t be able to get by with a little money? "The latter. In fact, there is no orphanage in the temple in this town. Aren''t they usually attached to each other? No, sir. The temple is independent as a pretext, but it''s almost impossible to run an orphanage without subsidies from the lord. It''s the lord''s policy to do so. If a single adventurer does anything to interfere with that, he will be noticed. In addition, if they are the guards of Viscount Nenus, they will cause trouble for the Viscount''s family. That seems to be the case. "Here, I''m intentionally making a difference to the people. And we''re showing it. Do you know that?¡¡There are no slums in Crevilly, you know?¡¡All those who don''t have money are thrown out. Taxes here in Barony of Dyas are much higher than in Viscount Nenus and other areas. This is one of the reasons why Baron Diaz is so wealthy, but the high tax rate inevitably increases the number of people who cannot pay. When this happens, his fields and stores are confiscated without mercy, and he gradually falls into decline. And the end result is slums. The final destination seems to be outside the gate we came through. The people are desperate to be shown this. They don''t want to be like that. I hear the tax revenue is good because of it. ...... The use of the class system to deflect or tighten up dissatisfaction is a common practice, but when you see it in action, you''ll see that ....... The temple also provides soup kitchens and some subsidies for them,......, but it''s more to keep them alive on the edge than to help them. I''m sure it''s hard for Arline, who belongs to the Viscountess Nenus family, to accept. I''m not sure what to say. It''s a tricky business for the aristocracy as well, because even with such a partner, they go out to celebrate with a smile and an expensive gift. Isn''t that a problem? "No, it doesn''t. It is the authority of the lord to decide the amount of tax. It is against the law of the land to enslave people because they cannot pay taxes, but it is a legitimate right to confiscate their fields. Even the king can''t violate it. "Even the nobles can''t solve this problem, or even the king. There''s nothing we can do about it. Toya let out a heavy breath, looked up, and shrugged. Strictly speaking, the king could do something if he exercised his power, but it would be difficult. He doesn''t have the power to easily crush the nobility of his domain. Arlin said, adding, "That''s why the Viscountess Nenus is still here, though. You know. The dungeon we''re exploring, there''s a scandal about it. Since the title is not confiscated, and the head of the family is only changed, and the younger brother is allowed to become the head, you can imagine the power relations in this country. Therefore, I am sorry, but you must be patient even if you are dissatisfied. If something happens, our family cannot protect you. Unless, of course, it''s something unreasonable and against national law. "I understand. I''ll keep that in mind. Everyone, including Mr. Arryn, has the same unsettling feeling. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, then you''re going to want to take a look at this particular website. 270-242 Cleverly (1) "By the way, Arlin-san, is there something you wanted to see me about? Yuki claps her hands to change her darkened mind and asks in a slightly cheerful voice. What?¡¡Oh, that''s right. I''m here to talk about our plans. Meals are prepared in each room. Haruka and Natsuki can wait in Ilias-sama''s room during their free time. Mary and Mitya are free to come and go as they please. I understand. I understand! Tomorrow morning we''ll cross the river and leave for Crevilly. We''ll cross the river tomorrow morning and head for Crevilly. It''ll be less dangerous, but we''ll still need your help. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó The next morning, we left the inn, safely crossed the river, and headed east on the road to Crevilly. The traffic between Mijara and Crevilly seems to be mainly transported by ship, but the roads are well maintained and the travel speed is faster than between Pining and Mijara. No bandits or demons appeared, and we passed through the gates of Crevilly on the third day as planned. We settled into the inn where we would be staying for the next few days, and the town of Crevilly was as beautiful as Arlin had told us it would be. There were no slums or anything like that, and there were no places that looked a little unsafe, like the area where we live in Laffan. At best, it''s a very neat and developed city. However, after seeing the slums of Mijara, the beautiful streets seem even more ugly. Of course, there''s nothing we can do about it, so we''ll just have to live with it. At any rate, we''ve finished half of our work. The plan is to stay five days and then return, right? Yes. We''ll have a wedding in four days, prepare for our return the next day, and leave the city on the morning of the sixth day. So we''re free until then. Do you want to go into town for a change? Yeah. Well, we''ve come to the right town. ...... There was nothing productive to be done in the room, and I wasn''t feeling too good. We accepted Toya''s suggestion and split up to go for a walk around the city. So we took a look around Crevilly. ....... Baron D¨ªaz''s treatment of his people is something that raises some eyebrows, but it seems that he is not simply a villainous lord or an incompetent one. Putting aside what''s going on behind his back, the town of Crevilly is generally safe, clean, and prosperous. It is safe enough for a woman to walk alone in the streets even after dark, and it is easy to do business, attracting many merchants. It is not an easy to understand villainous lord who exploits his people and only his lord gets fat, so there is no resentment from the whole town. If you compare Pining and Crevilly, Crevilly is certainly more developed. There is no doubt about that. There is no doubt about it, but ....... It''s not as simple as the king switching lords, is it? Yes, ...... it would be nice if there was a happy ending after the evil lord was defeated. A pair of me and Yuki are walking around the town. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea or not. It would be easier if there was an infinite supply of money ....... It would just cause inflation and chaos. "The people who have the money will be fine, but the people around them will be destroyed and there will be war. "I don''t agree with it, but in a way, it''s working. "If you don''t think of your people as people, then maybe you''re right.¡¡I heard it was like that in the Warring States period in Japan. It''s like, ''It''ll just increase. There are no human rights. "Even if you say that human rights are innate, if you don''t have the power to guarantee them, they are meaningless. In the end, human rights are not universal, but rather a social contract. ....... I came out here to change my mind, but now I''m talking dark again. Let''s just forget about the things we can''t think about and have fun!¡¡It''s not often that Nao and I walk together. You''re right. Is there somewhere you want to go?¡¡--I don''t know. In addition to us, Toya, Natsuki, Haruka, Mary, and Mitya were paired up and decided to go for a walk. After we left the inn, we all started walking in different directions, but we didn''t have any intention to go in the direction we chose. "Hmm... Anyway, let''s have lunch, shall we? Well... This time, Toya''s nose is not there. ...... The town seems to have a lot of commerce, and there is no shortage of places to eat. There are a number of stores lining both sides of the street we are walking on, but there are no food stalls, which is strange. I don''t care where we go.¡¡Just go with your instincts! "If you say so, it seems like a big responsibility. ...... Then we''ll go there. It''s not my gut feeling, but the hawk''s eyes caught a vaguely tasty-looking dish that the waitress was carrying. I pointed to the restaurant that served it. "Over there?¡¡Yeah. It seems to be doing reasonably well, so it''s good, right?¡¡Let''s go in then! I followed Yuki, who was walking lightly ahead of me, and entered the restaurant myself. As soon as I did, I could smell the delicious aroma. This might be a hit. Welcome. You''re new here, aren''t you?¡¡We specialize in otalka. Do you mind? As soon as we walked in, the woman who approached us was a typical diner lady, a little ......, well, a lot plumper. Wiping sweat off my face, I twisted my head around at the unfamiliar name of the dish and pointed to a nearby table where a customer was eating. "Otarka is that, isn''t it?¡¡What kind of dish is it? "It''s a dish of sliced oak and potatoes tossed in a sauce and then baked. It''s delicious, you should try it! She''s right, it does look delicious up close. I looked at Yuki and she nodded with a smile, so I gave her my approval and took a seat. As I looked around the restaurant, I noticed that there were only three kinds of sauces on the menu. "Let''s see, tomatoes, cheese, salt or ......?¡¡Tomatoes! Nao, there''s tomatoes, tomatoes! Oh, yeah. Tomatoes. Yeah. Fresh, huh? When I was looking at the customer''s order, I was sure I saw something red, but I didn''t know it was a tomato. Dried tomatoes are also available in Rafale, but they are a bit expensive and not very common, so I have never seen them in restaurants. It''s possible that we just don''t know about it, since we don''t use restaurants very often. "I think tomato and cheese sounds the best, but you''re the only one, aren''t you? "Sure, tomato base with cheese sounds good, but you said it''s a sauce, isn''t it more like a white sauce? In that case, the mixture would be a little delicate. In that case, if you mix it, it might be a little delicate, like a slightly mild tomato hash rice, which might be good. I see. That''s not exactly what I had in mind, is it? Yuki shakes her head, a little disappointed. I''m going to go with the ...... tomatoes here.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. The difference is suspicious. If it''s not at least as good, it''ll fall out of the regular category. In other words, is salt as good as the name implies ......? Hmm, that''s quite confusing. Have you decided what you want? Oh, here comes the lady. I felt a little rushed, but that''s normal in this world. But it''s normal in this world. You''re not allowed to occupy your seat leisurely. "Oh, can I have the tomato sauce as the base, with a little cheese on top? "Yes?¡¡That''s fine, but I don''t care if it doesn''t taste good, okay? The lady easily accepts my question, but gives me a strange look. There''s a chance it won''t taste like what I imagine it to taste like, so there''s no chance it will taste bad. But I think we should give it a try. "Yes. I don''t mind. If you can do it. "Well, then, I''ll do that too. I nodded, and Yuki followed suit, looking a little flustered. He''s a challenger too. "Okay. What size do you want? "Size? You can choose between large, medium and small. Usually medium. That size. I looked in the direction she was pointing and saw a waitress carrying a bowl of otalka. It''s huge! The size of the bowl was about five centimeters deep. The diameter is about ...... 25 centimeters. It''s not all the way to the edge of the bowl, but if it''s a hunk of potato and meat, it''s a bit inedible. It''s like eating two or three medium size pizzas by yourself. "......, small, please. "Oh, I''ll have a ....... Really?¡¡I''m sure the elves are small eaters. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... No, it has nothing to do with elves. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were you. It''s like, "What''s normal? Do you think people around here are big eaters? No, I don''t know. ...... Some people seem to share their food. Probably a ''large'' Otarka. There are tables where several people are sharing a meal that is so large that the waitress has trouble carrying it by herself, which is about 40 centimeters in diameter. As expected, no one would eat it alone. Besides, you didn''t have to make them the same, did you? I mean, it looks so good, right? You said it might not taste good.¡¡You said it might not taste good. Specifically, I wanted to try the salt. If Yuki had any doubts, I would have suggested it to her, but she had already made up her mind, so unfortunately I couldn''t tell her. I couldn''t tell her. It''s like we''re a couple if we share one dish. "No, we''re not a couple. No, we''re not a couple." Yuki smiled mischievously, but I firmly denied her words. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do. If it was with Haruka, I wouldn''t mind too much. You''re so boring. It''s okay.¡¡You don''t have to limit yourself to just Haruka. Not in this world. Me and Haruka are separate... No, don''t worry about that. I know you''re sure. No need to get into trouble. No bullshit! It''s just a question of when to cross the line, right?¡¡When we were in Japan, I thought Toya might have a chance, but it doesn''t look like it. Ugu...... yeah, well, ...... I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if Toya was aware of Haruka''s feelings or not, but it seems like there was a subtle line between the two. I don''t mean to tell you that you should cross the line as soon as possible, okay?¡¡It''s more like a plan.¡¡I don''t want Haruka to go on maternity leave. Don''t be so blunt, ....... If I had a contraceptive, I''d be pushing back. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. What do you mean, "...... is easy to do? What?¡¡The approach to Nao? You''re being too blunt!¡¡I''m not going to marry anyone but Haruka! "What are you talking about? I''m not sure what you''re talking about. I''m not going to marry anyone but Haruka! I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. You can''t deny that you want to do it. What''s more, you like it ......? I''m sure you''re not the only one. What?¡¡What''s wrong with that? No, but reality is important too. I''m willing to compromise on some things if it means living a safe, wealthy and peaceful life. ...... Why compromise to get married? Is it just me, or is there no need to get married if you have to compromise? "As long as you have love, even if you''re poor, that''s nonsense. As long as you have money, you can tolerate a little less love, right?¡¡If there''s a benefit to marriage. If there''s a benefit to marriage, why get married at all? ...... It''s important.¡¡"It''s important. Family is, after all, the smallest social unit. A group pursuing mutual benefit based on an implicit and explicit contract. If there is no "interest", there can be no contract, and the ritual of marriage is a form of showing that contract to a third party. --I like you just fine. "Hmm?¡¡You''re talking about something complicated, but what do you mean? It''s hard to live alone in Japan, let alone here!¡¡It''s hard to live here alone! You should belong to a group where you can make money safely! I understand. When you say that, it makes me think that Yuki is not wrong. I understand, but I don''t want to get married because of it. 271-243 Cleverly (2) Aiyo!¡¡Hey, guys! Whoa!¡¡Here it comes! Fortunately, she brought the otalka, and I threw the subject on the shelf. Yuki looked a little unhappy with me, but when she saw the otalka on the table, she rolled her eyes in surprise. "Wow, it''s really sizzling! "Oh, that smells delicious. ...... "Oh, it smells delicious. The red liquid making a gurgling sound in the bowl and the white sauce dripping on top of it. At first glance, it looked spicy, but from the smell, it was definitely tomatoes. And it was probably fresh tomatoes. There are chopped fruits floating around. And that distinctive smell that hits your nose is garlic! Garlic on a date. If we were a couple just starting out, this would be an unlikely combination, but Yuki and I aren''t close enough to worry about that, and we''re not even dating. So I''m just happy to smell this violent scent that stimulates my appetite. When I glanced at Yuki, her eyes were sparkling and she was quickly picking up a spoon. "It''s hot, so eat with care! She smiled happily at us and left the table with a warning. Catching it out of the corner of my eye, I also picked up a spoon and dipped it into the bowl. "Wow, I thought it would be heavier, but it''s more like a stew, isn''t it? "Yes. When I first heard about it, I thought it would be like a potato and bacon sandwich with sauce on top. I thought it would be a bowl filled with potatoes and meat, but it wasn''t. It was more like a tomato-flavored pork stew. I was told that there were potatoes in the stew, but not much of them remained, and the sauce was a little sloppy, as if they had melted. As for the shredded meat, there were only a spoonful or two of it, not a whole lot. I see. I see. I could have eaten a medium sized portion with this. "Right. But this is enough for me. "The more potatoes that melt, the more likely they are to get stuck in your stomach. Which is ....... Take a spoonful. The first thing that hits you is the smell of garlic. Then the sourness of tomatoes and a hint of sweetness. There''s a slight green tinge to it, but I guess the garlic is there to mask it. The meat was well seasoned beforehand, so it was not at all bland. Well, the meat is cooked separately and added later. If you cook the meat with the sauce and potatoes, it will become dry and lose its flavor. The sauce itself is pretty good too, right? Yes. The tomatoes, the sweetness of the onions, the saltiness, the bay leafy stuff, the rosemary stuff.¡¡And the garlic. It''s exquisite. That''s the man with the cooking skills. You''re more precise than I am. "Mix them together, put them in a bowl, and bake them in the oven. You can serve it hot to the guests and not overcook it like a big pot. It costs a lot of money for fuel, but if you only serve otalka and you get this many customers, you''ll do well. It''s well thought out. "The cheese part''s good, too.¡¡It''s not very cheesy. It''s like fresh cheese, it''s almost like cream stew, but it''s good enough. However, I''m not sure how well tomatoes and cheese go together, so if I ever have it again, I''ll order it by itself. With these thoughts in mind, Yuki and I continued to eat without stopping, and we finished the entire dish in one sitting. At first, I thought it was a little bit too little, but the potatoes were used more than I expected, and it filled me up more than I expected, and I felt very satisfied. I have to say, I''m impressed!¡¡I''m wondering if the food here is particularly good, or if it''s just normal food at this level. "Yeah. I can''t eat here anymore, though. Neither can I. I don''t think I can eat anymore.¡¡--Well, let''s get out of here. We couldn''t occupy the table for too long in such a crowded restaurant, so we got up as soon as we finished eating, thanked the lady, and left the restaurant. The total bill for the two of us was three large silver coins. The price of lunch at Aella''s restaurant was one large silver coin, so it was 1.5 times the price. Considering the number of items, ....... It''s a bit expensive, isn''t it?¡¡Considering that we ate a ''small'' meal. Oh, I see. The regular size is ....... Two large silver coins. That''s a bit expensive for lunch. Yeah. It''s hard to make a simple comparison, but ...... pinning was pretty expensive too, right? Yeah, I guess so. If you just compare the taste, the Otarka here is much better. I think there''s a difference in distribution, though. If the food I just ate was offered at the same price in Laffan, it would be quite cheap. But that''s because it doesn''t take into account the availability of the ingredients. Fresh tomatoes, which are hard to find in Laffan, may be easy to find here. In this light, it is difficult to compare prices. Services are a little easier to compare, but the same service is also difficult to compare. Well, if you walk around, you''ll see a lot, I guess. Let''s go! We should be back at the inn by dinner. We should be back at the inn by dinner time." Yuki took my hand and we followed her to look around the stores. My impression was that there were many stores. Not only restaurants, but also many other stores selling goods lined the sides of the streets. In places like Laffan, even along the main street, there are some stores that are not stores, but here, there are basically all stores. There are some stores that don''t look like they are open for business, but they are built as stores, not houses. And since there are boulevards other than the one we walked on, we can say that Crevilly is a complete commercial city. At least, we didn''t see any fields around the gate where we entered, so all the food must have been brought in from elsewhere. In addition to the river that runs from Mijara, there is also a river that flows from the north, and a river that flows from the northwest a little to the east, making it quite advantageous in terms of water transportation. Oh!¡¡Nao, over there. There''s an alchemy store. Can I come in? I don''t mind. I''m just curious. Oh, you''ve never been in one before, have you?¡¡I don''t think I can live up to your expectations. I followed Yuki into the store with a wry smile on my face. ...... This was a bit of a disappointment. I was expecting to see a lot of weird stuff in there. But in fact, there is nothing suspicious about it, it''s just an ordinary store. The only thing that caught my attention was a pair of tusks as big as I was tall, and a pair of black furs about the size of two tatami mats hanging on the wall. Instead of suspicious items, there were a lot of wooden boards hanging on the wall. "Sugasta of Shaverstar"?¡¡"Scales of Dradocerus?¡¡"Melphiria powder?" I don''t even know what they are. "Most of it''s not in the stores, you know. They''re too expensive. "Anti-theft. "It''s too expensive." "Anti-theft?" "It''s the same in bookstores, but I guess you can''t trust customers that much. Oh, but expensive things are similar in Japan. Some are just empty boxes, some are cards with the name of the product written on them, and some are in the show window so that you can''t pick them up. If you think of a book as a product that costs over 100,000 yen, it may be natural that you cannot pick it up. However, I was a little disappointed because I was expecting to see something mysterious. I had no choice but to take a look at the fangs on display. It is a little longer than I am tall, a little curved, but not crooked like ivory. The base is so thick that I can''t even reach it with the fingers of my hands spread out, and it looks like I''d need another hand, so I''d say it''s about ...... Yuki''s waist. That''s pretty thick. I''m not talking about Yuki''s waist, I''m talking about her fangs. I''m not sure if there''s a demon with fangs like this or if it''s just a normal animal. I don''t want to face it. "...... Behemoth fangs?¡¡Are they real? I couldn''t help but let out a few words at the description hanging on the tusk. I don''t know if it''s in the encyclopedia, Behemoth. "It''s real. Ten gold coins for a gram. How cheap is that? The person who answered me, who must have had a quizzical expression on her face, was an old woman who looked like she belonged in an alchemy store. Should I be surprised that the behemoth existed, or should I be surprised at the price of ten one-gram gold coins? That''s a lot more expensive than pure gold. I wonder how much a bottle of this will cost. ....... I don''t think I need it right now. But you have a very nice selection, don''t you? But the selection is very good, isn''t it?" "Ho ho ho, isn''t it?¡¡At least, I''m proud to say it''s the best in Crevilly. The old woman smiled happily at Yuki''s words. The old woman smiles happily at Yuki''s words. She looks like a suspicious alchemist, but her laugh is quite cheerful, and she seems to be easy to talk to. Do they come from all over the place? "Yeah?¡¡No, not really. Very few of the materials are from around here. So it''s not so cheap, is it? Well, it''s not as cheap as where it comes from. But can''t you go to the source and buy them one by one? Yes, I know. Well, I don''t have anything I want to make right now, so I guess I''ll hold off.¡¡I''m going to stay here for a few days, so I might come back and buy something before I leave. "Really?¡¡Well then, I guess it''s no use. I''ll just write down what''s on sale and go home. I''ll just write down what they sell and go home, so I can consider it at the inn. "Oh, suit yourself. While Yuki chatted with the old woman and took notes, I looked around the store, but ...... it wasn''t quite enough. There''s nothing interesting to look at, just some material names and big pelts (apparently this is a part of behemoth fur) that I can''t even tell you what they are. So, I waited for Yuki to finish her work and left the store when she was satisfied. After that, Yuki and I went back and forth to many stores, and we found that there was a wide variety of products in general. And there are several stores of the same kind. In Rafan, for example, there are several blacksmith shops, but there are never more than one in a single street. Except for the furniture workshop, which is a special product of the city, but that is a little different because it is not sold in Laffan, but made to be sold elsewhere. This may be a sign that the business is thriving, but it seems to be quite difficult for the sellers. In fact, some of the stores were deserted, and the ones that were closed were probably the end of such stores. I''m wondering what will happen as a result of this, but there is no doubt that the city as a whole is quite prosperous. ...... As someone who has lived in a free economy and capitalist society, I find it difficult to deny. 272-244 Cleverly (3) When we returned to the inn, it seemed we were the last ones to leave. In the room, each of us was relaxing freely, lying on the bed or sitting on a chair, while Mary and Mitya were eating some kind of apricot candy. Welcome home. The first person to call out to us was Haruka, who was sitting on the bed. The first person to call out to us was Haruka, who was sitting on the bed, with a book in her lap, as if she was bored. I''m back. Am I a little late? No, we''re not that different. Okay. Well, let''s see, ......, did you see anything interesting? There was a big bird! The one who answered my question immediately was Mitya. I was holding a candy apricot in my hand. If you believe Mitya''s words, you''ll be able to see the bird. If you believe Mitya, the size of an ostrich, but that''s just a child''s opinion. I looked at Haruka, who was with me, and she also nodded. It''s bigger than Mitya, and with its wings spread out, it''s bigger than my hands. It''s also ...... huge, isn''t it?¡¡More than a giant eagle? The eagle is said to be over two meters tall with its wings spread.¡¡I''ve never seen one up close, but I''m pretty sure its body size is smaller than a Mietia, and the bird Haruka saw might be even bigger. I heard that if you go to Hokkaido, you can observe a giant eagle. Even eagles, which are not as big as a giant eagle, are quite powerful when seen up close, so a bird the size of a giant eagle flying nearby might be quite scary. The bird is said to be called a ''kuusodori. It is said to be able to carry a cargo the size of a small cardboard box. By the way, it''s a cute bird without the sharpness of a bird of prey. ...... Except for its size. "Wow. It''s like a carrier pigeon. They''re smarter than pigeons, though, and they can get back and forth between two designated points. Oh, so they don''t just go back to the nest. That''s great. A carrier pigeon needs to be carried in a basket one way. By the way, I hear sometimes people drop their bags and have accidents. Watch out!¡¡Can''t you tie a knot or something? Most of the transport routes are uninhabited, so it is unlikely to have an accident where you hit someone by bad luck, but there are occasional accidents where packages are lost and rare accidents where buildings are destroyed. I thought that I should tie the luggage to my feet, but I heard that it would be difficult to take off. Once it takes off, it grabs the cargo and flies away. I don''t think it''s possible to fly on it. "I don''t think even Mitya can do that. I''m sure a baby could grab it and fly. Can''t you just ride a giant bird around the world? It''s a fantasy. I''d love to be able to fly while being buried in fluffy feathers. Yuki and the others chuckled at my hope. I''m sure you''ve heard of them, but I''m not sure if you''ve heard of them.¡¡But flying dragons do exist. We don''t have much to do with them, though. It''s a level that no ordinary nobleman can have. You have to be a member of the national army or one of the country''s great nobility. You can say that it is natural, but even a horse needs a lot of food, and the amount of food that a creature that flies with a human on board would eat would be quite large. Even so, since flying dragons are classified as demons, it is said that the amount of food they eat is small considering their size, but it is meaningless since there is no place to keep them. "Oh, so there''s no chance for us to fly?¡¡I''ve always wanted to fly. "Hmm, can you manage to fly with wind magic?¡¡I can''t land, though. "No! You can''t land, though. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that," he said. You can also use the "Walk on Air" spell, but that''s not quite the same as flying, is it?¡¡It''s just a little walk. According to the grimoire, this is a spell that can be used to cross a small valley or a pit, not a spell that allows you to walk around freely in the sky. It''s not impossible, but you''ll need a lot of magic power to go upward. It''s unrealistic. By the way, there is no one among us who can use it properly yet. You fall at the first step. Aside from the airborne bird, the ...... lunch was delicious. Yeah, me too!¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m not sure what to make of it. The food at the stalls was delicious. The food at the stall was delicious, and there was a wide variety. He bought us candy! We didn''t see any stalls, but in the direction that Haruka and her friends went, there were many stalls lined up in the square there. We didn''t see any stalls, but in the direction we went, there were many stalls lining the square. This already seems to indicate the prosperity of this town. On my side, there were many ingredients for medicines. I bought a lot of stuff that I can''t get in Laffan. "Oh, I agree. I''m an alchemist. I''m thinking of buying it after consulting with Haruka. I found some mithril. I couldn''t get my hands on any, though. "Oh, mithril. They said if I didn''t buy it now, it would be gone, and they''d lend me money if I needed it, but... But I stopped them. It was only the tip of my finger to begin with. Basically, there is no such thing as a weapon made of pure mithril (in terms of price), but apparently mithril as small as the tip of a finger is too small to make a short sword. But the amount of mithril is too small to make a shortsword. "If you think about it, at least 10% should be mixed in. I almost fell for that sales pitch. No, you should''ve known before you were stopped! It''s a good thing I''m not the only one. You can''t afford to spend all your money on a whorehouse. I''m not going to talk about it in front of Haruka and the others out of warrior''s compassion. In general, this town is definitely rich, right? Yes. The competitive society ...... is similar to capitalism in a way. That''s why the food is good, the products are plentiful, and it''s prosperous. The problem is that there is no safety net. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. You can find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life. If you talk to people in the slums, you''ll get the complete opposite impression. ...... It''s easy for able-bodied people to live," he said. It''s hard to say whether the lack of help for the weak is inaction on the part of the government, in this world. It''s impossible for the king to do anything about it. In this world, the king can''t do anything about it, because the territory is definitely growing, and he can''t confiscate the territory because it''s not being governed properly. It would also be difficult for the surrounding territories to accept it. It''s bad to say, but the good people will stay in Baron Diaz''s territory, and the bad people will flow out to the surrounding areas. It''s not easy to accept. It''s like the refugee problem on Earth. If a large number of unproductive people enter the territory, the current residents will be affected. If you still accept them, then you have to ask yourself what kind of a politician you are. "What do you usually do with such ''surplus'' people? In terms of the history of the earth, we ''consume'' them in wars, we send them out to explore recklessly, and so on. ...... From our point of view, we don''t like war, but from the point of view of the people in the slums, maybe war is still better. We can eat, and if we are active, we may have a better future. It''s a shame, but that''s the way it is in reality. I''m not sure what to say. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own web site. This is because the inn doesn''t provide lunch, but it''s not so bad now that I''ve learned that the town''s restaurants are better than I expected. On the other hand, this inn is reserved for the nobility, and the food served there is also expected to be good. I don''t think they''ll serve us, the guards, the same food as Ilias-sama, but I also don''t think they''ll serve us bad food either. We came back to the room and talked for a while about what we had seen and heard. There was a knock on the door of the room and the food was brought in. The inn does not have a dining room, probably to avoid trouble among guests, and all meals are served in the room. This is a very good system, because we don''t have to worry about it at all. There is also a table for everyone to sit at, although it is a little small, so that you can have a proper meal. On the table were white bread, soup, and wine to drink. And-- "The main course is ...... fish, right? "The fish ...... traumatized me ....... Yuki and Natsuki''s expressions tightened. Here at Crevilly, we are located downstream from Saalstad. I''m not sure what to make of that. But it smells good, doesn''t it?¡¡It doesn''t smell like mud. It''s more like a ...... kind of sweet ......? Unlike Toya, my nose can''t detect the sweet smell, but it doesn''t look bad. It''s not bad looking. It was a round fish about 20 centimeters long. It''s not like deep frying, but it''s not battered like frying or tempura. ...... The closest you can get is tatsutaage. I''m sure you''ll agree. If you can''t, there''s food in the magic bag. Yeah, right. Yes. If you''re thinking about lunch, I''m sure ......". We all took our seats and ate. Let''s try the fish. As I cut through the crispy skin of the fish with my knife, I could smell the strange sweet and savory aroma. It''s hard for me to describe it with my limited vocabulary, but if I had to guess, I''d say it''s a little like cinnamon. This one looks a little like ...... hibachi. "...... what''s that? Like me, Natsuki was the first to touch the fish, and the first thing that came out of her mouth was a name she had never heard before. It''s an Okinawan spice. It''s not a major spice, but it has a nice aroma, doesn''t it? It tastes like ......! Natsuki was at a loss for words when she took a piece of fish in her mouth. It''s spicy! The one who raised her voice was Mitya. Mitya panicked and tried to grab a cup from the table, but Haruka, who was sitting next to him, quickly took the cup of wine away from his hand and handed him a glass of water instead. Mitya drank the water immediately, but still stuck out his tongue and exhaled, as if he was still in pain. And I had a mouthful of it at about the same time,......, and it was definitely a little spicy. I didn''t expect it to be spicy from the smell, so I was even more surprised. It''s not hot like chili pepper, but hot like sansho. It tingles. It''s a little unfamiliar, but it''s not bad, is it? Yeah. It''s edible. ...... Or maybe it''s delicious?¡¡It''s spicy, but... You can eat it.¡¡If you can''t, I can get you something else. Yeah, I''ll try that. ...... Is Mary okay? It''s a little painful, but she''s ...... managing. Mary is drinking the water that Haruka has prepared and eating the fish and bread together. She is being eaten, but considering that Mary is still a child, the spiciness might be a little too much for her. The taste isn''t bad, but it''s a bit mismatched with the smell. "I agree. My brain is confused. Well, Hibachi?¡¡Is that hot, too? No, it''s called island pepper, but it''s not that spicy. I don''t know if it''s the same spice that causes the smell and the pungency, though. That''s true. You can even throw cinnamon in with the chili. You can even throw cinnamon in with the chili. It sounds like a disgusting dish, that''s for sure. Cinnamon itself is not sweet, but the image of cinnamon is that of a sweet snack. If it didn''t smell like hibachi, but more like prickly pear, it would be more palatable. "Oh, sansho''s good on fish, isn''t it? I use it for eel. If they sell sansho in this town, I''d like to buy some. It takes eel kabayaki to a whole new level. I wonder if it''s cooked in flour and fried.¡¡It''s not like butter, it''s baked in a different kind of oil with oil on it. "It''s not as tough as meuniere. It''s not as tough as meuniere, and it''s easier to eat because it''s not filleted. Once I knew that the fish was all right, the rest of the meal proceeded easily. The soup was rather light in flavor. The soup was rather light in flavor, and after the oily fish, it was refreshing to drink. The wine was a bit astringent, and I didn''t think it was very good, but I drank all of it (except for the Mitya and Mary). There wasn''t much alcohol in the wine, and no one got drunk, but Haruka, who had drunk all the wine, including Mitya''s, seemed to be a little cheerful, with the tips of her long ears turning a little red, so she might have actually been drunk. 273-245 Cleverly (4) Hey, Nao, wake up. "......? In the early morning of the next day, I was coasting through my sleep when I was jolted awake. It was not a wolf''s ear ...... that was in front of me, but Toya''s face. I''m not going to have a morning workout today. Because of the long travel time and the need to take turns on guard duty, I was somewhat sleep deprived during the escort. For this reason, I had decided not to do any early morning training while I was staying at the inn, but to wake up freely. Haruka and Natsuki, who usually wake up before me, were still in bed. Looking at the window, the sun has already risen, but the angle of the window shows that it''s definitely early in the morning. I''m sure it''s early in the morning. "How can you wake up so early at a time like this, Toya? ...... If you don''t get enough sleep, your performance will suffer. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. But Toya didn''t seem to care about my behavior, and pulled the covers over me. "No, it''s important, what is it? Rice?¡¡I found something that looks like rice. Seriously? That''s it. I immediately jumped at Toya''s serious statement, and my voice got louder. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. And of course you''ve secured them, haven''t you? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience.¡¡I''m not buying it. I''m not buying it.¡¡What if it sells out? I''m sure you''re not worried about that. There were a lot of them, and they usually come in stock. ...... Come on. Yeah, sure! There''s no effort to spare for rice. I quickly changed my clothes and went to the morning market as Toya led me. ....... Rice, right? Maybe?¡¡You can understand my hesitation, can''t you? Oh, ......, this is a bit of a problem, isn''t it? A stall at the morning market. There, in a jute bag, were unhulled rice. However, the size is completely different. The shape of the rice was closer to japonica rice than Thai rice, but the vertical size was clearly larger than one centimeter. This is more like a bean than a rice, isn''t it? Oh, yeah, it looks like that! If you polish the rice, it will be smaller to some extent, but I imagine it to be the size of a small fermented soybean. This is what it looks like when served in a bowl. ...... Hmmm, does it depend on the taste? If it tastes good, all is forgiven. But is it really rice? I''m pretty sure it''s a member of the rice family. ....... You were here earlier, weren''t you?¡¡Are you ready to buy some? The man manning the store was about thirty years old. He may be a grain peddler, since the other items in the store are all grain. No, I was there to consult. How are you going to eat this? "Hmm?¡¡It''s usually crushed and stewed. It''s very sloppy, which is why people like it. ....... You can also use it to make sloppy dishes. Oh, and of course, you have to peel it. It''s sloppy. Like porridge? Can I have a piece? Yeah, I''ll take one, all right? I asked the man''s permission, picked up one of the grains, and peeled off the husk to reveal what appeared to be brown rice. If you scrape the bran with your fingernail, translucent rice will appear. Except for the size, it looks like it''s right. ...... How much is this? "That''s five large silver coins for a bag. That''s five large silver coins per bag. Then it''s not that expensive. I put my hand into the bottom of the bag and stirred it, but I didn''t find any sand or stones mixed in, nor did I find any inferior goods packed in there. Don''t worry, there''s no one in this town who''d cheat.¡¡If they find you, they''ll kick you out in a heartbeat. Seeing my situation, the man who was keeping the stall smiled at me. This is an essential check when buying from a stall like this: ....... Are they strict about that? "Yeah, they''re strict. Yes, they do. Sometimes they check unannounced. And they pretend to be normal customers. Of course, you can''t switch what you''re showing and what you''re selling. The only thing that''s for sure is that it''s easy to do business with. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. They''re the ones who make it. It''s no use for us to worry about it. "Right. This much won''t hurt us if we fail. Hey, man, give me a bag. Thank you. This is a great way to make sure that you don''t end up with a lot of problems. I think it''s pretty heavy,......, but it''s probably strong enough to handle the grain. By the way, do you have any other kinds? Of course. This one is a small one. The big ones are about twice the size of a grain. Let''s see, it''s around here. I pulled away some colanders that had been placed on top of the bag, perhaps as lids, and what I found underneath was definitely rice (?) that was about two sizes too big. The rice underneath was indeed two times larger than the rice (?). If the rice was small-grained natto, then this one was large-grained natto. Can I check this too? "Sure. This one, this one, and this one are different kinds. They look like large, medium, and small grains. When you peel off the husk, there is not much difference except for the whiteness of the large grain. The whitishness of the large grain is simply due to its size. What should I do? "Why don''t you just buy it and go home?¡¡It''s not much money. How much, old man? Five large silver pieces. --Yeah, but not the same amount, okay? The small ones are the same as the ones Toya bought, the medium ones a little less, and the large ones even less. Many of the things sold in this world are like this, not in terms of "how much for 100 kilos", but in terms of "how much you can buy with one large silver coin". Although it is difficult to compare the prices, it is easy to handle and calculate the coins. This is probably because small denominations of less than 100 reais are almost nonexistent, and because there are not many common people who can do the calculations. I''ll take it all then. I handed over one gold coin and five large silver coins, and the man gingerly closed the bag and lifted it, his gaze wandering between Toya and me. Two bags over there. I''ll take this one. "Oh, yeah?¡¡You''re a strong man. That''s a beastman! The man smiled and patted the two bags. The man smiled and handed the two bags to Toya, and I lifted the bag with the large one. I picked the lightest one, but it still looks like it weighs over 20 kilos. ......? Oh, I''ve got three bags. No, I can carry them. I''m not sure it weighs more than 100 kilos, but Toya piles it on top of one of his shoulders and carries it easily. Not that I can''t carry at least one more bag, but... I paid three times as much as Toya did. I see. Well, if you put it that way, I should at least carry your bags! Well, if the rice is good, they''ll pay for it out of the common fund. If you guys like it, come back and buy some more!¡¡If you like it, come back and buy some more! I''m setting up store here at the market every morning. "Yeah, if it''s good, I''ll be sure to stop by again. We said goodbye to the store keeper, who smiled at us, probably because we had bought so much, and headed back to the inn, looking around the market for more bargains. There were many stalls lining both sides of the street, where yesterday there were not even any stalls, selling many items, mainly food. Compared to Haruka and the others, we don''t go to the morning market as often, but even so, there are a lot of foods that we''ve never seen before, giving us a sense of active distribution. The selection is really good. "Yeah. There are a lot of fruits. ...... In the first place, there are not many fruits on sale except during certain times of the year, but here there are many kinds of fruits in abundance. Of course, the prices are high in general, but the fact that there are so many different kinds of fruits on display is a testament to the good distribution system in this town. Oh, the dried dindol is so expensive! Only one piece cost 2,000 Reais. It''s the same price as all the rice we just bought, but there''s a big difference in terms of hunger. Does this mean we can sell it for that much if we bring it here? "Maybe, but would you sell it?¡¡You came all the way out here. No ......, yeah. Considering what we did last year, I''m sure we''ll make some money, but only a little. If we can get enough food for ourselves, we can get a few hundred gold coins at most. Considering the distance, it would be better to devote that time to another hunt. But that''s beside the point. I think we should bring Haruka and the others with us. If we do it right, our meals will be even better. "Yeah. We''ve got all kinds of spices and stuff. ...... Maybe we can get a curry or something? "Curry!¡¡That''s the Japanese way! "Oh. If you have a troublesome classmate, you can always use curry as bait. ......? Nice idea!¡¡If it comes with rice, it''s a no-brainer! It''s not easy to make a hostile classmate suddenly friendly, of course, but you''ll feel better if you eat good food. Negotiations will be easier. So let''s get the hell out of here.¡¡If we''re going to take them with us, there''s no point in us looking around by ourselves. "Yeah, right. The rice is heavy, too. Let''s hurry. We didn''t bring any magic bags, so we were both carrying bags of rice. Toya didn''t seem to mind much, but it was no small thing. I set the bag down and put it back on the other shoulder, then hurried Toya along the road to the inn. 274-246 Cleverly (5) So you bought this rice?¡¡You said you bought it. Oh. Looks like rice, right? Except for the ...... size. I hold four different kinds of rice in my palm and insist to Haruka, who looks at me skeptically. I''ve never seen rice like this before. I''ve never seen rice like this before, and since wheatgrass and dandelion are also in the grass family, it''s not surprising that some of them are larger than others. ...... I''ve never seen it before.¡¡I''ve never seen that before. We used to drink barley tea with wheatgrass in it, but the packets were very thin. ...... Is it big? Yeah. Yes, it''s quite large. Jujudama, as the name suggests, is as big as a bead. Not many people eat ...... them, though. I''ve only heard of it by name, but I''ve heard that it''s used for stringing beads and making charms. I''ve only heard of it. As expected of a young lady from an old family, the games are old-fashioned. "But the way the husks are attached is rice, isn''t it? It''s a little different from wheat, isn''t it?¡¡The inside looks like ...... rice. But the large grains are whitish, so they look like rice cakes. "...... Oh, that''s what it looks like. If you want to make it into a rice cake, it doesn''t matter if the grains are large. I didn''t think of it when I saw it earlier, but the white grains certainly look like mochi rice. No, large grains would be difficult to soak and steam. ...... Would it be okay if I crushed them? The medium grain is a little different. ...... After carefully peeling off the husk and scraping off the bran, Haruka held the white rice up to the light and said something like that. I peeked at it from her shoulder and saw the white part in the translucence. Haruka, please let me see it too. ...... This looks a bit like sakamai, doesn''t it? "Sake rice is the rice used to make sake, right?¡¡Smaller grains are normal, so as it gets bigger, does it turn white from the center? No, it''s a different variety, so it doesn''t matter, does it? "No, it''s a different variety, so it doesn''t matter, does it?" Yuki''s prediction was easily dismissed by Toya, who shook his head. But it''s not just that the harvest time is different, these are clearly different varieties of rice. I don''t know," he said, "is it evolution or a mutation process?¡¡I don''t know. I don''t know. It''s possible that the original variety was large, and then dwarfed to produce a smaller variety. Seeing our relatively serious discussion, Mary nodded her head curiously. Is that the rice you''re talking about?¡¡Is that the rice?¡¡I''ve never seen it before, is it good? "Is it good? "Is it good? I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not, but it''s a good thing. I think it''s a good idea. "What''s ......? Mitya is still greedy about food. But even if we think it''s good, whether it''s good for Mitya and Mary''s taste is another matter. It seems that some people can''t stand the smell of rice. Well, that''s why I wanted to buy more rice if it''s good, but after thinking about it, we can''t eat it like this. "We don''t have a huller or a miller. Do you want to make ......? Haruka suggested with a very subtle expression. I''m not sure what to do with it.¡¡You can make some of the parts at home. ...... How does it work in the first place? "In the old days, they used a wooden mortar. Oh, I''ve seen that on TV. I''ve seen that on TV. I''ve seen that on TV. But I don''t think we can make a wooden mortar here. I''m sure Rafsan will be able to make one for you in no time if you ask him. No, if we were to make one, it would be a rubber roller type. No, if we were to make one, it would be the rubber roller type, because it would be better to be able to adjust it, considering the difference in the size of these grains. "Rubber rollers ...... rubbing together to remove the skin. Pretty simple, huh? It seems to be a mechanism where the rice is passed between rubber rollers rotating at different speeds and the skin is peeled off by friction. You can make the difference in rotation speed by adjusting the gears, and it seems to be structurally sound, so it would be relatively easy to make a hand-cranked rice huller. ...... The question is what to do now. Is it ...... too hard to peel them by hand? Oh, come on, how hard can it be? If you''re trying to get enough to taste ...... or even cook with, it''s going to be very difficult, even if you''re just trying to peel a grain or two. I can manage to peel large and medium-sized grains, but small grains are very hard on my mind. Besides, after removing the husk, the bran must also be removed. I wonder if I have to put them in a proper bowl and poke them with a stick. Either way, it sounds like a lot of work. If you want, Me and I can do it.¡¡That kind of work is for kids. Yeah. Good luck! No, it''s ....... Mitya looked a little excited, probably because it was food. I''m not sure if it''s because it''s food or because she''s a little overzealous. "Well, you know. "Well, you know. One serving of each kind can be managed by seven people. Yeah. So I suggested, and Haruka nodded her head in agreement. That''s right. If it''s a large grain, ...... 300 grains should be enough. And if you double it up, that''s a total of three thousand three hundred grains?¡¡Shall we stop at ......? There are two kinds of small grains and one kind of medium and large grains. I''m not sure if she got tired of actually doing the calculations, but Haruka suddenly turned her hand away. No, if there are seven of us, that''s about 500 grains per person. If we peel each grain in 10 seconds, that''s an hour and a half. Do you want to stop? I''m getting sick of it too. It''s not that expensive, and even if it tastes bad, it might be better to buy a lot of it and think about it when we get back to Laffan. No, no, no, let''s at least try that!¡¡No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! "......, is that it? That''s it, that''s it!¡¡These things are no big deal when you try them! Well, ...... if Yuki says so. So, we peeled four kinds of rice, each about a cupful, and kept on peeling. In the end, we finished the process in just over an hour, with breakfast in between. It was easier than I thought. "That was easier than I thought, huh? "Yes, it was. The skin is easier to peel off than I thought. ...... If you hold it between your hands and rub it, it will come off to a certain extent, right? Yes. After Yuki realized this in the middle of the process, the efficiency of the work increased slightly, and in the end we were able to peel about two servings of each kind. Even so, it took less time than we had expected. The next step is to remove the bran from the polished rice ....... Can I use a colander for this? "A colander?¡¡Don''t you mean poke it with a stick? You can poke the rice with a stick, but it takes a long time and the grains are too big to be broken. You can put the rice in a metal colander and rub it against a wire mesh. ...... something? I don''t really know what''s better, so I accept Natsuki''s suggestion and start polishing the rice. Since there were only two colanders, we took turns to grind the rice. It was a little difficult because the rice would break if we put too much pressure on it, but we could see the bran falling down, so I guess we were going in the right direction. It took me about two hours. It took a lot of time. But it was worth the effort, and we succeeded in getting white rice. ...... The grains are bigger than the white rice I know, and it''s covered in a lot of rice bran. It''s been a long road. ...... It''s not something you do by hand. I have a lot of respect for the old timers. ...... Removing the chaff is probably not a manual process, but the amount of labor required is probably quite large. To be honest, I wonder if the energy required to eat and the energy gained from eating are worth it. Our ancestors lived by it, so I guess it''s not a problem. ....... But you can finally eat it! "Oh, no, it needs to be flooded, okay? Natsuki threw cold water on Toya''s happy face, and Toya''s shoulders slumped. Normal rice doesn''t take that long to soak, but this size is ...... Really? ...... Oh, the flooding. Yeah, I know. "You can cook rice in less time with this! Most of the convenience goods that say "This will help you cook rice in a short time!" usually say "Soak the rice for a few minutes before cooking. Of course, that time is not included in the rice cooking time written on the package. It also says, "Let the rice steam for a few minutes. That''s not a short time at all! This is not a short time at all! If that''s the case, I''ll cook it in a regular rice cooker! If you have a pressure cooker, it might be a little better, but if you want to cook it in a regular pot, you need to soak it. How long would it take? The size of the pot is totally different. If we assume that water is absorbed at the same rate, is it proportional to the distance to the center of the pot?¡¡Hmm, at least four or five times? With soybeans, we let them soak overnight. ...... I don''t think they need as much as soybeans. ...... Do you soak the large ones for about three hours? Yuki had a valid point, but it also didn''t help that Toya screamed when she heard it. "Long!¡¡Haruka, can''t you do flooding magic? There''s no way you can do that out of the blue. You can''t do that just because you''re told to. I''m not saying you can''t make ....... Past wizards, don''t slack off! I''m not saying I can''t make it.¡¡I''m not saying I can''t cook. I''m sure you can think of a lot of magic that would be handy to have, but those are the so-called "menial work" magic. People who do such work cannot use magic, and if they can use magic, they can get another job. In other words, there is no one to study such magic. There may have been some people who developed it as a hobby, but it never became a major item, and it''s not in our grimoires. If there was an internet connection, the information could have been shared on the "I developed a useful magic wiki", but unfortunately there is no such convenient way to share information. 275-247 Cleverly (6) "Well, it''s no use talking about it, let''s just do it. If we cook the grains in order of size, the time will pass more smoothly. "Yes. First, wash the rice and let it soak in water. This is a high-class inn, and even this room, which is supposed to be for the attendants, has a simple kitchen ......, but it also has a hot water supply room. I helped myself and washed the rice with a bowl. Incidentally, the bowl I use is made by Toya. The reason is simple. You can''t find a white iron bowl in a normal store. They are too expensive. "It doesn''t get clean very well, does it? "Not as much as washed rice, but the commercial rice you buy doesn''t have much bran left. That''s because the milling process is messy. If it smells like bran, it won''t taste good, so please wash it clean. Okay. ...... By the way, do you think it''s ''purified''? No. Food is almost impossible. It''s useful for a lot of things, but it works for things like soil on vegetables, but it can''t do things like drain blood from fish or remove the skin from fruit. But it can''t do something like "draining blood from fish" or "removing only the skin from fruit. If it could do that, milling rice would be easy, but it is not that convenient. However, it does work on "fruit juice and blood on clothes" and "your own blood on skin", which is strange to say the least. ...... It''s magic. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. It''s a home-cooked meal. That''s one way to look at it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... No, I don''t think you can get rice from a microwave oven. If I''m going to eat at home, I want to cook at least some rice in a rice cooker. Frozen rice can be rented. Soak the rice for an hour or so and start cooking small grains of rice. Of course, the small grains are the only ones among the four types. The amount of water should be about the same. I think you can use the same amount of water. ...... As long as it''s flooded, we don''t need to worry too much about it, right?¡¡I''ll leave that to Natsuki''s intuition. It''s a big responsibility. ...... If it fails, Haruka will be next, right? ...... Don''t worry. I''m sure Natsuki can do it! I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a little nervous about the whole thing. I''ll try my best, but ...... He started cooking somewhat anxiously, and about 30 minutes later. As you would expect from Natsuki, the rice was cooked to perfection, with a distinctive aroma. It was fluffy, glossy, and "slightly different in scale? The rice was fluffy and glossy, and looked just like freshly cooked white rice. Natsuki put it in a slightly deeper bowl and put it on the table. Natsuki placed it on the table. "Let''s try it then! "Yeah. It looks good, doesn''t it? So, we tried it. The taste was definitely white rice. The taste is definitely white rice. It''s not very sweet when you chew it, and it tastes a little like cheap rice, but it''s edible. However, each grain is large, so the chewiness varies a little, which is a little annoying, but ...... tolerable. I can eat it without any problem. You can eat them without any problem. You can buy more if you want. I agree with you. It''s not the best, but it''s better. What do you think, Mary and Mitya? It''s a little strange, but it''s ...... delicious, isn''t it? "It doesn''t taste good! It''s a little strange, but it''s delicious. But Mitya''s response was honest: "Oh, yes. It doesn''t taste good on its own. It''s a staple food, like bread. It makes sense. ...... Although she was convinced, Mitya''s eyebrows were lowered and her ears and tail were lolling in disappointment. Nao, Toya, it''s almost lunchtime, so go to the square and buy something from the stalls. Something that will make a good side dish. Raja. We sat up at Haruka''s words, and at the same time, Mitya quickly raised her hand. I want to go too! "Then take Mitya with you. What about Mary? In the event that you''ve got any questions, you can contact us at our own web site. I''m watching. You''re going to use that for future meals, aren''t you? She seemed to be more interested in learning how to help with the cooking than with the stall. It was clear that he wanted to go, but he still had four days left in this town. I''m sure we can take him back. Before I knew it, Mitya was waiting at the entrance of the room with his hand on the doorknob, stomping his feet. Toya and I looked at each other and smiled, then we urged Mitya to leave the inn. I''m sure you''ll agree. When we returned to the inn, the other small grain rice was already cooked, and the medium grain rice was just finishing cooking. Welcome back. Did you find anything that looks good? "We have rice. I bought some grilled chicken. I bought some yakitori, which looked quite ordinary but was more expensive than oak meat. I didn''t find any sauce, so I used salt, but it would still be good with white rice. In addition, I found tsukune, so I bought that as well. It was not a round tsukune, but a tsukune wrapped around a slightly flat skewer, like gohei-mochi. I hadn''t seen minced meat in Laffan, but there are many different dishes in different regions. We also had some powdered food. Rice alone is not enough. Toya bought a roll of thin bread with vegetables and meat on it. It''s like a taco or a burrito or something. To me, it''s a meal-type crepe. "Mee got this for me! Mitya''s is spare ribs. Four big pieces of meat with big bones. I don''t know what kind of meat it is, but it smells good, and when Mitya stopped staring at the stall and didn''t move, Toya stopped too, so I bought some. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of good places to eat in this town. ...... I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea. The medium grain has just finished cooking. The women quickly laid out the plates on the table and put the food we had bought on them. As for the meat on the bone, they put one in front of Toya and the beasts, while the other four cut up the remaining one and put it on their plates. The rest is rice. Let''s divide that up, too. The cooked rice was still hot, as if the whole pot had been put in a magic bag. From the pot, the rice was placed on a plate in front of each of them, and the medium grain was placed next to it by Yuki. Let''s eat. "''Itadakimasu''. The lunch looks quite delicious, but I haven''t forgotten my purpose. I''ll start with a small piece of rice. ...... This one is a little less sticky, isn''t it? I don''t know if it''s the variety of rice or the way it''s cooked, but even though it''s the same small grain, this one has less stickiness on the surface and is a bit chewy. It''s a little hard because the grains are large, but it''s not bad. I think it is suitable for mixed rice such as takikomi-gohan. After resetting my mouth with yakitori and water, I moved on to the medium grain. This one is ......, and the surface is clearly crumbling. It''s not like I failed to cook it, right? When you put it in your mouth, the surface is still quite soft, a bit like melted porridge. But there''s a little bit of chewiness in the center. ....... The taste itself is not bad, so it might not be bad if you turn it completely into porridge. It is not suitable for daily consumption. Or can it be improved by the way it is cooked? I''ll leave that to Haruka and the others. Now for the meat on the bone and the burrito intermission. After waiting for a while, the last of the large grains that were still cooking were handed out. "This is ...... great again. "It''s so chunky. It''s so chunky. It''s completely integrated. I had to use two spoons to put it on a plate, otherwise it would stick to the plate. When you eat it, it''s still chunky. ...... Or is it gooey? If you think of it like this, it''s not bad. The rice cake is completely melted into mush. If you want to eat it, you''ll have to steam it. You''ll have to steam it if you want to eat it. Finally, we ate the rest of the food, and the tasting session and lunch was over. It had been a long time since I had eaten rice, and I was quite happy, but the quantity was not enough. And it wasn''t enough to move me to tears. Haruka and her friends usually make dishes that remind us of Japan. If it weren''t for the soy-sauce-like inspirational sauce, it might have been a different story. ...... In conclusion, only small grains should be eaten as rice. That''s what Haruka said as she relaxed in bed after cleaning up after the meal. And no one seemed to disagree with that conclusion, and we all nodded in agreement. Oh, but not Mary and Mitya. They seemed to be from this side of the world, and they were of the opinion that they would eat it if it came out, but they didn''t dare to eat it. Or rather, they felt that they had no complaints as long as there was meat. I think I''ll keep the large ones for mochi.¡¡I want to eat it at New Year''s." "I agree. "I agree. I agree, but you may be able to use the medium-sized ones as well, so let''s buy them. I don''t mind paying for it. No, you can pay for it out of the common fund. ...... Nao, you bought this rice at the morning market, right?¡¡It''s not available anymore, is it? There might be a stall that sells it, but that stall was gone. The square where we had just bought our lunch was where the morning market was located. Both sides of the street where the stalls used to be lined up are usually open for business during the day, so of course the stalls could not be left open. Perhaps it was a business that was allowed only in the morning. You can look for a store, but you don''t have to do that. It''s safer to buy the same variety. "That''s true. I don''t want to have to mill the rice by hand again. Well, let''s get up early tomorrow and go shopping. I''ve heard that they have some unusual spices. I''d like you to use those spices to make a curry if possible, but is that too much to ask? At my reckless request, Haruka was silent for a while. She put her hand on her chin as if she was a little troubled. I''ve used ...... canned curry powder, but I''ve never made curry powder with spices. All I know is turmeric, chili, cardamom, and ....... There''s also cumin and garam masala, right? Yuki added to the list of spices that Haruka mentioned, but Natsuki interrupted her. I''m not sure what to do with it.¡¡It contains nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, pepper, and many other spices. "Oh, really?¡¡I didn''t know that. ...... Chili powder is also a mixture of several spices. On the other hand, allspice is a single spice. Haruka and Yuki nodded their heads at Natsuki''s trivia, but I had no idea what she was talking about. I had everything in my kitchen except for cardamom, but the problem is that it''s in powder form, so you can''t tell what it was originally. Incidentally, I know only pepper and chili pepper. Oh, turmeric is turmeric, right?¡¡I know that. "Turmeric! I''ve seen a store that sells only dried turmeric with a big sign saying "Turmeric! I wonder if that was a viable business. ......? Also, have you ever seen ...... cinnamon sticks? Is it a thinly peeled tree, judging by its rolled shape? Cloves are also known as dongji, so you know what I''m talking about. That''s a good point. Haruka and Yuki laughed at Natsuki''s words, but I asked them why ......? The clove is shaped like a small nail and is used by sticking it into the food. Seriously? I didn''t know there was such a messy (?) spice. I didn''t know there was such a messy spice. Nutmeg, cardamom, and cumin are seeds, so you can only judge them by smell. Since nutmeg, cardamom, and cumin are seeds, you can only judge them by their smell, although you may have to look for spices with similar smells and tastes. "Well, there are many flavors of curry. If you don''t limit yourself to "Where''s the curry!", you can probably make something that looks like it.¡¡In extreme cases, if it''s hot and smells of spices, it''s curry. "It''s a bit of an extreme theory, but I can''t deny it. I agree. I agree. I have deep pockets. "What are the components of curry? When asked "What constitutes curry?", I think there is no other element than "spicy". In Japan, we have an image of curry''s aroma, but in India, each family blends their own spices, and there are many different smells, don''t you think? Isn''t this a delicious story? He seemed to have understood from our conversation that we were talking about food, and entered our conversation with interest. It sounds like it might be good. It''s a little spicy. I can''t have spicy food! Mitya made a batten with his hand and shook his head. Mitya, who sometimes doesn''t seem like a child, has a child''s taste buds, and she couldn''t even eat the spicy fish that was served for dinner last night. Don''t worry, we have sweet curry too. "Sweet?¡¡I like sweet things. Mitya smiles, but sweet curry is expensive. Fruits are expensive. But in our case, we can gather them ourselves. Besides dungeons, it''s almost dindle season. "Well, why don''t you just buy a bunch of different spices and make as many as you want?¡¡If you make a lot of them, you''ll get some good ones. That''s right. Fortunately, I can afford it. The price of spices is not cheap, but it''s not so expensive that it''s equivalent to gold. Even if I had to spend more than a gold coin for the ingredients for every meal, I wouldn''t think it was a waste if I could eat curry, and I would even pay for it. At least I think it''s a more meaningful use of money than going to a brothel like Toya and melting dozens of gold coins in a few hours. 276-248 Aristocratic wedding (1) Is this a good time? We had just finished tasting the rice and were talking about how we should take it easy today since we were halfway through the day, when Arlin-san came over to us. While we are in this town, Eckert and the other territorial soldiers will be guarding us, so we are completely rested. I''m sure you''ll be pleased with the results. I don''t have any plans today. Not wanting to turn him away because we weren''t at work, we graciously accepted Arline''s offer of a chair. Thank you, sir. We''ve gathered some information and thought we''d share it with you. "By information, you mean the attack? Yes, sir. That. I thought that there was nothing else that needed to be shared with us, but there was no need to tell us the background of the attack. ...... It was somewhat disturbing. However, my feelings aside, Arline began to speak. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it.¡¡Is the situation so bad that Ilias-sama is attacked? I''m not sure what to make of it, but it''s a good idea. As far as I know, the Upiclislea Empire is in the category of a hypothetical enemy nation, and I don''t think it''s in a situation where they would go out of their way to conduct guerrilla activities against a child of a nobleman who is far from their borders and can''t be said to be very influential. Even if they had kidnapped Master Ilias, it was unlikely that the Kingdom of Rhenium would have agreed to any kind of demand, and even if they had demanded a ransom from Viscount Nenus, it would not have been much, considering that he was only a weak nobleman on a national scale. If that''s the case, it would be better to think that the Order of the Saints hired some skilled person. If you''re looking for the best of the best, you''re going to have to go with the best. It seems to me that they were targeted simply because a small group of people could have successfully attacked them. In fact, in addition to Ilias, there were several other participants in the wedding who were attacked. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s difficult for the Juppicrisian Empire to infiltrate a large number of soldiers into the enemy''s country. It was probably done as a way to interfere with this wedding. "I see. But why?¡¡The Barony of Daias doesn''t border the Upiclisle Empire, does it? Yes. But the nobleman I''m marrying is confronting the Iupiklisian Empire. This time, Baron Diaz''s marriage partner is the daughter of Baron Acy, who has occasionally been involved in skirmishes with the Yupiklisian Empire. Naturally, the Iupiklisian Empire would not welcome the rich Baron Diaz and the Baroness Acy to be related. In terms of distance, the Barony of Acy and the Barony of Dyas are quite far apart, but the Barony of Acy is located downstream from the river that runs beside the Crevilly. The other way around, if you are transporting goods from Baron Diaz''s territory to Baron Acy''s territory, transportation is quite convenient and emergency support is easy. In light of this, it would certainly be a very unpleasant wedding for the Iupiklisian Empire. "But how can attacking the attendees be enough to stop the wedding? "Yes. Isn''t that right?¡¡It''s not like they''re getting married themselves. In particular, the Viscount of Nenus is merely a neighboring territory, and as you can see from the roads we''ve taken, we don''t have much interaction with him, nor do we know him well. Even if the Iliad were to be killed, it is unlikely that the wedding would be canceled. If it was possible, of course, they would have done it, but the Baroness Dias''s guards, who have a lot of money, are very strong, not to mention the Baroness Acy''s soldiers, who have seen a lot of action. So I guess it was the next best thing. Even if we can''t stop the wedding this time, it''s worth it just to get rid of it. In other words, it would be worthwhile if it could be a milestone in future diplomacy and policy. Well, it''s true that the noblemen who were killed in this incident may have some emotional ties to Baron Diaz and Baron Acy. Even though they know that it was the Iupiklisian Empire that was at fault. ...... Oh, and what happened to the other nobles who were attacked? "Two of them were killed. Fortunately, it wasn''t the head of the family. ....... Some of the others were injured. As for the guards, they''ve taken a fair amount of damage. "Wow. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. We would have been just as bad without you. Thank you again. "No, no, it''s my job. In the first place, we couldn''t catch them, and they all ran away. I waved my hand and responded to Mr. Arlin who bowed politely. At least one of them was seriously injured, but that was it. It''s not a result I''m proud of. Two of them were to be dealt with by the Territorial Army, and if there had been one or two more enemies, it would have been quite dangerous. Natsuki and the others nodded at my words, but they also questioned me a little curiously. But how did you know?¡¡But how did you know? From what you said, it seems you didn''t get a confession. Yes. Yes, based on various information. It seems that some of them killed some bandits, but they didn''t have any evidence to prove it. So we can''t even protest through diplomatic channels. Oh, you killed an enemy of that level? If we allow for the damage, we might be able to kill them, but considering that Toya and I couldn''t even attack them, we''ll probably have to get Natsuki to join us. I wonder if that is the kind of skillfulness that comes from having experienced actual war. That''s unfortunate,......, but if that''s the case, then the risk of being attacked on the way home is low, right? Probably so. Of course, we don''t know about common thieves and demons. It''s not a problem at all. ...... I don''t think there are any bandits of that caliber. I''d rather you didn''t. I''m afraid. I''m sure you''ll be able to make plenty of money without being a thief at that level. But that''s not the whole story, is it? What?¡¡Is that so? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. The person with the most political authority in the group this time is Arlin, who is presumably Ilias-sama''s chaperone. I don''t think he''s going to come and tell us just because he thinks we''re curious. "We don''t need to know what you know right now. Politics is none of our business. You''re very good, Haruka. Yes, what you just said is a premise. That''s why I''m asking you. I''ve managed to keep my face since I''ve successfully defeated them, but the fact that they targeted me is already a problem. To put it simply, it means that the empire thought you were a small nobleman, and that will cause you to be underestimated in noble society. As the Viscountess of Nenus, that''s not good. So, they wanted to somehow turn things around at the actual wedding, but the one who would be attending was Ilias, a girl less than 10 years old. Originally, it would have been fine as long as the fact that she attended the wedding was all that was needed, but now that the incident had occurred, it would inevitably attract the attention of the Viscountess Nenus, who was involved. I''m sure you''ll find that Ilias lacks dignity. ...... Well, you can''t control your age, can you? So, what do you want from us? Yes. The purpose of this is to assist the Iliad. ...... No, I''m asking you to join us to distract him.¡¡Of course, we''ll consider some sort of compensation for that. That seemed to be the purpose of telling him the details of the situation. As long as it was not included in the original contract, it was up to us to accept or not. They thought it would be difficult to ask us to participate without informing us. I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that.¡¡I''m sure there were others, Eckert and others. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. We''re here as maids of honor. We can''t participate. We are here as maids of honor.¡¡We can''t go anywhere formal. We can''t be in a formal setting." "Well, we can''t be in a formal setting, either. You can just stand there. You won''t even be spoken to. There are high ranking adventurers under Viscount Nenus, that''s what matters. We''re only rank five, you know. Don''t worry. We''ll take care of it. I''m sure we''ll be fine." Natsuki said as if to confirm, and Arin confidently stuck out his chest. I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find the right one for you. ...... Ah, the supply of precious woods. It''s true that the number of jobs has increased. "A religious group has plunged the town into chaos. I was instrumental in capturing its leader. Total luck. I just happened to run into Satomie and I caught her. I really didn''t do anything about the Order of the Satomite Saints. "I discovered a new dungeon... We just happened to enter an abandoned mine that turned out to be a dungeon. It''s more of a rediscovery, since the existence of the abandoned mine was already known. "I''m conquering the dungeon with a single party. Highest-ranked adventurer currently in the deepest part of the dungeon. We''re the only ones in there! I''m not lying. It''s not a lie, but you''re cherry-picking the best parts. It''s a completely misleading expression. The media. 277-249 Aristocratic wedding (2) "...... Well, that''s good. So, we''re all here? No, I''m asking for Haruka and Nao. Me and Haruka? Yes. When I pointed to myself and Haruka, Arin looked back at me and nodded. If it''s strength you''re looking for, I think Toya would be a better choice. ......? No, I mean, ...... how can I put it, ...... to put it bluntly, you two are good looking. "......... Whoops. It''s not a good look. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it. However, although we don''t usually think about it, Haruka and I as elves are definitely different. So, if you say that I look good, I can only say that you''re right. In addition, since she is an elf, even if she is unarmed, she can be an effective deterrent. I don''t think they''re going to do anything to you at your wedding, though. Because she can use magic? I think Toya can fight well with her bare hands, but I think the elf is an easily recognizable icon. ....... I''m sure you''ll understand. ...... What should we do? I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out on your own. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. In contrast, Natsuki was a bit more cautious. But if you get Arlin''s promotion, you''re going to stand out as an adventurer. The disadvantage of this is a problem for all of us, Toya. I think it''s best not to stand out too much. I don''t think it''s a good idea to be too conspicuous. Our policy is to keep a low profile. However, Arlin responded to Yuki and the others'' words. I''m sure you''ll stand out from the crowd as long as you''re in LaFang.¡¡It''s only been a year or so, so it''s not that big of a deal. Oh, they know about that. ...... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure we can handle a little trouble on our own. I''m not sure if I can say this in front of Arlin-san, but if it doesn''t change the fact that you''re going to be famous, it might be better to ingratiate yourself with the nobility. No, no, it''s easier for us if you say it clearly. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea or not. I''ll leave that to Nao and Haruka, as I said before. They''re the ones who have to do it. You''re right. I''ll go with that. Good luck!¡¡It''s not every day you get to see a nobleman get married! You''re not going to see many noblemen getting married! I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure there''s good food out there, most of the time. So they do. The aristocracy has a lot of money at stake. I guess it''s their job, but it''s a shame, considering how good the food is in this town. Nao, what do you think? "Hmm, I think we can take care of it.¡¡If you just walk behind Ilias-sama, you won''t get ripped off. ...... But you don''t have any clothes. I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m sure we can find something for you. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to do. Then there is no problem, right? If it''s okay with you, it''s okay with me. "I see!¡¡Thank you!¡¡Now, let''s get to work on those clothes! Arlin-san''s movements were swift. As soon as Haruka answered, he took both of our hands and led us out of the inn in a flash with a forcefulness that could be described as coercion. I''m not sure what to say. ...... Oh, he''s gone. "He''s gone! "Yeah. As for Arlin-san, did he really want you to take care of it? You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. So, it''s a good thing we took the job in the right place. It''s a good thing I took the job in the right place before I was forced into an inevitable situation. "Is that so?¡¡Arline, you''re a good person, right? It''s not a bad person," she said. He is not a bad person, but he is a servant of the nobility. He''s not a bad person, but he''s a servant of the aristocracy, and if necessary, he''ll use his wiles and wiles and wiles. The disadvantages of accepting the job will be meaningless if you just spread the word about us. The problem that Nao and the others are concerned about is that if they attract more attention than necessary, trouble may increase. However, from the point of view of Viscount Nenus, this is not a matter of concern. Rather, if they actively spread the word and put themselves in a situation where they need the protection of Viscount Nenus, they will have no choice but to accept the request. If they still don''t accept the request, they will have to accept the disadvantages, and rationally speaking, Nao and the others would never make such a decision. It might have been better to negotiate a little on the remuneration, but the current treatment is still good, so it won''t be so bad. I know. You know, this inn, it''s a luxury inn. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always ask for help. In Mijara, Haruka and Natsuki were in charge of guarding the room, but in this town, there is no such thing, so there is no reason to let them stay at the same inn. To put it bluntly, if the other adventurers knew about this, they would certainly be envious. But of course, the Viscountesses of Nenus have their own agendas. First of all, in order to ensure the safety of their precious daughter as much as possible, it is more convenient for Nao and the others to be by her side. Although they think it is unlikely, it is a big advantage to be able to escape to Nao''s room immediately if they are attacked. Even though they hadn''t accepted any request for protection while they were at the inn, they knew that Nao and the others would never kick out Ilias who had escaped from their room. Secondly, if a sudden request such as this one became necessary, it would be impossible to respond quickly if they were in another inn, and it would take a lot of time. And above all, the request fee paid to Nao and the others is a worthless dungeon for Viscount Nenus, so he has some money to spare. Although the number of people the Viscountesses of Nenus can dispatch has been reduced due to the disturbances in Kerg, they can save the necessary expenses for the number of people they can dispatch, and if they use the savings to pay the actual expenses for Nao and the others, the actual cost will not change much. If such a cost would make Nao and the others work better and increase the safety of the Iliad, it would be a cost that Viscount Nenus would not regret at all. I''m sorry for the hardships Nao and Haruka will have to endure, but... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m definitely curious! "Whether you''re a man or a woman, it''s tempting to talk to them. I''m sure there''s no such thing as a vulgar pick-up. ...... I''m sure there''s no such thing as a vulgar pick-up. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to say. It''s not uncommon for a s*xy aristocrat to talk to Haruka and for Nao to lose her temper, isn''t it? It''s a common story. But I wonder if ...... Nao will lose her temper?¡¡He knows Haruka''s personality, so he''ll probably just sit back and watch. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... No, I''m sure Nao will calmly intervene before that happens. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m sure you''ll find a lot of people who would like to know more about this. It is only a fool who thinks that if he wins a fight, a girl will follow him. There are not that many idiots like that. There are not that many of them, but they are rare, so don''t underestimate them. "Is it bad manners to ignore your master and talk to your servant? ...... Are you talking about aristocratic society? "Yeah. That''s what I learned! Yuki, who looked surprised at Mitya''s words, asked him to confirm, and Mitya nodded deeply and confidently. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. You don''t remember either? It''s not that I''m confident in my memory, you know.¡¡If you check the notes you took at the time, you may find it written down. ...... Natsuki''s grades at school were good, but he was more of a genius type, and his grades were good because he studied hard. It''s not because he can easily remember what he hears and understand it instantly that he gets good grades. Haruka, on the other hand, was more of a genius and got good grades even without studying much. But that''s a bit of a relief, isn''t it?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that Iliad will be a barrier to your safety. ...... I''m sure you''ll find a lot of people who''d like to know more about this. That''s right. We can''t do anything about it, even if we worry about it. Nao, pathetic. You''re not expected to do much. But if this is the case, will we be separated from Haruka and the others during this vacation? No vacation for Haruka and the others? I feel sorry for Nao and her brothers. ...... It''s their job. We''ll play hard and show them off later. "Well, ...... are you sure about that? Mitya looked around at Natsuki and the others with a question on his face as Toya spoke. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. I don''t think there''s any need to brag. I don''t think you need to boast about it. "Yes. We don''t know if we''ll have time to take a leisurely stroll through the morning market, so we''ll do our own research and make sure to buy the best ingredients. We''ll make sure to buy the best ingredients so that we can prepare a delicious meal for you. "Good food!¡¡I''m looking forward to the morning market tomorrow! With Natsuki''s words, "poor Nao and Haruka" easily disappeared from Mitya''s mind, and was replaced by a delicious dish. They were pitiful in another sense. 278-250 Aristocratic wedding (3) Mr. Arlin brought me to a clothing store on the main street. The shop had a sign that read, "No commoners allowed! You can almost see the words "No commoners allowed! Because I''m accompanying Natsuki and her friends, I don''t mind going to expensive boutiques, but this store requires a bit of courage to enter. But this time, Arline walked in so smoothly that I just followed her and walked right in. At first glance, the inside of the store gives the impression of an upper class parlor, not a clothing store. There were no clothes on display at all, just a few large tables and sofas. The only major difference was that there were some spaces separated by curtains. I''ve never been in a place like this before. Is that so?¡¡I''ve never been in a store like this before. - I''ve never been in a store like this before? - Well, everyone, including Mary and the others, wears well-made clothes. ...... Sometimes I see some unusual designs, but they''re expensive too, aren''t they? Those clothes are made by us. It''s like a hobby. ...... Are you sure you''re doing your job right?¡¡I''m sure you can make more money as an adventurer. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to ask for help. It is true that it is safer and more profitable to be a tailor than a novice adventurer, so Arlin is not wrong. However, this is not an easy task, because it requires the ability to open a tailor shop. Welcome. What can I do for you today at ......? A slightly older woman came out from the back of the store. She smiled as she approached, glanced at Arline and the two of us, hesitated for a moment, then set her sights on Arline. As Mr. Arlin says, our clothes are reasonably well tailored, but they are not what a nobleman would wear. In that respect, Arlin-san is dressed in a way that would be recognizable as a servant of a nobleman, so I guess he decided that there would be no mistake if he talked to her. I''d like a set of clothes for these two, please. So that you can attend the wedding of Baron Daileass. That''s only two days away. You''ll have to pay extra.¡¡And I don''t want anything too complicated. ...... I''m fine with the standard stuff. Yes, sir. This way, please. As we sat down on the sofa, a young male clerk quickly came up beside me and began to explain, showing us some pictures. This is the current mainstream type of formal wear. The color of the pants and coat can be whatever you like, but we don''t like anything too flashy. Many people use decorative cloths to express their individuality. Pants, shirt, vest and jacket. The closest thing I know is a frock coat. Instead of a tie, a long, thin piece of cloth is draped like a scarf and tied in front of the chest, but the overall impression is that it would not look strange even if it were worn today. However, it seems to be the current fashion to use patterned cloth or detailed embroidery for the lining of vests and coats. It is said that this is a kind of appeal to affluence, and at one time it spread to the outer lining of coats and even to pants, but the fashion died out in a short time when it became too noisy. I completely agree with you. Only women should be glamorous. I''m glad, though, that the formal attire of the aristocracy in this world is not pumpkin pants, tights, and flouncy neckties. I''m ashamed of myself, even if I look normal to others. And Toya and the others would definitely laugh at me. "This is the type of vest that is in fashion these days... The male shopkeeper continued to explain, but I just listened to him, and finally said, "I''d like whatever the shopkeeper thinks will look good on me. However, the shopkeeper said, "You can choose your favorite cloth ......," so I chose a blue-ish cloth out of several offered. To be honest, formal wear is not something that I would wear on a regular basis, and the people around me would be looking at it, not me. My taste is of secondary importance. Most people won''t think it''s strange if it''s coordinated by a professional who thinks it looks good on me, and if they say it''s strange, it''s easy for me to feel good about it because I didn''t choose it myself. I''m a chicken. Once I''ve decided on the clothes (and thrown them at her), all that''s left to do is to measure my body and I''m done. The male clerk seemed to start working immediately and retreated to the back. I sipped the tea that the other female clerk had served me and looked at Haruka, who was still discussing the matter. Haruka, like me, must not be familiar with the situation of formal wear here, but she doesn''t seem to be throwing things around like I am, and seems to be having a discussion with the clerk, including Arline. I think this will look more beautiful on your body line. If your hair color is Haruka''s, wouldn''t this cloth look better? "I prefer this one for the neckline. The sleeves should be this one. Since you are tall, you might want a skirt that is not too wide. I saw only a few pictures, but Haruka had dozens of pictures spread out on the table, along with shiny, silky cloths that were probably used in real life. ............ Yeah. Let''s get some air. If you''re not careful, you can make your presence felt and ask, "What do you think of Nao? What do you think?" It''s a pain in the ass. When asked like that, what you need is not the ability to "choose a good one". "It is the ability to choose something that the other person likes. Haruka and I have not known each other long enough to become unhappy over a failed choice, but I can assure you that the time spent worrying over a failed choice will add up. On the other hand, if you can make the right choice, you can save time. ...... It''s quite difficult. You''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in your work. If you''re asked for your opinion, it''s completely at the level of slight preference. So, the safest thing to do is to put yourself in a situation where you are not asked to choose. It depends on the mood of the other person, so it often fails. In the end, the discussion between Haruka and the others ended when I finished my fifth cup of tea, enjoyed the sweets served with my second cup of tea, and began to think that I should use the restroom. At the end, I was asked for my opinion, but this time it was easy. Haruka, Arline, and the shopkeeper had already discussed it with me, so we had already rejected the ones that we didn''t like in our world, and Haruka''s opinion had already reached my ears. So, there was no problem if I chose accordingly. The best thing would be if Haruka were to ask me, "Which do you prefer? That''s the most annoying thing. And so, the design of the dress for Haruka was decided. Like me, Haruka also had her body measurements taken, although it took her longer than me, obviously, and she''ll be waiting for her dress to be ready in two days. I''m not sure what to say. And I''m sorry, but you two could use a little help with your manners. ...... The dressmaker ......, or to be more precise, that''s what Arline told us when we came back to the inn from the tailor. You can''t just stand there, after all. If it were the master, he would be able to follow up appropriately and there would be no problem with that, but since it is the Iliad, ....... In fact, I would rather you two follow up on Mr. Ilias. To be honest, I would like to file a complaint, but it''s hard to say when you consider that a child under the age of ten is doing his best. Is that something you can get by with a little practice? Haruka''s question was met with a quiet nod from Arin. It''s better than being dull. It only needs to last a day. I see. Very well said. All you need to do is get through a day - well, half a day, actually. The possible situations are very limited, and you can get by if you learn only that range. Besides, I still have some of the lessons I took before I left, though only a little. That''s why Iliad, let''s do our best. After returning from the tailor shop, we went back to our rooms, but Toya and the others quickly sent us off, and now we were in Ilias-sama''s room. This is the first time I''ve been in this room, and even though it''s not fancy, it has a luxurious feel to it. "Yes. Haruka-san, Nao-san, I''m sorry for the trouble I''ve caused you. No, it''s not a problem. I took this job as a job. I''m a little nervous, but I''ll do my best. Thank you very much. I also nodded lightly with a smile as Haruka smiled and said it was no problem. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m not going to say it to Ilias. It''s not uncommon for a decent nobleman to talk to the two of you out of the blue, so as long as you can handle yourself well, there should be no problem. I don''t know if I can do this: ...... You''ll be able to do it. You''ll be fine. We still have two days. As if to encourage Ilias-sama''s anxious expression, Arin-san responded strongly with a smile, crouched down beside Ilias-sama, and mumbled something in his ear. As he did so, Ilias-sama''s anxious expression tightened and changed to one of determination. After confirming this with satisfaction, Arlin stood up again and turned towards us. There are two purposes for a nobleman to talk to you two. The first is that they want to recruit you to their territory as excellent adventurers. We''re not good enough for them to want to take us out. ...... No problem. We spread rumors to make people think that. Or rather, we do. Ketola. Mr. Ketola, I thought you were gone, but I didn''t know you were working like that! That''s rather not okay, wouldn''t you say? It''s overrated. ...... Yes. I want you to overestimate it. For the sake of our family. That''s what I was talking about. ...... Hmm. I hope the Iliad is treating you well. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had to deal with this. I don''t think we''ll have much trouble here. It''s only natural to stop the withdrawal of adventurers from your territory. As long as you stay close to Master Ilias, I can intervene. Leave it to me. It would be our family''s loss to lose Mary and the others. Ilias-sama said proudly, but I wish he would have mentioned my name and Haruka''s. Well, there is no doubt that he and Mary are getting along well. The other thing that can be a little troublesome is when you are spoken to as a man or woman. "...... What? "Simply put, as a marriage partner. What?¡¡As an adventurer, you spread rumors, right? It''s a nobleman who attends the marriage ceremony. Adventurers wouldn''t make good marriage partners. There will be squires like us, but they won''t leave their masters alone and call on us. "No, no. Not if it''s a high ranking adventurer. There''s still a lot of uninhabited land around this country, including the area from north to west of our house. It''s possible to become a noble from an adventurer. In order to expand their territories, they anoint skilled adventurers as nobles and put them in charge of empty areas. The higher the rank, the more money they have and the more demons they can slay. From the point of view of the country, this is a great way to expand the territory at a low cost. If you fail, your title will be taken away and you will be restored. There is no great loss. That''s what they said. In addition, even if you can''t become a nobleman, it''s worthwhile to have good adventurers in your family. It''s a great target. Haruka frowned at Arlin''s frank talk. In the past, even if you are an elf, you have never gotten into trouble because of it, but this time, it''s because you are an elf. It may not be so bad if you look at it from a certain perspective, but to be honest, it doesn''t make me happy to be popular with the ladies of the nobility. The other day, Adversus-sama gave me the [Lucky! Is it working? I''ve never really felt the effects of it at all. It''s the same with the experience boost I got the other time. You can''t compare the two. You can''t compare one with the other. "This wedding is rich, but it''s only a baron''s wedding, and the people who are coming are not high in rank. It''s just right for an adventurer. It''s a bit of a problem. ....... I''m in a bit of trouble. Can you help? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this.¡¡Are they actually married? "No, no, we''re not married yet ....... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. Haruka''s cheeks and ears are slightly red. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Well, well, well!¡¡I knew you were!¡¡It''s lovely! Ilias-sama pans her hands together, her eyes sparkling with a smile. "I think you two look great together, don''t you? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at ....... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. You''ll be able to get a lot more than that. I see, I understand. What do you mean, Arline? I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. "Well. . should I give you a push on this one? Mr. Arryn, please don''t explain that in front of him! And Mr. Iliad, you''ve ruined everything! "For the two of you with such a delicate relationship, I recommend a matching ornament. I''m sure Nao has chosen to wear one around her neck, but I suggest you wear the same one around Haruka''s waist. ...... What does that mean, exactly? It means that you are in love or engaged to be married. It is very rude to call out to someone when they are next to you. No nobleman in his right mind would do that. ...... What do we do?¡¡Nao. No reason to refuse, right? Of course. In the corner of my eye, I see Arline and Ilias smiling at me, and we nod to each other and decide to accept the proposal. And so, for the next two days, we were subjected to an education in the nobility. 279-251 Aristocratic wedding (4) The next day, for almost two whole days, Haruka and I experienced a cramming education. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. ...... Yes, it''s a pain in the ass. It''s a little hard for me as a high school student to understand that you should use honorific language for older people. But, as I have said many times, there is a girl under 10 years old working hard in front of you. In a way, this is the biggest pressure. And I''m sure Haruka isn''t used to it either, but once she''s told to do something, she does it perfectly, which is Haruka quality. Well, you know. I guess there''s a difference in attitude between me, who felt like a mere classroom observer, and Haruka, who even took notes and studied seriously. While I was struggling like this, Toya and the rest of the party members were enjoying their holidays as usual. Natsuki and the others, who didn''t come out of bed until late on the first day, woke up the next day at the usual time, left us to go to the morning market, and had a nice lunch somewhere. Our lunch, on the other hand, was a little simple, brought by Ketra. It tasted a little low compared to the Otarka we had eaten the other day, but since Ilias had eaten the same food, I couldn''t complain. All I can do is believe Natsuki and the others when they say, "We''ve bought all kinds of ingredients, so please look forward to it. I''m sure they''ll feed me curry when I get home. I''m sure. I believe in you, Natsuki and Yuki. It''s been almost a year. After almost a year of "forced study", we were finally ready for the wedding. I had studied magic seriously, but that was because I had a sense of urgency that I might die if I couldn''t do it, and a practical purpose that I needed it for tomorrow''s meal. In contrast, I feel that this study was a bit inefficient in learning, but Arline managed to give me a good score, so I''m sure I''ll be able to get through ......, right? The formal wear I had expressly made for me was properly delivered last night. I tried it on and found it more comfortable than I expected, and Ketra, who helped me put it on, said it looked good on me, so it''s probably not bad. By the way, I haven''t seen Haruka''s dress yet. ...... I wonder what kind of dress she chose? To be honest, I''m a little excited. "Nao, are you ready? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Oh, ....... The material is probably silk. It was a light blue, shiny fabric. I don''t know much about it because I don''t know much about it, but it''s the kind of dress I imagine when I hear the word "dress" - Haruka told me later that it''s the A-line type - and it has the same decorative fabric around the waist as mine. The same decorative fabric was wrapped around her waist and the skirt extended to her ankles. Around the hem of the dress, there is detailed embroidery that is not too flashy, and the shadows that appear in the light accentuate the simple dress. Her shoulders were uncovered, her sleeves were quarter-sleeved, and she had a V-neck with an expensive looking necklace shining on it. "What''s that necklace? "Oh, this?¡¡I borrowed it. I borrowed it because I''m not supposed to wear no jewelry. You''re right, it''s a bit sad to have nothing around your neck. It seems to be embroidered, but how did you have time for that? ...... It''s impossible to sew a dress from scratch in two days. You can''t sew a dress from scratch in two days, so you basically sew together the parts you already have. The hem of the skirt doesn''t need much adjustment, does it? While the upper part of the body needs to be fine-tuned to fit the body shape, the skirt part does not need such fine adjustments. Therefore, the embroidered parts are reserved in advance in case the dress is needed in a hurry. Of course, if the dress is a really high-class dress, the embroidery is done after it is properly tailored, but it is impossible to do that in a short time. "So, what do you think?¡¡What do you have to say? "Oh, yeah. Yeah, it looks good on you. You look beautiful. I''m not used to this kind of compliment, but I managed to say it to Haruka. --No, it''s really embarrassing to call my childhood friend beautiful. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡Oh, thank you ....... I''m not sure if it''s because I said that the dress not only looked good on her, but also that it was beautiful, or if Haruka was embarrassed, but she dyed her cheeks in confusion and looked away. But in fact, Haruka looked beautiful in her dress. I''m not sure if I''m a fan of this kind of thing or not, but I think it''s a great idea. That''s an elf. I want to take a picture of her and put it on a frame. As if embarrassed by my gaze, Haruka turned her face away and turned the conversation away. There was actually talk of changing the color of the dress to match the decorative fabric, but we didn''t have time, and it''s a pretty close to white blue, so it wouldn''t look too crazy, right? "Oh, yeah, yeah, I guess so. It''s not bad. It''s not a bad idea." The accent color on the dress is the same color as the accent color on Haruka''s dress, but as Haruka said, the dress itself is light in color, so the darker blue accent color is striking enough. I''m not sure what to say, but I think it''s a good idea. There is no way that any nobleman would call out to you when you two are standing side by side. Ilias-sama, a much younger child, smiled at us, and we looked at each other and smiled. Ilias-sama is also very pretty. The dress looks great on you. "Thank you. I think a more mature dress would be fine for me. ...... Ilias-sama seemed to be a little unhappy with Haruka''s words, but the dress definitely suited Ilias-sama. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time with your family. It may not be as mature as Halka''s dress, but considering Ilias''s age, I think this dress would make a better impression than a more mature look. "Well, everyone, are you ready?¡¡The carriage is ready. "Oh, yes. We''re all right. It was Ketola who came to call us. Today, Ilias-sama, myself and Haruka will be entering the venue, but Arlin-san and Ketola-san will be waiting near the venue, while Eckart and some of the guards will be accompanying us to manage the carriage. I didn''t think it would be too hard to stand there guarding the carriage for hours, but when I thought about it, I realized that we would have to be on our feet the whole time, and we would have to deal with the troublesome nobles. There may be good food and drinks around, but I don''t think we can relax and enjoy them, we''re just killing ourselves. Yeah, we''re more pitiful than you are. When we got ready to leave the Iliad''s room, we found Natsuki and the others all there. No, not really. They must have come to see the dress, because the ladies were happily talking about it. "Wow, ...... sorry, honestly more than I expected. You''re so precious! Yes. Haruka, it looks great on you. You too, Nao. Yuki was speechless for a moment when she saw Haruka appear, and then she squealed with emotion. Natsuki also complimented Haruka with a smile and then complimented me as well. "You look like a princess, Haruka! Yes, you''re so beautiful! The youngsters seemed to like her appearance, but Ilias, who came out with her, looked a little unhappy about it. "Mitya, Mary, what about me? "You''re pretty too, Ilias-sama. Yes. It suits you very well, Master Ilias. Thank you. I''m glad. It was a bit like I made him say it, but he was still satisfied and smiling. And she''s cute, so it''s not a problem. "You look like a nobleman when you dress like that, Nao. Just stand there and be quiet. "Toya, are you saying I''m a bad talker? When I snapped back at him, his reply was simple and to the point. No, behavior?¡¡You''re not very attentive at all. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Ugh! I can''t deny it at all. You''ve only improved your appearance, but your inside has not changed at all. "Oh, you''re escorting me? I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. If you don''t understand something, just ask. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. "Is this how it''s going to be? ...... Oh, it''s frustrating, but it looks really good on you. "Externally, it looks like it would make a good painting. That''s what elves are for. Yuki nodded her head as she stood beside me and placed her hand on my arm, while Natsuki nodded her head in agreement with Toya''s statement. Of course, I know what I''m doing, so I just keep my mouth shut. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. ...... By the way, Arin, how much is this? "Well, it''s about the same for both of you. We had to rush it. ""Boom!" Yuki and the others were blown away by the amount of money Arin-san had just indicated with his finger. The amount of money was enough to build a normal house. Only Haruka and Natsuki were unconcerned, while Mary and Mitya quickly distanced themselves from us. I guess they were afraid that I might get it dirty, but I was even more afraid of wearing it. What''s more, we were going to have a buffet party afterwards. Even if I don''t eat, I have to pick up the food and drinks. Seriously? Hahahaha ....... Yeah, it''s good until you need it, right? "That''s probably better. It''s useless if you change your size and can''t wear it anymore. Yuki shakes her head with a tight smile, and Arline nods in agreement. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to be able to do it. And Arlin, who has been given the authority to spend that much money, is actually quite amazing, isn''t he? From my point of view, it seems a bit too large an amount to spend just to save some face. ...... I guess that''s what the situation calls for. And we''re expected to work for that amount. Yeah, it''s probably better that I don''t know. It makes me nervous. "Well, well, well, Nao, good luck. I don''t know if you can take it easy at ....... Yuki encouraged me with a wry smile, pulling back her hand that was about to clap me on the shoulder. The trick is to move slowly and keep your chest up. The trick is to move slowly and speak slowly. The trick is to move slowly and speak slowly. Go eat something good! "Good luck! Toya, that''s a joke to make me feel less nervous, right? And thanks, Natsuki, for the practical advice. I let out a deep breath to relieve the tension in my body, and walked to the carriage where Eckart was waiting for me, smirking at me. 280-252 Aristocratic wedding (5) The weddings of the nobility in this world are much simpler than I had expected, and resemble a formality that we are familiar with. The first step is the wedding ceremony. The bride and groom and their close relatives go to the temple of the god they believe in to perform the wedding ceremony. Almost no one from the outside participates in this ceremony, and of course we were not included. Therefore, it was not included in the scope of the class, and we didn''t know much about what was going on. The next event was the wedding reception. The venue is Baron Diaz''s mansion, where the guests are gathered and the bride and groom greet each other. The bride and groom greet the guests, and the party continues until nightfall. The guests are supposed to enjoy conversation while eating and drinking. --Whether we can actually eat and drink and enjoy the conversation or not is up to us. But fortunately for us, there is no dance party, so it''s not too bad. All of this takes up a whole day. If you are a baron, this is the most you can expect. If you are a poor nobleman, it may be smaller. On the other hand, the higher the baronetcy, the longer the wedding banquet, the more it becomes a festival involving the town, and so on. And so on. In such a case, a dance party would be held as a matter of course. If that had been the case, I might have turned down this request. It is impossible to learn how to dance in two days. --Speaking of which, was there a "Dance" option in the first skill selection? It seems to be an essential skill for those who want to do reverse harassment. ...... Well, I guess it''s not my thing. "Nao, arm. "Arm? Give me your arm. "...... Oh! When I arrived at Baron Daias'' house and was walking towards the venue, Haruka urged me to hurriedly give her my arm. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one.¡¡I''m sorry for my lack of experience. I''m sorry for my lack of experience. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own web site. Of course, he immediately lined up next to me. "Hmm. You two have a very close relationship, don''t you?¡¡It''s nice to have that kind of intimacy, don''t you think? I''m so embarrassed. No, seriously. When you say it with a smile... Knowing the age of the girl saying it, it''s even more embarrassing. I wish I could be a little more considerate of women. ...... But, Haruka, aren''t you worried that Nao-san will become too good with women? You can''t deny that ....... That''s fine. It''s also good to have a relationship where you can say what you want without hesitation. --Well, we''re here. I look forward to working with you. "Yes. When talking to us, Ilias-sama''s expression, which seemed to be a little relaxed, changed to one of tension while smiling. As if caught up in this, we tightened our expressions and followed Ilias into the hall. If I had to describe the size of the hall as I knew it, I would say it was slightly smaller than a school gymnasium. Compared to a normal room, the ceiling is more than twice as high, so it doesn''t feel as cramped, but there are at least 100 people gathered there. As soon as we entered, some eyes gathered, but fortunately, other nobles were entering sequentially, so we didn''t attract attention all at once. However, it''s a little disconcerting that about half of the gazes were directed at me and Haruka. Let''s head to the corner. "Yes. Ilias-sama''s purpose is to make a record of having attended the wedding party. It''s not about standing out. Quickly move out of the entrance and take a place near the wall. As I had been told beforehand that it would be a buffet party, tables were set up here and there in the room, with drinks and food piled up on top of them, but of course, there were almost no people gobbling them up. There are a few people holding glasses and plates, but you can easily tell that they are not eating much by the fact that almost no one is holding a fork. If you can eat something with your bare hands, there''s no way you can eat meat with sauce on it without cutlery. First, let''s save some food. I think Nao and the others should have some too. It is also good manners to refrain from talking to someone who is holding a dish. But it''s also bad manners to hold the food all the time. It''s too much trouble. Master Ilias took a plate from a nearby table and placed the food on it. He then ordered a drink from the waiter beside him, asking for something light. Incidentally, "something light" usually means a light drink with low alcohol content, but if a child orders something light, it is likely to be a non-alcoholic drink. We followed suit, placing our food on the plate and ordering our drinks. We ordered something "light" as well, but since we were being served alcohol, it would be better to just moisten our mouths. Getting drunk and disgusting in this situation would be a real disaster. "Hmm, you two stand out, don''t you? Of course. You''re not imagining it, are you? No, it''s not. Either one of you alone would attract attention, but when you''re standing side by side, it''s only natural. Iliad smiled and denied Haruka''s slightly confused words. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You two can eat and drink as you please, as long as you don''t leave my side.¡¡As long as you don''t leave my side. I don''t think I''ll be able to stomach that after you''ve told me I''m ...... conspicuous. It''s scary to eat and drink without knowing it, but it''s even harder to eat when you''re the center of attention. And of course, it''s the same for Haruka. If it''s a drink you''re after, but I''m not much of a drinker. If it''s something light, no one gets drunk. ...... If you can''t, you can order something other than alcohol. No, I''m fine. ...... But there are more non-human nobles than I thought, aren''t there? In the event that you''re not sure what the difference is between a nobleman and a squire like me, there are still about 20% of beasts, elves, and dwarves in the world. I think there was also a halfling option, but I don''t know if it was included in the race selection. There are also nobles who look like children, but then again, Ilias is a child. ....... I''m not sure if it''s a halfling or not. I don''t know if you can see it properly. I''m not sure if you can see through it properly. Maybe if I understand what I''m looking for, you''ll be able to judge me pretty accurately. "Well, yes. There are a good number of elves and beastmen nobles. Not so many dwarves. They don''t seem to be very interested in the status of nobility. Is that about the percentage that''s here now? Yes. That''s about right. There are some who say we should increase the number, but it''s not easy. ...... Still, that''s a lot of people, isn''t it? To be frank, this is the place where I have seen the largest number of subspecies since I came to this world. The problem is that most of them are old men, even though they are beasts. I can''t say that they have good hair. It would be nice if there were more beautiful beastmen, if not beautiful girls. Of course, children are acceptable. And children can be boys. Elves?¡¡Male elves, well, they''re beautiful. Yeah. Female elves are definitely beautiful too, but I''ve already seen Haruka for over a year. (Nao, it looks like there''s a bear too.) "Oh. I''ve never seen one before. I''ve never seen one before. The man Haruka was looking at was taller than I was, about as wide as three of us. And yet, he''s not fat, which is scary. --No, it''s not a bear, is it? Just as Mary and her friends couldn''t tell the difference between a cat and a tiger, I can''t answer the question, "What''s the difference between a bear and a raccoon''s ears? I can''t answer that question. You can distinguish between a bear and a raccoon if you can see its tail, but you can''t see the tail of the man in question at all. In the first place, to my level of knowledge, there are almost no animals that can be distinguished by their ears alone. There are many different types of dogs, from the droopy ears of a dachshund to the erect ears of a shiba-inu. If you''re Toya, you may be able to figure it out by appraisal, but it''s impossible for me. Well, the star of the show is about to appear. "Finally, huh? There is a manner in which it is not advisable for the attendees to be too excited before the appearance of the main actors, so I have been able to take it easy until now, but from now on, that will not be the case. After the bride and groom entered and greeted everyone, the couple began to make their rounds, and then it was time to get down to business. As the attendees began to talk to each other, some of them would naturally talk to Mr. Iliad. We placed the glasses and plates in our hands on the table beside us and waited for that moment. I''m nervous. I''ll be fine. ...... maybe. That "maybe" is suspicious. As I was thinking about this, the bride and groom came into the hall. A different door than the one we used. From there, the bride in an especially gorgeous dress and, as a bonus, the groom in a probably expensive wedding dress entered. With smiles on their faces, they walked up to a raised platform in front of the venue and lightly raised their hands toward us. We, the attendees, clapped along with them. The groom looks to be over 20, but the bride is younger than expected. About the same age as us, maybe a little older? This one tends to look older than she really is to my senses, so maybe she''s younger. She''s a pretty girl, and to be honest, I think she''d look better in a simple dress rather than a gorgeous one, but I guess that''s just her position. But I guess that''s just my position. "Today, with the Barony of Dyas... The Baron began to make some kind of greeting on the platform, but I was not interested, so I ignored him. I guess more than half of the people around me were like that. Of course, on the surface they''re listening with a friendly smile, but most of them seem to be there more out of obligation than congratulations. As for me, after seeing the slums of Mijara, it''s hard for me to congratulate them on their marriage. ....... The fact that the people who live in this town seem to be happy in their own way makes me feel even more complicated. After a while of tedious talk, the bride and groom get off the dais and start making the rounds to greet the attendees. The basic order is in order of rank, or if equal, in consideration of importance, geography, and other factors. Since Master Ilias is in the latter half of his term, he has some time to spare, but it is another nobleman who comes by instead. As soon as the greetings were over, we picked up our new glasses and plates, so he won''t be coming by any time soon, but it''s hard not to let this happen. 281-253 Aristocratic wedding (6) ...... Let''s just have some food for now, shall we? In this situation?¡¡Your heart is strong, Haruka. I asked Natsuki about it. What do you do when you have no information about your opponent? According to her, it''s better to talk about the food and drinks that are available. Rather, it is the safest way. If you''re not careful, you might ask, "Are you married? or "How are your children? or "You look healthy," you may step on a minefield. In this world, there is no such thing as "s*xual harassment" for complimenting someone''s appearance. But it is best to be safe. What would you like to do, Master Iliad? "Yes, I think so. I think I''ll have some myself. I think I''ll have some of the food that is rarely eaten in my family. Ilias-sama, smiling a little like a man of his age, turned his gaze to the delicious-looking sweets. I''ll get it for you then. I''m sure you''ll be pleased with the results. I''m interested in the cake, but I''m a little hungry, so I''ll start with the meat. The sliced meat looked like roast beef, so I was a little curious. "Well, well, well! I couldn''t help but exclaim. It had a nice saltiness, a citrusy acidity, and a not too hard texture. There was a definite bite to it, but not so much that it lingered in my mouth, and the taste of the meat was strong. To be honest, I was tempted to bite into it, but there was no way I could do that. And it''s difficult to refill your order because of the etiquette. d*mn you for thinking of such troublesome manners! If this is the case, I''d like a thicker slice. ...... No, there''s no way I can even order that. Laughing in my face and crying in my heart, I put the plate I used on the table and grab a new one. It''s okay, there are still some good looking dishes--hmm? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it. ...... Oops, watch out. I almost forgot your job. You''re saying you already forgot? Yeah, I can''t deny it. But I didn''t let it show on my face. I put the unused plate on the table as Master Ilias put the plate on the table. No matter what, it''s impossible for a servant to be eating when the master is not. And then, as if I was waiting for it - well, I guess I was waiting for it. A young man approached me with a smile. It''s a pleasure to meet you. Viscountess Ilias Nenus. I am Zasu Tradato, third son of Viscount Tradato. How do you do? Ilias Nenus. The man greeted her with a hand on his chest, and Master Ilias returned the greeting with a light hand on her skirt. May I have a moment of your time? Yes, of course. Thank you, sir. But this time it was a disaster. You were attacked on your way here. Were you injured? This nobleman must have heard about the bandits. He suddenly brought it up. The fact that he doesn''t seem worried at all, even though what he''s saying seems to be worrying, may be amazing. Thank you for your concern. Thank you for your concern. Fortunately, we were able to fight it off without anyone, including me, getting hurt. "That''s great. It was a short distance, but you were unlucky. You must be having a hard time defeating the bandits. "No, no. It''s no problem at all. The place where we were attacked was on the border between our family and Baron Diaz''s territory, a sensitive place. If you are a nobleman, you know how difficult it is to send out an army. "Yes, yes, yes. Territorial borders are quite difficult. However, I''ve heard that Viscount Nenus''s soldiers are not very good at such work. I thought it was a bit rude, but I asked them to help me out out of old age. Both Ilias-sama and Zas Tradat are smiling, but they don''t look friendly at all. It''s a very aristocratic conversation that is not at all heartwarming, even though they seem to be concerned. It''s all right. We have good adventurers in our territory. "Oh, you do?¡¡I''ve heard rumors about you. ...... I''ve heard rumors about you, but I''ve never heard of you." Zas Tradart''s gaze glanced in our direction, and I gave him a slight bow, but his gaze was clearly suspicious. It wasn''t because of his age as an elf, but probably because there had been no rumors about him at all. "Yes, a very talented adventurer. I don''t know what rumors you''ve heard, but I''m sure you''re not wrong. It was a rumor that Ketola had spread. But Ilias-sama never said anything about it, he only smiled. I''m a little curious about that. I''m sure you''ve discovered a dungeon or something. The two were interrupted by an elven nobleman. He looks to be about 30 years old, but his actual age is unknown. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or a bad thing. "This is Mr. Arlandi Slyvya. Yes, it''s true. Thanks to you, our family is very wealthy. I think "very rich" is an exaggeration. Even if it does contribute a little. Of course, I''m not saying anything. "That''s very enviable. What do you think?¡¡What do you think? Are you planning to move your base to Count Slyvya''s territory?¡¡As you can see, it''s ruled by our family of elves. As you can see, it is ruled by our family of elves. "Hey, hey, hey, from what I hear, there are beastmen, too, right?¡¡We''re not bad at all. We''re not bad at all. In Nenus'' place, you''re having a hard time finding someone to marry.¡¡It''s okay to make a decision for the sake of your friends, isn''t it? He interrupted us again. This time, it was the (tentative) bear beastman we''d seen earlier. And again, he brought up the issue of race. I guess there are variations in the races of the nobles who rule. But please don''t come too close to my face. Elvishly beautiful faces and faces with beast ears do not make me happy at all when the other party is a man, and they are too strangely powerful. If the opponent is a nobleman, you can''t push him back. Haruka is completely hiding behind me. Keturah, how many rumors have you been spreading? Aren''t you two behaving a little badly?¡¡They''re under the protection of our family. Shouldn''t you talk to my father first before asking him? The two adults looked at each other as Ilias insisted on interrupting the small body. "Hmm. That''s true, too. "Shall we back off here to save face, little girl? The two adults nodded to each other, smiling as if they had seen something slightly amusing. The two of you, if you have any problems... "Master Slyvya? That was an unnecessary comment. I''ll see you soon, Miss Iliad. See you soon, little girl. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that I''m not the only one who''s had to deal with this. ...... Speaking of which, that Zas something you were talking about in the beginning has been gone for some time, hasn''t it? I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that. The beastman didn''t mention his title, but I guess that''s what he meant when he said he was more than an equal. You managed to get through it. "Thank you for your time, Master Iliad. No, I''m sure you''re both mentally exhausted.¡¡Come on, let''s get the food. "Yes. Ilias-sama''s cheeks relaxed in response to our efforts, and he picked up his plate. We can take a break now, but in a little while, we''ll need a partner for the main character. ....... Good luck, Master Iliad. We''re just as much of an ornament as we were before. But while it seems to be helping enough to distract us from the raids, it seems to be causing more trouble than it''s worth. It seems that I was not the only one who thought so, and Haruka asks Master Ilias. "Master Ilias, isn''t spreading rumors about us having the opposite effect? "No, it''s exactly what we had planned. It''s much better for Haruka and the others to be recruited than for our family to be underestimated. To put it simply, the idea is to put forward the image of a noble family with adventurers capable enough to be recruited, rather than a noble family weak enough to be attacked. Even if there are strong adventurers, the noble family itself is not strong, but the brand of the territory where such adventurers are settled, and the fact that they are in a position to make requests in case of emergency, seems to be more effective than we think. --That is, of course, if you''re a high-ranking adventurer. In all likelihood, we are inadequate for the job. To be honest, we''d be troubled if we were actually approached for the job. Of course, we won''t cause you any trouble, so don''t worry. I''ll take care of all the trouble myself. Perhaps sensing my concern, Ilias-sama smiled at me. He is indeed a small but noble man, and judging from the way he handled me earlier, I am no match for him. But to be honest, it was a great help to have those two come and talk to us. It saved me a lot of trouble. "You mean Arlandy Slyvya and the beastman, right?¡¡Who is he? He''s the Marquis of Lambert Marmont. ...... What?¡¡The Marquis himself?¡¡He''s the head of the family? I was expecting to hear, "What son of the Marquis?" but the Marquis cut me off. I didn''t think so, so I asked him back, but he just nodded silently. It seems that it really is him. "Well, Mr. Ilias. Why is the head of the Marquis family here for the Baron family''s wedding?¡¡It''s not something that would normally happen, is it? I''m sure you''re not the only one. ...... As you can see, he''s a bit of an unconventional person. When I was a little girl, he picked me up when we first met. You mean the Iliad? Yes. That was years ago. It''s not uncommon for an ordinary nobleman, let alone an aunt or uncle in the neighborhood, to pick up a child from another family. If it is a family that is related by blood and is very close, but if it is a marquis and a viscount, or a head and a legitimate son, it would be a problem. However, in his case, he is known to be such a character, and since he has no ill intentions at all, it seems that he did not cause any problems even with the Iliad. I''m sure he came here again thinking that the Baron Diaz family would serve delicious food.¡¡See? If you look in the direction of Ilias-sama''s gaze, you will see a beastman devouring a plate of meat with gusto. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that the meat I gave up in tears was ordered and cut into thick slices. d*mn, I''m jealous! I think you two are helping me out. I''m sure the two of you have given us a helping hand, since it''s hard for others to do the same when the two of you have pulled out. The head of the marquis family approached him, and Master Ilias rejected him, asking him to go through Viscount Nenus himself, which he accepted. If another nobleman were to go directly to the Iliad, he would say, ''Even though the head of the Marquess family has accepted. If it was a noble with a higher rank, it would be a different story, but of course, there would be no noble higher than the head of the Marquis family here. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own web site. Judging from his withdrawal and the way he responded, it is highly likely that he did so out of consideration for the still young Ilias-sama. In fact, Master Ilias has been lifted up by the Marquis of Marmont, and may be a casually loved character. 282-254 Aristocratic wedding (7) Now all we have to do is get our act together with Baron Diaz and the others and we''ll be on our way. "Is that so?¡¡Even though we''ve greeted the bride and groom, we still have a while before we''re done, right? Yes, I think it would be difficult to continue eating and not be talked to during that time. In my opinion, it''s totally okay, but in terms of manners, it''s the worst. The Marquis of Marmont is allowed to do this because he is a marquis. If I, a mere squire, were to do it, it would surely ruin the reputation of Master Ilias. "No, thanks to the Marquis of Marmont, we were able to push Nao and the others forward. There''s no one who''s going to talk to us now about our lack of military strength. We''re not the private army of Viscount Nenus, though. Of course I understand that. Of course I understand that, but it''s how you look from the outside and how you appear that matters. I don''t want to be taken in, so I whispered a few words to her, but she only smiled. He is a nobleman. "Well, it looks like the main course has arrived. I followed his gaze and saw the star of the day coming towards me. Master Ilias places the plates and glasses on the table and greets them with a smiling face. "Congratulations, Baron Daileass and Madame. Congratulations on your marriage. "Thank you very much for your kind words, Mr. Ilias Nenas. "Thank you. As Master Ilias bowed politely, Baron Daias and his bride also bowed firmly and returned the greeting. It seems a little strange that a grown man is bowing to a little girl, but since Master Ilias is the daughter of a viscount, her rank is equivalent to that of a baron. Iliad-sama is the daughter of a viscount, so her rank is equivalent to that of a baronet. "Equivalent" in itself makes her lower than a baronet, but since she is currently a stand-in for a viscount, she is nominally equivalent to a viscount. In other words, he is higher than Baron Diaz in a sense. It''s quite a hassle, but these subtle differences don''t seem to be a problem as long as the two parties are polite to each other. On the other hand, if you are a little bit higher than him, it is definitely frowned upon if you are arrogant. Well, in our case, we just have to be polite to everyone, so it''s easy. "I was wondering when you were going to get married, but you found a very nice wife. "Haha, I''ve been quite busy with work. I''ve been very busy with my work. Fortunately, Baron Acy and I were able to find a wife for me. I am very grateful. "Our family is also neighbors with the Barony of Dyas. I hope we can develop together. As Baron Diaz smiled cheerfully, Master Ilias also smiled elegantly, but it was unclear whether she meant it or not. I''m not sure if he meant it or not. It is reassuring for our family to hear you say that. Oh, yes, the Viscountess Nenus gave us something very valuable as a gift. Please give my regards to your father. It would be a great fortune for our family if we could be of assistance to the development of Baron Diaz. However, it must have been very difficult for Viscount Nenus to acquire such an item. I assume you are referring to the milk from the Red Strike Ox. The word "precious" seems to refer more to the difficulty of obtaining it than to its price, judging from the state of Baron Diaz''s domain. The Baron''s slightly probing gaze was brushed aside by the Iliad, and he turned to us. "Thanks to them. They''ve been a great help. "Oh. Are they good adventurers? I am a little uncomfortable with the blatantly probing gaze directed at me and Haruka, but I try not to show it on my face and bow my head. It''s not that I''m not a good person, it''s that I''m a cold-hearted businessman, but it''s not as friendly as the looks I''ve gotten from Arlandi Slyvya and the Marquis of Marmont. He seems to be an excellent ruler in a sense, but if he were to move, it would be easier to live in the Marquesses of Marmont''s domain, which he hasn''t actually seen. "Hmm, I envy you. Unfortunately, there aren''t many adventurers in this territory. "It''s not an easy thing to do. It''s not easy. Even if the results don''t come easily, we invest in the long run. That''s what we do here at home. "I see. That''s an interesting story. I''ll keep it in mind. So, can we expect to see such goods flowing into our territory in the future? Was that a question for us? But it was Master Iliad who answered immediately. "That depends on the road between Pining and Mijara, doesn''t it?¡¡It''s a matter of transporting goods bought and taken in our territory. "...... I see. --Well, we''d better get going. Thank you very much for attending. I hope you enjoy the rest of your stay. "Yes, thank you. The bride bows her head as Baron Diaz bows his, and they leave together. Perhaps the bride doesn''t talk much in such situations. After the initial greeting, she just smiled next to Baron Diaz. Of course, in that case, we were just standing there without saying a word. Huh. ....... I hope we managed to get through this without incident. But when Baron Diaz began to talk to the other guests, he put his hand lightly on his face and exhaled, as if to relieve his expression. I think I was able to speak clearly, sir. Haruka smiles as she hands Ilias-sama his drink and plate. And I agree with you. I''d rather not go toe to toe with that guy, to be honest. ...... Ah, as I said earlier, there''s no problem with Haruka and the others selling what they get in the dungeon anywhere. Of course, we would prefer that you sell them in our territory. As long as it''s livable, we don''t intend to leave the Viscount Nenus territory, so we don''t plan to go out of our way to sell them elsewhere. "As long as it''s livable? I''ll let your father know. I''ll tell your father." Master Ilias nodded in response to my frank words. But the fact is, I''ve already built a house, and even though I may travel to other places, I have no intention of moving completely. I know that the food is definitely better in Crevilly than in Laffan, and I know that I can get many other things there, but Laffan is the place where I can live comfortably and safely. If that doesn''t change, Rafan is the better choice for a home. If it weren''t for Haruka and her roommates who are good cooks, I might have come to a different conclusion. But now the rest of my life will be easier. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Ilias-sama says, a little self-mockingly, but somewhat relieved. He may not be too happy about his family being called weak, but he also doesn''t want to be in the crossfire of diplomacy between nobles. I guess that''s about it. Up to this point, it was within our expectations, and we had handled the situation well, including the rehearsal beforehand, but no matter how noble we were, it would be difficult for someone of Ilias''s age to improvise to deal with an unexpected situation. Well, in a nobleman''s party that follows certain rules and etiquette, unexpected situations don''t happen very often, unless you''re someone like the Marquis of Marmont. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. It would be a shame to waste it. "You''re pretty tough, Ilias-sama, aren''t you? Ilias-sama smiled lightly at Haruka''s words, which contained a slight chuckle. "Yes. The ordeal is over. I''m sure the food will be delicious. "It''s true that the food here is definitely delicious. Since we''re going out of our way, let''s choose something expensive to eat, shall we? Haruka, you are very good. You''re very good. I''d like something that''s hard to find in Pining. I''m thinking of fruits. Also, I''ve never seen seafood before. I joined them in looking at the food. For Toya and the others, who were still at home and enjoying their holidays while we were undergoing our Spartan education, we should taste the food and show it off. If it were possible, I''d like to bring back enough information to recreate the dishes here, but that''s just too much for me. I''ll leave that to Haruka. Because the sea is far away, seafood is inevitably expensive. What we can get is salted fish, so there are few tasty items that we dare to serve. Some nobles who want to boast of their wealth may offer it. I don''t know much about it, but is the sea far away? Yes. If we were to go to the sea from our country, it would be to the south and east, but the south is the Upiclisian Empire. Of course, it''s difficult to distribute goods, and the Iupiklisian Empire itself is not bordered by the sea. It seems that you have to go further south, past another country, to finally reach the sea. In the east is the Principality of Austianum, which is a friendly country, but this side also needs to cross another country, and the distance itself is far. It would take months to transport them in a normal carriage. It would take months to transport it by horse-drawn carriage, and of course it would cost a fortune to bring it from such a place. You don''t have to go to that much trouble to eat seafood. You can catch fish in the nearby rivers, and people usually eat that. I don''t care if it''s a muddy fish from Sarlstad, it''s good enough to eat in this town. I don''t know if it''s in the cuisine here. I''m not very familiar with seafood. You can''t tell the difference between a fish dish and a seafood dish. From behind Ilias, I surveyed the dishes on the table, but there were so many different dishes. Some of the dishes looked like fish, but there was no way I could tell if they were sea or river fish. Well, it looked good, so of course I took it and tried it. By the way, when I heard the price of the clothes, I was super scared, but if you think about it, we have - or more precisely, Haruka has "purification". We can remove stains in an instant, so as long as we don''t make a mess, we don''t have to worry if we make a mess. As you can see, I can''t eat as boldly as the Marquis of Marmont, but I don''t have to shy away from a delicious dish for fear of the sauce flying off. Now that the tedious dialogue with the noblemen - with the exception of the Iliad, of course - was over, he could start eating. "Hey, Nao, there''s a shellfish dish.¡¡Isn''t that something from the sea? The shellfish Haruka showed me was a bivalve about half the size of my palm. The bivalve shells that Haruka showed me were half the size of my palm. I don''t know.¡¡You can find them in rivers, ponds, and even on land.¡¡There are also snails and snails in rivers and ponds. ...... I''m losing my appetite now that I hear that. Is that a shellfish?¡¡That''s a lake clam. They''re delicious. They don''t make it to our table, though. So they''re expensive? Then you should eat it. It looks like a clam, only the shell is left on one side and it''s cooked. The meat of the clam is placed on top of a cheese-like substance and herbs, and it is either grilled or baked in the oven. "Oh, it''s so rich. "Oh, it''s so rich. "Oh, it''s so rich. Yeah, it''s thick, not muddy, no sand. It''s not cooked on the spot, so it''s cold, but the flavor of the shellfish is concentrated, and it''s quite delicious. Moreover, the scallops were neatly separated so that they could be easily eaten with just a fork. Since Ilias-sama had also eaten the same dish and her cheeks were relaxed, it must have suited her palate as well. I knew this was probably true because of what happened to Aella, but the level of this world is really high. "Three stars! I want to say, "Three stars! It''s hard to say, because some of the food is really bad, but it''s also probably costly, so it''s hard to say it''s bad. And now for ....... We all put down our plates and were about to choose our next dish when... "Oh!¡¡I never thought I''d find such a beautiful gem in a place like this!¡¡This is a godsend! Suddenly, I heard a voice. 283-255 Aristocratic wedding (8) I turned to look at him and instantly regretted my decision. There was definitely an "airheaded aristocrat" there, in more ways than one. As I had been taught at the tailor shop, men''s formal wear is usually simple and chic, except for the vest and lining, and of course most of the people here were wearing such formal wear. Even with a few exceptions, there is a modest embroidery of the same color thread on the jacket. No one wears fancy clothes--except him. Standing in front of me was a man in a very flashy purple ceremonial dress. It''s impossible to tell from the color, but the dress is embroidered with colorful threads in a fancy way. Simply put, it''s the kind of embroidered clothing that a delinquent would wear. Something like that. In addition, the surface of the garment is shiny and sparkly, like a jewel or something, and it hurts my eyes. I guess you could call it luxurious, but to my eyes, it looks like something cheap. Some of my hair is also purple. ...... You dye your hair, right? It''s not your natural hair, is it? I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of it. And with her hands outstretched and a smile on her face. I felt like stepping forward to protect Master Ilias and Haruka, but I couldn''t do that in this situation. Unless there is a clear danger, as a matter of etiquette, I have to stay behind Master Ilias. "Miss, may I ask your name? It was already obvious from the way she was dressed that she couldn''t read the air, but her behavior was the same. The man''s eyes were on Haruka. But this is clearly a breach of etiquette. We are here now as the followers of Master Ilias. Nevertheless, it''s not normal to call out to Haruka in a way that ignores Master Ilias. Naturally, Ilias-sama stepped forward to interrupt them. "Who are you? I am Pano Gnos, the eldest son of Baron Aare Gnos. Please make my acquaintance. The man finally turned his attention to the Iliad and gave an exaggerated bow, to which the Iliad replied with an air of displeasure. I am Ilias Nenus, daughter of Viscount Joachim Nenus. "I have heard of Viscount Nenus ....... I''ve heard of him. Does he rule the northwestern frontier? Yes, I do. "I see. But since this is not the time, would you mind keeping your daughter off to the side? "...... Yes? While Master Ilias was stunned by the unbelievable behavior of the nobleman, Panno approached, avoiding Master Ilias. "Oh, your shining, lustrous hair, your beautiful skin, your slender limbs. Very nice. It''s a loss to the world to have a gem like you on the frontier. I hope you''ll join my family. I took Haruka''s hand and hid it behind my back, interrupting Pano who was sleepwalking. Pernod sees this and frowns in displeasure. What is it with you?¡¡I''m not here for you. "Do you see this? The man twisted his head curiously as I gazed at the ornaments around his neck and around Haruka''s waist. What''s wrong with that?¡¡Yes, it''s not a bad cloth. Of course, it''s not as good as mine. No, don''t compare it to that glittery purple cloth of bad taste. --Not that. No, I''m not. You taught me the meaning of the decorative cloth, right? I looked at him with some concern, but he also looked at me as if he had seen something incredible. Okay, you''re right. Let''s put it plainly. She''s my partner. I need you to stay away from her. "....... You''re going to say that to me, a nobleman?¡¡A mere squire? Pernod looks uncomfortable, but I''m more uncomfortable. I was about to lash out in that unpleasantness, but it was difficult to do so given the publicity and my position. It was quite stressful. The one who took care of it for me was Ilias, who had recovered. If you are a nobleman, why don''t you learn some manners first?¡¡If you go too far, I''ll have to protest to Baron Gnoss. "Hmm. How much do you want?¡¡A beautiful elf is not suitable for a frontier nobleman. I''ll tell my dad and see what he can do. The reply to Ilias-sama, who had expressed his displeasure quite clearly, was quite unbelievable. The smile on Ilias''s face tightened. It''s not a question of money. It''s not about money. Pernod Gnos seems to be a bit lacking in education. "(d*mn you, kid. If you''re too greedy, you may end up with nothing at all.¡¡There are many ways to do it. I''m a high performance person, and the swearing that Pano whispered into my ear reached me. At first, he was smiling like a nice young man, but now his expression is completely thug-like. I clenched my fists at the joke, but Ilias, on the other hand, looked like he had plenty of time to spare, shrugged his shoulders exaggeratedly, and shook his head. You should be more careful with your words and actions. Unlike me, you''re not old enough to be overlooked as a child, are you? What? Purno''s expression of anger at Ilias-sama''s rather clear (for a nobleman) abuse was... "I overheard something. I think you misunderstand our race as if they were works of art or something.¡¡Baron Gnoss? The one who interrupted me saying that was Arlandy Slyvya. The one who interrupted our conversation was Arlandi Slyvya, an elf nobleman of the Slyvya Count family. What the hell are you--? It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web, as well as the information on the internet. Either way, it is a fatal stupidity for a nobleman. Even those of us who have only received a cramming education - or even if we haven''t, we can understand that the response is wrong. And that foolishness can be interrupted by a tap on the shoulder from behind. You''re making a bit of noise, aren''t you?¡¡I think you''d better calm down.¡¡Hmm? What? Standing there was the Marquis of Marmont. The Marquis of Marmont is a man of rank, but his power as a human being is completely different. Even if Pano didn''t know about the Marquis of Marmont''s title, he wouldn''t have the gall to remain calm when he was threatened by him. He''s flirtatious by all accounts. The way she was dressed, she looked like she was saying, "Weee! I''m Lambert Marmont. "I''m Lumber Marmont, and you''re Pernod, Baron Gnoss, right? "Hmmm, ......, that''s a bit of a bad vibe. I''ll get back to you. See you soon. I''ll see you in a little bit." "Don''t call me ''air'' if you can''t read me at all," he said, but it wasn''t a bad exit. The Marquis of Marmont''s name may have reminded him of his rank, but Pernod''s face turned a little pale as he quickly walked away from us and out of the hall. But at the end of the day, the way he looked at Haruka seemed to be very stubborn, which made me feel quite uncomfortable and anxious. If you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own webpage. Thank you, Marquis of Marmont and Master Slyvya. "Thank you very much. The Marquis of Marmont and Master Slyvya, thank you." "Thank you." Since it was an obvious help this time, we also bowed our heads and thanked Ilias. It may be that the man was just too conspicuous, but he may have been paying attention to us in a subtle way, since he interrupted us in a precise manner. Considering the fact that Ilias-sama was picked up by the Marquis of Marmont when he was a small child, I wonder if there is some kind of connection between the Viscountess of Nenus and the Marquis of Marmont. I don''t care, that''s enough. I''ve never seen this before.¡¡I''ve never seen him before. ...... Do you know Erlandy? "I know Baron Gnoss, but this is the first time I''ve seen a man claiming to be his legitimate son. Baron Gnoss himself is not much of a man,....... I don''t even have a rating to lower. I don''t even have a rating to lower. Hahahaha! The Marquis of Marmont himself, perhaps not knowing Baron Gnoss very well, said such a thing and laughed gaily. If you think about it, Baron Gnoss might be a lowly nobleman with nothing outstanding about him. If that''s the case, there''s not much to worry about, but judging from his clothes, he seems to have a certain amount of money, which worries me. His taste was bad, but he seemed to have a lot of money from the embroidery. I don''t know much about Baron Gnoss either, so I''d like to talk to your father about it when I get back. That would be a good idea. I don''t know much about Baron Gnoss either. Oh, I won''t force you to move your activities. It''s a family affair. I''ll help you, too.¡¡If you''re one of Miss Ilias'' favorite adventurers. I''d love to have you come to my territory at least once, but it''s a bit far. ...... It''s the same with my territory. The Marquess of Marmont and the Count of Slyvya are adjacent to each other, but from the Viscount of Nenus, it will take four or five times longer to get there than from Pining to Mijara. I wondered if it was safe for the Marquis of Marmont to be away from his estate for such a long period of time, let alone Arlandy, who was not the head of the estate, but later I heard that his heir had already come of age and was doing a fine job, so there was not much of a problem. Furthermore, the Marquis of Marmont himself, as well as his bodyguards, were all strong beasts, and they were able to travel in a short period of time by running on their own feet instead of using a carriage. Normally, even if this were possible, he would use a carriage out of concern for public opinion, but he seems to be unconventional in that way as well. "My God, you two. Please don''t tempt the precious adventurers of my territory too much. Even high-level adventurers don''t stay with us. The Marquesses of Marmont smiled at Ilias, who puffed up his cheeks a little and complained. The Marquesses of Marmont smiled as if they were nurturing a child, "No, no, no, I didn''t mean it like that. But you said there are beastmen in the party.¡¡It''s hard for our kind to find a marriage partner. A marriage trip of sorts? That could be it. I think it''s better than having to choose between Toya, Mary and the others, and I''m happy to see a variety of beastmen. The practical Mitya seems to be aiming at Toya, who can afford it, but as her skills improve and she becomes more independent as an adventurer, she may be able to expand her horizons. Yes, sir. Fortunately, the two of you don''t seem to be a problem. But you are beautiful, even to your own people. If you don''t have a partner, I''d like to come forward. Aarandi praised Haruka''s appearance with a noble gesture that was not at all sarcastic. It''s not like I''m all about appearances. The compliment is the same as Pano''s, but the fact that it doesn''t make you feel uncomfortable is amazing. Even Haruka, who doesn''t like to be picked on, replies with a soft smile on her face. I''m sorry. But I''ve already made up my mind. "I understand. It''s a great match. I''d like to know when you get married. I''ll be there. Even though he was rejected, Arlandi bowed with a fresh smile. It was lip service, but it was very cool to see how well he looked. So this is a natural nobleman. From then until the end of the wedding party, the Marquis of Marmont and Erlandy stayed by our side without leaving us. The Marquis of Marmont''s appetite was even more impressive up close, and I was able to use that as a cover to eat as well, which was one of the benefits. Thanks to the two of them, no strange noblemen reappeared, and we survived the reception without incident. 284-256 Return to the throne (1) The day after the reception, Haruka and I were lounging on the bed while Toya and the others went out for the final push to prepare for tomorrow''s departure. Thanks to the Marquis of Marmont, we had enough time to taste a lot of food, but the mental stress was still too much. I didn''t do anything, I basically just stood there, but it was hard. I couldn''t speak very well, and as an ordinary citizen, it was exhausting to be in a situation where I was constantly being watched. Perhaps it was because I was an elf, but in the beginning, I was often noticed in Raffan, but since I had a fixed area of activity and it wasn''t that big of a town, that stopped after a while, and the way I was noticed was different. Rafan was just looking at me out of curiosity, and if I did something strange, he would just think that there was a strange elf. But yesterday''s scene made me nervous because it wasn''t just about me. "Oh, I feel so stiff all over. That''s true. I can feel my facial muscles tense up. Haruka was making an expression. ...... It''s not that Haruka is unsociable, but she''s not the type of person who always has a gentle smile on her face. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. But the nobleman is also troublesome. It''s like they''re laughing and hitting each other with words. "Master Ilias is only a child, but I''m sure he''d be even worse as an adult. I don''t even remember his name, but the first man who approached me was clearly trying to mount Master Ilias, using the fact that he had been attacked as an excuse. He faded out easily when a higher-ranking nobleman appeared. The Marquis of Marmont seems to have a lot of study and little freedom. The Marquis of Marmont seemed to have a lot of freedom. The Marquis of Marmont seemed to have a lot of freedom. With all those nobles, he was the only one who stood out. And yet, he didn''t seem to be frowned upon. Of course, this is because of his character and the title that allows him to do so. It''s probably easiest to be a well-paid adventurer when you think about it. As long as you don''t get into the hands of some crazy nobleman. ...... We need the protection of the nobility, don''t we? If it''s purely brute force, you might be able to fight them. But if you fight them off, that''s not good. If it is between nobles, it may be treated as a "conflict," but if a civilian kills him, it is murder against nobility. No matter what kind of vicious aristocrat we are dealing with, the regime will naturally turn against us and kill us. "It''s not going to be a happy ending where the righteous side defeats the bad guys. I guess it helps that the traffic is so bad. You can''t just drive up and down the street. Not only the speed, but also the safety on the road is quite critical. This is the reason why it is so important for you to have a good idea of what you are looking for.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s a problem that arose at the request of Viscount Nenus. You could say that it was Haruka''s good looks that caused the problem. Oh, good looks. Is that a compliment? There''s no denying she''s beautiful. As Erlandy the Elf said, anyone who sees Haruka''s appearance and thinks she''s not beautiful must have a very different sense of beauty from the general public. "Yes, yes. Thank you. Haruka was a little embarrassed by my honest feedback and lay face down on the bed. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. ...... Hey, hey, Nao. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡You know, you''re really stiff, right? "Hmm?¡¡That would be great, but ...... Yeah. Here, lie on your back. If anything, my mental fatigue is greater than my physical stiffness, but it''s hard to say that to Haruka, who is very motivated, so I honestly get down on my back. Then, let''s go. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Mmmm. Honestly, it''s comfortable. If it''s just about healing, I can do it with magic, but there''s something different about it. "You''re very stiff, sir~ Really? No, I''m just saying. What the hell is that? I laughed lightly and Haruka laughed a little too, then proceeded to massage her hips and back. But Nao''s body is thinner than before. But your body is thinner than before. But your body is thinner than before. You''re a little bit taller, and you''re obviously stronger, but ...... that tickles me. I move my hand to get away from Haruka''s hand, which is rustling the muscles in my arm. I''m sorry. But it''s the same for me. My body has gotten thinner and ...... my breasts, too. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s nice to be well proportioned.¡¡Yeah. Well, that''s good. ...... ......... "......... Haruka''s hands rubbed her shoulders and neck as if she were putting weight on them silently. I''m not sure what to do. ...... But what''s wrong, all of a sudden. Massage? I''m sure you''ve heard of it.¡¡You can do something like that, can''t you?¡¡Oh, you''ll have to do it to me later. That''s what I said at the reception. That''s right. Haruka also has a ...... partner in mind, doesn''t she? Yes, I do. ......... "......... We fall silent again. Before I knew it, Haruka''s hand had stopped and his face was right next to mine. Even up close, her face is really beautiful. I gently reach out and bring her face close to mine, and she closes her eyelids. And then... "Hey, Nao. I''m here for lunch. Suddenly, without knocking, the door of the room was opened with a bang. My gaze collides with Toya''s as he walks in. And then, with a bang... The air in the room freezes. I''m going out to eat. I won''t be back for a while!¡¡Me and Natsuki and the others!¡¡Yes, specifically, about two hours. Then! The door closes rather roughly with a bang, and you can hear Toya running away. No, what''s wrong with the air? What am I supposed to do? ......... ...... said he won''t be back for about two hours. Yeah, I heard that. ......? What are you going to do? Haruka opens her eyes and stares at me with deep, clear eyes. You can find a lot more information on this subject in this article. I''m sure you''ll agree. In the end, Haruka and I decided to have our last lunch at the Crevilly with what we had stocked in our magic bags. After a little more than two hours, Natsuki and his friends came back, and they didn''t say anything, but they responded as usual. ...... The fact that they didn''t say anything made me feel a subtle sense of embarrassment. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. "Yes. I was able to get enough rice and a large variety of spices, so I think I can make something close to curry if I try hard enough. I also bought a lot of other unusual items. Maybe some of the spices can be grown in the garden? "Yes. I''ll give it a try!¡¡I''ll try my best! It''ll only be a few spices, though. I could eat a lot of good food! It was just a normal conversation. And she remembered the story about the curry. Mitya was interested in eating. We had eaten a lot of food at the wedding party, but we wanted to try eating out. Haruka and I had only eaten on the first day because of our cramming education. We spent a lot of money, though, right? Well, if Natsuki and Yuki decide it''s okay, then it''s fine. ...... Wow, you really spent a lot of money. When I get home, I''m going to have to work hard for a while. You''re not going to get any cash for this escort request. Haruka looked at the leather bag containing the common expenses and squealed. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. On the other hand, speaking of Toya... "Uh, Nao, I''m sorry about earlier, okay? What are you talking about?¡¡What are you talking about? I was just getting treated by Haruka.¡¡I was all stiff from the reception yesterday. Yeah, yeah. No, it''s obvious when you didn''t come after me right away. ......... I have no idea what''s going on. So, did it work? ...... I have no idea what you''re talking about, and I have no idea what you''re talking about, but I have no comment. I don''t know what you''re talking about.¡¡It''s not like I''m asking for details. It''s a good idea to have a little bit of time to think about what you''re doing. You know what ...... is? You''re obviously in a good mood. Is that what it is? Of course, I don''t think he''s bad, but I think he''s always like that. --No, maybe I''m not good enough to know that. I''m far from a nobleman. Well, I''ll give you my blessing. "I don''t know what you''re talking about, but thank you. I don''t know what you''re talking about, but thank you," I replied, to which Toya shrugged his shoulders. Early in the morning of the next day, we set out for the Viscount of Nenus. As if retracing the path we had come, from Crevilly to Mijara to Pining. As expected, we were not attacked by bandits this time, and since we had repaired the road on the way, the journey went smoothly. Despite the rain, we made it back to Pining almost on schedule. 285-257 Return to the throne (2) On the day we arrived back in Pining after nearly a month of escort duty, we were staying overnight in the rooms of Viscount Nenus'' house that we had used before our departure. The next day in the afternoon, we were called to the room we had used to buy the family heirloom sword. When I entered the room, I found Viscount Nenus himself, his butler Biesel, Master Ilias, and Arlin, among others. I sat down on the sofa as recommended, and Viscount Nenus opened his mouth. "First of all, thank you for your hard work on the escort mission. First of all, thank you for your hard work in protecting the life of the Iliad from dangerous bandits. "No, that is the job of an escort. The level of danger from the bandits was beyond my imagination, but that doesn''t mean I should complain about it. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. In addition, it seems that he responded to an unexpected request. This is a different request from the original one, so naturally, I will prepare a different reward for you. Yes, thank you very much. Incidentally, I have already received the formal wear that Haruka and I wore as part of the reward. It''s not that they can''t be sold as second-hand clothes, but since they were made to fit each of us, it''s more valuable to give them to us as a reward. In the event you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, you can contact us at ....... I have a bad feeling about the words of Viscount Nenus. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s not like Biesel is going to show it on his face. Aaryn also only smiled at me when I looked at her. But I guess I can''t not ask. When I looked at Haruka, Natsuki and the others, they nodded without expression, and I turned my gaze back to Viscount Nenus. I''ll ask you. You may have heard of it, but there have been kidnappings here in Pining for some time now. Let''s see, ...... Oh, that''s the guy that Diora flagged for me a long time ago, isn''t it? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you out. The number of people itself is small. Probably less than ten people. That''s why the case was discovered so late, and why we''re having trouble getting a full picture. "I see. I don''t know what kind of people are missing, but if they are adventurers, a few missing people is hardly an incident. It''s not uncommon for people to go out of town and never come back, and just because you''re going to another town doesn''t mean you''re going to declare it and leave. With that in mind, it is probably the town''s inhabitants who are missing, but even so, it is quite diligent of the lord to act even with a single digit number of missing persons. In this world, death is quite common, so it''s normal not to worry about a small decrease. Is it possible that the missing person is someone important? I want you to investigate the case, find the missing person, and solve it if possible. That''s what the ...... Territorial Army is investigating, isn''t it?¡¡We are not experts in that area. We are not experts in this field, and I don''t think we can expect to get much out of it. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get rid of it. It''s a good thing I''m an amateur detective. I''m not sure what to make of it. To be frank, our participation in the investigation would be a drop in the bucket. "Hmm. I understand that. But we''re short-staffed. It''ll be a little better when Eckert and the others get back, but still ....... It has to do with another thing I need to apologize for: ...... I''m sure it''s quite difficult to say, but Viscount Nenus was silent for a while, and then he opened his mouth. "Saint Sathmie ran away from me. ""......!" "Really? It''s no wonder Toya couldn''t help but let out a yelp. Even those of us who didn''t let out a sound gasped and looked at each other. "I''m sorry you guys took the time to get me. The Iliad''s escort has taken advantage of the reduced number of soldiers. "Wow, ....... "We''re sure to be the target of a lot of attention. (That''s what I''m talking about. I''m going to punch you in the stomach. "Should I have taken care of the problem then? We hold our heads and whisper to each other. And then Haruka says something a little scary, but it''s a reality that''s not entirely wrong. I mean, they hadn''t executed him yet, had they? I had a feeling so, based on Arlin''s reaction at the time. Of course, we immediately put out an APB, but it''s highly likely that he''s already escaped from this pinning. Kerg had cordoned off the town quite tightly in case of escape, but the gates of Pining were on normal alert until the escape was discovered. When entering, the gatekeepers would check guild cards, collect taxes, and so on, but when leaving, they would let you pass unless you looked suspicious. Satomi also knew that he would be trapped in the town if he was found out, so he quickly left the town. Do you mean you need a territorial army to search for it? Yeah. You guys got Satomie, but you''re more suited to investigate the inside of the town than the outside, aren''t you? It''s a bit of a toss up as to which of the two you''re more suited to, but you''re definitely not suited to searching outside the town, which requires organized action. "The reward is the dungeon I''m supposed to give you. You will be given a six-kilometer perimeter around the entrance to the dungeon. Of course, it will be registered in the royal capital. Unlike Japan, private ownership of land in this country is much more difficult. For example, the land of the house we''re living in. For example, the land of the house where we live is our own land that we bought, but it is the lord of this place, Viscount Nenus, who approves it. Conversely, if Viscount Nenus says ''no'', it could be taken away. However, "registration in the royal capital" is different. Once it has been registered under the approval of the lord, only the owner himself or the king can overrule it. It is impossible for Viscount Nenus to say afterwards, "I guess not! He can''t say, "I guess not! So, Viscount Nenus''s offer is pretty unbeatable, but ...... it''s because he has no use for it. For us, there is nothing we can do with that much land. If we had to think of a use for it, it would be to be able to freely build a resting hut or a shed in front of a dungeon. In fact, even if you don''t own it, I don''t see why anyone would complain about it. To put it bluntly, the rewards are subtle. ......... I also promise to protect you from any interference from other noblemen and promise not to give you any trouble from my family. No, the reason why other nobles might interfere in the first place is because you attended the wedding party at their request, right? On top of that, I''m being asked to do troublesome things on an ongoing basis. You can''t say that they are arrogant, but they are aristocrats. ...... May I have a word with you? Yeah, sure. Yes, we''ll leave you alone for a moment. Arryn, get them some tea. "Very well, sir. Viscount Nenus and the others got up and left the room, and Arryn made us a quick cup of tea, bowed, and left. A few moments later, Toya groaned with her head in her hands. What are you doing, letting a very important and dangerous person escape ......? It''s because he''s dangerous. It''s only because he''s dangerous. No matter how low the skill level of the territorial army is, normally they wouldn''t be able to escape. It''s not as if he smashed the walls of the prison and escaped. If it was a spectacular escape, the town would have been shut down immediately. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the best way to get the most out of your time. It would be best if the Territorial Guard could catch him or dispose of him as is. ...... It''s a little difficult to say. The next best thing would be for them to flee somewhere far away to another country and stay out of our way. ...... Satomi is the one who caused our house to burn down, isn''t he? Well, he''s a distant cause. The landlord is the one who started the fire. I see. ...... You''re still alive, aren''t you? Mary''s eyes are dark as she murmurs. I think it''s best not to drag this out too much. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡Do you want to take it? The price isn''t very attractive, is it? It''s not like you''re getting a piece of land in the woods. There''s no use for it. You could cut it open and farm it.¡¡That might be a good way to live after you retire. Having a piece of land is something to be happy about, though! Tohya''s reaction was not good. But isn''t it great to be given such a large piece of land?¡¡The farmer also said that if you have an inheritable farm, you are safe. ...... "If I can marry the heir to a farming family, I''m a success! Listening to Mehta''s words, I wondered about their father and his educational policy. But it''s not wrong to be very realistic, and it''s true that being able to eat is the most important thing. In a sense, love is a luxury of the rich. In this serious world. "Mitya, how hard is it to turn a forest into farmland?¡¡You have to cut down the trees. Come on! There are demons coming, and we have to kill them. We''ll do our best! Mitya, do you have some kind of attachment to the land? Is it because you are a successful man? I''m not going to let my negative comments deter you from clasping your hands and breathing hard. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to pay off your debts. Haruka nodded in agreement, but added one more thing. I think the way you said it, it probably includes the magic bag thing.¡¡It''s not a problem if it''s just for your own consumption, but it''s not a bad thing to have, the backing of the nobility. So, what''s left to fight for?¡¡I don''t think we can negotiate much. Hey, don''t look at me there, Yuki. You can''t negotiate with a nobleman either. Besides-- It''s nice to get a deal, but the ding-dong season is almost over. Yeah, that''s the thing. Dildos, they''re important. Dindolls are important, both for Diora''s sake and for our own dietary needs. It''s a fruit that can be eaten on its own or used to make inspirational sauce. That''s Dindol. Now we''d rather go and collect them for ourselves than sell them for money. And unlike last year, we have a magic bag, so we can expect to increase the amount we collect and the time we keep it. I''d like you to go and pick some dingles. I''ll never forget how delicious they were. This may be due to the fact that I had been eating bad food for a long time, but there is no doubt that they are delicious. "Yeah, me too. So, I''ll ask him to wait for a while. "Or we can split up temporarily. Right now, Nao and I can get by on our own. Last year, Haruka, Nao and Toya worked hard together, right? Yeah. Well, I was just waiting for them. I couldn''t climb the tree. Didn''t Toya help you with the luggage on the way back and forth?¡¡Yeah. For efficiency''s sake, would it be better if we split up?¡¡During that period, I want Toya and the others to take it easy. So, what are the terms of the contract?¡¡Additional demands seem to be difficult. ...... I think it''s a little too convenient to use, but it''s hard to see where the reward isn''t worth it. It''s not easy to use, but getting the land in a real sense is pretty big. If money is difficult, what else is there?¡¡Special products or ...... furniture? "No, it''s better to order from Simon-san. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. But I agree with him. But I agree with you. Moreover, it''s just a hindrance if you get it when you don''t need it. "Ale!¡¡We have ale! I don''t drink it, so I''ve forgotten about it." "Oh, ......, there was such a thing. I don''t drink, so I forgot all about it. I don''t drink it, so I''d forgotten all about it, but you remembered it well, Mitya. When I stroked her head, she giggled happily and said, "Heh. But ale... If it''s safe to keep, I might as well keep it. It seems to be popular, and it could be used as a souvenir for Tommy, or as a bargaining chip for other people. Well, let''s go in that direction, shall we?¡¡I don''t know if it will work. I don''t know if it''s going to work, but that''s where Nao''s negotiation skills come into play.¡¡Good luck. Yuki, don''t put pressure on me with a smile. ...... I don''t have any bargaining power. Just take it easy. The only thing I need is for you to acknowledge me regarding Dindol, and that will be enough. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. 286-258 Return to the throne (3) After confirming the policy of the party members, we took a break and waited for the Viscount and the others to come back, drinking tea that had cooled down a bit. Perhaps taking into consideration the troublesome situation, there was a knock on the door of the room some time after we had finished our conversation. When I answered the knock, Viscount Nenus and Ms. Biesel came into the room. It seemed that Master Ilias and Mr. Arlin had not returned. "Have we reached an agreement? "Yes. I have a few requests that I''d like to make, if you don''t have any problems with them. Oh. Yeah? I''m relieved to see that Viscount Nenus doesn''t seem particularly offended by my words, and I''ll list the conditions we discussed earlier. "I see, Diora. I accept. I want this to be resolved quickly, but I understand the importance of our relationship as adventurers. Despite the fact that it was a rather delicate request to go pick some fruit, it was granted more easily than I expected. Perhaps Diora''s name had an effect. The ale was also approved. I''ve recently acquired a good brewery. I''ll have some good ones for you. Thank you, sir. I''m sure it won''t be a problem since we''ve met, but I''ll talk to the guards. If you need information, go ask. Also, you are free to use the room now. Take care of it. "Yes, sir. After we stood up and bowed together, Viscount Nenus and Mr. Biesel left the room quickly. I''m sure you''re a little busy, but I''m sure you have a lot of work to do with all the problems that have been occurring. Well, it was approved more easily than I expected. ...... That''s my bargaining power. I didn''t negotiate with them, I just told them. Yeah, that wasn''t so bad. Yeah, it was an excellent negotiation, Nao. "Yeah, good job. That''s Nao! I was honestly praised. "...... Are you killing me with praise?¡¡You saw I wasn''t negotiating, right? I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not.¡¡It''s the basis of education. It''s the basis of education. You''re treating me like a child! You''re treating me like a child!" Haruka patted my head and then slapped my hand away. In response to my response, Haruka laughed and quickly changed the subject. I''m going back to Rafan first thing in the morning. Natsuki and the others, can you proceed with the investigation as long as you don''t overdo it? "Yes, sir. We''ll be careful not to go too far. I''ll be careful not to overstep. We don''t know what we''re up against, but considering this escort mission, we can''t be too careful. I don''t want to think that the Yup''iklis''a Empire will reach this far, but it was so close. All of us frowned, remembering that time. The only ones who don''t feel it are Mary and Mitya, who didn''t face it directly. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡That bandit? When the bandits attacked, Ilias-sama and the two who were riding in the carriage stayed in the carriage until the matter was settled. Unfortunately, in the current situation, it would have slowed them down even if they had come forward, so it was the right thing to do. The guy that Nao and I dealt with was clearly better than me, right? Yeah. Yeah. If they had come to kill us, we would have been in trouble. Maybe, from what Arlin told me, they didn''t want to wear out their manpower too much. Soldiers who can penetrate deep into enemy territory in small numbers. This case was not strategically valuable enough to dispose of such soldiers. Aim for nobles who can be killed without sacrifice, and pull back if it seems impossible. Looking at the way they attacked, it seemed more likely. If that''s the case, then the fact that they lost a man''s leg might be unexpected. In addition, if you think about it, you''ve successfully retreated with a badly injured soldier, and you''ve done it very quickly. ...... You didn''t dispose of him on the way, but you kept him alive? Yeah. At the very least, they were all alive in my search range. I''m afraid it''s possible to dispose of them or something, but the spotters were still alive, and they fled at a speed that you wouldn''t expect with a person in their arms. In addition, he even retrieved the leg he blew off, so he was quite calm. "With that injury, ...... could any of them have been able to use healing magic? "Well, the attack was fire magic. Maybe if we burned the wound a little more, the bleeding would have stopped? "Ugh. ...... That looks really painful. Thank goodness we have Haruka and Natsuki. I''m glad we have Haruka and Natsuki. We don''t use them often. We can make our own. But they''re not free. If you heal it with magic, it''s free. I have it as an insurance policy, but I''ve only actually used it when I was experimenting. I always have Haruka or Natsuki with me, so there''s no need for it. "Well, at least we''re working under the assumption that the enemy is stronger than us. Nao and I will finish our work on the other side and join you as soon as possible. "Oh! Haruka and the others should be careful, too.¡¡I don''t think you''ll be hit by a vipu bear anymore. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a way to make it work. "Yeah, well, last year was a close one, wasn''t it Toya? Yeah, we almost died, didn''t we, Toya? Yeah, I did!¡¡I was the one who got hit!¡¡d*mn it, I was worried about you. Toya bends her head when Haruka and I make fun of her in the same breath. Seeing Toya, Haruka and I laugh lightly. "I appreciate the sentiment. But a vipu bear should be fine. They''re less than orcs. "We''ve grown, haven''t we? We''ve grown in the past year. Yeah, I know. It''s been a year. ...... This time last year, we were picking magic mushrooms. But I don''t think I''ll need to do that this year. My savings are a little low, but I don''t feel bad about taking away the rookie''s food supply. Dildos?¡¡I''ll take this one because it''s good. That''s our priority. All right!¡¡This is the first time we''ve been split up for an extended period of time, but let''s be careful and keep each other on our toes! "Yes, sir! The next day, early in the morning, I was pinning. The next day, early in the morning, Haruka and I left Pining and were running towards Laffan. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of jogging with a man and a woman, but the speed is faster than a world-class marathon, so it''s not at all like a fun sport with your girlfriend. And since we were standing in a vertical line, I couldn''t even see Haruka''s face. But if I went to the side, I''d be asked to play the role of pacemaker. It seems that "slipstreaming" is important. I didn''t know that the windbreak was called a slipstream. I''ve never heard of it. Well, with Toya out of the way, I''m forced to stand in front. After a couple of not-so-fun hours with only the sound of Haruka''s breathing right behind me, we arrived at Kerg. It was a little early for lunch, but we decided to stop by Yasue''s restaurant. Because of the time of day, it was not as crowded as when I had come here before, but I guessed it was doing well, because there were still customers. I walked in, sat down at an empty seat, and the waitress came to ask my order. It''s nice to be able to order without worrying about missing anything. As we waited for a while, Yasue came in, as if she had noticed our presence. What''s wrong with just the two of you today?¡¡A date? "Unfortunately, work. Unfortunately, I''m working. We''ll be with Rafan and Natsuki will be with Pining. Haruka shrugged her shoulders as she asked Yasue with a smirk on her face. I''m sure you''re right.¡¡I''m a little jealous that the two of you can move around town so easily. I''m sure Yasue will have no problem with this neighborhood.¡¡Didn''t you learn swordsmanship from Toya? At least, yeah. He also told me that goblins would be fine, but ...... it''s still hard to kill a living thing. Well, yes, it is. We also had a tough time with dismantling at first. I''m used to it now. You can get used to anything, really. We couldn''t live without it, though. Right?¡¡I''m also a diner, so I''m more used to it than I used to be, but I''m still alive. ...... It''s not sliced neatly, here. If it''s the amount of food we eat at home, it''s a block of meat that we buy at the butcher shop, but at the diner level, it''s a complete carcass. That''s what we supply to Mr. Aera''s restaurant. If it''s been processed well, it''s not that raw, but if you''re not used to it, it''s still a little unpleasant to have the skin removed. The ribs look like an animal. But ......, yes. I think I''m more appreciative of the fact that I''m eating a living thing than before. It''s not as real as packaged meat. I agree with you a little. But in my case, gratitude is a little different. It''s a demon that''s dying. "...... Oh, I see. It''s a little bit different from taking the life of a normal animal, isn''t it? It''s not like we''re raising them for meat, they''re harmful if left unchecked, demons. It''s not like we''re raising them for meat. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. ...... Yeah, that''s right. I''m not sure what to make of it. Oh, that''s right. Easy to understand. How''s Yasue''s doing?¡¡Your restaurant seems to be doing well. Thanks to you. I can cook now too. Kerg''s recovery is going well, so I guess you could say it''s smooth sailing.¡¡(Besides, there hasn''t been any lately, has there?) In the end, Yasue glanced at me and murmured something into Haruka''s ear. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be glad you did, Fuxiang. Thank you. I''m a little nervous, but it''s necessary. How''s Haruka doing? ...... Well, it''s going well. Haruka also glanced at me and said something like that. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. It may be because of the close proximity of the original, but even after that, it''s always too much. ....... You''re always eating homemade ...... food. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one. Holding hands is ...... normal. We''ve been spending a lot of time together since before ....... There is no place to go on a date, and we always go shopping. Oh, once again, I think we''re ....... No, but...!¡¡It''s just the two of us for the time being. I''m not sure we can do anything differently ....... I''ve got work to do, and I''ve got to get home as fast as I can. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask for help. 287-259 Get dindle (1) After lunch, we took a short break and left Kerg for Laffan again. The road didn''t look much different. However, the increase in the number of lumberjacks and adventurers guarding them in the southern forest reminded us that the seasons had come and gone. From now through winter, the logging season is at its peak. It''s also a time for adventurers in Rafan to earn money. According to Diora, there has been some change thanks to the spread of backpacks. But the change is so slight that it doesn''t seem to be enough to encourage more adventurers to stay in Rafan. In our case, we stepped up to orc hunting without experiencing lumberjack guarding, but it seems that Kiura, a town a little east of Sarstat, is a better place for that. ...... It seems that Raffan is a little sensitive. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. That''s right. You should also report to Diora. If Master Ilias is Diora''s cousin, she''ll be curious. Hmm?¡¡Speaking of which, Diora-san is also a nobleman, right? Should I address her as "sir"? --No, it''s too late for that. If you haven''t heard anything about it so far, then I guess that''s what it is. I entered the town of Raffan through the south gate and went to the adventurer''s guild on my way home. When we entered, Diora was sitting at the counter as usual, and she smiled at us when she noticed us coming in. Welcome back. If you''re back, that means you''ve made it to ......, right? In the middle of the dialogue, Diora noticed that it was only me and Haruka who had come in, and she looked a little worried. "Oh, don''t worry. We''re all safe. Of course, so is Master Ilias. "I see. I''m glad. When I briefly explained to Diora, who breathed a sigh of relief, about the request for this escort, she seemed to be on edge during the conversation, but when I finished listening to her, she bowed deeply once again. Thank you very much. It was the right decision to ask Haruka and the others. If I had asked a poor adventurer, I doubt that Ilias and the others would have been safe. ...... We''re a little out of practice now, aren''t we? If the other side had come with abandon, we might have been in danger. It seems that their goal was not necessarily to kill Master Ilias, which was a relief. I would like to think that they are elite, but if soldiers of that level are common, I definitely don''t want to get involved in a war with the Empire. Oh, by the way, Diora, you are a nobleman, aren''t you? "Yeah, ......?¡¡Oh, the Iliad. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''m a nobleman at least.¡¡I''m sure you''ve heard of it. And it''s hard to get married because of that. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a bit of a jerk. "What do you think, Nao? You''re almost certain to get a title now, aren''t you? "That''s a nice offer, but I''m afraid I have to decline. I understand the troublesome nature of nobility now. That''s right~. Especially, a nobleman like me is not wanted! We don''t have much money, and having troublesome Alexandria and mother-in-law around is a punishment game! I don''t like it either. Ms. Diora must have been joking. When I refused, she just shook her head with a smile and shrugged her shoulders, but she didn''t seem offended and smoothly changed the subject. So, why are you two here alone?¡¡Have you and Toya gone home yet? No, Toya and the others are still pining. We''ve been asked by Viscount Nenus to do some work for him. ...... When I explained what I had been asked to do, Diora''s expression at first was one of dismay, but then she quickly bowed her head apologetically. I''m sorry, he''s ....... I''m sorry, I''m afraid I''ve come in handy. "No, it''s for our own good. We came back because we wanted to go and get some dindol. Oh, and I''ll share some with Diora, okay? "Oh!¡¡Is Haruka-san a god?¡¡I was half expecting it to be impossible this year. Hahaha ....... After what happened with Kerg, I''m not sure I feel comfortable being called a god. "What ......?¡¡God is not so narrow-minded as to be affected by light words like this. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. In the end, God''s punishment has not fallen on the cult of the Holy Satomi, so it is not something to worry about in everyday life. You are going to return to Pining after you have finished collecting Dindol, right? Yes. Yes, for a few days. "I see. I haven''t heard of anyone going to collect dindol this year, so please go ahead and collect as much as you can. It''s almost the end of the season. And you''ll have plenty to share? Yes, that''s the best way. Good luck! I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Nao, are you happy? You''re happy?¡¡...... Oh, you''re talking about earlier?¡¡It was lip service. You can''t just say, "No, I don''t want you at all," when you''re doing me a favor. Diora-san was probably just joking. For a moment, I couldn''t understand what Haruka was saying and pondered over it, but then I realized she was referring to the marriage proposal I had just received from Diora. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Could it be that he was jealous? I thought Haruka wasn''t the type to worry too much about it, but... "I don''t know.¡¡If you had said, "Yes, that''s a good idea," you might have been able to put it together quickly.¡¡You''re an aristocrat, so you might not be able to use the ''it was just a promise'' excuse. "......... I''m sure Diora will be fine, but if she is a noblewoman, she might do it. If it''s in their interest. I''ve been to Crevilly and thought again that there are a lot of noblemen. I don''t know what kind of noble family Diora''s family is, and considering the way they treated her, I can''t help but feel that they might have some problems. So be careful not to be taken for a fool! Got it. But is it something to worry about?¡¡It''s not every day you''re in a situation like that. I don''t know, okay?¡¡Nao''s a beautiful elf now, and she''s an adventurer who can make money. --Oh, yes. Natsuki gave me a mirror. Want to take a look? And so Haruka took out a mirror about the size of a compact. It seems that while Haruka and I were struggling with the nobles in Crevilly, Natsuki and his friends, who were strolling around the city, bought it for Haruka. It''s not as beautiful as the mirrors you see in Japan, but it''s not too bad for practical use. If you look into it, you will see that ...... you certainly have a good face. I don''t like to say it myself because I feel like a narcissist. If you have a sufficient income, you may certainly have the makings of being popular. ...... Well, anyway. Before leaving, let''s go to Aella''s place. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. You''ve gone off on a tangent. I don''t mind. I don''t mind. ...... Last year, we went to pick them to make sauce, didn''t we?¡¡Given that, I''m sure you''d like to go. The question is, can you get the store closed? It seems to be doing well. I know. Well, let''s just call out to them. If you can''t do it, we can give you some of our own. "Tomorrow at ? "Tomorrow at ......? Hmmm... So I went to Aella''s store and asked her about it, but as I expected, she looked a little troubled and thought about it. As I expected, she looked a little troubled and pondered. I''ll be back by this evening, though. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Well, ...... it depends, but three days? It depends on how much you can collect, but fortunately, this year we have magic bags. Fortunately, we have magic bags this year, so we don''t have to worry about transporting them, we can just collect them, and our physical abilities are not as good as they were a year ago. Last year, the reason we needed so many days to collect was because there was a physical limit to what we could bring back in a day. If you have a magic bag, you can probably collect enough in three days. If that''s the case, would you be willing to join us for the third day?¡¡I can manage to get some time off then. "Yes, of course. I''ll pick you up in the morning the day after tomorrow. ......¡¡Speaking of which, where do you live, Aella? It''s right upstairs.¡¡I bought this whole building. I live here with Luce. Oh, really? That''s right. It was a pretty shabby room, so I was pretty surprised when I came here. But I can''t complain because it''s free. The one who entered the conversation was the one whose name was just mentioned, Luce. She shrugged her shoulders and shook her head, indicating that she might have been in a really bad state. I came from the city to help, but I feel a little sorry for Luce if that''s the room he was given. "Oh, my God!¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that the room has been renovated and is now beautiful.¡¡......Thanks to Nao and her team, though. When I first came to Laffan, I had been working hard to save up enough money to buy this rather old store. After that, the first floor of the store was remodeled, but the second floor was completely untouched. However, thanks to our advice and Aera''s hard work, the store was thriving and they were able to save up some money, so they recently renovated the second floor. "Well, we can''t invite people in that condition, can we? No, that''s not the reason!¡¡It''s because you said it was hard to live in, or that it was cold in winter! In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. But the fact is, buying a house in this area, renovating it, and setting it up as a store must have cost a lot of money. I don''t know how much money Ms. Aella had saved when she came to this town, but it would have been difficult to buy a house unless it was very cheap, in other words, very old. It''s a miracle it didn''t leak, yeah. There wasn''t even a hole in the wall. There was a little draft, though. Yeah. Insects also came in, and that was a problem. It was cold in winter. When it was bad, we slept downstairs. We slept downstairs when it was bad." "...... That might have happened. Aella gently averts her eyes from Luce''s gaze. It is also a good memory to huddle in front of the oven in the kitchen. Apparently, she was having a harder time than she thought. "Well, Aella, you''re okay now, right?¡¡If you''re in trouble, I can help you out a little. "Yes!¡¡I''m fine!¡¡I can afford it right now!¡¡d*mn it!¡¡Because Luce said something strange, you worried Nao-san. "Haha, sorry, Nao. I''m so much more comfortable now. Those days are really good memories, aren''t they?¡¡I knew I had no choice, and the situation I''m in now is the result of my hard work with Aella! I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or a bad thing. Aella poked Luce with her cheeks and he smiled brightly and waved. "Luce, Luce!¡¡No, no, no. Oh, no. Oh, no. I''m afraid I can''t do that. I knew he was joking, but I shook my head immediately. "Yes, of course. It''s not polite to pay a surprise visit to a woman''s room. Of course, it wasn''t that I was afraid of Haruka''s gaze. Of course, he wasn''t afraid of Haruka''s gaze.¡¡Well, I''ll see you in a day or two! "Yes, that''s right. ....... Yes, I''ll be waiting. We left the store with a relieved, yet slightly disappointed, look on Aella''s face. 288-260 Get dindle (2) The next day, Haruka and I headed for the forest early in the morning. We made sure to kill the task boars that appeared along the way and collect them. Come to think of it, it''s been a while since I''ve been into the Eastern Forest, and it''s also been a while since I''ve hunted a Task Boar. I could say that there was no need to hunt them, but I remembered that the task boars I had eaten last year at this time were quite tasty, probably because they were fed with dindle berries. The fact that I could easily kill it with a single thrust of my spear alone made me feel a little happy that I was growing up. "This time last year, you were saying ''next year I''ll have a more profitable job,'' but you''re still doing the same job, aren''t you? Our goals are very different. That time it was purely for the money . This time, it''s almost entirely for a hobby, or for our food supply. We used to say we could kill goblins, but now we''re small fry. You''ve gotten mentally tougher. "You''ve become mentally tougher." "I used to be bad at gore, but I can get used to it if I have to. While we were chatting, we walked through the forest with much more ease than a year ago, and arrived at the first dindle tree. No one seems to have come to pick them. "Oh, there''s a lot of them. I looked up and saw a lot of fruits growing near the top. There were also some lying on the ground around us, but not many, probably because they were eaten by task boars. Let''s climb up, then. Will we be able to do it without a rope this time? "We can just attach a lifeline after we get up there. It''s true that we can''t jump up to the lowest branch, but now that we''ve strengthened our bodies, climbing a tree is much easier. Once we reached the top, we tied the lifeline and started to collect the dindle. This time, we didn''t care how much we had, we just threw it into the magic bag, so we started from the top. In less than an hour, we had collected all the berries that were ready to eat. It''s going better than I thought. At this rate, we should be able to get at least three plants in one day. "Yes. The problem is, if we do that, we won''t have any trees to go around on the third day. ...... "Nao, why don''t you poke your head over the top and look around?¡¡Nao, why don''t you poke your head out from the top and look around, the dindle tree is clearly out of place. We were picking the fruit near the top, but the visibility wasn''t great because of the foliage around it. So I can understand Haruka''s point about climbing to the top and then putting your head further up. ....... The trunk is pretty thin, huh? I''ll be back. ...... Yes. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s quite flexible, so it''s unlikely that I''ll just snap out of it, but height is height. Naturally, the wind was also blowing strongly, and the tip of the trunk swayed meter by meter. If it were not for the fact that dingdol is a special fruit tree that grows at the top of trees, I would have cut off the tip of the tree to get a better view. If I wasn''t an elf, I''d be pissed, I swear! "Don''t worry. I''ll still love you if you mess up!¡¡There''s purification! Thanks for that. I was both happy and not happy. But I''m really scared I''m going to choke. It''s like climbing a pliable pole on the edge of a high-rise apartment building, man! I wish I had flight magic! But even so, it seems that the race characteristics of the elves are not flawless, and they successfully emerge from the tree canopy without slipping. "Wow. ...... I was speechless. It''s a completely different panorama from the one you see through the leaves when you''re picking berries, which spreads out to 360 degrees. In terms of height alone, I have been to a higher observatory than this one when I was in Japan, but this one is many times higher in terms of excitement. The fact that it''s still blowing and the scaffolding is shaking might be a factor, though. "Hey, Nao, what''s up? Did you find it? Oh, yeah. Yes. The forest spreads out in front of me. I can see several trees growing out of it, not just one head, but several trees that seem to be poking through. I''m pretty sure that''s a dindle tree, but the question is: ....... How do I write down the location? I''m not sure my memory is good enough to remember where it is, and I don''t have the guts - or the recklessness - to take notes off my hands in this booming, shaking situation. Why don''t you just tie yourself to the trunk with a rope? ...... No, that''s scary enough. But there is no other way. I wrapped the rope around my body a little too tightly and secured it firmly. Take notes as best you can. "This direction is north, and based on my current location, the direction is ....... It''s impossible to write down the location completely, so I use my current location as a base point and write down the direction and approximate distance of each tree. Dindle trees are huge, so if you know some direction and have a good view, you can reach them. ...... That''s about it. I put the note firmly in my pocket, untied the rope and went to Haruka. When you get down to a place where the shaking is minimal, you let out a sigh of relief. "Mission accomplished. Thank you. "Ah. That was quite a thrill, huh?¡¡It was a nice view, but would you like to go check out ...... Haruka? I said that jokingly, but Haruka pondered a bit. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡It''s not a lie that the view was nice, but it was pretty scary. ...... Well, I''ll just have a look. Oh, oh. Be careful. Seriously? I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that. It''s not like the shaking has stopped. And after a while, she came down again. It''s a great view, that''s for sure. I''d like to show it to Natsuki and the others, but would it be too difficult to climb up here? "Maybe. --I mean, weren''t you scared?¡¡Wasn''t it scary? That''s after Nao. If you knew you couldn''t break him, would you have gone that far?¡¡Yeah, it was a little thrilling. No, it''s scary even when it''s safe. Even the scream machine is scary even when it''s safe. ...... Are you okay with bungee jumping? "I''ve never done it, so I can''t say. I''ve never done it, so I can''t say for sure." Haruka replied with a nod of her head, but I''m sure she''s the type who can handle it. By the way, I''m not good at it. I can manage a roller coaster at a small amusement park, but I definitely don''t want to go on a free fall. Of course, bungee jumping goes without saying. Now that we know where we''re going, let''s move on. We''ve got a year''s supply of Dildos to get through. "Right. It''s going to take some time to find them, so let''s hurry. We''ll have to hurry. We ended up collecting fruit from three trees on the first day, and from three trees on the second day as well. At that point, we had already secured enough dindol to last us for a year. Specifically, each of us could eat about one a day. But if you''re thinking of sharing them, giving them as gifts, or using them to make inspiration sauce, you can never have too many. I left my house at the same time as the day before yesterday, and headed for Aella''s diner, where she was already standing in front of the store waiting for me. Good morning, Aella. Good morning, Nao. Good morning, Haruka. Where''s Luce today? She''s not working today. Human Luce isn''t very good at climbing trees, and he can hardly fight in the first place. Oh, I know. Shall we go then? Yes! With Aella''s positive response, we headed out of the town, chatting. I didn''t want to take Aella too far into the forest, so I left three dindle trees in a relatively close area unharvested. You guys have been out for quite a while this time, where have you been?¡¡Oh, if you don''t mind me asking... It''s not a problem to know where you''ve been.¡¡I went to Crevilly for an escort. Oh, Crevilly? What?¡¡Aella, do you know Crevilly? Yes. It was the first town we considered opening a store in. There are a lot of people, and you can get all kinds of food there. However, the competition was so fierce that I thought it would not be suitable for me because I wanted to take it easy, so I decided not to do it. You''re right, it was prosperous. The food was of a high standard. You know... I thought it would help me improve myself. ....... Also, there was the problem of funding. It was a little difficult to open a restaurant there. So it''s going to cost a lot of money? Yes. Yes, it is. So I decided to stay in this town where it''s cheaper. ...... Perhaps remembering the deadlocked situation of a year ago, Aera-san slurred her words and smiled wryly. I''ve been through a lot, but now I''m glad I came here. I''m glad I came here. I got to know Nao and the others. We''re glad we got to know you too, Aella.¡¡We have a good diet thanks to you, Aella. No, no, no, no. Haruka and the others are professional enough in their cooking skills. I''ve learned a lot of new dishes and snacks from them, and I''m learning more from them than from you! For us, the inspirational sauce is enough to pay for itself. "Well, it''s something that every family has, isn''t it? Oh, but didn''t Nao-san and her family make it? Oops, we''re getting into a sensitive topic. No, well, I don''t mind telling the truth to Aella-san. We know that the one who brought us here is not an evil god or anything like that, but an Adversary who is worshipped in this world, so if we choose to be a normal race, we won''t be persecuted. But just then, the Dindol tree we were looking for came into view. "Oh, that''s the tree, isn''t it? "Yes, it is. Aela, do you have a container? I''ve got a bag! What Aera-san showed me was a bag that was a modified version of a backpack. It''s better than a simple bag, but it doesn''t seem to hold much. You can''t get much with that. We''ll lend you our magic bag, and you can use this. "Are you sure?¡¡That''s a luxury item. I''m sure you''ve noticed that we use it to deliver our products, but we have a lot of it. ...... I can''t give it to you, though. Of course. It''s a pain in the ass to deal with magic bags. We elves would be happy if you were a little more relaxed about it. ...... When I asked Aella, who seemed to know a bit about the situation, she said that there are some elves who can make magic bags. Of course, it''s a rare thing, but it''s a different level from the human race, where not many people can even use magic. One of the most famous people in this country is the Countess Slyvya, an elven noble family I met the other day. There is a relatively large supply of magic bags from there, but due to conflicts with other nobles, the supply can''t be too unlimited, so it''s not exactly gobbling up the money. As for me, I think that if we can supply a large amount of magic bags and start a distribution revolution, the country will grow, but it won''t be easy considering the fact that the magic bags can easily flow to criminal organizations and enemy countries. In particular, the Kingdom of Rhenium has an advantage in terms of the number of elves against the hypothetical enemy, the Empire of Upiclisar, so a restricted distribution is more convenient. On the other hand, if they were to be too strict, it would lead to an exodus of magicians to other countries, so they are probably balancing the situation at the current level. However, if there is such a situation, we might have been in trouble in other countries. When you think about it, Advaustris is very different. --Oh, I haven''t been to the temple since I came back. I have to go to the shrine once before I go back to pinning. 289-261 Get a dindle (3) As I thought last year, Aella-san is a genuine elf, and her lightness is comparable to us who have learned to strengthen our bodies. With her participation, we were naturally able to make progress in our gathering, and by mid-afternoon we had finished gathering from the three trees and were on our way back. After being treated to a late lunch at Aella''s place, I headed to the temple of Lord Adversus to greet her. I wonder if the heavily charged bonus [Lucky! I don''t know if it really works, but nothing bad has happened, and I''m alive and well, so I guess I should be grateful. It''s been a long time since I''ve prayed, so I threw in a little more money than I should have, and found that my level had increased. In addition, I gained two levels, and am now level 24. The last time I gained a level was when I came back from the dungeon. ...... I guess the experience I gained from this escort mission was pretty big. It''s not that we killed a lot of strong demons, but we did gain some experience from training with territorial soldiers and fighting marauders that were probably stronger than us. "Hello, Nao-san, Haruka-san. It''s been a while. As we were leaving after the prayer, Ishka, who was not there when we entered the temple, appeared before we knew it and called out to us. "Hello, Ishka, it''s been a long time. Hello. It''s been a while. Where have you been?¡¡It''s been a while since I''ve seen you. I had to go to another town, a bit far, for work. It''s made things a bit difficult at home. You know what happens when you neglect your garden in the summer and fall. What happens if you neglect your garden during the summer and fall? Of course, the grass will grow and the garden and flower beds will return to nature. Even though Hulk and his friends are gardening and maintaining the garden, it''s not as clean as it should be. I can''t help it, though, since Mary and her friends have recently started working with me and I''m often away from home. However, if we don''t want to hire them as housekeepers all the time, we need to give them job training. After all, the only thing we can teach them is how to be adventurers. Oh, that''s what this time of year is all about, isn''t it? Yes. It''s going to be very hard to keep it clean. Nao and the others could hire someone to do it.¡¡Simple weeding is cheap and easy. ...... Oh, that''s one way to do it. Haruka nodded approvingly at Ishka''s suggestion. It''s like the Silver Human Resource Center, where people are paid by the hour to do small chores. Our house has a security system, so we can''t just go in and clean up after ourselves, but we can hire more people. That''s not bad. It would be a shame to make Mary and Mitya work too hard when they get back. Yeah. If the garden is overgrown when they get back, Mary and Mitya will try their best to clean it up. Of course, we''d have to help, but it''s a big place. "Is this the kind of request that the ...... Adventurer''s Guild is looking for? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the site, you can contact us at the following web page. No, no, no!¡¡I recommend an orphanage for such Haruka and her friends!¡¡Although the orphanage is a bit unreliable as a labor force, the wages are lower than those of adult adventurers, and you can have your own staff at once. The temple will guarantee your trust, so don''t worry! He was pushing hard. "Were you aiming for ......? I''m sorry to hear that, Haruka. But, well, it''s not like we don''t get requests like that at this time of year. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll agree with me.¡¡It''s a great way to earn money and learn how to work, but it''s also a great way to meet people in the community and get job training. In terms of future employment. It''s also easier for employers to hire kids they''ve known since they were little. That''s ...... true. I''ve heard that orphans don''t have any relatives, so it''s meant to create a relationship with them by providing such opportunities. Well, it''s not hard to understand. Even if it''s just a chore, a child who has worked diligently for you for several times will be easier to hire than someone who just showed up. There are children who are taken in because of this kind of work. Some children are taken in because of this kind of work. If they stay in the orphanage, they will be in trouble when they grow up. I see. An orphanage doesn''t just provide a place to live and food, does it? In the event that you are not able to find the right one, you will be able to find the right one. "What do you think, Haruka?¡¡I don''t think it''s a bad idea to hire him. ...... It''s not a situation where I can relax too much. I''m not going to be too reckless because of Natsuki, but I''m afraid Toya and the others will rush in too much when they find a clue. We can''t leave today anyway. It''s okay if we go from now until nightfall. Okay.¡¡Thank you very much. Well, we''re all free today, the wages are about the same, and the number of people-- As if to say, before we change our minds, the wage offered by Ishka is quite low. Considering the difference in prices, it was less than half of the minimum wage in Japan. No, well, child labor is already a bad thing. "It''s very cheap, is that okay? Hahaha...... includes small children who can''t work much. You can think of it as a donation. Oh, I''ll have Sidney with my apprentice Kane, so I don''t think you''ll be bothered. ...... Well, it''s not a lot of money anyway. It''s much bigger than the amount I just threw into the money box. I understand. Okay, please. "Thank you very much. Thank you very much. - I''ll bring him back in a moment. I saw Ishka off to the orphanage in the back, and waited for a while. Sidney and Kane arrived with the children in tow. We didn''t have much chance to talk to them compared to Ishka, but since they were younger than us, we didn''t feel too nervous, so we exchanged a quick greeting and went to our house. The children were a little surprised to see the large yard and the thick grass, but they soon scattered to different parts of the yard and started working. As Ishka had mentioned earlier, there were many requests for weeding, and each of them had a tool in their hands. Each of them is paired up with an older child and a younger child, so it''s a bit safer, but Haruka and I have to be careful not to let the kids get too close to dangerous places. Specifically, the shredder, Toya''s forge, and the area around the building. The shredder has a safety device, and the forge is locked, so it should be safe, but the most dangerous places are around the building. If you are fooling around and bump into a window, the security system will be triggered. If you''re an adult, you shouldn''t die so often, but what happens when you''re dealing with children? ....... It''s a little scary. However, despite our concerns, the orphans were very serious. They were not joking around, nor did they show any signs of slacking off. Regardless of their efficiency, even a little kid like Remy was working hard, which was amazing. I guess that''s how hard life is. ....... "You guys are doing great. Yeah. Does this mean we don''t have to be careful? Yeah. I''ll treat you to some ...... dindol.¡¡I got a lot of them. Yeah, why not?¡¡Maybe a slice each. I''ve been told by Ishka not to bring anything too extravagant ......, but if it''s for someone who''s come to work, I don''t see a problem. It looks like all the orphans are coming, so there won''t be any trouble later when some of the children can''t eat. I''ll call out to Kane and the others then. Kane!¡¡Sydney!¡¡Hey. "Yes! Haruka called Kane and his friends, who were working with the orphans, over and gave them a brief explanation of the security system, pointing to the walls and windows. The house is equipped with a security system, so please be careful about that.¡¡As long as you don''t climb over the walls, break the windows, or force the doors open, you should be fine. ...... No, I don''t think there are any kids who would do that, right? That''s right. They''re all good kids. Some of them are naughty, but when they''re working, they''re serious. Just in case, just in case. Even if they don''t do it on purpose, accidents can happen. Haruka laughed and shook her head at them, looking a little resentful. That''s true. I understand. I''ll be careful. Leave it to me. Yes, please. And the well is behind the house, so drink water and take breaks as needed. It''s still hot. I''ve got small children. I won''t cut your salary if you take some time off. Thank you for your concern. This garden is full of grass. Even though it''s almost autumn, I''m worried about heat stroke if I keep working for hours in the hot sun. We left Sidney and his friends, who seemed a little relieved and breathed a little easier, and went into the house to start cutting dingles and preparing chilled fruit water. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. The maneuver was effective enough. The garden, which had been so overgrown with weeds, was clean enough by the end of the day, and the work was finished. Haruka and I used magic to take care of some of the areas that we usually use for training, but the majority of the work was done by the children. Incidentally, our magic was very popular with the children, probably because they don''t usually have a chance to see it. And Dingdol, who provided the magic. They expressed their joy so honestly that we couldn''t help but offer them another slice each. ...... We can''t help it, can we? It''s not that I''m a big fan of this kind of thing, but I''m not a big fan of it either. At the end of the day, I handed Kane and the others their wages and called it a day. Early in the morning of the next day, we left the town of Laffan to return to Pining. 290-262 Incident investigation (1) "Now that Nao and the others are gone, what should we do?¡¡We can''t really make any serious moves until they get back, can we? On the morning of the day that Nao and Haruka left for Laffan, the remaining Toyas gathered in their assigned rooms to discuss their plans. However, it was Toya, Natsuki and Yuki who were participating in the discussion. Mary and Mitya were just lounging on the bed, listening. At the very least, we need to avoid anything that could lead to a fight. At the very least, we should avoid anything that could lead to a fight, because some of our classmates might show up. Even if it''s not a classmate, the other day''s attacker turned out to be someone of that level, so we can''t be too careful. The three of us all looked serious as we remembered that we were in a bit of a pinch. Although one of them was badly injured, they were all able to escape in more than a one-on-one situation, so their skill is not to be underestimated. On the other hand, Mary and the others, who did not see the situation firsthand, looked a little uneasy. "Were they that strong? "Your brothers are so strong? No, we''re not that strong yet, to be honest. Maybe it was a good opportunity. It was a good opportunity to see where we stand. We were able to beat Sazius and his team. ...... So it turns out he was right. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. In fact, the soldiers of the Viscountess of Nenus are weak. If their soldiers were strong, they wouldn''t have left the trees in the town of Raffan until they became scarce. Since it is an important local product and can be exported to other territories, it is only natural that they would use their territorial army to secure it. So even if Mary and the others are able to beat me, be humble, okay?¡¡If Mary and the others can beat me, be humble and remember that there are still others out there who can beat you. I don''t think I can beat them. ...... Yes, I''ll try to remember that. Do you understand? In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out by yourself. But what should we do?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out, but we''re complete amateurs. ...... Yes. My knowledge is limited to what I know from mystery novels. What about Toya? No, if you two can''t make it, what do you expect me to do? What can I expect?¡¡But games are all about choices, right? "Canvassing, stakeouts, sting operations?¡¡That''s how it works in dramas. Yeah. I don''t know the details. The three of us are just high school students, neither police nor detectives, and we have no idea how to investigate. Therefore, it is inevitable that their knowledge is only at the level of TV dramas or mystery novels. In addition, in this world where there is no such thing as a photograph - to be precise, there is such a thing, but it is not as easy to prepare a photograph of a suspect as in a TV drama. We can''t even interview them while showing them the photos. Since the family register is vague, it is impossible to know if the suspect is really missing. If I had to give an advantage, it would be the small population. ...... Shall we go and talk to the guards for now? That way, there''s no danger, and they''ll know more about the investigation than we do. "Right. That''s a good place to start. I''m not sure. When Toya and the others stood up, Mary and the others who were lying on the bed stood up as well, but they looked a little troubled and called out to them. What do you want me and Mee to do? "Well, you can come with us, but there''s not much point, is there? They may be mature, but they''re still kids, not even ten. There''s no way they''ll be of any use to the investigation, and if things do get rough, they''ll be a liability. It is only in the world of shonen manga that elementary school students can conveniently solve crimes. You can do whatever you want, as long as you don''t go out into the city. ...... You can participate in the training of the territorial army, or you can play with Master Iliad - no, study? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. When Mary heard this, she pondered for a moment and then quickly nodded her head yes. I understand. I''ll just go with it. Is that okay with you? "Yes. Leave it to your sister. I''m sure you''ll be fine, but try not to bother the Viscountess. Of course. Take care of yourselves, Natsuki. Have a good day, sisters. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó After leaving the room, Natsuki and the others first went to the office where Sazius was working. The first thing the Natsuki did was to go to the office where Sazius was working. A building that doubles as a dormitory for the territorial soldiers, located a short distance away from the main residence of the Viscount Nenus family. In one corner of the building was the office of Sazius. When Toya and the others visited him, they were immediately welcomed. I''m sorry I had to ask you to do something so complicated this time. "No, it''s fine. It''s an official request. But ......, you do that kind of work too? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. The desk where Sazius was sitting was piled high with papers, and the bookshelves against the wall were lined with bound volumes of paper, probably for some kind of material. For them, it was the first time to see such a large amount of paper, except in a bookstore. If you''re my age, you''ll see more of this. If you''re Jasper, you''re more likely to be in the field. ...... Huh, I wish I was in that position. It''s a pain in the ass. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. In fact, it was clear just by looking at the unorganized desk that Sazius was not very good at office work. I can understand your feeling. But for today, let me talk to you. You know best, don''t you? Got it. Let''s see. ...... Speaking of events, it''s going to be spring. We found a body, a young woman. Well, that happens all the time, you know. It''s not a big deal. The problem is, she was a resident of Kergu. "......?¡¡Wait a minute. How did you know that person lived in Kergu?¡¡You found him here in Pining, didn''t you? "Oh, you''re adventurers, don''t you know?¡¡The Barony of Nenus issues resident cards upon request. Not many people have them, though. A resident''s card is issued to those who live in a town and pay taxes by applying to the town office. The main purpose of this card is to receive tax exemption when entering and leaving the town. This exemption is available not only in the town you live in, but also in other towns in Viscount Nenus'' domain. In other words, it has the same effect as the guild card of the adventurer''s guild. However, the majority of residents who never leave the city have no use for them, and only a few have them. Merchants who go to other towns to buy groceries, farmers who go out of town, and so on, usually know the gatekeepers of their own town, so they don''t have many chances to actually receive the card. And, well, the way the victim died was a little suspicious. I did some research in Kerg to check it out. ...... It seems he left town around winter without telling anyone he knew. Probably. It''s possible that he had business in Pining, per se. ...... Well, he was in Pining. The victim was a peddler or something. But on the other hand, he didn''t go without saying anything to others. The victim was not peddling to the public, but wholesaling to stores. For this reason, it is natural for him to inquire in advance when he is going somewhere to purchase something, and to tell the shop owner when he will be back. Nevertheless, he went missing without any such information. It is precisely because of this suspicious situation that Sagius was able to obtain information. By the way, what is the suspicious way of death? Oh, we haven''t found any trauma to cause death. I think it was poison, but it was in an alleyway. Maybe he was poisoned somewhere, walked over there and ran out of energy, or maybe he was dumped after he died. Oh, and by the way, the victim was a woman. No external injuries. ...... How old is she, by the way? Mid-twenties. But, well, it''s just one woman''s suspicious death. That''s all that happened then. "Oh, it''s over, then? In fact, it is not uncommon to find a dead body in the city itself. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. Therefore, unless a murder is committed in a public place, or the murdered person is an influential person or related to one, the body is just incinerated. Even in the case of a murder, there is not enough manpower to investigate the death of a commoner with much effort. "So, the next case was before summer. A woman''s family claimed that their daughter had disappeared. Sagius took out a sheet of paper, looked at it, and continued to explain. "The woman''s boyfriend, the man whose body was found, and the woman is missing. But when I looked into it, I found out that the woman and the man had been seen fighting. The story ended with her killing the man in a love affair and the woman running away. This is the time... "What about this time? When Natsuki overheard Sazius'' words and asked him back, he nodded lightly. "Yes, at this time. I''ll explain later, but we were busy at the time, too. We didn''t have time to spare. 291-263 Incident investigation (2) I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''ve been busy," said Sazius, and Toya pondered for a moment, then nodded approvingly, as if she remembered immediately. "Yes. Most of the territorial army has been mobilized. And, well, when everything was settled, the woman''s body was found. Did she say anything about a love affair? Yeah. Well, technically, I found out she was found, yeah. I was going through some paperwork, and the name stuck, so I checked. The body was actually found just before the expos¨¦ of the Order of the Sutomie Saints took place. Needless to say, the Territorial Guard was pretty slammed at the time, not to mention their boss, Sazius. Inevitably, a simple report was made, and the body was disposed of. It was a drowning in an irrigation ditch, so I thought maybe he threw himself in. ...... Later, when I went by there, I saw that the water was not even knee-deep. It''s possible to drown in water as deep as your ankles, though. ...... "Is that so?¡¡We were suspicious, so we looked into it. Yes. Yes, depending on the circumstances, drowning is possible. In fact, it is possible for water to enter the ear, upset the semicircular canal, and cause the person to be unable to stand up and drown. However, this is a very special situation, and it is unlikely to happen to a normal, healthy person, unless he or she is drunk, and it is unlikely to be a method of suicide. It''s definitely not a good place to throw yourself, though. It''s more of a crash. Right?¡¡So, after the mayhem in Kergu was over and I had a little more time, I looked into missing persons and such. ...... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. It looks like this. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out.¡¡That''s a bit much, isn''t it? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. You can''t blame them. A lot of them have disappeared because of Kerg. I''m sure some of them died in that conflict,......, but honestly, I don''t know! Sazius gave a list of people who were supposed to be living in Pining but whose whereabouts were unknown and whose bodies had not been found, but several merchant families and noblemen were destroyed in the Kergu uprising. Some of these people may be living in Pining, so there may be an incident that caused them to go missing, or they may have been in Kergu during the disturbance and got caught up, or they may have simply fled the town. The situation makes it very difficult to separate the two. I''m sure you''ll agree with me.¡¡I''ve left in some ...... ambiguities, though. I think Viscount Nenus said that there were less than ten people. That''s because of the pending disappearance of the victims. What I need you to do is solve the kidnapping case. That list includes unrelated disappearances, because ...... is a(n)(n)(n)(n)(n)(n). You''re saying there''s less than 100 people on this list that look suspicious?¡¡You mean, a hunch? Well, that''s what I''m saying, but I''m including the results of my research, okay? I see. ....... But why did Viscount Nenus consider it a kidnapping? This is not enough to conclude that it was a kidnapping. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. The answer to this question came easily to Sazius. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. What? "Aside from the first case, there''s a second one, similar to this one. This one hasn''t turned up a woman''s body yet, but it''s ...... this one. The paper that Sazius pulled out showed a pair of men and women, the man was found dead and the woman was missing. This is the first time I''ve seen a man and woman fighting, but the age range of the man and woman is similar to the second case Sazius described. I''m not sure what to make of it. The type that went away of their own free will. But this one seems to be different. That''s my hunch. Sazius says this while pointing to the names on the list. So we''re supposed to do this messy job because you think it''s a kidnapping? "Well, I guess so. But I''m sure of it, aren''t I?¡¡I''m an expert, after all. "I suppose that''s true, but ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the best way to do it. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the things that are available. I''ll give you all the relevant materials. I''ll give you all the relevant materials, and you take care of the rest. To tell you the truth, I''m not good at work that requires a lot of brain power. But you guys look smart, right?¡¡The two elves aren''t home right now. Don''t worry, more than half of our brains are still here! I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that," he said. "Hmm. I see. "Hey, Sazius. What did you agree to? No, nothing.¡¡I was just wondering how much Toya contributes to that "brain"? ...... At least I think I''m better than Sazius, don''t you? In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll want to take a look at the following. Sagius shrugs his shoulders broadly and shakes his head, "Hey, Toya, take it easy. You''re obviously on our side, aren''t you?¡¡You can''t fight like that and still be smart, can you?¡¡You''re good at fighting, but leave the brain work to the rest of us. That''s your position, right? You''re so prejudiced!¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. I''m sure you''ll be able to tell me more about it. I''m sure Mr. Sazius is busy. "Well, yeah. But if there''s anything I can do to help, just let me know. It''s our job to keep the peace, you know. I understand. We''ll talk about it when we get there. All right, bye. Good luck with your work, Sazius. Yeah, thanks. Sazius stretched and breathed heavily, and Toya and the others left his office. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. It''s the only way. But thirty-seven people are missing, that''s too many. But isn''t there thousands of missing persons in Japan every year? No, it''s an order of magnitude more. Oh, tens of thousands?¡¡There are that many missing people in Japan? ...... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of that. In addition, the number of missing persons in Japan is the number reported to the police, and most of them are found later. The causes of disappearances include runaways of minors and disappearances due to dementia, and the percentage of crime-related cases like this one is quite small. As Natsuki said, the figures are inappropriate for comparison. After that, the three of them quietly read the documents that Sazius had given them, but their expressions were not very bright. Of course, the contents of the documents were not very cheerful, but it was also probably because they could not easily get a clue to the case by reading them. After reading all of them, the first person to speak was Natsuki. "How was it? "I don''t know. ...... I know what happened, but I don''t know what you''re asking me to deduce. Yeah, I know the victim, but I don''t have any information on the suspect, not at all. The document that was handed to me contained the name, age, and gender of the person who was believed to be missing. The list included the names, ages, and genders of the people who were believed to be missing, as well as the circumstances of their disappearance, but it was basically a list of what witnesses had told them, with little physical evidence and, of course, no scientific research. It''s impossible to follow up on everyone on this list, so for the time being, can we leave out the 21 people who are thought to have been members of the Sutomie Order? "I guess so. If we don''t have some reason to omit them, our abilities won''t be able to handle it. "But you know, it''s possible that this missing person is involved in Satomi''s escape, right?¡¡In relation to that, the missing person that Viscount Nenus is looking for?¡¡It could also be related to that. ...... In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it on the web. As for the 21 people Yuki mentioned, the Territorial Guard also considered the possibility that they were involved in Satomi''s escape, and a very thorough investigation was conducted. As a result, there were a number of people who were suspected to be heavily involved, but since it was confirmed that they were almost certainly out of Pining, their investigations were to be conducted in conjunction with the pursuit of Satomie. If anything turns up, Sazius-san will contact us and we''ll check on the rest. There are still sixteen of us, though. ...... "There are five other bodies that have been found. Incidentally, these five include the corpse found in the spring and the corpse found in the canal that Sazius mentioned earlier. Seven men and nine women? "Why don''t we leave out this 14-year-old boy who had a fight with his parents and ran away from home, saying he was going to be an adventurer?¡¡We''ve already confirmed that he registered as an adventurer, right?¡¡Sazius also said that this is not the case, right? I''m sorry to hear that.¡¡I feel sorry for him. "This part is, too. In the end, Natsuki and his team left with three males and seven females, after eliminating six more cases that seemed less likely to be incidents. So, tomorrow we''ll start investigating the five places where these bodies were found, and the ten cases of missing persons, is that correct? "Right. We''ll just have to start from there. We have no idea what they have in common. They''re all different ages and genders. I don''t have enough data to say anything about the bias of the places. We''ll have to do it by foot. I wish I could. ...... I''m worried. Natsuki and the others sighed together at the muddled state of affairs. 292-264 Incident investigation (3) "In cop dramas, they say, ''visit every crime scene,'' but it doesn''t matter how many times an amateur visits. "Interviews are not going well either. The next day, Natsuki and the others went around the place where the body was found, but the results were just as Toya had said, with no results. Not only do Toya and his team not have the skills to investigate the remains of a dead body, but the scene has not been preserved, and there is no way that there are any such items left. The fact that they were commissioned by the lord, Natsuki''s appearance, and Yuki''s ability to talk made it possible for them to ask questions without any problem, but whether this would lead to solving the case was another matter. The content of the question would be very vague, since he has not even prepared a sketch of the subject of the conversation, and the common people have a very rough sense of time. "They don''t remember what they were doing on what day of the month, and since they don''t own a watch, there is no way they can answer "around what time" if you ask them. Besides, the estimated time of death as far as we know is after sunset. In the daytime, we can still say "after how many bells have rung," but the last bell of the day rings at sunset. After the sun goes down, the time becomes more ambiguous. Furthermore, there are no security cameras and no passersby conveniently taking pictures with their phones, which would certainly make the investigation more difficult than it would be in modern Japan. After visiting the scene of the death, Natsuki and the others moved on to investigate the missing person. They spent that day, the next day, and the day after that, asking around to talk to the people involved, but unfortunately, the results were equally unsuccessful. The only result was that we were able to confirm the whereabouts of one of the women. The status of the remaining nine cases is as follows, but the information is quite vague in each case. She disappeared while I was away from her for a while (male, 8 years old). When the landlord went to ask for the rent, no one was there (male, 33 years old). He said he was going out for a drink after work and then left. She said she was going to a friend''s place and then disappeared (female, age 12). She went out to shop for dinner and did not come back (Female, age 13) When I visited my daughter who lived alone, she had disappeared (Female, age 16) When an acquaintance visited her house, she was not there (Female, age 21) When I visited her house, she was not there. When an acquaintance visited their house, they were not there (Female, age 32) Natsuki and his friends went back to their room and pondered over the information, but it was not easy to come up with a good idea, and Toya threw himself on the bed and was helpless. We''ve been able to reduce the number of cases, but ...... the number of people who are missing is less clear. It''s not like we''re on the clock. If you have a day job, it''s not surprising if you don''t show up for work, and if you don''t live with your family, it''s hard to know. The age group seems to be younger, but it''s hard to say if it''s a trend or not. There are more young people here than in Japan. There are more young people than in Japan, so it''s not surprising to see this result if the population pyramid is correct or if there are more young people in ....... If we could find out anything after asking around for two and a half days, Sazius and the others would have already found it. We''re not professional investigators, you know. I''m not a professional investigator," he said. "There''s a certain level of expectation that Viscount Nenus has, isn''t there? If you want to know more about this, please visit our website. If this were the case, the Japanese police would have no trouble at all. In the first place, you are investigating on the assumption that there is a kidnapper, but you are not certain, are you? It''s not certain, but it''s true that the kidnapper was missing for a while and then found dead, almost certainly murdered. Oh, I see. At least there''s a murderer. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out.¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. If you think of it as kidnapping, there''s a high risk of women and children being targeted, yes. Well, they are not the kind of people who can be ransomed, and if I may say so, kidnapping adult males does not seem to have much merit. The missing people are all commoners. It''s not like you''re a nobleman or a wealthy merchant, the amount you can pay in ransom is limited and the risk of being caught at the time of delivery is more of a disadvantage. In other countries, you can kidnap them as slaves, but in this country where slavery is prohibited, the risk is too great, and even if you take them to another country, it would take too much time and effort, which would be more disadvantageous than aiming for ransom. The other thing that caught my attention was the ...... "female, 16 years old". As Sazius pointed out... Well, ......, that''s the part where the family was pretty salty about it. The last time the missing woman was seen was in the so-called "s*x district" where she was known to be walking with a man. The man was found dead in the area and the woman is missing. The woman''s family thought that she might have killed him in a love affair, and when Toya and his friends went to talk to her, they were told to stay out of it. The situation is similar, isn''t it? ...... You''re not going to be found dead, are you? I''d like to solve this before it happens, if possible. It''s not like it''s going to be the same thing. It''s not that it''s going to be the same thing, but it''s not that it''s not going to be the same thing. According to the explanation Toya and the others received from Sagius, a woman''s body was found in the canal a little over two months after the man''s body was found. The woman Toya had pointed out had also gone missing about two months ago. It''s natural for him to be curious. But as it stands, we have no idea who the killer is, and we can''t even look for him. If only we had a suspect. ....... I''m not sure if you''re a detective or not.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. I don''t have any. In the first place, I don''t want my relatives to have a dangerous person who encounters a case every time he goes out somewhere. "Ah, it''s true that Japanese detectives are like that. It''s like the law of cause and effect is distorted. Sherlock wouldn''t have that problem. "He''s a decent detective there. Basically, they solve the cases that come in as requests. Japanese detectives, for some reason, tend to be involved, to be there at the scene. If such a person was a relative of mine, the number of my relatives would decrease every Bon and New Year. However, if we use real-life detectives as the basis for this story, most of the investigations would be very simple, so there would be no room for a "great detective". At best, the level of detecting industrial espionage is limited, and murder is completely the domain of the police. If I had to guess, I''d say it was a classmate, but ...... that''s complete speculation. We don''t have any leads. I''m not sure what you mean. Oh, no, it was the winter before that. Still, it''s been a few months since we''ve been here. The first case Sazius investigated after the body was found in Pining. The victim disappeared in Kergu in the winter. Did he come to Pining afterwards and get involved in the case, or was he already involved when he was in Kergu? It''s unclear at this point, but even if he was involved in the incident in Kergu, three months have passed since Natsuki and the others arrived. Considering this, it is a little weak to say that the incident occurred because their classmates were transferred. No, even if the timing was right, it would be speculation, just as Natsuki said. Once again, Natsuki and Yuki were silent as they looked at the data. In the meantime, Toya was pacing on the bed, pacing this way and that, as if he was thinking about something or not. ...... In this situation, would it be better to focus on looking for the missing person rather than looking for the killer?¡¡If we can find that one, there''s a good chance the killer will be in the vicinity. "Yeah, that might be a good idea?¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to try. At least we know the names and faces of the missing people. ...... We need to find someone who can draw portraits, though. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡If it works and we run into the killer, we''re in trouble. There was some concern about that. Do you think he''ll be back tomorrow? "If all goes well, yes. We hadn''t set a definite schedule when Haruka and the others left, but we had agreed that it would take one day each to get there and back, and two to four days to collect. If he had finished the collection in two days, he would have returned today, but as it was already evening and he hadn''t returned yet, it would have to be tomorrow or the day after. I''m not sure what to make of this. Of the nine remaining missing cases, four were reported before the Territorial Guard investigated, and of those, one was independently requested by the Adventurer''s Guild. It is said that even the police in Japan do not look into mere disappearances with much enthusiasm, but in this case, it was more than that. If there is nothing like this case, they do not investigate much, but only check the person who reported the body when it is found. Therefore, if we really want to look for them, we have to look for them ourselves or ask the adventurer''s guild for help. ....... I think it''s a matter of money. It''s hard to afford to hire people when you''re an average person. There are many people who are just barely making ends meet. The only person who told me that he had sent a request to the adventurer''s guild for a search was a woman 13 years old. The only one who said she had submitted a request to the adventurer''s guild was a 13-year-old woman who ran a small store and managed to raise the money for the request by pushing herself too hard. There was also a 12-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy. I''d like to help the kids, but ...... You seemed to be giving up on them, when I asked you about them. Yes. The boy, in particular, may be ......". In fact, it is not uncommon for people to abandon their children in this world, or to cut them off. When there is a shortage of food, the choice between adults who can work and children who can''t work is which to "dispose" of. In reality, disposing of the adults who can work does not add anything to the food supply, but rather negatively affects it. In the Viscount Nenus territory, there is an orphanage that functions reasonably well, so you could leave the child there, but it would be a little difficult to do so when the child is about eight years old and has some sense. It would be difficult to leave her at an orphanage in the same town and have her come back without permission, and it would be impossible for an ordinary person to take her to another town. Then, there are not many ways we can take. ...... Well, tomorrow we''ll go to the Adventurer''s Guild. If they''re sending out requests, they might have some information. Right. Okay!¡¡Then let''s get it over with for today. It''s no use worrying about it! I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll help. Natsuki and the others followed Toya''s lead and were also cleaning up the materials when Mary and the others came back. We''re back. "You''re back! Welcome back. Are you with Master Iliad today? Yes. In the morning I was mixed in with the training, and in the afternoon I studied and ...... also had tea and sweets. In the past few days, while Natsuki and the others were conducting their research, Mary and the others participated in the training of the territorial army, as Natsuki had said, and then basically spent the rest of the day with Ilias. She and Ilias had gotten to know each other quite well by spending a lot of time together in the carriage on the way to and from the escort request, and they had become casual enough to talk. If he were an aristocrat, he would probably raise an eyebrow, but Viscount Nenus doesn''t seem to be too concerned about that, and it hasn''t become a problem. On the contrary, he even seems to be encouraging it. Only he knows where his intentions lie, but there is no doubt that Iliad''s desire to learn is increasing now that Mary and the others have joined. How is the training going? "Yes, everyone is very kind. Of course, the training itself is tough. It''s fun! In fact, from the point of view of the territorial soldiers, Mary and the others are much stronger than Toya and the others, who are clearly stronger than them. They are weaker than us, so their self-esteem is not hurt, and they are not so weak that they are no match for us. They are not so weak that they are too weak to be taken seriously, but they are strong enough to keep up with the training, and as little girls, they are well loved. How are Toya and the others doing? I have no idea. If it was so easy to solve, it would have been taken care of already. If it were easy to solve, it would have been done by now. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that kind of work when I become an adventurer. "Are you okay, sister? Me? When you become an adventurer, you won''t accept such requests. I''m going to earn money by killing demons! I''m not going to take any of those jobs when I become an adventurer," Mitya replied cheerfully, waving her right hand in the air. That''s right. You''re a smart girl, Mitya. "Ehehe. Mitya smiled shyly as she was praised by the smiling Natsuki. In the case of Natsuki and the others, they did not choose to take on this job, but were forced to accept it. 293-265 Incident investigation (4) Oh, you mean that. If that''s the case, you can see it over there. It''s a reward, so you don''t need to do anything in particular. The next day, when Natsuki and his friends visited the guild, the receptionist showed them a request form posted on a corner of the bulletin board. On it was written the name and characteristics of the missing girl, as well as the location where she was last seen. The reward was 100 gold coins if she was found safely. It''s quite a high amount for a request without rank restrictions. Is it a reward? Yes. It''s not a ''go out there and find it'' kind of request, so if one party monopolizes it, it might take too long and it might be too late. It''s a kind of bounty, isn''t it? Well, on the other hand, there are cases where there is no party that is eager to find the ......, but that is up to the client. It''s up to the client to decide whether to search diligently so that other parties won''t beat them to it, or whether they''ll only be interested in finding it on the side of something. It would depend on luck and circumstances, but this request was made a few days after he went missing. It''s already been two months, and so far, at least, it doesn''t seem to have led to any good results. Do you want to see the sketch I left for you? "Yes, please. Let''s see, it''s ....... Then the receptionist brought out a portrait, which was a bit poor in technique, but it was an ordinary realistic one. It was probably a charcoal drawing. It was drawn in monochromatic colors, not quite like a photograph, but enough to grasp the features. She''s pretty, isn''t she? Yeah. She seems to have been a popular girl in the neighborhood. A lot of people know her face, so I was expecting to find her sooner. ...... Since she often worked at her parents'' store, she was known by many people, and although there were a good number of witnesses, there was no definitive information on where she disappeared. But even if some adventurers had good information, they wouldn''t tell it to the receptionist. The client may want to share the information and solve the problem as soon as possible, but if he does so, other adventurers may try to sneak in. In a sense, it is natural for them to keep it a secret. If the bounty was distributed according to the usefulness of the information, like the bounty of the police in Japan, it would be a different matter, but it would be difficult unless the guild managed it very well. Shall I copy it for now? "Natsuki, can you do it? I don''t have the skills to draw a good portrait, but I can manage to copy one. Even if you don''t have an artistic background, you can still do something if you work carefully. I don''t have any art background, but if you work carefully, you can do pretty well.¡¡Didn''t you win some kind of award in junior high school? It''s not an award that I''m proud of. I learned to draw once, so I had a little more skill than other people. As Natsuki said, the prize she won was a simple contest for junior high school students, so she was not an outstanding artist, but her skills were definitely better than most people. After borrowing a portrait from the receptionist, Natsuki sat down at the table, placed it beside her, and copied it down, and the result was quite good. Natsuki sat down at the table and copied the portrait. You can do this if you get used to it. You can do this if you get used to it. If you draw a border around it, you won''t have to worry about the balance getting messed up. But Natsuki, you didn''t draw the border, did you? That''s something you have to get used to. I can''t draw them on the original picture. I wish I had a transparent sheet, but ...... Because the original picture was not that well drawn, Natsuki finished copying it in less than an hour, despite talking about it. It''s a pretty good copy, and while it''s a pretty accurate copy, he''s made some subtle corrections, and if we''re talking about the quality of the picture, Natsuki''s drawing is better. I tried to fix the unnatural parts, but ...... I''d like to show it to someone who knows him and ask his opinion. After returning the borrowed picture to the receptionist, Natsuki scrutinized her own drawing, but without having seen the person in question, she was unable to determine whether or not the resemblance was real. "Why don''t we go and check with someone who knows the person? That''s not a bad idea. Hey, guys. Are you guys going to look for him? When Toya was about to nod at Natsuki''s suggestion, a man interrupted him and called out. The man who looked back at them was a rather dull, middle-aged man. He was probably not that old in real life, but his stubble and life-weary expression made him look older. "Yes, I am, but what about you? "Don''t do that. That''s what I''m after. The man didn''t answer Natsuki''s question, but snickered, but Natsuki didn''t seem to mind his reaction and said something back. We''ve been commissioned by the lord. You can''t just say, "Oh, I see. "...... d*mn it. It''s too late to get involved now. Don''t get in the way of that. The man looked as if he was chewing on a bitter bug at Natsuki''s words, but perhaps it was because he said he had been commissioned by the lord. He clucked his tongue and left the adventurer''s guild building. I wonder if he''s been investigating all this time.¡¡I''m not sure.¡¡--I''m not sure about that.¡¡The receptionist. "Well, that''s fine, but he said something similar about a month ago, didn''t he? The man''s back was seen off, and Yuki said something like that to the receptionist, to which the receptionist replied with a wry smile. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡It''s not like we''re obsessed with 100 gold coins, so if he can solve it, that''s fine with us. ...... I''m pretty sure he''s investigating. Perhaps the fact that it''s been going on for such a long time means that there are some clues. ....... If they couldn''t find anything, they would have backed off, right? It''s been two months since the request was made. At first, several parties showed interest and many people checked the sketches, but after a certain number of days, most of them received other requests and did not seem to be seriously investigating. On the other hand, the man in question is still interested enough in the request to advise Natsuki even after two months have passed, so Natsuki''s prediction that he would have backed off if there was no progress is not that far off. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡Isn''t he in a party or something? Yes. Mr. Goods is alone. In the first place, he usually works as a day laborer and only takes simple requests. In response to Yuki''s question, the receptionist blurted out her personal information. There was no hesitation there at all. This is partly because we know from Natsuki''s words that they are working on behalf of the lord, but also because of their rank. In pinning, Natsuki and the others are classified as high ranking. If you are a receptionist, you will naturally remember them because there are few adventurers with higher ranks than that, at least in terms of opportunities to visit. When you''re a lowly adventurer and a high rank, and you''re well known to the lord, it''s obvious which one the organization will prioritize. So, how about we just ask for help, and don''t ask for a reward?¡¡Well, Mr. Goods?¡¡He''s probably lacking in strength as well. "Oh, that''s good, right?¡¡Adventurers who don''t usually fight in the first place . Even if we find the kidnappers, we''ll be in trouble if it turns into a battle. Toya immediately agreed to Yuki''s suggestion. He was a little disappointed that he wasn''t getting paid, but that was a small thing in the face of the fact that the investigation was not progressing at all. From his point of view, it''s much easier to hunt and sell demons in the dungeon than to go through all this trouble. Are you sure?¡¡I''m not sure what to do with it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure he has no intention of going against his lord. The receptionist said something quite harsh, but Yuki and Natsuki smiled in response and shook their heads. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡You can''t use your power to do anything about it, because we''re adventurers too. "Well, yes. Let''s go peacefully. Do you visit the Adventurer''s Guild often, Goods-san? Yes. I see him almost every day, or at least once every few days. He seems to be asking around. All right. Well, I''ll come back tomorrow and we''ll talk. Thank you for everything. No problem. Good luck. We live in this town, so it''s not our fault. Yes, sir. We''ll do our best. After leaving the guild, Natsuki and the others showed Natsuki''s sketch to the family of the girl in the sketch, as well as to the people around the house, to make sure the resemblance was correct. I didn''t show it to my family, of course, out of consideration for their feelings. Incidentally, the reactions of the people we showed the sketches to were all, "It''s a great likeness. There was no way they could be mistaken," so Natsuki and his friends decided that there was no problem. The day''s investigation ended there, as it was getting late, and they returned to the lord''s mansion. I''ll be back. The man who came out of the adventurer''s guild as if he was half running away from Natsuki and the others was walking very fast through the back alleys to a certain place. His expression was irritated and frustrated, and his steps were not relaxed. "d*mn it!¡¡You''ve come here now, and you''re wielding the power of a lord! The man''s impression was different from Natsuki''s. In fact, Natsuki had just told him the truth and had no intention of wielding power. In fact, if he was ordered by his lord to tell him everything he knew, he would not be able to keep quiet. Of course, he could lie or hide the information, but if he did that, he would not be able to fulfill the request and receive the reward later. If he was investigating a case, it would not be convenient for the lord not to know about it, and then the discrepancy between the information the man gave and his actions would become a problem. I''m not kidding. I''ve been working on this for almost two months.¡¡I don''t want my reward to be wiped out now! He stopped in a back alley. He leaned his back against the wall of a building on the side of the alley and peered out into the street. There was a house, a little larger than the surrounding area, where he turned his gaze. It is surrounded by walls slightly taller than an adult and has a garden. From the house, there is no doubt that the owner is wealthier than the average person, but the garden that can be seen through the gate is a little unkempt, indicating that the owner does not have enough money to hire a professional craftsman. The man continued to watch the house, but the sun began to set without any movement, and the last bell of the day rang in the town. "No movement today? f*ck you! Spitting viciously on the ground, the man puts his hand over his mouth, fingertips twitching in annoyance. I was going to gather some more information, but I guess I''ll just have to go with ....... The man then left, and when he came back a few moments later, he had a cloth wrapped around his head to hide his face. He waited until it was completely dark, and made sure there was no one around. He carefully climbed over the fence of the house so as not to make a sound. Then, using some kind of tool, he pried open the back door and disappeared into the house. 294-266 Investigation of subsequent incidents (1) Haruka and I had arrived back in Pining the same day we left Laffan. But what awaited us there was a case investigation that was not progressing at all. I can''t blame them, since I told them not to push themselves too hard, but my naive expectation that "Natsuki and Yuki are here, and maybe the case is mostly solved" was easily overturned. They seemed to have decided on a plan for tomorrow, but Haruka and I were both looking over the materials we had gathered, thinking that we might be able to find out something if we looked at it from a different perspective. Meanwhile, Natsuki and the others were taking a break from eating the dingdol we had brought back as a souvenir. By the way, Mary and Mitya took the dingdol we gave them and went to Ilias''s room. ...... I''m glad to see that they are getting along well. I''m glad to hear that they are getting along. I''ve finished reading it for now. ...... Where''s Nao? I''m also. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡At least I can''t predict the murderer, not for me. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. In the first place, if it were a real mystery novel, it would have all the necessary information, but this is just an investigation document. I don''t even know how much of the necessary information is included. In the first place, it is just a list of what happened, and there seems to be almost no information that could lead to the culprit. I don''t know who did it either, but don''t you care about ...... this? Haruka took out a piece of paper and traced a part of it with her finger. We all looked at it, and Yuki read out the part. "Let''s see, ''no external injuries that could cause death''? The first case of a Kerg resident found dead in Pining. In the documents, it was concluded that it was a case of poisoning. "Yes. Does that remind you of anything?¡¡Specifically, about a year ago. I''m sure you''re not the only one who can think of something. "......[Skill Robbery]!¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡It is possible that he became a peddler in a few months and made some business contacts. It says here that she herself had a "resident''s card," in addition to having been interviewed by the Territorial Guard. If you ask her, it seems that they are issued to residents who pay taxes, so it''s a little hard to believe that her classmates received them. I''m not sure what to say, but I can''t give you an opinion, so Natsuki seems to have come up with something else and claps his hands together. "Oh, I see. So it''s the other way around. So it wasn''t a classmate who died, but a classmate who caused the death? "Yes. I heard that there were unexplained deaths around the same time we moved here, and I thought it might have been a classmate, but I never confirmed it. I didn''t have the luxury of time back then. It''s true that at that time, I couldn''t even afford to buy a proper weapon to pay for that day''s lodging - or even when I went to register when I heard about it. Toya was also fighting with a wooden stick called a "wooden sword". Who died is a secondary concern. Our first priority was to survive. I don''t remember exactly, but I''m sure there were two in the guild and a few others.¡¡I don''t remember exactly. It''s been a year, and it''s been the most eventful year of my life, so it feels like a long time ago. And of course, I don''t remember any details. That''s what Diora told me: ....... But you said you were our age, right?¡¡"Are you healthy? I remember him asking me if I was healthy. Yeah. But there are a lot of people our age in Laffan, aren''t there?¡¡It''s a town full of rookies. If we take a wider range of ages, we can say that two out of every three adventurers in Raffan are the same age as us. Is there anyone who has taken assassination skills?¡¡No, maybe it''s dark magic?¡¡Do they have instant death magic? "I don''t know much about dark magic. I don''t know much about dark magic. I''ve never even seen a grimoire. ....... But you can''t deny it. In contrast to the relative ease with which water-based grimoires can be obtained, I''ve never seen a dark magic grimoire. I''ve never seen a grimoire that doesn''t have some kind of dark magic in it. I don''t know the details, but I''ve heard that there are paralysis, confusion, sleep inducement, and so on. Of course, it depends on how you use it, but public image is also important for adventurers and wizards who work on behalf of the state. Normally, it would be more popular to say ''I can use light magic'' rather than ''I can use dark magic. But even if you could use instant death magic, would you use it on the street?¡¡I''m not sure if there are any psychos in my classmates that would do that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. In the event that you''ve got a problem with your own personal computer, you''ll be able to contact us. At least the Guild''s deaths didn''t seem like they were caused by trouble. Did you try it because it works?¡¡I don''t think so. ...... I think it''s normal to experiment with magic on demons, but I don''t think it''s possible to do it on humans. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. It''s quite vicious, isn''t it? Yeah. It''s a slippery slope. Unintentional?¡¡If you take away an adventurer''s skills and they go to work without realizing it, there''s a high risk of death. When you factor in the lifestyle, it''s pretty similar. It''s true. It''s worse than suddenly being fired from your job. There is no unemployment insurance, and many people are living on the edge, so if they suddenly lose the skills they have acquired, they could starve to death. However, the probability of success in [skill robbery] is probably lower. Also, it''s not necessarily magic, is it? Also, it''s not necessarily magic. It''s not necessarily magic. I''ve seen a guy die from a spell gone wrong. I wonder what kind of skills ...... that can kill people without any external injuries? I''ve been thinking about it for a while now, and I''m trying to remember some games and novels. In addition to instant death magic,......, poisoning, asphyxiation, and, for a change, psychokinesis, which destroys the heart and brain from the inside? Other than instant death magic, you can use poison, suffocation, or even psychokinesis to destroy the heart and brain from the inside. I''m sure there''s no such thing as a wraith. Wraith? You know what drains are, right?¡¡You lose levels, you lose HP, it depends on the game. Toya reacts to my mumbling and I say what I''ve been thinking. I wonder if there are any such demons in this world? --No, there are undead. Ghosts and wraiths are in the demon dictionary. I don''t know if it lowers your level, but it says that if you''re touched, you lose your strength, or worse, you become weak and die. That''s not a wraith. That''s not reincarnation, that''s death. --If you''re a no-life-king or some other kind of awesome undead, there might be some people who''d go astray. Turning death. That''s a new word. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m not sure if we''re reincarnated or transmigrated because we''ve changed species. ...... Are we transmigrating because we have no parents? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Yeah, it makes even more sense now. I really don''t care what it means. But no life king. Not that I don''t admire it a little. "At least it wasn''t on my list, No-Life King. Even if I could reincarnate, I''d never have enough points. A normal race is 20 points, and a special vampire half is ......50 points, right? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. If you suck blood, it leaves a mark. You can at least tell if the blood is gone, so the cause of death is unknown. ...... No, can you? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... Well, as Yuki said, "It''s going to leave blood sucking marks. I''m not sure what to make of this. ...... No, Yuki''s words may be correct. What?¡¡Me?¡¡Vampires? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure. I think vampires have the ability of energy drain. It''s also possible that it''s someone who has only received the Energy Drain skill, of course. ...... No, as expected, only wanting the [Energy Drain] skill is too special. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything that might help you. Choosing such a skill in that state is too irrational, unless you have a special attachment to [Energy Drain]. Vampire... Sounds cool, doesn''t it? By the way, how many points do you need? To Toya''s question, Natsuki thought for a moment and answered. "I think it''s about 130, 150, something like that. It''s pretty vague. "That''s too high!¡¡It''s so expensive!¡¡I can''t get it even if I poured it all in! Even I''m on the edge. Even Natsuki can''t expect a very accurate value from his memory of a year ago, but I''m sure it''s still over 100. I don''t know how many of his classmates were able to choose, but if he chose vampire, we can expect him to have few other skills. "I didn''t really look at the races after I chose elves either. ...... What abilities do they have? To be honest, I don''t remember much about the race, but I think it was ...... the general idea of a vampire. Bloodsucking, atomization, batting, enchantment,......, that sort of thing. The only weaknesses they have, other than sunlight, are attacks related to holiness, like the undead. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Natsuki thought for a moment and shook his head. I don''t think it says anything about that. ...... Maybe. What about the fact that he doesn''t like running water or that he can''t enter a house without being invited? I don''t think so either. I don''t think so either, but it didn''t say anything about them being incredibly immortal either. A vampire with few weaknesses would be ...... troublesome. The fact that sunlight is a weakness is a bit of a relief, but there is the question of how weak it is. It''s a good idea to make sure that you have a good idea of what you''re doing. If you have the skills of bloodsucking, atomization, batting, and enchantment for 130 points or so, it seems like a big weakness. ...... No, is bloodsucking classified as a weakness? In the case of the vampire half, that was close to a weakness. ....... ''But it also didn''t say that they were ridiculously immortal?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. What about resurrection from the ashes? I don''t see that either. Maybe you can kill them normally?¡¡If he''s that strong, he''ll need more points. The good news is that it''s not as big a deal as I thought. It''s not as big a deal as I thought. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to ask for help. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s not as if you can charm an unlimited number of people. There are limits. If it wasn''t, it would be a huge cheat. If you meet a demon or a bandit and you charm them, you can do whatever you want. The only way to deal with them would be to snipe them from a distance before they recognize you. I don''t think Lord Adversus would give you such an ability. The question is, "How restrictive is it? If you haven''t done anything crazy, then it must be pretty strict, right?¡¡I don''t know. I don''t know, can I use my blessing to prevent it? It''s worth it, I suppose. If you think of it as an anomaly, it should reduce the danger. The best thing to do is to stay out of it, but I''ve already taken care of it, and I''m afraid to leave it alone. If Viscount Nenus were to be charmed, our safety would be at stake. We discussed some more concerns, and decided that if we were to face him, we would not take too many people with us to prevent him from being charmed, and that we would not participate if he was sick or tired. We also decided to go to the temple to pray for comfort, to use "Recover Mental Strength", "Resist Disease", and "Holy Weapon" in advance, and to use tactics in case the opponent uses atomization or batting. But... It''s also possible that even with all of our considerations, our classmates had nothing to do with it. At the end of the meeting, Yuki said something like that. It''s all a bit of a mess. But it''s better to be prepared. Better to be prepared than sorry. I''m sure this won''t be a waste of time - no. It''s better if it''s wasted, really. 295-267 Investigation of subsequent incidents (2) The next day, we went to the adventurer''s guild to meet an adventurer that Toya and his friends had spotted. We came early in the morning, which we don''t usually do, to avoid any misunderstandings, but there are always a lot of people at the adventurer''s guild in Pining. We waited for the crowd to thin out and then went inside. As far as we could tell, there was no sign of the person we were looking for, but we did check with the receptionist. She told us that he hadn''t come in after all. After that, we sat down at a table in the guild and started to wait, but ....... "He''s not coming. He''s not coming. We''ve been sitting here for a few hours now. It''s almost noon. Well, it seems to happen once every few days in some cases. ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. In addition, Toya and Yuki went out to buy something delicious. It is unclear whether they will be found or not, since they are not in Clevily. If they''re not, they''ll be gone for a few days. ....... Should we split up and look for this girl? Natsuki showed me the girl in the sketch. She''s a pretty girl, and if she''s still alive, I''d like to help her. But the truth is, ....... I hope the situation is not too bad. ....... The question is, which is faster? The question is, which one is faster? Hmm, this is a bit foul, but, you know, goods?¡¡Do you want me to look for that person? You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I don''t think that''s a foul thing to do. I''m not saying that. I''m talking about investigating Mr. Goods'' activities. If you''ve been investigating him for two months, there''s bound to be a trend in his behavior, and there''s bound to be a lot of people who''ve seen him. He''s not exactly hiding himself, so he''s easier to track than a missing person, right? In other words, you know where Mr. Goods was working and what he was doing, and you know what he was looking for. "...... I see. That sounds a bit foul, to be sure. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what he was doing and how he was doing it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Of course, if it works out, we can give him the reward. Of course, if it works out that way, we can give him the reward, but it would be hard for us to take it. "Yeah, I agree. Yes, I agree. It''s just that we''ve been working hard for two months. And I''d like to get this over with. Right. I''m staying at the lord''s mansion, so I don''t have to pay for lodging, but to be honest, it''s not as comfortable as at home, and I don''t have any income during that time. I''ve spent a lot of money in Clevily. ....... So we changed our mind, and after eating what Toya and the others had bought, we asked the receptionist to send a message to the goods and began our search for him. As we had been investigating for two months, it was easier than expected to gather information by showing Natsuki''s sketch and talking about the features of the goods. As a result, we were able to narrow down the area where he had been hanging out recently, but unfortunately, we couldn''t see him even after walking around there. I also found the place where he stays, but there was no sign of him there either. We went back to the guild to talk to the receptionist, but still no sign of the goods, and the day''s search was over. But the goods were there. But what were the goods doing there, I wonder?¡¡That area is a residential area, right? But what was he doing there? If they''re criminals, they should be holed up in a less safe place, like a barbershop. The range of goods found in today''s survey. Taking it all together, it was highly likely that he was looking for a corner of a residential area. The area was neither poor nor upper class, but an ordinary residential area. Notwithstanding Toya''s slightly prejudiced words, it is not the kind of place where you would expect to find corrupt aristocrats kidnapping beautiful women, or poor people committing crimes. If there were a few more stores, I could have listened to you, but it''s a little ...... difficult when you''re a passerby. The shopkeepers were generally cooperative if we showed them our guild cards and told them that we were investigating a missing person at the request of the lord, but it was a little difficult to talk to passersby, and they often walked away, saying they were in a hurry. Well, it''s not surprising. They don''t just take a leisurely stroll in the middle of the day, they''re usually at work. It''s difficult to ask them to take time out for us. In the meantime, when Haruka and I talk to them, they don''t react so badly, but ...... it''s the appearance correction. I''m not sure. I think that''s a big part of the reason why the interview went so well. I''d rather be talked down to by a pretty girl than by a shady cop. It can''t be helped. For me, it''s kind of annoying that women respond well to ......, but it''s convenient. But it also seems to me that the odds of a classmate being involved are much higher now. Is that so? I''m assuming they''re kidnapping and holding her captive. In a normal residential area, it would be difficult to bring in people without people noticing and keep them locked up without them noticing. But if you can be mesmerized, then you can solve those problems, right? "Yes. Well, unless you are indifferent to your surroundings like in modern Japan, this is not the case. It''s not uncommon in urban Japan to not even know the name of the person living next door in your apartment, or even have a nameplate, but not here. But not here. We know our neighbors, even if it''s not much. Because of Diora''s advice, we went to greet our neighbors after we moved in, and sometimes we give them small gifts. It didn''t cost us much, because we picked it ourselves, and it''s a small price to pay to help prevent crime. Does anyone want to borrow a guard?¡¡Then the passersby will have to talk. Why don''t you just ask around the houses? It would be suspicious for us to go and talk to them, but we can do that. "I see. And you don''t need a search warrant here. ...... If it looks suspicious, you can force your way into the house. That''s this world. If you can manage that well, it''s a strength of non-democratic countries. It''s a strength of non-democratic countries. Yeah, let''s talk about it. The next day, Sazius was walking with us in a residential area. The next day, it was Sazius who was walking with us through the residential area. The reason why he decided to cooperate with us was not that he was impressed with our enthusiasm for the investigation, of course. The main reason was that, based on our opinions and the information we had given him, he felt that other territorial soldiers would be a liability in case of an emergency. The other reason was that we thought we could get some idea if we asked around for a day. If we had to hold him for several days, we wouldn''t be able to drag him out. If this doesn''t work out, we''ll have to come up with another plan without him. It will be a hassle. So even if we don''t finish this today, I''d like to at least get some clues. Around here?¡¡It''s far from any of the places where the bodies were found. Standing at the spot where we brought him, Sazius looked around a little surprised. It''s morning, and people are going to work. There''s a fair amount of traffic, but it''s not particularly noisy, and it''s a peaceful residential area. If you listen carefully, you can hear the sounds of daily life from the houses, as if they are doing housework. That''s right. If it weren''t for the goods, we wouldn''t have come here either. At least, not in the short term. "Hmm. I''ll give you a reward for a job well done. ......? In yesterday''s survey, we were able to narrow down the area that the goods were focusing on. But we haven''t been able to identify the individual houses. So we started canvassing the houses in the vicinity of that section. Thankfully, the lord of the area was quite respectable, and even though he seemed a bit busy, he listened to us and told us what he knew. They also seem to know their neighbors well, knowing their occupation, family structure, living style, and even what they eat for dinner. As we approached the target plot, a house came into view. It is a slightly larger house in the area, and it seems to have been built a few decades ago by a couple who were slightly successful in business. The couple had already passed away, and the person living there now was their daughter, who was around 20 years old. The daughter, who is around 20 years old, lives alone, but has some money left by her parents, so she is leading a comfortable life. Recently, however, the daughter has been acting a little strange. It''s not that I haven''t seen her, but the number of times I have seen her has obviously decreased, and her small but carefully tended garden is now in a state of disrepair. I heard that many of the neighbors had been taken care of by her parents, and that they occasionally called out to her with concern, but all they got back was, "Don''t worry. But the only reply she gets is, "It''s okay." With that being said, she can''t do anything and is in trouble. That''s what we found out from our interviews. "......, isn''t it already a hit?¡¡It''s good to go in, isn''t it? It''s not hard to see why Toya would come to that conclusion, given the information. I think so, too. No, it wouldn''t be possible in Japan, but... "What do you think about that, Sazius? Sazius nodded again when Natsuki asked him about it. Sazius nodded again. But if what you''ve told me is correct, ...... I''m a little nervous. I''m going to cast a counter-magic on Sazius as well. ...... Do you want to go ask the gods for help?¡¡Sazius, what is your faith? In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to ask for help. So I asked Sazius about it, but he shook his head. He shook his head and said, "There was a temple to Ygrimyah near where I was born, so I''m familiar with him, but I''m not a believer. You can''t just ask for blessings at a time like this. In this world where gods are real, I don''t see as many devoted believers as I thought I would in this country. If you pass by a temple, you stop by, put in a money offering, and pray. However, there are people who are paranoid about participating in religious events, following strict precepts, and saying, "It''s God''s will! It''s not that I don''t believe. It''s not that they don''t believe in God, but they don''t put their trust in Him. ...... It''s similar to the feeling of Japanese people, and it''s quite easy for us to do. Of course, as long as the gods are real, they are not as loose as in Japan. So, if there is a battle, let''s have Sagius stay back. But if you get mesmerized or something, I might have to stop you a little rough, sorry about that. "...... I''d prefer you go easy on me. Well, it can''t be helped. I''ll take it. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. 296-268 Investigation of the incident (3) "This is Sazius, Viscount of Nenus, Lord of the Guard. After completing the various preparations, we passed through the gate of the target house and stood in front of the door. Sagius knocked on the door and called out, but there was no response from inside. After knocking a few more times a little more roughly, we finally heard a weak "yes" from inside, and the door opened a little. What I saw was, as I had heard, a woman around 20 years old. She was quite beautiful, but her face was a little pale and unhealthy looking. This is Sazius of the Territorial Guard. I''m currently investigating a crime. I''m going to search your house. "I''m in trouble. ...... The woman''s confused, wandering gaze was of no concern to Sazius. It doesn''t matter. You have to help us. Very forceful. There was no pushing and shoving. Sagius put his hand on the door and pulled it open at once, restraining the woman who had stumbled out of the house. If the Japanese police did this, they''d be guilty for sure, but here it''s OK. No problem. And it''s convenient in a way. Uh, Sazius, you take care of the guy. "All right. Be careful. Sure. I don''t know if she''s the enemy or not, but it makes sense if we can hold one of them and get Sazius away from the scene. When we entered the house with Toya in the lead, it was quite dark inside. The curtains were drawn and there was no sunlight, even though it was the middle of the morning and afternoon. --This is a good thing. The response is on the second floor of ....... Maybe three. I''m not sure what to make of this. First of all, the reaction of non-monsters is slow and difficult to sense. This is especially difficult for non-hostile people, and it is quite difficult in crowded cities. For example, a hive of bees. It''s like asking how many bees are in a hive. If there are few people, like in the forest, or if you are very close to someone, you can get a good idea. Furthermore, if you are in a building with many obstructions, thick walls, or high airtightness, you will not be able to sense it as well. "It''s easy to understand if you think of it like sound waves. So again, there is no way to know in advance how many people are in the building. Well, now it''s easier to tell, because the hostility is pretty strong when you break in. "The stairs are at ......! Be careful, okay? Hey! We followed Toya''s lead and ran. At the top of the stairs, Toya paused for a moment, but then his ears twitched and he quickly ran toward a room, opened the door, and charged with his shield at the ready. I''m not going to give you time to think about it, that''s the plan. What we''re concerned about is what happens when the other guy is a classmate. If that is the case, then they are just amateurs and will not have the ability to react instantly. And sure enough, when I ran into the room after Toya, he was upright on the bed, looking at me stunned. The room was rather large, about 20 tatami mats, dimly lit, with a table and a bed in one corner. On the bed was a man of about our age, sitting upright, and beside him sat two thinly clad women,......, or were they girls? The next moment, the room is illuminated by the light that Haruka has released. The girl''s face was clearly visible,......, one of which was the girl in the portrait we were looking for. It seems that the sketch that Natsuki had shown us was quite good, and there was no mistaking the resemblance. The other girl was new to me, but a little younger. A little older than Mary? I believe there was a 12-year-old girl among the missing. Could it be her? d*mn it!¡¡You can''t break in without a warrant! The man who was stunned on the bed finally came to his senses at that point, and jumped off the bed, swearing like that. He is black. There''s no way anyone in this world would have a warrant. I''m not sure. Yes, it''s black. ...... Who is this guy? He''s pale and unhealthy looking, probably because he''s a vampire. I''m not sure what to make of this. Even if you take into account that it was a year ago and my memory is fading, there is no subtle target to hit . My facial recognition system isn''t very good, so I can''t say for sure, but my face must have changed when I became a vampire. I''m sure. "Meekly surrender!¡¡I don''t know who you are! I don''t know who you are, but you''d better give up.¡¡Or ......, or ......, or whatever! It''s Kaji!¡¡f*ck you!¡¡Even if you''re a little inconspicuous, you should at least remember his name!¡¡Nagai!¡¡And you''re Kamiya, aren''t you? The man pointing at us, stomping his feet... or Kaji. I see, Kaji. Now that you mention it, it sure sounds like it. But if you''ll remember, you should stop wearing your hair that long. There''s a lot going on, and I''ve got a lot of magic and stuff to learn. You can''t help but push out the less important information, right? I don''t care about that. Can you just surrender?¡¡I''m holding you for kidnapping. ...... No, I''m holding you for kidnapping. East, Shito, Furumiya!¡¡Shit, you guys are still in the rear here! I''m sure you''ve had your way with Kaji-kun too, haven''t you? I''m sure you''re not the only one," he said, glancing at the girl still sitting on the bed and giving Kaji a look of disgust. I''m not saying that I don''t understand the feeling, because I''m a man myself, and I''m sure I''d be tempted if I had the power of fascination, but actually doing it would be a bad idea. I''m not saying I don''t understand the feeling at all. It''s not clear that they were actually doing that. ...... No, it''s not clear that they were actually doing that. Well, that''s a crime, so let''s just pay for it. In fact, we don''t know how much of the crime was committed by Kaji, which makes it a little difficult to deal with, but the kidnapping seems to be the only thing that is certain. If all the suspicious deaths are the result of this guy, it would be a good idea to kill him quickly. ....... In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a little tricky. It''s a little tricky to be found out, but I guess I should be grateful that you brought Azuma and the others with you. --Come on, Azuma!¡¡Kill Kamiya! Kaji''s words made us tense, and we turned our attention to Haruka. What do you think, Haruka? "...... Yeah. No problem, it seems. I''m not sure what to do. Yeah. We knew it would probably be fine, but we breathed a sigh of relief when we found out there was actually no problem. In the event that Haruka becomes enchanted, Yuki and Natsuki were going to restrain Haruka while Toya and I were going to kill Kaji without question, but that situation seems to have been avoided for the time being. What? Why?¡¡Shidou!¡¡Furumiya! I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not a fan.¡¡I''m not sure I want to charm a man, but I can''t help it!¡¡Hey, Kamiya!¡¡Hold Azuma! I thought I saw a glint in his eyes as he looked at me, but that was it. It''s not like I''m resisting anything or anything. Why?¡¡Why doesn''t the charm work? Well, we''re using some defensive magic that might work, and if the charm works so easily on us after a year of hard work, it''s too powerful an ability for Adversus to give us. In this respect, we trust Advaistris. Unless you''ve been working hard to improve your abilities, but you don''t seem like the type, and that''s why you wouldn''t abuse the charm. "Because we''re classmates?¡¡No, that''s not possible. I had no problem with Takamatsu. "......? In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with me, you''ll be able to contact me at the web site. "Takamatsu is from the Order of Satomi Saints? "Oh?¡¡Yeah, you know it. I charmed him a little and pushed him back, and he danced very well, Takamatsu. I had a lot of fun with that, didn''t I? Kaji, who had been smirking and sneering at my question, suddenly deepened his smile, as if he had thought of something. "Oh, yes!¡¡I''m sure you''ve heard of it.¡¡You know how nasty religious groups can be, don''t you? That''s right. You''re right. Religious groups are troublesome. You never know what they''ll do, especially if they''re fanatical, and they might even commit terrorist acts. But... ....... I''m sorry to burst your bubble, but the Order of the Saints has already been shut down. ...... What? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure he''s been holed up in his house indulging in debauchery or something like that. In a way, it seems that he''s been living a righteous life of self-degradation, which we, the opponents, are grateful for... d*mn it!¡¡Well, that''s okay. I guess I''ll just have to deal with him myself. "Wow, that''s a very small-fry boss line, isn''t it? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. But I agree with you. The bosses who talk like that are actually small fry. They don''t even have weapons to begin with, so what are they talking about? It would be magic to be careful. ....... 297-269 Investigation of the incident (4) Shut the f*ck up!¡¡I''m a vampire!¡¡I''m not some inferior race!¡¡Batting! Kaji spits out a few savory lines and thrusts his palm at us. I''m not sure what to make of this. "Squeak! Squishy! "Gugga! Smaller than a giant bat, tougher than a ripper bee. Just a few more of them. To those of us who can cut down a Slash Owl, they''re just small fry. They are cut down quickly and fall down screaming. It attacks us with its wings, but it can only cut through our clothes. The chainmail it wears underneath is completely ineffective, and as long as you protect your face and other parts of your body, there''s not much of a problem. You''d have to be an idiot to turn into a bat in a room, right? Yeah, right. If you''re trying to escape, why not just turn into something weaker and get rid of it? Maybe it was because he heard our words, or maybe it was because he was killed so easily. The scattered bats and the bats that had been cut down and lying on the floor gathered again and took human form. "d*mn, it''s not as useful as I thought! Kaji''s swearing figure was bleeding all over the place, and he had quite a few wounds. There were no corpses left of the bats that had been cut down, but all of them must have killed at least one or two of them. I think there were more than 20 of them, but considering their numbers, I''d say 20-30% of them were damaged. I think it''s better to be caught straight away.¡¡You can''t take it easy on them if they resist too much. Yes, yes. You can''t win with mere special abilities, you know. I''m trying to capture him, but if he resists, I''m allowed to kill him. "Who?¡¡If you are caught, you will be executed! I see, you''re aware that you''re being executed. But you can''t attack us. Atomize! Kaji turning into a blurry black fog. That''s what''s coming next, right? But you know what? Don''t you think we''re prepared when we''re not surprised by the batting? "Fire Jet! "Aaah! The air trembles. "If it''s fog, how can it not work? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time and energy, you''ll be able to use it to get the job done. In terms of simple power, a fireball might be better, but if we used it indoors, it would destroy the house, and the opponent would be covered in fog. If you use it indoors, it will destroy the house and the opponent will be in the fog. So, "Fire Jet". It''s a defective product that can only reach a short distance, and it''s also a fire hazard, but it''s better than shooting a fireball. Besides, Haruka has "Extinguish Fire" on standby, so it should only be a small fire at worst. I''m still going!¡¡Come on, come on, come on! "Geez, geez! Whenever Toya swung his slightly shining sword, a strange anguished voice echoed in the room, even though it was slipping through the fog without any resistance. You may have used it because you thought it was strong, but it''s an ability that can be weakened quickly if it''s ...... handled. In the event that you have a lot of money, you may want to take a look at the following tips. Because of the fog, Holy Fire would be more effective, but unfortunately it is not available yet. I''ve been focusing more on space-time magic lately. ....... I was wondering what would happen to the corpse once it was dead, but then the mist gathered on the other side of the bed and it became a human body again. But the body was in an even more miserable state than before. His right arm was gone and his left leg was missing from the knee down. He managed to stand leaning against the wall, but he was probably already in no condition to fight. The damage he sustained when he was a bat is still there, and it seems that he does not have the immortality of the story. It''s not supposed to be like this. ...... This is a great way to get the most out of your business.¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. In the meantime, you can use the Fire Arrow to inflict some damage, but you won''t be able to stop them from escaping. "Well, just give up. See? "Yeah, yeah. It''s impossible. You''ve come to the wrong world, ....... You shouldn''t have abused your ability, you should have taken it seriously. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. But then, as if he realized something, his face twisted into a grin. Oh no! You guys!¡¡Stop these two! "Ah! At Kaji''s words, the two girls who had been sitting on the bed suddenly jumped towards me and Toya. At about the same time, Natsuki and the others jumped into bed, but they were a little too late. To avoid this, Natsuki and the others were supposed to sneak up on the bed and restrain the girls while we were trying to get Kaji''s attention. ....... If it materializes by the bed, you''ll notice it. The reason for the defeat is that the fog has no substance, so it could not be pulled off the bed. Sorry! I didn''t get it! The younger one jumped on me. I grabbed his arms and tried to pull him off me, but his arms were so slender that if I grabbed them too hard, they would break, making it very difficult. I''m not sure if he''s just fascinated or if he''s unusually strong, but he''s clinging desperately to me with both arms and legs as I push back, making it difficult to deal with him. If she was an enemy, I could just forcefully pull her off, no matter if she broke her bones or not. But this girl is not like that. She''s not armed, so she''s not in danger. ....... If you look, you''ll see that Toya is similarly entangled. "Wait, now-- I''d rather take Kaji''s side than ours. Clang! In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. At the same time, Kaji leaps out of the window and transforms himself into a bat. In the meantime, Kaji leaps out of the window and turns into a bat. Immediately, Yuki and Haruka fire arrows at him, dropping several bats, but as expected, he thinks about it to some extent and immediately hides himself in a place where the line of fire cannot penetrate the window. "d*mn it, I let him get away! It''s ...... impossible to chase after him. If we were on the first floor we could jump out the window, but we''re on the second floor. Unfortunately, none of us can fly. Oh, well, at least help me pull it off. ...... Yeah. I''ve got a lot on my mind, but for now, I need to do something about these girls. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. They were a little rambunctious, but with the futon, they would not be injured. After restraining the two women, we take a break. I wish I had some kind of magic that could put them to sleep, but I don''t have it. Huh. ...... Let''s go get Sazius first. Yeah, I''ll have to report back. I''m a little depressed, but I can''t not report it. I''m sure Sazius can hear us slamming around, and he''s probably tired of waiting. I went downstairs and went to the door, where Sazius was waiting, tapping his toe on the floor, with a woman tied up with rope. Sure enough, as soon as he saw me, he called out to me as if in a hurry. "What happened? "Oh, just bring him upstairs with you. ...... Oh. Sazius, perhaps sensing something from my expression, picked up the woman and followed me. He didn''t seem to be in any trouble, perhaps because his orders were different from those of the two men above. When I returned upstairs to my room, I found the two girls wrapped up and rolled out on a large bed. Seeing this, Sazius also laid the woman he was holding next to him. Even though she was laid down in this way, she did not resist. They did not resist. The girls had been squirming when I left the room, but now they were motionless. No way. ......? "Oh, it''s okay. I''m alive and well. Noticing the look I gave her, Haruka replied. It stopped working after a while, but maybe there''s a time limit or sphere of influence on the order. Well, ......, that''s good. We tried as hard as we could not to injure her. We were dealing with a girl younger than us. If she had died, it would have been a very bad aftertaste. I don''t know if he''s in elementary school or middle school, but he''s fascinated by her. ...... And what happened to it?¡¡I''m sure you can guess from the situation here. There is no one in the room but us and the women on the bed, and the broken window. Sazius said and I nodded. "As it turns out, we let the killer go. I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... Oh, yeah. I''m not sure what to make of that. It can''t be helped. You say that because you know what we''re capable of. ....... No, if you had planned to kill us from the start, we might have been able to kill you. You don''t have a choice about that either. Even we territorial soldiers would prioritize catching them in this situation. I''d rather not be killed outright. That''s very kind of you to say. And what about the girls? Yeah. I thought I''d try to get to them first. ...... It would have been better if I had jumped on them immediately instead of trying to sneak up on them, but hindsight is 20/20. You''ll never know which was better. Was the enemy a vampire? Yes. Yeah, they turned into bats and mists. The information I had given to Sazius beforehand was that the killer might have the ability to charm the target. As an example, I mentioned vampires, but Sazius was quite skeptical about them. However, when he met a woman who seemed to be controlled by them, he changed his mind. In this world, the existence of vampires is known to a certain extent, but it is generally accepted that they are more realistic than vampires in our world, and that it is rare to encounter them. There are many theories about their abilities, and there is no definite theory. Even humans can use magic, are good with swords, and are strong, so it is natural that it is difficult to fit vampires into a mold. "At least I got one leg and one arm. I also gave him a final push, so I think I did a little more damage than that. ...... Hmmm, a normal person would die if they lost one arm and one leg and couldn''t get medical attention. ...... What do you think? "I don''t know . I don''t know. My arm is gone, but I didn''t see any blood spurting out. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one of these, you''ll be able to get a lot more than just one. There was one other thing he said that caught my attention. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bit of trouble. What?¡¡...... Hmm, I''ll ask her about the details when I get back to my office. We should search this house as well, but ...... it would be better for us territorial soldiers to do that. Let''s bring those three back first. Can you do that? Yes, sir. After that, Sazius took the oldest girl, Toya took the middle, and I took the youngest girl, and we went back to the guard station. During this time, I was a little concerned about the stares from the people around us, but since the soldiers were the ones walking in the front, we arrived without being told anything. I left the mattress I was carrying with the other guards and made a report with Sazius. However, since we didn''t know the details, we only wrote down that Kaji had charmed Satomi, his abilities, the damage we had done and how we had done it, and his appearance. 298-270 Investigation of continuing incidents (5) We parted ways with Sazius, who said he would consult with the lord first, and went back to our room. "F~~~. I''m so tired. I''m not sure what to do. "I''m halfway through ....... "It''s not like we didn''t get anywhere. Not that it didn''t pay off. ...... We found the missing person we were looking for. It''s not clear if the other two are still on the list, but you''ve freed them from the vampire. The other achievement is that you have damaged the vampire. But it''s hard to say that it''s a solution, because we let them go. In the first place, it''s not clear which of the missing persons Kaji was involved in. I think he said something like "I don''t want to charm a man", so I don''t think he was involved in the disappearance of the man. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. "It was a request this time. I''m not sure what to do. If it weren''t for that, I would have done everything in my power to kill the vampire as soon as he tried to charm Haruka, but this time, the Viscount asked me to do it, and in addition, there was someone who seemed to be charmed. If killing the vampire would break the spell, there would be no problem, but if not, it was unclear whether Haruka and her team could break the spell with their "Remove Curse" or something similar, and there was also the question of whether "spell" was a curse in the first place. In addition, the "Remove Curse" that Haruka and her friends could use was still weak. As well as the Regenerate, which can only be used somehow, the status of the light magic level has not yet reached level 7, where the Remove Curse can be used. So, I was greedy to restrain him if possible. ...... As a result, he was allowed to escape, which may have been a mistake. The only thing that saved me was that the charm had no effect. That''s to be expected. Adversus would never have given you such a powerful ability. Haruka was right, I thought it would be fine, but I was not without my doubts. But the result was fine. It may have worked on ordinary people, but it didn''t seem to be enough to have an effect on those of us who had been working diligently for a year to improve our level. It seems to have worked on Satomi, but the Order of the Saints was only formed a few months after we arrived here. If she hadn''t been trying to improve her status, it wouldn''t be surprising if it worked. But I''m afraid that if she puts in the effort, it might start to work. Mr. Adversus, you seemed to like ''hard work never fails you''. But even vampires can''t grow arms, right?¡¡If it regrows, then there''s a risk of it getting stronger and striking back, but with one arm and one leg, there''s no way to work on it, right? That''s a bit of a stretch, but yeah. To put it bluntly, it would be more peaceful for us if he just died like that, wouldn''t it? I''m not sure what to say. I don''t think there is any compensation for the protagonist because he is completely resentful. But I think he could have become a stronger adventurer if he had used that ability well, in my opinion. That ability is quite effective as a lifeline. Even if you force yourself to go into a dangerous place, you can still run back if there are strong enemies. That''s right. Normally, you have to think of all the ways you can get there and back, but you can just think of the ways you can get there and back safely. And the clothes were fogged, right?¡¡I don''t know how big the area is, but it could carry a lot of stuff. Oh, you''re the type of guy who''s strong if you take him seriously. The ding dong we could earn because we were elves. If we were vampires, we wouldn''t have to worry about climbing up and down trees, and we wouldn''t have to worry about falling, so we could have made more money than we did. But, on the other hand, if you give in to temptation, you''re doomed. No, even if we gave in to temptation a little, it would not have been a problem as long as we did it in moderation. If you do not do anything forceful, but just be a normal pimp,......, you must be a bad person. The other thing that bothered me was that Takamatsu-san said that he was fascinated with Satomi. I''m sure it was ''charmed and pushed back'', right?¡¡It''s a bit complicated for us, the ones who caught him. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s not wrong, because our position is that we have caught a wanted criminal, but as Yuki says, it''s a bit complicated. However, if you think about it that hard, you won''t be able to be an adventurer. I guess we''ll just have to deal with it as a judicial job. We can''t investigate every time something goes wrong. "That''s right. Even if we say something, it won''t mean anything. Let''s just hope we didn''t get our heads chopped off, okay? As Toya said, the arrangement itself was not a matter of life and death. ...... If you had killed him, you would have had more complicated feelings. "But what about this time?¡¡If Satomi hadn''t acted on her own initiative, she would have been a complete victim, but the way the girls were acting, it didn''t seem like there was much flexibility in their fascination, did it? "Yeah, he didn''t act proactively, did he? Even though Kaji and I are fighting, he just sits there in a daze until he''s given a direct order. He didn''t seem to move until we gave him a direct order, and after Kaji escaped, he didn''t move actively again. It''s like a voice-controlled robot. "Can''t you just rewrite the perception?¡¡If it''s possible to do something like ''like yourself,'' it would be weird if he didn''t take action in that state. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event that you''ve got any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. It''s probably pretty much of his own volition, you know. I don''t know if you''ve ever heard of it, but I''ve heard Yasue say something like, ''I used to call them male prostitutes and do whatever I wanted with them.¡¡She didn''t say anything about it. That''s what he said. In other words, they were at least accomplices to each other. ......? If Satomi was completely under Kaji''s control, there was no way he could have done that. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡He didn''t know that the Order of the Holy Women had been destroyed. "He''s not going to be able to stand on his own for that long, yeah. Judging by the girl''s behavior at the time. Bottom line, you did the right thing catching Agent Sutomy. That''s good. For our mental health. There are some unknowns, but there''s a good chance we''re right, and Haruka has a good point. So that''s our conclusion. I''m sure you''ll agree. In the evening of that day. We were resting in our room when a messenger from Sazius came and summoned me and Toya. The messenger led me to the basement of one of the offices. Sazius was waiting there and took me into a dimly lit room. This is ....... There was a body. Both arms were missing, the left leg was missing from mid-thigh, and the right leg was missing from the ankle down. The situation was worse than the last time we saw him, but it was definitely Kaji''s body. One of my men on patrol found him in an abandoned house. In an abandoned house? Yeah. We''re not just playing around with you, are we? No, we''re not. We were asked to do this because Sazius and his team were busy searching for Satomi. In the process, they may have searched the abandoned house. Are you sure this is the vampire who confronted you? Yes, I''m sure. ...... Is he already dead? That''s what I heard. There was no blood. ...... Normally, there is no way he could have survived in this condition without treatment. It''s probably the same as humans. If it doesn''t bleed, I don''t even know how to treat it. You can''t stop the bleeding, right? I wonder if healing magic will work? Sure. But it''s definitely one less thing to worry about. Something to be happy about, I suppose. One less criminal to worry about. ....... Oh, and what about the girls who were fascinated? I think we should tell Haruka and the others about that. We''ll talk about it when we get back to the room. I''m sorry, but I need you to check one more thing. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you may want to check with your doctor. When Sazius bent his knees and turned up the cloth, sure enough, what came out was the body of a man. Compared to Kaji''s body, which was not in bad condition except for the missing limbs, this one showed some signs of injury. But that''s all I can say. There does not appear to be any fatal injuries. Probably middle-aged, and probably not acquainted with me. What do you think? "What do you think, ......? Oh, this guy, he''s an adventurer called Goods. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I think it was the guy who was looking for the missing girl. It is no exaggeration to say that thanks to him, we were able to identify the suspicious house. ...... Is he dead? So he is. This guy was found in a room in that house. It looks like he was beaten, but that doesn''t seem to be the cause of death. Probably killed by some kind of vampire ability. Ah, energy drain. We were never touched, so I don''t know how powerful it is, but I''m sure it''s enough to kill someone. Confirmed, thank you. Let''s go back then. I think we should tell Haruka and the others the details. Yeah, sure. Thank you. Thank you for the ...... and for your concern. Well, I''m a woman adventurer. I wouldn''t have invited you here if I didn''t have to. Sazius smiled and shrugged, adding, "I''m not afraid to ask if I need to," which was thoughtful enough. Even though he had gotten used to it, there was no way he was going to feel good about seeing a dead body. 299-271 Investigation of subsequent incidents (6) We left the morgue and returned to our room, where Sazius explained what we knew so far. "First of all, Toya and the others checked, and they found a dead vampire. Haruka and the others turned their gaze to us as Sazius said this. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bit of trouble. In addition, as a result of searching that house, we found the corpse of the goods that we were looking for missing. I wonder if it ...... snuck into that house?¡¡Maybe it was our presence that made them impatient ......? "Maybe, but I don''t think you need to worry about it, okay?¡¡You take responsibility for your own actions. That''s what adventurers do, right? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. ...... Yeah. I''m not sure what to make of that. There was another person in that house. A sixteen-year-old woman on the missing persons list. This one''s alive. "What?¡¡She was there?¡¡There?¡¡You''ve been slamming around and there''s been no response? I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. You should search for them. But I''m not talking about being locked in a basement or anything like that, but sitting on a bed in a daze. So she''s in the same state as the girl. I wonder if it''s a state of fascination with no specific orders. The other good news is that the vampire''s death seems to have broken the spell. The charm was lifted and the girls returned to normal around mid-afternoon. It was a few hours after we raided the house. We didn''t know why at the time, but later, when we found a suspicious body, we thought it might be a vampire. I guess I should say, "Thank God. ...... How are the girls? "As for the three we brought back, they''re not that bad. Compared to the victims of similar cases, though. The "same kind" that Sazius was referring to were cases of s*xual assault and kidnapping and confinement. It seems that, as a territorial soldier, he has had the opportunity to come into contact with victims of such incidents, and that he is still in a better state of mind than most of the victims of such incidents. Even though he remembers being beaten up, he seems to be in a state of half-dreaming and was not forced to do so. "But the last one I found, she''s pretty messed up. You''ve read the files, right? Uh, ......, maybe the guy she was with was found dead? Yeah, that''s it. I''m not sure what you''re talking about. ...... Apparently, they made him kill his girlfriend. ""...... Wow." I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m not going to be able to do that. ...... It''s a very traumatic experience. It''s ...... going to be okay? "It''s not okay, but there''s nothing we can do. If your family has the money, you might be able to get a good priest to heal you. ...... I don''t know. Sazius''s expression was quite gloomy as he said this. By the way, the family of the victim''s girlfriend wasn''t very helpful when I went to talk to them. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''ve been so impressed with your work. .... Can I see her, please?¡¡It''s not as good as my day job, but I can use some healing magic, so it might improve things a bit. ...... I''m not sure what to make of that. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. That said, if we leave her alone, the future of the girl we saved is bleak. The vague tone of his proposal was probably based on his consideration of these factors. I''m grateful, but is it okay?¡¡Normally, you''d need a certain amount of money to get someone to use healing magic. I''m involved. Hmm. In that case, I''ll allow it. But only women, please.¡¡It doesn''t look good for men to be around. So it''s just me, Natsuki, and Yuki. Okay? Yes. We''re good. Yeah. It''s kind of sad. All right. I''ll show you later. So, the lord''s decision is that your request is now complete. As for the rest of the disappearances, they''re within normal limits. I appreciate that, but are you sure you want to go to ......? No problem. It''s our territory, after all. We''ve scaled back our search for Satomi. I''m not sure what to make of the "normal range of disappearances," but if that''s what it is, there''s nothing we can do about it. And here''s your reward. Sagius took out a sealed letter from his pocket and held it out to me. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web at ......, but you''ll have to get the official document from the king from Diora later. I don''t know what that means, but I took your word for it, okay? "Yes, sir. Thank you. Thank you for your help this time. Thank you for your help. If you''re going to be active in this territory in the future, I''m sure you''ll have opportunities to get involved, but if you''re not, please let me know when you''re in Pining. Our training with you is well worth it. With that, Sazius shook hands with each of us and left the room. As we watched him go, we quickly opened the sealed envelope Sazius had given us and checked the documents inside. We opened it and checked the document inside.¡¡It says that you will be given a dungeon and a six-kilometer radius of its entrance. It''s also signed by Viscount Nenus. ....... In terms of area, isn''t it about the size of a small town? In Japan, of course. A circle with a radius of six kilometers is over a hundred square kilometers, right? I wonder how big the town - or city - we lived in was. It has become quite large due to various mergers, but it might have been about this size in the past. There are many cities of this size. It''s a common thing for a city of this size to have an aristocratic face. ......¡¡I''m sure there''s a part of you that cares. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that we''ve saved Ilias''s life. And on top of that, there''s this request. "If you have no use for it anyway, you''re willing to pay a little extra for it, aren''t you? Hmm. Well, we don''t have any use for such a large area. "Anyway, should we build a house?¡¡At the entrance of the dungeon. Don''t be afraid to ask questions. It would be nice to have a safe place to put my transfer point, but I don''t have that skill, do I? You know, like a prefab? You''ve got transport skills, more than most people. If you use magic as well, you might be able to manage a small building. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you can do it. I''m not sure if Simon will be able to make it.¡¡It''s good to ask, but ...... The problem is money, isn''t it?¡¡I''ve spent a lot of money. ...... Oh, you said you spent a lot? I''m sorry. I just had a lot of delicious-looking food. Oh, no, that''s okay. We''re going to eat it. --But then we''ll have to find the money. It looks like we''ll be hiding in the dungeons back in Laffan without much rest. As we were discussing the specific schedule of our activities, there was a knock on the door and a female soldier entered. There are not many of them, but there are female soldiers in the Territorial Army. She was sent by Sazius to guide Haruka and the others out. In less than 30 minutes, Natsuki and Haruka returned, leaning on Yuki''s shoulder. Welcome back. How was it? ...... Things aren''t looking too good. I tried my best, but... This is the result. ...... This is a great way to make sure you are getting the most out of your time and money. It''s also a great way to get the most out of your day. I''m not sure what to make of that. But when Haruka and her team cast the spell, she seemed to calm down a bit.¡¡So it''s not like it didn''t work. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. It''s not that they don''t need to worry about it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that at least we saved four women''s lives. It''s hard not to. Natsuki and Haruka did what they could. Isn''t that enough? I know, but ...... Yes, ....... In the event that you''ve got any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with us, we''ll be happy to assist. I''m not sure what to say. A corner of the town of Pining. In a corner of the town of Pining, by the wall of a crumbling abandoned house. In the shadows, there was a figure of a man. He had a pale complexion and an arm missing from his shoulder. His left leg was missing from the mid-thigh, and his right leg from the ankle down. In such a state, he was leaning against the wall - no, he was there in a state of collapse. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. You will find a lot of things to do. There was no blood flowing from them, but Kaji could definitely feel something invisible, like a life force, spilling out. This doesn''t look like a vampire at all, does it? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. Energy drain was supposed to be a powerful ability. It has a weakness in that it can only be used when it is materialized, but when it was tried before, it succeeded in killing the opponent in a few moments after grabbing his hand. If you can catch them by surprise, you are the best, but even if you can''t, you can always turn into a bat or a fog and get behind them. That''s what Kaji thought. However, he was completely helpless against an opponent who had already taken countermeasures. It was outrageous to try to grab them head-on. Even if he could get behind them successfully, the moment he materialized and grabbed someone, the other four would cut him down. Such a situation. In the first place, even if he turned into a small bat, he was attacked precisely, and when he turned into a disembodied mist, he was burned and also damaged by weapon attacks. There was no room for energy drain at all. d*mn it!¡¡Why can''t I charm at all? Kaji was confident in his ability to charm, as he had never failed at it before. In fact, with this ability, he could get by without any other abilities. Or so he thought. However, in the fight just now, it had no effect on Haruka and the others, and could not even create an opening. Why is that? I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... Oh, I see. Level difference. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time. I''ve never done anything that would raise my level ....... I didn''t fight at all when I moved from town to town, using my charmed opponent, and of course I didn''t do any combat training. The only thing I''ve done is kill a few people practicing my energy drain. It''s not going to work. A guy who''s been an adventurer for a year has the ability to use level one. Regardless of the actual level difference, Kaji is strangely convinced of the difference between Nao and the others, who are well equipped, and himself, who has been indulging in debauchery for a year. Only the protagonist of the story can defeat a level zero level five. I simply wasn''t one of them. That''s all there is to it. I was supposed to die then. I was supposed to die then. The year I spent here was an extra stage. I''ve enjoyed a lot of experiences that I couldn''t have had over there. ...... Kaji muttered, and thought back to the past year. I was fascinated, I did what I wanted, and I killed people. I did a lot of things that would have been easily caught by the police in Japan. To put it simply, it was the work of scum. ...... Kaji chuckles to himself. It''s karma. If you think about it, this ending is natural. But rather than ending up with nothing, you should be satisfied with the fact that you were able to do whatever you wanted... Kaji thought about this and looked up at the blue sky through the collapsed wall. It''s not a bad way to go,......, but it''s not the best way to go,....... I''m not sure what to make of this. However, his face had a strangely satisfied expression on his face as his mouth relaxed. 300-272 To my home after a long time Early in the morning the day after we received the reward from Viscount Nenus, we were hurriedly preparing to go home. It was a request that was a little hard to refuse, so we accepted it, but even though it was a reward, it didn''t mean that we would earn any cash from this job. As soon as we finished our preparations, we made an appointment with the butler, Mr. Biesel, through a servant, told him we were free, and left the house. The two people who saw us off were Mr. Biesel himself and Mr. Ilias, who came running to see us. To be more precise, Ilias came to see Mary and Mitya off. To us, he simply said, "Thank you for your kindness," but to Mary and the others, he hugged them goodbye. "Mary, Mitya, even though we are far apart, we are still friends! "Yes, Master Iliad. Thank you very much. "Thank you, Master Iliad. It was a pleasure. This disparity. ...... No, I''m not looking for a hug, of course. I''m not asking for a hug, of course. ....... But it was still a lot of work. ....... It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. The three of them seem to have eaten the sweets we gave them, and from the looks of it, I think Ilias got to touch his ears and tail without incident. As for me, that was a step forward in my relationship with Haruka, so if I had to choose between positive and negative, I would say positive. I saw a lot of things I didn''t want to see, but I also got some good food and rice at Crevilly. All in all, I would say that there were many advantages to this request. So, shall we get going? "Right. Thank you for your help, Mr. Biesel. No, we''re very grateful. The lord said to call him if we had any trouble. --Well, there may be times when we need you again, and we would appreciate your help. Yeah, we''ll see you at ....... Even though I have gained some experience, I still find it troublesome to deal with nobles. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one. I gave a vague answer and left the lord''s mansion with Mary and Mitya, who had finally said goodbye to the Iliad. After leaving the pinning, we drove to Kerg and had lunch at Yasue''s restaurant, where I shared information about Satomi and Kaji with her. Yasue looked a little uneasy at the fact that Satomie had escaped and that the Order of Satomie Saints still had the organizational power to make her escape, but I also told her that Viscount Nenus was conducting an extensive search. On the other hand, Kaji''s reaction was a simple, "Oh, that''s so ......", but maybe that''s what happens when you have nothing to do with it. It''s like the street robbery cases you see on the TV news, you feel scared, but somehow you think it has nothing to do with you. In fact, Kaji is dead, so Yasue''s reaction would not be so strange if she did not have feelings for him. After talking and eating with her, we went to the temple where Mary''s and Mitya''s fathers were buried and said a short prayer before leaving Kerg. As Mary and Mitya were growing up well, we were moving fast enough that we managed to get home before the end of the day. I''ve been working for a few days now. We usually take a few days off after work, but after discussing it after we got home, we decided to take only one day off this time. The main reason is that our cash income has been cut off for a while. We have some reserves, but not having any money coming in is quite frustrating. Such is the case. There was a discussion about having a party to celebrate the party''s first anniversary, but it would still be a while before Natsuki and Yuki joined the party, and there would be financial problems. We decided that we would like to have a party without hesitation and that it would be better to wait until a little later. Natsuki said, "I''ll finish the curry by then! I''ll finish the curry by then! Well, it was a one-day holiday. Haruka and Natsuki went to Tommy''s place to build a machine for hulling the rice they had bought, and Toya, along with Mary and Mitya, began tending to the vegetable garden at home. I, on the other hand, went into town to do some shopping - for some reason, with Yuki. "Well, Yuki, why did you follow me?¡¡Why did you follow me, Yuki, and not Haruka and the others? Well, because it looks interesting? What do you mean, "sounds fun"? ...... We''re just going shopping. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I don''t want you to come with me if you can help it. ....... I''m sure you''ll find it interesting.¡¡You are going to buy a ring, right, Nao? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one. "Why? "How could I not know? We talked like that last night at dinner. It''s obvious. I couldn''t help but let my agitation show on my face, and Yuki responded in a rather dumbfounded manner. "......... At dinner last night, I casually - and according to Yuki, it was obvious - mentioned the ring and asked about Haruka''s finger size. ...Or, more accurately, I tried to find out. And I said something like, "What''s the size of rings in this world? But unfortunately, in this world, there is no such standard as "what size". In the first place, ordinary people rarely bought rings, while rich people had rings custom-made to fit their fingers. Rich people have rings of various sizes because they also wear them over gloves. In addition, there is no custom like wedding rings, so there is no reason to make a standard. A ring is a kind of symbol of authority, and it also shows that you are in a position where you don''t have to do chores by yourself. I think a simple ring could be popularized. ...... Well, customs are like that. You know, Yuki and her friends don''t wear a lot of jewelry. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Unless it has a special effect like Natsuki''s necklace, it would be a shame if they died because of a mere accessory. It''s true that if the accessory is too flashy, it might get caught somewhere or make a clanging sound. Accessories with special effects can also be a disadvantage if they are not taken into consideration. You mean you''d rather work and be safe than dress up? That''s what I mean. In Japan, a sushi chef with a ring on his finger would look a little like ......, right? Yeah, it''s a little unsanitary. I wear it a little bit on holidays, but ...... it''s just a little thing. Originally, I was in high school. I''m not sure if it''s because I''ve never had anything to do with expensive accessories, but even when I came here and had more money to spare, I didn''t see Haruka and her friends buying anything fancy. I only saw them wearing simple necklaces and bracelets once in a while. Well, maybe it''s because they''re not machine-made, or maybe it''s because some of the more visible accessories are quite expensive. But then again, Haruka always wears a pendant, right? It''s a simple one. ...... ......, is that right? No, actually, I know that. I know for a fact that Haruka always wears a pendant, although she keeps it discreetly and out of the way inside her clothing. "Hmm... I see. Did Nao give that to you? "...... Yuki, aren''t you being too perceptive? "Yuki, you''re too perceptive, aren''t you?" "You guessed everything from my slight silence?¡¡Hey. No, because... "No, because... Haruka wears it all the time, you know?¡¡I don''t think she bought it by herself. Even when she was in Japan, she wasn''t really the type to wear accessories, and considering when she got it, I don''t think Haruka would spend a lot of money on accessories. Yuki nodded her head and said, "I gave that to her just before we met up with Yuki and the others. It wasn''t that expensive - in Japan, it was cheap enough that a high school student could buy it with a little effort, but this was back when we hadn''t completely separated our wallets. Toya and I were given some money as allowance, but Haruka was in charge of the rest of the money. In such a situation, it''s unlikely that Haruka would ...... spend money on herself. And now you want to give her a ring, right, Nao? I can''t deny that I''m considering ...... that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You can''t deny it in this situation. You can''t deny it in this situation." "No, you don''t have to say it like that. You can just say, ''We had s*x, and I want to give you an engagement ring. Wait, wait, wait. You don''t think I know, do you? I tried to cover Yuki''s mouth, but she grabbed my hand and smiled at me. I sighed at the sight of Yuki, but I tried to resist at least and pointed out her unladylike nature. I''m sure you''re not the only one." "...... Do you have any sense of delicacy that you''re not saying out loud? We''re out of that stuff. I''m not sure if I should say "as soon as possible" considering that I''ve been here less than a year, or "finally" considering that we''ve been childhood friends. ...... You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I think it''s better to say, "You''re in high school and it''s too early to get engaged. Or should I say, "We''re in high school.¡¡But if you''re going to make a move on me and Natsuki, that''s okay too. I''m sorry, Yuki. I''ll give you some pocket money to go buy back your delicacy.¡¡That''s not something you want to say to your friend who just got back together after ten years. "Well, we''re not interrupting your honeymoon, are we?¡¡The other day, when we came back here, just the two of us, for a few days-- "Oh, I can''t hear you, I can''t hear you!¡¡I got it. I understand!¡¡You can follow me! I held my ears and shook my head, and with a sigh I raised the white flag. No way, Haruka. You''re not going to tell them, are you? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. And I think you''d be better off with me around. "Really? Do you know where I can buy a ring? It''s a metal product. You could ask Mr. Gantz. "Metal.¡¡You''re being too general! Yuki''s strong advice made me clam up. But rings are made of metal, aren''t they? Well, I was also thinking, "Maybe the weapons store is a little different... I was thinking... I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... Well, can you stagger the time? I''m sure you can find someone to introduce you to, but I think it would be Simon the carpenter.¡¡Furniture decorations are the domain of metalworkers. Then I''ll go to Simon. No, no, no, let''s just go to the store. I''ll show you. Do you know him? I''m a girl! She turned over and said, "I''ll take care of it! Yuki put her hand on my chest and I felt a little uneasy, but the fact was that I didn''t know any of those stores. I hesitated, but all I could do was nod and say, "I''ll leave it to you. 301-273 Important shopping Yuki led me to a store in the administrative district of the town of Laffan, relatively close to Aella''s store. I could tell from the store''s appearance that it was a high-class store, and I would have been a little hesitant to go in, but Yuki didn''t seem to mind and walked right in. But Yuki didn''t seem to mind as she walked into the store. As if pulled along by Yuki, I also went inside, but the inside of the ...... store was a little different from what I imagined. My image of a jewelry store is of glass cases lined with pendants and rings with price tags that I can''t afford, but here, of course, there were no glass cases, not even a single ring. Instead, there''s a reception set, an elegant-looking clerk, and what looks like a strong security guard. The clothes were formal, but the atmosphere was that of a rough trade. I was puzzled, but Yuki sat down on the sofa and beckoned me over. Ah, there it is. This is the same type of store where I had my formal wear made at Crevilly. The kind that doesn''t accept poor people. "Sir, please have a seat. "Oh, hi, ....... I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. It''s not as old as Biesel, the steward of Viscount Nenus, but he is a gentleman with the same kind of elegance. If such a shopkeeper recommended me to sit down, I couldn''t help but sit down. I sat down a little nervously, and tea was brought to me without much delay. A place where tea is served just for sitting down. That''s not normal. But Yuki took a sip of the tea without any sign of hesitation, and opened her mouth. "I''d like to see your ring today. "The ring. Please wait a moment. No, why do you have to take the initiative? It would be nice. When the clerk leaves the table, I secretly whisper to Yuki. Is it safe to go into a restaurant like this? No problem.¡¡It''s not a place where you have to buy something if they show it to you. It''s not like you have to buy everything they show you. (That may be true, but ......) I''m not used to this, and I''m a bit of a novice, so this kind of store is quite a hurdle for me. I''m sure they won''t force me to buy it, but it''s okay, I have the money. Whether I buy it or not, I feel somewhat reassured that I have enough money to buy it. Fortunately or unfortunately, I didn''t have time to shop at Crevilly, so I have a relatively large wallet. There was no need to worry. Still, I took a cup of tea to quench my thirst. Yeah, it''s good. Probably good tea. Thank you for waiting. The waitress returned a few moments later with a thin wooden box in her hand. He placed it on the table and slowly opened the lid to reveal a thick cloth lined with rings. The rings were not studded with small gems, probably due to the cutting technique, but on the contrary, larger gems were used, and frankly, they all looked expensive. What do you think? Yes, it''s a pretty good quality gem. Thank you. Compared to my timidness, Yuki took the ring and held it up to the light. I know it''s not something you can just hold in your hand, but ....... You''ll be able to get a lot more than just a ring. --I''m sure it''s beautiful, but ...... it''s just not my taste. I don''t like the idea of an over-the-top ring. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "Something that won''t get in the way. ......? Nao, rings are usually a distraction, you know.¡¡You wear it to parties and stuff. I know that I wouldn''t wear it in a situation where it would get in the way, of course, but what I want is something that I can wear on a regular basis, like a wedding ring in Japan. Something that I could wear on my left ring finger. When I told the clerk what I wanted, he said, "A simple one? ......" and pondered. Is it difficult? "Oh, no, we can make it. ...... He said he could, but still looked a little reluctant. Yuki nodded with a wry smile at his appearance. There''s no technology for a simple ring. Hmm, how about embedding a small gemstone inside the ring?¡¡If you polish it up, it would be quite beautiful, wouldn''t it? At Yuki''s suggestion, the shopkeeper looked up as if in awe. That sounds good. It''s going to take a lot of skill. I''m not sure if it''s possible to ...... do that. My image is that gems are not very resistant to heat. Putting jewels in molten metal would ruin them, and drilling holes in them and gluing them together with precision machining is also ....... Yes. Yes, it is possible, though it requires advanced technology. It''s going to be a little expensive because of the magic involved, but how about ......? Mmmm, a simple silver ring would be tasteless. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It depends on the ...... price, but I''ll go that way. Thank you very much. What material should I choose for the ring? What kind of material do you have in mind? If you''re looking for a ring, you''re going to have to look at a lot of different materials. In general, silver, gold, platinum and, for a little more money, mithril. Normally, metals other than silver are mixed with other metals. Platinum and mithril can also be used on their own. ...... The clerk was slurring his words. If you use them alone, they are very expensive. I understand. Silver is a little troublesome. It gets cloudy if you don''t polish it. Isn''t it? Yeah, I guess so. I''ve never used silver jewelry, but I know that silverware gets cloudy. I have never used silver jewelry, but I know that silverware gets cloudy. I''m not sure what to do with it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. "It''s a mixture of platinum and mithril. The mithril content is about half. It''s not just a platinum ring, but it has a strange color that looks like a rainbow depending on the angle you look at it. It''s not available in Japan, and I think it would be a good gift for Haruka. The only thing that remains to be seen is how it will be used in everyday life. Do you have to take care of it? I just wipe it when it gets dirty. You don''t need to take any special care of it, the shine won''t change. That''s good to know. Order ...... Oh, I don''t know my finger size. It''s a great way to get a sense of what you''re looking for, but you''ll have to bring Haruka with you to actually buy it. It''s a shame that I can''t just pull it out of my pocket and give it to her as a gift. But Yuki gave me an unexpected suggestion. "Oh, that''s okay. There''s an alchemy called ''Adjust'', I''ll take care of it for you. "What? As the name implies, it automatically adjusts the size of the garment to suit the wearer to a certain extent. Since the range of adjustment is not very wide, it is not suitable for armor, and can only be used for accessories, hats, gloves, and other things that don''t vary much from person to person, but it is still useful. However, because of the high cost, it is unlikely to be used for consumable items such as gloves. "Hmm. Okay, can you do it? "Okay, I got it!¡¡Hey, hey, Nao. Since we''re here, why don''t we make a pair of rings? A pair of rings with Haruka? ...... Yeah, that''s a good idea. And then... I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. No, I''m not buying it!¡¡I''m not buying it! "d*mn. I thought I could go with the flow. I''m not going, I''m not going. I won''t let you go. I''ve just become lovers with Haruka. I don''t want to cause any trouble. Uh, sir, ......? I''m sorry. I''d like a pair of rings, please. What size should it be? A little bigger. You can''t make something small bigger. I mean. As for the gemstone-- I apologize to the clerk, who looks a little troubled, as if she doesn''t understand our relationship, and we go over the details of the ring. The ring is made of an alloy of mithril and platinum, and the gemstone used is a ruby for Haruka and a sapphire for me. Since the gems available were small, the price was not high, but the price of mithril and platinum was quite high, even if it was only a small amount. Add to that the tech fee and ...... yeah, that''s a lot of money to blow. I shudder a little. No, if you think about it, the weapons and armor we have are more expensive. Besides, it''s a lot better than spending it on a one-night stand like Toya. I''m sure. The ring will be ready in a month. We were told to give the ring about a month to complete, so we just paid the deposit and left the store. We only paid the deposit and left the shop. It would be more than a month before we could actually give it to Haruka, because Yuki would need to do some work on it after it was finished. But it was nice to be able to buy it without having to take Haruka with me. I think it''s a good idea to go shopping together, but I''d like to give her the first ring as a surprise. --If you believe Yuki''s words, it may not be a surprise, but ...... Haruka is a capable woman. I''m sure she''ll at least pretend not to notice. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡You''ll have to charge me for it. "Thank you. Aren''t you glad I came with you? Well, I didn''t know where to go and it would have been hard to get in if I was on my own, so I''m glad I did. ...... I couldn''t deny it and nodded to Yuki who was smiling. In fact, a store like that is more difficult to enter than a jewelry store in Japan, and I would have failed in front of the store by myself. I''d like to learn from Yuki''s boldness in not feeling self-conscious about not buying anything. "But Yuki, you''re always setting up traps, aren''t you? "Well, is it really a trap?¡¡You''re just trying to get a little bit of credibility. It''s not like I''m trying to crawl in the night. No, you can''t go that far. Friendship ...... is in danger of breaking up the party. I''m not going to crawl in the night. I''m not sure what to make of that. I don''t think you need to worry about me, Yuki and Natsuki can find plenty of partners.¡¡I''m sure they''ll be able to save enough for stability if they keep going like this. That''s a terrible thing to say. I like Nao a lot, you know? I was at a loss for words when Yuki turned her face away from me, her mouth agape in a slightly sultry manner. I''m sorry about that, ....... I''m sorry about the way I said that. If the person you love says to you, "There are plenty of other people out there," you may indeed be hurt. I''m sorry. I''ve heard that it''s wrong to say ''there''s someone better'' when dumping someone. I''ve never had that opportunity. And, you know, marrying a normal person is probably going to be a pain in the ass. Do you remember the effect of the skill robbery? "Ah. I don''t remember the details, but it''s the one where you transfer your life span to your partner and eventually die, right? Yeah. There''s a high probability that me and Natsuki are being used. A wife who lives much longer and stays younger than most people. I smell trouble, don''t I? "...... can''t deny it. You can''t move easily in this world. You can''t deny it. On the contrary, if there is anything unnatural, it will naturally become a rumor. If you''re an adventurer who moves from place to place, it''s impossible to have a normal marriage otherwise. But Nao is an elf and knows what''s going on, so she''s safe, right?¡¡You can''t worry about dying first, right? "......... I''m confused. I''m convinced of the reason. I guess you could say it''s classmates, but half the boys I haven''t seen yet. I don''t know if they''re still alive, and I don''t know if they''re sane. You can''t just choose one of them. ....... There is also the option of not getting married, though. It''s fine while you''re still an adventurer, but what happens after you retire? ...... Life After Retirement. You can''t really feel it yet, but it will come. What will we be doing then? Will we be married and have children? If possible, I would like to live a peaceful life surrounded by children and grandchildren, but if Natsuki and Yuki don''t get married, there will be no children. ....... I''m not going to ask you to do anything that you don''t want to do, but I would appreciate it if you would think about it for a moment. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time and money. 302-274 My Dungeon The next day we resumed business as usual and came to check out the dungeon that was ours, whatever it was. Confirmation ......? Not exactly. We''ve been here many times, so maybe claiming ownership is the right word. The purpose is to put up a sign. I''ve never seen anyone in this dungeon, but now that I''ve got it, I''d better claim it. Is this a good place? "Yes. If it''s there and you didn''t see it, you can''t say you didn''t see it. Mostly Toya worked hard to put a stake and a sign next to the dungeon entrance. The sign simply says, "This and a six-kilometer radius are private property and are off-limits. There is no guarantee of life for trespassers. I don''t want to attack them just because someone enters the surrounding forest, but we are in a position to do so now. Well, at least if you don''t put up a fence or something to show that it''s private property, it''s going to be a little tough in terms of public opinion. All you have to do is put a fence at the entrance and you''re done. Yes. It''s not very well known, so I''m sure it''ll be fine. The fence is just an average board with a "No Entry" sign hanging from it. In other words, it is like a barricade at a construction site. You can easily step over it if you intend to, but at least you can prevent yourself from entering by mistake, and if you do enter intentionally, we won''t hesitate to attack you. So, let''s start our first dungeon attack in a while! But we''ll be in the meat area for a few days, collecting meat for rehabilitation. I''m going to check Mary and Mitya''s skills. I''ll do my best! I''ll do my best! In response to Haruka''s words, Mary and Mitya clasped their hands and got fired up. As Yuki said, the plan is to spend a few days in the meat area - the sixth, seventh and eighth levels of the dungeon, hunting for demons that can be used as meat, and then distribute them to the guild and Aella''s. This is a quick way to earn cash and increase the supply of meat to Rafan. In addition to increasing the supply of meat to Rafan and providing a quick cash income, this was also a way to check on the condition of Mary and the others who had been separated from us at the pinning to participate in the training of the territorial army. If there were no problems, I would take Mary and the others to collect fruits and nuts from the tenth layer onward, and then challenge the boss of the 20th layer. As the weather is getting cooler, we debated whether to go further into the dungeon or to earn money by killing demons in the area, but the conclusion was unanimous: the dungeon. The profit from the sale of milk was a big factor, but the deciding factor was the fruit. Yuki disagreed, saying that since it had been over a month since the last harvest, it was time for the next one.¡¡No one disagreed. Of course it''s the same for me. There''s a lot of dingles, but that''s it, this is it. You can''t miss out on the best fruit, can you? The training in pinning was not in vain. The training in the pinning was not in vain, and both Mary and Mitya were able to defeat the demons in the meat area and one-on-one without difficulty. The Big Ostrich was the only one that made me a little nervous, but the two of them were able to work together to kill it. The reason why Mary and the others were able to face each other one on one without worrying about other monsters invading was because we were following them around. So it''s not as if the two of them can be adventurers on their own. ....... "Well, what do you think? "Me, I tried! We looked at each other and nodded as they looked up at us a little anxiously. We looked at each other and nodded. "Yeah, I think we''ll be okay.¡¡I think we''ll be fine. Yes. Mary can match Yuki in strength, right? "Oh, really?¡¡--I don''t know, maybe a little bit. No, not just a little bit. He''s wielding a one-handed sword with ease. Now Yuki is taller than me, and the difference in strength between our races is somehow compensated for by the difference in our physiques, but Yuki is the smallest of us all - or even smaller than the average high school student. Considering the age difference, if Mary continues to grow at a steady pace, there''s a good chance she''ll overtake Yuki in the near future. In this world, there are levels, so arm strength and physique are not simply proportional, but if you consider the difference in arm strength between us and Toya, you can see that the difference in race is unexpectedly large. Well, in other words, it is almost certain that Yuki will lose to Mary, and maybe even Mitya, in terms of arm strength in the near future. It''s okay, it''s okay. I''m more skilled than you!¡¡I''m not going to lose!¡¡Mary! "No, no!¡¡I''m not even close. "Hey, hey, Yuki, why are you competing with Mary? You''re supposed to be leading. Think about the difference in skill level. Moreover, Yuki has [Skill Copy], so it''s almost impossible for Mary to beat Yuki in overall strength. At least, as long as she''s working with us. Well, I agree with you that Mary and the others are fine. They can''t be the vanguard, but they can be the support. "We have me and Natsuki as vanguards. We have me and Natsuki as vanguards, so we should be fine as long as we can handle things without them. So it''s decided that we''ll take the two of them and move on? Yeah. Thank you very much. Thank you! Mary bowed with a smile, and Mitya jumped up and down with joy . If this doesn''t work out, they''ll have to practice on their own at home for a while, so they were probably pretty nervous. So let''s gather some more meat, then go home and get ready before we go any further. "Yes! After confirming the current status of Mary and the others, we actively participated in the battle and hunted all the demons in the meat area - well, almost all of them, in fact, and collected the meat. We also dealt with the resurrected boss, and temporarily returned to Rafan. We sold some of the meat to Aella and the adventurer''s guild, and took some of the less expensive meat to the orphanage. The orphanage in Raffan was calm and unchanging today. It was an ordinary scene, but if you recall the sense of chaos that was felt immediately after the conflict at the orphanage in Kergu, and the Barony of Diaz where there was not even an orphanage, this lack of change was rather precious. "Oh, Nao-san!¡¡Good morning. When we visited the orphanage, the first person to call out to us was Kane, an apprentice priest. "Good morning. Is the chief priest there? "Yes, sir. One moment, please. As soon as I returned his greeting, Kane walked into the orphanage. Although we had visited the orphanage several times, we hadn''t actually had many chances to talk with Kane and the others who were taking care of the orphans. Therefore, although we had been introduced to them by Ishka, our relationship with them was at best an acquaintance. I couldn''t say that I was very close to them, but the other day, when Haruka and I had asked them to pull the weeds, I had some time to talk with Kane and Sidney, who were leading the group, and I felt like I could get to know them a little better. In a way, this is the first friend of my generation that I have made in this world. ...... Or is it too early to say friend? He''s a potential friend. When I think about it, I don''t know many people of my generation in this world. Except for a former classmate. There''s also Seira, an assistant priestess, and Angel, a full priestess, but that''s it. Aella, who looks like she''s the same age as me, or even younger than me, is actually older than me. I''m sure it has something to do with the fact that our area of activity is work related, but where do young people our age work ......?¡¡Other than adventurers . What''s wrong, Nao?¡¡You seem to be thinking about something. No, I was just thinking that we don''t have many friends our age. Well, yeah, we do. Well, we do have Tommy, but Gantz, Simon and Sazius are older than that. Toya nodded as if he understood my words. The young people in Simon''s workshop are around our age, right? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Right? But what does it matter? But what''s wrong with that?" Yuki asked me again, and I was a little lost in reply. It''s not that there''s anything wrong with it, but ...... maybe you should make a few friends or something? Yuki nodded her head to my answer, but then nodded her head and said something fundamental. But you know what?¡¡But, Nao, you didn''t have that many friends to begin with. "Geez! Well, I wasn''t one to brag about having many friends! Oh, I''m sorry. I''m sorry, I shouldn''t have said that. When you''re our age, it''s normal to not have many friends your own age outside of school. That''s right. If you''re taking lessons or something, you may meet people there, but you spend most of your time at school, and it''s normal to hang out with friends related to that on holidays. I''m glad you''re following me, but I didn''t have that many friends at school, so it won''t heal my wounds, okay? You can find a lot of people that you can talk to, but only a few that you can hang out with outside of school. You''ll be able to find a lot of people who''ll be able to help you out. 303-275 Class at orphanage (1) I don''t think I have to be your age, do I?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to suit your needs. As she said this, I looked in the direction Haruka pointed and saw Remy running towards me. He stops in front of me, catches his breath, and opens his mouth. "Hello, Nao-chan! "Hi, Remy. Hi Remy. How are you? I crouched down and asked her back, and she nodded loudly. "Yes!¡¡I''m eating a lot! That''s good. I''ve brought you some meat today. "Meat?¡¡Yay!¡¡Garlic~! When I said that while patting her head, Remy raised her hands and jumped up and down, then straightened her posture as if in a panic. ...Oh!¡¡Thank you very much! She added those words as if she remembered, and bowed her head. Cute. No, well, I put money in the temple every time I visit, and I donate something to the orphanage every time I visit, but ...... if you thank me politely every time, it makes me feel uncomfortable. In my case. d*mn, this is what Mr. Ishka wants!¡¡I guess not. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m not sure if it''s a good idea. The more mature children seem to adore me along with Haruka, but most of the orphans are rather active. Toya, Yuki, and Mary and Mitya, who must have visited the school far less often than me, are more popular. Is it because they are close in age? Even now, I''m surrounded by children, smiling and talking to them. Me is also a dungeon dweller! "Oh, my God!¡¡I like being an adventurer. I want to be an adventurer too! "If even a little girl like me can be one, then ...... The orphans, who looked only a little older than Mitya, were jealous of her boastfulness, especially the boys. The only one who discourages them is Mary, who is the oldest of them all. We can''t do it alone.¡¡We can''t do it alone. We can''t do it alone. Don''t try to copy them. That''s right!¡¡It''s not just me!¡¡But I''m training hard, too! What do you mean, you''re training? You''re such a little thing! I''m not sure if it was the boy that Remy called brother Jay or the boy that pushed Mitya''s shoulder while saying that, but Mitya didn''t stumble, and Jay did. But Mitya didn''t stumble. "What? "Hmmm!¡¡I''m working out! Jay compares his hand to Mitya''s in disbelief, while Mitya puffs out her chest with a smug look on her face. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. "Seriously?¡¡That''s awesome!¡¡Let''s have a little power competition! I can''t lose! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to hear that. Mary is watching over these children as a big sister. ...... Before you know it, Toya is teaching the boys how to use swords, and Yuki and Natsuki are being dragged along by the children. No, there are a few others around me and Haruka, besides Remy, right? But please don''t climb up my body silently. I''m afraid of falling. As I was sitting there and helping Haruka with the children who were clinging to her, Ishka came over. Nao-san, Haruka-san, I apologize for keeping you waiting. "No, I didn''t promise anything, so please don''t worry about it. I''m not sure if she was working on something or not, but she appeared a little slower than usual, but she didn''t make a big deal out of it. We''re good patrons. --No, we don''t pay him enough to be patrons. And thank you for the other day. Thank you for the job. It was a big help to us, too. Hey, Nao. Yeah. We''re away from home a lot, and we''d like to have another chance. The orphans are a reasonable workforce if you compare the amount of work they do with the amount of money they are paid. The orphanage has no reason not to ask for cash if it is profitable. "I''d love to. So, how was your day? Ishka smiled and nodded her head. I''ve got some meat to share. It''s cheap meat that doesn''t sell for a lot. "Well, thank you very much. We don''t get to eat meat very often, so we are very grateful. In our case, we don''t have to buy meat, so the grains and vegetables that we need to buy at the market are a little more valuable, but meat is much more expensive to buy. That''s why Remy was jumping for joy, but I''m sorry to say that the meat is not that good. Well, I can''t help it, since Ishka asked me not to buy anything too expensive. So, let''s go to the warehouse. As Ishka was leading us to the warehouse, she looked at Allen, a quiet boy of about three or four years old, who was still clinging to my head, and said something like that. I don''t know what he liked about it, but he grabbed my hair and wouldn''t let go. He grabbed my hair and wouldn''t let go. It''s not very heavy. Allen, hold on to it, okay? I felt Allen''s nodding response, and I stood up with my hands lightly on his body. "Excuse me. Sorry, Nao-san. No, no, no. He''s one of the few kids who really likes me. I''m sure you''ll agree. Haruka chuckles at this, but as ...... mentioned earlier, I''m not the most popular person in the world. I''m not sure if it''s a good look to have a sword, but when we visit the orphanage, most of the boys go to Toya''s side. Natsuki is the most popular among girls. Half of the girls like Natsuki, and a quarter of the girls like Yuki. The rest of the girls and Allen are the only ones who stick with me and Haruka. I understand how they feel, so I''m not complaining, but it''s a little lonely. Well, since there are only a few of us, we''re not in the way. With these kids in tow, we went to the storage room in the basement of the orphanage. The orphanage doesn''t have a refrigerator, but it''s cool enough that the meat will last for a few days. In that period of time, 10 kilos should be enough for about 30 people to eat. "By the way, Ishka, do you make salted meat? I was thinking about this, when Haruka asked Ishka about it. I don''t have enough meat on hand, so I won''t be making it. I see. Well, we have about 40 kilos of it here for you to try. Haruka said, and laid out the chunks of meat on the shelf. "Are you sure you want to use ......? "Yes. You''ll be able to get a lot more than that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. That''s right. I''ll take it with gratitude. Are you going to go home now? "Hmm, what should I do, Nao? I hadn''t made a decision beforehand, so Haruka gave me a curious look. I know I''m going back to the dungeon tomorrow, but there''s nothing special I need to do today. But there''s no reason to stay at the orphanage either. "Nao, are you going home? As I pondered, Remy grabbed my pants and looked up at me sadly. Allen, on top of my head, is also pulling his hair and saying something like, "Mmm~" in frustration. I don''t have any business here anyway, so why don''t you stay a little longer? As for me, I don''t see why I should dare disagree. ...... What are you doing? I don''t know. ...... The kids that follow us around are all relatively laid back and quiet, so we can just relax in the shade like we always do. ....... It''s a bit of a waste of time, isn''t it? 304-276 Class at orphanage (2) I walked back out of the warehouse, wondering what I was going to do for the next hour, and found Toya and the others teaching the kids how to use weapons. Toya teaching the boys (and some of the girls) how to use swords is a regular occurrence, but it was unusual to see Yuki, Natsuki, and the others there as well. But it was unusual for Yuki and Natsuki to join them. After all, it seems that Mary and Mitya''s adventuring inspired the orphans to become adventurers. ...... Excuse me, Mr. Ishka. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. To be frank, being an adventurer is a risky business. It''s not a job I''d recommend. If you can get a normal job, that''s much better. At my words, Ishka smiled and shook her head. No, Nao and the others are helping me out. It''s not something you can take even if you want to, you know, be taught by an active adventurer. Of course, it would be possible if they paid for it, but the orphanage couldn''t afford it, and even if they did, whether or not the adventurer could teach them properly was another matter. In this respect, thanks to our skills, we have the right basics in place. Whether we are good at teaching or not, we have the advantage that we do not end up teaching our own style of sword fighting. Of course, there is a danger that by teaching you, you will develop a strange confidence. ....... Don''t worry. I won''t let you do anything on your own. I''m not sure if you''re aware of what I''m going through, but I''m sure you''re aware of what I''m going through. ...... I see. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Hmm, should we teach them something too? We have to ride this big wave!¡¡Like that? But what?¡¡But what? Natsuki has already taught Nao what spear she is good at. Well... You could join him there. ...... I don''t know. I''d use a bow, but that''s not easy to teach. It costs a lot of money. In contrast to swords and spears, which can be taught with mere sticks, teaching archery requires not only a bow but also arrows. Arrows are a consumable item, especially in an orphanage, and the risk of accidents from practice is probably higher than with swords. There is also an unused bow in the magic bag, but considering the danger of orphans practicing on their own, even when we are around, we can''t just hand it over. There aren''t that many spears, and it looks like Natsuki is enough to get the job done. "How do you say that? I''m not a fan. ...... Well, the truth is, I''m not sure I can teach better than Natsuki. I''m not sure if I can do better than that. "Well, well, there are some things that only I can teach. Don''t worry. ...... What''s wrong? Don''t twist my neck. No, I''m not the only one, but I''m good at what I do. Mine and Haruka''s. It''s more of a frequency of use thing, I''m... I''m good at ...... magic, by any chance?¡¡It''s true, I''m good at it. ...... Magic, huh?¡¡Is that okay?¡¡Usually, you have to be a student to learn magic. ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure what to make of that. In human society, the typical career path for a wizard is to find a wizard who is looking for an apprentice or who will take you on as an apprentice, and then spend many years as an apprentice. If you are able to cast spells during that time, you succeed, if not, goodbye. That''s how it goes. Moreover, it seems that most wizards have a policy of "learn by watching" and do not give proper instruction. This is probably because the "magical qualities" are not recognized. If you don''t have it, no matter how hard you try, you won''t be able to use it, and your master won''t even know if he''s teaching you correctly. As a result, the way of teaching has become a way of saying, "It''s your fault if you can''t remember. If you don''t teach, you don''t have to worry about being told that your teaching method is bad. Well, you won''t be able to use it just by teaching it a little, so it''s probably just a ''start'' at best. But if you can become a wizard, then you''ve succeeded!¡¡I''d love to! "Okay, I get it. Even though my words were quite vague, Ishka grabbed my hand and shook it as if she was leaning forward. That''s how high the status of wizards is among the humans. No, it''s not that high, it''s that they''re easy to use?¡¡Can''t be bothered to work? "I can actually use magic." As long as you have that fact, you don''t have to be told you''re related or anything, so it''s definitely a very lucrative career for orphans. That''s why I asked orphans to apply for the job. ....... "Not as many as I thought, huh? "Yes. There''s hardly been any increase since the beginning. The kids who used to follow us to the warehouse. So to speak, the kids who are always following us stayed behind, and only two came from Toya''s side. Isn''t magic really that popular? If it were me, and there was even a hint of a chance that I could use magic, I''d definitely ask you to teach me. Or maybe I''m not that popular? If that''s the case, I''d be super bummed. No, Nao, I think you''re just giving up. Have you? Yeah. Everyone thinks it''s normal not to be able to use magic. Gordon, the oldest of the orphans, was the one who followed me. He was one of the orphans who came here from Toya''s combat training. "Hmm, something like that. By the way, does Gordon want to be an adventurer too? If you''re good enough, yes. From what I''ve seen of my predecessors, it''s hard to make enough money from a regular job to donate to an orphanage. He implied that we, as adventurers, were able to donate a good amount of money, but ....... I don''t think we''d be much help, would we? First of all, there''s a simple difference: a party of four wizards doesn''t exist, at least not in Raffan. Furthermore, the starting point is also different. We had only been adventurers for about a year, but by the time we became adventurers, we were veterans in terms of skills. All we had to do was get used to it, and if we thought we could make the same kind of money, we would be in trouble. "Of course I understand. I''m not going to push myself. You know what?¡¡If anything happens to us, Mr. Ishka will hate us. It was surprisingly Ishka who raised an objection to my reminder. You don''t need to worry about it, Nao. As an adult, you are responsible for all of your own choices. We will advise you, but we will not force you. Is that how it is? Yes. That''s the way it is. Once they reach adulthood, there is no way for us to protect them. Gordon laughed and shrugged at Ishka''s harsh words. And that''s it. But the chief priest is quite strict.¡¡If you''re a senior who simply says, ''I''m going to be an adventurer! I''m sure you''ll be pleased to hear that. "......? "Oh?¡¡Oh-ho-ho. What did you mean when you said "advice"? You''re using force. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. No, the seniors who endured it are doing just fine. ...... It''s a kind of gateway to success. If you''re good enough to be beaten by Ishka, don''t become an adventurer. If the survival rate of the orphanage is increasing, then it is not a mistake, but it is a very violent orphanage. 305-277 Class at orphanage (3) "...... Well, okay. Let''s see if you can do some magic. So, Nao. How are you going to do that? Hmm. I think the only way to know if you can use magic is if you can manipulate it. I think the key to being able to use magic is being able to manipulate it, and being able to sense it. Right. Continue? In other words, if you use magic while in contact, you can at least tell if you can sense magic or not. Like this. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at our own web site. I''m sure you''ll be able to tell from the way I''ve used it. ...... I could definitely feel the magic moving through me, but can you tell from this? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. You can try it out. I''m not sure what to do with it. And my magic. You can''t do everything by yourself, right?¡¡Light magic? Oh, there it is. I need your help. Okay. --Let''s do it. You seem to be expecting it. The children''s eyes sparkled as they looked at us, probably because of my magic, even though it was simple. I''m sure I''ll be more popular than Toya soon. "Okay. All right, let''s line up. In order. And so the experiment - or was it training?¡¡And so began the experiment - or training? "...... Mmm. This is a strikeout, huh? I tried fire, water, wind, earth, light, and magic with about five kids, but all of them just twisted their heads and couldn''t feel anything. Gordon was the first one to try it, but it didn''t seem to work, and he laughed and said, "It''s not so convenient after all. It''s not going to make me popular, is it? It''s only natural, considering the percentage of people who can use magic. --Remy''s next. Give me a hand. Haruka stands behind Remy, who has taken his turn, and takes her hand like a drudgery, and uses magic. And then, as soon as he tried to let go of her hand... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. "Oh, really? Yeah. ...... Oh, again! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get there. If I can sense magic, I can recognize it, but if I can''t, I wouldn''t recognize it. But Remy seemed to be able to recognize it. ....... I''m sure you''ll have a lot of questions. I''m not sure if it''s a hit or a miss, but I''m pretty sure Remy is aware of the magic of light magic. Really? I''m not sure what to say. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m sure you''ve heard that Remy can use light magic. "Yes, yes. It''s a possibility, that''s all. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. But it''s still a great thing, isn''t it!¡¡Oh, Remy''s future is as a priest!¡¡Thank you, Lord Adversus! In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of that. No, not at all. It is said that the more religious you are, the more likely you are to receive light magic, so it is inevitable that ...... "The more religious you are, the more likely you are to receive light magic. ...... I see. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡Faith. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. (What do you think?) (Well, ......, if there are a number of people with magical qualities, what do you think the chances are that one of them will be apprenticed to a wizard with the same qualities? I was not convinced, and Haruka brought up such a metaphor when I asked her that. Assuming that there is one fire, one water, one wind, one earth, and one light wizard among 100 people, what are the odds that five of them would want to become wizards and would be lucky enough to be apprenticed to a wizard with the same qualities? In human society, where the number of wizards is small, ....... (It''s ridiculously low, not to mention ...... think about it.) (Right?)¡¡But what are the odds that one of the orphans has the makings of a light magician?¡¡(And what are the odds that the orphanage has a priest who can use light magic? In the previous metaphor, if there are 100 orphans, there is at least one with light magic. Furthermore, considering that there are a certain number of priests who can use light magic, the probability of finding such a priest in an orphanage is not low. Incidentally, Ishka can also use light magic, so... (Inevitably, the probability of finding a wizard who can use light magic in the orphanage will increase? (Probably.) And with the relationship between the priest and the orphan, it''s unlikely that he would refuse an apprenticeship. "(By the way, even if you''re not an orphan, if you''re a person of high faith who visits the temple frequently, your chances of being exposed to the magic used by the priest will also increase, right? (Taking all of this together, it''s not surprising that people who are involved in temples tend to be light magic users. Simple probability theory. If you examine all people, you may find that religious belief is irrelevant, but if you consider the probability of becoming an apprentice of a light magic user, people with religious belief will have an overwhelming advantage. "Well, ......, Nao?¡¡May I? "Oh, yes. As I was sneaking around with Haruka, Ishka approached me in a reserved manner. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m sure she''d like to check out the other children''s possibilities now that she''s had some success with Remy. As for me, if this will lead to the future of orphans, I have no reason to refuse. I don''t mind that, but ...... it''s going to be tough for us to do it alone. Let''s get Natsuki and the others to help us. Please! You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. The moment I told them that Remy might be able to use magic, there was a stir among the children. Then, as Ishka led them, they formed a line in front of us... After all, there were two of us. "Yes!¡¡That''s more than enough. Thank you very much. In addition to Remy, an eight-year-old boy named Milo reacted to earth magic and a seven-year-old girl named Amber reacted to water magic, according to a check conducted with the help of Natsuki and Yuki. Still, Ishka seemed happy and thanked us with a bright smile. But just because you might be able to use it doesn''t mean you''ll be able to use it as an adventurer. I''ve told you both that. Being able to use magic and being able to use it to attack are two completely different things. In the first place, you can only detect magic power, but you are not yet able to activate it. Milo didn''t seem too interested in being an adventurer, but Amber was quite happy, so I was a little worried. In the first place, water magic is not very good for attacking. If you can use water magic, you can get water anywhere, and you can make ice, so it''s useful for adventurer work. But it''s still worth it because it opens up a lot of possibilities. That''s good. Well, I''ll give Milo and Amber a quick lesson when we get here. Mr. Isiaka, you don''t have an apprenticeship in mind, do you? Yes, unfortunately. --No wizard would accept an orphan. Ishka-san sighs with a sad expression. Although I don''t have many opportunities to feel it in this town, I guess there is discrimination against orphans. It''s a shame, though. After that, Haruka and I taught magic to Milo, Amber, and Remy until it was time to go home, but it was the first time for us to teach magic. In the end, the day ended without any of us being able to use magic. 306-278 Challenge the boss of 20 layers (1) The day after our visit to the orphanage, we were well prepared to visit the dungeon again. We had enough meat, so we skipped that level and focused on collecting fruits, nuts, and milk. In just a few days, I had reached the boss room-like door that I had turned back to before. Incidentally, we didn''t collect the milk from Red Strike Ox. We don''t need it right now. No offense, but I''m fine. And maybe Toya, too. We''ll collect them when we have a place to sell them, or more specifically, when Diora asks us to. Now that this dungeon is private property, we don''t have to worry about competition. Now, the boss of this place, according to Toya''s prediction, is ......, right? "Me?¡¡I think it''s a big bull, based on past trends. So far the trend ...... has been Tyrant Pickau first, with the exception of a few skeletons. Next was the Goblin General. Two captains followed. The eighth level was a Tyrant Flameboar. Ten was a lizard zombie. Fifteen was some kind of minotaur. Murdotaur. But isn''t a cow the same as a mardtaur? If it''s a trend so far, I think we''ll see a different kind of enemy. The impression of this hierarchy is a strong image of Strike Ox, but the bosses so far have been disparate. ...... I think the bosses will be based on other types of demons that have appeared in this hierarchy. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out.¡¡I''d rather you didn''t go for the ...... insect type, as far as I''m concerned. I''m not sure if a giant wolf would be ...... hard to kill.¡¡I don''t know if they''re cute or not. ...... I''m not sure if it''s cute or not. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m sure you''ll have a lot of fun. I''ll kill the enemy, of course.¡¡You killed Dahl''s Bear! "Oh, that was a giant fluffy thing. "Oh, that was a giant fluffy thing. ...... No, it was lumpy. It wasn''t very nice to the touch. If the fur was fluffy, I would have loved to have it as a pet. --I''d have loved to have it as a pet, but it''s a ferocious demon. "I want a cow!¡¡Lots of meat! "Me, me, me. You eat all the meat you want, don''t you? You can never have enough meat. Especially beef! Mitya clasped his hands together and sniffed insistently. The meat you can get is rather tough and lean, probably because you''re hunting a male strike ox, but Mitya - or maybe Toya, since he seems to like it too - seems to like it a lot. --But Mitya likes it. For me, I prefer more tender meat, specifically, piccau. The non-marbled part of the piccau is just right for a hearty steak. And this tendency is the same for everyone except the beastman. And that''s true of everyone except the beastmen, who just die no matter what comes out of their mouths. That''s true, but ...... It''s not wrong, but... Okay, Toya, open the door! "Sure! Yuki said lightly, and Toya responded lightly, and did not open the door ...... casually, but opened it carefully. Mitya and Mary took shelter at the back of the line, and we also readied our weapons and watched Toya''s movements. I''ll take the hit!¡¡I''ll take the hit!¡¡Cow! The cow in the room was bigger than an elephant. Compared to the Strike Ox that inhabits this area, it''s not just one size, it''s huge. If I had to name a demon of similar size, I''d say Dahl''s Bear, which we had a hard time with. Which one looks more vicious is up to the individual, but the huge horns on its head seem to be aggressive enough. "Red Tyrant Strike Ox. "Red Tyrant Strike Ox, with a nasty ''red'' on it. "What a long name! Yuki let out an involuntary gasp at the name Haruka had mentioned. I totally agree with you, but I think that complaint should be directed to God. But if the name is added every time there is an increase in the number of attributes, then in a sense it is convenient because you can predict what kind of demon it is just by hearing its name. Yuki, that''s not important right now!¡¡Toya, watch out for the breath. Oh! Red Strike-Ox spit out a breath. It''s hard to believe that he doesn''t use his breath. Haruka warned him to be careful, and Toya gripped his shield tightly and jumped into the room. Considering the fact that the strength of Strike Ox differed greatly depending on whether or not it had Red or not, could the Tyrant and Red actually be quite dangerous? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m coming with you! Following Toya''s lead, Natsuki also took up her naginata and went into the room. The room where the boss is located is large enough for his huge body to move around, and there is no problem at all in wielding the cleaver, but on the other hand, there is also enough space for the boss to rush in. Oh no!¡¡Oh no!¡¡He''s gone! Geez! It was a mistake that the door was a little far from the boss''s location. While Toya was running towards the boss, the boss got into position and started to rush towards him. Toya immediately jumped to the side to avoid the rush, but the boss was coming at us from where we were. I can''t ask Toya to take on such a huge body, but... "Yuki!¡¡Get Mary! Okay! Mary and Mitya stopped moving at the sight of the most powerful enemy to date. I grabbed Mitya''s arm and backed away from the door. Yuki also pulled Mary to retreat in the same way, and then the boss came rushing in with his head down and crashed into the wall without stopping. Boom! The sound and vibration echoed through the large room. "...... Oh, it''s really stuck in there. I''m not sure what to do. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. This is a great way to make sure that you are getting the most out of your time and money. ...... A hit from that will kill you. Even if you have the ability to strengthen your body by leveling up? It''s not the same as a knife that your cheating spouse stabs you with. --Do you want to try it? I''m sure the knife is pretty sharp, but... I''ll leave that to Toya. Don''t leave it to me!¡¡--Hey!¡¡Over here! While protesting my words, Toya holds up his sword and moves slightly exaggeratedly, provoking the boss who is looking around at us. She''s trying to attract his attention. In response, we move slowly and gradually get some distance away. I''m sorry. I couldn''t move fast enough. I''m sorry. Mary and the others, who were protected by us, apologized, but Yuki and I shook our heads lightly. "Don''t worry about it. You''ll get used to it. "Yeah. Don''t think about attacking this time, just think about running away. If it''s too dangerous, you can go out the door. Fortunately, there are no restrictions on leaving the boss''s room, so it''s safer. Fortunately, there is no restriction on leaving the boss''s room, so it''s safer. Of course, that includes the boss, but he''s not going to ignore us in front of him and chase Mary and the others out the door. "No, no!¡¡I''ll do my best! Yes! Okay. What do you think, Natsuki? You''re faster than I thought. Timing is difficult. Natsuki, who was a little behind Toya, had tried to attack his leg in time with his earlier lunge, but he had failed in his attempt. But it was no use. Those hooves were being stomped at high speed. If he stepped on them, he would probably die instantly. She''d be seriously injured even if she was tripped. At present, the boss seems to be more concerned about Toya and is focusing on her, but when Natsuki tries to approach from behind, he jumps up on his hind legs as if to check her. The cow''s field of vision is surprisingly wide. It''s not easy to attack from a blind spot, either. It''s not good! Haruka noticed something and shouted, and her words may or may not be finished. The boss lifted his head a little to expose his throat, then shook his head from side to side and exhaled at once. 307-279 Challenge the boss of the 20 layers (2) The boss let out a breath. It was covered in flames, as it should be. The target was Toya. It had some effect on us, but it was enough to avoid it. On the other hand, Toya, who was in the center... "Oh no! To avoid being engulfed by the flames, she curled her tail and dove forward, swinging her sword at the boss''s leg in the process. But-- But...! What sounded was a very hard sound. But it didn''t seem to have any effect at all, and the boss let out an annoyed voice, "Boom, boom, boom! and stomped his feet in annoyance. And Toya moves away to avoid it. "I can''t!¡¡Help! I can''t help you!" After the blow, Toya immediately called out to us for help. I''m sure. The vitals are too high. Let''s just kill it with a long range attack. Right. Natsuki, you and Toya take control. Yes, sir. Yuki, control the breath. Thank you. Natsuki, who had been watching the boss''s back, moved to the front of the boss and split left and right with Toya to attract the boss''s attention. If you try to go towards Tohya, Natsuki will cut you with a cleaver. If you try to breathe out a breath, Yuki will interrupt you with low-powered magic that prioritizes speed. While we''re biding our time, Haruka and I hit the skull with a powerful spell that contains enough magic power. However, the skull''s defense seems to be quite high, and while it can inflict wounds, they are not fatal. And of course, there was a lot of hate for Haruka and I who kept attacking her face, and there were several times when she would rush towards us, over Toya and Natsuki''s provocation. We could easily avoid them. In such a situation, we had to continue grinding slowly and without much flair for a while. The turning point was when my magic was sucked into the boss''s nostrils. The boss was unable to close his nostrils, and his movements were greatly disrupted as he let out a cry of grief. In the end, the boss broke his knees and fell to the ground with a resounding thud. It''s a good thing that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. It''s a bad place to be. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. When the head is up, we can''t see the eyes properly, and when the head is down, the horns are in the way and it''s quite difficult. If you are not fast enough, you will not get a direct hit on the eyes, and if you are fast enough, even if you close your eyelids, you will kill the power. It seems that this cow skin had a high level of protection. As a result, the boss''s head was in a very bad condition. The boss''s head was in pretty bad shape. "We were all able to kill him without getting hurt, but ...... it was a pretty uneventful fight. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. You could have cut his head off, you know. "Of course not. It''s more likely to be Natsuki. ...... I can''t either. I don''t have the muscle strength to cut off both of my neck bones, and I don''t have the skill to get through the gap between my cervical vertebrae. I don''t have the muscle strength to break the neck, and I''m not skilled enough to get through the cervical spine. In fact, even a normal-sized Strike Ox would have a hard time cutting off its head, but cutting off the head of a Red Strike Ox of this size would be impossible, at least as long as the current weapon is used. But it''s amazing!¡¡I killed something this big!¡¡It''s full of meat! I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Well, it was just one animal. I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s purely a matter of moves. If you have a single animal, no matter how huge it is, as long as you have a long range attack, you can do some damage. The only question is which one''s strength and magic power will run out first. But I can''t imagine how I would be able to kill it. Mary also approached the corpse of the boss, comparing her weapon with the size of the boss, and looked troubled. It''s the same for me. ....... You can''t force yourself to jump up and down. ...... No, it''s not safe. In fiction, it would be easy to jump on a huge body and crush it from above, but in reality, it would be very dangerous. At the very least, with our current physical abilities, we would have easily stepped off and fallen, and been crushed. Toya must have had a similar thought. He looked up at the boss''s torso, which was still as tall as he was, and shook his head. But how do adventurers kill an enemy of this size without magic?¡¡I thought I was getting stronger, but ......". I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of this. It was far from enough to break the bones of the leg, and it was obvious that it would be difficult to break the leg with a normal attack. That''s because you''re cutting it off from the legs. With a bow or something. That''s right. It''s not going to be a problem if we take him out. I put a lot of pressure on him and he''s still in that condition? But at that time, Toya was rolling and cutting, right?¡¡If he had put his back into it, it would have caused more damage. "Hmmm, maybe? I''m not sure if he remembered that time, but he thought about it for a while and then nodded. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s true that if Haruka and I didn''t focus on the hard head, but concentrated on the joints of a single leg and attacked there, it might have collapsed a little faster. "What?¡¡If we attacked the leg, we might not be able to get the meat off the thigh? Yeah, yeah. There''s nowhere to eat the head. I''ve heard of people eating calf brains, but at least none of us would eat them, and unless you like ghetto food, you wouldn''t dare to eat head meat. It doesn''t look very good when you''re eating. In the first place, the head of this cow is too big. On the other hand, beef thighs are quite tasty. It''s a shame to miss the opportunity to get a lot of it. Roast beef with thighs is good, right? Ahhhh, these two are getting along in a strange way... "Wow, I can''t believe Nao and I make a good match. Compliments don''t get you anywhere, do they? I didn''t say that!¡¡--No, we''re similar, aren''t we?¡¡Hmm? In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. It''s a good thing that you were able to kill him. Yes, yes. Mary and Mitya want to eat thighs, too, don''t they? Uh, ......, yes. Beef thighs are delicious! It''s a good thing to be honest. It''s good to be honest, you know? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. So let''s get this over with. ...... Will it fit in the bag with the Dahl''s Bear?¡¡If you can''t, you''ll have to cut it into a few pieces. ...... Let''s just get it ready while we drain the blood. That''s right. The amount of blood would be ridiculous for something this size. ...... I don''t know exactly how much, but I''d say at least a hundred liters. We''ll work together to drain the blood and prepare a magic bag in the meantime. When the bleeding stopped, we managed to push the huge body into the magic bag. 308-280 Challenge the boss of 20 layers (3) "Well... The next step is to get the reward you''ve been waiting for: your first kill! After finishing the job, Yuki clapped her hands happily. Mary and Mitya looked at Yuki curiously. "The reward for the first kill? "Yes. When you defeat the boss, you''ll get a treasure chest. ...... No, you can go to the room where the treasure chest is. There, right there. It''s a new experience for us, and a new experience for Mary and the others. We walked into the room with the girls, who looked like they didn''t understand what was going on. It''s a treasure chest! It''s really here: ...... As usual, there was a treasure chest in the room. But what we found was a treasure chest with a slightly different shape than usual. It was like a long chest. It was about the same length, but slightly smaller in overall size. And the same as always: a transition zone and stairs leading down. There are no traps in ....... Mary, Mitya, do you want to open it? Are you sure? I want to open it! I don''t care. I can''t just give you the ...... contents, though. Of course not!¡¡Well, then. ...... What is it? What is it? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site and find out more about it. The two sisters looked at each other, timed the opening of the lid, and peered inside at the same time. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. It''s a little plain ....... You can find a lot of different types of tents in the market. Were they expecting to find gold and silver treasure? I''d like to see a treasure chest overflowing with gold coins, but unfortunately we''ve never seen anything like that. "At first glance, it looks like a normal tent. With a wry smile on his face, Toya walked over and pulled out a tent from the treasure chest. It''s a big tent, maybe for four or five people. It is a large tent, but the structure itself is normal - a normal tent in this world. It doesn''t seem to have any features that allow for instant deployment or compact storage. For those of us who are familiar with modern, highly functional tents, this is a rather disappointing item, but based on the pattern of the past, there is a high possibility that it is some sort of magical tool. Maybe it''s a magic tool, right? "Probably, yes. But I''m not sure I want to use it right away, so let''s put it away for now. Well. Even if it''s a good effect, it''s not necessarily a good effect in that situation, so you have to be careful. "Hmm ......?¡¡What is it? When Yuki asked if she didn''t understand Natsuki''s words, Natsuki thought about it for a moment and then gave an example. Well, how about ...... ''a tent that lets you sleep very well''?¡¡It might be a good effect to get a good night''s sleep, but what if you''re camping and plan to stay up all night for safety reasons? That''s a problem. I see, there is that possibility. Yuki nodded her head, and Toya and the beastman sisters nodded their heads as well. I''m not going to use it until I''ve evaluated it. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to have to. I''m not sure what to do. "Oh. Okay, let''s go down. After confirming that we all nodded, Toya led the way down the stairs as usual. He walked down the stairs in silence, ...... and eventually stopped. In the middle of the stairs. "......, aren''t these stairs too long? "Oh, you think?¡¡I''ve been thinking that too. "At least it''s longer than the stairs to the 20th level. Haruka nodded in agreement with Yuki''s slightly relieved response. The staircase is quite dark and narrow, so I think it feels longer, but it is still too long. After the tenth layer, the stairs have been longer since the natural environment with high ceilings, but this time they are still too long. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of these. ...... It was more than three times as long as usual, maybe even four times as long. I had been going down the stairs for quite some time when I heard a faint sound coming from up ahead. "Toya, what''s that noise? I don''t know. I don''t know. But it sounds like ...... something echoing. I tried to check with Toya, who has the best hearing, but her answer was incomprehensible. I also looked at Mary and Mitya, but they too just shook their heads. As you continue down the stairs, the sound gets louder and louder - it''s definitely an echoing sound. Maybe it''s the gurgling, maybe it''s the thudding, maybe it''s the long staircase, but it''s a dull, echoing sound. If you ask me what it is, it''s hard to answer. Let''s see, maybe that sound is ....... "Natsuki, do you have any idea what it is? Natsuki smiled vaguely and shook his head. No, I thought it sounded like something I''d heard before, but here it echoes in the narrow corridor. ....... We''ll find out once we get down there. Let''s move on. "Well, I guess we should. Nao, there''s no sign of the enemy, is there? Yeah. We''re good. Then why don''t we just go? Tor, go, go! Got it! At Yuki''s urging, Toya started walking a little faster. But even at that speed, it will take a while to reach the bottom of the stairs,......, and when we did, we were met by... I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. "Huh-uh-uh!¡¡Huh! Mary and Mitya were the first to express their surprise. Mary''s tail curled up between her legs and she screamed, while Mitya''s mouth opened wide and she let out a few words that I couldn''t understand. I can''t understand what she''s saying, but I''m sure she''s surprised. You can''t possibly find this kind of thing here ....... Haruka looks up in disgust, and there it is, a waterfall. And it''s no ordinary waterfall. The image is that of Niagara Falls. I''ve never seen it in person, so it''s really just an image. Huge. I can''t think of any other word for it, it''s just so big. It''s a waterfall. "This is a waterfall?¡¡It''s totally different from what I know. ...... Aww! Mary and her friends had never been out of the city before they met us, and the only waterfalls they''d ever seen were a few meters high. There''s just no comparison between that and this. Even if we had never actually seen them, our impressions would be completely different from those of those of us who had seen Niagara Falls or Victoria Falls on TV. Even I was overwhelmed by the power of this sight, so it was understandable that Mitya forgot his language and kept his mouth wide open. If I were not in a dungeon, I would want to stare at this magnificent sight for a while. Oh, so it''s a waterfall after all. But this size is bigger than Niagara Falls. By the way, you''ve been to Natsuki before, right? Is it bigger than that? Yes. We didn''t get this close, so I can''t say for sure, but my impression is that it looks bigger. That''s the celebrity Natsuki. He had seen the real thing before. A huge waterfall spread out in a semicircle in front of us. There is a shelf-like section of rock that clings to the rock wall that rises up beside it. There was the exit to the stairs we had come down. The distance from the waterfall was probably no more than a few dozen meters. Just standing there, the water sprayed at us, and if we looked up, we could see the edge of the waterfall in a haze. If you look down, you can''t even see the waterfall''s pool because of the smoke. ...... No, but this is too ...... large a scale. Yeah. I knew the dungeon was strange, but I didn''t expect it to be this ...... big. What''s going on?¡¡I know it''s useless to wonder, but ...... really, what''s going on? I''m not as stunned as Mary and the others because of my knowledge, but Yuki is also twisting her head. It''s huge. ...... It''s a perfect tourist attraction, isn''t it? "If you can get here, that is. --"If you can get here, yes." "A tourist attraction on our own private property. It''s a strange feeling. I can''t help but nod my head at what Natsuki said. This waterfall belongs to us, right? It''s a very strange feeling. I wonder if this is how it feels to be a member of a famous family whose house is turned into a tourist attraction. 309-281 The second layer is... (1) "This is such a great place to visit, maybe I can make it as a tour guide when I retire?¡¡--No, I wonder if there''s any demand for tourism? I''m not sure if there''s any demand for tourism," Natsuki said, looking up at the waterfall and thinking for a moment. You''re always so steady, Haruka. You don''t have to think about what you''re going to do after you retire. You''re still young. But even if you don''t retire, you might not be able to work, right?¡¡You know, that thing ....... I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m not sure.¡¡Oh, you''re pregnant? Are there any signs? "No, but...¡¡But I''m not!" "Don''t say that because I''ve blurred it! I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure what to say. It''s a good idea. It''s true that for a tour guide, me, Nao, and Toya as guards would be enough. We can still make enough money to live on. Please don''t make it difficult for me to interrupt you. Toya''s grin is getting on my nose. Don''t tap me on the shoulder while I''m nodding. "Mmm!¡¡Now, where do we go from here? "Huh. That''s a very deliberate diversion. Shut up, Toya. I''m going to tell Haruka and the others about your whorehouse habit. You''re laughing and I''m punching Toya in the stomach. --Oh, shit. My abs are so tight. "Yeah, right. This narrow ledge leads to the other side, but I wonder if it''s a path? But then a slightly annoyed-looking Haruka left Yuki and the others and stood next to me, pointing to a shelf that clung to the cliff. The place where we came out of the hole is a little bit wider - but it''s still a little bit like a large room - but the shelf that extends away from the waterfall is much narrower. That''s what I imagine it to be. A walkway carved out of a rock wall, which was built when the Kurobe Dam was constructed. If you fall in, you will die. It is wide enough for two adults to walk side-by-side, but in reality, you can probably only move in single file. This is quite a thrilling experience. To be honest, I''d rather use a wire and a carabiner. Yuki said this while peeking down fearfully, but it was just like that. If we''re talking about height alone, Dindre''s tree was high enough, but this one was by far the most terrifying. There''s no ...... trap that''s going to suddenly collapse under your feet, is there?¡¡It''s a dungeon. ".........". I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. The fact that you can''t say for sure that there isn''t one is scary. Well, as usual, it''s Toya who leads the way. "Oh, no!¡¡I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m seriously scared. I''m kidding. I''m just kidding. Let''s hope Natsuki can detect the trap and tie each other up with a rope just in case. If only one person falls, ...... well, let''s hope we can ...... handle it. The most dangerous one is Toya. ...... You can''t help but notice how vague Haruka''s dialogue is. Toya is the one with the highest weight and muscle strength. No matter who else falls, Toya might be able to support herself alone, but if Toya falls, Haruka and I probably won''t be able to. Toya''s weight, including her equipment, would surely exceed that of the two of us. If Natsuki joins us, will he be able to withstand it? If there''s fall acceleration, even if Yuki joins us, she''ll be dragged along. Mary is the one who seems to be sober and dependable, but I can''t help with the weight aspect. ....... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m not sure what to make of it. No, I''ll take the lead. I''ll take the lead. That way, if you fall, you''ll be supported. Also, if anyone should fall, everyone should immediately squat down on the ground. You''ll lose your balance if you stand still. Are you sure?¡¡Natsuki. That''s the best thing to do in this situation. Besides, I''m also a vanguard. Although not as hard as Toya, Natsuki is also classified as a vanguard. It''s reasonable that she can also check for traps, but there''s something about having a girl in the lead that bothers me a little. But as we are basically equals, there was no reason to actively oppose it, so we tied each other up with rope. We tied each other with ropes that would allow us to move to a certain extent, but at intervals that would not cause too much acceleration when we fell. With Natsuki in the lead, the order was Toya, me, Haruka, Mary, Mitya, and Yuki last. I''ll go then. Natsuki looked back at us once, nodded, and began to walk down the narrow path, carefully examining her footing. The path sometimes widened, sometimes narrowed. At its narrowest point, the path was only about 50 centimeters wide, and it sloped slightly toward the bottom of the cliff. There was a part where the path continued for about 10 meters. To be honest, I was really scared. I wasn''t aware that I was afraid of heights, but this situation made me feel quite uncomfortable. Haruka, for example, with a rather bloodthirsty and serious expression on his face, said, "If this is the case, I should have practiced ''walk on air'' more seriously. ......" The situation made me wish for such magic. I had been walking on such a thrilling path for about 30 minutes. I sensed a curious reaction and hurriedly called out to Natsuki. "Natsuki!¡¡Stop! "Nao, what''s wrong? No, there''s something that''s bothering me. ...... I immediately stopped and moved next to Natsuki, who looked back at me. But if I move, we all move. We are tied together by ropes. It''s a little awkward to be stuck in a group against a cliff, but it''s for safety reasons. There''s no response to [Searching for enemies]. I was a little curious about it. ...... It''s not a clear reaction, but the right wall in front of Natsuki, that''s kind of bothering me. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure my accuracy is much better now that I''m upping the level of my [enemy spotting]. ....... This area is ...... I''m not sure what to make of this. Boom! Whoa! "What? The rock wall suddenly bursts open, bouncing my spear back. As soon as I grabbed my spear back, which was about to drift towards the cliff, the lump of rock that bounced my spear went straight down the cliff... No, there''s an enemy reaction from that thing. What the hell? "Rock Spider, the enemy!¡¡It''s ......, but it''s gone down. The enemy bounced off my spear and fell straight down. ....... Suicidal? No, but if you look closely, you can see the string here. Oh, really?¡¡...... Really. It''s very thin. You can''t see it. Natsuki was right. If you look closely, you can see a thread extending from where the rock spider was attached. Mitya squinted and picked at the thread and pulled, but it was so hard to see that from a distance it looked like he was picking at an empty space. "So, is this the enemy?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡...... Scary! Toya''s face twisted into a grimace as he thought about the Rock Spider''s method of attack. The speed at which he flicked my spear earlier was quite fast. It''s dangerous even for someone of Toya''s size to be struck suddenly. I''m not sure if he''ll be back. Will he come back to ......? In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it on the web. If you look at it like this, without the legs, it really looks like a rock. Seriously, if you don''t have [Searching for enemies], you won''t be able to find it. "Oh, it''s hanging, it''s swinging. --Cut him loose. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "d*mn it. Nao, fire! Yes, yes. At the request of a frustrated Toya, I lightly roasted it with Ignite, and the thread burned down easily, and the rock spider that was connected to it was swept away by the wind and disappeared down the cliff into the smoky water of the waterfall. "Hmm. A little refreshed. "I didn''t get anything out of it, though. I''m not sure what to make of it. It may have killed the rock spider, but it didn''t give you the magic stone, and the same goes for the other materials. All that was left was a few spider threads extending from the wall. But isn''t it just too much trouble to pull it up and kill it?¡¡The only thing you''ll get is a magic stone and a spider gland. It seems that Toya had also done some appraising. The value of the magic stone is three thousand rares, so it depends on how hard it is, but if you can find it first and kill it, it might not be so bad. "The gland''s good. It''s pretty good stuff, if I recall. Hey, Natsuki? Yes. As you can see, it makes a very strong thread, so it can be used as armor for everyday clothing. But it''s vulnerable to fire, so it needs to be treated. Although it is susceptible to fire, it is not particularly weak compared to ordinary fibers such as cotton and silk, and is only weak enough to be used as armor. As Natsuki said, it is a very good material for armor, because it can be made up for by special processing when making threads from the glands using alchemy. Of course, if you make normal clothes out of it, it will be stronger and last longer than cotton, and it is also flexible, as Toya showed earlier when he pulled on it and it did not break, so it can be said that it is a highly functional fiber. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''d like to kill it before it dives. So, Nao, please. Honestly, I didn''t get it. Yeah, me neither. Your mimicry is pretty high, right? I didn''t even smell it. If it was an animal, I''d notice it at that distance. ...... Like Toya, Mary and the others are sensitive to the presence of demons, and have often spotted them before I pointed them out, but that didn''t seem to work with the rock spiders this time. It''s not easy to spot them when you see them. I wonder if I''ll learn to recognize it once I get used to ...... it. I don''t know. ......?¡¡I''ll point it out to you in advance, and you can try your best. 310-282 The second layer is... (2) Then we started walking again, but I guess that''s the kind of area we''re in, because within a minute we spotted the rock spider again. I pointed out where it was hiding, and we all tried to observe it from a certain distance, but no one could figure out where it was. When I pointed out "over there," they just twisted their heads. However, even I myself, who has [Searching for Enemies], could not distinguish them visually, so I guess it can''t be helped. Even so, if Toya, who has [Searching for Enemies], gets close enough and I point out the location, he seems to be able to recognize it through [Searching for Enemies] and slams his sword down on it without fail. The sound of the sword hitting the rock was like a thunderclap. The sound that echoed was like hitting a rock. And then, with its legs contracted, the rock spider peels off the wall and falls. Despite the fact that the rock spider seemed to be struck with a great deal of force, it did not seem to be crushed, which is indeed worthy of the name "rock," but it seems that this was only the case on its back. When Toya thrust his sword into the rock spider''s belly side, the side that had been attached to the rock, it went through easily and the rock spider died easily. Dismantling the rock spider from the belly side did not require much strength, and even Yuki was able to easily remove the magic stone and the gland. What was left was a hard corpse, but there was no use for it, so it was thrown directly down the cliff. Exoskeleton. The exoskeleton is completely made of rock, and the softer parts of the body are chitinous, so it is not suitable for composting like other demons. It''s like an umbrella shell stuck to a rock. Yeah. Once it''s off, you''re a fish. If you''re strong enough to knock them off. Maybe if it''s not Toya, it''ll be tough.¡¡--No. Can Mary do it? Mary has the same type of sword as Toya, but her other weapons are not suitable for striking. If we were wizards, we could hit her with a Stone Missile, but that would be a complete waste of magic power, since Toya can manage it. So, Mary, do you want to try? "Are you sure?¡¡I don''t know exactly where I''m going to hit. ...... Oh, yeah. ...... Okay, Nao, follow me. Copy that. So the next rock spider that came out, I specified the location in great detail and had Mary attack it, but even with her attack, the rock spider rolled away. However, unlike Toya''s attack, the rock spider tried to escape by moving its legs, and I had to kill it immediately with my spear. In Toya''s case, he was probably either knocked out by the impact or almost dead. Still, it wasn''t much of a hassle, and we walked for about an hour, lightly dealing with the rock spiders. ...... is a dead end, isn''t it? Oh, it''s a dead end. At the end of a narrow path that seemed to have been carved out of the cliff. It was as if the digging had stopped there, and the path was gone. You don''t mean I have to dig my own way out of here, do you? "Of course not. This isn''t the end of the dungeon, is it? No!¡¡No way. It''s too much of a letdown! No, I don''t think so. At least, from what I''ve read about the dungeon so far - and there have been only a few stories of people reaching the end of the dungeon - every one of them has a shape that clearly indicates the end of the dungeon. I''ve read dungeon books too. I''ve also read books about dungeons, and Natsuki is right, there are some particularly strong bosses or special treasure chests at the far end of the dungeon, but at least they didn''t end with an abrupt dead end. It would have been too convenient to say that this was the first special dungeon. So, are there any hidden doors in the walls along the way? Haruka glanced at Natsuki, but Natsuki shook his head again. At least, I didn''t find out. I''m sure you''ll be able to find it if you look hard enough. ...... I really don''t want to do that. There were many narrow parts, so I walked very slowly and carefully, but it was still more than a kilometer. It would be mentally demanding to continue investigating the entire wall while being afraid of falling. Even if we were to take this opportunity to have Yuki learn the [knowledge of traps] and split up between me, Natsuki, and Yuki, each of us would have to walk several hundred meters or so to get to ....... I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea.¡¡You can do that while moving around. "I''d like to suggest a possibility other than a hidden door. Up there or ....... I look up and see a rock wall so high it''s hazy. No, in fact, it''s so hazy that I can''t even see the edge of it with my [eagle eye]. "Or down. ...... I looked down cautiously, but it was also hazy and I couldn''t see the bottom. Even though we had walked quite a distance, we could still see the waterfall from here, and the smoke from the waterfall basin was obscuring the bottom, so the scale of the waterfall was clearly visible. It''s a little too much for me to climb up and down," he said. I don''t suppose any of you have any rock climbing experience, do you? I''ve only ever done bouldering. Just for fun. Bouldering is the sport of climbing with handles attached to the wall, under proper safety control. Bouldering is a sport in which you climb using handles attached to the wall, with proper safety control. It requires muscle strength, but because it is man-made, you can hold on to the handles and not worry about them suddenly collapsing. I used to do that too. I mean, we went together, didn''t we? We just watched, though. We didn''t do it for real, we just went there because there was a facility where we could experience it for fun. We had no experience in free climbing or rock climbing. It''s just not for me and me. ...... "Me, I can do it! I''ve never been free-climbing or rock-climbing before. No, Mitya, this is not a situation where you need to work hard. Yes. This rock wall is going to be difficult to climb down unless you are very well prepared - not only with the right equipment, but also with training. I''m not sure I need to go down in the first place. ......? As I carefully peered down the cliff, I caught the edge of my vision and saw a path that looked like it was about 20 meters down. I don''t know if it''s really a path, but I can see a place that looks like it might be a little way down. "Hey, what do you think of that? ...... looks like the place. The wall is gouged out, so it''s hard to tell unless you lean forward a little, but if you look into it while holding each person''s hand, you can definitely see something that looks like a path. Are we going down there?¡¡It''s still realistic to think about going down to the bottom of this cliff. ...... As for me, I''m curious about those things growing on the rock walls. That''s Stack Mash and Fronion, right? Uh, ...... that? Because of the high humidity caused by the waterfall, there were some plants growing on the rock walls, but Toya pointed to two of them. Flonions are green plants that look like chives or leeks that hang down from the wall. A common vegetable with no significant characteristics? At least, it doesn''t look like something I''d want to risk reaching for. At first glance, the stack mash looks like moss stuck to a rock wall. It looks like a thin white paper, but it seems to be a mushroom. If it is a mushroom, it should grow perpendicular to the rock wall. ...... Is this due to wind or something? It''s a canyon, and the wind is blowing pretty hard through it. I''m not sure if that''s a good idea. I know it sounds corny, but we''re adventurers. Money is a concern. If it pays, it''s worth the risk. As you can see, they''re hard to get, so they''re more expensive than regular vegetables and mushrooms, but they''re just regular food. Not so bad, huh? It was Haruka who answered my question. I heard that they were tasty, but in terms of image, they were like brand-name vegetables for flonions and mushrooms for stacks of mushrooms, which were a step lower than truffles and matsutake mushrooms. Incidentally, if you look down the cliffs, you can find them, but if you look upwards, you can''t find them at all, at least not within our reach. Is this intentional for the dungeon, or is it the result of something else? ...... Maybe the rock spiders are eating them? You can''t say it''s not possible. But we can keep it for ourselves, can''t we?¡¡It''s good, isn''t it? That''s what it says. ...... doesn''t look like it, though. Yeah, especially the mushrooms. It''s no better than a fungus. I don''t think it''s worth the risk, at least not right now. ...... Why don''t we just turn around for the day? "Right. If we do, we''d better be ready to go down. Unless there''s a hidden door or something. As expected, we didn''t find any hidden doors in the passageway we returned to while doing the percussion test, and we headed home without much success. 311-Two volumes release commemoration SS "Promise of H... With Natsuki and the others joining us, the inn was divided into two rooms: a men''s room for me and Toya, and a women''s room for Haruka and the three of us. This was not only a benefit to Haruka and the other women, but also to the men, especially to Toya. I didn''t mind being in the same room as Haruka, since she was usually in her own room, but Toya was not. So, for the first time in a long time, there was no one of the opposite s*x in the room, so I relaxed and hung out on the bed. Well, that''s a relief. "Yes, for the time being. I was a little worried when I found Natsuki and the others, but they seem to be fine now. From Sahlstat to Rafan, they had experienced their first time out of town and their first time in battle, and although they must have been physically exhausted, their expressions were brighter than ever. Unwanted work, mental fatigue, and a lack of vision. To top it all off, the food was bad. These were the reasons why Natsuki and the others'' faces were clouded, but by joining Haruka and the others, they were able to get rid of them all. They may have been tired, but the meaning of that would be completely different. Even now, from the room next door where Natsuki and the others are, there is a voice that echoes up to our room. I don''t know what they''re talking about, but I guess it''s good to be cheerful and noisy. I''m not sure what you''re talking about, but I guess it''s good to be cheerful and noisy," he said, looking at the next room. "...... Yeah. "...... Toya, you can actually hear me, can''t you? When I asked him about his unnatural response, he lay face down on the bed and shook his head. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. That''s ...... what I''m hearing. Probably. But I don''t dare find out. He won''t talk about it. It''s probably a conversation best left unheard. If I were to put my ear to the wall and eavesdrop, it would be as brave as sticking my head in a guillotine. Only then would I be caught eavesdropping, because that''s the way it is. "Are you going to try to get a private room next time? "No, isn''t that difficult when you live in an inn?¡¡There are some innkeepers that offer private rooms. ...... Since I started staying at this inn, I''ve been doing some research on that side of things, but at least in this town, there was no better inn than this one. There was also an inn with private rooms, but it was a very low-ranked inn, and if I were to change my regular lodging there, I am sure that I would have to pay much more for lodging than here, and the quality of life would be much lower. You''ll realize how foolish it was to say that you wanted a single room. It would be more practical to rent a house. If you want a private room. That''s what I''ll do. ....... That''ll be a while. I nodded to the slightly disappointed Toya and made a suggestion to address his concerns. If you need me to vacate the room, feel free to do so. It would have been harder to say if Haruka was here, but we''re both men. --Can you give me an hour? No thanks! ...... Oh, Toya, are you actually early? Well, you''re young. Well, you''re young and you''ve got a lot on your plate. No!¡¡I don''t need that kind of attention!¡¡I can''t do this here! ...... Oh, I see. There''s nothing to eat. That''s where my imagination engine is running at full speed, so no!¡¡I can stand it! It''s only been a month or so. But... It''s not good for you to hold back too much. I don''t need you to tell me that!¡¡Anyway, Nao, are you okay? Oh, I''ve lost my appetite for that kind of thing, haven''t I? I''m not sure if it''s because of my race, or because of my lifespan, which is twice that of a human. Perhaps puberty occurs a little later in life. If you simply cut their age in half, they would be under 10 years old. You can''t be jealous of ....... No, what about ......? Is it better to have it or not? It is difficult to say, because it is a kind of biological vitality. "Well, I don''t think Toya is going to lose her temper, but I think it''s better to vent in moderation.¡¡I don''t want her to just wander into a whorehouse. Haruka told me that it was forbidden to enter the brothel because of the danger of getting sick. This is because prostitution is a common practice at the inn where Natsuki and her friends worked, and it is very common and familiar. You don''t have to go out to the so-called "s*x district" to have a chance. It is too dangerous for weak-willed youths who want to have s*x. ...... Well, we don''t have that kind of money, do we, with our pocket money? No, but that''s not really true. "Oh, really?¡¡Really? Oh, Nao, are you interested?¡¡Are you? Not really, but I''m interested in the economy. I smiled and nodded to him, but he was not satisfied with my answer and clicked his tongue. You''re not interested? That''s not even 80% of what the boys are talking about. "No, it''s not that high a percentage!¡¡What kind of school life have you been living? What kind of school life do you usually have? Did you talk obscenities with all your other classmates? I''m kidding. I''m kidding. You can get laid for the price of one meal or something. Really? ....... Oh, my God, another world. Otherworldly, I mean, ......, well, there are areas like that. It''s not necessarily otherworldly. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. "It''s not a world, but a time and a region. "I mean, Toya, don''t ever mess with that thing, okay?¡¡You''ll end up in Haruka''s care for sure, and she''ll give you shit about it. No way. I know. Really? ......? I understand that men are not very trustworthy in this area. That''s why Toya''s words were so ....... "Seriously, seriously. You have to trust me!¡¡I promise! He looked at me with his unclouded eyes. His eyes are so clear, it''s easy to believe him. ....... "Please, seriously. It''s not that I don''t believe him, but I reminded him again. --Toya did indeed keep her word. I''ll give him that much. But later on, as a reaction to that, she ended up getting into something terrible! That doesn''t make any sense! 312-283 First anniversary (1) The results were not ...... good, but they weren''t bad either, were they? After returning from the dungeon, I took a break to finish processing some things. Haruka said this as she counted the ten coins piled up on the table. And just as Haruka had said, the number of coins on the table was not small. First, the nuts and fruits collected from the tenth to the twentieth layer. We kept these for ourselves and sold them for a reasonable price, as there were no fruit-producing areas in the vicinity. The tent we received as a reward for our first kill was immediately appraised and found to be quite useful, keeping the temperature and humidity inside at a comfortable level. I tried to spread it out in the garden, but it could only sleep three people at most. If we tried hard enough, we could get up to five people including the small Mitya, but it was not enough for our number. However, it was a good size for us because we would never sleep in a tent without a guard outside. Of course, we didn''t sell it, we kept it. It didn''t make me any money, but it was good enough for me. And the corpse of Red Tyrant Strike Ox. This was very lucrative. The meat of the strike ox itself is more expensive than the meat of an orc, but it''s size makes it more expensive. Normally, I would just dismember it and sell it to the guild, but it''s such a huge body. I thought it would be better to leave it to the professionals, so I relied on the guild''s contacts and asked the old man of the butcher shop to come. No, "old man" is not the right word. He was only about 30 years old. But to call a 30-year-old brother... well, that''s okay. Greedo. We''ll call him by his first name. Now, this Mr. Greedo, he''s a butcher. The head we were trying to get rid of, he said, "You can''t throw that away! He showed us where we could get the meat. He also told us about the rare parts that can only be obtained from one cow. He also told us about a number of other rare parts that can only be found in a small amount of cattle. ...... When those rare parts are about the size of a Mietia, they become less valuable. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to hear that. "Bigger is better! That''s right. I gave Mr. Greed some meat as a gift, and thanked him for his generosity. I could have sold the meat directly to him, but lately I have been selling it through the Adventurer''s Guild, except for Aella''s store, so if you need it, please buy it from there. However, there is a downside to being large. That is, some of the motsu. Many of the parts were too big to eat. For example, liver can be sliced, but there are some parts that are not suitable for eating if sliced. For example, the small intestine. If you''ve ever eaten it, you''ll know that you don''t want to cut off a huge piece of it and eat it. ...... At least I don''t. The same goes for the stomach. The same goes for stomachs, which I threw straight into the compost. Even if they are large, it is no problem to use them for compost. However, I had trouble with the bones. The bones that repel Toya''s blows. Even Haruka and the others'' special compost, which can turn even orcs into scrap, would be hard pressed to crush these bones. Tohya said, "Let''s put it in! but he was immediately stopped by Haruka and Yuki. Very roughly. That''s right. They knew that it would almost certainly break. I couldn''t go any further, but my pocketbook is much better now. Yeah. Well, at least I don''t feel so anxious anymore. --Okay, guys, here''s your share. Haruka, who was counting the coins, made a little pile in front of each of us. When I transferred them to my wallet, my once light wallet became much heavier. The ring had sucked up a lot of my savings. I didn''t regret it, but I felt a little nervous about it. "Now that that''s all taken care of, ...... How to deal with the bones, right? Yeah. If there was a museum, I would donate them. The bones of the Red Tyrant Strike Ox, in need of disposal. It''s a bit of a hassle to keep it in my magic bag, so I have it piled up in a corner of the yard for now. ...... What should I do with it? Although the purified water does not attract any insects, the huge bones are still quite suspicious to the neighbors. Thankfully, thanks to the fence, they are almost invisible. As Yuki said, if you assemble it, you can make a very nice skeletal specimen, so in a sense, it''s a museum-grade treasure, but it''s useless if there are no buyers. It looks like it could be used as a weapon, with its hardness. Shall we take it to Mr. Gantz? "No, no matter what, it''s impossible.¡¡Bones are bones. ...... Haruka shook her head in disgust at Toya''s words, and I nodded again. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. ...... Oh, but they also sell spears made from demon fangs. There was such a spear that Gantz recommended to me almost a year ago. I''m not sure what to make of it. I can''t just leave it there. You can''t just leave it there. ...... There are few people who visit this site, but it looks bad, doesn''t it? I''ll ask Mr. Gantz, and if he doesn''t like it, we can dispose of it in the woods.¡¡I don''t like the idea of dumping garbage in the woods. I think we''ll have to ask Toya to do his best to crush it. That may be the role, but ...... it''s so hard, those bones. I think we should get Tommy. He''s a hammer man. "If you burn it, won''t it become brittle?¡¡If you burn it, it becomes brittle. ...... If you turn it into bone ash, it might have a use. Bone china, fertilizer. Bone china is so-called porcelain. It is made by mixing clay with bone ash. As a fertilizer. I heard it can be used as a phosphate fertilizer. ....... I''ll call around for now. Maybe we can find a way to dispose of it.¡¡If that''s not possible, we''ll take Natsuki''s advice. Let''s try to burn them with the ...... wizard group. "I hope you find ....... Sincerely. In addition to Toya, the wizard group also nodded deeply at Haruka''s slightly disgusted words. Surprisingly and fortunately, the bones of the Red Tyrant Strike Ox had a buyer. Mr. Diora, who has been a great help to me every time I''ve asked for help, traced the message to find a buyer, and to my surprise, Joseph Fader, the deputy of the town of Laffan, came up with the idea. I wondered what he was going to do with it, but he said he was going to display it in a visible place for a while to show that there were adventurers in this town who could kill such monsters, and then he was going to process it into fertilizer and sell it. A kind of demonstration? I guess it''s like a horse show in the old days, or a military parade in recent times. Not all the adventurers who can defeat the demons will cooperate with the deputies. ....... This is the first time I''ve ever seen such a thing. I''m not sure what to think. Hmm, that''s an unexpected income. I was having trouble finding a way to dispose of it. It''s all thanks to me. Can I have a compliment? It''s more like a compliment to you, Diora. Of course. You can praise me. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. In fact, they had only met once before, and had no relations after that, and would not have been able to get through without Diora''s message, so if anything, Yuki and the others were right. I''m not sure if Haruka understands this, but she didn''t say anything more and changed the subject. "Well, that''s all right. I''ve got a little extra cash in my pocket, so maybe we should have a party to celebrate the party''s first anniversary. "Oh, Haruka-san, you''ve only been here a year? The one who sounded surprised at Haruka''s suggestion was Mary. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. You became an adventurer, right? We''ve known each other for a long time. Yes. It''s been exactly one year since we joined. The party, you mean?¡¡The one we had for Mary''s welcome party, where we invited everyone we knew and had a feast. "Party!¡¡It''s so nice! At Toya''s metaphor, Mitya seemed to remember that time, and happily did a "Banzai". I''m sure she''s expecting that, since she ate so much meat that time, but as for me... I''d prefer a different kind of food anyway. Like ...... stew? "So, like beef stew? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. No, that''s fine, but maybe a stewed hamburger. I''ve got some beef on hand. I want roast beef. Yeah, well, if there''s anything you want, just let me know and I''ll see what I can do.¡¡Okay? Yes. I''ve got some rice this time, so I''d like to use that too. The size of the grains was a bit surprising, though. The size of the grains was a little surprising, but it''s a lot of work to do it by hand, so I guess it depends on Tommy''s effort. It''s hard work, Tommy. Well, it looks like I''ll have to ask him for some rock climbing equipment for the second layer. Good luck. I''ll pay you well. So, when are you going to do it?¡¡Right away? I''d like to invite all the people who''ve helped me, so I''d like to give myself some leeway, say within a few weeks? I''d like to invite Diora at least. I''d also like to invite Aella and ....... Agreed. And Tommy. I think we should invite Diora, who has always been a great help to us, as well as Aella, who has provided us with the Inspire sauce that has supported our rich diet. In that case, we should leave some room for them. I''m sure the restaurant has its own schedule. I''ll also invite Luce if she can come. It''s not like I''m inviting Aella but not Luce. I''m not going to invite Aella but not Luce.¡¡They''ve been very helpful to me. Not to mention Gantz-san, who is in charge of all the weapons and armor, and Simon-san, the carpenter who has been taking care of us from time to time even after the house was built. I''m not sure if he''ll be there, but I''d like to ask him. Who else can you find at ......? If he''s in the same town, we can call Yasue, but it''s a bit far from Kerg. If you want to be safe, you''ll need a ride. You can''t go to ......, can you, Ishka? The temple doesn''t seem to have many people. ...... Do you want to talk about it? It''s a give-and-take with the temple - well, more of a give-and-take, I guess, but we''re close. I''m very grateful to Mr. Adversus, but there''s no way I can call him. "Um, can''t the kids at the orphanage go to ......? I''m not sure if we should call out to Ishka, but Mary suggested it in a reserved manner. "Hmm, orphans, ....... "I''m not sure if I''d classify them as ''taken care of'', but there are some that I do miss. Specifically, Remy, Allen, and also ......... Remy. I''m not going to discriminate against you, even if you don''t like me very much. I don''t think it''s a problem.¡¡It''s not like you''re going to be drinking, so it won''t be too much of a burden. Really? I think it''s fine. ¡¡The only problem is the location: ....... Is the garden okay? But hey, Haruka and the others, are you sure you can cook?¡¡Isn''t it hard?¡¡With that many people? If you want to invite orphans, there will be more than 20 people at once. Considering that the amount of consumption will more than double, the effort will be ....... I''m sorry that Haruka and the others are too busy to celebrate with us. I looked at her as if I were looking at her, and she thought for a moment and nodded. It''s good, isn''t it?¡¡Fortunately, I can make some leftovers. That''s right. It''s a lot easier when you don''t have to take into account when the food is ready. It''s great to be able to eat freshly baked or fried food at any time. Super high-tech! Well, there you have it. I don''t think it''s technology, but it''s definitely a very convenient storage. Let''s split up and go around like that. I think we need to coordinate our schedules. If there''s anyone else you''d like to invite, you can ask them, but you''ll have to tell us cooks in advance. We have to prepare. Okay. Please don''t jump in. Perhaps because they hadn''t heard about Tommy''s arrival at the last welcome party, Haruka and Natsuki looked at Toya and said something like that. In response, Toya nodded curiously and said, "I understand. 313-284 First anniversary (2) After going over the schedule with the invitees, the "first anniversary party" was decided to be held in about two weeks. I don''t know if people usually do that, but I had a lot of people ask me, "Are you having an anniversary party?¡¡Just for the first anniversary? But it was decided that everyone would attend. Well, let''s just say that it''s been one year since I became an adventurer. That''s all there is to it. But from our point of view, it''s different. This is also a commemoration of the fact that we came to another world and survived for a year without losing anyone. We avoided danger as much as possible, and in fact, due to Haruka''s cautious nature, we felt little danger, but still, not all. Considering this, the fact that she survived for a year and became accustomed to this world is well worth celebrating. Of course, I hadn''t explained that to Tommy, so he was the only one who deeply agreed with me. During the two weeks leading up to the party, we didn''t go into any dungeons, and were basically free to go as we pleased. However, while the women were cooking, baking, and working on the rice mill at Tommy''s place, we men had nothing better to do. "What are we going to do? After discussing it with Toya, we decided to take Mary and the others into the forest. It was almost time for magic mushrooms, and we could make some money by hunting down some task boars. If we were lucky enough to secure some mushrooms, we could give them to Haruka and the others as souvenirs. Last year, I sold most of them because money was more important, but magic mushrooms can be used as materials for [alchemy] and [pharmacy]. There''s no harm in keeping them. A week or so passed while I was taking it easy like that. It was one day when Mary and the others were out at the orphanage and we were at home. As I was sitting idle in the living room, a suspicious figure approached me. "Sir, sir, may I have a word? "No, what''s with that tone? Or... There was another person who called out to me in a suspicious way. Yuki. "Well, I''m in a bit of trouble. I had a bad feeling about this, but I couldn''t just ignore her. "...... What? I told you that I was going to pair you up with Haruka and give you an Adjust, didn''t I? Oh, yeah. You''re going to ...... do that for me, aren''t you? I had no choice but to ask her back, and it was very relevant to me. I didn''t buy it to fit, so if I don''t get it done, I won''t be able to give it to her. It''s not cool to ask Haruka to do it. No, I''d love to, but... I''d love to, but I can''t get the materials. ...... Since my promise, Yuki had been searching for the materials in the town of Raffan in her spare time. However, the town of Raffan is not that big to begin with. It seems that materials used for alchemy are not widely available there, and so far he has been unsuccessful. Come to think of it, there have been many times when I couldn''t find alchemical materials. I had to buy them in Kerg and so on. Now that I think about it, I should have bought them in Crevilly. I''m sure they had it there. --It''s too late now. I guess I should''ve talked to them about it. ...... But I didn''t have time to think about that at the time, so it''s really too late now. --To tell you the truth, I was so excited to get together with Haruka! I''m not going to say it out loud, though! Is it hard to get that material? It''s not for sale. It''s not for sale, but it''s not impossible to get. That''s not very crisp. What''s the short version, ......? Let''s go get it! Yuki smiled and gave me a thumbs up. I''m going to go pick some. I''m going to go pick some. Yuki said it casually, but in reality, it''s not that simple. I can''t just sneak out of the house, I have to come up with a good reason. And she had to come up with a good reason so that Haruka wouldn''t find out. But, but-- "Oh, you''re going out?¡¡Be careful. It was easy. --Well, if you think about it, for the past week, Toya and I and Mary and the others have been going out in the woods as usual. Even if the lineup changes a little, if we go out normally, people won''t suspect us, right? For your information, this time there were two of us, me and Yuki. ...... This is the first time we''ve been together in this group, isn''t it? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure what to make of this. No, of course, I don''t have any guilty feelings at all. By the way, as for the rest of the team... It seems that the work that Tommy asked him to do is not going well, so Toya is going to help him with that, while Mary and Mitya are going to work with the children of the orphanage to maintain the garden. In addition to maintaining the party site, they will also be working on the half-neglected vegetable garden ......, or is it a full-fledged vegetable garden since it is quite large?¡¡They are also going to work on it. They''re planning to plant autumn and winter vegetables that can be harvested in the coming season. Oh, and we''ll pay the orphanage kids who come to help us a decent amount of money. Unlike the last time when we cut the grass, this is not a formal request for work, so it''s not much. Even if it''s not a formal request, it''s easy to get together when Mitya says, "All you can eat meat at the party! It''s easy to get people together. Meat is strong!¡¡I guess that''s why. Our destination is the northern mountain range, right? Yes. So far we''ve only been to the foot of the mountains, but we''re going deeper. Where do we get the materials? The canyon located deep in the mountains north of Laffan is the destination for this trip, and the place where Yuki has been gathering the materials she has been investigating. It is said that the levulite ore that is collected there is essential in order to add the effect of "Adjust". You don''t need a lot of it, but since it''s not for sale, you''ll have to go get it. I was told there was no danger. ...... As far as demons are concerned, yes. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. The two of us. I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... No, it''s more than a half if it''s just long-range attacks, but when it comes to close combat, it''s a bit weaker. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. And if we''re in danger, we can use teleportation to escape. If it''s really dangerous, we can escape with it. "Well, yeah. The magic of teleportation allows you to transport yourself. If you set up a transfer point, you can travel kilometers. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. So, let''s do our best. Oh! "Oh, oh? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s a bit of a jerk. This is the first time I''ve ever seen it. The North Woods. In the beginning, I was afraid to enter the forest, but as I went back and forth to get to the dungeon, it had become a place I was familiar with, if not my own garden, then at least the garden of someone I knew. The demons that appeared straight to the north were scarp apes, bind vipers, and the like. The Scarp Ape, which had been troublesome in numbers at the beginning, could be dealt with sufficiently by using [Search Enemy] to reduce their numbers before they surrounded us. The two of us here are capable of long-range attacks, so . This is the first place you''ve been from around here. Yeah, it''s a bit of a hike. It''s not hard, but the ground is definitely sloping, and the vegetation seems to have changed a bit. There is no path that looks like a path, and the visibility is poor due to the crowded trees. "Hey, Yuki. "Hey Yuki, the word ''distress'' just popped into my head. ......" "Don''t underestimate the power of low mountains." "When you go into the mountains, you should be prepared, and you should report it, just in case." I remembered now that I had heard such stories. Now we''re like the unknowns who climbed Mt. Fuji in flip-flops and were rescued by helicopter. ...... Or maybe it''s not that bad. We''ve prepared enough to bivouac, and we''ve told Haruka and the others where we''re going. I''m not sure if it''s the best climbing gear, but the various adventure gear has saved our lives so far. The only thing I''m worried about is that if we lose our way, there won''t be a rescue helicopter flying over us. 314-285 Mushroom picking? (1) Yuki laughed at my anxiety and puffed out her chest with a smug look on her face. "Oh, Nao-san. Do you remember my useful skill, [Mapping]? "...... Oh!¡¡No, is it even useful in a place like this? Indeed, I had forgotten. I forgot that it can be used in places other than dungeons. You can''t draw a beautiful map, but you can at least not get lost. At least, you won''t get lost because you won''t take a wrong turn.¡¡Especially with our current physical abilities. One of the reasons why people get lost is that they are forced to take a detour by obstacles and lose their bearings. Considering this, our current physical ability, which allows us to go straight for a little while, can be said to be quite an advantage, but is it the right thing to do when hiking in the mountains? Isn''t it best to take it easy and not get lost? Of course it is. Besides, if something happens, we can just transfer back, right?¡¡We''ve been filling up the transfer points at regular intervals. Well, yeah. The usefulness of transfer points is that, in addition to being the target of transfer, you can also detect their location from a distance. In other words, if you place a transfer point with a certain amount of leeway, you will always be able to detect it somewhere, and if you go back from there, you will be able to get home. The standard for "margin" is Yuki''s current ability, and if I had a longer transfer distance than her, the margin would be quite large. Unless there was an accident, such as being swept away by a river for a long distance, or the transfer point being dug up and taken away, there was no point in worrying about losing my place. Instead, let''s think about something fun. You see, the trees grow a little differently around here, don''t they?¡¡I''m thinking we can pick mushrooms or something.¡¡That''s what I''m thinking. Mushrooms. ...... Toya used to pick them and make an inspirational sauce out of them, but I don''t remember ever eating them. The other day I was able to recover a small amount of magic mushrooms, but they are not meant to be eaten. Maybe it''s because I''m not actively looking for edible mushrooms, but I don''t remember seeing many of them. No, I''ve seen some small mushrooms growing on rotting trees that I don''t know if they are edible or not, but at first glance, mushrooms look unappetizing, don''t they? If they look like shiitake mushrooms, you might think they look tasty, but if they look like a bunch of small ones, they look like ....... Oh, and by the way, mushrooms are not listed as "edible" in the "help" section. Unfortunately. I guess that such knowledge is not common knowledge. I don''t know if I can eat mushrooms that grow in the mountains of Japan, so it''s reasonable to say. I sometimes use them in cooking, you know?¡¡When I made soba noodles a while ago, I used them as soup stock. I don''t use it often because I can''t get it very often. "I see. I''m sorry. I''m sorry that I''m eating the food you''re making for me. It''s okay if you''re enjoying it. If it were more commonly available, I could make a more understandable dish. ...... Mushrooms aren''t really a necessity, you know. I''ve never imagined that you could find mushrooms grown on fungus beds in supermarkets, but mushrooms don''t keep well. Unless you dry them like dried shiitake mushrooms, they are easily damaged. Moreover, the amount of mushrooms that can be gathered is limited. Since the shiitake mushrooms are not grown in the field, but naturally in the forest, there is no way we can collect many. If there were more room, artificial cultivation might be possible, but mushrooms are not particularly prized or expensive. However, mushrooms are not particularly prized or expensive, and it would be much more profitable to grow wheat for the same amount of effort. Thinking about it, how did you find the mushrooms, Toya? He said he found them by smell. ......... For a moment, I imagined a pig looking for truffles. Sorry, Toya. Toya can use her appraisal skills to find edible mushrooms, so she said. I see. So, what about us?¡¡I can''t use my help. I''ve got a plant book in my magic bag, but I''ve never seen a mushroom book that says ''amateurs should not pick'' or ''under the guidance of an expert''. It''s a little risky to try to pick mushrooms with only an illustrated book with somewhat unclear illustrations and text, even if you have a mushroom book with pictures. "I''m sure you''re forgetting the obvious, Nao-san. "Yes? When I asked Yuki, who seemed to be slightly dissatisfied with the answer, she stuck out her chest again. "Actually, I can use appraisal. "...... Oh, by the way! I know, I''m forgotten. Toya is more trustworthy. Toya is more trustworthy. She''s only backward compatible. Hmm, hmm! No, no, no, no, no, no, no. I try to follow Yuki''s deliberate sulking, but I''m not sure what to say. In fact, when everyone is working together, the knowledge skills are almost useless except for the highest level person. It may work as a backup, but it is just that, a backup. You don''t need it in normal situations because you have more reliable information, and you don''t want to be in a situation where you need it. "Well, it''s useful in these situations, right?¡¡Yeah, it''s not useless. Don''t worry, be confident. It''s only a few times a year. That''s true. If it''s a practical skill, it''s a different story, but it''s really only useful in situations like this. Mmm-hmm!¡¡Now, let''s find some mushrooms! "Fooled ....... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I can''t think of a good follow-up. I''m not sure what to do. He said this in a tone of voice that didn''t sound very nice, but he understood that there was no point in saying it, and Yuki also looked around. There are no ...... trees growing in the area. It''s not on the ground, and I didn''t look through the leaves. Can a layman find them?¡¡Natural mushrooms? "Well, mushroom hunting is just a bonus. If we find any on the way to our destination, we can just collect them, right? Okay. --As for the story, I''d like to bring back a mushroom with a funny effect. Like a personality flip or something? Yeah, something like that. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. It''s not enough to be a simple warai mushroom. It would be interesting to see a mushroom that reverses not only its personality but also its gender. It wasn''t. If we''re the ones who are affected, that''s not good. "It''s an interesting story, though. But there''s no such thing as a ...... mushroom, that''s for sure. You''re not sure? It''s a world with magic.¡¡But be careful, because hallucinogenic mushrooms are common, like the magic mushrooms Nao and her friends picked up the other day. Of course, they''re mushrooms. Of all the bounties of the mountains, mushrooms are probably the first thing that amateurs should not touch. Of course, I wouldn''t have touched them without Yuki''s [appraisal]. I''m not particularly fond of mushrooms. But once I became aware of mushroom hunting, my eyes couldn''t help but look for mushrooms. Even if you''re not that interested in eating them, collecting them can be fun, right? Of course, the better the taste, the better. ...... "Hey, there''s something that looks like a mushroom.¡¡It''s not white. A brownish mushroom with a round umbrella was growing on the ground at the base of the tree, hidden by the leaves that had accumulated there. The size of the mushroom was about two times larger than the first joint of my thumb. It is slightly larger than the mushrooms you see in supermarkets. Mushrooms are not always white. ....... That''s a bear mushroom. 315-286 Mushroom picking? (2) "Hey, Kumacolo. What a cute name. "One bite and even a bear will be satisfied. It''s dangerous! I was about to pick it up and leave, but I hurriedly pulled my hand back. They look normal, but they''re really noisy, aren''t they? Yuki smiled at me and pointed to another place. It''s a poisonous mushroom, but there''s no problem touching it. See the slightly lighter colored mushroom next to it? "Hmm?¡¡This one? I pointed to one of the lighter colored mushrooms, but Yuki shook her head. "Right next to it. That''s a kumakoro. It''s edible. It''s edible. ...... About five of them are bearberry. "I can''t tell the ...... apart, can you? There are about a dozen mushrooms growing like a colony, and I can hardly tell the difference. Of course, I know there is a difference. Of course, I know there are differences, but I''m not sure if they are individual differences or if they are different species. ....... I was told that the one I just pointed at was different. He said, "Well, you can tell by pulling out this one and this one and ...... this one. The color of the pith is different. See? "...... sure. You can compare the two. If you pull it out and compare it, you''ll see that the color of the pith buried in the ground is different. In the Kumakoro, that part is white, while in the Kumakoro-modoki, it is brown. Even I can clearly see the difference. ....... If this part was cut off and sold, you wouldn''t notice it, right? "No, not usually. As you can see, they grow in the same places, so it''s best to stay away from stores you don''t trust. I can''t tell the difference at all when I hide the pebbles. Oh, man, mushrooms. Well, there are stories about natural mushrooms, like poisonous mushrooms being sold by mistake at roadside stations in Japan. Yeah, it''s all over the news. In addition to mushrooms, there are also narcissus and chives, saffron and garlic. These are major poisonous plants that are in the news every year when the season comes. There are many people who say that they got them from their acquaintances or collected them by themselves. "So far, I haven''t seen poisonous mushrooms being sold for food in the market, but some vendors seem to be selling questionable products without knowing the rest, so it''s very risky to shop without knowledge. I shudder to think that the most dangerous thing you can do is to collect it at your own discretion. "Well, we''ll be fine. We''ll do a proper [evaluation]. And you won''t die if you eat the bearcolo. ...... Maybe. Maybe? ...... Really? It''s tougher than most people, though. I''m not sure if that''s the only benefit of leveling up and being more robust. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure you''re right, I can detoxify. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask for help. But I don''t want to take such a gamble. Don''t worry, don''t worry!¡¡There''s no such thing as poisonous mushrooms in the food we make!¡¡--Unless Nao has an affair or something. "Hey!¡¡What did you just say?¡¡I heard a word that really caught my attention! I was in a hurry, but Yuki said something back. I''m very curious about what you said. It''s important to live a decent life, isn''t it? Especially when your food (life line) is in your hands. "Oh, I''m fine, all right?¡¡I''m fine, right?¡¡Right? You got nothing to worry about. --Whorehouse. I gasped at the last words he added with a smirk. "......... It''s okay, it''s okay. I didn''t go there. ...... I was a little curious, but I didn''t go there. I don''t think so. I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m sure you''ll find more mushrooms than you think. Let''s collect as many as we can and go home. --Let''s collect as many as we can and go home. Oh, my God. ...... You''re sure there are no poisonous mushrooms in this "stuff"? It''s okay, isn''t it, Yuki? I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m not sure if this is a good time or not. I''m not sure if it was the right time of year, the right place, or both. After we harvested the kumakoro - or kumakoromo(d)oki(ki) - we found more mushrooms. There were mushrooms that looked bad but could be eaten, and others that looked ordinary but were deadly poisonous. There were also mushrooms that would make your skin sore even if you touched them, and mushrooms that would spew out spores when you tried to pick them and make you cough if you inhaled them. And, well, Yuki collected most of them. It seems that the dangerous mushrooms are for sale because they are unappetizing, and the poisonous mushrooms are for medicinal and alchemical purposes, but please don''t mix them up. I''ve got them all in my magic bag. ...... I''m definitely not going to cook with mushrooms. If you''re not careful, you might end up with something you thought was an ingredient, but actually is. By the way, some of the mushrooms are collected from the rotting wood on which they grow. If you are good at it, you may be able to keep getting them in your garden. Mushrooms grow by spores, right? If I cut down a tree of the same kind and leave it by my side, will it grow from there too? A little hope. --Well, Natsuki told me later that even the shiitake mushrooms that are sold with the fungus need to be planted in kindling and then left to grow for years, so artificial cultivation of mushrooms is a long and tedious process. Hmm, we didn''t make much progress, did we? That''s because I was so absorbed in picking mushrooms. Yeah, Nao, right? You can''t deny it. It is said that with our physical abilities, if we try hard to reach our destination, we can normally reach it in a day, but in reality, we still can''t even see the shadow of our destination. It was no wonder that we had been enjoying picking mushrooms since we entered the mountain. When you find them, you want to pick them. It''s inevitable. So we''ll camp here today. I brought the tent I found the other day, so I''m sure it''ll be comfortable. I hope so. We just found a big rock. In the shade of it, we started to set up our camp. We set up the tent, built a fire, and sat down on the chairs we had taken out of our magic bags. It''s not too inconvenient, but it''s more like camping. Hmm, we''ve grown up, haven''t we? We used to be nervous about camping in the beginning. You get used to it. That''s how it is. If we were in a place where we didn''t know what kind of demons would appear, now we understand that we don''t need to be so nervous around here. I''ve gotten used to being on the lookout all the time, and I''ve gained experience in dealing with spur-of-the-moment situations. It''s no problem to take it easy and camp out. "Since we''re here, why don''t we make some mushroom soup? "Hmm, you don''t make it yourself, do you?¡¡You''ve got it, right? The only time I cooked in the camp was in the beginning. Nowadays, I just eat what I take out of my magic bag or lightly heat it up. I rarely cook them anymore. "Pick it and eat it right away. That''s one of the best things about camping, isn''t it? I can understand that. It''s good because it''s fun, but ...... don''t put anything weird in it, okay? Yuki''s shoulders twitched as she turned her head back to look at me, preparing the pot. Then she slowly turned around, smiled dryly, and hung the pot on the fire. No, I don''t like it. I wouldn''t put anything strange in there.¡¡Nao, can you believe me? "Basically, I believe you.¡¡--"Basically, yes. But I don''t believe it now. However, I don''t believe it right now, because I remember that there was a mushroom that I was picking with a suspicious smile on my face. "I know, you believe me. The word "basic" bothers me. Don''t worry about it. --Can I take care of the food? Yeah. I got it. We''ve got all kinds of mushrooms. I''m sure you''ll make a nice mushroom soup. Well, I''m looking forward to it. I pull out my magic bag, take out a book from it and start reading. Most of the books are on my bookshelf at home, but some of the books that I might use during the adventure are in my magic bag. And some books that I read to pass the time. And right now, I''m reading... 316-287 Mushroom picking? (3) "...... ''used as an energizer''? "What?¡¡--Oh!¡¡The book! "It''s called ''The Illustrated Book of Plants''." I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. This book covers a good number of plants. It''s a must-have book for collecting in the forest, but it also contains a chapter on mushrooms. Yes, mushrooms. I was curious about the mushrooms Yuki had collected, so I looked them up based on my memory, and the description of the mushroom that looked like that was the passage I mentioned earlier. I''m not sure if it''s right, but I''m not sure if it''s right. I''m not sure if I got that right, but I''m pretty sure that''s your response. I don''t know what you''re talking about.¡¡I was just trying to make Nao feel better, okay? I was just trying to cheer Nao up." Yuki looked away, sweat dripping down her cheeks. That reaction is already the answer. "You ...... said it would be bad if he cheated on you, and before your tongue was dry, you ...... said it would be bad if he cheated on you. I have no idea what Nao is talking about, but I''m sure she''ll be fine. I''m sure that Natsuki and I will be able to forgive you. I sigh at Yuki''s insatiable refusal to admit it. I don''t want to, but what if ...... you don''t forgive me? I''m not going to do it, but ...... what if you don''t?¡¡Hell. No!¡¡Absolutely, no! I looked up at Yuki and smiled at her, and she said a resounding no. I''m going to build a bright, peaceful, warm family. I''m kidding, I''m kidding. What part? That''s a secret. But these mushrooms... And then he took out a few of the mushrooms that I had just looked up in the picture book. I took them out. "Ah! I threw them in. Into the pot. "Don''t worry. "Don''t worry. I don''t know if you''ll eat all of these mushrooms, but they won''t do anything to you. It''s like eating garlic. ...... Sure, they say garlic gives you energy. It''s not like eating one or two cloves of garlic is going to change anything drastically, aside from your mood. --Except for the smell. Right?¡¡--I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Oi. If you ask me that, I''m sure you''ll be slightly concerned about your future meals. "Yeah, but do you think Natsuki will do it?¡¡What do you think Natsuki will do? --I don''t know what I''m imagining. You still say that? I don''t know what you''re imagining. Yeah, yeah. So, Nao, you don''t have to worry about the mushrooms I''m picking, okay? Okay. Okay. Okay. I''ll keep a close eye on it tomorrow. "......? Yuki tilted her head at my response, but why did I think she wouldn''t mind? I''m sure they do. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on, but it''s not like there aren''t other mushrooms out there that are more effective. Well, despite all that... Yuki''s "Mushroom soup using lots of seasonal mushrooms" was very delicious. And that''s not even including the rather nasty mushrooms. The next day we continued to hunt for mushrooms. The next day we continued picking mushrooms and headed for our destination, the canyon, we arrived there in the evening when the sun was starting to set. The cliffs were so steep that it looked as if a machete had been driven into them. From the bottom to the top of the cliff, it was about the height of a 20-story apartment building. The entrance to the canyon faces southeast, so it is hard to get any light at this time of day when the sun is setting in the west, and it is quite dim. Is it here?¡¡Well, ...... has Revlite ore. Yeah. It''s in this canyon, a little further ......, but it''s dark, so we''ll continue tomorrow. It''s not exactly rock climbing in the dark, is it? --So, the next morning. So the next morning, just as the sun was shining in the canyon, we set out. Yuki pointed to a place on the right side of the canyon, about 200 meters from the entrance. Yuki pointed to a crevice in the right wall of the canyon. It was a little over a meter wide. It was a little too narrow for two people to walk side by side, but it continued toward the back. The canyon itself is a bit dim and the air is cool, but the crevice is even darker. It looks like it would be a good place to ...... test your mettle or something. ....... This is not a joke, because in this world there are usually skeletons, ghosts and even zombies. If I didn''t have the skill to search for enemies, I might have shied away. "I see. This is why the person who told me about this place said it was better to go in the summer. Maybe it''s the dimness and the temperature. In the summer, when the sun is high, the area will be a little brighter, and it might be a good place to stay cool. But it''s just a cool place, it''s not a scenic place that''s perfect for a summer resort. The place you want to go is about 20 meters up this wall. ...... It''s not invisible, but it''s a bit dangerous. I can see better at night than before, but it''s still dangerous to ask amateurs like us to determine safe footholds and clues in this dim light, not to mention to think about it. That''s true, if we keep going like this. What''s wrong? Yuki tilted her head at my implied words, but I didn''t answer her, instead I raised one hand and used a certain spell. "Light! With those words, a light appeared in the dimly lit canyon, shining brightly. "Hey!¡¡When did you ......? I raise my voice and give a chuckle to Yuki, who looks at me intently. I''m not the same person I used to be. What do I need to do to increase my magic skill level? In addition to practicing the next level of magic, it is also important to improve your ability to manipulate magic and increase the amount of magic you can release. In other words, the level of a spell is determined by the difficulty of manipulating magic power and the amount of magic power required to use that spell. What I''m saying is that if you can use high level magic of one attribute, you can use low level magic of other attributes relatively easily. At least in the case of elves. Except for humans. You need to have the corresponding magical qualities. That''s why I''ve been able to use this one with very little practice. No fair!¡¡That''s the elf! "But the Light Cure is still too subtle. I think I can use it somehow, but I don''t see [Light Magic Lv.1] in my status, so I guess it''s not enough. Of course, if you practice diligently, you may be able to raise your light magic level, but for now, there are no plans to do so. Haruka and Natsuki are the best users of light magic, and the first thing I should practice is space-time magic. The first thing I need to practice is space-time magic. Yuki is a cheat to other people. You can use four different kinds of magic. "Yeah, I think I did pretty well there. And I used so many points that if it weren''t for Natsuki, I would have been in a bit of trouble. At first, I heard that you had almost no skills except for [skill copy] and magic qualities. If you''re alone, you''re in trouble, no joke.¡¡I don''t know. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll do fine. "Yeah, that''s it. I think it''s partly because there are no grimoires, but I think it''s also because there''s no one around to use it. All the other magic was used by someone else. Space-time and fire were originally available, water, wind and light were available to Haruka, and earth was available to Yuki. On the other hand, Darkness is a magic I''ve never seen before, so it''s probably impossible for me to learn at this point. As a non-lethal magic, it can be useful depending on how you use it. "It would be nice to have it for human combat. In a way, you can use it without reservation. It''s not a good idea to suddenly fire off a Fire Arrow when you don''t know who the enemy is. If I had been able to use non-lethal magic when I was fighting with Kaji, who had become a vampire, I might have been able to deal with him more intelligently. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you may want to check out the following: ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it.¡¡It''s also heavy. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. The barrier can be physically destroyed if you want to, and it is more of a spell to keep you locked up for safety. Since it is physically isolated, it may be possible to aim for a lack of oxygen over time, but it is a bit far-fetched. The Stagnation Zone can slow down the passage of time in the area, but the target of the spell is not the person, but the area. However, the target of the spell is not the person, but the area. If you enter the area to bind the target, the person will also be affected, so it can only be used to buy time. Well, you might be able to use it to put a rope around the area and capture the person as soon as the spell is released, but that is only if the spell works. Such a powerful spell does not work unconditionally, and if the target in the area resists, it may fail. 317-288 Climbing! (1) But thank God for that. I''m not sure I''d be comfortable climbing a wall in the dark. We''re amateurs, you know. They say you can climb it without tools, but ...... it''s a bit scary at this height. It''s only a little over a meter wide, so if you try hard enough, you might be able to push both walls with your feet and climb up, but it''s pretty scary to go 20 meters up like that. If my hip joint snaps, I could die. Well, it''s not overhanging, so it''s a good place to practice. "Bouldering with a little more difficulty?¡¡It''s a bit more difficult than bouldering, though. ...... There are no safety devices. Overhang is a condition in which the wall is tilted toward the front rather than vertically. Since it is difficult to stick to the wall, it is almost impossible to conquer unless you can support all your weight with one hand. When I was bouldering once, I fell down as usual. It''s impossible to pull yourself up from that state, let alone to hang down with one hand. So I always think. In the movies, there are people who hang on for a very long time even though they are only hanging on by their fingertips. People who grab a person who is about to fall with one hand and pull him up. --No, you can''t do that. At least not with the strength of a normal person. You don''t need to grind your fingertips, you''ll fall! I wonder how many people can do pull-ups with one hand, even if they use something easy to grab like a bar. I wonder how many people can do one-handed pull-ups, even with something as easy to grab as an iron bar. Well, in this world, Toya could do it. It''s just the right level of difficulty since we''re also testing the equipment. To be honest, it''s also a cause for concern. ...... This time, Haruka easily gave us permission to go out, but we didn''t go out without telling her our destination. We had never been to the place before, so we couldn''t tell her the details, but we gave her a rough idea of where we were going and said, "I''m going to pick up some things around there. No, I don''t think of it as climbing gear. Rock climbing gear? Something like that. Specifically, harnesses, ropes, picks, carabiner-like things, rope hooks, and some kind of unidentifiable tools to hold onto the rock. It''s a mix of tools used for climbing rocks around here, and stuff that Haruka, Natsuki, Tommy, and others have made up by pulling together their vague modern knowledge. If you''re going to the crag, why don''t you go and test it out? That''s what they say. Harnesses and ropes are okay. The so-called safety belt and rope. I''ve already checked the strength of the rope when I was collecting dingles, and the safety belt was sewn up by Haruka and the others, so I understand the strength of the material, so I''m not worried. The pick is also okay. It''s just a different type of hammer. It won''t break easily, and even if it does, it won''t cause too much damage. The carabiners and rope clamps are also ...... probably okay. They said it was well forged, hardened and annealed, so I''m sure it won''t suddenly break - or so I hope. Seriously, please?¡¡I''m going to put a lot of weight on this thing. But the problem is that I don''t know what I''m doing. I''ve been briefed on how to use it: ....... The first one looks like a square weight attached to the end of a loop of wire. The first one looks like a square weight attached to the end of a looped wire, and it''s supposed to be hooked into a crevice in the rock, but is that enough? The structure itself is simple, so there is no need to worry about the strength of the tool. I guess it''s our responsibility to choose the right rock for the job. ....... The other one is also for inserting into the gap between rocks, but it is bigger than the previous one, and the mechanism is more complicated. When you insert it into the gap between the rocks and pull the wire coming out from underneath, the tip of the wire will expand and hold it firmly in place between the rocks. Anxious. Super anxious. It''s not as simple as other tools. Yuki. Are these tools really safe? "That''s why we''re here, isn''t it? I asked anxiously, to which Yuki responded in a rather curious manner. No, it''s true, but ....... I''m not sure what to make of that. --It''s not like I can test it in a dungeon. I made it up from my foggy memory. "Hey. Fuzzy memories, huh? I heard a line that really caught my attention. "Because none of us have ever been rock climbing. Not even Nao. "No. It''s not an easy sport to get into. It''s not a sport that''s easy to do," he said. "So these tools are just vague replicas of what we''ve seen on TV or in online videos of rock climbing. It''s the memory of four people, so I don''t think it''s that strange. "Mmmm ...... It''s true that Haruka and the others are more reliable than my memory. ....... "Don''t worry, it''s been tested for durability. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "Then-- As long as it''s securely fastened. That is the problem. Even a proper tool is useless if it is not used properly. Let''s just use it in a place where it''s safe to fall, a few meters away. "Copy that, ....... There''s no point in arguing, and in fact, there''s no way I''m going to use it in the dungeon unless I test it here to make sure it''s safe. I put on my gear and got on the rock wall while Yuki explained to me. --Thanks to the magic bag, I don''t have to worry too much about the weight, which is an advantage. It''s a good thing that I don''t have to worry about the weight of the bag. "Okay, let''s go!¡¡Nao! "Yes, yes. Actually, it was Toya''s role to do this. His strength, his sturdiness, and most of all his weight. Even if I can use it without any problem, Toya is twice as heavy as I am, including equipment. It''s too big to be a margin of error. "Well, you can think of it as the first test. ...... Yuki pointed upwards, and I started to climb up the rock wall. But it''s only a few meters. I found a suitable crack in it, so I used a pick to check the strength of the crack. ...... is okay, right? I''m too scared to use it if it''s going to fall apart. Hook a weighted wire of the appropriate size into the gap, and attach a carabiner to the wire. Okay, here we go. Come on! Underneath me, Yuki is waiting for me with her arms outstretched, waiting for me to put my weight on her. ...... No, just avoid him. It''s okay!¡¡If you fall, I''ll catch you! It''s impossible, isn''t it? We''re not as strong as we look. We''ll fall a few meters. We''re not going to be crushed, so we''ll just stay here. "Okay. ....... --Gently. At first I tried to pull on it, but it didn''t seem to come off. I also stuck my foot on the wall and pulled, and it hung ...... down, no problem. I wasn''t too worried about the tool, but when I checked the crevice in the rock, the corner of the weight was slightly embedded in the rock. ....... I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Is this a problem?¡¡Hmm, there is room to think about the shape of the weight, huh? It is better for a large area to receive the force than for it to be applied to a single point. If it''s possible, it might be better to wrap the weight with a slightly flexible material or something like that. "What''s the matter? Oh, yeah, no problem. Let''s go next. Yuki''s worried voice came from downstairs, and I started to work on the next tool - my most important concern. A little wider gap ...... will do. The gap was a little higher than the previous one. A slightly higher gap than the previous one. A tool with a slightly complicated mechanism is inserted into the gap and manipulated. "Spread it out here ...... and insert a pin here to hold it in place. By inserting the pin into the fan-shaped tool, it will stay in place and will not come loose from the gap in the rock even if you pull on it. I hooked the carabiner to it and gave it another hard tug, but it stayed in place. ...... are you okay? Thinking that I could move with the rope hooked, I moved left and right on the wall with my weight on it. In addition, you can loosen the rope a little and put your weight on it all at once. Crack! 318-289 Climbing! (2) "Oh, ....... The voices leaked out almost simultaneously. My body softly floated in the air. It''s a good thing I''m not the only one. I''m not sure what to do. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the following article. Nice catch!¡¡I can''t say it was a good catch, but it was a good save. ...... Sorry, that helped. I fell to the ground with the back of my head on Yuki''s chest, and she fell to the ground in the same position. By rolling on the ground without forcing myself to support her, I was able to protect my head and escape the impact. He is quite dexterous. No, falling headfirst on this hard ground would be dangerous, as expected. Nao might have been able to catch it, though. No, it was a little dangerous because I was putting on too much weight. It wasn''t a normal fall, it was a deliberate acceleration and pull, so the balance was terrible. He could have avoided hitting his head, but he would not have been able to land on his feet. I didn''t expect it to break. ...... Oh, this? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do. The pin is broken. It was fine when I experimented with it, but ...... did I apply a strange force?¡¡Nao, do you have a broken pin somewhere? Let''s see. ...... I attached it there, and it fell down here. ....... I thought it might have rolled into a crevice in the rocks, but after carefully examining the ground, I found a broken pin on the ground. That''s it. I can''t say for sure, but was it a bad idea to play with it?¡¡I thought it was supposed to be easy to get into. ...... I don''t know, but I don''t think it''s safe to use, at least not like this. Yeah, I''ll give you some feedback and fix it. Tommy? ...... Well, I guess we should leave it to the experts. You''re paying for it. Besides, I''ve got one other thing on my mind. What''s the point? Drill a hole in the rock and drive a stake through it. This one''s not ready yet, so I''m not bringing it. With a drill, like a whack? Yeah. Yeah. We''re not going to drill holes, we''re going to use magic. When you see rock climbing on TV, there are hooks embedded in the rock wall for attaching ropes. It''s not so common, but it seems that stakes are driven into walls in this world as well. However, since there is no such thing as an electric drill, the usual procedure is to drill a hole by hand, pour a special resin into the hole, and then drive the stake into the hole with a hammer. The resin is not sold in Rafan. It''s made by alchemy, so if you have the materials, you can make it, but they don''t sell those materials either. And in the process of searching for the materials, Yuki realized that the materials needed for the "Adjust" were also not sold, so she decided to come here to get them. Raffan is a bit of a difficult town for an alchemist, isn''t it? Because of its small population. By the way, what about the resin there? Haruka and the others went to get it. Fortunately, there seems to be some deep in the southern forest. Yuki added, "There''s no demand for it, so no adventurers seem to be going out to collect it," and shrugged. I''m glad to hear that you''ve got everything you need, despite the hassle. Yeah. And we found out about the problem with this equipment before it happened. Yuki smiles as she holds up the broken device, puts it and the broken pin in a bag, and puts it back in her magic bag. You don''t need this to climb, do you? I have another one, and I feel like I can climb without it, as long as I don''t make any mistakes. For safety reasons, I''d like to use a rope, but I think it''s possible to free-climb this wall without it. It''s not like the rock wall in the second layer of the dungeon where free climbing was absolutely impossible. However, it''s just a matter of principle. In terms of image, it is like being told to hang from the roof of a ten-story apartment building without a safety belt. Even if you are going to do the same thing, the psychological aspect is completely different between a height of 2 meters and 20 meters. I can never do it. Too scary. After all, auxiliary tools are very important. Let''s go, then. Hang in there, Nao! With Yuki''s cheering, I started to climb the rock wall again. Unlike before, when the purpose was to test the equipment, this time the purpose was to climb. I climbed up the cliff, trying not to rely on the rope too much, but hooking on a little more hardware in case I fell. Normally, you would consider the amount of fittings you can carry, but since you don''t have to worry about that, you have a big advantage. Metal fittings and ropes can weigh tens of kilos if they are long enough. Rock climbing is quite demanding because you have to carry it uphill. ...... Oh, by the way, in the video I saw on TV, they put the rope in a separate bag and pulled it up in the middle of the climb, didn''t they? I see, there was a reason for that. In our daily life, we don''t have a chance to hold a rope so heavy that we feel its weight. A tug-of-war rope at an athletic event?¡¡But that''s not the same thing in terms of thickness. "But to come to another world and experience rock climbing... It''s a unique experience. It''s also fun, I guess you could say. If I had stayed in Japan, I probably would never have experienced it. "It''s a kinematic support, isn''t it? I learned this when I experienced bouldering. Three points, that is, three of your hands and three of your feet are always attached to the wall. It takes time, but it''s the safest way. I continued climbing in this way for a while. Yuki, who was watching below, called out to me. "Nao~. I think it''s around there. Isn''t there a rock that looks different? ''Feeling different is so vague. ......'' Feeling a little nervous, I put my weight on the rope to pull myself away from the rock wall and look around. I was told that there are some silvery veins exposed! The silvery vein ...... is it? Did you find it? I''ll take a look. Wait a minute. It''s fragile, so be careful! I raised my hand and moved to the spot, attaching the fittings. As I approached, I saw that there was a whitish layer about 20 centimeters wide on the surface of the rock, extending about four or five meters in either direction. The color is more like limestone, and silvery white is a bit harsh. ...... Oh, is that silvery white? If you scrape the area with a pick, the surface will be scraped off and it will look somewhat silvery. However, as Yuki said, the rock around the area is fragile and will easily collapse if you hit it with a pick, so it would be dangerous to attach any hardware to the area. There it is! I''m coming up too, drop the rope! "Done! Avoiding the fragile area, I moved a little above the vein. Fixing the fittings firmly there, he hooks a new rope and drops it down to Yuki. But when I look down like this, ...... it''s pretty high. I wouldn''t say that it makes Yuki look small, but it''s a bit high. I tried not to think too much about the height, but I kept my eyes on Yuki, and she came up to me in a relatively short time, without relying on the rope too much. "Let''s see... Yeah, this is definitely Revlite ore, isn''t it? I''m going to cut it up and take it home. "How much do you need? "A handful for each ring should be enough, but we''ll take as much as we can get. You never know when you might make a mistake, and it''s not like a lot of it will go bad. It''s inorganic ore. No, even food won''t spoil in a few years, even if we have magic bags. "Well then, Yuki, you cut it down from that side. I''ll go from here. "Ho, ho, ho. 319-290 Climbing! (3) Yuki and I secured the rope to the safety belt so that we could use both hands, and used a pick to dig out the vein. The vein itself is not very hard, so it is not difficult to dig it out, but it is difficult not to lose it. With one hand wrapped around the vein, the vein is gradually removed and placed in the leather bag. I have a feeling that there is more than lebrite ore mixed in, but I''ll let you sort that out when you use it. My strength and stamina wouldn''t last if I had to worry about that. It must have taken me about an hour of such nerve-wracking work. When the leather bag was almost full, Yuki also stopped and took a rest, hanging from the rope. I think this is enough. I think this is enough, let''s go down. If Yuki thinks it''s enough, then there''s no problem. Then let''s go down. In this kind of rock wall, descending is in some ways more difficult than climbing. This is because it is difficult to check the foothold because your eyes are not below you, but with a rope, this problem is solved. We descended the wall relying on the rope, and after a few minutes we reached the bottom and pulled the rope to retrieve it. Unfortunately, we can''t retrieve the fittings that are hooked to the top, but we prioritize safety. Our own lives are more important than money or environmental issues. It''s not like plastic, so it will return to nature in time. "Hmm. Well, at least we got what we came for! I nodded to Yuki, who smiled as she lifted the leather bag containing the lebrite ore. "Including testing the equipment. "Yeah. It was a good performance overall, wasn''t it?¡¡It worked well. One of them broke, though. Simple is always better. The metal I used to fix the rope. It''s like ''the strength of the material. That''s all there is to it,'' so I didn''t have any worries about the equipment. I was worried that it might break the rock, but if I had checked the strength with a pick beforehand, I would have had no problem at all. At least, the fittings didn''t fall off from the points where I checked the strength of the fittings, so I guess my judgment was not so wrong. "Well, with a simple structure, the unexpected is unlikely to happen. It''s the same as driving a pile in. That''s true. --But if we''re going to put in stakes, why don''t we put in bouldering holds?¡¡The purpose is to make it easier to go up and down. Oh, that''s a good idea!¡¡I''m in!¡¡You''re right, the purpose is not rock climbing. For us, it''s just a means to an end, whereas rock climbing is a sport where the goal is to climb by yourself. If it''s easy, we want to make it easy. You can use magic to dig a wall and build a foothold. ...... I shook my head at Yuki, who held up her index finger. No, that would be difficult. Not in a normal rocky mountain, but in a dungeon. This is partly due to the fact that magic does not work well in dungeons themselves, but it also has to do with the dungeon''s repair function. For example, if the walls of a dungeon are damaged by a magic attack. The damage will be repaired in a relatively short period of time - a few days or so if the damage is not at the level of a collapse. However, items embedded in the dungeon, such as the transfer points we set up, will not be easily absorbed unless they are left for a long time. If you think about it, the scaffolding you made with magic will probably be repaired normally. If you drive a stake through it, it will remain. Even if you have to use magic to make a hole, it''s better than just a stake. It''s not like you''re going to run out of magic on the way up. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. It''s not good practice, is it? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to make a staircase if you and Nao work hard enough. Even if you can mine, it won''t help you in the dungeon, so half of your goal is still unfulfilled. So, what do we do now?¡¡So, what do you want to do? The first objective is done, so you can just go home. ...... Do you want to practice some more?¡¡Just for the day. "No need to rush home, huh? I need to practice anyway. "Well, I''ll support you down there, so you can practice, Nao. To be more specific, support means to hold the rope below you so that if you should slip and fall, you will not fall straight down. However, since you are pulling on the rope to stop yourself from falling, if you are not good at it, the friction with the rope will cause the skin on your hands to peel, and even if you are wearing leather gloves, it will probably hurt. Is that okay? Yes. I can do it when I come back with Haruka and the others, okay? Well, they need to practice, too. ....... All right. Make sure you wear gloves. "Hey, hey! Yuki''s reply was very light, but she was doing her job well and I was trying to improve my rock climbing skills. First, I climbed up to a point much higher than where we had just mined, and then I hung a rope and used it as a lifeline to go up and down the rock wall repeatedly. Since there was no point in doing it in the same place, we set up ropes in places where it would be difficult to climb and practiced. I almost fell off twice, but thanks to Yuki, I didn''t get hurt, and I made it to the end of the day. Thanks a lot. Tomorrow we''ll leave early in the morning and head back to Laffan. "Yeah. --Well, unless we find some nice mushrooms on the way. Yeah, you''ll want to pick them when you find them. Yuki and I look at each other and laugh together. It''s autumn. If we don''t collect mushrooms this time of year, it will be difficult to get them as food. It''s not like today, where you can go to the supermarket and buy mushrooms at a steady price. By the way, Nao. By the way, Nao, have you grown any skills? "Well, I don''t have ....... I just started today. It won''t come easily. I''ve tried, and I can climb this wall without any problem, but unfortunately no skills have been added to my status. Maybe I haven''t practiced long enough, or maybe I''m not skilled enough. Should I try harder walls to get it as a skill? I see. Too bad. --I was going to copy it if I had it. No!¡¡That''s not fair, Yuki!¡¡I''ve been working hard. Copying skills is my advantage!¡¡It saves time. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s efficient for the party as a whole, and will benefit everyone in a short amount of time, but as someone who''s struggled with ...... it''s a bit of a bummer. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''ve been supporting you all day.¡¡You know, holding the rope. "Mm-hmm. ...... Is that why you''ve been so supportive of my training? So to speak, the more I train, the better Yuki''s skills will be. The more I train, the more I can improve Yuki''s skills, though only up to level 1. So until someone else learns the [Climbing] skill, I''m going to support them! "...... can''t be helped. I didn''t have enough material to deny Yuki''s words. In fact, it''s very efficient. Then it''s no use. "Okay, I get it. I''ll let you copy me then. I''ll teach you everything I know. What?¡¡If you just give me a quick lesson, I''ll activate-- I''ll teach you in no time! For my mental health, and Yuki''s safety! And the next day. The next day, we left the canyon, and as expected, we were once again absorbed in mushroom hunting, and we didn''t return to Laffan until the day after that. 320-S020 Every Time I Shake It (1) Today, Haruka and her friends came to the store for the first time in a while. They said they were going to some distant town on business, so they must have just come back from there. In their hands is a small bag. Is it a gift for me? You don''t need to worry about it, since you''re working. But if she''s going to give it to me, I shouldn''t shy away. I''ll take it. In this world, a souvenir would be something like food. --My expectations and predictions were half right. Haruka and the others did indeed offer it to me. But they also said. "We found some rice, so we need you to make a rice milling machine. Really?¡¡I opened the bag, and what I saw was ...... rice? It doesn''t look like anything I''ve ever seen. Isn''t it a little too big? Is this good to eat? Oh, I thought it was good. I can eat it just fine. Hmm. Then I''ll have to try it. As a former Japanese. Maybe I can make some sake. Ale is good in its own way, but it''s just that. As dwarves, we can''t help but make good sake! After I left the rice with Haruka and the others, they went off again to "earn the commission" to pay me, so I started designing the machine by myself. Honestly speaking, I don''t mind if I don''t have to pay the commission, since the products I make for Haruka and the others are usually profitable and I''m always indebted to them. As long as I get paid for the materials, I feel that''s enough. It took some effort to make the mincer, but it is profitable enough for me. When I told him that, he said, "I want to be paid for my work. Isn''t that right? I said. I''m sure you''re grateful for the fact that you''ve been able to save a lot of money. ...... Maybe I should build a house? But I don''t want to live alone. I''m not sure if I''ll ever get a wife or something. Now for the rice mill. Fortunately, I''ve seen a home rice miller before. My mother used to say, "Freshly milled rice is the best! That''s why she bought a home rice miller. The structure of the machine is simple, and it simply consists of a metal colander that rotates. I don''t know the structure of a commercial rice mill, but since it''s going to be used in Haruka and her family''s house, I guess this is fine. The only problem is whether it will work properly with this size of rice. ...... Well, we can experiment with that after we get some brown rice. But first, there is a problem before that. That is the hulling process. I don''t know much about this. I don''t know much about hulling rice, and I don''t know much about home hullers. In the program where idol groups grow rice, they use a wooden mortar, but I don''t think modern hullers use that. Is this something that could be achieved here: ......? ......? Oh, by the way. You know, wheat is also supposed to be hulled, right?¡¡I''ll ask him. "Hmm?¡¡Wheat hulls?¡¡I don''t take that kind of thing. That''s the answer I got when I asked my master for the time being. "What?¡¡Then, when you grind it into flour, you can use ....... You can grind it with a stone mortar or use a water mill. If the powder is a little better, you can sift it through a sieve, but ...... it''s usually left as is. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. I don''t know much about cooking, but I''ve heard of whole wheat flour. I''ve heard that whole wheat flour is good for your health because it contains various ingredients. I see. Is the bread you eat every day a healthy bread? ...... Oh, no. Kuro bread is not made of flour. It may be healthy, but it''s not healthy. I know about the wheat, but I''m pretty sure it''s useless for hulling. It''s not rice flour I want, it''s rice grains. You can''t just grind it all up and call it good. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡...... No, I don''t think that''s a good idea. If that were okay, they wouldn''t have brought it up to me. Haruka and his friends brought a little over a kilo of rice. I took a few grains out of it and observed them. The shape is exactly like rice. The husk is a little thicker than usual.¡¡It''s not hard to peel it off with your hands. ...... A golem to peel the husk?¡¡--No. That''s not a blacksmith''s job. If you hold the rice between the palms of your hands and rub them together, you can remove the husks. But you have to rub them together many times before you can peel off even a few grains. Once the husks are peeled off, the wind blows them away, and the remaining brown rice can be polished. While I was thinking about this, Haruka and his friends came to visit me again. They seemed to have finished their dungeon search and had some money in hand. Tommy, how is it going?¡¡I''m not sure if it''s already been done or not. Yuki-san: ...... It''s not that easy. It''s still in the conceptual stage. Oh, really?¡¡I thought it wouldn''t be that difficult. What''s the problem? The first step is hulling. I''m thinking we''ll have to use a wooden mortar. I''ll explain to Haruka and the others the structure I''m thinking of. However, it''s simply a matter of getting Haruka and others to provide me with a motor that can be made by alchemy, to automate the rotation of the wooden mortar, and to automatically blow away the chaff. To put it simply, it is a combination of a wooden mortar and a winnowing machine, and relies on magic power. Structurally, it is 19th century. The problem is that the millstones will probably have to be sharpened more often. --Do you know anything about the structure of modern hullers? "Modern hulling machines use rubber rollers. The modern hullers use rubber rollers. To explain it simply, they use two rubber rollers with different rotation speeds, and the husks are stripped off by passing through the gap between them. It was Mr. Natsuki who gave me an easy answer to my question without much expectation. And apparently I wasn''t the only one who was surprised by that. Haruka''s eyes widened a little and she tilted her head. "You know a lot, don''t you, Natsuki? I''ve been to the rice mill company. I''ve been to the rice mill company. ...... You gave me a souvenir. Dried rice. It wasn''t the best souvenir, but it was pretty good. Alpha rice. I couldn''t find anything else that would do. It''s better than plain rice, right? Yeah, it was kind of fun, though. I see. If you go on a factory tour, will they explain the structure? I''ve heard that you can get a tour for free or for a small fee, and also get some souvenirs. I''ve also heard that you can get a free beer tasting at a beer factory. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I was underage. ...... Too bad. "By the way, do you have any rubber?¡¡Can I get some? It''s okay. Whether it''s natural rubber or not, I can make something like it with alchemy, so I''ll provide it. Thank you very much. I''ll try to make a hulling machine with it. Is the structure of the rice mill the same as that of a home-use rice mill?¡¡To put it simply, it just stirs the rice in a colander. ...... The one my mother used had an automatic stop function after setting the amount and pounding rate, but that seems to be difficult, so I''ll have to ask her to stop it by herself. If I can make a golem or something like that, I might be able to make a golem-controlled tool, not a computer-controlled tool. ...... I don''t know if that''s possible. I''m fine with that. And it would be even better if we could divide rice into four parts. ...... Yo, quadripartite? ...... That''s quite a difficult thing for you to say. But I understand what he is trying to say. Because this rice is too big. You say it was delicious, but considering the cooking process, it should be as big as the rice we know. It''s better to use the size of rice that we know, for soaking time and eating texture. ...... I understand. I''ll try my best. Thank you. I''ll look forward to it. As a craftsman, I can''t compromise, I nodded. Haruka smiled at me and thanked me. Yes, it''s very eye pleasing. But Haruka-san, who has such a beautiful face, is quite unforgiving, though. 321-S021 Every time you shake it (2) Well, now we have another job to do. Mary and Mitya, you know them, right? "Yes, of course. I attended your welcome party, and I come to your store from time to time. You know that I''ve been struggling to make a rice milling machine, right? Is this more work for you? I''m grateful for the job itself! "I''m thinking of making white iron chainmail for those two. Should I discuss this with ...... Gantz-san? "Oh, I''ll let him know then. I don''t know if Master will make it or I will. I see. This is business as usual. Maybe Master will do it. - No, I''ll tell him to do it, I''ll be fine. I''ll leave that to you. Please. Okay. Thank you for your order. But it''s amazing that an adventurer can order armor worth millions of Japanese yen. I don''t think I want to be an adventurer now, though. I''m not sure I want to be an adventurer now, though, because I''ve learned that Haruka and the others are special and most adventurers are not. In addition, this is a new development .......¡¡I''d like you to talk to Mr. Gantz about this too, but I need you to make me some tools for rock climbing. Rock climbing, huh? We need them in the dungeon. We can provide the harnesses and ropes, but I need picks, carabiners and rope brackets. ...... doesn''t sell them, does it? "At least not in the stores. I''m sure that the demand for climbing rocks is not non-existent in this world, so there must be some tools, but at least this store doesn''t carry them. I wonder if I should ask my master if he knows what it is? And maybe this won''t be an "incidental" job. My hunch is. I don''t know much about modern tools. ...... I''ve never done any rock climbing. Don''t worry, we''ll figure it out together.¡¡As long as you provide us with the technology. Well, we only know what we''ve seen on TV... Yuki-san said that and casually laughed, "Haha," but you''re going to entrust your life to it, aren''t you? I''m the one who''s going to make it, aren''t I? If it should break down and someone dies, ...... ugh, I''m going to get sick to my stomach. It''s the same with weapons, if they break, it''s life threatening. ....... I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that.¡¡I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were you. I''m not sure if he noticed my inner thoughts, but he said it gently, but my heart is not strong enough to be easily convinced by that. ...... Yeah, I''ll be really careful with my cooking. And then-- I''m not sure what to say.¡¡To be honest, I''m overcapacity. ...... Oh, don''t worry, this is not a job. Oh, well, that''s good to know. ...... If you get more work than this, you''ll be ...... better off than having no work and no time, but... I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that we''ve been partying for a year now.¡¡I thought we should have a party to celebrate our survival and all that. "Why don''t you come, Tommy, if you can spare the time?¡¡We''ll have some fancy food, but nothing too fancy. Of course I''ll come! Good, that was an easy conversation. And there was no way I was going to miss the chance to eat Haruka''s cooking. "Not only that, but rather that''s the "what". "The food at the Bear of Slumber is delicious, but the food prepared by Haruka and her friends is better. Maybe it''s the difference in cost, or maybe we have similar tastes as former Japanese. Either way, I''m going to participate, no matter what. But it''s already been a year. ...... Yeah. Well, we''ve survived, haven''t we? I''ve managed to build a good foundation for my life. In my case, it was thanks to everyone, including you, Toya. When I said that, Natsuki and the others shook their heads. "It''s because you''ve been so diligent, Tommy. "Well, we were just helping out. That''s what they say, but it''s actually more than ''lightly''. The reason why I was able to start my apprenticeship, the first and highest hurdle, was because there was a certain level of trust between the master and Haruka and the others, and because Toya was willing to put in the hard work. The same is true for the rest of my work. When a blacksmith is just starting out as an apprentice, the most he can do is help his master. And yet, Haruka and the others would ask me directly for good paying jobs, so I never had to worry about money. But they would deny it, so I just said "Thank you" and bowed my head. I''m sure you''ll agree. Thanks to the rubber material and motor provided by Haruka and the others, the huller took shape relatively easily. The structure of the huller was almost the same as the one Natsuki had taught me, and the only modification was to make the gap between the rollers adjustable. I asked Haruka and his team to provide me with some more types of rice, and found that there were differences in the size of each type, so this feature is quite important. But basically, it is just two rollers turning. The rice milling machine is even simpler. For reference, Haruka and her friends brought a food processor that they had made before, and we copied it almost verbatim. All I had to do was make a few changes. What was more difficult than expected was the tool for dividing the rice into four. When I tried to break the rice, it would shatter. I can manage to split the rice into two parts, but when I try to split it into two halves, even with a sharp blade, a large percentage of the rice is broken. If you are not careful, you may end up with more powder than grain. He said, "I can make a dish using rice flour, so that''s fine. I''m not a cook, but I can make a dish with rice flour. Even though I don''t cook, I can imagine that if I had the same amount of rice flour as I eat every day, I would have a hard time using it. For a while, I tried to make the blade sharper and change the direction of splitting, but it only increased the yield a little, and did not solve the problem. In the first place, a blade that is too sharp needs to be sharpened frequently, which is not very useful. When I was stuck like this for a while, it was Haruka who gave me some advice. "Why don''t you soak it in water beforehand? And. It''s done. Easily. You need to soak the rice in water overnight or so beforehand, but once the rice is well watered, it is no longer crumbly. Of course, since the rice had absorbed water, it had to be cooked immediately after breaking, and could not be broken beforehand, but Haruka and the others assured me that there was no problem with this. To celebrate the completion of the project, they gave us salted rice balls made from the rice. It was delicious. It was insanely delicious. Of course, I think the quality of rice itself is better in Japan. But it was the first time in a long time that I ate rice. And the correction of the rice balls that Haruka and the other beautiful girls hand-rolled for me: ...... I made a mistake. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. The combination of these factors made it very tasty. I''d like to continue to buy rice if I could, but unfortunately it doesn''t seem to be sold around here. Haruka and her friends, who had bought it in a distant town, gave us some, but even they can''t easily go there to buy it, so we''ll have to eat it carefully. 322-S022 Every Time I Shake It (3) That day we gathered in the store''s workshop to go over our memories of the equipment we use for rock climbing. All of us didn''t have much knowledge, so it was a bit unreliable, but some of the items became clear. "Well, after collecting everyone''s vague memories, we came up with five pieces of hardware. First, the carabiner. I immediately thought of carabiners, since they are used for things other than climbing. There are several different shapes of rings and ways to close them, but this one seemed fine. I''ve had my hands on one before. There are three types of fittings to hang the rope on the rock. One is a loop of wire with a weight attached to one end, the other has a fan-shaped end, and the third is a stake that is drilled into the rock. Lastly, there are fittings used for vertical descent with a rope. Name unknown, shape unknown, structure unknown. I gave up on this one, because I had no idea what it was. So we gave up on this one. We decided to solve the problem by putting a rope through the carabiner and using our arms. It''s not that important, because I heard that a person of Toya''s age can rappel without any equipment and a single rope. What he knew was to drive a stake into the rock. The stakes themselves can be made by the master, but what is important is the tool used to drill the holes and the resin used to fill them. ...... After accepting the request from Haruka and the others, I asked the master about it, and he told me that there is almost no demand for it around here. ...... Or to be more precise, there used to be demand for it, but not anymore, so the master did not usually make it. However, he had made one before, and he told me about it, and what he found was the one I mentioned above. A drill is a tool to drill holes in rocks, so it must be very sharp and strong. However, it should be light and easy to use while climbing the wall. The material is special and not easy to make. The resin one is injected into the hole drilled before driving the stake. So-called glue. He said that since alchemists can make this, Haruka and the others should be able to make it. We''ll prepare the resin ourselves. For now, let''s make the other things. I understand. And so, while consulting with Haruka and the others, I made various devices. A few days later, after we had completed some of the equipment. A few days later, Yuki-san returned from a trip with Nao-kun to test the equipment. How did it go?¡¡Did you use it properly? I asked her, feeling quite nervous inside, and she nodded her head. "Yeah. It''s broken. "...! We both gasped at Yuki''s simple answer. "Are you okay? Nao fell. You weren''t hurt, were you? If I was, I''d have brought you here. You were testing in a low place and I was following you. No problem. Oh, thank God. I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that." As if caught by Haruka''s genuinely relieved exhale, I also let out a big sigh of relief. It''s a good thing. I''m sure you''ll be glad to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. "This. It''s hard to make something complicated. Yuki-san then took out a metal fitting with a fan-shaped tip. It took a lot of effort to make it, but ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I thought there was plenty of room for strength. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. Looking at the way the pin was broken, which Yuki had retrieved, it certainly looked that way. It could also be the quality of the material. I was very careful, but I can''t deny that there may have been some weak parts, and it may have been due to the hardness and tenacity, or the way it was quenched. But to be honest, it may not be necessary. But honestly, I don''t think that''s necessary. Rather than increasing the reliability of that, we might as well just get another fitting and a stake and deal with it. "Sure, those two are simple enough to be reliable. I''d like to have more than one, though.¡¡It was easier to use more when climbing. Nao also asked me if the stakes could be used as bouldering holds. "That? That would certainly make it easier to climb. I''ve never done it before, but it''s usually just a matter of making a foothold that''s easy to grab, if your goal is to climb up and down. "Huh?¡¡When I think about it, if you just want to go down, you can just prepare a rope ladder. ......? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. I''m sure you''re right, the purpose of that place was to get off. "Yes, that''s right. We don''t have to force ourselves to go down by rope, do we? Apparently, the purpose of the dungeon. Apparently, the goal was to get down the rock wall. Yeah, then there''s no need to force yourself to do rock climbing! So maybe all the hard work we put in this time was for nothing? But we''ll keep developing. But we have to keep developing it. If we can''t climb it, we''ll be in trouble. Oh, I see. That''s right. Even if we put up a rope ladder, we can''t be sure it''ll stay up. If you don''t make it back, you''ll die. Oh, dungeons are dangerous, aren''t they? I didn''t think much of it because Haruka and the others went in and came back as usual. What kind of place is it, by the way?¡¡What kind of place is this, where you have to climb up and down the rock walls? Well, it''s a place with a pretty spectacular view. Yes. At least I''ve never seen a waterfall of that size on Earth. It''s otherworldly in scale, isn''t it? Oh, really?¡¡I''d like to see it once. My curiosity was aroused by what Haruka and the others were saying. To be honest, I haven''t seen many otherworldly things since I came here. I''ve seen some pretty strange things in my life. The giant cow that Haruka and her friends hunted the other day was also quite impressive. But if you''re distracted by the view, you''ll probably be thrown off and die. ...... Oh, really? Yeah, it''s a dungeon. If you''re not careful, you''ll die. I heard that a spider that mimics a rock will come to push you down. Yeah, a dungeon. Very dangerous. It''s not a place for normal people. If you want, I can take you there.¡¡Haruka''s talking about making a living as a tour guide when he retires. Hmm? It''s actually not that dangerous? Or is there a way to keep you safe? If so, I''d really like to go there. In this world, there''s no such thing as a sightseeing trip. "Well, you might want to practice on Tommy. "Well, it might be a good idea to practice on Tommy, so you can joke about your mistakes. "No, you won''t!¡¡I''m not the only one who lives in the world of gags, you know! This is not a comedy story where you blow up with a ''thud'' and come back to life in the next scene. It''s not a comedy story. ...... Well, it''s a lot tougher than it used to be. I''m kidding, of course. I''m just kidding, of course. In all seriousness, it''s more dangerous on the way to the entrance than in the dungeon, so I can''t take you there now. I''m sorry. "No, you don''t have to apologize. ...... I''m a little disappointed. It''s an amazing view, I really wanted to see it. But my life is more important than yours, so I''m not going to push you. If we become strong enough to withstand the demons in the area, we can take you there. I don''t want you to get your hopes up too high. "Yes. We''re not very high ranking. "Well, I''ll do my best to help you with that. In my field. Yeah. Nice to meet you. --In the meantime, you''ll be brushing up on your rock climbing gear. Right. From then until the day of the party, I worked on my rock climbing gear. But the carabiners and weighted wires were simply mass-produced, almost as they were. Complicated fittings were cast down and stakes were made in large quantities. I also made something that can be used as a bouldering scaffold. I left the adhesive resin to Haruka and his team. I also made a rope ladder with wire so that it wouldn''t break in a moment. Considering the risk of being attacked by a demon, a normal rope would be dangerous. With this, it won''t break if it''s bitten a little. At least, the wire is stronger than chainmail. So, it''s been a little over two weeks since Haruka-san first brought the rice. Finally, the day of the first anniversary party arrived. 323-291 Party day (1) The day of the first anniversary party. The first to arrive were Aella and Luce. Haruka and the others were preparing the food, so it was up to me and Toya to greet them. Thank you for inviting us today. Thank you very much. We''re celebrating. Thank you for coming. I know you''re busy. I accepted the small keg offered to me, and thanked him. Is this alcohol? We don''t drink much, but some people do, so we''re grateful. Is there anything I can do to help? Well, I''m sure it''s fine, but can you go over to Haruka and the others?¡¡They''re in the kitchen. I''m in the kitchen, and Toya is working on setting up the table in the garden. I don''t want to ask them to help me, so I point to the kitchen where Haruka and the others are. They are professional cooks and caterers, right? "I understand. I''ll see you later. Excuse me. A few moments after they entered the house, the next group of craftsmen arrived: Tommy, Ganz and Simon. They also brought a barrel of alcohol. It was two sizes larger than the one Aella and the others had brought, and Tommy was carrying it as if he were carrying it. It seems that the three of us bought it together. Since there was nothing for the three of us to do, we asked them to sit and wait for a while, and continued setting up. When the food was ready, I asked Mary and Mitya to run to the orphanage. There were more than 20 children in the orphanage. It was a little ...... doubtful that that many children would be able to wait quietly, so we decided to call them when we were ready. Before Mary and the others returned, Diora arrived. If the orphanage group arrived now, all the guests would be invited. Thank you for coming today, Diora. "No, thank you for having me. I was a little surprised when I heard you were having a party for your first anniversary, but it''s good that you can afford it. Is that unusual? I''m sure the party members will have a toast in a bar, but they won''t be inviting people over like this. ...... In the first place, it is impossible for ordinary adventurers to have a house that they can invite people to in a year. Diora smiles at that. Well, that''s understandable. We are able to do this because we had enough skills when we became adventurers. Are you okay with your work?¡¡Ms. Diora, you''re the vice-chief, aren''t you? I''m fine. I need to take a break once in a while. Besides, I''ve asked Nao and the others for a lot of help, and I''ll be there to celebrate. That was ...... well, it helped us grow as well. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. This and that regarding Viscount Nenus. If I say it was troublesome, it was troublesome, but there were also many rewards. We were able to get a dungeon, we were able to get some rice, and we had to face this and that about the nobles at some point. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. If you say so, ....... Also, I have received this and would like to give it to you. It''s a formal document granting ownership of the dungeon and its surroundings. And here is my congratulations. The document was written on a rather expensive looking piece of paper, and a bottle was handed to me as if it were a complimentary gift. The bottle, from the looks of it, is probably alcohol. ...... Hmm?¡¡Bottled liquor is pretty rare, isn''t it? Not to mention, isn''t it a luxury item to think about? Oh, thank you very much. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I''m sure you high ranking folks will be able to help me out a lot? Diora''s smiling face made me feel a little scared. She''s not just the vice-chief of the Adventurer''s Guild, she''s also a very clever person. Diora, please be gentle with me, okay? "Haruka ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. I''m sure you will. Coexistence and co-prosperity is the relationship between adventurers and the adventurer''s guild. I hope so. I''m sure you''ll agree that this is a great idea. The document was then passed on to Natsuki and the others who had gathered there curiously. "Are you sure? "Yes. Yes, it''s a property right officially recognized by the king. The king has officially recognized your property rights, and you are entitled to a wide range of privileges within the land. Privileges? You can kill any commoner who enters without permission without any problem at all. Diora said something scary to Natsuki, who asked back. "...... That much? Yes. In the event that you have a lot of money, you can use it to buy a new home. If the opponent is a lower class nobleman and there is evidence that he is stealing, it is okay. Hunting in the forest is gray, but entering a dungeon without permission can be considered black. A lower class nobleman is a nobleman below the rank of baron. It''s also amazing that the commoners are allowed to be "cut off", but it seems that this "ownership" is much greater than I imagined, as it applies to the nobility as well, albeit with conditions. Well, it''s only allowed, so I wouldn''t recommend it. I''m sure you''re right. Of course, unless the person you''re dealing with is very troubled, doing such a thing will cause resentment. You don''t need to think about what will happen if you get a grudge, especially from a nobleman. You can''t spend the rest of your life in a dungeon. If Nao and the others have reason and advantage, they will move to protect Viscount Nenus, but he is a Viscount. We can''t expect that much from him. "No, we''re not going to do that, okay?¡¡We''re not. Yeah, yeah. We''re not going to kill nobles or commoners just because they break into our dungeon. We don''t have a problem with people hunting us in the meat area. I don''t like it when people pick fruits without permission, but even in that case, I will confiscate them and throw them away. In some cases, report them to the adventurer''s guild. That''s about it. But Diora looked around at us with a vague smile on her face and slowly shook her head. "Toya, most troubles are not planned, you know? "Mr. Diora, would you mind not saying anything sinister?¡¡Diora, would you mind not saying anything ominous? We''re having our ''happy new year'' party. To Yuki''s protest, Diora-san was silent for a moment and then smiled. ...... If you can call the past year peaceful, there''s no problem. Yes, "peaceful" is a bit of a misnomer. I''m not sure what to make of it. A year ago, it never occurred to me that Haruka and I would be forced to attend a nobleman''s party. ....... But we''ve managed to get through it. I don''t want to have the luxury of "peace", but I just hope that we can get through the next year without any problems. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó "Today is our first day. Thank you for coming to our first anniversary party today. Thanks to your support and encouragement, we have made it to this day. We hope you will continue to support us. Please eat and drink to your heart''s content today. When Mary and the others returned with the orphanage group, the party began. I don''t know why I''m the one greeting them today. I don''t know why I''m greeting the guests today, but I know them all, so it''s nothing to get worked up about. As soon as I finished my brief greeting, the kids started to move. They were headed for a table with a lot of food on it. As soon as they arrived at our house, they were so engrossed in the food that it was unavoidable. Haruka and the others were aware of this and separated the table from the adults so that the children could eat without hesitation, so there was no problem. Now, I''m going to eat too. What would you like to eat? ...... There is a good selection of dishes that I and Toya have requested, so I''m not sure what to look for. 324-292 Party day (2) It was Haruka who relieved me of my worries. Nao, you want some? "Oh, thank you. What Haruka offered me was a plate with several dishes already prepared. There was roast beef (made from Red Tyrant Strike Ox), hamburger steak, vegetable salad, fried eggs, and a sort of main dish, bale shaped rice balls. I had heard that the rice mill had been completed, but to tell the truth, I had never eaten rice milled by the rice mill. The first week I was out of town with Toya, and the second week I was out with Yuki, so the timing didn''t work out. That''s great, that looks like rice. "Yeah, it took some effort to make it rice-like. This time, the grains of rice were smaller than the ones we had peeled by hand before. The hulling and polishing of the rice was not too difficult, but it was the quartering of these small grains that was the hard part. As soon as I took a bite out of the rice ball, the texture of the rice grains crumbled into pieces. If you''re going to eat it as rice, it should be like this, right? Yes. If you want to eat it as dumplings or something, the size of the grains won''t affect you, though. This is Nao''s and Yuki''s work. Oh, miso soup with mushrooms. Natsuki handed me a bowl of miso soup filled with mushrooms. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "It''s miso, but it''s not the same. But now that we have rice, maybe we''ll be able to eat real miso. Can I count on ......? I''ve already had a lot of complaints about my diet with the Inspir Source, but if I can have the real thing, I''d love to. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will work for you. I guess it''s up to you, Natsuki.¡¡You know, Natsuki. Yes, I will try my best. If you can isolate the koji mold, the rest should be no problem. Miso, soy sauce... You''ve made them before? In our family, making miso and soy sauce was something that had to be passed down from mother to daughter. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version) That''s an old family. Old-fashioned customs. In my family, we used to buy miso from the supermarket. So, in the Furumiya family, miso and soy sauce are homemade? No, miso is homemade, but soy sauce is usually store-bought, though I made it once when I was taught. It''s a bit time-consuming. I heard that there used to be a soy sauce presser, but not anymore. Is that why we sometimes hear about homemade miso, but never about homemade soy sauce? Unlike miso, which can be used as it is, soy sauce takes a lot of time and effort to press, which seems to be difficult. --You have to heat it up, right? Considering that they used to sell raw soy sauce. By the way, what did you do with that one time you made it? I pressed it myself with a sarashi. I didn''t have any special tools, so I could only press it moderately, but it was very tasty. Homemade soy sauce, ......, sounds delicious. Considering the tastelessness of the soy sauce that came with the lunch box and the taste of fresh soy sauce, Natsuki was right, freshly pressed soy sauce must be delicious. Even the raw soy sauce you can buy at the supermarket is completely different. Koji is essential for Japanese food, so I''d like to cultivate it well. You can also make sake and mirin. You can make sake or mirin, but you can''t get the delicate flavor from substitutes. Natsuki''s cooking is good enough, though. Thank you very much. But I don''t want to compromise. Well, when I watch cooking shows on TV, I see that many Japanese dishes are seasoned with sake, soy sauce and mirin. If you can make it, I''d like you to make it. ...... Hmm?¡¡I''ve never heard of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. There are no regulations on sake brewing in our family. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version) What, you''re going to stop there? "Well, just so you know, legally speaking, it''s not a problem.¡¡Yes, religious sake making is allowed. It is prohibited to make sake without a license, but under certain conditions, it is not considered moonshine if it is made at a shrine. I seem to remember hearing about a relative of mine who married into a shrine before ......? Is this related? I heard that you can make sake! I don''t know how long I''ve been listening to this, but it was a dwarf who came up to me with these words. "There you are, the drinker. Can you make it, Natsuki-san?¡¡If you can make it, I''ll spare no effort to help you.¡¡Yes, I''ll spare you! Oh, oh, Tommy, calm down.¡¡Tommy, calm down. Natsuki is pulling away. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. "Oh, I''m sorry. I got a little excited. No, it''s fine. ...... I thought Tommy was enjoying his drink here. I pointed to Tommy''s mug as I said this. The drink in his mug is the one Tommy and the others brought themselves. The drinks we had prepared were mostly non-alcoholic (since we had the most underage kids), and the alcoholic ones were still unopened. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea for them to drink up what we brought as a gift, but we don''t drink much, and if they''re enjoying it, it''s okay. Yeah, well, it''s good in its own way, but ...... it''s not very sophisticated. The ale I brought this time is a bit better. It''s from a brewery that''s famous for its pining. Ah, ....... Could it be that one? The brewery that we were involved with and that Viscount Nenus now manages. It''s more affordable than you think, but the problem is that it''s hard to get hold of. I''m glad I was able to get it this time through Simon''s help. Yeah, that sounds about right. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version) 325-293 Party day (3) "Nao, have you been drinking? "No, I''m not drinking, but ......, Yuki, are you okay? As if he had been waiting for Tommy to return from drinking with Gantz and the others, Yuki came in with a bright red face. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve. I''m sorry, I brought some alcohol, Yuki said ....... "Oh, that bottle of... Did you have a weakness for alcohol, Yuki? The one who answered me was Yuki, who was waving her hands helplessly. "Huh?¡¡I''m not weak at all. I''m not asking a drunk. She nodded with a chuckle and held out the bottle she was holding. She nodded with a wry smile and held out the bottle she was holding. "It was an easy drink, and I think I drank a little too much. ...... The bottle had only about a third of the alcohol left in it. It wasn''t a bottle, but it was a bottle larger than a wine bottle. I poured a little bit of it into a glass and tried to drink it. ...... Yes, it''s very easy to drink. It has a fruity aroma, is it a fruit wine? But the alcohol content seems to be quite high. "Oh, this is a little strong. Isn''t it like sake? Natsuki nodded as she took the cup out of my hand and took a sip. Well, I shouldn''t ask why Natsuki can compare it to sake, should I? Just like he knew how to make sake. "Mr. Diora, that was a pretty good price, wasn''t it?¡¡This sake. ...... We''re celebrating, so you''ve staked out a bit of ground. Perhaps it''s a matter of brewing technology, but the ales that are commonly drunk around here have a much lower alcohol content. And we''ve never seen any spirits. Maybe it''s because we''re not really interested in alcohol. "If you drink this much, you''ll get drunk even if you''re not weak. Excuse me, we''ve just started, but I''m going to go put Yuki to bed. Oh, I''m fine. Yuki, if you don''t want to die later, just listen to me. Here we go. "Uh, yeah, okay. ...... Yuki looked unhappy because of Natsuki''s strong advice, but she obediently walked back into the house with Natsuki''s hand. I''m sorry, I should have stopped her a little earlier. ...... I guess I wasn''t as used to drinking as I thought I was. We shake our heads at Diora''s apology. You don''t need to worry about it, it''s your responsibility. We don''t drink nearly as much as we used to. We don''t drink nearly enough. - We''d rather have good food than drink. Well, I mean ......, Toya, you should stop. You know Yuki doesn''t drink much alcohol, right? I didn''t know it was alcohol. I didn''t know it was alcohol. I was just gulping it down. It''s hard to tell with the smell of alcohol all around. Well, Tommy and his friends are having a party around the keg. Well, Tommy and his friends are having a party around the barrel. But, Haruka-san. But, Haruka-san, you can heal them, can''t you?¡¡With magic? Yes, I can. And Natsuki too, by the way. Come to think of it, there''s Cure Poison, right? Alcohol is also a poison. Can you cure it with that? "Then let me cure you... "Let Yuki suffer a hangover and learn her lesson. Isn''t that what you think, Natsuki? ...... Well, that''s one way to think about it. There are many people who make mistakes with alcohol. Even if you can cure it, too much alcohol is not good for you. Besides, it''s not always possible to have Haruka or Natsuki by your side. Considering that, I guess Haruka''s idea is reasonable. --Yeah, I''ll be careful too. I''ll be careful too. Yuki was still in a good mood, but I don''t want her to get drunk in a strange way. I''ll die of embarrassment if I start crying or something in public. But, Haruka. But, Haruka-san, you don''t have to force yourself to drink, but it might be better if you could drink a little.¡¡For the future. Is that what it is? When you go to a party, there will be alcohol. When the host offers you a drink, you can''t avoid drinking it. Didn''t Nao-san and Haruka-san attend a wedding party? "You know very well. I was the chaperone of Master Ilias at that time. I didn''t drink much, just a little something to moisten my mouth. "Besides, you don''t get that chance very often. You''re an adventurer, you don''t get a chance to go to a real party. No, I don''t know, do I? "......... I''m sure you don''t, but you''re making me nervous, Diora. I''m afraid it''s a flag. I''m not sure if it''s a flag or not. In the first place, the reason why Haruka and I decided to join the party was because of Diora-san. I''m not sure if I should listen to this advice or not. What about you, Diora?¡¡What about you, Diora? Did something happen with the drinks at the party?¡¡You''re a nobleman, aren''t you? Toya''s unreserved question may have been a bit of innuendo. But Mr. Diora smiled with a perfect smile. No, not at all. I''ve never gotten drunk, have I? ......... Well, it''s true that I can''t imagine Diora getting drunk ......, but when you say it so crisply, I want to say something. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not married!¡¡I''m not sure.¡¡If I get drunk and end up like Yuki, will I want to marry her? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "No. With Haruka right in front of me, there''s no other answer I can give. "Your age?¡¡Is it because I''m too old? It''s before that!¡¡Even if she looks s*xy, I don''t want to marry her out of the blue! Is it wrong to be impatient? ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. It''s a good idea to take a look at your own personal life and the way you live it. Well, it''s good that things have calmed down. ....... But just as the fire was about to die down, some idiot poured oil on it. It was Toya. But, you know, a woman like Diora, who is too perfect, can be hard to get close to. "What?¡¡Then what about you, Haruka?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of it. No, I''m not perfect at all. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Looks!¡¡Very beautiful!¡¡Work!¡¡I can do it!¡¡Earn money!¡¡Nothing to say!¡¡Cooking!¡¡Like a pro!¡¡Isn''t she perfect? I bet you can do housework too, right?¡¡And even if you can''t, you can do it with light magic, right?¡¡I''m sure you can''t even see me! --Oh?¡¡You can''t deny it, can you? You can''t deny it, can you? As for the money and the work, let''s put that aside, but as for the other things... Yeah, yeah, I know. I''m just a half-wit. I''m only a little good at my job, I''m not half as good looking, I''m not half as good at my rank, I''m not half as good at earning money. I''m generally unattractive. ...... You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few things to do. (Hey, Toya. Follow me. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡(Didn''t I start the fire, Haruka?) You''re the one who poured the oil.¡¡In the first place, how can I or Haruka follow you?¡¡(With the content of that complaint) (...... is impossible. Definitely fuel. I''m sure you''re right. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it. Toya shrugged his shoulders lightly and walked over to Diora, patting her on the back and leading her towards the table. "Well, well, Mr. Diora. Let''s have a drink today!¡¡You''re having a hard time at work, aren''t you?¡¡I''ll listen to you complain and we''ll get it all out today!¡¡See? Diora looked up at Toya and gave her a slightly relieved look. Diora looked up at Toya and said, "You''re very kind. I wish I had met someone like you ten years ago. "Oh, I''m getting a bride with beast ears. Hey! I know you like beast ears. I know you like beast ears, but how can you say that in this situation? Oh, my God!¡¡What about me? I know you like beast ears, but how can you say that in this situation? ...... Diora, you said you don''t get drunk, but I think you''re actually drunk. 326-294 Party day (4) Leaving Diora to Toya, who had said something unnecessary, Haruka and I quietly left the place. As I was looking around to see who I should greet next... "Nao-san! Aella came running up to us. I responded to her by raising my hand. I raised my hand and replied, "Um, are you okay? You''ll be able to see Diora''s face as she looks at you with concern. "Oh, no problem, no problem. I''m sure you have a lot on your plate since you''re working so hard. Yeah. I''m sure you''ve got a lot on your plate. More importantly, Aella, I''m sorry for helping you. You''re my guest. No, no, no!¡¡I didn''t do much, just set the table. But the rice dish sounds interesting. Unfortunately, I don''t think I can serve it in my restaurant. ...... We can''t get it anywhere near here. Thank you for your help, Luce. I''m a professional caterer, I can only serve food. I''m a professional caterer. I''m grateful for the delicious food. I''m a professional at serving food. I think Luce should at least learn to cook a little. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. What do you mean "always"? A little bit. I''m not sure what to make of this. Hey. This is a small range for elves!¡¡I''m not sure if it''s because I''m an elf or not, but it''s within my personality! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Yeah, for all intents and purposes, she looks like a kid. ...... No, she''s a girl. It''s a little girl. If that''s the case, then my cooking skills are also my personality. First of all, isn''t Haruka-san''s cooking like a pro''s? I''m not even a chef. Me and Haruka-san. I''m definitely the more common one. I''m not a cook, but I''m a professional. The ingredients for the dishes, the recipes for cooking them. Considering all these factors, only a few people with enough money in their lives can make elaborate dishes. Moreover, as you can see from the many food stalls in the city, most people eat out. It''s not a delicious meal like the one at Aera''s restaurant, but just something to fill your stomach. That is the norm. It is not easy to cook good food in this world where the availability of spices and seasonings is limited. That''s why it''s not uncommon to find people who can''t cook very well. We agree with you. I thought I brought some expensive sake, but the food is too good for snacks. How much money did you spend on this? Mr. Gantz, Mr. Simon. Oh, thank you for having us. No, thank you very much. But it''s not that expensive.¡¡I''ve prepared most of the food myself. Incidentally, the most expensive dish on the menu today is the white rice. Since it is not that popular, it is mainly consumed by us former Japanese. On the other hand, meat dishes, which are generally costly, are the least expensive. We just got more meat than we can eat the other day. Adventurers are strong because they can do it. They can prepare ingredients that ordinary people can''t. No, that''s not all. Your cooking skills are as good as the professionals, no, even the professionals are not this good, as the lady there says. I''m glad to hear you say that. I''m sure Natsuki and the others will be happy to hear that. It''s true. --I heard they make good sake. Well, that''s ....... I glanced behind Simon and saw Tommy with his hands clasped together and his head bowed. Did he speak? It''s fine in itself, but you didn''t say anything about the original world, did you? I can''t say for sure if it''s good or not, but we''re going to make a brew, aren''t we? Well, well, well. And we''d like to help you with that, wouldn''t we? Yeah, me too. And in return... Drink when you can, I suppose. It would be nice to have a carpenter and a blacksmith to help me. Especially you, Simon. I''m not sure what to do. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not going to be able to provide you with too much because we have limited raw materials, but if that''s okay with you. That''s fine with me. If it''s good, we can get the ingredients ourselves. We''ve got our own contacts. Okay. We''re exporting fine furniture, aren''t we? If there''s a rice-producing area, we can ask them to bring rice when they come to pick up the furniture. Hey, Nao, what''s the new liquor? "Well, Nao, what''s the new brew?" "Well, I got some rice, so I thought I''d make something with it. While I''m making seasoning. Seasoning!¡¡I''m interested! I''m more interested in the alcohol. As expected, Aella took a bite of the seasoning and Luce took a bite of the alcohol. If it turns out well, I''ll share it with you. "Yes!¡¡"Yes, by all means! I''d love to! Next we came to Ishka''s place. When Ishka noticed us, she immediately put the items in her hands on the table and bowed deeply. Nao-san, Haruka-san, thank you for today. "No, don''t worry about it. No, don''t worry about it. Mary and the others have been very helpful lately. Even now, Mary and Mitya are eating at the table set up for the orphanage, together with the other children. They are competing with each other. They don''t have to try so hard to eat now, they can eat enough later. ...... Does it taste better when you eat with friends? It''s like camping food. The Mary''s are more than happy to help us. "Mary and her friends are more than happy to help us out. They teach the kids how to use weapons for free. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. We were actually relieved to see that Mary, who was usually so mature, sometimes showed a bit of an older side when she was with the orphanage children. Perhaps, in the future, Mary and her friends will form an adventuring party with the children of the orphanage, and get married. Give me your daughter, please. At that time, Toya will be put to the test like a stubborn father. I''d lose physically, but that doesn''t mean I can''t blow her up with magic. Ah, but there are no beastmen among the orphans, right? The two of them grew up in an environment where there were no beastmen around, so they might not care too much. ...... What do you think? I''m glad to hear you say that, but we need to settle this. I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that. Then they all bowed their heads in unison. Thank you very much! "Oh, oh, don''t worry about it. You can eat as much as you want, okay? ""Yes!" I replied, a little surprised by the neatly coordinated movements, and the children again replied in unison. I looked at Ishka, and she nodded towards the orphans. As soon as she confirmed this, the children returned to the table and resumed eating. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. ...... No, if you look closely, you''ll see Angel, Sydney and the rest of the children, as well as priests and priestesses. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. You can join the adult group, but you may be more conscious of that because you grew up in an orphanage. I''m sorry, I''m not fully grown up yet. I''m not sure if she noticed the look I gave her, but she smiled a little shyly. No, there''s nothing wrong with that, as long as you enjoy it. "I''m sorry, sir. Our food is the same as the children''s, and they are quite ......". Oh, that''s ...... The two apprentice priests, Kane and Sidney, are middle school-age eaters. If there''s meat on the table that you don''t normally eat, you''re going to eat it. My stomach would be bursting. In that environment, I''d eat too. Even if I was eating well, if I went to an all-you-can-eat barbecue restaurant, I would eat until I was in pain. I became a small eater after I became an elf, but middle and high school boys are supposed to eat as much as they want. Please eat as much as you like. If you don''t have enough, you can take some from the table over there. If you need more, you can take it from the table over there. ...... They seem to be enjoying their drinks. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of that. Except for Tommy, they can''t eat like young people. Thank you, sir. But I don''t think this table will be empty ......, do you? The subtle question is the presence of Mary and Mitya. They eat so much that you wonder where they are. "And that was it. Mary, Mitya, hey. At the sound of my voice, Mary and Mitya both looked back at me at the same time, made the same gesture, swallowed what was in their mouths in a hurry, and came running towards me. "Yes, what is it? "I''m here! She replied, her gaze never leaving the table with the food. I think I''ve eaten enough. ...... Well, let''s get on with our business. "Your armor you ordered is ready. It''s in the living room. Really? Mary and the others quickly ran into the house. They didn''t need to rush to see it, but they were happier than the ...... food. They''ve been waiting a long time. "Looks like. Is that new armor? Yeah. Mary and her friends have started to fight in earnest. While they were talking, Mary and the others came running back. This time, they were wearing white iron chainmail that glittered in the light. We thought they were coming towards us, but they ran straight to the children at the orphanage. When the children saw them, they gathered around the two of them and said, "Wow! and "Cool! and "Cool!" as they clapped their chainmail. And the two of them are proudly showing off their chest. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one.¡¡It''s not worth it, is it? I''m sure you''ll find a lot of people who''d like to know more about it. It''s expensive, but it''s within our means. In fact, there was a debate between us as to whether to use white iron or attribute steel for the material of their chainmail. If you want to be safe, you can order attribute steel chainmail, but if you put the value of Mary and her team''s work into monetary terms, even white iron chainmail is out of reach. There is nothing wrong with us paying for it, but since there is no better equipment available at present, some of us felt that it would be a shame to lose the "joy of acquiring better equipment through our own efforts". And there is a part of me that agrees with that opinion. After all, we were happy when we got new equipment, and it motivated us to work. Of course, there was the question of whether we should weigh that against safety, but in the end we decided to go with the white iron equipment because of Toya''s manly statement, "If it''s not safe, I''ll take care of it myself. I was rather surprised that the kids didn''t seem to be jealous of them. ...... They know that there is no point in comparing themselves to others. They are grateful for what they have right now. That''s all. "......... For the first time in a long time, Haruka and I were silenced by a comment that reminded us that Ishka-san was a priest. It is true that being an orphan and being jealous of those who are better off than you is like living in constant envy of others. That''s not a good thing, but it''s hard to do in practice. But in fact, the orphans and Mary and the others have become friends, and I wonder if that''s part of Ishka''s skill. It must be difficult to educate children. ....... And it''s definitely having a positive effect on Mary and the others. Haruka and I looked at each other and thanked our lucky stars that we had met Ishka. 327-295 Aise Below The party started in the early afternoon and ended when the sun went down. The children who had eaten so much, as if they were children who had not eaten enough, must have been full after half a day of eating. There were still some dishes on the table, but by the end of the day, there were hardly any children left to eat. Ishka said with a smile, "Now I have enough for two meals," so it seems that she really did not eat lunch. So I gave her the rest of the food and asked her to leave. The three craftsmen drank all the sake they had prepared and went home with a steady gait, but Diora said she wasn''t drunk, but she was still suspicious, so I sent her back with Toya. Me, Haruka, and Natsuki cleaned up the mess. Mary and Mitya also offered to help, but they seemed to be too excited or sleepy, so I told them to go to bed and sent them back to their rooms. In fact, it didn''t take much effort to clean up. All the food that could be eaten had been pushed to Ishka, and once the leftovers were thrown into the compost, all that was left was for Haruka and Natsuki to use the Purify. There was no need to wash the dishes. Just clear the table and the dishes and you''re done. And when the work was mostly done, I called out to Haruka. --Can you give me some time tonight? The sun was setting. When the sun had completely set. I was standing in front of the door, waiting for Haruka. Under the moonlight, I breathed in the cool night air and took a deep breath. Eventually, the front door opened quietly. Haruka came out of the door and stood next to me. "Did I keep you waiting? "No. No, I was just watching the sky. There are no clouds in the sky, and the near-full moon is casting its light quietly. The stars that I''ve grown accustomed to seeing over the past year are shining, but they''re hidden by the bright moonlight. The moon, it''s beautiful. "...... What?¡¡"What? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time with us. I also smiled back at her. "Huh, no. That''s just what I thought. "Not the moon, technically. Yeah, it is. And there are two of them. Yes, in fact, our world has a moon - two moons, to be exact. However, the two satellites are never visible at the same time, and they are almost the same in appearance and size, so I didn''t notice them until I was told. I did not notice them until I was taught. But I never thought that they were really different satellites, because I had experienced the same thing with the moon on the earth: "Today''s moon looks bigger. Today''s moon is the bigger one, so it''s brighter. "A little bit. But I feel grateful for that today. --Thanks to it, I can see Haruka''s beautiful face. Haruka''s blue eyes twinkled a little unexpectedly in the moonlight. What''s wrong with you?¡¡What''s wrong? I''m in the mood.¡¡I''m in the mood. Yes, I am. Well, I''m a woman too, so who''s to say I''m not happy? Standing with her shoulder to me, Haruka also looked up at the sky next to me. It''s been a year since we came here. Yes, it has. Well, we had a party today to celebrate that. So I thought it would be a good time. "...... for what? Before Haruka looks up at me curiously, I hold out a small wooden box and open the lid. There were two rings lined up inside. Haruka gasped when she saw the rings shining quietly in the moonlight. "...... is this an engagement ring, is that correct? I''m not sure. It''s not possible at the moment, but when things settle down and you''re able to live a more relaxed life, will you marry ...... me? "Yes, it''s fine. It took a lot of courage for me to push out the words, but Haruka simply replied. I forgot my words for a while as she replied without the slightest hesitation. ...... You answered so easily. "Oh, should I have bothered? "No, I don''t like it when people delay, but ...... my decision was, you know? I''ve been thinking about this a lot. Should I say it now? What should I say? In what situation should I say it? That''s why I was kind of disappointed when Haruka answered so normally. Perhaps understanding my feelings, Haruka smiled kindly. To be honest, I''ve been wanting to do that ever since I was in Japan. Is that right, ......? You didn''t know that?¡¡--No, you didn''t, did you? Well, yeah. ...... In fact, Toya has been his childhood friend since about the same time, but Haruka has never done anything like that. If I were to say ''I didn''t realize it,'' I''d be a better hero than the hard-of-hearing ones. But I would have liked to have heard a more romantic proposal. That''s not something you can expect from me. Yeah, I know. I don''t mind being unpretentious, you know? Well, thanks for the ....... Thank you for understanding me. I hadn''t thought about it at all, but I thought it would be better to say it honestly than to try to fix it and fail. That''s how much time we''ve spent together. "Well, since we''re here, will you set me up, Nao? "Okay. I picked up the ring and gently placed it on the ring finger of the left hand that Haruka held out to me. It''s a good idea to have a ring that fits your finger. "Oh, it''s not ...... perfect, is it? Is this Yuki? "Oh. I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. She said it would be nice if I could give it to you today. If it was originally planned, the ring itself would have been made a little later, but without my knowledge, Yuki rushed the craftsman to shorten the delivery date. On top of that, he did his best to add "adjustments" and now this ring is ready. Although Yuki is a bit of a trapper, I can''t deny that he''s been a great help to me in many ways, and I can''t help but hate him. I''ll set Nao up myself then. Haruka took the other ring and put it on my finger. She grasped my left hand and her left hand as if they were overlapping, and smiled happily when she saw the rings lined up. He smiled happily at the sight of the rings together. They''re matching. It''s a pair of rings. I''m not sure what to do with it. "Mmm, would you like to hear a few more nice words? "You don''t mind me being unpretentious, do you? It''s okay. You don''t mind me being unpretentious, do you? "Don''t worry. I like Nao when she''s on display." Haruka looked into my face as if expecting something. You will find a lot of people who are looking for the best way to get the most out of their life. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I hope that it will not lose its shine until the end of our lives, if that is possible. ...... Too cool. But I''m glad. It''s going to be a long time, okay? Yeah. Nice to meet you. I looked at Haruka, and then... Ahh!¡¡Sweet and sour, man! As if to break the ice between us, a voice rang out. When Haruka and I turned our gazes towards it at the same time, we saw Yuki standing in front of the doorway, looking up at the sky with her hand on her forehead. And behind him, Natsuki is peeking out from behind the door, looking apologetic. Yuki, Yuki!¡¡I thought you were asleep! "Yes, yes, I was asleep!¡¡I was asleep!¡¡I was half asleep!¡¡I was going to sleep until morning! Then I wish you had stayed asleep! Then I wanted you to stay asleep! Or I wanted you to close your eyes and fade out! I''ll meditate on you if you''re peeping at me! But if I woke up, you''d have to come and see!¡¡I know!¡¡Of course!¡¡Natsuki! "No, no, I was invited by Yuki to ........ I was not aware of it in the first place,....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get there. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Yuki knows, doesn''t she? It''s almost as if Yuki set it up. I didn''t really want to see it!¡¡"I didn''t really want to see it, but I''m awake now!¡¡I''m curious! --"I didn''t really want to see it, but it woke me up! Maybe that''s why you''ve been drinking so much, so that you can sleep through the night without seeing me and Haruka together. But if that''s the case, you should have done it towards the end of the party. If you think about our various abilities, such as [Robustness], even if we drink too much during the day, we''ll recover at night. I''m so jealous!¡¡I swear to protect you." I want to be told that too!¡¡Right! You''re not just peeking, you''re listening! I did!¡¡Of course I did!¡¡If I had my phone with me, I''d take a picture of it for sure!¡¡It''s a permanent record!¡¡We''ll show it on the big screen with effects at the wedding. Ya-me-lo! I''ve never been more thankful that Yuki doesn''t have a phone in her hand. And for not having a similar tool. I''m afraid to say it''s impossible because of alchemy. At least write down what Nao just said... "Yuki? I''m not sure what to say, but I''ll try. I think this was one of the most important moments of my life, you know? Haruka smiles very quietly and takes a step towards Yuki. "Oh, my?¡¡I''m not sure.¡¡You''re actually quite angry? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. So, if there is a running lantern at the end of your life, it will always be picked up. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Well, maybe the peeking was a bit much, but the barging in was a bit much, wasn''t it? Nao is too shy to say anything direct. "Was it wrong to peek at ......? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m not sure if I should apologize or not.¡¡I''m ready to apologize.¡¡I''m a person who can reflect on my actions. Haruka stands in front of Yuki, who is hunched over, and with a smile on her face, but with a cold expression on her face, she grabs both of Yuki''s shoulders tightly. "Well, do you think I won''t be angry? For Yuki''s honor, I won''t tell you what happened next. As I clasped my hands to Yuki''s, a smiling Natsuki avoided Haruka and the others, came toward me, and bowed. I''m sorry, I peeked. "Oh, it was a little embarrassing, but ...... that''s all. Don''t worry about it. It was Yuki who ruined it. But you set up the whole thing, didn''t you? That''s right. He''s been helping me a lot. ...... Honestly, it''s hard for me to be angry. The reason I was able to give you the ring today, and the reason I was able to fit it on your finger, was because of Yuki. It was Yuki who pushed me to do it. When I think about it, ....... I''m sure he couldn''t resist. ...... You''re loved, Nao. "Fortunately, ....... I am, too. ...... Hmm? ...... No, not now. I''m going to go back first. I''ll leave Yuki and Haruka to you. ...... I don''t want to be left in charge. "Everything is an experience. It''s for the future. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. 328-296 Climbing, again. The day after the party, we went to the canyon where Yuki and I had mined the Revlite ore to practice rock climbing. On the way, we replenished the mushrooms we had consumed yesterday. There are many mushrooms that can only be found at this time of year. It took a while, but there was no way I could ignore it, and Mary and Mitya were happy, so no problem. So we actually arrived at the canyon the morning after the party. This time, in addition to the tools we used last time, we had rope ladders and stakes. However, it seems that the equipment that was broken at the time has been rejected in favor of safety and reliability. So this is where Nao and the others used last time. I think I can climb it without using the rope, don''t you? "Yes, here. But the goal is to get used to using the tools. We can''t just do it in a dangerous place, can we? If you can overcome the fear of falling, you can climb the rock walls around here without using any equipment. But it''s risky to climb without a lifeline, just in case. I see, this is a practice stage. That''s it. Now, Toya, can you hook a rope to the top of the wall? Where''s ......? Over there. He looks up at my pointing finger, squinting, and then looks back at me with a serious look on his face. "Free climbing up there?¡¡That''s pretty high, right?¡¡If I fall, I''ll die, right? Yeah, I''d die no problem. The ground is solid rock. ......... No, Toya said I could climb without a rope. He looked at me very accusingly, so I made an excuse. It''s not always possible to perform the same act in the same way in a dangerous place as in a safe place, you know? If there is a person who can walk on a 50-centimeter-tall averaging platform and a 50-meter-tall averaging platform in the same way, he or she is a very bad person. The mental aspect. "Don''t joke about it, Nao, just go. You don''t have to do anything dangerous for nothing. That''s right. If Toya were to fall, you wouldn''t be able to catch him, you know. Well, with Toya''s size, ....... Oh, maybe you can spin in the air and land on your feet? I''m not a cat.¡¡No, I''m not a cat! ...... Although it''s not impossible. You can do that? And speaking of cats, Mary and Mitya. And speaking of cats, Mary and Mitya, could they possibly be ......? I''m not sure.¡¡What is it, Nao? Nao, what? No, it''s nothing. I can''t tell you to try it. Okay, I''m off. With the harness and rope firmly in place, I secured the rope to the top bracket, using the middle bracket as well. I also made sure it hadn''t been damaged in the past few days. I made a hole in the ground a little farther away from the fittings, injected some glue, drove in a stake, and fixed the rope there too. This is insurance. If the fittings break, we hope this will hold up. Once again, I made sure that both were in place, and I slid down the rock face. "Okay, okay. Who wants to go first? I''ll go first. Why don''t you make another place where you can practice? Yeah, one place is not efficient. Can you do that? Okay. I''ll build something a little further away, a little higher. "Well, I''ll support you then. We did it last time as a pair. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. She looked around at Toya and Natsuki and nodded with a sigh, "Considering Toya''s weight, I think Natsuki and I should stay. Yes, Yuki, Mary, and Mitya can lift Toya if her weight is accelerated by gravity. I understand. Be careful. Yeah, I got it!¡¡I''m serious when it comes to this stuff! Yuki smiled and clapped her hands on her chest. Yuki smiled and clapped her hands on her chest, "But I wish you were serious the night of the party. The other place I made to practice was at the end of the day. The other practice area we made was about twice as high as the first one. It is almost near the top of the canyon. About halfway up, it was similar to the first place, but after that, the slope became steeper and steeper, and the last quarter was completely vertical. There are few clues, and it''s almost impossible to climb without driving stakes into the ground. At least not for us now. Incidentally, we have prepared some bouldering holds that I suggested, but this time we''re just going to practice attaching them, not actually use them. The goal is not to climb, but to learn the technique. Two of us will climb, and the rest will support. We kept practicing like this, and by the end of the first day, all of us were able to climb without any problems, probably because of our high physical abilities. --Except Yuki. After all, they were expecting me to grow some skills. When Yuki didn''t practice, Mary and Mitya asked her very honestly, "Why don''t you practice? Yuki''s reply was, "I can climb without any problem! I can climb without any problem! You may be able to learn relatively quickly after copying, but you''re still not very good at it at first. Do you understand that? ...... Well, shame on you when you get there. You''re going to have it easy, so that''s acceptable, right? On the second day, we''ll move the practice to a more rugged location. The wall was vertical from the start, with a slight overhang at the end. I was the most experienced member of the party, so I climbed up first and secured the wall with stakes. I wondered what would happen on the overhangs, but ...... it turned out to be quite manageable. I can''t support myself with just one finger, but I shudder at my physical ability, which is fine as long as I have three fingers on each hand. This is absolutely because muscle strength, muscle mass, and weight are not proportional. To put it simply, "Magic power is amazing! That''s what I''m talking about. So, when I was able to free-climb an overhanging wall (with a lifeline, of course), I finally got [Climbing Lv.1] added to my status. ...... No, the standard for level 1 is too high, isn''t it? You can''t rely on the equipment? It''s a good thing I got it, though. Now. (Yuki, you got it, skill.) "Really?¡¡Can I have a copy? Yeah. But after all this practice... Hey!¡¡Nao and I are going to retrieve the Revlite ore, so you guys can keep practicing here! Whoa, that was Yuki. That''s not fair. That''s how you do it. Well, everyone but Mary and Mitya knew that... "...... Yeah. Be careful, okay? "Yeah. I''m sure it won''t take long. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. But not at the first place where they mined, but at twice the height. We should give him a little thrill. We''re going to do some rock climbing, right? "Have you tied the lifeline securely?¡¡Now let''s try to climb to the top without using any ropes or fittings. ...... What, all of a sudden? Don''t worry, don''t worry. I''ll follow you if you fall. Are you sure you want to do this?¡¡I don''t want you to think it''ll be more fun or thrilling if you fall for a little longer, okay? ...... Oh. Sure. By ''sure'' you mean you''ll pull me in right away, right?¡¡You can trust me, right? I was going to hold the rope just a little bit longer so that it wouldn''t fall all the way down to the bottom. ...... Well, Yuki is getting teary eyed, so I''ll stop. I''ll do it right. Go ahead and climb. "Please!¡¡Really!¡¡I''m not afraid of heights like Nao and Haruka! I''m not afraid of heights either, except in trees. It''s funny, because I''ve climbed many times higher than this cliff in the Dingle tree. "It''s okay. Come on! Ugh, I don''t know if I believe you. Don''t worry. Don''t worry. I can trust at least as much as the vow you made to Haruka the other day to never peek again. I don''t believe that at all! You''re right!¡¡...... No, well, I''ll do it right. Come on, come on! With my back to her, Yuki glanced back at me and headed for the rock wall. Then, she climbs up the wall, following my advice to keep her hands off the fittings. I pull the rope to keep up with his speed, and adjust it so that it doesn''t slacken. If you slip and fall, it''s a real heart attack. I know you''re okay. "Are you okay? Yeah, it''s about the same around here as before. You climbed up there when you were mining the lebrite ore, right? The problem is when it becomes vertical. From there, Yuki slows down and climbs very carefully, looking for clues and footholds. He''s still a little awkward, but perhaps because he''s been watching us climb for so long, he''s been able to find the right spot and not make any mistakes. ...... No, I don''t want him to fail. It''s not that I want you to fail, but I don''t want you to experience being suspended in midair a few dozen meters above the ground. I don''t want you to share my heart pounding experience. But when you experience the same thing, it gives you a sense of solidarity, doesn''t it? "A little more, a little more ...... I can faintly hear Yuki''s voice. And just like she said, we are almost to the place where the rope is fixed. "...... good!¡¡Nao~, we''re here! "Crap! --Congratulations. Now go straight down. The way down is more difficult. Yuki looks back at you and waves, and you give her the next task. I''m very scared of free-climbing downhill, but I''ll do my best. Yuki begins to descend immediately, and this time I loosen the rope. It''s very difficult to descend without using a rope when you can''t see your feet. ...... You never fail, right? I''m sure you''ve already got the skills for this. I''m not sure. Here we are!¡¡You did it!¡¡You didn''t fall! Hey. That''s not heartfelt! Yuki puffs out her cheeks at my throwaway congratulations, but what can you do? I had a lot of trouble with it, but ...... it''s still subtly unreasonable. So, did you activate your skills? I''m sure you''re right. ...... Yeah. I do. Thank you, Nao. You''re welcome. You''re welcome. I''ll take that as a good use of my time. Haha. ...... Sorry, okay? I shrug my shoulders and chuckle at Yuki, who clasps her hands together with one eye. I''ll forgive you for your cuteness. It''s okay. --Now, how are Haruka and the others doing?¡¡Have they got the skills by now? Yeah, I think so. Let''s go back. When I returned to Haruka and the others, I found that they had all successfully acquired [Climbing Lv.1]. When we left here, I had said that free climbing might be a good idea, and by actually focusing on it, it seemed to have shown up as a skill relatively quickly. Unfortunately, I can''t see Mary and Mitya''s status, but they seem to be able to climb up and down at the same level as Haruka and the others, so they should be fine. So for now, we''ve achieved our goal. I''m not sure what to make of that. No. I still have to practice using the rope ladder. What?¡¡What''s a rope ladder, you need to practice? Nao, have you ever used one? I don''t have a ....... But it''s a ladder. It''s a lot easier than going up and down with just a rope. It''s not like a normal ladder, a rope ladder. It''s not like a normal ladder. ...... Now that you mention it, it sounds like you need some practice, doesn''t it? You have a point. It is not advisable to think easily without experiencing anything. So, I climbed up to the top of the canyon and hung the rope ladder from there. The rope ladder was quite long and reached the bottom properly, and it was made of wire, so there was no problem in terms of strength, but ...... it was quite difficult to use. It''s fine at first, but as you go down, the swinging gets louder and louder, and unlike a normal ladder, you can''t just grab the bars on either side and go down quickly. Moreover, if you hang it too close to the wall, you will hit the wall when you hang your arms and legs. To be honest, when it comes to descending, it may be faster to use a rope. However, the rope ladder was more convenient for climbing, so we kept going up and down the rope ladder until we all got used to it. 329-297 Bonuses The next day after returning home with the [Climbing] skill, we decided to take a rest day to prepare for the dungeon exploration that would begin tomorrow. Since it was a rest day, the four of us, except for Toya, Mary, and Mitya, lounged around in the living room, literally resting. Mary and Mitya went to the orphanage to play, and Toya went along with them. Earlier, Natsuki had also been in the pharmacy lab, preparing the mold from the ingredients he had prepared before he went to the climbing training, but now he was resting. Of course, the molds were not just molds, but mold fungus. He is going to pick up several kinds of molds and cultivate them in a petri dish (made by my soil magic company) to see if they can actually break down starch into sugar. Of course, they didn''t just collect molds in the dark, but they tried to isolate the molds before conducting the experiment, and the way to confirm the results is to actually eat them, which is quite challenging. According to Natsuki, "I have poison resistance, so I''ll be fine. ...... Hmm... Well, with Natsuki, Haruka, and a specialist in healing, I guess I''ll be fine. But it''s been a while since I''ve relaxed in the living room like this in the middle of the day. It''s been a while since I''ve relaxed in my living room like this, but I''ve been so busy lately with party preparations and rock climbing gear. Also, preparing Nao and Haruka''s pairing. And preparing Nao and Haruka''s pairing... It was a lot of work, you know?¡¡I had to rush the craftsman, practice the ''adjustment'', and make it work in the real thing. "Yes, yes, thank you. It would have been a great job if you had just faded away quietly. Yeah, that was a mistake. Yeah, that was a mistake. You should have just kept it in your mind and used it later. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. "...... You''re not feeling sorry enough, are you? It''s a joke!¡¡I''m just kidding!¡¡It''s ...... true!¡¡I''m not sure what to do.¡¡It''s scary, isn''t it, alcohol? Don''t drink and not be drunk!¡¡I know! In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, we''ll be happy to assist you. He turned his gaze to the door and saw Toya standing there. The first thing he said was. I got a heavy bonus from Lord Adversus. At those words, we all immediately looked at each other, understood the situation, and let out a sigh of relief. Toya, perhaps unhappy with our behavior, looked a little disgruntled. "No, I''m sure you''re aware.¡¡I''m the last one. I wouldn''t have told you otherwise. Well, that''s true. There''s no way I''m going to tell you without thinking about it. It''s just that Mary and Mitya aren''t here either. Those two seem to be visiting the orphanage quite often in their spare time. They seem to be getting along well with the orphans, probably because they are in the same age group. If they''re having a good time, it''s worth it for us to take them in. That means we all got a heavy bonus. "We''ve been donating a good amount of money, we... We''ve been donating a fair amount of money.¡¡I got [lucky! I was lucky. "I got [good health]. I got a boost. I''m fluffy. "Fuzzy"?¡¡It''s a benefit I''m slightly curious about. ...... Where''s Haruka? In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one of these, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of them. I''m ...... ah, [safe delivery]. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. This is a great way to make sure that you get the most out of your investment. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what you mean by "fusa fusa".¡¡It''s fluffy enough, like your ears and tail. Does it make your cuticles look good? "No, you said it prevents baldness. Baldness ...... prevention ......? Does that ...... matter a bit? A balding beastman can be ...... pretty sad if it''s just the head, or if the hair on the ears and tail is gone... I''m sure you''ve heard of it. It''s not often, but it''s not zero, apparently. Just the head, though. Just the head. ...... I see. Well, it''s possible for some humans to have a smooth head and a full beard. I''m not sure why people go bald on their heads in the first place. If it were a beard or something, it would have less effect. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Considering the fact that many people used to shave their heads, ...... Japanese people are too easily influenced. A ring that costs three months salary, a diamond that shines forever, chocolates on Valentine''s Day. It''s all for the convenience of the seller. ...... As someone who gave Haruka a ring worth more than three months salary, I have to say. I''m more concerned about Nao. What''s that, [Lucky! Lucky. It''s the same thing. It''s supposed to make you lucky. Subtly. Subtle? Subtly. Advaistris says it''s as lucky as getting an arrow in the knee and having it slide into the thigh. All of us have an indescribable expression on our faces at the effect. It''s not great, but it''s not meaningless either. It''s subtle. "...... is really subtle. I hope you''re lucky enough to at least miss the arrow. "Yes. Then we''ll never even know if we''re lucky. ...... You''ve been hit by an arrow. ...... Really! It''s been a good number of days since I received it, but I don''t even know if this benefit has ever worked. I dare say I''m lucky to have ended up with Haruka in one piece. ...... No, if things had gone in the right order, we would have ended up together, right?¡¡Maybe. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. The name itself is . I don''t know how it works. All of them are not bad, but this one is a little more subtle. Yes, it''s like a talisman from a shrine. That''s a good point. Especially for good health and safe delivery. If you add traffic safety to it, it''s a standard shrine charm. How does it work?¡¡Natsuki''s skill set is such that she never gets sick. I think it worked a little bit for me, don''t you?¡¡But I''m still training as usual. I think I just got stronger. And no comment on Haruka. It''s a little sensitive. It''s a little sensitive. "Hmm, is it just me or does it feel artificial that it''s this bad? It seems like the probabilities are being manipulated, isn''t it? I''m not sure if it''s just me, but I think it''s a good idea.¡¡...... Well, that''s not why I donated in the first place, so it''s fine. It''s a good idea, but it''s a little frustrating. For your information, Yuki also chose darts. As for the others, Natsuki was playing the string fishing lottery, Toya was playing the slots, and Haruka was playing the rattles. They were more scattered than expected. ....... I''m not sure how you chose to play darts, Haruka.¡¡I''ve been told I''m scary. "Are you talking about subtle skills?"¡¡Hmm, I guess I wasn''t too worried about that.¡¡I didn''t ask for it, but Adversus prepared it from the beginning, and maybe it didn''t have any mine skills in it.¡¡For example, you see, the benefit I received, even if Nao received it, it would be "subtle", right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. It''s true that it''s meaningless for a man to receive it. In fact, I don''t want it to be meaningful. If the other person is going to be ...... like that, then I guess it has some meaning. And then there''s ...... anyone who has gotten any information from God? No, not at all. He just said "Hmmm..." and didn''t tell me anything. Me neither. He said, "You don''t have the authority to access that information. I''m not going to tell you anything about it. Either way, you''re not going to teach me. From the benefits we''ve received, I''m guessing you don''t intend to have much of an impact on the world. Those weird benefits in the slots were just a joke. "God punishes people who use his name to do bad things. And as far as I can tell, there are no other cases. For example, there are countries where beastmen are oppressed, where slavery is allowed, and even in this country, there are areas where the weak are oppressed, such as the Barony of Dyas. But I have never heard of God doing anything about it. It seems to me that God is a bit strict about embezzlement of offerings, but I guess the line is drawn between using his name and not using his name. If a country starts saying, "Slavery is allowed by God! If a country starts to say, "Slavery is allowed by God!", it will be punished by God in a big way. ....... If a country starts saying, "God allows slaves! God is not only Adversus. There may be evil gods, and even Adversus is not necessarily a good god. "He calls himself an ''evil god''. He''s a self-proclaimed "evil god." ...... In moderation, though, he said to me, "See you later. Is that so?¡¡I don''t think he said ...... that to me. ''I wonder if I''ll get some subtle benefit from you again?¡¡It''s a bit of a bargain, and I don''t mind it. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. I''m not sure what to make of that. I know it''s hard to say with all the healing magic out there, but... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to do this.¡¡Then there''s the "heavy pay" and then ...... the "continuous login" bonus? That''s impossible for us!¡¡It''s impossible for us to go to the temple every day when we''re working. I know. I don''t know much about that kind of stuff, what else is there? "There are events on anniversaries, anniversaries, collaborations, friend referrals, etc. ...... To my question, Toya twisted his head and gave me a few examples: ....... I''m sure you''ll have a lot of questions. ...... What do you mean, "collaborate"? With other gods? "Refer-a-friend" is a total religious inducement. You don''t have to think about how many anniversaries you''re going to have, but what about the anniversary of ...... Adverstice''s birthday? "Like Christmas?¡¡But does God have a birthday? None of these seem to work. Except for the anniversary. And on the first anniversary of the transition, there was nothing. "I guess I shouldn''t think about doing something for ....... It seems useless. "Right. Besides, Adversus seems to be cynical, and if we dare, he''ll exclude us, right? I guess so. Well, if we get something, we''ll just consider ourselves lucky and leave it at that. It''s all God''s whim. We decided to act without thinking too much, and that was the end of it. 330-298 21st layer (1) Now that we were ready, we decided to start the second layer, but before that, Simon gave us a part-time job. He said, "It doesn''t have to be much, but can you supply me with some wood? He asked. Thanks to our efforts last year, the shortage of Raffan wood has been alleviated and the purchase price seems to have settled down, but if the supply of new wood stops this winter, the price might go up again. If it''s just about our profit, it''s better to go cut the wood when the price rises again than to supply it now when the price has settled down. ...... Simon''s request. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I believe that the lumberjacks are able to separate themselves from the trees they cut in the southern forest in terms of price range, but if we are the only ones who make a lot of money while cutting the same trees, we can''t help but be envied. However, I think they understand the difference in ability between us and them, and they don''t do anything to us directly. ...... The more allies you have, the better. This is why we decided to release a certain amount of wood. Even adventurers chop down trees, don''t they? "We haven''t done that since Mary and the others joined. Not many adventurers go directly to cut down trees, but here in Rafan, it''s more of a job to guard the woodcutters. Mary looked a little surprised when she saw us chopping down the trees, so I told her about the current situation in this town. I''ll tell you what''s going on in this town, except for the people who go into the dungeon like us. But it seems that Mary and the others knew that, and Mitya nodded deeply. I know!¡¡That''s what the kids at the orphanage told me! Yes. Yes. They said they would guard us, but they would never cut down trees. It would be difficult for ordinary adventurers to cut down trees in the southern forest. In our case, we sell directly to the craftsmen. It would be difficult without a tradition. We wouldn''t have been able to sell ordinary wood in the first place. And by the way, it''s not easy to take home. So we''re a bit of an exception. We''re a bit of an exception.¡¡It''s gobbledygook, gobbledygook! Yuki laughs and says something like that, and moves his hands. "Hey, what''s that move? "Hmm?¡¡"Hey, what''s that move?" "Hmm?" "Is that a gold coin jingling pose? No, you can get that much, but don''t ...... tell Mary and the others anything weird. Mary and Mitya are nodding their heads in admiration. By the way, how much do you get for one of these trees? Hmmm, the price has dropped, but it could be worth 200 gold coins ......? Two hundred!¡¡That''s amazing! That''s a lot of power! Both of them are gripping the axe tightly in their hands. Oh, it''s good to put in the effort, but don''t get hurt, okay? It''s difficult to chop down a tree, so I''m asking them to help me chop down the branches, but it''s dangerous if they overexert themselves and hurt their feet. I can''t help but feel sorry for him. The price has dropped to about half of what it was at first, but we have grown in the past year. The speed of cutting down the trees has also increased, so in terms of earning per hour, there is probably not much difference. Well, we plan to finish in about a week this year. "What?¡¡Why?¡¡Why, when you can make so much money? Because there is no one who will buy it even if you cut it that much. If you want to sell it at a lower price, you can, but then you''ll have a lot of problems. "Problems? Mitya tilted his head curiously, but Natsuki nodded and explained. If there is not a significant price difference between ordinary wood and famous wood, ordinary lumberjacks will be in trouble because they will not be able to sell their wood. At the current price, no one would ever think of using the famous wood when the ordinary wood is sufficient. However, if the difference in price is two or three times as great, there is no guarantee that there will not be people who want to splurge a little and use the best wood. It depends on the product, but the ratio of the price of materials to the price of the product is not necessarily high, so even if the price of wood doubles, the price of the product will not double. In other words, we would not be able to make any money and we would be in complete conflict with the lumberjacks. The artisans would not welcome it, either, because the rare value of the wood would disappear. There is no point in choosing an option that will not make anyone happy. "Well, I''m sure we can make a killing in a week. Mary, Mitya, let''s get to work! "Yes! "Yes! With a week to spare in our pockets, we went to the dungeon with a little more preparation. These preparations included the construction of a gate, a fence, or something like that. The purpose was to enclose the square in front of the dungeon, and to make a firm claim to the property. It is also a preparation for a building that will be built in front of the dungeon. The idea is to build a gate at the entrance of the dungeon and fence off the square, hopefully stopping demons from entering at least for a while, but ...... I don''t think a simple fence will be enough to stop demons around here if they want to... .... If you''re going to build a full-fledged building, you might want to work hard with your wizard team and build some earthen walls. I''m sure you''re not going to be able to just walk in unnoticed if you''ve gone this far. That''s true. But what kind of adventurer would come this far? At least, it''s unlikely for any adventurer in Raffan. Are you still going to do it? Mary twisted her head curiously as she heard Haruka''s answer. But there are reasons other than the feeling of "I''ve been given this, so I want to claim ownership of it somehow! But it''s not that I don''t have a reason other than the feeling of ''I''ve been given this, so I want to claim ownership for some reason! "It''s a bit tricky to say whether we need it or not, but there''s no guarantee that high-ranked adventurers won''t come from another town. What we''re concerned about is the milk from the Red Strike Ox that we gave to Baron Diaz. It seems that the milk is in demand by some of the nobility, and its value is more than its actual trade price. The fact that Viscount Nenus, who was in a rather depressed state, prepared such an item would provide a certain amount of buzz in the aristocratic society. And if the aristocracy is so inclined to look into it, it is not so difficult to trace the source. Especially since Haruka and I were also present at that party. Diora also warned me about this. So, it would be nice if you could send us a request for collection. ...... We don''t want people to think it''s easy to collect things and then break in without permission. Especially if they send a high ranking adventurer. Even if they say we can fight them off freely because it''s our property, it''s meaningless if we don''t have the ability to do so. Even if we were killed, no one would know about it. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Kill us all, and you''ve got a high probability of the perfect crime. Of course, it''s unthinkable for us to do such a thing with a little milk from Red Strike Ox, but we live in a world where you can kill a man for a loaf of bread. That''s scary. ...... I''m sure you guys will be fine! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s nice that you trust us, but we''re not that strong. So we''re taking precautions, in case we have to kill you by surprise. "If you ignore this and come in, you can''t complain about being killed, right? And. "Well, that''s groundless. There''s no reason for an adventurer who can get this far to Red Strike Ox to do that. As you can see, we''re capable of making enough money without taking such a risk. But that''s only if you think about it normally. I can''t say for sure that there are any noble family ties or anything like that. But I''m not going to tell Mary and the others about that. It''ll only scare them, and it won''t do much good. "Well, that''s it. Let''s go in. We''re here for two layers. Right. We''ve got a fair amount of other stuff left in stock, so let''s get a move on. Yes. We''ll have to rely on Nao-kun and Yuki, though. That''s what we do, right? Let''s go then. After a short break, we entered the dungeon, and after repeated transitions and breaks, we arrived at the end of the boss room on the 20th level. We descended the long stairs to the second level. And then we see it, a huge waterfall. ...... It''s still a hell of a sight. If it were on Earth, it would be a natural heritage site, for sure. Yeah, ......, but we''re not here for sightseeing today. We have to go on. I don''t think we can camp here. You''re right. You can''t really sleep here. ...... Not to mention the noise, the constant spray of water, and the wind. There are comfortable tents, but it doesn''t matter to the people on guard, and no matter how [strong] they are, if they''re wet and blowing in the wind for hours, they''ll catch a cold. "Let''s bury the transition point here first. In case we don''t make it up the cliff. Right. That''s a good idea. So we dig a hole at the bottom of the stairs. Place a transfer point and backfill. Works fine at ....... --Hmm?¡¡Hey, Yuki. Can you detect the 20th level transfer point? What?¡¡It''s right above us. - What?¡¡No. Is it broken? No, I don''t think so. It''s the newest one. What''s more, we can''t even detect the transfer point at the 19th layer. Even if the transfer point in layer 20 is broken, it should still be able to be detected, because the detection distance has increased significantly. ...... Yes, under normal circumstances. 331-299 21-layer (2) It''s obviously the fault of this hierarchy. Haruka said, looking around at the magnificent scenery, and Toya nodded in agreement. That''s right. The stairs were very long, and the height of the sky ......, or was the sky the same for 20 layers? Yeah. I couldn''t see the ceiling, but it wasn''t that high from the distance I could detect the transition point. The length of the staircase itself isn''t far enough to make it imperceptible, but is ...... space distorted? It''s possible. In the first place, the dungeon itself is not normally under the ground. Just as you can''t reach the dungeon by digging in the ground above it, you can''t necessarily reach the lower levels by digging in the floor of the dungeon. There are some cases where you can reach the lower layers, but the first two layers of the dungeon are probably the ones you can''t reach. Or rather, if they do, they will fall and die for sure. Even if the stairs were only as long as they were high. "...... Well, if we set up a transfer point here, it won''t be a practical problem, right? "Yes. We have a good inventory of transfer points. Since my alchemy level is higher than it was at the beginning, I have a certain amount of transfer points in my magic bag. It''s not that the cost is low, it''s just that it costs Haruka and her team a little extra in terms of time and money. It is not a low cost, but if you use it as an insurance policy for your life, it is not a problem. The question is, where do you start? ...... "Looking at it like this, there are a few places where you can get off. As Toya crawled on the ground and looked down at the cliff, I looked again and saw several ledges jutting out a few dozen meters down along the cliff path. I can''t see them clearly, but I can see a narrow path leading out from the ledges that cut through the cliff. The cliff seems to be a shelter, and it is difficult to tell from here. I think we should just take the closest one. "Yes, I think so. It''s better to be close to here, in case we have to move back. So, that''s it. The nearest descent point would be the plaza at the bottom of the stairs, and the ledge at the bottom of the path extending about ten meters to the right. I''m first in line, aren''t I? Who else is there? I''m sorry that I''m leaving Toya in charge of everything, but he''s the most rigid, so I have to be rational about it. I knew it. I knew it. You know, ......, if you want, I can take over. I can''t accept that, Mary. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do it, but I''m sure I''d be able to do it. But I''d rather go myself than leave it to her. And Toya is even more qualified for the job, so it''s only natural. I''m sorry, Toya. But there''s no one to take your place. I''m sorry, Toya, but it''s not like I''m s*xist or anything. I know. Except for the healers and the younger ones, Yuki and Nao. It''s more my role than theirs. I''ll support you, just hang in there. Sighing, I pat Toya on the shoulder as he begins to tie the lifeline, and I drive the stake into the ground. I''ll use the rope ladder to get down, but I''ll also tie a lifeline just in case. "Nao, where''s the rock spider?¡¡It''s not safe to be attacked on the way down, right? The wall here seems to be safe. I''ll check with ...... and see what they say. There is no response to the search, but the enemy is good at hiding. Just in case, I lightly cast a spell on some suspicious rocks, but there was no ...... response. "Good. Well then, Toya, go ahead. I pointed towards the cliff, and Toya tilted her head quizzically. "Didn''t you just use the wrong intonation, ......? No, no, no, no. Don''t worry, I''ll keep an eye on the perimeter. Really?¡¡Yeah, I''ll be there. "Oh, yeah, Toya. Oh, and be sure to pick up some of the stacked mash and flonions that are growing around here. It was Yuki who said this to Toya, who was firmly attached to the lifeline and had her feet on the rope ladder. And Haruka and Natsuki nodded in agreement. I''m sure you''re right. It''s a great way to expand your cooking. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡Well, if you can afford it. Good luck, Toya! Yeah. Cheered on by Mitya, Toya began to descend the cliff. Considering the length of the remaining rope ladder, it was probably more than 20 meters to the ledge below. That''s pretty high. The tallest building in our high school is four stories high. The descent is twice as far as that, and that''s to the ledge. It''s quite scary to start descending from such a height with a rope ladder, because there is a cliff with no visible bottom below. But Toya was disciplined enough to collect the stacks of mash and flonions that were within his reach, and he went down. And when he had descended about three meters, my [spotting] system detected a reaction. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡You''re fast!¡¡Up! "Bird! The one who immediately reacted to my words was Haruka. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it. The first attack was also by Haruka. The first attack was also by Haruka. I''m not going to lose in terms of magic power, but in terms of range, I''m no match for Haruka''s bow. I''m not going to lose to the power of magic, but if you''re talking about range, you''re no match for Haruka''s bow. Haruka quickly picks up the arrow, and as soon as she takes her hand off the string, the arrow travels through the air and heads for a bird. A direct hit course. But the enemy didn''t just run straight into it. He changed the angle of his wings slightly to avoid it, but Haruka''s arrow pierced his wings faster than he could succeed. This is a great way to make sure that you don''t end up in a situation where you''re not the only one. "''Fire Arrow''! The next attack came from Yuki and me at the same time. The next attack came from Yuki and me at the same time. As we entered the range, the Fire Arrow pierced the body of the enemy, and the two birds also fell down the cliff. I was in a hurry. ...... The one who breathed a sigh of relief was of course Toya, who was descending the rope ladder. The bird was clearly targeting him, and in Toya''s condition, it was difficult to avoid. I''m sorry. I was out of range. No, that''s fine, but how good of an eye do you have, ......, to launch an attack from outside Nao''s range? Exactly like a hawk''s eye. The original. How far can you recognize Toya? I''m not sure how far away he recognized Toya, but seeing as he was definitely aiming for her, I''m pretty sure he has good eyesight. You can''t be too careful, you know!¡¡Again!¡¡And there are so many of them! The next reaction came from the upper part of the waterfall to the left. From there, there is a reaction that is approaching at once. I turned my eyes and saw a small dot flying towards me. "d*mn!¡¡The target is too small! It''s a good idea to take a look at the details on the web and see if you can find anything that might help you. I''m not sure what to do. I think it''s a fish! You can''t see it clearly because it''s still far away and it''s coming at you head-on, but it''s probably some kind of flying fish. However, the shape of the fish is like that of a datsu, and it has a long, sharp proboscis sticking out of its head. Numerous dots are flying diagonally upward as if gliding. When they get a little closer, Haruka fires an arrow at them, but even Haruka can only graze them, not shoot them down. As if to confirm this, Haruka throws away her bow and thrusts out her hand. "Fire Arrow! "Fire Jet! Yuki and Haruka immediately used the magic they were familiar with, while I, after a moment of hesitation, used an imperfect magic. It was a spell that took into account the number of enemies, but as it turned out, it was completely incorrect. I''m not saying Yuki''s magic was the right one, but I still managed to get rid of them one by one, while the enemies easily went through the flames I sprayed. My magic may have been inadequate, but I think the main reason was that the magic I used was fire magic. Fire magic is a spell with high attack power and is easy to use, but it is not without its flaws. I was aware of this, or to be more precise, I was aware of it, but I didn''t think it was a serious problem. But now, that shortcoming has been exposed. It lacks mass. For example, a charging orc. Even if you blow its head off with the "Fire Arrow," its body will roll toward you with inertia. This is because the "Fire Arrow" itself does not have the effect of pushing back the opponent. It has some explosive power, but the penetrating power is stronger than the explosive power, so it doesn''t blow backwards. And less effective is the "Fire Jet". It''s a spell that can burn a large area of enemies, but it''s not powerful enough to burn them all in an instant, at least not with what I can use now. In other words, the enemy will fly through the flames. Whether it lives or dies, it''s already a threat in itself. "Toya! The flying darts that pierced the flames were aimed right at Toya, who was trying to climb up the rope ladder... "Noooooo! Toya jumped, kicking the rock wall. 332-300 Raid from the air (1) Toya floating in the air. Some of them were flicked off by Natsuki''s cleaver, but there were still more than ten of them. Some of them were flicked off by Natsuki''s cleaver, but there were still more than ten of them. Some of them were flicked off by Natsuki''s cleaver, but there were still more than a dozen of them. Their sharp proboscis, which looked to be 20 centimeters long, was more than half burrowed into the rock wall and was moving rapidly. "Agh! Toya, who had been floating in the air, let out a groan as she was slammed back against the rock wall. "Toya, big brother! Are you okay?¡¡Toya-san! It''s not ...... okay. That really hurts. ...... Toya jumped sideways from the rope ladder and avoided the group of flying Datsus, but he couldn''t avoid them all. He saw that one of them was lodged in his right shoulder. The wound widened and blood spurted out from it. With the lifeline in his left hand and the rock in his right, Toya managed to hold on to the rock wall, but the pain was so strong that he distorted his face and let out a groan. I''m not sure what to say. To be more specific, the rope. I''m not sure what to make of that. The purpose was to stop Datsu from piercing the rope. That goal was successfully achieved, but there was nothing he could do to prevent the rope from rubbing against the rostrum of the impaled datsu, and the rope was currently being worn down. "Nao!¡¡New rope! Oh!¡¡Mary and Mitya, wrap the rope around your bodies and sit on that side of the wall. Yes! Not only Mary and the others, but also me, Natsuki and Yuki wrapped the rope around our bodies and hung it straight down to Toya. After confirming that Toya had attached the carabiner on the rope to her harness, she took a short breath. Thank goodness for the carabiner. There''s no way I''m going to be able to tie it off like this. Toya, are you ready to climb? ...... Sorry, my grip on my right arm is really bad. So ...... In the meantime, Yuki and I have made an indentation in the ground to prevent our feet from sliding down. In the meantime, Yuki and I made an indentation in the ground and hung our feet on it to keep it from sliding down. To be honest, with Toya''s weight, even if there were five of us, it would not be enough. "What do we do?¡¡Pull her up? "...... didn''t work. I should have brought a pulley. In addition to the weight problem, Haruka''s gaze was drawn to the part of the rope that hung over the edge of the cliff. If she pulls on it, she''s sure to chafe it. There are things that are used for cutting wood, but it would be difficult to use a pulley of that shape in this condition. "Oh!¡¡You have a roller!¡¡Why don''t you put that between them? "Nao, nice! Haruka snapped his fingers and took out the roller he used to move the giant tree in and out of the magic bag, and placed it between the cliff and the rope. "Now we don''t have to worry about rubbing. Can you do it? Shouldn''t be a problem. Let''s go. Even though Toya is heavy, we have the skill of [Strengthening]. As long as we can hold on to our feet, we can pull up the weight. We all pulled on the rope, and soon Toya''s body came up. Thank God. ...... Shit. Oh, wait a minute! In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''ll take care of it. Sit down there first. ...... Oh, sorry. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "Ggh! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. He holds Toya''s shoulder as she moans in pain, and Haruka immediately heals her wounds with magic. "...... Hmm. Thank you. This is the first time I''ve felt my life in danger. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. Yuki removes Toya''s shoulder pads, checks his condition, and shouts in disgust. "Scary!¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... I''m sure the chainmail is safe, but I''m sure it''s out of place. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to do when you''re in a situation like this. The chainmail was undamaged, but the tip of the proboscis must have slipped through the gap in the chain and nicked Toya''s shoulder. But we''re using Gantz''s finely woven chainmail. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. In preparation for such an attack, the important parts of the body were protected by armor made of Dahl''s Bear leather, but even that was useless if it was easily pierced. I thought it was pretty tough leather. ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. Toya also sighs when he sees the hole in the shoulder strap. It''s stuck in a rock. I don''t know how tough it is. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of them. This is a great way to get the most out of your day. And the proboscis is quite vicious. It looks like it''s going to hurt. ...... If you and Mitya take a look at Natsuki''s proboscis, you will immediately understand what Natsuki is talking about. A long, sharp proboscis. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Is this the reason why it didn''t come off even after all that flailing? Yeah, it hurt a lot, this. Just flailing around will damage the inside, and if you force it out, the wound will be in a terrible state. It''s a good thing there''s a healing spell, but if you''re going to wait for it to heal naturally, it''s going to take a long time and leave a scar. Which is ...... "Flying Gar", jumps out of the water and stabs with its proboscis. If you don''t have a way to stop the bleeding, you may bleed out a lot because the wound will be messed up. It''s a good thing that you were healed immediately. It''s a good thing that he was healed immediately, but without Haruka, his fighting strength would have been ruined if he couldn''t use his right arm. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s exactly the same. It may be a kind of terrain effect, but that attack is a bit unfair in this situation. You can eat it, by the way.¡¡You can even sell the rostrum. ...... Let''s just strangle it for now. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Is it good? It was Mitya who had the same impression as I did. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a very good idea to have a look at the pictures. Mitya, let''s try it when we get home. You might be able to make some kind of ago dashi. "Ago dashi?¡¡I don''t know, but I''m looking forward to it! I don''t know, but I''m looking forward to it! Ago dashi is a broth made from dried flying fish, right? I''m looking forward to it, too. This rostrum ...... looks like it would be vicious if you made a spear out of it. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. Yes, that''s probably what it''s for. I''m sure it''s going to be used for arrows or something like that. I see, I can try to make one of those. "I bet it''s pretty tough, isn''t it? I bet it''s pretty tough, since it can pierce rock without any modification. Yuki took the proboscis from Haruka and tapped it with his own small sword, sounding dumbfounded. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. The stakes are so hard that even the stakes we had prepared would have trouble being driven into them. "Well, it''s good for a lot of things. --Well, let''s collect the rest. Haruka then pointed in the direction of the cliff. There, impaled on a rock wall, is a flying dart, or flying gar. It''s rostrum is still buried in the rock wall and it''s twitching, but that''s a flaw in the creature, right? If you miss an attack, you can''t help yourself. I''m not sure if it''s because they''re demons and it''s pointless to think about the rationale behind it, or if they''re like some bees and they''re trying to sting you with the spirit of death. ....... I didn''t want to think about that. I didn''t want to think about it. ...... By the way, who''s going to collect it? I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''re not the only one. I do. Yes, I knew it! He looked down at the cliff and frowned. It''s a pretty large area that''s been pierced. ...... Could it fly back down when we start to descend? It''s not out of the realm of possibility. When it does, it''ll be ....... And then what? You''ll be happy to have more material for your soup stock? Not happy! Haruka tilted her head adorably, and Toya protested vehemently. But, Toya, agou-dashi is very expensive, you know. I''m not happy even if it''s expensive! You want to eat the dried fish instead of the broth?¡¡That''s fine too. No!¡¡It hurts like hell when it stings!¡¡It hurts like hell! That''s right. I knew it. We all did. It looked like it was going to hurt a lot. Well, we''ll do the best we can this time. "...... What exactly? I explained to a half-terrified Toya what I was going to do. First, the Isolation Field. If we put it behind Toya, even the Flying Gar won''t be able to penetrate it easily. What?¡¡Should I have used it earlier? No, you can''t. The magic consumption is quite heavy, and the magic won''t reach the ledge below, let alone the area where the flying gar is currently piercing. If you want to put it behind you as I descend, that''s fine. And intercept. Flame magic does not have enough mass, so now I will use "Concussion" and "Stone Missile". With these, if they hit, they will be able to blow them away. The problem is that we can''t collect the bodies. The hawk went unclaimed. No, you''ll have to be patient. If you can only attack the things that are likely to hit Toya,......, it will be a bit difficult. If it''s coming at you, you can judge, but it''s not in the right place. "Oh. By the way, the eagle I saw earlier was an Arrowhead Eagle. Excellent feathers, normal meat. I didn''t know it was that kind of bird. I barely had time to look at it. "I didn''t get a chance to look at it," Yuki said, filling in for Toya, who had his back turned and could not observe. The way it flies, I think I know what it is. That''s what the name means, isn''t it? I don''t think it comes from there, though. Well, since that''s the case, I guess it''s not too bad if we don''t get it back. As for me, I''m a little concerned about the arrow feathers, but it''s ...... not too much to ask. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "Safety before prey!¡¡Please, really ....... It''s okay, it''s okay. I''ll protect you. The rope was re-tied to the harness, avoiding the worn parts, and Toya was back on the rope ladder, casting a spell and encouraging her. I''m sorry about this," he said. The cheers from Nao and ...... are atrocious. But he does not complain. I''m impressed. 333-301 Raid from the air (2) Big brother Toya, get a lot! "Toya-san, be careful! Not necessarily because of Toya''s words, but because of the cheering from Mitya, who was smiling and squeezing her hands, and Mary, who looked a little worried. --No, is Mitya cheering? I''m not sure what to make of it. "Oh. I''m off. I''m going to go." With the leather bag of ice that Haruka had given him slung around his waist, Toya descended the rope ladder with a little less intensity than before. After what happened earlier, I''ve been concentrating more on searching for the enemy, but so far, no response. Toya harvests a flying gar from the wall, while keeping an eye on his back. Harvesting. Yes, just like that. He grabs the body of the flying gar, which is still jiggling against the wall, and snaps off its body. Hang it by its tail, and when the blood stops flowing, put it in a bag. The head, which is still propped against the wall, is forcibly pulled out and also put into the bag. ""........." As we watch from above, the scene is so surreal that we fall silent. It''s reasonable, but it''s a pretty bad picture. And the flying gar, a defective organism. It may be a matter of location, but if you miss the first blow, you are a carp on the chopping block. It is just waiting to be reaped. "......14......15. That''s a lot of fish. Fifteen in all. If you include the one that was stuck in Toya, there were sixteen. I looked around to make sure there were no more left behind, and Toya climbed up the rope ladder. I break my spell at the same time. Good work. --Yuki, are you ready for that too? Haruka took the leather bag from the returning Toya, opened it, and presented it to Yuki, who was still inspecting the proboscis. "Oh, sorry. I was just curious. After apologizing lightly, Yuki put the proboscis in a leather bag, and Haruka put it away in her magic bag before asking Yuki back. What''s bothering you? "Yeah. Do you think the Flying Gar''s proboscis can penetrate metal? I don''t know, do you?¡¡I don''t think it''ll penetrate white iron with a certain thickness. ...... It does pierce rocks. ...... I''m afraid I can''t say for sure, but fortunately, I''ve secured a lot of flying gar proboscis. Whether you make a shield or armor, you can experiment and see how much you can prevent. You think we should put Toya in a plate mail? No, no. I''m not sure if Haruka was thinking the same thing as me, but Yuki shook her head and made a surprising suggestion. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. ""...... Pfft!" Toya with a doorplate on her back. The Flying Gur stabbed into the doorplate with a thud. We imagine the scene and gush out. It''s not a bad idea. "Yes. It''ll have to be tested, but... But it would be safe and profitable at the same time, wouldn''t it? We all nodded our heads, including Mary and the others, but it was Toya who raised his voice. It''s really heavy, isn''t it?¡¡It''s not the door plate, but the metal plate! The door plate itself would weigh about 20 kilos, but the metal that would be attached to the back of the door would weigh a lot more. Of course, it would depend on the type and thickness of the metal, but even a steel plate about one centimeter thick would weigh more than 100 kilograms, and the burden on Toya to carry it down would be quite unbelievable. If you have a rope ladder, but if you happen to be hanging by a rope--. "......?¡¡No, it''s not that bad, is it? Hey, it''s not like you''re getting any better, ....... I mean, you know how rescue workers carry people down on their backs with ropes?¡¡Think about it. With all of the equipment and the weight of a person, I think I''d weigh over 100 kilos. And Toya''s physical ability should be more than the rescue team''s ....... I''m more worried about the strength of the rope, aren''t you? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if it''s possible to do ......, but it''s certainly possible. It''s not only the rope ladder, but also the rope to get down might be better to use wire. It''s a bit expensive, though. ...... With Natsuki''s efforts and a bit of luck, the flying gar didn''t get stuck in the rope, but if it did, the rope you''re currently using wouldn''t be enough to save your life. With that in mind, wire is the obvious choice, but it is not easy to handle, not to mention expensive. The best we can do is to get a fiber that can bounce back the proboscis of a flying gar, but if such a thing is available, I would rather make clothes than rope. We''ll think about the doorplate again, but the question is, can we move on today? Yes. If safety is our top priority, we should probably go back for more preparation. ...... We''re just here today. ...... We''ve always given top priority to safety, but it took us a few days to get here, and we''re still wondering if it''s right to go back ...... without going any further. It took me a few days to get there and back, a few hours to actually explore, and a few days again to prepare for my return. Another few days to come back here. It''s an obvious choice if you don''t have a way to get there, but I''m not sure if it''s the right choice when there is a way. Fortunately, we have enough money thanks to the precious wood, but it is too much of a failure. "It''s not like we''re only getting a dozen or so ''jaws''. "Is it more like flying fish, or more like datsu, or is it something else entirely? We don''t know yet, do we? We don''t even know if it tastes good. We don''t even know if it''s good. It just says it''s edible. ...... I see. It''s been a long time since I''ve had sea fish. The fish I sometimes catch in the river are tasty enough, but they''re not the same as sea fish. It''s a bit vicious, but it''s pretty dumb if you look at it the right way, and if you can get it here, it''s perfect. "No, I don''t think it''s a sea fish, sir. I don''t think it''s a sea fish. It flew over the waterfall, so it must be a river fish. --Unless the water from that waterfall is saltwater. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. You can''t deny it as a phenomenon, but Haruka easily denies Toya''s words. It''s not. If it were seawater, we''d be all wet and sticky. "That''s true. So, the flying gar is like a sea fish, a river fish. You''ll have to wait until you get home to taste it. Toya nodded his head in agreement. But first, let''s get some information straight. First, the enemy. You can sense the rock spider, right, Nao? "Probably. "Probably, but I''m not so sure at long range. Specifically, near the ledge below. ...... Hey. I was going down there, remember? I nodded to Toya, who looked at me blankly as I spoke, and countered. "That''s why I shot the spell to make sure. Just in case. Besides, if Toya gets hit by a rock spider, she''ll be able to pop it, right? "Hmm, maybe? I''ve already confirmed how powerful rock spiders are when they hit you in the process of dealing with many rock spiders last time. The power was such that if he could avoid the surprise attack, Toya would have no problem, and even I could deal with it as long as I was well-positioned. It is truly a demon that thrives on stealth and surprise. In fact, I could see the [Hide] and [Sneak Attack] skills. Next was the Arrowhead Eagle. The next one is the Arrowhead Eagle. I was able to shoot this one down, so it''s not that much of a threat. "No, it''s not that easy.¡¡No, it''s not that easy to shoot it down. Haruka said lightly, but the Arrowhead Eagle''s speed is not something to be taken lightly. It''s a little better because it''s coming straight at you, but you''ll still need a lot of skill to shoot it down with a bow. Oh, you can''t have me. Me neither. Weapons can''t reach it, but at that speed, it''s ...... The only ones who can deal with it are Haruka, Yuki, and Nao-kun. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. "Oh, Me too!¡¡I''m sure I can kill it if it comes this way! Mitya raised his hand to counter, but the problem was that he didn''t come. Haruka can handle one, and Yuki and I can handle two each. Three birds is ...... a little tougher? If Haruka uses magic after the bow, it will be up to about six birds. I think we can handle the number we just got, plus a few more. I''m sure. Then the problem would be the flying gars. Those numbers and their small size are tough. Even if we kill a few of them, it won''t be enough. Even if we kill three each, that''s nine. If it''s the same as before, we''ll miss seven. ...... No, more than that. You''ll be able to get rid of some of them with my magic and Yuki''s. --I don''t know. "Ugh!¡¡I''m sure you''re right. You''re right. It wasn''t even a grilled fish, it wasn''t even a seared fish. No, it wasn''t! It was completely raw! I''m sorry, that was a completely wrong choice of magic. Nao, you''re not so cute when you sulk, are you? I''m not sulking. --So, how do you deal with it? "Yeah?¡¡First, let''s see if we can kill it. ...... Nao, what about the Explosion? It''s not perfect, and if you''re not careful, you can damage the people on the ground. It''s still incomplete, and if you''re not careful, you''ll damage the people on the ground.¡¡How about the Cutter Storm? I think I can handle that, but I can''t yet either. I''m only five. Incidentally, Explosion, Cutter Storm, and the Fire Jet that I activated in a delicate state are all level 8 magic. To be able to use them fully, I need to practice for a while. And that''s not to mention Yuki, who is also backwards compatible when it comes to magic. 334-302 Go down a cliff (1) "Well, then, let''s have Toya do his best here. If a flying gar flies at us, we can turn around and cut it all off. After a few moments of thought, Yuki''s words caused Toya to look away. You''re being reckless.¡¡You can only use one hand, and your foothold is not fixed! "Well, you''re right. If you could do that, you''d be amazing. You''re not afraid of a bow and arrow, are you? At least, if you''re not taken by surprise. Unfortunately, Toya''s skills haven''t reached that level yet. Rather you go, Yuki. You can also use Nao''s magic, the Isolation Field, right? "Me?¡¡Wouldn''t Nao be better?¡¡I''m not as good as Nao when it comes to magic. You''re trying to prevent, not repel. That''s fine with me, but the problem is what happens after I get off the plane. Maybe the Quarantine Zone can prevent the Arrowhead Eagle and the Flying Gar. But when I get down to the ledge below, if there are other demons there, I''m not sure I can handle it. So, why don''t Nao and I rappel down at once?¡¡Considering what happened earlier, we have some time before it flies, so we should be able to handle it. The idea is to get to the lower ledge before the flying gars come flying down. That''s not a bad idea, but we won''t be able to get back, will we?¡¡If we''re not careful, they''ll cut the rope. We descended about three or four meters and saw three Arrowhead Eagles and less than two dozen Flying Gars. If they flew at the same rate, there would be seventy to eighty flying gars by the time we reached the ledge. We should not expect that all of them will be lucky enough not to pierce the rope. You can use transference magic to get back, but there''s something scary about relying completely on magic. If you want to rely on magic, you can use Nao''s transfer magic to jump to the ledge below. If you can rely on magic, you can use Nao''s transfer magic to jump to the ledge below. You''ll be able to get a lot more than just a few of these. If you''re in sight, the transfer won''t fail, so there was no need to take the risky way of going down the cliff? I''m sure you''ll agree with me. No, I''ve thought about that too.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡You can say that transference magic is a skill, but it''s not the same. ...... I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not, but it''s a good thing. ...... Oh, there are times when you use a warp point to advance, and the enemies there are so strong that they wipe you out. In games, though. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m sure you''re not the only one. Yes. Don''t you think it''s better that way? Yes. You need a certain margin of safety. So it''s better to be able to descend without using magic, but another question is, once you''ve flown, will you be able to fly back to the same place? There''s that too. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one of these, you''re going to want to make sure that you''ve got the right one. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. The fact that it''s called an experiment makes me nervous, but I guess we''ll have to try. Well, Nao will be easy to pull up. If I''m on top. It''s confidential where I stand among the party members in terms of weight, but I''m sure I''m lighter than Toya. And if Toya joins in and pulls me along, I''m sure it''ll be easier than before. But then, we need someone a little lighter, don''t we? Yes, I do. In addition, someone who can use the Isolation Field. When Haruka and Natsuki said this, their eyes naturally fell on Yuki. Yuki''s eyes swam at the sudden turn of events. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡Are you going to do it? "Well, I''ll do it... I laughed and a voice came up to cover my words. "Me!¡¡I''ll do it! ""What?" We all look at Mitya at once, but she doesn''t seem to be intimidated, she sticks out her chest and sniffs. I''m the lightest of them all. That''s for sure, but ...... "I''m pretty sure that''s true, but " "As expected, none of the women claim that I''m lighter than Mitya. And with Nao''s magic, all the fish will fall out!¡¡It''s a waste! "...... Well, you''re going to pop them back. If you''re lucky, you might end up on the ledge below, but since I don''t have a barrier on my back, most of them will end up at the bottom of the cliff. "I can do my job, too! Mitya insists, but when he looks at his sister Mary to see what''s wrong, she also nods with a serious expression. She nodded with a serious expression, "Can you leave it to me?¡¡If you can accept us as your friends, too. If you think of Mitya as a protected person, you should probably avoid having her do anything dangerous, but if you see her as an equal party member, like Yuki and the others, then there is a certain rationality to Mitya''s proposal. Considering her weight, the physical strength of the person pulling the rope, and what she just said, the danger is not that high. It''s an acceptable job for a party member to do. ....... I''m sure you''re right. It''s a good idea to put Mitya first and then Nao right above her. That''s a good idea. It''s a good idea. Nao will be able to detect the enemy more easily, and Mitya will be safer if he pulls up to Nao''s place. Let''s try that, shall we? The way to do this is to slowly lower Mitya down without using the rope ladder, leave a few meters of space between them, and then I''ll use the rope ladder to follow. When the flying ger flies in, pull up Mitya, and depending on the situation, use the Isolation Field to defend. "I''m going! I''m not sure if she''s too scared to see Toya''s devastation, or if she trusts us, but she''s being lifted up with a smile on her face. I''m off. Nao, keep her safe, okay? Okay. I followed slowly, keeping an eye on Mitya''s location. A few meters past the spot where Toya had been attacked, I saw a response to my search. I looked up to see Haruka already holding her bow. Four Arrowhead Eagles flew at me. There was one more than before, but Haruka''s attack was fast, as I had predicted in advance. As soon as they were in my range, two of them were shot down, one by the Fire Arrow that flew from above, and the other by my magic. This time I had a little more room, so I adjusted my attack distance a bit so that it would hit the ledge below. ...... Well, it seems to have worked. I''m not sure if the feathers are still worth anything since they are fire arrows. You''re good at this, Nao. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own web site.¡¡You''re dangling, yet . Everything okay? Yeah. I''m fine. While we were talking, Mitya''s body went down again. Seeing this, I couldn''t help but imagine fishing with Mitya as bait. It''s only a fish that I''m after. And soon the real fish came. Like the previous one, it came straight from the top of the waterfall toward us. The number of fish was about the same. Toya! I know! Whoa! When Mitya came up to me again, I hugged her with one hand and activated the Quarantine Zone just in case. Immediately after that, a flying gargoyle poked up a little lower than my legs. Not only that, a few of them hit my barrier and bounced back, falling down. Hmmm, I must have pulled them up too fast! The trajectory suggests that they were not aiming at me, but rather at Mitya, who had moved upward and changed her trajectory. It seems that it is difficult to change the trajectory freely because of the speed, but if there is a certain distance, it may be possible to shift the arrival point slightly. But-- "...... Mitya, you can afford it? "Yes!¡¡I''ll be fine with my brothers! I don''t want you to be too overconfident, but I''m glad you trust ....... It''s not impossible to expand the quarantine area to Mitya''s place if it''s in trouble. It''s a good idea to take a look at the actual information on the web and also the internet. "Toya, big brother!¡¡Can you go a little slower? "Yeah, ....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. But it doesn''t matter how confused Toya is, he waves his hand and tells Mitya to loosen the rope. First we have to collect the fish. It''s full of fresh fish! Indeed, there are. A few of them fell, but the number of fish protruding from the shore was around 20. I''m going to help Mitya retrieve them. I mimicked Toya''s method earlier. Come to think of it, this method is quite reasonable. If you pull them out without breaking their necks, you''ll be swinging a dangerous proboscis around. It is safer to strangle it while it is still in its sheath. ...... Although I can''t help but feel that it looks bad. The end!¡¡Catch them! Once I had succeeded, I repeated the process four more times, as if Mitya was hurrying me with a smile. With over a hundred fish in hand, we descended to the ledge below. Fortunately, there were no demons there, and we succeeded in our descent and were rewarded with a large number of fish and several birds. 335-303 Go down a cliff (2) Yuki was the first one to follow us. This was as we had decided beforehand. We decided to give her some time to make sure she wouldn''t come at us again, and if she did, Yuki would be able to stop her. However, it seems that this concern was unnecessary, and Yuki landed next to us without being attacked. "Hmm, I''m a little nervous. "Good work. But Yuki can also use the Isolation Field, so even if it flies at you, you should be fine, right? I don''t know if I can protect you!¡¡I don''t know if I can protect myself! ...... Well, the strength is proportional to the magic power consumed. I''m not sure how much magic I used to block the flying gar. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to get a lot of things done. I''m sure they won''t fly back to the same place though. ...... I''m not sure for how long. That''s right. Is this like a trap in a dungeon?¡¡Once it''s triggered, it takes a while for it to come back. "The fish won''t fly back? I''m sure you''ve heard of it. If you can deal with the viciousness of the proboscis, you can, in a sense, eat all the fish you want just by waiting. I think this one will come back to life after a while, just like the boss comes back to life. "Right. If it''s like the boss, it''ll take a few weeks.¡¡But if it''s a trap, a few days? Oh, thank God! We laughed again when we saw Mitya smiling happily at us. Toya was in a lot of danger with this fish, but that didn''t stop Mitya from being happy to get a fish. After Yuki, Mary came down, followed by Natsuki, Haruka, and finally Toya. Toya, however, retrieved the rope ladder and rappelled down using only a rope. The rope used by Toya will be left behind. You made it. Well, this is ....... We descended about 20 meters, but there was not much change in the scenery. We still couldn''t see the bottom of the valley, and the waterfall was too big to be seen from this height difference. From the back of the ledge, there was a narrow path cutting through the rock wall, but we couldn''t see it from above because of the sheltering rocks. It might be a good passage to get wet even if it rains, but does it rain in the first place?¡¡In the dungeon. Normally, I''d say it''s impossible, but looking up, I can see something like clouds, so I can''t say it doesn''t happen. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to continue down that pathway or if it''s a dead end and I''ll have to go down the cliff. ...... I think I''m going to go down the cliff again, don''t you?¡¡Pattern-wise. "The same type of trap?¡¡I think it''s unlikely that the same type of trap? Natsuki nodded to Yuki''s words, and Toya pointed to the top of the waterfall and opened his mouth. It''s a great location, after all. The flying gar flies to the top of the waterfall where Toya pointed, where the water begins to fall. If it were to fly slowly, it would be no threat at all. I''m not too happy about it. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. But there are so many fish! But there are a lot of fish!" Mitya said with a smiling face as she looked into a bag full of fish. Behind Mitya, Mary peeked at the bag, still looking happy. They said they had never eaten fish before they came with us, but they seemed to really like the fish that sometimes appeared on the table, and they were probably expecting the same thing from this fish. They haven''t decided yet that this fish is good, but ...... it''s good to enjoy it. I bet you could eat this every day! "Yes!¡¡Even if we eat two fish each, we can eat for a while! We both looked at each other and laughed. I''m not sure what to say. Fortunately or unfortunately, Toya''s prediction was correct. After walking for a while, we found that the passage was still a dead end, and if we looked at the bottom of the cliff, we could see some rock shelves. If you go down the same way as before, you will find more fish in leather bags. The smiles on the faces of Mitya and the others are dazzling. So I guess it''s lucky for them. Of course, it''s not as if we weren''t hoping for a chinwag. After three more times like this, we kept going down, but we still couldn''t see the bottom of the valley. We wondered how high we were. The fog seemed to be getting deeper little by little, so we were sure we were getting closer to the bottom. When I came here this time, I had prepared enough money from the sale of the wood, and I had quite a few ropes, but of course there is no limit to the number of ropes. Strong ropes are expensive, and there are only a limited number of them available in Rafan. We can''t afford to buy cheap rope when our lives depend on it. Maybe we should start thinking about what to do. It''s getting darker and darker. It''s getting darker and darker." For some reason, the sun-like object we could see was slanting, and as dusk began to fall, Haruka sighed and made such a suggestion. If there was something that would bring closure, I would have said something, but since there has been no change, I was out of time. "Well, yes. It''s a little difficult to stay here in the open. It''s getting wetter and wetter. At the first ledge, there was a slight spray of water blowing in the wind, but by this point, the surrounding area was completely covered in fog. It wasn''t as thick as a fog, but even so, the visibility was definitely getting worse, and it was becoming a little difficult to shoot down the Arrowhead Eagle against the Flying Gar, which could only be detected and avoided by [Searching for Enemies]. However, compared to the almost constant number of Flying Gars, the number of Arrowhead Eagles was decreasing every time I went down the cliff. When we had just descended the cliff, only one or two birds had flown at a time, so this was not so much of a problem. What was more of a problem was that their bodies would get wet. Sometimes Haruka would dry them off with Purify, but only for a short time. In no time at all, you''ll be soaking wet all over again, like you''ve been caught in the rain. If it were hot, this might be a good thing, but the current temperature is very comfortable. On the other hand, if you become a wet rat, it''s usually cold. This takes away your energy and makes your feet and hands slippery when they are wet. Especially Toya, who had to rappel down with a rope every time, had a hard time. From the halfway point on, we all put on our cloaks to keep our insides dry, but fog is a tricky thing, and you can''t completely protect yourself from it. Moreover, wearing a cloak inhibits our movement. Of course, if you camp in such a condition, you will not be able to recover your strength, and if you are not good, you will get sick and catch a cold. ...... Hey, I wonder if this is a trap that includes this long cliff?¡¡There''s no warm place to rest, and it takes a lot of energy to get back. It''s pretty hard, isn''t it? Yuki said a little disgusted, and looked up at the height of the cliff she had come down, and then looked down and sighed at the fact that she could not see the bottom. "Well... In our case, it''s still better because we have a comfortable tent with a magic tool. ...... I''m sure that''s why you came out there.¡¡Comfort tent. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s common. In the game. You''ll have a hard time making a fire in this state. ...... aside from us. If you have firewood, it will get wet, and it will be difficult to make a fire with a regular flint in this situation. In other words, it would be difficult to warm ourselves by the fire. We have firewood in our magic bags, so it is still dry, and we can use magic to make a fire. We are very fortunate. We have plenty of firewood! "Do you want to cook some fish? The only saving grace is that Mitya and the others are full of energy. I''m not sure if it''s the abundance of fish that''s making them happy, or if it''s the fact that they''re beasts and have different basic stamina compared to Yuki, who''s about the same size but is the most groggy of us all. ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out when you get back to layer 20. That way we can eat in peace. Are we going back? I think I can make it down at least one more time. ...... We can go down at least one more time. Yuki, on the other hand, only let out a small breath. "Is Yuki okay? I''m not sure.¡¡But when you come back, let me ride on Nao''s transfer, okay? Copy that. The distance isn''t too far, so you should be fine. I also consume a lot of magic, but I think the difference between elves and humans is that I can afford it more than Yuki. So, let''s go down again, and then go back to the 20th level and set up camp. And cook some fish. "Yay! Mitya expressed his joy honestly, and Mary looked happy with a modest smile on her face. While being softened by these two, I checked the ledge below and went down. We had already done this several times, so we were used to it. It had become a routine, and the roles of each of us had been roughly fixed, so things were going smoothly. But that was not good enough. It was while Natsuki was getting off that something strange happened. "What? The upper rock wall that held the rope ladder in place suddenly collapsed. Natsuki''s body floated in midair. Her body floated in the air. The height from the ledge was about ten meters. With her current physical ability, she would be injured but not killed, but that was not the problem. A chunk of collapsed rock was falling from above Natsuki. There was no way she would be able to survive being caught underneath it. For a moment, she was troubled. She slammed her naginata against the rock wall and shifted her body away from the rock fall. This allowed her to escape the threat of the rock, but at the cost of being off the ledge. A straight fall would send me straight down the cliff. I look at Haruka and Yuki and check their positions. Yeah, I can''t. I immediately jumped towards Natsuki, who was falling down the side. It was just in time. I grabbed Natsuki''s arm, which had accelerated considerably, and pulled him to me. "Natsuki!¡¡Hold on! Yes! When I saw that Natsuki''s hands were behind my back, I grabbed his harness firmly with both hands. But I wasn''t wearing a lifeline either. It was a mistake. But if I had been wearing a lifeline, I wouldn''t have been able to grab Natsuki either. "Nooo! Haruka''s scream echoed in the air, and I fell into the deep fog with Natsuki in my arms. 336-304 To return to japan (1) ...a chunk of rock falling onto the ledge with a roar. Haruka''s scream echoes. And falling, Nao and Natsuki. They happened almost simultaneously. At the time of the cliff''s collapse, Haruka and her friends escaped by taking shelter on the sheltered side of the ledge, but this also meant keeping their distance from Nao and the falling Natsuki. "Oh, Nao, my brother has fallen! "Wow, wow, what should I do? In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. "Calm down. Nao didn''t fall. He jumped by himself. ...... You don''t jump without thinking, do you? Yeah. Nao doesn''t jump without thinking. You can trust him. Although her voice sounds calm, Haruka''s face is pale and her hands are clenched tightly. And as soon as the smoke from the collapsed rock wall cleared, she rushed to the edge of the ledge and peered down. But all that could be seen was a white plume of water. There was no sign of Nao or Natsuki. Haruka clenched her fists even tighter as the reality of the situation was once again revealed to her. Yuki, standing next to her, gently grasped her fist and stroked it to relax it. "Calm down, okay? "Yeah, I know. I know. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. What do you think? I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. Toya......, you''re early. That''s right. That''s because of the situation. I came down right away. The rope ladder is down there, though. Toya pointed behind him as if in trouble, and sighed deeply. The part that had just collapsed was the part that held the rope ladder in place, so it was only natural that if it fell, the rope ladder would fall underneath it. Of course, a part of it was visible, but in order to retrieve it, he would have to move a rock block that was taller than Toya. What to do?¡¡What do you say I take the longest rope and try to climb down? That''s ....... You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them. It''s not a good idea to do that when Nao is not around. I think Toya can do it, but flying gars, and unknown enemies... The risk is too high. "I see. --You''re calm, aren''t you? That''s my job, I know it. If I get upset here, I won''t be able to show my face to Nao. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand what I mean. I think it''s a good idea. So, Haruka, you said that Nao had a plan and acted on it. ......? Yes. When we found out that we were in this situation, Nao and I put a lot of effort into practicing the "walk on air" technique. It''s not perfect yet, but it should be able to slow down your fall. --I''m better at it than you are, so I should be the one jumping. I should have jumped, but I was in the wrong place. I should have been the one to jump because I''m better at it, but it was a bad place to do it, and splitting up between Haruka and Natsuki would have been unbalanced, so Nao was the right choice. "That''s right. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡It''s a blessing in disguise. I''m sure Nao''s transference magic will bring you back soon.¡¡If he''s still alive. Toya! Toya, you''re terrible! Ugh! When Toya added unnecessary words, the two younger students immediately protested. Not only verbally, but physically as well. The punch was a little too powerful to be a child''s punch, and Toya let out a little groan and clutched her stomach. The chainmail is not that strong against impact. "Oh, come on, you two. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not. I''m not sure what to do. ...... I think I''ll bury the transfer point here for now. Maybe they''ll come back towards the entrance. "Right. Let''s just wait here for now. Okay, I''ll dig up the rope ladder. Let''s hope it''s not broken. ...... We''ll have to check it out. Even though it''s a wire, it''s still underneath the rock. Toya, can you help me?¡¡Actually, I think it would be better if I used my magic. ...... I''m on it. We''ll have to conserve our magic. The biggest rocks will be tough, but ...... if you can''t break them, you''re on your own. Okay. You want me to help? I''ll help you. Okay. All right, well, let''s just make sure we don''t jam our hands together or anything, okay? The big rocks that came crashing down were about a meter wide and two meters high, but most of them were only a handful. Even with such rocks, if you lose your balance and fall on a limb, you can''t avoid breaking bones. While Toya was thinking about where to start, Haruka called out to him. "Toya, don''t throw that rock down by mistake, okay? "Oh, right. Yeah. Of course I know that. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. Toya and Yuki looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders in silence, and then split up with Mary and the others to move the rocks toward the pathway. As for the biggest rock, Toya kicked it over and it broke in two, and they managed to deal with it without using magic. The rope ladder was retrieved, but ....... "A little suspicious? Yes. I''m not sure I''d trust my life to it. There were no broken wires on either side, but the metal rungs on which the feet rested were bent in several places and the wires were damaged, making safety a bit questionable. I''ll fix it. "Shh! Haruka put her finger on her mouth and sharply stopped the conversation between Yuki and Toya, who were inspecting the rope ladder. Beep, beep, beep. Here it comes! The sound of a high-pitched whistle was heard. "Twice. Looks like he''s okay! Yuki breathed out a sigh of relief, and Haruka''s grim face relaxed a little. "Yes. The whistle was useful, wasn''t it? When Nao suggested it, I thought I wouldn''t use it. ...... At Nao''s suggestion, each of us had to carry a whistle in case we got separated. In the event that they were separated, each of them had their own whistle, and Haruka and the others had decided in advance to communicate by the number of whistles they played. It may sound primitive, but since there is no such thing as communication magic, the whistle is actually an excellent means of communication. The sound can be heard for kilometers, and if made properly, it can be quite resonant. Even now, the roar of waterfalls can be heard, and the whistle is still able to reach us, so we can say that its functionality is sufficient. Incidentally, they had decided that three times was the signal for SOS, two times was the signal for safety, and one time was just a signal. In addition to these, there are several long and short signals like Morse code, but only Haruka remembers them to some extent, and even Natsuki and Yuki have no idea what they mean without looking at the corresponding chart. But it was good! Yes!¡¡--I have to answer! Yes!¡¡Let''s see, ...... Toya, can you help me? "Oh. We''re gonna do this twice, right? Yes. When Toya took the whistle and confirmed it to Haruka, she nodded immediately. Then ....... Toya took a deep breath and blew twice as loud as the whistle sounded. "Phew. ....... Will this come back to me in a while? "Probably!¡¡The whistle is within hearing distance, so Nao should be able to bring Natsuki with her. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ....... It''s not going to come! I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. What do you mean?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s also possible. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Haruka also reminded me of this. So, you can''t come back for a while. ......? "Haruka-san, there were two whistle signals. You don''t have to worry so much about it. I''m sure Nao and Natsuki will be fine!¡¡They''re not like my brother Toya! ...... I know. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. It''s about whether you can use magic or not. I''m not sure what to say. "Huh?¡¡...... Uh, yeah!¡¡That''s right! I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. You can read the air. It''s as it should be. It''s definitely not! But unfortunately, Toya didn''t understand her. Of course not. ...... Well, I''m sure the chances of survival are higher than me falling... A little frustrated, and perhaps not confident that he was ahead of Natsuki and the others in terms of calmness and assessment of the situation, Toya grumbled, but said nothing more and looked up at the cliff. He looked up at the cliff.¡¡Didn''t we talk about going back to the 20th level after we finished this? "It''s possible. Yuki, can you help us? Haruka asked, "Can you? But the look on her face was more like, "Don''t tell me you can''t do it. Yuki only nodded her head in affirmation when he looked at her like that. I''ll do my best!¡¡I don''t have much magic, but I''ll try! Immediately, everyone gathered around Yuki, and Yuki meditated and focused her consciousness in order to activate her magic. But... "......? What''s wrong? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. I''m not sure. I''m not sure, but I''d like to know. 337-305 To return to japan (2) "Not being able to transfer doesn''t mean you don''t have enough ...... magic, does it? No. I know the difference between that and not being able to transfer. I can recognize the location of the transfer point, but I can''t reach it. ...... Oh, maybe I don''t have enough magic power in a way? What do you mean? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it for a lot of things.¡¡I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do anything about it if I use a lot of magic, but it''ll be pretty hard. "Hmm, is it like jamming communications? Maybe like that?¡¡I think I can reach the ledge one level up, but I''m afraid to jump without a transfer point in this situation. If I''m off by a few meters, I''ll be upside down. The ledge has a certain amount of space, but the rest of the passage is less than two meters wide. If Yuki is right, if five people are transferred at the same time and they are off by even a few meters, the probability that someone will fall will not be low. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. "What? I''m not sure what to say.¡¡You''re supposed to be our cool guy, right? Yeah, I know. I know, but ...... In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask for help. It''s rare to find a Haruka sister like this,....... You''re always so calm. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. And she doesn''t have Natsuki, her twin in charge of calmness. That''s right. We''re the ones left in charge of making things lively. That''s right, who''s in charge of making things lively? Haruka''s cheeks loosened up a little when Yuki snapped at Toya''s joke. You''re right. We have to be strong. First, let''s go back to ....... Mitya rolls his eyes at the conclusion Haruka came to after thinking for a bit. "Are you sure you don''t want to go towards Nao''s brother and sister? I''ve been thinking about it for a while. In other words, there was no room to go on. And we can''t go any further without you two. "That''s what you''d think, right? I''m not sure if you''re going to be able to do that," he said. We have enough food for both of them. You won''t starve to death. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. There''s enough time for us to regroup. It''s wishful thinking without proof, but no one dares to point that out. "Well, we''ll just have to hope for the best, won''t we? We''ve got our own situation that needs to be handled. ...... What are we going to do?¡¡Are we going to climb this rock wall? "Can you do it? When Haruka asked, Toya nodded, but frowned a little and looked around. If you want me to do it, I will. ...... It''s getting a little dark. If it''s only brightness, you can use the light to deal with it, but it''s a good idea, right? It''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of it. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it on the web. I''m sure Haruka understands this. He immediately nodded and made another suggestion. I guess we''ll just have to camp out for now. Fortunately, I don''t know if I should say that, but I have a comfortable tent in my magic bag. Once you''re inside the tent, you can rest without worrying about wind, temperature, or humidity. The downside is that the person standing guard outside will have to face the wind with a wet body, which can be quite harsh. ....... The only problem is that the person standing guard outside will get wet and windy.¡¡It''ll give you some protection from the wind. Yes. There are some rocks lying around that have just fallen, so I''ll use them to make a wall. Toya, you help Yuki. Mary will help with the fire, and Mitya will set up the tent with me. Toya and the others were relieved to see Haruka, who seemed to have recovered well and was giving them quick instructions, as they prepared to set up camp. "Toya, put those rocks over here. Line them up along this line. "Okay. Okay! While the Earth Wall will disappear in a certain amount of time, the soil transformed by the Ground Control will remain intact. Which one is better depends on the situation, but this time Yuki is using the latter, slightly deforming the rocks that Toya had him lay out and remaking them into a wall. The main reason for doing so is probably because he does not have much magic power left. Although the earthen wall can be built in an instant, the magic power needed to maintain it for a night is quite large, and it is quite difficult in this situation. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I''m sure you can. I''m not sure what to do. It''s a great idea to have a fire to keep you warm. The warmth of the fire is soothing. Yes, it is. If you''re hungry enough, you can try to roast a ...... flying gar. ...... Are you sure? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the most effective way to get the most out of your time. I''ll need to eat anyway. Yuki, help me. "Yes, sir. Would you like a net for this? Yuki lays out a few rocks, puts a fire in it, and puts the net from the magic bag on top of it. He placed the gutted and washed flying gar on the net and sprinkled salt on it. It''s totally a long flying fish, isn''t it? Yeah, ......, Haruka, have you ever cooked flying fish? Yeah. Yeah, I''ve seen them for sale sometimes.¡¡It''s not a fish you see often. The most common round fish you can find in supermarkets are horse mackerel and saury, but the supermarkets Haruka used to go to sometimes sold flying fish and inada (small yellowtail), so as a high school girl who was relatively good at cooking, she had some experience processing and cooking those fish. Compared to the flying fish she was eating at the time, she had the impression that the flesh of the fish might be a little firmer. But the difference was only to the extent of "If you say it''s an error, it''s an error. But the difference was only to the extent that it could be called an error. "It looks like a bluefish, doesn''t it? "It flew in from the waterfall, but it looks exactly the same when you process it. Haruka and Yuki twist their heads as they watch the fish burn. It looks like a bluefish, but the bluefish that Haruka and her friends know are from the ocean, not the rivers. But it looks so good! "Yes. It smells good. It''s very fatty. It looks different from the river fish we usually eat. If it''s good, it''s good, I guess. --Well, it''s about time. Let''s eat. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''ll eat it!¡¡Haguchu!¡¡It''s delicious! This is quite ...... "Oh, it''s got a lot of flavor, this fish! Haruka and Yuki took out their own chopsticks and ate while unraveling the meat. However, it was not because they were trying to be sophisticated, but because it was more convenient for them to separate and eat the small bones. "It has a slight odor, so it''s more like bluefish. "Compared to white fish, it''s not so bad. The two beastmen who had eaten the whole fish, even the tail, were simple-minded. I don''t mind it that much.¡¡I don''t mind it that much. I don''t mind it so much." "The usual fish is good, but this is good too! Mary also nodded her head with her tail sticking out of her mouth. Of course it''s delicious.¡¡"Of course it''s delicious, but I think I''d like to dry it. "Of course it''s delicious. But I think I''d like to dry it, like whole dried fish. There is such a thing as ago dashi, so I think it would be better to use that. "I''ve never had dried flying fish before. I wonder if I can dry it well. I''ve seen dried whole saury on TV before, so I''m sure it''ll be fine. "Whole fish?¡¡Without even opening it? Yes. By the way, the guts were also intact. They grill it and eat it. By the way, the "agou" used in "agou-dashi" is a kind of dried flying fish, not dried as it is. "Niboshi, as the name implies, is anchovies that have been boiled and dried. Note that the method of making niboshi is different from that of dried horse mackerel, which are simply soaked in salt water and then dried. Some important parts are cut out on TV, so it would be wise not to believe them easily. I''ll tell you about it after I get settled. For today, ......, can we have rice balls and soup? I want another one! Me, too! Hey, I''m with ....... Okay, okay. Yuki? I don''t think I''m ready.¡¡Just give me some soup and a rice ball. Okay. That''s fine with me. Haruka took the rice balls out of the bag, placed them on the net and started to process the fish. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to eat it as it is, but I''d like to. ...... It''s easy to eat it as is, but it''s also good to cook it in a simple way like this. Yes, it''s distracting and calming. ...... Well, I''m glad you''ve calmed down, Haruka. I''m glad you''ve calmed down Haruka. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. You''re right. Fortunately, Nao also has a cook named Natsuki, so you don''t have to worry. I wish I knew the status of this thing. ...... Haruka, can''t you use your long ears to communicate with Nao?¡¡It beeps. My ears are not antennas. You could use your whistle to communicate, but it would take too long and it''s not practical considering the risk of attracting enemies. We haven''t heard anything since the second time, so that means there''s no problem, right? Right. Basically, you''re on your own. Although Haruka and the others hadn''t expected that they would really need it, they had discussed guidelines for action in the event that one of them got separated or for some other reason. In this case, since it was known that they were not alone and their lives were not in immediate danger, the agreed-upon policy was that each of them would make every effort to return alive. In disaster relief, people say that the time limit is 48 hours or 72 hours, but in their case, it does not apply because they are at least in a position to move and they have magic bags. "Well, we have water and food. With Natsuki''s magic, they don''t have to worry about hygiene, injury, or disease. It''s safe to say that we''ll still be alive after more than a year. As Toya said, there is no such thing as hopelessness in that direction, but Haruka bent her mouth a little in frustration. I''m not going to spend that much. "I know. It''s just that there''s no need to rush. It''s just that there''s no need to rush, just enough so that you can work hard to level up if you need to. Well, ...... you''re right. Our priority right now is to get us back to safety. Toya, could you take the first watch? Yeah. You sure you want to be next, Haruka? Yes. Yuki needs to rest to recover her magic. I''m sorry. I don''t have much left. Don''t worry about it. I specialize in physical strength. That''s who I am! He smiled and gave a thumbs up to Yuki, who looked apologetic. 338-306 To return to japan (3) "Enemy! It was Haruka who immediately responded to Toya''s voice. "Yuki!¡¡The Isolation Field! I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. Although half-asleep, Yuki''s spell was properly activated, and a barrier enveloped Haruka''s tent. In the meantime, the sound of something hitting the ground could be heard inside the tent. Let''s go! "Yes, sir! Yes! Haruka and the others grabbed their weapons and ran out of the tent, only to see Toya looking into the distance with a stern look on her face. However, after a while, Toya let out a breath and relaxed her body. He''s okay. No reaction. Yeah, ......, or what? Here, look at that. And while you''re at it, check the other side of that wall. He pointed to a flying gar that was bouncing around on the ground. Because of its location, it must have hit the barrier Yuki had put up earlier and fallen to the ground. Oh!¡¡There''s a bunch of them stuck here too! Mitya, who was behind the wall, said with a voice that was a mixture of surprise and joy. "Wow, it''s true: ....... There''s over 20 of them. ...... In contrast, Yuki, who also went to take a look, sounds as if she is saying, "Ugh! This would have been quite dangerous if Toya hadn''t noticed. ...... It''s also worth noting that Haruka''s reaction was quick. How did you manage to react so quickly? Yes, I was sleeping a bit lightly. ....... And Yuki used her magic right away, too. I see. I guess that''s why I was able to protect my expensive tent. He didn''t need to ask why he hadn''t slept well, so he didn''t say anything more and turned his attention to Yuki. The earthen wall you built also helped a lot. As you can see. Yeah. ....... It was supposed to be a windbreak, but it had an unexpected effect. The tent was protected by a spur-of-the-moment quarantine zone, but Toya''s location was outside that zone. Even if Toya had been able to see them coming, it would have been difficult for her to deal with more than 20 flying gars in the dim light. I don''t think he died, but he would have been injured, if it weren''t for this. I didn''t expect an attack at night. ....... No, it wouldn''t be strange if it was a normal demon. It''s pretty vicious, isn''t it? It''s pretty vicious, though. It''s been there in the daytime, so it thinks it''s safe in the passages and ledges. Yeah. I''m not saying I wasn''t careless, but I was tired and resting, and I was taken by surprise. ...... If you don''t go up and down the walls, you think you won''t be attacked from the sky, but at night they come flying. In addition, compared to the Arrowhead Eagle, which makes some flapping noises, the Flying Gar, which does not flap at all, is almost silent except for a slight wind noise. It is extremely difficult to spot them at night. ...... In this case, would it be a good idea to put up a good light? If it''s bright, it''ll glow! When she jumped out of the tent, Haruka quickly activated the magic of the "light". The light is reflected by the fish body of the flying gar that Mitya picked up. It''s not very noticeable, but as bluefish are called "shiny things", it will definitely shine and help you find them. "Yes. Let''s float the "light" in the direction of the waterfall, a little farther away. Fortunately, the direction it flies in seems to be fixed. It would be a disaster if it came from the opposite direction, wouldn''t it? I''m not sure what to make of that. Stop it. It''s really going to happen. I don''t care how many times I have to say it. It would still make sense if it flew from the top of the waterfall, but the other side is the sky, right?¡¡Unless you were suddenly born and fell into the air... Yuki laughed and denied Toya''s words, but then fell silent and thought about it. It''s a dungeon, right? It''s not that unreasonable. It''s not that unreasonable. If you say so, you''ll have to live in fear of Dahl''s Bear suddenly appearing above you. We''d be crushed to death if that happened. A typical Dahl''s Bear weighs over seven tons. Even if Toya and the others are getting better, there''s no way they can support that kind of weight if it suddenly falls on them. "Well, if it comes from the opposite direction, we''ll be safe against the wall. Toya, this is a good time. I''ll take over the watch. We''ve got a big day tomorrow. Get some sleep. Yeah?¡¡Okay. Yeah, I got it. You and Yuki. And me. Me, go to sleep. I''ll leave it to you. Mitya raises her hand, and Mary lets it fall as she pushes her back toward the tent. But ...... Mitya, you''ll need to keep watch tomorrow. So get some sleep. I understand. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to do it. I''m sure you''re right. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do. You used it again just now, didn''t you? I''m sorry. Well then, Haruka and Mary, take care of the rest. After watching Yuki and her friends go back into the tent, Haruka and her friends sat down next to the fire and added firewood to it. The next day. The next day. Haruka and her friends had a peaceful morning. The next day, Haruka and his friends had a peaceful morning. "That''s good, Haruka-san. It was safe. Mary smiled at the slightly disgruntled Haruka, but then choked on her words when she heard Haruka''s next words. But isn''t Mary a little disappointed?¡¡But isn''t Mary a little disappointed that there are no more fish? "Ugh!¡¡I''m sure the flying gars were delicious, but... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. "...... Would you like some of that for breakfast? I''m sorry. I''m not sure what to do. Would you like me to bake it? Yes! Mary nodded happily to Haruka, who responded with an involuntary gush. Then Haruka and the others started to cook the fish. Perhaps lured by the smell, the first to show up was Toya. Mitya followed soon after, and Yuki came out a few minutes later. Yuki came out a few minutes later, yawning as if she hadn''t slept long enough. "Good morning. "Good morning. Yuki, how''s your magic? "Hmm, something? Yuki replied, folding her arms and twisting her neck as if to measure her magic power. "Well, that''s good. You have to work hard, Yuki. Oh, so I''m supposed to be the one doing all the work? "After what happened last night. After what happened last night, I don''t feel safe without the Isolation Field protecting my back. I know. That''s what I was thinking. Yuki''s shoulders slumped a little, but she nodded her head in agreement. If you want to go down from the top, you can use a rope to go down at once, but if you want to climb the wall, it will naturally take many times longer. Especially this time, they had experienced the collapse of the rock wall in addition to the attack last night. We had to be very careful about where we chose. The first attacker under such circumstances would be none other than Yuki. Once Yuki is up there, she can use the rope ladder to climb up quickly. Yuki!¡¡Hurry up, hurry up! Your food is ready. Okay, I''m coming. Laughing at Mitya and the others who seemed to be waiting impatiently, Yuki sat down by the fire. After breakfast, Yuki started to attack upwards with caution, but fortunately the Flying Gars and Arrowhead Eagles did not attack him. Fortunately, the Flying Gar and Arrowhead Eagle did not attack. He carefully secured a foothold and reached the top ledge, at which point Yuki''s magic power was already nearly depleted. It was difficult to go on without taking a rest. Half a day''s rest would allow her to recover her magic, but there was no way she could operate day and night, and considering safety, she could only climb two levels in a day. Halka and the others would have to make two more encampments before they could escape the second layer. During this time, the night attacks continued, but Haruka, who had plenty of magic power, dealt with them by building an earthen wall. The flying gars that had flown in during the night were simply collected by Mitya the next morning, saying, "Fish! On the third day, Haruka and her friends finally reached the stairs leading to the 20th level. "You managed to get back here. "Yeah, sort of. The rock spider was back, which was a bit of a pain in the ass. In the past year, Haruka and the others have also learned the [Spotting enemy] skill, and Toya''s [Spotting enemy] has risen to level 3, but it is still lower than Nao''s. Although he was able to find the rock spider that was hiding, he was often surprised to find it just before he did. Maybe we should work out a little, too. Yuki learned by copying, didn''t she?¡¡And now? "...... level two. It''s not high, but it''s not slacking either. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time. You can''t say that you''ve been lazy because you''ve been able to raise your level in a situation where you can safely leave it to Nao and Toya. You say that, but what about Haruka? Me?¡¡I''m level one. You''re lower than me! You know you don''t have a copy, right?¡¡First of all, if you train her too much, Nao won''t be able to play.¡¡Consider it, consider it. "Mmm. ...... I''m sure you''re not the only one. In fact, compared to Toya, who has animal senses, and Yuki, who can copy, it is difficult for Haruka to acquire the skill of searching for enemies. It''s difficult, but as of now, Natsuki also has ¡¾Searching Enemies Lv.1¡¿, so it''s a skill that can be obtained to a certain extent if you''re a serious adventurer. I''ve been wondering about this for a while now, but I''m not sure what a level is. "Well, ....... In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site and find out more about it. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. This is the first time I''ve ever seen such a thing. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. Well, that''s what it means. In fact, it''s not as simple as that, and it has the advantage of allowing you to grasp all of your abilities, but Haruka nodded that she was generally correct. But for Mitya and the others, that alone was enough to surprise them. It''s very convenient! "Wow, if we pray hard enough, can we get blessings too? If we pray hard enough, will we receive a blessing?" Yuki averted her gaze and muddled her words. "Oh, I don''t know about that.¡¡Maybe it depends on God''s will? Yes, that''s right. If you have impure feelings, you won''t get any blessings, will you?¡¡I''ll pray sincerely! I''ll try to pray sincerely!" Yuki thought that it didn''t matter if he was sincere or not, but there was no way she could say that, so she just nodded vaguely. But there was no way he could say that, so he just nodded vaguely and said, "Well, that''s not the point right now.¡¡We need to get ready and go save Nao and the others, okay? "Oh, yes, of course. I''m sorry, I shouldn''t have bothered with that. I''m sorry, I shouldn''t have worried about that. No, I think it''s natural to be curious. No, I think it''s natural for you to be curious, so feel free to ask me if you have any questions in the future, okay? "Yes, I understand. Mary, who tended to be reserved because of her position, and Mitya, who seemed to be less reserved but still read the air. It''s a good thing that the two of them have started to speak out their doubts honestly, Haruka and the others nodded to each other. So, let''s go back to layer 20. "Yeah, I guess so. With Toya in the lead, the five of them began to ascend the stairs. Haruka, who is walking at the end of the stairs, turns around and looks down the cliff when her foot is on the stairs. What lies there is a deep valley, closed off by fog, the bottom of which cannot even be seen. "Nao, Natsuki, I''ll be back as soon as I can. ...... Haruka muttered, and ran up the stairs, shaking off her reluctance. 339-307 Falling (1) The smoke was getting thicker as we fell. Visibility was deteriorating rapidly. An unusually deep valley. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? But thanks to the height, we were able to get into position before we hit the ground. Natsuki put his hands around my neck, and I pulled Natsuki''s waist to support him. "Nao-kun!¡¡What about the transfer? No! This magic is useful in many ways, but you need to know where you are and where you''re going before you can activate it. But we''re in a state where our position is changing in less than a second. In other words, our current location changes between the time we prepare the spell and the time we cast it, and we can''t determine it. If we were rattling along in a carriage, we could get by, but at this speed, it''s impossible. But that doesn''t mean I jumped out of the carriage without thinking. "Walk on air! Good thing I''m practicing magic. Since I found out about the situation at the second layer, I''ve been practicing this spell. I skipped all wind magic and lower level magic. As a result, I was able to use it successfully... but that''s not the case, is it? The world is not so easy. But the effort is not in vain. You feel a resistance under your feet, and your falling speed decreases slightly. Immediately after that, the resistance suddenly disappears, and the fall begins again. "Natsuki, bring down the light! Yes! As soon as I responded, Natsuki sent three lights downward at regular intervals. Nice! You can''t see the bottom of the fog, but you can see the light. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Since the lights are floating at intervals of about 10 meters, you will be able to tell when you are 30 meters from the ground. ''Walk in the air, walk in the air, walk in the air! Incomplete magic. Half as effective and half as powerful as the magic used. Normally, when a person falls, there is a limit to how fast they can accelerate in free fall, and they reach terminal velocity relatively quickly. In other words, as long as you can see the ground, it is very inefficient to slow down slowly, but at the present time, it is very difficult to slow down from the terminal velocity - about 200 km/h - to a velocity where you can land safely. However, at present, we don''t know the distance required to slow down from the terminal speed - approximately 20 km/h - to a speed at which we can land safely. Because 200 km/h is a drop of more than 50 meters in one second. Even if you could see the ground at 100 meters above you, you would only be able to use magic once. So the only option is to keep slowing down the fall. --Oh, I should have prepared a parachute. Even if it was incomplete, it would have added some value. It''s too late to realize that now. "Walking in the Air" ...... "Walking in the Air Hmmm. It''s a little bad. I''ve been using a lot of magic today, and I''m not sure how much I have left. "Recover Mental Strength. Good luck. Oh. Walking in the air. Natsuki''s magic makes me feel a little better. But it''s about time... I see it! The surface!¡¡Natsuki! Yes! It''s obvious, when you think about it. There was a possibility that the cliff was not the shore, but a river. It was fortunate that the river seemed to be deep enough. On the other hand, the unfortunate part is that the current seems to be very strong. A bang! My body and Natsuki''s body fell into the current of the river, sinking deeply. If this is the case, I should have practiced breathing underwater. However, if we had spent more time practicing underwater breathing, we would not have been able to slow down when walking in the air, and we would have crashed before drowning. We didn''t have an unlimited amount of time to practice, but I guess that''s what you call begging for something. Just before we hit the water, we sucked in our breath and dove deep into the water, but even so, we never touched the bottom of the river and were swept along by the violent current. But we were lucky to have Natsuki''s "light". Relying on it, I kicked the water toward the surface. "Whoa!¡¡Are you okay, Natsuki? "Yeah, yeah, I managed to ......". I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. Can you send the light around? Yes, please wait a moment. While being swept along with only my head above the water, I checked the situation around me, relying on the light that Natsuki had released. Incidentally, one of the tips to avoid drowning in case of emergency is not to put your hands in the water unnecessarily. The human body is buoyant when it is in water, but when it is above water, it becomes a load. In other words, if you raise your arms above the water, you lose the buoyancy of one arm, which in turn becomes a load, making it easier to sink. The best thing to do is to keep your head - or more precisely, your face - above the water and wait for rescue, but that is only possible in a situation where rescue is possible, and that is in the ocean. However, this is not the case when you are in a river like we are now. If you know what''s going to happen, one option is to drift until the current becomes calm, but that''s pretty scary when you don''t know what''s going to happen. The danger that there might be a waterfall ahead, the danger that the current might become more violent and slam us against the rocks, the danger that there might be demons like flying gars in the river. The list goes on and on. So all I can do now is to try my best to climb up out of the river. I look around for a place where I can climb up, but... "Isn''t there any sand at ......? The river where we were being swept away was probably more than 20 meters wide. Both sides of the river are steep cliffs, and beneath them is a rugged rocky terrain. It''s better than a cliff with no place to hold on to, but it''s still a little more dangerous than a sandy beach. Let''s be thankful that there are rocks. Nao, go over there. Oh. On the left, facing upstream. I swam up to the cliff where we had fallen and managed to grab a rock. "Natsuki......! Yes! I pushed Natsuki up onto the rocks and helped her up onto the rocks. I breathed out a sigh of relief that we were in a safe place for the time being, and that we had successfully escaped from the fast-flowing river. As if in sync with me, Natsuki also breathed out, and we looked at each other and laughed lightly. You''ve been swept away, ......? I don''t know, I was pretty desperate myself, but the current was fast. I looked up, but all I could see was a white mist in the sky. We couldn''t tell how far we had fallen, or even how high the cliff was. And when we looked upstream, we couldn''t even see the waterfall, only hear the roaring sound. Shall we call it in? "Yes. Can I do it twice? Then Natsuki took out a whistle. It was a whistle, but not a musical instrument, like a horn or a whistle. This whistle is an emergency whistle that each of us has, and it was prepared for the same purpose as the whistle in the so-called "emergency bag". By the way, sounding it twice is a signal that you are safe. We have also decided on other methods of communication using lights and mirrors, but they are useless at present. It''s not completely safe yet, but if we''re not sure if we''re alive or dead, Haruka and the others might be overwhelmed. Yeah, that''s probably a good idea. Then I''ll blow. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The high-pitched sound echoed twice in the valley, cutting through the roar of the waterfall and its heavy bass. Then, after listening carefully for a while, I heard the same sound twice from a distance. Hearing this, Natsuki and I looked at each other, relaxed our expressions, and exhaled heavily. It seems that the other side is also safe. "Yes. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that he managed to avoid falling.¡¡He thrust his sword into the ground. He was the second from last to go down. The only person left on top was Toya, but when the rock collapsed, his body seemed to float in the air for a moment, but he was still hanging on to the sword he had thrust into the ground. I''m really impressed with your quick decision in that situation, even though it looked a bit risky. But even if you transfer back, you still need to wait for your magic power to recover. ...... It''s a small place, isn''t it? Yes, it''s a bit uncomfortable. In addition to the fact that the rock we crawled on is less than a tatami mat, it is not a square block, so the only place we can practically sit is a slightly slanted half-tatami mat space. The two of us were sitting there, huddled together, and Natsuki was right, it was quite uncomfortable. Furthermore, we were soaked from falling into the river, surrounded by fog, and the temperature was a bit chilly. It''s impossible for me to recover my magic power in this condition. Let''s dry our clothes first. I''m not sure about me, but Nao-kun might catch a cold. You can''t overestimate the power of [Robustness] either. You can''t overestimate the strength of the [Robust] either. Fortunately, none of us have gotten sick in the past year, but I''m sure that''s due in part to the fact that we''ve been trying not to push ourselves too hard. I don''t think [Robustness] is a skill powerful enough to keep you from getting sick under any circumstances. So, Natsuki, please. I''m sorry. Purify. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. But it was only for a short time, and as for the clothes on top, they soon became damp with fog. Thank you. Thank you for having me. No, no, no. You can dry your clothes with the Dryer, right? I could, but I''d have to take my clothes off. Haruka created a water magic called "Drying". You can use this magic to dry wet clothes, but it is a bit dangerous to use while wearing clothes. If it dries your skin, it''s just a funny story, but if it fails, it''s not so funny. Well, inanimate and animate. If you compare inanimate objects and animate objects, the latter are much more resistant to magic, so unless you make a mistake, it won''t be fatal. However, I don''t want to strip in front of Natsuki, and it''s too dangerous in many ways to be naked in such a small place. If you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you can always try to find a place where you can find it. It''s not only fatal to your wallet, but it will certainly make Haruka angry with you. 340-308 Fall (2) Now, we need to find somewhere to settle down. ...... Natsuki, which do you think we should head upstream or downstream? "That''s a tough one. ....... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a little nervous about this. A river, you know. ...... In general, the flow of a river becomes slower the further downstream you go, and the rocks become stones and then sand. If you think of it as a place where you can rest your body, then Natsuki has a point when he says, "It''s better to go downstream. And if we head upstream, the cliffs will continue to get steeper and steeper, and if there is a flash flood, it could be dangerous, right?¡¡I can''t say that there aren''t traps like that. ...... Yeah, that would kill me. It''s a very steep stream. I heard a story when I went to a certain tourist spot famous for its canyons. When it rains heavily, the canyon''s water level rises more than 10 meters, and the deep valley sinks below the surface. As the story goes, there were traces of the rising water in a position where you could look up from below. A ravine collects that much water. With that in mind, even a little rain would easily submerge the rock we were on. Swimming in such a river is an experience to be avoided. I''m not sure if it rains in the dungeon, though. But even if it doesn''t rain, the trap is still a possible danger. The cliff that collapsed earlier might have been a trap, too. I couldn''t notice it. ...... That''s right. It didn''t look like a problem. ...... It''s a good idea to make sure you have a good idea of what you''re doing. The ground was not cracked, nor was it fragile enough to collapse easily. However, there was no doubt that the best place to set the trap was on the ledge, which looked like it could be descended. Moreover, we had been able to get down safely several times, so our guard was relaxed. I don''t want to think that we were not careful enough, but this is the reality of the situation. ...... Hmmm. Are you heading downstream to ......? Yes. Yes, that''s the safer option, isn''t it? Just as it''s impossible to pitch a tent in the middle of a river, it''s even more impossible to spend the night in a place like this. Natsuki and I started to move downstream, jumping over rocks. It was a bit nerve-wracking, but not too difficult, considering our greatly improved sense of balance and jumping ability. We had been moving for about an hour. Then, after about an hour of moving, I heard a sound that caught my attention. It was a heavy bass sound that seemed to resonate in my stomach. The sound of falling water from the waterfall had been there all along, but it was more intense, and it seemed to be getting closer and closer. I don''t want to think about the cause of it, but I can''t ignore it. "...... Hey, Natsuki. I''m hearing some disturbing noises. Is it my imagination? That''s strange. I''ve been wondering about my feet for a while now, too. Is there a slight increase in the volume of water? Is that what you think? The rock we''re using as a stepping stone. In the beginning, there were many rocks with enough space for the two of us to stand on, but they became smaller and smaller, and the distance between the rocks became wider and wider. This doesn''t mean that the number of good-looking rocks is decreasing, but that they''re submerging. "Natsuki, should we tie each other up with a rope?¡¡I don''t know if that''s the right thing to do. I don''t know if it''s the right idea, but it''s better than getting separated. Keep the rope as short as possible. If the rope is too long, it may get tangled around your neck, and if it gets caught in the wrong place, you may not be able to rise to the surface and may even drown. On the other hand, it would also be dangerous to be separated from the others. We stopped on a wide rock and took out ropes to tie each other. ...!¡¡Nao-kun!¡¡Please hurry up! "Geez! If you follow Natsuki''s gaze, you''ll see that there was a wall of water. A wall of water was approaching, pushing away the smoke. "Oh no, oh no! It wasn''t a situation where I could say, "There''s a certain amount of leeway. I hurriedly pulled Natsuki into my arms and twisted the rope around our bodies. And when I tied it tightly with all my strength, Natsuki let out a gasp, but there was no time to talk about that. "I''m coming! Isolation Field! The only thing I could do was to use the little magic I had recovered and cast a spell that might help. Of course, I don''t expect it to stop the muddy water. I just hope that it will increase my chances of survival, even if only slightly. Immediately after the spell was activated to create a spherical barrier, we were slammed into the water as if we were being flung away, and a moment later we were swallowed by a huge amount of water. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to say.¡¡...... Huh, huh. "Natsuki, are you okay? Yes, yes. I''m okay. Koho, koho. ......! The muddy stream that swept us away flowed down the river at once. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. However, I should say that it was fortunate that the current was fast, and the water volume returned to normal in a relatively short time. However, the river was still flowing very fast. I was on the edge of my seat, but before I felt sick from the overuse of magic, I released the barrier. I continued to be swept away by the water while hugging Natsuki, and eventually, when the rock walls on either side of me disappeared and the sandy shore came into view, I succeeded in crawling out of the river. Oh, I feel sick. Thank you for your hard work. But thanks to Nao''s magic, you didn''t get hurt. I guess. I''ll dry your clothes. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. It''s the forest ....... I''m not going to say that I''m in a dungeon now, but ....... "Yes, sir. It looks like it came from over there. If you look upstream, you''ll see a huge rocky mountain with a crevice in it that looks like a machete has been swung down. The river we were swept into was flowing out of that crevice. Even visually, we can see that we are a long way from there. ...... Well, let''s just be glad we''re alive for now. I guess. To be honest, if it weren''t for Nao''s Isolation Field, it would have been quite dangerous. "And now your magic is empty again. I felt as if I had been swept down the river for quite some time, but if I think about it calmly, it was only a few minutes at most. In addition to activating the quarantine area, which is normally used to fix the location, around the entire circumference based on your location, it consumes a large amount of magic power to maintain that state while being swept away by the river. The amount of time you can activate it with the magic power you recover in an hour or so is far beyond your capacity. First, let''s find a place to camp. There are many dangers near the river. But going into the forest is also a bit uncomfortable. ...... What do you think? There''s nothing nearby that responds to the [search enemy]. Except for animals. Some animals may attack you, but they are basically harmless. A year ago, they would not have been a threat, but now they are not. Of course, this is only true for the animals we know, and even those are dangerous if they attack you in your sleep, so it doesn''t mean you don''t need to deal with them. "So, the forest. Let''s find a suitable place to camp. I nodded at her words, and we left the riverbank and went into the forest. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary forest, similar to the forest we usually enter in the upper reaches of the Sahlstat. But I don''t know how it really is, because I''m not very familiar with the vegetation of the forest. "I''d like to rest early. ...... Is this a good place? "Yes, I think so. I don''t know if it''s safe or not. We''ve never been here before. We can at least avoid places that are clearly dangerous, such as riversides and cliffs, but we don''t know what kind of enemies we''ll encounter in the first place. Walking around forever will only make you tired. We decided to make a break for it and set up camp at the base of a rather large tree. We built a fire there, took out one of the folding bunks, and sat down on it together. "Huh~ "Huh." "...... We both exhaled loudly, looked at each other, and relaxed our cheeks a little. We looked at each other and relaxed a little. I think so. I fell off a cliff and was swept into a river. ...... Just when you think you''re safe, you get swept away again. Yeah, I''m glad you''re okay. In retrospect, I probably should have trained a little more before coming to this level. If you''re looking at it, you''re probably not too far off the appropriate level, since you''re still alive and not seriously injured. ...... Hmm. If you only go to places where you can fight easily, it is possible that you have not grown as an adventurer. Nao-kun. It''s a good idea to eat and rest early today. You don''t mind if it''s ready-made, do you? "Yes, of course. I just want to eat something hot. I''ve got to swim twice today. Yeah. That''s what I want too. Let''s make pork miso soup. It''s not pork but boa meat, but that doesn''t matter. If you warm yourself up with hot soup full of vegetables and meat, and fill your stomach with rice balls, your tense nerves will be relieved a little. Pork soup with rice. And a hot meal is still important. "Well then, Nao, go to sleep first. I''ll keep an eye out for you. Are you sure? I need you to recover your magic. I wish I had some kind of magic that could transfer ...... magic power. I''m not sure what to make of that." "Oh, that can''t be helped. ...... In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''re going to want to make sure that you''re getting the most out of your business. There are potions that restore magic power, but these are not as effective as the ones we have access to and can make now. At the very least, the amount of recovery is completely insufficient to use magic that consumes a large amount of magic power, such as transfer magic. So, Natsuki, take care of it. "Yes, I''ll leave it to you. I laid out a mattress, a blanket, and a quilt on the bed, and crawled into it. This is the standard style in our camp these days. It may ruin the atmosphere, but we prefer comfort. We don''t dare use sleeping bags. You can''t jump out of a sleeping bag in case of an emergency. But with a futon, you can jump up and down and react immediately. The downside is that it gets dirty, but we have ''purification'', so that''s not a problem. Well, good night. "Okay, get some rest. Restore your mind. I smiled and said "Thank you" to Natsuki, who cast a spell on me, and closed my eyes. 341-309 Rest and explore (1) "...... Nao-kun, Nao-kun, please wake up. ...... Ah, ah, time for a shift? Yes. Are you okay?¡¡If you''re not recovering fast enough, you can get some more sleep at ....... No, no problem. You''ve been asleep for quite a while. Before I fell asleep, there was still some light around, but now it was completely dark. I wonder if it''s midnight? I don''t know if it''s midnight or not, but it''s a dungeon, so I don''t know, but my feeling is that I''ve had a good night''s sleep. As soon as I crawled out from under the covers, Natsuki hurriedly got under the covers. It''s warm. "...... No, you have your own futon, right? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s fine. It''s good, because Nao-kun is warming it up for you. Besides, it''s not like I''m going to smell it. "No, please don''t!¡¡That''s kind of embarrassing! Well, the truth is, no matter who used the bedding, I always apply Purify to it, so there''s no need to worry about it. ...... It''s just a feeling. I''m not sure what to say, but I''ll try. Good night. Oh, good night. It''s a great way to get a good night''s sleep. And if you pay close attention to the response of the [search enemy], you can see a few small responses, probably because it''s nighttime. There''s still a distance between us, and it''s not a threat that I feel threatened by, but I don''t know enough about this forest to be relaxed about it. As a precaution, I will surround the area with Sanctuary. Incidentally, the difference between the "Isolation Field" and the "Sanctuary" can be simply described as a physical wall and a magical wall. No, they are both walls made by magic, but as an ''effect''. The former blocks everything, including air, while the latter blocks anything harmful to the magician. The latter is affected by the perception and skill of the magician. For example, if there is a rock fall as a natural phenomenon, it is usually impossible to prevent it in the "sanctuary. If you think about it, the quarantine area is more secure, but if you also think about the danger of consuming magic power or running out of oxygen, it is not necessarily better. I guess you need to use it differently depending on the situation. But ...... looking at it like this, it doesn''t feel like you''re in a dungeon. ...... In the case of this level, you would not know you were in a dungeon unless you were told. If you listen carefully, you can hear a few insects and the wind is blowing. If I continued to observe carefully, I might be able to find something unnatural, but for the moment, there was nothing that I could recognize. While staring at the fire, I spend some time quietly focusing on the reaction of the [enemy spotter]. Then, about three hours have passed since I switched guards with Natsuki. It''s not that strong of a reaction, but it''s not that bad. The reactions were not that strong, but there were about eight objects that seemed to be moving with some sort of intention. They were approaching in a semicircle around where we were. "Natsuki. I''m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but it''s a good thing. I''m not sure what to say. I think the enemy might be here. I can''t ...... feel it yet, but if Nao-kun says so, we need to be on the alert. When Natsuki got out of the futon, I put the futon and bunk away in my magic bag. Now all I need is a weapon and I''m ready to go. I didn''t take off my chainmail because I didn''t know when I would be attacked, so as soon as I woke up, I was ready. The problem is that it''s a little hard to sleep, but I''ve gotten used to it. I think it''s much better than plate mail. "What do you think it is? "I don''t know. At least, I don''t think I''ve ever encountered one before. ...... I''m not sure what it is, but I''m pretty sure it''s something I''ve never encountered before. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure he''s around there. Natsuki looked at the spot I was pointing to. "No, ......, there it is!¡¡It''s a cat! Almost at the same time, a number of shadows popped out of the darkness as if they were separating. Their pitch-black figures were truly cats. They were about a centimeter taller than the average Aedes aegypti, but including their tails, they were only about 50 centimeters long. Such demons jumped at me all at once from the trees and bushes. But it was good to use Sanctuary. It''s not enough to bounce them back, but their momentum is killed as if they are caught by something in the barrier, and they can''t reach us. And being stopped in midair for a moment is a good thing for those of us who use long arms. At this point, four of the eight animals that had jumped at us had their heads ripped off and were just scratching the ground. "Shadow Margay, you have [Covert]. "Pitch black and covert. That''s pretty dangerous when you''re attacked in the dark. Yeah. I wouldn''t want to walk in this forest at night, at least. But the enemy is very quick, and the target is small, so it is difficult to hit. However, the Sanctuary is still very useful. If you follow the blind spots with Natsuki and attack, there are only a few places within the range of the Sanctuary where you can escape. And if you touch the barrier, it''s all over. The moment their movement slows down, you can deal with them quickly. It didn''t take much time for all the Shadow Margays to stop moving. "Hmm. You were quicker than I thought, weren''t you? "Yes. Without the Sanctuary, it would have been a bit of a hassle. Yeah, the Sanctuary is a lot more useful in a defensive battle than I thought. If this is a quarantined area, your attacks will also hit the barriers, but this is not the case with the sanctuary. But the sanctuary doesn''t have such a barrier, and yet it blocks the demon''s actions even for a moment, so it is much easier to fight. As some of them jumped from the top of the trees at first, it would have been a little more difficult if they had attacked us while hiding in the bushes or on top of the trees. On the contrary, the compatibility with the sanctuary that inhibits it is very good from our point of view, and the worst from Shadow Margay''s point of view. "Wow, look at ....... These claws are really sharp, aren''t they?¡¡If they were aimed at your face or neck, it would be fatal. "Geez. Too disproportionate, these claws. ...... The claws on the paws are about two centimeters long and quite sharp, even though the cat looks a bit bigger. If one of these things suddenly attacked you from a tree in the dark,......, you''d have a very high risk of dying if it cut your carotid artery. "Okay, let''s never move at night. If we miss them, we''ll be in trouble. "Yes. It''s not so bad if you fight them head on, but surprise attacks are dangerous. After that, we were on alert for a while, but there was no sign of a second wave coming, so we decided to let Natsuki sleep. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. I''m sure you''ll agree. "What do you think, Nao? I''m sure you''ll be fine.¡¡We might not be able to move for a while. The next morning, after eating breakfast and leaving the camp, we were looking for the transfer point that Haruka and her team might have set up, in order to transfer back. There were two that we could see. The far one was the entrance to the second layer, and the slightly closer one was probably the new transfer point Haruka and her team had set up. The distance was quite close, but only Natsuki and I would be transferring this time. If it''s a little closer, I think we can make it, but it''s going to take a lot of magic. I think we should stop at ....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I think they''re probably waiting for us at the transfer point, but I''m not ...... sure. I don''t think Haruka and the others will abandon us, but we should consider the possibility that they are attacked by demons and have no choice but to leave the location of the transfer point. Fortunately, thanks to Nao-kun, we know where we''re headed, so let''s walk as close as we can. How about that? "Yeah, no problem. Yesterday''s Shadow Margay is not so scary at this time of the day. Of course, we need to think about the possibility of another demon appearing, but for now, there is no target that will be trapped by the [Search Enemy]. If you are a full member of the team, you can make money even if some demons appear, but with just the two of you, you don''t want them to appear if possible. The direction is ...... this way. With the location of the transfer point as our guide, we start walking. If you think about it, the transfer point is quite convenient, isn''t it? They allow us to walk without anxiety even in the middle of the forest, where there is no way to see. If you place them well, you won''t have to worry about getting lost, and if you combine them with Yuki''s [Mapping] skill, they''re even more useful. Well, there is no way to distinguish which transition point is which, so if you place too many of them, you''ll lose track of them. "Stop!¡¡Stop! I had a bad feeling about this, so I rushed to stop Natsuki. "What''s wrong? I''m not sure what it is, but I''m pretty sure it''s something that''s trapped in the tree. ....... I can''t say it''s an enemy response, but it doesn''t look like there''s anything ...... faint about it either. If I had to use a metaphor, I''d say it was more like a harmless animal. But it doesn''t look like there are any small animals around the tree, and the reaction seems to be more volumetric than that. I don''t know. Invisible monster?¡¡Ghostly. "The shadow ghosts I''ve encountered before were visible, ...... but I''d rather not ignore them. It''s my first time here. Do you want to attack it at random?¡¡Maybe something will fall from the tree tops. Yeah. This is the kind of thing Toya is good at. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to do this. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. For the time being, you can try to hit them with Stone Missiles. ....... "No response? Yes. There''s no sign of anything falling. A stone the size of my fist hit the tree and shook the trunk lightly, but that was it. There was no change. "......, or is it just my imagination? I took the axe out of my magic bag and walked towards the tree with it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. "Nao-kun!¡¡Up here! 342-310 Rest and explore (2) I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. "What? I was stunned for a moment by the unbelievable sight, but even so, I have a certain amount of experience. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the following article. Wow. ...... It''s moving, isn''t it? As if pulling my foot out of the mud, I saw the roots of the tree undulate and start to move. And indeed, in this state, there is a clear response to the [search enemy]. "I don''t think I need to tell you this, Trent. I thought your skill was [Mimicry]. Do you have any other information? It doesn''t come up quickly, but it seems to be more valuable as timber than the trees we''re cutting down. Would you be willing to take it home? If you ask me, I think I read something like that in the Demon Encyclopedia. In a way, it would be a popular demon in the town of Raffan. ....... "How do I kill it? "You can either destroy a certain amount of it or destroy the demon stone. It''s hard to say what to do. If you damage the tree too much, it will lose its value as wood, and if you destroy the magic stone, you will not be able to sell it. If you have a magic bag that you can take home, you should probably go for the magic stones. ....... "Do you know where the nasty ...... magic stone is? "It''s in the center of the base," he said. I think that''s fair. It''s the thickest part. That''s true. The thickest part of a normal tree is at the base. If you place a magic stone in the center of it, it will have the highest defense. There is no ...... means of attack that can penetrate that far at once. I''m not sure if you can cut it down little by little or burn it. It''s also difficult because it''s raw wood. I really regret that Toya is not here. And then there''s Haruka. If I had the Sickle Wind Air Cutter, I could use it to drop the branches bit by bit, but I''m not very good at wind magic. A spear and a naginata is not a good match for me and Natsuki. Incidentally, the reason why Natsuki and I are able to talk to each other relatively slowly is because of Trent''s slow movement speed. Its wavy roots are a bit uncomfortable, but it doesn''t seem to be very good at moving, and escaping itself doesn''t seem to be difficult. However, if there are other torrents on the way to escape, there is a high risk of being caught by surprise. ...... No, seriously, how do I die? If you don''t think about it later, you can probably get away with using my specialty, the Fire Arrow, but if you''re going to do that, you''ll want to secure some wood. I want to bring it back to Rafan to see if it''s worth hunting Torrent in the future. I''m going to have to use my axe to cut off those roots and-- oh, by the way, isn''t there a space-time magic called ''Plane Shift''? "Oh!¡¡That''s it! This is a level 5 spacetime magic, "Spatial Fragmentation". I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. First of all, it takes time to activate. In the case of fire arrows, the spell is cast on the enemy after it is activated, but in the case of space fragmentation, the process of specifying the location of activation, concentrating on consciousness, and activating the spell is followed. In other words, there is a slight time lag between specifying the location and activating the spell, and normal enemies will have moved away from the target location in the meantime. Even if you can deal with this by reducing the time lag and predicting the location through training, the other problem is the consumption of magic power. If you want to kill orcs and the like, the fire arrow is by far the more cost-effective option. It is not only difficult to use, it is also inexpensive. In other words, there is no advantage to using them. That''s why I forgot about it as a means of attack, but I think it''s just right for this situation. Trent''s movement is also slow. So let''s get started. ...... The magic stone is the thickest part, right? Yes. It''s not the roots, it''s the thickest part of the trunk. That''s another subtle ...... It''s a little hard to tell where the trunk is and where the roots are because it''s crawling out of the ground. The size of the magic stone suggests that an error of a few centimeters might be manageable, but... I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. It was a very simple spell with no apparent change, but the change in Trent was clear. The roots of the tree, which had been wiggling, stopped moving. Immediately after that, the roots began to snap as if unable to bear the weight, and the trunk that was on top of it began to move toward me. Oops! Whoa! In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, please do not hesitate to contact us. I''m not sure what to do. It seems that he was able to successfully cut the location of the magic stone. You can find a lot of people who are interested in this kind of thing.¡¡Isn''t this magic? I should have used it the other day when I was cutting down that tree. But you can''t use this magic more than once, can you? Well, yeah. But if Yuki and I had used it together, we could have cut down half of the trees with this magic. Manual logging takes a lot of time, so we have time to rest. It also takes time to trim the branches after cutting them down. I won''t be logging for a while, though, and my priority right now is to go home. I picked up my spear and poked at the stump, but there was no response. There''s no response from the stump either, so I guess it''s dead. If I kill it, it''ll die. If it dies, it will lose its strange flexibility. Natsuki nodded while inspecting the broken roots and branches that looked like ordinary trees. I touched it too, but it looked like wood. Looking at it like this, I can''t imagine that the roots were moving like tentacles or that the branches were flexible like rubber. The only indication that this was a torrent is the severed magic stone that can be seen in the cut of the stump. The only indication that this was a torrent is the severed magical stone that can be seen in the cut of the stump. The magic stone has been ruined. I''m sorry. It''s a good idea. We''re used to cutting down trees. The two of us quickly remove the branches and put them in the magic bag. We didn''t know if there was any use for the stump, but we collected it and moved on, but after that, Trent kept popping up as if he remembered. After the second time, I''ve been cutting them down with the ''space divider'' before they start moving, but it''s a bit of a hassle if I miss the location of the magic stone . It attacked me with just the stump. In addition, they are strangely quicker, probably because they are lighter. Well, I guess that''s inevitable, considering that you have to move around to avoid knocking over a tree that''s over ten meters tall. But aren''t you saying that if you destroy a certain amount of trees you can kill them? That''s what the ...... book says, if you ask me. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the future. I''d like to complain about the author, though, because most of them can be killed with a single blow by avoiding the roots and hitting the center of the stump with an axe. Still, they are reasonably fast, and if Natsuki gets entangled in one, it might be R18, so I''m the one who has to deal with them. But you really can''t walk in this forest at night. It''s too dangerous. "Yeah. Shadow Margay coming at your neck from the dark. It''s like Trent suddenly getting clubbed over the head.¡¡It''s a little high on the killing intent, isn''t it? He also has the skills of stealth and mimicry. It''s just like an ambush, a surprise attack. I''m not sure if there are any other similar types of demons out there. You can''t say that there aren''t any. ....... Let''s proceed with caution. Yes. I''m not sure if that was a flag, but I''ve seen exactly the same type of demons appear since then. The first kind was Stub Burrows. The first type is the Stub Burrows, which also appeared around the entrance of the dungeon. but the other one was a bit trickier. It was the Shadow Viper. Its name sounds like a relative of the Bind Viper, but its biology is very similar to it. The differences are that it has [Covert], it is about five meters long and somewhat slender, and it is all black. And this difference is not so subtle. In addition to being difficult to detect by [Searching for Enemies], it can slip through the branches from a very high position in the tree and extend its body at once. And yet, its skin is harder than that of a Bind Viper, and its strength is even greater. If you are attacked in the dark, the blackness of its body color is a real threat. The snake is likely to have a pit organ or something, and the darkness won''t matter to them. --Well, Natsuki still managed to easily cut off his head with his naginata. It''s easier to cut than the Bind Viper because it''s thinner," he said. 343-311 Rest and explore (3) We were going through the forest like this, but when it was noon, the forest finally broke up and a sheer rocky mountain appeared in front of us. Finally, the surprise area was over. ...... It was quite tiring. "Thanks for the help. How''s your magic? To be honest, I could use a break. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Shadow Vipers and torrents are both difficult enemies to detect. In a situation where you never know when they are going to attack you, it is very hard to keep your attention on [searching for enemies]. If Toya were here, he could share some of the work, but it''s just the two of us. I''m sure you''ll be able to do the same. If we use the Sanctuary, we can relax a bit, right? Sure. When we got out of the forest, we sat down some distance from the cliffs and started to prepare for lunch after using the sanctuary. There weren''t any suspicious trees around, and we didn''t have to worry about Torrent or Shadow Viper, but we had to be careful. I''ve made sure that there are no rock spiders attached to the cliffs,......, but come to think of it, this level is full of enemies that want to take you by surprise, not just in the forest. So the surprise area is not over, but will continue? I hate it. I''m going to be tired. "Well, Nao, what do you want to eat?¡¡It''s always good to have something warm. "Oh, I want to eat something sweet. Would you like a ding dong? Ding dong. --Yes, please. When you are tired, you need something sweet. The common people might say, "How extravagant! But Natsuki and I ate one ding dong each. Well, a single dingdol is more expensive than a whole lunch at a good restaurant, so it is a luxury. That said, I have no intention to save money. Since I don''t have much in the way of entertainment, I''d like to be free to eat good food. This is especially true if the food is not bought, but picked by oneself. There is some cake left, would you like some? "Cake or ...... Ever since the milk from the Strike Ox became available, Natsuki and his friends have been making butter and cream. This is a great way to make sure you are getting the most out of your time with your family. ...... No, let''s have a normal meal. Let''s have some meat. "Okay. I finished my lunch with bread and meat, which Natsuki served me again, and I took out my bunk and lay down comfortably on it. Natsuki made a light fire and put a kettle with tea leaves and water on it. He was in full rest mode. He would like to concentrate on recovering his magic power until the evening. Speaking of which, Natsuki. You make butter and such, but you don''t make cheese, do you? "Cheese?¡¡We''ve always wanted to eat cheese, but it''s a little hard to make fresh cheese, let alone real cheese. When I asked her what she was interested in, she replied. "Oh, so it''s difficult. Do you know how to make it? "Roughly. But it''s not as easy as it sounds. Even if you had the cooking skills. It''ll take time. -- "Didn''t they sell it at Crevilly?¡¡Didn''t you buy it? I''m sure you''re not the only one who''s had it. It was a little different from what I imagined cheese to be, but it was quite delicious. I don''t know how it is sold, since it was almost liquid, but since it was served in the restaurant, it must have existed. However, what Natsuki replied to my question was a wry smile. It was sold, but whether or not it would suit our palates was another matter. We didn''t buy most of them because Toya, Mary and Mitya couldn''t handle them. The smell was too strong. "...... Oh, I''ve heard that foreign products have a strong smell. Is it like that? "Most of them are better than that, in my opinion. I''ve bought some of the stuff that looks edible. ...... I''m not a big fan of smelly cheeses either, and if you''re a beastie with a good nose, you''ll probably have a harder time. If you think about it, some cheeses are eaten with mold, so it''s a very risky food. So far, I''ve only added it as a secret ingredient. A little goes a long way. It doesn''t bother you much, does it? "It''s in there? Natsuki''s cooking is always delicious, you know.¡¡I appreciate it. No, no, no. It''s worth the effort to hear you say so. --Here''s your tea. I took the tea offered and sipped it. The warm tea soothed me, and I thanked Natsuki. After that, I continued to chat with Natsuki, resting and trying to recover my magic power. In the evening, when my magic had mostly recovered, we put away the fire and the bunk, and began to prepare for the transition. I''m not completely recovered, but I''ll be able to make the transition from here... Hmm?¡¡The transfer point is increasing: ......? I focused my attention on the transfer point, and frowned at the different reaction from the morning. What''s wrong with you? No, as of this morning, there were two transition points, but they''re increasing. Normally, it''s not far enough to increase the number. ...... I thought the other transition points in addition to the ones at the two entrances were to mark our return, but I don''t understand the significance of the additional transition points. It is so close to the second transfer point that there is no reason to put it there. Why ......? It costs a lot of money to build a transfer point. Installing more than necessary is a complete waste of money. I don''t think Haruka would do such a wasteful thing, so it must have some meaning. ....... You''ll find that out when you get back. Let''s hurry up and join them first. "Whoa, yeah. Okay, Natsuki. Okay. I hold Natsuki''s hand and search for the transfer point. There''s not much difference in distance, so it''s better to set up a new one. It''s not too far away, and there''s a good chance Haruka and the others will be there. I''m not sure what to do. ............ Oh? I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it''s a good idea. ...... No, actually, it''s a magic that tried to work but didn''t. I nodded my head at that. What''s ...... wrong with you? You''re not transferring. I''m not sure what''s wrong.¡¡I''m sorry, I''m not sure why. I''m sorry, I don''t know exactly what''s going on. I can see where the transfer points are, but I can''t connect the lines to them. ......?¡¡This is the reason why the number of transfer points is increasing? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this. That prediction may not be wrong. If it''s in the vicinity, is it possible to transfer? Probably not a problem. As a test, I tried to transfer to a place about 10 meters away, but ....... Oh, no. ...... is slightly off. The grass that had been the target of the transfer was sprawling. I was supposed to move right above it, but I actually moved right next to it. The gap is less than 20 centimeters, but it was never a gap in the first place, let alone in the recent past. ....... This could be dangerous if used improperly. Yuki, I hope you didn''t make a mistake and head off a cliff. ...... Let''s hope that ...... is okay. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Am I right? Since the number of transfer points has increased between this morning and now, I guess it''s safe to say that we''re still alive. The problem is on our side. The problem is us. If we can''t transfer, we''ll have to return on our own. ...... I''m not going to say it''s 90 degrees, but I''m going to say it''s 90 degrees. It''s not a mountain climb, but it''s a rock climb. If you can see the top, you can climb it, but when you look up, all you can see are clouds. But when I look up, all I see are clouds. I have no idea how high it is. No matter what I do, I won''t be able to climb it in a day, and there''s no way I can keep up my strength. I''ve seen rock climbers camping in tents on rock walls, but of course it''s not something we can do. What kind of punishment is it to sleep in the air? I don''t think we can do such a thing in this place where demons can fly in. I''m not sure I want to climb this rocky mountain. ...... Yes. It''s too dangerous. I think we should look for a place where we can climb. ...... Natsuki slurred his words, looked around, looked at the sky and sighed. I''m sure that''s it for today. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. "No. You''ll get hurt for sure. Even in the daytime, it takes a lot of nerve to detect [cloaking] and [mimicry]. I don''t even want to think about doing that at night. So, now that we''ve cleaned up, let''s get ready to set up camp again, shall we? Natsuki and I looked at each other and sighed together. 344-312 Rest and explore (4) The next day we woke up early and started to investigate the rocky mountain. First, we headed along the mountain in the direction of the river. We reached a place where the river was flowing out of a crevice in the mountain, but unfortunately there was no place we could climb, nor any place of interest in between. We had no choice but to go back, this time to the other side. About an hour''s walk from where we had camped at the foot of the slightly curving mountain, we came upon it. A gaping hole in the rock. It''s a beautiful cave. It looked just like the entrance to the dungeon here, but the floor, ceiling, and walls were even smoother, giving the impression of artificiality. It''s not exactly a dungeon entrance. We''re already in a dungeon. Yes. The surrounding area looks like a natural forest, though. This must be some kind of passage made by the dungeon, right? It''s not so strange, since the first ten layers were like this: ....... It''s not that strange, because the first 10 layers were like this:¡¡Maybe it''s a path leading up, right? "Yes, I think so. ....... In terms of direction, the entrance to the second layer is just ahead. Natsuki pointed to the top of the rocky mountain. There should be a regular route leading here from there. It''s a dungeon. I don''t think there''s a regular route down that high cliff and down the river to get here, and I don''t think this entrance leads further down ....... I''d like to think that there is no such thing as ....... "Enter ......? It''s the only way. The conditions are not too bad. Fortunately, no demons appeared along the rocky mountain, so there was no magic consumption. As for my physical strength, I simply walked for an hour or two. If I can''t go on in this state, there''s nothing I can do. It''s a dead end. Natsuki and I looked at each other, nodded lightly, and entered the passage. It''s not a very wide passage, about two meters high and wide. It took me a few minutes to carefully walk through it. What lay ahead was a small room with a somewhat familiar feel. There was a door in front, a treasure chest on the right, and perhaps a transition zone on the left. Isn''t this the room after the boss room ......? "Yeah, yeah, I think so. ......? Normally, I would be happy about this situation, but it was so unexpected that the look on Natsuki''s face was more confusion than joy. And I''m sure it''s the same for me. "Ummm, so now I don''t have to worry about returning home, but ...... what a letdown. If you think about it, this situation is possible if you go back in time, but up until now it''s been at the end of the hierarchy. There have been exceptions, such as the Skeleton King on the first level and the Tyrant Pickau on the second level, but after that there were no consecutive bosses, and it is questionable whether the Skeleton King on the first level can be called a boss. Besides, there are no stairs to go down to the lower levels this time. I wonder if it''s like a boss room separating areas within the same level. Anyway, let''s collect the treasure chest. So... This is a war hammer. ...... What Natsuki took from the treasure chest was a hammer with a handle as long as Natsuki''s chin. I''m not sure what to make of it. The head is about the size of my fist. I''m sure you''ll find it easier to use than you think. I tried to swing it lightly, and found that the weight balance was just right, so even I, the weakest of the party, could swing it reasonably well. I''m sure that if I were to fight a demon around here with this weapon, I would not be able to get hurt. On the other hand, if you have the physical strength of Toya, you might be able to get by without any skills. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. Oh. I''ll put it away for now. After storing the war hammer in the magic bag, the only thing left to worry about is the door. This one, too, if the pattern is anything to go by. There''s a boss over there, right? "Yeah, probably. Do you want me to check ......? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Whether we fight or not, we can''t afford not to see it, right? If you want to stop exploring this dungeon in the future, one option is to pretend that you never saw that door and escape back to the transition zone. But we''re too young to set limits. Besides, if we find something too dangerous, we can suspend our search and work on leveling up. "If it gets dangerous, we''ll jump into the transition zone. Is that okay? Yes. Natsuki and I stood in front of the door so that we could peek through the crack. ...... Let''s open it, shall we? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. What I saw was a large room, similar to the usual boss''s room. Immediately noticeable were the six pedestals that lined the inner perimeter of the room. One right next to the door, one in front of the original entrance, and two on either side of the wall. On the pedestals, each about 50 centimeters high, there was a transparent ball about 30 centimeters in diameter, and a stone statue holding the ball. The size of the statue was about one meter in a seated position. It had wings, two horns, and a long tail. At first glance, it looks like a gargoyle, but it is quite massive, and my impression is that it looks more like a demon. These are the only things in the room, and there are no demons in sight. The only bosses I''ve seen so far have been large demons, so if they were there, I wouldn''t have missed them. ....... I have a bad feeling about this. I don''t like it either. Do you want to attack from here?¡¡That stone statue. It looks suspicious to me. Yeah. I''d be more surprised if it wasn''t an enemy. Could it be that as soon as you enter the room, something appears from the center? The ball is summoned by its mysterious power or ......? I mean, either way, there''s no harm in destroying it, right? ...... No, I mean, yeah, but... It''s like trying to attack a shape-shifting hero while he''s in the middle of his transformation. But it''s more pragmatic than romantic. If our lives are on one side of the balance, we will not hesitate. "In this pattern, would you prefer to use ''Plane Shift'' ......? If the enemy (presumably) is not moving, it is a good opportunity to use the most powerful magic. I aim at the nearest pedestal, the body of the stone statue on top of it, and get ready to cast a spell. ...... Oh, my God, it''s moving! As if they sensed that I was about to attack, all of the stone statues began to move, just as Natsuki had said. But their movement was still slow... "Plane Shift"! The moment the magic is activated. The moment the spell is activated, all the stone statues jump up at once. "Ah! The spell activates a moment too late, but it succeeds in cutting off the targeted statue from the knees down and the tip of its tail. But how much damage would that do? The stone statue, like the other five, was still floating in the air with its wings flapping. I was able to detect it when it started to move, but it seems that the target was a gargoyle. In addition to the skill of [Flight], the skills of [Claw Strike] and [Tail Strike] are also visible. I''m not sure about the former, but I''m guessing the latter is an attack with a tail. ......? I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. Gun!¡¡Gun!¡¡Gun! It was Natsuki who quickly closed the door before the attack could reach us. I helped Natsuki to hold the door, and as I did so, I heard three heavy thuds of something hitting the door. I felt a dull vibration. The material of the door is hard, like stone or concrete. But to be honest, I''m not sure if it will be able to keep up with the attacks. The main problem is our muscle strength. Even with the two of us holding it down, the door would open slightly each time it was attacked, and if all six of us pushed it, it would be impossible to support it. "Natsuki!¡¡Let''s get out of here! Yes!¡¡On my count!¡¡--Three, two, one! With zero timing, we left the door and ran for the transition zone. As soon as we jumped into it, the door opened with a bang, and the gargoyle landed on the ground like a crash. But the next moment, we were gone from the room. 345-313 Waiting days (1) The stinging rays of the sun. I felt it and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that Natsuki was right next to me. Did you make it back? Yes. That gargoyle looked stronger than I thought, didn''t it? Yeah, it was pretty quick. The Arrowhead Eagle probably flew faster, but it was bigger than Yuki, and it was a solid block of stone. The power of this thing is unmatched by the Arrowhead Eagle. If it weighed as much as a stone, it could kill you with a simple hit. "Well, I''ll think of a countermeasure for the gargoyle with Haruka and the others. I was a bit nervous this time. ...... It''s quite a thrilling experience. It''s a real rubberless bungee jump. I never imagined in my life that I''d be jumping off a cliff myself. I know. When I fell, I thought I was going to die, too. Nao, I''m really grateful for your help. Even so, I have a feeling that Natsuki would have survived somehow, but she would not have been unharmed. The next time you go, should you at least prepare a parachute or something? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure if it''s Haruka, but it''s tough for me. ....... I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. But, as far as the manipulation of magic power is concerned, it is the same as any other kind of magic, so the difference is not as great as the difference in levels. I''m having a hard time because I don''t have the basics of wind magic, but it''s probably more difficult than level 6 or 7 of space-time magic. I''m sure if I spent the same amount of time on it, I''d be able to use it well enough, but I don''t have the time. ....... There was a gargoyle, right?¡¡I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to use it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to use it. This is also a level 8 magic, but fire magic is steadily increasing in level, so it will be easier to use than walking on air. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Unlike in the game, even allied magic can cause damage, so you have to be careful about that. If an explosion occurs in the same room, you might break your eardrums. Gargoyles, on the other hand, don''t seem to have eardrums. ....... If you want to use it, just throw it in the room and close the door for the first time. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do that. It''s too scary to risk being wiped out by your own magic. As the stun grenade is a thing, explosions are not to be taken lightly. In the case of the flames, the flash may not be so great, but I don''t know because I''ve never used it. If you are going to use it, make sure you experiment well. If you do, don''t try it on the spot. Well. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you out. I think the chances of them getting back before us are ...... slim. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. There is no sign of Haruka and her friends, nor are there any landmarks. If Haruka and the others had returned to Rafan before us, they would have left at least some kind of message here. In the first place, it''s only been a day and a half since Natsuki and I fell. If nothing happened, the distance from that position to the 20th level transition zone might be enough to climb, but if you consider that you''ll have to rock climb while being wary of attacks from behind and defending yourself with magic, it will be quite difficult. It would be difficult for Yuki, both in terms of her magical power and her physical strength. So let''s wait here for a few days. If Haruka and the others still don''t come back, we''ll leave a message and return to Rafan. --You''re okay with that, right? "Yeah. If it''s just you and Natsuki, you can transfer to a reasonable location. From there, we should be able to return without any problems. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Considering the fact that Stub Burrows appeared in the forest yesterday, we''re finally getting close to the enemies in this area. The threat level is still higher in this area. We haven''t encountered the strongest Dahl''s Bear since then, but I''m still a little nervous about walking alone with him. If we can shortcut that part of the journey, we should be able to make it back to the town safely, even if it''s just us. Of course, it would be best if we could meet up with Haruka and the others. The first thing I did while waiting for Hulkas was to build a simple fort . The first thing I did while waiting for Haruka and the others was to build a simple fort ......, which may be an exaggeration, but it was like a shelter. Before entering the dungeon this time, I had fenced off the plaza with a simple fence, but it was only a simple fence. It''s not something that can stop a powerful demon. Besides, it''s just the two of us now. We needed something to protect ourselves. What do you think about building a wall around the point where we''ll come back in the transition zone? What do you think? "Well, it might be beneficial for the future. We can avoid the danger of coming back and immediately encountering a demon. Right? So far, I haven''t experienced any demons when I came back from the transference camp, but it''s not impossible. It''s not impossible, because this area is usually overrun with demons. "Well, as far as the current danger is concerned, you can stay in the dungeon. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "...... I see. So it''s safer to stay in the dungeon than to camp here? That was a blind spot. Basically, demons in dungeons don''t go outside, and demons outside don''t enter dungeons. In other words, there are only small fish in the first level of the dungeon. In other words, there are only small monsters in the first level of the dungeon, and you can prevent them from entering by using the Sanctuary. If you want to be safe, Natsuki is right. ....... No, we should still build a wall. No, let''s build a wall. It will improve safety in the future. Also, the brighter the better. I agree with you. --As long as it doesn''t rain. Haruka and the others have the tents. I''ve got a tarp, but I''d rather go into a dungeon than use it. Let''s see, the wall should be a U-shape with the cliff behind it. The cliff with the entrance to the dungeon. The return point of the transition zone is near there. Draw a U-shape about six meters on a side with the cliff in the background, including the return point (but not the entrance to the dungeon). The size of the figure would be about one size smaller than a school classroom. This amount of space would be enough for our party of seven to camp in. It would be better to be able to climb on top of the wall for defense purposes. It should be about a meter thick and ...... two and a half meters high. What about the entrance? I''ll cut a hole in the archway ......, but a square one would be better, considering I''ll have to make a door. I''ll think about what to do in the future, but for now, I''ll leave a gap that will allow one person to pass through - a little too tight for Toya. When we get a door, we can adjust the size of the gap. One of the advantages of building with magic is that it is easy to modify. This time, the priority is on speed, so the material is ordinary soil. The wall will be built using the easiest soil available, which can be manipulated with "Ground Control". The more soil we use for the wall, the less soil there is on the outside, making it look like a moat, but that''s okay too. It''s not as strong as it should be, but it saves magic power and speeds up the process. Even so, by the time I finished building the wall, my magic power was depleted, and I went to bed that day. The next day, I started to build a mud wall to replace the wooden fence that surrounded the square. This is a U-shape including the entrance to the dungeon. Instead of making it about three meters high, we kept the thickness to about fifty centimeters to conserve magic power. It''s a bit of a problem for a fort because it''s hard to climb up, but there are ways to deal with it. But there is a way to deal with it, and that is the two gazebos Natsuki is building. While I was building the wall, Natsuki, who had nothing better to do, cut up some wood and made some tables and chairs like you''d find at a campsite, saying things like, "You might be able to learn [woodworking] skills ......," but they were just simple constructions. The chairs were just logs cut into rounds and arranged in a row, so the work was finished after the first day. It was on the second day that Natsuki began to build the gazebo. It was a relatively simple structure made of logs, but it was nearly four meters high, and had enough space for two or three people to stand on it. It can be used for monitoring the surrounding area and for attacking with bows and magic. Incidentally, I also helped to build this. I don''t have the magic power to build a wall of this size at once, so I take a break to recover my magic power, help Natsuki, take a nap, and eat. Natsuki and I took it pretty easy for about a day and a half. For the time being, we have completed the defense equipment. The strength itself is not that great, so it would be dangerous if Dahl''s Bear attacked, but the killer gators and stubby barrows that usually appear around here would not be able to get in. The forest hide spider may be able to penetrate ......, but it is basically a demon that lives in the trees, so it probably won''t be able to come into this side of the forest where there are no trees. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Yes, sir. However, I think it''s time for them to come back. ...... Today is the second day after we came out of the dungeon. Natsuki and I were having lunch at a table we built near the return point. We were grilling meat on a barbecue stove that we had built in our spare time. The ingredients were the stubby barrows that had attacked him several times during the construction. The material was the stubby barrows that had attacked him several times during the construction. "Hmmm, if it''s going to take a while, why don''t we build a cabin?¡¡Like a log cabin? A log cabin? I don''t know how to build one, so I''m not sure if I can do it. ...... Yeah, I don''t know either. All I know is that you have to peel the bark off the tree properly, and that you have to cut the trunk and put it together. I can build a wall, but there is no way I can build a roof or a door. Should we ask Simon to help us? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to copy my carpentry and woodworking skills. "Oh, that''s good. You can make a simple hut with your level 1 skills. The more people you know, the more effective Yuki''s [Copy Skills] will be. It may not be easy to get to know each other well enough to receive help, but you can learn skills other than those required for adventurers. In the long run, Yuki may be the most effective adventurer. You''ll be able to get a lot more out of the game than you might think. ...... Oh?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. Haruka''s pimp confirmed ......? --Oh, no, no, I had magic! Just being able to make ice is a job for you. I''ll be back!¡¡No, no, no! When you have a family in the future, you can avoid freezing the air when your child asks, "What does your father do? I''ve avoided a situation where the air would freeze when my child asks, "What does your father do?¡¡Hmm. "Nao, what would you like for dessert after dinner?¡¡Shall I serve cake?¡¡We have a table. "Oh, I like that. Okay, then. I''ll make you some tea, too. While the cookies and fruits were easy to pick up, the cake was difficult to eat without a table, a plate, and a fork. After placing the cake on the plate, Natsuki poured tea into a teacup and placed it in front of me. By the way, this tea is homemade. I don''t know how it compares to high quality tea leaves, but it''s okay because it''s drinkable. From an outsider''s point of view, the two of them are having an elegant tea in the forest. I don''t know what they''re doing, but it''s not a problem because they''re out of sight. I cut a piece of cake with my fork and took a bite. "Yes, it''s delicious. "Thank you. Thank you. I''ll get you another one. Hmm, won''t I get fat if I eat too much? I think we''re moving so fast we don''t even need to worry about it. Natsuki''s weight is... Nao, did you say something? No!¡¡No, nothing! I''m not going to say anything!" I smiled and shook my head. Watch out. It was a woman who cared even when she didn''t need to care at all. Let''s just focus on savoring this cake for now. With that in mind, I took another bite out of my fork and a light appeared in the corner of my eye. 346-314 Waiting days (2) The source of the light was the location of the return point. While I was thinking, "Oh, so this is what it looks like from the outside when you return," the light subsided, and Haruka and her group appeared there. There were five of us. As I was relieved to see that there was no one missing, Haruka and the others were stunned for a moment by the walls surrounding them, and then, as if in a panic, they raised their weapons and immediately noticed us. Welcome back. "I''m back. ......? I raised my hand and lightly called out to her, and she dutifully replied, but was silent for a while. I raised my hand to her, and she replied politely, but remained silent for a while. Then, as if in a state of shock, she closed in on me. What?¡¡No, what?¡¡Wait, what do you mean? "Looks like everyone''s okay. Thank God. Thank God. No, that''s our line, okay?¡¡Nao and Natsuki fell, didn''t they?¡¡You two aren''t ghosts, are you?¡¡Why are you eating cake back there?¡¡What the hell is going on around here? Yuki also looked confused as she touched my body. "Don''t worry. I''m alive. You''re not hurt. "Fortunately, I was able to come back about two days ago. Fortunately, I''ve been back for a couple of days." Toya was the first to smile at Natsuki and me as we looked at each other. The first to smile was Toya. Mary and Mitya also smiled, though they looked surprised. It''s just like big brother Nao! I knew that Nao and the others would be fine, but I was still relieved. I''m not saying there weren''t dangerous parts, but ...... well, here we are. I''m not saying there were no dangerous parts, but well, we''re safe now. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the most effective way to get the most out of your time. I''m sorry about that. "Huh, ...... is fine. It''s good that you came back safely. I thought that Nao and Natsuki might come back on their own, but I didn''t expect them to come back before us. Well, it was just luck, I guess. As you can imagine, we came back with the transfer team, too. That''s right. Otherwise, there''s no way we could have overtaken them, right? Yuki and Haruka nodded in agreement with my words. If I had honestly climbed the rock wall or killed the gargoyle to go backwards through the dungeon, it would probably have taken me months. If I hadn''t started by leveling up, I wouldn''t have been able to do anything. I''m more concerned about the walls around here.¡¡And that table over there. "The walls are there. It''s for safety. It''s not safe for just me and Natsuki, right?¡¡Demons around here. We had time for the tables, I guess. Do Haruka and the others have lunch yet?¡¡Do you want to eat?¡¡We had barbecue at Stub Burrows for lunch. I want some! Oh, good. You''re going to use that stove over there, right?¡¡Don''t make a fire. As soon as Natsuki said that, Mitya immediately raised his hand and Toya immediately started to move. The coals were still smoldering in the stove, so preparations would be ready soon. Huh. While we were losing our nerve, you two were having a barbecue party. --They even ate dessert. "Oh! I''m not sure what to make of this. Yes, it''s delicious. Haruka, you''re behaving badly. If you want some, I''ll give it to you. I''ll get that after dinner. I''m taking it out on Nao. "......... If you''re conscious, don''t do it. I want to tell you not to do it if you''re conscious of it, but I kept my mouth shut because I''m sure I worried you. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. What about you, Haruka? We had a flying gar fly over us in the middle of the night, out of nowhere. Thanks to Toya, no one was hurt. As we waited for Haruka and the others to finish their lunch, we sipped our after-dinner tea and updated each other on the situation. We had been attacked by a Shadow Margay in the middle of the night, but it seems that Haruka and her friends had also been attacked by a Flying Gar while they were sleeping in their tent. That thing that can pierce even leather armor, suddenly flying at you in the dark, is super scary. Was the tent all right? Yes, everything was fine there too. After the second day, I took all the necessary precautions before going to bed. It''s good news that the handy magic tools I acquired were safe. The second layer is also going to be useful after you get past the gargoyle boss room. Of course, it goes without saying that the safety of Haruka and the others is more important. We can''t be too careful, can we? How was the rock wall?¡¡It hasn''t collapsed since ...... No, it did not. I was very careful up there. That''s good to know. The problem is that we don''t know if the collapse was an accident or a trap in the dungeon. ...... You don''t know, do you? Natsuki then turned his attention to Toya, who was the only one left up there at the time. He was the only one who could tell, but the problem was that Toya didn''t have any trap-related skills. The problem was that Toya didn''t have any trap-related skills. Still, Toya thought about it for a while, as if remembering what had happened, and then opened his mouth. Hmm, I have the impression that the collapse was sudden. If it was a spontaneous collapse, there would have been a little more warning, and it could have been a trap.¡¡It''s really just an impression, though. Do you think so? ....... Hmmm, we might need a little more preparation before we can proceed to the second layer. That''s what I thought too. At the very least, we need more fall protection. Nao and Haruka can manage on their own, but us, well, ...... I''m hoping for a simple parachute. If you can slow down a little bit, I or Haruka can catch you, right? The only reason I was able to catch Natsuki this time was because he was falling from above. If I had been in Toya''s position when Natsuki fell, it''s doubtful that I would have been able to capture him. However, if I had a parachute, there might be enough room for me or Haruka to catch her with a "walk on air". I can''t say for sure, but it''s better than nothing. You can make a parachute ......, but the problem is that you can''t experiment with it ....... No, maybe I''m supposed to experiment with it? What?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. ....... I''m not sure if there''s anyone else. I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll be able to use your walk on air better than I can. Yeah, maybe, but that''s a situation I''d rather avoid. Good luck. I''ll share with you once I''ve practiced and gotten better at the Walk on Air. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. But let''s put that aside for now. What about the harvest? "I told you that I got some Torrent, right?¡¡We''ve got a few torrents, and a war hammer from the treasure chest. Haruka and the others don''t have much in the way of ......, do they? I''m just going back the way I came. In fact, we spent a lot of transfer points, so we''re in the red. When I checked, it had only increased by one, but it seems that every time you go up a cliff, you''ve set up a transfer point. That''s certainly a deficit. But it was Yuki who objected to this. "But I got a flying gar just by sleeping. I caught a lot of them! I didn''t catch them, I just collected them in the morning from the wall. ...... I got quite a lot of them. "Well, we only collected them in the morning when they were stuck in the wall, but we got quite a lot of them." Metia and Mary were also smiling and happy as they showed us the bags they had taken out of their magic bags. If you take a peek at the bag, you''ll see ...... oh, there''s so much in there. I think I can make a lot of dried fish with this. It''s even better when it''s grilled! Oh, you ate it? They had enough room to cook fish when they were camping. Well, that''s what we did, too. We roasted and ate the stubby barrows we hunted in the forest. Even when separated from his friends, he never forgets to be normal. You''re living up to your party''s name, "Clear Vision." Isn''t that good? The first to die is the one who forgets their normality and panics. It''s a staple of panic movies and horror films. But I think it''s a bit much to build a table and chairs and have a leisurely tea time with cake. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Come on, Natsuki-san, give Haruka-san some more cake. "Yes, yes. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m not fooled by a piece of cake. "Well, well, well. There you go. It''s ....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. Seeing Haruka, Natsuki smiles a little and opens her mouth. I''m sure you''ve heard of it.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. "Yes, yes. Haruka and the others didn''t fall, and they''ll be able to come back. ...... Well, that''s what I''ll tell them. Let''s go back to Rafan and stay here for the night. ...... Now that Nao has given us a solid place to stay? I agree. I''m a little tired too. I''m a little tired too. I think we''ll be safe here. Yuki looked at Mary and Mitya as she said this. They had finished lunch and dessert, and at first glance they seemed to be in good spirits, but a closer look revealed that they were a little tired. Unlike us, who had been taking it easy the past few days, Haruka and his friends had spent all their time rock climbing. It''s not hard to imagine how physically and mentally taxing it must have been for two kids. --So that''s the main purpose. In that case, there''s no reason to object. Roger. Then we''ll leave tomorrow. Until then, take it easy. You''ll be mostly safe inside these walls. There was no problem if it was just the two of them and Natsuki. I don''t need to tell you what it''s like when there are seven of us. After that, we rested until the next morning, keeping a proper lookout, and returned to the town of Raffan. 347-315 Preparation and rest (1) After returning to Rafan and resting for a day or so, we began preparations for the second layer of the attack. Haruka and I, Yuki practiced magic, Natsuki made a prototype parachute, Mary and Mitya procured rope, and Toya went to Tommy for advice on repairing the rope ladder and door panels to prevent flying gars. ....... "Tommy and Mr. Ganz said, ''Have you had enough to drink? That''s right. ...... Oh, yeah, we''ve talked about that. As soon as we got back, we looked at each other as Toya told us. At the party, there had been talk of making sake, which would require the rice and koji mold we had provided. Tommy and the others seemed to be waiting with a certain amount of anticipation. It will take some time to isolate the koji mold. ...... "Well, let''s not rush into the second layer, but let''s keep it half preparation and half relaxation.¡¡It''s a cool time of year. There''s nothing I can do about that. I''ll leave it to Haruka and the others. It was Toya who immediately responded to Haruka''s suggestion. In his case, all he had to do was to train his own body. He''s not like us, who need to practice magic, and he can''t be involved in making parachutes. I guess that''s why he came to this conclusion. I think I agree.¡¡I don''t know, I haven''t had much time off since I got the escort order. "Sure, you don''t have to worry about money now. It''s also a good time of year to make miso. By cutting down the famous trees, I''ve earned enough money to pay for my spending at Crevilly. In the middle of summer, it would not be a bad idea to dive into the dungeon to avoid the heat, but this time of year is relatively comfortable. It may be a little chilly at times, but in a sense, it''s a good season for leisure. I have no reason to disagree with you. ...... What about Mary and Mitya? Well, I''m not opposed to either ...... I''m happy to eat good food! Mary is modest as usual. Mary is modest as usual, and Mitya is a steady gourmand. But it''s going to be difficult to get rope. We don''t seem to have any in stock. "Oh, you have that? It''s not an industrial product, so it''s not easy to increase production, and it''s not easy to bring in products from other places. But if we force them to make it, we are more worried about the quality. Our lives are at stake. I think it''s better to take some time for safety reasons. "Well, then, for the time being, we''ll be relatively free to work on our own leveling up. I briefly summarized, and everyone nodded in agreement. Well. What am I going to do with ......? I''m not sure. "It''s done! It was about ten days later that Natsuki showed up with a petri dish. The first step was to isolate the yeast, with Natsuki taking the lead. "That was surprisingly quick, wasn''t it? I''ve got some pharmacy skills, too. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. That reminds me, I have such a skill. In our case, we have high-level light magic, so it''s an unfortunate skill that we rarely use. With a little practice, we seem to be able to make more and more medicines, but they are all in stock just in case. And fortunately, there have been no such incidents so far. In the first place, Natsuki herself can use light magic, so relying on medicines would be a really bad situation. She once showed us something like a nutritional drink that we could use on a daily basis, but we''re still young, and if we''re so tired that we need such a thing, we''ll just rest. So, it''s a skill that has never been very useful to us, but we never thought we''d be able to use it in a situation like this. ...... In a way, it''s just like us. It''s also thanks to the accelerator that Nao and his team built for us. "Oh, that''s good. It was a lot of work to make that. As the name implies, the accelerator is a magical device that accelerates the time inside. Basically, it has the same structure as the storage vault, which slows down time overwhelmingly, but it is much more difficult to make. Why? Because there''s no demand for it, and there''s no alchemy book on how to make this magic tool. I think it''s useful depending on how you use it, but if you spend the same amount of money, the Magic Bag is more useful. I don''t see why anyone would want to build an accelerator over a magic bag. Besides, while the Magic Bag has been refined over a long period of time, the accelerator has not been streamlined, so the level of acceleration is only three or four times higher. It''s not as dramatic as the Magic Bag. Well, I think this is about right for practical purposes. If it accelerates time by a factor similar to the time delay of the magic bag, the objects inside could be destroyed in an instant. It''s also thanks to the existence of Worms, Disinfectant, Cure Poison, and Cure Treatment. Magic is very useful, isn''t it? "Cure Poison" and "Treatment" can be found at ....... Thanks to the help of Yuki and Haruka. You''re putting your body on the line. I''m not sure what to make of it. Which did you cooperate with, the magic or the tasting (?)? I don''t know which he helped with, the magic or the tasting (?), but I''m sure he went to a lot of trouble. "By the way, how did you isolate the koji mold? "Well, let me see. The koji mold can grow even in alkaline conditions. So, I isolated the fungus from the rice and grew it on alkaline agar, or transferred each colony to a different petri dish. "Oh, yes, thank you. I understand. There''s something I don''t understand. You can make rice malt with it, right?¡¡...... is kind of yellowish. Is that what koji looks like? "It varies. The one we used at home was a little whiter, but this time I chose the strongest one I could find. The taste of miso, soy sauce and sake changes depending on the koji, so if it doesn''t suit you, you''ll have to separate different ones. "Oh, I see. ...... Koji is quite troublesome, isn''t it? You can make all kinds of koji-related things with this, aren''t you? "In fact, the koji mold is quite powerful, isn''t it? I don''t know the standard koji fungus, but it survives when mixed with steamed rice, and you can make rice malt in an hour or so at room temperature by sprinkling it on a bowl of rice. You can make rice malt in about an hour at room temperature. You don''t need to use it for several hours, right? I mixed the rice malt with rice porridge and made amazake in about an hour. How did it taste? It was sweet and delicious! Yes. I''d never had it before, but it had a gentle sweetness that was different from sugar. It didn''t seem to have been passed around to Toya and me, but Mary and Mitya seemed to have tasted it. Incidentally, the sugar Mary was referring to was brown sugar, which has a very sticky sweetness. Compared to that, koji amazake has a very smooth sweetness. "Like the inspiration source, the bacteria in this world are quite amazing. It''s a good thing they''re useful bacteria. Cannibalistic bacteria. Will you shut up?¡¡Toya! I hurriedly covered Toya''s mouth when she started to say something dangerous. What will you do if you get flagged? I''m not sure how many times I''m going to be able to do that. ...... No, if the disinfectant works, can we deal with it? But even if that''s the case, it''s too scary. Yeah, I''ll pray to the Lord Adversus to lower the odds. My "Lucky! You''ll do your job, won''t you? Well, thanks to Natsuki''s hard work, we got a lot of spores, so let''s call Tommy. "Well, thanks to Natsuki''s hard work, we got a lot of spores, so let''s call Tommy. ...... We got a lot. Twice? "Yeah, twice! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for.¡¡I''ve heard. If you calculate the required amount of koji mold, you can already make tons of rice koji with the spores. I see. Well, I''ll go for a run. "No, there''s no need to be so hasty. ...... In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. In addition to Tommy, Gantz also seemed to be in a bit of a hurry, to be honest. The sooner the better. Besides, I''m a bit interested in alcohol myself. Well, I''m off! No sooner had he said that than Toya ran out of the house. You''ve been busy. Well, that''s all right, isn''t it?¡¡I''ll just leave the sake brewing to you. --By the way, you can make sake with this koji mold, right? I don''t really know how to make sake, but... I don''t know much about sake brewing, but I can tell you that it can and it can''t. I don''t know much about how to make sake, but I can say it can be done, or it can''t." Natsuki''s answer to my question was a bit subtle. 348-316 Preparation and rest (2) "...... Hmm?¡¡Can''t you do it? I was under the impression that sake was made with koji.¡¡That''s what I thought. "Nao-kun, do you know how to make sake? "Well, ......, you make rice malt, add water, stir and leave it? Yuki nodded her head in agreement, and Natsuki smiled. I thought of it like that, too. Until Natsuki taught me. You''re not wrong in the big picture. But ......, well, let me simply explain how sake is made. There are two main steps in sake making. The first is to convert starch into sugar, and the second is to convert sugar into alcohol. In the former process, koji mold is used, and in the latter process, a different type of yeast is used. Yeast for alcoholic fermentation also exists in nature, and in the past, the fungus found in breweries was used for fermentation, but the taste was not stable and sometimes failed. So nowadays, I cultivate a specific yeast and use it. The yeast is cultivated by mixing water, rice malt and steamed rice. The yeast is then cultivated in the mother, which is then mixed with water, rice malt and steamed rice. After that, you squeeze the unrefined sake, add water and heat it, and you''ve got sake. So, it''s quite complicated. I was thinking, ''Well, since we''ve made amazake, why not just let it sit? That''s what I was thinking. "Still, if you''re lucky, it might turn into alcohol, but it''s a big gamble. It can go bad. It is said that making sake mash is also a way to create an acidic environment by letting lactic acid bacteria grow, which inhibits the development of other putrefactive bacteria. Recently, it seems that lactic acid is added separately. ....... You can also add water or rice malt in several times to prevent the mixture from becoming too thin. By the way, what about you, Natsuki? We make it the old-fashioned way. The taste may vary, but it''s not a product, it''s a religious ceremony. I see. ...... If you have koji mold, you can win!¡¡But it wasn''t that easy. "The koji mold is definitely important, though. We can make miso and soy sauce without any problem. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a little nervous about this. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. No, not yet. No, we don''t." "Are you sure?¡¡Tonya''s tone of voice sounds like it could be quite troublesome. They''re greedy about alcohol. They are greedy when it comes to liquor, and if you call them up and tell them you can''t do it, they''re going to make a lot of noise. In response to my concern, Haruka and the others shrugged their shoulders and simply shook their heads. It''s fine. To make sake, you need a brewery, and you need time to make it, right? I don''t think it''s right for us to make all the arrangements. Tommy and the others will have to do the hard work, too. I''m not sure what to make of this. No, I''m sure they''re having a hard time. If they hadn''t, they wouldn''t have had to use ''poison healing'' or something. Well, until you make a drink. "Well, just until we can make some booze. If we succeed, we can isolate the yeast from it. Right? Yes. Then we can either keep making it with that yeast or try to isolate other yeasts. It''s up to those who like alcohol to do their best. As for Haruka and the others, they don''t seem to care that much about whether it tastes good or not, as long as they have cooking sake. I want to drink more amazake! I''d rather have that than sake too. ...... Well, amazake is so nutritious that it''s been called an intravenous drip, so it might be a good idea to make some. It''s a little late to prevent the summer heat. Sweet things are so precious. As we were talking, Toya, who had gone to Tommy''s place, came back. I don''t know why, with a mushy Simon. Well, ......, why Simon? You need a brewery to make sake!¡¡I''ve been waiting to hear when he''s going to call me, but he never does! My simple question was answered with a shout. And well, when I went to Gantz-san, he told me to go to Simon-san first. Next to Simon, who had his arms folded and a look of dissatisfaction on his face, Toya smiled and shrugged his shoulders. Oh, by the way, you were talking about building a brewery in the corner of our garden. Hmmm. Surely we should have prioritized the building of the building before worrying about the koji mold? It would have taken a certain amount of time. I''m sorry. I was busy with the dungeon. ....... So, when do you want to start working on it? "Now! Simon stomped his foot and announced. "What?¡¡You don''t have to be in such a hurry. You idiot!¡¡It''s a new drink!¡¡Of course I''m in a hurry!¡¡The boss is expecting it! What?¡¡No, why, the deputy is ...... The deputy of the town of Laffan. His name is ...... Joseph Fader, I believe? It''s not an exaggeration to say that this town is built on furniture, and the furniture workshops are large in their own right. Because of this, they have many opportunities to meet each other, and it seems that the topic of alcohol came up. ....... Simon, you need rice to make sake, what about there?¡¡I don''t think they make it around here. I don''t know anything about that. I don''t know anything about that, it''s their job to figure it out.¡¡I mean, I''ll have them order it! "Yeah, ....... No, well, maybe that''s true, but ...... is that okay? I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m a little nervous about the involvement of the shogun. ....... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡Hurry up and show me! "Okay, I understand. We left the house as if we were being hounded, and Simon led us to the area to the left of the gate. This area is unused and is now overgrown with plants and trees. I don''t know how big the brewery is going to be, but there is enough space to build a normal house, so it should be big enough. How about it?¡¡Around here. "Hmm. Not bad. Yuki, and Nao can use earth magic, right?¡¡Give me a hand. What?¡¡We?¡¡We can help with the foundation, but we can''t do any carpentry. I don''t expect you to do that!¡¡We''re building a basement. Ha, ha. ...... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. In terms of size, it''s about five meters by ten meters. That''s about the size of a small house, even a one-story one. Since they were going to build a basement on top of it, the floor space would be quite large. Good. Let''s start digging down here. Seeing Simon pointing at the ground, Haruka and the others looked at each other and opened their mouths, as if they understood that this would take some time. Oh, well, I guess we''ll be back. Good luck, Nao and Yuki. Take a break when you get tired, okay?¡¡I''ll get you something. Good luck, Nao. Good luck, Yuki! Good luck. I''ll call you when I need your help. Haruka and the others left with smiles and words of support. Mary and the others, Toya, and Natsuki are fine with this, but... "Oh, hey, Haruka... Come on!¡¡Get on with it! I''m sure Haruka can help you with some earth magic, right?¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. And then Haruka fades out in the gap. Oh no. How dare she abandon me, her lover! I''ll pull you out when my magic wears off! 349-317 Preparation and rest (3) Huh. ....... So, Simon, what kind of digging do you want me to do?¡¡If you just dig, it''s easy. ...... It''s not so simple that you can easily build a basement. You''ll need to deal with the walls, the pillars to support the first floor, and the foundations and foundations. "Hmm. Let''s see how much you can do with your magic. ...... Can you make the walls solid? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. No problem~. It''s not a problem, Nao. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. Thinking about the earthen walls in front of the dungeon, it''s a much easier job. Well, that also depends on the depth. ...... Simon, how deep do you want to make it? "Well. At first I was thinking of the first basement, but it would be great if we could make it to the second or even the third basement. That''s quite absurd. "No, the third floor, Simon, that''s insanely deep.¡¡How many meters are we talking about? How many meters do you need? - Well, if you dig 12 meters, that should be enough. Twelve meters is ....... Isn''t the ceiling too high on the third floor? Considering the thickness of the floor and ceiling, it would be more than three and a half meters, which is quite high. It may be because it is a brewery and not a normal room, but if you dig that deep, our magic power will be too strong. "In the first place, Simon. If we dig that deep, we''ll never be able to get out. Of course we''ll have to set up scaffolding. How do you think we''re going to do that? I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. We looked at each other and nodded, "Oh, that''s right. It''s not the end of the world if we dig a hole and fortify the wall, is it? "Can you do that? What about ...... and groundwater? It''s not a problem around here. Fortunately, it''s around where the old village used to be. We know how deep the water goes. Look, that well behind your house, it''s deep too, right? "Oh, sure, ......? We don''t have much chance to look into the well because we can get water out of it by magic, but it seems to be quite deep. We can leave that to the professionals. All you have to do is dig the hole. "Okay. Okay. Okay. The others should be here any minute with tools and wood. We''ll wait for them at the gate. Simon urged me to wait in front of the gate for a while. A group of people with a cart arrived. We thought we were just going to build a little hut, but the number of people was much larger than we expected. When I asked them about it, they said they were planning to build a two-story structure on the ground as well, and the construction was going to be quite large. ...... What would they do if the sake brewing failed? What if the sake brewing fails? It will definitely be a huge loss, right? It''s not like we asked for it, so it''s okay, right? "Master!¡¡I''ve got them all! I stopped the cart in front of the gate and came out to see the young man from Simon''s workshop. Many of the others were also young, is this because the first thing they do is a lot of hard work? Oh. Bring it in!¡¡--Is that okay? "Yeah, I''m good. But don''t bump into the walls or anything, okay?¡¡We''re equipped with a security system, so it might be a little dangerous. "Oh, yeah. You hear that, boys? Yes, yes!¡¡We''ll be careful! I''ll be careful!" Yuki replied, pointing at the wall outside the house, while Simon and the youngsters nodded, a little snidely. But in fact, any attempt to climb over or destroy the wall would trigger the security system, so it''s more than a little dangerous. However, it seems that the security around here is not as bad as I thought, and I have never had to use that device before. You''re not going to die, so don''t worry. ...... maybe. Yuki smiled at him to reassure him, but it had the opposite effect. In fact, they walked through the gate with some trepidation, trying to stay as close to the wall as possible while pulling the cart. So, come on. "Okay, ......, but how do you want me to do it?¡¡All over? If you can keep your magic up, do it. But you can''t do that, can you? Oh, you can''t, can you?¡¡Nao. At least not in a day. Maybe. Well, you''ll have to scrape the wall. We''ll dig up the inside and haul the dirt away. That''s what we were going to do in the first place. Digging a hole like this with human power seems a bit unreasonable, but I guess it''s normal in this world where there is no heavy machinery. In the first place, people here have more physical strength than people in our world, so maybe it''s still better than I imagined. Let''s get on with it. The first step is to dig a one-meter wide, three-meter long trench down to 12 meters. Then, I asked him to set up a scaffold there, and gradually widen the length of the trench from side to side at that depth. After digging on the right side, they proceeded to dig on the left side, and so on, efficiently alternating between scaffolding and digging, taking occasional breaks. Meanwhile, in the middle, the other workers are digging out the soil with shovels and carrying it out with a fern. ...... Yeah, it looks like a lot of work. Incidentally, it''s a lot of hard work, so I''ve invited Toya to join in. Mr. Simon, how long will this take? Simply, if we take 5 x 10 x 12 meters, we get 600 cubic meters. Even with a specific gravity of 1, that''s 600,000 kg. Even if we assume a single implement weighs 30 kilos, we''d have to go back and forth through the hole 20,000 times. And the more you dig, the more distance you have to travel. ....... That''s right. ...... At this rate, it''ll take a few days. Maybe we should hire a few more people. I''m not sure what to make of it. No, I was wondering how hard you''re going to work on ...... for a few days. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to finish it even if we double the number of people. I''m sure you''ll be fine.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. In fact, I would like to say, "Won''t the employees run away with such black? I would like to say that, but in this world where running away from your workplace can end half your life, I''m not going to say anything. There''s no need to worry about it. I''ve made a lot of money thanks to you guys. I''m giving back. Since last year, the wood we brought in has been going through Simon to other workshops in this town. It seems that Mr. Simon has not made a killing, but the wood is high quality and there is a lot of it, so he has made a lot of profit. According to him, many of the young people working there now are young people from other workshops, and it seems that the profits that Mr. Simon has collected are meant to be returned to those workshops. The wages he pays them are higher than the market rate, and their hard work seems to be partly due to that. Hmmm. But we could be a little more efficient. As Simon and I were talking, Toya came in, carrying a shovel. That outfit suits him very well. He''s working harder than anyone else. He''s a beastman. That shovel has made us much more efficient, you know.¡¡You made it, didn''t you? "Well, yeah. But ...... yeah, that fern, that''s not good. Do you want to make a ...... catwheel? "Hmm?¡¡What''s that? It''s a tool for efficiently transporting earth and sand. ...... A catwheel is a single-wheeled wheelbarrow, the kind you see at construction sites. Basically, one person can carry a lot more earth and sand than with a two-person fern, and since there''s no need to lift, it''s less tiring. As a means of transporting earth and sand, it''s a pretty effective tool. The only drawback is that you have to build a ramp to use it. "Okay!¡¡I''ll have Tommy make one!¡¡He said he needed some business ideas! Oh, hey! Quick as a flash, Toya thrust the shovel into the ground and drove away. I''m sure he went to Tommy''s place, but I don''t think he''ll be able to get the order in time for this construction. Huh?¡¡Toya, what''s wrong? Yuki, who had just come up from under the hole, tilted her head as she saw Toya''s back running away. He said he was going to ask Tommy to make a catwheel. Oh, that might come in handy, that''s for sure. But even if we go there now, it''s still ....... "Yeah, right?¡¡Excuse me, Mr. Simon. I don''t know about the catwheel, but I don''t care. I don''t know about the catwheel, but I don''t care, because we said we''d build it. I don''t have a problem with him leaving. ...... So, what about us? You''re irreplaceable!¡¡Magic is useful, isn''t it? ...... If you guys have any trouble finding work, we''ll hire you. What?¡¡We''re adventurers, aren''t we?¡¡Simon. "It''s not a job you can keep forever, is it?¡¡Especially you, Yuki, you have to get married and have children. "Ah, ha ha ...... It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything you like. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. ....... In modern Japan, this would immediately be called "s*xual harassment! But in this world, it''s a perfectly legitimate statement. Adventurers are just a little bit special, but in general, people of Yuki''s age usually get married and have a family. If you get married, you are expected to have children in order to keep your family. It is said that in old Japan, if a woman could not bear children, she was called a "stone woman" and was disowned. Well, as a practical matter, without children, a farmer would not be able to maintain his farmland, a craftsman would not be able to maintain his workshop, and it would be inevitable if he thought about his old age. By the way, Yasue is married now, isn''t she? I wonder if she has any children. I wonder if any of my classmates have children, which makes me feel strange. Hmm?¡¡What? Is Yuki on good terms with Nao?¡¡I thought that Nao was sticking with Haruka. "Yeah. I''m with Haruka. You''re going to take care of me and Natsuki together, right? 350-318 Preparation and rest (4) "Oh, hey--! Yuki said, interrupting my words. But when Simon heard that, he unexpectedly nodded without hesitation. What? Then there''s no need to worry. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. ...... No, that''s not right, Simon-san. What?¡¡What? What do you mean, you''re married to three people? Really?¡¡Isn''t it normal for a man like you to have three wives?¡¡Some of us craftsmen, the best ones, have more than one wife. I''ve got two myself. "......... I''ve never heard of this. ...... No, I''ve never heard of Simon''s family situation before. But even if you''re not a nobleman, do you have more than one wife or is that ...... common? Simon, is it normal to marry more than one person? It''s not that common.¡¡There are very few men who can marry. Right?¡¡After all, a man who is worthy has to work hard! Yuki smiles happily when she hears Simon''s words. There are not enough men who can marry, which simply means that there are not enough men who can earn enough money to support their families. For example, farmers. Only the eldest son gets the farmland, and the second and subsequent sons work for the farmer, or are thrown out of the house. The same is true for artisans. Most of them become adventurers, work day jobs, or become real "adventurers" like us. In other words, it is very difficult for anyone other than the eldest to get a decent job. And if you don''t have a decent job, it''s hard to get married. ....... If men and women are born in the ratio of one to one, the competition for marriage will be quite fierce. It is more difficult for a woman to survive on her own than for a man. This is not to say that women are discriminated against or anything like that, but most of the jobs that are readily available are physical labor, and women who are physically inferior have a harder time earning money. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one. "Well, there are some female adventurers who surround themselves with young men... I see. If you can make money, you can do the opposite. Yuki is not that type of girl. Simon said, looking at Yuki and shaking his head. You''re not that kind of guy," Simon said, looking at Yuki and shaking his head, and Yuki immediately shook his head in denial. "No, I don''t think so. "I guess not. Well, that type of person can''t have children. Is that so? Adventurers can''t make money if they have children, can they?¡¡It''s a relationship that will fail. It''s not the same as a man making money. That''s right. You''re a pimp. No income during pregnancy: ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. In the first place, childbirth is an act of risking one''s life. Especially for adventurers, there is no way they can work right after having a baby. Before you say, "I failed at nursery school! There is no nursery school, and there is no milk powder, so you need to breastfeed. Of course, there are no convenient disposable diapers. It would be very difficult to have both s*xes in this situation. As I was thinking about this, Simon smiled a little sympathetically and patted me on the back. Well, if that''s the case, there''s no need for me to tell you. It''s not just about money, Nao.¡¡It''s not just about money. Hang in there! Yeah, ....... Come to me if you need help. I''ve got a lot of experience. "Oh! While I was puzzled for a moment, Simon went away to give instructions to the workers. Yuki looked up at me with a big smile on her face. "Good luck, Nao. ...... Yuki, you''re steadily filling in the moat, aren''t you? Every time you get a chance. I pointed this out to Yuki, who shook her head in disbelief. No, I''m not. Really? "No? No. I''m burying it in a big, big way. Including the moat. Hey! Ha-ha-ha. Before you know it, Nao Castle will be completely naked! Yuki thrusts out her hand and declares such a thing. Seriously, you can never be too careful. "Come on, come on, you''ve had enough rest. Let''s get on with it! No, I''m wondering what''s the inner moat and what''s the outer moat? I don''t care. I don''t care. If you don''t know, it means it''s not working yet. If it doesn''t work, then there''s no point in worrying about it, okay? So, that''s what ...... is? I feel like I''m being cheated, but Yuki has already climbed down the scaffolding and into the hole. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''ve been working on this for a while now. I didn''t expect the deputy to get involved. After parting ways with Nao and the others, Haruka and the others returned to the house and gathered in the living room to catch their breath and discuss what had just happened. So.... I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to leave Nao alone, Haruka?¡¡I''m sure you can help me out a bit too. Natsuki nodded, but looked at Nao and the others through the window, and asked Haruka. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m good at earth magic. But I''m not very good at earth magic, and there was something I wanted to talk to you about. Is it about the deputy? Yeah, that. I imagined it was just a hobby to brew some drinks for dinner. ...... It looks like a big building. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to get the most out of your time. I''m a little nervous about ...... failing to make alcohol. Yes. I don''t think that deputy would be reckless. I think he knows the relationship between us and Viscount Nenus. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s unlikely that they would be disadvantaged by this, but liquor interests are no small thing. Taxes on sake and the right to sell it. If they can make sake in this town as a business, it will be very profitable, and it is hard to say that the government officials who are blinded by this will not be reckless to Haruka and her friends. Haruka sister, Ilias-sama said that we can rely on you if we have any trouble! Oh, yes!¡¡He said that we can contact him at any time. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a great offer, but I''d prefer not to have to rely on it. I''m sorry. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to use it for a lot of things. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It is not a good thing for Haruka and her friends to disrupt that relationship. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. ...... No, even if it works, is it a problem?¡¡I''m not sure what to do. Simon said it was something for the deputies to think about. ...... The best thing for us would be for rice to be grown in this area, don''t you think? There''s not much farmland. We don''t have a river nearby, so if we want to grow rice, we''ll have to build a reservoir or draw water from the river. "But, Haruka, there is a possibility that the rice we bought is land rice. ...... I see, so it''s not necessarily rice. Then we don''t have to worry about water. ...... On the other hand, we do have the problem of continuous crop failure. In general, most of the crops, if grown in the same place continuously, will have poor growth due to continuous crop failure. On the other hand, paddy rice can be grown in the same place year after year without the need for the Norfolk farming method, because the water flowing through the paddy avoids the continuous cultivation problem. In fact, paddy fields are a very good agricultural method. Of course, it has a drawback that it is only possible when there is plenty of water. Well, importing and growing rice is not something we can do anything about. We can''t do anything about importing or growing rice. ...... If we can make good sake, we can use it as bait to encourage people to grow rice. I hate to say it, but that''s a good idea. It''s a good idea. We''ll have a steady supply of rice. The rice that Haruka and his friends bought was enough to last them for a year, but that was all they could eat. Once the rice is consumed, they will have to go back and buy more, and if it is used for sake brewing, the quantity will decrease rapidly. Even if the governor decides to grow rice, the results will not be seen for several years at the earliest. Either way, it is almost certain that there will be no more rice. But ...... well, now that we have the koji mold, can we try to make a new kind of alcohol, not just sake? No, no, no, Haruka, it''s not that easy to make new sake, is it? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s not really.¡¡You can make alcohol from starch or sugar, in the extreme. There are some drinks that are made from unexpected ingredients. For example, ...... Toya, do you know what tequila is? Oh, it''s a Mexican drink, right? Yeah. Do you know what it''s made from? ......?¡¡Around there, it''s ...... potatoes? Mexico''s agricultural product is corn, which is also used to make tacos, although its proximity to South America may have given it an image of its own. And of course, tequila is not made from potatoes. No, it''s lily of the valley. It''s lily of the valley. 351-319 Brew (1) "What?¡¡The lily-of-the-valley, the one that grows so big and only blooms once every ten years or so? Yes, that''s it. Incidentally, the length of time it takes for the plant to bloom is proportional to its growth, so it is said that it takes more than ten years to bloom in its original habitat, and twenty to thirty years in Japan. In Japan, it takes 20 to 30 years. Tequila is made from the stems of the plant when they are in a state of full nutrition before they bloom. Is that the stem part of the ......?¡¡Well, that''s what we use to make it. Oh, you grow that as produce? ...... I can''t imagine what that''s like. ...... I can''t imagine what that would look like. But in fact, she''s not wrong. The plant is harvested before it flowers, so it doesn''t have the huge flower stalks that rarely make the news, but its radiating leaves are bigger than your arms, and it takes more than a decade to harvest. No matter how you look at it, it just doesn''t fit into the small fields of Japan. There''s another kind of liquor made from potatoes, I think it''s called ....... "Aquavit. If you just want to make alcohol, you can make it from a lot of things. I don''t know if it tastes good or not. I don''t know if it tastes good or not. One of the major waste-based products is molasses. It is a waste product after sugar production, and is used to make shochu. Whether it is a "waste" or a "by-product" is a delicate question. If it doesn''t taste good, what''s the point?¡¡I mean, what''s the point of making it if it doesn''t taste good? It''s okay. Don''t worry. Most things can be distilled to be drinkable. ...... maybe. Probably? ...... Because I don''t know what liquor tastes like. Let''s just make some and let Tommy and Simon drink it. Is that what you want ......?¡¡No, what''s the point of us making alcohol in the first place? Diversification of Management. Are you worried about being an adventurer all by yourself?¡¡What about after you retire? Haruka''s answer to Toya''s plausible argument was something like that. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "Yes, I wouldn''t say that it didn''t. With so many sources of revenue, there''s no need to rush. For now, Haruka and the others have reached a consensus that they will continue to be adventurers to the extent that they can, but their goals, such as how much money they actually need to save, will inevitably vary. Toya and the others, who have shorter lifespans than the elves Haruka and Nao, will be able to work as adventurers for a shorter period of time, and there will also be differences in their life stages as they get married. If they have no other source of income, they may not be able to quit even if they wanted to. If you have no other source of income, you may not be able to quit even if you want to." "Well, I''ve heard that there are no jobs after retiring as an adventurer. You can''t even get a proper job, or start a bad food stall or something... No, in Haruka and the others'' case, don''t they usually succeed in a food stall? I''m not sure about us, but what about Toya?¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do.¡¡Do you have any reserves? "Aah!¡¡I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. In addition, the women have various other skills that can be used during normal times. Toya, on the other hand, has only [blacksmithing] skills at best. She has acquaintances in Gantz and Tommy, so she can do some menial work there, but it will be a very lonely life for her. It''s also possible to save up enough money by then to not work after you retire,......, but it''s better to be able to work if you can.¡¡As a human being and as a father. That''s right. When you have a child, they might say, ''Father, don''t you work? ...... "Geez!¡¡Well, that would certainly be tough! I''m not sure if Toya imagined this, but his face became impatient. His goal is to get a cute bride with beast ears. His goal is to get a cute bride with beast ears, and of course, he''s also thinking about having children. When your child asks you, "What does your father do? I wonder if I can say, "He worked a lot when he was young, so he doesn''t work anymore. If you do, will they respect you as a father? It is a serious question. No, a father who doesn''t work and just makes out with his wife. That''s pretty bad. It may be different when the child is old enough to understand, but until then, how will he be viewed? ....... Incidentally, he is also slightly behind in his goal of saving money. The reason is, of course, that. The reason is, of course, that the Blue Tower is considered a high-class brothel, although he has been there only a few times. By the way, Mary, Mitya. By the way, Mary, Mitya, do you know what it''s like to be a former adventurer? It''s not like they are local representatives, but when Toya asked that, the girls gave him a ruthless answer. Hmm, I don''t know much about it. But most of them can''t get married and are drinking in bars. That ...... is a small area that I know of, but not many decent people ...... Oh, no, I''m sure there just weren''t any decent people in our sphere of life! In fact, there are almost no "decent people" outside of Mary and her family''s living area. Even the adventurer who runs a bad stall is a success in a way. ...... Yes, we need to diversify our business. I''ll do my best. Anything I can do, just let me know! I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''d rather make miso and soy sauce first. That''s right. I think we should wait for the results of Simon and his team''s work before we start making sake. In the meantime, I''ll just look for something that can be made into ...... alcohol.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡It''s a good idea to have an appraisal. "Mmm, sure. Well then, I have nothing to do, so let''s get started. Just as Toya said that, Nao came into the room at the right moment. "Toya, be happy. It''s hard work. Oh, there you are. Got it. Nodding at Nao''s words, Toya stood up, and Mary and the others raised their hands. "Nao, do you want me and Me to help you? "Yes, I can do that too! They jumped to their feet, probably because they had nothing better to do, but Nao thought for a moment and shook her head. I know that Mary and Mitya are as good as adults, but for today, it''s okay. They''re too big to be working with adults. Is that so? Yeah. It''s a little dangerous. In fact, the scaffolding used for construction work is made to fit the physique of an adult, so it is dangerous for Mary and her friends, especially Mitya, to work on it. Even so, if the work was limited, it would be useful enough, but building the brewery was not Nao''s wish, but Simon''s and Tommy''s. But the brewery is not Nao''s hope, but Simon''s and Tommy''s. Considering that, it''s not something that they would dare to put their children to work on. In the extreme, there is no need for Nao and the others to use magic to help them, but this is a matter of duty, humanity, and socializing. "Nao-kun, are you okay with Haruka?¡¡Aren''t you tired? "Hmm?¡¡Yeah, well, I''m a little tired, but it''s no problem. I''m a little tired, but I''m fine. ...... Even if Haruka comes, it''s not going to be a full day. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m sure it will help a lot considering the amount of magic Haruka has, but she doesn''t usually have a need for it, and her [earth magic] is level 1. It is a bit insufficient to harden the wall at the same level as Nao and Yuki. However, I don''t feel like making her carry out the soil, which she can manage by hand, so I guess that''s the reason. Is that so?¡¡Well then, we''ll work on making miso. Oh. That''s more like it. Make it good. That''s what I''m trying to tell you. Natsuki''s the main one. I''ll try to follow the same procedure for now, but since the rice, beans, and koji mold are all different, we''ll see what happens. ...... In fact, there are many types of koji mold used in Japan, some used for making miso, some for making sake, some for making shochu, and there are many different types of koji mold used for making sake alone. Even if there are different types of koji, it doesn''t mean that they can''t be used to make something, but it will be reflected in the taste, and "koji for what" means that the koji can be used to make something delicious. "Well, that''s about it. Well, if it works, it''s a good thing. Yes. Mary and the others, please help us. Okay. Make it good. Make it good. 352-320 Brew (2) As soon as Toya and the others were out in the garden, Natsuki and the others moved into the kitchen to start making miso. "Haruka, do you know what kind of miso is? What kind of miso, white miso or red miso? No, I mean rice miso, barley miso and bean miso. Oh, I''ve heard of them. The ingredients are different, aren''t they?¡¡Rice miso is rice and soybeans, barley miso is barley and soybeans, and soybean miso is just ...... soybeans? Yes, that''s basically right. In fact, in addition to this, you need koji mold and salt. "......?¡¡Wait a minute. So you could make barley miso and bean miso without rice? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it. I don''t know.¡¡I''m not sure if koji mold could be cultivated from wheat or beans. ...... "Oh, that''s right. You need koji mold. We could have done it if we tried, but we had an inspirational source. It was not as good as the real thing, but it gave a similar taste. If it wasn''t for that, Haruka and the others would have made an effort out of their dissatisfaction with the food, but since they were satisfied with the food, they shelved the research on koji, which could have wasted cost and time. "Right. So you''re making rice miso this time? It could be, but I''m thinking of using our family''s miso as the base this time. Natsuki''s place is different? Yes. We use equal amounts of rice and wheat to make koji. We use half the amount of soybeans as rice and wheat. It''s a little less. "Oh, really?¡¡I don''t know much about the normal way. More than half of the koji is used in most cases, right?¡¡The taste will vary depending on the amount of koji you put in, so try making several different kinds in small amounts. How much will you make? For now, we have 20 kilos of rice and wheat soaked in water. Haruka and Mitya, can you take care of the wheat? Okay. Mary and I will take care of the rice. ...... Please help us. Yes. I''m sure you''ll be able to help me with the rice. ...... I can just steam it in the steamer, right? There is no way that four of us can steam 100 kilos each. There''s no way we can steam it all at once, so we each get a steamer and start steaming as much as we can fit in the pot - about two kilos. How long does it take to steam, Natsuki? Natsuki, how long does it take? When you try it, steam it until there is no core. Okay. That''s right, they are different sizes. The wheat one is almost the same as the one Natsuki knows, but the rice one is too big as it is, so it is cut into quarters. Past experience does not help much. He waited for a while, tasting the rice from time to time. This should be fine. Please spread them out in this wooden box. With that, Natsuki took out from his magic bag a thin wooden box about the size of a large tray. More than a hundred of them piled up on the table. ...... When did you get these made, Natsuki? It was after we returned to Rafan, after we got the rice.¡¡I knew I would need it. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a bit surprised. It''s quite a thorough preparation. After spreading it out on the wooden box, while the next one is steaming, I''ll mix in the koji mold. Normally, I would measure the temperature properly, but with ...... this koji mold, it should be at a temperature you can touch with your hands without any problem. Sprinkle a pinch or so and stir well. "I''m looking forward to the delicious rice! It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time and money. "Mee, you have to mix it well. You don''t want to waste your precious rice. It''s okay. I''m doing fine! But Mitya responded to her sister''s complaint with pride. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. "Mmm ......, is that so?¡¡But Natsuki and the others are a little too kind. You can scold me more severely if you want. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. That''s right. I''ve never been troubled by the two of them. I''ve never been bothered by the two of them." Hearing Haruka and the others'' words, Mitya snorted, "Hmmm! I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. That''s right!¡¡I''m a good girl. "Hey!¡¡Mee!¡¡That''s what''s wrong with you! I''m not sure if it''s because she''s mixing koji with her hands, but Mary''s tail twitched and she slapped Mitya on the back as if to scold him. It''s okay, it''s okay. You''re a good girl, Mitya and Mary. We think it''s okay for them to be a little more selfish. Including Mary. We''ve already been treated so well by ....... Oh, yeah. You''re a good girl, you shouldn''t be selfish. When you take it for granted and forget to be grateful, you''re a scum! ""........." It''s not wrong, but it''s quite radical. ...... "Uh, Mee?¡¡Where do you learn to do that? My dad told me. Dad ....... I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this, but I think you should choose your words a little more carefully. No, no, I didn''t ask, so maybe your father didn''t expect Mitya to remember. ...... I''m not sure if this is the first time I''ve heard of this. I''m not sure what to make of this. In the event that you''ve got a good memory, you''ll be able to remember these words very well. Fortunately, she didn''t say anything that crazy. Children remember more about their childhood than their parents think, you know. Do you think so? Yeah. I can remember some things from when I was about two years old. Not in chronological order, but in terms of events. I can only remember ...... about three years old.¡¡But ...... yes, even babies have to be careful not to say strange things in front of children. Oh, Haruka. What are your plans? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. No, but...¡¡But maybe. Yeah, I''m fine, okay? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be fine.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. --That''s not what I meant. I''m sure you''ve got enough koji bacteria mixed in already. "Hmm. Yeah, right. All that''s left to do is to put it in the accelerator. The koji mold I know would take a day or two to brew, but common sense doesn''t apply to this one. ....... In addition, we have an accelerator, so we have to keep an eye on it. The same process was repeated five times by Natsuki and his team. And after finishing the last task, Natsuki took out the koji that was first put in the accelerator. ....... I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. "It''s kind of ...... amazing, isn''t it? It''s all moldy ....... If you didn''t know, it would look like a completely moldy food. If you don''t know what it looks like, it''s just moldy food. It''s no wonder Mary and the others look a little nervous. Are you sure this is what you want? "Yes, I think it''s pretty much like this. The whole thing was covered with a light yellow cotton-like substance, and the rice was stuck together, forming a brittle mass. Natsuki unraveled it with her hands, checking its hardness, smell, and taste, and nodded. There seems to be no problem. Let''s make it into miso right away. "Let''s see, ...... are you going to boil the beans? Yes. Yes, you need to mash the boiled beans. Cook them until they are softer than normal beans and can be squashed with your fingers. Seemingly having already made preparations, Natsuki took out some soaked beans from the storage. These were the beans that Natsuki and his friends had searched for at the market to make sure they were as close to soybeans as possible, and they looked almost identical to soybeans except for a slightly darker color. As for the taste, Natsuki and his friends tasted it and said, "It''s just a different variety. It tasted very similar to soybeans. We transferred them to a large pot, and when they had softened, the mincer appeared. You can do it by hand, but I''m going to use this because it''s so convenient. I''ll pour it in from the top, and you can catch what comes out. Unlike the ones used by butchers, Haruka''s mincer is fully automatic. All you have to do is pour it in from the top, and it will automatically grind up and come out. I don''t know, this thing that comes out of the mincer... "Whoa, don''t go any further, Mitya. "Mmmmmmm! In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. It''s strange that this could be good food. "That''s what I think, too. You too, Haruka? Yes. But don''t worry. But don''t worry. Natsuki will make sure it''s delicious. No, I''m a little nervous too, because the ingredients are different. ....... I''ll try to make it in different proportions. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. They are about two liters in size. These, as well as the bath tub, were all made by Yuki and Nao with magic. Next to them is a pile of salt. Miso requires about ten percent of the ingredients, so there is a lot of salt here. I''ll measure it out, so Mary and Mitya, mix it well and fill the jar to the brim. Halka, write down the amount on the jar and give it to Mary and the others. The Natsuki had made dozens of different kinds of miso, but that was only half the story. The same process was followed to prepare the same amount of soy sauce, and the day''s work was finally over. 353-321 Brew (3) Day two of the sake cellar construction. The walls of the basement were 80% finished, but the first floor of the central part of the cellar was just about finished. However, the number of workers has more than doubled since yesterday, and I''m afraid that if all goes well, we''ll be finished by the end of the day. I wonder how much effort they are putting into the sake brewing. As for Toya, he said, "I''ll finish it today! He went to Tommy''s place early in the morning. The purpose was to increase efficiency, but wouldn''t the work be finished before the ...... cat car was ready? In fact, it would be more efficient to use Toya''s physical strength here. Construction is going well, isn''t it? Is it usually like this? You idiot! You''re making it go a lot faster. When it comes to digging holes, you just need more people, but when it comes to the wall, it''s not so simple. Normally, a lot of time is spent on building up the blocks and solidifying them. In this case, Yuki and I are handling it all with our magic, so the efficiency seems to be completely different. I''m sure you''ll agree that magic is amazing. ...... I''m always waiting for you, right? I''d rather not be in that situation if I can help it,....... I''m not sure what to do. I smiled at Simon''s reiterated invitation. I''m not sure I want to be in a situation where I can''t be an adventurer. I wouldn''t mind working part-time. I don''t mind if you work part-time, but you guys don''t have a lot of money, do you? Well, yes, for the moment. If I do, it''ll be in my spare time or during my pregnancy. ...... Do you want to keep talking about it? After that, I told him that I had no plans to marry Yuki or Natsuki, but he laughed and said, "Gahhaha! He just laughed and slapped me on the back. After that, he muttered, "Life is not as it seems. After that, he muttered, "Life is not as it seems. As I was working with Simon, I saw Toya coming through the gate of the house. She didn''t have a catwheel, but instead she was carrying a magic bag in her hand to carry larger items. I thought I wouldn''t make it in time, but could it be that the catwheel was already ready? Toya, is it ready? Yeah. Just one thing for now. As I said that, I pulled out my magic bag, which was not so different from the cat car I knew. Oh, the tires are different. I''m not sure what it is, but it''s not a rubber tire. Is this the catwheel you were talking about yesterday?¡¡It''s supposed to be used for transporting earth and sand. ...... Yes. I think it''s pretty useful. Hmmm, ......, it sure looks easy, doesn''t it? Simon nodded with interest as he inspected the cat cart. Simon nodded curiously as he inspected the catwheel, "Wow, that''s pretty cool. Yesterday, today. Yuki came up to him and complimented him, but Toya looked a little unhappy and shook his head. No, not really. There are no pipes, so it''s a lot of work. ...... Oh, by the way, the framework is made of bent pipes. If you remember what is used at construction sites, you will find that pipes are indeed used. If the pipe is produced as an industrial product, it can be made by simply bending it. ......Wow, is this steel plate being bent by hand?¡¡That''s a lot of work! It''s a lot of work, that''s for sure. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "Light and strong material. ...... Oh, I remember that one. Trent''s wood. It''s strong and light. You idiot!¡¡Who''s going to buy that?¡¡--I mean, did you guys get ahold of any torrents? Yeah, yeah, in the dungeon. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. Do you know the price of Torrent?¡¡Do you know how much it costs? It''s many times more expensive than the wood you bring in. Oh, that''s right, it''s expensive. If you''re just using it for the framework, you probably don''t need that much. ...... Speaking of which, the bow that Haruka uses is also based on a branch of Trent. The price of that is 80 gold coins. Even if it costs a lot of money to select a suitable place for the bow and to process it, the torrent material itself is not cheap. At the very least, it''s unlikely that you''ll be able to casually use a construction product made of torrent in the field. You''re right, it seems a bit impossible. "Not a bit!¡¡If you use it, it will be stolen! I see. By the way, Simon, would you like to buy some Trent wood? I nodded to Simon, who said in a dumbfounded manner, and took the opportunity to suggest it to him, but he snorted deeply. I''d be lying if I said I didn''t want it. But I can''t. You can''t buy it at ....... Or even if you buy it, you can''t use it. I''m not sure what you mean.¡¡Is it technical? Don''t be ridiculous!¡¡I''m the only one who can process Torrent.¡¡That''s not true, we''re a furniture workshop.¡¡Who''s going to buy furniture made from Trent? "Oh, I see. ...... Even furniture made of fine wood is a luxury item that the aristocracy would buy. I''m not sure how much a piece of furniture made from even more expensive torrents would cost. If you think about the price of Haruka''s bow, it would probably be enough to build a house. You can have our furniture made for you, but if you ask me if you need such high quality furniture, I think you don''t need ....... The furniture we use now is good enough. After all, it''s all solid wood. There is no such thing as a plywood sheet. If you want to sell it, you should go to Gantz. It can be used as a material for weapons. But they don''t sell a lot of those, do they? No. In the first place, are there any adventurers in this town who would use such a high-class weapon?¡¡It''s probably just you guys. I know, right? We went through a lot of trouble to cut down the trees, and then Nao and Natsuki... Yeah, only at first. I had a hard time with the mimicry, but the felling itself wasn''t too difficult. Well, it''s a hard tree, so it was hard to cut down the branches. After we returned home, Toya sharpened the machetes that Natsuki and I had been using, but he said, "You might want to change to a better one. In fact, we felt the same way, so if we are going to continue to cut down trees, we should consider buying a new one. Why don''t we update our weapons?¡¡It can be used as a spear handle, you know?¡¡...... Well, we usually don''t use it because it''s too wasteful. Oh, so it''s better than pseudo-ironwood? It''s good. You can make a mere wooden sword out of Torrent and it will be better than a normal iron sword. Seriously?¡¡Wow, I think I''ll have my wooden sword remade. "What for? ...... Toya''s eyes widened in surprise, and I sighed. The first weapon I bought when I came here was a wooden sword. It''s still in use and has never been discarded. --But in training. I don''t see the point in changing it to such a vicious weapon. No, it would be more harmful if the training could cause serious injury. So, most of them are in storage. ....... I thought we could sell them in this town. "I''m sorry. I''m sorry, but our customer base is a bit lower than that. Do you want to go to another town to sell it, or talk to the deputy ......?¡¡Is that even possible? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure what to do. No, I have a few ideas. If you''re not in need of money, can you hold on to it for a while without selling it? That''s fine with me. ...... I''ve sold some of the wood a while back, so I''ve got some cash to spare. "I''ll take it up with the governor. "I''m going to talk to the governor, and depending on what he says, I might be able to buy it. "Is that so?¡¡Then I''ll do it. If it can''t be sold here, there''s no hope of selling it in Viscount Nenus'' territory. I''m not sure what to do with it. "Oh. But for now, I''ll just use this brewery. If we can make good sake, it will make the deputy''s tongue slippery. That''s right. Well then, let''s work a little harder. So we resumed our work, and the catwheel, which had been forgotten in the course of the work, played an important role. At first, Toya showed it to the other workers, and later they used it as well, but it was very popular because it could carry a lot more earth and sand at once than the fern, and it was less tiring. The only drawback was that we had to put boards over steps and gaps that a walker could easily step over, but even taking that into account, it seems to have improved efficiency a lot. Mr. Simon said he would buy it if the price was right, but it took a lot of work to make it. Whether or not he can make money from the cat car will depend on Tommy''s ingenuity in the future. 354-322 Do I need a side job? (1) Thank you for your hard work. Nao, Yuki. Yeah, I''m a little tired. Our work on the brewery was over by noon. After building the walls of the basement and laying the foundation of the building, Simon said, "We''ll take care of the rest, no problem," and we were excused. So even now, I can hear the sound of construction from outside. But the carpenters here are great, aren''t they? They work so fast. I thought so when this house was being built, but it''s true. Natsuki''s miso is done, right? Yes, the preparation itself. Yes, the preparation itself will take a while, but you can look forward to it. Oh. By the way, how''s the sake coming along?¡¡By the way, how''s the sake coming along? It looks like you''ve put a lot of work into it. ...... I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m sure Tommy and his team will work hard on that. We provided the koji mold, the rice, and the place. "I hope they succeed, though. It might make it easier to get rice. Is that what they''re interested in? Of course, I want rice, too. So we''re just going to leave the rest to them? No, I''m actually thinking of getting involved a little, you know, on the side. As the story goes, I thought I''d be helping out with the yeast extraction, but then I got an unexpected response from Haruka. "Why again? I don''t need a second job, I''m making enough money, and I''m not having trouble making a living. I don''t think there''s any need to get involved in the production of alcohol. ....... I don''t think you need to get involved in the production of alcohol. ...... No, they''re not popular, at least not in this world. In Japan, there have been reports that more and more companies are allowing people to work on the side, but I''ve never heard of anyone working on the side, at least not here. At least, I''ve never heard of anyone having a side job here, since it''s common to not even have a decent day off. Speaking of side jobs, Haruka had a backpack income, right? What about that? It''s not much, that''s... It''s not much, it''s just enough to cover living expenses. And you don''t get it all the time. ...... ...... Do you need money for something?¡¡I can give you some. You''re not Toya, you''re not stuck in a whorehouse and have no money, are you? In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it by visiting our website. I''m not sure what to say. Haruka is thinking about the time when she retires as an adventurer, and the time when she can''t work as an adventurer. You see, depending on your life stage, you may not be able to work for a period of time. "Life stage ...... So that''s what Simon told me. Should I think about the fact that I might not be able to work for a year or two in some cases? Well, if that''s the case, there''s no reason to oppose it. Yeah. Even though we have recovery magic, there are still concerns. That''s true. In the beginning, I was afraid that if I got injured or sick and couldn''t work, I would be lost immediately. Fortunately, thanks to Mr. [Robusto]''s work, I''ve been able to live without any illnesses, but there''s no way I can say that I''ll be safe forever. If the need arose, I could ask Simon to let me work for him, but considering the number of civil engineering works being done in this town, I think an occasional job would be just fine. What about Toya? Of course, I have no reason to object!¡¡I''d rather make a lot of money! Oh, I see. I know. He''s running low on cash. Well, he''s not in town that long, so I don''t think he''s really put all his money into it. ...... He''s still young. But when you say get involved, what do you mean?¡¡You''re not just going to help me extract the yeast, are you? If that''s all you''re doing, I wouldn''t dare say anything else. We''re hoping to make something other than rice and the other ingredients that are commonly used to make sake around here. ...... No, that''s pretty hard to do, isn''t it? I''m not too familiar with it, but the most common alcoholic beverages available around here are wheat ale and grape wine. There are also some high-class fruit wines made from fruits such as apples, but it would be out of the question to make them here, where there is no production area. If I had to guess, I would say that this is a place where dingdol is produced, but even dingdol is expensive. I wonder what the price of liquor that uses a lot of it would be. Can it be competitively priced?¡¡Is it competitive? Needless to say, the town of Laffan is not a granary. The town of Laffan is not a granary at all. The area around Pining produces a lot of wheat, which makes it an ale producing area, but if you''re going to import ingredients to Laffan, you''re going to have to make a very good brew to sell it. ...... No, maybe you really want a ding dong? If it''s a super-premium liquor, there''s a chance? Yeah. So the goal is to use underutilized or cheap plants to make alcohol. Wrong. Plus... It''s even more difficult. I know it''s difficult, but we can still be adventurers for another ten years or so.¡¡I thought it would be good to find something around that time. "Considering the fact that Earth''s alcoholic beverages are made from unexpected ingredients, I''d say there''s no possibility. We have more knowledge than most people in this world. Well, there you have it: ...... Knowledge of the earth''s liquor, how starch becomes sugar, knowledge of alcoholic fermentation, knowledge of yeast, and so on. It''s hard to discover something new, but it''s much easier to imitate it. If you think about it, it''s not impossible. I''ve told Toya to look for something in the forest. Is that so? He turned his head towards Toya and she nodded lightly. "Oh, I''m gonna try to get there tomorrow, okay?¡¡Why don''t you join us, Nao? Yeah, I don''t mind going out with you, but ...... Is it that easy to find?¡¡You can''t find anything that can be used to make alcohol. It''s best to use something with sugar, like honey or fruit, because they have enough value on their own. We''re looking for starchy plants like potatoes, bulbs, stems, that sort of thing. Okay. I''ll look for it. We don''t have iodine solution, so we can''t experiment, but we can look for something powdery. Like potatoes. You''re coming with me! Oh, yeah?¡¡Okay, let''s go. Just for fun. "If you''re going, I''m going with you. Mary agreed to join us, and now there were four of us. We''ve grown up to be able to go to the forest easily. I''d like to ask Mary to give us some ideas for our own ....... If I can help, I will. ....... But I''m not as smart as Haruka and the others. ...... Don''t worry about it, Mary, you''re smart enough. Is that so?¡¡Thank you very much. When Natsuki praised Mary for her self-deprecating words, Mary smiled a little happily. And what I want to ask you is, in a way, what is Mary''s specialty?¡¡So, yeah. I don''t care what it tastes like, what cheap food do you know? "Cheap food"?¡¡What we used to eat when we were short of money were ego potatoes. They are very cheap. When Mary answered immediately without thinking, Mitya, who was standing beside her, raised her eyebrows and curved her mouth into a crooked line. It''s not good!¡¡When you eat it, it makes you oozy. When you eat it, you get an oooh and an aaah. Hahaha ....... It''s a very sour potato, so you have to grind it and soak it in water before you can eat it, but it''s still ....... I''m not a MeeTia, but it makes me want to eat it. We both chuckled at Mitya''s very understandable expression. Even if you discount the fact that Mitya has a child''s tongue, it''s probably not a very tasty potato. "Are those the kind of potatoes that are usually sold? In Kerg you could buy them at the market, but here ...... I''m sorry, I haven''t had a chance to eat them since Haruka and the others picked them up, thankfully. Oh, that''s okay. I''ll see what I can do. I''ll try to find it." Haruka responded to the apologetic Mary with a slight wave of her hand. But ego-imo. But ego potatoes... If you look hard enough, you can find quite a variety of them in this town. 355-323 Do I need a side job? (2) The next day, after seeing Nao and the others off to the forest, Haruka and the three of them visited a certain place. Yes, Diora in times of trouble. The Adventurer''s Guild. Yesterday, we went to talk to Tommy, Gantz, and the others, saying, "If you want to commercialize sake brewing, we''d like to be a part of it," but they said, "You''re the ones who provide the know-how. It''s only natural that you have the right to do it! We were told, ''You''re the ones who provide the know-how! Tommy said, "It will be a long time before we can actually drink alcohol, and we don''t know if it will be commercially viable. It''s not too late to get the management and other things done ......," he said, but even so, the fact that they moved quickly shows the firmness of Haruka and her team. "Hello, Diora. "Yes, hello. What can I do for you today?¡¡It''s going to take a while to appraise the hammer you gave us the other day. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. The hammer, which looks like it could be useful for gargoyles, was sent to the adventurer''s guild for appraisal as soon as they returned from the dungeon. However, as usual, there is no way that they can appraise complex items here, and the results were not available for a few days. I''m curious about that too, but this time it''s about something else. We''re thinking of starting a brewery on the side. I was hoping you could help me with that. "Liquor"?¡¡It''s a lot of work, isn''t it?¡¡You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be fine when it comes to creating. It''s just the management that''s not. I''m sure Simon and his deputies are involved and can help with the permits, but I was hoping Diora could help as well. I''m sure Diora will be able to help. With ...... concessions, it might be easier to find a marriage partner? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, please do not hesitate to contact us. But then she looked away with a pained expression on her face. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything that might be of interest to you. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. "Oh, I know. I''m sorry. I was rash. You''re right. And it''s not the right person to be attracted by money. Sorry, I''ll look elsewhere. --Would it be better to go to Simon? I''m sorry. If it''s alcohol that doesn''t compete with ale, he''ll be able to help us with the income. Yes. Well then, Diora, sorry to bother you. Wait, wait, wait! In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the following web page. ''Haruka-san?¡¡You can stick with it a little longer, you know?¡¡I have a wide network of contacts and a lot of knowledge. I''m a bit of a dependable sister. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''ve been able to rely on you for the past year. ...... I''m a little worried about the current situation. Whoa. I''m sorry. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. That was a little bit harsh, wasn''t it? It wasn''t a little, was a feeling shared by Haruka and the others, but they had the good sense not to say it. "Well, but you can''t, can you? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m sure you''re right. I''m sure you''ll be able to find someone to help you. I know, I know!¡¡That''s enough!¡¡If you insist, I''ll help you!¡¡Yes, I''ll do my best! In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. The three of us just looked at each other, smiled, and moved on with the conversation. Then, please. Well, what should we do?¡¡Would you like Simon to take care of the liquor? No, leave it to me. It''s not that difficult if you''ve already talked to the deputy. ...... If there is anything else I can do, please let me know! It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. I''m sure you''ve heard of ...... egoimo, Diora? I''m sure you''ve heard of ego-imo, ......, the first and last of its kind? "Yeah, what a cool name! I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. The origin of the name is not that good, though. It''s the first thing they plant when they settle down. Even in wastelands, as long as there is water, they grow in an unusually short period of time. That''s why it''s the first food. "Oh, that''s why? I see. And the last food? It''s even sadder, isn''t it?¡¡It''s about being poor and not being able to buy food, but still being able to eat ego potatoes. Oh. ....... That''s really sad. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. But in reality, Mary and Mitya were not at the bottom of the food chain, as it was only occasionally eaten by the common people who did not have much money. It''s just that Diora, who is middle class or upper middle class by any means, heard that. It''s very easy to grow, so even if you don''t have a lot of money, you can get by.¡¡Just chop up a potato, bury it in the ground, water it, and it will grow to this size in a month or three at the most. As he said this, Diora showed me a circular shape with a diameter of less than 30 centimeters and a thickness of about 15 centimeters. Even if it took only three months, it was an extraordinary growth rate, but in fact, that''s how much the ego potato grows. There''s talk that the magical element might be affecting growth, but we don''t know much about that, do we? That''s interesting. --Wouldn''t it be great if we could make sake from such potatoes? "Oh, you can?¡¡I''m sure it would be great, but I think it would be difficult.¡¡I''m sure it would be great, but I think it would be difficult. At Natsuki''s words, Diora''s eyes widened, but a skeptical expression appeared on her face. In fact, there is no reason why such an efficient plant should not be researched, and there have been many trials and errors to see if there is a way to make it taste better or if it can be processed into other things. The result is the "first and last food," so I guess I don''t need to mention the results of my research again. "Besides, even if you do make sake, you can''t sell it unless it tastes good, right? This is the first time that I''ve ever heard of an ego-imo tasting bad, so I can''t imagine that the alcohol made from it would taste good. It''s also possible that they might be, and Diora didn''t deny what Haruka and the others had said. You can''t say for sure, but it''s possible, right?¡¡It''s not that I''m only focusing on Egoimo, but I want to make it with something unexpected, something that you wouldn''t normally eat. There''s not much point in making liquor with dingles, is there? That would be a waste!¡¡--But I might want to try it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s not always possible to make a good drink from a fruit that tastes good to eat, however. Don''t worry, we don''t make liquor with dingles. We don''t drink much, and I think it''s better to just eat. "I see. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who likes to drink. You can''t deny that you would have liked to have tasted the liquor because you like dildos. "Well, that''s it. I''d like to get some ego-imo to try, can I get some at the market? I''ve never bought any, so I can''t say for sure, but I''m sure they sell them. Well, wait a minute. ...... It''s a potato like this. Diora, who had left her seat for a moment, brought out a book and showed Haruka and the others a page from it. What was depicted on the page was something that looked like a konnyaku potato. The stalk grows straight from a black, round potato that looks like a large pumpkin, and the leaves radiate out from the stalk. It is about 1.5 meters tall, and its leaves are long and thin like those of the grass family. However, while konnyaku potatoes are similar in shape, they are more difficult to grow and take several years to harvest, ego potatoes grow even when left alone and take several months to harvest. This is quite different. I think I''ve seen it in the market. I didn''t buy it at the time because I didn''t know what it was. "I saw them too. I thought it was a konnyaku potato, so I passed it by. I didn''t know how to make konnyaku, and it wasn''t something I wanted to make. "Well, it''s not something I want to force myself to eat. I''ll buy it if there is. ...... By the way, Diora, is this something that you could increase production of if you wanted to?¡¡I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use it as a raw material for alcohol, but if it becomes hard to find, other people will have problems. That''s exactly what they call "the last food". If Haruka and the others were to buy too much of it, the people who live off of it would be in trouble. I''m not sure what to make of that, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. As I said before, it''s something that can be grown on one''s own. If you ask a farmer, he will plant it on the side of a field. If it''s only a few hundred kilograms, you can grow it in your garden, don''t you think?¡¡You don''t even have to take care of it. That''s a good idea. We have that fertilizer. The flowerbeds that Yuki and the others built when they said, "We''ll do gardening! The flowerbeds that Yuki and her friends had built because they wanted to garden were rarely in good condition, but it was inevitable that they would be away from home a lot. On the other hand, ego-imo can be chopped up and buried in the ground, so even Haruka and her friends who are going on an adventure don''t have to worry. Natural rainfall is enough to irrigate them, so as long as there is a vacant lot, they can be grown without any trouble. But that''s only after the alcohol is well made. For now, let''s buy some ego potatoes and go home. "Right. Diora, if it works, I''ll come back to you for advice. Yes, I''ll be waiting. I''ll make the necessary preparations, so please call me when you''ve decided. I''ll make sure to get your permission! Haruka and the others left the adventurer''s guild after waving to Diora, who responded strongly. 356-324 Do I need a side job? (3) That was very cheap, ego-imo. "Yes, a bit unbelievably so. When Haruka and his friends returned home, they saw the four ego potatoes on the table and were surprised at the price, which was much lower than they had imagined. Four potatoes about 30 centimeters in diameter cost one silver coin. It was the kind of money that could only buy a loaf of bread. "Well, let''s taste it and see what it''s like. Oh, you''re very brave, Natsuki! You''re very brave, Natsuki. - We won''t know what to do until we try it. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll like it. No, thank you. I''m fine. Natsuki offered a slice of ego-imo, but Haruka and the others all backed away and shook their heads. Well, seeing the expression on Natsuki''s face, he wouldn''t normally say, "I''ll try it. So, do you think you can handle it? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use it as a raw material for alcohol, but I think it might work. I''m still level 5 in [Pharmacy]. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡This can be removed by distillation. I think the sour taste is tannin, but that''s not a problem either. Well, can yeast work in such a condition? We''ll have to experiment with that. Is it better to mix rice malt with the yeast, to saccharify it with malt, or do I need a different method? It seems a little difficult, but it may be possible to use potatoes directly as koji. With that koji mold. Oh, that. ....... I''m sure you can do something with that. Yuki recalled the fungus that made rice malt in an unusually short time, folded her arms and nodded her head. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I have to make a parachute, so I''m going to try some experiments while I''m working on that. I''m not sure what to make of this. Of course, the results of our forest search were not so good. It''s not easy to go into the forest and find a plant that conveniently stores starch and sugar. If you dig hard enough, you might find something like a yam, but that would defeat the purpose of this article. As we went out into the forest several times, our exploration of the forest turned into a walk. We got rid of the occasional goblin and got a boar - Mary and Mitya. We practiced our magic while watching them do their thing. We don''t have to worry about how much magic we have left, because there''s no problem without my magic. And sometimes I invite Haruka and the others to enjoy the autumn leaves in the mountains, or to replenish fish and shrimp in the river. While we were slowly enjoying the autumn, the brewery that was being built in the garden was completed. This is ...... a magnificent sake brewery! For some reason, Tommy was the one who shouted in admiration in front of the three-story brewery. He had also come to see the brewery when it was under construction, but only once because he had work to do. Instead, the number of cat cars had been increased to three. Of course, it was Tommy''s hard work. Some improvements have been made, but it seems that the cost problem has not yet been solved. Mr. Gantz is not here today because he has work to do. I mean, Mr. Simon, weren''t you planning to build a two-story building? I just felt like it!¡¡Don''t worry about it! I just felt like it. ...... Is it really okay to make a building in such a random way? Isn''t it necessary to have a solid structural calculation or something like that? As for us, we''re a little concerned that it''s more expensive than our own house. ...... "Oh?¡¡You guys want me to build an addition to your house too? You''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this sort of thing. No, it''s not necessary. We don''t need any more rooms. Well, it doesn''t look too bad, so what''s the harm? It was taller than our house, and it did block some of the view from our windows, but it was far enough away that it wasn''t an eyesore, thanks to the fact that it was built on the edge of the property. The exterior walls are neatly plastered, and even the pattern of the walls of a sake brewery (namako-kabe), which Toya had taught me to enjoy, has been reproduced. But ......, you built a very thick wall, didn''t you?¡¡The cost is quite high, isn''t it? "It''s not cheap. But it''s not a problem. It''s necessary for sake brewing, right? I wondered at the start of the work how serious he was about sake brewing. Well, for those of us who are thinking of making sake as a sideline, there is a part of us that is grateful. For the sake brewing business, we have agreed that we will provide the technology, Diora will take care of all the paperwork, and Simon will build the buildings, make the tools, and provide the manpower if necessary. Now, let''s get started on the brewing, how''s that going? We''ll talk about it inside. "Let''s talk about it inside," said Natsuki, leading Simon and the others to our dining room. We are here except for Mary and Mitya, Tommy, Simon, and Diora are also at the table. Diora said, "It''s important for our future! It''s important for our future! Mary and Mitya are at the orphanage. They didn''t seem to be interested in brewing, so I sent them to play. First of all, here is the rice we will use to make the sake. Here is what we heated up. You may have seen it at the last party. Haruka first laid out on the table raw rice, steamed rice, and cooked rice. There were three types of raw rice: hulled, brown, and polished. This is the steamed rice with koji, and this amazake is made by mixing this koji with the cooked rice. Even though it is called "sake," it does not contain any alcohol. Please try it. Natsuki poured the amazake into a cup and placed it in front of the three of them. Seeing the cloudy white liquid, only Tommy took it and drank it without hesitation. Simon and Diora were looking into the cup with narrowed eyes, but when they saw Tommy drinking normally, they sipped it with some confusion. I''ve never had amazake made from koji before, but I didn''t know it tasted like this. "You''ve never had it before Tommy? Yes. There are things made with sake lees, though. I see. Even if they are the same kind of amazake, they taste quite different. Koji amazake contains no alcohol and has a unique flavor, while amazake made with sake lees is sweetened with sugar and is rather bland. The alcohol content varies depending on the sake lees used, but it can be strong enough to make you drunk. By the way, my preference is for sake lees. I don''t like the flavor of koji amazake. "Wow, this is sweet. "This doesn''t have any sugar in it, does it?¡¡It''s amazing. It''s more than I imagined. The two who sipped it after Tommy also rolled their eyes at the sweetness. I don''t know what the sugar content of koji amazake is, but it seems quite sweet even to us. For people from this world who don''t usually have a chance to eat sweetness, it must be too much. As you can see, we have succeeded so far without any problems. The next step is to turn it into alcohol, but this will take time and some trial and error. "Hmm. If it''s as sweet as this, I think it can be made into alcohol on its own, but it''s not stable, is it? Yes. Then there is the taste. Once we succeed, we''ll be able to make it consistently, but we have work to do as adventurers. ...... We don''t have time for that, do we? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I''m going to see if I can''t get a steady supply of rice. I''m going to see if I can''t get a stable supply of rice, including researching the place of production and distribution channels. There may be some rice grown nearby. Thank you very much. We just bought it at Crevilly, so we don''t know anything about it. If it''s sold there, it must be made somewhere else. It''s not easy to find out where to get the goods, but Diora, who has access to the adventurer''s guild and the nobility, will probably be able to help you out. I''ll make the necessary tools. I can make tools out of wood. "As for manpower, I''m ......, or rather, my mentor is. "As for the manpower, I , or rather my master, said that he would find someone who would take it seriously. "Well, I guess it''s our job to teach them how to build. I don''t think we''ll be successful right away, but we''ll be around for a long time, okay? "I know. The wages of a few apprentices are not much for a few years. Well, I can''t wait to start drinking. I don''t think it''ll take that long, but I''ll take care of it if it keeps failing. Please don''t worry about that. According to Haruka and the others, it''s not difficult to make alcohol. Aside from whether or not it can be made into a tasty alcoholic beverage, in extreme cases, even yeast and sugar water used to make bread can be used to make alcohol. Since such liquor is definitely alcohol, if the process does not work, it is possible to cultivate appropriate yeast from fruit peels, etc., and make distilled liquor. The question is whether the price of such distilled liquor will be competitive or not. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó A few days later, three young men arrived. Their names were Jay, Peeta, and Kise. All of them were about the same age as us or a little younger, but their attitude toward Natsuki, the technical instructor, was stiff, and I could clearly sense that they were very nervous. Was it because he was cute?¡¡I thought it was because she was cute, but it didn''t seem that way. He was warned about coming here - well, to put it bluntly, he was given a very strong warning, almost like a threat. It seems that he was nailed. Mr. Ganz, Mr. Simon, and Mr. Diora. What would happen if I slacked off, cut corners, or leaked secrets to those three? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and what you can do to help. ...... is usually a very kind sister. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. But they all shook their heads desperately and said, "Our lives depend on it! When I asked them about their situation, I found out that they were so-called "leftovers". They have no family business or farmland to inherit, and if things continue as they are, they will have no choice but to become adventurers. In other words, if they succeed, they will be able to get stable jobs and get married. If you fail, your life is over. The guild''s vice-chief, Diora, has a bad memory, and I''m in worse shape than a normal adventurer, so I''m off to a negative start. It was almost like a dead or alive situation. Yeah, I feel bad for dragging you into this. But the odds of success are pretty high, so all I can say is good luck. Natsuki''s instruction lasted about three days, and the first batch of sake was safely prepared. The sake was not yet finished, but we could only hope that the yeast would take hold. And with that, we finally returned to our main task: exploring the dungeon. 357-325 Toward restart (1) "Well. I''ve been through a lot, but now I have a source of income for after I retire. Let''s take it easy and explore the dungeon. I''m not sure the brewing will work yet, though. Brewing with eelgrass isn''t going too well, is it? No. I don''t know why, but for some reason the saccharification is not progressing. ...... In the beginning, it was thought that it was possible to make sake using eelgrass. However, it was not so easy when they actually tried it. The principle of saccharification is the breakdown of starch by amylase. So I thought I could make saccharification by grinding up ego potatoes, mixing them with koji, and keeping the temperature around 40 degrees Celsius, but this didn''t work. I tried using malt instead of koji, but that didn''t work either. Natsuki is currently researching to find out if there are any inhibiting factors, but our main job is to be adventurers. We''re just working on it in our spare time, so there''s nothing to report at the moment. However, considering how easy it is to make egoimos, I''m sure some research has been done, and it''s no wonder it''s not that easy to make. Well, that''s for the long term. As long as we can make rice wine, there''s no problem. Yuki said casually, and Haruka nodded. As long as it''s made, there''s no problem with sales or licensing. It would be nice if we could do it ourselves, a business backed by the authorities. It would be worse if they were our business enemies. It sounds bad to say that they are in collusion with the powers that be, but when you are in the country, you are in the country. It''s no use complaining about the social system. We''re not trying to start a revolution. We''re not going to start a revolution, but Jay and the others are going to be in trouble mentally. The people involved are like that: ...... It seems that the governor does not have high expectations for this project, but for Jay and the others who have been entrusted with the sake brewing, even a small part of it is a kind of fear. Of course, above the deputy is Viscount Nenus, the supreme authority of this territory. The current Viscount Nenus is a decent man, but the tyranny of the previous lord still lingers in the memories of the townspeople. But thanks to the Viscount, the rice is going to be okay, right? Yes. ...... I was surprised that it was grown closer than I thought, though. After Diora''s research, we found out that one of the rice varieties we got was grown in a town closer than we thought. It''s a town called Kiura, east of Sarstat. It''s actually a village near the town, but the simple distance from Rafan is closer than going to Pining. However, the roads are not so good, so Pining is by far the better place for transportation. The village does not seem to have a large amount of rice, but if you succeed in brewing sake, they will arrange for you to buy it from there. On the contrary, Mr. Diora has successfully negotiated with Viscount Nenus and promised to consider growing rice in the vicinity, depending on the quality of the sake. Since they have experience in growing rice in the vicinity, I don''t think there will be any problem in terms of climate, but they are very good negotiators. "Well, let''s leave the alcohol out of this. Haruka clapped his hands and changed the subject. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s had a bad experience. "Well... We''ve been working together in some areas, but we''ve been working separately in others. It''s not that we''ve only been working on our side jobs lately. Rather, it would not be an exaggeration to say that we spent about 20% of our time on the sidelines, and the other 80% on training and preparation for our main work. Oh. I don''t have a lot of information to share. I''ve got the reinforced door plate shields made. Mr. Gantz and Tommy laughed at me, but after a few flying gars, they changed their tune. The rope ladders have been repaired and added. Oh, that. I didn''t eat them until I got home, but they were pretty good. We dried a lot of them and made a soup stock with them, which was also very good. That is an ingredient that we should definitely keep on hand. Although it is a very vicious ingredient that could kill us if we are not careful. We were able to secure quite a bit of rope as well. You''ve been to all the stores! Yeah, we checked. Thank you, both of you. Haruka nodded and thanked them, and Mary and the others smiled, their ears twitching happily. "I guess my parachute is not so good. I''m sure you''ll be pleased with the results. "Yeah, that was a lot of work. ...... The experiment was more ...... than the alchemy. I''m not sure if it reminds you of the experiment, but Haruka''s shoulders slumped and she let out a deep breath. And it wasn''t just Haruka who helped me with this experiment. The cliff we used to practice rock climbing. We used that cliff for the experiment, but it was not very high, and the rocky bottom made it very scary to jump off. However, the only ones who could help were me and Haruka, who could use the "walk on air" method, so we had no choice but to do it. Of course, we had tested with weights before we jumped, so we were somewhat safe, but I was scared. Bungee jumping is definitely better. I''ve never done it. I''ve never done it before, but... "My magic is a little delicate, isn''t it?¡¡I''ve been practicing Explosions, but my Fire Magic level is only 4, so I''m not sure if it will work against ...... gargoyles. If it''s a goblin, it''s no problem at all. I''m not sure if it''s a problem or not. It''s not a problem, it''s overkill. ...... No, it was a disaster, right? Yes, it was indeed a disaster. Fortunately, I wasn''t there at the time, but the goblin''s body was blown apart by Yuki''s explosive flame. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. Natsuki''s Purify was the most gratifying thing ever," Toya said. Incidentally, Yuki, who was one step away from the two vanguards, was able to escape the disaster, and was unusually tormented by Natsuki. Perhaps remembering this, Yuki put her hands on the table with a bang, rubbed her forehead against the table and bowed deeply. I''m very sorry about that. I''d like to apologize again! ...... I didn''t do it on purpose, so that''s enough. Well, that happens in combat, right? I don''t want a second ....... Yes!¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to try. I''ll have to be careful too. I''m not Yuki, but my "Walk on Air" is incomplete. It''s better than Nao''s. I can only manage to walk gently, and even when I use it when I start to fall, I haven''t managed to stay in the air. Haruka''s [wind magic] skill is level 6. He''s better than me, but "Walking in the Air" is essentially a level 8 spell. It''s not perfect, but it''s still effective enough to slow down a fall from a cliff and land on the ground, so if you combine it with a parachute, you should be safe enough. That is, if Haruka can catch the fallen person. It may be more dangerous to fall from a low place halfway, because there is no time to catch the person. Incidentally, we have not conducted any experiments or training in this direction, because it is too dangerous. The person who parachutes down has to jump down without slowing down, but the person who catches him has to jump down without slowing down. ....... I was able to do it on the spur of the moment, but if I were asked to do it again in a calm situation, I would be reluctant. 358-326 Toward restart (2) "Me last. My ''walking on air'' is better than before. Last time it was water underneath me, but next time it won''t matter if it''s bedrock underneath me - or anyone but Toya. "What?¡¡What, I''m not good enough? I nodded deeply at Toya, who pointed at me and looked at me wide-eyed as I reiterated my words. It''s about weight. You''re at least one and a half times heavier than the rest of us. I''m not going to say ''compared to'' anyone, because I''d like to save my life, but I''m heavier than the heaviest person in the party, by far. I''m not going to say ''compared to anyone else'' because I want to save my life. "So, if I fall, goodbye ......? Are you serious?¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I can support you, I think. But I don''t want to do it if I can help it. I''d rather not do it if I can help it. My weight and Pastoya''s weight will be on both my legs. Walk on Air is a magic to walk in the air, not to fly. In other words, if you want to help someone, the burden on your knees is quite high, as Haruka said. If the weight of the object is much heavier than your own weight, it goes without saying. On top of that, Haruka''s slender arms will be supporting Toya''s weight during the fall, right?¡¡You can see what will happen to Haruka''s arms at ....... Yeah, Toya, you just fall. That''s terrible! I''m kidding. But, Toya, don''t fall.¡¡I can''t let you break Haruka''s arm. I''m not gonna fall!¡¡I''m not going to fall! - But you''re in danger of falling! That''s true. --Just because I''m on a diet doesn''t mean I should lose weight. Of course not! Because it''s the ideal shape. "......? We look at each other, me and Toya. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. "Oi, oi. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡It''s a good thing I have a reputation for physical beauty. "......." "A warrior''s compassion, no. A man''s compassion. I''ll spare you the trouble of trying to find out where you''ve shown your physical beauty and who has praised it. "Oh, geez. But it''s true that you have no fat to lose.¡¡I mean, not like Haruka. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not going to say anything.¡¡I''m not going to say anything else, am I?¡¡It''s okay, I''m fine!¡¡I''m a model. I''m a model. Nao has no complaints either! ....... Is that so? Don''t ask! I don''t know what you think, but you can''t answer that question right here! Don''t drag me into this! Well, well, well, if Toya should fall, Haruka and I will have to do our best. I said this to change the subject, and Haruka nodded her head, removing her finger from Toya''s cheek. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. ...... I wish I never had the chance to do that. I know, right? I don''t know if we''ll be able to catch it together. It''s like a triple SSS. I believe that the fact that we were able to successfully catch Natsuki at that time was due to a great deal of luck. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. I''m not sure if Haruka and I can catch such a difficult thing in time. "Yeah, probably not. I''m sorry if I fail. You can''t be sorry.¡¡--But that''s just the way it is. I won''t hold it against you if you fail. I''m glad to hear it. ...... If you come out as a skeleton or a zombie, I''ll purify you, okay? I''m not sure if I should thank you for that. I''m not sure what to say. It''s better than being left alone, right?¡¡Isn''t it embarrassing?¡¡Isn''t it embarrassing to see your own corpse moving? I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were shapely enough to be a skeleton, but as a zombie I''d be able to see every color. ...... I see. That''s right. Thank you. I''m not sure if he imagined this, but he thanked me honestly, even though his mouth was bent into a knot. You''re welcome. But it will be Haruka and Natsuki who will actually do it. No, let''s try not to do that, okay?¡¡Both of you. You''re right!¡¡You can''t die! In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the following. It''s not even a year since Mitya and the others lost their father. Haruka, who was sitting next to Mitya, stroked her head and gave us a stern look. You''re right, we shouldn''t die. Toya, Nao, be careful. "Oh, yeah. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Of course we don''t want to die, and we don''t intend to. Of course we''re not going to let Toya die. We''re getting off track here. I''m still halfway through my ''Explosion''. I''ve raised my fire magic level to seven, but ...... Even though the level of the status is not that reliable, the fact that both the fire jet and the explosion, which are level 8 spells, are still active does not mean that they have not reached the standard power. In spite of this, both the power and the magic power consumed are quite large, as expected of a level 8 spell. It may not have the same explosive power as the original Explosive Flame, but by converging it, it can at least break rocks. "Oh, that''s great. How much? Well, it depends on the material, but it''s enough to blow up a handful of rocks. The experiment took place at a rock climbing practice. There''s no shortage of rocks to use for experiments in that area. If you just want to cut it out, you can do it by ''plain shifting''. Oh, oh. ...... I don''t want to take a ...... hit. You don''t know how well it''ll work in the field.¡¡It''s slower than the Fire Arrow. If you were to use it against Toya, she would certainly avoid it. And if you use it at such a close distance that she can''t avoid it, you''ll get caught in it. It''s an explosion spell. If you use it at close range, you will be caught in the explosion. In addition, there is the question of how well it works on gargoyles. Unlike mere rocks, humans and demons have a resistance to magic. And then there''s ....... Oh, by the way, you''ve been updating your weapons. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. It''s easier to use than pseudo-ironwood in terms of flexibility, and it''s much stronger. In fact, it is said to be strong enough to catch a blunt sword with its hilt. Even with our small swords, we could not cut it off, so I believe it will protect me in most situations. Incidentally, torrents are hard enough as they are, but it is said that they can be made harder by treating them after completion. It is said that this treatment costs a certain amount of money, but if it is hard enough to catch a sword from the start, it is naturally difficult to process, and it will be a tremendous hardship to kill the torrent and to beat the branches afterwards. ...... processing fee, though that hurt! 359-327 Toward restart (3) Speaking of which, our little sword sheaths, they''re Torrent now, aren''t they? Yeah. Gantz-san cried that it was a waste. I don''t usually do anything with the scabbard, so there''s no deep reason for updating it, but I thought it might be useful as a weapon in case something happened. I had it made with the lightest of intentions. As Haruka said, Mr. Gantz shouted, "What a waste! But torrents are so expensive that they have little use. Mr. Gantz bought some of them and gave them to the guild, but we still have enough left over to give to Simon when he asks for them. Me and my friends have new weapons too! "Yes, we got new ones too. Thank you very much. You two have been working hard. This time, since there was time, I changed the chainmail to light attribute steel, Mitya''s small sword to wind attribute steel, and Mary''s bastard sword to flame attribute steel as ''the amount of money they earned''. The actual earnings are not enough to pay for the equipment even if you simply divide it by the head, but it is in anticipation of future activities and in preparation for demons that are too strong for us to follow. In a situation where even Toya can be injured quite badly, avoiding an irreversible situation is a higher priority than ''training with appropriate equipment''. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. Yeah. It was a better weapon than I expected. The war hammer I found in the treasure chest was called the Impact Hammer, and it had the ability to cause a shockwave to penetrate and damage an object at the same time as it attacked it. It seems to have an attack power that can crush an ordinary rock, and it would be quite useful against gargoyles. However, the opponent is a demon. I''m not sure how effective it is, though. That''s about it as far as enhancements go. The other thing you''ll need to do is ...... to make sure you have plenty of food for your search. Just in case we get separated. What else?¡¡When we were swept away, we were able to get by. ...... Being able to swim and the need for life preservers are two different things. Because physical strength is not infinite. After that, the discussion ended with each of us sharing some opinions. Toya and I went out to buy what we needed, and all the women cooked a large amount of food and stored it in their magic bags. The next day, we set out again for the dungeon. The next day, we headed back to the dungeon. It''s been a while since the last time, so we head to the second layer, killing the resurrected dungeon demons and collecting all the items we can find. We could have ignored the bosses by using the transfer function, but there was no reason to skip them, since defeating them was useful for checking the usability of weapons and training Mary and the others. And the same goes for collecting resources. You can''t miss the good stuff. ...... Well, actually, I have a lot of stuff I can''t sell in my magic bag that I left at home. It''s called overstock. If we sell them at a low price, neither we, the guild, nor anyone else involved will be happy, so we can''t sell them easily and they accumulate as inventory. As a side effect of this, the cost of the food at Aella''s restaurant has casually skyrocketed, but I guess only a few rich people can understand that. The common people cannot distinguish between a 2,000 yen gram of meat and an 8,000 yen gram of meat. No, when I watch TV rating programs, I think, "Maybe it is like that even if you are not a commoner. Well, it''s because they are poor, and because they have experienced poverty in real life, that they work hard to collect even in such a situation. And Mary and Mitya are even older in their poverty than we are. I had no idea that Mary and Mitya lived a life of eating ego potatoes. ....... Once you''ve tasted them, you can understand why Mitya is so greedy about food. We spent a certain number of days going through each layer like that, and then we came back to the second layer. So let''s skip ahead to where we were last time, shall we? Although the second layer seemed to be restricted in terms of transfer, it was still possible to transfer safely within a short interval and with a transfer point. The last time Haruka and her friends came back, they had already set up a transfer point, so they could transfer to the place where we fell last time without any problems. Therefore, there was no need to risk going down the cliff, but Mitya lowered her eyebrows a little sadly when she heard that. "Aren''t you going to retrieve the fish? I''m sure we''ll be able to get them back, don''t worry.¡¡In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to buy a lot of things. "Yes, we did. I can''t tell you exactly how many meters, but it was high enough for us to get into position. ...... I didn''t have time to count the seconds, but I could tell it wasn''t more than a few dozen meters. I''m not sure how high the entrance is, but maybe we still need to go down the cliff? It''s okay. The fish are important! Mee, our safety is more important than yours, okay? Of course it is!¡¡But I''m happy to eat good fish. Mitya nodded contentedly with his arms crossed, and we began our transfer. A few minutes later, we had reached the place where we had fallen last time. Looking up, we could see that the rock we had fallen on was no longer there, and the area that had collapsed was back to its original state. A sorrowful look appeared on Natsuki''s face as he noticed this. This is ...... a trap, after all. I''m sorry, I should have known. I don''t care, I don''t care. Fortunately - and I shouldn''t say fortunately - it was Natsuki who fell, and she didn''t bother anyone else, and as a result, she was safe. No, not to Nao-kun. ...... It''s okay. I heard that you two were hugging each other.¡¡It''s a perk. Nao doesn''t think it''s a problem. Right?¡¡Nao? "Uh, yeah, I guess so. Yuki confirmed, and I nodded, a little vaguely. No, of course I don''t think you''re bothering me, but it''s true that I can''t say, "Yes, it was a good deal. I can''t say, ''Yes, it was very soft. Besides, I was pretty frightened and desperate, so I didn''t have time for that. Of course, I''m not going to say that here. But I can''t deny that I was not very careful about traps. Including us. "Right. Let''s all be careful next time. We all thought we were safe. I didn''t even notice! I did. I had no idea! Thank you very much. Haruka and the others followed up, and Natsuki''s face lit up with a smile. "As far as this trap is concerned, why don''t we do a percussion test before we go down?¡¡We''ve just got the perfect hammer. No, that thing is going to collapse even without the trap if it''s not good. ...... The shockwave penetrates the target and crushes it, that''s its function. If it doesn''t break, it''s okay, right? "Well, I don''t know.¡¡I think we can identify natural collapses, but if it''s a trap, it''s ....... It''s a trap because a place that normally wouldn''t collapse collapses. It depends on the trigger conditions. To put it in a simple way, if a trap is designed to blow up when an enemy arrives, you won''t be able to tell whether it collapses or not by sound inspection. Of course, we can''t say that it''s completely meaningless, so we''ll have to try it out. --So, we moved to the ledge and carefully examined the ground while moderately dealing with the rock spiders. After Natsuki and I had focused on the ledge and determined that there was nothing there, it was Toya''s turn. Okay, Toya, go ahead and try. Got it! I hurriedly stopped him as he raised the impact hammer with a strong response. Wait a minute!¡¡You''re pushing it too hard. That''s not a percussion test, that''s a serious destruction motion! "Oh, right. Like that? Toya stops swinging, but still hits the ground with a very strong thud. It was scary to feel the slight vibration of his feet each time. Isn''t this going to cause the whole aisle to collapse or something ......? Fortunately, my fears did not come true, and the rock shelf did not collapse. ...... doesn''t seem to be a problem, at least not yet. Well, it''s not like we''re going to have the same traps all the time. In other words, when you''re not careful, that''s when you''re in danger. I''ll be careful. Yuki nodded, and we nodded too. The last time we were caught off guard was a pattern. Let''s make sure we remember to do it every time this time. So, secure the rope ladder and go to ....... In the past, this was where Mitya and I came in, but this time... 360-328 Restart (1) "Door plate''s on. Toya, are you sure about this? Of course I tested it. I''ll use it myself. As Toya said this, he pulled out a door plate from his magic bag. It looks like something you might find on a storm door of an old house. The only difference was that it was much thicker, and it had a shoulder strap attached so that it could be carried on the back. Oh, and if you look closely, you can see a long, narrow cloth bag attached to the top of the shoulder strap. What about the cloth bag on top of it? Oh, that''s a parachute. It''s a parachute because you can''t carry a backpack with it. You don''t want to fall out, do you? I see. ......? The parachute made by Natsuki is an attachment to the backpack, and of course it is attached to everyone''s backpack. This is why I understand that Toya thought of this as a countermeasure for when he is not carrying his backpack. ...... Toya, are you going to fall with that doorplate on your back? It''s a river down there. If you go into the river with it, won''t you drown? Before you put a parachute on the door plate, you should think about casting off the door plate. ....... If you look at Natsuki, she didn''t know either, she rolled her eyes. ...... Yeah, I''ll leave that as an issue for next time. We can''t change it now. If possible, there should be an immediate cast-off mechanism and independent parachutes on both the toya and the door plate. By the way, there''s a steel plate in between. It''s quite heavy, isn''t it? It''s ...... heavy! Toya handed it to me, and I tried to hold it, but it was so heavy that it made my muscles wobble. I can''t carry this up and down the rope ladder ....... I''m not sure if you can handle this, Toya.¡¡"Toya, are you sure you can handle this? I can''t fight with this on my back, but I can make it up and down. Toya put down his backpack. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to carry this on my back, but I''ll be able to walk up and down. Oh, I''m impressed. ...... Toya''s physical strength is the best, isn''t it? His back is literally a walking doorplate. Toya''s entire body is completely hidden from view. It seems that there is no danger unless he is pierced by thick boards and steel plates. If you can even bear the weight. I can''t. And I can''t support Toya with it on my back. If he falls, we''ll have to swim together. Are you sure about the rope ladder?¡¡Weight-wise? It''s been taken care of. We''ve already taken care of that. They made the wire a little thicker. Oh, it''s not just new? I knew that they had repaired the wire because it had been damaged in the last collapse, but they had also changed the thickness. I couldn''t tell much difference just by looking at it, but since the professionals said it was okay, it must be okay. Okay, I''m off!¡¡Take care of the Arrowhead Eagle, will you?¡¡I can''t see a thing. Yeah, I''ll take care of that. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something to help you. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. It would be dangerous if he didn''t act very carefully. After Toya had descended about five meters, the first thing to arrive was another Arrowhead Eagle. Four of them. We had gotten used to them, so Haruka shot one, I shot two, and Yuki shot one, at the point where the bodies fell on the ledge. The Arrowhead Eagle, its life easily snuffed out, moves toward Toya with its inertia. It hits the doorplate with a thump, thump, thump, and makes a pretty good sound. "Hey!¡¡It''s hitting me in the back! No problem. He''s already dead. ...... I''m afraid the corpse is going to explode, aren''t you? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. If you want to be sure to drop it on the ledge, you will have to intercept it at a very short distance. Since it is flying at a very high speed, some things will hit Toya. If you''re going to kill it, you might as well collect it, right? You want to prevent flying gars, right?¡¡Arrowhead Eagle will be fine even if you''re not dead. It''s shockproof, it''s big! We said we didn''t need to worry about it, and Toya shouted in protest, but the younger group cheered. "Good luck, Toya!¡¡The Arrowhead Eagle is delicious! The Arrowhead Eagle is delicious! "Ugh. ...... Well, it wouldn''t be a problem if you told me in advance. In fact, the yakitori at Arrowhead Eagle was pretty good. Especially the thigh meat. The thighs are quite thick and firm, with a nice crunch and no dryness, as if they were birds of prey and used their feet to grab their prey. Compared to pork-like meat or beef-like meat, bird meat is much harder to find, so the Arrowhead Eagle is a valuable item in its own right. In the event that you''re looking for a great deal more information on the web, you''ll be able to find a lot more information here. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''ve seen it before. I''ll brace myself. Okay. Oh, we''re about to hit it. Flying gars. Huh?¡¡...... Oh! The Flying Gur was thrust into Toya''s back as he grabbed the rope ladder tightly after being momentarily stunned by my warning. --Of course, it was the door board on his back that stuck out. "Oh, oh, ....... "Wow! While Toya let out an indescribable squeal at the impact of the large number of flying gars, Mary and the others cheered. Needless to say, they were happy to see so many fish. "Toya, are you okay?¡¡Does your back hurt? "Oh, yeah, no problem. I''ve got it all covered. It''s heavy. It''s a big deal. Probably because we skipped the cliffs on the way, the number of flying gars is probably the largest it''s ever been. I''m not sure what to make of it. ...... But it''s a pretty surreal sight. Yes, it is. The chittering is also ....... It''s quite surreal to go down a rope ladder with a door plate on your back, but there are a lot of fish sticking out of the door plate and wagging their tails. ...... It''s hard to describe. But it''s full of fish! Oh, yes. You''ve achieved your goal. The goal of protecting Toya''s back and efficiently catching the flying gar. "Okay, Toya, it looks like we''re not getting a refill. You can go down now. "Done. Toya started down the ladder again, and I watched from above for a while. No additional Arrowhead Eagles or Flying Gars flew by, and Toya descended to the ledge below. Looks like we''re okay. Let''s go down in order. The last one is ....... I think it''s Nao. "Me?¡¡...... I guess that''s it. I looked at the remaining members and nodded. The last person to descend would have to remove the rope ladder and use the rope to descend, but last time it was Toya. Last time, it was Toya, because he was physically fit for the task. Since Toya was the first to go down this time, if it came down to who would do it out of the remaining members, it would be me. I''m not so devilish as to tell Toya to come up again. 361-329 Restart (2) "Then we''ll go down in order. We''ll just collect the stacked mash and frozen onions if there''s room. These two foodstuffs that grow on the cliffs, I tried to eat the ones I collected last time: ...... Well, they were edible. The stacked mushrooms looked like fungus with little flesh, and while I wouldn''t say they weren''t tasty, they weren''t the kind of mushrooms you want to eat a lot of. The flonion was a slightly flat green onion-like plant that tasted both pungent like raw onion and pungent like ginger. It''s good to use as a condiment to accentuate your cooking, but the taste of both pungent flavors makes it a little hard to use, and it''s also the type of vegetable that you only use a little, so it''s not something you want to force yourself to collect. I tried taking them to the adventurer''s guild, but they gave me a high price for both, but they are only wild vegetables. None of them were enough to force me to collect them. Haruka and the others who had already gone down were only collecting what they could reach and carry in their hands. It didn''t take them long to collect, and everyone except me went down. "Nao, it''s okay. "Okay. The rope is reeled in, retrieved, and stowed in my backpack. As I descend, we are all harvesting flying gars from Toya''s doorplate on the ledge. "Everything okay? "Yeah. Yeah. It''s only piercing the surface, not the steel plate in between. Yeah. Except there are more flying gars than I thought. That''s not a problem. I''m happy! Little girl snapping the necks of flying gars. Yeah, you look pretty happy. The picture''s not quite right. "Yeah. As long as it doesn''t stab me. --Give me a warning a little sooner. That was a little scary. Yeah. Maybe we should stick to the wall a little tighter. You don''t want to get side-swiped. Copy that. I mean, Toya was [spying] on you too, right? You''d think she''d have noticed before I warned her. ....... "It''s fast, the Flying Gar. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m on my back with the doorplate on my back, or if it''s because my detection range is slightly narrower. Also, the sound of the waterfall is too loud. Oh, there you have it. If your ears and vision are restricted, your range of detection will also be reduced. This is the subtle and realistic aspect of this skill. But it''s good to know that you can descend without problems. Now we just need to set up a transition point and start descending. Yeah, let''s go for it. Yeah!¡¡Let''s get the fish! Yes!¡¡And the bird meat! Oh, I see it was Mary who dismantled the Arrowhead Eagle. It was already gone by the time I got down there. But Mary, you''re not the one who''s supposed to do the hard work. Then I went down the cliff over and over again, a hundred times. One of the cliffs collapsed when we hit it with the impact hammer, but since Natsuki and I had judged that it was suspicious before we hit it, no one was hurt so far. Of course, no one had fallen. We continued down the cliff, steadily increasing our stock of fish and poultry, until dusk. It was around that time that it appeared. "That''s ....... It was me who found it. It must have been a simple matter of visibility. It was obvious that Toya, who was carrying a door plate, had a much harder time seeing his surroundings, and Haruka and the others, who were descending the rope ladder, had a little less visibility than me, who was using a rope to descend. I only noticed this because I was trying to keep my body upright and my legs propped up on the rock wall to avoid scraping the rope on the wall. We were about six meters to the left of where we had set down the rope ladder. About halfway between the upper passage and the lower ledge, there was a hole hidden by a little protruding rock. The size of the hole was just enough for me to stand in and not jam my head, and it was about a meter wide. It was not a mere crevice, but a passage. That''s where it was. "Let''s see. ...... After a bit of agonizing over what to do, I went back up, set the rope ladder again, and went down to Haruka''s place. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "What''s wrong? "You can''t see it from here, but I found a hole, a passage that leads inside. I replied to Haruka, who asked me as soon as I came down, and pointed to the place where the hole was, but as I expected, the rocks were in the way and I couldn''t see the place from this ledge. If this is the case, ...... is still a nasty hierarchy. Are you sure?¡¡You have to go in there. We''ll just have to go in, right? I''m not sure what to make of that. I guess so. Let''s go back and go up there for now. We climbed up the rope ladder again, and re-linked it to the passage I had found. The first to go down was Toya. It was a bit out of place, so we had to be careful. ...... Sure enough, there it was. Flying Gar. As expected, this level of nastiness is still alive and well. Toya, who still had more than a hundred flying gars on her back, though fewer than before, went down to the corridor and came back without going in. "What''s wrong?¡¡Wasn''t that an aisle? No, it led to the back, at least as far as I could see. But you can''t get in with this on your back. Oh, yeah, it''s heavy, isn''t it? It''s heavy, but it''s also too much of a hindrance. It''s usually jammed. That hole is too big. By the way, it was just big enough for me to fit in. Toya is bigger than me, and the door plate is even bigger than that. It''s going to be tough to fit in there. Well, we''ll have to clear the board. Let''s harvest! Mitya moved before he could say anything and quickly retrieved the flying gar from the doorframe that Toya had lowered from his back. She had already done this many times before, so she was very good at it. She''s better than me, who''s always the last one down, and basically doesn''t participate in the harvest. Also, it''s better to go down with a rope instead of a rope ladder. To be honest, I''m scared to move from the rope ladder to that hole. With a rope, you can jump right over the top. Toya drew a picture on the ground and explained, "Like this. The image of the rope is like that of a Special Forces soldier descending from the top of a building, kicking out the window and jumping in. If done well, it would be safer than jumping from the rope ladder to the hole. Yeah. So, who''s going to go first? ...... I''ll go. If Toya''s doorplate doesn''t work, I''ll be the one to go. I raised my hand to Haruka, who was looking around at us with some concern. If we follow the pattern of the past, I don''t think the flying gar will fly again, but we can''t be too careful in this level. On that note, I can protect my back with the Isolation Field. The problem is that if there are enemies in the passage that you jumped into, ...... then Toya, who has a high level of defense, will be more suitable. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡We''ll use two ropes. It''s a good idea to use two ropes and stay in the same place to protect my back. "Yes, that would be safer. Haruka agreed, a little relieved, but Yuki disagreed. But what about the lights with Toya and Nao?¡¡It''s too dark in there, isn''t it? "Hmmm... Yuki, have you forgotten?¡¡I can at least use the ''light'' too, remember? It''s just the light! I don''t get a lot of time to practice. Besides, I don''t have a chance to use it. There are two professionals who specialize in light magic. Oh, I see!¡¡That''s the elf. That''s not fair! No, it''s not cheating.¡¡You can''t use magic without practice. You can''t use it if you don''t practice it. - I''m practicing it in my bed before going to sleep. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. ...... Well, it''s only a little bit, compared to other magical practice time. 362-330 Into the rocky mountains (1) After that, I increased the number of ropes to two, and Toya and I, using the Isolation Field to protect our backs, rappelled down the cliff side side by side, and when we reached the top of the hole, we activated the Light to precede us into the hole. Okay, I''ll go first then. Are you okay? It''s better than you going in. ...... All right! Because of the small size of the hole, Toya curls up a little, kicks the rock wall, and jumps into the hole using the pendulum principle. It was a little risky because it was so small, but he didn''t hit the wall and his figure disappeared into the hole. After confirming this, I jumped in as well, and found a passage leading to the back. While the entrance was a bit narrow, the inside was a bit wider, but still about two meters high. It was also about 1.5 meters wide, barely wide enough for one person to walk through compared to the previous dungeons. About ten steps into the cave, Toya was standing in the middle of the room, holding his shield and sword, staring into the depths of the cave. "Enemy? I asked a little impatiently, to which Toya replied vaguely. No, I don''t know ....... I don''t know what is, but I think there might be one. What about Nao? Is this ...... another mimic? I look around carefully and point to a point in the cave. "Toya, try hitting that rock there. Impact hammer. "Is that it?¡¡--Say. When Toya hit the rock I pointed at, it shuddered and collapsed into pieces. A bulky mollusk spread out on the ground from underneath it. "Oh no!¡¡That''s disgusting!¡¡--A rock shell? Looks like. --I''ll call Haruka and the others first. If we''re too late, they''ll be worried. I left Toya poking at Rock Shell''s corpse with his sword, and I walked back to the entrance and called up. "No problem!¡¡You can come back down. Copy that! Natsuki''s voice came back from above. And soon, Mary and Mitya came down. They''re safe, so they don''t jump in as fast as we did. When they reach the hole, I pull them in one by one. And then Haruka and the others followed, and we were all safely together. ...... It''s so small. You can barely pass each other, so you can''t even form a line like you usually do. When we got back to Toya''s place, Mitya was poking at a rock shell on the ground with a small sword. "Can we eat this? In response to Mitya''s question, Toya stared at the dead rock shell and nodded. Yes, it''s edible. But it seems that there are not many places where you can eat it, considering its size. The rock shell that he had just killed was about 40 centimeters in diameter, but the shell, which looked like a rock, was about five centimeters thick, and the contents that remained after removing the remains of the shell were not as large as expected. The shell was about five centimeters thick, and after removing the remains of the shell, the remaining contents were not very large. In the event you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please feel free to contact us. The rest is guts and is not edible. If it is not cooked properly, it can cause stomach problems," he said. He probably used [appraisal]. Toya gave me a very passive explanation. If that''s the case, then collect it!¡¡I''ve never had it before! Aggressively, Mitya didn''t show any sign of being intimidated by the crushed mollusk, but rather happily retrieved the magic stone and began to dismantle the rock shell. As Toya instructed, Mitya cut off the unnecessary parts around the rock shell and took it away, which at first glance looked almost like an abalone. At first glance, it looks almost like an abalone, which is strange because it looks like a foodstuff. Can''t you eat the parts you removed? "They are not poisonous, but they contain a lot of rocks. If you eat it, you might get a crunchy or gory feeling and chip your teeth. The best way to deal with them is to strip them alive from the rocks and throw them in the water, and they will spit out the rocks and dirt. The best place to eat them is where Mitya just retrieved them. Even though it is a shellfish, it seems to be completely adapted to land and drowns when it goes into the water. Therefore, they seem to throw away their heavy shells and spit out rocks in order to reduce their own weight and escape from the water. Well, even if it could escape from the water, I don''t think it would be possible for a shellfish to survive without its shell. By the way, what is its method of attack? I asked Toya, thinking that he must have some kind of nasty attack method, but he gave me an unexpected answer. No, that''s the thing, it''s almost harmless. There''s no problem ignoring it. ...... Oh, really?¡¡In this somehow evil hierarchy? Yeah. Even if you''re close to it, even if you sit on top of it, it doesn''t move. Really?¡¡How is that for a dungeon demon? Right?¡¡Why does it even exist? I don''t care if it''s a normal animal in the natural world, as long as it''s a demon in a dungeon, I think it''s wrong. But I''m pretty sure it says that you have to check if there are any nearby before setting up camp, right? Yeah, that''s the only thing you have to be careful about. To Natsuki''s comment, Toya nodded and continued. "They say that if you are sleeping peacefully beside them, they will slowly approach and pounce on you. Like in the face. "Ugh, is that it? It''s disgusting. ...... Mary and Mitya scowl at the corpse dumped by Mitya. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. It''s not a problem if you''re awake because it''s slow moving, but you can ...... imagine what happens if you get one of those things stuck to your skin that sticks to rocks and scrapes them off, can''t you? It''s really evil! It''s scarier than a bad cut or bite! That''s what I imagine, but it doesn''t really happen, does it, as long as someone is awake and watching. That''s right. It''s impossible to sleep in a dungeon without a guard. That''s why it''s usually only the guards who fall asleep that get hit in the leg. I mean, it''s still pretty disgusting. Maybe they''ll scrape the flesh off your legs? Judging by the umbrella shell-like shape. Without the healing magic, it''s going to be pretty bad. But if you take precautions, you should be fine, so that''s a relief. You can just hit the suspicious rocks around you! As she said this, Mary lifted the bastard sword in her hand. It''s easy to forget that after Toya, she''s the most powerful of us all. Even though she is second to last in size. I don''t know how she''s going to grow up, but my hope is that she doesn''t become too muscular. She has precious beast ears. Fortunately, in this world, you don''t need to be muscular to have a high level of physical strength. ...... Well, you could try hitting it, but with a war hammer instead, right?¡¡I''ve got one for the gargoyles. "Yes, I understand. I''ll do my best to crush it! I''ll do my best to crush it! In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. 363-331 Into the rocky mountains (2) We were fed up with the narrowness of the passage we had entered, but within a minute of walking from the entrance, the path had widened enough for the two of us to walk side by side. Even so, wielding a long weapon was not easy, so Toya and Mary took the lead, followed by me and Natsuki. We haven''t encountered any enemies so far, though. --Except for Rock Shell. As for this thing, I''ve found two of them since then. One of them was on the ground with a face like a mere rock, and the other was so tightly packed in a gap in the ceiling that it was almost impossible to tell them apart. I was able to kill both of them easily with an impact hammer, but in terms of threat, the rock shell above me was a bit dangerous. The outer shell is mostly rock, and if such a thing were to suddenly fall on your head, you would be seriously injured at best, or killed at worst. However, a rock shell that has been peeled off from the rock is just a small fish, so it would be almost like a suicide attack for the opponent. Probably, once you''re turned over, you can''t even get back up by yourself. I asked Toya and Natsuki about it, but they didn''t find any cases in the book of rock shells falling from above, so I guess it''s safe. We continued walking, and when the number of Rockshells we had killed reached four, the flat path gradually turned into a downward slope, and the height and width of the passage began to increase. This way, I could handle my weapon with some leeway. As if he had been waiting for it, there was a response to [Search Enemy]. It was an enemy other than the Rock Shell. They''re not moving very fast, but they''re getting closer. It''s not moving very fast, but it''s getting closer." "Finally, a decent enemy. ...... No, I''m not happy about that. It''s not something to be happy about, though," Toya said, somewhat relieved that he didn''t want to have to smash something that didn''t move. But I understand. Rockshell, safe is safe, but it doesn''t feel good, like you''re killing an unrestrained creature. --It''s not ''like'' it, it''s just... Toya, this is probably the first time you''ve faced one of these, so be on your guard, okay? Of course! In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. It''s a rock golem! What appeared was a rock golem, slightly larger than Toya. It was not as big as Toya, so it was not as intimidating, but instead, it moved quite fast. It may have been reacting to the light, but it was running towards us with noisy footsteps, but it was fast enough to be recognized as "running". Its movement is similar to that of a bipedal robot, but it does not move unnaturally like a robot. "Hmmm, why is it moving? "What?¡¡Isn''t it magic? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. ...... Ah, yes, it''s magic, isn''t it? I understand it in theory, but when I see the rock moving smoothly in reality, I can''t describe it. I wonder what''s going on with the joints and all that. Natsuki, Haruka and the others, who were smiling wryly, were probably of the same opinion. This may be the difference between Mary and the others, who take magic for granted, and us. "Toya, can you take care of that? It''s the only way!¡¡Got it! I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for, and what you can do about it. GAGONG! A dull, fierce sound reverberated around the area, and Mitya frowned at the deafening sound and turned a deaf ear. This is quite annoying if the battle goes on too long. I''m not sure what to say. It was Yuki who blurted out the words, but the sentiment was probably the same for everyone. Toya had only attacked once, but that was all it took for the Rock Golem to stop moving. Toya, who was behind him, stopped attacking once, as if confused by the unmoving Rock Golem with his hand raised, but then he raised his hammer again and lightly punched it in the back. And that was the end of it. The rock golem, split into pieces by its joints, crumbled to the ground with a sound. ...... A blow?¡¡Is this what it looks like?¡¡What is a Rock Golem? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. In other words, the magic stone was destroyed? "I suppose so. Let''s have a look. "Let''s take a look," said Natsuki, taking out an ice axe and other tools used for rock climbing, and began to destroy the body part of the rock golem lying on the ground. The process was quite smooth. The Rock Golem is also classified as a demon, but does it benefit from the [Dismantle] skill?¡¡It looks like a stonemason to me. There''s ....... It''s broken. No, it''s been shattered. Maybe it''s the impact hammer. Maybe it''s the impact hammer. It''s a good way to penetrate the shockwave. Looks like. By the way, the stripped part of the rock golem is ....... It''s just a magic stone. And that''s the magic stone. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s not going to sell. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡You have to break more than half of this rock. That''s right. The other part of the money can be found at ...... In very rare cases, this rock may contain ore, but the probability is so small that almost no one will look for it. The probability of finding something of value is about the same as finding something of value by digging up rocks in the middle of nowhere. Yeah, that''s almost zero, isn''t it? And there''s no reason to dig up the remains of a rock golem, right? Weapons are expendable, but they don''t pay. That''s a nasty enemy. ...... Let''s let Toya do her thing. If she gets tired, I can take over. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Thank you. But it''s only one blow. If there aren''t too many of them, they might not get tired. "I don''t need inedible rock golems to come out. I''d rather have a rock shell. I''m more than happy with rock shells. I''m more than happy with rock shells." Mitya tossed the dead rock golems lying on the ground (?) to the side of the passage and piled them up. We helped him clear the passage and resumed our search. After that, we encountered a few more rock golems, but Toya killed them all with a single blow, and we had no income as well. The occasional Rock Shell is a small source of income. As long as you don''t use the wrong amount of force, you can collect the magic stones and get some meat to eat, so it''s still good. The results were more sour than expected, and Mitya was not happy, muttering, "It tastes better outside," perhaps in a double sense. But that doesn''t mean there hasn''t been any change, the descent has become steeper and steeper, and golems have begun to appear, sometimes two at a time. Thanks to Toya and Mary, we didn''t have to fight too hard, but the lack of merit in killing them was making us feel like we were wasting our time, so Haruka called out and stopped Toya. "Toya, can you give us a moment? 364-332 Into the rocky mountains (3) "Huh. ....... What''s up, Haruka? I need to get some rest, but I''m also worried about the continued slope. This could be dangerous if a golem comes from above. So far, we''ve been able to kill all the rock golems we''ve encountered on the straight path, but if there are side roads, there''s a risk that they''ll attack us from above. If you''re in a dungeon, you should consider the possibility of demons suddenly appearing. ...... Regardless of whether it was an attack or not, if a lump of rock of that size came rolling down, you''d get hurt badly. If I were to use the slope of the current hill as a metaphor, I''d say it''s definitely steeper than a wheelchair ramp. When Toya killed the rock golem, it sloped downward for a few meters, just enough to roll over. It''s just a little heavy.¡¡They''re kind of heavy. ...... Mitya, who is taking the initiative in cleaning up after the death, says so, but in reality, it''s more than a little heavy. The rock golems that I have killed have always been placed off to the side of the road, in case they get in the way of my future travels, but some of the rocks are too big for one person to carry. The biggest one so far was a rock golem about two and a half meters tall, and naturally the rock it was made of was large and heavy. Or rather, it was so big that it was in the way and needed to be treated with earth magic. Another problem is that there is no level ground. Sleeping on a hill is ...... It''s not good for you. You don''t get tired. We''ll probably be camping for a long time. Even if you use the adjustment function of the bunk, you can''t ...... sleep?¡¡With this slope? No. ...... No, if you line it up horizontally against the slope, it will work?¡¡If you turn over and fall off the bunk, you might just roll over. No, you wouldn''t, normally. Our folding bed is made of a frame with a cloth stretched over it, so it sinks a little when you sleep on it. It is impossible to fall over the frame in this condition unless you have a very bad sleeping position. But Mitya has fallen before, hasn''t he? Oh, that was inevitable!¡¡The food escaped! I''m sure she''s been eating a lot lately. ...... When Toya pointed out that Mitya''s face was red, Mitya objected, and Mary smiled in annoyance. I didn''t know it, but she''s had a fall before. In a dream. In the case of Mitya, his light weight may have contributed to the fact that he didn''t sink as much, but I was a bad sleeper when I was a kid, so it''s not very funny. But it''s not so funny because I had a bad sleeping position when I was a kid. If it''s on an angle, we''ll have to think about it. Okay. I took out one of the bunks and put it down. As Toya had said, if I put it at a right angle to the slope of the hill, I could make it horizontal by adjusting my feet. I felt no discomfort when I lay down on it. I also tried to lie on the ground, but the slope was much harder than I expected. I''m glad I have a bunk, because I don''t want to sleep like this for days. ...... You look okay. "Yes. If it comes to it, we can use magic, but it''s a pain in the ass. It''s a dungeon. If this was outside, we could use earth magic to level the ground, but this was a dungeon, and even if we scraped the ground, it would be repaired after a while. The worst that can happen is that you will fall off your bed while you are sleeping. However, you can''t scrape the dungeon, but you can put blocks on top of it, so you can put blocks made by magic to make it level. Well, you don''t have to go through all that trouble, you can just put something in your magic bag under the foot of the bed. So, let''s camp here. It''s a good time, and we''re getting hungry. Yes. "Yes. Since we''re here, why don''t we try the rock shells that Mitya worked so hard to collect? When Natsuki proposed, Mitya''s face lit up with all hands. I agree!¡¡I''m looking forward to it!¡¡I''m looking forward to it! I want you to cook it well, Natsuki! "Yes, leave it to me. "Yes, I''ll leave it to you. Let''s cook it the same way as the abalone this time. I want you to cook it well!" "Yes, I''ll leave it to you," said Natsuki, and Haruka and Yuki quirked their mouths. Abalone ...... is a dish I can''t do. I''m with you. I''ve never had the chance to cook with such expensive ingredients. "Well, it''s not that difficult. First of all... Natsuki''s buttered rock shell (homemade from the milk of Strike Ox) was very delicious. It had the strong flavor of shellfish and the texture of abalone, but not too hard. The fact that it was sliced at a moderate thickness probably contributed to the fact that it was very easy to eat. This is even better than I expected. "Yes. This is an abalone, isn''t it? I''ve never eaten an abalone before. Oh, no. Well, neither have I. I''m so excited for tomorrow. That''s a shellfish? A luxury item. ...... It seemed that everyone else felt the same way, and the pile of buttered rock shells on my plate was quickly being digested. It''s a shame we can''t eat it as sashimi when it''s this good! The freshness is unbeatable, but the appraisal results are ...... I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. I''m sure you''ll agree that abalone sashimi is not that great. Is that so? Yes. It has a good texture, but ....... Of course, everyone has their own preference, but for me, I think it tastes much better when it''s cooked. I see. ...... I was going to experiment with Toya. I was going to experiment with Toya, but I guess not. Me?¡¡I don''t want to do that. I don''t want to be sick to my stomach from food that Natsuki says is not that good. It can''t be helped. Aside from Natsuki, who''s in charge of recovery, Toya is the strongest. "It''s sturdy, so stop trying to get it! Yeah, I agree. In this world, Toya has zero weapons left. But Toya. But if Natsuki says something tastes really good, you''ll be my test subject? I''m willing to do that for the sake of good food. Assuming you can be cured! You''re too ambitious. No matter how sturdy Toya is. ...... Well, considering that there are people who have made efforts to make puffer fish safe to eat, such a way of life may be possible. By the way, Natsuki, how does this compare to an abalone? Natsuki, how would you compare this to an abalone?" "I would say it tastes as good as a good abalone. I think the butter is good, but the rock shell itself is also good. So it''s good. As a commoner, I can''t judge it, but if Natsuki says so, I''m sure it can be classified as a luxury food. If I were to be extravagant, it would taste even better if I drizzled a little soy sauce on it. ...... But I''ll leave that for when I get home. Natsuki said the soy sauce would be ready by the time I came back next time. In fact, I''m supposed to take care of it, but I guess that''s what I have to do as an adventurer. If it suits the taste of the people in this area, there might be room to start making soy sauce and miso in addition to sake. In order to stabilize the sake brewery''s business, diversification of business is a must. For what it''s worth, we''re not in town a lot. But it''ll keep our spirits up even if all we see tomorrow are rock golems. Thanks to this rock shell. We all nodded deeply at Haruka''s words. 365-333 Into the rocky mountains (4) The next day, we had rock shell soup for breakfast. It was delicious grilled, but even in soup, the rock shells were tasty enough to naturally motivate us. We went down the slope, securing rock shells whenever we could find them. Of course, rock golems also appeared, but they were worthless and were now just obstacles. Yes, in the literal sense of the word, an obstacle. A barricade. Yesterday, I used the wreckage of a few golems to put up a barricade that would stop a car from driving into it, but whether it would really work is a mystery. ...... Unlike the round rocks that tend to be traps in dungeons that simply roll around, golems have legs. I''m afraid that I might be able to get over it. While we were doing this, we were making our way deeper into the dungeon, but around noon that day, a change finally appeared. The golem appeared as usual, and was hit by the impact hammer as usual. The sound it made was distinctly different from the previous ones. The sound was different. was replaced by a slightly harder sound. a slightly harder sound. At the same time, a voice came out of Mary''s mouth as she held the hammer. It''s too hard! But the result was still the same, it still fell down with a single blow, but if you look closely at the wreckage, you can see that it is a different color. "Toya? ...... Yeah, it''s a Stone Golem. Subtle difference?¡¡When a stone gets big, it''s not a rock?¡¡It didn''t change in size. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it on the web. Haruka, can you brighten the light a bit? Yes, sir. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. The difference between a rock golem and a stone golem is clear. The rock golem was made of brownish rock, while the stone golem was more whitish. The Stone Golem was made of a material similar to granite, and when Natsuki tapped it with her pick, it sounded a little harder than rock. What did you think of it, Mary? "It was hard, of course, but I think it was a little bit faster. I mean, it hurts to be hit. I''m not happy about that. "No, wait, Nao. This wreckage isn''t like the Rock Golem, it''s for sale. What''s for sale at ......? "The stone." Well, it''s too heavy, so not many adventurers seem to be collecting it. I''m not sure if it''s worth it or not. I don''t know if it''s worth it. If you have a surplus of magic bags, it''s usually not worth the effort. And if you fought them normally, wouldn''t they be too big to be used as stone? You have to be able to break the magic stone. ....... You want to give it a try? ...... Yeah. There''s only one Impact Hammer, so we should be prepared for more than one to appear. It might be a good rehearsal for the gargoyle battle. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. It took me a long time to get the stone, and I couldn''t sell it, and the magic stone was broken, so I made nothing. The result was zero. On top of that... My ears hurt so much. ...... Oh, if I''m going to fight, I''m going to need some earplugs, seriously. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at the web site. The sound of a hammer being slammed into stone at close quarters was quite damaging. And the weapons are already dull, probably because they are cheap. Yeah. Maybe I saved a little too much. Since we weren''t planning on using the weapon on a regular basis, we were using a reasonably priced off-the-shelf weapon that we got from Gantz-san. The quality is worth the price, because the price is different from the usual weapons. The war hammer I was using was already crushed on one of its sharp ends due to repeated strikes on the stone golem. Although it is not as flat as it should be, there is a clear difference compared to the beginning. The damage inflicted is also considerably reduced. I don''t have any earplugs, but Mitya and Mary, do you want to cover your cheeks?¡¡It might reduce some of the damage. "Well, yes. That might be better. It seems that you are able to keep your ears down, but when you are in a state of excitement, such as during a battle, your ears stand up straight and it is a little difficult to keep them down. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. ...... Yeah, it''s not great. You look like a farmer''s grandmother. I''ll take it. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at the web site. Now that''s what I call a noodle shop guy. Or a carpenter. Yeah, this one''s better. "Oh, yeah?¡¡It''s easier for me to move around, too. Mary and Mitya are doing the same thing with Natsuki and Yuki. You can say that they were cute, but this one is usually cuter. --I mean, they beat me to it. I wanted to do it. This was my chance to touch her ears. No, I''m sure she''d let me touch her ears if I asked, but she''s a girl. It''s like saying, "Let me touch your hair because it looks nice to the touch. If you don''t have a close relationship with the person, you are just a pervert. That''s why I''m careful about it. Instead, I touch Toya''s sometimes. I am grateful that Toya understands me, because he also likes animal ears. However, he said, "I don''t like to be touched by men! He only lets me touch him occasionally, though. "Mitya-chan, do you have any pain in your ears? "I''m fine. Thank you, Natsuki! How is the sound?¡¡Is it getting any better? It''s nice not to have to pay attention to my ears. But it might affect our search for the enemy a bit. ...... Nao, you got it? Copy that, ....... We''re getting closer as we speak. Oh, let''s see if it works! In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. On the third day, a fork appeared in the pathway, with Toya taking the lead in eliminating them. There is an upward direction and a downward direction. In all probability, the downward direction would lead to the boss room with the gargoyles, but considering the danger of golems rolling up from behind, it was difficult to ignore the upward direction. Because it''s a dungeon, even if you eliminate all the demons, they''ll come back after a while, but that doesn''t mean you can''t leave them behind. Taking these risks into consideration, all of us discussed for a while, and decided that it was getting cold outside the dungeon, and we had plenty of food. There''s no need to rush, so let''s just take our time and check it out,'' we decided. Fortunately, the map was clearly marked with an incline, so we mapped the map in the upward direction, eliminating golems and rock shells as we went. Thanks to the impact hammer, fighting is easy, but going up and down the slope all the time is hard, and the fact that all the demons are not worth money even if you kill them is killing my motivation. The only saving grace is the Rock Shell, but it appears less frequently than the Golem. However, as if to give us a helping hand, on the fifth day, a treasure chest appeared in front of us for the first time in a long time. 366-334 Into the rocky mountains (5) "Oh, ...... treasure chest. How long has it been? "Except for the one in the boss room, we haven''t found it since the tenth level, so it''s been a year. Yuki was the one who immediately replied to my words. I see, it''s been that long. I had found a lot of things up to the tenth layer, but I hadn''t seen them for a while now, probably because the grassland area had continued. A treasure chest in the meadow. If it doesn''t match, it doesn''t match. I''ll check it out. ...... Oh?¡¡It''s ....... What''s up? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "Nao, would you like to take a look? I did as he asked and examined the treasure chest. ....... I''m not sure if it''s a trap or not. It''s a trap, isn''t it?¡¡It''s a trap, isn''t it? I''ve opened a lot of treasure chests in my life. I''ve opened a lot of treasure chests in my life, and none of them had traps, so I had a strong sense of "just in case. But still, he was sure he was doing the right thing. "Poisonous needle, right? Right?¡¡The kind that pops out when you try to open the lock. It''s the kind of trap where you put a wire or something in the keyhole to unlock a treasure chest, and a poisonous needle comes flying out. "Oh, first time with a lock!¡¡First time with a trap!¡¡I can''t wait to see what''s inside! No, it''s up to me and Natsuki to deal with it. You sound happy.¡¡Tohya. --I agree with you. "That''s just a trap with poisonous needles flying at us, isn''t it?¡¡Then why don''t we just point it towards the wall and pry it open from behind? ...... No, you could, but Yuki, you''re being so defensive, aren''t you? If it''s trapped, disarm it. If it''s locked, open it. It''s a game that completely ignores such conventions. But in fact, there are various tools used to cut down wood, so it is possible to pry open the trap, and in extreme cases, there is a way to cut off the lid with my Plane Shift. There is. ....... No, let''s try to disarm it. This time, but for the future, you may need to improve your skills. I agree. If you can afford it, you should do it. There''s no harm in being prepared for situations where you can''t use magic or don''t have various tools, like the current situation where transference is blocked. If you want to continue to be an adventurer. Also, if you''re not Natsuki, but if you''re caught by bad guys and have to escape from a prison. I don''t want that to happen. "Right. If it''s a poisonous needle, I''ve got Cure Poison, so I should be fine. If Nao and Natsuki are okay with it, why would I be against it? I''ll give it a try then. I''ll give it a try, but please stay away from everyone except Nao-kun. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. "Stone ......? What was inside the treasure chest was a stone-like object that somehow fit in the palm of my hand. It looked black and weighed about the same as a normal stone. When I turned it over, it was still stony. It was also stone-like to the touch and other things. "What is this?¡¡Toya, can you tell? I couldn''t make a decision, so I handed it to Toya, who also twisted his head. "Which ...... stone? No, I know what that is. Let me have a look.¡¡Hmmm, ......? I went around from Yuki to Natsuki, Haruka, Mitya and the others in turn, but all of them couldn''t figure out who it was. My [help], Toya''s and Yuki''s [appraisal], [alchemy] and [pharmacy] skills can only determine that it is a stone, so it is, to say the least, ''unidentifiable''. And to put it simply, it is ''just a stone''. "What do we do? What do we do?" Toya asks as he plays with the stone, but we can''t come up with an answer, so we look at each other and groan. If it was really just a stone, we would have thrown it away. ...... Is it in the treasure chest?¡¡It''s just a rock? "Hard to imagine, right? Yes. In addition to the key, the trap is also attached to the trash, no matter how nasty ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of this. Fortunately, the weight is not so important to us. "Well. It''s best to have a professional take a look. Okay, got it. I''m a little disappointed, but let''s get back on track and move on!¡¡Next! We nodded to Toya, who clapped his hands to change the atmosphere, threw the stone into the magic bag, and resumed our search, but... "Hey, another rock? Yes. We continued our search for another three days while eliminating the Stone Golem. We found a total of five treasure chests, but what came out of them were always stones. We all scrutinized the first two, but after that, we started taking them out of the treasure chests and going straight to the magic bags almost straight away. All the treasure chests had locks and traps, so it was a good way to improve our skills, but since all we found were stones, the party members were not excited. "Then put this away in your bag... "Wait a minute! I was about to throw the stone into my magic bag, but Toya grabbed my hand and took the stone out of my hand and stared at it intently. What''s up, Toya? What''s on your mind? ...... Oh, it''s a garnet in the rough. Garnet. ...... What?¡¡A gem?¡¡Seriously? I took back the stone Toya was holding and held it up to the light. ...... Is this a gem? It looks a little reddish-black, but that''s it. It doesn''t look like a gem to my eyes. "Wait, Nao?¡¡Can I see it? Yeah, I can''t miss it when I hear it''s a gem. The women, who had almost completely lost interest in the stones that kept appearing, suddenly got a twinkle in their eyes and approached - or rather, pressed - me. "Oh, yeah. Have a look. There''s no good in disobeying. Knowing this, I handed the stone to Haruka and stepped aside, retreating to Toya''s side. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. Yes, Mary and Mitya joined in. Even though they are still small, they seem to be interested in jewelry. Although, for Mitya, it''s a little unclear whether her interest is in jewelry as an ornament or as a source of money. "Toya, are you appraising? Yeah. I didn''t look at it and judge it, so I''m sure of it. At first glance, it''s just a rock. There''s a little gem-like light. Maybe there''s another stone around it. Okay, so it''s just a lump of stone with a gem in it. That means... The stones we''ve found so far, if you break them open, you''ll find-- "Please wait! Haruka and the other three shouted in unison. I don''t agree with amateurs messing around with things. No. Gems are more susceptible to shock than you think. We don''t recommend breaking them ourselves. Let the professionals do it! Oh, yeah. ...... I had no intention of breaking it myself or doing it right now, but Haruka and the others were so powerful that I didn''t say anything else and just nodded my head. I guess Haruka and the others find jewelry attractive too. In the event that you''ve got enough money, you don''t seem to be buying expensive accessories, unlike Toya, who poured it into the ...... brothel. This is making me look forward to the treasure chest and returning to town. Yes!¡¡I was starting to think, "Who cares about the treasure chest? I was starting to think that I didn''t care about the treasure chest, but now I''m really motivated!¡¡It''s all up to Natsuki and Nao, though! Yuki is doing a great job with the mapping. You''ve been doing a great job with the mapping, so let''s make sure we don''t leave anything out! Of course! Yeah, your enthusiasm is different. So far. I''m glad to be able to make money from ...... the demons that have been unsuccessful so far. It''s a good idea to process the jewels and give them to Haruka, but I don''t think she''ll have much use for them. The ring I gave her would be expensive but inconspicuous, but I can only imagine the trouble she would attract if she walked around town wearing a large piece of jewelry. ...... Mary and Mitya are also happy with jewelry? I''ve never had any luck with them before. ...... They''re beautiful, aren''t they? Oh, you''re at that level?¡¡I''ve never had the opportunity to see it before. I''ve never had the chance to see the real thing, except for the small ones my parents had, only when I went to museums and art galleries. Without TV or the Internet, most people would be at that level. In addition, Mary, who lived a below-average life in this world, would not normally have the chance to see jewelry. Haruka and I both have small jewels on our rings, but we''re not showing them off. "When Master Ilias attended the wedding. I wore it then. "Yeah, yeah. But I was too scared to take a closer look at it at the time. At Toya''s point, Mary nodded and shook her head lightly. Perhaps it''s the policy of Viscount Nenus, but Ilias doesn''t wear jeweled accessories when he''s at home, and the same goes for his wedding. Ilias and Mary spent a lot of time together in the carriage and at the inn, but they probably never looked at the jewels up close. "Mitya-- "The jewels sell for a lot!¡¡That''s why we can eat so much delicious food! I guess Mitya''s appetite comes first. She''s beautiful, but she''s not hungry. Very well said. Jewelry is meaningful because it has monetary value, not because it is practical. At least, not in this world. And what do you ladies think, Mitya says? "...... Jewelry is nourishment for the soul. You can''t have too much metabolic syndrome, but good nutrition can enrich your life. I''m sure you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. I see. You have a point. I''m not going to complain about it if it''s within my means. If you think about it, you could say that Toya''s "spending" is also nourishment for the soul. Well, as long as it doesn''t affect your physical nourishment. Sure. Yes, of course. Yes, of course. ...... Let''s do our best to explore for that reason. 367-335 Into the rocky mountains (6) Toya!¡¡You''re moving too fast! Oh!¡¡d*mn, my arm''s in the way! Toya slams the hammer down on the outstretched arm. Gwaan! It echoed! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. "Tsk!¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s been a few days since the garnet stone was found. While destroying the golem, we began to fill the map more energetically, as if pulled by the women whose eyes had changed from the past, and we had obtained some more "stones". Only a few of them were identified as gemstones by Toya''s [Appraisal], and the rest really looked like stones, but of course we kept them. They are stored in the magic bag. There was no change in the enemies that appeared, so I was able to proceed with my search without any difficulty, but then a new enemy finally appeared. That enemy is the Iron Golem that Toya is currently dealing with. The Rock and the Stone had been moving faster, but this time the Iron Golem was even faster. The difference in speed could be seen in the fact that Toya''s first blow failed to hit the torso and instead struck the arm. The strength of the impact hammer seems to be far different from Stone''s, and when he struck his arm with the impact hammer, it did not cause any cracks, but only made a loud sound. As Toya spat, the spot where he struck seemed to be slightly dented, but that was the extent of the damage done. There was no change in the Iron Golem''s movements, instead the arm that had been slammed into the ground crushed the rock and sent shards flying around. ''Toya-san!¡¡I''ll get its attention, attack the torso! Oh! It''s not as fast as some of the enemies we''ve fought in the past, but it''s fast for a golem. It''s also a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. When Mary provoked the Iron Golem''s attention, Toya quickly jumped in and struck it in the torso. It''s a great way to make sure you don''t get caught in the middle of the night. I''m not sure what to make of this. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, you can call us at our own web site. "Ow! "Stupid. ....... It''s a piece of iron.¡¡Of course it''s heavy. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. You''ll be able to get a lot more out of it. It''s like kicking an anvil. I also tried to hit a piece of the lying golem with my spear, but it came back with a very hard response. It''s metal, not something that my spear can pierce. It doesn''t look like our weapons are going to do much good at all. Even if we use a war hammer, I''m not sure we can kill it. ...... Yes. My war hammer will only dent it a little if I hit it with the sharp end. --Will it work if I aim for the joints? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m sure the rest of us don''t need to tell you that, since Mary is so powerful with her war hammer. I wish I had a weapon that could cut through steel, but I don''t. ...... "No, that''s the thing, Nao, there is such a thing, a weapon that can cut steel. Oh, really? Yeah. I''m talking about so-called "magic swords," which are weapons made by mixing mithril with magic power. It seems that the magic sword that was mentioned some time ago was only possible if you had the right kind of weapon, and conversely, if you had the right kind of weapon, you could do some unbelievable things. However, it is said that a weapon that can be obtained by hard work can at most cut a one-centimeter-thick steel plate. Of course, it won''t be able to cut through a properly forged sword. "Subtle, but realistic! It''s amazing enough that it can cut steel, but the level at which it can cut is slightly shoddy. If you can''t cut forged iron, or steel, then of course you can''t cut white iron, or even attribute steel. If you can''t use forged iron, you can''t use white iron, and you can''t use attribute steel. "Well, how about this Iron Golem? You can attack the same spot over and over again, chipping away at it little by little, until you finally cut it off. To Yuki''s question, Toya scraped the corpse of the Iron Golem (?) with his own weapon and confirmed its strength. I see. I see. That''s why the Impact Hammer is so useful. "Indeed. For the first time since I''ve been here, I feel like I''ve gotten a cheat piece of equipment! It''s like, ''I got a cheat gear! It''s like a meta-equipment that''s specific to golems. I don''t think it doesn''t work on other enemies, but it''s probably easier to use your own weapons. It can be used against rock shells, but it can also be killed with a standard war hammer. It''s a great way to get rid of the golem and kill the gargoyle. ...... We took a shortcut, didn''t we? I feel like I''m cheating a little. Well, it''s not about fair play, it''s about personal safety. For us, it''s not ''play'', it''s ''reality''. The fact that they survived the fall and the flash flood is a result of Natsuki and Nao''s efforts. That was a high kill. The only saving grace is that the flying gars didn''t fly at us while we were falling. ...... It was all I could do to slow it down with magic. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I''m sure there will be enemies that can''t handle that hammer alone. It''s not that slippery. Probably. So stay alert and keep your eyes peeled. Oh!¡¡But finally, a golem worth its weight in gold. Oh, the Iron Golem sells well, huh? Yeah. For the same price as scrap iron! Tohya''s face is smug with happiness, but Yuki''s expression is subtle when she hears the news. "Wow, is that great? No, I''m telling you, iron is pretty expensive.¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for.¡¡You can find a lot more information on this topic at ....... I''m too lazy!¡¡Toya, give me a price, give me a price! Unlike Toya, who is a blacksmith, we don''t have the opportunity to work with iron. We''ve bought weapons, but it''s been a long time since we''ve seen a weapon made of mere iron, and there''s no way we can put iron as a material in the same category as a processed weapon. That''s why I wanted him to tell me exactly how much he could sell it for, but Toya looked a little annoyed and crouched down and began to crunch equations on the ground. "Amount ......?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. "What?¡¡We have to retrieve it! Mi, Mi, I''ll help you. I''m sure you''ll be glad you did. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use a lot of people, but I''m sure it''s a good idea to use a lot of people. Their arms and legs probably weighed more than a hundred kilos, and their torso more than a ton, but they were still able to move them. So, it''s more lucrative than you think. ......? Yeah. --If you can bring it back. Oh, I see. You can''t usually have that much, can you? ...... This is going to be the limit of our magic bag, isn''t it?¡¡If it keeps coming up. I''m not sure what to make of this. The largest part of the body was too heavy for Mary, Toya, me, and Natsuki to lift. That''s a possibility, isn''t it? Our magic bag only reduces the weight by a few hundredths, but it doesn''t reduce it to zero. As I managed to drop the body into the magic bag, I agreed with Yuki''s words. Moreover, that one-hundredth of the weight is only a rough prediction based on a rough measurement. Even if you put in a 10 kilogram weight, the amount of change would be a few dozen grams or less. The scales that Natsuki uses for pharmacology can measure very precisely, but you can''t put the magic bag on such a scale, and if you use a scale to weigh grain in kilograms, you won''t be able to determine the detailed value. The weight of the magic bag itself is also very cumbersome to measure, and I didn''t need to know it for practical use, so I don''t know what it really is. That''s the point of ....... Well, you''ll just have to bring back as much as you can carry. Yes. You can''t have too many magic bags for this. ...... Oh, yeah, that''ll do. The weight reduction is about the same for all magic bags. If the number of us remains the same, the total weight we can carry will not increase. "Mmm, that would be a waste of money. I''ll do my best! Yeah, just take it easy, okay? It''s more important that you don''t get hurt than the money. The first time the magic bag didn''t work, we shuddered a little and went further in. 368-336 Into the rocky mountains (7) Haruka''s words may not have been a flag, but it was a few days later that golems that could not be killed by a single blow from the Impact Hammer began to appear. The type of golem hadn''t changed, but the reason why I still couldn''t kill it was probably because it was getting bigger. The passageway, which became wider as they descended, widened from the original width of two people walking side by side to a sufficient fighting space. The size of the golems continued to grow as well, ...... and the first difficult enemy was the Stone Golem. It was almost twice as tall as Toya, and its torso and arms were much thicker, making it very different from the previous enemies. The Stone Golem was twice as tall as Toya, and its body and arms were much thicker than Toya''s. Perhaps because it was bigger and heavier, it moved a little slower, but on the other hand, the power of each blow was much greater. Not to mention the weight of the footsteps that echoed with every movement. If he were to be crushed, he would probably not survive, and even if his arm were to be grazed, it would be very dangerous. Toya dodged the arm and struck a blow to the torso, but perhaps the thickness of the torso had an effect, the shock wave did not penetrate to the magic stone, and it was moving without any problem at all. No, I can''t say ''no'' at all. The strength of the stone itself has not increased, because the part that Toya struck is cracked and chipped. "Toya!¡¡Aim for the center of the body, just above the magic stone! Aah!¡¡Copy that! I''m not sure what to make of this. The corpse (?) after it was killed was properly analyzed and its structure determined. I''m not sure what to make of it. It was only at the beginning that he examined it in detail, but even then he understood where the magic stone was and how it was broken, so Toya knew where it was. When he heard Haruka''s words, Toya immediately understood and swung the impact hammer at the location. A dull thud sounded. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of this, but I''m sure you have. The golem''s demon stone has been destroyed. ...... The golem''s magic stone is located in the center of the golem''s body, slightly closer to its back. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and how to get it. Toya is striking from the front this time, so if he were to strike from the back, he would be able to deal with a larger body. But not yet, anyway. It''s getting a little dangerous, isn''t it? If you aim properly, you can still kill it. ...... I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that we''re not contributing to the damage. No, it''s easier for me to fight if you just draw my attention. Tohya said, but when multiple golems appear, our role is to completely buy time until Tohya arrives. I''ve been trying to break them down by targeting their joints, but it''s almost impossible with stone golems the size of Toya, but not with iron golems or golems the size of the one I just killed. No, you might be able to get away with it if you spend an hour or so grinding away, but it''s a bit of a problem that it takes that long to kill a normal mob, let alone a boss fight. In other words, it''s out of the appropriate level. ...... Should I go back and spend a little more money to get a specialized weapon? In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it on the web. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that," he said. I''m not sure about that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. You may be able to get by with a longer handle and a counterweight, but you''ll need a lot of training. That''s already not a war hammer. Yeah. It''s more like a club. A war hammer is very difficult to handle. If you want to attack with just one blow, or two or three, you will need a lot of training and strength. The only reason we can attack at all is because we are slow-moving golems. If you want to make up for the damage, you might want to use a club. ...... Oh, by the way, there was a milk cutter in Japan too. "What''s that? I''m not sure where I heard that. I think I''ve heard of it somewhere, but I can''t picture it at all. If it''s easy for you to understand, it''s ...... a flail with a long pattern? Okay, I get it. So it''s a weapon with a chain and a weight attached to the end of a stick. The flail has a longer handle than the current flail, so the centrifugal force will increase the power, but on the other hand, it has the disadvantage that it is difficult to attack quickly. In the event that you have a lot of time and energy, you may be able to get a lot more out of it. The advantage of the club is that the impact of the attack does not bounce back, right? If you hit an Iron Golem with a war hammer, your hand will go numb. Yes. The shattering stone golem is still fine, but ...... it hurts my hands a bit. Mary nodded in agreement, raising her eyebrows and clasping her hands together. After Toya, Mary is the second person who uses the war hammer. Maybe I should make her some shock-absorbing gloves or something. But how do other adventurers kill golems? Golems in this world aren''t so convenient that you can kill them just by shaving off one letter. ....... I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "Magic ....... What do you think, Nao? In the event that you''ve got a hard enemy, you''ve practiced the Explosion for a while. ...... If the golem explodes, aren''t we in danger? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. It would be a disaster if I blew it up badly and the stone fragments scattered around. "How about ...... only Nao goes behind you and blows up your back? That way, the front side might not be damaged, but what about me? I can take it! Don''t be absurd.¡¡You''re not like Toya, I am! I''m not like Toya! I''m not even carrying a small shield, if I do that, I''m sure to get hurt. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''re going to need to be able to pay for it. If you shoot it to death, you might be able to get away with it. I think it''s pretty tough. I mean, it''s probably impossible ....... The next time you kill an Iron Golem, you can try experimenting with its corpse. If you''re using magic to deal with it, I think it''s better to use pitfalls to restrict its movement and then beat it up with everyone. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. I guess that''s a good idea. If we push too hard and damage our allies, we''ll end up in the wrong place. There is also the "Plane Shift" as an alternative, but I would avoid using this magic in the middle of a battle unless it is very important. It takes a long time to activate, and if the coordinates are not set correctly and you cut your allies into a circle,......, it would be seriously unfashionable. Even if there is no mistake in the spell, you may trip and fall, or be hit by an enemy attack, or some other accident may bring your allies into the setting range. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to do it.¡¡My cheat weapon is still effective, and if I target the location of the magic stone from the back, I can deal with enemies that are a bit more powerful. "Yeah. The rocks we''re finding are getting a little big. Yeah, that''s true. Most of them I don''t know what they are, or even if they''re really jewels. Yuki was right, as we descended, the size of the "stones" from the treasure chests gradually increased. Of course, the size of the stone does not necessarily mean that it is of high value, but it is inevitable to have a sense of anticipation. Hmmm, I think that emotion might lead to an error in judgment. ...... Well, let''s keep going until Toya thinks it''s impossible. I''ll let you decide.¡¡Let me be the judge of that. I''m not going to be swayed by jewelry! Toya smiled and clenched her fists. It''s true that Toya doesn''t have much interest in gems. That''s for sure. But considering his financial situation, I''m slightly worried. ...... Yeah, I''ll be careful too. Yes, "I can still go" with the spirit of "It''s not safe anymore". 369-337 Gargoyle (1) Fortunately, as soon as we finished widening the passage, the golems stopped growing in size. The largest of the golems was twice Toya''s height, and only slightly larger. However, an Iron Golem of that size was quite formidable. Attacks from the front were almost ineffective, and Toya succeeded in destroying it by going behind it and striking the location of the magic stone from the back several times. If several of these golems appeared at the same time, we would have had to consider retreating, but only two golems of that size could appear at the same time. Even for smaller golems, the upper limit was four. This is probably due to the fact that if the golems get any bigger, there won''t be enough room for them to swing their arms around. There are three main types of enemies: Iron, Stone, and occasionally Rock Golem. Rock shells for dessert. This was the pattern of the game, so after a week of fighting, I had developed a fighting style and was able to kill even the biggest golems without any trouble. The strongest one was naturally the Iron Golem, but this one was rather good. As Toya pointed out, if we could just bring it back, it would be worth a lot of money. And we can do that. Normally it would be difficult to do so without bringing a cart, but thanks to the magic bags, and to me, Haruka and Yuki for making them. Instead, we haven''t been able to secure any of the golem''s magic stones, but that''s ...... a minor problem. Stone and Rock? That''s garbage, isn''t it? Especially rock, you''re no good. You''re really not worth the money. Stone is still for sale, but I''m letting it go for now. Or rather, I''m throwing away the ones I had. Finally, I''ve run out of magic bags. That''s the iron. It''s too heavy. So, I''ve been in the 21st layer for about a month now. We''ve been in the second layer for about a month now, and we''re starting to miss the blue skies, when the boss''s room finally appeared before us. This is where Natsuki and his friends are. Is this the room where the gargoyle that Natsuki and the others saw is? "Probably?¡¡I don''t think there are multiple boss rooms in the same place. I think you''re right. I''m pretty sure, though, based on the sensation of the transfer point. When I fell last time, I didn''t have a transfer point, so unfortunately I couldn''t place one in the place where the transfer camp was. However, I do vaguely remember the location of the transfer point that Haruka and the others had set up, which I confirmed at that place. The last sensation I had then and the sensation I have now are quite close. I''m sure that the gargoyle is behind this door, unless, as Natsuki says, there are several similar boss rooms nearby. Yeah. If you two say so, then I guess you''re right. The question is how to fight the gargoyle. ...... "Nao and Natsuki saw it at least, right?¡¡What were they like?¡¡Gargoyles? I didn''t see enough of them to say I saw them, because I ran away right away. ...... It was like a flying stone statue, right? It''s definitely tougher than a golem. It moves fast and it flies. I''m not as fast as them! I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were you. I''m not sure if I''d be able to do that if I were you. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of this. "Mmm, I don''t like it when it''s hard. It''s not fair. I don''t know if it''s as hard as a stone statue.¡¡It''s a little unfair. There were six of them, right?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of people who''ll be able to help you out. I''m not sure what to make of that. I don''t know. I''ve never seen one before. You''re right. ...... I think the only one who can definitely kill it is Toya. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. On the other hand, Natsuki and I are not so good with the ...... war hammer. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not skilled enough, but I''m too light to use a heavy war hammer. To be honest, I think I would have been more useful if I had prepared a flail. Considering this, it might be more realistic for me and Natsuki to use our spears and cleavers to buy time, instead of forcing them to die. As for Haruka and the others, fighting the gargoyles without a vanguard would be a bit difficult. Yuki seems to understand this, and growls with a difficult expression. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. That''s Yuki. That''s what I call Yuki. I admire you for that. Tohya, hang in there! That''s a good idea. It is. I''m sure you can do it, Toya. Good luck, Toya! Toya, you''re amazing! Toya was cheered on by all the women, but he shook his head without wavering. No, it''s not a good idea.¡¡It''s not a good idea to throw yourself into an enemy you don''t know the strength of. "Oh, come on, Toya. You don''t know what you''re doing, turning down a woman''s cheers. I don''t read people, not like this!¡¡If you want, Nao, I can lend you my impact hammer, if you want.¡¡Oh? I averted my gaze from Toya, who thrust the war hammer in his hand toward me and gave me a blank stare, then changed the subject. You''re not serious. I don''t think we can use Toya as the main target. I don''t think she''s that strong, based on the pattern we''ve seen so far. ...... The strength of the bosses that have appeared so far is roughly proportional to the strength of the enemies that appear in that level. To be more specific, if you can take on the strongest enemies in the hierarchy, and you can take on several of them at once, the bosses are no problem. Something like that. In this case, it''s a big Iron Golem. A few of them ...... would be a bit tough. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure if we''re good enough. ......Should we still use the Explosion? I''ve gotten used to it over the years. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. In the beginning, we made some mistakes and caused some injuries, but now, we were able to destroy the Rock Golem and blow off the Stone Golem''s legs. What, an Iron Golem? That''s something to consider in the future. --As expected, iron is hard. I''m sure you''ll have a lot of fun if you can take out one or two with your first shot. Yes, sir. Fortunately, there''s a door here. We can throw them in and then close the door. It''s a very unfair method, but it''s no substitute for safety. The previous "Plane Shift" failed, but in the case of "Explosion", since it is a magic that is aimed and thrown, there is no need to open the door until just before it is activated. You don''t have to worry about being attacked in the time it takes to activate it. And unlike using it against golems, you don''t have to think about damage to the surroundings or adjusting the power once you close the door and leave. So, let''s go in that direction.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to use it. If the flames don''t work, retreat will be an option. Yes, sir. There''s no need to force it. That''s right. That''s important. Fortunately, I''ve earned enough money from the iron ingots and gemstones. You can also choose to turn back and start over without any problem. So, there is no need to rush at all. We reaffirmed this, and prepared to camp early in preparation for tomorrow''s battle. 370-338 Gargoyle (2) The next morning, we were preparing for the gargoyle battle, but our activities were the same as usual. We ate a good breakfast from our magic bags, let our stomachs settle down for a while, and then did some light exercises and mock battles to relax our bodies. There was some tension in the air, but there was also a sense of ease, as if it was too dangerous to run away, so there was no sense of sadness at all. ...... Now, are we ready to go? I''m fine. I''m fine. I think Toya''s health is the most important thing. ...... I''m fine, too. I''m fine, I''m fine!¡¡And the breakfast was good. It''s always good to have a good meal. I wouldn''t be able to go on a month-long adventure without this and my bunk, if I had my druthers. In addition to that, we mustn''t forget the Isolation Field and the Worms. For a comfortable camp. I''m grateful to Nao and Yuki. "Oh, you can thank them all you want. The temperature in the cave is a bit low, though the Sanctuary is enough for a comfortable season. It''s just the right temperature for combat and activities that involve a lot of climbing and descending, but it''s a little chilly when you''re sitting still and not moving or when you''re trying to sleep. Sleeping is not a problem once you are in the mage''s tent, but guarding is. So, the quarantine area and the heating were used to deal with that. That''s magic. Convenient. However, these are most effective in the summer. If it''s cold, you can sleep if you put on a lot of clothes, but if it''s hot, you can''t do anything without magic, and if you can''t sleep, you''ll be drained of energy, making it difficult to go on a long expedition. Well, in our case, we took refuge in a dungeon during the hot season, so we didn''t have a chance to camp in the heat. But this is a dungeon of summer refuge. "Are you okay, Mary and Mitya?¡¡--Then, please. When Mary and the others nodded, Natsuki turned her gaze toward Yuki and me. With that look, Yuki and I stood in front of the door, and Toya put her hand on it. Haruka and the others stand by the wall next to the door. Even if the door were to blow open, there would be no damage. The target of the attack was me against the left wall and Yuki against the right wall. If the room is the same as it was then, there should be two gargoyles there each. The reason why I don''t aim at the gargoyles that are supposed to be right next to the door is because the distance between the activation of the spell and its impact is too short, and I don''t know if I''ll have enough time to close the door. "I''ll count. Five, four, three... "Five, four, three..." As Natsuki counted down, she prepared the spell and brought it to the point of activation. "Two, one, zero! At the same time as Natsuki''s "zero", Toya opens the door. Immediately, Yuki and I checked inside and fired an Explosion at the gargoyle. Toya immediately closes the door, and Yuki and I evade the door. The door closes, but Toya quickly moves away and holds her ear. Doggone it! A violent explosion echoes from inside the room, and the door vibrates loudly. Just as the vibration was about to stop, Toya put his hand on the door and jumped inside. We immediately heard a shocking sound. We hurriedly followed, and Toya had just hit a gargoyle by the door with an impact hammer. Two are down!¡¡Two more are damaged! It seemed to be more effective than he thought. Just as Natsuki had said, the two bodies were completely destroyed, along with their pedestals. He had aimed for the torso, and had been able to hit it exactly where he wanted. Yuki must have hit the other one without any problem, because the other one was also collapsed on the opposite side of the wall. Of the two more damaged bodies, one was almost completely destroyed, with one arm and one wing missing, and was struggling on the ground. The other had lost its left arm halfway up, perhaps due to lack of power, but its wings, legs, and torso were undamaged and it was still floating in the air. "Mary!¡¡Kill the left side! Yes, sir! Send Mary to the side with the most damage, and Haruka and the others to the other side. Natsuki and I will head for the seemingly unharmed gargoyle flapping in the center. Natsuki, buy us some time first. "Yes, sir. Let''s hope Toya can do it. The ceiling of this boss room was quite high, as if the gargoyles could fly. Considering what happened last time, a swooping attack from above would be very powerful. It was impossible for us to catch it, and if we swung a spear or a long sword at a block of stone coming at us at that speed, it would break our weapons or our arms. It would be better if it was just a sprain, but if not, it would be a broken arm. There was a hard cracking sound coming from behind him, but that was something Toya could do. "Nao, I can basically handle this, so why don''t you try shooting some magic? "Well, that''s a good idea. As the gargoyle hovers in the air as if watching us, Natsuki takes a step forward and I take a step back. If you''re going to use it, it should be your best magic. I''m not sure, but I''m pretty sure I can hit him with the Fire Arrow, considering he''s flying. I put a lot of magic power into Explosion, but it''s still no problem. I immediately shoot the Fire Arrow at the gargoyle and give it a scorch mark on its arm. But it''s only a burn mark! You''re not damaged? No damage? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m sure he doesn''t like the magic though. I hope you''re right. The gargoyle rises slightly and then plummets from its feet. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The gargoyle scrapes the ground with its sharp claws and jumps up again. Natsuki''s naginata swung at her back, but it only made a hard thud, and didn''t seem to do much damage. The descent is quite fast, but it seems that it is difficult to change direction in the middle of the descent, so it can be avoided by one opponent. Instead, if you avoid them too much, it will be difficult to attack them before they escape into the sky. It would be dangerous to avoid ...... by a paper-thin margin. The opponent has not only legs, but also arms with sharp claws. Natsuki''s attacks don''t seem to work either. ...... Well, I''m sure Natsuki is taking it easy so as not to break the cleaver. I''m not sure what to make of this. It''s proven to work, but if you hit a gargoyle in the sky with that kind of magic, the flying debris will do a lot of damage to all of us. Should we try to stall for time as we had originally planned? It''s a good idea to take a look at the situation around you to make a decision. "Oh, it''s dying. A gargoyle that could not move properly was probably no match for Mary. She seemed to have destroyed it in a very short time, and her figure was next to Haruka and the others. The gargoyle was missing one arm, and Haruka and the others were three. It''s a combination that could destroy them if done right. Should we take it easy here and buy some time by hitting them with magic? 371-339 Gargoyle (3) "Nao, let''s be steady and just aim for the right wing. Copy that. "Stone Missile. Physics is strong. It''s good that it''s not peculiar. So, I''ll aim at the gargoyle''s wing with the Stone Missile. Considering the size of the wings, it''s probably not the same as simply flapping them, but since the gargoyle that lost one of its wings was unable to fly, it must have some effect. The gargoyle fired a flurry of rock bullets at the wings, but they only hit the body of the gargoyle, as if it was on alert. Fragments fly out each time, but they do not destroy the body. Whenever the gargoyle descended, Natsuki tried to attack it with her wings, but it seemed that her cleaver was ineffective. "By the way, Natsuki. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡It''s unnatural. Yes, it''s flying. Is it? No, I mean, isn''t it possible that they can fly with magic? I still understand why bird and bat monsters fly. They have wings. But gargoyles, I don''t understand. It''s true that it has wings, but there''s no way that its obviously heavy body can float with those wings. So there must be some kind of magical effect, and there''s no chance we can fly. There''s no flying magic in the grimoire, so I''ve given up. ...... I don''t know about that, but why don''t we focus on killing it now?¡¡It''s not like we''re trying to catch it and analyze it, is it? Oh, right. Sorry. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not going to turn my head towards you, but you sound a little dumbfounded, and I apologize to you. But I wasn''t just talking about wanting to fly freely in the sky, I was also thinking that if it''s flying by magic, it might be possible to drop it by jamming its magic. A gargoyle that can''t fly is probably no better than a golem. I''ve been thinking about how to deal with gargoyles in case they show up in the future. Well, I don''t know of any such magic, so maybe that would be the field of magical tools. ...... Hmm?¡¡I''m not sure if there is such a thing. I''m not sure if there is actually such a thing as a magic tool, but you might want to be prepared for such a situation. We rely heavily on light magic outside of battle, and if there were dungeons with areas where magic could not be used, for example, the now almost useless potions and potions would suddenly become the focus of attention. --As I was attacking with my magic, I felt Toya approaching from behind. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Are you okay? Are you okay? Are you done? Yeah. That''s the last one. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site and find out more about it. They are also trying to come to us, but it looks like they don''t need to ....... It seems that the gargoyle doesn''t have the option of running away even if someone other than itself is killed, perhaps because it is the boss, and it drops down to attack Toya, who is now standing next to Natsuki. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of this. ...... We''ve had a few hits, but with the Impact Hammer, it''s just one hit. It feels unreasonable. Yeah, I''ll work on it. At least try to destroy it with the Stone Missile. And the end of the gargoyle, whose wings were destroyed and who could no longer fly, was tragic. While Natsuki and I were trying to get his attention, Toya beat him up and he quickly turned into nothing but rubble. Thanks a lot. Well, at least we got him down without any problems. Is anyone hurt? I''m fine. I''m fine. Most of it was destroyed from the start. We''re fine. We took it easy. Me, too. One on one, you''re no threat, gargoyle. I think it''d be pretty dangerous against more than one, though. Haruka and the others seemed to be uninjured and nodded as if relieved to hear our words. So. I guess you could say the plan worked. Yeah, we took out more than two with the first spell. The broken one was easily killed by Mary. You can find a lot more than two or five in the first explosion. The descent attack is also dangerous if you are hit by several of them, but you can easily avoid one of them. It was difficult for them to attack, but it was just a matter of weapon compatibility, and they weren''t so hard that they couldn''t be defeated. Well, it''s a bit of a cheat that Toya can die so easily because of the Impact Hammer. "It''s kind of a weapon push, isn''t it? If we''re going to continue hunting at this level, we should probably increase our training with blunt weapons. Or we can get a weapon that can cut through golems, which is ...... difficult. I''m not sure what to make of this. Two small rings would have wiped out most of my savings. Of course, mithril weapons are not all mithril, but alloys mixed with other metals, but even so, the amount of mithril needed to make something as large as a sword is not small. I wonder how much it would cost to make a sword the size of the one Toya is using. You can get the tip of my spear at ....... We need to save our money, right? We''re a little strapped for cash right now, aren''t we? In order to buy expensive weapons. The cost of weapons and armor is so different from the cost of everyday living that it''s hard to say whether you have money or not. I don''t have enough money to buy a good weapon at all. But if we just live modestly, we can live for a few years, or even a decade. Are we really wealthy? If we return safely and sell the wreckage of the Iron Golem, we''ll be able to get a lot of money. ....... Well, let''s think about that again. Specifically, after we find out the value of the stone we found in the treasure chest. Yes, depending on the results of the appraisal of that gemstone, you''re going to work even harder to explore this area, right? I understand. Now, what''s left of the pedestal, or rather, the jewel? Only two. Four of them are damaged. What do you mean?¡¡We''ve been sitting on this thing, remember?¡¡You can''t just destroy the gargoyle. The other gargoyle beside it was half destroyed. Even the other gargoyle beside it was half destroyed. I''m not saying it''s a bad thing. I''m not saying there''s anything wrong with it.¡¡I''m not saying it''s a bad thing, I''m just saying it could have been sold if you brought it back. It looks like a crystal ball, doesn''t it? I''m not saying it''s bad, I''m just saying that if I brought it back I could have sold it.¡¡I don''t know. It was still working when it was broken. If you think of it like an external battery, it could be. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Haruka and the others are ....... I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what I know. What about Toya? "Uh, the crystal ball?" Apparently even Toya''s appraisal is impossible. But crystals can be sold as crystals, can''t they? Let''s just take it back and give it to the guild. Take the broken one with you. "Got it. Let''s collect them then. I need your help. You got it? Okay. Okay, we''ll go collect the stuff over there. We split up and started picking up the shattered pieces of crystal. However, we left the shattered ones alone and chose only the larger pieces that seemed to have some value, so it didn''t take too long to finish collecting them. The last two are safe. Yay, ...... heavy! You''re heavier than I thought you''d be!¡¡Crystals! It''s probably over 30 kilos. Are you okay?¡¡Nao. Yeah, I''m fine. I''ve been working out a lot since I got here. I''m working out, or rather, I was working out when I got here. In addition to that, I have been training every day and strengthening my body with magic, so if I know it is heavy, I can carry 30 kilos normally. I just need to put this in my magic bag .......¡¡What''s this? 372-340 Gargoyle (4) "What''s wrong? No, something doesn''t ...... fit. A crystal ball about 30 centimeters in diameter, I took it down from its base and tried to put it in my magic bag, but it felt like it was repelling me and wouldn''t go in. "Really?¡¡I''ll unroll it for you. Thank you. Thank you. ...... Oh? Seriously? It''s floating! Yeah, ...... what is that? You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of these in the marketplace. If you let go of the bag, the crystal ball will seem to float in that state and ....... Oops! The crystal ball slides across the surface and almost falls off, but you hold it tightly again. "...... What do you mean? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I think only Haruka, Nao, and Yuki can figure it out. ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that you can''t put in your magic bag, right?¡¡This means... That''s what it means, right?¡¡It''s not supposed to hold humans or anything like that. ...... Is it because it''s a magic bag?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. If it is a magic tool, attribute steel is also a kind of magic tool, and even magic tools found in dungeons are carried around using magic bags. I don''t think that''s the cause. I think this is a collapse of the magic bag theory. "I''ve never heard of that theory. But I see your point. The Magic Bag is the foundation of our adventuring. It''s the reason we make so much money. If there are many things we can''t carry with it, we''re in trouble. ....... ...... No, there was something you couldn''t carry in your magic bag. You know that, Haruka? In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one, you''ll be able to get a lot more. What''s that, .......? I''m sure even Toya knows that. It''s a magic bag. "Magic bag ......?¡¡What''s that?¡¡We''re talking about something that doesn''t fit in the Magic Bag. Magic bag. ...... Oh!¡¡Magic bag! In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. You can''t put a magic bag in a magic bag, can you? I had completely forgotten that the Magic Bag had such a limitation. I had forgotten that the Magic Bag had such a restriction, though I hadn''t thought about it recently. I forgot about it too!¡¡But this crystal ball is not a magic bag, is it? "It''s not a magic bag, but it won''t fit. It''s not a magic bag, but it won''t fit. ...... So you''re saying it''s some kind of space-time magic tool? I don''t know, but it''s possible, isn''t it? That''s true. ...... I don''t have enough information to be sure, but I can''t say I''ve come up with anything. I think I should just leave it to the professionals. "Okay. I''ll bring it back to the guild. Then we''ll know what we''re dealing with. Yeah, that''s a good idea. The only problem is, we don''t have a proper container. ...... Our backpacks are all magic bags, so of course we can''t put them in. For example, if you have a magic bag for large items, you can stick it in a pocket on the outside of the backpack or tie it with a string, but you can''t do that with a crystal ball. I do have a leather bag that I reserve for sorting materials. ...... These leather bags are designed to be put into a magic bag with things inside, so there are no strings attached to carry them, making them difficult to carry. If I had known that there were some things that would not fit in the Magic Bag, I would have prepared a regular backpack, but now it was too late. If that''s the case, Mitya and I can carry it. We''re the ones who have the least problem with our hands being full. Is that okay?¡¡Mee. Yeah. Of course. I think we''ve both had enough of this for one day. ...... Are you okay?¡¡It''s pretty heavy, you know? Yes, we''ll take care of it. In the event that you have any kind of questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. Especially since Mitya is still so small. But if it''s just bare muscle strength without magic, Mary is probably the second strongest among us, and Mitya is pretty good too. I''m not sure what to do. "Then, please. You have a thick leather bag, right? I''m afraid it will be slippery and scratchy as it is. Choose a thick leather bag, spread it out on the ground, carefully place the crystal ball in it, and tie the mouth tightly. "Mitya, are you okay? I''m fine!¡¡But it''s a little hard to hold. ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m not sure what to do. Unlike Mary, she is a bit overwhelmed with her large crystal ball. I''ll be back as soon as I can, so do your best, okay? Yes! I''ll be back as soon as I can.¡¡And gargoyles. By the way, you didn''t check the gargoyle''s body. It might be shattered, but let''s take a look. It''s unlikely, but we split up to examine them, and we succeeded in recovering intact magic stones from three of them. The only ones that didn''t make it were the three that were heavily damaged by the Explosion. It was unexpected that the gargoyle that Toya dealt with gave him a magic stone, but I guess it was different from a mere golem. After checking the boss room one last time, we opened the door at the back and proceeded onward. ...... Yeah, this is it. The familiar room was also the small room that Natsuki and I had found last time. It''s the usual room after the boss room, but this time we''ve already emptied the treasure chest, so unfortunately there''s no reward for the first kill. Now that we''ve filled up the transition point, shall we continue on to ......?¡¡This passage will take you outside, though. I don''t know if I should say outside, but at least we can escape from the basement. No, to be precise, I think it''s underground too, but you can see something that looks like the sky, so it feels open. Of course you have to go back. Of course. Of course. I knew it. When we talked about the forest, he seemed interested in it, so I just asked him if he wanted to see it. "And I''m curious about the jewels, too!¡¡Aren''t you curious? "Yes. I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t curious about what kind of gemstone it was. Oh, that. Well, I''m also a little curious about how much it''ll sell for. --You''ll sell it, right? I''m not going to say that Halka and the others don''t want to sell it, right? I''m not sure how much I''m going to get for it, but I''m sure it''ll be worth it. I don''t think I''ve ever seen anything like it. It''s not "Oh, yeah", Toya!¡¡It''s very important! Oh, yeah. I get it, I get it, so don''t come at me. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. This is a great way to make sure that you don''t end up selling ...... your products for a while. Okay, let''s go home. It''ll be fun. Okay. What do you think it will be? I''m gonna make some accessories! I want to eat good food. "You''re a girl, you should be more interested. Haruka and the others, smiling happily as they talked about this, walked lightly to the transition camp. And Toya and I followed them with a wry smile on our faces. 373-341 Results (1) The day after our safe return to Raffan, as usual, we all visited the Adventurer''s Guild, taking advantage of Diora''s free time. It was the first time in a long time that we had enjoyed a good night''s sleep in bed, and we had enjoyed a late breakfast, dessert, and tea time after dinner. When we entered the guild, we found Diora at the counter, looking bored as expected. But when he saw our faces, he stood up with his hands on the counter and leaned forward. I''m so glad you''re all back!¡¡Your drinks are looking good. This is going to be a very lucrative business, yes!¡¡The decision to build a new brewery is already made. We''re just trying to find a plot of land. As soon as he saw our faces, Diora-san became excited and started to talk. Haruka hurriedly raised her hands to stop Diora. "Wait a minute, Mr. Diora. We just got back yesterday. We just got back yesterday. We''ll take our time. "Oh, yes, of course. I''m sorry, I was in too much of a hurry. I''m sorry, I was in too much of a hurry." Diora coughed lightly, smiled, indicated a small room in the back with one hand, and continued. I''ll tell you more about it over there. Are you sure you don''t want to go to ......?¡¡I don''t work at the counter. Besides, the Guild has nothing to do with alcohol... A guild employee sat next to Diora with a slightly dumbfounded expression on her face. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. No, no, no!¡¡I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you have.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one.¡¡It is a natural task to consult with them about it. What? I''m slightly curious. ...... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can contact us at the web site. I understand. There is no doubt that there are many things you want to discuss with me, so let''s go. Yes. You can ask me anything!¡¡I''m still the vice president!¡¡I don''t know if I can answer! I don''t know if I can answer that!" "Isn''t that something you should say forcefully, ......? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to answer that question, but I''m sure I''ll be able to. We sat down together on the sofa. "Well, can I start by giving you my report? Yes, let''s hear it. It''s about the alcohol, isn''t it? Yes, that''s it. Well, first of all, the drinks are going well. We''ve had some failures, but we''ve had some successes. It''s ready? Yes. Tommy has been actively involved. We''ve saved the good ones as instructed. I set up a storage unit in the brewery when we left. I also instructed Jay and the others to separate the unrefined sake and keep it in the storage room if it turned out to be good. This is, of course, to extract the yeast from the unrefined sake. Since the taste of sake differs depending on the yeast, I told him to repeat the brewing process for the amount of rice I gave him in order to increase the variation in taste. When I sent a bottle of the rice that Tommy had assured me would be fine to my aunt for her to drink, Viscount Nenus said, "We will make every effort to grow rice in this area. Viscount Nenus replied, ''We will try to grow rice here, and at the very least, we will try to import it. Already?¡¡He''s moving fast. ...... I''m impressed. ...... Come to think of it, you moved fast at the time of the ale brewery, too. Is Viscount Nenus actually a drinker? Even during that incident, he took immediate action in the few days it took us to investigate and report on the water source and leave Pining. Perhaps it was because ale is such an important product, but I was a little surprised at how fast they moved. If anything, your aunt is more of a drinker. Of course, the Viscount himself likes it, but I think he sees it more as an asset to his estate. It''s the right thing for a politician to do, isn''t it? As for us, we''re happy if it makes it easier for us to get rice. ...... Yeah, that''s okay. No matter what, we''ll be able to secure enough rice for Haruka and the others to eat. "I see. I''m glad to hear that. We''ve been experimenting with seasonings with that. Diora''s one eyebrow twitched at what Natsuki had said. It seems that he liked the food that he ate when he came to our house, so Diora can''t let this go unheard. I''m interested in the seasoning.¡¡I''m interested in that. ...... Please let me try it some other time, okay? Yes, when you come to my house. Thank you, I''ll look forward to it. --By the way, the name of that sake, was it "Nihonshu"?¡¡What''s the origin of that name? The name that came up in our conversation and with Tommy had already been heard by Diora. We had discussed this with Tommy when we first started talking about brewing, and we decided not to give it another name, but to go with it. No, not really. No, not really. We talked about it and decided on it together. "Really, ......?¡¡It''s a new drink, and it''s not like it''s going to be confused with any other drink, so that''s fine. ...... You can give it some kind of appropriate origin, you know?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. As a sales pitch. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to find out about the secret of the elves. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that there are even elven nobles in this country. I''ll leave that to you, Diora. As long as it''s not a problem. As long as it''s not a problem. Haruka says it twice because it''s important. I understand. I''ll think of something awesome. But I''m not sure if it got through to Mr. Diora. Are you sure about that? --I''m sure it''s good, because Diora said so. And she''s got the backing of the nobility. There''s no mechanism in this world to review proper advertising. We could have named the sake whatever we wanted, but there was a reason why we kept the name "Nihonshu". It was a countermeasure against our classmates, following our decision to name our party "Meikagakusui". No, it''s more of a "message" than a "countermeasure. We''re making a good amount of money now, and we''ve acquired achievements and skills as adventurers. In addition, we''ve made some connections with the nobility and other influential people in the area. Now, if a classmate who is having a hard time comes to me for help, it won''t hurt much if I give him a hundred gold coins instead of ten large silver coins, and if he works diligently, I can hire him at the tavern and let him live a normal life. Moreover, if they are classmates, they can read, write, and calculate without any problem, so there is no harm in hiring them. Also, I have a suspicion that if the mine is really bad, it will have already self-destructed. At this point, the fact that you are surviving without causing any particular problems means that you can be expected to be a reasonably decent classmate ......, right? Or maybe you are in a situation where you can''t even cause problems for some reason. Some of the skills could lead to such a situation. ....... Well, all we can do is to help as much as we can, if we can afford to when we are asked for help. Whether or not you are willing to risk your life to help depends on ...... the person and the degree of danger. There are already people here who are willing to risk their lives to help you, but there are others who are willing to risk a little injury to help you. So, that''s all I have to report. What about you, Haruka?¡¡I heard it was a bit difficult. We managed to get out of there, I guess. I have a lot of things to do, but ...... I think I''ll start with this. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. 374-342 Achievements (2) I''ve been wondering about that for a while now. You''re carrying it instead of putting it in your backpack. It''s pretty heavy, isn''t it? "Well, can you take a look at it for me? Haruka opens one of the leather bags and pulls out a crystal ball, and I open the other one and place it next to it. I can''t find any difference at all when I put them together like this. Size, clarity, color, and unblemished surface. If it were an industrial product, wouldn''t it be next to impossible to polish a crystal by hand and make it into a ball of this size? Or is it possible for a great craftsman to do it? This is not a man-made crystal, but a dungeon crystal. This is a ...... crystal?¡¡That''s amazing. It''s quite a treasure, especially when it''s this big. "...... Oh, it''s worth something too, of course. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll be able to get the most out of it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. For example, it''s a little too big to be displayed in my room, but I''m sure there are rich people who would like it. Are crystals really expensive? I''ve heard that good wizards and alchemists can make crystals, but at this size, they''re quite expensive. ...... Oh, it''s quartz, you know, crystal. I''m not sure what to make of it. But Toya seemed to be a little bothered by his words. "Hey, Nao. Is quartz a quartz?¡¡Quartz is like quartz glass or something like that, right? "Yes, it is. That''s right. Chemically speaking, it''s silicon dioxide. It''s the same material as the bath tub we made. If my magic hadn''t failed. It''s cloudy, but I guess my magic isn''t good enough. On the contrary, if the technology of magic improves, as Diora says, it will be possible to make quartz as transparent as this crystal ball. "So, what is it?¡¡A crystal ball is actually a glass ball? Yuki chuckled and said to Toya, who looked as if her expectations had been betrayed. "That''s true, depending on your point of view. Over there, they sell synthetic crystal balls, but they''re just glass balls. Maybe some of them use sodium glass instead of quartz glass? I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it. As an ordinary student, the only quartz glass I have ever seen is test tubes used in chemistry experiments. Most of those test tubes are also made of sodium glass, but some of them are made of expensive quartz glass for experiments with high heat. My teacher used to say to me, "They are expensive, so don''t break them! I was told. In concrete terms, they are 10 to 20 times more expensive. Even though they look almost the same and cannot be easily distinguished from each other. With this in mind, it is not surprising that some companies use sodium glass as a material for crystal balls. I''m interested in its value as a crystal ball, but what I want to ask Diora is something else. As I was wondering, it didn''t fit in my magic bag. Do you have any idea what kind of magical object it might be? Yes, I do. It''s not that easy.¡¡You have? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You can''t even carry the parts for that with a magic bag. Oh, I see. The Adventurer''s Guild installs transfer devices in dungeons, right? Do you have knowledge about that? You''re the vice president. It''s hard to install them because they''re often heavy. They have to be carried deep into the dungeon. Normally, they are not carried by hand, but are sent by space-time magic users via ''transport'', but it is said that parts that do not fit in the magic bag are difficult for space-time magic in general to work, so that makes things difficult. Um, so you''re saying that space-time magic-related grimoires are incompatible with space-time magic? Yes, they do. Not all of them, but it''s like you can''t put a magic bag inside a magic bag. So I guess this is just another space-time magic related tool? I''m not an expert, so I can''t say. I''m not an expert, so I can''t say, but I think it''s highly likely. I''m not an expert, so I don''t know. Diora looked at me like, "You can make a magic bag? But we are only a couple of people. I''ve been able to use magic for a little over a year now. We''ve only been able to use magic for a little over a year now, and we''ve only been able to modify a few things in the grimoires. I don''t know anything about research or anything like that. What do you want me to do?¡¡Shall I buy it back?¡¡Or should I send it for appraisal?¡¡Since it''s a magical artifact found in a dungeon, it can be appraised for a standard price. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a way to use it.¡¡We''ll keep it. You need to be an expert in that area as well. ....... I can think of a few, like interior design? I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one. Other than interior design, the other uses would be related to magic tools and space-time magic, but since we who are involved in them don''t know what they are, it would be difficult for Diora to ask us. Since we have no use for it at the moment, we might as well sell it, but the downside is that it''s not going to be easy to get if we need it in the future. What to do? If you''re safe, you can keep it at ....... Fortunately, I have the golem material, so I won''t have any trouble finding the money for the time being. That''s right. Then, Diora, can you buy these pieces and send one of the safe crystal balls for appraisal? All right. Then I''ll take this one to the back. Ah!¡¡Mr. Diora. I''ll carry that in later. It''s very heavy. Diora tried to lift the crystal ball, but Toya hurriedly held her hand. "Yes, sir. We''ll take it and the pieces with us. "Is that so?¡¡Thank you very much. I weighed it when I got home, and it weighed almost forty kilos. Plus the debris. We left the small pieces behind, but four of them would weigh over 100 kilos. Ms. Diora is stronger than she looks, but it''s not something an ordinary woman should carry. And Mitya, who was carrying it as usual, was quite impressive. Speaking of heavy, in this dungeon, we found a Rock, a Stone, and an Iron Golem. The only one I brought back was an Iron, can I buy it back? "An Iron Golem?¡¡That''s amazing!¡¡If you can harvest iron, this is a very promising dungeon! I thought I was asking lightly, but what came back was an unexpectedly loud response. I''m not sure what to make of it. "Is it that much? "Yes. Iron is an important strategic material. Iron is an important strategic commodity, and territories with dungeons where iron golems appear are quite wealthy. --Ah, but it''s a very deep place, isn''t it?¡¡Is there a limit to the number of people who can bring them back? No, depending on how many appear, you may be allowed to set up a transfer device ......?¡¡This is the time for our guild to make a breakthrough? Diora put her hand on her chin and began to worry, "Mmmm ......". It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. In all honesty, you''re lucky to be able to get iron and make money. But when you say it''s a strategic item, I''m a little put off. But I suppose I should insist on what I should insist on. I opened my mouth, somewhat reservedly. 375-343 Achievements (3) "Uh, Mr. Diora?¡¡That dungeon is privately owned by us. ...... At my words, Diora-san looked up and snorted. You''re right!¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s already been registered in the capital. This can''t be overturned, as expected. The amount of iron obtained from the Iron Golem is incomparable to iron ore. The amount of iron obtained from iron golems is incomparable to that of iron ore, and the value of dungeons where iron golems appear is said to increase greatly because iron golems can be used simply by melting them without the need for refining. I knew that iron was important in history, but it seems to have been so in this world as well. If the ownership of our dungeon had only been granted by Viscount Nenus, it would have been possible to say, "I knew it, without it. But this time, the transfer of ownership has already been registered in the capital. In order to overturn it, the king has to give his approval, which is impossible, apparently. By the way, is that even possible?¡¡It''s a strategic item, isn''t it? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. "It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Yeah, iron is heavy, isn''t it? The only way to get back is to use the transfer device beyond the boss room, but it''s a lot of work just to carry the defeated Iron Golem back there. In the first place, you have to go down several cliffs to get into the rocky mountain there. All the while fending off flying gars. Unless there is a transfer device installed, it would be very difficult for ordinary adventurers. "On top of that, it''s a long way from that dungeon to this town. If you want to increase iron production at the same cost, it would be better to invest in the existing dungeons. So you''re saying there''s no problem? Yes, well, perhaps ......? That''s kind of a vague term, Mr. Diola. Well, I can''t be sure. The aristocracy has a lot of ...... things going on, and it''s a magical place. A shadow falls on Diora''s face as she struggles to be a member of the nobility. Currently, if you want to increase iron production ''as a country'', that dungeon is of little value. However, "as the owner of the dungeon," dungeons that produce iron are valuable and profitable. Since it is not a matter of national interest, the ownership of the dungeon should not be easily overturned, but it is impossible to say that it is not possible due to court manipulation. Oh, just so you know, there is no problem with Viscount Nenus. He''s an honest nobleman, and as a matter of fact, it''s profitable enough for the Viscount of Nenus to not have to intervene. Due to geographical constraints, all the goods produced in the dungeon there would have to go through the town of Laffan. Of course, it''s not impossible to go to another town to sell the goods, but unless Viscount Nenus imposes some kind of crazy tax, there''s no advantage for us to do so. If it''s a really promising dungeon, there might be a request to open it up to other adventurers. ...... But even then, you can charge an entrance fee, take a tax from what you get inside, or whatever you want. You''ve done it!¡¡Your future is secure. Diora smiled and squeezed her hands firmly, but Haruka''s expression was skeptical. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡Do you want to come?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Yes, sir. If you don''t have a lot of conditions, ...... you''re almost counting on it. What do you think about that as a guild official?¡¡Diora-san. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure. I''d like to buy the Iron Golem. This is just iron, so the price is simply based on weight. If you have some, you may want to bring it to Gantz-san. I''m sure they''d be willing to pay a little more for it. No ......, huh? Well, that''s okay. We both chuckled at the all-too-obvious diversion. Haha. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sorry, I didn''t mean to get your hopes up. I don''t mind. We don''t have to worry about it being vandalized thanks to you. You''ll continue to buy the Iron Golems we bring in, right?¡¡That''s enough to make a profit. "Yes, of course. Please bring this Iron Golem to the warehouse later. I''ll weigh it there. Is there anything else I can get for you?¡¡Fish would be fine. It was delicious and will sell well. You can''t have fish! Mitya interrupted Diora''s suggestion as if in a panic. "Is that so?¡¡Mitya-chan. We''ll eat the fish! I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m sorry to hear that. It''s a shame. It''s a shame. I''m sure Diora will share some of her food with you. I''m glad to hear that. We don''t have many chances to eat good fish. It was the perfect snack. Diora-san seemed to remember the taste of the fish and looked somewhat enraptured. As a non-drinker, I can''t judge whether flying gar is a good snack or not, but it''s definitely a tasty fish. The taste is different from the river fish caught in the upper reaches of the Sarre Stat. ......? Is the flying gar also a river fish? They fly from the top of waterfalls, and at least the water in the river we fell into wasn''t too soggy. --I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not, but it doesn''t matter. There were only golems this time, so there weren''t many demon-derived items like magic stones. Instead, there were more treasure chests, though. These are the ones that came out. What we have laid out on the table is, at first glance, just a stone. But we already know that it''s not just a stone. "Whoa, this is ....... Diora picked up some of them and observed them, nodding her head in agreement. "Do you understand? "Yeah. It''s ....... And this one is ......? Haruka leaned forward and asked again, and Diora took her time to answer ....... It''s a stone. I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''re right.¡¡I''m sure you''re right.¡¡But it''s not that! I''m kidding. It''s probably a gemstone, right? Haruka exhaled at Diora''s nonchalant reply, "Haha ......". You know what I mean. Are you sure that all these stones are gemstones? "Yes, ......, can I try to break it open? "What? Diora pointed to a stone and said, "Di, Diora, this is a gemstone. "Di, Diora, are you a professional gemologist or something like that? No, not at all. No, not at all.¡¡If you make a mistake and break it in a weird way, ...... Diora answered flatly, Yuki hurriedly waved her hand and refused. In response, Diora looked at the stone with some regret. I see. I think the ones with jewels showing on the surface are usually gemstones, but I think this one is probably a Thunder Egg. "Thunder Egg: ......? Yuki blinked her eyes and tilted her head at the strange sound of the words. 376-344 Achievements (4) Have you ever heard of it?¡¡It''s a type of stone that has a gemstone inside it. "...... Oh, so it''s a cave stone. I see, then this appearance is also ....... Natsuki seemed to have an idea and nodded in agreement, but I had no idea what it was. What''s a cave stone? I''m not sure what you''re talking about.¡¡If you go to a tourist attraction, you can find it at the souvenir shop ....... Oh!¡¡Oh, that!¡¡It''s the one before you cut it! It seems that Toya didn''t understand either, so he nodded his head vigorously at Natsuki''s explanation. It''s true that the outside of that thing looks like it''s just a stone. And yet, the inside is beautiful. Very strange. So this is it. I''d certainly like to break it open. No, I''d rather cut it clean off. And I have the means to do it. Yes, a "plain shift". "Hey, Haruka-- No. Yes. Apparently not. Leave it to the professionals. I can''t deny it if he says so. What do you want?¡¡Do you want to sell them to the guild?¡¡The guild would be happy to sell them to you, but I''m sure the price would be higher if you took them to a store. "Are you sure?¡¡Even so. Yes. It''s our job to support adventurers. The store I recommend in this town is... The store that Diora-san told me about was... Oh. I know that store. ...... What a coincidence. I know it too. You do?¡¡Nao, you don''t seem to be into jewelry. Yeah, because that''s where I bought ....... I glanced at Haruka''s fingers. You can''t see it because she''s wearing gloves right now, but underneath it, there''s probably a ring. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. So, yes. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. Did you know that? You know that shop?" "Yes, that''s the shop. They''ll give you a proper appraisal, and you can trust them to make jewelry or accessories. If you want to go to the trouble, you can go to Pining. ...... Is there any chance that pinning will be more expensive or technically superior? It''s not going to change. Unless you travel to King''s Landing. If you don''t need the jewel right now, you can have it roughly processed and keep it in that state. I think you should consult with them about that. I see. That''s also a good idea. It''s not that we need accessories,......, but the way the ladies are acting, it''s not like we''re not going to make any at all. Thank you, Mr. Diora. I''ll be right there. Yes. -Wait a minute. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, please do not hesitate to contact us. What is it?¡¡I''m going to leave the Iron Golem in the warehouse properly. ...... Yes, please take care of that. But that''s not it. I''m talking about your adventurer rank, Haruka-san. Adventurer Rank: ...... Oh, by the way, there is such a thing. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. And the same goes for the rest of us. The last time I was ranked up was ...... when. I think it was about six months ago, when we defeated Dahl''s Bear, so it was around spring. We didn''t pay much attention to it, so I don''t really remember. Diora sighs a little tiredly at us. Don''t forget: ....... There are a lot of adventurers who are busy trying to raise their ranks. "Well, you don''t really think about your rank when you''re in this town, do you? Even if you look at the forums, there are no requests for high ranks only. That''s right. There''s no benefit to being a high rank... Oh, you said the appraisal fee is cheap. That''s a benefit. "It''s not like people say, ''Wow, high rank! That''s a benefit. You don''t really feel it, do you?¡¡Are we strong enough to begin with? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. ...... Don''t just say things you can''t deny. You can''t help it. We''re in the country. And Nao-san, Nao-san and the others are much stronger than the average adventurer. "Is that so, ......? Of course, I feel that I''m stronger than I was when I first came here, and I think I''m better than the adventurers who are guarding the woodcutter around here. But I couldn''t beat the bandit-like soldiers who attacked me when I was guarding the Iliad. Even here in the Kingdom of Rhenium, I''ve heard that the national army soldiers are far more powerful than Viscount Nenus''s territorial army. ....... I''m not sure what to make of it. And it seems that it was the same for Haruka. "Average, huh? That includes adventurers who take on day jobs, right? No, no, that''s not including those who don''t fight at all. So, if the strongest adventurer is 100 and the weakest is 1, where would you rank them? .................. Three, no, twenty-five, maybe? That''s not strong at all! This is the first time I''ve been able to do this. No, you can''t help it!¡¡The top level is really outrageous!¡¡That''s why we have a rank evaluation system. That''s why we have a rank evaluation system. If we simply ranked them by strength, they''d all be ranked one or two. Hmmm, that certainly doesn''t motivate me. You know what I mean?¡¡You don''t have to be strong to rise, and that''s what the rank system is all about. Mary and Mitya are happy when their ranks go up, aren''t they? I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I don''t know.¡¡I don''t really understand. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. I don''t know. The adventurer who can earn money is different, after all. It''s also important to note that the higher the rank, the more the client will pay, so it''s usually important.¡¡For adventurers with no money. The adventurer''s rank indicates not only his combat prowess but also his trustworthiness to the adventurer''s guild. Therefore, in order to receive escort requests, you need to have at least rank 3, and in most cases, rank 4 or higher. The higher your rank, the more rewards you will receive for escorting. In other words, if you are an adventurer who mainly does that kind of work, whether or not you gain one rank will have a big impact on your income. --But for those of us who don''t take escort requests, this is completely irrelevant. Well, that''s fine. I think it''s time to raise your rank to six, because it''s going to be a problem if you''re still at rank five. Is it bad? Yes, a little. You still haven''t taken on any work for the guild, but you''ve done a lot of dungeon diving and haven''t caused any problems. Considering the benefits you are bringing to the guild. It seems that there is a balance to be struck. But then again, I''ve heard that high-ranked adventurers can compete with nobles to a certain extent. There was a nobleman who messed with Haruka at Baron Daias''s wedding, and even though Viscount Nenus blocked him, it wouldn''t be a bad idea to be able to compete with him ourselves. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to pay off your debts. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. "Huh?¡¡Nao, are you getting interested? The other day, at a wedding ceremony I was requested to escort by Ilias-sama, there was a nobleman who tried to touch Haruka. I thought it would be good to be able to fight back. "Hmm. You are loved, Haruka-san. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. 377-345 Achievement (5) Yes, she loves me. Everything okay, Diora?¡¡Marriage life is... Maybe that''s why you''re in such a hurry to start brewing? Haha!¡¡Ha, Haruka-san. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. I''m not going to do that at all. I''m not sure what to say. But be careful. I''ve heard that no scammer has a bad face. I think the more money and interests you have, the more you need to be a good judge of character. "That''s true. The more money you make, the more money you make for yourself. Yeah, yeah. Very good man. Until the moment you realize you''ve been deceived. The three of you are going to get the better of me?¡¡If you say that to me, I can''t marry someone even if he''s nice to me! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. It''s true that if someone says something like this to you, you will be wary even if a kind person approaches you. "After all, a really good person is someone who supports you even when you don''t have money and even when you''re going through hard times. People who say, "I''ll marry you because you have money," are no good. It''s not about money, it''s about love! Hmm?¡¡I remember Yuki saying to me once that she''d rather have a stable life even if it means losing some of her love. I''m not going to mention it here, although I have the discretion to do so. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand what I mean. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I think money is very important. I think money is very important. If you have a hard life, ...... it''s very hard. But it takes a lot of intuition to sniff out a good man who will ''heal'' you! It''s a real feeling. Yeah, if you can''t afford it, your marriage might not work, right? But that doesn''t matter at all when it comes to Diora. Ms. Diora is the vice president of the guild. She''s probably got some money. And don''t tell me, Mitya. If Diora had such a sense of smell, she''d be married already. "Ugh. ...... I''m not experienced enough anyway. That''s enough. Come on, hurry up and get your guild card. I''ll go up in rank! I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Yes, indeed. I''ll go get it then. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it. That''s good enough for me. We''re still only as good as Haruka and the others. Don''t worry. Mary and the others are the type of adventurers who will succeed because they have acquired solid skills. As the vice president of the guild, I can vouch for them. I have a good eye for adventurers. --Even if you don''t have an eye for men. Diora smiled and stood up with her guild card in her hand. We silently watched her back with a slightly melancholy look on our faces. I''m not sure what to say. "...... was that too much to ask? Yes. For an unmarried woman of that age, Haruka''s words were lethal. You should be sorry! You''ve been riding well. I''m fine. I don''t have a boyfriend yet. You know what, Nao? "...... no comment. After that, while Diora was renewing her guild card, we were selling the Iron Golem at the warehouse. After completing that process and receiving the updated card, we left the guild. Partly because our business was generally over, and partly because we didn''t feel like we needed to talk again. Diora-san, who handed me my guild card, was smiling, but she was carrying a subtle darkness behind her. I wondered if she was worried about it. Well, I felt a little sorry for him, too. I mean, wouldn''t you hate to see Diora get cheated on by some strange man? Yes. I don''t think there are any good men who approach you because you have money. If the liquor business goes well, Diora will stand out, so she has to be careful! Hmm, I don''t know how you feel about that. ...... What do you think of Mary and the others? I''m ...... not too sure about that. I don''t really know. The people around me, the older sisters in the neighborhood, they were married to whoever their parents decided to marry. ...... "Oh, I see. So that''s the norm. "My dad said, ''Get someone who can provide for you. Sometimes it''s by force! Aggressive?¡¡Mary, is that so? "Well, I didn''t hear him say that, but perhaps he thought it would be difficult for his parents to put together a marriage. ....... We''re beasts. "Is it so difficult to find one''s own kind? Even if you are not discriminated against, there will always be differences in lifestyle and habits. If you want to marry someone, it is inevitable that you should first look for someone of your own race. In this respect, she cannot be placed in the same category as Diora. Haruka and the others probably have no intention of interfering with Diora''s marriage, and I can understand their concern. Even though he is an aristocrat, he has a low title, not a lot of assets, and troublesome family relationships. It seems that she has been shunned because of these things, but when assets and rights are added to the mix, Diora''s value suddenly rises. In the first place, Diora''s pretty appearance makes her look younger than she really is, and she has a connection with the Viscountess Nenus. Considering these factors, she is essentially a very good property. Even if she had been intercepted by her family, it is hard to believe that nothing had ever happened to her before. In spite of this, the fact that she is still single suggests that she has a good eye for selection, doesn''t it? First of all, Diora-san is a much older sister than us, so there''s no need for us to worry about her. I''ve been trying to tell Haruka and the others about this: ....... I know, I know, I know. But I want you to marry a good man, Diora. "You are very capable, but you also seem to be clumsy. I''m kind of worried about him. ...... I don''t want to give it to a strange man. I don''t want to give him to some strange man! No, Mr. Diora is not Haruka''s property. I don''t want to give it to a strange man! No, Diora is my wife, our wife!¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what you mean by "wife. That''s not what "wife" means. And we don''t want any crazy people getting involved in our seemingly successful alcohol business. I agree with that, but ...... that''s only after the candidate appears, right?¡¡If we worry about it now, it''s just groundless, right? I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what you mean by "groundless fears." ...... Nao is a terrible person to say that to. The odds of Diora-san getting married are earth-shattering. "It''s a metaphor, a metaphor!¡¡I don''t think the odds are that low. I''m kidding. But you''re right. If such a person does appear, we''ll find out for sure. For Diora''s sake! Yeah! Yes, of course. Give it everything you''ve got. I wondered if that wasn''t meddling or onlooker''s guts. I wondered if it wasn''t meddling or onlooker''s spirit. But there is no point in trying to reason with women who are in love. Knowing this, I didn''t say anything more, but stepped away from the women who were talking about useless things such as ''what kind of man would be suitable for Diora'', and went to the jewelry store in silence with Toya. 378-346 Achievement (6) When we entered the store, we were greeted by the same calm man who had greeted us the last time. He looked around at us, smiled gently, and approached me. Welcome, sir. Are you in need of an extra ring? "Don''t say anything dangerous! I shook my head in panic at the sudden danger thrown at me. You can''t be too careful, even though he looks like a gentleman.¡¡This guy. He seems to remember exactly where I bought the ring and what we talked about at the time. It''s true that when you bring a woman to a store like this, it''s normal to assume that she''s here on your business. "Oh, I see. How about you, then? I don''t need one at the moment, unfortunately. I don''t need it at the moment either, unfortunately." Tohya''s reply was met with a slightly disappointed look from Mitya behind her. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use this to your advantage. Today I was introduced by the adventurer''s guild to sell some rough gemstones. ...... Or maybe I came to ask for an appraisal?¡¡Well, that''s what I''m here for. I see, so you''re here as an adventurer. Then go to the other room. The clerk nodded at Yuki''s words and led us to another room in the back, not the reception set where we had been shown the jewels last time. Incidentally, we were all wearing casual clothes today. Since we were not planning to leave the town, we were not wearing any armor or carrying any weapons. We''ve been living in Raffan for so long that it''s no exaggeration to say that we''re already locals. I no longer need to be overly cautious as I used to be. The fact that I can now go out easily like this is probably a sign of growth. Please sit over there. Thank you. I wondered what kind of room it would be, since it was referred to as an "adventurer''s room," but the room I was shown to was an ordinary, elegant reception room. There was a sofa and a table where we could all sit comfortably. The furnishings were also very well done, making the room stand out from the guild''s rooms. It may be natural, considering the kind of goods they handle, but as a commoner, I felt a little uncomfortable. And the same type of people as me are Toya and Mary. Natsuki, of course, and Haruka and Yuki, too, have settled down without a care in the world. And then there was Mitya. She sits deep in the soft sofa, enjoying its rebound and letting her legs dangle. Can I see it then? The waitress laid a thick cloth on the table, indicated it with her hand and smiled. "Yes, I understand. As I laid out the stones from my magic bag on the cloth in order, the clerk took them one by one, examining them with interest. Like Diora, I nodded my head and looked at them, but I''m sure I''m not like her. She wouldn''t say, "It''s a stone. She spends a lot of time looking at it. And of course, my expectations were not disappointed. "Yes. Yes, I did. A gemstone and a thunder egg. What would you like to do with them?¡¡Are you sure you want to buy them all? "Well, I''m still trying to decide what to do with them, so can I just have them rough processed first? Yes, you can. There are a lot of unnecessary parts in the original stone. I''ll call a specialist. The clerk smiled at Haruka''s words and left the store. After a while, he brought in a man who looked like a craftsman. --A dwarf. Dwarves are rarely seen in this town, but the mere fact that they are dwarves makes me feel that I can trust them. "Well, that''s quite a lot of stuff you''ve brought in. Let''s see. He only bows lightly to us, then immediately picks up a stone on the table and starts pounding it with a small hammer. At first glance, it looks as if he''s just tapping away, but then the black parts start to peel off and the shape of the stone gradually changes. As he tapped the stone, the lustrous stone was revealed, so it must have been an unnecessary part that was falling off. I''m sorry, sir. I''m an unsociable craftsman. But you can trust my skill. It looks like... In just a few moments, the gemstone had shrunk more than a stone in size, but from it emerged an object that was clearly a gem. What are you working on now? Just checking to see what kind of gems are in it. We need to know what kind of gemstone it is and how much it is worth before we can take it in for rough processing, so we''re working on that now. The clerk adds a detailed explanation to the craftsman''s simple explanation. At first glance, a rough stone looks like a dirty little stone. Even if you are told after you have entrusted it to us that there were no precious stones inside, a layman would not be able to judge whether it was a lie or the truth. In some cases, you may even be suspected of hiding the fact that there were gems inside. In some cases, they may even suspect that you are hiding the fact that there were jewels in the store, which can actually happen in suspicious stores. To avoid this, it is best to do the whole process in front of the customer, but it is not something that can be done in a short time, and waiting for a long time is too hard for both the person watching and the person being watched. That''s why they are doing this work to check the approximate condition of the gemstones and to share information with each other about what kind of gemstones they have received. "Hmm, all very good. This is from the dungeon, isn''t it? Do you know that? I know. Naturally mined material doesn''t contain this many gems. There are two types of gemstones: those dug out of deposits and those found in treasure chests in dungeons. Even though they look similar, the latter is apparently more valuable. However, the similarity in appearance is a danger, and there is a risk of being switched if the item is brought to an inferior place and deposited. If you want to be safe, take it to a decent store like ours, even though it will cost you a bit more. Is that right, ......? "We value trust. If you betray it, you will not get a recommendation from the guild, and you will lose your connection with promising adventurers like you. If you fail to do so, we will not be able to get recommendations from the guild, and we will not be able to connect with promising adventurers like you. Please feel free to bring in your items in the future. There is a part of me that wonders how much I can trust the words of the shopkeeper himself, but this is the store that Diora introduced me to, and I am satisfied with the ring she made for me. It''s not a bad deal, though, and there''s no reason to bring it to a shady store, even if the clerk suddenly throws a dangerous ball. ....... I''m sure you''re right, it depends on the outcome of this case. "Hahaha, that''s harsh. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I wonder if they are confident in their response. If that''s the case, it''ll be easier for us. 379-347 Achievement (7) All that''s left are Thunder Eggs. That''s going to take a while. What should we do?¡¡Break it?¡¡Or cut? What difference does it make? Well, the short answer is that it doesn''t make much difference whether you take out the gem or cut it. The only difference is that breaking is slightly better. However, if all you have inside are small gems, cutting them will be more valuable. It can be appreciated in its original state. The one that was cut was probably an amethyst ornament like the one Natsuki was talking about. It''s true that it''s only if it''s cut cleanly. If it were broken, its value would be reduced by half. But on the other hand, it will take some time to cut them, so if there are so many, you may have to wait quite a while. ...... "Oh, that might be manageable. Nao, why don''t you just cut it with magic? "...... Hey. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who can''t help you. I''m sure you''ve heard of it, but I''ve never heard of it. I''m sure you''re not the only one.¡¡Hold on a second. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "Try to cut along this line. If you fail, I won''t know, will I? Well, I''m the one doing it, so that''s a given. But ...... should I do it? It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Mary doesn''t seem to be dissatisfied, and Toya''s eyes are clearly saying, "Let''s just get this over with and go home. And then there''s Mitya, who''s completely bored. "Okay, I''ll try. He takes the stone from the craftsman''s hand, places it on his right hand, and adjusts it so that the drawn lines are horizontal. Stare at its position. "(Plane Shift)". You don''t have to say it out loud, so just do it in your mind. This magic is not flashy at all, so at first glance there is no change, but ....... I''m not sure what to say.¡¡What! I hold the top of the stone in my hand and lift it up, and it snaps in half. The cut surface is smooth and shiny. It''s really scary magic. There is a restriction that the difficulty increases when dealing with magical creatures, but if it''s just a hard object, it''s easy to cut like this. The craftsman who took the stone from my hand, traced the cut surface with his finger, stared at it and sighed. "That''s a hell of a spell, man. It''s no wonder you''re an elf. Manager, why don''t you hire this guy? "They''re good adventurers. There''s no way they can do that. But ...... this magic is amazing. I could use your help in a time of need. ......? I nodded to the shopkeeper - or manager - who glanced at me. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. The lack of completed requests is one of our bottlenecks, and for me, it''s a quick and easy job. It''s not a bad thing for both of us. "I see, you''re an adventurer. I get it. I''ll keep that in mind. The manager nodded smiling at my suggestion. After that, the craftsman hurried me to cut all the Thunder Eggs, and I found that they were filled with various gems. Crystals, agates, onyx, amethysts, citrines, opals, and so on. Even though I''m not that interested in jewels, I found them to be genuinely beautiful, and even Mitya, who seemed to be bored, picked them up one by one and looked at them, letting out an exclamation of admiration. But only Natsuki said, "Most of them are silicon dioxide. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that there was a large crystal ball. Is it related to the fact that there was a large crystal ball? These gems are, let''s say, all variants of quartz, which is close to glass. ...... Well, they''re beautiful, so it doesn''t matter. Diamonds are, in the extreme, just like charcoal, so it is pointless to think about them. In addition to the garnet that Toya found, rubies and sapphires were also found in the rough, so it seems that silicon dioxide is not necessarily a binding material. The question was what to do with those gems, but each of us took one of the Thunder Eggs that we liked, and sold the rest. As for the gems from the rough, we decided to keep the large ones in the rough state. I''m not sure how much money I''ll make. "That''s more money than I expected! "Considering the fact that they only sell Thunder Eggs, it''s not so bad, huh? The amount of money received was quite a lot of money, as you would expect from jewelry. In addition to this, considering the fact that the smaller gems would be sold after they were roughly processed, he would be able to make a good profit. What to do with the larger ones was yet to be decided, but at least one jewel per person would be distributed, and Yuki was smiling and light-footed, perhaps thinking about the jewel. What should I do? What should we do with them? Should we make accessories?¡¡What are you thinking about? I want to make something that can be used as-is, since I can get a big one, but I don''t really have a need for it at the moment. Yes. I''m too careless to use it when I go on adventures or even when I go out in town. Even though the security in Raffan is relatively good, it is still too dangerous and too disturbing to wear something too luxurious on a regular basis, let alone a simple ring that can be hidden under gloves like the one I gave to Haruka. If you want to make jewelry into accessories, brooches and earrings would be the obvious choices, but the reality is that we don''t have the opportunity to use them. If you are a member of the upper class, you may need it when you attend a party or a ceremony. When you think about it, expensive accessories are not very practical. I wonder if they are nourished by looking at them in the house, as Haruka said, "nourishing the soul. I wonder what I''ll do. "Why don''t you just keep it?¡¡Why don''t you keep it? You might need it sooner or later.¡¡When you find the right guy. I secretly advise Toya to sell it for money. If it''s a gemstone, at least it has the advantage of being harder to spend than cash, and it''s not bad for savings. "What?¡¡Well!¡¡It might even increase your success rate! Toya nodded his head in agreement. The idea of a partner who is attracted by money is somewhat subtle, but as a practical matter, a person without money cannot be considered as a marriage partner. In other words, you need to have enough money to support your partner in order to stand in the doorway. In this respect, giving expensive accessories is not a bad way to show your ability and wealth as an adventurer. There is a saying that "white hides seven evils," but in the case of a man, it is probably "having money hides seven evils. Incidentally, I intend to keep the gemstone that will be distributed to me. In preparation for my marriage to Haruka. "Oh, this is boring. What about Mary and the others? Well, ......, I''m going to keep it. I''m saving it for dinner!¡¡You can''t eat accessories. I''m going to save my money to eat!" "I can''t eat the accessories." Yuki, a little ticked off at the uninteresting responses from Haruka and Toya, asked Mary and the others, but the answers they gave her were also very realistic. Mary''s answer was probably because she had gone through a lot of hardship, but Mitya''s was more subtle, as if she had the same reason as Mary, or if she just wasn''t interested in accessories. She seemed happy when she received the Thunder Egg, so I guess she likes beautiful things, but doesn''t want to wear them herself. Am I the only one who''s excited about this?¡¡Isn''t everyone excited about jewelry? Of course I''m happy, but I can''t simply rejoice when I think about the proceeds from this and the next ....... This time, it was more than a month from the time we left to the time we came back. I''m not sure how much money I''ll get from the magic stones and materials, and the chests aren''t coming back that often, are they? It''s not a lot of money, but it''s enough to get you to and from the second tier, and on the way to the dungeon in the forest, so it''s still a lot of money. Of course, that''s not enough to pay for seven working adults who risked their lives to work for over a month. Hmm, that''s true. "Well, that''s true, but considering that there will be no treasure chests next time, the second layer might be a bit tricky. The Iron Golem''s earnings were quite large, you know?¡¡--The price of the Iron Golem was quite high, though it might be much lower next time. The fish are flying too! If we go that way, we''ll find Trent. --I have no place to sell them. The torrents are selling for a little bit, but at the moment there are no buyers even if we continue to harvest them. This time, the guild also got an unexpectedly large amount of iron, and the man at the warehouse said to me, "Cut back a bit! The man at the warehouse said to me, "Cut back a bit! If we were to dive into the dungeon again and secure the same amount of iron, we might not be refused the purchase, but as Natsuki said, the purchase price might be drastically reduced. Since the transportation cost seems to be the bottleneck, we should think about selling it ourselves to another town. Alternatively, we could ask Viscount Nenus to connect us with a buyer. ....... In this regard, Mitya''s fish will not be difficult to sell, and the price will not drop, but the unit price is low. I''m sure you''ll be able to get a lot more for your money. That''s the downside of the small size of this town. The traffic is not so good. But it''s hard to go far to sell it. ...... If it was a city like Crevilly, it would probably sell better. ...... In that case, there would be a lot of competition. The fact that Raffan is in the countryside and there are no high-ranked adventurers makes it possible for us to do whatever we want. There are both advantages and disadvantages, no matter what. It is because there are no high-ranked adventurers in the countryside that we have been able to find dungeons and get enough materials from them to sell. On the other hand, if this place were a city where there was no shortage of places to sell, there would be a lot of competition and we wouldn''t be able to get as much material as we do now. If I had to choose one or the other, it would be here. Even if it doesn''t sell, it will remain an asset. That''s right. It''s strong to be able to sell it when you need it. And we can use it to save for our retirement. We don''t have to pay for storage. In that case, we''d have to produce more magic bags, so we''d have to be careful not to sell them out. However, we still need to secure something that can be turned into cash. I think we should have a discussion about how to proceed. 380-348 Policy-making meeting (1) So, let''s start meeting to discuss our future plans. The dining room at home. Everyone was seated at a table with a cup of tea and a platter of sweets in front of them. It looks like a tea party, but it''s time for a serious discussion. It was my suggestion that we gather here to think about our position. Do you mind if we join you? Of course. Mary and Mitya are part of our family and our future is at stake. Yes, feel free to speak your mind, okay? I understand. After confirming that Mary and Mitya nodded their heads, I thought for a moment about where to start, and then opened my mouth. "First, let''s go over our original intentions when we became adventurers. When in doubt, go back to the beginning. It''s not bad. "The first thing was to have a safe and stable life, right? Yeah, that''s right. That was achieved relatively quickly, wasn''t it? Haruka agreed and Yuki and the others nodded in agreement. "Yes. Yes, we have a house now and we are living a comfortable life. Yes, when I think back to the first month, it was like a dream: ....... I rather wish it had been a dream! It sounds like you had a hard time ......, or rather, we tasted(ed) a part of it. In the literal sense. It''s too hard to work from morning to night while eating those things, and it''s hard to have dreams and hopes with those wages. We''re like that, but Mary and her friends became adventurers at ....... We became adventurers so that we could be independent. As adventurers, even orphans like us can get jobs. I wanted to be like you guys! I''ve always wanted to be like you! There is a common sense in this world that it is natural for people to leave their homes and become independent when they grow up. If you are not the heir to the family, you are usually kicked out of the house, regardless of whether you have a job or not. If you don''t leave, you can''t complain about being treated like a servant to the heir. It''s a very serious matter. As far as we were concerned, once we took them in, we would take care of them until they came of age, and even after that, we would hire them as janitors of the house, but Mary was not happy with that. She was a little unhappy with that, or more accurately, anxious. If we fire her, there''s nothing left to do. He was given a job that anyone could do, and one that he had little need for. In fact, we''re not in much trouble even if Mary and the others don''t stay home, so I can understand her concern, and I can''t say that we won''t be able to continue our employment - that is, we won''t die. Well, even in that case, selling what we have left in the house will provide enough money for the two of us to live on for quite some time, but I don''t think Mary is optimistic enough to feel comfortable with that. There are many concerns, such as the danger of having such a large amount of money for two people who are not capable of fighting, and the legitimacy of inheritance due to the fact that they are not really children. On the other hand, becoming an adventurer would solve many of these problems. If you are good at what you do, you can protect yourself and earn your own food. At the very least, the chances of getting lost will be greatly reduced. Do Mary and the others have any hope for the future?¡¡They sometimes train with the kids from the orphanage, but in the future, they want to form a party together and become independent from us. Oh, don''t worry about us, just tell us what you want to do, okay? Halka was right, Mary and her friends were often out at the orphanage when they were not working. But when they go to the orphanage, orphans who want to become adventurers ask them for help and guidance. No, I have no intention of doing that. I''ve been asked to partner up with them. ...... You''re very popular, big sister! When Mary shakes her head and slurs her words, Mitya throws a Hail Mary and happily tells her about it. But Mary can understand that. Oh, she''s strong and pretty. The orphans who are about to become adventurers are probably a little older than Mary, but if there is a girl as skilled and pretty as Mary, it would be a lie not to invite her. If I were in that position, I would definitely ask her out. No, no, no, no, no, no, no.¡¡It''s true that you''re asking me out. ...... But you don''t want to work together? Yes, I''m sorry to say it, but there''s a difference between us and them. Well, of course not. We''re on different levels. The orphaned children may not be mere amateurs now that Toya, Mary and the others are teaching them, but they''re still only starting out a little better than the other rookies. Even if they worked a little harder to train at the orphanage, the gap in skill would only widen compared to Mary and the others who were already working with us. On top of that, there''s the equipment aspect. Mary''s and Mitya''s equipment has just been updated and is now made of attribute steel. Naturally, there is a huge difference from the weapons and armor they get when they first become adventurers. Even if they don''t start out with a single wooden sword like we do, there is definitely a difference in quality that makes it foolish to compare. The result is probably jealousy and inferiority. It would be difficult for ...... to overcome these differences and keep the party going. If the relationship is that of a guardian and a protected person, Mary and the orphans do not have that relationship, and the orphans are older than Mary and the others. If you think about it that way... But even if they do, it''s likely that they''ll fall apart due to discord within the party. Besides the technology and equipment, there are other things like fighting over Mary, right? "No, no, not me! No, I don''t! - No, you don''t!¡¡Adventurers don''t have many women. Mary hurriedly denied Toya''s words, but Yuki and the rest of us couldn''t deny what Toya said, so we nodded our heads. Mary looked around at us and then said in a panicked voice. I''d like to continue working with you and Haruka!¡¡Is that a bad idea? "Me too!¡¡I''m the same way. If we''re together, we won''t have any trouble finding good food. Natsuki''s food is so delicious! After Mary, Mitya raised her hand and said such a thing. And Mitya''s words are very important. I don''t think I can live without Haruka and the others now, either. At least not here in Laffan. There is Aella''s restaurant ...... but yes, Haruka''s food is better. I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. You''re right, you don''t have to leave.¡¡We have extra rooms, so there''s no need to live in an inn. It''s fine for adventurers to live at home. Natsuki and Yuki say that it''s fine for adventurers to live at home, but Mitya shakes his head sadly. But when you''re adventuring, you''ll probably be poorly fed. But I''m sure you''ll be poorly fed during your adventures. ...... It seems that people don''t usually take the time to cook. And of course, it''s impossible for a normal adventurer to carry around a freshly cooked delicious meal. Well, if that''s what Mary wants to do, then why not? "Well, I don''t see any reason to oppose it, as far as I''m concerned. Mitya and I have a bit of an age difference, but at least Nao and I will be able to be together until Mitya retires. "I''m over ten years old, so I guess I''m ....... I can''t really imagine what it will be like when I retire. I can''t imagine what it will be like when I retire. If you take into account the different ways of counting ages and assume that our ages are the same as when we died on the other side, then we are actually about 12 years different? In other words, when Mitya was 30, we were 42. I can''t really imagine what it''s like to be middle-aged and beyond, but there seems to be a big difference in physical strength between 30 and 42 years old. At least for people in our world. On the other hand, Haruka and I are elves. Even after Toya and the others retire, the four of us will be able to continue our work. We are also grateful to have Mary, who can take care of the vanguard. 381-349 Policy-making meeting (2) I don''t know if we''ll be adventurers until we reach that age, though. At the moment, we''re doing well in saving up for retirement, and it''s safer to retire before we reach our physical limits. That''s right, that''s what we''re going to do next. If we continue at our current pace, we should be able to save up enough before we reach our physical limit, just like Natsuki said. Even if you take into account factors such as the fluctuating price of precious woods, you can still make a good amount of money just from what you catch in the forest. Yeah, as long as we don''t spend too much, we''ll be able to save enough at this rate. "Oh, yeah, right? We all nodded in agreement to Natsuki''s very plausible words, but the only one who seemed to give a subtle reply was Toya. The only one who seemed to have a subtle response was Toya, who seemed to have already been caught up in the "as long as it''s not extravagant" part. I''m not going to pursue it out of warrior''s compassion. As a man, I understand, and if you make a lot of money every time, I also understand why you might want to spend it. "So, since there are no problems there, you concluded last time that we should aim as high as we can, right? That''s pretty much it. That''s what we discussed almost a year ago, before we went deeper into the forest. We''ve been working hard under that policy, and we''ve been developing our skills and raising our levels reasonably well. My current level is 27. Considering the number of battles I''ve fought, the pace seems to be slowing down, but it would be pointless to compare it to the rate of increase when I was a low level player. And is my benefit, the "Slightly Increased Experience Value", having any effect on this level-up? Another benefit, "Lucky! Similarly, I have no idea. I''m sure it''s lucky that I''m alive and well now. ....... There have been a few dangerous moments in my life, but I guess that''s what ...... work is all about. Yeah, it''s not like you''re quitting your job because you''ve been in danger, is it? I think it''s much safer than the stories I''ve heard about other adventurers. What about your adventures with Haruka and the others? In our case, we don''t have to push ourselves for money. If you don''t have enough money for lodging or food tomorrow, you''ll have to take on dangerous jobs, but in our case, if we think it''s dangerous, we can afford to take time off work to train and prepare. This is a big difference. "Also, I think you mentioned that you wanted to go to ...... dungeon city, how about that? He crossed his arms and twisted his head as if thinking. I don''t think we need to go there at the moment. If all you want to do is go to a dungeon, there''s always the Dungeon of Escape. I wanted to experience a dungeon, that was a big part of it. And you were able to achieve that. Yes. Besides, there''s no competition there, so it''s safe. There''s no danger of being attacked by other adventurers in the dungeon, and I can do whatever I want. We can do whatever we want in the dungeon without the risk of being attacked by other adventurers, and we don''t have to worry about being seen with magic bags or other valuable items. And if we were to go to a dungeon city, we''d definitely get tangled up, tempestuously. It may also be an experience. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find out more about it here. And they are good looking. Even though the two of them are still young, in a world where there are few female adventurers, what man wouldn''t be jealous of this situation? If it were the other way around, I''d be jealous too, even if I wouldn''t get involved. I''m sure you''ll agree that Toya isn''t enough of a bulwark. "...... Oh?¡¡Haruka, what about me?¡¡I''m here too. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. It''s not like he''s going to get into a fight, but he''s a nice guy. I think he''s a bit overpowered as a bug repellent for adventurers. Mmm ...... can''t deny that. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. Simply being an adventurer would not be enough of a deterrent. Toya seems to be easily recognizable, but in my case, his strength includes magic. I can''t just open fire in the streets, and I can''t walk around claiming my slightly higher adventurer rank. If the guild card changed color, it would be easy to understand, but since the card only has a mark on it, you can''t tell unless you take it out and show it off. The advantage of going the other way is that it makes it easier to raise your rank as an adventurer. In the case of dungeon cities, there seems to be a lot of requests to the guild to collect materials. That''s true. Even if you collect materials from dungeons here, it doesn''t mean you''ve fulfilled the request. Diora will appreciate it, though. The requests lined up at Rafan''s guild have been the same since we came here. If it was a dungeon city, people would know what kind of materials were available at which level, so there would be requests for those materials. The market in Rafan is also small, and the probability of getting a request for collection is low because we are constantly supplying materials. If it''s Red Strike Ox''s milk, which we don''t supply, there''s still a chance, but it''s not something we need that often. --No, considering the popularity of Viagra, there may be a lot of people who want it, but the price is the price. Not many people will be able to afford it. Rank. I wonder which is the bigger advantage or disadvantage of raising my rank. ......? I''m sure you''ve heard of it. The advantage of our high rank is that it makes it easier for us to defend ourselves, right? "Yes, from the nobility. Commoners and nobles. It is the power of the nobility to retract some reasonableness when there is a conflict. If the commoner is a high-ranked adventurer, he can be reasoned with to some extent. In this country, at least, it seems that the nobility is not absolutely strong. It''s also possible to make a profit from higher commission rates, of course. ...... I''m not really interested in that, as far as I''m concerned. I don''t have any problems at the moment. I''m not in trouble. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of people who are interested in this. If I had to guess, I would say that Toya''s goal is to get a beast-eared wife. If he finds a good one and marries her, that''s it. In the first place, a high rank does not necessarily mean a high reward for a simple request, so whether it is good or not is not clear. If the reward is high, but you''re only given troublesome or dangerous requests, it''s not worth much. The disadvantages are prominence and ...... duty. Do I have to defend the town? It''s not explicitly stated, though. In the event that you have a high rank, you''ll be able to get the most out of it. In that case, it will be difficult to escape if you have a high rank. No, you may be able to escape, but once you abandon the people and run away, even if the town is safe, you won''t be able to come back. At least, not for me. I can''t stand the stares of my neighbors. "But, Nao, can you run away?¡¡Aera, Diora, Gantz, and many other people I know are in this town. I couldn''t help but think about Yuki''s words. I''m sure you''re right, I already know a lot of people in this town. ...... is difficult. But if it is the case, I will run away. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m here. The most important thing is your family members, no matter what you say. If I had a child, I would not hesitate to run away. If I had a child, I would not hesitate to run away. But if we don''t get out, we''re in trouble!¡¡But if we don''t get out, we''re in trouble!" Wouldn''t all the people in the town run away?¡¡It''s not like Viscount Nenus wouldn''t let them evacuate. That''s right. I''m sure it''s unwarranted, as it''s never happened before. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡What do you think of Mary and the others? I don''t care if you''re with your sisters or not. I simply think that high ranking adventurers are great. However, some people have a bad impression of adventurers, so I don''t think they are respected by everyone. ...... That''s true. It depends on the person, right? I''m not sure if it''s a good thing or not. On the other hand, it''s scary to be respected by everyone. If Viscount Nenus can prevent the nobles from intervening, there''s no need to force it. Yeah. I think I''ll just go to the dungeon city for sightseeing. Well, speaking of sightseeing, you mentioned that you wanted to see some other cities, how about ......? ".........". We were both silent when Haruka asked. 382-350 Policy-making meeting (3) A year ago, I would have said I would love to go, but after the request to escort me to Crevilly, my mind has changed a bit. I don''t think the scene in Mijara is common, but I don''t really feel like sightseeing in a town like that. Then there were the dangers on the road, such as bandits. The bandits who attacked us seemed to be from the military, but there was no guarantee that there would be no bandits of that caliber. There are stronger enemies than us. I knew this in my head, but it was important to understand it in my body. Depending on the situation, we could die. ...... First of all, you have to be very careful about going abroad. You should avoid entering at least two of the countries adjacent to this country, the Iupiklisian Empire and the Kingdom of Fegley. There seems to be a lot of discrimination. Non-humans are dangerous. Such a country. No, the Kingdom of Fegley is dangerous even for humans. It''s a very unstable country. The Duchy of Austianum seems to be safe in that respect. ...... "Safety on the road, right? There''s no real map. If you choose to travel only on the big roads, it''s not that dangerous and you won''t get lost. ....... I don''t know if it''s necessary to risk one''s life to go sightseeing. ...... It''s a matter of degree. If you''re only traveling within the Kingdom of Rayam, it doesn''t seem that dangerous. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to get the most out of this.¡¡Hahahaha! I''m not sure what to say, but I''m not going to say it. The cackling and giggling that is so common in romantic comedies is too far away. Both in terms of distance and difficulty. In terms of distance and difficulty, it is like crossing the Eurasian continent from Japan by land (on foot and by carriage) and going to the Mediterranean Sea for a swim. There is no advance information, so there is no way to avoid conflict zones. Well, we''ve only been in this town for about a year. We''ve only been in this town for about a year, so we can''t think about sightseeing for a while. Considering our age, we''re still students, and it won''t hurt to work diligently to improve our skills for a few years. You have a point. Considering how hard it is to travel in this world, it would be nice to have that much time to prepare. It''s not like I''m losing money. It''s not exactly peddling, but maybe we can sell the materials we acquire in the next few years wherever we go.¡¡I don''t want to peddle, but maybe I can sell the materials I acquire in the next few years wherever I go. "That''s a possibility. If you have a certain amount of wood or iron golem, you can get a good price for it, and that will be enough to cover your living expenses. If that''s the case, then as Yuki said, it''s a good idea not to try to sell materials that you can''t sell, but to save them. It''s not like there''s an enemy we can''t defeat, so it''s probably appropriate to continue exploring the dungeon. So, in the end, we''ll still be doing the same thing~. --"So we''re still going to do the same thing after all..." "Hey, was there any point in taking the time to discuss this? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site and find out more about it. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand what I mean.¡¡If you don''t know what you''re going to do, it''s hard to decide what you can spend.¡¡--Of course, you''re free to spend the money as you see fit, aren''t you? I don''t have to worry about eating, so I can understand how you feel, but ...... saving is important. Yes, yes. I don''t understand why you feel this way, but saving money is important. "Ugh ....... The three of them all said that, and Toya was at a loss for words. In fact, all the things we need for our adventures, food, etc., come out of the common fund, and the clothes we use for everyday wear are made by Haruka and the others, and we don''t pay for them. Since I''m left in charge of my life, I don''t have to worry much about having no money of my own. As for me, the only things I have bought with my own money are the ring I gave to Haruka. --At least, that''s how I blew most of my money. It''s more like three months'' salary. Mithril is really expensive. Well, Torya, take it easy. And I''m glad to hear how you feel about Mary and the others.¡¡I''ve been wondering what they''re going to do, what I should do for them. "Is that so? I was wondering what I should do for them. "Well, yeah. We don''t have much experience either, do we? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea to try to find a way to make it work. Of course, I have some skills such as [common sense of other worlds], but I don''t think it''s enough to make things work. If that were enough, social problems such as child abuse, delinquency, and so on would have been solved more easily. We''re grateful, and we''re not complaining, okay?¡¡Hey, Mee? Yeah. We''re very lucky. We wouldn''t be alive. So thank you again. Yeah. Thank you for saving us. By the looks on the faces of the sisters as they bowed their heads together, I guess we made the right choice. We felt it and looked at each other and relaxed our cheeks. "Well!¡¡Now that we''ve got that out of the way, let''s talk about the good stuff. "Tasty talk?¡¡Delicious is always welcome! I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. --I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one with a serious expression. "Hmm?¡¡Lunch? It''s almost noon. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m going to have to. But before that... I''m going to taste the miso and soy sauce. Natsuki helped Haruka and the others to bring a tray with a number of bowls, each a little larger than an oinoko. They put them in front of us, 100 at a time. As you can see, there are five kinds of miso soup and clear soup. As you can see, there are five kinds of miso soup and five kinds of clear soup. I didn''t put in any ingredients, but the soup stock is ago dashi ......, or flying gar dashi. I could have made many more, but I have narrowed it down to five. There''s quite a difference in color between the two, isn''t there? I''m not sure if it''s because I''m not a big fan of the name, or because I''m not a big fan of the name. It''s a difference in the ingredients. The color of the miso soup is almost identical, but the color of the miso soup varies from light brown to slightly reddish. "Oh, well, let''s get to ....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. ...... Hmm. It''s good. No question. The Flying Gur dashi -- or, since it''s too much trouble, the Ago dashi is fine. Of course the flavor of the ago dashi is good, but the miso and soy sauce flavors I haven''t had in a while are very good. Insipir sauce was a good enough substitute, but it is a substitute to no end. When you actually try it like this, it is no match for the real thing. The taste is so nostalgic that it almost brings tears to my eyes. Putting that nostalgia aside, I tried to taste and compare them again, but it was quite difficult. Because Natsuki has already selected them, and they are all delicious. Which one was the best, from left to right? After everyone had finished tasting, Natsuki asked, but no one answered right away. No, there was one person who answered right away, but... 383-351 Policy-making meeting (4) "It was all good! It was. Of course, that was Mitya. At first, I followed Mary''s example and drank a little at a time, but halfway through, I guess I didn''t know what was going on anymore, so I just drank it all smiling. But Mitya was right, wasn''t he? There are different flavors, but they''re all good, right? I understand of course that there are different flavors, such as white miso-like or red miso-like, but if you ask me which one is the best, I can''t ...... help you. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. That''s all I can say. I agree with you. I don''t know about soy sauce, to be honest! "I agree. I think it''s a little different. ....... If you lick the soy sauce, you might be able to tell a little bit. Compared to miso, soy sauce is almost the same color, and the difference in taste is subtle. If they switched the order, I probably wouldn''t be able to tell the difference. I agree with you about the miso. The one that came closest to my family''s taste was No. 4, but if you''re not particular about it, you can just change it every day.¡¡As for the clear soup, I think No. 2 was the best for this soup stock. I wonder if it''s the same for me.¡¡It''s just a difference in the manufacturer, isn''t it? It''s tasty enough, so I think it''s up to the cook to use it as he or she likes. I''m not sure. How about ...... Mary? I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''ll be fine. It''s delicious. ...... I''m sorry. I''m sorry, but everything I eat here is so much better than before. Are you bothered by the smell of fermentation? The smell of fermentation?¡¡No, not at all. Is it the miso here?¡¡This one smells a little, but not as bad as the others. There are a lot of pickled vegetables and other things that have a much stronger smell. "Oh, that''s for sure ....... We frowned at Mary''s words. If you want to know more about how to make a good pickle, please visit our website. They are sour pickles that have been pickled for several months and have undergone a thorough lactic acid fermentation. They also have a strong smell, but they are still easy to eat. Some of them are more like putrefaction than fermentation. Some of them are more like putrefaction than fermentation. Especially in the winter, when there are no vegetables, such food can be found in ordinary restaurants. Fortunately, we have almost nothing to do with them, but according to Mary, it''s still good to be able to eat vegetables even with such pickles. Dried meat also has a bad smell if it is of poor quality. Dried meat is supposed to be dried so that it does not go bad, but there are some rotten and moldy ones mixed in. It''s hard to tell because it''s so dry. Don''t imagine that the dried meat tastes like beef jerky. So, do you think this seasoning will sell? I think it depends on the price, but I think it tastes good enough. "I see. That''s a very realistic answer. "If we want to commercialize it, we need to research the prices of other seasonings and see if it''s profitable. Haruka and Natsuki nodded their heads at Mary''s honest words. Of course, it''s unlikely that everyone would be raving about soy sauce and miso, or that they would sell for a ridiculously high price. My classmates would be happy, but it''s no use trying to sell to them. "But, Natsuki. There are few other seasonings on the market.¡¡We can''t compete with salt in price. That''s the point. It''s difficult to know how much the people of this town can afford to spend on food. ...... There are some people who just want to eat. Even a bad food stall can still exist without going out of business. In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your home, you''re going to want to make sure that you''re getting the most out of your home. You need to consider the percentage of people who cook meals at home. Yes. In some cases, it may be better to limit the target to restaurants or ...... ask other people''s opinions. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to ask for help from Aera to sample the product. ...... The question is whether the taste will be accepted, whether there will be demand, and how much the average person will be able to afford. If it is alcohol, it can be consumed in large quantities even if it tastes bad, but that is not the case with seasonings. If you don''t study this carefully, you may end up in trouble later. If the product remains unsold and is discarded in large quantities, it will hurt you a lot, not only financially, but also emotionally. It will be a while before the rice for the raw material becomes readily available. Until then, let''s listen to the opinions of various people and consider the matter. Understood. For now, let''s just be happy that we can eat good food now. Yes!¡¡Nao and Toya, if there''s anything you want me to make, let me know. For now, today''s lunch will be grilled rice balls with miso soup and soy sauce! "Oh, grilled rice balls! A grilled rice ball with real soy sauce on it. If we can eat this, it''s worth making miso and soy sauce for ourselves, even if it costs a little more. I swallowed the spit that came out of my mouth just thinking about it. This is the first time I''ve seen such a thing. We were free to go until the rough processing of the gemstone was finished, but Yuki and I used that time to investigate the crystal ball we found in the boss room where the gargoyle was. When we first came here, it would have been impossible for us to investigate, as we were left to our own devices and lacked the knowledge to do so. However, over the past year or so, our knowledge and understanding of magic has greatly improved, as we have read many books and actually used magic to verify our findings. We may not be as good as experts, but we can do some research. As a result, I found out that... Disrupting transference magic? Yeah, probably. That''s what I was expecting when I couldn''t get into the magic bag. ...... That''s what I was thinking. That''s what I thought, too, when you were lined up in the boss''s office like you meant something. That''s right. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. If it was in a treasure chest, but it was set up like that, some kind of magic tool of space-time magic, and the elements that make it difficult to transfer long distances in two layers come together, it is only natural to come to that conclusion. It is because of this hypothesis that Yuki and I were able to determine the approximate effect of this crystal ball. A single crystal ball seems to be of little use, though. It''s like a magic tool that works only if you place six of them in the right place in the right way. If we could have gotten six of them intact, we could have sold them for a pretty penny, but ...... our magic destroyed them. I don''t regret using the magic because I thought it was necessary for my safety, but it''s a shame that I missed out on a huge income. "Can it be sold?¡¡This kind of magic? "Yes, it should sell. "Yes, I''m sure it will. I read about it in a book. Like for security. For example, an important facility like a royal castle. It''d be a shame if someone could easily break into a place like that with transference magic. Even though the number of people who can use transfer magic is limited, such facilities are said to be equipped with such devices in case of emergency. However, the magic tools in the book can only protect you for a few dozen meters at most. It''s much less effective than the grimoire that blocked the transfer on a kilometer scale. That''s why it''s so expensive. --If only we had enough crystal balls. You mean it''s just a big crystal ball? Yes. It has no value as a magic tool, but it does have value as a crystal ball, so it''s still a luxury item. ...... What do you do with it? I''m not sure what to do with it. This size is a bit delicate for interior decoration, isn''t it? "Yes. If you put it in the wrong place, there''s a risk of convergence fire. Oh, you know, you can''t put a round transparent object near a window. In addition to crystal balls, there have been occasional accidents involving goldfish bowls, bottles, and other objects that act as convex lenses that have caught fire or burned. You don''t have to be near a window to be in danger, you know.¡¡You don''t need to be near a window to be in danger, because the sun can penetrate deep into the room at dusk in the winter, let alone in the summer. In this house, ......, most places are out. All the rooms in this house have windows facing south, so it''s very bright. It''s bright, but in other words, it''s dangerous to put a crystal ball anywhere in the room. You can block out the sun by putting up a partition, but if you want to put it in a room, it''s ...... too delicate. To put it bluntly, it is a distraction no matter where it is displayed. A crystal ball of this size. I have no use for it. I think you should sell it. That''s the safest thing to do. Yes. Some people thought that if I didn''t sell it, I could keep it and use it for something, but the problem was that it wouldn''t fit in my magic bag. It''s fragile, it''s heavy, it''s spherical, it rolls, and it''s a pain in the ass. Although it was an unusual magic tool, the crystal ball was eventually exchanged for money and distributed to each of us. 384-352 Get out of the forest area (1) It''s been a little over a week since I returned to Rafaan. While we were spending our days repairing the war hammer and extracting yeast from the sake, we received word that the processing of the gemstones we had left with them had been completed. We immediately went to pick it up, sold half of it as it was, and came back with the other half. The ladies, who were discussing what accessories to make, didn''t seem to be planning to work on it right away, and seemed to keep it as a gemstone for a while. The next day, when we were talking about going back to the dungeon, it started to snow. It wasn''t a lot of snow, only a few centimeters. But it didn''t snow last year, and according to Diora, it''s rare for it not to snow. In a normal year, it rains a few times. In a normal year, it rains only a few times, and in a year with a lot of rain, it may rain more than ten times. It seems to have already fallen this year, while we were holed up in the dungeon. Based on this information, and considering the possibility of more snow and the need to get used to it, we decided to delay our departure for a few days and wait for the snow to disappear. There was too little snow for snow combat training, and there was no need to leave in a hurry. In the time available, Mitya and the others could play in the snow, we could observe the sake brewing, and Natsuki could work on improving the taste of miso and soy sauce. Three days later, when we were sure the snow had melted, we headed for the dungeon. Once in the dungeon, it was business as usual. The temperature was not too low, and the dungeon could be used not only as a summer retreat but also as a cold retreat. We went down slowly, slaying demons, collecting meat, and harvesting nuts, and we were well on our way to the second level. Nao, do you think you can make the transition? "Yeah, probably no problem. How far do we have to go? I''d like to pick up where we left off, what do you think? To be honest, it''s hard for me to figure out which transition point is where, because I''ve set up so many transition points last time, but I know that the farthest transition point is at the back of the boss room. I know that the farthest transfer point is behind the boss room. No, it''s too hard with all of us. Should I rest ...... at the halfway point? It''s a good idea to take a look at the website to see if there is anything you need to know. But you can''t catch fish when you''re in transition. I''m sure that''s true. We nodded our heads at her plausible words. For safety reasons, it is best to avoid going down the cliff, but the number of fish that can be caught then is far more than a bite. Since we haven''t been fishing lately, we want to keep the flying gar in order to conserve our stock of river fish and shrimp. The ago dashi soup was delicious. Because of this, many of the flying gars were dried, but Mitya, who likes to eat them grilled, was a little teary-eyed. When you think about it, ....... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of that.¡¡If there are no restrictions on transfer, it would be a waste to have so many transfer points set up. "Right. In addition, I''m curious about what''s going on inside the rock pile. You mean the status of the golem''s resurrection? Yeah. You''re wondering how long it will take for it to come back?¡¡Like, do iron golems revive at the same pace as normal demons? If that''s the case, it''s understandable that the dungeon where the Iron Golem appears is of high value. If it hasn''t been resurrected yet, its value as a mine is a bit delicate. It would be difficult to mine consistently without a larger dungeon. That''s true. But you know, even if there were no enemies, it would still take a long time to go down there on foot, right? If you just follow the correct route, it won''t take that long. ...... If you''re going to go through the rocky mountains anyway, it seems a shame not to check and see if the treasure chest has been restored. "Gems, you know. Yeah, yeah. There were so many beautiful ones. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. ...... No, I understand how you feel, but it''s not like they''ve come back in such a short time, is it? I don''t think so.¡¡It''s been over a month in some places. If it was near the entrance, yes, but a ...... treasure chest? It''s not going to come back that easily. It contains something valuable. If you don''t find any treasure chests in the first area, you can just follow the correct route. That would be ......, wouldn''t it? I''ll go with that. "All I need is a fish. That''s Mitya. That''s Mitya. So we went down the cliff, catching flying gars and looking for the treasure chest, but as I expected, it was not so convenient to find it again. After a day or so in the cave, we gave up looking for the treasure chest, and continued onward through a series of transitions. Defeating the occasional golem was smoother than we expected. In addition to the fact that there were fewer of them than last time and we were more familiar with them, the biggest factor was the change in armament. Specifically, the weapon used by Toya. During the last vacation, I thought I heard some thumping noises coming from the corner of the garden, but it seems that Toya had made an original war hammer in his spare time. His skills as a blacksmith are probably not as good as Gantz''s or Tommy''s, but he made it as a hobby, using expensive materials without regard to profitability, and it definitely paid off. Furthermore, with the help of Mary who took the Impact Hammer instead of Toya, we were able to get through the rocky mountains and into the forest in less time than expected. This is where Nao was talking about. So this is the tricky forest that Nao was talking about. It looks like a normal, peaceful forest. It''s a trap. If you''re not careful, you''ll get hit.¡¡No kidding. I insisted with some effort to Yuki, who seemed somewhat fluent. Basically, they come at you from a hiding place. This is the characteristic of the demons that appear in this forest. There''s no such thing as an enemy that responds to [Searching for Enemies] in an obvious way. Thanks to this forest, or should I say thanks to this forest, my [Spotting Enemies] had risen from level 5 to level 6 when I came back from here. If I were to walk around carelessly, I would be easily killed. Trent''s a pain in the ass, isn''t he? "Walking trees!¡¡I want to see it! Mitya raised his hand in response to Toya''s words. I''m sure that even the inhabitants of this world have never had the opportunity to see such a strange creature (?), although they listened with interest when I told them about this forest. I guess Mitya, a resident of this world, never had a chance to see such a strange creature. I think it''s safest to cut them down before they start moving,......, but I understand the feeling. Yeah, ...... over there. You see those trees?¡¡Three trees in a row, thin, thick, thin. That middle one is probably Trent. The distance is about 20 meters. Trent''s [mimicry] skills are not to be underestimated, as even at that distance, if you''re not paying attention, you won''t notice him. --It doesn''t need to mimic, it''s just a tree if it doesn''t move. "What?¡¡That tree?¡¡That''s the one, isn''t it? Yuki raises her eyebrows and puts her head close to the side of my face to check the direction I''m pointing, but I don''t think she can tell.¡¡I don''t think you can tell. Haruka also peeked her head above Yuki''s head, but quickly shook her head as if she didn''t understand. Hmm, I don''t really understand. "Yes. I don''t even smell it. ...... When Haruka and the others avoided them, Mitya and the others were next. Mitya is quite a bit taller than me, so I crouched down next to her and showed her with my fingers, but she still didn''t seem to understand. The only one who reacted differently was Toya, who had the second highest [spotting enemy] level after me. 385-353 Get out of the forest area (2) "...... Oh, I think I figured it out. Oh, that''s great, Toya. I can count on you!¡¡--I think I can rest now. It''s really hard to stay focused enough to see through mimicry and stealth. Trent is the most troublesome, but Shadow Margay and Shadow Viper are also not to be underestimated. But only if you hit them hard enough to get a reaction.¡¡If you''re asking me to notice you while you''re walking, it''s going to be tough, probably. "d*mn, that''s useless. I''m not going to call you Toya. I clicked my tongue deliberately, disappointed in my expectations, and Toya''s eyes flashed at me. "Hey. You''ve been calling me that all along. I''m kidding. I''m just kidding. After a few encounters, you might learn to recognize it. I had a hard time finding it the first time. If you''re in mortal danger, you might start to recognize it. ...... What''s the point if you''re dead? I know. Let''s just try it. Let''s see. ...... "Stone Missile. I wondered for a moment what I should use, then chose the safest magic. A stone the size of my fist flew straight from my hand and smashed into the trunk of Trent, but... It''s not moving. ......? Isn''t it? Oops, you''re giving me the stink-eye, aren''t you? You''re in trouble, Mr. Trent. If you ignore me, you''ll ruin my credibility. "...... ''Explosion'' Hey! "Hey! I thought I heard a panicked voice, but I must have imagined it. I''m fine. I''m cool. I''m aiming for the top of the torrent. I aimed for the top of the torrent, where the branches were thicker. It started to move when the explosion inside it blew away the twigs and sifted through the leaves. I thought it would be too much ......, but it wasn''t. Explosions are explosions. It''s pretty flexible, you know?¡¡You can use less flame and more blast, or vice versa. There''s a lot of freedom in magic in this world. I''m not going to use it on the spur of the moment either. I''m practicing and verifying these things with Yuki. Using fire magic in the forest and causing a huge fire is not a good idea. The other spells such as ''Flame Missile'' and ''Fire Jet'' are flames no matter how you use them, but only ''Blast Flame'' can reduce the flames and increase the blast. Although the damage would be reduced, it would be useful as a fire magic with a range that could be used in the forest with relative ease. I think it would be more appropriate for Haruka to learn wind magic as a ranged attack spell, though, in terms of her magical qualities. You''re so creepy!¡¡Hahahaha! I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. I feel an indescribable sense of discomfort. But if you''re asking me if I''d be okay with tentacles that look like sea anemones, I think that would be more creepy. But... Can I die now?¡¡...... Then, "Plane Shift". I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of this. What, that''s it?¡¡It''s so easy. ...... Trent was killed without any effort, and Toya let out a sigh of disappointment. You can''t do that if you suddenly start moving in the forest.¡¡If you try to run away and open the distance, you might find Trent there as well. "Right. There are many other monsters that hide in the forest and attack, so once they start to run away, it will be very troublesome. So it''s because they attacked from outside the forest. That''s what I mean. So, don''t underestimate them too much. If you''re not careful, they can hit you over the head or come at you from behind, you know? You get it! Yes! Only Mitya and Mary responded, but Toya and the others nodded as well. Now that you understand how troublesome Trent can be, where do you want to go with ......? Last time, our goal was to return home, so we moved towards the transfer point set up by Haruka and the others, but this time it''s different. We''re going to go through the forest, but there''s no map, no roads in this area. It''s hard to know which direction to go. "This time, we have Yuki who can do [mapping], so it should be easier than last time. ...... I?¡¡I can handle it to a certain extent, but if possible, I would like to take a method that is less likely to lead me astray.¡¡I''d like to go along this rocky mountain or that river over there, right?¡¡We can go along the river. If you''re looking to make money, you should probably go into the forest, but with the current situation, you can''t sell torrents. ....... I''m not sure if I''ll be able to afford it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to afford it. I don''t know about the snake one, but I think Margay''s fur will sell for a good price. I''ve only heard of them, but I haven''t seen them. Now it''s ....... I didn''t bring it, okay?¡¡It''s in the same magic bag that the torrent is in, so I left it at home. Yeah. Well, I''m sure you''ll get a chance to see it soon, if you''re in the area. Yeah. So, which way do we go?¡¡It''d be a little easier to tell if we knew the terrain. "Then why don''t you look at it from above? I blurted out, and Toya, pointing to the sky, said something quite absurd. "How?¡¡Just so you know, my ''walk on air'' isn''t effective enough to get you to high places. No, you don''t have to do that. There are high places. No, you don''t have to do that, there''s a high place," he said, pointing to ...... behind him. I looked back and all I could see was a high, sheer cliff. "...... I see. I can see it if I climb up here. I''ve been practicing rock climbing for a while now, and I''ve acquired the skills to climb, but I''ve never had the chance to climb. "So, who wants to go first? As I said, my gaze went to Toya. He knew exactly what I was talking about, and nodded immediately. "Well, I guess me. Once roped, anyone can climb, but it''s a bit difficult at first. Since there was almost no difference in our [climbing] skills, Toya, with his physical strength, was the first choice when it came to who should go. Without complaining, Toya took out his rock climbing gear and started to climb the wall. The rest of us backed him up with a lifeline. We watch as he climbs, occasionally looking back to check the scenery. That lightness of foot is indeed that of a beast. In no time at all, he had climbed so high that his figure had become small. How was it? "You can see the whole thing when you climb that high. If you go up that far, you can see the whole thing for yourself.¡¡It''s hard to explain. I found it kind of interesting. It''s hard to explain.¡¡Well, I''m going to go next time. "Well, I''ll go up next time." When someone says something like that, you have no choice but to go up there. Since the rope was already in place, there was little danger. I followed Toya to the cliff, climbed to the top and looked back. The first thing I saw was a rather large circle of forest. The river that Natsuki and I fell into runs along the left third of it, and rocky mountains surround the entire area. The image is of a forest inside a caldera. However, the outer wall of the mountain is quite steep, and is not something that can be easily climbed over. There are only slits in the upper and lower reaches of the river where you can go out. There is one more place, slightly to the right in front of where we are climbing, that looks like a cut. In other words, if you want to go through this forest, you have to go down the river, through the cut, or risk going over the rocks. But as Toya had said, there were some very interesting things in the clearing. 386-354 Get out of the forest area (3) It was a huge tree. It was not unrealistically large, as one might think of it as a fantasy, but it was one or two times larger than the surrounding trees, and more than three times as tall. It stood tall in front of the pathway, as if it were a roadblock. And in front of it, there was a little wide open space--well, that''s too obvious. According to my game-like thinking, that was almost certainly the boss area. That tree must be moving. If it doesn''t, I''ll be disappointed. I take another look at the whole area, and drop down on the rope to let the next person take over. Since we''ve been up and down cliffs many times before, there''s no one who''s shying away, and it doesn''t take too long for everyone to finish. The only one who took a little longer was Yuki, but she had taken out a map and wrote on it, so it was only natural. "What did you think? "Probably, or rather, almost certainly, the rocky mountain area, followed by the forest area. That cutout area is the boss room, or maybe the boss area. That''s right. There will definitely be huge torrents, right? I mean, they''re already there, aren''t they? I''ve never seen multiple bosses on the same level before, but they''re not always separated by stairs, according to the dungeon books. I guess everyone felt the same way I did. If this place was outside the dungeon, it would be different, but since it''s surrounded by a rocky mountain that restricts your movement, it would be strange if there were nothing here. How about going down the river?¡¡Wasn''t there a rocky outcrop there too? "There''s also a way up the mountain. It''s a bit expensive, but it''s ...... not impossible. Yeah, that''s an option. However, I don''t think you can get through ...... without incident. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. I''m curious to see what will happen when we try to go through the river part, just like the flash floods that hit us when Natsuki and I fell. I''m curious, but I don''t think I want to experience it. Choking can be avoided by magic, but muddy water is not something you can just breathe through. You''ll probably hit a rock or get hit by a piece of driftwood.¡¡In the literal sense. There''s Trent and stuff. It''s ...... dangerous to get tangled up in those roots underwater. Yeah. It''s dangerous just to have a piece of driftwood crash into you, but it''s also dangerous if that piece of driftwood attacks you, no pun intended. There''s also the danger of a waterfall up ahead, you know? If I fall, I''m dead. Even without the trap, it''s dangerous. No way we''re getting out of there. It may not be ''game system impassable'' like the shortcut Natsuki and I took through the boss''s gargoyle, but it seems to be highly dangerous. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you out. I''m not sure what to make of it. I can''t even rock climb with a doorplate on my back. Flying Gars are exactly that type. If you''re prepared to rock climb, you''ll be able to handle climbing, but dealing with enemies is another thing. Even if Toya is able to climb with a doorplate on his back, he can never be too careful because there are enemies that attack not only from behind but also from the side of the rock, like rock spiders. Normally, I would gather information before entering a dungeon, but that doesn''t apply to this dungeon. We''re the first ones. On the other hand, that''s why we''re getting good stuff. The risk is proportional to the reward. First kill rewards, treasure chests, that sort of thing. We go back and forth, buying unnecessary equipment and doing inefficient things because there are no adventurers to go on. The reward may be a treasure chest, but we don''t want to take unnecessary risks for it. If that''s the case, we''re going to have to go for that cut-through. ...... Are there three routes? "Well, there are three routes: straight through the forest, along the rocks from here, or along the river? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. I nodded. "Oh. As for the forest across the river, there''s no point in going there, right? Unless you''re looking for treasure chests or something. It''s ...... unlikely, though, isn''t it? We haven''t found any in the meadow area or in the forest so far. That''s right. I''m not opposed to it if you want to go, but from what Nao and the others have told me, it seems to be quite troublesome.¡¡This forest? I don''t want to go that far either. ...... For now, let''s consider the three ideas Yuki presented, shall we? Cut through the forest. Needless to say, it''s the shortest distance. But even then, it would take more than a day to get there, and you''d have to be on your toes the whole time, so it would be quite tiring. Specifically me. Whether or not I can rest depends on how reliable Toya''s [spotting] is, but realistically speaking, it will be difficult for me to relax and let Toya do the work. We continue along the river. The advantage is that the path is easy to find and the threat from the forest is slightly reduced. The problem is that the river is not always free of threats, and there are not always convenient places to walk along the river. You can''t be sure that there are no crocodiles or other monsters in the river, and if both banks are cut off, you either leave the river or go through it. Considering the fact that there were flash floods, there seemed to be little advantage. Along the rocky mountain. As you can see from above, there is almost no risk of getting lost, and the rocky mountain on one side reduces the threat from the forest. The only drawback is that it''s a long way to go, and there''s a risk of collapse. Having experienced such a trap once, we cannot be too careful. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages, but we chose the path along the rocky mountain after much discussion. The most important factor in our decision was that we didn''t need much material from the forest at the moment. The price of magic stones from Shadow Margay is around 10,000 rares, which is a little cheaper than the demons we encounter near the entrance of this dungeon. Despite the danger, the profit from the magic stones is small. The destination of torrent materials is yet to be determined, and the price of furs and meat is also unclear. Considering the Bind Viper, it is likely to be sold at a reasonable price, but the purchase price of demon meat does not depend on the strength of the demon, but simply on how delicious it is to eat. No matter how strong the enemy is, if it tastes bad, it''s garbage. And in most cases, there are not many demons that are more useful and tasty than orcs - in other words, there are not many demons that can be sold at a high price. The same is true for materials such as fur, etc. Even materials from strong demons are garbage if they have no use. The only thing that can be sold at a higher price is the magic stone. It''s a very hard world. In the case of skins, the stronger the demon, the stronger the leather, so in many cases the strength is proportional to the price. I''m not sure if this is a good idea. A few days after choosing to go along the rocky mountain. Our journey was going well. There were no attacks or rockfalls from the rocky mountain side, which we had been a bit worried about, and the only problem was the forest. On the other side, there were some attacks by Trent and Shadow Margay, but we were surrounded and only had to watch one side. My mental fatigue was greatly reduced, and Yuki''s ability to use Plane Shift also helped. More importantly, with so many people, I felt much safer than when I was working alone with Natsuki. After all, numbers are power. Six days after entering this area. We had reached what we thought was the boss area. 387-355 Get out of the forest area (4) The open space at the entrance to the cut-through was a little larger than a schoolyard. As if to make it easier to fight, there was a flat area with only grass growing on it. And there is only one tree that stands tall, blocking the path. That''s a ...... Trent, no matter how you look at it. It''s a big one. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Elder Trent. It''s also visible in detection. And by the way, it doesn''t have [Mimicry], does it? It''s not insanely big like a dindle, but it''s big enough to be a giant tree. Of course, it''s nothing compared to the torrents we''ve seen in the past. ...... The diameter of the trunk is about three meters, and the height is about 50 meters. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. It''s probably going to start moving when you step into this square, right? I''m sure it will. It''s too big. ....... Mee, there''s nothing you can do. Even with my weapon, it''s too big. ...... She looked up at the Elder Trent branch and compared her own bastard sword with Mitya''s, whose mouth was bent into a crooked grimace. And so it should be. It''s not a branch, but rather a log. In Trent''s attack pattern, it would be like a log over 30 centimeters in diameter being swung down from high above your head. A club wielded by an orc is in no way comparable. Not to mention Mitya''s main weapon, the small sword, even Mary''s bastard sword would be tough to fight. I''m not sure if there''s anyone who can do that. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m here. The toughest of our primary weapons is Mary''s bastard sword. Toya''s weapon is a little thinner than Mary''s because it can be handled with one hand. Of course, because of the attribute steel, his weapon is much more powerful than weapons made of iron, but it is still impossible for him to cut a log with a single sword. I''m not sure if I can find a sword that''s stronger and sharper.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a physical limit, right? A magic sword is a sword made of attribute steel through which magic power is passed. The sharpness is greatly increased, but it is not insane enough to win a fight with a lump of iron. I could cut through an untrained lump of iron, an Iron Golem, to some extent, but it was still half my arm. That''s where I lost. It just fell apart. Of course, it was too risky to try such a thing on the spot, so I tried it against the remains of the Iron Golem. That was the last time I was back in LaFang. So, in fact, the steel sword Toya is using now is the second generation. Incidentally, the experiment was conducted by Toya without our permission, so he had to pay for the renewal. I don''t know the exact details, but I''m sure the cold wind is blowing in his pocket right now. The attribute steel itself was melted down and reused, so it was probably cheaper than making a whole new one, but even so, it must have cost him a hundred gold coins. We who can use magic - except for Natsuki - will attack, and the rest of us will support them, I suppose. I''d like to think that we can handle Trent, but if we don''t ...... What if it doesn''t? We run. The way we came. When Haruka asked me back, I simply answered and pointed along the rocky mountain. You can escape from the boss here. There''s no option not to run when things get dangerous. But make sure you don''t run into the forest. Right. There''s no more dangerous place to run than this forest. It''s almost impossible to detect a Trent while running, a Shadow Margay or a Shadow Viper might be able to notice it, but whether they can deal with it is another matter. Stubby Burrows, who suddenly attacked from under your feet, is not to be underestimated. I''m not sure what to do. Mitya is likely to be overpowered, so keep your distance, just enough to draw his attention. I understand. If I were you, I''d like to attack you with magic before you enter the square, but you''re too far away. We approached cautiously as we worked out our magic. I was afraid that if we stepped into the square, we would be in an immediate battle, but Elder Trent didn''t seem to make a move - and soon we were in magic range. I''m not sure what to make of this. That''s what you get against Trent. It''s a very effective spell against immobile targets, and Yuki and I cast it at the same time. "Hm? "Huh? The moment I felt something strange about the response, Elder Trent began to move. Its movements were exactly the same as the Trent I had seen before, but its size was completely different, so it was much more powerful. And the part we attacked... "It''s not sharp! "Razor!¡¡--It''s not a razor!¡¡Resist? I observed Trent as Yuki said something that sounded like a commercial, but I didn''t see any hindrance in his movements. Yuki and I targeted the left and right sides of the trunk, about a meter wide. That''s about the extent of the space division we were able to target, but it doesn''t look like it''s been cut. No, there seemed to be a cut in the bark of the tree, but the cut probably ended there. It may not have reached the main part. Not so easy. "Didn''t I use enough magic? You can reduce the effects of magic by countering it with your own internal magic power, just as the skill of [magic barrier] exists. It''s difficult to prevent physical magic like stone missiles with this skill, but you can reduce most fire and wind magic to some extent, and if you can resist magic that is abnormal, it won''t have an effect. I''ve never experienced this, though, since I can''t use dark magic. And spacetime spells are, in a sense, similar to anomaly spells. For example, spells such as "Slow Time" can be countered by this, and spells such as "Transport" will only work if the opponent is almost unresisting. But if they can''t resist, you can easily defeat them by transporting the troublesome enemy into the air, and this is only natural. As Yuki mentioned, the more magic power you put into it, the harder it will be to resist, but I''m not sure if it''s worth it. It is usually more effective to shoot a lot of Fire Arrows with the same amount of magic power than to use Slow Time with a lot of magic power. Because of this, I rarely had a chance to use space-time magic in battle after I first tried it out for a while. Instead, I''ve been making use of the fact that there''s no damage even if resistance fails, and I''ve been making effective use of it in order to raise the level of our [magic barrier]. "What do you think?¡¡Do we try again? "Speed-wise, I think I can handle it. ...... Elder Trent approaches with his roots pulled out of the ground, slamming into the ground. The swaying of his upper body (?) is quite impressive. But at first glance, its speed seems to be the same as that of a normal Torrent. But in fact, with a body twice the size of Trent''s, they move in what appears to be the same way. ...... Their terminal movements are certainly faster than Trent''s. I''m not sure if that will work.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. "Nao and Yuki''s transitions are important for escape as well. If you can afford it, that is. ...... In the case of space fragmentation, the all-or-nothing nature of it is troubling. Even if you use a lot of magic power, it is almost useless if you are resisted. Should I still give it a try? ......? I only had a few moments to think about it. It was Haruka who made the decision. 388-356 Get out of the forest area (5) Let''s try another spell for next time. Copy that. Right. With Haruka''s words, the decision was made to retreat. In fact, it would be difficult to even cut the roots, let alone the trunk, when the "space division" was ineffective. We retreated little by little, searching for a magic that would work and experimenting. "Cutter Storm! The first spell to be unleashed was Haruka''s. A huge tornado formed around Elder Trent and completely covered its zenith. This is the most extensive magic I''ve ever seen. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. I''m not sure what to say. Did you do it? I didn''t do it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. The roots, which are driven deep into the ground every time I move, keep my legs and feet (?) stable. The roots, which are driven deep into the ground as we move, keep our legs and feet (?) stable and do not seem to fall down. After a while, what emerged from the tornado was a rather slim Elder Trent with its thin branches cut off and about 70% of its leaves gone. It''s ...... unclear if it''s been damaged. "Tsk. I used 80% of my magic. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You''ll be able to get a lot more than just a pair of shoes. Unfortunately, he or she has a lot of legs. He or she has a lot of legs, unfortunately, and they don''t stop him or her from shaking a little when the explosion occurs. "Flame Missile". I half-heartedly attempted to burn it, but... Oh, no. It''s a live tree. I aimed at the upper half of the tree, where the leaves were thicker, but I only blew off a few branches, and the fire didn''t start. You''d have to pour oil on it. What do we do now?¡¡We''re running out of space. True to Toya''s words, we kept moving back and were already near the edge of the square. And the damage to the Elder Trent was ...... almost hopeless. It helps that the Elder Trent is a slow attacker, not a rapid attacker, but in a way it is a way to take advantage of the characteristics of this area. But in a way, it''s also a way to take advantage of the characteristics of this area. If you''re cornered in the forest, you''ll have to deal with the torrents and covert monsters that exist there at the same time. "Last. Yuki, Nao, there''s a pit behind you. Yeah! "...... ''Pitfall''! I aimed at the roots of the Elder Trent''s back, the part that supported its massive body, and channeled my magic power to the extent that it would not affect the transition, but... It''s deeper than I thought! No! The pit is not Elder Trent itself, but a magic that affects the ground. I''ve read that it works well even if the Elder Trent''s resist ability is high, but what I didn''t expect was how deep the Elder Trent''s roots are. The roots of the Elder Trent were so deep that Toya''s head would have fit through the pit, but the roots extended further down. I was a little hopeful that it might collapse if it lost about a third of its support, but it hardly shook at all. ...... This is impossible. Retreat! "Yes! This time, I''ll wait and see. There was no point in sticking around in this situation. We''ll turn our backs on Trent and run for it. "Ai-shal-ri-tan! Toya, we''re leaving you! I hasten to use my transference magic on Toya, who is pointing at Elder Trent. We had to flee back to Rafan as quickly as possible. I''ve been working on a new project for a while. It''s been a while since we left Elder Trent. We were coming back to that place again. Of course, I''m not talking about that day or a few days later. We''ve spent a good deal of time and money preparing for this, because it seems impossible to deal with magic alone. I made custom-made weapons that would be effective against the torrents, trained with them, and bought all kinds of items. ...... If I couldn''t kill it, I would be in a huge deficit. If you can''t kill it, you''re in the red. Even if you can kill it, you will still be in the red in some cases. You can''t even afford normal torrent materials. But still, I want to kill it. That''s why... Gargoyle and now a specialized weapon. It''s no use. It''s too much to ask. I''m resourceful. Haruka shrugs at Toya, who seems to be unhappy that she can''t use only her signature weapon, her sword, to deal with the situation. But if it''s not a problem to carry, and if it''s beyond what your skill level can handle, then it''s not wrong to use a weapon that suits the enemy. This time, Toya and Mary are carrying huge axes that look like something a dwarf would carry. It looks like it could chop down a small tree with a single blow. When they came here, they tried it on a rock golem, and it cut its body in half with a single blow. It''s that powerful, but it''s also very heavy. If I strengthen my body, I can carry it, but whether I can fight is another matter. So, except for Haruka, we are holding the Bardiche. It is a weapon with an axe attached to the end of a long handle. This is a weapon that uses centrifugal force to strike, so even those of us with inferior strength are guaranteed a certain degree of power. However, it tends to leave a lot of gaps when attacking, and is difficult to handle. Incidentally, it is powerful enough to cut down an orc if it hits cleanly. The only weapon of Haruka who does not have an axe is the explosive arrow. As the name suggests, it is an arrow that explodes when pierced. ...... The cost is about two gold coins. It was made by Haruka, but if you buy it normally, it will cost you at least five gold coins. In addition, Toya''s axe and our bardiche are all flame attribute steel. In any case, Toya''s axe is thick, and of course the amount of attribute steel used in the bardiche we use is large, so the cost is not too shabby. If it wasn''t for the extra income from the Iron Golem, we would have been in a very tough spot. Even if I could kill him with this, I''d probably be in the red, right? "What do you think?¡¡In the event that you''re looking for the best way to get the most out of your business, you''ll be able to get the most out of it. In the meantime, Diora says that Elder Trent will make a fortune if he can get it to the capital. It''s hard to transport them when they''re that size. Some people have asked me whether it is necessary to spend so much money to die. ...... Even though debt is out of the question, I have money at hand that I can use. I''m not sure I''d go as far as to say that I''d go as far as to say that I''d go as far as to say that I''d go as far as to say that I''d go.¡¡It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for.¡¡I said "Ai-share-ritan"," some of them said, and the mission was carried out. Well, even if we lost money this time, we can still use the weapons next time. Except for Haruka''s explosive arrows, which are consumables. If anything, I''m more concerned about the time I spent training the battle axe than the money, but I guess that''s experience. I''m not sure if I''ll ever have a chance to use the [battle axe technique] skill that I somehow managed to acquire this time, but the experience of fighting a big enemy shouldn''t be wasted. Let''s go, then. "Let''s go! We nodded at Toya''s words, and stepped into the square where Elder Trent was waiting. 389-357 Re-fight, Elder Trent! (1) The strategy this time is pretty simple. Let''s just work hard and cut the roots until they fall. The main players are Toya and Mary. Haruka, who can attack at a moment''s notice with great power, will watch the entire area from the rear and provide support and recovery in case of danger. However, unlike in the game, you can''t heal from a distance, so injured people need to return to Haruka''s place on their own. Potions are distributed to all players so that they can heal on their own, but in most cases, if you can''t afford to use them, you''d better run to Haruka. It looks like there are no ...... effects left from last time. It''s growing fast. You can''t feel the effect of Haruka''s magic tearing off the last time on the thick foliage. If the last time you retreated it was a deciduous tree in winter, now it is a deciduous tree in early summer. It''s all over the place. It''s not unreasonable to think that once you leave the dungeon, the boss will be completely healed, but it seems that too much time has passed. "Haruka, do you want to go first? "Hmmm, I''ll stop at ....... I''m not sure how effective it is. It consumes a lot of magic. I''ve got some oil with me, but it''s a ...... double-edged sword, isn''t it? I bought flammable oil after learning that I couldn''t burn it last time. ...... If it burns, I''m in trouble. If you want to know which hurts more, a simple cudgel or a burning cudgel, it''s the latter, of course. It might cause additional damage from burns. Besides, even my "Flame Missile" had almost no effect. It seems that burning a little bit of oil won''t do any good, and if you don''t use it carefully, it will be a waste of money. Oil is not cheap, either. Well, let''s just try to keep it steady! Perhaps because we hadn''t attacked like last time, the Elder Trent only made a move when we were about ten meters away. The Elder Trent pulled a root out of the ground and began to move, swinging its branch down with a crisp motion as if it were touching the ground. Seeing its reach, Haruka retreated a bit, while Toya and Mary stepped forward and slammed their axes at the right moment. With a cracking sound, about two meters of the branch was chopped off, but the damage may or may not have been done. Elder Trent moves the roots without any particular delay. It''s hard to do. You can''t even tell if it''s in pain because it doesn''t have a mouth. But it doesn''t seem pointless, Toya-san! I''m not sure if Mary and the others who cut off the branch are unhappy with it, but the branch is being swung down at the two of them. While avoiding them, the two of them move towards the base of the branch, while we swing the bardiche at the branch. In order to disperse the attention as much as possible, me, Natsuki, Yuki, and Mitya split up on all four sides of the tree to deal with the swinging branches. We''re cutting the ends of the branches as we go. ...... Is this pruning work? I don''t feel like I''m doing much damage. It''s a good thing that the attacks aren''t too violent, since they''re spread out over four locations plus the base of the tree where Toya and Mary are, but they''re also not very responsive. Of course, if they hit you, you''ll get hurt badly, but since they''re swinging down from a high place, it''s easy to see the attacks and not so difficult to avoid them. In return, though, you can''t do any big damage with it. Should I dodge a little closer and aim for the thicker branches? But it''s difficult because of the foliage. The other three also ...... oops, Natsuki has put down his bardiche and switched to his naginata. It''s true that the cleaver seems to be more effective in terms of cutting down branches, and in fact the branches being swung by Natsuki are much cooler than in other places. Should we continue at this rate and wait for Toya and the others to cut the roots? "Toya, Mary!¡¡How''s it going? Oh, it''s pretty tight. It''s going to grow back! I looked at Toya and the others as they fought off the branches, and they certainly looked tough. The roots move much faster than the branches. When you think you''ve been pulled out of the ground, you can be slammed straight down, making a deep gash in the ground, or you can be thrust into the ground. No matter how you look at it, that''s the real deal, and this is just a bonus. Mary and the others are dodging them and attacking, but the sheer number of roots makes it difficult for them to attack. "d*mn it!¡¡d*mn it! Toya, who had just barely avoided the roots, slammed his axe into a root the size of my leg, cutting it in two. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a little creepy. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It''s like regeneration, isn''t it? Is it better to burn the cut end, as is standard for regeneration-type demons? There''s no end to it! "I''ve cut a lot off. ...... As Mary said, if you look closely at the surroundings, you can see that there are more than a hundred roots that have been cut off. In the event you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to get a hold of a friend or family member. What do you think, Haruka? I don''t think you can keep regenerating, but you need ...... energy. Energy ....... I looked up at the top half of Elder Trent, reflecting the light and sprouting green. It looks like it is photosynthesizing. And then there are the roots sticking deep into the ground. It looks like it''s sucking up a lot of nutrients. "Maybe if we got some kind of herbicide, we could get rid of it? Maybe. It''s too late now. Yeah. ...... Okay, let''s burn it. Not many options now. I don''t know if it will work, but if we just burn the leaves, we can get by with the oil we have. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "Mitya, Yuki, Natsuki!¡¡We''ll burn it!¡¡We''ll burn the oil pot! "Yes! "Yes!" I shouted, pointing broadly at the top half of the torrent, and the three of them shouted back. "Toya, Mary, let''s go!¡¡Three, two, one...! Storm! At about the same time as Haruka''s magic enveloped the upper half of the Elder Trent in a swirling wind, oil pots flew into it from four different directions, sending Toya and the others farther back. He also throws another bag of oil at them and fires a "Fire Arrow" at them. Go! A tornado of flames appeared. The heat that scorches even my face from a considerable distance surges forward. "Oh, oh. ....... It burns like hell. ...... I couldn''t help but let out a few words at the unimaginable effect. The one in the bag is a highly volatile oil. The one in the bag is a highly volatile oil that doesn''t last as long. The main ingredient is ethanol, which Haruka and his team extracted by distillation, and then further adjusted by alchemy. The oil jar is the other way around, isn''t it? Yes, as you can see. The tornado of flames lasted less than ten seconds. But even at that level, it succeeded in removing a lot of leaves and igniting the oil in the oil pot. There were four places where the oil stuck to the tree was still flaring up in the wind. But it was not enough to burn the branches. It''s hard to burn a branch that contains water with instantaneous heat. I knew that, but I was a little disappointed. "Alright, there''s another one! As I threw in more oil pots, Natsuki and the others, as well as Toya and the others who had retreated, also threw in oil pots. It''s my job and Yuki''s to light them with magic. If the fire hits an area that is already on fire, it will spread on its own, but if it hits a remote area, you have to deal with it individually. I''m sure you''re suffering, ....... I''m not sure. Mary nodded her head as she watched Elder Trent shake his head. I''d like to think it will work, though, because the branches aren''t burning down, but the leaves are burning to a certain degree. ....... 390-358 Re-fight, Elder Trent! (2) It''s time for the storm to die down. Immediately after Haruka said this, the swirling wind stopped. As a result, the entire Elder Trent was revealed to be rather shabby, with over 80% of its leaves gone. "It works pretty well. The Elder Trent stopped his head banging for a moment as the Storm broke, but in the next moment, a tree branch swung down towards me with a speed that was unlike anything I''d ever seen before. As I jumped back, the branch - or rather, the log that had already become a log - sunk into the ground and made a hole. It''s probably because there''s no more air resistance! I''m not sure if it''s because there''s no air resistance or what!" Natsuki also jumped back, putting down her cleaver and picking up the Bardiche. You''re lighter, you''re faster! The roots are increasing in number! To be precise, the number of roots used in the attack has increased. When Toya and Mary approached the base of the Elder Trent again, they found that they were targeted by more roots than ever before and were unable to attack. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m sorry.¡¡But!¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. I''m not sure.¡¡It''s not that easy to cut! Good. I thought I damaged it, but it just got stronger. I was the one who suggested it. And as for me... "Ah! As soon as you lift up the Bardiche, which you vainly slammed into the ground, and run away from the scene, a branch is slammed into it again. As a result of being swung down quickly and then pulled up quickly, my [battle axe technique] skill can''t handle it at all. I''ve trained up to level 1, but I guess that''s not enough for this level. "You can''t push your way through with your character level! I avoided the branch as much as I could, strengthened the [Strengthening] more, and swung the bardiche at the branch that was pulling me back, but it only scraped the surface slightly. I''m not strong enough to begin with, so swinging down is the best way to use the Bardiche. It is impossible for me to do effective damage by slashing up. Still, the fact that I''m able to use it to some extent is a blessing in disguise, as I''m about to reach the age of 30. I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. But, ......, it''s impossible. It''s impossible for me to do macho fighting. If you can''t cut, a bardiche is just too heavy. I threw it in my hand and grabbed the spear I kept as a backup. It fit. I knew this would fit my hand. If you look at the other three, you''ll see that ...... Natsuki has managed to cut down a branch, but Yuki and Mitya are in almost the same condition as me. They are not getting any hits at all. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. And that''s probably what Haruka saw as well. "Mitya!¡¡You don''t have to attack. Just focus on avoiding it! I get it! I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''ve seen it before. In fact, with Mitya''s physical strength, a bardic attack wielded from a precarious position would have little effect, so there was no point in risking it. Of course, I can''t speak for others, but I have magic. I can''t speak for anyone else, of course, but I have magic, and I''m slowly building up my magic while avoiding the branches'' attacks. Explosive Flame! The converged "explosion flame" hits the middle of the branch. It''s not perfect, but level 8 magic is no mean feat. In addition, the magic that normally causes explosions on a meter scale is converged into a small area. You can guess how powerful it is. With an explosion, a branch the size of my torso bursts open and falls. It echoes with a thud. "Whoosh! This was my first ......, no, my first big score against Elder Trent. A gut pose. And then...! But the next branch that swung down on me immediately made me fall back in a panic. I was just about to knead my magic again when I heard a roar. There was a cracking sound and a huge branch fell in front of me. I hurriedly backed away and glanced behind me to see Haruka standing there with her bow drawn. Did you use it? Yes, it seems to be working well enough. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. It seems that if you cut down 80% of it, it will break under its own weight. "Oh, so you don''t need to blow it up completely? And broken branches, unlike roots, do not regenerate. Elder Trent is waving the shortened branch around, but it doesn''t pose a threat because it doesn''t reach the ground at that length. And now there''s an explosion from Yuki''s side. It must have seen what Haruka and I were doing and started doing the same thing. Are you starting to see a pattern? Yes. I think we can handle it. Trent''s movements are a bit organic and unpleasant, but there are limits. For example, the trunk. The trunk, for example, may ripple a little, but it will not suddenly bend 90 degrees. For example, the branches. It seems to be moving freely, but it is only at the base of the trunk that it is moving freely, and the branches are almost straight, only flexing. The branches are almost straight, with only a little flexion. They seem to expand and contract slightly, but only slightly. In other words, if the branches can be shortened as described above, the attack will not reach the ground. And the higher branches are not long enough to reach the ground as they are. The only branches that need to be dealt with are the longer ones that grow below. "Do you have enough magic power for ......? While avoiding the attack, I look up and count the remaining branches. In my location, the attacks are sporadic because two of the branches are no longer functioning. Perhaps if I dropped four more branches, there would be none left to reach me. But for the base of the tree where Toya and the others are fighting, I''ll have to cut a few more off, and there are still three other sides left. Even though Yuki can also use it, the Explosion consumes a lot of magic power. If I use it 20 times, ...... will be in trouble. You''ll fall. How many explosive arrows do you think you''ll need? They''re pretty powerful, though expensive. Yeah. Expensive. The area of effect is narrow, but if you hit it right, it''s powerful enough to kill an orc or something like that, even an amateur. The modern image of the RPG-7 is that it is like a rocket launcher, and it seems to be a useful item, but it has some drawbacks, so it is not really used very often. First of all, the price. Depending on how powerful it is, it costs between five and ten gold coins to purchase. If you are as skilled as Haruka, you may be able to hit the right spot, but if you miss, that much gold will be wasted. If you consider the profit from selling orcs, you can only use two arms at most. In addition, if hunters and adventurers who cannot kill orcs head-on are forced to use them, their lives will be in danger the moment they miss. You might be able to escape if there is only one orc, but the sound of the explosion is sure to attract enemies. It''s a bit of a bad bet. There''s also the matter of how to trigger it. The explosive arrow that Haruka is using right now uses magic power as a switch, but only a few people, such as wizards and adventurers with a certain amount of training, can control magic power well. It''s a little hard for ordinary hunters. To cope with this, there is a type of magic that is triggered by the impact of a collision, but this type is more difficult to handle. There is no safety pin mechanism, so if you have a magic bag, or even if you just put it in an arrow sling, something could happen. Because of these disadvantages, even though it is powerful, it is not an easy item to carry around casually. 391-359 Re-fight, Elder Trent! (3) "....... Let''s play a big game. I''m not a fan of disposable items and boss battles, as I''m the type of person who can get through a game without ever using an elixir, but I don''t want to get hurt by it. Well... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that the amount of time you spend struggling here can be paid for by hunting down demons. You''re right, if I may say so myself. If you go into the forest and hunt one of the Stub Burrows, you can cover the cost of a few explosive arrows. I know that. But it feels like a waste. That''s poverty. Shall we do it then? "Yes. Once you''ve made up your mind, there''s no need to hold back. Four more branches fall from the explosive arrows and the explosive flames that explode in rapid succession. As expected, there were no more branches that could reach my location, and Haruka''s safety was secured behind them. I would have liked to continue to cover the other areas, but there was a problem. It was a huge branch that was still lying on the ground. It didn''t matter to us who were attacking from a distance, but to Toya and the others who were wielding weapons near the roots, it was a dangerous obstacle. I couldn''t just leave it there, so I took out a rope and hastily wrapped it around the branch. "Okay, Haruka!¡¡Pull! "Yeah! The two of us dragged the branch away from the battle area. It was a branch, but it was a size. It''s almost the same as cutting down a tree. That''s four branches in total. It''s hard work. The two of us finished our work, breathing hard, and checked the status of the other three. Mitya seemed to have the most leeway since he hadn''t attacked, but all the branches were still intact. Natsuki was able to remove some branches, but due to the weapon she was using, she was not able to deal with the thicker parts. Of the three, Yuki seems to be the one with the least room. In addition to the difference in physical ability, one of the factors is probably the fact that the branches that fell from the flames are blocking their movement. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one. Copy that. I''m not sure what to do. I''m not sure what to do. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡It''s dangerous! We decided to deal with it with magic and explosive arrows, and it took about 30 minutes. The battle was still going on. Most of Yuki and I''s magic, plus Haruka''s explosive arrows, eliminated the overhead attacks, but Elder Trent was not so naive that it would end there. As the upper part of the body became lighter, the attack of the roots became more fierce, and they even attacked from underground to the ground, extending their roots as if they were thrusting. It was this attack that made Toya jump back in panic. I can''t help but shudder at the sight of the thin roots stretching out as if they were aiming for Toya''s buttocks. In a double sense. Of course, Elder Trent may not have meant to do that, but I definitely don''t want to be stabbed in the ass and die. Even if you''re lucky enough to survive, it''s pretty humiliating to have to ask Haruka or Natsuki to heal you, even if it''s with ...... magic. Fortunately, you can manage to perceive them with your [Enemy Search] skill. "Hey, Nao. Can''t you do something? I can''t. I can''t. If I use any more of my magic power, it will interfere with my actions. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. The branches broke under their own weight, but not the roots, which could be repaired if damaged to some extent. Even so, I was able to tear out a number of roots by concentrating my attacks, but Yuki and I''s magic power, as well as Haruka''s arrows, were already gone. So the five of us, minus Mitya and Haruka, are surrounding the area and chipping away at it little by little. The job of Haruka and the other two is to clean up the cut roots. If they stepped on the roots and fell, they might be pierced through the body, so this was a simple but important role. But I think we''re almost there, aren''t we? Why? We haven''t moved since a while ago. It would be better if there were no more roots to move ......, right? "Just hope!¡¡But yes. It''s a possibility. If it moves, it will fall. If Natsuki is right and we can reduce the roots to that level, we''ll be saved. ....... I hope so. I really hope you''re right. It''s just too hard. I nodded to Toya, who continued to attack while breathing hard, and raised the Bardiche. However, despite Toya''s hopes, it would be another 30 minutes before Elder Trent was defeated. I''m not sure what to say. "Hahahaha!¡¡Finally! I''m so tired. ...... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. Even though they had been given "Recover Strength" several times along the way, they had been on the move for over an hour with their nerves worn out. I suppose it can''t be helped. Elder Trent is still wriggling his roots a bit, but he''s probably not going to get up from that state. ...... No, he''s not going to relax. Yuki, Natsuki, let''s cut the roots. Yes. Yeah, I think he''s still alive. Me, help! Okay. Then you and Natsuki pair up on the other side. All right! I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. But just to be safe, we kept hitting it with the axe until the [Search Engine] response completely disappeared, and finally our defeat of Elder Trent came to an end. We managed to defeat them without incident. "Good work. Are you hurt? Toja and Mary raised their hands in response to Haruka''s question. I''ve got a broken arm and finger. I don''t think they''re broken. ...... I was hit in the chest ...... and it hurts a bit. It was apparently impossible to avoid all of those attacks. She was hit in several other places, but that seemed to be the worst. So, let''s start with Mary. ...... Oh, and Toya and Nao, turn around and keep an eye on your surroundings. "Yes, sir. Chainmail is a pretty good protective gear, but the downside is that you can''t even see the affected area until you take it all off. We turned toward the forest so that we wouldn''t see Mary, and concentrated on [searching for the enemy]. Even though we had been brawling for quite a long time, there was no change in the appearance of the forest, as if other demons were not allowed to enter the boss area. I''m grateful for that, because it''s impossible for a small group of players to kill the monsters if they keep gathering there, but it''s a little strange, considering that the boss can leave the boss room. Well, it''s a dungeon, so there are plenty of strange things. Oh, that''s a broken rib. Mary, you''ve persevered. "Cure. "Oh, thank you, that''s much better. It was painful to breathe. ...... That''s true. How could you fight in that condition? You could have taken over, you know. No, I''m the vanguard! From what I could hear, Mary''s injuries were quite severe. It was inevitable that she would get hurt as an adventurer, and it was her own choice, but considering Mary''s age, was it a bit arrogant to feel sorry for her? "Hey, can I turn around now?¡¡I''d like you to treat me too. "Hold on, ......, yeah, sure. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I''ll take care of it. As soon as she said that, Toya also started to take off her armor, but she occasionally frowned, as if it hurt to move her arm. I''ll help you. Oh, I''m sorry. Thanks. Oh, no, no, no. There you go, Toya. There you go. "I''m a kid! I''m just a kid!" He argued, but there was no doubt that the pain was severe. With Natsuki''s help, he pulls out the chainmail from Toya, who sits there and hails him. He also took off his armor to expose his injured arm. ....... 392-360 Re-fight, Elder Trent! (4) "...... Whoa. Whoa! "......... I was speechless. The reddish-black arm is not a minor injury by any stretch of the imagination. "How dare you say, ''I don''t think it''s broken''? Isn''t it on the verge of an open fracture? "It''s just that the chainmail and armor kept it in place, right?¡¡How can you move your arm like that? In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, please do not hesitate to contact us. The first time they saw each other, Mary and Mitya were even worse. "Toya, does it hurt?¡¡No, it hurts, doesn''t it? "Yes, it hurts. I mean, it hurts like hell when I see it. It''s not only that, it''s the increased blood flow. Just hold on a little longer. Relax. Haruka looked at him, and Natsuki pressed Toya''s shoulder. And me. Mm, got it. Just as I''m about to press down on Toya''s shoulder, Haruka grabs Toya''s arm and jerks him off. "Agh! Toya grits her teeth and holds on. I know, I know. I''ve been there myself! Just over a year ago. Cure! As soon as Haruka cast the spell, the reddish-black color of his arms returned to normal, and the strength left Toya''s body. Okay, that''s it. "Toya, are you okay? Are you okay?¡¡Toya-san. Yeah, I''m fine. But it''s tight. Seriously. I can understand why Nao cried last year. No, I didn''t cry!¡¡No, I didn''t! It''s a terrible rumor! Mary and Mitya both stared at me and I shook my head in panic. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. Even Toya is crying, you know. This is because I was clenching my teeth! Natsuki grabs Toya''s hand and smiles as he tries to rub his eyes. Natsuki grabs Toya''s hand and smiles. If it hurts, tears will come. It''s normal. That''s right. I''ve heard that if it hurts, it''s better to say ''it hurts'' to make the pain more bearable. "Gosh, ....... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. Since the tears are gone along with the dirt, Toya can''t complain. I understand what Yuki and the others are saying, but I''m more on Toya''s side. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. ...... I''d rather have Natsuki prepare an anesthetic for me. I''d rather have an anesthetic than a potion I''ll never use. That''s terrible, Toya. It''s just a precaution. ...... Natsuki''s response to Toya''s comment was a little more pointed, but she didn''t seem too bothered by it. I''m sure it''s hard to endure the pain until the anesthetic you''re taking takes effect. "Well, what about alchemy?¡¡I''m not sure if you can make an anesthetic that works right away? "I don''t think it''s impossible to make one, but if I use the ...... anesthetic, I''ll also have to use Cure Poison after I heal, right?¡¡Isn''t that a waste of medicine and magic? "If you think rationally, Yuki is right. ...... If you can endure the pain, the cost of the anesthetic and the magic power used for the poison treatment, which is not necessary, are unnecessary. If you''re a normal adventurer, it''s definitely a luxury item. But you''ve never experienced it!¡¡Nao will agree with me, right? Well, it hurts enough to make your eyes go blank, doesn''t it? It''s true, we''ve never had a fracture that bad, but ...... I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. But none of the injuries were so severe that the bones had to be forcibly repositioned, and as Toya said, only Toya and I have experienced such injuries. Incidentally, it is surprisingly rare to get injured during an adventure, and most of the serious injuries, such as broken bones, are caused by mock battles during training. Toya is the one who does the most, and I am the one who is beaten up the most. I''m sure it''s not my imagination that I''m the only one who seems to be more lenient than the rest of the women. Not that it''s because of that, but I''ve been doing it as hard as I can when I''m with Toya, but unfortunately - or fortunately - there hasn''t been an accident where Toya has broken any bones. "So you want Mitya to go through that too? At Toya''s words, everyone''s eyes focused on Mitya. Remembering the pain, she looked at Mitya and couldn''t help but ponder. Even though she''s an adventurer, she''s still too small to put up with it. ....... "Mi, mi can do it! In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not sure what to make of that. ...... Let''s discuss it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. "Oh, right. I almost forgot, my arm hurts so much. When he took off his gloves, his middle and ring fingers had also turned blue. This time, Natsuki gently touched them and examined them. He said, "This one''s broken too. Phew. ...... "Cure". "Agh! Without any warning. I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it, but I''m sure you have. Toya, who didn''t have time to clench his teeth, shouted louder than before, but Natsuki didn''t seem to care and let go of his hand. Yes, I''m healed. "...... tell me beforehand. Are you mad at me about the potion? No?¡¡Not at all. No, I''m not. I''m just trying to give you a warning. I can''t see any hint of anger in her smiling face, but I''m not sure if it''s true or not. He shook the hand that had been healed and put his gloves back on. "Well. Now that the treatment is over, Elder Trent, let''s get rid of it. If we don''t bring this back, we''ll be completely in the red. I mean, it''s insane. You''d have to build a house with the money you just spent. I''m not kidding. The value of all the things we have prepared this time exceeds the price of the land and building of our house. It''s not as if the cash we spent was that much, since we prepared the materials ourselves, but if you calculate the selling price of those materials, it''s about that much. We can''t do anything about the consumable explosive arrows, but Toya''s axe and our bardiche, if they have a chance to play an active role in the future, we can make some money. --No, I''m not asking Elder Trent to come out again, though, am I? For the time being, I can use it to deal with Elder Trent. It''s a hell of a lot sharper than the axes I''ve been using. Toya and Mary are swinging their axes to remove the branches. Yuki and I use the Plane Shift to cut off the base of the tree. If you die, you don''t have to worry about being resisted, but it''s a little hard because you don''t have much magic left. So we used magic only on the thickest parts, and did the rest by hand. After a short rest, we joined in the branching, and eventually we had a huge log, many branches, roots, and stumps. And it''s all in the magic bag. "Collect everything you can. Elder Trent can sell the branches. It''s a branch, but it''s as thick as a log. I think it can be used for some things. It''s an ear for money. Yes, sir!¡¡Money is important! Mitya replied cheerfully, and ran towards the branch in the distance. 393-361 Re-fight, Elder Trent! (5) After picking up the branches as if we were sweeping the square, we finished our work and took a break in front of the clearing. As we ate our lunch to recover our strength and magic from the long fight, we looked at the path that Elder Trent had blocked. The boss is down, but are there any treasure chests? If the pattern is correct, there should be a treasure chest and a transition zone, but ...... the fact that there are multiple bosses on the same level is out of the pattern. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to get the most out of your time. What you can see from here is a slightly uphill path that leads to a chasm, but the chasm is also slightly crooked, so you can''t see what''s beyond it. Like the treasure chest, you''re going to want a transition team when you''re this worn out. Gargoyle''s place is pretty far away. "But I''m curious about that end. But I''m curious about that place." Mitya said, sitting up and moving her toes. Mary nodded to Mitya, but pressed her shoulder to calm her down. I agree with you, but Mee, let''s just rest for now. You know that. I know," she said, "but you never know what might happen. At least here we won''t be caught by surprise. A clearing. We don''t have any place to hide either, but considering the demons that are in the area, we feel safer here. After that, we all rested for a few hours, sitting or lying down on the couches, somewhat fidgety. After Yuki and I had recovered our magic power to the point where it was no longer a problem, we got up to leave. We head for a clearing. Our goal is to see what''s beyond it. No matter what, we''re going to set up a transition point and head back. ...... I hope there''s a treasure chest and a transition point. I hope there are treasure chests and transition points. It''s going to be mentally difficult to go back to the gargoyle for days. "Down this time. "Right. It looks like the road turns and leads down. It was only a short distance up from the plaza. It soon turned into a descent, and the path seemed to have been carved out of the sheer rock, winding gently down. ...... Oh, I can hear the sound of the waterfall. I knew that the river was a waterfall. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "If you could go down the river and go through, who wouldn''t choose that one? That''s true. Especially after the fight with Elder Trent, I strongly agree. Mary smiles a little tiredly at my words. Considering the time and cost involved, I''d rather go down the river, even if it''s a bit risky, if I can make it down alive. I don''t think I could survive falling down a waterfall. I wonder if I could make a glider that could fly over waterfalls. Maybe, as long as it doesn''t send flying gars or anything. ...... You''re right, there are demons out there. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find anything that might help you. Well, we didn''t have to do such a reckless thing, we''ve already defeated it. We can leave a transfer point at the end of the path, so we won''t have to worry about Elder Trent coming back. That''s right. If you can sell Elder Trent for a good price, I think it would be a good idea to have a rematch when he comes back. ...... Mm, rematch. ....... I need to level up, too. I think I''ll be able to sell it at a higher price when it comes back. And Toya isn''t the only one who needs it. We can use disposable items like explosive arrows to kill them, but if we''re going to go around and kill them, we want to be able to do it on our own. The best thing to do would be for Nao and Yuki to become proficient in space-time magic. ....... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you can do it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea.¡¡I''ve been doing a lot of research on that. ...... Actually, I read that it''s tough to use against living things. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to ask your doctor. In other words, you interrupt your own magic power into the part of the body where the opponent''s magic power is, and take control of that part of the body. In other words, it is like taking something that your opponent is holding tightly from a distance without touching it. It is easy to imagine how difficult this would be. In other words, even if the spell had been cast in time when you first encountered the gargoyle, the probability that it would not have worked is probably higher. It seems that inanimate objects are not affected. ...... "The grimoire said, ''If you don''t have a compatible alchemist who can make a magic bag, you can work in the quarry and get paid the wages of dozens of people! That''s what it said. That''s not surprising, considering the labor involved in cutting stone by hand. There is no such thing as power tools, and masonry involves roughly breaking the stone and preparing the surface by hand. The amount of time and effort it takes to do this is enormous, but with the use of the "space divider" it can be flattened in an instant. It may depend on the amount of magic power you have, but even if you paid the wages of dozens of people, it would probably pay for itself. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure what to make of that. It''s something between a plant and a demon. I''ve read that you can get by with golems if you work hard enough. However, Elder Torrent seems to be impossible. At least not with my current level of magic and skill. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a way to make it work. "Oh, no. Most of the time it can be resisted. Don''t be scared!¡¡Don''t do it, okay?¡¡Don''t do it, okay?¡¡I''m not pretending, all right? I''m not. Toya may be safe, but his belongings are not. Belongings. I mean, clothes. I don''t want to see Toya''s treasure on display. And if I involve the ladies, Haruka will kill me. ...... Oh, I see. That makes you feel better?¡¡I''m sure. But then, does that mean that the magic of space division will easily break weapons and such? No, not really. For example, the attribute steel weapon we are using. It''s impossible to break a weapon with magic power passing through it. The same goes for chainmail. So, in reality, there is little danger that we will be able to do anything about the spatial division. In other words, Toya''s treasure has been averted. That''s good. It''s a good thing that Toya''s treasure trove has been averted. "Other than that, it seems to be difficult to find normal clothes that are close to the body. ...... unless you''re dealing with a very high ranking wizard. It''s just a small part of our world. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. We can''t say that there aren''t people who can sever the connection. "Well, the rematch with Elder Trent will be a future issue. Has anyone found the reward for defeating the boss or the transfer team? Everyone shook their heads at Haruka''s question. No, sir. There''s nothing? We''ve already walked more than a few hundred meters from the boss area, right?¡¡Maybe there''s nothing? I was hoping for a transition zone at least. ...... Yeah, it was pretty big, the forest area. I guess we''ll have to go back that way after all. This path is also quite long. ...... Where does it lead to once we get past the rocky mountains? After the mountain area and the forest area, what''s next, the plains? I don''t know.¡¡It''s a dungeon. You can''t always predict what you''ll find in a dungeon. ...... Oh, it looks like you''re through. --Oh, this is ....... Oh, ....... I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I wondered for a moment, but as I stood next to them, I soon found out why. Suddenly, my vision opened up brightly. What lay there was the ocean. 394-362 What is the value of the sea (1) "The sea, sir? Yes. The ocean. Not like a subterranean lake or something? No. It was very salty. After returning from the dungeon after several days, we visited the adventurer''s guild and reported to Diora. On the other side of the cut, there was only a small amount of grassland, a wide sandy beach, and a vast ocean that filled our vision. With so many rivers flowing through it, it was possible that there was a sea. ...... Our feeling was, "I didn''t think it really existed. Even those of us who have actually seen it can''t believe it, so it''s no wonder that Diora is skeptical. Is it really so rare to find an ocean in a dungeon? It''s not found in any of the dungeons in this country, at least. No dungeon has ever been fully explored, so maybe there is one somewhere. ...... Is that so? As far as I know, yes. Not all the information about the dungeon will be made public. So you''re saying you don''t know much? It''s possible that the place is also a salt lake. ......?¡¡If it''s in a dungeon, what''s the difference between an ocean and a salt lake? "Size, I guess. I''ve never heard of a salt lake in a dungeon, but if it''s a pool of salt water and it''s big enough that you can''t see the end of it, then I''d classify it as an ocean. "Then it is an ocean. I could see the horizon from the hill. What we saw after passing through the cut was the entire ocean, with no islands in sight. With the horizon, I wondered if the dungeon existed on a planet. I wondered if dungeons existed on planets, but it was probably a waste of time to think about it. But when it comes to the ocean, you can''t just leave it there, can you? Is that so? Yes. Iron is one thing, but salt is also an important commodity. ...... No, I think it would be difficult to manufacture salt in a dungeon. I''m not saying it''s impossible, but it would be hard to build a salt field, and I wonder how to secure workers to work there. I don''t think it''s worth it to take a civilian and guard him with soldiers, or to use a skilled man who doesn''t need guarding as a worker. --I thought about it, but Diora shook her head. Not really.¡¡Well, it''s a lot of hauling. If you ask me, I heard that there are magical tools for salt production without building a salt field. I heard that working in the salt fields was hard work, and with alchemy, it was only natural that such magical tools would be developed. In addition, the source of energy for magic tools is magic stones, and there is no need to worry about their supply in the dungeon. This country does not face the sea, so it is not common, but it is said that magic tools are commonly used in coastal countries. However, if you are in a dungeon, you will need to have guards on duty to protect the magical tools, so it is not something that can be easily commercialized. And whether you actually do it or not, it''s important to be able to do it. ...... The salt they sell in this town is rock salt, right?¡¡Is it produced in a few places? I can say yes or no. There is a mountain range in the north, right?¡¡The salt mines are in that area, but the demons in the area are strong and dangerous. There may be places to mine if you look in the mountains, but so far they haven''t found any places where it''s safe to mine on a large scale. The reserves are not very large, and the industry is not very lucrative. The reason why they are still mining is because they can''t completely depend on other countries for salt, which is a necessity. This town is located near a mountain range and far away from other countries, so rock salt is distributed, but in places close to other countries, a lot of salt is imported from abroad. So it''s all about bargaining power. That''s what I mean. At least we don''t have to pay more than the price of domestically produced salt. We can''t say to our importers, ''We''re stopping the salt! When an importer says, "We''re going to stop selling salt," or "We''re going to raise the price! When the importers say, "We''re going to stop producing salt," or "We''re going to raise the price," whether or not you can say, "Well, we''ll produce it ourselves," is a big question. Come to think of it, there was a term for resource diplomacy. When you think about it, simply saying, "It''s cheap, so we can just buy it from abroad," or "We don''t need to produce it ourselves," is quite a risk from a diplomatic point of view. So, in a case like this, we need to check ....... And by confirmation, you mean ......? I''m not sure if there really is an ocean, as Haruka and the others have reported. I trust them, but that''s not the point. We need a third party to confirm the existence of the ocean before we can make an important report. I''m sure you''re right. I understand, but ...... do we need a report in the first place?¡¡That''s our private property, isn''t it, in a manner of speaking? "Right?¡¡Doesn''t it matter to the Adventurer''s Guild what happens on private property? At Yuki and I''s words, Diora-san lowered her eyebrows as if troubled. I''m sure you''re right, but the Adventurer''s Guild is responsible for managing the dungeons, so if you can help us out, we''d appreciate it. ...... Normally, who owns the dungeon? Needless to say, it is the lord who rules the land. The only reason we can say that the Dungeon of Refuge is ours is because the lord gave us the right to own it. The relationship between the adventurer''s guild and the dungeon is that the owner entrusts the management of the dungeon to us. A dungeon has value only when adventurers enter it and collect materials. Of course, there is a way for the owner to manage the dungeon, but it is much easier to outsource the management to the adventurer''s guild in terms of know-how. Therefore, most dungeons are managed by adventurers'' guilds. In such cases, the status of the dungeon''s exploration is reported to the owner of the dungeon, the lord, and especially important matters must be reported to the state as well. ....... This means that our dungeon has nothing to do with it, right? Strictly speaking, yes, but ...... It''s important information that should be reported to the government, but since there is no reporting requirement for dungeons that are not managed by the government, even if you know about them, you don''t report them. That seems to be the case. It is indeed difficult. If you are pursued for something, will you be able to say, "I didn''t report it because I wasn''t obligated to"? In a country governed by the rule of law, you might be able to get away with "I didn''t violate any law," but here, ....... In a legal country, you might be able to say, ''It''s not against the law,'' but here, it''s not. But in that case, if they bring in material related to the sea, ...... Diora said with a crisp expression, but slurred her words. If you bring it up, I will have no choice but to report it, I suppose. At that time, the report might not be ''there is an ocean in that dungeon'' but ''there might be an ocean'', but what is the point of going to that much trouble to hide it? Especially considering Diora''s position, I feel bad about putting her at risk. Diora has been a great help to me, so I think it''s okay to cooperate with her. "Well, I''m willing to help, too, but-- "Thank you! In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the site, you can contact us at the web site. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of this. Normally, we would ask a high-ranked adventurer to confirm this. That being said, Haruka and the others do meet the requirements, but they''re the ones involved this time. "Other high-ranked adventurers? But as you know ......, there are no high ranking adventurers in this town. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few. 395-363 What is the value of the sea (2) What would you do then?¡¡Call them from other towns? That''s one way to go, but another way would be for the guild staff to go with the adventurers as escorts. "Guild staff: ...... At Diora''s words, I looked around the guild, but to be frank, the number of guild staff here was small. I''m sure there are a few uncles in the warehouse and a few other employees that aren''t on the public eye. ....... Isn''t that dangerous? "And while we''re at it, those guards are us, right?¡¡I''m afraid to take an amateur with me, aren''t you? Yeah, right. We''re not very good at guarding people - we''re not even experienced enough to say that. If there are high-ranked adventurers who can escort up to two layers, there is no need for the guild staff to go there in the first place. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. That''s the thing, isn''t it? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what you need to do. So, Diora, you can fight to a certain extent? "Yes, really, ''to a certain extent''. I''m not rich, but I''m still better off than the common people. To put it simply, they had enough time to train their bodies. In this world where going out of town is an immediate danger, it is better to train your body if you can afford it. It can be deadly. So, I guess I''ll have to ask the branch chief. "I''ve only met the branch manager once, at ....... Mr. Marx, is it? You remember me well. Yes, Marks. That''s Natsuki. I''ve only met you once, about a year ago. The only thing I remember about him is that he had a little receding hairline on his head and that he had a reasonably well-trained body. To be honest, even his face is fuzzy. "We don''t have much contact with him, is he a great guy? "He''s a former rank eight adventurer. Even a second-tier adventurer should be able to keep up. Eight?¡¡That''s a rare level of adventurer, isn''t it? I''m not sure that rank equals strength, but I''m pretty sure he was pretty strong.¡¡It''s been many years since he retired, so we don''t know how much he can move now. Why would someone like that be the head of a branch in a place like this ......? No, adventurers who want to get a position in a guild need to have that rank, so it''s not that strange. "Oh, really? It''s a different matter to be a competent adventurer and to be able to work in a guild. It''s not as simple as saying that if you have a high rank, you will be hired as a guild employee after you retire. However, if you don''t have the trust of the guild, you won''t be able to get a high rank, and if you have a high rank, you have a lot of knowledge and experience in adventuring, so you can get a job easily. But if you''re rank eight, you don''t need to work, right?¡¡Just think about it. Our current rank is six. Even so, we are earning enough to live for the time being. If we were rank eight, it would have been even more so. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. ...... Oh, you don''t have a lot of money to spend tonight, do you? There are many people like that. The branch manager seems to have a good amount of money saved up, but he also has a ...... family. You can''t just play around because you have money, can you? ""Oh, ......." I''m sure you''ll agree with me. If it''s just your wife, but if you have kids, it''s a bit of a problem. In that light, it may be necessary to have a safe job that even retired adventurers can do, even if it doesn''t pay very well. It''s a good idea for my future life. I''d be shocked if my children thought that their father was always playing. In the meantime, I''d like to talk to the branch manager to confirm the schedule, and then I''d like to submit another request for escort to Haruka and the others, can you accept it? That''s of course ...... good, right? Yeah, that''s fine.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy with the results. "Please rest assured that we will not enter without your permission. Even if we ask someone else to escort you, we won''t be able to enter without your permission, of course. That''s a relief. Then, will you contact me when the details are decided? Yes, sir. I think it will be decided in a few weeks at the latest, so please don''t travel too far and wait for a while. "I didn''t think there was an ocean. I''m a little surprised there''s an ocean here, aren''t you? I''ve never seen an ocean before. It''s so big! After returning from the guild, we were relaxing in the living room and discussing about the sea we saw in the dungeon. Mitya, as he said, seemed to have touched the ocean for the first time, and jumped up and down with his hands outstretched in excitement. She seemed to be expressing the size of the ocean. Mary is probably the same, but she''s sitting quietly, as if she''s proud to be my sister, but her tail is wagging slightly, reminding me of the sea. We, on the other hand, have seen the ocean before, though not in this world, so we are more surprised and wondering than excited. I''ve read that there are dungeons where the ocean exists. ...... "Yeah. I didn''t expect it to be there. I''ve read in our dungeon books that there are very rare dungeons with oceans. It doesn''t say how rare they are, but Diora also said that there are none in this country, so I''m sure that they are quite rare. However, since there are not so many dungeons in the world, the number of samples would be too small to statistically calculate the frequency of appearance, and even if the probability were to be calculated, it would not be very reliable since it is unclear how much accurate information is even available to the public. By the way, how do you go forward in a hierarchy with an ocean?¡¡You''re not going to swim your way through, are you? I''d like to think that''s not ...... possible. As far as I can tell from the book I have, there is no record of anyone going further than that. "Well, to be precise, there is no record of any return after the first trip. There have been adventurers who have paddled out in boats or dived underwater. ...... There are demons out there. It''s not a surprise that demons exist in the seas of this world. The strength of these creatures varies greatly, ranging from a level not much different from that of an ordinary fish to a threat that can sink a ship. In the original world, there are sharks and other poisonous creatures that can kill you just by stinging you, so there may not be much difference in the danger level of each individual creature, but the difference is the aggressiveness and the existence of huge monsters. However, there seems to be a bias in the distribution of demons that can sink ships, and in places where the concentration is low, fishing along the coast is normal. On the other hand, in places where the concentration is high, large and strong ships are necessary. Even so, the frequency of shipwrecks in distant oceans is said to be high, so the level of danger in these seas is probably far greater than in the original world. However, I don''t know the rate of shipwrecks in the days when there were only wooden ships, so it may not be much different from those days. I''d like to go on, but we can''t bring in a big ship, can we? You can''t ...... take a ship. Maybe a building. It''s beyond the scope of a DIY project. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Even if the hut were to collapse and we were to be trapped underneath it, we would probably be fine. But not the sea. If it sinks, we die. That''s obvious. Hmm, it''s too dangerous for a small boat that can fit in a magic bag. No, never. No way, no way. The ocean waves are too dangerous. No way, no way. Is that so?¡¡No, I can imagine how dangerous it is, but when I think about it, I''ve never been on a boat much. Well, you don''t get many chances these days. Even the big ships can be quite ...... rough when it''s rough. He must have been on one before, because he said in a very serious tone. In the past, the only way to travel long distances these days was by plane or bullet train. There are very few opportunities to get on a ship, and there are very few ships that sail the open sea in Japan. ...... Have you been to the Ogasawara Islands? I''m sure you''ve traveled a lot, Toya. He''s also been to a wooden inn. Well, it may be debatable whether the sea inside the dungeon should be called the open sea, but it is too optimistic to think that the sea in the dungeon is safer than the normal sea. 396-364 What is the value of the sea (3) "Oh, but there is such a thing as sailing across the Pacific, isn''t there?¡¡If you think about it, ...... Yuki said as if it had just occurred to her, but Toya quickly shook his head. But Toya quickly shook his head. "That''s because it''s a boat with the latest technology. That''s because they''re the latest technology boats, and they''re subject to waves of many meters.¡¡If we went in a rowing boat, it would capsize in an instant. Even a yacht like that would sink if it hit a whale. "Well, I can imagine that. As for stability, there may be ways to use outriggers or a catamaran, but demons are ....... I''ve been thinking about it for a while. You''ll be able to get a lot more out of it. I know, but why can''t we go swimming in the ocean?¡¡We had fun in the Noria River last year. The river is fine for swimming, but you can''t swim in it. In that river. It was upstream. Around Sahlstadt, the river was much wider. ...... The river was deep enough and wide enough to have a river port, and the current was relatively slow, and there was a wide riverbank, so in a way it was a very good place for river recreation. ....... No, that''s not what I''m talking about. That''s right. Yuki denied me with a serious face, and I quickly nodded. If playing in the river is a normal thing, at least we have never seen anyone playing in the river in Sahlstat. If you were to play in the river next to the people working in the harbor or fishing in the river, you would definitely get angry. In my image, people around there look rough. By the way, I don''t like to show my bathing suit to strangers. It''s not very safe here. No, I''m sure Haruka and the others will be able to fight back, even if some of them are a bit vicious. But still. It''s hard to tell how much is too much. Whether it''s a vicious pick-up or a robbery. How far they''ll go. What level should we fight back at? "Yes, it is. It''s difficult, isn''t it? Natsuki nodded deeply at Haruka''s words. But I understand that it is difficult. Here, it is common knowledge that if someone is a robber, kill them. Especially if you are out of town, you can''t complain about being killed if you behave suspiciously, and that is the level of caution you should take. In any case, it''s quite a hassle. With this in mind, Haruka''s reluctance to swim in the presence of strangers is natural. If you''re in a dungeon, especially a ''summer retreat'' dungeon, it''s certainly not crowded, but ...... I can''t say for sure if you can swim there. It''s hard to say if you can swim without checking. The beach looks like a good place for swimming, doesn''t it? It was a bay. At that time, it was a rather large bay in front of us. The waves were calm, and the beach was clean, with not a single piece of trash on it. It''s a great location for a private beach. --If only there were no demons. Demons of the sea and demons of the land. It may not be straightforward, but it''s worth checking out. That''s only in the summer. It doesn''t mean it''s going to be as hot there. ...... You''ve got a problem, too? As we named the dungeon a summer retreat, at least up to the 20th level, the temperature was kept at a constant, relatively comfortable and cool level regardless of the temperature outside. It seemed to get a little colder after entering the 21st layer, but was this temperature also constant regardless of the season? If so, swimming in the ocean would be a dream. It''s too cold. "So, does that mean that''s the end of our exploration of that dungeon? We pondered in silence for a while as Mary asked for confirmation. In the past, there were stairs to the next level at the location of the treasure chest and the transition zone. But at the gargoyle, there were none. As for the Elder Trent, the next boss, there were no stairs, no treasure chests, not even a transition zone. It''s hard to tell because it''s out of the pattern. I don''t know, .......¡¡As far as the 21st layer is concerned, there are no physical barriers like there are for the 20th layer so far, right? "There are natural barriers, though. There are natural barriers, but if you try hard enough, you might be able to get over a rocky mountain or go over a waterfall. If you''re talking about going further, the coast still looks walkable, doesn''t it? The physical barriers that Toya was referring to were probably the transparent walls that were visible up to the 20th level but prevented him from moving forward. They may exist if you go along the coast or all the way through the ocean, but we haven''t encountered any so far. Instead, there is a steep natural barrier, which is probably not impossible to conquer. It would be a real risk to your life, though. I haven''t checked all the places in the second layer, so it''s possible that there are stairs leading to the second layer somewhere. The top of the mountain and the other side of the river are untouched. Come to think of it, we''ve only explored a small part of it. There was also a rocky mountain on the other side of the river from the 20th level, and if we looked hard enough, we could find a way to get to that huge waterfall. There''s a dungeon behind the waterfall!¡¡or something like that. Whether it''s necessary to go that far is another matter. In terms of earning money, you can get enough in the second layer. If there''s any other reason to go further, it''s worth the effort. ....... The ocean. What''s the benefit?¡¡Besides the salt, as Diora said. Seafood, of course. It''s not easy to get shellfish in this town. Shellfish ...... like clams and clams on the beach, and oysters on the rocks, but underwater is a little scary. I''ve never had the chance to eat much abalone, turban shells, sea urchins, and other luxury marine products. I haven''t had the chance to eat much of it, and I''d like to catch it if I could. I''d like to catch them if I can, but I''ll have to check out the sea monsters first. We don''t know if there are any creatures other than demons in the dungeon sea, do we? "Oh, that''s true. Maybe it''s only inhabited by demons? I don''t know, but it doesn''t matter as long as it tastes good. Well, that''s a good point. As long as it''s edible. In the first place, if you want to get sea urchins or oysters, there is no way that they exist in the same world as in the original, you just have to look for similar creatures. And whether or not there are magic stones is a trivial matter. Well, if it''s a demon, it''s going to be hard and dangerous to catch it. So, even if you go fishing, you''ll only catch demons? That''s a possibility. The flying gars were delicious, so that''s fine, but you have to be careful not to get hurt. Oh, so we can''t just take Tommy with us. If there is a demon as big as a flying gar, there is a risk of death by a single blow. If you want to make sure that Tommy is safe, you need to make sure that he is protected with plate mail. And even Tommy, who said that fishing was his hobby, wouldn''t want to go fishing in that condition. It''s not a life jacket, but a death jacket. If you slip, you''re sure to die. Hmm, I guess I can''t eat sashimi, huh?¡¡We have soy sauce now, and I was thinking I''d like to have some for the first time in a while. "If it''s fresh, I''d say yes, but there''s always the problem of parasites, isn''t there? If you freeze it once, it should be fine. ...... At one time, anisakis was a problem, but it seems that the easiest way to prevent parasites is to freeze them. In other words, you freeze the parasites to death. It may not taste as good, but it''s better than suffering. There are many questions, such as whether there are parasites in the demon''s body, whether it really kills the parasites, and whether it contains poisons that disappear when heated, like eel, but would you like to try ......? ...... Toya, please. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. I''m not the only one.¡¡I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. If you''re looking for the sturdiest in terms of skills, it''s Natsuki, but Natsuki is a healer. It''s a good idea to have a backup, even if you have Haruka. And even if you get poisoned or sick, you can still use magic to deal with it, so in terms of tasting experiments, this world may be safer. I don''t think I want to do it, though. "...... No, wait, what?¡¡Isn''t Yuki the one who should be tested?¡¡Even if Toya is fine, it doesn''t mean the others are, right? I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. Considering that, it makes more sense to test Yuki, the weakest of them all. Of course, the weakest one would be Mitya, but it would be unreasonable to let her try. When I explained this to Yuki, she nodded her head in agreement. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡...... Yeah, but let''s start with the animal experiments. Let''s find some rats! When it comes to eating them, Yuki proposes a safe plan. That''s what I''m talking about. But ordinary rats seem to be tougher than ...... not to try. I think they eat rotten food. It''s best not to eat things you don''t understand. 397-365 What is the value of the sea (4) "Is this what you get from the ocean?¡¡It''s a shame it''s not worth the money. ...... You can also get bitter melon. With this, you can make tofu. "Tofu. I personally don''t want to eat that much, but ...... It''s not that I''m a particular fan of cold tofu or hot tofu, or that it''s a side dish to sukiyaki or miso soup. I''d be happy to have them, but I don''t really have a problem without them. But then I thought... "Oh, Nao. You like Inari-zushi, right?¡¡You can''t make it without tofu, right? "What?¡¡...... Ah, fried tofu! I''m sure you''ve heard of it. I remembered that tofu is also used to make that. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. "Yes, we need tofu. Important. "Nice flip-flop, dude. Toya gave me a dumbfounded look, but I didn''t care. A good meal is important. I also use it in tofu steaks and tofu paste. Tofu is also used in cancer and other dishes, and it plays a very casual role, doesn''t it? It''s not worth the money either way, though. It''s not going to make much money either way, but it might enhance your diet. ...... When you retire, you can open a restaurant? A small eatery run by a couple. Normally, running a restaurant would not be an easy job, but if you can eat food made with ingredients that are not available around here? It''s a pretty stable job that you can keep until you die. In that case, I might as well be able to cook. No, I could leave the seasoning to Haruka and concentrate on cutting up the ingredients using my [Dismantling] skills? I kind of know what you''re imagining, ...... Nao-kun, but let''s leave that for a few decades, shall we? "Oh, oh, yeah. ......? I suddenly realized that there was a warm, fuzzy look on my face. --I didn''t say what I was thinking, did I? I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had it.¡¡Let''s have some more adventures. "It''s also a side job for adventure, you know?¡¡You know, like a brewery. It''s a good way to keep your head above water. Right. If you don''t have a lot of money, it''s safer to keep dying the same demon for a steady income than to go to dungeons with an uncertain future. It''s hard to argue with that, but... Well, whatever. The next step is to escort the branch manager, right?¡¡What are you going to do when that''s over? That''s something you''ll have to figure out. You can visit the dungeon cities, the Marquess of Marmont where there are many beastmen, the Count of Slyvya where there are many elves, or you can explore the dungeons there. When the escort is over, we can discuss it again then? Yes. Unless there''s a specific reason, I think the majority vote is fine. Depending on the promotion? I see. Well, we''ll have to look into it. Toya said, getting up and heading for the bookshelf. The key is to be able to show the benefits that outweigh the troubles and dangers of going somewhere else, and to make people want to go there. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do this, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. It''s a good idea to take a look at the website and see if you can find any useful information. It would be nice to go to Count Slyvya''s territory to see the elves, but there''s a cute elf right in front of me. There are some cute elves right in front of us, but we don''t have the common sense of elves. There might be some other interesting places, I''ll check them out too. I''ll have a look around. The absence of the branch manager for a long period of time, in some cases for several weeks, seemed to be important in its own way, and it wasn''t until a week or so later that Diora informed me of the planned date. In the meantime, I had been spending my vacation quite meaningfully, inviting Toya, Tommy, and Mitya to go fishing in the Noria River, going to Aella''s place to eat a prototype dish using soy sauce and miso, and going on a date with Haruka in the spring weather. Well, there was no place to play in this world, so we took a picnic with our lunch boxes, which turned out to be a very healthy thing. The other members of the group also spent their time freely, but if I had to pick an achievement, I''d say it was Toya. The billiards that I mentioned before. He finished it and set it up in our house. Strictly speaking, I could complain about whether the table is exactly level, or whether the center of gravity of the balls is uneven or different, but the purpose is to play. The purpose is to play, not to compete. Of course, it was the craftsman who actually did the work, and Toya only supervised, but since he was the one who financed the project, it would not be wrong to say that he "made" it. I guess this is why we don''t have any money, but the finished billiards were popular not only with us, but also with Mary and Mitya and Tommy who came to visit us from time to time. After another week or so of hearing from Diora, we went to the dungeon with Marks, the branch manager. "It''s been a long time, Meikyoushui. I haven''t had a chance to thank you, but you''ve been a great help to me. We were waiting at the guild, and the man who appeared in front of us was Marks, wearing old, but carefully maintained leather armor. He looked to be close to fifty years old, but his well-trained muscles showed no signs of weakening, and it would not be out of place to say that he was an active adventurer. She has a large sword strapped to her backpack and no shield, so I guess she is similar to Mary in terms of fighting style. No, we''re just doing what we want. "Even so. Just having a high rank living in town means something. This backpack is a credit to you, right?¡¡Because of this, some of them are going orc hunting. As a chapter leader, I can''t thank you enough. We''ve been making a lot of money from the stuff we bring in, but with the trading of backpacks and the resulting increase in profitability for other adventurers, the adventurer''s guild in Raffan last year made its highest profit since Marks became chapter leader. And now this, right?¡¡As for me, it''s been a long time since I''ve been able to go on an adventure, so I''m all for it! Chief, don''t get too carried away and cause trouble for Haruka and the others, okay? In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it for a lot of things. But it''s been a long time. But it''s been a really long time. It''s okay to fight a little, right? I''ve been away from the field for a long time. Don''t forget that you''ve been out of the field for a long time, okay? Don''t worry. I haven''t missed a day of training so I won''t fade! Still, sir. I''ll ask Haruka later, okay?¡¡I''ll report you to your wife if I have to. I know, I know!¡¡I''ll be fine!¡¡So, you know, Diora? As long as you don''t cause me any trouble, you''ll be fine. I''m going to ...... myself. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure what to make of that. You can all go on as usual, with a little help in battle. That''s about right. Oh, and don''t worry about the language, okay?¡¡We''re going to be together for a while. You''re going to be with us for a while, and polite language in the middle of a fight is a distraction. I understand. By the way, you were rank 8, right?¡¡Didn''t you ever go on any solo adventures? The reason is that I have a job as a branch chief, but even though I''m rank eight, I''m in a party. Except for a few special guys, you can only get by solo as far as a day trip is possible, you know?¡¡It''s hard to get any sleep. Pairs can take turns keeping watch, but it''s impossible for a single person. If you want to encounter a demon that will satisfy Marks, you have to go deep into the forest. As a result, he''s frustrated because he hasn''t had a chance to fight. Instead, he was very enthusiastic when the guild hosted an orc extermination. "It''s a rare opportunity to go on a rampage!¡¡That''s the only thing I regret about your arrival. The guild-sponsored orc slaying that takes place when the streets are overrun with orcs. I heard that Marks and Diora were going to join us to work on it. This time, however, there was no opportunity to do so, since we had already crushed the orc nest ahead of them. As for the future, if the number of adventurers who go out to kill orcs increases with the spread of backpacks, there will be no more overflow of orcs, and there will be no more guild-sponsored orc-killing. "Excuse me for saying that ......? I''m sorry?" "No, I put my work before my hobbies. You don''t have to worry about it at all. Yes, I do. My salary is going up, too, now that Haruka and the others are here. That means my wife is in a good mood. In total, it''s a huge plus. In the first place, an orc is not worth much. I didn''t know guild employees were paid on commission. Or is it a bonus? Either way, if our actions are helping, I''m a little happy. (Well, since that''s the case, please let the branch manager relieve himself of stress as he sees fit. I don''t mind as long as it doesn''t interfere with my work. (I understand.) I nodded to Diora, who smiled bitterly and whispered covertly so that Marks could not hear, and then called out to Marks, who was gazing gingerly out of the guild. So let''s get going, shall we? 398-366 Marks Musou (1) "Wa-ha-ha!¡¡Fragile, fragile! ""........." The road to our destination was, to put it simply, "Marks-san''s Warriors". Of course, we''d play an active role in watching over them when they slept, transferring them, healing them, and so on, but when enemies appeared, Marks threw away his pack, drew his sword, and plunged in. Our original plan was to do most of the transferring and rest to recover our magic, but then Marks said, "I want to fight! I''m sure you''ve got a magic bag, right?¡¡I''ll give you all the materials from the enemies we''ve defeated along the way," and Natsuki said, "It might be a good way to learn how others fight. As a result, we''ve had quite a few battles, but Marks has been so exasperated that he''s probably killed half of the enemies that have appeared in the game by himself. And now, the one that is being destroyed is the Iron Golem. Yes, that hard and troublesome thing. The one he is using is not a war hammer, but the sword he brought with him. It''s about two times larger than Mary''s bastard sword, and I would have a hard time even wielding it. He masterfully manipulated it and dismantled the Iron Golem without even allowing it to counterattack. Then, when the Iron Golem was in pieces and no longer moving, Marks-san stopped moving and wiped the sweat from his forehead with a very nice smile. "Hmm. I guess I need to move my body once in a while! That''s great ....... Yeah. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of these. I''m sure using an impact hammer to crush the demon stone would be a smarter way to kill it, but killing it without using a special weapon is still amazing. If he had used the steel axe that Toya had prepared to fight Elder Trent, he might have been able to do something similar, but Marks-san was using a sword. In addition, he can collect the golem''s magic stone if he kills it that way. I''m not sure if it''s worth the effort, and I don''t think I''ll be copying him. It''s a lot stronger than Toya''s brother. "Ugh, ...... is true, but... It''s true, but we have different weapons. I''m not going to try to imitate him. I''m not sure what to say. What''s that weapon?¡¡I''m not saying it''s ...... easy to kill an Iron Golem, but it''s been killed without destroying the weapon. "Oh, this?¡¡It''s my most valuable asset!¡¡It''s a mithril sword! "Oh?¡¡Seriously?¡¡I''ve never seen that before! I''ve never seen it before!" Toya grinned happily at Marks, who held out his sword and tapped it with his eyes. I don''t know what it is, but it sure looks like it''s shining a little differently. In other words, if you don''t tell me, a layman like me wouldn''t be able to tell. No, it''s definitely not an ordinary sword when it attacked the Iron Golem so hard and didn''t spill its blade, but you can''t buy a Mithril sword even if you wanted to. You can''t buy a mithril sword even if you want to. The former rank of eight is not an exaggeration. I like it. ...... I want one too. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. A sword of pure mithril, even at the size of a dagger, is not something that can be bought by an individual, even if the national budget level ...... is an exaggeration. The little ring I gave to Haruka. Half of it is made of mithril, but even that little bit of mithril was very expensive. But even mithril alloy swords are relatively common, and not something that can be easily bought with money. In particular, ordinary sized swords like the one Toya is using are hard to come by because they are popular among knights and nobles. If you can find a weapon of a less popular type, you can get it cheaper than a sword, but since they are less popular, there are fewer of them being made, and it is completely a matter of luck whether you can find one. If it''s a special kind of bow that Gantz showed me before, it''s even cheaper, but a special kind of bow is a special kind of bow. If you have no use for it, it is meaningless. The only realistic way to get it would be to spend some time buying mithril shards, and then take them to a blacksmith. Isn''t that awesome?¡¡I got this a few years before I retired. My buddies told me to stop wasting money on it. ...... A mithril sword is a swordsman''s dream! That''s right!¡¡I guess I''ll just have to save my money. I need to save up for my wedding. Toya, if you''re going to buy something, do it before you get married.¡¡Once you''re married, your wife will tell you to stop wasting money, okay? Whoa, Mr. Marx, is that from experience? "Well, yeah. I can''t tell you how many times I''ve been told to sell this sword!¡¡"You''ll never get a chance to use it. You don''t believe me, do you? That''s terrible!¡¡After all the trouble we went through to get it! Toya and Mr. Marks are having a good time together. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. What do you think of ...... as Haruka? I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure if I can understand how your wife feels.¡¡If you''re retired and don''t use it, money is more useful. Okay. ...... The sword that Mr. Marks has is too martial to be considered a work of art, and a weapon that has no use is a complete hobby . It''s a good idea to have a good weapon, and it''s not easy to sell a weapon that you''ve worked so hard to get. As if sensing my feelings, Haruka smiled at me. But if you''re going to use it once in a while like this, I don''t think you need to sell it unless you''re having a hard time making ends meet. "I see. That''s right, yeah. That''s a relief. I don''t have much of a hobby, but... "Nao, I''m sure Mr. Marks'' wife didn''t say that before they got married. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "...... Natsuki? Haruka calls her name in a low voice. "What are you trying to say? I''m not sure what you''re trying to say, but I''m just trying to show you a possibility.¡¡...... Yes, a possibility. Yeah, yeah, it''s a possibility. But when it comes to deciding on something, if you''re going to have a majority vote, don''t you think it''s better to have ...... more than two people?¡¡Hey, Nao? Natsuki and Yuki seemed to have hit it off. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure what the point of a majority vote would be if it''s just the two of us, right? If we don''t disagree, then we don''t need to vote, and if we disagree, then we need to vote fifty-fifty. Two people can''t decide anything. We have to decide in a way other than majority rule. ....... "Yeah, yeah, right?¡¡After all, the more allies we have in the household, the better, right? "Yes, I know. I think I''m an understanding person, don''t you? I don''t know. ...... Hey, hey, hey, guys! While we were talking, behind us... "What, do they have that kind of relationship? "That''s what it looks like. "Yeah. Well, when you''re making as much money as you are, it''s possible. But what about that one? I think it''s just going to be an overwhelming majority, I guess. (I think it would just be the overwhelming majority. I don''t have to think about who I''m taking sides with, women or men. "Of course. "Some things you learn after marriage. Welcome to our side, I guess. (Welcome to our side, right?)" The conversation between the two men whispering in the background was not heard by me. 399-367 Marks Musou (2) Is this where the gargoyle was? Yes. There''s nothing there now but ....... As Haruka had said, there was nothing there. The only thing we retrieved was a large piece of crystal. We had left the smaller pieces and the base, but they were already gone. The walls that had been damaged by Yuki and I''s "Explosion" were also restored. All of this must be the dungeon''s repair function. "Mr. Marks, do you think the gargoyles will come back? Do you think the gargoyles will come back?¡¡I don''t think so. As long as you''re in here. Oh, yeah? I thought I could make a lot of money if the bosses would come back from time to time like the other bosses, but I heard that''s not such a good idea. Well, considering the way the dungeon works, it''s not surprising. If I were to use a simple metaphor for the empirically predicted dungeon system in this world, it would be something like a ''point allocation system''. Weaker monsters require fewer points, while bosses and magical items such as crystal balls require more. Weak demons will be resurrected soon, but the stronger the boss, the harder it is to be resurrected. It''s like that. However, in dungeons that have been abandoned for a long time, the bosses may be resurrected sooner, as if they have a surplus of points. However, the number of demons in the dungeon is not so large that it overflows even if the dungeon is left unattended for a long time. There is a lot of debate as to what these points are, but most people seem to think that they are "magical elements". If you leave it for a couple of years, or if more adventurers come and go, the crystal ball might come back to life. ...... You don''t intend to do that, do you? "No, sir. It''s just that the other stuff is more appealing than that thing. It''s literally a beautiful dungeon, isn''t it? There are some undead areas, but most of the levels have edible items, and most of them are delicious. It''s a shame to have to endure for years for a mere gargoyle and a crystal ball. I don''t plan to open it up to other adventurers at this time. To be honest, I think it would be counterproductive in terms of restoring the dungeon if we let in adventurers who can come this far. "Well, I suppose you''re right. The adventurer''s guild can''t afford to send in weak adventurers. It is said that the more adventurers enter a dungeon, the more points are recovered. However, the more adventurers you have, the more points you consume, so it''s not always clear if the amount of points you consume is equal to the amount of points you recover. However, in this dungeon, if you compare the demons in the lower levels with the demons around the dungeon, the demons around the dungeon are clearly stronger. In other words, the only adventurers who can enter the dungeon are strong adventurers. It is unlikely that opening the dungeon to other adventurers would speed up the recovery process and allow them to get better items. These are all hypothetical, so it is possible that the actual results would be different, but there was no reason to take such a chance with a dungeon that was so convenient for us. "Well, you can do whatever you want with it. This dungeon belongs to you. The Adventurer''s Guild is here to help if you need it. "Yes, I''d like to help you then. This is the place where you can find all the information you need. This is the dangerous forest you were talking about? I''m not sure. I''m sure you''ll be pleased to hear that. We passed the gargoyle room and entered the forest area. We stopped in front of it, and I was explaining the forest to Marks. We stopped in front of it and explained the forest to Marks. "There''s a Trent right ...... there, Marks, what do we do? "It''s not safe, we''ll go around, right? I had intended to ask him that, but his reply was different. The other demons were Shadow Margays and Shadow Vipers? "Yeah. And Stub Burrows. Not to say there aren''t others. ...... After all, the only time we moved through this forest was when Natsuki and I got separated. Last time, we bypassed this place and traveled along the rocky mountains, so there is a good chance that other monsters are living here. That''s why, even though I was thinking that we should not go around, Marks nodded nonchalantly and started walking towards the forest. "Hmm. Well, that''s not a problem. "Oh!¡¡I''m sure you''ll be fine. "Oh, Mr. Marks?" "Only if I have time to call out to him. Mr. Marks walked straight up to Trent, who I had just pointed out. Then, inevitably, a branch of Trent was swung down over his head... "Hmph!¡¡C''mon! Bang!¡¡Boom! Marks easily cut off the Trent branch and slammed the sword into the trunk with the momentum. I''m not sure what to make of that. And then, with a loud thud, the sword slammed into the trunk. "Well, it''s like this. "Yeah, ......? Huh? Why? The awesome ....... You can''t blame us for letting out a squeal of dismay when Marks looked back at us and said he was fine. You can''t blame us for letting out a squeal of dismay when Marks swung out his sword and easily destroyed the trunk of the Trent, which was about 30 centimeters long. Yes, destruction. He didn''t cut it by mistake. Looking at the cross-section, about a third of it was cut, but the remaining two-thirds looked as if it had been forcibly snapped. It''s not quite as smart as my "plain shift" method of cutting, but it''s quicker. If you take into account the time it takes to collect the materials, the total difference won''t be much, but if you want to, you can kill it without stopping. In case we have to run through this forest, Marks'' ability will be quite effective. There''s also the Shadow Viper, ....... That''s not a problem either. The only problem is the direction. I don''t know anything about that, I''m afraid. I''m lost, that''s for sure. Mr. Marks is proudly claiming something he''s not proud of at all. But I''m relieved to know that we''re not in the same position as you when you say you''re perfect at mapping and all that. That''s my responsibility, I can handle it. But are you sure you can handle the enemies? "Yeah, I''ll take care of it. Or rather, let me do it. I''ll only take a small portion of the meat! He said that he would bring it home as a souvenir to his wife, who was probably in a bad mood after a long absence. Some people say that husbands are good at staying at home, but Mr. Marks and his wife are said to be good friends. Even though he''s the butt of the family. But then, wouldn''t it be better to bring back other materials and sell them? You idiot!¡¡How can a guild employee rip off an adventurer? Is that how it works? It''s not good for a guild official to take advantage of his position. When you think about it, our job this time was to escort the guild staff to confirm the existence of the sea. It''s a request from the guild, so we''ll be paid well. For some reason, Mr. Marks is stepping forward to fight, but guild officials don''t fight, and it would certainly be wrong for such a person to say, "Since you''re with us, give us a share of the demons you killed. As the head of the branch, Mr. Marks cannot set such a strange precedent. If that''s the case, then meat seems to be a bad idea too. ...... Well, it''s in the range of "sharing". In fact, I sometimes give it to Mr. Diora. If there''s no loss to us, there''s no need to say anything. "Yes!¡¡Let''s get moving! Oh, wait a minute!¡¡We need to think about our direction! Hey!¡¡Just point me in the right direction! With Yuki hurrying after him, Marks-san raised his sword and began to walk lightly through the forest. 400-368 Marks Musou (3) Mr. Marks was not lying when he said there was no problem. Basically, the way we fight is to anticipate the enemy and attack first, or wait and deal with them, but Mr. Marks is different. He would just walk up to them and swing his sword when they attacked. Even though he didn''t seem to notice the attack until just before it happened, he was able to cut it down easily without being caught by surprise. Or, to be more precise, he was taken by surprise, and sometimes he was hit, but there was no damage. The Shadow Viper is biting me hard, but I don''t have any fangs in me, or what? It''s true that I''ve heard that high rank adventurers can''t get their knives stuck, but ....... I''m sure you''ve heard of it. It''s almost a lickety-split. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I stopped giving warnings to Toya and the others, whose skill level was lower than mine, as a practice. In fact, Marks-san was moving forward at such a fast pace that I couldn''t keep my mental strength if I kept searching for him. We continued through the forest like this, and after a few encampments. It''s time to leave the forest. A few minutes after Yuki said this, we arrived at the square where we had fought Elder Trent. The square had been wrecked by magic, and there must have been uncollected Elder Trent wreckage around, but there were no traces of them, and the ground was as clean as it had been the first time. The only difference was the absence of that conspicuous Elder Trent''s huge body. This is where the Elder Trent used to be?¡¡It seems he has not returned. "Yes, I''m a little relieved. I was a little nervous about fighting unprepared. We may have weapons, but we don''t have supplies. ...... The presence of Mr. Marks is a great boost to our strength, but the items we had prepared for the Elder Trent battle, such as explosive arrows and oil, have not been replenished at all. It would have been nice to buy a few items that could be used for other purposes as well, but according to Haruka, "Unfortunately, we don''t have much common money left. Well, it''s not surprising. We''ve prepared another set of weapons of the same rank as the main weapons we usually use, for each member of the party. The price of the weapons alone is enough to build a few houses. However, since there are still gems and rewards distributed to individuals, it is possible to collect additional money to increase the common expenses if the need arises. Therefore, we are not really in need. "By the way, Mr. Marks. Did you ever fight Elder Trent?¡¡Did you kill them as easily as you killed Trent? I''ve never fought one. Elder Trent is not the same as Trent. Even if I were to join you, I doubt I''d be able to kill him easily. You''re right. ...... In fact, it would be quite scary if they said they could kill you easily. I''m not sure how much of a monster a high rank adventurer is. There are a lot of them out there. I definitely don''t want to go to a labyrinthine city where there are a lot of them and it seems unsafe. We seem like a group that could easily get into trouble. If you''re a real high-ranked person, you can trust your character to a certain degree, so it''s not a problem. We''ve managed to die, but we''re in the red. Elder Trent, the Adventurer''s Guild can''t buy it, can they? We can. You can''t, can you? We can. But not for cash. If it''s an Elder Trent, you''ll have to put it up for auction. You''ll get paid in a few months-- no, there was the matter of transportation. If the timing is not right, it will be nearly a year later? When Haruka rolled her eyes, Marks-san affirmed again, but put his hand on his chin and twisted his head as if thinking. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. If you''re willing to take that long, we can take Trent. Can you sell them at auction?¡¡Even regular Torrent. The auction will be held in the capital of this country. That''s why it takes so long to transport them. ...... It''s a remote area. That''s right. Auctions are held four times a year. There''s a lot of stuff up for auction, but Elder Torrent starts at 10 million rares. Maybe even over a hundred million rares. "Yes, 100 million rares. ...... I can''t even imagine. ...... I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. We didn''t say it out loud either, but we looked at each other at the amount of money that was beyond our imagination. The guild will take 10% of the bid price as a commission, right?¡¡The guild will get 10% of the winning bid as a commission, so you guys will only get 80% of the winning bid. Even so, that''s ten million rea per person. I don''t know if you can actually sell it for that much, but it''s definitely a hell of a lot of money. By the way, can you sell them privately? You can. But I wouldn''t recommend it. We used to make a fair amount of money when we were working, so we''ve tried it. ...... In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to use the site, you can contact us at the web site. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. He said that he was able to save some money on the simple costs of the auction, such as the hassle of selling the items, the cost of storing the items until the day of the auction, and being there on the day of the auction, but considering that he couldn''t be active as an adventurer during that time, he didn''t gain anything at all. In this respect, if you leave it to the guild, you can go to the nearest guild and receive the proceeds there. If you consider the cost of transport, it''s a pretty good deal. I''ll have to think about what to do. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. You can talk to Diora about it. "Oh, no, it''s not that I don''t trust what Mr. Marks has to say. ...... This is a great way to get the most out of your business. Don''t worry about it. It''s important to get the facts. Thank you for saying that, ....... "By the way, Mr. Marks. By the way, Mr. Marks, can you get the Mithril Sword at that auction?¡¡No. Can I bid on it before that? You can bid on it if you pay the entry fee. But ...... Toya, the type of sword you''re holding is unlikely. You''ll be competing with the nobility. "Oh, really? -- "Which ones seem easier to get? All of them are difficult to find, but compared to the one-handed swords, the other weapons are still easy to bid on. However, since there are few users, the frequency of bidding is also much lower. It''s unlikely that you''ll be lucky enough to find the weapon you want on display when you join. Weapons that are popular will be made in large numbers and listed more frequently, but they will also be sought after by more people, which will raise their prices and make them harder to buy. Weapons that are not popular are not made in large numbers to begin with, so they are rarely encountered and cannot be obtained. This is natural, but it doesn''t always work out. If you want to get the sword you want, you''ll have to buy mithril little by little. If you want to get the sword you want, buy mithril little by little. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot of people who''ll be able to help you out with this. There are no shortcuts, after all. "You can get it in the dungeons, but that''s probably more difficult. As Toya sighed, Marks-san also smiled and shrugged his shoulders. In fact, we''ve been exploring this dungeon for about a year now. In fact, we''ve been exploring this dungeon for about a year now, and we''ve gotten every treasure chest in the monopoly, but not a single mithril device. If the dungeons were more difficult, the chances might be better, but they are definitely harder to come by. In the end, the best way to get mithril is to buy it steadily. 401-369 Marks Musou (4) How much mithril do I need to collect to make a weapon? Well, it depends on how much mithril you want to have in it, but for a standard one-handed sword, a hundred million rares of mithril would be enough to call it a mithril sword. "Oh, ......?¡¡That''s about it? I''m not sure if Yuki thought it was unexpectedly cheap, but she looked at me strangely. It''s a good idea. But if you want to feel the effect, you need 500,000 Reais. This is only 10% of the content, but if you combine it with the magic iron, you should be able to produce something of reasonable quality. It''s not cheap, but at 500,000 rares, even we can afford it now. It''s too expensive to pay with shared assets, considering the balance with other members'' equipment, but if Elder Torrent sells well, we can get by with just personal assets. If Toya wants to buy it personally, I''d like to support him. But it''s not easy to raise money. But mithril is hard to come by, you know. It''s always in short supply, and when it does go on sale, it''s bought up quickly. The ring I bought the other day contains mithril, but it''s only a few grams. You can get that much, but it''s hard to buy in bulk. Is it because they use it for weapons? "Yes, but mithril is also a very popular asset. It''s not bulky, and it''s not badly convertible. On top of the gold coins we usually use, there is a large gold coin, the platinum coin, which is worth 100,000 rares. Which has a higher value per volume, the platinum coin or the mithril, is the platinum coin, but in reality, the platinum coin is not very useful. Of course, they are not accepted at food stalls, but even at slightly larger stores that have stores. You can exchange them in larger towns, but you will be charged a fee as a matter of course. Mithril, on the other hand, can be exchanged in almost any town, and unlike platinum coins, it can be sold for a fraction of its value. Furthermore, mithril is rare but not completely unobtainable, and does not require as much discernment as jewelry. It is truly a superior substitute for gold. And by the way, even if you have mithril, there are not many blacksmiths who can turn it into weapons.¡¡It takes time because of the workload. In total, you should expect to need at least ten million rares. Even if you have the raw materials, you still need the production costs. It''s not going to be easy. ...... Toya sighs ruefully at the reality of what Mr. Marks is saying. All those years of collecting mithril and waiting for a blacksmith appointment. If I''m not careful, I''ll probably be close to retiring before I can get one. Marks said that''s about how much he got, so maybe that''s how it is, but I''d like to get a weapon that can kill the Iron Golem easily as soon as possible. Mmm, mithril weapon ...... me, also prepare from a young age! "Wow, should I be thinking about ......? It''s not too early to start listening to Mr. Marks. The youngest and second youngest of us said that, but in fact, if you have the money, there''s no harm in buying mithril whenever you find it. However, Mr. Marks looked at us with some dismay. It''s a good idea to buy mithril weapons whenever you find them.¡¡It''s not like it''s a ''must have'' weapon in the future. I''m sure that''s true, but looking at Marks-san''s weapon... That''s right. I really wish I could use a weapon like that. Me, too, I want to kill a golem. I''ve never felt this way about any of my previous opponents, but when I fought the Iron Golem, I felt that I was genuinely lacking in weaponry. Maybe it''s wrong to think of knocking it down head-on, but I can understand why you''d want to go for it when it''s right in front of you. --It''s something I can''t do. No, if you think about it the other way around, you can think of it as having a goal to further improve your magic. Convenient magic can make your life richer, but if you want to continue being an adventurer, attack power is still important. As a man. "By the way, Gantz-san, can you make a mithril weapon? "I don''t think so. He''s good at it, but I heard that to handle mithril, you need not only skill but also talent or something like that. I don''t know what it is. "Talent: ...... Mr. Marks'' words made us look at each other. What came to mind was Tommy. I thought of Tommy. He had a talent for smithing. Could that be the difference between being able to handle mithril and not being able to handle mithril? If so, rather than looking for another blacksmith, you could help Tommy improve his skills and ask him for help. ......? The bottleneck is that no matter how talented you are, you''re not going to be able to succeed if you''re just going to bang it out, and that makes it difficult to prepare mithril for practice. "Well, you guys are only in your second year, right?¡¡--Well, you''re only in your second year, aren''t you? Don''t be too hasty. Let''s just check the waters for now. Let''s move on. Yes, sir. We''re almost there, though. We''ll be able to see it once we get through that cut. This is . "This is ...... definitely the ocean. ...... Mr. Marks was a bit stunned when he saw the scene spread out in front of him through the passage. You can''t help but be surprised when you actually see it, even if you''ve heard about it. This is such a sight. "Well, there''s no point in fawning over it. Let''s go. "Have you ever seen the ocean, Mr. Marks? Mr. Marks nodded his head, "Yes. He nodded, "Yes, I''ve been active outside of this country. It''s been a good experience, but you guys better be careful, okay?¡¡We were a human-only party, but some countries are intolerant of elves and beastmen. ...... Well, to put it bluntly, some places can turn you into a slave. It''s pretty shitty, in some places. When he saw us, more than half of whom were non-humans, Marks looked into the air as if remembering something, and sighed with a pained expression. Yes, I''ve heard of them. But even in this country, there are areas that discriminate against elves and beastmen, aren''t there? Mr. Marks chuckles at Haruka''s words. There is no comparison. In this country, it is forbidden by national law to resist unreasonably. But there are even countries where such resistance is illegal. However, it would be a good experience to go to another country when you are young. However, if you are going to go to another country, it should be the Principality of Austianum. It''s a bit stuffy, but it''s not a bad country. You''re allied with this country, right? "Sort of. In fact, I don''t think we''ve ever publicly sent reinforcements to each other. I don''t know if it''s true or not, but I''ve heard that it''s against the Kingdom of Fegley. The only country that the Kingdom of Lanium and the Duchy of Austianum share a common border with is the Kingdom of Fegley. If you want to send reinforcements to fight against other countries, the distance is a big constraint. If you look at the map, it looks like you''re right. ....... I heard that the country has a lot of infighting and is not very powerful. Yes, that''s true. It''s just that ...... it''s such a troublesome country, the Fegley Kingdom. They think they are strong,....... In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to find out how to do it. However, since they are not really strong, they are easily defeated every time, but since the two countries never invade back, they accelerate their misunderstanding that ''they are afraid of us! But since the two countries never invade back, they accelerate the misunderstanding that they are afraid of us. But the truth is that the two countries really don''t want to be cut off from the Fegley Kingdom. That''s what the two countries really feel. While the two countries are made up of many races, the Kingdom of Fegley is a country that discriminates against people just because they are from other countries, not just races. Taking in the people of such a country would only cause trouble. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to annex them if you get rid of all the inhabitants, but it''s not worth the cost. You don''t really want to give us a place that doesn''t have any special technology and is in a state of internal strife. There''s still an empty space to the west, isn''t there? That''s right. ...... Huh?¡¡But, Mr. Marks. I''ve heard that the Kingdom of Fegley is a friendly country, at least.¡¡Are they going to invade? I''m not sure what to make of that. I''ve heard that it''s a friendly country. That''s another reason why it''s so troublesome. I''ve heard that they''re going to make excuses for it, saying that the provinces are out of control.¡¡I''m sure the higher-ups in the country are saying, ''Stay out of it! That''s what they''re really saying. "Wow, what a pain in the ass!¡¡It''s even worse than the enemy! In fact, it seems that there are more people who hate the Fegley Kingdom than the Iupicrisian Empire during the war. I''m not sure what to make of this. In addition to racism, that seems to be another reason why they are hated. I suggest you don''t go there, because you''ll definitely end up feeling uncomfortable. By the way, have you ever been there, Mr. Marx? ....... On business. I''ll never go there again. I''m not going to go to the beach. I''m not going to go, but I''m going to watch. I don''t want to go, but is there anything I should see? "No. To put it bluntly, the whole place is filthy, that country. The culture is retarded. It''s probably because of the infighting and the lack of room. ...... Some of the worst mouth-breathers call us barbarians. I''m not so sure. I''m interested in other cultures, but I don''t think I need to go to a place where people say it''s not worth it and where I''m sure to get in trouble. 402-370 By the sea (1) I''m not sure if you''ve heard of it or not. ...... Mm, it''s definitely the ocean. It''s salty. We arrived at the beach while chatting. After scooping up and tasting the lapping waves, Mr. Marks nodded several times in agreement. I''m pretty sure we''ll get salt. Now we just need to find out what kind of monsters are out there. ...... Have you guys fought in this area? No, the last time we were here, we left as soon as we saw the ocean. I''m sure you''ve heard of it. We had no information about the demon. Yes. There was no information on demons in the encyclopedia we bought. I had Diora order it for us, but the Adventurer''s Guild''s demon dictionary doesn''t include sea demons, does it? When Natsuki asked, Marks scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed. "Oh, I should say I''m sorry about that. There are volumes on sea monsters, but this is a landlocked country, right?¡¡That''s why most guilds don''t keep them on hand. There''s no demand, so there''s no stock. Guilds in King''s Landing and the big cities would have them. ...... If we want to get it, we can either get a copy from them, or get it from the guilds in the coastal countries. Either way, they are not easy to come by. Diora probably didn''t dare to order a book that she was unlikely to use - a book that would have cost her dozens of gold coins. Books about this world are a little too expensive to buy on the side. But I guess my guild will have to keep it on hand. If you guys need it, I can order it with you. "By all means, sir. It''s dangerous to fight without knowing what you''re up against. All right. I''ll let him know. --Now that we''ve accomplished our objective, I''d like to get a look at the demon. You''ve been active in the coastal countries before, right?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to figure it out. Can''t say I know much. I never went out to sea. I''ve only fought a few on the beach at best. There''s a few different kinds of demons to watch out for, but the hopping leathershells are a pain in the ass on the beach. "Leathershells. ...... Shells? Yeah. It''s a long, thin shell that hides in the sand, and it''s dangerous if you''re walking along the beach. It is 30 centimeters long and about three centimeters in diameter. The upper part of the shell is hard and sharp. It is said to sense the vibration of people walking and suddenly pop out from under their feet. If you are barefoot, it can easily penetrate the sole and instep of your foot, and even if you are wearing shoes, it can easily penetrate the sole of a soft shoe. Seriously dangerous. I can''t go swimming anymore. If you wear shoes with steel plates, you''ll be fine, but they''ll fly out with great force. A pair of sturdy leather pants won''t protect you, and if you''re unlucky, you''ll get stabbed in the butt. ...... No, your butt is still better. The worst is ....... Mr. Marks slurred his words and looked at his lower body. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. ...... Yeah, that would suck if it stung. My life as a man is over. "Ma, Mr. Marks, we''re wearing chainmail pants, is that okay? Yeah, that''s fine. Yeah, that''s fine. We''re not going to penetrate the chainmail. Hopping leathershell is an easy demon to deal with. You just need a long club and you''re good to go. "Can I use a club ...... or a wooden sword? That''s fine. Give it to me. Like this. Haruka hands him a wooden sword from his magic bag, and Marks walks off, pounding the sand with it. I don''t know if he''s here, but the danger is in the surf. They don''t stay where it''s dry. When I tap like this, they pop up. ...... They don''t seem to be here. Once you get used to it, you can make a little extra money. It jumps out a little over a meter high. After that, they fall to the beach, and it is easy to kill them if you crush their shells before they dive into the sand again. It''s been a while since I''ve had one of these. Mr. Marks says this, tapping the beach with a bit of regret, but nothing pops out. A little closer to the beach. It''s a scary shellfish, but is it good ......? I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s good for a snack.¡¡It''s good for a snack. In those days, we''d collect a few before dark and return to the inn. We''d grill them over the coals and cut them into pieces with a knife, and the salty taste would make us drink more. Mr. Marks closed his eyes and licked his lips, as if he was remembering that time. I''m salivating just listening to him. I haven''t had shellfish in a while. ....... I''ve not eaten shellfish in a while. ...... I don''t like the idea of the ocean being dangerous. I''ve never eaten shellfish. I''ve never had shellfish. If I ever get the chance, I''d like to try some. ...... The beach here is wide. You never know where they might be.¡¡You just have to be careful, though. I guess I can''t go swimming. I''m not sure if I''m imagining someone in a swimsuit, but I''m somewhat fluent. You want to die?¡¡This is a dungeon, remember?¡¡I think it''s suicidal to be defenseless in a place where you never know when the demons will return. "Ugh, I know, right? If it''s not a dungeon, is there such a thing as swimming in the ocean? Well, only a few. Only in places where demons are few and far between, and where they''re regularly swept and controlled. It''s a vacation spot for the rich. I heard that there are areas that only nobles, royalty, and a few wealthy merchants can use, not commoners. Most of them are coves, and they are managed to keep dangerous monsters and creatures from coming in. It is not easy to use a shark-avoidance net, and it seems to be quite difficult. The only places where ordinary people can swim are a few safe rivers and lakes. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. ...... Well, a rank 10 monster might be able to swim in the ocean where demons appear. "That much? Oh. They''ll repel hopping leathershells in bare feet. They''d shake off a shark bite with a smile. They''re a joke. Mr. Marks frowned and sighed, as if he had seen them first hand. High rank is that unreasonable? "It''s unreasonable. I don''t know about you, but I think you''re unreasonable enough for the average person. You''ve been attacked by something that would normally break your bones, but you''re still alive and well, right? "Oh, I guess you''re right... Yuki thought for a moment and smiled vaguely. When I think about it, in the beginning I was also hit by an orc and broke some bones, but ...... now I think I''ll be fine. Since I haven''t been attacked by Orcs recently, I can''t simply compare the two, but I have fought enemies stronger than Orcs, so I can sort of understand if I compare it to that. The day when you can be stabbed by a knife may come soon, but you should be careful not to get stabbed. Well, up to rank 5 or 6, you can get by if you work hard enough. But beyond that, it''s different. It takes a talented person five or six years at the earliest to reach rank seven, and more than ten years for rank eight, even if he works hard. Normally. "Well, we''ll be rank six in about a year. ......? You guys are special. You''re special. You''ve had a certain level of skill since you registered, and many of you are wizards. In addition to that, you can use space-time magic. I don''t know what''s going on with the elves, but I''m pretty sure they don''t belong in this part of the country. The guild is grateful. In response to Haruka''s reserved words, Marks smiles and shrugs his shoulders. "Hmmm, but won''t that mean that by the time you reach ninety or ten, you''ll be physically weak?¡¡I don''t care if you''re an elf, but if you''re a human or a beast... "That''s why you''re a monster. The rank goes up fast, but the strength doesn''t go down. I wonder what''s going on with him. I''ve been told that our party is pretty good, if I do say so myself.¡¡Still, we''re rank eight when we retire. He complained, but I couldn''t help but disagree with him. No, Mr. Marks. I''m sure you''re not the only one. You can''t possibly hit an Iron Golem with a single blow, can you? It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your money. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. Is it possible that the improvement in his level of play has an effect on his defensive abilities as well? No, I understand the feeling, but it''s not a small difference.¡¡Because it''s not comparable. Rank 10 is. I don''t know if you''ll ever meet him, but if you did, I''m sure you''d agree with me. Is that how it is? I''m both excited and a little scared. Still, I''d like to see it at least once. 403-371 At sea (2) -- "But I really don''t see anything coming out of it. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It''s not really a lure, but it used to attract hammer crabs when I did this. ...... They''re delicious, too. You''ve casually put food first, Mr. Marks! I want to eat crab too! I''d like to eat a crab, too, but I''m not sure I want to eat a crab. It''s a huge crab, about the size of Toya''s arms, and it features a huge pair of scissors on its right arm that are half the size of ...... Mitya''s. That''s ridiculously big, dude! The scissors on the left are about the size of my arm, and the scissors on the right are about the size of my arm. As he said this, Mr. Marks spread his index finger and thumb and crunched them together. It is said that even such small scissors can break an iron sword if they are pinched, but they usually attack by striking with their huge scissors. They''re so powerful that they can easily turn you into mincemeat if you take them seriously, but they''re surprisingly easy to kill once you get used to them. Marks'' level. "These scissors are delicious. Throw the whole thing in the fire, and when it''s cooked, smash the shell with a hammer, take out the meat, and eat it. Mr. Marks, perhaps remembering that moment, loosened his mouth a little slackly. "Well, that''s interesting. What about the rest of you, by the way? "The other legs are good in their own way. But not the torso. There''s no place to eat it. No, it''s not poisonous, but it''s not tasty either, so no one''s gonna eat it. "Too bad there''s no miso. By the way, what else do you have? I don''t know much, but there''s a big oyster on the rocks. Big oysters on the rocks... That''s not a demon, that''s just a marine product. ...... No, no, no, it''s a demon, okay?¡¡No, it''s a demon, it''s got a demon stone. They''re dangerous. Basically, it''s an oyster, but it''s about 50 centimeters in size, and it mimics a rock so cleverly that you have to be very careful not to notice it. When I was walking on the rocky beach, the big oyster under my feet suddenly opened its mouth, and I was either rolled onto the rocky beach or dropped into the sea. Furthermore, it is said that the oyster''s shell is so strong that if a normal person were to get his or her arm caught in it, it would tear off. Naturally, the meat of the oyster is as big as its shell. ....... Oysters don''t taste good when they''re big, do they? "Right?¡¡They are tasty because you can eat them in one bite, but ...... they are simply not edible when they are huge, right? I don''t want to eat the guts or anything like that, although I wouldn''t go so far as to say it''s bad. I don''t like oysters that much to begin with. I don''t really like oysters.¡¡You stew them to make a sauce, or you eat the scallops and the edges after removing the internal organs. They''re so big that they''re often made into dried fish. "Scallops...... come to think of it, oysters have surprisingly large scallops, don''t they?¡¡Are they tasty? Natsuki nodded to Yuki, who seemed interested, perhaps remembering the scallops. It might be delicious. The scallops must be pretty thick if they''re sandwiched so tightly. I''m curious about the sauce?¡¡Can you get that? If you go to a big town, they sell it. ...... I mean, have you guys ever eaten oysters?¡¡I mean, have you guys ever eaten oysters? They''re almost impossible to find even in dried form around here. There''s no me and me. Right? No. I''ve never heard of oysters. Mr. Marks looked at me quizzically, and we exchanged glances. In this country, where there is no ocean, you can''t get raw oysters, or even oysters for cooking. At best, you can get dried oysters whose original shape is indistinguishable. In such a country, it is a little strange that we can talk about oysters. ....... I''m not going to bore you with the details. As long as it benefits my guild, I''m fine with it. I''m sure there''s something about you that makes you too good for a rookie. I''m glad you said that. As long as you don''t commit any crimes, that''s what the Adventurer''s Guild allows. --Well, I''ve checked, but there''s no sign of the demon. I''d like to explore a bit more if I can, if that''s alright? "Yes, of course. It''s a good thing that we can fight with Marks, who has experience fighting sea monsters. I''m not sure if it''s a sense of duty as a guild employee, a lack of fighting, or frustration that we haven''t gotten the seafood we were hoping for. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on this topic in this article. I''m sure you''ll agree. After leaving the beach, we next came to a rocky beach with lapping waves. There was no deep meaning to it, it was simply that if there were no demons on the beach, then there might be demons on the rocks. I hope they are there this time. ...... Oh!¡¡You did it!¡¡Big Oyster. It''s a dungeon, but I was afraid it was a sea of demons. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one, you''ll be able to get a lot more than one. I''m not sure if that''s a good thing or not ......? You can''t make money without demons, right?¡¡It''s easy to do without them if all you want to do is collect salt, but you never know if you''ll actually need to collect it. If you''re a dungeon owner, you should be happy about diversifying your revenue sources. Well, I don''t have a problem with it, as long as we get to eat good food, too. --As long as the danger isn''t too great. Are you here?¡¡I have no idea. I''m sure you''re not the only one who''s wondering. Mitya, you said it was dangerous to get caught. What?¡¡You''re right!¡¡It was dangerous! If I''m careful, Mitya''s eyes will widen, and he''ll turn behind me as if in a panic. I can''t tell from looking at her, but it''s not hard to tell. Like this: ...... Mr. Marks pulled out his sword and popped it on the rock, and at the same time, the surface of the rock popped off with great force. No, to be precise, the shell of the Big Oyster that was attached to the surface of the rock opened up with great force and repelled Mr. Marks'' sword, but the speed with which it did so was like an explosion. Immediately after that, the shell closed again with great force, but Mr. Marks quickly inserted his sword into it, and it made a violent "clang! And then it stopped in a halfway position with a violent sound. And that''s about it. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out what''s going on. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The speed at which he said it earlier suggests that he was not lying when he said that. Even if they are not, they are sure to fall over, and they should never lose their heads. As you can see, the closing force is also quite strong. As you can see, the closing force is also quite strong, though not strong enough to bend a metal sword. As you can see, the closing force is quite strong. You can''t even scratch the surface of the oyster, but the shell is being chipped away. How can I kill it? I''m not sure what to do, but I''d like to know what to do. It''s easy when it''s like this. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. But you have to be a little more careful about what you eat. While explaining this, he slid the dagger in his hand inside the upper shell and quickly separated it from the scallop. Removing the shell, he plunged his hand into the giant oyster''s flesh and pulled out a small magic stone. That''s it. Easy, right?¡¡Oh, I''m sure you guys are fine, but just so you know, people need to be careful.¡¡Sometimes they spray seawater at you, but it''s strong enough to blow a child away, you know? If you''re an adventurer who can come here, you won''t get hurt by it, but if you''re not an adventurer, you can usually get close to the beach. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I see. It''s a big scallop, though. Looking at the Big Oyster scallop that Mr. Marks had cut into pieces, Toya let out a slightly disgusted voice, but I guess it can''t be helped. The size of the shell of the big oyster I killed this time was about 30 centimeters wide and 60 centimeters long, and the scallop occupied more than 20 centimeters in diameter. Considering the speed at which the shell is opened and the strength of the clamping force, this may be necessary, but the area occupied by the scallop was clearly larger than the oysters I knew. To be frank, this is the main part of the Big Oyster. You put these scallops on the shell, put them on the coals, pour a little seawater over them, and they''re good!¡¡The sizzling sound and the aroma is enough to make you drink! Wow, I''m salivating just hearing that. If you put soy sauce on it, it looks even better. That''s ...... interesting. I''m interested. I want to try it! Yeah, yeah!¡¡It looks so good!¡¡The meat is so juicy. Right?¡¡So, let''s get some! There was no one who disagreed with Marks, who stuck out his thumb. 404-372 At sea (3) It is very difficult to distinguish between a rock and a Big Oyster by observation alone. Basically, if you tap the shell, as Mr. Marks did, it will open its mouth, so you can make a judgment, but it is a little tricky because not all Big Oysters respond. However, not all Big Oysters react to it. As soon as you put your foot on it, it opens its mouth and falls on the rocky ground. In our case, however, there is no problem at all, because we responded to the [search for enemies]. We pair up and search for the Big Oyster. When you find a Big Oyster, hit it to make it open its mouth, and use a sturdy weapon such as a two-handed sword or an iron rod as a pincers, while the other person quickly detaches the scallop. This is not defeating, but rather collecting. Incidentally, Toya tried to attack the scallop from the top of the shell with an impact hammer to see if it would be easier, but it was a soggy mess. However, the shells turned out to be a messy mess. I continued to work steadily for an hour. Marks, who was working with Mitya, stopped his work and called out to us. Have you got the amount you need yet?¡¡I''d like to eat it while it''s fresh, how about it? "Yes!¡¡I''m in! Me too!¡¡Me too! I want to try it!¡¡I don''t know about you, but Uncle Marks'' explanation sounded really good! I''m interested, too. Yuki and Mitya immediately agreed, and Mary raised her hand modestly. If it''s just freshness, you can use a magic bag, but we agree that the seafood grilled on the beach looks delicious. So let''s get started. We started to move from the rocky beach to the sandy beach, but right after that, we heard a shout. "Oh no! When we turned around at the sound of the slightly dumb voice, there was Toya on the rocks, stomping his foot bellows. I looked over and saw that something was tangled around his legs, restricting his movement. It moved in a slippery motion and crawled up Toya''s body. "An octopus? For a moment, he couldn''t tell what it was because of the brownish color and the thick tentacles, but then he saw the body crawling up from the surface and the suckers attached to the tentacles, and he knew what it was. Toya, you''re being too cautious! I thought it was an oyster, even though it reacted! To Haruka''s disgusted voice, Toya shouts out an excuse. I see, you have such a blind spot. I''ve seen the skillful mimicry of octopi on TV, and it''s inevitable that you wouldn''t notice it at a glance. If you think it''s a big oyster when you see an enemy under your feet, you''ll be distracted, thinking, ''It''s OK as long as I don''t put my feet on it. But that''s not the time to say that! "Toya, can''t you unshake it? I can''t!¡¡I can''t! I''m trying my best to protect my face! The octopus, which had first been entangled in Toya''s lower body, crawled up to his face. The body of the octopus, entangled just below Toya''s waist, was probably about a meter in diameter. The base of the legs growing out of it is thicker than Toya''s arms and is probably more than two meters long. There are eight of them wrapped around Toya''s body. This is something for the ladies to do! Oh, no, Toya. Toya, I don''t think that''s a good idea. Toya''s brother: ...... Toya-san: ...... Toya was completely beaten up by everyone except Haruka. And even the only one who didn''t say anything, Haruka, gave Toya a cold stare. I''m not going to lie. But the real-life octopus demon is not something that can be treated as a service scene. Toya''s physical abilities allowed him to fight it, but if it had been Yuki, every bone in her body would have been crushed, and even the suction cups would have been quite dangerous. The chainmail and leather armor are not enough to deal with it, but it would be quite dangerous to have it attached directly to the exposed parts of your face and bare skin. However, Toya is wearing a flexible armor, and even Toya''s face is getting a little red from the tightening. Well, it doesn''t look like she''s in any immediate danger, so we can afford to make such observations. "Marks!¡¡Help me! "Oh, I''m sorry, Toya. I''m not an expert in handling women. Not that way!¡¡You octopus!¡¡I don''t have time for jokes like that! I''m sorry about that.¡¡By the way, sorry about that too. Unless you want me to smash you to bits, I''m not good at that kind of delicate work. I''m not good at that kind of delicate work.¡¡I''m really stuck here.¡¡Help!¡¡Help~!¡¡I''m in serious trouble!¡¡I''ll apologize! The octopus''s body crawled up to his chest, and it looked like it was about to get really dangerous. Even Toya''s life would be in danger if his face was covered. It''s no use. Hey, Toya. Me, Haruka, Natsuki, and Nao. Who do you want? Shaking his head, Yuki held up four fingers, to which Toya immediately replied. "Natsuki! You didn''t hesitate at all. So, Natsuki, please. I understand. Nao, please lend me your spear. The octopus''s vital point is ...... here! The effect was dramatic. The effect was dramatic. When Natsuki received the spear from me and quickly thrust it between the octopus'' eyes, its body color suddenly turned white and its body stopped moving. At the same time, the octopus lost its clamping power, and Toya immediately ripped it off and slammed it down on the rocks. It seems that even demons are no different from kryptonite. Thank God, Natsuki. Oh, that''s disgusting. ....... I''m in a lot of trouble. Toya, my brother is all sticky and wet. ...... And it stinks, too. ...... I''d like to jump into the ocean, but I''m not sure I want to. I want to jump into the sea like this. ...... Someone, please purify. Yes, yes. Purify. Watch your step this time, okay? Okay. Huh. ...... Tiredly reaching for his feet, Toya dragged the dead octopus he had just knocked over to the beach and jumped off. I''m a little glad we got the octopus, but, Marks, what kind of demon is this? I''m not sure if it''s because I haven''t read the encyclopedia of sea monsters, or because I couldn''t identify it with my [Appraise] skill, Toya asked, but Mr. Marks simply shook his head. No, I don''t know anything about it. What? I''ll tell you, I only know a few demons that I''ve encountered in the short time I''ve been active near the ocean. I''ve been looking through the demon encyclopedia for a while now, but I don''t remember that much. It was a long time ago that Marks retired from active duty, and it was even longer before that that he was active in other countries. It''s inevitable that he can''t remember anything about a demon he''s never fought. We don''t even know if the octopus is a demon or not. Well, considering that it came out of the dungeon, I think it''s a demon, and we can find out if it has a magic stone or not. You know, right?¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find it on the web. He washed it clean with seawater and placed it on his palm for us to see. "Wow, that''s a beautiful stone, ...... shining a light blue. It''s really ...... your first time, isn''t it?¡¡A magic stone of this color? In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s worth it. "Is that so?¡¡I didn''t know that. The majority of the demons I''ve killed so far have had blackish demon stones, which depending on how you look at it can be beautiful, like obsidian, but not at all vivid. If the magic stone is as beautiful as this, it may have a certain value as a decorative item. ....... The color, by the way, has no effect on the price. At least when the guild buys it. Oh, I see. Magical stones are practical items. There''s no one special who uses magic stones as ornaments, right?¡¡If that''s the case, it''s much better to sell the magic stones to buy jewelry. "...... is that it? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. In this world, perhaps because of the existence of alchemy, glass processing technology is also surprisingly developed. Since it is not an industrial product, it is not inexpensive, but it is possible to make glass beads that are beautiful enough to be used as jewelry. Even so, they are much cheaper than ordinary jewels, so unfortunately, even if a magic stone is somewhat beautiful, the price will not be high unless it is rare. 405-373 At sea (4) And then there''s this guy. Can you buy this? The octopus was easily killed by Natsuki, but when I stretched out its corpse on the beach, it was quite large. From the tip of its head - or should I say the tip of its body?¡¡The tentacles at the base of the body were thicker than my arms. If I could eat it, it would be the equivalent of several hundred ordinary octopuses, but Mr. Marks shook his head reluctantly. I don''t know. I''m sorry, but my guild can''t make a judgment. Even if we were to buy it, we''d have to wait until we had the demon encyclopedia with all the demons of the sea. Normally, if we kept it around that long, it would go bad. We can preserve it, at least for now. Let me consult with you again then. Oh. If we can''t buy it, I''m sorry.¡¡--Well, that''s it. Let''s get some of those Big Oysters!¡¡It''s been a hell of a long time, me too. You can''t get them around here, you know. Let''s get a fire going, shall we? Yeah!¡¡I''m so excited! I wonder what oysters taste like? They''ll be delicious! It''s been a long time since we''ve had a barbecue-like event, so everyone''s steps are light, and before long, the fire is being built by the dead wood that has gathered. When the fire had settled down a bit, the coals were evenly distributed and five oyster shells were placed on top of the coals. "Now, cut the scallops into pieces. Haruka took out a cutting board and knife and was about to start cooking when Toya interrupted her. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡I''m sure you''ll have a great time. I''m sure it''s just hard to eat. ...... So, just leave it as is for Toya. Yes. Yes! Toya takes the scallop from Haruka, which is hard to grab with one hand, and places it on the shell. Immediately, a sizzling sound and a delicious smell begins to spread around. We''ll keep it classy. We''ll keep it classy. ...... Even if we cook them that big, we''ll have to cut them up to eat them. The scallops that Toya is grilling are over 20 centimeters in both thickness and diameter. Haruka''s point was perfectly reasonable, but I could understand Toya''s feelings. The reason why I didn''t say anything is because I know that if I, who doesn''t have any cooking skills, try my hand at it, it will surely turn out to be worse than what Haruka makes. I''m not sure if this is the right size for ....... The scallop he cut into pieces was slightly larger than a bite size. The scallops were slightly larger than bite size. Let''s add some soy sauce, miso and butter too! ""Oooh! A vicious, appetizing aroma rose up. In each of the five shells, there are salt, soy sauce, miso, and butter flavors, as well as Toya''s wild scallops. Each of the five shells had a different flavor: salt, soy, miso, and butter. "Gulp. "Hey, Haruka, is it okay if I eat now? Hmm... Can I eat now?¡¡Except for Toya''s. Ugh! The other seven each stuck their forks into their favorite flavored scallops and put them in their mouths. "Yes, this is it!¡¡I miss it! "It''s a little chewy, but it''s a good scallop. Butter and soy sauce are a must. Drizzle a little ...... on it, it''s delicious! "Soy sauce is the best!¡¡"Soy sauce with scallops is an ironclad combination, isn''t it? The more you bite into it, the more the flavor of the shellfish floods your mouth, and it''s indescribable. The salt flavor made from seawater is good enough, but for me, the soy sauce flavor is a step up. Again, soy sauce is the best. "Whoa!¡¡There''s something so delicious in the juice, sizzling, sizzling! "Oh, it''s a mass of deliciousness! Mary and her sisters, who were probably eating the scallops for the first time, were waving their hands and tails in the air and bringing them to their mouths one by one. "Oh, no!¡¡Why didn''t I bring my own alcohol? "It''s your job. It''s a great way to make sure you''re getting the most out of your vacation. I don''t want to hear that argument!¡¡I''m not going to say that I don''t want to hear that!¡¡If you''re an enemy around here, it doesn''t matter if you''re drunk, just share with me! "No, sir. We don''t drink. I''m not lying. I''m not saying we don''t drink at all, but it''s not like we''re going to drink during our adventure, and we''re not going to bring alcohol if we don''t have to. "Whoa, whoa, seriously?¡¡I don''t drink either. I don''t drink either. I don''t think it tastes that good. I don''t think it''s that good." Mr. Marks frowned at Toya''s response, and let out an exasperated sigh. What?¡¡I heard that you guys are making a new brew.¡¡And you don''t even drink it or have it? It''s true that it''s weird to make sake when you don''t really like it, but the purpose is to have a side business for the future. But the purpose of the project is to create a side business for the future. The company only provides the technology and investment, but the actual work is done by the sake lover, so there is no problem. It''s for sale. I''ve got some for cooking, but-- Give it to me! Natsuki looked at us as if she was troubled. "Well, what do you want? What should we do?¡¡It''s good for publicity. "Really?¡¡Then, just one cup. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. I''ve heard a little bit about it from Diora, but ...... it''s not familiar to me. It smells ...... a little different, too. It''s a little on the heavy side, so be careful, okay? It''s okay, it''s okay. You won''t get drunk after one drink. It''s a good idea to have a little bit of beer in the house. It may be due to our [Robustness] and [Poison Resistance], but none of us have ever gotten drunk from drinking ale. However, according to Natsuki, the sake we currently have is ''higher in alcohol content than most sake on the market''. The sake on the market is made by adding water to the original sake to adjust the alcohol content, but even with that, our sake seems to be even higher, and according to Natsuki, ''the yeast is different, so it''s possible that the alcohol content could be different. But just in case, be cautious. ...... Oh, it''s definitely strong!¡¡But that''s good!¡¡And the snacks are delicious! And the snacks are good!" He drank and ate a scallop, drank again, and extended his fork to another flavor of scallop. It''s strange that when someone drinks like that, it makes me want to drink too. However, it was too dangerous to drink in the dungeon, so we drank cold tea. It''s good enough. While we were tucking into the scallops, Toya, who had been left to his own devices, jerked Haruka''s hand away. "Hey, Haruka, can''t I eat mine yet? "It''s too thick to be easily cooked. Why don''t you just cut it into pieces or wait until it''s cooked while you eat something else?¡¡If you can eat it, that is. No matter how much food you can spare, the rule in our family is no leftovers. If you want to bite into the whole thing, you have to finish it by yourself. I wouldn''t be able to eat a whole giant scallop like this, but I''m sure Toya, who is a big eater, can ......? I''m sure he''ll be fine!¡¡--It''s delicious!¡¡What is this?¡¡It''s delicious! Toya was a little unsure of himself, but he couldn''t resist the delicious looking scallops, so he took the one that was cut into pieces into his mouth and squealed with delight. I''m expecting a big one! No, it looks like it''s going to burn raw, but ....... It''s fresh, so you might be able to eat it, but I wonder how it will taste? It''s fresh, so it might be edible, but how will it taste? Natsuki, who had been taking care of turning the scallops over for Toya, tilted her head slightly. This one is only cooked on the surface, right?¡¡Do you want me to cover it with a shell and steam it?¡¡I think that would work, but the heat would be a bit troublesome. Let''s just cut it open. If you want to bite into one, I''ll make it for you at home. If you want to bite into the whole thing, I''ll make it at home next time." Yuki looked a little dumbfounded, and Toya nodded reluctantly, perhaps sensing that it was indeed too much to ask. "Mmm. You''re right, it''s not the time to be selfish. To be honest, I don''t think I could eat it all by myself. --But I''d like to try it half raw. Try cutting it up a little. "All right. Horizontal is better, right? The fibers of the scallop run vertically, and the Big Oyster scallop is more solid than the scallop. This is fine for bite-sized pieces, but if you cut it lengthwise, you end up with a cheese that''s hard to chew. Natsuki, who must have thought of this, cut the scallop horizontally to break the fibers, then sliced it thinly and presented it to Toya. 406-374 At sea (5) The slightly undercooked scallops were plump and looked reasonably tasty. It looked like a squid fillet, but the fact that it was cut into large pieces was probably a result of Toya''s desire to bite into it whole. He took it with a bit of joy, opened his mouth and put it in his mouth in one big bite. I''ll take it then. Mmmm ...... yeah. It''s about as good as a ...... not-so-good scallop. It''s hard to tell. Is it good or not? Haruka thought the same thing, cut the raw part into bite-sized pieces and ate it, and nodded. It''s not very sweet. The fibers are strong and a little chewy, so the texture is not so good. It doesn''t have a melt-in-your-mouth texture, but depending on how you cut it, it could be delicious. Well, that''s much easier to understand than Toya. I don''t eat very expensive food, but I think I can eat well enough. Is it good?¡¡If it''s good, I want to try it! "I think it''s probably better grilled. Do you want to taste it? "I''ll try it! Mitya smiled and nodded, and Haruka cut the scallops into bite-sized pieces, placed them on a plate, poured soy sauce over them, and offered them to her. The more you bite into it, the more your face becomes cloudy. The more she chewed, the more her face clouded. Yuki and I also reached out and tried it. ....... --Yeah. Too bad. It''s good at first, but as you chew it, the soy sauce flavor fades and the strands remain, which is a bit subtle. I can understand the reason for Mitya''s expression. It''s delicious, but ...... "It''s usually better when it''s cooked. You could cut it a little thinner and serve it as carpaccio. Right?¡¡I''ll just cut it up and grill it. It''s just too bland. ...... In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get the best results, you can contact us at our website. It''s a great way to get the most out of your day. "...... You guys can eat it raw, right? We stopped moving at his words. "What? ......?¡¡You can eat it raw, can''t you?¡¡This is... I looked at him and he shook his head as if in a panic. No, no, no, I''m not doing that. In seaside towns, people eat raw food, not just this. But I''m not so sure. --One of the party members at the time said, "Delicious!¡¡It''s good! But then something bad happened. ...... I''ve heard that it''s awful to get hit by an oyster, but I heard that Marks'' friend got it right. In this world where medical care is so delicate, except for healing magic, it seems that he almost died, no pun intended, and watching it from the side, the dangers of raw seafood, including oysters, became ingrained in Marks'' mind. Most of us are strong and have healing magic, but for those who don''t have it, food poisoning is a life-threatening disease. It happens once you''re inside, doesn''t it? Yeah, I haven''t gotten it myself, but I''ve seen people dying. Here''s something for you, Mr. Marks. I''ve cooked it well, so it''s safe. Oh, I''m sorry. Oh, this stir-fried vegetable is delicious. Good food is what keeps men coming home. Haruka, anyone who marries you will be happy! That''s too much praise! Would you like another drink? In response to the blatant compliment - and there''s no doubt that Haruka''s cooking is delicious - Haruka waved her hand, loosened her cheeks, and poured a drink into Marks'' cup. "Are you sure?¡¡--It''s good? I''m sure this stir-fry is delicious, but I''d like to try something else. I''m sure the stir-fried vegetables are delicious, but I''d like to try something else." A good drink and some snacks may be enough for a drinker, but if you''re just tasting the scallops, it''s not enough for a meal. There are only variations in taste and quantity, but the ingredients are the same: scallops. Even if it''s good, it''s boring. I''m not in the mood for meat ....... I''m not in the mood for meat.¡¡It''s an octopus, it''ll probably be good. Hey, Toya, nice!¡¡--It''s a little big, though. Octopus is expensive, and I rarely had a chance to eat fresh octopus. They may be large, but unlike giant squid, which live in the deep sea, octopuses live in shallow water. But unlike giant squid, which live in the deep sea, octopuses live in the shallows. "What, you''re going to eat that? "That?¡¡Mr. Marks, can''t you eat octopus?¡¡We''ll cook it. I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s not surprising that Marks, who was mainly active in inland areas, can''t eat them. I don''t know if it''s safe to eat them.¡¡I don''t know. You can eat most of the demons around here, but there are many demons in this world that you can''t eat. "...... Oh, I see. There''s also the danger of poisoning. We looked at each other in disbelief as Marks said something fundamental. "Come to think of it, there are poisonous octopuses, aren''t there? The most famous one is the leopard octopus, which has tetrodotoxin. Like the fugu. No!¡¡It''s too dangerous to taste it! No, tetrodotoxin won''t kill you instantly, and with our Cure Poison, it''s easier to taste. "Toya, taste the poison, please! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. Toya-san: ...... I''m sure you''ll be fine. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to have to. This is a great way to make sure you are getting the most out of your time with your family. It''s a shame ....... You don''t have the guts. No, it''s not a matter of courage.¡¡It''s a matter of life and death. With sister Haruka and sister Natsuki, I''ll be fine! I''ve got a lot of faith in you. They healed my sister and me too! You''ve got a track record. It''s no wonder Mitya is so proud of himself. That''s how badly they were injured. But Yuki and Natsuki were probably joking. Mitya was probably the only one who really wanted Toya to be poisoned,....... "Well, even if you can eat it, it''s a lot of work to prepare it, though, isn''t it, live octopus? Is that so? The octopus that I know is the one that I''ve been eating. The only octopuses I know of are boiled and reddened. I''ve seen whole, live octopuses for sale, but they were not affordable, and I couldn''t eat them all even if I bought them, so they were not something we had any connection with. Yeah. First of all, you need to wash it with a lot of salt until the slime comes off. Sometimes you have to do it over and over again. Salt isn''t cheap around here, so that alone would be quite costly. Then you have to pound it to make it soft. We rub them with grated radish and pound them. I''ve heard that in some areas, they soften it by hitting it on the rocks over and over again. By the way, in Japan, they wash them in a washing machine. Of course, they don''t add detergent, but it''s convenient because it removes the slime and makes them soft. This is a little surprising. Moreover, since it''s this big, ...... it must be very difficult. I''m not going to start making salt just so I can eat this octopus. Oh, you''re going to do it?¡¡If you''re going to do it, I''ll at least arrange for the magical tools for salt production.¡¡And I''ll be happy if you distribute them to my guild. I''m not doing it!¡¡...... For now, at least. But if you think about it, it would have been easier and more profitable to run a salt business than to start a brewing business on the side. As I confirmed today, the area near the beach is safer than I thought, and with the transference magic, I can avoid most of the battles that brought me here. Plus, unlike alcohol, it never fails, and salt is something that everyone consumes. As long as I can keep Rafan, the dungeon, and the road safe, I feel like this might not be a bad retirement job. Hmmm, it might be something to consider. 407-375 At sea (6) In the end, the additional seafood was grilled flying gar skewers. It is debatable whether flying gar from the river is "seafood" or not, but it tastes like sea fish and is delicious, so there is no problem. After finishing all the food, Mr. Marks drank his glass of sake and opened his mouth with a serious expression on his face. Now that we''ve eaten our fill, let''s talk about something serious. About the sea, right? Yeah. I''m just a small-time branch chief. Now that I''ve confirmed it, I can''t help but report it to the top. To the country, right? Yeah. I will send the report to the guild headquarters in this country, and from there it will be reported to the country. Normally, information about a dungeon is reported to its owner, usually the lord, who in turn reports important information to the country, but this dungeon is not owned by the lord. Therefore, in this case, the local guilds will send a report to the headquarters in the form of important information they have obtained, and the headquarters will decide whether to send the information to the country. There''s no chance that the headquarters won''t send out the information, but ...... they will probably report it. "Don''t you have to report it to Viscount Nenus? I''m not sure what to make of it. It''s a tough call. I''m not obligated to report to the headquarters either, so I guess it''s up to you whether or not you want to take that into consideration. On the other hand, there''s a way to raise the information through the Viscount instead of through the guild. It''s better to tell them ......, isn''t it?¡¡After all. I guess so. I''m not sure what to make of that. If the information about the dungeon in your territory comes from another place, you will not feel good. Ignoring it because you don''t have an obligation to do so is not the way to socialize with people. In that case, I''ll let the guild know when the time is right. Thank you. --What do you think will happen if this information reaches the country? Will there be trouble? It depends. This is a pretty good country, but it still has no shortage of aristocrats who love their rights. I don''t think the system will force them to take it away, but I''m sure there will be people who will try to negotiate with them. "''Negotiation''." ...... It''s probably not a serious discussion. I''ll probably be the one to take the brunt of it. Even if I can get support from Natsuki and Haruka, I don''t want to negotiate with a nobleman if I can help it. I was nervous even discussing business with Viscount Nenus, but I can''t see myself succeeding in negotiating with a nobleman on a matter involving interests. If it''s a "talk" (negotiation) with a doomed person, it can be settled by pushing Toya out of the way, but I don''t think it can be done with a nobleman. When Marks saw me sighing deeply, he grinned meaningfully. "Nao, let me tell you something good. Negotiation is only possible when you can talk to the other side, okay? That means ....... You want me to hide myself so that I can''t negotiate? It''s true that if you don''t see the owner and you can''t contact them, you won''t even need to negotiate. But what about the risk of someone taking possession of your property because you can''t negotiate with them? "That would not be a problem either. It is the law of the state that guarantees the rights of nobles. If you disregard it, you will jeopardize your position. Diora said that the only noblemen who would get involved in something like this would not take such a risk. That was a piece of information he had just received. Well, Marks, a commoner, and Diora, an aristocrat. Diora is by far the most reliable source of information, so there is no problem. "In the first place, there is not much profit to be made from this sea. We''ll need to invest, and it won''t be worth the risk of breaking the paper. Except in terms of national interest. In terms of national interest, the fact that there is an ocean is meaningful, but there is also a reasonable amount of risk in order to profit from it. If the owner is a commoner, he will make a move if he thinks he can take it easily, but if he thinks it is not worth the cost, he will back out. That seems to be the extent of it. However, if you make a mistake in negotiating with them, you may end up destroying their face, and you may end up negotiating with them with no regard for profit, so you have to be careful. Yes, it''s very troublesome. It seems that the best thing to do is to let things cool down for a while, without coming face to face with the other party. In the meantime, we have the backing of Viscount Nenus. We can''t do anything too spectacular, and if we just keep moving around, the chances of being caught are pretty low. Even if they find us, they can''t detain us because we''re not criminals, and in a world where there''s almost no way to communicate instantly with distant places, it''s not uncommon for even the smallest contact to take months. It''s not like we''re going to be living on the run for the rest of our lives. I don''t know what''s the best thing to do. I don''t know what the best thing to do is. In the end, it might be better to stay in Laffan. I''ll let you decide that for yourselves. That would be ...... right. We can ask for advice, but we are the ones who make the decisions, and we are the ones who take responsibility for the results. We have a backer, but not a protector. "It''s hard to say, but ...... we could go away for a while. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. The other day, the escort request gave us a little more confidence, and leaving this town for a while does not seem like a bad choice. The quality of life will be a little lower, but we have magic and magic bags. It''s not going to get much worse. I''m not saying that I''m not running away from the troublesome negotiations, but it would probably be better if I didn''t than if I did. Besides, it would be a shame to be confined to one region of the world. If you think about it, this might have been a good opportunity. When Marks saw that we were reasonably enthusiastic, he relaxed his expression as if relieved, sat back down and abruptly changed the subject. I''m going to have to write up a report on what happened after I get home, but that''s a lot of work.¡¡I may have to work overtime for several days to finish it. "What?¡¡Yes. But if the ...... wife is in a good mood, she might be in the mood to leave work early and go home. Hmm? "On the other hand, if she''s in a bad mood, she might work late, which would make her work harder. "...... I see. Understood. Mr. Marks, I''m sorry to interrupt, but... This dungeon also produces fruit. We can''t eat it all by ourselves, so why don''t we take it home?¡¡You can feed them to your wife. "Yeah, I''ll take as much as I can... She was about to say something, but Mary quickly stopped her. "Oh, are you sure? "Yes, Mr. Marks, and by extension his wife, who graciously gave me a ride home, so I''m sharing. I smiled at him and he smiled back. Thank you. I''m going to be away from home for a little while. Thank you. --By the way, on a different note, it''s going to be about six months before the report I wrote up reaches headquarters. After finishing the conversation with a smile, Marks and I clasped hands. Yeah, there''s nothing wrong with that. We were simply sharing a rare fruit, which is hard to find around here, with someone we know. 408-376 Before the journey (1) After returning from the dungeon, we hurriedly made preparations to leave the city. Mr. Marks had given us half a year to get away, but in this world where it''s impossible to fly high, the more time you have, the better. First of all, we need a house. We don''t want to leave our new house unattended. "Yes. Houses deteriorate quickly when they are no longer inhabited. It''s been about a year now, but our house is still brand new, and we all agree that we can''t leave it unattended. To be honest, it was a shame to leave such a house, but we had no choice but to leave it to avoid any trouble. Let''s ask Tommy to do it. Just tell him he can use the bathroom and he''ll take care of it. It won''t be much trouble. That''s right. He seems to be a frequent visitor to the brewery in the garden, so we only need to change the air. For those of us who have Purify, a little dust is not a problem. If you''re asking us to regularly ventilate the room or deal with some unexpected situation, such as damage caused by a natural disaster, it won''t be a problem if you''re paid to use the bathroom. Of course, you will need to deposit the necessary funds. Then there''s the garden. This one is sure to fall into disrepair if left unattended. ...... It''s not as bad as it was in the summer, but even on this expedition, I came home to a garden full of weeds. The only part of the garden that was in decent condition was the area around the brewery, which Jay and his team were probably tending to. With a garden this big, you''d normally hire a gardener, but ...... Then you can ask the kids at the orphanage to do it! An orphanage. ...... I can''t supervise, is that okay? In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you may want to take a look at a few of the best ways to make sure you''re getting the most out of your time. When Mary saw me worrying, she raised her hand and said. I''m sure Saara and the others will be fine. They''re always so polite. "Well, you''re the oldest girl, right?¡¡I think. Haruka put her fingers on her temples as if searching her memory, and Mary nodded her head. I didn''t remember much, but it seems that she is the oldest of the orphan girls, and it''s time for her to think about what to do. Then perhaps we could hire you to manage the house. I think that''s a good idea.¡¡The inside of the house can be taken care of by magic, but the garden is a lot of work. "It''s a lot more work than I expected, isn''t it ......? We all nodded at my words. At first, I thought, "I''m so happy to have a big garden! But it was nearly impossible to manage this garden in between adventurer work and training. Even Yuki, who had been talking about gardening, has recently given up on the idea. There are many things I want to do, but I don''t have the time to do them. It would be possible if we cut back on work, but considering the amount of money we make, it would definitely be more cost effective to hire someone. Initially, I was expecting Mary and her friends to do that, but now they are important party members. It would be a pity to leave them just to maintain the house and garden, and it would be a waste of their abilities. It would be a good idea to hire an orphan who is not interested in being an adventurer. Let''s talk about it later with Mr. Ishka. If we can suspend the fertilizer sales, the only problem left is Aella. As for the meat in Aella''s store, we are responsible for the supply. We told her at the beginning that we might not be able to supply her at some point, so we are not obligated to supply her, but she is not just a business associate of ours, she is our second closest friend after Diora. If possible, I would like to do something about it. Can''t we lend Aella our magic bag?¡¡We can collect a lot of meat, can''t we? "Magic bags. ...... The amount of meat consumed in Aella''s store is actually not that much. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It seems that the high profit margin comes from the high unit price sweets that are sold during the tea time from late afternoon to evening. Due to the spread of backpacking, the supply of meat has increased more than before, even without our presence. We can buy a certain amount of meat from the butcher shops in town, and even if the supply of meat runs out, we should not go out of business because we have stopped selling at a low profit and our customer base is more female. ....... It''s a shame that the meat poste is going away. Even if I don''t eat it. I agree. I''d rent it out if I could, what do you think? I don''t want them to get away with it, but I have faith that Aera-san won''t do anything like that. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the site, you can call us at the web site. Is that so? Yeah. I''ve got the backing of Viscount Nenus now, and he says I''ll be fine as long as I don''t start a full-time magic bag shop or something like that. I''m not sure what to make of this. If you want to use your power to push, it depends on your backers. If the supply is high enough to cause a price collapse, it''s a problem, but if it''s not, there''s no problem selling it. If you think about it, even a few magic bags a year seems to have a big impact, but the truth is that magic tools, including magic bags, are a kind of durable consumer goods, like home appliances. Even though they use magical alchemy, tools are still tools. Sometimes they break, and sometimes they deteriorate over time. In the case of magic bags, the first thing to consider is the durability of the bag. If you handle it roughly, it will tear, and if a sharp object sticks in it, it will make a hole. If this happens, the bag will naturally lose its effectiveness as a magic tool. Of course, the owner must handle it carefully to prevent this from happening, but accidents will inevitably occur as things are taken in and out of the bag, and the leather used will wear out. Another thing is the expiration date of the magic bag. The function of a magic bag is at its highest point when it is first made, and then it gradually declines and finally becomes an ordinary bag. The length of time it lasts depends on the skill of the person who made it, but if it is of poor quality, it can last for several years, and if it is particularly good, it can last for several decades. In other words, the more magic bags you make, the more magic bags there will be in the world. If you sell it to the public, it will be a pain in the ass. I get a lot of requests to sell them. By the way, the least troublesome way is to auction a limited number of bags. However, in that case, since there is no intermediary from the Adventurer''s Guild, it seems that you have to go through the troublesome procedures that Marks mentioned, either by yourself or with a proxy. I''ll lend it to you. We''ve got a lot of meat stored up, and we don''t want to get rid of it, do we? I''m leaving this town. ...... In the beginning, we had a hard time, and we were poor, so we saved up a lot of delicious meat, but in reality, once we went on an adventure, our meat stock would grow. In the first place, our consumption would not be enough to eat even one orc in a year. Now that we can get many times as much meat just by passing through the meat area of a dungeon, it''s time to get rid of our overgrown inventory. Of course, I regularly bring meat to the adventurer''s guild, but if I give them too much meat at once, I''ll cause trouble for them. I''m sure the guild will take it, as that is their role, but I''d like to avoid causing trouble as much as possible. There is also the option of selling it at the guild of the place I''m going to, but without the flexible Diora, I feel that it might become a source of trouble. Considering this, leaving it at Aella''s place is not a bad idea. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that.¡¡Let''s split up and deal with it. I''ll go to the orphanage and talk to Ishka about it. I''ll talk to Ishka at the orphanage," said Haruka, and Mary and Mitya immediately raised their hands. Oh, I''ll go with you. I''ll go with you. I''ll go ask Tommy. --There''s someone else I''d like to say hello to. So I''ll go to Aella''s? I''ll go with you. You''ll have to explain. Me, too. I have to keep an eye on Nao! Why? I didn''t do anything to deserve being watched. --You''re not, are you? It''s Toya who''s doing it, isn''t it? ...... Are you trying to get Toya to go by herself? I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. Okay, let''s not beat around the bush. I''m a prince. We spent the next three days getting everything ready as planned. The loan of the magic bag and the request to Tommy went off without a hitch, and we hired Mary''s recommendation, Saara, to tend the garden. As for her, I have made a contract with Mr. Ishka and have deposited several years'' salary with a view to employing her as a gardener on a continuous basis, depending on the situation after our return. It''s not a lot of money, since labor costs are low in this world and she''s underage, but she was very happy to hear that Saara, who was having trouble finding a job after adulthood, was unlikely to be an adventurer, so I guess this was a good idea. On the morning of the fourth day, after greeting Gantz, Diora, and other acquaintances, we set out from the town of Raffan. 409-377 Before the journey (2) Well, we were all set and ready to leave Laffan, but by the end of the day, we had easily reached our first destination. The town of Kerg. It''s right next door. Very close, but we were not just stopping there, we had a specific purpose. Haruka, Yuki, and Natsuki were the ones who strongly requested to go, but since we still had plenty of time left in our schedule, we had no reason to refuse, so we accepted. As soon as we arrived in the town, we went to the store where the person we wanted to meet was. Welcome! Even though it was past the peak time for lunch, more than half of the seats in the restaurant were occupied. The cheerful voice and the noise of the customers. As if to weave in and out of the crowd, a girl moved quickly with an empty plate in her hand. No, it would be rude to call her a girl. Her belly had swollen so much that I could clearly see it. She put her plate down on the counter, looked back at us, and rolled her eyes. "Huh?¡¡It''s Haruka and the others! It''s been a while! It''s been a while!¡¡What are you doing?¡¡What are you doing? What do you mean, work? The one who tilted her head was Yasue, the proprietress of this store. I''m not sure if it''s because I have a child or because I''m used to this world. No, it''s not that...! "Oh, I''m sorry, I''m busy. I''m sorry, I''m a little busy right now.¡¡I''ll settle down in a little while. Yasue replied lightly to Haruka''s hasty rebuttal and resumed her work. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''ve been so impressed with your work. We looked at each other and settled down at a table in the corner, "She''s pregnant, isn''t she? Did Haruka and the others know about it? "Possibly. I didn''t tell Nao and the others because I wasn''t sure. Is that why you wanted to come here? Is that why you said you wanted to come here? Haruka and the others wanted to stop by Kerg before they left town this time. I had heard that it was because they wanted to see Yasue, but it seems that the reason was her pregnancy. They had been told before that they would need to take some time off after Marks-san''s dungeon investigation, and this was probably the reason. "Confirmation and support. We''re friends now, right? There are some concerns about the medical system here: ....... If I or Haruka were here, we''d be able to help a little. The rest is for our experience, I guess. I''ve never had the experience of witnessing a childbirth, even if I do have some common sense knowledge about it. In general, there are people you know who can help you during childbirth, such as your parents or neighbors, but in our case, those connections are thin. The only adult female acquaintances we have are Diora, Aella, Luce and Ishka, but that''s about it. I''m not a woman of childbirth, so I''m not sure if I can rely on her for childbirth. If I had to guess, I would say that Gantz''s wife, Sybil, is also there, but unfortunately she is only an acquaintance. "So you''re saying you want to support Yasue and gain some experience? I see. I''m not sure about me, but I''m curious about Haruka and Nao, aren''t you? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. I''ve been thinking about it. I''m sure you''ll be able to find someone you can talk to. It''s your first time experiencing this. I''ve heard about maternity blues and such. We never know when it''s going to happen, do we?¡¡You should be careful, Toya. If you plant seeds without thinking... Oh, yeah. ....... You''ll be fine.¡¡Maybe. The three were unexpectedly serious, and Toya nodded, as if a little pressured. I don''t know much about it, but I would think that a store like that would have measures in place, but it''s not out of the realm of possibility. I''m ....... Well, yeah. I''m thinking about it. I''ve been thinking about it for a while, but I''ve heard that the odds are lower between elves than normal, so it''ll probably be a while before I get around to it. I''m not sure what to make of this. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. When more than half of the tables in the restaurant were empty, she came back with a tray of cups in her hand, saying, "Thanks for waiting. She laid them out in front of us and sat down on a chair with a "yokkosho", when Haruka opened her mouth. I''d like to congratulate you first. I knew you were pregnant. "Congratulations. "Congratulations. "Well, thank you. We congratulated each other, and Yasue responded in a whisper, her eyes wandering as if she was a little embarrassed. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s kind of emotional. I never thought that one of my classmates would get pregnant at this age. ...... "Wait, don''t say that!¡¡It''s kind of embarrassing! It''s me and Toya who are glancing at each other. It''s normal in our world to be pregnant in high school,......, and when you think about it, it''s certainly a bit strange. But as a man, it''s hard to get into these topics. However, I don''t want to be talked about too much, so Toya and I keep our mouths shut and quietly fade into the shadows. But I''m relieved to hear that things are going well. Are things going well with your husband? "Well, yeah. Well, thanks to you, I''m able to help with the cooking now.¡¡No problem. Yasue glanced towards the kitchen and smiled, her face was happy and not as stern as when we first met. I was not really expecting you to come.¡¡I wasn''t expecting much, but... I wasn''t expecting much, but you guys have work to do. You said you''d come and take a look. We keep our promises, don''t we? I wouldn''t have minded if it had been the first time we broke up, but now that we''re reconciled... Yes, but ...... well, thank you. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. I''m not sure what to say. We can''t help but loosen our mouths at such Yasue. "Well, it''s not a good night''s sleep when your classmate dies in childbirth, is it? "Hey, don''t say something that won''t bring good luck! "But it''s closer than you think.¡¡For ordinary people. If you are a rich person or a nobleman who can call a healing wizard, the mortality rate of pregnant women and unborn babies associated with childbirth is quite low, but if you are a commoner who cannot call a healing wizard, there is a danger of a rate that cannot be ignored. As light magic has purify and disinfect, people are aware of the importance of cleanliness and would not perform medical treatment or take away a child without washing their hands. In other words, there are limits. In other words, there is a natural limit. "Yes, but ...... think about my feelings. "Sorry, sorry. Sorry." "Don''t worry, Yasue. Even if something happens, I''ll take care of it. Haruka and Natsuki... We''re all in this together! We''re one and the same!¡¡And we live in the same house. ......¡¡How''s that working out for you? So far, so good.¡¡It''s going well. I''m sure it''s going well. Well, it''s definitely going well, isn''t it? I don''t have any experience, but I think it''s much easier than living in a dormitory. Part of it is that we have been close friends since childhood, but another part of it is that I have a private room. I wouldn''t say that we have zero disagreements, but they can be resolved through normal discussion. Mary and her friends, whose living conditions were different from ours, would never complain about their greatly increased, if not lowered, standard of living. The only people who would have a problem with this situation would be people with communication problems. By the way, do you have any plans? "I don''t, but Haruka... Yuki shook her head and looked meaningfully at Haruka. 410-378 Before the journey (3) So far, no. But Haruka, who was being looked at like this, replied without changing her color. In fact, I, who wasn''t involved in the conversation, felt my face heat up. "Really?¡¡But it''s possible? "Well, we do what we do, don''t we?¡¡But it seems that elves are slightly less fertile. I don''t want you to get pregnant too soon, though. I''m thinking about it, though. Oh, hey, Haruka, ......? I couldn''t help but interrupt her at the unbelievable flow of conversation, but she responded without hesitation. I''m not sure.¡¡It''s not like we''re close enough to care, right? No, I think we''re close enough to care. Or what? Are girls supposed to talk about such things openly with each other? Isn''t it supposed to be a secret? I''m not sure what to make of this. ...... Yeah, you''re even harder to get into a conversation with than I am. I understand. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Nao, I think it''s a little late for that, don''t you? That house is well built, but there''s no insulation or soundproofing in the walls. ...... I can''t hear you. I can''t hear anything. I''m lying down on the table, holding both ears. I''ll do my best to avert my gaze from what Yuki and the others are saying, which is almost as good as saying it without being specific. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to live with those two little guys, but I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to live with them.¡¡I''m afraid it''s going to break up in a share house or some such romantic relationship. "Toya seems to want a beastman wife, and she seems to go to places like that in moderation. "Oh, really? When the subject of himself came up and Yasue glanced at him, Toya meditated and did not change his expression like a noh mask. If he says something, he will be ridiculed, and that is probably the right choice. In fact, at first Haruka had said, "Never go to a brothel," but after she got used to this world to some extent, she didn''t have much to say about it. She probably doesn''t think very well of Toya''s addiction to the Blue Tower, but the money he''s spending is his personal property, and it''s much safer than going to a cheap place and getting a disease. As for the concern that it might not be good for Mary''s education, it is completely unjustified; in fact, I sometimes feel that they are more sophisticated than she is. In the first place, the views on s*xuality vary greatly from era to era, so it is only natural that different worlds have different ethical views. There is no point in worrying about it. That''s why I don''t ask Toya about it even when she sometimes stays over, and I just make fun of her and let it go. What''s more, I''ve never directly accused him of anything, which is a very good thing. It must be difficult for Toya to say, "I''m going to the brothel," since he was first told not to go there, and he must feel uncomfortable. I''m not sure if I''d be able to say to a girl in my class, ''I''m going to a brothel! ....... I wouldn''t be able to. --If I were to say to a girl in my class, "I''m going to a brothel," I''m pretty sure a war would break out. So, let''s leave Toya out of this. What about Yuki and Natsuki?¡¡They''re making out in the same house. It''s annoying!¡¡Don''t you think that''s annoying? No, we don''t make out that much, you know. At least not when we''re in public. Yuki and Natsuki looked at each other and nodded. I''m not so sure about that.¡¡It''s almost the same as before. Yes. The two of you were always very close to each other. If you''re wondering, it''s ....... It was slightly different. I''d have been more careful. ....... "Oh, I see. So you''re used to seeing them. I get it. Well, I''ve always thought, "That''s a lie, they''re not together," I said. "That''s like family. There was a theory that Nagai was the one. "Oh, really?¡¡I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I think it''s a good idea. I can''t believe Haruka either. ...... What?¡¡What''s wrong with me?¡¡What is it? Unreasonable?¡¡I said the same thing! Haruka pressured him with a smile, and Toya hurriedly waved his hand to explain. You''ve only ever looked at Nao, right?¡¡In that sense. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one. ...... Well, yeah, but... "Really?¡¡It''s different outside of school? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure. But when it''s just the three of us, these guys don''t pull their weight, do they?¡¡When we go out to eat together, it''s normal for the two of us to share a single dish. "Oh, really? Yasue''s eyes sparkled, and Yuki and Natsuki looked curious. In addition, the ears of Mary and Mitya, who are quiet, are also twitching. "Hey! "Or you could just use the same spoon and say... Would you shut up, Toya? Toya, what''s the harm in talking? No, no, no, no!¡¡Don''t... As Toya escalated, Haruka pulled her ears and I pulled her tail to stop her. I feel like I''m doing a lot of things in front of Toya, so it''s not a good idea to make her talk more. "Okay, I get it!¡¡I''m not talking! Okay, good. You might as well keep your mouth shut forever, okay? I get it, but it''s been pretty much the same at home lately, hasn''t it?¡¡You can''t hide it in front of them. ...... But you know what? It''s a bit embarrassing when you actually say it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a shame. But I see. I was hoping to hear a little bit about love triangles, love quadrangles, and hopefully love pentangles. You have a bad personality, Yasue. Yasue. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. When Haruka looks at her, Yasue shrugs her shoulders lightly. I''m kidding. Half of it. "You''re not half serious. No. To be honest, I wasn''t expecting a slog, but I was expecting a love story. Do you have anything more interesting to say?¡¡That Nao is actually dating Natsuki and Yuki behind Haruka''s back? No, I''m not! Don''t drag me into your dangerous conversation. I''m not trying to stop girls from talking about their love lives. That''s usually how it goes down.¡¡--I''m sure it''ll happen. Oh, so Yuki is openly trying to get you?¡¡It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. I don''t think Yuki and the others can marry ordinary people around here. I don''t know.¡¡I''m sure the standard of living will drop. "It''s the lowest level, from our point of view. But if you want to get rich, it''s going to be the big merchants and the aristocrats, and then we''re going to be second or third wives, maybe even mistresses. "Right?¡¡There will definitely be serious conflicts within the family about interests and heirs. I think Nao is a safe bet. That''s kind of boring. What about the other classmates? Oh?¡¡Yasue, can you think of anyone?¡¡At least none of the classmates we''ve met so far have been decent people. ...... "Ugh. ...... In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, we''ll be happy to assist. 411-379 Before the journey (4) "Oh, but I think it''s ...... Tommy, right?¡¡That''s the guy, right? Natsuki and Yuki lowered their eyebrows in annoyance at his words. I don''t mean to discriminate, but dwarves are indeed a bit ...... I''m not sure if I''d want to do that.¡¡I don''t think so. It''s ......, right? Sorry. But if you do, you''ll have to love them very much to marry them. I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m not sure.¡¡I''m not sure if that''s a love thing or not.¡¡Yasue. "No, it''s not! I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "In the first place, I was in a much worse situation when I came over here. ...... ""........." The words are heavy, and we fall silent. I didn''t hear the details, but I heard that he had a lot of trouble after he picked a fight with us. We didn''t have the luxury of accepting a hostile stranger in that situation, so I don''t regret it, but I do feel a little sorry for him. Well, it doesn''t matter. I''m happy now. I''m happy now because of all that hard work. Yasue laughed, and unconsciously or not, she was gently patting her stomach with her hand. And then, perhaps seeing that the conversation was interrupted, Mitya, who had been silent until now, looked up at Yasue and opened her mouth. "Hey, hey, sister. Is there a baby here? "Yes. It will be born in a month or two, three months at the most. "Mee, I''ve never seen a baby born before! Yasue''s answer to Mitya''s question was that of a mother. So I guess the timing was just right. Yes, it was. But isn''t it dangerous to work here with that stomach? Why are you working here in the first place?¡¡If it''s just office work, or even serving in a cafeteria, you never know when you might bump into someone and fall. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the following. "Tell him, gentlemen. If I stop you, you won''t listen to me. ...... While we were chatting, most of the customers had finished their meals and left, freeing up their hands. A man about our age came out from the back of the restaurant, wiping his hands. A man about our age came out from the back of the restaurant, wiping his hands, saying, "You know, if I leave, you won''t have enough staff!¡¡--I''ll introduce you. This is my husband, Chester. Hi. My wife''s been taking care of you. Chester was a gentle, good-natured man who greeted me with these words. I''ve never met him before, but he''s introduced me to Haruka and the others. No, thank you. I''m sorry to interrupt your work. ...... Whether or not we''re in Yasue''s care, we''ve certainly been talking to her during business hours, so I greeted her and Chester smiled and shook his head. Chester smiled and shook his head, "I''m fine, this time of day. In fact, I''m glad my wife didn''t move. "You''re worried about your husband, aren''t you?¡¡Yasue, can''t you get some help from the guild? No, but you can''t always get people who will work for you, right? Like that guy who threw away his job after a fight? It''s not as convincing when you say it yourself. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. "Forget about it. It''s a stain on the past. I think most people would work diligently if the guild offered them a job, except in ...... special cases. Mmmm. ...... "If you''re worried about it, why don''t you just hire someone full-time instead of part-time?¡¡That''s how many customers you have, right? That''s right.¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. And the salary is low. That was pretty awful, wasn''t it ......? Yuki and Natsuki look at each other distantly. Indeed, it would take a very special person to be motivated by such treatment. But if you''re thinking of having a baby, you''ll have to save money, right?¡¡It costs a lot of money to educate them here. "That''s true, but it''s more important to have a safe birth first.¡¡Besides, you taught her how to sew, didn''t you?¡¡I think you should hire an employee, even if it''s a job that Yasue can do sitting down. Haruka makes such a suggestion to the hesitant Yasue. Teaching probably means [copying skills]. If you''re a skilled sewer, you''re good enough to get a job, so you should hire someone, even if you have to use all the money from your sewing job. ...... I see. That''s a good idea. I''m not sure what to make of this. As you can remember from the beginning, the wages of the waiters were quite low. As you can see, the salary of a waiter is quite low. It is hardly a skilled job, and a tailor is much better paid. Of course, it''s not so simple, because even if you have the skill, it''s not a matter of having a job, but it''s not so difficult to earn enough money to pay for a tailor''s salary. The number of customers who come for Yasue-san may decrease, though. "Natsuki, no one comes here for a married pregnant woman, let alone before. Yasue laughed, but she was more than beautiful enough. She''s more than beautiful enough. "What about them?¡¡Mr. Chester? Quite a lot, to be honest. In the beginning, I was approached by so many people that it interfered with my work. "Hey, Chester ....... There are a lot of regulars here, and it''s gotten a lot better since my wife and I got to know each other, but ...... it''s still popular. You can find a lot of people who are interested in this kind of thing. It''s not impossible that there are some first-time customers, but the regulars will take care of those. I see, you look good on the outside, Yasue. Haruka, that sounds like you''re not good at anything but looks. ...... I''m sorry. I can''t deny it. That''s terrible. No, no, no. Yasue''s doing great. Yasue is doing very well. She was not used to it at first, but now she''s getting used to it. Chester: ...... Yasue: ...... Yes, please leave the lovemaking to the evening. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. "Well... Now we have to figure out how to keep Yasue from overexerting herself as a pregnant woman, right? That''s right. If we adopt your idea, we need to recruit outside the adventurer''s guild. ....... Chester, do you have any ideas? Well, fortunately, none of my relatives are out of work, but if we broaden our scope a bit, I''m sure we can find someone.¡¡It will take some time, though. Until then, I''ll just have to make do. No, no, no. If a drunk hits you and you fall and go into premature labor, you''ll be in a world of hurt. There''s no way to deal with a premature baby. But ...... Don''t worry, we''ll help you with that for a while. Are you sure? Yes, of course. Fortunately, we''ve got two experienced guys. Okay? "Yeah, sure. If there are three of us, it won''t be too much of a burden for one person. I think we can cover the cost of one person, Yasue-san. I''m sure you didn''t think that Haruka and the others would say such a thing, but Yasue''s round eyes moistened and she thanked them. "Oh, thank you ....... I''m really sorry, but I really appreciate it. I''ll take care of my parents and make it as easy on them as possible. Chester bowed deeply, and Haruka and the others nodded vigorously, saying, "Leave it to me. 412-Waiting for 380 Months (1) It''s been a while since we moved to Kerg. We''ve had a lot of free time on our hands. Or to be more precise, me, Toya, and Mary and her sisters. Haruka and the others had been helping Yasue as they had declared. At first, it seemed like it would be a piece of cake for the three of us to cover Yasue''s work, but Natsuki and the others had been attracting a lot of male customers in Sahlstat. The number of customers started to increase, easily surpassing the number of customers Yasue had when she was working as a waiter. The days were quite busy. However, with the hiring of a new waiter and the gradual withdrawal of Haruka and the others, the number of customers settled down to a moderate level. As a result, the three of them are relatively free at the moment, but their original purpose is to support the birth of the baby and to gain experience in these matters. They can''t travel far, and the only things they can do in town are to visit the temple where Mary''s father is buried, and to visit bookstores and other stores. Basically, they stay at Yasue''s restaurant or at the inn we are renting. On the other hand, although the four of us don''t have such restrictions, we can''t take on overnight requests without Haruka and the others, who are important healers and purifiers. I spent my days training at the adventurer''s guild training grounds. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to make of this. And Mary and Mitya. Are you at the training grounds again today? The adventurer''s guild I''ve become accustomed to recently. The first person who greeted me was Ketra, who was sitting at the counter. We hadn''t been to Kerg in quite a while, but he greeted us as soon as he saw us the other day, saying, "It''s been a while. "Hey!¡¡If you have any good requests, I''d like to take them on, but do you have anything for ......? "Not much has changed today. I don''t think there''s anything that would interest you. ....... Of course, I''d be happy if you did. I''d be happy to accept your offer, of course. I''d be happy to take it, of course. If you feel like it, I''d appreciate it. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. It''s a little better than Rafan, but still a little sad to see the number of requests. Although the time of day is a factor, at a quick glance, there''s not much to see. Mary, Mitya, is there anything you want to do?¡¡If there''s something you''re interested in, you can take it. I''m sure you''ll get bored with just training every day. Well... I can''t even go to the orphanage here. Unlike the orphanage in Raffan, we are not very close to the administrator of the orphanage in this town, the priest. We have visited the temple a few times and paid some money, so we at least know the priests'' faces, but they are not as pushy as Ishka, so we only lightly greeted them and never talked about the orphanage. Besides, the number of children in the orphanage in this town has been increasing due to the turmoil of the Order of Satomi Saints. There was a possibility that Mary and her sisters knew some of them, but this was keeping them away from the orphanage. Considering how Mary and her sisters came to be in our care, and the difference in their current positions, it would be complicated for them to be reunited with even a child who lived in their neighborhood. Hmmm... ....... There''s nothing too interesting here. I was hoping to get a request to take down some of them, but ...... the only thing I can take on is a collection request, which isn''t very lucrative. "Then... Hey!¡¡Hey, you guys. I haven''t seen you around before, have I? I was about to say "as usual" when a voice called out from behind me. When I turned around, I saw a small but strong-looking young man standing there. However, even though he was young, he was probably in his mid-20s. As an adventurer, he would be in the middle of the pack. His gaze is quite sharp, but given the height of Toya and I, he looks up at us from below, so it''s not very impressive. However, Mitya, who is a little shorter than the man, seemed to be a little scared and sneaked behind me. I don''t know if she intended to do that, but I hope she didn''t scare the cute Mitya. On the contrary, it was Toya who gave me a curious look and asked me a question. (Nao, could this be, after a year and a few months, finally a tempest? (Sounds like a pattern, but do you want to do it?¡¡In this place?¡¡With this system? We don''t pay much attention to it, but rank is pretty important for normal adventurers. As the guild''s rank is determined at their discretion, and rank downgrades are common, causing trouble in the guild building is a bad thing. It is impossible to succeed as an adventurer if the staff stares at you even if you are a little strong. What the hell are you talking about?¡¡If you''re a newcomer, you should greet your seniors first. "Hello? Oh, hello, hello. Don''t go to ......!¡¡If you want to say hello, you need to drink! In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. If you see something like that, you can''t help but notice that my voice is a bit coarse and my gaze is a bit sharp. What do you want?¡¡What do you want? I don''t remember hearing anything about needing to say hello. The man backed away as if a little pressured by my lowered voice, then moved his hands as if to appease me, and smiled fondly. "Oh, oh, ......, don''t be so sharp. I''m just saying, can you buy me a drink or something? You know, for the older adventurers in town? "......... It''s not a big expense to buy this guy a drink, considering his current financial situation, but to be honest, it''s not fun to be lambasted and collected. When I looked at Toya to see what was going on, he looked a little unhappy too. We nodded at each other silently and agreed to get rid of him. "Freddy, are you gathering with the new guy again? That''s what I heard as if interrupting me. "Sa, Mr. Silas! The man who looked back at me with a slightly awkward expression on his face was a large, muscular man of advanced age. The man''s face was familiar to me, and the name he called me and his appearance triggered my memory, but it was Toya who answered before I did. "You were there at the handover, I believe. ...... "Oh. Oh. You remember me. I''m sorry. He''s not a bad guy either. ...... Silas smiled and patted the man on the back, then walked up to us and bowed lightly. It''s not a bad idea, I''m told. ...... I''m not sure what to say. I''m sure you''re a regular, judging by what you just said. That''s right, but... But if you give him a drink or two, he''ll teach you what you need to know to be an adventurer in this town. He''s a pretty good guy. I heard that this Freddy, when he sees a new adventurer who is not familiar with the town, he calls on him and teaches him how to be an adventurer over a drink. He also has some experience, so when he needs advice, he gives it to them over a few drinks. He was not a vicious person who would try to rip you off and take your money. I would like to say that he should think about how to talk to her, but it may be that he is an adventurer and can''t take advantage of her. 413-Waiting for 381 Months (2) What, no templates, huh? "Template?¡¡I don''t know, but you''ll have to forgive me for this. In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, we''ll be happy to assist. It''s good that no harm was done, but ...... I''m sorry. I''m not sure what to make of it. They''re already rank six adventurers. Oh, I don''t remember telling Silas, but he knew that I had risen to rank six. But Ketola knows from our guild cards, and Cyrus is an adventurer who''s been assigned to guard the branch chief. It wouldn''t be too surprising if they were sharing information. But Freddy couldn''t believe it, and looked at us in turn with a quizzical expression. "Are you serious?¡¡Mr. Silas. Such a youngster?¡¡It''s not that I doubt Mr. Cyrus, but that''s just the way it is. ...... It''s not that I doubt you, Mr. Cyrus, but it''s true. And one of them is not even ten years old. You can''t help but be misled by the absence of Haruka and the others, but you also can''t help but have a hard time believing that these people are rank 6 adventurers. No, these guys are young, but they''re pretty good.¡¡They''ve defeated bandits, captured the ringleader of the Sathmie Order, escorted the princess to other territories, and even solved a kidnapping case in Pining. He was trusted by the lord and brought a lot of profit to the guild. Well, it''s no wonder my rank has risen. If you list them like this, we''ve done a lot in the past year and a half. We''ve been doing a lot of things in the past year and a half. We didn''t mean to be so flashy, but ...... maybe we''re pretty famous? ....... Considering the population, we''re just a bit of a hot topic in some parts of the town. I don''t think it''s an achievement to be proud of. The reason why Cyrus knows so much about it is probably because he''s involved with the guild. But despite my thoughts, Freddy''s eyes widened and he shouted. I don''t think they look that bad.¡¡I don''t think they look that good. ...... Just so you know, there are three more party members besides us, okay? My sister and I are not rank six. That means you and your elf are rank six. Mr. Cyrus, do they have any arms? Of course not.¡¡Rank 6 is not so easy for an adventurer who can''t fight to become one. Adventurer rank and combat power are not directly related. If you''re not strong enough to be trusted and benefit the guild, your rank will go up,......, just as if you''re not strong enough to be ranked. This is why Freddie probably asked Silas about it, but as you can see, there are no adventurers who can''t fight, even if their strength varies when it comes to ranks four and above. "Oh, yes. I heard that you guys are spending all your time training.¡¡This is a good time to try it out with Freddy. "...... with this guy? I thought it would be a good idea, since I don''t often get the chance to train with other people, but it was Freddy who looked at me. "Hey, Mr. Cyrus!¡¡These guys are rank six, right?¡¡I can''t do it! "Freddy, you should try being desperate for a change!¡¡Don''t set limits and stay small. Are you calling me small? You''re right, Freddy is small. Freddy is small, not much smaller than Mary. But I don''t think that''s what Cyrus is saying. He may not be a bad guy, but he doesn''t seem to have much ambition when he''s drinking in the daytime without training. Since he has survived to this age, he is probably doing reasonably well, but I wonder if Silas wants him to work harder or something. What do you say, Toya, Mary and Mitya? "That''s good, right?¡¡We''re bored, to be honest. We''ve got a lot of free time on our hands, and I think Mary and Mitya will benefit from the experience of playing against other people. I have no problem with that. I have to work harder to catch up with Toya and the others. I''m trying too! Well said. Let''s get you to the training grounds. Wait, I haven''t agreed to that yet! In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the best way to get the most out of your time. But with Silas''s firm hand on his shoulder, it was impossible to escape. "Hey, Freddy. You''re not going to run away, are you?¡¡Are you trying to ruin my face?¡¡Oh? No way. There''s no way I''m gonna embarrass Mr. Silas. Heh. That''s all right. You''re one of the best in this town. Don''t make a fool of yourself. Silas and Freddy are both smiling, but their expressions are contrasting. Cyrus has a fierce smile, and Freddy has a drawn-out laugh. If you look at it from a third party, it looks like Freddie is being threatened because of the height difference. So, Ketra, I''m going to go play with these guys. Tell William I''ll be there later. "All right. Silas, I don''t mind if you get hurt, but please don''t hurt Toya and the others, especially Mary and Mitya, okay?¡¡If you do, you know what you''re doing. ...... "Oh, yeah, of course. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at our own web site. I''m not sure what to say. We moved to the training ground and warmed up with simulated weapons similar to the ones we normally use. After our bodies warmed up, we decided to try out a mock battle. Let''s start with ...... Freddy and Toya, you want to try? Me?¡¡I''ve never dealt with two knives before. Heh, I''ve got some experience with that. I''m not going to be defeated easily! With Cyrus'' words, Toya and Freddy stepped forward. Toya has her usual shield and wooden sword, while Freddy holds a knife-shaped wooden sword in both hands. Judging from their stances and physiques, their fighting style would be based on speed. "Are you ready?¡¡--Begin! As soon as Cyrus gave the signal, Freddy jumped in. It was faster than I thought it would be, but Toya calmly handled it with her sword and kept it at bay. You''ll be able to find a lot more than just a few of these in the marketplace. If you''re looking for a small, fast monster, there''s Stub Burrows, and Toya isn''t so weak that she can be destroyed by that alone. Just as I thought, Toya''s pretty good. Freddy is pretty strong too. I had the impression he was a small guy. ...... He''s got a lot to lose with his words and actions. ....... He''s one of the best in town, even with that. While talking with Silas, the mock battle between Toya and Freddy ended. As expected, it was Toya who won. After that, we took a break, and I, Mary, and Mitya had a mock battle with Freddy, in that order. Nao was out of the question. It''s a bad match. I''m not sure if I can get close enough to ...... to make it work. I''m not sure what to make of that. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You''re too fast!¡¡Even if you get a little closer, you''ll still get hit! I can use stick fighting too, you know. I can also use stick fighting, though my skill level is not as high as spear fighting. You can use a spear as a stick. If you can''t fight when you''re approached, you''ll be injured when dealing with multiple demons. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who''s had it. It''s not a good match either. In a different way. It''s great that you''re still able to fight. Mary wielding a two-handed sword and Freddy with a two-handed knife. If there is no difference in skill, Freddy would have the advantage in a one-on-one mock battle. The two-handed sword is also advantageous when dealing with large or hard enemies such as demons, but its drawback is that it is difficult to maneuver. As a result, Freddy won the mock battle between the two. 414-Waiting for 382 Months (3) You and Mitya mesh well. They''re both about speed. Mitya for speed, Freddy for moves. I''d say Freddy picked up the win by experience. Hey, Freddy, how pathetic are you? The difference was so close that Mitya forgot that he had been a little scared at first and said, "Mmmm~! I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. However, Freddy had fought many times in a row with a break in between, and if he had fought in perfect condition, he would have won with a little more time to spare. But Freddy''s exhaustion seemed to have peaked, and he was now slumped to the ground, breathing heavily. "Give me a break, Mr. Cyrus. The two girls are also quite strong, even if your rank six is not. That''s true. But, you know, they''ve only been adventurers for about a year. Seriously?¡¡That''s really depressing. ....... And they''re still underage, right?¡¡Of course. You must have a good instructor. I think it''s great to hone your skills on your own, but it''s not very efficient. I can''t speak for the instructors, but just to let you know, the training time is different.¡¡Mary and the others... I can''t speak for the instructors, but just for the record, the training time is different. A normal rookie would have to work from morning till night to earn enough money to have a place to stay and food to eat. Inevitably, there will be little time left for training, but we are different. We are making money efficiently, we have reserves, we have a lot of time to spend on training, and we have a skilled mentor. Our leadership skills are questionable because they are not acquired under someone''s guidance, but at least we can show them the right moves and train them in simulated battles. In addition, there is the risk of injury during training. If you are a newcomer with little reserves, if you are injured during training and cannot work, your life is at stake. Just like we were afraid of when we first came here. However, thanks to Haruka and the others'' medical care, Mary and the others are able to train intensely without having to fear even fracture-level injuries. They are little girls, and in the beginning we were hesitant to train with them, but they wanted to, and we have broken their bones in training more than once. Since they have been training in such a way, the density and duration of their training is incomparable to that of ordinary adventurers, and it is only natural that there would be a big difference in the results. In addition to that, I casually suspect that the effect of my gift [a little increase in experience]. Since God gave it to me, I''m sure that its effect is on Toya and the others, but if it''s meaningless to Mary and the others, it''s probably not. Experience in this world is not just a number, but the result of our actions expressed as a number. In other words, the more experience you have, the more experience you gain from combat and training. I don''t believe that Lord Adversus would be so stingy as to exclude Mary and Mitya from the sphere of influence - I don''t know Lord Adversus well enough to say for sure, but if I didn''t think so, I wouldn''t be able to explain the rapid growth of Mary and the others. But if I didn''t think so, I wouldn''t be able to explain the rapid growth of Mary and the others. But I don''t know what the standard is in this world, and I can''t help but think that with the physical abilities of a beast, they could do something like this. "Okay. Freddy, you''ll train with those two girls. You train with your two girls, Freddy, and I''ll train with Toya and Nao. "What?¡¡You''re going to continue? When Freddy finally stood up, his jaw dropped, but Silas put his hand on Freddy''s shoulder and encouraged him with a manly smile. I''ve always thought you were the kind of guy who could take it up a notch. You don''t deserve to end up here. Don''t you think? "Really ......?¡¡Do you think you can do it? Of course I do. But it will require your effort. Get some experience!¡¡Hone your skills!¡¡Don''t just stop there! Silas, ....... I''m going to do it!¡¡I want you to watch! Hey!¡¡Come on! Silas pats the bright-eyed Freddy on the back and sends him off towards Mary and the others. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. When I nodded, they nodded seriously. I''m going to win this time! Whether they can win or not, I''m sure there are things they can absorb, so it will be a good experience for them. "Cyrus, we were supposed to be training again today, so I don''t mind. ...... Is he good?¡¡You got a job or something? If he''s in the guild at this time, he''s not busy. And as you can see, he''s a complete self-starter. It''s great that he''s gotten so good at it, but it''s also good that he''s had some experience with legitimate swordplay. Those two are good for that. "Legitimate swordplay, huh? Is that what it looks like? Do they not?¡¡It definitely looks like a move of some kind to me. I''d say it''s the same. The main person who teaches Mitya is Natsuki, and Mary is Toya. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that. Perhaps it''s proper swordsmanship. So we''re dealing with Silas? I, well, I''ve got time. You guys don''t have a lot of experience with people, do you? You know what I mean?¡¡Just mock battles within the party, basically. We''re mostly fighting demons. I''ve trained with Viscount Nenus''s army, but that''s about it. And they weren''t very strong either. Maybe a common soldier in the Territorial Guard can beat Freddie. If you''re an ordinary adventurer, that''s fine, but as you move up in rank, you''ll have to deal with more and more bandits, guards, and other people. There''s no harm in getting some experience. "If that''s the case, I''ll lend you my chest. You''re going to entertain me, aren''t you? Oh, it''s Toya?¡¡Well, I think I can do that, don''t you? I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m not sure what to say, but I''d like to know.¡¡It''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that there is no Haruka to heal you. When you play with me, Toya will usually break your bones. I wish I could do it back sometimes, but unfortunately, there''s not enough difference in skill between me and Toya to break the bones of a musclebound Toya. There''s a big difference in weapons and intrinsic physical strength. In return, I''ve been burning her with a moderate amount of magic! I''m telling you. I''ll go easy on the bones so they don''t break. Silas, a few bruises would be fine, right? I''m just trying to help you out. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for.¡¡Every day?¡¡I''m not sure what to do. You can''t break a bone every day.¡¡Occasionally, occasionally. It''s not at all my opinion, but I can''t help it if I say it now. Are you ready?¡¡Cyrus, I don''t care if Toya breaks her arm. Give it your all. I''d rather break them. I can''t help it, but a little payback would be nice, right? Seriously? Wait. Oh. I''ll have it fixed when I get home. Let''s get started. After overhearing Toya''s protests and signaling the start of the battle, the two men opened up and faced each other with their weapons at the ready. But it was only for a short time. Immediately, they stepped into each other''s arms and their weapons clashed, creating a loud noise that echoed throughout the training grounds. 415-Waiting for 383 Months (4) The weapon Silas uses is a two-handed sword. It is the same type as Mary''s, but perhaps because of the difference in their physiques, the two give completely different impressions. While Mary''s weapon seems to be swinging her around, Cyrus is standing tall and swinging it lightly, and after swinging it out, he pulls it back easily. He swung it with ease, and even pulled it back with ease. It is a simulated weapon, so it is probably lighter than a real weapon, but even so, a large weapon like a two-handed sword has a certain weight to it, as if there are weights inside. It is not an easy thing to handle. Several clashes of swords. Toya is a little inferior to me in size, but he doesn''t seem to be losing any of his strength. I thought it would be good for Toya, who has the most physical strength among us, to experience being defeated once in a while, but even Silas seems to have difficulty. Marks would probably be able to easily beat Toya, but he''s the branch chief. He can''t just say, "Let''s sweat it out. And so they cut each other dozens of times. Without a single blow to each other''s body, they face each other again. Strong. Silas, what''s your rank? "Well, I''m rank six like you, but I''m here as the branch chief''s bodyguard, so I''m kind of a favor to him. If it weren''t for that, I''d be a five at most. "Is that so?¡¡I think you''re pretty strong. ......? If you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask him. It''s not important if I''m the only one who''s strong. You guys, the whole party is rank six, right?¡¡You''ve got to have a network of contacts to gather members with that kind of skill, the coordination to maintain it, charisma, planning and negotiation skills. There are a lot of things, but they''re all included in the judgment. "I see. ...... I knew that simply being strong was not enough to get a higher rank, but I guess they judge you more comprehensively than I thought. I''m sure you''re not the only one. "It''s not like you''ll be stripped of your rank.¡¡It''s just a value that basically represents the trust you have in the adventurer''s guild. If you''re not in a party, you''ll probably get fewer requests from the guild. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to make it work. Looking at the first Natsuki and the others, and then Mary and the others, they are probably being judged based on both the party''s performance and their individual actions. If one''s rank rises simply by being in the party, then things like parasitism can happen. Conversely, if you don''t have good party members, you won''t be able to raise your rank like Cyrus, but I guess that''s part of your ability. "Well. This is a great opportunity to train with a worthy opponent. It''s a waste of time. Let''s do more!¡¡Nao, you''re next! Hey, ....... That''s Cyrus. Ketola frowned at him, he was as hot as he looked. But a mock battle with a strong opponent is definitely a good experience. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on this topic on the web. I''ve known Freddy for a few days now. It had been a few days since I''d met Freddy. Since then, Freddy and Silas have been showing up at the training grounds every day, spending all their time training with us. It was a very sweaty encounter, but the training with them was quite meaningful, and we were getting some results. I, Toya, and Silas are about evenly matched, so there is no obvious change, but Mary and Mitya have already been able to pick up a win against Freddy. Freddy was quite shocked to get a black star against a young girl, but he recovered easily when Silas told him, "You''ve improved enough," so I guess it''s not a big problem. And today, Cyrus had invited us all to a bar after training. ""Cheers!" "''Gosh, gosh, gosh. Phew!¡¡It''s always good to drink after a hard day''s work!¡¡One more! Gulp. More meat, please. Gulp. I''m tired again today. ...... Silas finishes his mug in one gulp, Toya takes a sip and asks for more food, and Freddy leans back against the table after half a drink and catches his breath. It''s a three-way street. Silas chose this bar where we were, but he said that he chose a wholesome bar because Mary and the others were also there. But even so, the girls, who have never had the chance to be in a place like this, were a bit confused. They were quietly tipping their cups of juice, unlike Toya who was immediately reaching for the food. We don''t often come to bars either, but the first one we stayed at, "The Bear of Slumber," was filled with drunks every night, so we were not confused. I never joined them, but I did eat there. By the way, Toya and I are drinking juice. It''s a little more expensive than ale, but it''s on Silas. I''m not going to hold back. For me, I''d rather drink water than ale. "Mary, Mitya, don''t be shy, if there''s anything you want to order, feel free to ask.¡¡It''s on Silas. "Yeah, ......, but it''s not very good. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m sure it''s not that good, this juice. I''m sure it''s not that good, this juice." "Hahaha ......, because what you usually drink is too good. Mary also let out a slightly dry laugh at Mitya''s honest words. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. Even in the original world, it is a high quality juice that cannot be drunk casually. But the kind of juice you can drink in a tavern like this is watered down--or, to put it bluntly, water with a fruit flavor. It''s a good substitute for water, but it''s not very tasty. "Hey, Nao, I need to cool it down. "Yeah, sure. Can I drink it if I chill it? Oh, Nao. Then I''ll have one too. Okay. Chilling Mary and the others'' juices, including mine, will make the not-so-tasty juice a little better. Mitya smiled too. And then there''s the food. ...... Yeah, it''s not that good either. We''ll eat lightly and go back to Yasue''s restaurant. For now, I''ll order some roasted nuts with salt, which are almost always good. Incidentally, we usually eat at Yasue''s restaurant. It''s partly because they serve food that even we find tasty, but it''s also because Chester has told us that all of our meals are free as a reward for helping Haruka and the others with the cafeteria and helping with the birth. It''s not a lot of money for us now, and we could pay it, but Haruka suggested that we should just take her word for it, so we''ve been eating without reservation. This is because it is not easy to get someone who can use healing magic to attend a birth, and even if you could, you would need to pay quite a bit. This is why people who can use healing magic are so valuable, and it seems that rather than Haruka and the others taking on the job for free or at a discount, it would be more convenient for both parties to have "free food and drink" where there is the fact that they paid a fee, but the amount is hard to tell. Well, the reason we came all the way to this town was because we were dealing with Yasue, and also because we wanted to gain experience in childbirth for the future. If I were to accept a poorly paid job and then be told, "Come to us too! It would be too much of a hassle for me, and I don''t have the time to take it on. 416-384 Invitation to work (1) "But are Freddy and Silas okay?¡¡They''ve been hanging out with us for days. Ugh. Actually, I''m about to get sick. Thanks to Haruka, I don''t have any extra expenses like medical bills, but ...... You need money for living, too. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. Toya and I would be healed up once we got back to the inn, but that wasn''t going to be the case for Silas and Freddy. When Freddy and the others were badly injured, I would take them to the inn and have Haruka heal them. After that, Freddy called Haruka "san" for some reason. He called me and Toya by our names. No, I''m not asking you to call me "sir". I have no problem with that.¡¡It''s almost like I''m retired. You''re not?¡¡You were the branch manager''s bodyguard, right? That''s part of my job now. I''m kind of the guild''s errand boy. Without that, I''m pretty bored. I''ve worked my way up to this age, and I''ve got some money saved up. "So Cyrus is a winning adventurer. Silas smiled and waved his hand at Toya, who looked a little amused. It''s not that good. It''s not that good. It''s just that he was wise enough to know when to retire, if I do say so myself. Even so, considering that most adventurers die before they can retire, Silas was wise and capable enough to build up his reserves and bring himself into semi-retirement, as he said. And by the way, it''s still half my job. "Hmm?¡¡Work ......?¡¡You mean training with us? That''s one thing, but it''s more like measuring your skills. ...... What the hell is that?¡¡It''s disturbing, isn''t it? I''m not sure if you''ve ever heard of this, but I''m sure you''ve heard of it. "Don''t be so picky. I heard you guys were bored. When I heard that you guys seemed to be bored, I thought we could work together, if your skills are up to it. "Oh, I see. So you didn''t just hear about it, you checked it out for yourself? That''s what I meant. And even if you''re good, there''s always chemistry when you work together. Come to think of it, Cyrus had never seen us fight before. He must have heard about the place where we got Satomi and our track record through the guild, but if we''re going to work together, it''s understandable that he would be cautious not to believe them. And it''s probably because of this caution that we''ve been able to survive until now. It would be too scary to suddenly form a wild party in a real life-threatening situation. So, did we pass? "Passed, too. Needless to say. And Freddy, since you''re here, why don''t you join us?¡¡It''s a direct order from the guild, so the pay is not bad. If Silas-san asks me, I won''t refuse! Oh, I see. Hey, Toya, what about you guys? Well, I can''t answer that without asking you what you want. You know? I nodded to him as he looked at me. You''re right. I''ll take the job after considering the risks. It''s only natural. Freddy may trust Silas, but we''ve only been in contact with him for a few days. I think he''s trustworthy, but we don''t know each other well enough to trust him. Well, you''re right. This has something to do with the fact that I''ve been out of town for a while now, but there''s been a bit of a problem-- Silas began to speak. There are two rivers flowing near the town of Kergu. The one to the east is the relatively large Noria River, which flows from Sarstat to Mijara. To the west is the Petras River, which is said to originate far west of Rafan, further west than our "summer dungeon". Even though it''s "close", the distance from Kergu to the Noria River is farther than the distance from Laffan to Sarstat, and the Petras River, which is somewhat closer, is not close enough to be seen directly from Kergu. And it is the closer one, the western Petras River, that is causing the problem. Some of the agriculture in the area around Kergu uses the canal water from the Petras River. The person who maintains the canal water reported that there is a huge creature in the Petras River. It was unconfirmed information, but demons usually exist in this world, so we can''t easily judge it as a mistake. This season is spring. If the canal is destroyed, agriculture will be greatly affected. The town''s representative immediately sent a request to the Adventurer''s Guild, and Silas was sent to investigate. So, did you find anything? Not sure, but something that looks like it. What?¡¡If you''re not sure, then you didn''t see it? Just a shadow. I saw something big swimming in the river, didn''t I? What? You better check it out. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that can help you. "Don''t be silly!¡¡What if I get too close and get attacked? When I''m alone. "That''s right. We''re here to investigate. I''m kidding. I don''t think you should go that far by yourself. There''s no point if you can''t come back. Right?¡¡What a good adventurer needs is discretion. Of course. --Maybe it''s an unidentified creature. ...... Mmmm," said Toya with a serious expression as he began to worry. All eyes were focused on him, wondering what he was going to say, but... "If it''s a UMA from the Petrus River, should it be Petosee or Peto-chan? What came out of Toya''s mouth was something unimportant. Silas raised his eyebrows in disgust at the words that only his classmates could understand. "What''s that? No, I just thought we should name the giant creature. ...... do what you want. Well, I need a name for my report, so if you want to name it, I''ll leave it to you. Cyrus sighed and reached for his ale, but Toya snorted again and turned her gaze to me. I had no choice but to think for a moment. "Well, it''s a river, so it''s more like Peto-chan, isn''t it? No, doesn''t that naming convention only apply to cute girls? I see. You have a point. Petosey, then? It''s not a lake, that''s what''s bothering me. ....... But I''ve always wondered, what''s a ''she''? It''s probably a suffix for a nickname or something. It''s a suffix for a nickname or something like that. "It''s ''shee'' because it''s after Loch Ness, but it''s originally ''ie'', so if you''re applying it to the Petras River, it should be ''Petty'' or ''Petrasi''. "I see, so-- "Petey''s not good. It''s probably not so pretty. Before Toya could say which one she would choose, a serious Mitya came in with a plea. Before Toya could say, "Which one? I''m not sure I understand what Nao and the others are saying, but Petraeus is hard to say, so Petosee is fine.¡¡...... If you try too hard to give it a name and get attached to it, it will be harder to die. It''s hard to say, but it''s hard to say. But I agree with Mary that it''s hard to say. "Okay, I''ll take that. The unidentified creature is Petosy. And, Cyrus. Are you sure this is an invitation to take down the Petosi? To be honest, I didn''t really care either, so I quickly adopted Mary''s idea and looked at Silas, who had already emptied his several cups of ale and looked back at me with slightly reddened eyes. 417-385 Invitation to work (2) Oh, did you finish deciding on a name? Yeah, we''re going to call him Petosey. And you''re going to take down this Petoshee? That''s the idea. What do you think?¡¡It may not be a lot of money for you guys, but at least it''s more than what you''ll find on the guild board. As for me, I don''t mind that I''m bored. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to get the most out of your time. Even if it takes a few days to solve the problem, we can just commute from this town. It''s a request we can easily take on under our current circumstances. We''ve been training for a while now, and we''re looking for some refreshment, so Silas''s offer is a good one. ...... Or perhaps this is Silas''s plan?¡¡I''ve been training with him from morning till night for the past few days. Well, it''s not like it''s detrimental to us, so I don''t mind. ....... It''s fine.¡¡If things get out of hand, I''m sure we''ll have to run. I''d like to take a look at Petosey. I''m not sure what to make of this, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m a little nervous about ....... I can''t swim. ....... I don''t know if I can fight. I can swim, but I don''t know if I can fight. I can swim too, but I''ve never been in an underwater fight before. It''s a good thing that you''re not the only one who has a problem with this. Fighting an aquatic creature in the water, a huge unidentified creature (most likely a demon), is a disadvantage no matter how you look at it. Fire magic, which is my forte, is unlikely to be effective against an underwater enemy, and whether I can fight it with a spear from the water depends on the depth of the river and the size of the enemy. I can easily kill a Great Salamander, but I don''t think the guild would request me to do so if it was that big. What do you think about that?¡¡Cyrus. I wouldn''t go into the river to fight it either. I have a plan. I got it! I''m not sure how much I can trust you, but Cyrus thumped his chest confidently. ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó "So, Cyrus. Is this your secret plan? Oh!¡¡Pretty good, huh?¡¡I had it made while I was training with you guys. The day after we heard from Silas, Haruka sent us off with a "Have a safe trip" and we went to the bank of the Petras River where Silas had seen the black shadow. There, Cyrus showed us his secret plan: ...... a strong wire and a huge fish hook. Three sets of them. He was going to use them to pull the unidentified creature ashore. "That''s great!¡¡Mr. Cyrus! The drummers raise their hands, but will it be that easy? I twist my head and look back at Mary and the others. "What do you think? I think you''re right about pulling them out of the water. ...... It''s not that easy to catch a fish. Life is not so easy. It''s not that easy to catch a fish. I''m sure they''ve been to the luscious fishing grounds of the upper Noria River and the flying gars, where you can get all the fish you want just by carrying a door board down the cliff, but have they tried fishing somewhere else? There are only so many places Mary and her friends can go alone. Maybe it would be good to take them there again. We haven''t gone out to get river fish or crabs lately, since we got a lot of flying gars. That wire is too conspicuous, isn''t it?¡¡I don''t know about you, but I thought fish had good eyesight. I don''t know if it''s a fish or not, but I have a feeling they''re going to find out. I don''t blame you. Judging from the size of the shadow I saw, a normal fishing line will never work. It''ll cut you for sure. "That''s true, but ...... what are you going to use as bait to lure them in if you don''t know their biology?¡¡You can''t just stick a giant worm in it. The size of the hook limits the bait that can be used. The size of the hook limited the bait available. Silas smiled at me when I asked him that. No problem about that. I''ve got a sighting of a farmer. "You have? But Cyrus didn''t seem to care much and apologized lightly. "Hmm?¡¡Didn''t I tell you?¡¡I''m sorry, I''m sorry. According to the report, ''a black shadow suddenly appeared from the river and pulled the boar, who was drinking at the riverside, into the water in an instant. He didn''t know what kind of creature it was. "...... How big is the boar? "It''s the testimony of a slightly panicked farmer. I''m not sure how accurate it is, but it was about the size of a Mitya. It swallowed a child whole. ....... I''m not sure if that''s accurate, but it was about the size of Mitya. Mee, don''t get too close to the river, okay? I get it. I''m an eater. I''m not going to be eaten. I''ll be careful, but ...... would be better. I''m not going to be the one to get eaten." "I''ll be careful too, but it''s better that way." "So far, I haven''t seen any shadows in the river, and there''s been no response to my spotters, but you can never be too sure, because some enemies, like Trent, are very hard to spot. Freddy, you have to be careful too, right? "Me?¡¡It is true that there is not that much difference between the two. ...... It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing. I''m not sure if I''d like to be lumped in with Mitya, but there''s no doubt that there''s little difference in size, and there''s no reason to deny it. But if you say that, then Mary would be on that side. "Well, we don''t know what''s going on with Petosey. We don''t want to get too close. That''s why I''ve got a secret plan.¡¡Pull them out of the water and they won''t be afraid. So, let''s start looking for bait! We prepared three kinds of bait for our mission to capture Petosy: rabbit, bird, and boar. --We had three kinds of bait: rabbits, birds, and boars. If it were a forest north of Raffan, where the prey is thick and few people enter, but this is near Kergu, which is more populated than Raffan. Compared to the forest there, the danger level is lower, and hunters are also hunting, so even with our ¡¾Searching for Enemies¡¿skills, we couldn''t easily catch the bait, and we ended up only securing bait on the first day, and decided to go back today. We hooked the bait onto the hook - or was it the other way around? We hooked the hooks onto the bait and threw them into the river, leaving a space of about ten meters between them. In ordinary fishing, one would hold one end of the wire with one''s hand, but the other end is a huge creature, and even Toya and Silas cannot deny the danger of being dragged in. Therefore, the wire was wrapped tightly around a nearby tree to hold it in place. It''s a bit messy to call it fishing. More of a trap, perhaps? But will it work? It''ll be fine.¡¡Thanks to you guys, the bait is fresh. But ...... what a waste. ...... Mitya looks at the meat drifting in the river, a slightly sad expression on his face. It was an ordinary boar, not a task boar, that he had hunted, but it was understandable that he should have regretted it, as it had been a more difficult hunt than usual. The meat itself tasted better than that of the task boar, though. Silas, too, has his gaze fixed on the boar, as if Mitya''s words have made him regret it now. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. It''s not worth it if it doesn''t work, right?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you.¡¡I''ll provide you with the meat, just be patient. "Oh, really?¡¡I''ll do it. I''m interested in the meat eaten by a rank 6 adventurer! Silas, you''re rank six too. Mine''s just a name. Can I join you? You''re not gonna be left out. But I need you to gather wood for the fire. We''ll get it ready. I''m off! Me, too! So we started to prepare the fire, thinking it wouldn''t take long, but... We started to build a fire, but it wasn''t going to take long. Just as we were about to light the fire, Mary pointed to a boar trap that had been set up on the river. The tree to which the wire was tied was clearly flexing and making a creaking sound. 418-386 Invitation to work (3) "Too soon, man!¡¡Couldn''t you have waited till I was eating meat? You couldn''t wait for me to eat the meat?" "This is no time for that, you idiot! Silly, this is not the time to be talking like that!" Silas slaps his forehead in frustration, and I stab him in the back and run towards it. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site for more information. What the hell is that? ...... "I don''t know. But it''s pretty long. The water in the river was clean, but the mud on the bottom of the river was muddy due to the violent Petosi, so I couldn''t see it clearly. However, the length of the shadow alone is more than ten meters. It''s not important.¡¡It''ll break the tree! Oh, yeah, that''s right! Toya and Silas, wearing thick leather gloves, immediately grabbed the wire and began to pull, but the wire remained taut and barely moved. We hurriedly joined them, but it was still very heavy. It''s not that it doesn''t move at all, but even if we pull a little to give it some room, it will be pulled back immediately. Are the wires okay? It should be fine, right?¡¡I ordered a pretty good one, you know. Shiro iron. Silas replied to my question, but his expression was not very confident. I think he''s getting a little anxious himself. Because of the wire, he should be able to pull pretty hard, but we''re all adventurers. Even Mitya, the youngest of us, has the physical strength of a grown man. Cyrus, Toya, and the rest of us can''t even compare to that. With six such people pulling with all their might, the force on the wire must be considerable. At a low estimate, it is probably in the order of tons. I wonder if this thin wire can support them. "Hey, Nao. You can use magic, right?¡¡Can''t you do something? "Don''t be absurd!¡¡There''s no such thing as convenient magic! When you''re underwater, fire and wind magic can''t reach the enemy. Light is out of the question because it''s basically not suitable for attacking. If it''s just a simple weight, you can use space-time magic''s Light Weight, but considering the opponent''s magic resistance and swimming ability, it won''t matter much if it''s a little lighter. As for water magic, level 10 Tide might be effective, but of course I can''t use it. Earth magic has substance, so it can reach the water, but it may or may not do any damage. Considering the buoyancy of the water, it is unlikely to be effective to send a rock that can hold up to a hundred pounds. It would be better if there was a lightning spell, but I don''t have such a grimoire, and I have never tried it. I''ve been training to specialize in the magic I''m good at, but if this is the case, should I have tried practicing?¡¡I don''t know if I can use it. d*mn it. Should I have put poison in the bait? Silas blurted this out, but Mitya immediately complained. If you use poison, they won''t be able to eat it! "Don''t worry, Mitya, you can eat it!¡¡We will, though! Who knew?¡¡You''re not going to get eaten! But if he hadn''t tied the wire tightly to the tree, he would have been dragged into the river and Freddy would have been right. What do we do now?¡¡If we keep going like this, will it weaken? "It''s pretty hard!¡¡Can''t we just take our hands off it and leave it? If I let go, they''ll know!¡¡Stay strong! What Silas is referring to here is the one where the hook comes off. In fishing, it is important to hook the hook in time with the bite, control the rod and reel, and keep the line loose. The same is true for fishing, although the size of the fish varies a little. --Well, there was no time to think about tactics, we were all just pulling. I was struggling with the wire for a while, trying to figure out what to do, but no good ideas came to mind. Aside from the physical Toya and Silas, the other four, including myself, were beginning to show signs of fatigue, but there was no change in the situation. If we continue like this, we''ll never get anywhere. It seemed that we weren''t the only ones who thought so. The wire that we had been pulling on suddenly loosened. For a moment, we thought the needle had come loose. The next moment, a huge creature appeared as if jumping out of the river. It''s huge. It''s thick. ...... It''s black and shiny. It was such a creature that slammed its body into the riverbank, making the earth shake. A long, black, slender, wispy fish with a girth of over a meter in diameter and a length of well over ten meters. From its mouth extends the wire that we are pulling. To put it simply, the Petosy was a giant eel. We were lucky that we were far enough away from the river, but if we had gotten too close, we would have been eaten, no joke. It was no wonder that Freddy backed away as if he was scared of such a thing crawling toward us, twisting its body. "What the hell is that? "Probably a monster eel. It''s probably a monster eel, but it''s usually no more than 30 centimeters in diameter. ...... I''ve never seen such a creature before, but Cyrus seemed to have an idea of what it was and frowned suspiciously as he picked up his sword. I''m not sure what to make of it.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. It can swallow a human being whole!" "Hmm, is that a Mega Monster Eel? "No, Toya. No, Toya. If there''s a Giga Monster, we''ll be in trouble. You shouldn''t say anything ominous. It''ll set a flag. I''ve been based around here a long time and I''ve never seen anything like this. I think it''s a special species. I''ll go with Petosey. I can''t stand it when there''s more than one of these things. I''ve never seen anything like it before. I''m more of a lump, not a lump. "''Indeed.'' The voices overlapped, unintentionally. Silas, who was about to step forward, nearly snapped his knees for a moment, but quickly regained his footing and started running, carrying his sword. I don''t care either way!¡¡I won''t be able to crawl any time soon! The Petoshee approached us, pulled by the wires we were holding. Silas swung his sword at the Petossi''s neck. But... "What? If I had to put it into words, I''d say "nyurunn". Silas''s sword slid across the surface of the Petoshee and knocked it to the ground. The slipperiness of the eel is unlike any other eel I know. In other words, it''s slippery like a marsh eel. In addition, the mucus secreted from the surface is currently increasing, turning the surrounding area into a sludge as the petticoat undulates. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Ah! Cyrus avoided it, but the mucus on the ground caught his feet and he lost his stance. Petosy''s mouth closed in on him. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. "Sorry! No!¡¡But please be careful. There''s a lot of mucus in the area. Shit!¡¡Everywhere Petosey moves, it slides!¡¡Freddy, can you aim for the eyes? Yes, sir! Me, too! As soon as Freddie thrusts his knife into Petosy''s right eye, Mitya''s knife slices through his left eye. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to do it. Toya followed up, but her attack was almost the same as Cyrus''. It only slightly cut the surface, but it was far from damaging. Even if I participate in this, it won''t have much effect. Not even Silas can do that. I''m sorry to say it, but Mary''s attack is like a degraded version of Cyrus''. If his attack is ineffective, then the result would be the same if Mary tried the same thing. "Mary, hold the wire. No need to push, but if you can support her like you did before, please do. Perhaps because they were out of the river, Mary was able to move Petosy''s head with only one person pulling on it. Even if you have to interfere a little, it will be worth it. I understand. Now, what should I do? 419-387 Invitation to work (4) "Nao, give me your spear!¡¡I can''t do this with a sword. Toya puts away his sword and thrusts his hand toward me. If it''s too slippery to cut, just poke it. I''m sure that''s what he meant, but I don''t want to lend him my spear. I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. Well, wait. --Fire Arrows! I wasn''t going to sit back and watch Toya and the others attack. It''s big, but it''s only an eel. The weak point is right in front of you. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a number of things you can do. I''m not sure what to do. That was too shallow. The bone in his head is harder than I thought. The forehead was gouged out, but it did not seem to reach the brain. But the damage was definitely done, and Petosy''s torso began to wriggle and flail even more violently. With that, mucus splashes out. Toya and Cyrus rushed away. However, Silas, who was slightly behind, was bounced off the body of the Petoshee and fell to the ground. He got up quickly and didn''t seem to take much damage, but his body was covered in mucus. If you''re going to do it, Nao, do it with one blow!¡¡I can''t get close enough! Don''t be reckless with your first enemy! I don''t want to touch that mucus either, and I understand your complaint, but you can''t kill an enemy of this size with one blow. --I don''t want to touch that mucus either, and I understand the complaint, but you can''t kill an enemy this size with a single blow.¡¡You don''t have to aim at their weak points. This would be a disaster if it went wrong, though. The explosion would splatter mucus all over the place. With that in mind, Fire Arrow is probably the best choice, but you have to be careful to adjust its power. If you use it at maximum power all the time during an adventure, you will soon run out of magic power, which will cause problems with your ability to carry on a battle, and it will take a long time to activate it. In addition, if you blow up more than necessary, the value of your prey will decrease. The best way to kill an opponent is to aim at their weak points. It is best to aim at a weak point, such as the eyes, and kill it with the least amount of magic power, but it is difficult to fire such a pinpoint shot at a moving opponent, and if you miss, there is nothing you can do. That''s why I usually adjust the power of my shots to the point of blowing off the head, but when it''s the first time I encounter an enemy, I don''t know how long it will take to inflict a fatal wound. In this case, I didn''t need to worry too much about how much magic I had left, so I let loose with a slightly higher power, but it seems that Petosi was harder than that. I''ll kill you next time. Just hold him off for a while. d*mn it!¡¡Now I''m desperate! I don''t want to get too close. ...... In the event that you''d like to get more information on the subject, please go to our own web page. I''m not sure what to say. "It''s finally over. "Yes, it was a hard fight. It''s a mess. The battle was over. The second Fire Arrow had succeeded in destroying Petoshee''s brain, but it had been a long time since then. With its brain gone, Petosi could only rampage in the dark, but its body continued to secrete mucus. In this state, the body continued to move, slamming and undulating, and a large amount of white goo splattered around the body, which was ...... already a sludge. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea.¡¡You''re not dirty at all! ""........." I''m not sure what to make of that. I tried not to look, but Toya''s appearance was quite tragic. Normally, Toya wouldn''t be attacked by an enemy that moves as fast as a Petoshee, but when the ground is slippery and she can''t stand on it, it''s different. Just before I could land my second Fire Arrow, I was knocked off my feet and fell. The body of the rampaging Petoshee overran me, and I was soaked to the bone. After that, I worked with Silas to push back the body of the rampaging Petoshee so that it wouldn''t fall into the river, and it was all very sticky. Even a bucket of well-kneaded natto (fermented soybeans) would not have made it this far. The only saving grace is that the sticky substance has almost no smell. "d*mn it, after the octopus, I get to do this again.¡¡It''s not even a service scene. ...... No, even if Haruka and the others were here, I wouldn''t let them. I''m not saying that I''m not a little bit interested in it, but if it''s just me, it''s no good showing it to other people. Didn''t you protect Mary and the others this time? I wish you could have shared that kindness with me!¡¡Silas, say something! What?¡¡It''s the fate of the vanguard to get dirty when fighting the Decapods. It''s the vanguard''s fate to get dirty when fighting the Decapitators, but it was easier this time with Nao. Thank you! Oh. Oh. You''re welcome. I''m not sure what to say, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sorry.¡¡I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure what to make of it. That''s a luxury. We can rarely even wipe with water. Well, you''re lucky this time. There''s a river nearby. Really? ...... Toya looked at Silas and the others who were talking like this with a look of despair on their faces. Even though it''s getting warmer, it''s still too hot to bathe in the river. It would be quite a punishment to bathe in the cold river until this persistent stain is removed. Purify will clean you up in an instant. "By the way, Silas. What if there''s no place nearby where I can wash up? What if there''s no place to wash?¡¡Is there any other way?¡¡Unless you''re magic. Certainly not. It is almost impossible to carry enough water to wash your body, and there are only a few people who can use light magic or even water magic. But if you go back to the town in this state, ...... I can understand why adventurers are often disliked by the general public. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to do it today. The worst was when I was covered with intestines mixed with feces and urine. I really wanted to cry. "Wow, Mr. Cyrus, you''ve had that happen? Oh, yeah. That was quite a fight. I barely survived, but it took me half a day to get to the water.¡¡And after that, I got sick and had to go to bed. ...... I thought I was going to die in many ways. It''s hard to hear. Seriously, Purify is important. Mary and Mitya also let out words of dismay. I''m sure it''s a lot of work to be a normal adventurer. I''m going to stay with my sisters, Haruka ....... I''d prefer it if I could. --Okay, Toya, let''s get you washed up. Wow. Nao, I''ve never been so bitter about your inability to use Purify as I am today. Sorry. It''s not a priority. In addition to light, I can now use light cure, but I have rarely needed purify in a situation where Haruka was not around. Moreover, even if I did my best to learn it, it would be much easier to ask Haruka or Natsuki to do it for me, and I would lose my motivation to practice. I''ll spray you with hot water and dry you off later, so hurry up and go wash up. Roger that. ...... You can use the water magic method to produce hot water, but I don''t have the magic power to keep producing enough hot water to remove the persistent dirt from Toya and Silas, and this is all I can do. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out the best way to get rid of this. 420-388 Invitation to work (5) Suck it!¡¡Nao, hot water, hot water! Ha-ha!¡¡Toya, you''re pathetic! Petosi''s mucus was persistent, and it took quite a while for Toya and Silas to return. In comparison to Silas, who was walking around with his chest out and smiling even though he was soaking wet, Toya''s wet and shriveled tail and floppy ears made her look rather cold. "Do you want it hot or warm? "Hot! Okay. --Water jet. If I had to name it, it would be "Hot Water Jet", but the effect of the spell depends on the consciousness of the magician. The name of the spell doesn''t matter much, so I didn''t change it. It is a little hotter than a bath. Use the spell with this in mind, and pour it on Toya and Silas. "Too hot! It''s too hot, man! It''s because you''re cold.¡¡You''re not going to burn. Overhearing Silas''s protests, I stop the hot water at an appropriate point. Pouring hot water is only a first aid. Unless you make a bath in a barrel, it''s impossible to warm yourself up with this. For this purpose, I prepared a fire. Since Toya and the others had been bathing for a long time, the fire that the other four of us built was quite large. It would not warm us from the core, but it was more practical than pouring hot water on it. Come here and take a seat by the fire. Oh, thank you. Mary is very kind. No, we''ve all collected wood. Here, take off your clothes while the water''s still warm. I''ll dry you off. --Mitya and Mary, turn around. You don''t need to look at anything unsightly. Did you get it? "Yes, yes. As Mary and the others turned around, Silas and the others began to take off their clothes, mumbling. It''s not a pretty sight. I didn''t know you had a hobby of showing off your nipples to little girls, Cyrus ....... Can you please stay away from my child from now on? No!¡¡I don''t know. "Silas ......, I didn''t know you were a hentai who enjoys wet underwear. From now on, I''m going to make sure that my children... No!¡¡And I''m supposed to give you what I took off? No, please don''t. I don''t want to touch it. You''re so mean!¡¡Don''t use polite language. It''s annoying. What are you gonna do? Hook it to your sword and shove it out. It''s hard to ''dry'' clothes while they''re still on. In the event you''re not sure what to do, you can always ask your doctor. Mummification may be an exaggeration, but it is likely to cause dry skin and dry eyes. Toya, who understood this, quickly took off his wet clothes, hung them on his sword and held them out to me, as if he were drying laundry. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for and what you can do to help. ...... I see, that''s it. Nao, please. Yes. I''m sure you''ll be glad to hear that. I''m sure you''ll find it very useful, magic. Normally, I''d have to wear cold clothes that I just wrung out. Don''t you have a change of clothes or something with you? "Nao, it''s not easy. Nao and the others have magic bags, so they don''t seem to think about it, but only high ranking people can have such a bag. "Right. There''s room for food, water, tools, and materials for demons. It''s normal for adventurers to not change their clothes for days. It''s not easy to carry around an extra change of clothes. It''s hard to carry around an extra change of clothes. ...... You know, we didn''t have a change of clothes in the beginning either. It''s not that we don''t have a change of clothes, it''s just that it took us a while to be able to buy anything other than underwear. At that time, I was only working on day trips, so it wasn''t much of a problem, but I did have some trouble bringing back my catch. These days, however, thanks to the magic bag, I can carry around everything I might need, and I don''t have to worry about carrying too much stuff. The only thing I couldn''t bring back was the material for the golem, but I guess that was a special case. When you think about it, we''re pretty lucky, aren''t we? "Yeah, pretty much. Mary and Mitya were lucky, too. --No, it''s because of you that they chose to take in a mere orphan. Yeah. I''m grateful to my brothers. Yes. If I had been in an orphanage in this town, it wouldn''t have been easy. I wouldn''t have survived in the first place. Are there no adventurers who take in children? No, of course not. Ordinary adventurers can barely make a living on their own. Retired adventurers who are wealthy and never married sometimes take in children. "Well, the most I can do is take care of newbies like him. In fact, Freddie is special because he does it for no money. Mr. Cyrus, I''m only talking to you to pay for the drinks. A drink or two doesn''t amount to much to you. A drink or two isn''t much to you. If you had the time to wait around in the guild, you''d make plenty of money. Why don''t you just talk to him? No, that''s right. ...... Freddy laughs, somewhat embarrassed. The price of a cheap ale is about the price of a can of juice. Taking into account Freddy''s skills in the past few days, there was no need for him to go out of his way to ask the newcomer to buy him a drink. In other words, his behavior when he met us probably meant that he was worried about us and wanted to talk to us. Unlike a year ago, I am still equipped to look like an adventurer, but with the presence of Mary and Mitya, I can understand why he was worried. I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡I''m going to take care of Petoskey now. It''ll be messy after dark. Yeah, that''s right. Toya and the others should be warmed up by now. I''m sure they''re warm, but we''ll have to think about ....... Toya looked very uncomfortable and reluctantly looked back at Petoskey''s body. When you pull it out of the river and measure it, you''ll see that it''s about 1.5 meters in diameter at its widest point, nearly 5 meters in girth, and over 20 meters in length. Its entire body was covered with a white, slippery mucus, and to be honest, I didn''t want to get too close to it. "Nao, can''t you use your magic to wash it off? "Nao, can''t you wash it off with the magic you just used?¡¡I can use it, but will it work?¡¡All this mucus? I had trouble washing myself earlier. This kind of mucus usually retains a lot of water and is hard to flow. The reason is that mucus protects us from enemies. If the mucus of an aquatic organism, a petosyne, is easily washed away by water, it cannot fulfill its role. I remember Haruka telling me that when you remove the slime from an octopus, you rub it with salt or wash it with grated radish. ...... There is no salt, is there? It''s a slippery festival that no one will appreciate. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to use it. So this slippery stuff is protein. I don''t know the details, but there''s no way I can do it, and there''s no point in knowing. I don''t know the details, but there''s no way I can do it.¡¡Normally this would be difficult, but with Nao''s magic, ...... "Oh, Mary, that''s clever. That''s a lot more effective than water! It didn''t even make sense. Proteins are sensitive to heat. If the mucus is protein, roasting it with fire may be effective. It would be difficult to roast the core with a "fire jet", but it would be possible to roast the surface. It may be quite tiring due to its length, but it is much better than struggling with the slime, and even if it doesn''t work, it is free to try. So let''s get to it... ''Fire Jet''. I held my hand over Petosi''s corpse and cast the spell. 421-389 Job invitation (6) Flames erupted from my hands, licking the body of the giant Petosy. With a little smoke and a crackling sound, the mucus visibly disappears. Oh, it''s working!¡¡Okay, Nao, hang in there! "Well, I''ll do my best. ...... But it''s huge. But it''s big, and it''s hard to keep the flames coming instead of just shooting them out for a second. I wish you were here. I wish you were here," he complains, and Toya smirks. "Whoa. Are you cheating on me?¡¡Shall we keep it a secret from Haruka? "Nao, you have a girlfriend?¡¡I envy you! No!¡¡No, I have a girlfriend. ...... Freddie and Silas nodded their heads and smiled at my slurred speech. I''ll take good care of you. A girl who will go out with an adventurer is valuable. That''s right. If you''re an adventurer with a lot of money, you''ll have no trouble finding a lover for the night, but someone who''s willing to go out with you for real. ...... "It''s tough, isn''t it, Silas? I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it.¡¡Even if you''re a little skilled, you''re not the target! Silas looked up at the sky, trying to hold back his tears, as if he had a sad memory. I''m not sure if this is a good idea. I''m not going to be able to get married for a while. "Don''t worry, Toya. I''ll be fine. "Don''t worry, Toya. I''ll be fine." Silas put his hand on her shoulder with a smile and Toya looked relieved. "Is there any hope? "A man can get married after he retires. That''s not for a long time! By the way, I''m semi-retired and have some savings, but I''m not married yet. How can I be sure? Are you sure, big brother? I''ll marry you then! In the event that you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you may want to check with your doctor. However, Toya shook her head with a half smile. I''m sorry. I''m sorry, but Mitya is out of my age range. I hope you can at least shake it. "You''re being cruel!¡¡I''m going to grow up! Toya didn''t say what, but she understood what he was trying to say from the way he looked at her, and Mitya snapped at him. No, I don''t know. Mitya is cute, but I don''t know if he''ll ever grow up. ...... In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at this kind of. "Toya-san, ....... Naturally, the one who was looking at her noticed, and although she didn''t complain, her expression was clearly unhappy. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Brother Toya, it''s ''Sekuhara''. I demand an apology and compensation! "Oh, Mitya. You''ve learned a difficult word. Did Haruka and the others teach you?¡¡I''m sorry. You''re not ready to talk about s*xuality yet, are you? I''m sure you''ll be able to understand why I''m here. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it.¡¡I demand an apology and compensation! I''m sorry. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. In fact, there is no doubt that he was making fun of her physical characteristics. As for me, I think it''s pointless to talk about the development of a feminine body in Mary, who has just turned ten, and I don''t think it''s something to be concerned about, but at least at this stage, Mary has no feminine proportions. They hadn''t been eating very well before we took them in, and their physical growth has been slow. Since they came to live with us, we have been feeding them as much meat as they like, and they have grown up rapidly and gained a lot of physical strength, probably due to the fact that they have been exercising more, but it is still difficult to say that they have become more feminine. Although Toya loves them as his guardians, he doesn''t think of them as his girlfriend or marriage partner, and treats them completely as children. Well, in another ten years, she will be old enough in this world not to be a problem at all - in fact, she will be a little late, so we, except for Toya, have reached a consensus that we will take it easy on her until then. At first, I was a bit agitated because Mitya was so eager to be provided for, but then I realized that Toya was more sane than I thought. Because of Toya, I said, "Whoa!¡¡Beast ears. Wife. Wife! It''s no secret that we thought Toya might go out of control. If you''re wasting your time, help me out! Excuse me. What do you want me to do? No, I can''t use magic. Me neither!¡¡That''s something only Nao can do! Same here. Right place, right time. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I agree that the right people are in the right places. So turn it over. I''ve finished searing the top side, but I can''t sear the belly side of the Petoshee, the part that touches the ground. I could probably roll it over a little at a time, but it''s obviously not very efficient. I''ll have to get someone who''s proud of his strength to do it. "Hey. ...... Oh, it''s not slippery. Silas, Freddy, let''s get this thing rolling. Yeah. All right, Freddy, you take that one. Yes, sir! Just say the word and we''ll move. You should appreciate that. Toya and the others put their feet on Petosy''s torso and pushed hard, and Petosy''s body rolled over, revealing his belly. I gave it a last spurt and increased the power of the fire towards it. I''ll be back. Finally, it''s over: ...... Thank you for your hard work, Nao. Really. It''s the most tedious post-processing ever, isn''t it? The Elder Trent is the same in terms of time consuming, but it was done by all of us, and it wasn''t a task that consumed magic power all the time. The fact that I''m the only one struggling while others are talking fluently is, well, it''s kind of hard. But thanks to Nao, I''ve been able to touch it properly like this. It smells fragrant, too. The fire was not properly controlled. There was no way I could have done something as delicate as burning off the mucus - well, I could have if I''d tried, but I didn''t see the point in doing it, so I just roasted it, and some of the skin on the surface was charred, and there was a slightly savory smell in the air. "Silas, is this edible? If it was inedible, I would have to do the hard work of taking it apart and burying it, but fortunately, Silas'' reply was in the affirmative. The monster eels themselves are edible, you know.¡¡"Monster eels themselves are edible, although they''re not very popular because they have a lot of small bones. But it looks very, very satisfying! Hmmm, they''re pretty tasty when they''re this big, aren''t they? No, but some giant creatures are tasty, so it''s not necessarily true. Some fruits and vegetables don''t taste so good when they grow too big. "If you don''t like it, it''s okay. A full stomach is justice!¡¡Besides, my sisters can make almost anything taste good! I see. That''s a good argument. The cooking skills of Haruka and the others are not undeserved. I''ve realized that a lot in the past year or so. "Well then, let''s take it apart. You can take it to the guild and sell it, right? "At this size, the small bones are likely to be big bones, so we can sell them as fillets.¡¡Can we split it equally? "I think so. Can we still eat a lot? Even if we divide it equally, it''s more than three meters per person. Even if you ate it every day, you could eat it for more than ten years. I don''t think I want to keep eating it, and it is usually difficult to store it for such a long time. Are you sure?¡¡I''m not much use to you. It doesn''t matter. I don''t think Nao and the others are in need of money to be petty about this. Thanks a lot. --Can we ask you to transport it? I guess we''ll have to. We could borrow a cart and come back, but it would be too heartless to just leave us alone and let Freddy and Silas do their best. Besides, it''s almost nightfall, and I want to go home and rest. So, let''s cut it up. Okay. We''ll make it quick. We''ll make it quick." Toya and I took out our big dismantling knives and thrust them at Petosy. 422-390 Work done (1) So, this is what you call a Petosey? Yeah. That''s the slice. I named it Toya, by the way. It''s in the kitchen of Yasue''s house. There are eight people here, including our party and Yasue, who is not at the restaurant at the moment. The four of us who were already watching were looking at the meter-thick slices of petosi on the table and opening our mouths in some kind of disgust. But that''s only a fraction of what we have. We left Silas'' and Freddy''s portions, as well as the head to prove that we had defeated them, at the guild, but as for our portion, Ketra asked us to take it all back to ...... if we could, as it was a bit difficult to process. I''m taking it all home. "Hey, Nao. "Hey, Nao, did you find this in the river there? "Yasue, do you know it?¡¡It''s a little far from here. I''ve only seen it from a distance. My husband told me not to go near it. Considering what''s swimming around, I can understand your caution. Yasue nodded, saying, "I can''t kill this thing. I''ll tell you what, this is not normal, okay?¡¡A normal monster eel is about a meter in girth at most. But it''s still big enough!¡¡When you have children, you must train them to stay away from it! When they''re babies, but when they start to play outside, they''re a bit dangerous. Even if it''s a normal size, a child could swallow it in one gulp. There are many dangerous places in this world, and it is impossible to reason that the government is at fault for not putting up fences in dangerous places. Since there are dangerous places and dangerous monsters everywhere, raising children seems to be quite difficult. It would be nice if parents could stay with their children until they become sensible, but maternity and childcare leave is up to them, and the more they take off, the more they lose in income, so it goes without saying that it is quite difficult. But then, it''s a bit too big, isn''t it?¡¡Why is it so big? "Unknown. You said it might be a mutation. If it is a demon, it is said that occasionally abnormal individuals appear, but the monster eel is still classified as an animal, not a demon with a magic stone. I''m not sure what to make of it. There''s no record of it in the past, so I don''t think it''s a common occurrence, but it''s probably best to stay away from Yasue. I''m not going. I''m not going. ...... It''s a shame you can''t play in the river with your kids, though. It''s a shame that you can''t play in the river with your kids. I''m sure you''ll agree that it''s a great idea to have a child.¡¡I''m sure you''ll want to play like that. The difficulty of leisure is probably the most difficult part of coming here. If you''re old enough to play and we''re around here, we can take you out.¡¡The Noria River is reasonably safe. Haruka thought the same thing, and made such a suggestion to Yasue, who widened her eyes in surprise. I''m not sure.¡¡It''s a good idea.¡¡Isn''t there a demon or something? There are some, but they''re safe enough for us to swim in. That''s right. Let''s go back when it gets hot again this year. I didn''t take Mehta and Mary with me. Swimming in the river!¡¡I''m looking forward to it! I wonder if I''ll ever learn to swim. ......? You''ll be fine. Neither of us is athletically challenged. Mitya looked happy, and Mary looked a little nervous, but still happy. I''m not sure what to make of that, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. You guys have already experienced this?¡¡You guys have already been through it? --I''ve had a hard time. I''ve been having a hard time." "Because Yasue is trying to pick a fight with you?¡¡If you had asked for help, I would have at least given you some advice. We didn''t have the luxury of time, so I don''t think we could have taken care of you. "Ugh. ...... I know, but... I''m not sure what to say. As Haruka sighs, Yasue slaps her desk to express her displeasure, but when she hears Yuki''s next words, she snarls, "Mmm....... But Yasue. If it wasn''t for that, you wouldn''t have caught your husband, would you?¡¡You''re a real man with a kid now, right?¡¡I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. It''s all or nothing. If you''re happy now, that''s fine. It''s more constructive to think that way. ...... That''s right. That''s what I''ll think. It doesn''t make any sense to talk about the past now. Yasue seemed to think so too, and changed the subject with a sigh. "So, Nao, what are you going to do with this fish?¡¡Are you going to share it with us? "Do you want it?¡¡I don''t mind if you want a piece. After that, we cut up the Petosi into pieces of about this size, and each of us was allotted about four pieces. In other words, there are three more slices in my share alone, and I don''t mind if I get a slice. That''s what I thought when I said that, but Yasue''s mouth twitched a little in dissatisfaction. You''re being stingy. Why don''t you at least give me one for my family? "Hmm?¡¡Oh, no, no, no. Here''s a slice. "What, ......? Yasue paused for a moment, looking at the huge slice on the table and at my face. Then he twisted his head, thought for a while, and then, as if he understood what I meant, he shouted. It''s too big!¡¡This is not a piece!¡¡It''ll go bad before you can even consume it! I can save it in my magic bag while we''re here. "...... What?¡¡What is that? Not only do magic bags hold a lot of stuff, but they also don''t go bad?¡¡Isn''t that foul? Yasue didn''t know about the magic bag and was surprised when I brought out the Petoshe fillets, but she was surprised again when she heard that it could preserve food. He was surprised again when he heard that it could preserve food. "It doesn''t stop time, but it makes it flow much more slowly, so the food lasts longer than you need to worry about if you keep it in there. Wow. That''s a coveted item for restaurants. --Can you give it to me? I''ve been rehabilitated. I''ve been rehabilitated, so I''m not going to be overbearing and ask for it, but Yasue is looking at my magic bag quite covetously. I''m not saying you can''t have it, but I''m saying you can''t have it. I''m not saying no, but I wouldn''t recommend it. "Why ......? I''m not saying no, but I don''t recommend it. This is a very valuable item. Yes, yes. It''s like, ''I''ll kill you to get it! That''s right. If you have it, you might be in danger. We''re high-ranking adventurers, so we''re usually armed and spend a lot of time out of town. On the other hand, Yasue will be in town all the time, and she''ll have a baby. She''ll be able to fight better than a normal person, but ...... I''ll stop. If she dies,......, no. If she gets killed or something, it won''t do any good. After listening to Haruka and the others'' explanation, Yasue patted her growing belly and shook her head slowly. That''s wise. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to use it in secret, but if you use it in a store, people will definitely know. Well, if we serve it at the restaurant, we can consume it while we''re there. Otherwise, we won''t be able to finish it. But how am I supposed to cook this?¡¡It''s an eel, isn''t it? "Yes, it is. It''s a monster eel. "The only eel I know how to cook is kabayaki. I don''t remember eating much of it because it was so expensive over there. I don''t remember eating much of it because it was so expensive over there. ...... You can''t make it into kabayaki with this size, can you? "Formally, yes. The origin of the word "kabayaki" is that it resembles an ear of a stag beetle. The word "kabayaki" comes from its shape, which resembles the ear of a kabayaki. It is not kabayaki when it is already cut into pieces. "In the first place, it doesn''t look good without soy sauce. "Yes, there is soy sauce. There is soy sauce." Yasue, who had been looking disappointed at Natsuki''s simple words, blinked widely. 423-391 Work completed (2) "Oh, really?¡¡Where did you get it?¡¡Is that a price I can afford? No, we didn''t. We made it ourselves. You guys are so self-indulgent!¡¡But I envy you!¡¡Give it to me! "But I''m jealous!" Yasue pondered, but then immediately asked for it. I suppose a little conflict is worth nothing in front of soy sauce. Seeing Yasue like this, Yuki smiles mischievously. "Mmmm, do you want it?¡¡Soy sauce. You greedy bastard! "That''s fine, give it to me. Now that I''m cooking, I''m thinking that they use too much soy sauce. Isn''t it in most things? That''s the way it is in Japanese cooking, isn''t it? I haven''t cooked that much yet, so I can''t give you enough for a restaurant, but I can give you enough for home. I don''t mind at all!¡¡Thank you. Natsuki is very kind, unlike Yuki. Yasue, who had thanked Yuki happily, gave Yuki a suggestive look. In contrast, Yuki''s mouth pouted in frustration when he pointed it at her. What? I didn''t say I wouldn''t give it to you. But it takes a lot of effort to make soy sauce.¡¡You have to buy ingredients you can''t get around here, and it''s hard to extract the yeast. Then we brew it, stir it. It''s a lot of work, you know. You didn''t do it!¡¡Oh, but it''s not that easy to make. Thanks again, Natsuki. No, no, it''s only with everyone''s help. Yuki, of course. You know what you''re doing, Natsuki. You should be grateful, Yasue. I appreciate it. But Yuki, you need to pull your weight. Yes, ma''am. --Well, since we''re here, let''s cook this up. Mitya can''t wait to see it. Mmm, can you wait for me? I''ll wait quietly. Mitya''s cheeks puffed out in frustration as he said this, but his hand was holding his stomach, and he hadn''t missed the small rumbling of Mitya''s stomach while we were talking. It was almost time for dinner, so it could not be helped. I''m hungry, too. Let''s eat. "Yeah. Besides, it''s important to know if it''s good. And it''s also important to know if it''s good or not, because it affects how you handle it in the future. If it''s not so good, go to ....... "What if it''s not? Yasue, you want some? "If it''s not good, I don''t want it! I''m not going to be able to do that. You can eat enough to sell at the guild, though, right?¡¡If that''s the case, it might be enough to serve in the store. ....... I''m not saying it''s free. Sell it to me cheap. "I don''t care if it''s good. We don''t have enough to eat by ourselves anyway. Let''s start by grilling the fillets like kabayaki. "Okay. I have eel sauce. "Why do you have ......? There are also regular eels. I haven''t gone out to catch any lately, so I made some, but I didn''t get to use them much. I know I keep saying it, but the disparity is so great!¡¡--Is it good? It''s a natural product. It was delicious. It was good, but not as good as the ones I ate at a good restaurant over there. There''s no sansho. d*mn. Don''t be shy! Yasue bites her teeth at Natsuki''s nonchalant reply. But if it''s a restaurant like the one Natsuki goes to, it must be good. He was rich. "Well, well. It''s good that we can eat like this. "This is not the eel I know! "This is not the eel I know!" Yasue pointed to the eel, which certainly did not look like an eel. We''ve gotten used to it, but if you look at it in a normal way, it''s something unrecognizable. You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. I''m sure you''ll like it. ...... Let''s think about it after we try it. It might be delicious. You know what? You know, you shouldn''t be afraid to try things. So, let''s cut it up. Yuki took the initiative and began to dismantle the fish, but... There are a lot of small bones, aren''t there?¡¡That''s what I call an eel. Yuki took the initiative and began to dismantle the eel. "I guess you could say it''s a small bone, but for a fish of this size, it''s pretty thick. Let''s leave them out this time. Natsuki, Haruka, and Yasue removed the small bones one by one from the meat that Yuki had cut into single servings, using a special bone-removal device. This bone-removal tool was specially made by Tommy at Natsuki''s request. It is not sold in the market because there is no demand for it in LaFang. I can''t do this when I serve it at the restaurant. It takes too long. "Yes, it does. The meat is a little soft, so it would be difficult to handle. ...... I think it would be better to make fish balls or fish paste.¡¡Then you can make it in one go even if you don''t know how to de-bone it. It''s not hard to beat or grind. I''ve never seen a mortar before. Oh, we have a mincer. Yes, yes. You made that, didn''t you? No, we''re helping, but Tommy made it. You can get it at Laffan''s. Tommy is Wakabayashi, right?¡¡He''s working hard, isn''t he? But it''s a lot of work to go to Laffan to buy it, and I''m not going to buy it just for this fish. ...... I''ll figure out how to get it out. No, it will only sell while we''re here anyway, so we''ll lend it to you.¡¡I''m bringing it with me. Oh, right, that''s right. When we''re gone, there''s nothing to do but let the Petoshee fillets rot. I''ll ask you then. Even with all this chit-chatting, the four of us with [cooking] skills were able to pull off a masterful job, and soon we had kabayaki-style petosi, meuniere-style petosi, salted grilled petosi, petosi fish ball soup, and petosi kamaboko on the table. We ate them one by one. As we ate them one by one, they all tasted delicious, as if Haruka and his friends had made them. However, when Yasue took a bite of the kabayaki, she twisted her head with a slightly confused expression. ...... It''s good, but it''s not the same. I think it''s because there''s no skin. I think it''s the texture and aroma of the skin that makes eel kabayaki so delicious, don''t you? Oh, I see. I used to think that the skin was like rubber and not very good, but I didn''t know it had a meaning. No, I think it was the eel Yasue ate that was poorly cooked. "I''m sorry!¡¡The only eels I can eat are imported ones sold in supermarkets! We''re like that. But the smell doesn''t bother you. I thought the smell would be a little more annoying since it was probably not drained of mud. What Haruka is eating is grilled fish. Because of its simplicity, it is probably the easiest dish to detect odors. I tried it myself, and although I could eat it just fine, it was quite bland, neither good nor bad. The other dishes were better. I thought it would be a little smelly. ...... Maybe it''s because there are no people living upstream. The upper reaches of the Petras River are further west than the summer dungeon. There are no towns or cities, and there is no room for domestic wastewater to flow. There were no towns north of Sarstat around the Noria River either, but the fish I ate in those towns still smelled like mud, so the geology may have had something to do with it. If you could remove the mud, it would taste even better. "No, it''s impossible to catch a Petoshee alive and remove the mud, okay?¡¡I''ve been through a lot of mud, haven''t I? You can''t catch that one. ...... If it weren''t for you, Nao, I wouldn''t have been able to kill it. I''m sure it''s not impossible, but I sure could use some magic. Even if we could catch them, there''s no place to drain the mud. Most eels use a tub of clean water for draining, but of course you can''t get a tub that will hold a petosy, and even if you could get a pool or something like that, there''s no way a petosy would stay still in it. She would have climbed out of the water and attacked. I know. I just thought if it was too muddy, I''d have to figure out a way to cook it. But this could be used in any dish as long as you''re careful with the bones. "Yes. Yes, this will sell well. No, depending on the price, it could be a big hit. --Raising children must be very expensive. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. "Yes, yes. I''ll give you a discount in exchange for the gift. It''s okay with Nao and the others, right?¡¡We''re not selling everything. I don''t care. I''m sure we can get enough for one slice. Me too. I''m more of a meat guy. I don''t mind. I''m more of a flying gar kind of guy. I don''t mind either. There are sixteen slices for us all. I think Nao is right. One slice is enough. No, we can''t sell that many before the baby is born. But thank you. I appreciate it. If that''s what you think, then have a healthy baby and raise it. That''s what we''re here for. Of course. You don''t have to tell me! Yasue responded, smiling with a look of core strength and happiness. Not long after this conversation, the day arrived. 424-392 The moon fills (1) The day started with a heavy knocking sound. When I woke up, Toya was just getting out of bed and opening the door. "What the hell, I-- I''m in labor!¡¡Please come quickly! Yasue''s husband, Chester, interrupted Toya as she opened the door and came into the room, grabbing her by the chest. His clothes were a mess and his hair was shaggy. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked quite mad. "Oh, oh, I get it. I''ll be right there. Please! As soon as Toya nodded as if pressured, Chester turned on his heel and ran out of the room and down the stairs. . ...... like a storm. It was frantic. I didn''t even have time to get out of the covers. It was still dark when I looked outside. We were renting three rooms. I don''t know if they knew about it, but I''m glad I didn''t go to Haruka''s room. I don''t think Haruka and her friends would have opened the door in the first place, but I wouldn''t have wanted to be visited by an unfriendly man at this hour. Anyway, shall we go tell Haruka and the others? Sure. I''m sure they''ll be ready. I went to the next room and knocked lightly on the door, which was answered immediately. I heard you. Wait a minute while I get ready. Okay. If they''re making that much noise, they can hear us. I hope there won''t be any complaints from the other guests in the room. ....... I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I visited Haruka and her friends'' room again. ...... They let me in, but they didn''t seem to be in a hurry. You will find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier. "Hey, Haruka, are you sure you don''t want to hurry?¡¡Chester, I''ve come to call you at this hour. You''ll be fine. Even if you go into labor, it''ll be a long time before the baby''s born. Usually. You stay home until the contractions start, and if they get too bad, you head to the hospital. If you are having a normal birth, you should have enough time to do that. Depending on the results of the preliminary checkup, some women may be admitted to the hospital for a while, so it may not be the case for everyone, but if anything, it seems to be the exception. "Yes, Haruka. If your aunt told you to call her, it might be the final stage, you know?¡¡Nao-kun, did she say anything else?¡¡For example, did she say anything about her water breaking? No, nothing. Just, "Please come quickly. Then I guess there''s no need to rush. If it''s just the onset of labor, it could take a day or more. A day ......, that doesn''t seem to make sense even if you hurry a little. I''m not sure what to do. We left the inn without eating breakfast, and Toya carried the still half-asleep Mitya on her back as we hurried to Yasue''s place. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. A few hours after Chester came running into our inn. It was just me, Toya, and Chester in the temporarily closed dining room. Haruka and Natsuki, who can use healing magic, are there to help, Yuki is there to help, and Mary and Mitya, who don''t seem to be of much use directly, are there to help with the birth. In the modern world, husbands are supposed to be present, but in this world, it''s unlikely. Thus, their only job is to be with us and worry about it. Are you okay? ...... "I don''t know. But it''s a lot safer than a normal birth. You''ve got Haruka and Natsuki. Calm down a little. I know, I know. I know, but I''m restless! He sits down and shakes his head, stands up and walks around the dining room, sits down again, and stands up again. I know you''re worried, but if you have to watch this for hours on end, you''re going to get sick of it. "......, I''m going to the guild. My presence here is of no use. That''s half a lie, I''m just tired of keeping up with Chester, who is very upset. If this is going to continue for a while, maybe even a day, I''ll have to change my mind. Oh, well, me too. Maybe it was the same for Toya, who stood up after me. "Oh, please don''t leave me alone! Chester immediately clung to me. If it had been a pretty girl, I might have been happy, but when it''s a man who''s already grown up, it''s just annoying. Toya looks a little uncomfortable, but he''s not so cruel as to forcefully pull her away, and he tries to look at me as if he''s in trouble. But I''m not going to give her that chance. It''s too much trouble. I''ll take care of the rest. "Oh, Nao, don''t run away! I can''t hear anything. That''s what I''m going to do, and I''m going to close the door of the cafeteria. The adventurer''s guild I visited. The adventurer''s guild I visited was deserted. The time was halfway between morning and noon. This is the time when most people are at work, and it''s too early for drinking and moping. The only people who visit the guild at this time are adventurers who have stayed overnight to work, and it is the least crowded time of the day, except for late at night. Naturally, I was conspicuous, and Ketra immediately approached me. "Hey, Nao. Thank you for your hard work in defeating the Petossi the other day. "No, no. --Did you adopt that name? That''s what Cyrus reported. Also, it''s more convenient to have a specific name for it, since it''s hard to tell if it''s a big monster eel. "It''s true that describing it as ''big'' is not quite right. "Yes. Now the townspeople can go to the river without worry. Are there a lot of people visiting?¡¡The Petras River? No, except for adventurers and the farmers who manage the sanitary sewer. The Petosi was unusually large, but the Petras River was originally inhabited by monster eels. Perhaps because of this, there are fewer fish in the Petras River than in the Noria River, and even ordinary monster eels are quite dangerous to ordinary people. If one were to fish or fish for a living in such a place, one''s life would never be enough. Even a normal-sized monster eel is bigger than a python, which may give you an idea of its threat level. Incidentally, it is said that python does not attack people very often, but monster eels usually do, and since the water is completely their field, the danger is quite high. No one in their right mind would want to go near one. That''s why it won''t affect us immediately, but if we can''t manage the sanso, it will affect our agriculture. It seems that Silas couldn''t handle it alone. Ah, the enemy was a little incompatible with the Great Sword. You can use other methods to deal with them, such as preparing oil and setting it on fire, or using a spear, like we did with Elder Trent, but only if you know your opponent and are prepared. If Silas had been alone, he would have had no choice but to retreat from the scene. Did you manage to sell all of Petosy''s body?¡¡There was quite a lot of it. Yes. No problem. A few restaurants bought it. The size is a bit insane, but it''s no less a monster eel. The slimy surface had been seared and the huge size of the fish made it easier to fillet, and it sold for a little more than the usual price of a monster eel. If there are any left, can we take Nao and the others'' things as well? If there are any left over, I can take Nao''s stuff? If there''s any left over, we''ll probably have to sell it. The food made with Petosi, sold at a lower price than usual, was quite popular, and the stock was being steadily consumed. However, there was still a large amount left over due to the quantity. We haven''t decided how long we will stay in this town after Yasue''s birth, but it is almost certain that there will be a large amount left. In that case, it would be better to sell them. Magic bags have their limits, and now that we''re traveling, we can''t leave them at home like we used to. In some cases, we could sell it to the guild and then leave town. I''d like that. Yes, I''d like that too. 425-393 The moon fills (2) "By the way, what else have you found out about ...... Petosy?¡¡Like why it''s so huge? Not really. I dismantled its head and examined it, but I didn''t find anything unusual except for its size. Could it be a mutation? Possibly. But considering the fact that it has never been seen until it reached that size, could it have come upstream from downstream or upstream from upstream? ...... If it grew up in this area, would you notice it before it got that big? Probably. I don''t care if you''re from the city, adventurers sometimes go to the Petras River. They catch ordinary monster eels and sell them to make some money. They bring them in once a month, though not that often, so it''s a little strange that there were no sightings of them around here until they reached that size. With that in mind, Ketola''s prediction makes sense. "I''ve sent Silas to take a look around, but ...... if we find any more, can you help us? As long as we''re in town. Now that we know how to deal with it, it won''t be too hard to kill it if we can just catch it. The reward from the guild wasn''t very high, but considering the profit from the sale of Petosi''s body, it was a reasonable request for a day''s work. You''re in town for the birth of someone you know, aren''t you?¡¡When is she due? "Today. ...... What? Today, right now, she''s in the middle of giving birth. I added another word to Ketola, who tilted her head curiously, as if she could not understand my words. When she understood what I meant, she lowered her eyebrows with a slightly annoyed expression. "...... Um, are you sure you want to be here? It''s not like we men are going to be of any use. I guess she couldn''t stand her husband''s restlessness, so she ran away. Haha, that might be true for a first-time mother. But Nao, when it''s your own wife, you should stay close to her.¡¡You''ll have a lot to say about it later on. That''s my sister''s advice. "I see. So your sister is still blaming her husband for her problems? No, I''m not!¡¡I''m still single!¡¡I''m still single! I''m looking for a husband who makes as much money as you do. How about you, Nao? Thank you for your time. I''ll be leaving soon. I think Toya is hungry. I turned my back to Ketola, cutting her off with a quick glance. I don''t know anyone here, but I''m afraid if I do something wrong and Haruka hears about it. "Oh, Nao! Your sister will be waiting for you. I felt guilty for abandoning Toya, so I bought some food from the stall, mainly things he would like, and came back, but the situation in the cafeteria was the same as when I left. No, Toya''s eyes were dead. Yeah. I suppose it''s no wonder that I''ve been staring at a wandering, rattling, restless man for hours. ...... Welcome back. "Hey, I''m home. You must be hungry.¡¡I bought some stuff for you, so eat up. Toya looked at me a little coldly, and I hurriedly put the things I had on the table. Toya''s eyes softened a little at the delicious smell wafting from the kitchen. I didn''t have time to eat breakfast, you know. I didn''t have time to eat breakfast, so I''ll forgive you for abandoning me. "Thank you very much. --But are Haruka and the others okay?¡¡They haven''t eaten either, have they? Hmm, but we can''t just bring it in ourselves. If they get hungry, someone will come. We''ve got the numbers. So be it. At least Mitya and Mary are redundant. They''ll send them on errands or come to us if they have to. Hey, Chester. You haven''t eaten yet, have you?¡¡Why don''t you sit down and eat? Toya asked, hoping to calm him down a little. Chester gave him a sharp look and responded in a half-shouted voice. Chester looked at Toya sharply and half shouted, "Yasue is working so hard, she won''t be able to eat! "Oh, oh, I see. ...... Toya is pressured by Chester''s desperate expression. His eyes are bloodshot. I don''t think it''s any wonder he''s so uptight. "On the contrary, if he collapses from hunger, it won''t affect him. Just leave him alone. It may be a little heartless, but there''s no point in forcing him to eat. If he calms down, he will make his own food or eat something. He''s a chef, after all. However, we couldn''t just ignore Chester and have a nice chat while we ate, so we proceeded to eat in silence. When half of the food on the table had been cleared. The door to the back of the room opened with a bang, and Mitya peeked out. "You''re having a baby? What? Chester immediately rushed out. He ran into the back of the room, pushing Mitya away, and at the same time, Chester''s voice, "Yasua! Chester''s voice faded away. "You''re in too much of a hurry. Mitya says, a little dumbfounded, but I don''t know what will happen to me, so I keep silent. I don''t know what''s going to happen when it''s my time, so I stay silent. "Well, it''s your first child, so it''s probably for the best, right? "Hmm, I guess so.¡¡Oh, my brothers, they''re eating something delicious! Do you want some Mitya? "Yes! Mitya replied and immediately went to the table to eat. So, everything okay? No problem. He was a healthy boy. But Yuki looked a little pale. Hmm. Well, at least she''s pale. I heard some husbands faint when they witnessed the birth. Rather, Mitya''s calmness, even though it was someone else''s, made her seem like a big shot. I thought it was pretty long, but it''s not? Not really. My aunt said things were going rather well. The aunt that Mitya is referring to is Chester''s mother, or Yasue''s mother-in-law. The birth is being carried out with the help of the aunt and an experienced woman in the neighborhood, with Haruka and others helping. It''s a little scary that there is no doctor specializing in childbirth, but that''s how it is for ordinary people. My sisters will be back soon. Not long after Mitya said this, footsteps began to be heard and the door was opened. It''s over! The first one to enter, breathing heavily, was Yuki, followed by Haruka and the others. Mitya said Yuki looked pale, but she had already recovered and now looked as normal as ever. "Good work. "I''m really tired. I was just watching. Most of us were, too. It was the old lady who took him away, and then she helped Yasue to recover. We did prepare hot water and purify her, but that was about it. No, I think Purify helped a lot, you know?¡¡It''s hard to keep clean when you''re a commoner. Even the big hotels have baths, but only a few of them have them. Of course, there was no bath here either, and the old lady who came in tried to just wash her hands lightly, so Haruka and the others panicked and applied Purify all over the old lady, as well as the room and the cloths used. Infections are scary, aren''t they? Yes. Even if you say it''s normal, it''s a little ...... from our point of view. We don''t want to be told later that the baby is sick, do we? You should do what you can, you know. I don''t know about your common sense, but according to our common sense, cleanliness in the medical field is of the utmost importance. There is a useful magic called purify that can be used for this purpose, so not using it is not an option. Well, fortunately, the baby seems to have been born healthy, so let''s go home for today. 426-394 The moon fills (3) "Are we done?¡¡You can check on him at ....... "Yasue''s already been treated. It was magic, I should say, and I felt like I could get up right away, but my strength was still drained, so I just fell asleep. With the baby. I don''t know if we''re in the way. I don''t think Chester can afford it. Yeah. Yeah, he just stuck to the side of the bed, looking at the baby like he was a slut. The four of them, including Mary, nodded to each other. The four of them, including Mary, nodded to each other, "Well, that''s to be expected, considering Chester''s condition during the birth. That one''s not going away for a while. "Right. We''ve already said our goodbyes, so let''s just go home. Yeah. We''re hungry, too.¡¡I think Nao and the others have already eaten. And then Haruka turned her gaze to where Mitya, who hadn''t stopped while we were talking, was munching on the last of the skewers. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us. "......?¡¡It was delicious. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I''m not sure if you''re a fan of this, but I''m sure you''re not. It''s a little better than Rafan, but if you just want to eat good food, it''s much better to eat Haruka''s food. Even so, I sometimes buy food, which is a kind of festival compensation. Another factor is that sometimes I can eat rare food, but most of the time, such food is not good. What do you want to do?¡¡Should we get something to eat? We can''t just call Chester and have him cook for us. The reason I eat most of my meals in this town at this diner is because it''s my reward for helping Haruka and the others, but calling Chester at this moment would indeed be a devilish thing to do. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a new place to eat.¡¡Nao and the others have been to a few of them, right?¡¡There were many times when they didn''t come home for lunch. I don''t mind showing you around, but ...... isn''t that good, okay? It''s okay. It''s a little delicate considering the price. When we were training all day at the guild, it was a hassle to come all the way back, so the four of us often had lunch at a restaurant near the guild. We asked Ketola about it and chose a restaurant that she said was good, but even that restaurant was not nearly as good as Aella''s cooking. The prices were the same or a little higher. I''m a little confused. Is that so?¡¡But that''s where we''re going for today. In a little while, you''ll be left with nothing but leftovers. ...... Oh, that''s what happens when you leave town. The birth went well, you know. We''ve been here a little too long, but today we''re done. There''s no reason or room to stay. When do you think you''ll be leaving? We''re new at this. We''ll give it a week or so to see how it goes. ...... And if it''s all right, we''ll leave? I think there''s still some room for improvement, but there''s a deadline. The effect of the report to Marks should give you a few months to wait before the report about the dungeon goes to the guild headquarters. In addition to that, considering the distance between Rafan and King''s Landing, another month or two. It will be a few months until some sort of policy is decided from that report and it reaches us. I want to be out of Viscount Nenus'' territory by then. I''d like to be out of the Viscount''s territory by then. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not going to be able to see the baby. It was two days after the birth that Toya and I were able to meet Yasue''s child, having left without seeing the baby''s face that day. Yasue was walking right after the birth due to the effects of the healing spell, but Haruka and the others advised her to rest for at least one day, so she stayed in bed for a while, and we refrained from visiting her as men. So, two days later, the four of us, me, Toya, Haruka, and Natsuki, visited Yasue. We didn''t want to bother her with too many people, so the other three stayed at the inn. The cafeteria had already reopened, and the only person who greeted us was Yasue, standing there holding a baby - well, just the two of them, including the baby. Welcome. You''ve come a long way. Thanks to you, we have a healthy baby. Yasue smiles happily and walks normally, but when I think that she just gave birth to the baby in her arms the day before yesterday, I feel uneasy. Yasue, are you okay to walk now? "I''m fine. I''ve had a healing spell cast on me, so I''m perfectly fine. I feel a little weak, but that''s because I haven''t worked in a while, I guess. And for that matter, ....... I think it''s okay to sleep for a while longer, don''t you? I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. But even in the original world, in some countries, you''ll be discharged the next day. "Oh, really?¡¡You''re going to have a baby, right?¡¡You''re going to have a baby this big right there ....... It was Toya who asked this with wide eyes and slurring her words in the process, but I totally agree with her. It''s a little marvel of life, even if you know that''s what it is. Isn''t it too harsh to be kicked out of the hospital the day after accomplishing such a marvel? Let''s be more gentle! I''ve heard that.¡¡I''ve also heard that even an appendicitis operation is discharged the next day. I heard that''s because of the high cost of medical care. I was in the hospital for about a week for that surgery. ...... Appendicitis, so-called appendectomy. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re doing. I went to visit him, didn''t I? You looked like you were in pain, right? Yeah. The next day was pretty painful. The anesthesia made my head ache like crazy. I can''t leave the hospital in that condition. You''d have to use a stretcher. I can''t get up. It''s true that Yasue''s condition is due to magic, though, isn''t it? I really appreciate it. I''ll be working in no time. --Hey, you two, check out this girl. Oh, that''s right. ...... Oh, he''s a boy, isn''t he? Yeah. Yes. You''ll be able to look into Yasue''s arms and see a very small, peach-colored, plump baby sleeping peacefully in her arms. It was hard to tell the s*x of the baby just by looking at it, even though its eyes were closed at the moment. No, it''s probably impossible to tell even if she is awake. When they are babies, there is not much difference. What''s the name? I talked it over with my husband and we decided on Alvari. You can call him Al. Alvari...... Al. That''s a good name. --I''m not sure. Toya, you''re too honest. Actually, I don''t know what it is either. My husband picked it out of a bunch of names. After laughing a little at Toya''s blunt words, Yasue stuck out her tongue and laughed. But the name. It''s a little scary to think that Haruka and others have common sense in other worlds, but we don''t have such common sense, so we name them just by sound. It''s a life-long problem. I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. ...... Yes, when naming your own child, listen carefully to the opinions of those around you. The priestess Ishka may be the best person to consult. "Since you''re here, Toya, would you like to hold her? Toya took a step away from Yasue''s offer and shook her head. "No, no, no. I''m too scared to hold a baby that''s not ready to be born. "Yeah?¡¡How about you, Nao? I don''t know. Nao, you''re going to be a father soon, aren''t you?¡¡You can''t even hold a baby, can you?¡¡Why can''t you have a baby? No, no, I''m not planning on ...... that yet, but just for a little while then. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m going to try. "Oh, oh, ......, that''s pretty heavy. The average newborn baby weighs about three to four kilos. It''s lighter than the weapons we usually use, but it feels much heavier, perhaps because of the weight of life. As I was looking at Al with this in mind, he woke up, as if he had noticed something was different. 427-395 The moon fills (4) I don''t think he can see clearly at this age, but he looks at me closely with his round eyes. He wriggled his hands and feet, and then closed his mouth with a grunt. Right after that... "Aaaaah! She starts crying. "Oh, oh. It''s okay, okay? Al''s arms and legs were flailing in frustration, and I was flabbergasted. I patted him on the back and rocked him gently, but to no avail. ""Pfft!" Haruka and the others laughed at my panic, but I had no choice, right? I''ve never had the chance to take care of a baby before. "Hmm... Give me, give me. I''m not sure if they know the mother, but Al immediately stops crying and has a calm expression on his face. What is it?¡¡The way she held him?¡¡A smell?¡¡A sixth sense? If this happened to my own child, I''d be very upset. ....... "Nao, don''t worry about it, my husband cried too. Seriously? Poor Chester. I wonder if it would help if I talked to him while he was still in my belly? You guys are leaving soon, aren''t you?¡¡Leave the area for a while? Oh. Your delivery went well. We''ll be leaving in a few days. I see. Well, stop by again when you get back. I want to see how Al''s doing. "Right. I''m sure you''ll be back within a year ...... when things cool down, right? I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. I''m sure. I''ve asked him to take care of the house, but I don''t want to leave it too long. I''ve asked them to take care of the house, but I don''t want to neglect it too much. I''m also curious about Al''s progress, so I''ll stop by when I can. Yeah, I''ll be waiting. Thank you so much for this time. Yasue thanked him again and smiled gently. I''ll be back. It was three days later, on the day we left Kerg, that things took a turn for the worse. On the morning of that day, after we had finished our preparations to leave the city, including greeting Silas and the others, we had eaten breakfast and were talking about how we should get going when... Boom, boom, boom! A heavy banging on the door. I had a feeling of d¨¦j¨¤ vu, or was it d¨¦j¨¤ vu? For a moment, I was thinking fluently. The lock, which had been locked properly, though it was not very strong because it was not a high class inn, popped open and the door opened with a bang. We immediately reached for our weapons, but the person standing on the other side of the door was Yasue, whose face had turned pale. After confirming this, we took our hands off our weapons, but what came next was confusion and doubt. But before we could say anything, Yasue shouted in a trembling voice. Oh, my God, Al!¡¡Oh, please!¡¡Help me! Is he sick?¡¡Is he sick? Is he injured? The one who reacted immediately was Natsuki. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. I think he said he was sick ......, maybe. I don''t know!¡¡But! I''ll be right there. Mary and Mitya, you stay here. And Mee... I don''t want you two to get infected. Yeah. Extend the stay, will you? Then I toss my wallet to Mary. We have at least [Robust Lv.3], but the two of you don''t have that skill. We haven''t gotten sick since we met, so we''re probably strong, but there''s no point in taking unnecessary risks. Me, we''ll wait for you, okay? "Uh, yeah. ...... I ran out of the inn, leaving them in the room with worried expressions on their faces. We were about to run, but Yasue''s legs got tangled and she almost fell, so I quickly offered my hand. I managed to support her, but Haruka saw this and made a quick decision. "Toya, carry Yasue! "Oh. Just be patient, okay? Hey... You''re in a hurry. Keep your mouth shut and carry him so he doesn''t bite your tongue. Yasue is a little stronger than the average person, but she''s not that well-trained. And that''s just after running all the way here. Needless to say, the speed at which we run is completely different from those of us who are adventurers and have been training every day. The difference between an Olympian and an ordinary person is incomparable. In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, there are a few things you can do. I''m in a hurry! "Oh! "Yes! Only if she had time to respond. We drove through the city at a slightly annoying speed and ran into Yasue''s house. And when Yasue instructed me to go to the room, I found Al alone on the bed, breathing hard. There was no sign of Chester and the others. "Where''s Chester and Auntie? They don''t know if they''ll find them, but they''re going to look for medicine. "I don''t know if they''ll be able to find them, but they''re going to look for medicine," Yasue replies, rushing to the bed with a worried look on her face. You know the name of the disease? My mother-in-law called it gresco fever, but she also said it wasn''t something you get right after you''re born. ...... I remember seeing Gresco fever ....... As soon as he said that, Natsuki took out a book from his backpack and started flipping through it at great speed. It was a book on pharmacology, I think. We didn''t really need it, so we didn''t get to use it much, but Natsuki was studying it diligently. There it is!¡¡The symptoms are consistent with ...... a red rash on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, and fever. Natsuki nodded as she placed her hand on Al''s forehead and checked his limbs. I don''t know if that''s enough to make a judgment, but there are definitely some red rashes on his hands and feet. But it says here that it occurs between one and three years of age. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what''s going on in your life. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do that.¡¡I''m sure you''ll be able to fix it with magic. I think it can be cured, but I''m not sure if it should be cured: ...... "Why?¡¡Money?¡¡You need money?¡¡If so, I''ll work hard to pay you back! I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it''s a good idea. I don''t think so. Please calm down. This disease is like the mumps, to put it simply. ".........? Does that mean I should have this disease as a child? I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. That''s what I''m talking about. Gresco fever is a disease that affects almost 100 percent of children. If left untreated, nearly 80% of children will recover spontaneously and never get it again. That means that the other 20 percent of children will get it from ...... ......... What? It''s probably because they don''t want to talk about it directly. Yasue gasped, her face drained of blood, as Natsuki remained silent. But in fact, in this world where the mortality rate in infancy is high, it''s not considered such a scary disease. From our point of view, a disease with a 20% mortality rate is quite scary, but from the point of view of people here, "If you can save 80% of your life just by resting and not seeing a doctor, ....... If you die from it, that''s your fate too. It may be a resignation that comes from being close to death and God, but for me, and if it were my child, it would be unacceptable. "Of course, there is a way to cure it with magic. "Then! But then you won''t be immune to it, and you''ll almost certainly get it again. And we won''t always be there when that happens. What? Yasue must have understood that it was impossible to ask us to stay forever. He bites his lip in frustration and lowers his eyes. You don''t have to worry so much, if you take proper care of him, the chances of him surviving will increase. However, as Nao-kun said earlier, the disease usually occurs when the child is a little older. ...... Does that mean you''re worried about her physical strength? Yes, it does. I can help you a little with magic, but the cause is ......". Natsuki pondered again, looked at Yasue and Al, and continued to speak. "Yasue, you took the [Robust] skill, right? I''m sorry.¡¡Yes. Level 1. "Maybe that''s the reason. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. 428-396 The moon (1) What''s with the ......? I heard that newborns inherit their immunity from their mothers. I heard that the effect lasts for about six months. Normally, newborn babies are not susceptible to diseases due to the effects of the inherited immunity. Later, as the effects of the mother''s immunity wear off, they gradually acquire their own immunity through illness. I mean, I never had Gresco''s fever, so Al was ......". Natsuki nodded ruthlessly to Yasue, who was even more bloodthirsty and white. It''s a possibility. In the event that you''ve got a lot of money to spend, you''ll be able to take advantage of it. So, we''re okay, but not the kids. Well, doesn''t that mean we''re not all in this together? Yes. There is a difference in levels, so we can''t make a simple comparison. I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. If possible, I would like to check with Adverstice. ...... If you throw in a lot of money, can you see him again? But that''s for the future, right now it''s Yasue''s child, Al. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡What should I do? "First of all, you should use the Recovery Slumber to reduce your physical exhaustion and increase your recovery power. The downside is that we can''t let her sleep as long as an adult, since she''ll need to nurse frequently. If the baby is an adult, he can sleep for a whole day and eat only once a day, but this is not the case for a baby who nurses frequently. If the baby is not woken up and nursed at appropriate intervals, he will not be able to recover due to lack of nutrition. As Yasue cringes and holds Al''s hand, Natsuki reaches behind her and casts a spell, causing Al''s breathing to become slightly calmer. Oh, thank you, ....... No. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''ll help. So, Natsuki, what should we do? The best thing to do is to get the medicine. I''m sure Chester and the others have gone looking for it, but ...... it''s not going to be easy to find. "Why?¡¡It''s a common enough disease that anyone can get it, right? Yes. But the medicine is not cheap, and 80% of the diseases can be cured without doing anything. As a result, only rich people and aristocrats who don''t want their children to suffer would use this medicine, and I don''t know if any stores around here have it in stock. ...... So, what do we do now? It would be more practical to make them ourselves. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. I''m not sure.¡¡I had a pharmacy! I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. But the problem lies not in that, but in the material. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. However, magic and pharmacy are different. No matter how skilled you are, you cannot make medicine without materials. It seems that most of the ingredients can be bought without any problem, but one ingredient, the key ingredient of this potion, is almost certainly not sold. It''s a flower called obtusia. Without it, it''s impossible to make the medicine. So, what is it?¡¡So what? We''re supposed to find that flower? Are you going to help us with ......? We can''t just abandon the baby. Right? I know. You don''t abandon a stranger, but you don''t abandon Yasue''s baby. Oh, thank you. I''ll pay you back at ....... Don''t worry about it. If you won''t be hostile, I''ll at least give you a hand. "Oh, my God! In the event you''re not sure what you''re looking for, you''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure you''ll do fine. Ovania is an underwater flower that blooms in beautiful water. Unfortunately, we''re not familiar with this area, and we don''t know where it blooms. So, Nao-kun and Toya-kun, please go to the guild and gather information. Okay. It''s unlikely, but Yuki, please check the alchemy stores in this town to see if they sell it. I''ll go to the stores that deal with medicine related materials. Haruka, please stay here and apply "Recovery Slumber" as needed. If she doesn''t drink her milk, she will become weak, so keep it short. "Understood. In case of emergency, should I use the Treatment? ...... It''s a difficult decision. As I''m sure Haruka knows, the treatment can deplete the patient''s own energy, which may not be good for old people or children with low energy. Does that mean they''ll die if they can''t take it anymore? Yes, Yasue-san. I think she will be fine for a while, but if her condition should suddenly change, Yasue-san and Chester-san should make the final decision on whether to use magic to cure her. Don''t leave it to Haruka. "...... I understand. If you''re thinking about curing yourself with magic, it''s preferable to do so while you''re still physically strong, but if you cure yourself with magic, you won''t gain immunity and you''ll contract gresco fever again, and there''s a high probability that we won''t be around when that happens. On the other hand, if we prolonged the process to the limit, he would be too exhausted to be cured by magic. It''s a tough decision to make, and Natsuki told her to make it as a parent, and Yasue nodded slowly and responded in a hushed voice. Of course, I''m going to do my best to avoid having to make such a decision. Let''s hurry up. With those words from Natsuki, we started running. "Ovnia, huh?¡¡It''s the season of Gresco fever, isn''t it? When Toya and I went to the adventurer''s guild and asked, Ketra nodded in agreement. "Do you know about it? "Yes. Most of them can be cured by simply resting, but rich people sometimes ask for them. In that case, it would be an urgent request, which would be very profitable and helpful for the guild. No, this time, it''s a little ...... physically demanding. I''m not sure what''s going to happen even if you have magic assistance. ....... Do you have any information on this? When I lightly explained the situation to Ketola, who smiled at me with an expression that seemed to say that I was being overprotective, she changed her expression and bowed her head. I''m sorry, sir. I''ll go check it out right away, so please wait a moment. He left the counter and I waited patiently for about thirty minutes. When he came back, his expression was cloudy. "Thank you for waiting. How did it go? Unfortunately, as far as we can tell, there is no record of any Obunia collected in the area being delivered to the guild here. I see. ....... So you''re saying there''s no place in the vicinity of this town where obvnia can be collected? No. Not at all, but that''s to be expected. It is more difficult to prove that something does not exist than to prove that it does. But Ketola''s words did not end there. "Do you know what kind of environment Ovnia grows in? They grow in clean water, don''t they? "Yes. Yes. In return, I''ve researched all the places in the area that have clean water. Oh, thank you very much. Can you tell me about it? Of course. One place is the Petras River, which Nao and the others know. That river has cleaner water than the Noria River to the east, so there''s no chance of Obunia growing there. That river. The water was indeed clean, but that place is inhabited by monster eels, right? Ovnia is a grass that grows at the bottom of the water. ...... Do you dive? The other is the Petras River. The other place is a forest just beyond the Petras River. I don''t know if it''s true or not, but I''ve heard that there was a beautiful spring there. I''m sorry to say that I''m not sure of either of these facts. ...... Ketra bit her lip in frustration, and I shook my head. No, thank you. I don''t have a lot of time to gather information. "Right. I''d rather have inaccurate information now than accurate information that could take days to get. "I''m sorry. If you can make it to Laffan, you might want to ask Diora. He has a lot more information than I do. "I see. ....... Thank you very much. 429-397 The moon (2) A few hours later, we gathered again at Yasue''s house, all of us with dark expressions on our faces. What was the result? The first to open her mouth was Natsuki, who shook her head. The first to speak was Natsuki. There was no cure for Gresco''s fever, nor was there any Ovnia. Same for me. I have no idea. They don''t have it! That''s what they told me. ...... Chester and his friends couldn''t find any medicine either. He''s working in the cafeteria now. ...... Chester would love to stay with his children, but with his income, it''s just not possible. In addition, Chester''s presence is of little use except for Yasue''s mental health, which is not surprising. It''s not looking good for us. We''ve asked around about possible places, but that''s it. I''ve been told to ask Mr. Diora, but what do we do? I don''t know what to do. We''ll do what we can. We should split up. Then me and Nao will go to the place Ketra told us about. Considering we''re going under the Petras River. I can breathe underwater, and Toya is strong enough. I don''t think the Petosi are around anymore, but I''m not sure I want Haruka and the others to dive into that river. On the other hand, as long as Toya can breathe, I have faith that she''ll be able to survive even from inside Petosi''s stomach. Me?¡¡I can''t do it. I''m just going to do the magic and let Toya do the diving. I''ll take Yuki, Mary and Mitya back to Laffan. You stay here and help Yasue. You must be worried about being alone. All right. Be careful. Natsuki immediately nodded to Haruka''s words, and Yasue gave Natsuki a look of mixed anxiety and relief. "Are you sure?¡¡As far as I''m concerned, it''s a big help. ...... Yes. If anyone is going to stay, it''s going to be me, because of my magic and skills. If Nao and the others are successfully found, it will be useless without someone who can make medicine. I''m not sure what to make of this. Yasue also has the [Pharmacy] skill, but it would be dangerous to leave it to a girl who just took the skill and has never practiced it before. I''m not sure what to do. Haruka and the others, hurry up, but be careful with your safety. Okay. Be careful, Nao. We nodded at each other and started to move immediately. "Toya, what''s up? Toya, what''s up? We nodded at each other and started to move immediately. "Toya, how are you doing?" we asked Toya, peeking out from the surface of the Petras River with a dagger in his hand. No. There''s nothing that looks like it. Fortunately, no monster eels. What''s the river bottom like?¡¡What''s the bottom of the river like? Any chance of finding it? It''s basically sand. There''s no mud, it''s clean, but there''s no water plants. It''s hard to grow in a river with a current. ......? Lotus flowers, for example, grow not in rivers but in ponds where there is not much water flowing. Considering this, it is unlikely that you will find them here, even if you try hard. ....... "Toya, can you look around some more?¡¡If possible, focus on places where the water is stagnant. I''m on it. Where the water is stagnant, right? With a thumbs up, Toya dives back into the water. But when he returned a few minutes later, he had no harvest in his hands, his lips were blue, and his body was shaking. I''m sorry. I shouldn''t have done that. No, no, no, no, no, no!¡¡Your body is too cold!¡¡Get up here. Oh, my God. ...... Still early spring. The clear water flowing from the mountains was quite cold, and even Toya, who was a physical person, found it difficult to stay in the water for a long time. After he got out of the water with sluggish steps, I poured a little hot water on him and put him on the fire I had prepared. It''s so cold!¡¡A little hot water and this kind of fire won''t warm you up. Isn''t there some kind of magic that can warm me up more powerfully? I nodded to Toya, who was completely naked and wringing out her underwear because I was the only one there, and held up my hand. It''s not a good idea. No, it''s not good.¡¡It will only warm the surface!¡¡It doesn''t heat up, it just burns! It''s not warm, it''s just brown! I can''t eat that. Yeah, yeah. If you don''t use far infrared rays to cook the inside, you''ll get sick to your stomach. ...... That''s not true!¡¡I''m not kidding, it''s really cold! But, you know, ...... The magic of Breath Water is great because it eliminates the need to breathe, but can''t you do something about the cold? I''m not sure if it''s from frustration or the cold, but I think about it as I watch Toya clench her teeth. It would be convenient if it could be insulated like a dry suit, but I don''t have that kind of technology. I''ll have to ask him to come up from time to time to warm himself up, even if it''s a hassle. I''ve heard that divers repeatedly fish by the fire during the cold season. ...... Oh! There''s a magic called "resist cold". I''m not sure if this works underwater too. It''s a spell that I''ve used from time to time in the winter, but it''s basically for use when the temperature is low. The current temperature itself is comfortable for early spring, so I forgot about it. There''s a good one!¡¡It should work for now, if not underwater. Put it on! "Yes, sir. "Resist Cold. ...... Oh. I''m not cold anymore! Okay, that makes sense. Will this work underwater? It''s not the air temperature, but the feeling ......, or maybe the body temperature.¡¡It seems to work by feeling, not by temperature. If that''s the case, you can expect it to warm you up when your body temperature drops underwater. However, the magic power consumption, or duration, will be reduced. Water has a much higher thermal conductivity than air. "Hmm. I''m comfortable. Then get dressed. Don''t show me your shabby clothes. Whoa. You left my tomahawk out in the open. Excuse me. Excuse me. Tomahawk? What? What? Tomahawk?¡¡You''re an active player.¡¡It''s a big deal. I don''t care if yours is a Tomahawk or a Patriot or a Pencil Rocket, what''s the hit rate? I don''t care if it''s a Tomahawk, Patriot, or Pencil rocket.¡¡And by the way, it''s not a pencil either! I''m not sure what to make of that. So let''s not tease him any more. I''m sure you''ve done your best. --You''ve shown me things I don''t want to see. ...... All right, it''s stowed. So, what do we do now?¡¡Do you want to keep exploring?¡¡If I had a Resist Cold, I could still make it. ...... No, let''s go to the fountain in the woods up ahead. It''s not likely to be found, is it? "Yeah. It''s probably been eaten by aquatic life, but there''s no sign of it. ...... Then it''s more likely to be found in a spring. Let''s cross the river. "That means we have to go into the river again. We''ve dried up so much. And there''s no campfire over there. He sighed a bit in disgust, but then looked at me and smiled. This time, Nao will also get wet, right?¡¡There''s no bridge. Let''s go naked together! "Oh, you mean that? I shrugged and shook my head as Toya patted me on the shoulder, as if she was still upset about the ridicule she had just received. Unlike Toya, I''m not going to show off my tomahawk. 430-398 The moon (3) Toya, are you forgetting something? Forget what? That I have ''walk on air''. I can''t fly, but I can walk a few dozen meters above the water. Considering the width of the river, I can manage to maintain it for about 10 seconds, and even if I fail, it''s not too difficult because I only get wet a little. "No!¡¡Then, I''ll join you... "Oh, I can''t do that. You''re too heavy. With Toya on your back, you will almost certainly not be able to maintain altitude. If I''m lucky, I might make it to the other side without getting too wet, but since Toya is already half naked and I''ve already put on the Resist Cold, I''ll just let her cry alone. I''ll go on ahead then. Oh, I''ll take your stuff. No, no, no. No need to thank me. Wait, wait, wait! I quickly carry Toya''s luggage, which she seems to be trying to say something about, and I start running to the fire with the Extinguish Fire. I''m sure you''ll be able to see that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. That''s not fair, Nao! "Hahaha, it''s called efficiency, Toya! In fact, it is much better for my magical power to cross the river unscathed and let Toya dry off than for me to cross the river with Resist Cold and Breath Water on myself and let both of us dry off. I''m not trying to be mean to Toya. ...... I don''t deny that I don''t want to get wet, but... I''m not denying that I don''t want to get wet.¡¡It''s not that I don''t want to get wet. It''s not that I don''t want to get wet. Of course, I had already used the "Walk on Air" technique. But the surface tension of the water, buoyancy, or mass... But the surface tension of the water, or buoyancy, or mass, or whatever, makes it much easier than walking on air, and I finish crossing the river in just a few seconds. Then I turn around and shout. "Toya!¡¡Before one foot sinks, put the other foot in front of it! "You can''t do this, a**h*le!¡¡You can''t! I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out how to get the best out of it. ...... No, I''m not saying you can, but you''re making a lot of progress, right? I''m not sure what to make of that. By the way, although he is gurgling, he is breathing underwater, so there is no need to worry about drowning. After a long wait, a soaked Toya came up from the river. Thanks to the magic, she doesn''t look cold, but she is waving her ears and tail uncomfortably to blow away the water. "d*mn, I''m wet again. You don''t have to carry me on your back, you can just give me a ''walk on air'' ....... "I''m sorry, I''m not strong enough. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. "Oh, no, I don''t blame you if you can''t do it. ...... I didn''t want to tire you out. You can''t do that? Lie, lie. I could if I put my mind to it, but that''s just not realistic. It''s a magic I haven''t fully mastered yet, and I can barely use it on myself. It''s impossible to cast it consistently on others. Besides, it''s too dangerous to go into the forest for the first time if you''ve lost your magic power. As long as you don''t mind falling on the way, then what''s the point? That''s true, but I don''t understand ....... I''ll dry your clothes, please. I''m not cold from the magic, so I tossed Toya a towel and took her clothes to dry off instead. He throws Toya a towel, takes her clothes, and dries her off. ...... Phew, that''s refreshing. You''ll be wet again when we get back, though. "You''ll be wet again when we get back, Toya. "You''re right. I just remembered, Nao, didn''t you say before that you could now use the Walk on Water feature?¡¡Was that a lie?¡¡Was it just me being vain, Nao? Why should I look good for you? I can use it. I can use it. ...... The "Walk on Water" spell that Toya mentioned is literally a spell that allows you to walk on water. But this is really only a "walk on water" spell. If you put your hands on the water, you will sink, and if you fall on your buttocks, your buttocks will sink into the water. And yet, your feet do not sink. To put it simply, you are hanging upside down in the water. I was practicing this magic in the bathroom, but once I fell, I couldn''t get myself up and panicked. If I lifted the spell, I could stand up normally, but I couldn''t think that much because of the suddenness. If I had been practicing by myself, I might have been seriously injured. And it''s like walking on a soft mat. Even a bathtub can make you fall if you lose your balance, but a river with currents and waves is too dangerous. It may change when you get better at it. ....... Do you want to try it on the way back? I added, "It might be dangerous," but Toya quickly shook his head. No thanks. Let''s practice in the summer when we have some leisure time. We''ll be diving in the springs anyway. I give up. Or will Nao dive for us? "...... will take care of the auxiliary magic and drying the clothes. Huh. No, well, that''s fine if you want to be safe. ...... Hmm?¡¡No, wait. I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but it''s a good idea. You''ve got teleportation!¡¡You could have crossed without getting wet! "...... Oh, by the way... I clap my hands in response to Toya''s sharp point. I used to think that rivers were meant to be crossed, but now I had transfer magic. Lately, I had only been using transfer points to transfer, but if I could see my destination, it would not be too difficult to transfer with Toya. I didn''t need to get wet! "Oh, sorry, sorry. I''m sorry, I totally forgot. When you transfer a long distance, the magic power consumption is so large that you need to rest for a while, so transferring right there was completely out of your mind. So, transference magic can be used in situations like this. "Pull yourself together, wizard. "No, I''ve always thought of it as something for dungeons and combat. I''ll be more careful next time. --But you can point it out to me, too.¡¡You know how to use magic, right? Toya can''t use magic, but she can read grimoires. I know that she has read every grimoire in her possession. I know I''ve read every grimoire in my possession. I didn''t think of that either. ...... Oh well. Just know that you won''t get wet on the way home. So, let''s go, shall we? I nodded to Toya, who stumbled over her words and laughed, and we walked into the forest together. The forest on the west side of the Petras River was a bit brighter than the forest north of Laffan, with wider spacing between the trees. It was a peaceful environment where we could have come for a picnic if the situation was not so bad. But we couldn''t afford to enjoy it right now. Ketra had told us that there was a spring in this forest, but we didn''t know where it was. The only way to find it was to walk around the forest by ourselves. It would have been more efficient if the two of us had split up to look for it, but considering the danger, we should probably avoid that. There is no strong sign of demons near the entrance, but that doesn''t mean the same is true for the whole area. They spent a whole day wandering around the forest, looking for anything they could find. By mid-afternoon the next day, we had finally found the spring we were looking for. Surrounded by trees and hidden, the spring was small, less than ten meters in diameter. It was not far from the river, but the trees prevented us from seeing it from a distance, making it quite difficult to recognize. If it were not for this situation, it would have been a nice spring that would have tugged at our heartstrings, but in this case, we hoped it would have been easy to find. Because of this, we had no time to savor our pleasure and immediately began to look into the spring. ....... "I don''t see any ....... Oh. There''s no point in diving down there. The water was so clear and the surface so calm that it was easy to see to the bottom just by looking from above. The obtuseness of the red flowers made it quite conspicuous, so there was no way I could have missed it. Moreover, since even the deepest part seemed to be only about a meter deep, there was no need to dive down to check. I''m glad I didn''t get wet, but I''m not happy about this. What should we do, ......? The forest here is a large one, extending further west into uncharted territory, so the possibility of finding a new spring if we continue our search is not insignificant. But ....... No, we should follow Haruka and the others. The odds are too low. The probability here is not "the probability of finding it", but "the probability of arriving in time". It took us more than a day to find a spring that we knew was there. How long would it take us to find a spring that we didn''t know existed if we just searched in the dark? Considering Al''s physical strength, it would be a very bad bet. If that''s the case, it would make more sense to help Haruka and her team, who have a strong ally in Diora. "I see. I have no objection either. Then let''s hurry. Ah. I hope I can catch up with them. ...... If Haruka and the others are in the forest, it''ll be difficult to find them. I want to catch up with them in the town of Rafan if possible. We turned on our heels and immediately started moving as fast as we could. 431-399 The moon (4) On the other hand, Haruka and the others, who had left Nao and the others and started to move on, had rushed to Diora''s place earlier that day. What''s going on, everyone? I''m not sure what to make of this. I thought you were out of town.¡¡I''ve already sent you a report. ...... I''m having some problems. I''ll be out of here soon. I''m sorry, but I''ve come back to borrow Diora''s knowledge. I was wondering if you knew of a place near here where I could pick up some Ovnia. If I can be of any help, that would be no problem at all. ...... When you say obbenia, do you mean gresco fever?¡¡I''m sure you''re not the only one. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of the best ways to make the most of your time. I''m sorry about that. In the vicinity, there is a spring in the mountains between Sahlstat and the town of Kiura to the east. However, I don''t know the details, so it might be quicker for you to go to Kiura and ask about it. As Yuki and the others had experienced, the adventurer''s guild in Sarstat was quite poor and almost useless. In addition, the area east of Sarstat is the domain of another noble family, and adventurers operating in that area are not based in Sarstat or Rafan, but in Kiura, making it difficult to obtain information. This is the reason why it''s so important to have a good idea of the location of the spring. "Does that mean it''s hard to find the spring? "If anything, it''s too easy to find. There are a lot of springs in that area because of the abundance of water. I don''t know if Ovnia is aware of the springs we can collect, but I''m sure we can get some information. "Well, thank you. I''ll be right there. Also, as you may know, it''s probably best not to put the Ovnia in your magic bag after you''ve collected it. "Oh, really?¡¡Natsuki didn''t say anything about that, did she? No. Only that it grows in clean water and the color of the flowers, right? I don''t know if it''s true, but if you keep it in a magic bag, it loses its effect. Other things to keep in mind when collecting... Seeing the surprised look on Haruka and the others'' faces, Diora gave them all the information she knew about Ovnia, just in case. "Thank you for your help. Well, then-- Haruka and the others, who had been listening intently to Diora''s story, hurried to leave the guild as soon as she finished speaking, but... "Haruka-san! I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one of these, you''ll be able to get a lot more than one of these. Please be aware of that. Yes, I understand. You have a job to do, Diora. Thanks. No. Take care of yourself. Haruka and the others nodded and thanked Diora, who implicitly told them it was better not to show their faces. Diora smiled at them again and sent them on their way. Haruka and her friends spent the night at Rafan''s house and left town early in the morning, but the rain that had started to fall by then was really pouring down by the time they reached Sahlstat. In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, we''re here to help. In particular, the absence of Toya and Nao, who were good at spotting enemies, had no small effect, and by the time Haruka and the others had rushed to the gates of Sahlstat, they were more mentally exhausted than physically. This lack of composure was even a little suspicious, but the gatekeeper of Sahlstat called out to them as if he knew what he was doing. "Are you girls planning to take a ride?¡¡Then you''d better hurry up and try a little harder. With this rain, it should stop soon. Yes, rain. Sarstad is a town of people waiting for weather to cross the river. The ferry is closed quite often due to rain and wind. Oh, thank you very much. Here''s your guild card. The gatekeeper nodded and pointed toward the harbor as he looked over the guild card hurriedly presented by Haruka and the others. "Oh, I see. Come on, hurry up. "Yes, sir. Thank you! After thanking the gatekeeper, Haruka and the others started running again, and ran through the main street of Sahlstat. As the town is not very big, the harbor soon comes into view, where the sound of a bell announcing the departure of a ship and a voice saying, "This is the last flight of the day. Hearing the voice, Mitya, who was the lightest of the group because she didn''t have any luggage, made a dash for it. I need you to wait for me! The young man who had been waving the bell stopped waving when he saw Mitya approaching with a wave of his hand, and re-hung the gangplank that he had been trying to remove. "Are you getting on, little girl? "Yes. Four of us, please. In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with us, we''ll be happy to assist. So, ...... here we go. "Sure. It''s wet and slippery. Be careful not to fall. In the event that you have any kind of questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. ....... It would be nice if you could just ride quietly. It''s a bumpy ride. I''m sorry. In the event that you''ve got any questions regarding where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at the web site. Haruka and Yuki enter the boat without using the ferry, and the man immediately removes the ferry, unhooks it, and rings the bell. The ship started moving immediately. You made it in time, didn''t you? "Yes, sir. We were just in time. As well as the time of the ship''s departure, the surface of the river was beginning to get rough, and even from the eyes of Haruka and the others, who were not very familiar with the river, it was very close. The boat used at the ferry landing was only about the size of a slightly larger fishing boat. They have a shallow draft and are not very stable, so they are easily affected by the current of the river. The water is turning brown. "Mitya, don''t lean over, it''s dangerous. Therefore, it was only natural that Haruka pulled Mitya''s head back to the inside of the boat as she looked curiously into the river from the edge of the boat. I''m sorry, ....... "Hahaha, don''t worry, it doesn''t often tip over. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. ''Seldom ......?¡¡Does it turn over once in a while? It really is only once or twice a ...... month. Don''t worry about it. Me, stay calm! The accident rate was higher than expected, and Mitya, who could not swim, froze in the middle of the boat. The first time on a boat is interesting, but falling into the water is scary, I guess. Don''t worry, if someone falls in, or the boat capsizes, help will be here soon.¡¡Well, in weather like this, it''s rare that someone unlucky--oh, we''re almost halfway there. We''re almost there. "No, what happens to bad luck? What happens if we''re unlucky?" Yuki complains about the unnatural change of topic, but the boatman, drenched by the rain, laughs cheerfully and says nothing. He doesn''t say anything, but I guess you could say that this is already the answer. In this world where there are no motorboats, even if you were to go for rescue from the shore in the event of an accident, you would need a certain amount of time. If a non-swimmer falls into a river swollen by rain, even if it is not a raging torrent, without wearing a life vest, there is no need to think about whether he will be able to hold on until rescue arrives. This is especially true if you are an adventurer wearing metal weapons and armor. ...... Me, I knew you''d be quiet. "Well, I''m being quiet too. I''m also quiet." Mitya and Mary crouched down, their faces pale. In the end, the boat made it to the other side of the river without incident. 432-400 The moon (5) After reaching the eastern shore of Sarstat, Haruka and the others immediately left the town and headed east along the road. And immediately there was the border between the Viscount Domain of Nenus and the Barony of Ornik. However, as the two noble families were not in conflict with each other within the same country, the only thing that indicated this was a stone monument placed on the side of the road. If you go further, you will see the town of Kiura. It is a smaller town than Laffan, but it is the only town in the Barony of Ornik. There are several other village-level settlements scattered around, but none compare to the size of the territory and population of Viscount Nenus. That is the Barony of Ornik. When Haruka and his friends entered the town of Kiura, they were a bit confused by their first visit to the town, but they soon found the adventurer''s guild and visited it. The guild''s building and the bustling atmosphere were more like Raffan and less like Kerug. Considering the size of the town, it''s quite impressive, but that''s largely due to the fact that it''s the only town in the Barony of Ornik. It''s no surprise that the small village doesn''t have an adventurer''s guild, and the neighboring town of Sarstat is not an adventurer''s guild at all, but rather a brothel. If you want to make a request in this area, you have to come here. Because of this, there were a good number of requests posted on the guild''s bulletin board, but Haruka and the others didn''t pay attention to them and went straight to the counter. They presented their guild cards and approached the receptionist. I have a few questions for you, if that''s okay. "Well, ....... Yes, you can ask me anything. When she saw the rank on Haruka''s guild card, the receptionist''s eyes widened and she answered immediately with a smile. It''s no wonder that a rank of six is almost impossible to find in a small town like Kiura, and from the guild''s point of view, it''s like a valuable asset. Inevitably, the guild would deal with them very differently from low rank adventurers. Hulka and his friends think that guild rank is not very useful, but when they visit a new town like this, guild rank has a great effect on them. I''m looking for the flower of Ovnia. I''ve heard that it''s in the north woods, do you know where the spring is? Wait a moment, please! She quickly rummaged through her papers and found a map, which she presented to Haruka and the others. I''m not sure if this is a good idea or not. But you''re in a hurry to ...... find out where the Obunia grows on this one, aren''t you? "Yes. I''m sure you know that, but we need it to treat Gresco''s fever. And this map doesn''t show the exact location. Do you have a more detailed map? In a sense, it was only natural that Yuki would complain. The map that was presented to us was quite rough, and only gave us a rough idea of the location and number of springs. If you are a low rank adventurer, you can only get a more general map that shows you where the springs are. If you are a low rank adventurer, all you can do is point to the map and say, "It is said to be in this area." Since there is no one who can make a detailed map in the first place, it is no wonder that the map is of this level. I''m sorry, but this is the best we can offer. ....... "If the members of Jade Feather were here, we could show you around. ...... "Is that a party of adventurers from this town? Yes!¡¡We are the best adventurers in this town!¡¡It''s a party of only women, but they''re working very hard!¡¡They''re also very strong and can use magic. But Haruka and her friends don''t have the time to listen to this, so Haruka quickly interjects into the gaps in Saara''s story. I''m sure you''ll be able to figure out where the spring is. "Yes, yes, yes. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "So, do the Jade Feathers know the location of the spring where the Ovnia flowers are? "I don''t know, but I think they can at least lead us to the spring. Also, I believe that some of the springs have had their water quality altered by the construction of the reservoirs. ...... Baron Ornick conducted a survey to find a suitable location for the reservoir and to minimize its impact on the rest of the area, but as the mountain was cut down and the water from the spring was drawn in to create the reservoir, it could not be completely unaffected. As a result, some of the springs in the area were drying up and the water quality was deteriorating, but the Adventurer''s Guild did not have any detailed information about this. "So, where are the jade feathers?" "I''m working overnight at ...... tomorrow at the earliest. He probably won''t be back for a few days at the earliest. That''s not enough time! He was almost two years old when I saw him, but still, ...... In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. I''m not sure what to do. "If we wait for the return of the jade feather, it will be a full day at best. If we''re not careful, we''ll spend more than a few days in idleness, and considering the baby''s physical strength, that delay is not something to be optimistic about. But gresco fever is usually not something to worry about. Sarla tilted her head a little curiously. Did a young child get it? Yes, newborns. That''s very, very unusual. Sarla swallowed the word ''impossible'' that had almost escaped her. But in fact, the majority of deaths from Gresco fever occur when the patient is under one year old, and when it is a newborn, the situation is usually quite hopeless. Yes, it''s normal. I''m sure there''s someone with recovery magic on the way. "Well!¡¡That''s very extravagant - no, I guess it''s possible for a high-ranked adventurer. Thinking about the income of a high-ranked adventurer, Saara nodded approvingly. The only ones who are actually sick are the children of the high-ranking adventurer''s acquaintances, but Haruka and the others didn''t bother to correct that. "...... All right!¡¡I''m done copying! I''m sure you''ll be pleased to know that I''m not the only one who''s a fan of your work. She knew that no matter what, there was no harm in having a map, so she proceeded with her work while listening to Saara. Perhaps it was the effect of his skills, but the precision of his work was incomparable to the original map. Although it was unclear how useful it would be, since the original map was not very accurate. Let''s go!¡¡Sister, if I can''t find you, I''ll come back. "Yes, ma''am. I''m sure you guys don''t need to worry about it, but the forest is full of orcs, so please be careful. Also, please be careful with that map. "Of course. Thank you for your help. ""Thank you very much." Haruka and the others thanked each other and left the guild quickly, leaving the town behind and entering the forest. 433-401 The moon (6) Relying on an inaccurate map, finding the spring was a difficult task, even with Yuki''s [Mapping] skills. However, for Haruka and her team, walking through the forest where only orcs appear is not so different from walking. As the rain that had been falling since yesterday began to drizzle, they reluctantly increased their meat stock to a moderate level, and trudged through the forest at a fairly fast pace, finding the first spring a few hours later. But... "It''s pretty muddy. "Muddy? The water itself seems to have some dirt in it. The bottom of the spring, which had probably been clean until a while ago, was covered with a fine layer of dirt, and the whole area was brown and dirty. If this was only a temporary problem caused by the rain, it would have been a relief, but as Mary had discovered, the water coming from the spring itself had become dirty, so we should assume that the environment of the water source had changed. I don''t know who you are, but you need to think more about the environment! "I don''t know who you are, but you should be more concerned about the environment! He said he built a reservoir. If you''re a politician, you need to think more!¡¡You can''t tamper with the nature you''re trying to protect! No, let them at least build a reservoir!¡¡Haruka, you''re not an environmentalist, are you? Haruka nodded to Yuki, who said in a somewhat dumbfounded manner. I don''t know. I''m just saying that because it''s relevant to me. I saw your selfishness! "Because I believe that humans are part of nature. I don''t feel comfortable with the idea that what humans do is special. Even if it rains hydrochloric acid or sulfuric acid, the earth will remain. Yeah, and all living things are extinct! Is that a form of evolution?¡¡And there will be new intelligent life forms that can survive in such an environment. I don''t want to live on that Earth!¡¡I mean, I kind of understand what you''re saying, but it''s not relevant now, is it? No, it doesn''t. No, it doesn''t. Alchemy and magic can do a lot of things, depending on how you use them. ....... But I won''t hesitate to use powerful magic if I have to, even if it destroys the environment! I don''t know if I''ve ever hesitated before. We''ve been trying not to burn too much in the forest. It''s too dangerous for us. You''re so selfish! Nature is not weak enough to need to be kind. ...... At least not in this world. I''m sure you''ll agree with me. And two of them agree with it. I''m sure you''ll agree.¡¡I''m sure you''ll agree. If you''re not careful, you''ll die. Serious opinion!¡¡But I agree. If you go into the forest, you''ll die. In fact, if you step out of town, danger is everywhere, and fatal accidents in the forest are not uncommon. In other words, nature is a threat and an enemy to be overcome. From the point of view of Mary and the others who have lived in this world, the idea of "protecting nature" is completely incomprehensible. Incidentally, Baron Ornick, who was told by Haruka that he needs to think more, is actually thinking a lot. To be precise, he is thinking about the people and demons such as orcs who are affected by the reservoir, which is a little different from the idea of "protecting nature", but he is still making sure to minimize the impact of the reservoir on the surroundings. One of the main reasons for this is the industry of Barony of Ornik. The export of oak meat. It is an important industry and the backbone of this territory. Therefore, it is natural that we do not want orcs to be completely exterminated, but we also do not want them to increase too much, and we also do not want them to cause major changes in their habitat and attack human settlements. However, in order to expand the farmland, we also need reservoirs. After taking these factors into consideration and conducting a thorough investigation, a reservoir was built, and the result is the current state of the spring that Haruka and his friends found. From Haruka''s point of view, this is an unacceptable change, but from Baron Ornik''s point of view, it is an acceptable change. Haruka and her friends are also involved in the development of the farmland, but they don''t know it, so the main culprit is Baron Ornick alone. Haha. ....... I''m not sure what to make of that. Yuki, let''s change our minds and move on. "Right. Fortunately, there are many potential springs. Haruka and the others, who had finished their refreshment with idle chit-chat, began to move again with Yuki in the lead. This time it was easy to find. They arrived at the next spring a few minutes later. It took them a few minutes to reach the next spring, which was much shorter than the time it took to find the first one. But ...... this spring is no good either. But this spring isn''t any good either." Mitya looked into the spring and saw that the water was still murky and unpredictable, and her mouth curved up in a disappointed expression. I''m sure you''ll agree. I''m not sure what to make of this.¡¡Would you like me to go in? "Thanks. But it''s not necessary. I don''t think this water would be effective as a medicinal plant even if it did grow. "I see. Mary breathed a mixture of disappointment and relief at Haruka''s words. Let''s go to the next spring right away. Yuki, are you alright? "Yes. Maybe this map is pretty accurate when it comes to the location of the springs. Then-- Will it be easier to find the spring? Yes. Unless this is just a coincidence. If it''s accurate, whoever made it must be pretty good, huh? It''s hard to see in the forest when you''re on a level ground with good visibility, and it''s even harder to walk straight in the forest because of the trees. It is difficult to grasp the exact location in such a place, let alone think about it. If you''re like Yuki, you''ve got the [mapping] skill and the spatial magic ability to know the location of the transfer points you''ve set up, but there are very few people who have those abilities. ...... Yeah, it''s not looking promising. But for now, let''s trust the map and go! Somewhat unexpectedly, Yuki found that the map copied by the guild was quite accurate regarding the location of the spring. However, the route on the way was completely different. Haruka and his team encountered some difficulties that they couldn''t pass straight through, but they started from the spring closest to Kiura and found a beautiful spring at the fourth stop. But there was nothing to be found. Haruka and her friends continued to search for the spring, but they had to visit three more springs over the course of the night before they found it. "Ah!¡¡There''s a red flower blooming in the water! The first one to find it was Mitya, who was the first one to run to the fountain every time they arrived and look inside. Haruka and the others looked at each other and quickly approached the fountain, and sure enough, they saw what looked like a red flower at the bottom of the fountain. But the only thing you can tell from the surface of the water is that it''s a red flower, and it''s hard to tell if that''s what you really want. "Yuki, how are you doing? I''m not sure if this is a good idea, but I think it''s a good idea. I''m sorry, but the appraisal doesn''t seem to work from this distance. I''m pretty sure that''s what it is. ...... Then we''ll have to go get it. I''ll be right back. Do you want me to go? I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that works for you. Thank you. But I''d feel safer if I could swim. It''s a little chilly in the ...... with the use of Avoid Rain and Breath Water. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re looking for. If you wear light clothing at such a time, it''s natural to feel cold even if you don''t go into the water. I''ll use ''Resist Cold'' then. I''ll use Resist Cold." "Well, does Avoid Rain work in the water? "Oh, I''m not cold anymore. Thank you. The Avoid Rain is a water-avoidance spell, so I''m sure it works. ...... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with that. ...... looks okay. It''s nice to know that your clothes won''t get wet. Oh, yeah. But then you wouldn''t have had to take off your armor, would you? ''Yuki, are you one of those people who can swim while wearing chainmail?¡¡I don''t think I''d try it. Oh, yeah. It''s a little heavy. Not a bit. Of course, it can''t be compared to full plate metal armor, but the chainmail that Haruka and the others are wearing is not a vest type, but a type that covers the entire body with long pants and long sleeves. If you want to swim with a weight of more than 10 kilograms, you will need a certain amount of training. This is not something to be tried in a natural environment, let alone in a safe pool. Okay, I''ll dive down and get it. Yeah, be careful. "Be careful. Haruka nodded back to Mitya and the others, and kicked the water toward the bottom of the spring, holding the tub to hold the Obunia she had collected. 434-402 Get flowers (1) The place where the obbonia was blooming was about five meters from the shore and about three meters deep. As Diora had advised, Haruka dug up a few obblonia plants from the surrounding soil, placed them in the bottom of the tub, and gently closed the lid. He put them in the bottom of the vat and gently closed the lid. The flowers were needed for the medicine, but this was the best way to maximize the medicinal effects. According to Diora, who gave us the warning. Haruka and the others couldn''t tell if this was true or not, but the medicine would be used on a newborn baby. We are going to do everything we can. Haruka immediately kicked the bottom of the water to get out of the water, and offered the tub to Yuki. "Huh!¡¡Yuki, let''s see what you got. I''m not sure.¡¡...... Yes, I''m sure. It''s Ovnia! Mary and the others also smile when they see Yuki staring into the vat and then immediately smiling brightly. "You did it!¡¡You''ve done it! We''ll be able to deliver it tomorrow. Yes, we''ll make it in time, won''t we? We''ll be fine!¡¡My sister Natsuki is over there! I''m sure you''ll be able to find something that will help you. I''m sure you''re right. I''m sure Natsuki will be ...... fine. I''m sure you''ll be happy to hear that. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at a few of these. I''ll carry it. I''ll carry it. I''ll carry it." "Well, ......, can you? I''m not sure if I''m going to be able to do it, but I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. In the event that you''re not sure what to do, you''ll be able to always ask for help. "Yes!¡¡I''ll leave it to you! Mary replied clearly with a serious expression on her face, and accepted the tub firmly with both hands. So, let''s hurry back to Sahlstat. We have to get back to Sarlstad. It''s closed!¡¡It''s not raining! You can see from the river, it''s not ready for boats. It''s been shut down for at least a few days. As soon as they got out of the forest, Haruka and the others ran west along the road, but what they were told in Sahlstat was desperate information. As Yuki had said, the rain had stopped for half a day now, and the sky was blue, but the Noria River was not a gentle river that would soon return to normal. The river running north from Sarstad is a river that collects rainwater from the surrounding mountains, and once it rains heavily, the water keeps rising for several days. This is not only the case in the area around Sarstad, but also when it rains far away from there, and it sometimes happens that the weather is fine in Sarstad but the ferry is closed. This time it was rough in the north. Look around. See that driftwood?¡¡If we launch the boat in such a condition and it capsizes... The passengers won''t be saved. "Mmmmmm ...... As the boatman at the ferry said, the Noria River was flowing very fast. It''s not as if it''s flowing very fast at first glance, but the mass of the driftwood is not to be underestimated, and it has enough power to capsize a boat if it hits it. Of course, if you fall into the river, you will be swallowed up by the muddy water before you have time to go for rescue. There are many ways to do this. ...... Oh, yes!¡¡I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure I''m not the only one.¡¡Let''s use that to get across! That''s impossible. I''m not sure what to make of it, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. What? You can''t walk on the ground without falling.¡¡Sometimes logs will attack you. By the way, if you fall, you die. Be a skequillo. Of course, Haruka also knows the disadvantages of "Walk on Water" and knows about Nao''s failure. In fact, since Haruka is the one who saved Nao, there''s no way she doesn''t know. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a lot more information on this in the coming weeks. What would you do then? Calm down!¡¡That''s what I''m trying to figure out!¡¡Walk on air is a ...... no-no, even if I''m the only one to cross it ....... Even if I tried that magic... No!¡¡It''s too dangerous. I''m not sure if it''s because I''m impatient or because my tone is getting stronger. I''m not sure what to do. "What''s the matter, girls, are you in such a hurry? "Yes, quite. You can''t ...... get a boat for us, can you?¡¡I can give you some money, though. That''s not possible. There''s life in this world. Right? If I cause an accident, it won''t just be my problem. If you sail a ship in a dangerous condition and drown the passengers, it is almost murder, and of course the person who did it will be punished. Moreover, the responsibility does not stop with the person himself. The ferry in Sarstat is also a part of the city road, which is a kind of public transportation. Since it is operated under the supervision of a guild, the guild itself will be punished by the lord. But that doesn''t mean there isn''t a way, right? Is that so?¡¡Please tell me! In the event that you''ve got a lot of money, you''ll be able to use it to buy a lot of things. It''s a good idea to take a look at a few of the things that are available in the market. Oh, oh, that''s all right. If you go downstream from this town, you can find a small bridge at ......, which would take an adventurer less than a day to reach.¡¡There''s a small bridge about that far. Cross it and you''ll find a small road leading to Kerg. If you have business in Raffan, it''s a bit of a detour, but it might be quicker than waiting for the service to resume. When the boatman pointed downstream, Haruka opened her eyebrows and nodded deeply. It''s a good thing, on the contrary. Our destination is Kerg. Yuki, Mary, Mitya, let''s go! "Yes! Yes! I know!¡¡But... I''m not sure if you''ll be able to find the right one for you. I''m not sure what to say. I''m not listening!¡¡I didn''t hear that!¡¡A small bridge is a suspension bridge! Yuki''s shout echoed around the area a few hours after we left Sahlstat. What would have taken us a day on foot took only a few hours if we could keep running. Haruka and his friends made it to the bridge just before the sun went down, but they were stuck there. Needless to say, thanks to Yuki, who shouted the aforementioned line. It''s a little long, but it''s not too high, is it?¡¡The water is a little ...... fast, though. "A little?¡¡This is a little?¡¡It''s gurgling like crazy! The river beneath the suspension bridge was truly a muddy stream. The muddy brown water was flowing at a great speed, with occasional branches and fallen trees in it. The fact that the ferry at Sarstad is closed is not a coincidence. The suspension bridge built there is a handmade one made of ivy using the standing trees on both banks. Although the width of the river here is narrower than around Sahlstat, it is still more than fifty meters wide, and this makes the river flow faster. Crossing such a river on a rather unreliable suspension bridge would certainly cause some hesitation, even if not as much as Yuki. Moreover, if the bridge is swaying considerably in the wind even now when no one is crossing it--. Yuki stared at the bridge with a serious expression, then tightened her expression and opened her mouth. 435-403 Get flowers (2) f*ck!¡¡Leave me alone and go ahead! No, this is not the time!¡¡I don''t care if it''s Toya, Yuki is not safe alone! Even if the demon is not that vicious, the sun will go down in a while. It''s too dangerous for Yuki to be camping alone in a place like this. Of course, there was no way she could leave Yuki behind. "Are you okay? The suspension bridge won''t break so easily. Ding, ding. Mitya jumped on the suspension bridge to show Yuki how strong it was. The suspension bridge is swaying and swaying. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!¡¡Mitya, don''t! "It''s no problem at all. Here. Snap. "Ah! It wasn''t a loud sound, but it was definitely a destructive sound that stopped Mitya in his tracks. And that sound reached Yuki''s ears as well, so... It''s not okay at all! "Me...... "Failure, failure, failure! It''s a chaos. It''s chaos. "Huh. Yuki, didn''t you once say that you crossed a suspension bridge made of ivy? "Don''t be like that!¡¡That''s just a decoration!¡¡The actual bridge is made of metal and is strong! It''s actually a strong metal bridge! It''s natural to say this, but a suspension bridge that many people cross in a tourist spot can''t be made of natural ivy, considering its safety and durability. Of course, the suspension bridge Yuki crossed before was made of metal wires, and natural ivy was used to cover it. It is safe for many people and does not sway much. You look too frightened for your own good. ....... What did you do? "......... I''m not sure what to make of it. I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. "Tell me what you did. Come on, come on. Mary and Mitya are also curious. I care! Well, no, I''m ...... Come on, they''re curious. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the web site and find out more about it. I''m not sure what to say.¡¡It''s not the place I told Haruka about, but I stepped over a plank on a suspension bridge once, you know? Did you fall off? No, I didn''t. I didn''t fall, okay?¡¡Only up to my chest. That''s almost a fall. Just not falling. If Yuki had been a little more slender, it would''ve been dangerous. It was quite a ...... thrilling experience. Incidentally, Yuki was wearing a skirt at the time, so it was quite a catastrophe, but fortunately, Natsuki was the only one who knew about it. Fortunately, Natsuki was the only one who knew about it, and that was the main reason for her trauma. If you''ve had such an experience, it''s understandable that you''d feel uneasy, but ...... this suspension bridge isn''t that high, is it?¡¡You can learn from Nao, who dived off a dungeon cliff. "Ugh. ...... I''m not sure what to say, but I''m sure you''ll understand. It''s true that it''s much lower than that, but... I''m not sure how you did it. I know it was because of the magic, but ...... you didn''t hesitate for a second. "Well, well, well?¡¡Haruka, are you jealous of Natsuki? I''m not sure what to do, but I''m sure it''s a good idea. But that was a bad move in this situation. ...... Yuki, you''re back on track. Boom! I''m not sure what to make of it. You''ll be able to find a lot more information on the web. I''m not sure if you''ve seen this before, but I''m sure you''ve seen it before. "Aaah!¡¡"Aah!¡¡No! "Your mouth isn''t spinning. You''re not going to be able to keep your mouth shut. "What if I fall? You can''t fall off, not with the gap in this suspension bridge. You can''t fall off this bridge. ...... I don''t know if the treads will break. That''s what I''m afraid of! It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing and how you''re going to do it. However, with Yuki and the others'' current physical abilities, they can handle a broken suspension bridge, but a broken stepping board is more than enough. "Yuki, if you''re scared, I''ll hold your hand. Want to come across with me? Yuki flinched when Mitya looked up at her and held out her hand, while Haruka looked at her with an amused expression. What are you going to do?¡¡What do you want me to do?¡¡Mitya? "No, no, I''ll cross by myself. It''s too dangerous. That''s wise. The suspension bridge is a little too narrow for two people to walk side by side, which is a disadvantage considering the weight. To be frank, it is safest to cross quickly, one by one. But instead, Haruka, cross first. Haruka''s weight is the heaviest. If it wasn''t for ...... Yuki, I would have seriously pushed her off. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m going to say it. I''m sure you''ll agree. What do you mean?¡¡I don''t know. I''m probably lighter than you, Yuki.¡¡I''m an elf. And that''s not saying much when you consider the weight of my equipment. It''s no surprise that Mitya is the one with the lightest total weight, but there''s almost no difference between the other three. Yuki and Haruka, Haruka is obviously taller, but there are subtle differences in their chest armor, so there is room for debate as to which of the two is heavier. Mary''s current height is about the same as Yuki''s, but the weapons she uses are heavy, and she is currently carrying a vat of Obunia, so she is probably the heaviest in total. Yuki understood this, but considering her age, there was no way she could ask Mary to cross first. But even at the moment, it was still pathetic enough. It''s okay. I''ll cross, and you should come soon. Of course! Haruka sighs when she sees Yuki''s eyes swimming. She looked at Mary. "Mary, if Yuki hesitates, give her a push. Physically. We''re running out of time. "Yeah, just-- Yes, I understand. Even Mary? Yuki. It''s getting dark. Shall we cross quickly? Ugh, good point. ...... I''m going to go," he said. I''m going to go. Yuki, be strong, okay? As soon as she said that, Haruka stepped out onto the suspension bridge without hesitation and walked quickly across the bridge, reaching the other side in a short time. The bridge swayed to a certain extent, but her sense of equilibrium, which allowed her to easily climb even a dindle tree, was still intact, and her steps were completely unhindered. Then he looked back at Yuki and the others and waved widely. "Ugh. ...... Do you need a push? No!¡¡No problem!¡¡I''m fine! ...... Okay! I''m not sure if it''s a good idea, but it''s a good idea. It was a mental problem, not a physical one at all. Yuki crossed the bridge as fast as Haruka, and with less swaying than Haruka, and let out a big breath. Mary and Mitya followed close behind, and all four of them finished crossing the suspension bridge safely. We managed to get across! It''s not that we managed, it''s just that Yuki saved us a lot of time. I know, but...¡¡Ugh, I can''t say anything. Well, well, Haruka. Even if we had crossed right away, it would have been tough to keep running, so we''ll just consider it a good break. ...... You''re right. We''ll probably have to camp here anyway. It was tempting, but we had to be safe. The sun is still shining, but it will be dark in a few hours. In the event that you''ve got a lot of time, you''ll be able to take a look at the best way to get the most out of your time. If you drive on such a road in the dark for the first time, you are almost certain to crash. If you simply fall, or if you splash the Obunia in the tub, everything will be ruined. The more you hurry, the better. That''s what Natsuki said. Very true. Is there any place around here where we can camp?¡¡Who? Haruka, who had been looking around for a way to find out what was going on, raised her voice. At the same time, there was a sound of rustling and scratching in the surrounding trees. "Hey!¡¡I''ve been waiting for you! Welcome back, Haruka. Welcome back, Haruka. And Yuki and the others. "Welcome back, Haruka." "You too, Yuki and the others." The two who appeared at Haruka''s side were Toya and Nao. 436-404 Get flowers (3) You''re just in time. I''m sure you''ll recover safely. Thank you!¡¡Thank you so much!¡¡If it weren''t for Natsuki, ...... After Haruka and the others had safely brought back the Obunia, I left it in Toya''s hands and led Haruka and the others back to Kerg, but Haruka and the others were tired and it was almost midnight when we arrived back. What awaited us there was the aforementioned situation. Yasue''s eyes were red and swollen, and she was holding Natsuki''s hand and thanking him. On the bed, Al, with a peaceful expression on his face, was sleeping peacefully. "Natsuki, have you slept yet? Yes, I''ve just given him his medicine. If it had been a little later, it would have been a little dangerous physically. The Recovery Slumber has kept the wear and tear at bay, I guess. "Well, that''s good. It was worth the effort. Thank you, Haruka and the others!¡¡It''s thanks to all of you that Al was able to survive! Yasue grabbed our hands one by one and thanked us with tears welling up in her eyes. The last one, Mitya, was so overcome with emotion that she hugged us tightly and spun us around. "Oh, my God! Thank you so much!¡¡Natsuki is also making a difficult face, and if she doesn''t come back today, I don''t know what I''ll do. ...... That''s a credit to Toya and Nao. If they weren''t there, it would have been tomorrow morning at the earliest when they came home. ...... Why were you there?¡¡I didn''t know you were coming through, did I? "That''s the result of my gray brain cells glowing and roaring. We heard from Diora, too, and we made it as far as Sahlstat. But, well, it was raining and the ferry was closed, and we didn''t know if we''d be able to find it if we went after it, so we waited by the detour we heard about in Sahlstadt. "Well, you''re right. If you wait for the ferry to reopen-- No, there''s no problem with that, because you can use teleportation to get across. ...... That''s right!¡¡There it is. In the event that you have any questions concerning where and the best way to get in touch with your loved ones, you can call us at the web site. You forgot?¡¡This is unusual for the calm Haruka. "Wow, I can be impatient too. ...... I''m sure you''re not the only one. I''m not sure what to say. "Is this the time to say unnecessary things? Ouch, ouch, ouch. I''m sorry. I''m sorry. Yuki pinched her mouth and apologized hurriedly. Haruka sighs and pulls his hand away. Yuki strokes the slightly reddened area and opens her mouth again. But you know what, Nao? I''m not sure what you mean by that. "We did consider that possibility.¡¡I''m not sure what to do. If they were to return from Sarlstad, they would take the normal route, so it would be less dangerous and there would be no point in us accompanying them. However, if we were to take a circuitous route, the story would be different. Unlike the roads leading from Sarstad to Rafan and Kergu, the one we were on was too small for a carriage to pass. Rather than a road, it was more like an interstreet. The probability that Haruka and the others, who were passing through such a small and confusing road for the first time, would be able to reach Kerug quickly without getting lost, and the probability that they would get lost and take a long time. If you weigh them both and put Al''s life on the scale, there is no reason not to go get him. So we waited there, where there would be no misunderstandings. You''re right. Thanks to Toya''s running, we were able to deliver it quickly. It''s a good idea to have a good idea of what you''re going to be doing in the future. I think we were supposed to continue camping for a while, but that''s all. It''s not a big deal if we can eliminate one possibility of trouble and help save Al''s life. I''m not going to say anything about Haruka, because I didn''t know about teleportation when I crossed the Petras River. Yuki and the others didn''t notice it either, did they? When I asked Yuki and Mary, they laughed and shook their heads, but one of them, Mitya, raised her hand. "Mee!¡¡I was aware of it. "You did?¡¡So why didn''t you tell me? If so, why didn''t you tell me?" Mary asked curiously, and Mitya explained the reason with a bit of pride. Ovnia told me not to put it in the magic bag. Transfers are space-time magic, just like magic bags. That''s why I thought I shouldn''t use it. "Oh, I see. Is that possible? That''s a more solid reason than I thought. We heard it from Diora too, Natsuki, is it true? "No, no, I don''t know. No, I don''t know. It''s not in the book, and it''s not in my knowledge. ....... I think it''s more the domain of Nao and her friends who use space-time magic. "No, I don''t know. No, I don''t know. But I can''t say it doesn''t exist either. I can make it, but I don''t know the details. The magic bag has an effect of repelling creatures above a certain level, and there is no possibility that such a function will have some kind of effect on plants, which are a kind of living thing. That''s why I didn''t use the magic bag. I didn''t use the magic bag for that reason, because after I brought it back, I couldn''t get it back if I said, ''Actually, it affected the plant. "Thank you so much for your help! I''m really sorry for the trouble I''ve caused you!" Yuki waved her hand at Yasue, who bowed deeply once again. You can''t help it, you''re sick. You can''t help it, you''re sick. But when you think about it, it''s a good thing you didn''t use teleportation. But if I had known that at the time, I could have used it to cross the bridge instead of using the suspension bridge. ...... "No, I think it was a good decision not to use it.¡¡I''m not sure if the bridge was broken or not. If you use a transfer point, you can almost certainly transfer right above the target point, but if you use a visual transfer point, the target point may be slightly off. I have eagle eyes, so it is a little better, but it is quite difficult to grasp a point tens of meters away with certainty. On level ground, a slight deviation would not be a big problem, but in the case of the place where the suspension bridge was located, the forest was close to the bridge, so if it was too short, I would fall into the river, and if it was too long, I would run into the forest. If it was too short, it would fall into the river, and if it was too long, it would plunge into the forest. A fall into the river would be a disaster, and a plunge into the forest would cause injury. Since there is a bridge, there is no reason not to cross it. I thought so, but Natsuki smiled and glanced at Yuki. I thought so, but Yuki smiled and glanced at me. I thought that''s why you didn''t want to cross it. "Hmm?¡¡Is that so? Yes, that''s right. Yuki was reluctant, so I took some time. --For Yuki''s honor, I''m not going to say anything else. I am. Thank you very much!¡¡Master Haruka!¡¡I''ll keep my mouth shut from now on! I will refrain from talking about it in the future!" Yuki saluted him, and Haruka smiled and stood up, saying, "Well. I''m sure Yasue is tired. Yasue must be tired. Yasue must be tired. You must have slept very little. "Well, yeah. I was so worried I couldn''t sleep. --I forced Chester to sleep. But I''ve got work tomorrow. Oh, I see. So that''s why Chester''s not here. In a world where there are basically no holidays, if you''re always closed, you''ll lose customers. To put it critically, it''s more important for Chester to keep the cafeteria open and make money, since he''s not much use to us even if he''s around. Right?¡¡Yasue, you''d better get some sleep. Thank you. But Al''s going to wake me up soon anyway. Hahaha ...... While thanking Haruka, Yasue let out a dry laugh. "Really? "More often than I thought. The baby cries? I''ve never seen a baby cry like that before," Natsuki replied, nodding to Yuki. Yasue also let out a sigh of relief. I''m sure you''re right. ....... I''m sure you''ll be happy to know that I''m not the only one who has a problem with this. ....... I''m not convinced that Natsuki, who should not be sleeping any more than I am, hasn''t changed color? I''m working out. I''ve been working out." Natsuki replied, but from my point of view, her face showed a bit of fatigue. If you''ve been awake most of the time for more than two whole days and have been using magic, it''s not surprising. In addition to the physical strength that has been improved through training, the fact that you can''t tell at first glance is probably due to the influence of [Robustness Lv.5]. You should be prepared for this, Haruka and the others.¡¡It''s harder than you think. --But if you guys are going to keep living together, you can spread out the burden of raising the kids. That''s the advantage of a big family.¡¡That''s the advantage of a big family. We don''t have a day care center. Yeah, yeah. Especially in your case, you don''t have in-laws, right?¡¡You don''t have anyone to talk to when you''re pregnant because ...... you''re still worried. Maybe we should ask Yasue at ...... for help. "Me?¡¡I''ll give you some advice, but I can''t go to Laffan, okay?¡¡...... No, I''ll consider it if you come and pick me up, depending on how old Al is. No, I don''t want you to go that far. If you need advice, we''ll be here. "Really?¡¡If you lived closer, I could help you as a nanny, but it''s a bit far. --Are you guys planning to move your base to Kerg? Not at the moment. We built a house. Hard to do when you have a house. But it might be convenient for you to have your babies at the same time, so you can feed them in shifts. I don''t know about that. It''s a gift. ...... It''s not just our problem, you know? I have a feeling this is going in a disturbing direction. I''m not sure what to do with it. I''m not sure what to do.¡¡It''s already midnight.¡¡It''s already midnight. Yasue is tired and sleepy, right? I''m not sleepy, but I''m sure ...... tired. "Hmm, yes. Yasue, let''s talk about it over a girls'' night out when we get the chance. That''s right. Let''s leave the guys out of it and just have us girls. Please do that. I don''t want to be a part of that even if you ask me. It would be uncomfortable. I pushed Haruka out of the room, urged the girls to laugh, and left Yasue''s house.