Chapter 16
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
As I approached the dungeon exit, I saw more and more adventurers who had finished their hunts, just like me.
It seems that not many people enter the dungeon alone, and most of them were discussing their battle results or plans for the night.
”Where should I go today?”
”I’m thinking of…’Honeycomb’…”
”Again, that place…and that girl, too. I know you like her, but don’t get too caught up and forget to eat, okay?”
”I know. If that happens, I won’t be able to move around.”
”Yeah, I guess that’s true…but since it’s a popular spot, and there are a lot of customers, I think it’s better not to get too attached.”
”…I know that too.”
As I listened to their conversation, I left the dungeon and saw guard-like people lighting bonfires on either side of the exit.
Although it wasn’t dark yet, it seemed like they lit fires around evening time.
As I walked through the space between the bonfires and exited, I saw that the square in front of the dungeon was even more lively than during the day, with various shops competing to attract customers.
I didn’t think I stood out that much, and I expected there wouldn’t be many people trying to attract customers like that…
”Hey, are all the items in that bag yours?”
”Do you have a place to stay already? If not, come to ours…”
”Then come to ours! We’ll give you an extra ‘special’ deal, okay?”
”Oh, I’ll come too!”
”…”
I was surrounded by 4 female customer attractors, and I felt embarrassed about my mistake.
No, I didn’t feel embarrassed about the customer attractors themselves, since they looked great and their soft, gentle touches felt nice…but I didn’t want to stand out, and that part wasn’t pleasant.
The reason I ended up like this is because of the bag I had, and the spoils of war inside it.
Since it was the first time, I didn’t know how much money I’d get, and there’s also the issue of taxes, so it’s better to avoid borrowing from the Guild if possible.
So, I thought I’d prepare a decent amount of money, and the magic stones I earned, I didn’t absorb as magic power, but left them as is.
It wasn’t good that I didn’t put them in my backpack, which I could easily abandon in an emergency, and instead carried them by hand.
I had prepared a large bag with plenty of room, so I didn’t think it would be filled to the brim with spoils…
The magic stones were a bit larger than the monsters in the forest I was abandoned in, and even if they were small, 52 of them would be about the size of a bundle.
So, when the woman who first approached me asked, “Is that all, including materials?” and I replied that I only collected magic stones, that’s how it turned out.
With just magic stones, this amount would be a decent earning.
It was clear that it all belonged to me alone, and that’s when 3 other customers attractors who happened to overhear it approached me.
Still, I think it’s impressive for a newcomer like me to be earning this much…
”Aren’t there any number of people who are earning more?”
”Yeah, there are…but…”
…Nod, nod.
The woman who answered my question nodded in agreement, along with the other 3.
It seems that teams and companies that earn a lot are cautious about leaking their own information, and are very ‘selective’ about which shops and people they deal with.
In that case, even if they become their customers, they’re still at the lower end of the membership, and might be introduced to higher-ups…but that would increase the burden of confidentiality.
On top of that, if I’m thought to be affiliated with an organization like that, they’ll be targeted by people who don’t get along with that organization, and that’s a hassle.
So, if there’s someone who can earn a decent amount on their own without ‘relying’ on an organization… it’s only natural that they would.
”I understand the situation, but… I’ve only been in this city for a short while. I don’t know if I can keep earning like this in the future, so I want to save as much as I can.”
”Ah, then how about I provide a ‘service’? Let’s try it out tonight.”
One of the customer scouts said, stroking her thigh.
In response, the other women’s invitations became more aggressive.
”How about trying it out with me too?”
”Hey, why don’t we team up and make it a 2-for-one deal? I’ve got a cute girl friend.”
”Hey, that’s not fair!”
The 4 women pressed their bodies against me, chatting like that.
Since the surroundings were noisy, they didn’t stand out too much for now… but if this keeps up, it’s only a matter of time.
So, I thought I’d ask about the lodging prices and decide accordingly, but then a new customer scout appeared.
”Ah, you’re here!”
On the way to the Adventurer’s Guild, which was a bit off the beaten path, I got scolded by this woman.
”Ugh, those girls are going to be the death of me.”
”Hmm.”
”Do you understand? They’ll keep coming after you every time they see you.”
”That’s a bit of a problem.”
”Is that all it is? You’re going to keep saving until you can make ends meet, right?”
”That’s true, but…”
”Haa… fine, come stay at my place for tonight. I’ll provide a service for you.”
It’s frustrating, but the one who said that is a woman named Linna, who lured me into this city as soon as I entered, calling herself a customer puller.
Since it’s the day I arrived in the city, and the district is shallow, I thought monsters would be scarce, so I expected her to come early and prepare for the next day. But when I saw her again, I was being pulled by 4 customer pullers…
She’s worried about me, probably because she thinks I’m some kind of rich kid.
Ms. Linna seemed to think that I have earned more than expected from my situation, and figured out that I was having trouble deciding where to stay. She declared that she had a prior engagement with me and made the other women pullers give up.
Having a prior engagement seems to be important, and the customer puller women easily gave up… Now, she’s guiding me to the exchange center to cash in, saying that we’ll exchange money there.
”In the first place, I was surrounded because I said I didn’t have a place to stay.”
”People have already found out that you lied about having a prior commitment. So, they’ll use that to lure you in next time. You seem like a good person, and you’d feel guilty if you lied, right?”
”Ah, I see. Well, it depends on the person, but… if it’s not an enemy, I’d definitely feel sorry about it.”
”You’re that kind of person, huh? So, you earned that war spoils on your own, right?”
”What does that have to do with war spoils?”
”There are people who steal war spoils from others, you know. It’s fine to collect materials from abandoned monster corpses, but basically, magic stones are already collected. And then you said that all of those were magic stones… You’re quite something, aren’t you?”
Ah, considering we’ve only talked for a bit, and I’m not a thief, but at the very least, I’m not doing anything as bad as a hyena’s act…
Anyway, let’s talk about the inn.
”Hey, you said you secured a room at the inn earlier, is it still available?”
”……Well, yeah…”
”I’m a bit worried about the weird atmosphere…”
”Don’t worry, I’ve got a room reserved. I’ll go back and get ready first, then you can come and exchange your loot for cash. Ah, don’t bring all the money back, leave some with the guild, okay?”
She tried to leave quickly, muttering to herself, but I stopped her.
”Hey, wait a minute.”
”What’s up? What is it?”
I had to confirm one thing with Ms. Linna, who looked a bit flustered.
”No, it’s about the inn’s location.”
”Ah.”
So, she remembered the important thing and told me the location of the inn and its name, “Horned Ox Inn”, before leaving.
Now, I was left alone, and I followed the flow of other adventurers into the Adventurer’s Guild’s exchange center.
It’s like a fish market or something.
There’s a partition, but it’s just a hurdle to make it easy to bring in large items for work.
They seem to be considering ventilation, but it’s still a bit worrying from a security standpoint. There are a lot of guards eyeing the place.
Well, even without magic items, there are expensive materials, and that’s what’s driving the prosperity of this city, so they’re putting a lot of effort into security.
As I took in the scene, I turned my gaze to the building where reception and administrative tasks were being handled.
There were many reception desks lined up, just like in the Guild, and since they handled items of a certain size, each desk was secured with a width about twice that of the Guild’s.
Larger items were handled in the workshop area in front of the desks, where the staff would appraise them.
Anyway.
I was going to have my appraisal done, but it was only for the magic stones, which were found inside the monster’s body.
I had only wiped them with a kitchen paper infused with magic, so they were still dirty and smelly, but… I guess it’s okay?
I could have washed them if I wanted to, but since I was alone, I knew how much water I could carry.
So, I thought it would be a waste to use precious water to clean the magic stones, and I just wiped them instead.
The reason I used kitchen paper was that it was good for absorbing oil.
After using it, I dug a hole, put the paper in, and buried it with magic.
Trash and waste were handled like that, and basically, they wouldn’t be dug up again, so it was just the monster’s blood that was left.
And, I’m not sure if the Slime was handling it, but it seemed to disappear after a while.
I wanted to exchange those magic stones, but everywhere was crowded.
So, I looked for a suitable place to line up, and I found that the last reception desk was empty.
In other words, there were no users, so I thought the staff was absent.
But, a young-looking female staff member was indeed there, and I wondered why it was empty… well, I’ll just go and try.
Thinking that, I approached the desk, and I was greeted with an unexpected phrase.
”Go somewhere else, it’s a pain.”
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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