Episode 122: Veteran (1)
The next day, Misha woke me up early in the morning.
“Wake up, wake up! How long are you going to sleep!”
The time was 6:30 AM at that time.
Even considering my schedule for going to Commelby, it was still quite early.
“Let’s eat out today. I woke up early so I didn’t have time to pack a lunch.”
“Then, first of all, from the first floor in the morning—”
“This place is not so good, not so good! Let’s go out and eat. Okay?”
“I’m hungry… … .”
“Come on, I’ll buy you something delicious. Okay?”
I was dragged out without even eating breakfast because of Misha’s back pain. Then I ran away in a carriage and arrived at the commercial district of Commelby, where I finally had a meal.
A restaurant located 30 minutes away from the public platform that Misha recommended as a good restaurant.
“How is it? Is it delicious?”
“it’s good……!”
I don’t know what they did to the stew, but it has a very familiar savory flavor.
I should remember this and come here every time I’m nearby.
“I’m glad you look satisfied. Did you like it that much?”
“Except that the price of one meal is expensive.”
“That’s because you ate your bowl, you old Bavarian fool!”
After a late breakfast, we stopped by our favorite gun and general stores and sold off all our loot.
‘3 million stones… … .’
The amount of money earned by selling all of the equipment and consumables of the trio and Jencia you met on the second floor.
It’s not a small amount of money, but it doesn’t feel like much. If you’ve sold the fangs of a poisonous snake or the leather armor made of tier 2 material, it would have been several times more.
‘Well, you can sell it later.’
After that, I took my equipment to the blacksmith shop that Hikuro told me about to get it repaired. I was worried about the repair costs since my shield and breastplate were badly dented in the troll battle… … .
“All together it’s 300,000 stones.”
The repair cost was cheaper than I thought.
Well, it’s probably easier to avoid getting crushed than to melt.
“Do you also deal in leather?”
“Yes, but is there anything you would like to leave to me?”
“Ah, this is so stuffy around my chest… … .”
While I was here, I also asked Misha to get her armor repaired.
Since it was leather armor, I was worried that touching it might cause problems, but there were no major issues.
“At this point, I don’t think there’s any need to add new material. I think it’ll be enough to just use a softener to slightly stretch the stuffy areas.”
The cost of repairs was only about 50 thousand stones.
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Since I came here on Hikuro’s recommendation, there was no hesitation and it seemed like a place where they do business very conscientiously.
“Come back with me in three days.”
After leaving the blacksmith shop, I wandered around and bought some supplies for this expedition.
I replenished the Witch Slamp Dissolution, a consumable item for the Hideout Counter, and bought a few other items that came to mind and stocked them up.
and…….
“I’ll give you two bottles combined for 2 million stones.”
I repurchased two bottles of the highest grade potion from the general store I went to before.
Well, I didn’t know you could use up a bottle so quickly.
Although the expenses were significant, it was better since the two of us shared the burden as public funds.
“Fortunately, we didn’t have to touch the money in the public account. Here, here’s 325,000 stones.”
I split the remaining money between me and Misha.
Well then, today’s schedule is now complete.
“Then I’ll go! Sleep well, Bjorn!”
“You too, grow up well.”
We returned to Ravigion at night, had a quick meal, and then parted ways.
And when I returned to my accommodation… … .
What is this?
I see a silver-haired fairy crouching in front of my room with her head buried in her hands.
“Erwen… … ?”
“Oh, you’re here?”
Erwen greets me with a smile as soon as he sees me.
Somehow, his eyes looked tired, so I couldn’t help but ask.
“… How long have you been waiting for me?”
“It hasn’t been that long. But did you two go out together?”
“Oh, I have something to do in Commelby.”
“I see… That’s right.”
“So what’s going on here?”
It was time for her to wash up and go to bed, so I asked her what she wanted to do, but Erwen just kept her mouth shut.
As if organizing some thoughts.
Although his expression was somewhat serious, Erwen soon began to speak in his usual lively voice.
“Sir, I can’t come here as often as I used to. That’s what I came to tell you.”
“Huh? Ah… Well, things are different now than they were back then.”
I’m not a month-old rookie explorer.
Well, it hasn’t even been a year yet… … .
No, that’s why you know that it’s a time when you have to focus more on growth.
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“Yes, I’m going to start special training with my sister starting tomorrow. So maybe once a week? I think I’ll only be able to come once. I’d like to come more often, but… I think it’ll take a long time.”
“A while?”
“…There is something like that.”
Erwen trailed off as if talking nonsense, then smiled brightly and disappeared without giving me a chance to ask her anything in return.
“Anyway! I’ll come next week, so see you then, mister!”
“Oh, okay… … .”
…What is this uneasy feeling?
***
The next day, the whole team gathered at the bar for lunch.
And then we had a return trip and time to distribute the spoils of the previous expedition.
“I think it would be enough to divide it into 550,000 stones per person. The byproduct of the Frogman sorcerer is sold for more than I thought.”
“Haha, isn’t it all thanks to Rotmiller’s good removal?”
“Ahem, it’s not going to be of much help in battle, so I guess we should do something like that.”
I brushed aside Rotmiller’s humble words and settled my final settlement of the proceeds from this exploration.
400,000 magic stones obtained from cracks and the 1st and 2nd floors.
320,000 stones remaining after deducting the cost of consumables from the money earned from selling the equipment.
550,000 stones as commission completion fee and by-product.
A total of 1.27 million stones.
‘Even though I spent that much, I still earned this much.’
In any case, the 4th floor has earned much more income than the previous two months.
No, actually, if you consider the essence, leather armor, and snake fangs that Misha ate, you could say that she made crazy profits.
There’s also 5 million stones to receive from Mr. Bear.
‘At this rate, I’ll probably get the 6th level seal in no time?’
I chuckled and took a sip of my beer.
Misha and I still have 2 million stones in cash left in our shared account.
The personal wealth I have accumulated so far amounts to about 2.5 million.
I’ve been feeling anxious for the past two months as my growth has been almost at a standstill, but when I look at my bank account balance, I feel a sense of satisfaction.
“Bjorn! What if you drink your first glass alone?”
“huh?”
“Let’s all drink together! We haven’t even had a proper celebration yet.”
“…Okay, do whatever you want.”
“Thank you for killing the troll cubs and helping everyone survive! Now! Everyone, drink up!”
After settling the accounts, we all drank some homecoming wine together and reminisced about the past exploration.
Could it be that we have overcome another crisis together?
The dwarf who was the team leader looked very happy.
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However, the drinking party ended faster than last time.
“I… I guess I should go now. I have to stop by my parents’ house for a bit today.”
First Misha left, then Rotmiller.
“I guess I’ll have to stop here for today. I have some business to attend to at the guild.”
Perhaps because of a promise later, the two of them, who had been just drinking and keeping up with the mood, left. Anyway, Rotmiller, once Misha left, the noisy drinking party became quiet.
I was going to stay and continue drinking because I thought the dwarf would get upset if I left too… … .
To my surprise, the dwarf slipped away and moved to the seat next to me.
“Hahaha, that’s right? The troll kid isn’t that bad, is he? You’re lying? How could that be? Do you see that barbarian over there? You may have heard of the little Vulcan… … .”
A dwarf who started clinking glasses and talking with new explorers, leaving his teammates behind. So I was about to turn back, but Dwalki stopped me.
“Well, how about we talk for a moment?”
“what?”
“Well, come to think of it, we’ve never had a quiet conversation just the two of us.”
Well, that’s true.
Rotmiller, everyone was drunk and often chatted while sleeping, but this guy was the type to sleep drunk.
‘Do you have anything to say to me?’
And that was it.
Dwalki just took a sip of his drink and didn’t open his mouth first.
‘Fuck, I should’ve just gone.’
Unlike the noisy surroundings, an awkward atmosphere flows around me.
So I just opened my mouth first.
Because there was something I was curious about anyway.
“Are you feeling better?”
“Oh, it’s okay… To be honest, I felt a little uncomfortable even after receiving treatment from the priest, but I’m completely better now.”
“That’s great. What about this side?”
When I asked, tapping my forehead, Dwalki tilted his head.
“Isn’t this the first time in your life that your body has been folded in half? How is it? Can you continue entering the labyrinth?”
Broken-hearted explorers are more common than you might think.
Sometimes, the cruel memories left on the body remain vivid in the mind like scars.
“Ah, that’s… … .”
Dwalki hesitated to answer, realizing the meaning of my question.
As expected, it seems like it couldn’t have been anything special.
“Whew… To be honest, I haven’t been able to sleep properly since that day. I thought it was because I was in the labyrinth, but it’s the same in the city.”
Soon, Dwalki took a long sip of his alcohol and confessed that his hands were already shaking at the thought of re-entering the labyrinth.
“But don’t worry too much. It’s something we all go through and overcome, right? I’ll be fine before the next expedition.”
You can overcome it… … .
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Looking at your eyes, it doesn’t seem like you’re talking in vain.
There was just one question.
“Is there a reason you go that far?”
Most of them overcome the trauma and continue their career as explorers.
Well, if it weren’t for this, there’s no way to make a living.
In a city where they had to pay taxes to survive, they had no choice but to overcome.
But Dwalki, the wizard, is different.
“Why do you want to continue working as an explorer when you could just work in the city?”
Dwalki hesitated at my question, then downed a glass of beer and answered.
“That’s because… it’s fun.”
It was a completely unexpected answer.
“Because it’s fun?”
“Of course, it was for a different reason at first. Do you remember what I said when we first met?”
“I remember. I said I would become a great explorer and bring honor to the Baron’s family.”
“Actually, it’s all a lie. I just thought that if I became a famous explorer, my father… no, the former Baron might be interested.”
Dwalki is the illegitimate child of a noble family.
And as is often the case with illegitimate children, he feels deep love and hatred for his blood relatives. It is a contradictory feeling of hating them, but also wanting to be loved by them.
“As you know, the former Baron has passed away. And as you saw… the brother who inherited the position didn’t even know of my existence.”
At first, I felt empty.
I felt like I lost my purpose in life in an instant and was floating on water all day.
Dwalki, who poetically expressed his feelings at that time, looked straight into my eyes.
“But I was able to overcome it because I had four people around me to lean on.”
“No way… Are you, are you talking about us?”
“Then who else could there be? At first, I didn’t know that colleagues were such people. They were more than just friends I could trust and rely on, they were family… That’s what it felt like.”
“Oh, I see?”
“Yes. After my mother passed away, I felt like I was left alone in the world every day… but when I was exploring, laughing, and talking with you guys, I didn’t feel that way at all.”
Dwalki, who knew that he was saying something embarrassing, downed the beer he had ordered in one go.
“Thank you, Bjorn. Thanks to you, every day is enjoyable these days. So… even though this happened to me this time… I can overcome it.”
“… I see.”
“Yes, that’s right. So don’t worry too much.”
“Okay, I won’t worry about that part anymore.”
Soon I was able to put my worries aside.
Whatever the motive, at that level, there is no need to worry about Dwalki’s mentality.
“Haha, if you look closely, you seem like you don’t, but you’re actually very affectionate.”
“Okay, let’s have a drink.”
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Perhaps because we had a sincere conversation, the awkward atmosphere disappeared.
Dwalki, who had been hesitating in front of me, got excited and started talking about this and that, and I listened to him, chiming in.
That was when it happened.
“Hey, Bjorn… I have a question for you.”
“Tell me.”
“Are you by any chance dating Miss Misha?”
Instead of answering, I stared at Dwalki.
His face, flushed with intoxication, was filled with anxiety and tension.
It was only then that I realized one thing.
‘For some reason, he suddenly said that we should talk together.’
Oh, so that was the original purpose.
***
“Brown Rotmiller. 34 years old. Been an explorer for 8 years?”
As soon as he entered the office, he was met with contemptuous stares. Despite feeling humiliated, Rotmiller answered.
“… That’s right.”
The doubts were greater than the confusion.
He received a call from the Explorer’s Guild this morning, so he arrived at the guild on time, even though he was out chatting with his colleagues.
And when I followed the staff upstairs, it was this room.
A man was sitting in the chair, and Rotmiller recognized his face.
‘Nile Urbans, the 7th Region Leader of the Explorers’ Guild. Why on earth would he choose someone like me… ?’
Although questions rose to the tip of his tongue, he did not act rashly and waited for the man to continue his explanation.
If you make even the slightest mistake, you never know what kind of trouble might strike.
“Hmm, I like it. Especially the part where you have to wait until the end even though you’re curious.”
“Then, can you please tell me what’s going on?”
The local leader nodded with a pleased smile at his request and explained why he had called him here.
The more I listened, the more absurd it became.
“So you’re telling me to betray my colleagues?”
“That’s up to you. To be exact, you just need to fix that Barbarian friend’s bad habits.”
Rotmiller gritted his teeth.
There are only 13 regional leaders in this city.
A being that can cause great harm to even a single explorer by simply irritating them.
That’s why it took even more courage.
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that suggestion.”
A word of rejection that was forcefully uttered with a clenched fist.
The local leader smiled as if he found this interesting.
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“If we’re done talking, I’ll take my leave now.”
Rotmiller hurriedly turned back to the door before he was consumed by fear.
That was when.
“It’s good to cherish your colleagues. It’s a truly wonderful belief. But… how long do you think they will remain your colleagues?”
At the sound of the voice that followed, Rotmiller stood still without realizing it.
“I’ve seen your records. It seems like you’re being treated unfairly. It took you eight years to reach rank 7. On the other hand, there was a barbarian who reached rank 6 in half a year.”
“I’ve never felt… that kind of emotion.”
“If that’s what you’re saying, then I guess that’s true. But shouldn’t you start accepting reality too?”
“… … .”
“Your colleagues will continue to rise above you. They are not ordinary humans like you.”
Rotmiller bit his lips at the direct words.
But he couldn’t offer any rebuttal.
It’s not that I’m afraid of that man’s power, but I know full well that what he says is true.
“How long do you think you’ll be with them? Three months? Four months? Well, maybe even longer. That is, if they take pity on you.”
Rotmiller opened the door and went out without listening any further.
“I trust you will make a wise choice.”
The district chief, seen through the gap in the closing door, had a friendly smile on his face.
