Chapter 12 "Adventurer"

 　Clear skies today.

　I got rid of all my excess baggage and got new clothes.

　My mood is pretty upbeat.

After saying goodbye to Mt. Shudras, I was able to enter the Acothern territory without any disturbance.

　Acothern Territory.

　It is located to the east of Oratorium.

　I don't know the population, but according to my memory, there is a thriving trade in crafts such as pottery, and iron products such as arms and farming tools.

　There is no trade with the Oratorium Territory.

The reason is that there is a small mountain range consisting of sheer mountains that divides the two territories.

　The mountains are safe for human traffic, but the slopes are so steep that even horses, let alone horse-drawn wagons, cannot pass through them.

The Acothern, in particular, did not see any merit in trading with the Oratorium, and they basically ignored them.

　Their relationship with each other is, at best, that of neighbors who know each other's faces.

　...Isn't it something you should interact with, even if it's only out of courtesy or formality?

　Is it different in this world?

　Rothfeldt didn't seem to think it was particularly strange either....

　Oh well.

　The city looks like a good place to make money.

　I am sorry to say this, but the liveliness and scale are different from those of the Oratorium territory.

I wonder why there is such a big difference even though they are neighbors....

　And now I am in the city of Enkau, which is under the direct control of the lord.

　It is, after all, the lord's home town. There are many people and many stores.

　The first thing I did when I entered the town was to exchange goblin coins for treasure.

　The goblin treasures sold for a good price.

　The shopkeeper asked me where it came from, but I told him I got it on an adventure.

　I didn't lie to him.

After that, I changed my clothes for new ones that were torn due to playing with my body shape.

　By the way, I removed the mud makeup on the way down the mountain.

　Since my pockets were warm, I bought some sturdy clothes made of better fabrics and a chainmail to wear under my clothes.

　After that, I sold off some weapons and other items I no longer had any use for to an arms dealer.

　I was a little unsure about the battle rings, but I got rid of them because I didn't feel like I could throw them and hit anything.

I was left with only the nail-bat makana, the katar, and the bracelet of reduced sound.

　I'm not sure how effective this bracelet is.

　After sorting out the clothes, I have the clothes I bought, a chain shirt, and a black robe with holes in it but still usable.

　The weapons are a makana and a katar.

By the way, I found a gimmick on the katar that allows the blade to move in and out when I play with it, so I can use it as a gauntlet.

　In the pouch are a small bottle of gunpowder that I got but never used, some money, and finally, my favorite rag.

　It's neat, belongings-wise.

　Now that I'm refreshed, let's eat.

　I haven't had a decent meal since I came to this world.

I know it from memory, but I haven't actually eaten it, so no matter what you say, I've never had it.

　The food I ate at a rather expensive restaurant was delicious, but...it didn't strike a chord with me.

　Well, thanks to this, I got to eat raw meat. Let's not look at the bad parts either.

I've eaten my fill. Then it was time to register at the Adventurers' Guild.

　To be honest, I'm pretty excited.

　Adventurer! A profession that allows me to have adventures!

　I wonder if my heart is this excited because it was my desire before I was born....

　It reminds me of the time when, in the cold concrete jungle of modern society, I would spend every spare moment thinking about escaping from reality and having adventures in strange worlds.

　I have no regrets about the world before I was born...I abandoned it myself, so it's only natural.

　I felt a little down at the thought of the old days, but then I got myself together and headed for the Adventurers' Guild.

　Oh, just as I imagined.

　The first time I stepped into the Adventurers' Guild, it was exactly as I had seen it in fiction.

　Wooden round tables lined with strong-looking men drinking alcohol.

On a cork board on the wall, there was a large number of papers, probably written requests, pasted to the wall.

　Rothfeld had never been associated with this kind of place...

　I head for the counter.

　The receptionist looks at me.

　"Welcome. This is the Enkau branch of the Adventurers' Guild. You have a request?"

"I'm ... sorry. Excuse me, I would like to register as an adventurer. Could you help me register as an adventurer here?"

Watch out, be careful. I spoke to her in the Rothfeldt speech style.

　I have to be careful.

　The receptionist looks at me and narrows her eyes for a moment.

"...Well then, please fill out this form."

Fill out the form with name, hometown, age, race, and other information.

　What should I write?

　Oh, what should I write my name?

　Rothfeldt is not good, is it?

Ro...ro...ro...ro...ro is fine.

　I finished filling out the form and submitted it.

"You are Ro... right? Are you from...Liard?　Why did you register here?"

　Dang. I wrote the name of my ex-fiancee's territory without any proper reason, or was that wrong?

　I had to fake it.

　"Actually...I've just left home and have been on my own for a while..."

　I mumbled, trying to explain myself.

　The receptionist narrowed her eyes a little. Did she get suspicious...?

　"I see. I understand. We will prepare your adventurer's plate, so please come back the next day. When you receive your plate, we will charge you a registration fee of 10 silver coins."

Did I convince her...?

So they need a day to hand over the plate.

　I've got nothing left to do, so let's get a place to stay and relax.

Later, let's eat.

　I'm leaving the Adventurer's Guild.

　Well, which way is the inn...?

　As I looked around, I heard a voice that sounded like a scream.

　...hmm?

　I turned my gaze toward the direction I heard it.

　There was nothing in particular.

　What was it?

　Oh well.

　He was running as fast as he could on the cobblestones.

　Ridiculous. Impossible.

Most of his thoughts were filled with astonishment and could not be coherent.

　He had gone shopping in this city under the orders of his new master, but while on the move, he saw something impossible.

The man he had supposedly killed was walking down the street with an air of dignity.

　He seemed to be of a different build, but there was no mistaking his face.

He screamed in terror.

He then left the scene as fast as he could in fear.

He stops when he is far enough away that he thinks it is safe enough now.

　Breathing out roughly, he thinks.

He has to kill it....

If he doesn't kill him soon, he might come back for revenge someday.

It's not only revenge that makes him wary... it would be even worse if the Lord finds out.

It reminds him of that woman's icy smile.

Cold sweat runs down his spine.

There is no way to choose the means, it's a risk, but it has to be done....

　He - Zubel Bonnord, former butler of the Oratorium family - set his feet to his destination, assembling the necessary actions and budget.

　After a hearty meal, I was in a good mood and lay down on the bed in the room of the inn I had taken.

　It would have been great if I could sleep now, but that's not going to happen, and that's the hard part.

　What should I do tomorrow?

　I thought about my plans for tomorrow in a daze.

　After getting the adventurer's card, I'm going to do some requests right away.

　First, I guess I'll do the standard goblin extermination, right?

　Oh, I've already done something like that.

　Then, maybe another standard task such as carrying luggage or gathering medicinal herbs....

　I'll think about it tomorrow.

Then, let's practice using the usual roots.

　I look out the window.

　I can see the darkness and the moon.

　Dawn is still far away.

　The next morning, I headed to the Adventurers' Guild to pick up my plate.

The plate is designed to resemble an identification dog tag and has a chain that hangs around the neck.

　After receiving the plate, a drop of blood was applied to complete the process. The receptionist gave me a brief explanation.

　Adventurers have ranks, starting from the bottom

　Low Yellow 3 to 1

　Intermediate Blue 3 to 1

　Advanced Red 3 to 1

　Highest level Gold

　Apparently, you are promoted according to the number of requests you accomplish and the amount of money you earn.

　I guess I'll start at yellow level 3.

　By the way, the higher you go from 3 to 1, the darker the color of the plate becomes.

　Mine was a light yellow and looked cheap.

　After listening to the explanation, I decided to accept the request.

　I couldn't take on any big requests anyway.

　Let's earn steadily.

　Let's see...housekeeping, cleaning and organizing warehouses, weeding private houses.

　Exterminating goblins in the village, helping in the fields, transporting goods to neighboring villages.

　...Which one shall I choose...Personally, I think the hard work will be easier...I won't get tired.

Let's clean and organize the warehouse and do some weeding for starters.

　Pull out weeds that are firmly rooted.

　When pulling it out, pull it out completely without leaving any roots.

　Pulling out, pulling out, pulling out, pulling out.

　The moon was in the sky, the sun was setting, and the area was completely enveloped in the darkness of night.

　Normally, it would have been impossible to pull the weeds because of the lack of visibility.

　But I had no blind spot, having acquired the goblin's night vision.

　I had eaten enough food earlier, so I still had plenty of energy to spare.

　Fatigue didn't bother me at all.

While working on the task, I checked the progress.

　...Yeah. If I keep going like this, it will be done by morning.

By the time the sun rose, the area that had been requested had been completely cleaned out.

　The client who woke up was surprised that his yard had been cleaned overnight, but he seemed satisfied with my work.

He even fed me breakfast in addition to my fee.

　You're a good old man.

　I'll weed for you if you ask me again.

　Okay, next job.

　The next task was to clean and organize the warehouse.

　I saw the site and it was a warehouse with a large amount of farm tools and fertilizers in disarray.

They said cleaning would be easy as long as it was organized, but I'm never tired, and if I put my mind to it, I can spare the time.

　First, everything inside was taken outside.

　After emptying it, I cleaned inside and put back what I had taken out.

　By the end of the evening, everything was cleaned up.

　The client, an old man, was very satisfied and even gave me a tip.

　I didn't have any adventures, but I really enjoyed working as an adventurer.

It's not a bad feeling to have people thank me, and the best part is that when it's over, I can just get it over with.

　I don't have to deal with people in depth, I get paid and thanked on the spot, and I feel good about my work.

　It's great.

　After completing the order, I was walking down the street feeling good when three guys who looked like hoodlums blocked my way.

"Hey, you seem to be doing well these days."

"We'd like to have some of that, too."

　"We don't have any money for alcohol. Help us out."

　Each of them pulls out a knife and thrusts it at me.

　Oh, not a guy like that, but a real thug.

　I look around. Yeah, there's no one here.

　Then don't be shy.

I use the arm with the Qatar attached to it to punch the head of the nearest guy with my fist.

　I can feel the impact on his skull. Instant death.

"Huh?"

　"What the hell are you doing?"

I pull out the makana from my waist and feed it to the other's jaw.

　Oops, too much force. He lost his face.

　Hey, hey, hey, hey, thug, you're too weak. The second class goblin was much stronger than you.

The other one tried to run away, so I caught it and turned its head 180°.

　The goon, whose neck was at a funny angle, crumpled to the ground.

　Oh, I'm strong. I won.

　Well, three dead bodies.

Let's just strip them down and eat the bodies for now.

　Thanks to you and your gang, I saved some money on food.

　I don't really care, but this is the second time I've been attacked by a thug in my first week on the job, and I wonder if this town is safe.