Re: Rabbit Eyes

White was almost certain that the man had recognized the dead adventurer when he called out in such an agitated tone. After all, this chest armor didn't belong to him initially. It wasn't impossible for a close friend to notice a special mark of sorts on the rugged piece of equipment. But White had a more urgent problem to deal with now.

"W-Wait...!" He was being pushed against a wall from the man's reckless advance. Is this what people call, a kabe-don? No, but he's a guy. White felt goosebumps on his skin. 

"The way this shirt is made... aah, and this pair of rough... indigo... no black? What dye is this, what in heavens! This is amazing!" He heard the man mutter to himself, as if unaware of what he was currently doing.

It seems that the man had instead taken interest in the clothes he had brought from Earth, but he had taken his curiosity to a very... passionate degree. It took a few seconds for the man to realize how inappropriate he was, and after coughing dryly, he took a few steps back and bowed.

"I am sorry for my rudeness. My name is Richard Brownfield, the tailor of this shop. Nice to meet you."

"A-Ah... my na---"

"---But really I need to ask, how did you get these clothes? I've never seen a cut like them. That stitch is so perfect I can barely believe it!" Richard immediately interrupted the young man with glittering eyes.

It was just a t-shirt and jeans, nothing to get too excited about. White adjusted himself after regaining some space, and responded wryly to the man who went by the name Richard. "...Well, I'm glad you like them."

"Can I buy them?"

"...Eh? Buy... them?" The unexpected request had threw off his guard once again.

"Yes, your clothing! I want to buy it! I'd like to examine it, see how it's made!" Richard exclaimed as his eyes continued to wander around his clothes, as if he couldn't wait to lay his hands on them.

White had an epiphany shortly after. He realized that the tailoring techniques and technology were most likely far behind from modern Earth. Seeing clothes like these would probably make someone shocked. Just like how someone back in the stone age would see a skyscraper, Richard was similarly awe-struck by how the garments were created. But still, he couldn't trade them so easily.

"I... don't have anything else to wear." He explained. 

"In fact, I came here hoping to buy more clothing."

White pointed at the rucksack near the entrance.

"I heard that enchanted clothing can allow someone to... reduce the load of baggage? It would be nice to buy more clothing too, since this is uhm... my only set."

"That's easy." Richard immediately made a proposal. 

"I will make you three full sets of clothing in exchange, one of them with a lightweight enchantment." 

If it wasn't obvious yet, Richard was the tailor of the shop.

Looking at the intricately-woven clothes hung around the store, the young man knew that he was pretty capable with his hands. Although not to the extent of how good a modern tailor was, Richard was probably still considered an above-average artisan in this world.

White pondered over the deal for a moment, and nodded. It seemed like a fair exchange. He didn't really have any special use for the isekai clothing, and if they could be bartered for things he needed, there wasn't any reason to keep them.

"It's a deal then."

"Alright it should be done in two days, you can pick them up then."

"What about the measurements?"

Richard sniffed. "I can memorize a person's three sizes in an instant no matter who they are, don't worry. It will fit perfectly, now give me those clothes!"

Did he really make a good deal there? Richard looked at his Earth clothes like it was treasure.

The young man ended up walking out of the shop feeling like he was mugged. He now wore slightly baggy tunic and plain pants. Richard assured him the stuff he'd make would be much higher quality and in the meantime he would have to settle with these. It was slighly uncomfortable to wear, but least it was free. 

〚 Plain Outfit ❙❙❙❙❙ ♦ Common Grade ✠ Equipment - Top / Bottom ♦ 1 Defense 〛 

Shortly after making the trade, the trinket around White's neck started to shine faintly. He turned it back into a Guild Card and saw a bronze symbol being inscribed onto the bottom right corner of the card. 

【Privilege: ｢Bronze Trade Stamp ｣ obtained.】

【Purchases from guild affiliated stores will grant you a 5% discount.】

5% huh.

Also guild affiliation, that made sense. What about the street vendors?

The tantalizing smell of street food quickly drifted into his nose. White walked up to a popular vendor selling skewered rabbit meat in order to test if his stamp worked on it.

"Irashaiii! Here for one, boy?"

"Yes, just one... please."

"Alright, here you go!" He received the stick of rabbit meat and felt his stomach growl from its appetizing aroma.

When White showed him the stamp on his card, the man smiled wryly.

"We don't do that here, boy. We're just normal folks, plus our stuff is already pretty cheap, no?"

Feeling a little embarrassed, White handed the street vendor 6 coppers instead.

The guy simply smiled and handed him another stick.

"You'll find better luck around the inner district. The guild has affiliations with most of the stores there."

Thanking the vendor for the information, White left the streets.

As White chewed on the two sticks of rabbit meat with a satisfied expression, he remembered the time he ate with Shinri again. The monster meat in his mouth was truly succulent, and so much better than the ramen he used to eat.

This wasn't such a bad life after all, he thought.

White returned to the guild and visited Heinesia. She seemed to be working today as well. 

"Hello, White-sama. You've come today again. What happened to your clothes?"

"Ah, that... I traded them... haha..."

Heinesia gave a look of surprise, but didn't say anything about it after that.

"So what brings you here?"

"Uhm... I'm actually wondering... Where I could earn some money?"

Heinesia smiles, and points at a bulletin board near the counter.

"You'd usually have to look for quests yourself, but the quests on the guild board are for Iron-rank and above. So what I would suggest is to hunt [Horned Rabbits]."

"Horned Rabbits?"

Heinesia nodded as she took out a file from her desk. On it was the information for the monster she'd just mentioned. The letter "E" was stamped on the top right corner of the document.

"There is a small field outside of the city walls, close to the next town. These rabbits have been gathering there as of late. You can defeat one as long as you're careful of the horns on their forehead. Because they are small and agile, they like to take approaching aggressors by surprise. The monster drops you get are [Rabbit's Meat] and [Rabbit's Horn].

The guild will buy the horns for 1 copper coin a piece, but you'll have better luck selling them somewhere else. Since you're still a beginner, I suggest that you look for the store owners in the streets for a direct deal rather than trade them on the first floor."

White recalled that the first floor was used for trading between adventurers. He also thought that it made sense for raw meat to be dealed with butchers instead of in a guild lobby.

White stopped and recalled something in his possession.

"By the way, how much are dungeon cores worth?"

"Hm? Aahh, those. It depends on the size and quality of the cores. But the guild will usually buy them for at least a silver coin each."

"...Thank you for the information."

"It is my job, like I said. White-sama, are you heading out now? In that case, I wish you luck in your hunt today. Because Horned Rabbits are E-ranked, if you retrieve twenty of its monster drops collectively, you will be able to advance to Iron-rank and start taking quests."

White nodded in agreement. He had heard about it from Heinesia yesterday. The difficulty of monsters ranged from E to A, with S - SS as the upper equivalent to calamities.

✦ E-ranked - Have to be cleared out to maintain the safety of human settlements.

✦ D-ranked - Threatens overpopulation if not cleared out on a regular basis.

✦ C-ranked - Environmental monsters. They are aggressive towards invaders in their territory, slowing down the conquest for human borders. Although dangerous, they are territorial and are usually unwilling or unable to leave their marked regions. 

✦ B-ranked - Tactical-class monsters, able to attack humans without having fixed habitats. Due to their wandering nature, some of them evolve and become stronger with the use of skills or magic. 

✦ A-ranked - Strategic-class monsters able to disrupt warfare at a high level. Some include the [Frost Giants], or an [Elder Lich] that commands an army of undead, although the last time one appeared was over a decade ago.

★ S-ranked - National threat. Usually belonging to that of the party of heroes, or the commanders of the Demon King's army.

★ SS-ranked - Continental threat. The Demon King is the only one ever recorded to reach this rank.

The ranking examination for Bronze-ranks were to defeat 20 E-ranked monsters and return with proof of them through the monster drops. Incidentally, he also could not sell them until they were collected together. 

... ... ... ... ...

White thanked Heinesia again before leaving. 

He had already prepared for it, but still he couldn't help but feel his hands shaking as he left the city.

It was time for his real test. A second confrontation with a monster. Whether he had what it takes or not, White was determined to find out.