Chapter 4 - After the First Job
We also have to go report to the Mayor.
For the time being, monster extermination is scheduled for the afternoon. Beowulf, whose shift ends when that's over, is with us. She has taken off her leather armor and is wearing a light brown jacket over a light green inner shirt.
When we went to the Town Hall, the service window was already closed, but a staff member who had apparently been told we were coming let us inside.
As we were shown straight into the Mayor's office, the Mayor was sitting at the office desk in front.
"Good work. How were today's results?"
The Mayor, standing up from his office chair, invited us to sit on the sofa.
Goodness, Beatrix is already sitting down.
"Seven. Not bad, right?"
She was puffing out her chest pointedly.
"Seven defeated on your first time? You certainly worked hard. How did it go?"
The Mayor, who had been listening to Beatrix's explanation interspersed with gestures while saying "I see, I see," said that scattering bait was a good idea.
"Right? It's easier that way, so I wonder why they haven't done it until now?"
When he nodded 'yes, yes,' the Mayor said they probably couldn't.
One reason was apparently that it serves as combat training for the guard, but the other reason was interesting.
"Buying up leftovers as rat bait requires a budget, and since it's done many times, the amount is not insignificant."
"For something like that, wouldn't chicken carcasses from a diner be fine?"
"When it comes to the government, we can't just take things for free. Besides, chicken carcasses have their own uses. They're crushed for fertilizer or used as livestock feed. We can't just take large quantities for free for something that might just be eaten and run by rats."
Hmm, so that's how it is.
"Well, we also promised the diner where we got them that we'd eat dinner there."
Beatrix's words revealed where we'd be eating dinner today.
Adolf-san nodded with a smile.
"The government can't make those kinds of flexible deals."
"But if we always use them for bait, won't the amount for fertilizer and livestock feed decrease?"
I don't want to be glared at by the collection contractors.
"That should be fine. The quantity should be more than enough. There isn't just one contractor collecting them, so it's just a matter of the destination changing, so to speak. After that, it's just a matter of making arrangements with several diners so you can always get chicken carcasses for bait, and trying various types of leftovers to see if there are others that are easy to handle."
"That way, the variety of your dinners will increase, won't it?" the Mayor laughed.
True, if we always ate at the same place, we might get tired of it eventually.
"Also, Beatrix, how are you creating the image for Fire Ball?"
"Let's see. While chanting, I aim my raised palm at the target and imagine a lump of fire forming there with gathered magical power. Then I just throw it at the target."
Beatrix raised her right hand and made a throwing motion, saying "Like this, the feeling of throwing a stone."
"Don't you imagine the fire flying toward the prey after you've thrown it? You must keep imagining the trajectory and speed of it flying until it hits."
"I haven't... gone that far."
Beatrix's expression became serious.
"You should try it. You probably won't miss much then."
"I get it. I'll try it next time. Thanks."
Beatrix bowed her head obediently.
"Are you a mage, Mayor?"
I couldn't help but ask. When I learned magic, I was only taught how to activate it.
"Fuffuffu, at times the Cake Man, at times the Mayor of Nakanohara, at times a magic consultant, but his true identity is..."
"Just an old man, right?"
"Hey, you shouldn't say the punchline first."
Beatrix and the Mayor are laughing together.
I wonder what kind of relationship these two have?
Beowulf and I couldn't help but tilt our heads.
In the end, the Mayor's true identity remained unknown. I'll try asking Beatrix if I get the chance.
After leaving the Town Hall, the next place we visited was the magic tool shop where Beatrix works.
On the sign featuring a spread-out scroll, it said 'Marcelo Magic Tool Shop.'
It was already closed for the day, but we were guided inside through the back door by Beatrix, the clerk.
It seemed to be the shop's workshop; carpentry-like tools were hanging on the walls, and in a tin can placed on the central workbench, there were spatulas, brushes, and paintbrushes like those used by artists.
"Ah, Beatrix. Are you finished?"
A quiet-looking man in his mid-thirties wearing round glasses, who seemed to have been working on something at the workbench, looked up and spoke.
This must be the shop owner, Marcelo-san. In other words, he's Beatrix's employer.
Beowulf and I greeted him with a "Nice to meet you" and introduced ourselves.
Marcelo-san knew both our names. He must have heard them from Beatrix.
"We defeated seven. That's three and a half silver coins, right?"
Beatrix thrust out both hands, emphasizing the seven with her fingers.
"That's impressive. If it's three and a half silver coins for half a day, the unit price is higher than the wages here."
"Well, yeah. But it's for three people, and for now it's only three times a week, so we can't quite live on it."
Wait a minute, that's my only income.
"Did you get what I asked for?"
"This, right? Rat whiskers. I got twenty of them."
Beatrix pulled a white strand wrapped in paper from the pouch hanging from her shoulder.
So that's why she was so intently examining the rat corpses. No wonder she was only looking at the ones defeated by Beowulf's charge and my Holy, rather than the ones defeated by Fire Ball. She had no use for singed whiskers.
"Thank you. Just as ordered. It helps."
Marcelo-san picked up a whisker with his index finger and thumb and nodded with satisfaction while holding it up to the light. He was wearing a ring with a black stone on his ring finger.
Since it's on his right hand, it's probably for fashion, but a black stone is rare.
"What do you use them for?"
"An apothecary uses them as ingredients when compounding medicine."
Eh, medicine has rat whiskers in it? If they're in the medicine I've taken until now, does that mean I might have put rat whiskers in my mouth?
When I reflexively grimaced, Marcelo-san laughed mischievously.
"Hahaha. I put that in a misleading way. Rat whiskers aren't used in medicine. Ancient alchemists did that sort of thing. When stirring powdered medicine, it's just right to have thin, elastic hairs, and bundling these works perfectly."
Yeah, you definitely said that misleadingly on purpose, didn't you? This man isn't just quiet.
"You're Jeanne, right? I've heard about you from Beatrix."
When I looked at Beatrix's face suspiciously, she was smirking.
This is definitely the face of someone plotting something. This is it.
"I hear you can use holy magic?"
"Ah, yes. Only beginner magic, though. I can use Holy and Heal."
"Yes. My wife and I run this shop. I'm a maker of small goods, and my wife is a mage. The two of us make magic tools together. Now we have Beatrix helping us too."
Beatrix puffed out her chest as if to say 'ehem.'
Seeing that, Marcelo-san smiled and continued.
"One of our best-sellers right now is magic scrolls. My wife can use water and earth attributes and status-change magic, and I can use movement-type magic. Adding the magic Beatrix can use, we can self-produce a fair variety of types of magic scrolls. However, we can't self-produce holy magic, so we source it from elsewhere. But we don't make a profit that way. If you could help us, Holy and Heal could be newly self-produced at our shop. If you'd like, could you help us out? We can't afford to hire a regular clerk, so just helping with making scrolls would be enough. Let's see, how about four copper coins per scroll?"
Magic scrolls are, simply put, things with magic circles that seal magic written on them.
When you release magic toward specially processed parchment—it doesn't have to be anything special, but it's apparently superior for storage and transport—that magic is sealed. When using it, you spread the scroll and chant a keyword, and the sealed magic is released.
According to Marcelo-san, holy magic scrolls are expensive, and even beginner ones sell for two silver coins each. Of that, one-tenth goes to the maker of the scroll, one-tenth to the mage who draws the magic circle for the scroll, and one-tenth to the person who seals the magic; that's apparently the market rate. If I seal the magic, two silver coins is forty copper coins, so one-tenth of that, four copper coins, would be paid.
Marcelo-san makes the scrolls, and his wife draws the magic circles, so the amount minus material costs becomes their profit. Marcelo-san can also draw magic circles, but apparently the ones by his wife's hand are exquisite. I don't know what the difference is, but it's good that they're a happily married couple.
Currently, I can use holy magic six times a day, so if I work hard, I can earn one silver coin and four copper coins a day.
Wait, I can live perfectly well on just that!
"We sell about five beginner holy magic scrolls a week, so you just need to help make five a week. You only need to come once or twice a week, so I don't think it'll be much of a burden."
The world isn't that easy. But one silver coin a week would be a huge help.
"How about it? Not bad, right?"
I understood why Beatrix had been smiling for a while now.
Oh, this girl, her smile is just too cute!
By the way, high-level holy magic scrolls apparently cost about ten gold coins each. Since only those in priestly offices can use high-level holy magic, it's effectively a Church monopoly and a good source of income for them. Though, it seems most are currently being used on the battlefield and are under national management.