kscans

Chapter 4 - A First Quest, a Merchant, and Panties

Gathering herbs was tedious work.

With my guidebook in hand, I just kept cutting the same plants.

I had returned to the scene of yesterday's attack.

I had guessed there would be herbs left behind by the attacked gatherers, and I hit the jackpot.

They were growing in abundance.

However, the crouched position for cutting herbs was tough on a middle-aged guy used to desk work.

"My back hurts,"

I muttered, pressing on the sore spot, when a violent impact struck me there.

I was sent flying without understanding what had happened, diving headfirst into the bushes.

"Nngh?"

As I picked myself up, a jelly-like object came ramming into me, and I hastily dodged it.

Then I drew my sword and faced it.

A slime. A translucent, spherical monster about fifty centimeters in size. The slime began to charge again. I swung my sword down at it.

The impact was greater than I expected, and my sword was knocked away. I staggered backward.

"Kuh!"

I supported the hilt with my free hand and thrust my sword into the slime. With that one blow, the slime vanished.

"A one-handed sword is tough with my strength,"

I said to myself.

Should I switch to a two-handed sword, or use a shield and chip away at them? I'll stop by a weapon shop today.

As I was thinking that, I found a Mana Seed where the slime had disappeared.

I checked to make sure no one was around.

"Hya hya hya, I did it! Gotcha!"

My joyous shout echoed.

After that, I encountered another slime. When I defeated it, it dropped another Mana Seed.

I became absorbed in slime hunting. I forgot what I had said yesterday about diligently gathering herbs.

In the end, I hunted about 15 slimes and obtained 12 Mana Seeds.

My level went up to 7.

Beaming, I returned to the city and headed for the guild.

"Here are the herbs for the quest."

I handed the herbs I had gathered to the same receptionist girl as yesterday and exchanged them for 15 silver coins.

"Can I exchange this?"

For now, I handed her one Mana Seed.

"Th-this is a slime's Mana Seed! It's rare!"

"You can tell what monster it's from?"

"Yes, because of the light blue light inside. Near the city, the only monster that drops a Mana Seed of this color is a slime. Light blue Mana Seeds are said to increase vitality."

"I see."

"Here, it would be 5 gold coins, but if you take it to a merchant company, you can get more than one large gold coin for it. Why don't you give it a try?"

the guild girl whispered to me. A gold coin is worth 100 silver coins, and a large gold coin is worth 1000 silver coins. I couldn't stop grinning.

"If you could secretly give me one gold coin from the sale, I can introduce you to a good merchant."

"Kukuku, you're a sly one, aren't you? But if you introduce me to a girl, I'll raise it to two... no, three gold coins."

I asked, just for the hell of it.

"Mmm, unfortunately, there are no girls cuter than the one who was with you yesterday, Mash-san."

"Is that so? A shame."

"It is."

She nodded.

I went to the Mateo Trading Company and told them I was introduced by the guild receptionist. A man named Mateo came out to greet me.

Mateo was a middle-aged man about my age.

He looked younger than me, being more energetic.

Mateo led me to a small room. We sat on comfortable sofas surrounding a luxurious-looking desk.

"Haven't seen you around before."

Neither Mateo, the innkeeper, nor the clothing store clerk used the kind of polite language with customers that you'd find in my original world. The guild receptionist was an exception. Their demeanor would probably change when dealing with nobles, but this way was better since I didn't have to be formal.

"Yeah, I just arrived in this city yesterday."

"Hmm? Are you the outsider adventurer who defeated the group of goblins that have been causing trouble recently?"

As a merchant, he seemed to have his ear to the ground.

"Yeah, I'm probably that outsider."

"I see, you seem to be a skilled adventurer."

"F-rank, though."

"No, your rank will go up soon. An F-rank can't defeat ten goblins."

I was more interested in asking about his relationship with the guild receptionist than this talk, but I didn't know how to steer the conversation in that direction.

I wasn't interested in old guys, so I cut the small talk short, showed him one Mana Seed, and moved on to business.

Mateo held his hand over the Mana Seed and used an appraisal spell.

"Right now, it's 15 gold coins,"

he said plainly.

"Can you exchange it right away?"

"Yeah. Of course."

"What if I said I have another one?"

I took out another Mana Seed. Mateo's expression flickered with surprise for a moment, but he quickly returned to a neutral expression.

"I'll take that for 15 gold coins as well."

It seemed having multiple didn't increase their value.

"Then let's make the exchange."

Since all gold coins would be inconvenient, I had some of it changed into silver and copper coins.

"By the way, does the Mateo Trading Company deal in slaves?"

I asked, remembering the warrior slave Reed had with him.

"No, that's outside our jurisdiction. But I can act as a broker."

He leaned forward and grinned.

"There are all sorts of types, you know. What kind are you looking for? This company has three slaves working as servants."

"I was just asking. I don't know anything about slaves. I wanted to know about the market price, how to buy them, and so on. For example, how about a female warrior? Preferably in her twenties."

Mateo would probably be at a loss when asked 'how about it,' but I asked anyway. The type who gets into some kinky trouble with monsters while gritting her teeth and saying, 'Kuh... kill me!' would be nice.

"A combat slave, eh? At the last auction, a 20-year-old female warrior was sold for 100 gold coins."

"There's an auction?"

"Yeah, it's common to buy slaves from a slave trader, but there's a quarterly auction open to the public where they're sometimes sold. That female warrior was bought after muttering 'kuh.' If you're not particular about age or gender, you can get one for around 70 gold coins, but that's not what you're looking for, is it?"

Mateo laughed knowingly. Dammit, he saw right through me.

"100 gold coins is steep. It's over if they run away, right?"

"A Slave Mark is engraved on their arm. With the Slave Mark, you can give them commands or inflict pain. If you give them a command like 'If you run away, commit suicide' or 'If you betray me, commit suicide,' the slave can neither run away nor betray you."

I wonder if a simple 'Obey me' wouldn't work. There seem to be various restrictions.

Come to think of it, Reed's slave had a crest on his arm. I thought it was a stylish tattoo.

"I see. How about a mage? The type of young girl who's at her strongest on Sunday mornings would be nice."

He's already read my mind. I might as well be honest about my desires.

"Mages aren't a profession just anyone can become, so they're valuable. You probably won't find one at a slave trader in this city. Further east from here, there's a large city founded by adventurers. One was sold there for 250 gold coins. A man, though."

"That's out of my reach."

After I said it, I realized I had let it slip. He would have known I had the means to prepare a hundred gold coins. I didn't want to reveal my financial situation.

"Ah, come to think of it, a platoon arrived in this city a few days ago and is selling some dog-eared slaves. I don't have any connections, so I can't act as a broker, but if you're interested, you should take a look."

"Got it. Thanks for everything."

I can't make friends through communication like Mizuki. Once I get more used to this world and my adventurer level goes up, I might make a contract with a slave and expand my party.

I cut the conversation short and stood up.

"Yeah, if you have anything you want to sell, bring it by anytime. If you want any special weapons or armor, let me know. Even if it's not in stock, I'll order it for you."

We shook hands.

When I returned to the inn, Mizuki and the members of Wind Blade had also returned from their dungeon exploration.

They were eating on the first floor. I called out to them once and went back to my room.

I wanted to eat right away, but I didn't know how to interact with Mizuki and the others.

I waited a while before heading to the dining hall.

"You're still here?"

Only Mizuki was left.

"Is that a problem?"

She seemed to be in a bad mood.

It was awkward, but avoiding her would make it even more awkward. I sat at the same table as Mizuki and ate. As expected, it was bland.

"Here..."

"Hm, what is it?"

Mizuki handed me a cloth bag. When I tried to carelessly check the contents, she stopped me firmly with a "Don't!"

"An apology for yesterday. For the second time I hit you."

"The second time was because I cornered you with sexual harassment. You don't have to worry about it."

"I do worry about it. But with this, we're really even, okay?"

Mizuki's face was bright red. I was very curious about the contents of the bag.

"May I check inside?"

"...Make sure no one else sees."

I nodded and peeked inside. A pair of light blue panties and a matching light blue bra were there. They were undoubtedly the ones she was wearing yesterday. I had witnessed the true essence of rare item acquisition.

"Oh, oh, oh, ooooh!"

"Stop groaning and put it away!"

"Mizuki..."

I wondered if she knew what these were used for when she handed them to me, just like with the sailor uniform yesterday.

"Wh-what?"

"Let's let bygones be bygones. I will make this my family heirloom. If we return to our original world, I will donate it to a museum like the Louvre and make it a treasure of the world. And from now on, I promise we will be friends."

"I get it, just stop looking at me with those creepy eyes."

I was lightly dissed, but I didn't mind at all.

"And this, too."

It was a small pouch that fit in my hand. The opening was sewn shut, so I couldn't check the contents.

"What's this?"

"A good luck charm. I don't know if it'll work, though."

"The kind of thing a woman gives to a man going off to war?"

"...Yes."

Mizuki nodded to my casual remark.

"Hey, why are you going this far? Of course, I'll make this an heirloom too. I won't give it back even if you ask for it."

"Mmm."

"This is too much. I didn't ask for this much. I'm definitely not giving it back."

Mizuki looked down, finding it hard to speak.

I needed to get back to my room and worship my heirloom, but since I had just said we'd be friends, I'd wait for her.

"Beers-san died today."

"Who's that?"

"The warrior from Wind Blade."

"Ah, that slave."

Mizuki nodded. I think that was his name. He died?

"I have no idea how he died, but this is that kind of world. Don't worry about it too much."

"Yeah."

She's so obedient. But wait, she smells a little like alcohol.

"You, you're a high school student, and you're drinking?"

"Ugh, is it bad? I don't think I drank that much, and here it's okay to drink from the age of 16."

Mizuki answered, looking guilty.

Was she only able to give me the panties and charm because the alcohol had emboldened her? She might ask for them back when she sobered up.

If the gifts were given under the influence of alcohol, it's better not to let her drink too much.

"I really want to stop you, but you can drink if you want. Do as you please. But stop drinking to drown your sorrows. If it's for a happy occasion, I'll join you. I'll get you wasted and take you home."

"Pervert!"

Mizuki laughed weakly.

"But I understand. I'll only drink when I'm happy."