Chapter 15

After about thirty minutes of travel, we arrived at the river where the fish were said to be.

Looking at the clear stream, I could see carp-like fish swimming here and there.

This is what I need to catch.

As I thought this, I began to survey the surroundings. My magic sensing ability is reliable.

For now, there don’t seem to be any monsters around. I don’t plan on staying long, but I can focus on hunting for a while.

Using telekinesis, I caught about five fish. I killed the wriggling fish one by one in mid-air, then bled them. I once heard that it’s better to cut the nerves before bleeding them, but since the shop owner said the old method is fine, it should be okay.

Naturally, the surroundings were stained with blood. The river turned red.

I packed the fish, whose bleeding had stopped, into the bag I brought, being careful not to damage them. I also put in some ice I made by freezing the river water. As long as they are wrapped in my magic, they will stay cold.

I thought about leaving quickly, but it seems the blood attracted something.

My magic sensing ability picked up a reaction.

A feeling of being pushed back. It’s a monster that uses magic.

I had heard from the shop owner about the characteristics of the monsters that appear around here.

Ratgals. In terms of meaning, they are like rat-birds.

Four of them flew out of the bushes, screeching. I knew they would come from there, so I dodged and launched blades of wind.

One of their heads flew off. The headless body continued its momentum and dove into the river, floating away. The fish will probably eat it.

Of the remaining three, the magic around the one at the back was pushed back. It seems to be using magic.

I used telekinesis to restrain and hang the other two upside down. They flapped their wings in resistance, but it didn’t break the restraint. I decapitated them in the same way. Blood gushed out and rained down on the last one.

Ignoring the blood of its companions, a spell was cast.

I had heard beforehand that rat-birds can cast a spell of hot wind.

“Gaaah!”

With a scream, a warm wind blew. I quickly fixed the air a few meters in front of me to create a shield. The next moment, the hot wind from the rat-bird burned the ground and the surrounding trees.

It was a powerful attack.

The ground around the rat-bird was scorched in a radial pattern.

I was safe behind the barrier, but if I had received the attack without protection, I would have suffered severe burns. I was chilled to the bone at the thought of it.

I had casually said I wanted to see what magic they could use, but I didn’t expect it to be so powerful. A light sigh escaped me.

It seems they can’t cast it in quick succession. The remaining rat-bird, seeing the disadvantage, tried to escape.

I calmly decapitated it as usual.

I proceeded to dissect the killed prey as usual. I am familiar with dissecting birds.

The rat-bird, as its name suggests, has the appearance of a chicken and the skin of a rat. This time, I didn’t need to pluck the feathers, but the skin was thick and hard to remove.

It took longer than usual.

It took more time to dissect the birds than to catch the fish. Is this okay for me...

I ate one of the birds for lunch.

The taste was that of a chicken, completely unrelated to rats, and it was very delicious.

This exploration went smoothly.

It seems that as long as the monsters use magic, I can defeat them without any problems.

The issue is with monsters that use ki, like the giant snake. How do mages deal with such monsters?

Shium’s lessons are geared towards warriors who use ki, and there was nothing about magic. It makes sense since Shium can’t use it.

If I could study somewhere, that would be great.

I arrived at the stone house before sunset.

Indeed, saving time on the way there and back, and finishing the hunt nearby, makes it convenient. If the reward is about the same as jade, it would be a very profitable job.

As I approached the door, a voice called out from behind me.

“Hey, crow, are you here to cash in?”

It was Hyro. Riko was standing next to him.

Hyro was grinning smugly, carrying a cloth bag.

“Huh? You’re wearing some nice clothes. Using the money you monopolized to live a good life, huh?”

Though he was being sarcastic, his mouth was smiling. He seemed to be in a good mood.

“I bought them here the day before yesterday. They are good for moving around in the forest.”

I didn’t respond to the sarcasm. If I did, it would only lead to more trouble.

“Ha! Just wait. We’ll take all the money you’ve been hoarding through dirty means.”

Hyro glared at me and pushed past me into the stone house. Riko followed behind.

She quietly apologized. The gesture of putting her hands together in a prayer-like manner is apparently a way to apologize in this world.

The door was roughly opened, and Hyro slid in.

What should I do?

I came to sell the fish I caught, but it would be awkward to go in with them.

I could go in if it was just Riko, but with Hyro, it’s a bit unpleasant.

I hesitated for a while.

I’ll wait until Hyro comes out.

As I was waiting, a loud voice suddenly came from inside the shop.

“Why! Why does he always get the good stuff! Is it because it’s ours that it’s not allowed!?”

Hyro’s voice echoed. The poorly constructed building seemed to shake from the loud voice.

I had a bad feeling. 'He' is most likely me.

“It’s fine, come on?”

Riko’s voice trying to calm Hyro could be heard.

Then, Riko opened the door.

“Ah”

I made eye contact with Hyro.

Hyro, who was momentarily surprised, quickly changed to an angry expression and came up to me.

“Again? Are you in the way again!?”

But I had no idea what he meant. What was he talking about being in the way?

“Hey, you’re back.”

The shop owner called out to me, completely ignoring the angry Hyro.

“Eh, yes. A little while ago.”

No, no, shouldn’t you deal with the angry kid first before talking to me?

It seemed the shop owner read my mind or it was part of the plan, as he sighed and called out to me.

“You came at just the right time. Show me the fish you caught.”

“Fish? Fish!?”

Hyro reacted to the mention of fish. Something must have happened.

I handed the bag of fish to the shop owner as instructed. Hyro glared at me the whole time as I passed by.

“Here, please.”

The shop owner transferred the fish, along with the ice, into a large box. The magic effect had worn off, so it was now ordinary ice that would melt.

“Different species, but take a look.”

Next to the box, he placed a different fish. It was shaped like a large trout with spots on its sides. The shop owner continued as he ran his finger along the belly.

“First, the belly is soft. The freshness is already bad. It’s been a while since it was caught.”

“Well, I caught it in the morning.”

“Whether you caught it in the morning or the afternoon, the freshness is still bad.”

Hyro was cut off mid-sentence and fell silent, looking bitter.

The shop owner showed the silver on his finger, which had come off from rubbing against rocks or the ground.

“It must have struggled, rubbing against rocks or the ground. The scales are off and it’s scratched, making it look bad.”

“It struggled a lot when I caught it.”

“That’s why I’m saying the value has dropped. The reason doesn’t matter.”

Unable to finish his sentence or find a way to argue, Hyro’s energy quickly drained away.

Riko, standing next to him, listened with interest.

“Are you saying that the fish this child caught doesn’t have such issues?”

“Yes.”

The shop owner turned to Riko and answered clearly.

“The poor freshness and bad appearance that I mentioned earlier are not seen in this child’s fish. That’s why...”

The shop owner scooped up the ice and let it fall back into the box.

“He goes to such lengths. Even if we exclude the difference in species, the price will naturally be different.”

“I see. The condition is different. It’s the difference in handling, right?”

“Yes. If I ignore that and lower the quality, and then get complaints about the low price, it’s a problem.”

The latter part was directed at Hyro. Hyro pouted and looked away.

“But, Hyro.”

Riko smiled at Hyro.

“This time it didn’t work out, but next time, be more careful when you bring it. If you do, then...”

She pointed at me with her thumb.

“You might be able to live a little better, like him.”

“...Tch. Yeah.”

Hyro managed to respond and left the shop without a word. Riko followed.

“So, can I exchange this for money?”

The shop owner, who had silently watched them leave, continued the conversation as if nothing had happened.

“Yes, please.”

The shop owner took out five silver coins from the safe.

“One silver coin per fish.”

“Thank you.”

I put the coins in the leather bag at my waist. The silver coins were starting to add up.

“So, what happened?”

I asked with a smile, but the shop owner, without looking at me, started talking as if it was just casual conversation.

“You probably already know. When I prepared items that matched the quality of the fish they brought, they complained that there were too few. That’s all.”

“But...”

If that was all, there would be no need to go through such an explanation to make them understand. At least, the shop owner wouldn’t have done that before.

“That was for you to hear.”

“For me?”

If I hadn’t been there, there would have been no such study session.

“You came at just the right time. Bring good prey in the future.”

“Ah, yes, I understand.”

If all I need to do is hang them and decapitate them, I can do it every time without any problems.

“By the way, you said the fish I caught this time can be used to prevent illness.”

“Yes.”

The shop owner, sitting in a chair and looking at the warehouse, answered.

“From this time of year, three-day fever starts to spread. You can sell as much as you catch.”

“What is three-day fever? I’ve never seen it.”

I’ve never seen it in the village, and I’ve never had it... I think. Maybe I just don’t know.

“It’s just as the name suggests. You get a fever every three days, and it goes down quickly. Weak people die after three or four fevers. That’s the illness.”

I’ve never seen a patient with such a severe fever.

“I’ve never heard of it.”

“You came to the slums about half a year ago, right? Where were you before that?”

“Well, I think it was one of the pioneer villages, but I’m not sure where.”

I can reveal this much.

“Then, it’s near Nerg. That’s why. There are no patients in the pioneer villages, apparently.”

“I see...”

Maybe I’ve just been lucky so far.

Oh, I remember. The giant snake’s meat.

“Changing the subject, can I complain?”

“O-Oh.”

The shop owner blinked in surprise. Maybe it’s rare for me to complain.

“The meat of that snake couldn’t be eaten.”

I glared at the shop owner, who frowned.

“There’s no way. It’s based on a report from a party that defeated the same monster in a different place.”

“But...”

I can’t back down when it comes to food.

“I tried to cook it, but it was too tough to eat. It was a struggle just to swallow it.”

The shop owner froze for a moment, then laughed softly.

“I see, I see. You cooked it. You cooked it, right?”

He nodded to himself, as if understanding something. What is he understanding on his own?

“Indeed, small snakes can be cooked and eaten, but a snake that big can’t be cooked and eaten.”

“Huh?”

It was a matter of how to cook it!?

The shop owner scratched his head in thought and then spoke with determination.

“There was a flaw in the information I gave you. Ah, I’ll give you more detailed information when you come again. Tomorrow... around noon, come.”

“Can’t it be now?”

“It’s hard to prepare on the spot. Just come tomorrow.”

“...I understand.”

It’s not clear, but that’s how it is, I guess.

It’s the first time the shop owner has asked me to come. It probably won’t be bad. Thinking this, I decided to wait until tomorrow.