Chapter 15

Leaving the Adventurer's Guild and heading straight down West Avenue, when I reached the compacted earth road marked with the sign for 4th Ring Road, a smell like something rotten was wafting through the area. The stench seemed to be coming from the huge holes dug along the streets, which were surrounded by fences. This area was already on the outskirts of town, with hardly any buildings around. There were fences set up in a grid pattern, perhaps to protect the streets, and watchtowers with roofs here and there.

At the intersection of West Avenue and 4th Ring Road, there was a massive earthen rampart. A makeshift fort-like structure was built on top of the rampart. This must be the base that guards the west. By this time, past noon, a group of adventurers who seemed to have finished their hunting were already forming a line near West Avenue. The front of the line was at the end of the western fort, where they were probably turning in the corpses of barbarians and monsters to receive their rewards.

"Hey, checking things out?"

The man who spoke to Arl was Orson, the elderly man who was at the "Red-Faced Sheep" inn last night. I hadn't noticed it then, but he was dragging one of his legs slightly.

"Hello, Orson. Is that the processing area over there?"

"Yeah, that's right. That's where they collect the corpses from the adventurers. They sort the parts that can be used as livestock feed from those that can't. The parts that can be used as feed are sent to the livestock farm, and those that can't are thrown into the holes dug around the ring road. When the holes are full, they're covered with soil, and new holes are dug elsewhere. The buried corpses eventually become good fertilizer. That's how the area where humans live expands, according to the bigwigs at the Adventurer's Guild."

"I see. It doesn't sound like a bad deal just from that."

"But if you do that job for a whole day, the smell will seep into your body and won't come off. No one will come near you. You won't be able to go to restaurants or get a room at an inn, and it's a real hassle."

Arl made a very unpleasant face, but Orson started laughing when he saw it.

"Hehehe, don't worry, a magician who can take down a bandit leader with a magic arrow won't be doing that kind of job. Relax."

"No, that was really just a fluke. I've been working as an adventurer in the capital, but I was only doing it part-time while going to school. I'm not really confident about making a living here yet."

At first, Orson looked puzzled at Arl's words, but as he listened, he began to understand that Arl really meant it.

"Is that so? Then what are you planning to do to make a living?"

"Well, I checked out the Adventurer's Guild's requests. There were some requests for collecting red ants, so I thought I'd look around and see if I could find them."

The red ant is about 20 mm long and a bit larger than a regular ant. The white liquid secreted from its rear end is said to be used in medicine. Orson knew about this request and shook his head, saying it wasn't a good idea.

"That's a pretty good reward, right? A lot of people think that way. But, since you don't know this area well, I'll tell you. There are a lot of monsters in the wetlands to the west of here, and the most troublesome are the red fire ants, which look similar to red ants. They look very similar, but they have a potent venom that can paralyze an adult and make them unable to move. I'm not saying anything bad, but it's better to get used to the area a bit before taking on collection jobs. How about it? Want to team up with me for a while and do some barbarian hunting? I'll explain how things are done around here."

He had been badly injured about a year ago and now could only walk by dragging his leg, so he had fewer jobs available. He explained that if he teamed up with Arl, he would be able to do a lot more jobs. Arl looked at Orson's face and thought for a moment. From the way he talked, he seemed to be a very reasonable person and knowledgeable. The Rass family also seemed to trust him. It wouldn't be a bad idea to gain some experience as an adventurer by following him for a while.

"Alright, Orson. I'd be grateful if you would."

"Great, that's the spirit. Thanks. Then let's get to know each other a bit more. We need to figure out which hunting grounds are the most efficient."

The two immediately started talking about their sword skills, magic range, and other things.

-----

The two returned to the "Red-Faced Sheep" inn when it was starting to get dark, in high spirits. Their teamwork of Arl luring the enemies and Orson holding them off had worked well, and despite starting in the afternoon, they had managed to earn about 30 silver coins. At this rate, they could earn enough to cover a month's living expenses in a week.

After changing, the two were happily talking in the inn's courtyard, cleaning their weapons and equipment, when Iris, the daughter, appeared, having heard their voices. It seemed that Arl had a visitor. A slender, bespectacled man of about the same age, so he hurried to the dining room where the guest was waiting.

"Hey, Alfred. Congratulations on your safe arrival. How's Lester?"

In the dining room, it was indeed his classmate, Kane. Arl approached quickly and shook hands firmly.

"Yeah, there's still a lot I don't understand. But I've made a few friends, and I think it's a good city."

Kane nodded in relief. He seemed to be having a light meal while waiting for Arl, and there was a plate of food on the table where he was sitting. Arl asked Rass's wife, Laureen, to bring his dinner to the table.

"That's good to hear. As a native of this city, I'm glad. But, I thought this was your first time here and you just arrived yesterday. The inn people seem to be very friendly with you, so what happened?"

"Well, actually..."

Arl explained how he had teamed up with Barbara and saved the inn's owner, Rass, and his family. At first, Kane listened with a nod, but when he heard about the two of them storming the bandit hideout, his eyes widened.

"Of course, they'd be grateful. So, you're planning to stay here for a while?"

"Yeah. Today, I went hunting with Orson, an adventurer who's staying here. He's a good guy and is teaching me a lot."

Kane nodded. Then Iris brought Arl's dinner on a tray. It seemed to be a menu of rye bread, meaty soup, and boiled beans.

"Thanks, Iris."

When Arl thanked her, she bowed happily and left. Seeing this, Kane smiled a little.

"Wow, you're quite the catch. Have you already got a girlfriend?"

Arl shook his head vigorously. He had no such intention. It was just a misunderstanding. The two of them talked for a while about who they liked at the middle school and deepened their friendship.

"By the way, I almost forgot the purpose of my visit."

When they were full and the dining room was starting to fill with drunk patrons, Kane said a little apologetically and took a package out of his bag.

"I came here today because Lord Narish received a message from Lord Revi that you were staying here. Lord Narish himself wants to meet you, but his schedule is so packed that he can't get away. So, I came in his place. This is a token of gratitude for your help. He was really disappointed that he couldn't come himself to thank you."

Arl took the package. It was a long, light box.

"Can I open it?"

"I don't know what's inside, but I think it's fine."

Arl carefully opened the package. Inside was a spell book. Arl's eyes lit up.

"What is it? It looks old and valuable. Is there anything written on it?"

Kane seemed to know nothing about the spell book. Arl looked at the title of the scroll. It was a spell for physical enhancement, a spell favored by magic-using nobles and knights, which they almost exclusively used, so it was rarely available on the market. Arl looked incredulous.

"This? I think it's quite valuable. Did Lord Narish say anything else?"

"Hmm, from the way he talked, he seemed to think that you were his savior and that this wasn't enough. I suggested that he could come out tonight, but he wasn't allowed. He's leaving here the day after tomorrow for the opening ceremony of the advanced school. He also mentioned that he can't use magic because he doesn't have the talent, so you don't need to worry about that."

"I see. Thank you. Please tell him that I'll use it gratefully."

Kane nodded at Arl's words.

"If anything happens, come to the government office. I'm working there as an intern in the internal affairs department, helping my father."

"Sure, thanks."

The two raised their mugs of ale in a toast.

Thank you for reading.

This concludes Chapter 2. I will post character introductions in an hour.

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