Chapter 26

When I woke up, there was a statue of Lady Kosomare.

It was truly a faithful reproduction.

"Master, congratulations."

Har bowed her head.

"Huh? What for?"

"The fact that no item appeared means you must have acquired a skill, right?"

Ah, that’s how it works.

"There was a time when ten consecutive brushes hit, and I was worried."

"Yeah, I got the skill to understand common language. It’s convenient because I don’t need to ask for dictation or reading anymore."

"That’s good. I’ll have less work to do."

Har’s tail seemed a bit disappointed. Maybe she doesn’t want to be seen as useless.

Lately, I find myself looking at her tail without looking at her face.

"No, as I said, I’m from another world, so I don’t know anything about this world. I expect a lot from you, Har, both as a combatant and for your knowledge."

"Yes, I’ll do my best with all my heart."

Seeing her tail wag happily, I was sure I had said the right thing.

When we left the boss room, the door closed behind us.

"Let’s head back... We’ll probably encounter a few enemies on the way back."

I want to level up the pugilist, so I want to defeat any enemies I find.

Before I forget, I changed the hunter back to a swordsman and went up the stairs.

When we exited the dungeon, it was already night. The gatekeeper was an unfamiliar old man, neither the one from yesterday nor Norn, so I just nodded and passed through.

In the dungeon, we encountered three small spiders the size of mice, one red slime, three giant bats, and two goblins. Har defeated the giant bats and one small spider, and I took care of the rest.

As a result, the pugilist reached level 5 and acquired the skills [Fist Attack] and [Physical Attack Enhancement (Minor)]. The jobless level increased by 1 to 56, the apprentice magician reached level 14, and the swordsman reached level 13, but no new skills were learned.

The growth rate is clearly slowing down. It’s probably because they are higher-level jobs, but the apprentice magician seems to level up particularly slowly.

"It’s getting late. Let’s head back to Margaret’s place."

I wonder if there’s dinner. She said she would prepare it, so I don’t need to buy anything.

"It’s around 7 PM, so it’s just about closing time."

"You can tell the time?"

"During the day, by the position of the sun, and at night, by the position of the moon and stars."

"Wow, that’s impressive."

I could only tell that there were still people on the main street, so it wasn’t late at night.

When we walked to Margaret’s shop, she was just closing up.

"Margaret, we’re back."

"Oh, Itchi, Har... Hehe, it looks like it went well."

"Yeah, we just explored the dungeon a bit."

"You went in that outfit? It’s fine for Itchi, but Har, that’s not your usual clothes."

Margaret said, sounding surprised.

Yeah, I suggested buying armor, but Har said it would be easier to move in this outfit.

"This is easier to move in."

"No, you’re a girl, so you should clearly separate your work clothes from your regular clothes, like I do."

...Does Margaret really separate her work clothes from her regular clothes? I never noticed because I wasn’t interested.

She’s wearing shorts and a shirt now, but usually, she wears a frilly skirt... No, I shouldn’t think about it. It makes me feel uncomfortable.

I guess I unconsciously avoided looking at it.

"Itchi, isn’t this the time to show your manliness?"

"...Yeah, um, about 100 cents for Har’s combat clothes—"

"Combat clothes are a bit more expensive."

"Then, up to 1000 cents is fine. Please."

"Thank you, Itchi... Hehe, Har, I’ll find the perfect clothes for you."

"Um, I’m fine as I am—"

Har was dragged into the shop by Margaret.

Yeah, if it comes to this, there’s no stopping Margaret.

I also went into the shop and, while trying to listen to the voices from the fitting room, I went further in.

When I reached the dining table, Norn was serving the food.

"Welcome back, sir. You managed to buy Har, I see."

"Thanks, Norn. Yeah, thanks to you."

I offered to help, but Norn shook her head and said, "I was off today, so I had time to do this."

So, I went to the well to fetch water in a bucket, brought it back to the room, and took off my armor.

The armor fits well and is light, so it doesn’t get in the way when I wear it, but it feels good to take it off.

I took off my shirt, wet a towel with the well water, wrung it out, and wiped the sweat off. It feels good, but something is missing.

I really want a shower.

Maybe I’ll take a bath with well water.

No, it’s too cold for that this time of year.

I felt the frustration of almost sneezing but not being able to, put on a new shirt, and started cleaning my armor.

There’s hardly any damage, but there are some small scratches from the previous owner. As a token of gratitude to Margaret’s former partner for leaving the steel sword, I carefully polished the armor. Then, I heard Norn’s voice from downstairs, saying the food was ready.

When I went down, Margaret and Har were already seated, and Norn placed the food on the seat next to Har for me.

When I asked Margaret about the cost of the clothes, she said 700 cents, but when I asked Har to tell me the real price, she said 750 cents, so I paid 800 cents. The extra is for the room rent.

She said it was too much, but I insisted, and Margaret took the eight silver coins.

Then, I also took my seat. Today’s dinner is grilled fish and sautéed potatoes.

There were knives and forks on the table, and a jar of butter in the middle.

"Let’s eat, then."

At Margaret’s words, we started eating.

The butter was apparently for the potatoes, so I followed Norn and Margaret’s example and used a butter knife to spread butter on the potatoes.

Butter is a somewhat expensive ingredient, so Har was initially hesitant, but at Margaret’s encouragement, she scooped up a small amount of butter and spread it on the potatoes.

"By the way, how long will you stay in this town?"

"Um, I’m thinking of heading to the southern town of Velasra soon."

I feel like I was subtly encouraged to meet Trailleur.

"If you’re going to Velasra, the carriage leaves tomorrow evening and then again in a week. You can walk, but it takes about three days."

"...Oh, really. Then, I might leave tomorrow... Har, is that okay?"

"Yes, Master’s path is my path."

Kuu, that’s a good answer.

"That’s right... I’ll miss you. You can always come back. And I’ll prepare a lunch box for you and deliver it to the carriage."

"Thank you."

And so, the last night in Florenz for me passed. No, it’s not the last, I’ll definitely come back.

I made that promise.

Before that, there’s one more thing I need to do in this town.

I returned to the room, lay on the bed, and looked up at the ceiling.

The lamp was off, so the only light came from the moon through the window, but it was still fairly bright.

After a while, there was a knock on the door.

"...Master, are you already asleep?"

It was Har. I told her I was still awake, and she opened the door and came in.

Her white hair, illuminated by the moonlight, looked incredibly beautiful and ethereal.

"...Master... about what happened in front of the boss room in the dungeon..."

"Ah... yeah."

"I lost consciousness from the moment you touched my stomach... I want you to... continue it here..."

"Continue...?"

Har said in a seductive voice.

"The oath of loyalty... Master, please... touch my stomach. If Master wishes, I can continue..."

"Continue...?"

"The bond between a man and a woman... White wolves can only conceive on the night of a full moon, so it’s fine today."

...Is it okay?

Huh?

Am I graduating from DT?

A man should not refuse a meal set before him.

...What happened after that is a secret (just kidding).