Chapter 53

After buying supplies, we went to the Adventurer's Guild one last time, registered Caro to the party, and left the town.

When we were leaving, the gatekeeper saw Caro and smiled, and Caro returned the smile.

Come to think of it, that man was also worried about Caro.

By the way, I entrusted the horse to Haru.

When I tried to sit in the driver's seat and control the horse, it wouldn't listen to me at all.

Then Haru came out and, when I told her to make the horse listen to me, it reluctantly followed my instructions, but it looked really unwilling, so I decided to let Haru be the driver.

It was clear that Haru recognized me as her master, but she didn't recognize me as a master in the same way.

I wonder if it's because she felt a connection due to our white hair, or if she's just perverted.

Maybe I should become a monster tamer and force her to obey.

That's what I thought.

"By the way, how do you become a monster tamer?"

"To become a monster tamer, you need to become a whip user at farmer level 5, and then become a monster tamer at whip user level 20."

Caro told me.

"Oh, right, I remember Elise called herself a monster tamer even though she was a whip user."

That might have meant she was going to become a monster tamer in the future.

"Do you know what other jobs you can become besides a farmer?"

"Fisher, gatherer, cook, scythe user. Also, it's said that you can become a grass mage at farmer level 20 and earth mage level 20."

"Earth mage?"

"At mage level 50, you can become a fire, wind, water, or earth mage."

"Wow, really? My mage level is still low... I need to level up."

My mage level is still 13, so I need to level up 37 more levels.

"By the way, what is Ichino-sama's job? You can use magic, fight with your bare hands, and fight with a sword. But since you left the party settings to Haru at the Adventurer's Guild, you're not an adventurer, right?"

"Yeah... well, it's a bit complicated—let me show you my status. You can see it, right?"

Caro thanked me for allowing it and said, "Status Open Ichino Jou."

Probably, she can see my status now.

"What... what is this, Ichino-sama? I can't see your job."

"It's not that you can't see it, it's that I don't have one. I'm jobless. But I'm a swordsman, a boxer, an apprentice blacksmith, and a hunter all at the same time. That's why my luck is high."

"...What? Master, I've never heard this before."

Haru, who was sitting in the driver's seat, perked up her ears and looked over her shoulder at us.

"Huh? I didn't tell Haru?"

"No, you didn't."

I see, I thought I had told her.

I only mentioned that I was jobless and had acquired skills.

"Sorry. Then, it's like this. This is something I was told to only tell people the goddess trusts, so don't tell anyone."

"To the goddess? Understood."

"Understood."

Caro and Haru nodded.

"So, Haru, Caro, I've learned a new skill from being jobless. You can now set a second job. What do you want it to be?"

"‘Eh!?’"

The carriage came to an abrupt stop. The horse whinnied as the reins were pulled suddenly.

"Is it really that surprising? I have five jobs, so a second one isn't a big deal."

"Well, Master, I don't think that's the issue."

"Then, don't set a second job?"

"Um... I'd like to be a lumberjack. I want to increase my stats as a boxer."

"Got it."

I willed Haru's second job to be a lumberjack.

"How's that?"

"Let me check. Status Open... Wow... Wow, Master, I really have two jobs now."

"Let me see. Status Open Haru Watart."

……………………………………………………

Name: Haru Watart

Race: White Wolf

Job: Beast Swordsman Lv7

HP: 131/149

MP: 34/39

Physical Attack: 133

Physical Defense: 128

Magic Attack: 9

Magic Defense: 74

Speed: 300

Luck: 30

Equipment: Collar of Subjugation, Fire Dragon Fang Sword, Short Sword, Silk Dress, Leather Boots, Wind Brooch

Skills: [Stone Throwing], [Bow Equipping], [Disassembly], [Sword Equipping II], [Slash II], [Spinning Slash II], [Bow and Arrow Equipping], [Sword Skill Enhancement (Small)], [Speed UP (Slight)], [Dual Wielding], [Experience Value Distribution Setting], [Enhanced Sense of Smell], [Forgery Appraisal]

Acquired Titles: Labyrinth Explorer II, Party Leader

Available Jobs: Commoner Lv15, Farmer Lv1, Hunter Lv5, Lumberjack Lv1, Apprentice Swordsman Lv25, Swordsman Lv23, Beast Swordsman Lv7

……………………………………………………

Huh?

I can only see one job. But the magic attack value, which was 0, is now 9, and the luck value is 30.

So, even in a party, others can't see the second job.

That could be useful for keeping things hidden.

"What about you, Caro?"

"Um... Ichino-sama?"

"What is it?"

"Can Ichino-sama set jobs freely?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Then... could it be that the person who changed Caro's job from seductress to commoner was actually Ichino-sama, not Trailleur-sama?"

Gulp!

Oh, right.

I hadn't told Caro that yet.

"Well, yeah, that's right. It's a skill from being jobless, and I was told to keep it a secret from Cosomare-sama."

"...Caro... Caro had a feeling it might be like that. When Ichino-sama put the friendship ring on Caro, and after that, Caro's job changed, and seeing how Ichino-sama fights without being bound by job restrictions—so... so..."

"Um, Caro?"

"Caro is very happy to be with Ichino-sama!"

"I'm very happy to be with Master too."

Ah, yeah, sure.

I'm super happy too, but it's a bit embarrassing to hear it said so directly.

In the end, Caro's second job became an apprentice mage.

She wants to become an apprentice alchemist and learn ore appraisal.

"By the way, I can use alchemy too... Would it be more profitable to turn iron ore into iron ingots?"

"Yes, it's quite difficult because it consumes a lot of MP. An apprentice alchemist at level 5 can only smelt 3 iron ores a day, but Master can probably smelt more."

"True. Let's give it a try..."

I took an iron box out of my item bag and placed it on the floor.

The carriage's speed seemed to slow down for a moment but quickly returned to normal.

I opened the lid and looked at the iron ore inside.

It's a red stone. I wouldn't have picked it up if I saw it on the ground.

"Would I be punished for smelting iron without joining the Alchemist's Guild?"

"No, you wouldn't. The Alchemist's Guild provides a stable supply of ores and catalysts and buys smelted metals, but you need to join the guild to benefit from that. However, you can smelt iron without using alchemy."

I see, that makes sense.

Iron smelting has existed for 5000 years in Earth's history.

It's possible without relying on skills.

Let's give it a try.

I changed my job to apprentice mage, mage, and apprentice alchemist, focusing on magic.

……………………………………………………

Alchemy: Production Skill [Apprentice Alchemist Lv2]

Use magic to turn ores into metals and combine metals to create alloys.

To see the metals you can create, say "Recipe Open."

……………………………………………………

By the way, I've checked the recipes before. There are 20 types of metals you can create, including the method to turn iron ore into iron.

I don't know how to make steel yet. I remember it's an alloy of carbon and iron.

Since carbon is easy to obtain, I want to make steel when I level up my alchemy.

I understood how to use the skill when I acquired it.

I took an iron ore out of the box, held it in my left hand, and infused it with magic.

Then... something started to gather on the surface of the iron ore and fell off like sand.

This is the impurities.

However, even after the impurities were removed, it was still red.

This is because it's hematite, which contains oxygen atoms.

But by infusing more magic, the oxygen was removed, and the color gradually changed to a dull metallic hue.

I used 20 MP and it took 3 minutes.

And then—

[Ichino Jou's level has increased]

An apprentice alchemist gains experience by using alchemy.

I grow 400 times faster, so it's like I smelted 400 iron ores, and my level increased by 2.

The iron that was created from the iron ore was a sphere, not a bar or a plate.

It was slightly lighter than the iron ore.

"How's that?"

"It's amazing. Normally, it would take an alchemist 10 minutes to smelt a complete iron from this size of iron ore."

I'm not even a full alchemist, just an apprentice.

"The speed of alchemy depends on magic attack. It's probably due to that."

Caro was impressed.

I feel a bit proud. It's just the power of being a jobless cheat, though.

While the carriage was swaying, I started to smelt another iron ore.

～Interlude～

Dacat is a country where 80% of the land is grassland, and pastoralism is prevalent.

Surprisingly, 90% of the population are nomads.

Therefore, there are few towns in Dacat.

There are only three: two border towns and the capital, Ferit.

There are ongoing skirmishes with the neighboring country, Colat, but they are limited to a 2.8-kilometer radius around the Sadenes River, and the people live in peace.

However, there was a group that did not approve of this peace.

The secret society Masakuru, named after the most brutal and cruel criminal in Dacat's history.

The leader of Masakuru, Frio, gathered the members and gave a speech.

"For centuries, we have been given a false peace, maintained by the ongoing war with the neighboring country, Colat. Some lament and mourn our inability to win, while others take pride in our ability to not lose. But we know. We are aware. The country fears winning the war. By creating a common enemy in Colat, the government covers up its failures, corruption, and misdeeds. They blame all the sins on the imaginary enemy, Colat—yes, Colat is not an enemy, but an imaginary enemy created by the country! They use the taxes collected from the people as military funds to indulge in luxury."

Frio made a fist and hit the table, and one of the members raised a hand.

"What is the ultimate luxury?"

"...Women. Women, alcohol, and meat. Meat with plenty of pepper. Pepper overflowing the iron plate!"

At Frio's explanation, the members exclaimed, "Ohhhhh."

"Anyway! We must strike down the corrupt government!"

Frio raised his fist, and the members shouted, "Ohhhhhh!"

At that moment,

"Hey, what are you kids doing in my warehouse!"

The excitement had caused his voice to leak outside.

Then, like scattering spiderlings, 13-14-year-old children fled from the warehouse, with Frio leading the way.

"How was it, Sutino? Was today's speech pretty good?"

"Yeah, it was great, Frio. By the way, have you heard? Narbe was caught in the northern Floorance."

"Narbe, my uncle?"

Narbe is Frio's father's younger brother, who was exiled 12 years ago for theft.

He later became a bandit and moved around various places.

Frio was only 3 when Narbe was exiled, and he had never seen him before, but to Frio, Narbe was a hero who rebelled against the corrupt country and was defeated.

"He was caught by a man named Ichino Jou and a woman named Haru Watart."

"Ichino Jou and Haru Watart... I can't forgive them for laying hands on our hero."

The two fled for the time being.

Their organization's name is the secret society Masakuru.

In the town of Ferit, they are a well-known gang of delinquents, known to everyone.