Chapter 63

After getting what I wanted to some extent, I finally finished shopping. It was quite a hassle. I returned to the room to take a breather.

"Silfe, can you tell me about what the guild members were talking about?"

"Ne-ne. Yuta. Beru. I want to eat meat."

Before Silfe could answer, Beru jumped into my chest. I remembered we had promised to eat when we got back to the inn.

"That's right. I'll prepare it now, so please wait a moment. Silfe, let's talk after we eat. Silfe, are you going to eat too?"

"Yes, I will."

I immediately placed the bread, which I had bought, on a plate, cleaned it, and put the thick slices of meat that Beru and the others had been craving the most between the bread. The old man at the stall had said it was a sandwich with herb-roasted Raphbird meat.

"Looks delicious," "Quu," "It's big," "Kuuu."

Yeah, everyone is so excited. I'm getting hyped up just by looking at it. The thickness of the meat is insane. When I said they could eat, Beru and the others immediately bit into the thick sandwich.

Beru, floating softly, held the sandwich with both hands and opened her mouth wide to bite into it. Her mouth couldn't even match the size of the bread. She could only take a bite of about half the thickness, and her body started to spin. For Beru, this sandwich seems to be a formidable opponent.

Rain and Tamamo seem to have no problem. Both of them opened their mouths wide and happily took on the sandwich. Since dolphins and foxes have big mouths, it doesn't seem to be a problem.

Turu held the sandwich calmly and took small bites like a small animal. She must be enjoying it, as she is eating with all her heart. Turu's way of eating might be the most proper. But I still want to push for Beru's way of eating, even though I know it's difficult.

I heard a "snap" and turned around to see a shocking scene. Silfe had apparently used wind magic to cut the sandwich into smaller pieces.

"Oh, Yuta. What's wrong?"

Noticing my shocked expression, Silfe spoke to me.

"Well, Silfe, I think that's a bit much. After all, it's a thick sandwich. I think it's polite to hold it with both hands and bite into it."

"Do you have such manners in another world? In this world, it's considered unseemly for a woman to open her mouth wide, so when possible, it's the custom for a lady to cut her food into small pieces and eat it."

So Silfe is a lady. Since she mentioned the manners of a lady, I have no way to argue. After all, my opinion is just a preference. A man's preference can be blown away by a lady's breath.

"That's true. Ladies need to be elegant. Come to think of it, in my world, women are also like that."

"Hehe, there are similar things in any world."

Silfe said this as she put the small pieces of sandwich into her mouth. Indeed, it looks elegant.

"Yuta, Beru is a lady."

No, Beru. A lady doesn't declare herself a lady while holding a half-eaten sandwich high in the air with both hands. But it's fine because she's cute.

Well, I should eat too. I opened my mouth wide and bit into the hot Raphbird herb-roasted sandwich.

The crust of the bread was crunchy, and the inside was soft and moist with the juices of the Raphbird. When my teeth reached the meat, I felt its elasticity, and at the same time, the aroma of the herbs and the juices exploded in my mouth.

... This is delicious. I chewed the sandwich thoroughly. It was worth twice the price compared to other stalls. I should buy a lot if I see it again.

We enjoyed the hearty and voluminous sandwiches with a lot of noise. Since one sandwich is enough to fill you up, it might be more cost-effective than skewers.

"It was delicious," "Quuu," "I like it," "Kuuu."

"Let's buy it again if we see it. I have something to talk to Silfe about, so why don't you all go for a walk?"

"Walk. Look for delicious things."

"Quuuu."

"Find it."

"Kuuu."

Even after finishing the large sandwich, they seem eager to look for more delicious things. I watched Beru and the others fly out of the window energetically. They must be spreading bad rumors, so it's a relief that they went out for a walk.

"So, Silfe, what kind of talk was there in the guild?"

"Hmm, there were various things, but all of them were bad rumors. Do you want to hear them?"

"I'll listen, but why do you look so happy?"

"Hehe, because the rumors are so bad. It's fun to imagine what the situation will be like when Yuta does something great. Hehe. Yuta, let's do our best."

The content is crude, but she's smiling very cutely.

"Silfe, have you become a bad person?"

"Hehe, maybe. But I think it's all due to the influence of the contractor."

The contractor is me, right?

"I was called a good person when I was in my hometown. Probably this world is bad."

After all, I was often told, "You're a good person, but a bit...". I'm a good person. No doubt about it.

"If this world is bad, there's nothing we can do, is there?"

"Yeah, if the world is bad, there's nothing we can do."

It's all the world's fault. So I'm not bad. It's a flawless, perfect theory.

"Then, can you tell me the content?"

"Sure. The main topic was that you, who were kind enough to persuade the guild master to quit as a spirit mage, were disrespectful and started a fight."

... A kind guild master? There was no such person. I was polite until halfway through, right?

"Maybe the information has been manipulated?"

"Yes, you're being treated as an air-headed troublemaker."

... For someone who worked in Japanese society, where reading the air is a must-have skill, being called air-headed is ridiculous.

"Who's spreading the rumors? The guild master?"

"The source is the guild master, but it seems to be the policy of the entire adventurer guild. They are sharing information and guiding everyone to avoid you."

Bullying is ugly. No wonder no one approached me despite my bold actions. I'm completely isolated.

"A fraud and an air-headed troublemaker. That's a harsh accusation."

"Oh, the fact that you can't read the air has been proven. You responded to Eltina with a blank face and signed up for the beginner's training in that guild's atmosphere. At that time, the other adventurers were convinced that you really couldn't read the air."

"That's rude. I could read the air, but I ignored it because it was necessary."

"I don't think there's much difference."

"No, reading the air and ignoring it are completely different."

"From the outside, they look the same."

"… You're right. Was that all the rumors?"

"No, Karl and the adventurers who lost to you in bets are spreading all sorts of rumors about your despicable acts. Like taking all their money by squeezing them dry, or tilting the bets and taking all the stakes. And there's a rumor that you tried to flirt with Eltina and got rejected."

"I forgave them with all their money because they didn't want to quit being adventurers, and I accepted the bet because it wasn't valid. The stories are completely different. Besides, I didn't even try to flirt with Eltina."

"Whether it's true or not doesn't matter. The goal is to make Yuta look bad."

That's harsh. Especially the part about flirting with Eltina and getting rejected is unacceptable. I would have liked to flirt with her if I had the guts, but I didn't. I can't forgive this.

"What do you plan to do from now on, Yuta? Are you going to show the adventurer guild what for?"

Don't look at me with such an excited expression. I feel like I have to do something big.

"Hmm, I thought it would be enough to show them how much they missed out on by doing a lot of great things, but that's not enough. I want to make the adventurer guild suffer more."

"Right. Half-hearted efforts won't do. They won't reflect unless you make them thoroughly realize it. Besides, the problem with the spirit mages is due to their poor communication, and it's frustrating to think that even the spirits are being seen in a bad light."

It seems Silfe is also upset about the spirits. From what I've heard, I think I can guide the spirits. Even if I ask them simply, I think they can make a lot of progress.

If I tell them easily, it might be used for war, so I need to think about various conditions. Maybe I should seriously consider creating a clan of spirit mages. Ah, since the original contract is spirit-favorable, it won't be that bad. Hehe, it will be interesting to see what the guild master does when the spirit mages start to shine.

"For now, I can think of two things. One is to advance beyond the 50th floor of the dungeon, where they are stuck, and not supply any materials to the adventurer guild. The other is to create a clan or guild of spirit mages, train them, and make them perform better than the adventurer guild. Both can be done with Silfe and the others."

It might seem like wishful thinking, but from what I've heard, it doesn't seem impossible. I plan to contract with other great spirits, and if that doesn't work, I can ask them to introduce suitable spirits. I think it will work out.

"That's good. Both are good. Let's do both. It will definitely be interesting."

Both? I think both will be difficult.

"Since we also have to develop the Land of Death, it will be difficult to do both. I don't think we have enough time."

"Is that so? It will be easy to go beyond the 50th floor of the dungeon with us. The only thing that will take time is training the spirit mages."

"Is that so? Then maybe it's not impossible. But let's do one thing at a time. First, let's explore the dungeon. If we have time, we can train the spirit mages."

"Understood. Hehe, I wonder what face the guild master will make. I'm looking forward to it."

Indeed. Maybe I've had a bad influence on you. I'm sorry, Silfe.

I've included an activity report and an apology. Please check it if you like.

Thank you for reading.