Chapter 6

It has been about ten days since I gave Mother the warm cloth as a gift. As expected, the mood boost didn't last that long. I ate breakfast as usual, did my manure disposal job energetically, and went to pray at the church. It rained all day, but I didn't miss my morning and evening prayers on any other day. I want to become an alchemist, so I decided to be greedy and go for it.

By the way, maybe because I confirmed that the money was coming in steadily, I started to have the leisure to look around. When that happens, various things start to catch your attention. For example, the tents in front of the church. I don't think there are people in this village who don't have a house, but there are quite a few tents in the square that everyone calls the church square.

The mayor's house also faces this church square, so I thought they might be the mayor's guests or something, but it's unlikely that he would make his guests live in tents. If they were merchants, I would expect to see their goods displayed, but there's nothing like that. I wondered what kind of group they were. Since I act early in the morning, I don't know what they do during the day, but... since they aren't being excluded, I don't think they are bad people. They come to the church in the evening, but I haven't seen them there. ...No, I think I've seen people cooking in front of the tents. But that's just a normal dinner, right? Anyway, since I was curious about this mysterious group, I decided to ask Judy about it while replenishing my storage bottles.

"The tents in front of the church? Oh, those are adventurers."

"Adventurers? What are they?"

"Adventurers are adventurers. Hmm, how should I put it? Well, they're kind of like jack-of-all-trades. There's usually an Adventurer's Guild in towns. If you go south for about a day, there's a town called Kauts, and I'm pretty sure there's an Adventurer's Guild there. They probably came to this village to take on a request from that guild."

"A request? So, like, 'I want magic mushrooms, please go and pick them. The reward is this much,' kind of thing?"

"Exactly, something like that. It's probably a request from an alchemist, magician, or pharmacist. It could be a different kind of request, but if it's a request for this village, it's likely related to York's Forest. Oh, it might be a standing request. But unless it's something like delivering letters, they're probably adventurers targeting York's Forest."

"Um, is what I'm doing now, kind of like an adventurer's job?"

"Hmm? Well, yes, it is something adventurers do. But it's also something alchemists do. ...Some alchemists are bad at or dislike physical labor, so it depends on the faction. If you're in the Illusionary faction, you'd definitely go and collect it yourself. Fieldwork is their main job. And adventurers vary widely."

"Variety? What do you mean?"

"Not everyone who takes requests is reliable. They're jack-of-all-trades, for better or worse. They're often not specialized, so many of them aren't very good. In my experience, about 80% are bad, and maybe 20% or even 10% are good. Most of them are village outcasts trying to make a living with whatever talents they have. It's rare to have a purpose like you. I think most adventurers do it without any particular talent or skill."

"So, adventurers aren't very good, then?"

"Well, not exactly, but... adventurers who specialize in combat in dangerous areas are good. An adventurer who can take care of materials is even better. There are also those who specialize in collection. I think there's at least one group in magical or spiritual areas. Since this is a spiritual area, I think there might be some in the tent group... probably."

"It doesn't sound very good."

"Well, yeah. Some people might call them a group of village outcasts. But there are decent people too. Also, they can get an ID card, which is convenient when entering towns. I'm registered just for the ID card. --Here."

She showed me a milky white plate hanging around her neck. The name was neatly printed, so it was probably made from an alchemical item or something similar. It was more solidly made than I expected.

"You should get an ID card too. It will make things easier in many ways. After the Star Allocation Ceremony, you should get one. Especially when using shared carriages, it can save you from a lot of troublesome contracts. With an ID card, you can skip those procedures. ...But as an adventurer, you'll have certain obligations, like helping defend the carriage or not committing crimes in town. They're common sense, so they're almost non-existent obligations. If you don't fulfill them, your ID card will gradually turn black. It's an item that works that way."

"So, a black ID card means a bad adventurer."

"Exactly. But even a clean milky white ID card doesn't guarantee a good adventurer. Failing requests doesn't turn the plate black, so there are many adventurers who fail continuously but still have a clean plate. Well, I don't give requests, so it doesn't matter to me."

She continued chatting with a laugh. ...I see, adventurers. If I can't become an alchemist, I'll probably have to become an adventurer. Knowing this, I think that's why Father and Mother let me do what I want. Either way, as the third son of a farming family, I'll become an adventurer who enters York's Forest.

"Oh, but there are adventurers who become the stuff of sagas. Have you ever seen a bard on a shared carriage that stops in this village? Most of what they sing about are great adventurers. There are poems about knights and such, but mostly about adventurers. ...They're like stars of hope for the people who are cast out. Usually, the ones who are sung about are those with combat talents."

"Are there talents suitable for adventurers?"

"Of course. Swordsmanship, spear skills, magic, you name it. If you get talents that give you an advantage in combat, you can survive as an adventurer to some extent. Those who become saga heroes usually have five or six stars in their talents. With just one star, there's a limit to how far you can go, a limit set by your lifespan. The number of stars directly affects the growth of your talents. So, those with more stars are more likely to be the subject of poems. ...But you shouldn't rest on your laurels. A focused one-star adventurer can be stronger than a lazy five-star one. It's the same with alchemy. Those with more stars will become skilled faster, but there's no limit with one star. The number of trials is everything. If you want to delve deeper, you can stay at the Academy. It's a place for that."

With Judy looking far away, I packed the storage bottles into the 'Extend Space.' ...I want to be able to store things without using my hands soon.

"Well, in your case, you need to successfully get through the Star Allocation Ceremony first."

The atmosphere became a bit solemn, but she laughed it off and talked about my Star Allocation Ceremony, blowing away the previous mood. Judy laughed, and the heavy atmosphere from before was gone. She probably had some thoughts about the Alchemical Academy. I'm mature enough to not bring it up.

After collecting 1,000 storage bottles, I went to gather materials as usual. This forest really has a lot of magic mushrooms. No matter how many I pick, they even grow in places where they weren't yesterday. It's very helpful for me, who wants to make money, but the prices don't drop at all, which is amazing. I asked Judy what they're used for, and she said they're mainly for intermediate potions and intermediate magic potions. I heard that alchemists and pharmacists make the most of these. They're also versatile materials for alchemy and concoctions that use a lot of magic. However, magic mushrooms without attributes are not suitable for handling attributes, so those with attributes are more expensive and more versatile.

Also, if you store them in storage bottles, they don't degrade much, and the bottles are hard to break, which is great. But storage bottles are made with magic. ...I don't quite understand, but there's a magical tool for making storage bottles, and if you channel magic into it, a storage bottle is created. Judy has two magical tools, and she uses both to make 1,000 storage bottles. It's very helpful.

The speed at which they are made depends on the quality of the magical tool. Judy has two high-quality ones, and they can make one storage bottle every 2-3 seconds. It takes about 30 minutes to make 1,000, but she makes some for herself when she has free time, so it's fine. I'm a bit worried that her 'Extend Space' might be full of storage bottles.

Speaking of 'Extend Space,' my 'Extend Space' is also gradually increasing in capacity. It seems to be largely due to magic manipulation, and it grows rapidly during childhood. It can still grow in adulthood, but childhood is the best time for magic manipulation. Magic manipulation is also a kind of talent, so the more capacity you have, the more convenient it is.

Regarding the collection, the quality of magic mushrooms can vary greatly depending on whether they are stored in storage bottles. Time still passes in the 'Extend Space,' and if magic mushrooms are not stored in storage bottles, their magic power gradually fades. If stored in a bottle, they can last for about 50 years, so the development of storage bottles is quite remarkable. If not stored in a bottle, the magic power of magic mushrooms will dissipate to less than half in a day. In the past, if you wanted high-quality magic mushrooms, you had to live near a magical or spiritual area.

By the way, after hearing about adventurers from Judy, I looked around the forest and could see people moving about. ...This is such a profitable place. There are competitors, of course. Just by selling magic mushrooms, you can earn more than a farmer's annual income, so of course, everyone enters magical or spiritual areas.

Oh, the difference between magical and spiritual areas is that magical areas are spots where monsters appear, and spiritual areas are where mystical creatures live. In spiritual areas, only slimes appear as monsters. ...There are animals, though. Hunters also enter spiritual areas, and the meat on our table comes from hunters who enter this spiritual area. By the way, hunters also need hunting and archery talents.

In this world, talents and the stars allocated to them determine everything. Even threshing wheat is a wonder with agricultural talent. Just a few light taps on the ground with the wheat and straw will separate the grains. I thought we didn't need a flail last year. My agricultural reform plan ended there.

In other words, it's a world where you can do almost anything if you have the talent. That's why entertainment hasn't developed much, and tools are minimal. In a farming simulation game, you might think there's no such thing as a plow that can till multiple fields, but with the right talent, you can do it with a wooden plow. It's a "do what you will" kind of world.

Thanks to that, I can live as a farmer's son without going hungry. Poverty is the enemy, but hunger is an even greater enemy. My family produces a considerable amount of wheat, and I don't know how much we earn, but it's probably about the same as a full-time farmer in modern Japan, or maybe more. Tilling multiple fields without a tractor is a great skill. There are no machine costs, so we must be earning more. As for the size of the fields, how many Tokyo Domes would it be? I don't know the size of a Tokyo Dome.

While I'm on the topic, my parents can also use 'Extend Space.' ...Actually, everyone except children can use it. Of course. It's convenient, and I could do it after a month of serious practice as a child. Everyone practices and uses it. So why did Mother put the warm cloth in the closet? It's to distinguish between work and home, she says. It's a matter of principle.

When I saw me using 'Extend Space,' she said, "You can use it now." I was curious, so I asked. It turns out the family teaches it after the Star Allocation Ceremony. In my case, Judy told me to learn it, and I could use it at this age, but usually, it's taught when you're a bit older and more rational. My oldest sister is currently working hard to learn it.

Now, back to the collection, or rather, the adventurers. They were all gathering in places where the forest's edge was visible. ...That's why I didn't run into them. They start collecting later than I do and leave before I return, so I don't see them in the forest. It seems they stay in one place for a very long time. They probably collect everything, even the materials Judy called "pennies," which is very inefficient.

If there's someone who wants those "pennies," that's different, but since they're making requests to a spiritual area, I think they want magic mushrooms more than those small items. Well, they might not know, since they're jack-of-all-trades. But identifying magic mushrooms is really easy. It's easy to distinguish Yellow Bell Mushrooms and Netted Vine Mushrooms, and Mica Mushrooms are also easy because there are no similar ones.

It doesn't really matter if other people's profits are thin. What's important is my own profit. But I think the Adventurer's Guild should do something about it. I have a bit of leeway now because I can easily meet my goal of one large gold coin by the Star Allocation Ceremony.

I'm not going to give advice to the adventurers. I just worry about them. Dealing with it is the guild's job. My job is to make money in York's Forest and handle manure at home. That's all I need to do. I need to focus on making money until the Star Allocation Ceremony.

So, I collected thoroughly until the evening. I have a directional magic stone amulet, so I can return even if I go deep into the forest. There's no need to collect in the crowded shallow areas. I can collect leisurely in places where there are plenty of materials left. If other adventurers had directional magic stone amulets, it would be better. They can be made from materials found in the shallow areas of this forest, so they should be cheap. Maybe they don't know, or maybe the professionals know but don't tell.

I went to the church and prayed that I would be given talent for alchemy, and then left. I saw people cooking in some of the tent areas. ...They can at least use 'Extend Space.' Otherwise, their luggage would be a mess. They're not worse off than farmers. They might even be eating mushrooms from this forest. I was told that there are no poisonous mushrooms in this forest. ...I can't quite accept that there are no poisons in a place with a strong dark attribute, but...

I left the adventurers' tents and went home. I did my usual work, but I wonder how the adventurers handle their manure. They can't be doing it just anywhere. The mayor wouldn't allow that. ...Borrowing from the church or the mayor's house seems reasonable. Paying a small fee is probably the norm. That's the normal way, right? I hope it's not a barbaric way of thinking.

After that, I went home as usual, ate dinner, and practiced making 'Extend Space' appear in the air in bed before falling asleep...

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