Chapter 75

Summary of the previous chapter ------------------------------------------------------

Trying to imbue multiple spells into the magic bag, but it wasn't going well.

At that moment, Yuki found a column in the lower volume of the magic book.

Following the advice in the column, they successfully completed a magic bag with three spells.

After obtaining the fully functional magic bag, our actions changed a bit.

When we entered the forest, we would search for prey, kill it, and skin it. Search, kill, and skin.

We repeated this until it was time to return.

Since we were no longer limited by the amount of prey we could carry or the risk of spoilage, we could be active until the last minute.

Our main target was orcs, which could be sold for money. We also targeted task boars when we found them.

Goblins, which didn't yield much money and required a lot of effort to collect magic stones, were generally ignored unless they were nearby. When we did kill them, Yuki and I would blow their heads off. This made it easier to collect the magic stones, but sometimes they would go missing, one in several times. However, we decided it was better than spending too much time, so we accepted it.

We collected magic mushrooms whenever we found them, but the number we could collect was quite low compared to the area we covered. Their rarity, comparable to matsutake mushrooms, made sense given their high value.

We almost stopped collecting herbs. Natsuki only gathered them for practice in alchemy, as they didn't sell for much.

Why did we focus so much on combat? Of course, it was because we had obtained the magic bag and needed money, but we also decided to "raise our character levels if possible."

Previously, everyone had wanted to raise their character levels to ensure safety, but there were concerns about the risks involved. It would be counterproductive to take risks to ensure safety.

However, we found prey that could be hunted relatively safely and for profit. If we had to leave the meat behind after hunting, we might hesitate, but since we could carry everything back, there was no reason not to hunt.

As a result, we hunted a considerable number of orcs. It was a disaster for the orcs, but their encounter frequency didn't change much, and since they were monsters, no one complained.

Now, we can handle up to four orcs at once without any trouble, so we have a fair amount of orc meat stored in the magic bag.

However, to avoid complications, we decided to sell only four orcs' worth of meat at a time.

Initially, we considered only selling what we could carry out of the magic bag, but hiding the magic bag completely was difficult and would negate its advantages. We decided to be open about having the magic bag but not reveal that we could make one.

To that end, we obtained an old, worn-out bag, turned it into a magic bag, and used it to store the meat we sold.

We told Diora that we borrowed it from an elf friend, and since it's considered impolite to pry into an adventurer's past, we thought it would be fine.

If someone tried to attack us for the magic bag... we would have to do our best to repel them.

To deter such attacks, we might need to raise our guild rank a bit more. We think it should be fine in this relatively safe city, but it's something to consider.

◇ ◇ ◇

"Haruka, it went well. They said they would sell it to you for 300 gold coins."

Diora told us this a few days after the magic bag was completed. The land we had asked her to help us with had been successfully arranged.

"Huh... Is that okay?"

The market price was around 400 gold coins, so it had dropped to 300 gold coins. It was understandable that Haruka was a bit worried.

"Yes. When I told them that the guild might not be able to find anyone else, they... cough, made a decision. That area is almost entirely under the guild's jurisdiction."

Diora smiled and explained her—ahem, persuasion. The guild leadership wasn't just for show.

"Are you sure it's okay!?"

"Yes, it's fine, really. Besides, it's unreasonable. If someone wanted to rent it, do you think the building would disappear?"

She had mentioned that the building had deteriorated and collapsed due to lack of tenants.

"If the building is gone, and they want to rent the land alone, who would rent it?"

True. Even with the building, it was hard to find tenants.

"Setting the rent at 2 gold coins was probably an attempt to get the building after the tenant built it and then evict them at a convenient time... But the guild wouldn't allow that."

Diora sighed, sounding exasperated. From her tone, the other party might have been a bit of a problem.

"Ah, so it's better to go through the guild for peace of mind?"

"Yes, especially for young people like you, there are those who might try to take advantage. You seem cautious, but it can get complicated, so I recommend going through the guild or other professionals."

Without a backing, we were at a disadvantage. If a small fee could save us the trouble, it was a necessary cost.

"But why couldn't they find tenants? If they lowered the price, someone would rent it, right?"

Toya's question made me nod. If a normal house were there, we probably would have rented it. Of course, if it were too expensive, it wouldn't work, but if it were the same or slightly higher than the surrounding area, there would be no reason to avoid it.

"That place is quite large. For someone who doesn't need a large garden, it's just 'unnecessarily' large. If they had lowered the rent to the same level as the smaller houses around it, they might have found tenants, but..."

The owner thought, "Since it's a larger house, the rent can't be the same as the others," which isn't wrong, but without tenants, the house would deteriorate.

By the time the owner gave up and lowered the price, the house was in such a state that even at a lower price, the repair costs would be too high, and no one would rent it. As a result, it deteriorated further and eventually collapsed.

"The best option would have been to divide the land into appropriate sizes, build houses, and rent or sell them, but they couldn't make that decision, and it would have been expensive. Plus, it's not certain that it would have worked."

Raphan's town wasn't growing in population, so the demand for houses was low. There were some sales, but the area in question was unpopular.

Even if they had built new houses, the chances of selling them would have been low, resulting in a loss.

Diora explained all this and persuaded them that "it's better to get a sure thing than to make an uncertain investment."

"Thanks, Diora. We need to build a house, so the lower price is a big help. I'll bring the money and a thank you later, so look forward to it."

"No, no, a thank you is just a gesture, you know? A gesture."

Despite her words, Diora's cheeks relaxed. We doubted we could have negotiated as well, so a proper thank you was necessary.

"So, for Diora's thank you, 50 dried dindles, is that enough?"

Back at the inn, Haruka counted out 300 gold coins into another bag and said this while taking out the dried dindles.

"They gave us a discount of 100 gold coins. Shouldn't we give more? Even if dried dindles are expensive, they don't cost 1 gold coin each on the market, right?"

"Maybe not. If we give something worth 100 gold coins, it would negate the point of asking Diora to negotiate the discount. It might also be inappropriate for Diora to accept the full discount amount."

Yuki thought it was too little, while Natsuki thought it was fine. Haruka then revealed a shocking fact to Yuki.

"Yuki, the market price for dried dindles is actually around 1 gold coin each."

"Really!?"

Yuki's eyes widened in surprise. They were incredibly expensive, and it was hard to believe. Of course, they were incredibly delicious, and I had never tasted such high-quality dried fruit in my original world.

"Yes. They are dried using a special method from high-quality fruit. The guild's buying price is 800 rea, so in terms of selling price, they are worth about 40 gold coins each. Also, the market price for the land was '400 gold coins is enough,' so the discount was less than 100 gold coins. And the thank you we give to Diora is just that, a thank you."

"I agree with Haruka. A thank you that benefits both us and Diora is appropriate."

A thank you equivalent to about half the discount amount seemed reasonable. In Japan, when you receive condolences or a gift, you often return half the value, right? ...Maybe that's a bit different.

Anyway, we ended up getting a fairly large piece of land for 300 gold coins and 50 dried dindles.