10-24. Explorers
Satou’s here. I rember about being surprised to see the figure of soone scooping the egg yolk of a boiled egg with a spoon in so kind of movie long ago. I’ve already forgotten the rest of the movie, but for so reason, only that scene leaves a deep mory.
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"Then, thanks for everyone from 『Pendragon』 for their rescue! And for our safe return, today let’s drink the night away!"
"""YEAH!""
The feast begins with the leader-shi’s greeting. His na is Koshin, and he seems to be the leader of a veteran explorer party called [White Horse Mane]. Gathering multiple parties and then going to the labyrinth deep like this ti isn’t their first ti.
The party is located on the square where stalls have gathered ahead of the street with bungalows that’s 300 ters to the east of the west gate. Around 30 food stalls and 10 drink stalls are lined up. The light from the stall signs are bright. Apparently, life magicians are using magic to illuminate it.
Besides us, there are also other explorers and day laborers-like people like carries who are enjoying the food and liquor from the stalls. Among them, there are young ladies with sensual clothes and strangely sexy young n here and there, sprinkling their charms. Either of them seem to be prostitutes.
One section of the square has been occupied today. It seems they’ve reserved one liquor stall, and three food stalls for the party.
There are no chairs and tables, it seems we’re going to eat and drink in a circle, sitting on the ground. Lulu and Liza have put a sheet on the corner for the place we’re sitting now.
The nu for this party this ti are grilled at, dried at, boiled beans, and boiled potatoes. They’re probably not shabby since Koshin-shi said teasingly "These are so feast" before the party began.
"Magician-san, thank you for the clothes that ti."
"Mwu?"
The two people from [Beautiful Wings] co to Mia while carrying sothing that look like folded clothes. Since Mia who looks troubled seeks help from , I act on it.
"Please have those clothes if it’s fine with you. If you expose too much skin, bad bugs could co after all."
The two are forced to wrap few cloth on their body, so although they can hide the important places, their shoulders and stomaches are bare, it’s quite sensual.
"Is it alright?"
"Thank you very much, Chevalier-sama."
The two must have been embarrassed, they readily wear the cheap shirts. They leave the mantles folded since it’s hot.
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"Hard~"
"This at person is quite tough nodesu."
"Haha, chibi-chan, you won’t chew it if you eat like that. You thin it with a knife and then eat it."
Pochi bite through the at with a ’pssh’ sound. The man who seems to be the stall owner that gave her the advice looks at her in wonder.
"Is it tendon at?"
Lulu cuts a thin slice of the at, puts it on a plate, and passes it to . I chew that at on my mouth, it’s hard alright. It could be softened if it was boiled in a pressure cooker. With so peculiar bad sll, it’s hard to say that it’s delicious, but it’s also not bad enough to make you vomit, it’s a delicate taste.
"This might be not to noble-sama’s palate since it’s monster at."
"Insect at is cheap after all, and you get used to it when you eat it everyday."
Looks like these grilled at and dried at are made from insect-type monsters. It’s a at that’s pitch black before it’s even grilled, and it’s as tough as tendon at of animals. As to what kind of insects they are, even the explorers only call it [Insect at] or [at] since the stocks change everyday. It’s extrely cheap, one skewer of the at only cost one penny.
"When I’ve just beco an explorer, I often follow along a strong party from behind and collect the at of the monster after they’ve finished stripping it off the materials."
"Although it did beco cash, it was quite nasty huh."
It seems there are a lot of explorers who only collect the shells or the claws that can beco money from insect-type monsters, and then there are also explorers who specialize in collecting the at from the leftover. The people who collect such monster at are called [Corpse Retriever (Looter)], and seen as the lowest. What a strange story considering it’s a fine job that supports als like this.
So young explorers are exhibiting sword dance-like acrobatics in the center of the explorers circle. When that was over, Pochi and Tama ca to the center.
"Pochii!"
"Tamaa!"
"Tou!"
I wonder if soone incites them, they’re demonstrating the jump like the one they’ve done to the mantis’ back. Whoomph, toward Tama who’s jumped five ters above, cheers are coming from the surrounding.
Nana caught the fallen Tama. Pochi and Tama, and also the spectator who plead the two to do the jump were scolded by Liza since they made dust enter the als, they were downhearted.
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"These beans and potatoes are soft."
"Nn."
There are a lot of vegetables even though it should be expensive in the labyrinth city.
"These are also monster at though."
"These are not the at part you know. They’re from the bodies of plant-type monsters called Walking Bean and Hopping Potato."
Looks like these beans and potatoes are taken from monsters. The labyrinth isn’t only a mine, but also a ranch, and a farm is it.
I tried eating them a bit, and it seed that these beans and potatoes are a bit different than normal ones. The bean has hard rind, and peculiar grass sll. There are white fibers that looks like of orange inside, this part is a bit bitter. When I chipped off the part, and then spooned the inside and ate it, it tasted like normal beans.
"As expected of noble-sama. You’re refined~"
"Maybe I also should use the spoon?"
Oops, I didn’t an to look refined. Even though I only wanted to take the inside and tasted it, I got so strange admiration instead.
The potato has thin sweetness of potato and stickiness-like taste of taro. They told that the violet part inside the potato is poisonous so I shouldn’t eat it. Although it seems that it only causes upset stomach, there’s no danger to life.
The is a 30 centiters tall pod with arms and legs, and there are 2-3 beans inside the pod after you defeat it. Since it’s four tis as big as normal broad beans, it seems you can earn a penny from 20 of it.
The Hopping Potato is a strange potato-type monster that’s jumping around with spiral spring, it’s as big as the Walking Bean. You can get as much as 10 kilograms potato from one monster. Since one kilo is one penny, you can get so money from it.
A middle-aged spearman told that you could easily defeat them by just readying your spear since they attack by ramming themselves. This man has been passionately talking about Liza and spears since a while ago.
Both are area 14 monsters, and explorers who have lost competition for monsters in the big first area often hunt them. Curiously enough, these two monsters either don’t give experience at all, or give extrely little. They’re monsters no doubt since they have magic cores the size of a rice grain, but it seems that there are people who don’t level up despite hunting them for a year. Therefore, they tell the theory of poor explorers, that is to earn inco at the area until you have enough money to buy equipnts and then move to another area.
"Now, now chevalier-sama. Let’s pour you so."
"Thank you."
I taste the ale that I’ve received in the cup. It’s sour and bad. It tastes like diluted beer mixed with vinegar. According to him this is a luxurious item, everyone is drinking deliciously. The alcohol strength feels less than 5%.
"Ara, Chevalier-sama, you can’t drink ale with such refined manner! You have to drink it like, so, in one gulp!"
Looks like the beauty-san of [Beautiful Wings] changes when she drinks liquor, she passionately speaks the way to drink ale.
I’ve forbidden our mbers from drinking alcohol since it would be chaotic like before otherwise. Everyone is drinking fruit water that I’ve brought.
There are also so small barrels of wine and spirits among those, and then the contest quickly happens not long after the start of the party. Although those liquor were just normal things that I bought from liquor store along the way here, it was good that they happily received it.
The patrolling soldiers in red hard leather armor ca just 3-4 hours after the sunset. They ordered us to dismiss in loud voice since there is a restriction for doing business late at night in this city.
Since I can’t leave the completely wasted [Beautiful Wings] and I don’t know their addresses, I’ve decided to let Liza and Nana carry them to the mansion. The guest room is vacant, so they can just sleep there.
We told our thanks to Koshin-shi who couldn’t even articulate words properly from his drunkenness and went back to the mansion.
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"We have troubled you greatly yesterday."
"We’re very sorry."
The [Beautiful Wings] apologized for last night while enduring the headaches from the hangovers. They don’t usually drink themselves that bad in the bar, but they went overboard last night since Koshin-shi was treating. I offer them magic potions for hangover, and invite them to breakfast.
They were deeply moved at the breakfast that Lulu had cooked, maybe it suits their taste. Lulu who looked proud while being bashful from the praise was impressive.
I’ve heard in the party yesterday, their fine for the ant-train case is two gold coins for each. It seems they have loaned money to pay it, but the debt increases by 30% every 10 days, and they will be sold as slaves if they can’t pay the interest every month. I think that’s quite an usury, but if I think about the high mortality rate of explorers who die in the labyrinth, it might be appropriate.
I offered the two to let take over their debts.
Of course this isn’t out of sympathy.
Briefly speaking, this is a part of the asure for the labyrinth city orphan plan. Arisa and I racked our brains lately for this problem, and we concluded that training baggage carrier children who want to beco explorers in the labyrinth to beco full-fledged explorers is the quickest.
They should beco able to sustain themselves once they reach levels to an extent, and if they want stability, I could refer them to beco soldiers or subordinates of Baron Muno in his territory.
The forr baggage carrier children who have beco full-fledged explorers then can raise the next generation children and it becos a nice loop.
The problem with the rearing is if it follows our training regi, they will level up without even getting the minimum knowledge. As the result, they would grow arrogant, careless and thought that they wouldn’t die.
Then I heard the story about their debts when I was searching for teachers, so I scouted them.
These girls should be qualified as they’ve gone through hardships as explorers. These two should be enough for the anti, but since the three beastkins from the ant-train case should also be suffering from the interest rate, let’s think about increasing personnels soon.
I can’t lead Arisa and the others for the next two days. During that period, I’ll ask everyone to train these two.
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