Chapter 57: The Bear Goes to the Trade Guild

Chapter 57:
The Bear Goes to the Trade Guild

 

ONCE WE WERE ALONE together, Fina let out a huge sigh and sat down on a bed.

“Yuna, today was exhausting.”

“Are you all right?”

“I’m okay, but is it really okay for me to stay the night in an aristocrat’s house?”

“I thought you were being quiet. Is that what was on your mind?”

“If I blurted out something weird or did something rude, it could be bad for my family.”

“Well, we’re done escorting Noa, so should we look for an inn or something? That would make you more comfortable, right?”

“But that would cost money…”

“I was the one that invited you to the capital. Don’t worry about the money.”

“But…”

“No ‘but’s. Anyway, we’ll look for an inn tomorrow, so don’t feel like you’ve got to be so tense.”

“Yes, Yuna. Thank you.”

We climbed into our respective beds and quickly fell asleep to rid ourselves of the day’s fatigue. The next morning, Fina was sitting on her bed with her legs splayed out on either side of her, looking bored.

“Morning.”

“Good morning.”

“You’re already up?”

“Yes, I woke up like usual, but I don’t have anything to do.”

Fina woke early in the morning to do chores since her mother Tiermina got sick. When the housework was finished, she would work at the adventurers’ guild. Being an early bird was probably a habit by now.

“In that case, should we change and go to the dining room?”

“Don’t you think it’s still too early?”

“If we’re early, we can just eat out. That way we can look for an inn right after.”

“Are we really going to look for an inn?”

“I’m not doing this for you. I don’t feel at home here, either.”

I changed from my white bear outfit to my black one and took Fina to the dining room. There was no one there. Maybe we really were too early for breakfast? For the time being, instead, I searched for someone to let know that we were leaving. When we left the dining room and went into the hall, we found the maid we saw yesterday.

“Oh, what a surprise to find you here, Ms. Yuna and Ms. Fina. You’re up early.”

“Morning. We wanted to get something to eat, if that would be okay. If not, I was thinking we could go out for something.”

“No, it’s fine. Please wait in the dining hall for now.”

While we waited in the dining room, Ellelaura came in.

“Oh, you’re early.”

“Good morning.”

“Morning. Here for breakfast already?”

“Yes.”

“So, what do you have planned for today?”

Since she asked, I answered honestly, “We were thinking of going to go look for an inn.”

“An inn? Why’s that? You can stay here until after the king’s birthday celebration.”

“A commoner like myself just can’t feel at home at such a large estate,” I explained, acting as a proxy for Fina.

“Still, I’m not sure you’ll be able to find an inn with empty rooms. There are a lot more people in town than usual because of the celebration.”

Hmm. She might be right. In that case, though it was a little earlier than I planned, maybe it’d make sense to find a place to set up the bear house. If I had a bear house, I could set up a transport gate and not have to worry about inns anymore, either.

“We’ll still at least take a look.”

“Just know you can stay here as long as you like.”

 

We finished breakfast, and Fina and I headed out. Noa was still asleep, and Shia had gone off to the academy, in her uniform. Maybe Noa was sleeping in for the first time in a while after all those days breaking camp at sunrise.

We walked around the royal capital and went around to several inns. The people of Crimonia had gotten somewhat used to me, but now that we were in a new place, my bear outfit drew looks everywhere we went. When we passed by people, their eyes would turn in my direction. Then, without fail I’d hear them say something.

“A bear.”

“A bear?”

“How cute.”

“The heck is that?”

“It’s a bear.”

“Fina, sorry for drawing all this attention.”

“It’s fine. I’m used to it.”

Just like Ellelaura said, all of the inns were full. At the last one, I switched to plan B and asked where I could find the trade guild.

Compared to the guild in Crimonia, the royal capital’s guild was on a whole different level. First off, there were a ton more people going in and out. Maybe they were visiting from different towns and villages? There might have even been people from other countries.

Ignoring the looks focusing on me, I went to find the reception desk. Apparently, you were supposed to take a numbered ticket, and then go to the reception desk when your number was called. I queued up in the ticket distribution line and got a numbered ticket.

The ticket I got was 195. Right now, they were calling 178. It looked like there was still some time until my number would be called, but there were ten reception desks. Maybe it won’t take that long?

After waiting for a short while, my number was called.

“Welcome. What business do you have with us today?” The receptionist’s smile started to slip for a moment when she saw my appearance, but it immediately snapped back. As would be expected of a receptionist in the royal capital.

“I’m looking for a plot of land inside the capital. Can I buy one?”

“Could you show me your resident card or a guild card, if you have one?”

I handed over my guild card.

“Please wait a moment.” She placed the guild card on the crystal panel. “You are Ms. Yuna?”

“Yes.”

“By the way, how are you planning on using the plot of land?”

“I’m planning to build a house.”

“In other words, you are going to live in the royal capital?”

“Still undecided. My main residence is in Crimonia, so I thought I would use the one here as a secondary location.”

“Understood. Well then, let me explain how the land works. First, the area near the castle is the upper-class sector that makes up the aristocrat quarter, so I can’t sell you anything there. Next, you’re not eligible to buy anything from the middle district yet. So that means at present, I can sell you something in the lower district.”

“What do I have to do to get something in the middle district?”

“You can buy land there if you have a letter of introduction from someone.”

So, proof of social status? I remembered the letter that Milaine, who helped me at the trade guild in Crimonia, had given me.

“Will this work as a letter of introduction?”

“Let me check.” The receptionist unfolded the letter from Milaine to verify it. “This is…ah.”

“And?”

“Please forgive me. I’m not sure I can decide this alone. Please wait a moment.”

The receptionist left her seat and disappeared into the back of the guild.

“Yuna, you’re going to build a house?” Fina asked.

“I was thinking it would come in handy in the future.”

If I built a house, I could set up a bear transport gate. Thinking about it from a transportation perspective, that would be super handy.

“Oh, why isn’t that Miss Yuna and Miss Fina?”

We spun around to find Gran and Ellelaura.

“Gran? And Ellelaura? Why are the two of you doing here?”

“That’s what we should be saying. And why are you at the trade guild of all places, Yuna? Didn’t you say that you were going out looking for an inn?”

I told her that finding an inn had been impossible, just like she had said. “So I was thinking of buying a plot of land to build a house, but apparently I can’t do that without a letter of introduction. Anyway, I gave them a letter of introduction I got from the trade guild in Crimonia, but I guess we’re waiting for them to inspect it.”

“You were going to build a house because you couldn’t find an inn…”

“I don’t even know what to say.”

“But do you have enough money?”

“I think I’ll probably be okay. If I can’t afford it, I’ll ditch the idea.”

“In that case, shall I give you a letter of introduction?” Gran said.

“I can also write one for you,” Ellelaura said.

“That would be a big help, but are you sure?”

“You saved my life, after all.”

“Yes, since you’ve been helping out Cliff and my daughter.”

I was thankful for that. If I had two endorsements from nobles, it was way more likely I’d be allowed to buy something.

“So, why are the two of you here?”

“I’m here for work.”

“I am here for something similar as well.”

While I was talking with Gran and Ellelaura, the receptionist returned.

“I apologize for the delay. As for the plot of land, you may purchase something from the lower-class area of the middle-class district.”

Looked like I could get something in the middle district without a problem. Maybe I didn’t need the two’s recommendations.

“Where is that?”

The receptionist spread out a map of the royal capital to show me. There was the entry gate to the capital; there was the castle. It was a little far away from Noa’s residence, so it’d kind of be a pain to go back and forth.

“Oh, that’s in the outskirts.”

“Indeed it is.”

The two members of my personal peanut gallery were peeking at the map from behind me.

“Miss, you over there, lend me some paper, will you? I will write her a letter of introduction.”

“Please give me some paper, too.” It seemed like the location didn’t sit too well with my aristocratic friends.

“Umm, who might you be?”

“Gran Fahrengram.”

“Ellelaura Fochrosé.”

“You are Count Fahrengram and the wife of Count Fochrosé?” The receptionist gasped in surprise and went visibly pale.

“That’s right. If the lass needs a letter of introduction, I will write one, so please find her a better plot.”

“Y-yes, sir. I’ll get one ready right away.”

The receptionist hurriedly stood up from her seat and ran off again. Moments later, an older woman emerged in her place.

“What is it now? When I heard Count Fahrengram himself was here, I thought it was the younger one—and here I find the geezer, instead.”

“Watch your mouth, you crone.”

“And here we have Fochrosé’s little girl.”

“I’m a bit too old to be called a little girl.”

“Do the two of you intend to become this strangely dressed girl’s guarantors?”

There it was again—another person calling me ‘strange.’

“I owe this young lady my life.”

“She also helped my husband and my daughter.”

“Hm, did she now? Well, all right. If you are her guarantors, then we will prepare a plot of land befitting that. Well then, lass, I’m supposing you’ve got money at least?”

Well, it wasn’t like there’d be any point to finding me a plot of land if I didn’t have the money to buy it. “I’m not sure how much it’d cost, but I’ve got money from slaying a black viper.”

“Pish, you must be something if you’re willing to take a joke that far.”

I wasn’t joking…not that there was any point explaining.

“Anyway, do you have requests?”

“I’d prefer somewhere that’s safe without too much traffic, if possible. If I have the luxury of choice, I’d like somewhere close to the adventurers’ guild and close to Ellelaura’s house.”

“Well aren’t you a greedy child. Well, fine. In that case, this would be the place.” The granny pointed out a place on the map. “It’s close to the upper district. Only the people who live here pass by, so there isn’t much pedestrian traffic. The guards also do their patrols here, so it’s very safe as well.”

“It’s close to my house, too,” said Ellelaura.

“If you travel down this main road, it’s close to the adventurers’ guild too,” said Gran. “This looks good, don’t you think, young lady?”

They gave me their explanations while pointing at the map.

“Taking your connections into account, this would be the cost.”

I looked at the amount that was presented to me. It was cheaper than I expected. Was that because of Ellelaura and Gran?

“Don’t you think that’s expensive? There’s no building there, right?”

“Don’t be foolish. For a plot of land in a good location in the royal capital, this is cheap,” said the old woman. “Can you pay this amount, young lady?”

“I can, but I’ll happily bargain it down if I can.”

“Can you really afford this, lass? This isn’t a child’s pocket money we’re talking here. Even nobles might balk at producing this sum.”

“It’s not as though she has to pay it as a lump sum,” Ellelaura said, trying to come to my aid.

“If this lass were the daughter of an aristocrat or a prominent merchant, it would be fine. If that’s not the case, then I can’t approve of anything other than a lump sum. On the other hand, if you can pay all at once, I’ll consider a discount.”

“In that case, I’ll buy it, so please do.”

The old woman laughed. “Are you serious? Well, if you have the money then that’s no problem for me.”

“Should I pull it out here?” It was a fair bit of money. This desk was probably too small. “Sure, that’s fine by me.”

If that was her reply, then all I could do was pay up. I started pulling money out of my bear storage.

“W-wait a minute.”

I ignored her and kept pulling out gold coins. The gold coins started forming a mountain on top of the counter.

“I said stop. Don’t put the money on this narrow counter.”

Take it out, don’t take it out—make up your mind, I thought.

“You’ll startle the people around us. You win. We can’t do large transactions here. Let’s go to another room.”

I put away the money, and the old crone guided us to another room.

“I’ll make good on my earlier promise. I said I could give you a bit of a discount. Of course, this is the most I can do.”

I pulled out the gold coins for the new amount she presented to me.

“But anyway, who are you? Are you the child of a notorious merchant, or something? No, if that were the case, I’d know about you through my information network. Are you some noble’s bastard?”

“I’m just an adventurer.”

“Heh, so you won’t tell me? Well, I’m sure I can find out on my own. If you have guarantors and money, this is a straightforward transaction. Here, that’s the contract. Now the plot is yours.”

“Thank you.”

“I don’t need your thanks. If you’re building a house, you can consult me for advice.”

“No need. This isn’t my first rodeo.”

“Is that so? Well then, we’re all done here.”

The granny shooed us from the room like we were nuisances. Now, I just needed to build a house. Once I did that and then set up a bear transport gate, I’d be able to come to the royal capital any time.

Plus, I’d be able to ease Fina’s tension—two birds with one stone.