Bonus Short Stories

Lorraine’s Raison d’Etre

“Say, Rentt, fetch me that tome over there... Yes, the one that says On the Observations of Mana and Fauna, by Professor Redonner...” I said, rolling around on the sofa in my abode as I casually instructed Rentt to fetch me more reading material. Rentt, for his part, immediately stood up, bringing me the tome without any delay.

“Is this all right?” Rentt asked, handing me the book without the slightest trace of resentment or annoyance at being asked to do such trivial tasks.

I guess this was to be expected since I had caused Rentt similar kinds of trouble over the years, from bothering him with housework to fetching books. I suppose this was an acceptable way of life, permitted, at the very least, by Rentt himself. I of all people knew that one should handle one’s own basic responsibilities. Logically speaking, I would have done that, but Rentt was simply too useful and ever-present, so this was how things always turned out.

...Well, things were this way when Rentt was visiting, at least; I did what I had to when I was on my own. In return, I would silently obey Rentt’s instructions when we were out in the dungeon or on assignment; we really complimented each other. But even so...

“You truly are something else, Rentt. How did you know it was this exact tome? While it is indeed the right item, there is no title written on its cover or spine...”

I had not expected him to know what I was looking for since it was, after all, a loose collection of academic and research papers, casually bundled into book form with spare binding material. While it was not a normal book, it certainly did look like one. Though due to the nature of the papers, it was left unmarked, so there were no markings indicating its contents on the “book” itself. If one were to take a casual glance at the shelf, one would be hard-pressed to locate it.

Perhaps I was at fault for making Rentt search for this collection. I had expected the exchange to be a bit more of a back and forth, maybe with a “Get me that,” “Where is it?” and finally a “Somewhere over there, that thickly bound book with a title much like this paper in my hands.” Such was the exchange I had planned for when I originally asked Rentt to fetch me the desired book; but of course, that exchange did not happen. Rentt had simply delivered the adequate item to my hands without as much as a question.

“...Ah. This is such bliss.” I couldn’t help but feel so.

Rentt’s response was humble, as usual.

“You had me fetch it before, and I just happened to see it. It’s a happy coincidence.”

“Is that so?” Hmm... I suppose there indeed were such coincidences in the world.

Rentt had made it a point to read the books scattered across my abode. While I entertained that thought for a while, it soon faded to the back of my mind as I laid back, the new reading material in hand.

◆◇◆◇◆

On another day, in the laboratory of a certain residential abode in Maalt...

“Rentt. Fetch me that Neris branch over there.”

“...Is this all right?” Rentt asked, the requested branch in his hands.

The problem with this, however, was that the branch was a rod made of metallic materials as opposed to wood. In addition, it was very much an uncommon alchemical tool. For my purposes, it was a useful and extremely reactive alchemical catalyst, one that I made a while ago as a request. Me being myself, I forgot about turning in that request altogether; a failure on my part, if you will. I suppose such things did happen from time to time.

But the problem here was that Rentt had accurately handed me the requested item, again with no questions on his part.

“...You. You’re really something else, you know that? How did you know it was this item?”

“Well... I spectated when you were conducting your experiments, Lorraine. I’ve also read your books on alchemical ingredients and reagents. I don’t have the mana, of course, so no alchemy for me.”

Come to think of it, Rentt had read through all my alchemical reagent tomes from beginning to end. In that case, I suppose identifying the branch would not have been so difficult for him.

While I entertained that thought for a while, it soon faded out of my mind as I fiddled with the branch and my other ingredients, fulfilling one silly request or another.

◆◇◆◇◆

“A moment, if you would, Rentt? Do brew that for me.”

“Ah... Hmm. Is this all right?”

Saying so, Rentt withdrew a container from someplace in the mess in my abode, placing it upon the table. It was none other than a tin of Empire-made Bergamont Tea, the very thing I’d just thought of drinking.

This was perhaps a little too much.

“Do you not think it strange? How is it you understand my non-specific speech, Rentt? It wasn’t like I was pointing at a tea tin. There are so many other kinds of teas available.”

Yes, disregarding the mess, I was very specific about what I drank. But of course, I was not enough of a snob to insist on brewing my tea myself. I simply loved all sorts of tea, and as such had a wide collection of tea leaves and other tea-related condiments.

—Let us not forget the alcohol.

In other words, the adequate response to my request should have been, “What would you like to have brewed?”

Rentt, however, had apparently guessed what I wanted almost instantly. This was nothing short of strange.

For his part, Rentt appeared a little flustered as I pointed this out. “...Come now, Lorraine, don’t be like that. I can’t help it if I somehow know exactly what you want, no?”

“You can’t help it, yet you ‘somehow’ know? Do you have any evidence to back up your claims?”

“Well... I wouldn’t say I have nothing, but I just know... In general, you know? I can’t put this into words very well...”

I supposed it would be unbecoming of me to push him any further. If anything, I deduced that Rentt’s observation was on a different scale altogether; one could even call it a supernatural ability. But the fact that I could not identify the reason behind this... As a scholar, I was suddenly overcome with a terrible sense of loss.

Even so...

If I thought about it, Rentt’s abilities were always used for my benefit, in which case, not knowing the reason was probably somewhat acceptable.

Yes... Right. In fact, I could merely think of it as having been blessed with an extremely capable assistant.

But then...has it not always been this way? Why, of course it has... What was I even thinking of again? Oh, never mind... I thought, as I sat drinking my freshly-brewed Bergamont Tea.

“Should I just explain everything, starting with the finer details?” Rentt asked, perhaps out of concern for me. I, however, dismissed his question.

“No... No. That is fine. More importantly, Rentt...I am hungry. Do make that for me, would you?”

“All right. Would the spicy stuff be good?”

“Yes... Yes, that is good.”

While I couldn’t put it into words, there was this nagging feeling at the back of my mind... Although I was well on my way to being pampered and spoiled, I couldn’t help but simultaneously feel an extreme sense of bliss and fortune.

A Certain Restaurant’s Opening Day

The chatter, and eventual roar, of activity soon thundered through the streets. It was now morning in Maalt, a town on the fringes of the frontiers of the Kingdom of Yaaran.

It would be difficult to call Maalt a city, as it was nowhere near the relative size. Though, in recent days, many adventurers had flocked to Maalt due to its proximity to various dungeons. If anything, Maalt was a town that did quite well for itself.

At this specific moment in the morning, a well-observed phenomenon happened: The taverns and eateries of Maalt were filled to the brim. There were, of course, well-established factors as to why this happened at this general hour. Adventurers, having returned from the dungeon the following night and wasted away their earnings later in the evening, now sought to fill their bellies with sustenance. For the otherwise normal townsfolk of Maalt, however, it was simply breakfast time.

Among the cacophony of voices, a couple, apparently proprietors of one such eatery, were trying to attract the attention of prospective customers, and in turn earn their coin.

What a common sight in the mornings of Maalt.

But in this particular busy street, a single building stood out, that of an eatery made of red bricks, with a signboard that read, “The Red Wyvern Pavilion.”

It was worth noting, however, that there were no other shops of a similar nature near this eatery. In fact, various plaques bearing congratulations and other greetings lined the little path that led up to its steps. It was quite the sight, for a restaurant at least. One would think an eatery that had received this many flowers had its host of patrons—patrons with deep pockets, at that.

In other words, the cooking here was most likely very good, so much so that the line outside the establishment snaked well into the road. Seeing this brought some degree of peace to my, Rentt Faina’s, heart.

At the same time, it occurred to me that dining at this establishment on today of all days would be a difficult prospect. In fact, it was rare for me to be out and about at this time of the morning to begin with, since the rays of the sun were not exactly healthy for an undead such as myself. I suppose a god or omnipotent being somewhere had once decreed that creatures like me were only meant to walk in the darkness.

However—

“Ah! W-wait! Wait up, Mister! Yes, you, robed sir!”

The voice became louder, its owner apparently seeing fit to approach me. Turning around, I was greeted with the familiar face of a middle-aged man—I suppose I should say that I was sick of seeing him, but yes—a face that was kind but very much unfit for adventuring.

“...You mean... Me?” I asked.

“Ah! I knew it! Boss! Boss Rentt! It is you! You finally came...”

With that, the man ran toward me, a wide smile on his face. His name was Loris—Loris Cariello. He was a man who used to have something to hide. He was the proprietor and owner of the Red Wyvern Pavilion, and at the same time, a fellow adventurer of mine. To be precise, he was perhaps more of a hindrance than a peer, but it was quite the adventure, so I suppose that was all well and good.

He did, after all, have a good reason to be beaming. With my help, Loris paid off his debts, a huge burden lifted from his shoulders. Plainly speaking, I had given him half of my proceeds from exploring the dungeon. As a result, he could continue running his store, with the new opening in question perhaps symbolic as a fresh start, a new beginning to his business.

The results were plain to see; if anything, Loris was doing quite well for himself. He couldn’t afford to repeat the same mistakes, after all, having been nearly out of business in the not-too-distant past.

We had, of course, sent him flowers to congratulate his reincarnated enterprise, with the pair of flower plaques at his door having been sent from Lorraine and myself respectively. As for the other plaque, though... I wonder who sent it? It was certainly a fancy arrangement of flowers. An admirer of Loris’s cooking, perhaps?

Unable to contain my curiosity, I posed the question to the still-beaming Loris.

“Well, Boss... Even I have no idea, see. Still good to have, though! Doesn’t hurt the business!”

Loris’s observation was indeed inaccurate, as the wallet of the one who had sent him said flowers grew lighter. In Loris’s view, however, what he had said was correct. Even so...I couldn’t help but feel that Loris was too relaxed. This was one of his redeeming qualities, as well as a bad habit.

“I... See. Well... Then. It seems you are... Doing well. I am happy... For you. I have to... Get going. You should... Get back... To work.”

As I turned to leave, Loris shook his head at an alarming velocity, grabbing me by the arm.

“W-wait up, Boss! Wait up! You came all the way here, so that means you wanted to have a meal, yeah? Then please do eat something, Boss! You’re our greatest investor!” Loris said.

An investor... For all intents and purposes, I had already handed a hefty sum of coin to Loris, and I was sure that I wouldn’t receive profits or dividends. Semantics, I suppose. And yet—

“...If one such... As myself. Were to dine... At your... Establishment. I would stand out... Too much. Bad for... Business, no?”

I was, after all, a member of the walking dead. Although I managed to conceal the smell of my perpetually rotting body after detailed discussions with Lorraine, I had to wrap my entire body up in robes and other items. At the very least, I looked highly suspicious. To think that one such as myself would enter a busy eatery. It did not seem like a good idea in any shape or form.

But Loris had other ideas.

“What do you mean, Boss? If you don’t come in at least once, how can I keep doing business in good faith? So come on, Boss! This way!” Loris said, pulling me to the front of the line as he did so.

I suppose Loris’s actions caused the line to assume that I was related to the proprietors somehow, and on that note, I felt no suspicious stares as I was led by Loris through the door.

Upon entering, I was greeted by yet another familiar face: the warm smile of Loris’s wife, Isabel.

“Mister Rentt! I see you came. Well then! Please do come this way,” she said, leading me to an empty seat.

The seat in question, however, was the most central, and arguably best, seat in the entire eatery. I would stand out far too much, so I instead requested a more isolated and quiet corner table.

It would seem that Loris and Isabel had employed other staff, having two other young girls present in the restaurant, working the tills and whatnot. Although Isabel had wanted them to greet me, I declined, seeing how they were already busy enough with work.

Shortly after, Isabel took my order, and Loris returned to leading and seating more guests to their tables. The restaurant was already filled to the brim, and I didn’t think they could possibly fit any more people in this establishment.

With Isabel taking order after order and the girls working the kitchen and till, it did seem like the Pavilion was doing very well for itself.

After a short wait, my meal was delivered to my table. It only took one bite for me to understand just how good the cooking was here. There was no blood of any kind present in my meal, but I still found myself somewhat satisfied by the experience.

Thinking back to when I first met Loris in the dungeon, I remembered having many doubts about him, and could hardly predict an outcome like this. All’s well that ends well, I could say. I suppose that was why I did what I did next.

Being in a reasonably good mood, I summoned one of the girls Isabel had hired, instructing her to handle my bill in a specific way. Paying the appropriate amounts, I left the store silently. If I were to say goodbye to Loris during their busiest time, it would only slow them down.

Just as I was about to step out of the doors, however...

“...Eh?! What? The Boss did?! Dear customers...! I am pleased to announce that just now, all your bills have been paid for by a certain benefactor of ours! In fact, this person is the greatest investor in our eatery, and the one who saved my life! Please enjoy your meal at the Red Wyvern Pavilion today!!”

Loris’s voice rang out from above the din. The price was right, and there were occasionally adventurers who did this sort of thing. Establishments that had patrons like this, in turn, were often seen as good shops that gave back to the community. I suppose this was an adequate, celebratory gift.

With this, Loris’s eatery was bound to do well, at this point in time and well into the future.

Those thoughts in mind, I headed back in the direction of Lorraine’s home, making a mental note to visit here again for dinner sometime soon.

Love Among Peers

“...I want to fall in love, too... Haaah...”

Hearing such a thing while dining at the tavern would cause anyone to spit out the food they were chewing on in surprise. The lips from which those words escaped hardly belonged to a young woman, but instead a muscle-bound man in his forties. To be precise, they were from the lips of Bronze-class adventurer, Zarid.

Zarid was an adventurer senior to myself, Rentt Faina (Bronze-class), and Lorraine Vivie (Silver-class). While his abilities were only at the Bronze-class level, the fact that he still had all his limbs, and only a few scars on his face to show, were factors indicative of his abilities and strengths. After all, adventurers of his age were usually a limb or two short, or perhaps even dead. I, for one, hadn take care not to end up as such, so I suppose it would be fine in the long run.

Taking into consideration the above factors, what Zarid had just said was truly startling. Although I did spit out my food, Lorraine, who was seated next to me, merely continued munching on her meal, eventually swallowing it without a sound.

“...Did I hear you incorrectly? I am somewhat certain that I just heard you say something most strange,” was what Lorraine had to say.

Zarid, in response, scrunched up his face, now looking more like a goblin than a human adventurer.

“Oi, I’m human, too, Lorraine! Is it wrong for me to want to fall in love?”

Such was Zarid’s swift rebuke, and I suppose he was right. Lorraine, now aware of Zarid’s upset tone, offered a somewhat conciliatory response in kind.

“Oh, I do apologize. It is just that...a man of your age, to be saying these things... It seems almost fantastical to claim you would like to fall in love. Surely there are other ways of...expressing it?”

Such was Lorraine’s measured answer. I, in turn, offered my take on the situation.

“Ah... Yes, Lorraine has a point. Would you not normally say that...you ended up ‘liking this girl,’ or say how you would ‘make her yours’? Something like that, right?”

Lorraine slapped her thigh in amusement at my response. “Yes! Exactly! But then, there you go... Claiming that you would like to ‘fall in love’ like a blushing maiden! Do you not see? I had valid cause for doubting my ears! Surely that can be forgiven, no?”

Hearing our justifications, Zarid appeared to understand the cause of our amusement, slowly shaking his head.

“Huh... Well, that’s my bad, I guess. But I can’t control how I feel, yeah?”

“Well... I suppose on that point you would be right, Zarid. Well then, tell us—who is it? Is it Nina? Jenny?”

The two names I raised were a member of the guild and an adventurer respectively, both relatively younger women. If anything, these two individuals were the women that Zarid had the most amount of social interactions with, so it wouldn’t be strange if he ended up liking one of them.

Zarid, however, shook his head.

“No...”

And soon it was our turn to stare at Zarid in shock, for the name that he brought up was one most unexpected.

◆◇◆◇◆

“...That...person?”

“Yeah. That’s her all right...” Zarid said, responding to Lorraine’s query.

At this point in time, the three of us were on the streets of Maalt, peeking out from behind a corner of one street at a certain storefront. A single woman stood before the store in question, speaking warmly with several customers. It would seem that she was the one who had captured Zarid’s heart, so to speak. Even so, this was something I truly did not expect...

“The girl at the flower store, huh? Quite the departure from the goblin-like adventurer, eh?”

While Lorraine’s statement could be interpreted in a definitively negative way, it was worth noting that Lorraine didn’t exactly hate goblins or their faces. In fact, she found them to be very interesting and indicative of a goblin’s character. She even conducted research into them at some point in time, gaining the ability to tell unique goblins apart from each other with a single glance. To me, however, goblins all looked the same, but Lorraine did, as usual, have a point.

“Why did it have to be the flower girl, of all people? I cannot imagine you going to the florist’s, Zarid...” I asked, unable to wrap my head around the matter.

“Well, no...” As if steeling his resolve, Zarid started telling the two of us about why he had been to the florist’s in the first place.

While Zarid was frequently partied with a warrior by the name of Ryude at this point, they both used to be a part of a four-man team. Of those members, one of them had lost their life while adventuring, and the other had left the adventuring life behind altogether. This adventurer’s death wasn’t exactly anyone’s fault. In fact, they spent their last moments talking about how they had enjoyed adventuring with their party and wished for their peers to continue their work as they passed on.

Zarid, concluding his tale with a bitter smile, looked away momentarily. Although he had attempted to hide it, I could see the regret and unbridled sadness in his eyes.

Zarid had of course noticed recently that the anniversary of his party member’s death was near. Twenty years had passed without so much as a visit to their grave, and Zarid had thought now would be a good time as any to perform such a visit. One would, in turn, need flowers when visiting the grave of a fallen comrade, hence the rare trip to the florist’s, and it was there that Zarid had met the flower girl in question.

“But then...how did you end up liking her?”

Zarid was not a fickle man; there was no way he would have fallen for this woman simply by purchasing some flowers. Zarid, however, was quick to offer an explanation.

“Yeah, see... I was troubled about what kind of flowers to bring... So I told her about the reason for me buying flowers as well. That girl, she’s called Phi, she started crying when she heard about it, see. Even I started crying, too, damn it. So before I knew it...I asked her out for a meal, and she asked to hear more about Latt...”

Latt—I suppose that was the name of Zarid’s fallen companion.

According to Zarid, Phi agreed to go with him for a meal. In fact, they had shared many meals since. If they indeed shared such a bond, I suppose it was not out of the question for the two of them to get married, but he had no idea how to ask her out, and was now consulting the two of us for advice.

Having heard his story up to this point, however, Lorraine and I felt somewhat silly for having made fun of him, and we decided to make ourselves scarce.

“...Let’s go home, Lorraine...”

“...Ah. Yes. Of course...”

We both were of one mind, having turned to face each other at the same time.

As we moved to leave, Zarid panicked, pleading with us to stay.

“W-wait, you two! Advice! Give me some advice. Help me out here!”

Upon hearing his plea, Lorraine stopped, looking slightly up at the sky as she did so.

“...You. Haah... If you are that smitten with her, all that is left is to bravely go forth and pop the proverbial question, no? Simply tell her that you love her, that you would like to go out with her, that you would like to get married. It’s not such a difficult thing.”

With that, Lorraine left in a huff, walking quickly down the street.

“I mean if I could, I wouldn’t be in such a tight spot...!” Zarid had a pathetic expression on his goblin-esque face.

I, however, could not help but agree with Lorraine, and as such decided to give my old friend some encouragement.

“Just draw out your courage, like when you’re fighting monsters in the dungeon. If you get rejected, I’ll treat you to a meal. Work hard, Zarid! If you succeed, you’re treating me, you hear?”

Without waiting for his response, I took off, attempting to catch up with Lorraine. What happened next would be completely up to Zarid. I, for one, didn’t think he was a man to back down from such a situation.

◇◆◇◆◇

The good news came a few days later: Zarid and Phi were now officially dating. They were happily married a year later. Zarid, in turn, retired from adventuring and now ran a tavern with his wife.

Although it was always a sad occasion when my peers retired from adventuring, at the very least I could be happy for him as he deserved at least that much. Lorraine and I, of course, pooled some coin together and treated Zarid and Phi to a lavish meal, in addition to being present for their wedding.

“When you two tie the not, I’ll treat you to something big, too! Make sure you tell me when, you hear?” That was what Zarid had told us at his own wedding ceremony. Lorraine and I turned to face each other, not saying a word.

Of course we understood what Zarid meant, but right now, we did not want to put it into words. Instead, the both of us simply smiled somewhat awkwardly, both playing dumb as we stared up at the blue sky.

House-Sitting (For Several Days) in Maalt

I found myself in Lorraine’s abode; I was all but too familiar with it. I also had something to say today, and that was why I was here.

It had been close to a decade—nine years, actually—since I became an adventurer. Those nine years were, in turn, spent with Lorraine. I suppose we had known each other for a long time, perhaps too long. Both of us understood the weight and importance of this bond, although neither of us saw it fit to express in words.

“It is rare for you to be outside of Maalt, is it not, Rentt? Well, to be precise, you have taken quite a few one- or two-day trips. But for a few days this time... How many days was it, again?”

“It would be about five days. Maybe even longer...”

There was a simple reason as to why I was discussing this with Lorraine, details and all. She was a friend whom I had known for a long time. But even more than that, an adventurer’s next request or assignment could very well be their last. As such, I had instructed Lorraine to take care of the house for the next five days, and that if I was gone for more than a month, I would be as good as dead.

For the record, I had no intention of dying, but it was impossible to predict what the future held. Such knowledge was surely in the domain of god, or at least some other omnipotent being.

“I see. Well, do be careful. Also... What is it this time? Another assignment?”

“Yes. I’m headed to a small village in the north by the name of Dorotan. It seems like a bunch of goblins have made a nest there, and a request was sent to the guild for their slaying.”

“Again they send you to some far-off corner of the rural hinterlands. I suppose that is why the request was left as-is. Adventurers are not usually too keen on long distance travel.”

“Yes, more or less. It isn’t exactly a big nest either. In fact, it’s quite small, populated by about five of them at best. That alone, however, is enough to threaten the livelihoods of the villagers, so I’ll be going there to put those goblins in the ground.”

“Only five? I suppose I should not really be worrying about you, then. Ensure that you are not careless, yes?” Contrary to what she said, Lorraine was clearly worried.

“I know, Lorraine. Well then, I’ll be off now.”

With that, I walked though the doors of Lorraine’s abode, heading toward the pick-up point for a local horse carriage service.

I had dropped by Lorraine’s with the intent of saying goodbye before I left. If anything, I found myself grateful that horse carriages went anywhere, even to the far corners of the rural hinterlands. I hoped that the service was regular, at least; I would hate to return to Maalt on foot.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Ohh...! How good of you to have come! We’ve had that request out for a month now! We feared that no one would ever come to help us...”

It was a great welcome. At least, that was what I thought as I sat in the house of the local village elder, having arrived at Dorotan shortly before. They seemed pleased to see me, if anything else.

Perhaps that was to be expected since so few adventurers would bother making their way out to a border village such as this. While requests could be put up by anyone, no aid would come if the assignment was not taken. For a while, the villagers in question had to put up with the goblin menace themselves, so it was not unheard of for villages to incur severe casualties in such cases. Compared to that scenario, having an actual adventurer take up the assignment and provide their services was above and beyond what they expected.

Perhaps me being only a Bronze-class adventurer would not bring them much comfort. I would need a few days to flush them all out, but at least it would be done without too much trouble. It would seem they expected great things of me.

“Well then... The request specifies that I need to destroy a goblin nest in the area. The fee will be five silver coins. If that is acceptable, I would like to know more about the surrounding geography, and where the nest is located...”

“No, no! You should rest for the night. It has been a long journey, no? We have prepared you a room, too, but of course, we are a small village... We hope you find our humble welcoming and amenities acceptable...” the village elder said, bowing deeply.

This seemed a little overboard for a simple goblin-slaying request, but I suppose this was how things were in border villages. Goblins, being monsters with a high reproductive rate and some degree of intelligence, posed a huge threat to such villagers. If any other kind of monster was allowed to take root here, this village would become completely uninhabitable.

In addition, irregularly-occurring monsters appeared in populated areas from time to time. Those who defeated such monsters were treated with the utmost respect by the local inhabitants. Of course, some adventurers chose such assignments so that they would be treated as kings. However, feeding one’s own ego was not what a normal adventurer would do.

In any case, it would be unbecoming of me to refuse their offer. If anything, it was common for villages like this to throw lavish parties welcoming adventurers, in exchange for lower reward fees. Regardless, I should accept their generous offer, if only to put them at ease.

I nodded in response.

“Well then... I shall partake in your hospitality. But you don’t have to go too far, though...”

I clearly said that, yet an intimidating amount of food—a feast, really—was now placed before me, along with copious amounts of wine, all having been served by the village’s young women. Both the food and wine, apparently made with produce grown in the village, were not as clean as the produce one would find in Maalt. The ingredients themselves, however, were fresh, and the meal was delicious.

I felt that this much was more than enough of a reward for slaying a few goblins.

“Don’t hold back! Please, have some more,” the village elder said, pouring more wine into my goblet alongside the young women.

I would have to put on quite the show tomorrow, as I now had a duty to these people, especially after being treated to such a feast.

With a fair amount of good food and wine in my belly, I turned my thoughts to tomorrow, and found myself anticipating the successful end of this assignment.

◆◇◆◇◆

“...I see them, all right. Is this all of them?” I asked the man next to me, spotting a goblin emerging from its burrow in the undergrowth.

The man in question was the village hunter, who held valuable knowledge on the construction and scale of the goblin nest. I had taken him with me at the recommendation of the village elder.

“Yep... The other hunters didn’t see anything else. This is all of them.”

“...Well then. Let’s get to work...”

“Eh...?” The hunter seemed genuinely taken aback at my words. “There’s five of them in there! You gonna be okay?”

“Yeah. Just you watch,” I said, leaping out of the tall grass we had been hiding behind. Confirming that all the goblins in question were indeed in the burrow, I withdrew a spherical object from my tool belt, throwing it with considerable force deep inside. With a loud bang, the sphere exploded, filling the burrow with a great deal of smoke.

Hanging back, I waited as the goblin’s screams slowly abated. Eventually, the cries fell silent until they could no longer be heard. As soon as the smoke cleared, I entered the burrow.

“...Sleeping well, I see...” I said as I looked at the sleeping goblins, slowly and methodically crushing each and every single one under my blade.

Even if I were not much of a fighter, sleeping goblins were no match for me. It hardly took half an hour for me to complete my extermination.

Although the sphere was a tool that granted me victory, it was one I had personally made. I would say that it evened out into somewhat of a profit in the end. See, this specific sort of tool was very troublesome to make. But If one were to buy it from the stalls of Maalt, it would cost at least ten silver pieces.

Having slain all the goblins, I collected their magic crystals, bidding farewell to the hunter. Upon heading back to the village, I informed the elder of my assignment’s completion, and was thanked by each and every villager in the process.

That night, the village threw yet another feast for me... While I had wanted to return to Maalt right away, I suppose I could not turn down their offering.

During the feast, the elder once again filled my goblet, all the while thanking me for what I had done.

“...Thank you so much, good sir! Thank you...! You have saved us all! Say... What do you think of that girl over there? She’s quite the looker, no?”

The girl in question was perhaps the most beautiful woman in the entire village, and quite young, at that.

“Well, yes, I suppose...”

“That’s my granddaughter, see! If you would like, why not take her hand...?”

I suppose the elder was concerned for the future of this village from here on out—the girl, too, batted her eyelashes at me, her cheeks red with her shy smile.

I, however, shook my head.

“I do apologize, Elder, but—”

“I see... I suppose there is no choice... We think highly of a great adventurer such as yourself! But we shall give up on that prospect!” the elder said, smiling.

I couldn’t help but think of a certain face that crossed my mind as I offered my refusal, along with the certain words I had to say to a certain someone I knew.

And so it came to be that I returned to Maalt.

“Well? How was it?” Lorraine asked.

“Oh, as always.”

With that, I began brewing some tea, like I always had, before reclining back in a chair with a book I picked off the floor of Lorraine’s abode.

The Convenient Rentt

“...Well then. With this, we’re mostly done,” a strict-faced adventurer said, a sigh accompanying his statement.

Standing behind him was Lorraine, a Silver-class adventurer and a well-built warrior. Seven years had passed since I, Rentt Faina, had become an adventurer. Although I had been gaining experience ever since, my rank was still lower-Bronze-class. As such, I found myself often left out when it came to parties. But this specific excursion was an exception, having been asked for by name by the guild itself. The party, in turn, conformed to the guild’s specifications.

Besides Lorraine, I was in a group with two other individuals: a swordsman wielding a great sword by the name of Zarid, and a heavily armored walking mountain of a warrior by the name of Ryude. They were both part of the upper-Bronze-class. Although the highest ranked adventurer in this party was Lorraine, she had no intentions of leading our group, leaving that role to Zarid.

The nature of the request was easy enough: flush out an unnaturally large concentration of goblins on the first floor of the New Moon Dungeon. Not exactly a dangerous request, and one easily handled even by Bronze-class adventurers.

We were, of course, not alone in this endeavor, as other guild-appointed parties were hunting goblins here as well.

All we had to do to complete the assignment was slay the required number of goblins; any extra that we could manage to put into the ground would result in a bonus. It was a good contract, albeit a compulsory one, having been appointed to the task by the guild itself. In reality, however, there was no mistaking that it was a tiring job, hence Zarid’s sigh.

“Well, we’re about 70% of the way there. We can just hunt the remainder at a leisurely pace well into the evening. How’s that sound?”

“From now? It is still morning, Zarid. I would like to finish the request and simply return home...” Lorraine disagreed, shaking her head.

Ryude, the armored warrior, chimed in with his own thoughts on the matter.

“I get that, Lorraine, but there aren’t many more goblins to go around. It’d be troublesome to go looking for the rest,” Ryude said, in a gentle and polite voice that hardly fit his hulking image.

From here on out, it was less slaying and more tracking; a time consuming task, indeed. Considering the terms of the contract, however, we had no choice but to do as we were told.

“I suppose that’s how it is. We can just take things slowly, maybe even fill our stomachs while we search,” I said, with the intention of lightening the mood. Reaching into my magic tool bag, I withdrew enough sandwiches for the four of us, having made them this very morning.

Lorraine, apparently still in a foul mood, snatched a sandwich from my hands before leaning up against the dungeon’s walls. She held onto the sandwich with her teeth as she poured a drink for herself, a steady stream of water flowing from her canteen into a silver cup.

Locating an adequate spot, I sat down as well, taking out a cup for myself from the depths of my magic bag. Looking up, however, I found Zarid and Ryude staring at me, wide-eyed.

“...What is it? There is enough for you two as well. Adventurers do usually bring food and a cup, right? Can’t say much about Lorraine’s silver cup...but a cup is a cup at the end of the day.”

I, of course, sported a rather normal-looking metal cup. Being fellow adventurers, I had expected Zarid and Ryude to act the same way. However...

“...Wait, wait, that’s not it! You... You actually went through the trouble of making fresh sandwiches? Aren’t camp rations usually just jerky and dry bread?” Zarid asked, surprise evident in his voice.

“What, you don’t want any...?”

Saying so, I reached out, intending to eat Zarid’s sandwich myself.

“Hold up! Of course I’d like some...” Ryude said, sitting down next to me. “And you’re right, I have a cup of my own, too, but your food and water just smell so good! Can I have some?”

Handing out a sandwich to him, I poured him a drink from my flask as well. I had taken care to prepare some apple-flavored water—why settle for less?

Zarid was quick to agree.

“Me, too! I’d like some, too! Please! I just thought I wouldn’t have anything nice to eat until I’ve left the dungeon... I was merely surprised that you had prepared all this!”

“Oh, I see. Well...adventurers mostly buy jerky and the like as rations before setting off on expeditions. But this is good every once in a while, no?”

“I’d rather have it every day! But then again, prepared food is quite expensive... Man, I envy those with wives...” Zarid said, sighing once more.

While one could indeed purchase dried supplies from vendors at the dungeon’s entrance, the offerings were usually expensive dried rations and not exactly mouth-watering.

In addition, most adventurers didn’t have magic bags. Due to the relative inconvenience of walking around with fresh food, most adventurers, in turn, simply purchased dried rations and hard bread, stuffing it into their packs.

But of course, an adventurer would be hard-pressed to find a wife who would purchase a magic bag for a large sum of coin, and then stuff it full of homemade food for their adventuring husband. The average person would most likely get fed up with doing it so relatively soon, let alone on a regular basis.

And so our chatter continued until we were finally done with our meals.

“All right! I’ve had my fill now. Thanks to Rentt, I feel like I can work twice as hard today!” Zarid cheered.

“I feel the same,” Ryude said, a satisfied expression on his face.

I suppose the sandwiches were worth the trouble after all. I, who was the weakest in terms of combat potential in the group, should at least do this much for my comrades.

But there was even more that I could do.

“Also...from the general distribution of the goblins that we fought this afternoon, I have charted out where the remaining goblins are. If we follow this route, we should get there relatively quickly.”

Zarid turned to me once more, visibly impressed. “...Oi, Lorraine. Is this guy always so convenient to have around?”

Lorraine’s response was somewhat deadpan.

“I would say that he is holding back today. After all, he would start cooking on the spot with fresh ingredients if he could. Well, such a thing would be dangerous to do given the amount of goblins in the vicinity, hence...”

“He cooks on the spot, too? You’re kidding. I’d want him in all my parties... But then, Rentt does have his own goals...”

“Yes, to become a Mithril-class adventurer.”

“Indeed. Solo adventuring trains one up faster than exploring in a party. It would be unbecoming of us to trouble Rentt. Give it up, Zarid...”

But of course, they would only invite me as a courtesy since adventurers were judged by their strength and combat ability. In those aspects, I was worthless, and I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed with myself...

After we packed up our lunch, we continued through the halls of the New Moon, slaying the required goblins before returning to Maalt and disbanding. Although I had enjoyed myself in the party today, I couldn’t help but feel that it would be a long time before I could enjoy a similar experience, and that revelation alone filled my heart with sadness.

“...If you ever did want to set off in a party, I am sure everyone would just flock to you, Rentt.”

Lorraine, who had been walking next to me, seemed to mumble something under her breath.

“What was that, Lorraine?”

“No... It is nothing. Let us return home. In fact, the payout from that assignment was respectable; we should feast over dinner, at the very least.”

Saying so, Lorraine quickened her step, with me following closely behind as she headed off in the direction of a well-known eatery.

Strength of the Silver-Class

It was perhaps common knowledge to most individuals that adventurers were segregated by a ranking system, with the strongest being the Mithril-class. Second was the Platinum-class, followed by the Gold-, Silver-, Bronze-, and finally Iron-classes. New adventurers, in turn, started off as Iron-class.

In addition to these, there was a tier system as well, with lower, middle, and upper ranks. This part of the classification, however, was mostly ignored. With the exception of certain special scenarios, most adventurers in the same class were equally capable.

Of course, veterans were another story altogether, but other than a difference in experience, their capabilities were mostly on par. Having more experience simply made one’s job easier, and there were, of course, lower-class adventurers with plenty of experience. A quirk in the system, if one would put it so.

That said, it was worth noting that I was of the lower-Bronze-class. Lorraine, for her part, was middle-Silver-class; she was, after all, quite capable.

If I had to say, Iron-class adventurers were mostly newcomers, and there were a fair amount of Bronze-class adventurers found in any town. The Silver-class was mostly made up of veterans, and so on. Gold-class adventurers, on the other hand, were in a league of their own, with some being capable of almost superhuman feats. Needless to say, few of these adventurers existed.

In other words, a typically successful adventurer ended their career as a Silver-class—such was just how things were.

With that said, it was not wise to pick fights with a Silver-class adventurer just because they were relatively normal. After all, there were certain Silver- and Gold-class adventurers with monstrous capabilities, who did not look too different from my fellow adventurers and me.

In fact, I had personally experienced such an event five years into my adventuring career—of course, this was when I had still lived.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Will you be continuing your research after this? Or will you be taking a nap?” I asked of Lorraine, who was partaking in her lunch at the same table as I was in one of Maalt’s busy eateries.

Upon hearing my query, Lorraine swallowed the lunch she had been chewing on, washing it down with a healthy dose of red wine.

“Why do you phrase it in such a way, Rentt? Do you think of me as some hermit who only sleeps and undertakes research? I do occasionally have other matters to tend to, you know... Occasionally,” Lorraine said with some feigned distaste. Ironically, she was the very picture of a hermit who only slept and researched.

If Lorraine was to be believed, however, her arrangements for today were somewhat different. Curious, I decided to ask after her.

“Is there anything special happening today? If I recall, the auction in the town center is the day after, and the new tomes only come in sometime next week. Also—”

“Well, not quite. Besides, you are only following me on those days to assist with the transport of my purchases, no? It is not that. Instead, it is about how I was approached on the street a while ago...”

Lorraine’s subsequent explanation was surprising, to say the least. Apparently, she had run out of supplies quite some time ago, having lost track of the time while engrossed in her research. Making a rare trip out to town, a young man had called out and spoken to her. The man then promised Lorraine a “special experience” if she had the time to follow him—at least, that was what he had told her.

At the time, Lorraine was on her way to purchase supplies and hence refused, but she promised to follow him on another day, said day being today past noon at a somewhat chic café.

“...He was so impassioned! Perhaps he had some revolutionary experiment to show me?! I would be most eager to witness such a thing!”

I could only look on at Lorraine’s strangely high-tensioned behavior with exasperation. After all, if one were to interview a hundred people, most would say that the man in question certainly had not one experiment to show Lorraine. She was, in this regard, a young woman with not much in the way of common sense. Although such activities were on the downturn recently, I suppose it still happened. While the guild provided a kind of education to adventurers who signed up, street smarts could not exactly be taught.

Back when I first met Lorraine, she was only fourteen. If she had to walk about at night, she would often call for me, or some other trusted associate. Having turned eighteen just a year ago, Lorraine now walked around the streets of Maalt at night as and when she pleased. Perhaps it was a question of luck, but Lorraine was now hardly ever accosted on her night walks. In addition, Lorraine’s reputation as a powerful mage preceded her, so few would call out inappropriately to her even if she was walking around at night by her lonesome.

But of course, Maalt was a big town—new people entered through its gates on a daily basis. It wouldn’t be strange for some among them to not know of Lorraine’s prowess.

Although I’d taught Lorraine all the basics of adventuring when I first met her five years ago, she only worked hard for a year and was mostly cooped up at home. I suppose that was just how Lorraine was, and there was no changing that.

“Lorraine... That man most likely didn’t have experiments of any kind to show you,” I said, shaking my head in exasperation.

“How do you know that, Rentt?” Lorraine asked, oblivious.

While I could have simply told her of the dangers, I suppose everything was an experience.

“You will know if you meet him in person... Well, in any case, I will hide nearby and look out for you. When and where are you meeting him?”

Lorraine, confused as to why I needed said information, obediently provided the details to me either way. After, we went our separate ways, having finished our lunch together.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Is it that man over there?” I asked, pointing to a lone man seated at the café’s terrace.

Lorraine nodded in response. “Yes, he is indeed the one. He doesn’t look like a suspicious person to me, no?”

“Well... You’ll see. Go on,” I said, shaking my head as Lorraine walked toward the man. I then hid myself, observing the two of them from the shadows.

The man was human, of course, but with his attitude, flashy clothing, and questionable sense of fashion, he was quite suspicious. One look at him was enough for most to understand that it wouldn’t be wise to associate with such an individual.

While I had thought to observe them for a while, I did not have a chance to do so. Though the man merely engaged in casual conversation at first, he soon drew a knife from a hidden pocket in his shirt, pointing it at Lorraine. In fact, he had positioned himself so that the other patrons and the café staff wouldn’t notice him. He was well-practiced, if nothing else.

From his general demeanor and smile, it did not seem like anything other than a casual conversation. If I were to leave her as she was, the man would take Lorraine away and enslave her or sell her to a brothel of some sort, where she would be forced to do all sorts of terrible things. Such was the trade that this man was involved in. But of course, that would only happen in the case of a normal girl.

This man had no idea, not an inkling, of Lorraine’s monstrous strength.

Mere seconds after the knife was pointed at her, I detected a surge of magic—Lorraine was weaving a spell while she sat. In the seconds after, the knife was bent and warped at an impossible angle as invisible ropes bound the man, immobilizing him.

The man probably had no idea what had just happened. Specifically, he probably didn’t understand why he was prone on the ground, and why there was a great, big ball of fire hovering over him. Upon witnessing such a sight, he promptly fainted, most likely under the duress of thinking death was at hand.

Lorraine easily dismissed the ball of fire with a flick of her hand, shaking her head disappointingly as she made her way back to me before speaking in a somewhat exasperated fashion.

“I suppose what you would like me to say is, ‘Women should be careful of strange men who accost them,’ yes?”

While I could have explained this all to her, there was a world of difference in personally experiencing something.

I nodded, satisfied. “Well, if it’s you, Lorraine, you would do something about it either way, no?”

Although the experience was enough to convince Lorraine of my warnings, I had to endure my own ordeal later, with Lorraine posing to me endless questions regarding such encounters deep into the night.