I woke up at the same time as Daniela the next morning . We washed our faces, ate breakfast in our room and made plans for the day . By the way, breakfast was scrambled eggs, salad, freshly baked bread and fruits . So, an incredibly fresh, juicy, delicious and overall happy meal .
“I will go and make a report about Eve . Bacon, was it?”
“Yeah . You can’t forget a name like that . Not even if you wanted to . ”
“It sounds awfully familiar to me… But nevermind . What are you going to do?”
I was getting changed now, and pointed at my bag with my foot .
“I think I’ll try and get rid of all the materials we’ve been gathering . ”
“Selling, yes . Is there a guild here?”
“There is . I asked about it yesterday . ”
While leaving the food district, I had followed some Adventurer-types . They went straight to the guild, so I knew where it was now .
“I see . By the way, about that wind dragon…”
Daniela opened and closed her left hand . She had already finished changing .
“Ah, your equipment?”
“Aye . I would like to use some of the materials . ”
“Sure . Why not get new clothes too? Those are ripped . ”
As she had been bitten by the wind dragon, everything below the shoulder had been torn off . Of course, that included the armor .
“Indeed… I am rather attached to this after all these years, but I think the time has come to make a change . ”
“Alright then . We’ll use the wind dragon to upgrade our equipment and sell what’s left . ”
“Thank you . ”
“Don’t mention it . ”
It was important to be careful when dealing with money, even though we were a party . Even though we were lovers . But at the same time, it was even more important to help each other . We would shoulder each others’ burden and walk together . I wanted her to depend on me more . It wasn’t good to require permission for everything and only care about rules all the time . There was nothing wrong with just having a few appropriate guidelines used in moderation .
“Alright, I’ll be off then . ”
I strapped the Glampanzer to my belt and put on my backpack . My clothes were the usual cheap set I used for walking in the town . There was no need to dress up . Though, everything was in this bag anyway .
“I will go to the bathroom first . Do not try to look . ”
“I won’t!”
“And no listening either . ”
“Why would I!”
“I will be using Presence Detection, just so you know . ”
“You don’t trust me!?”
Damn it! I puffed up with indignation as I left Room 106 behind me .
It was not Karamus, but someone else who greeted me at the counter . I told them that I was going out on business and then left the inn . It was a short walk to the main street . It was filled with the expected liveliness of a bustling crowd . I had to be careful not to bump into other people as I made my way to the guild .
“Adventurers Guild . Usk Branch . ”
It was a fine building made mostly of white bricks . Something about it made me think of palaces, but there was no point in allowing that to intimidate me . Hell, it was bound to be filled with the typical rough Adventurer types .
There was a guarded curtain instead of a closed door that I had to pass . Inside, the scene was mostly a familiar one . But as this was a trade town by a river, there was much variety in equipment . Perhaps this was also a form of communication between people of different cultures . No, that’s not it .
The structure of the place was mostly the same as other guilds . There were counters for Registration, Quests, Requests, Rewards, Conversions, and Questions . In the back, I could see a bar . And there was a resting area near the side of the entrance . There you could hear many Adventurers boast about their exploits .
I looked around, like the little outsider that I was . Eventually, I found my position at the back of the Conversion line and stared at the materials on the counter . …Orc fangs . Yes, they were unique in shape . So he must have hunted orcs . I hoped it wasn’t Arthur’s fangs… Where was he anyway? I ended up crossing the river without meeting him . Do orcs cross the river too…?
As I folded my arms and considered this question, someone cut into the line . I looked up to see three faces with sleazy grins . Well, there wasn’t much point in blowing a fuse here . My turn would come with a little patience . I shouldn’t let it bother me . I shrugged and returned my thoughts towards Arthur .
“Hahaha! Nile, this one can’t even talk!”
“Hey-hey, Zanbage . He must be ill . Don’t mock the poor thing!”
“Ahahaha! Zanbage, Nile, this guy’s ear don’t seem to work either! I don’t think he can hear us!”
…And I had been so kind as to overlook their earlier rudeness . And yet they were fanning the flames like nobody’s business . I snapped just enough to look up with a glare .
“…Eh? What’s this now? Have you got a problem with us?”
“If you do, we’re listening . Supposing you can actually talk!”
“Ahahahaha!”
These three had a gift for irritating people . It must be an important aspect of their craft, differentiating between irritating people and making them angry . They attacked with very precise blows . How did they do it?
“Bah! So you got nothin’ to say after all . This bastard has no balls . ”
“How sad . You should just quit the trade . You’re making the rest of us look bad . ”
“Ahahaha! Yes, turn left and go home, you coward!”
There was an audible sound of the camel collapsing under the last straw .
“Ah, sorry about that . I was just thinking about something else . ”
“Eh?”
“Yes, I was thinking about how I would handle a situation when someone cut the line while I was waiting . ”
“Ahahahaha! Indeed, what would a bastard with no balls do in such a situation?!”
The one with the most irritating laugh threw a shoulder around me as he said this .
“This!!”
I grabbed his arm and threw him onto his back . As soon as he hit the floor, I rammed my foot into his stomach, sending him sliding across the room .
“Senagal! You little shit!”
Then I activated Legs of the Forest Wolf for a split second around my left foot and launched myself into the air . It was a little higher than necessary, but I didn’t care as I kicked upwards with my right foot, right into the first guy’s jaw . He must have bit his tongue, because blood splashed from his mouth .
“How dare you…! …gg!?”
I dodged the biggest one as he shouted and swung at me . Daniela was both faster and more intimidating . I dropped to the floor and kicked his legs out from under him, causing him to rotate fully before crashing down to the floor . Then I grabbed him by the hair and pulled his face up before slamming it down again . A stream of blood flowed from his nostrils .
“Get it? That’s what happens when you cut the line . ”
“Shi-shit…bastard…mmm . . ggg…!!”
There was still a strong sense of resistance there, so I slammed his face into the ground once again .
“Still having trouble?”
“Ugh…gg…”
His eyes were wet, and yet he could not seem more alive as he glared at me . I wondered if I should make him taste the floor again, but then my time was up . A pair of legs stopped right in front of me . I let go of the man’s hair and stood up .
“Uh, forgive me for disturbing you while you are so preoccupied . But do you have some time to spare?”
“Uh, sure . ”
I thin man stood there . He was just standing there with his perfect posture, and yet there was something very guarded about him . Even his smile seemed misleading as he guided me passed the counter and opened a door marked, ‘Reception Room . ’ …It brought back horrible memories of Fiona .
“Is there something wrong?”
“Uh, no . ”
I gave him my own ‘customer service smile’ and entered the room . I glanced back just before entering and saw the three men being dragged away by their feet by some guild workers . That alone gave me an idea of the situation . But that was all I saw, as the man quickly closed the door behind us .
“Ah . I must say, those men have caused us so much trouble up until now!”
“Oh . ”
“They seemed to do little but pick fights with every newcomer to the guild . At times, they would even force people to give them money!”
“Huh . ”
“But we try to avoid getting involved in personal quarrels… And they are rather strong . ”
“Eh…”
“Still, they do have a knack for getting under people’s skin, do they not? It is really quite genius, even . Genius!”
“Uh, right… Who are you?”
As soon as we sat down on the couch, the man burst into a fit of complaints, as if he had been waiting for this moment for years . But I hadn’t got his name yet .
“Ah, ah, forgive me . I am Rio Grande . The Guild Master of the Flugelnian Empire’s Usk Guild . ”
“Guild Master… I…”
“You are Asagi, are you not? Asagi Kamiyashiro . The sharp and swift swordsman known as Silvergreen! Ah, you would not have known this, but I am a great admirer of yours . Yes, we shall be the best of friends from now on . ”
I guess there was no need for introductions on my end . I felt a chill when he suddenly grabbed my hand and shook it excitedly, but at least he didn’t seem to be the bad sort .
“Are they well known then? Um…for better or worse . ”
“Oh, yes . Very . No one has ever been a bigger nuisance… You don’t know how good it felt to see you give them a good beating!”
“Thanks . …Uh, is there a penalty for starting fights within the guild?”
When all was said in done, I had done the worst of it . I was quite pissed off in the moment, and a part of me wondered if I had gone too far .
“Ah, think nothing of that . There is indeed a penalty, but that shall be withdrawn from their accounts, and not yours . ”
“Should you be doing that? You are the Guild Master…”
“It is fine . If anything it is the one thing I can do as Guild Master . And so I must do it!”
I wasn’t sure if he was taking his job seriously enough . Well, if this meant that I was getting out of this unscathed, then I had no complaints . I had only come here to collect some money . If the guild could clean up the mess that this misfortune caused, then I was all for it .
“Well, that is all I wanted to say . Thank you for your time . ”
“No, thank you . And sorry about all of this . ”
“Think nothing of it!”
Rio stood up and opened the door for me . All eyes moved towards us . However, it only lasted for a second, and they all dispersed and the room was full of mutterings .
“Hehe . You are quite famous . ”
“I prefer to live quietly . I have no use for fame . ”
“Ah, so modest . But it is too late for that, Mister Asagi!”
Rio said, much to my annoyance . Then he disappeared in some backroom behind the counter .
Uhh…damn it . Replant had been so peaceful in comparison . I felt quite tired as I rejoined the line . This time, there was no one who tried to cut in .