Published at 20th of November 2020 10:34:26 PM
Chapter 59
Translator: SFBaka
Editor: Thor’s Stone
I stayed up late last night and somehow managed to finish copying down the schematics for the distiller’s basic parts on paper . It ended up being about 50 pages long . I also copied down the schematics for the metal parts of the magic tools . I’ll have to buy a fresh supply of paper today .
When I pored over the Commerce Guild rules and regulations through the document I brought with me yesterday, I saw something good .
It turns out the remittance fee for sending money actually differed depending on your guild rank . It was 50,000 Guineas for C ranks and below, 40,000 for B ranks, 30,000 for A ranks, and finally, 10,000 Guineas for S ranks .
It looks like the rule of the rich getting richer still held true even on a different planet . But since there would be a potential difference of 20,000 Guineas or more once I went up in rank, it was definitely worth signing up with the Commerce Guild .
Everyone was happily discussing their plans for the day while having breakfast . It kinda felt like I was being left out .
After breakfast, the girls readied themselves and went out looking pretty pumped .
(Selena, Sharon . If you get into any sort of danger, don’t hesitate to use your rifles . Even if you guys are going out for training, there’s no reason to unnecessarily risk your lives . Don’t get your priorities mixed up, okay?)
(Understood . )
(We’ll make sure to be careful . )
Their tone suggested everything would be fine, but I was still worried after all .
(D-1, please monitor them . Notify the Ensigns immediately when a monster approaches with an alarm, and if a monster manages to get within five meters of the four of them, deal with it immediately . )
『Acknowledged . 』
I guess I should head out as well .
When I arrived at Jordan’s smithery, I heard the sound of clanging hammers even though it was still pretty early in the morning . Wouldn’t all this noise cause trouble for the neighbors?
Jordan-san immediately noticed me when I entered the workshop .
“Let’s move somewhere else . ”
I showed him the documents I prepared outside of the workshop . Jordan-san read each page carefully for some time .
“These are some amazing blueprints . They’re pretty easy to follow too . It would be great if our customers brought something as nice as these whenever they make a commission . ”
“Can you make them?”
“Yeah, no problem . We’re gonna use copper anyway, so we’ll be able to manage . ”
“Um, but this is just one-third of the full schematics . There are about a hundred more pages to go . ”
“Hmm, so there’s still so much huh… Well, it can’t be helped . Just hand them all over to me . We’ll just have to do our best . ”
“Understood . I’ll do so . ”
Afterward, I went over the schematics page by page with Jordan-san and explained the illustrations in detail .
I did so for the schematics of the magic tool’s metal parts as well .
“Oh, and one more thing, sir . Can you make this too? I need it after twenty days if it’s possible . ”
“Hou, this is an interesting design . Well, if we make a proper mold, I think we can make a good number of these . If it’s after twenty days, then we can probably manage . ”
“Then, if you please, sir . ”
It was already 11 o’clock when I left the workshop after settling the payment for the additional items I ordered . I guess I’ll have lunch out first and return to the inn afterward . I remember the girls had planned to start the imperial martial arts lessons this afternoon, so I might as well participate . I’ve gotten a bit rusty, so it would be nice to have a spar or two with Selena and Sharon to get the feel for it back .
As I searched for a suitable restaurant, I saw a child bawling on the side of the street . It was Ella, and Teo was kneeling in front of her while trying to console her .
“Hey, Teo . What’s going on?”
“Bro! …I ain’t the one who made her cry . Ella just started to bawl her eyes out . I think she tripped . ”
“I bet she tripped because you pulled her in a hurry again, right?”
“Uu, well, yeah, I guess . But Ella’s such a slowpoke . Ugh . Even her clothes got ripped . ”
The dirty one-piece dress Ella was wearing got torn in some places when she tripped . When Teo tried to touch the torn part, Ella started crying even louder .
“Don’t cry, Ella . It’ll be fine if we sew it a bit . ”
Huh? Maybe they didn’t have enough spare clothes . No matter how you slice it, seeing a young girl like this is just too pitiful .
“Do you know of any second-hand clothing shops around here, Teo? I’ll buy some for you guys . ”
“Eh!? No, it’s fine bro . Clothes are expensive, y’know?”
“You may be okay about this, but don’t you feel sorry for Ella? It’s fine, so just hurry up and lead the way . ”
“Really!? Um, uh, I think there’s one this way, bro!”
I had Teo and Ella choose a dress once we arrived at the clothing shop .
“We’ll have this, bro . ”
The dress they showed me looked worn out already, and it was too big for the 4-year-old Ella . She would probably end up dragging the one-piece dress around if she wore it .
“Hey, this is too big for her . ”
“It’s fine, bro . She’ll grow into it real quick . You’ll see . ”
Really? I went to the clerk and paid for the dress . It seems that this second-hand dress actually still costs 200 Guineas .
Teo had Ella change into it right away even though we were out on the streets .
“There we go . It fits just fine . Thanks for buying us this dress, bro! Say thank you as well, Ella . ”
“Bro . ”
It looks like Ella was quite happy to get a dress that didn’t look like dirty rags .
“Good . Okay then, you two . Lead me to a nice restaurant next . I’ll treat you to lunch as well . ”
“Really!? Over here then, bro!”
The restaurant the kids led me to was quite bustling . Since the seats inside were full, we were guided to the terrace seats instead . They had meat and fish set meals .
“What do you guys want? Meat or fish?”
“”Meat!””
The meals consisted of the usual bread, meat and veggie stir-fry, and soup . The meals cost 10 Guineas per serving, so I paid 30 Guineas for me and the kids .
Teo and Ella started scarfing down on the food right away . As he chewed his food, Teo put his share of the bread as well as Ella’s into a jute bag .
“We’ll save the bread for tomorrow . Ella won’t be able to finish it all anyway . ”
Teo explained his actions to me when he noticed me watching him .
“I see… Good for you then . ”
“Yeah! Thank you very much, bro! Really . It’s been a while since we ate such a hearty meal . ”
“……Hey, Teo . Are you familiar with Clans?”
“Yeah, I am . It’s a group formed by adventurer parties, right?”
“Yeah, that’s right . We’re gonna start up a Clan of our own soon . We got a pretty nice building for our Home just recently too . If you feel like it, do you wanna work there? I can hire you as a helper . ”
“……Really!? I’ll do anything for you, bro! Please hire me!”
Sponsored Content
“But even though I say I’m gonna hire you, I’ll just provide you with a room to stay in as well as breakfast and dinner every day . I can’t pay you any money for now . ”
“A room and meals every day!? Bro! Please, please hire me! I’ll do anything you want me to! I don’t mind not getting paid . ”
“I see . Okay then . But we’ll formally move to the new building twenty days from now though . ”
“Twenty days… Hey, bro… Um, can Ella also work for you?”
“Yeah, of course . ”
“Really!? As expected of my bro! Yosh, I and Ella will work hard for ya!”
Of course, I’m aware that I’m being a hypocrite here . But I just can’t leave this pair of siblings alone after seeing how hard they had it . It was just giving them a nice room and meals every day . It’s nothing much . Teo’s been a great help as a city guide anyway .
After finishing our meals, I parted ways with Teo and Ella . Okay then . Let’s go for some Imperial Arts practice . I hope Selena and Sharon go easy on me a bit though…
For a while, I spent my days helping out with the manufacturing of the distiller, preparing for alcohol brewing, making magic tools, purchasing things to use for our new Home, and participating in the girl’s practice sessions . It was pretty hectic .
I only helped out with making the distiller as an advisor though . Even though there were detailed blueprints, making something like it for the first time still posed some difficulties for the blacksmiths after all . I was called in to give some technical advice from time to time .
Additionally, we ordered some wooden barrels and other supplies and equipment for alcohol brewing as well . We also secured a place to store them during the fermentation process .
The production of the magic tools I designed went without a hitch, and I had them brought to our Home straight away . Aside from that, with Karinsan’s assistance, I purchased a large number of items such as tableware, kitchen utensils, and cleaning tools for our new Home .
And so, today, we were finally going to formally move to our new Home .
After having breakfast, we checked out of the inn and prepared our carriage for departure . When we started heading for our new Home, we found Teo and Ella waiting for us outside the inn . They’ve been visiting us practically every day ever since my last encounter with them . They probably just want to get treated to a meal . It was a bit sly of Teo, but he’s only doing his best as Ella’s big brother, so it’s fine .
“Good morning big bro and big sisters!”
“Yeah, morning, you two . We’ll finally be moving to our Clan’s Home today . You guys will start working for us today as well . ”
“I got ya, bro . We’ve been waiting for today as well . ”
We let Teo and Ella aboard and left the Spring Breeze inn .
It took us fifteen minutes to arrive at our destination, and we found Karinsan already waiting for us .
Good morning, Alan-sama, everyone . ”
“Good morning, Karinsan . ”
There were thirteen new employees lined up in front of the building along with Karinsan . I already held a simple interview for these people a few days back, and I had a basic grasp of their personalities .
“Okay, Teo . You guys head over there as well and listen to Sally-san’s orders, okay?”
Sally-san was the head of our Home’s helpers and was a pretty dependable middle-aged widow . Her late husband was also an adventurer . I already told her and the others about Teo and Ella . The sibling hurriedly lined up with the rest of the employees .
“Well be in your care from now on, everyone . ”
“Yes . Thank you very much, Alan-sama, everyone . ”
First, we went around with Karinsan in order to check if there were no problems with the building and the new equipment . Of course, Karinsan handled everything perfectly, so we found absolutely nothing wrong with the building and equipment . The beds, tables, and chairs also looked practically brand new .
We looked around all the facilities and finished our tour at the office on the fourth floor .
“Well then, everyone . I will now formally hand the building over to you . ”
“Yes . Thank you for all your help . By the way, Karinsan, what about the rent for this month?”
It was just the fourth day of the month after all .
“We won’t charge you for this month, Alan-sama . We’ll only start billing you next month . ”
Sponsored Content
“I see . Thank you very much then . ”
After handing over the building, Karinsan finally left .
The total rent for this place was 70,000 Guineas per month . I thought it was a bit too cheap since it was a pretty big building with complete facilities, but Silas-san insisted on the price . I hope it doesn’t cause trouble for the rest of the Commerce Guild though .
“We finally have our Home now . ”
“Yes . We’ll all be living here starting today,” Cleria said with a smile .
“Oh, right! I made these for all of us . Try it on, everyone . ”
I secretly made badges for all of us . It had a secure hook, so you could fasten it to your clothes or pocket .
“”This is–!?””
Selena and Sharon let out surprised gasps .
The badges had the insignia of the Red Fleet on them . It was also the insignia placed on the hulls of every ship included in the fleet . It was a stylized supernova, so it also fit our party and Clan, Shining Star, perfectly .
“This is… a badge for Shining Star!? This symbol represents a brilliant star, right?”
“Yep . It’s pretty cool huh?”
“Yes! It’s wonderful! Let’s put them on, everyone!”
The girls found the badges to their liking, so they became our Clan’s official badges . Of course, I had prepared a hundred more badges as well . These will help strengthen the sense of solidarity within our fledgling organization . I’ll give these to the rest of the Clan members as well .
“Okay then . Now that we’ve moved, what do you girls want to do for the rest of the day? I was thinking of setting out for a monster hunt . ”
“I think that’s a good idea . We’ve used up quite a bit of our funds after all . We’ll have to start earning money again soon . ”
The rest of the party also agreed to my suggestion .
“I see . Okay then . We’ll hunt monsters today and set out tomorrow for bandit hunting . How about it, everyone?”
The girls all nodded in agreement .
We prepared straight away and set out on horseback . We only had two horses when we first got to this city, but we purchased an additional three a few days back, so now we had five . The three of them were good horses like Tarth and Syrah as well . Oh, and it cost us a total of 100,000 Guineas for all three .
I reviewed the habitat info scouted by D-1 and decided to aim for easy ones for now . We’ll hunt some Gray Hounds and Orcs then . There weren’t really a lot of Orcs to take down, but it’s been a while since we dedicated a full day for monster hunting . It should work out .
The monster hunting went without any trouble, and we returned to Gantz by four in the afternoon . Our harvest for today was 85 Gray Hounds and 12 Orcs .
As a bonus, we managed to take down a Big Boar as well while on our way back to Gantz . I immediately drained its blood, removed the innards, and tied it to two of our horses to carry it back . This is a pretty nice bonus . I’ll process it with our employees back at our Home later .
Everyone’s magic has improved considerably after dedicating twenty days for training . I didn’t want to get left behind, so I participated in the training sessions as well and learned a new spell; Light Arrow . Its overall power was about half of a Flame Arrow, but it was really fast . It was a great anti-personnel spell .
We reached the main city gates and greeted the guards on duty .
“Oh, if it isn’t Shining Star . That’s a pretty huge Big Boar you bagged there . ”
“Yes, we were quite lucky,” Cleria answered genially .
It seems that Cleria and the girls became quite familiar with the guards after these last twenty days . They were a group of beautiful ladies, so I imagine the guards had the time of their lives trying to chat them up as well .
We were allowed passage and entered the city . I had the rest bring the Big Boar back to our Home while I headed to the Adventurer’s Guild to exchange today’s harvest of proofs and magic stones for cash .
Our total earnings for today amounted to 38,750 Guineas . Not bad for a day’s work .
I went back to the Home and took my horse to the stables . I found Teo there . He was being taught by one of the staff about how to take care of the horses .
“It looks like you’re working hard huh, Teo . ”
“Oh! Br… Uh, Alan-sama . ”
He now changed the way he addressed me . Honestly, I would have preferred being called ‘bro’ instead of ‘Alan-sama’, but this was also part of Teo’s training, so I have to get used to it .
Sponsored Content
“Do your best . ”
I also tried to have Sally-san and the rest of the employees to stop calling me so formally, but I ended up getting lectured and told that as the leader of the Clan, I had to get used to being addressed in a way that fit my position, and that it would also be for the benefit of those under me . Sally-san was especially strict .
I entered the bath and heard the others call me for dinner after a while, so I dried myself up and went to the dining area .
It felt a bit lonely since there were only five of us sitting in the middle of a large dining room .
Tonight’s menu was rice, cream stew, and vegetable salad . I handed some recipes to our cook, Routal-san, and it looks like he made some of them for us tonight . By the way, Routal-san worked at a restaurant as a professional chef before, and the rest of his family ended up working for us as well .
“It’s good . ”
“Yes . But it’s still a bit different from the food you cook, Alan . ”
“That’s right . There’s definitely something different . ”
“Really? It’d probably turn out much like this even if I was the one who cooked y’know . Oh, by the way, let’s have a meeting after the meal . Let’s gather at the Clan office later . ”
After our dinner, we gathered at the Clan office on the fourth floor . After everybody found their seats around the large table inside the office, I spread out a map of the surrounding area and the highways . I made this map by copying sections of it on separate sheets of paper and then pasting them together .
“I managed to scout out a bandit hideout around this area . They have a fairly large number of members . There’s probably around thirty or so of them . ”
“Just how…… Haah, fine . Thirty is quite a number indeed . We can probably capture them all, but we would have a hard time transporting them,” Elna pointed out .
“Yeah, that’s right . But this is where those chain handcuffs I bought a few days back come in handy . We’ll go around on our carriage in order to serve as bait for the bandits . The main road branches out at this point, and we’re gonna enter this section over here . Since there’s quite a bit of distance to cover, we may need to camp out for a night . Any questions?”
Everyone shook their heads .
It looks like they have no problems with my plan . Well, it just goes to show how confident they’ve all become .
“We’ll set off two hours after dawn tomorrow . So be sure to sleep early tonight guys . ”
Everyone nodded and started heading out of the office to go to their respective rooms . But before Sharon managed to step out, she turned around and called out to me .
“Oh, Alan . I was thinking of adding a pocket on one side of our adventurer clothes, just below the shoulder, to clip our badges on . Would you like me to add one on your clothes as well?”
“I’ll help too,” Selena offered .
After hearing Sharon’s suggestion, everyone agreed to place pockets on the left side of their clothes for attaching the badges .
“That sounds good . I’ll leave it to you then . ”
I then handed them some of my clothes . It looks like they were planning to finish some tonight .
After drinking a bit of wine, I turned in early for the night .
We headed out on schedule the next morning . The girls were pretty pumped for our first bandit hunting expedition . We exited Gantz and headed out to the highway .
We were attacked by Gray Hounds along the way, but the girls handled them swiftly without my help .
“It’s a bit early, but how about taking a break and having lunch here?”
“Yes, that sounds lovely,” Elna agreed .
We were near a resting spot along the highway . I researched the place in advance of course . The timing was spot on .
Everyone ate the sandwiches prepared by Routal-san this morning . By the time we finished eating, I finally spotted a certain group of people traveling along the highway .
“There’s quite a lot of them . Let’s stay on alert,” Elna warned .
The group was now less than 100 meters away from us . Someone broke out from the group on horseback and started approaching us . It looks like they finally noticed us .
“Hey, Cleria . How about you wave toward them? They’re probably people you know . ”
Cleria looked confused at first, but she understood what I meant after a few moments, and frantically began waving at the group on the highway with both hands with a half-disbelieving expression on her pretty face .