Volume 2 Chapter 15 (1/2)

Intending on following up on the Mythological Fox’s sale, I headed to the place the adventurers were and although there were some complains at first, I was relieved to know they approved of our products.

However, the conversation they had afterwards led me to believe they had need for an inn and some equipment. And so, I decided to talk business with them.

“If you want, I can show you around. My city has sells equipment and also does repairs. We also operate an inn.”

Although they were bewildered by my sudden appearance, they immediately regained their composure and spoke.

“What do you mean father of the demihumans? And you’re a great sage? Just who are you?”

“This is a city I built for the demihumans being persecuted by society and I am their guardian. Also, to be able to build such a city, I can be nothing less than a great sage, don’t you agree?”

I said so smugly but I might have gone a little too far with my bluff. They were looking at me with suspicion in their eyes. I screwed up, I thought. It was a little embarrassing.

Alright, let’s change the subject.

“…Moving on, how about that tour?”

“Oh, oh yeah. Can you first show us to the inn?”

“Yes, my pleasure.”

I nodded and led the adventurer party to the inn.

◇

The one currently running the inn was Wight.

I figured I wouldn’t have anything to worry about if he was in charge of it.

“Welcome, dear guests.”

Wight greeted us as we opened the door.

His entire body was wrapped with his high-class robe and on his face was a mask.

The mask was enchanted with the effects of [Beguile] and it should make him appear like a refined gentleman as long as he wore it.

“Is this the city’s inn?”

“Yes, it is. Or so I would like to say but right now, it’s more of just a place to sleep at. Let me explain our systems.”

I cleared my throat once and spoke.

“We have two plans for you to choose from. The first option is to rent a private room. Regardless of the number of people to stay in the room, you are expected to pay two silver coins per night. Well, two people should be able sleep comfortably in them but it should still be able to accommodate four people. These rooms have locks installed in them so if you want some privacy, this is the option to pick. And don’t worry, no matter which plan you pick, blankets will always be provided.”

By the way, this was a really cheap price. In the city of Eclaba, manual labor aimed for adventurers would earn them 6 silver coins a day.

“It’s so cheap.”

“A place to sleep is all we’re offering, after all. Guests are expected to clean after themselves during stay. As for meals, please purchase those at the store you visited earlier. You’re free to use the water well in the inn’s courtyard so if you have any laundry, you may wash them there. Also, our city also has a hot spring and you’re also free to enter that.”

“You have a hot spring!?”

The eyes of the thief girl, the only adventurer in good health, sparkled.

“Lecca, you know anything about it?”

The warrior-looking man asked the thief.

“Yeah, I do. It’s a warm bath you soak yourself into. It really, really feels good. Plus, it takes helps to relieve your stress away.”

With an ecstatic face, the thief girl imagined the hot spring.

“You’re quite knowledgeable. As you said, hot springs relieve stress. But my city’s hot spring is special. Aside from the stress relief you mentioned, it also: makes your skin beautiful; accelerates recovery from wounds and illnesses; gives magic power recovery; and a lot more.”

“All that just from bathing in hot water?”

“Yes. Besides from the hot spring’s own mysterious powers, it’s because of the high-ranking elves blessing this city.”

What I said was definitely true. Although the effects may be minor, they were there nonetheless.

Each time Ancient Elf entered the bath, the effects grew stronger; she was then most probably the cause, I thought.

“Hey, Solt, let’s stay here! I’d like to enter the hot spring, it’s the best! It’d speed up the healing of your wounds too! Plus, Mira will also recover her magic power there!”

“…I still can’t believe it. Oh well, we were planning on staying here today anyway, might as well try the hot spring out.”

“Oh, yeah! I’m looking forward to it now!”

It seemed like the hot spring worked properly as a weapon thanks to their fondness of it.

“Earlier on, you said you had two plans but what’s the other one?”

“I did, and the second option lets you stay at a large communal room. Of course, the room won’t have a lock so we would advise the guests to be mindful of their belongings and to be on the lookout for theft. On that note, its cost is cheaper at only 1 silver coin per person. In your case, dear guests, rather than the communal room, it would be cheaper to stay at a private room, and thus why I mentioned it first.”

The communal rooms were basically a plan aimed toward adventurers traveling alone.

For a party, private rooms were always cheaper and better.

“Then, we’ll rent two rooms. Four silver coins will be enough, wouldn’t it?”

“Yes, perfectly.”

When I said so, Wight took out two keys and explained the particulars.

“Dear guests, these are the keys to your rooms. Please consult the map in the wall that shows the room numbers for your rooms’ locations.”

The warrior-looking man took a key while the other one was taken by the female thief. It seemed like they split up according to their gender: a rare consideration for adventurers.

“Procell, could you wait until we’ve dropped our baggage first before you guide us to the equipment shop?”

“Yes, of course.”

I replied and smiled.

For adventurers, this party was strong and experienced. If they were impressed, the widespread news of our city via word of mouth was likely. A little effort for that was tolerable.

◇

A little while later and the adventurers came back. It seemed they donned a change of clothes, this time wearing casual clothing. However, I also noticed that they were carrying a large bag on their shoulders which, I guessed, contained their broken equipment.

And so, I led them back to the store.

◇

When we returned to the store, Kuina and the two Mythological Foxes were busily moving around. I figured the Mythological Fox sent outside to draw in visitors had in fact drawn in too much to the point that she was called back to help.

When I noticed the sign and the Mithril Golem that acted as a guard weren’t in the city, I figured the Mithril Golem must have been told to keep holding the sign. The Golem did have the ability to draw visitors in so for the moment, I didn’t have to question such a decision.

The foodstuffs had sold well.

There were about thirty customers inside the store. It may not have been a lot but considering there only three of them to tend to the store, their job was tough.

Kuina then looked at me with eyes pleading for help but I pretended to not notice. It was alright, I trusted they were able to handle something like this. Rather, they have to in order for them to handle future sales. And so, I steeled my heart and hoped the girls would grow.

I then cleared my throat and faced the adventurer party.

“Well then, this is where the transactions for the purchase and repair of equipment takes place. For the moment though, only swords are being sold.”

I said so and led them into the store. We then proceeded to the area opposite of where the foodstuffs were placed. There, a lot of swords were casually displayed. The only sword that was framed and furnished to the wall was the sword Elder Dwarf seriously made.

When I thought about it, the swords didn’t really stood out. Upon entering the store, one would have had to search for them to notice them. In fact, the adventurers within the store were still yet to notice them.

I noted to place them somewhere better later.

But as I thought so……..

“Where are the swords placed? I heard there were wonderful swords being sold here but where are they?”

A new group of visitors arrived and asked the busy girls. They numbered close to twenty. Right from the start, they were looking for swords. I thought they must have heard of the rumors of this city’s blacksmith’s expertise.

With the arrival of the new group, the girls began to panic. Seeing that, I decided to take care of the new ones.

“The swords are this way. These customers are about to try the swords out as well so why don’t you join us?”

“Oh, that way, huh. I didn’t notice.”

I gathered the customers interested on the swords together. The inside of the store was vast so there were no problems with this many people inside.

I picked a massed produced sword up and handed it over to the warrior-looking man.

“This sword you’ve given me, it’s quite the item.”

The moment the warrior-looking man took the sword, his eyes changed from that of his relaxed usual self into that of a swordsman’s.

He stared intensely into the sword and then touched its blade. Afterwards, he readied himself and swung it. The sound of the sword cutting the air reverberated. He had good skills.

“This is a wonderful sword. You won’t see many swords this fine in Eclaba.”

“Why don’t you try swinging it at something?”