Chapter 47
'Quest 〈Deliver the Goods in Short Supply〉 completed.'
"You really helped me out, brother. Thanks a bunch! I thought I wouldn't be able to get my hands on these for a while, so this'll make things a lot easier."
"I'm the one who should be thanking you. You paid a lot more than I expected, so this really helps."
We both smiled, looking quite pleased with ourselves.
This time, I made 3.1 million Mille selling the materials from 〈Stonebridge Abandoned Mine Dungeon〉. 'Excavation' really paid off.
The taciturn senpai had only taken what he needed, so I had a lot of materials left over. Word seemed to have spread that 【Hero】 was supplying materials to Marie-senpai, and this time she bought everything. Man, I'm grateful!
On top of that, someone was apparently looking for some of the materials she hadn't bought before, so we had them appraised again.
I handed over the materials, and Marie-senpai deposited the Mille into my 〈Student Handbook〉.
Lower Beginner 〈Shocker〉 materials would probably drop in value a lot before long. I was lucky to make a big profit while I could.
And since I'd completed the quest, there was one more reward.
"All right, here are ten passes to use our 〈Wappen Seal Sticker〉! Take 'em, brother."
"Thanks. I'll take them. I don't need them right now, so I'll use them another time."
I carefully tucked the passes away in my 〈Item Bag (Capacity: Large)〉.
All right! Free passes!
I pumped my fist in my mind.
That reminded me of something else.
"I'm planning to head to Intermediate Beginner 〈Shotchu〉 tomorrow. Will you buy those materials, too?"
"Of course! You'll be bringing us plenty of boss materials, right? Then you're more than welcome."
"Okay. I'll bring you a ton of boss materials, then. I'm planning to go to 〈Wild Herb Grassland Dungeon〉."
"Oh! Then won't you need some gathering items? I've got a good one."
Marie-senpai disappeared into the back, then returned with a small, unremarkable shovel.
"This here—believe it or not, it came from a Gold Chest."
"Seriously!?"
Who would've thought this completely ordinary shovel came from a 〈Gold Chest〉!
Loot from a 〈Gold Chest〉 was guaranteed to be rare. In other words, even this ordinary-looking shovel must have some kind of rare bonus.
〈Kind Shovel: 'Gathering LV3,' 'Quality Boost (Large) LV4,' 'Double Yield'〉
"Whoa! Seriously!? This is amazing!"
Three Skills attached! It had three Skills!
Could you understand how valuable three Skills were if I told you that even Sky Equipment only gained one Skill after you collected the entire set?
Well, there was a big difference between how Skills were attached to equipment and to items, but three Skills was still incredibly powerful, and it had to be quite rare.
Especially 'Double Yield.' It simply doubles the amount you gather. Gather one item, and you get another one for free. Amazing.
"Marie-senpai, you got this!? That's incredible!"
She was so lucky that I couldn't help speaking to her with the utmost respect.
If I had to complain, I'd have liked 'Gathering LV3' to be a higher level. At LV3, it could only be used up through Upper Beginner 〈Shokko〉.
Still, a 【Magic Toolmaker】 and the like could raise an item's Skill level. It was definitely worth having. I wanted it.
"Heh heh! Have you finally realized how amazing your senpai is? I've been holding on to it, but we don't go into dungeons anymore, so it's been gathering a little dust. I figured you'd be a good person to pass it on to. And you've got some money on you now, too."
"How much!?"
"How about ten million Mille, on the dot?"
"I'll take it!"
I decided to buy it in a flash!
I don't have that kind of money, but I said it on impulse! I really do want it, though!
As expected of a dungeon item, the price was astronomical.
An item you could only use in Beginner dungeons cost ten million Mille. This really was the world of 〈Dan-Katsu〉.
"Can I pay in installments!?"
There was no such thing as a loan in 〈Dan-Katsu〉.
But since we'd started joking around, I decided to keep it going.
"Ha ha ha! We only accept full payment, cash on the barrelhead!"
My senpai was good at playing along, too. There was no cash in 〈Dan-Katsu〉.
Everything at the academy was paid for with a single Student Handbook.
I could keep riffing on the joke, but then we'd never get anywhere, so it was about time to get serious.
"You're fun to joke around with, brother. I couldn't help playing along."
"I can't compete with you, Marie-senpai. So, how much does the shovel really cost? There's no way I have ten million Mille."
"One million Mille will do. It came from a Gold Chest, sure, but it's well-used. If it were new, I could probably just about get ten million Mille by putting it up for auction, but a used shovel you can only use in Beginner dungeons? Not so much."
The price was a tenth of what she'd first asked. But by my reckoning, a hand-me-down from the beautiful Marie-senpai ought to come with a premium. Was she really sure that price was okay? I'd buy it, though. I wouldn't say that out loud.
"Then I'll gladly take it off your hands."
I successfully bought the 〈Kind Shovel〉 for one million Mille. That left me with 1.8 million Mille to my name.
That's the kind of money that disappears in no time once you start buying equipment. I needed to earn a little more.
While I was putting the 〈Kind Shovel〉 into my 〈Item Bag (Capacity: Large)〉, Marie-senpai spoke as if she'd just remembered something.
"Oh, right. Hannah's body gear is ready. Do you want to take that back with you, too?"
She'd only measured Hannah yesterday, and it was already done. The benefits of a Job—what a speedy turnaround.
Marie-senpai went into the back again, then returned with a black, dress-like piece of body gear.
"How's that?"
I could understand why Marie-senpai was looking so smug.
How should I put it? It was a dress with a snug, figure-hugging top like a cheongsam, paired with a long skirt.
Since I'd recently begun suspecting that Hannah was secretly rather busty, this was a piece I was very happy to see.
〈Anteater Queen (Black): Defense 20, Magic Defense 13, 'Blunt Resistance'〉
The stats were excellent, too. As expected of materials from the 〈Bear Anteater〉 boss. It was great that it had blunt resistance as well. Even though they came from a boss, I hadn't expected Lower Beginner 〈Shocker〉 materials to give clothing gear this much Defense.
It seemed Marie-senpai had really gone all out making it.
"This is amazing. It'll stay useful all the way through Upper Beginner 〈Shokko〉. I never expected you to make something with stats this good."
"Heh heh! All eight of our guild members worked on it. When I told them it was for the person who'd supplied us with Lower Beginner 〈Shocker〉 materials, they all got fired up. Everyone kept adding this and that, and before we knew it, the Defense had reached 20. We were surprised, too."
Apparently, this had turned into quite a big deal without my knowing.
"I couldn't stop laughing when it happened," Marie-senpai said, grinning at the memory. I took the gear from her, put it in my 〈Item Bag (Capacity: Large)〉, and paid 200,000 Mille. For gear with this much Defense, made by eight senpai, it was a real bargain. A great purchase.
I was covering the cost this time. I'd taken all the loot from the 〈Gold Chest〉 for myself when we got my 〈Sky Series〉 before, so this was partly to make up for that. Besides, every man wants to give a cute outfit to a beautiful girl at least once. Something a little alluring, at that.
I was really looking forward to seeing her wear it tomorrow.