Chapter 71
On the way back from the Research Institute, Hanna finally voiced all the thoughts she'd been bottling up.
"They were amazing people."
She seemed so overwhelmed that she could barely find the words.
"Yeah, I totally agree. Though they were exactly what I'd imagined researchers would be like."
"Really?"
Especially the way they latched onto whatever they wanted to know.
They'd been so engrossed. The researchers waiting behind the director had probably been held back in advance. Otherwise, a chaotic mob would've formed for sure.
The researchers' bloodshot eyes were downright scary.
It probably didn't help that my hints were so specific.
They'd shown me some of their past research, but it was still just statistics—things like, "People who keep doing this might be more likely to manifest this Job."
So I taught them a more efficient method. There was no need to do those nightmarish one million repetitions.
The researchers seemed to be having revelation after revelation at this efficiency-focused approach. They got more and more engrossed, until finally they formed a tight circle around me, armed with sheets of paper and pens. Their determination not to miss a single word I said made me like them.
Mm-hmm. They were good people. They had the same kind of vibe as 〈Dan-Katsu〉 players.
"Well, this should increase the number of people with high-tier Jobs. The Research Institute's deadline is the final assessment in May, so they'll probably hurry to revise their lessons."
They had three weeks left. It would be hell for the Research Institute—or rather, the academy—but I hoped they'd do their best.
I'd leave all that to them and focus on building up the guild. If possible, I'd like five more members.
"Hmm. But won't that mean more rivals? Is that okay?"
"The more, the better. The standard at this academy is lower than I expected. At this rate, we'll hit S rank without breaking a sweat, and that'd be boring, right?"
"I don't know about that... Hmm. I'm curious where Zephyrus-kun gets all that confidence, but it also kind of scares me..."
"Well, now that you've joined my guild, Hanna, I won't let you go hungry."
The academy's overall level would surely rise, but the only Job manifestation methods I'd leaked to the Research Institute this time were for general-purpose Jobs—in other words, Jobs available to people with only the standard Race categories.
Basically, they're mostly low-ranked Jobs in the high-tier category. To get a mid- or high-ranked one, you need an appropriate Race category.
Explaining the conditions for Race categories would be endless. They were way too specific, and people would start wondering how I knew them.
Besides, everyone in this world knew that some Jobs only manifested for royalty and the like. They'd have to do the rest themselves.
We 〈Dan-Katsu〉 players had figured it all out without any hints from the developers, after all.
Well, there were hints scattered all over the game, but we never got any direct advice.
After leaving the Research Tower, we headed straight for C Road.
At this hour, Senior Marie's classes would be over, so she should be at the guild.
"Is Senior Marie here?"
"Oh, welcome, Big Bro. I've been waiting for you."
"Hello, Senior Marie."
"Welcome, Hanna-san."
Senior Marie, who'd seemed down lately for some reason, was back to her usual cheery self.
Her expression seemed to stiffen ever so slightly when she greeted Hanna, but that must've been my imagination.
"Congratulations on forming your guild, Big Bro!"
"Thanks. So the news is already spreading, huh?"
"Of course it is! Big Bro's the hottest person among the first-years right now. With a princess, a talented young lady from a knightly family, and even the eldest daughter of the Marguerite family in your guild, how could people not talk about it? And you lived up to your word by clearing Beginner Intermediate in a single day, so word about the guild spread in no time."
"I see. Then there's no need to explain. Our guild's called 〈Eden〉. Looking forward to working with you, Senior Marie."
"Likewise!"
I shook hands with Senior Marie, whose hand was tiny.
Now the members of 〈Eden〉 should get preferential treatment here, too.
"So, about the materials I asked you to buy from us. Are they ready?"
"Sure thing! Here, this is the appraisal sheet."
As usual, I took the sheet and checked the figures.
This time, she also bought the Beginner Lower materials we'd been stockpiling because they hadn't accepted them before, so the total was higher than usual: 4.1 million Mir.
If Hanna and I split it, that's 2.05 million Mir each. That brings my current funds to 3.85 million Mir.
"Did the unit price drop a little?"
"Just a tiny bit. Apparently that muscle party's been rampaging through Beginner Lower, so the market's starting to get flooded."
"I see. We made it just in time, then. Glad we got a good profit."
That was another perk of getting in on the ground floor. The buyback price for Beginner Lower materials would keep falling from here on out.
Luckily, we'd managed to sell off a decent amount before that happened and move on to Beginner Intermediate.
The people challenging Beginner Lower from now on would also be delayed in moving up to Beginner Intermediate for financial reasons.
You needed a lot of money to get your gear in order. It was especially tough for commoners, since they couldn't get help from their families.
Having that big an advantage over the rest of the pack was huge.
After that, Senior Marie appraised the materials we'd gathered yesterday from the 〈Wild Herb Prairie Dungeon〉 and stared at them in shock. "W-wait, isn't this rare boss material?! Big Bro, what happened?!" So I struck a cool pose and brushed it off with, "That's the power of a 【Hero】." It felt great.