Chapter 78
On our way to the royal capital, we stopped in a city called Iberis, only to have the Adventurers' Guild there saddle us with a troublesome job.
That job was exterminating goblins. We went goblin hunting with the farmers, but inside the ruins, we found the bodies of countless victims.
To bury those bodies, I summoned Ko○tsu-san.
"Whoa!" "Eek!" "What the heck is that?!"
Ignoring the farmers' astonishment at the iron giant that had suddenly appeared before them, I dug a hole about four meters deep, put the bodies and bones inside, and filled it back in.
Normally, digging even a shallow hole would take a full day's work, but with my Item Box and heavy machinery, it took less than thirty minutes.
"Incredible... It's an iron magic beast..."
"Namu Amida Butsu, Namu Amida Butsu—may you rest in peace. Everyone did their best, so the summoned beasts didn't get a chance to shine this time."
Wait, the gods of this world are different, so would saying "rest in peace" be inappropriate?
When I climbed back inside on the scaffolding, the goblin corpses had been piled up. After Anemone dried them with magic, we set them on fire.
Living bodies contain too much moisture to burn, but once dried, they burned well, like torches.
I could have put the goblin corpses in the trash can too, but I didn't want to put something like that in there.
Besides, everyone was still unaware that the trash can existed.
"Boss, there were quite a few silver coins."
"Nya."
Beastfolk couldn't count, but at a glance, there seemed to be several gold coins and about fifty silver and copper coins.
Goblins apparently didn't use money or go shopping, so they must have just been collecting it.
They apparently didn't engage in economic activity either. They produced nothing and existed solely to steal from people.
"There was this too."
Anemone showed me a black book covered in filth.
"Is this a grimoire?"
"I think so. It says Heal inside."
"Whoa! Healing magic at last! What a stroke of luck! A real windfall! We'll clean it up later."
"Okay!"
Since it stank, I quickly shoved it into my Item Box.
Once the ruins were cleared out, I stored the scaffolding and cleaned up outside the ruins.
I dug a huge hole with Ko○tsu-san, then used Yu○bo's blade to push the goblins' mangled corpses into it and bury them.
"Hahaha! I said I wanted something to brag about to my grandchild—but with an iron magic beast and scaffolding made from iron pipes that appear out of nowhere, we could even lay siege to a castle!"
"Yeah, that might be possible."
"If I told my grandchild about all this, would they even believe me?"
"Kids love outlandish stories. Just tell them exactly what you saw. They'll probably listen with shining eyes."
"Still, we exterminated more than fifty goblins, and not one of us even got a scratch."
After counting the ears we had cut off, there turned out to be fifty-three goblins. That was quite a large group.
"Well, we just got lucky. A contest is decided by the luck of the moment, you know."
"Hmm—people with real skill are the ones who say things like that, aren't they?"
While keeping an eye on the calico woman who had helped us as she gazed up at Ko○tsu-san, I collected everyone's weapons and shields, along with the arrows we had gathered.
I took the truck out of my Item Box, loaded the surviving women into the truck bed, and covered them with new blankets.
One could answer, another was dazed, and the last was breathing but unconscious.
When Bell came over, the cat jumped into the truck bed and sniffed the women repeatedly.
"Kenichi, can I try the Heal spell?"
"Hmm, I wonder..."
But this would amount to human experimentation.
"Um, if she can use healing magic, we'd appreciate it if you let her try..."
Apparently, the farmers had overheard Anemone and me talking.
"It's the first time she's ever used this spell, so I don't know whether it will work. Are you still willing?"
"But if we leave them like this..."
Magical treatment cost money. The farmers couldn't afford it, and in a world where medicine was not very advanced, the women's chances of survival were slim.
If Anemone used healing magic on them for free as experimental subjects, it would be a stroke of luck.
"Then... will you agree to let her treat them for free as a magic experiment?"
"Yes..." "We'd be grateful just to have magic used on them." "Either way, in this condition..."
The farmers agreed to Anemone's magic experiment. The women themselves had not consented, but in an emergency, there was no other choice.
I took the grimoire of Heal out of my Item Box.
"Damn, this thing is filthy."
I took out some tissues and wiped it off for the time being. I put the dirty tissues in the trash can on my status screen.
"I'll try using Clean."
"Oh? Is that a new one?"
"Yep! Clean!"
When Anemone chanted the spell, blue-white light enveloped the black grimoire covered in filth. When it ended, it looked a little cleaner...
"Hmm? One more time! Clean!"
In the end, it took about three casts before the smell finally disappeared. I see—if this household magic exists, perhaps electric appliances aren't necessary here.
Rich people might hire mages to use in place of electric appliances.
Anemone climbed into the truck bed, opened the grimoire in front of the women covered by blankets, and began to focus. Blue-white light gathered in front of her chest.
Bell, who had been beside the women, jumped down from the truck bed and came over to me, so I crouched and stroked the cat's body.
'O truth that is the source of all things, grant light to heal those who are wounded and laid low by illness.'
A small, dazzling orb of light seeped into the body of the unmoving woman.
The spell seemed to be over, so I climbed into the truck bed to check on her.
"Hmm... Her complexion might be a little better, but we won't know whether it worked until some time has passed."
I had seen healing magic at the old woman's place in Astrantia, and this seemed to be what Heal was like in this world.
Unlike in a game, someone on the verge of death didn't suddenly spring back to life, nor did a severed hand grow back.
And it certainly couldn't bring someone back to life with a resurrection spell. I used the magic on the other women as well.
"Thanks for your help. Should I give you all something for your trouble?"
"N-no, not at all. You even used healing magic for them..."
"Don't worry about it. The spell was an experiment anyway."
"But..." "Just avenging our companions and wives is more than enough." "That's right. Not only were there no casualties, no one was even injured."
"Come on, we all worked hard and succeeded in the extermination. Surely we can give you some token of appreciation?"
"How about making a collar out of the fangs, like I did?"
The elderly beastman who had been helping us interrupted and pointed to the white animal fangs hanging around his neck.
"No, goblin fangs..." "Yeah..." "That might be a little..."
Apparently, goblins were symbols of impurity, and they didn't want to keep anything like that around.
"Then how about this?"
I bought a 2,500-yen hoe and a 4,000-yen spade from Shangri-La. The spade was more expensive, perhaps because it took more work to make.
"S-such brand-new farm tools..." "These are fine tools."
"As a reward for helping out, I'll let you choose whichever one you want."
"What?! Are you really sure?"
"Of course."
Giving them one or two silver coins as thanks would amount to 50,000 to 100,000 yen. If I could settle things with hoes and spades bought from Shangri-La, that was the cheaper option.
Besides, brand-new farm tools in this world were all custom-made and cost the equivalent of 100,000 to 200,000 yen.
Poor farming families who couldn't afford farm equipment rented it from the village headman and paid a fee. If they broke it, they had to pay for it too.
From a farmer's perspective, receiving a high-quality new tool was better than receiving a silver coin—in other words, this was a win-win.
I bought nine hoes and eleven spades from Shangri-La and gave them to the farmers. They looked genuinely delighted to receive their new farm tools.
It was striking that they seemed happier about this than they had after exterminating the goblins.
"Hey, Boss. You've got lots of amazing summoned beasts and amazing things, and you don't treat beastfolk any differently. Why don't you hire another beastfolk?"
While I was talking with the farmers, the calico woman in her fur coat sidled up against me.
"Hiss! You old hag! What are you doing, nya?!"
"Don't rub yourself against him and leave your strange smell on him!"
"Aww, I'm many times better than those little girls..."
As she spoke, she put her arms around my neck. When I stroked her chin, she began to purr.
The woman turned around and presented her rear, waving her long tail in a come-hither motion. She was wearing a miniskirt and no underwear, so everything was plainly visible.
"Ha-ha, I've been told not to add any more, so I can't."
When I stroked her tail, it wrapped around my hand.
"You turn me down so easily."
"Sorry."
The calico woman flicked her tail back and forth and moved away from me. At the same time, Myaree and Nyamena leaped over and clung to me.
"Nya! You can never let your guard down around her!"
"Hey, Blackie, you're in trouble. Good food, good liquor, a master who treats us kindly, and he even brushes our fur. He'd be a perfect catch for any beastfolk woman!"
"Really?! He brushes you too? Then he's a perfect catch!"
"Heh-heh... Of course he is."
"Share such a wonderful master with me too, won't you?"
"No way, nya!"
The two of them bared their white fangs in warning and desperately rubbed themselves against me, trying to overwrite her scent with their own.
I wondered what they meant by "a perfect catch," but then—
Apparently, there were three kinds of men in this world.
One: men who hated beastfolk.
Two: men who would deal with beastfolk, but only for you-know-what.
Three: men who liked beastfolk and treated them kindly.
Apparently, I was the third kind—a "perfect catch"—and there weren't many of them. What? Really...? But they're so cute.
Their fur was fluffy too, you know? As I was thinking that, Bell came over to my feet and began rubbing against me as well.
"Oh, now that Forest Cat-sama has claimed him, I never stood a chance—tch."
The calico woman looked disappointed, but there was nothing to do except give up.
Anyway, everything was cleaned up. Before I forgot, I retrieved the drone I had sent out at the beginning and stored it in my Item Box.
"All right! Shall we head back to the Guild?"
"Whoa!"
------◇◇◇------
We loaded everyone into the truck and set off back to the city.
We arrived at the Guild a little after noon. After pulling the truck alongside the building and unloading everyone from the truck bed, Primula came out to greet us.
"Welcome back, Kenichi."
"Welcome home!"
The farmers' children who had been with Primula greeted us energetically and embraced the adults who had returned safely.
"Yeah, I'm back. You were worried, huh?"
"No. There was no way Kenichi could lose to mere goblins."
"Well, I'm glad no one was hurt. Everyone worked hard too."
We all went inside the Guild and headed for the reception desk. On the counter at the receptionist's station, we placed a jar filled with the ears we had cut from the goblins.
"Eek! Um... Did you exterminate all the goblins?"
"That's right!"
Anemone puffed out her chest at the receptionist's question.
"Yeah, there were fifty-three altogether. We also rescued three women who had been kidnapped. Please arrange treatment for them—we had our mage use healing magic, but..."
"Um... What about the cost of their treatment?"
"Hey! Why don't you people cover that much yourselves?!"
I stopped the elderly beastman as he tried to confront the receptionist.
"...Deduct it from my reward."
"Understood."
We couldn't blame them. In a city like this, there was no work for adventurers, so the Guild's finances must have been strained.
On the other hand, the Commerce Guild seemed to be doing quite well.
While we waited in the hall for them to inspect the goblin ears we had brought in, the Guildmaster came out.
"I never expected you to succeed at the extermination in such a short time. The rumors were true after all."
"Well, I'm glad no one was hurt. I also paid the treatment costs for the women we rescued, so make sure you look after them to the end, all right?"
"We will, of course."
Once they had finished inspecting the body parts we submitted, I received nine gold coins (1.8 million yen), after the women's treatment costs had been deducted.
From that, I gave each of the beastfolk helpers one gold coin (200,000 yen).
"Heh-heh, one gold coin for a day's work. That's good money."
"Seriously, one gold coin for such an easy battle."
If we had been risking our lives, one gold coin might have seemed inadequate, but today's battle had been practically effortless.
At this point, I made everyone a proposal.
"Since we've come this far, why don't we have a meal in the backyard? A celebration for successfully completing the extermination."
"Are you sure?"
The farmers cheered at the unexpected offer.
"Of course."
"And can we have some liquor too?"
The beastfolk seemed to want a drink.
"Sure. It's still early, so you can have a little. It is a celebration, after all."
"Woohoo! Boss, you know what's what!"
"Old man, don't take advantage of the kind mage, all right?"
The beastwoman admonished the old beastman, but he didn't seem particularly concerned.
"I know better than to do that."
"I wonder about that."
"Now, now, no more than two cups."
"The Boss's liquor is strong, so that's plenty for us."
When I asked everyone what they wanted to eat, they said they wanted curry. Curry really was incredibly popular.
After we all ate, the farmers and beastfolk returned to their villages slightly tipsy. It had been a very short victory party.
It was around three in the afternoon, but the villagers had to leave then if they wanted to reach their homes while it was still light.
It was already a little too late for us to leave for the royal capital, so we decided to spend another night in the Guild's backyard and depart first thing the next morning.
Once that was settled, we had time to spare, so we decided to tour the tool shops around the city.
However, after visiting several shops, we found nothing particularly worthwhile.
While we were at it, we sold the items stripped from the goblins, but despite the large quantity, everything together was worth only a little more than one gold coin.
Still, the gold and silver coins in the treasure chest—and the grimoire of Heal—were more than enough to make up for it.
Nyamena was delighted to equip herself with the slightly finer sword the goblin mini-boss had been carrying.
It had probably been obtained by attacking some knight or someone similar.
The gold and silver coins we had acquired came to the equivalent of about 4.6 million yen—and there was also the grimoire. The grimoire of Heal alone was apparently worth more than twenty-five gold coins (5 million yen).
Since Anemone had acquired the grimoire, she declined her share.
"This time, if I give up my share too, Tiger's portion will increase, so I'll take my share and have Kenichi hold on to it for me, nya."
"You, Blackie—if you don't want your share, give it to me."
"No way, nya."
In the end, Nyamena's share came to eight gold coins (1.6 million yen). That was an extraordinary amount for a single day's work.
Since most of what had been in the goblins' chest was silver coins, I paid her share in silver as well.
"Woohoo! This is the first time I've ever seen so much money all together!"
"Good for you."
"We earned even more when we defeated Shaga, nya~"
However, Nyamena seemed troubled as she stared at the bag filled with silver coins.
Bell was sniffing the bag of silver coins Nyamena was holding.
"What's wrong, Nyamena?"
"Boss, could you put this money in your Item Box for me?"
"Sure, no problem."
If she deposited it in an Adventurers' Guild account, the amount would be recorded on her Guild card, and she could withdraw it at any Guild in any city—a very convenient system.
However, to use the Guild's services in this city, she would have to register. The registration fee was one silver coin (50,000 yen).
Nyamena had apparently decided that spending that money would be wasteful. She probably had no plans to use the Guild in this city again.
I had been forced to register here against my will and then made to take on a job, too.
Since the Item Box could be divided into folders, I could simply put Nyamena's share in one of them.
There was a folder for Myaree too, and her share was stored there.
"Kenichi, you could charge a storage fee, nya."
"I'm not charging you. Nyamena, if you want to grow your savings little by little, invest it in Primula's business when we return to Astrantia."
"Even so, business sometimes loses money, so it is not guaranteed to make a profit."
Primula was being modest, but—
"No, it would be safer to leave it to you than to have a beastman like me try to do something with it."
In any case, we still had plenty of time before returning to Astrantia. She could think it over for a while.
When we all returned to the Guild, the sun was sinking and it was just about dinnertime.
We all prepared the meal. I brought out the bread maker and had Anemone bake some bread.
There was no way she could bake enough bread for that many people, after all. I had Primula make soup while I grilled the meat.
I still had tomatoes harvested from the field in my Item Box, so I had her make tomato soup.
There was still curry left too, but even I would get tired of eating curry over and over. Anemone and the beastfolk were happy to eat it again, but I was not.
"Primula, sorry for making you look after the children."
"Not at all. I actually had a lot of fun. But I had no idea looking after children was that difficult."
Perhaps remembering the experience made Primula sag with exhaustion. Children were like small typhoons, after all.
And with so many of them, they must have been incredibly noisy.
"But when I taught them how to calculate and write, they quieted down."
"What did you teach them to write?"
"How to write their own names."
Among farmers, being unable to read or write was normal. Even if parents wanted to teach their children, they couldn't if they themselves didn't know how.
It was a vicious cycle.
Drawn by the smell of the cooking, the Guild employees came over.
"You lot, don't mess with me. You take people's money and force troublesome jobs on them."
"But the Guild here is having such a hard time financially..."
The receptionist from before came whining to me, but—
"That's none of my concern."
"Waaah!"
"Crying won't help. Besides, you're over twenty, aren't you?"
"...Yes."
"Then no. I won't forgive you."
"What's wrong with that?!"
But the Guildmaster stepped between the sobbing receptionist and me and bowed his head.
"I sincerely apologize for forcing such an unreasonable job on you this time. Even if you call it an abuse of authority, I cannot deny that it was."
"Well, it seems the Guild here is struggling financially, and you wanted to help the farmers somehow despite the limited budget—so I was the one singled out, right?"
"Exactly."
"I didn't accept the job for the Guild's sake. I accepted it to help the farmers."
"Thank you very much."
Once again, the Guildmaster bowed deeply.
"But we're having a hard time toooo~"
The receptionist came whining to me again.
"You're still not forgiven."
"Why not?!"
Unable to bear watching, Primula stepped in.
"Oh, come now."
"Then I'll charge you. Two copper coins (2,000 yen) per meal, and one copper coin (1,000 yen) per cup of liquor."
"Understood."
Primula began negotiating with the Guild employees. The receptionist who had eaten our food the previous day must have told them about it.
Everyone seemed willing to pay, so I served the Guild employees the curry that was left in my Item Box.
"Delicious!" "This spiced food is incredible!" "It's delicious!" "I've never eaten anything like this before!"
While the Guild employees praised the curry as they ate, I gave the Guildmaster the same food we were eating and chose an inexpensive brandy for his drink.
"Hmm! What is this liquor...?"
"It's a private reserve. It was made from the same stuff as wine, though."
"This came from wine...?"
"Boss, can I have some of that too?"
Nyamena couldn't resist liquor, so she wanted to try the brandy. I poured her a little.
"Whew! This is as delicious as ever!"
"That's why I told you not to spoil your palate too much. You said it yourself, remember?"
"Mmm... uhh..."
Nyamena groaned uncertainly as she sipped the brandy with a troubled expression.
"No, you're right. Once you've tasted liquor like this, drinking ordinary liquor from tomorrow onward will be painful..."
"Ha-ha, consider it payback for forcing that tedious job on me. How are the women I rescued doing?"
"It seems you used healing magic. Their lives are not in danger, but even magic cannot heal emotional wounds."
"Yeah, I know."
It seemed Anemone's magic had worked properly.
"We don't know whether they will return to their village."
"I rescued a lot of women from that villain Shaga, but about half of them didn't return to their villages."
I decided to leave the women in the Guildmaster's care. After that, I gathered some information from him about the royal capital.
The royal capital also seemed to have a weak Adventurers' Guild, just like here, while the Commerce Guild flourished.
Well, adventurers weren't exactly in demand in a major city.
The Guild employees wouldn't leave, so I charged them for the food and served them liquor. The commotion continued until late into the night.
You lot, hurry up and go home already.