Chapter 62
After clearing the Centipede Tunnel, Luche and I returned to Lacolina, the city of adventurers.
Luche looked around warily.
Luche had both hands clenched into tight fists.
The adventurers we passed eyed us suspiciously.
“...Luche, could you stop acting so suspicious?”
“I-I can’t help it! We made so much money from clearing the Centipede Tunnel!”
I gave a wry smile, then looked toward the Adventurers’ Guild building up ahead and narrowed my eyes.
For now, we were going there to exchange our magic stones, but that wasn’t our only reason for going.
The Dream Lord’s Existence Evolution was not something we could simply ignore.
I’d heard that the Centipede Tunnel was a Dungeon that had only recently appeared.
But the Dream Lord’s Existence Evolution shouldn’t have been possible unless many monsters and adventurers had been sacrificed.
If a disaster on that scale had happened, it would be strange for the Guild not to have shared the information.
We needed to make sure the Adventurers’ Guild knew about it.
Luche and I entered the Adventurers’ Guild and spoke to the receptionist across the counter.
“I’d like to exchange these magic stones. Also, I’d like to speak to a senior adventurer on the Guild’s staff—preferably the Guildmaster. Something serious may be happening.”
“Oh... A Heavy Knight and a Jester, both D-rank adventurers from the low-level city of Rondalum, you say?”
The receptionist glanced between our adventurer cards and muttered mockingly.
“I’ll pass your message along. There are people waiting, so please keep it brief.”
“W-what’s that supposed to mean? You don’t have to put it like that!”
Luche frowned, clearly displeased by the receptionist’s attitude.
“Well, you see... This is Lacolina, the city of adventurers. We Guild staff take pride in having produced many renowned adventurers.”
The receptionist spoke as if exasperated.
“M-mmph...!”
Luche puffed out both cheeks.
“It’s fine, Luche. Leave this to me. If I explain things calmly, she should understand.”
I raised a hand to stop Luche from arguing.
“If you say so, Elymas-san...”
The people of Lacolina were proud of their city and had high opinions of themselves.
That was something I’d been taught back in the Edvaughn family.
I remembered my father, Aizas, complaining at length that the House of Howlrod, the marquises who ruled this city, was proud, mean-spirited, and quite the handful.
They were an exceptional family who had skillfully managed a territory where high-level Dungeons appeared, amassing enormous wealth and establishing their standing.
“I know I’m asking a lot. If I’ve offended you, I apologize. But I’d like you to give me a chance to convince you first. This incident is complicated, and I’m worried that if I explain it through someone else, it’ll be dismissed as something simple. It could be a sign of something bad to come...”
“We aren’t too pleased about some provincial adventurer casually demanding to see the Guildmaster. Don’t mistake us for a small guild in the countryside like Rondalum. The number and quality of the adventurers we handle, as well as the amount of money that passes through here, are all far greater than you imagine. Parties that earn several million gold from a single magic-stone exchange are hardly unusual. In any case, the Guildmaster is a very busy person, so we can’t grant your request for an audience. The same goes for other adventurers affiliated with the Guild...”
“B-but I don’t think the city of Rondalum or Edvaughn County are quite that rural...! I’ll admit this place is a little more developed, but I don’t see why you have to treat us so harshly...”
I leaned over the counter and cut in before she could finish.
“Please calm down, Elymas-san! It’s not like you’re still attached to or have any lingering regrets about that family, are you? So let’s stay calm, okay?”
“S-sorry, Luche. You’re right.”
Well, it wasn’t that I felt attached to the family or had regrets about being its former heir or anything. The fact was, Edvaughn County wasn’t rural.
That’s right. This wasn’t about local pride or anything.
I’d just stated a fact.
“I should’ve shown you this first.”
I took Deatharmed’s magic stone out of my Magic Bag and set it on the counter in front of the receptionist.
The receptionist’s expression changed.
“Th-this size... A level-60 monster’s magic stone... no, even higher...? This is a job for B-rank adventurers. D-did you really obtain it yourselves? It’s not something D-rank adventurers could defeat...”
“I got this from the Dream Lord when we cleared the Centipede Tunnel. Something strange was happening in there. Many people may have died, so please let me speak with the Guildmaster.”
“I-I-I understand. I’ll speak with them. I’m terribly sorry for my rudeness...!”
The receptionist bowed repeatedly.
An adventurer’s worth varied enormously depending on their rank.
That was because the benefits they brought to a city varied just as much.
They could bring back all manner of resources, like items and magic stones, from high-level Dungeons, and they also helped defend against monster disasters.
It was probably because Lacolina had developed thanks to its Dungeons that such a strong respect for high-ranking adventurers had taken root here.
“I should’ve done this from the start. And I’d like you to exchange these, too.”
I took out the Mithril Golem’s magic stone and the magic stones from the Smiles and placed them on the counter one after another.
Seeing them all together, it was quite a haul.
Honestly, this time we’d gotten too caught up in hunting monsters.
Part of that was because we’d encountered so many powerful foes.
Together with Deatharmed’s magic stone, it came to a little over ten million gold.
“W-w-w... What is all this...? From a single expedition...?”
The receptionist stared at the haul, mouth hanging open.
She’d boasted that parties earning several million gold from a single magic-stone exchange were hardly unusual, but even the receptionist seemed shocked by this amount.
I’d originally planned to collect some Blacksteel equipment and head back, so I hadn’t meant to gather this much.
“I thought it might take a while to prepare the money, so I figured I’d hand these over first.”
“W-we can prepare this amount right away! Please wait a moment!”
At my words, the receptionist turned red and hurried off toward the back.
“Was there a little bit of payback in what you just said?”
Luche glanced at me.
“I didn’t mean it that way.”
Besides, for our party, the proceeds from exchanging magic stones came second.
The item drops were worth far more.
――――――――――――――――――――
〈Poison Centipede Dagger〉: 28 million gold
〈Mithril Ingot〉: 25 million gold
〈Destruction Rune〉: 20 million gold
〈Blacksteel Hammer〉: 4.6 million gold
〈Blacksteel Sword〉: 4.5 million gold
〈Blacksteel Knife〉: 4.3 million gold
〈Blacksteel Ingot〉: 4 million gold
〈Deatharmed’s Magic Stone〉: 4.2 million gold
〈Mithril Golem’s Magic Stone〉: 2 million gold
〈Cry’s Magic Stone〉: 900,000 gold
〈Smile’s Magic Stone〉: 800,000 gold × 4
――――――――――――――――――――
That was the total market value of the items we’d obtained this time.
Altogether, they came to 100.8 million gold.
I planned to keep some of the items and use them as weapons rather than sell them.
I also planned to hold on to the Destruction Rune for now.
I was going to have a blacksmith make me a weapon, and ask them to embed it in the weapon.
“Excuse me! There’s an adventurer who says they need ten million gold immediately from exchanging magic stones. Please get it ready!”
The receptionist’s voice came from the back of the Guild.
“Ten million gold all at once?! Then we’ll need to check and process it, and record it in the paperwork...! Is this person a famous A-rank adventurer? If so, we can use the abbreviated procedure...”
“They’re D-rank!”
“D-D-rank?! Wait, what kind of track record do they have in this city?”
“Just hurry up! Lacolina’s prestige is at stake!”
...They seemed to be arguing about something. Would everything be all right?
In any case, once we’d finished exchanging the magic stones, we’d meet with the Guildmaster.