Ch.14Shen’s Dungeon (1)

Rascal.

City of villains.

Well, that’s what they call it, but the scenery isn’t much different from any other city.

There’s a market, residential areas, and a fortress perched at the highest point.

However, there was a specific reason why Rascal was known as the city of villains.

It’s the black market.

All sorts of illegal items, rare enchanted accessories, and even cursed weapons appear in Rascal’s black market, which was famous enough to be sung about in songs.

“The black market… Should I check it out…?”

I don’t know what the black market looks like or how to get there.

But that’s not really a problem.

Isn’t discovering the unknown part of the adventure?

Grumble…

“Right. It’s about lunchtime now, isn’t it?”

I had breakfast, but I didn’t realize it was already time for lunch.

“Come to think of it… you haven’t eaten anything for three days, have you?”

I realized that while I had been eating well thanks to my preparations, my pack horse hadn’t had even a drop of water for three days.

I soothed the slightly restless pack horse and began looking for an inn with a stable. I managed to find a decent one in the center of the city.

It seemed like a good place to stay, especially since it was close to the Adventurer’s Guild.

With that in mind, I led my horse into the inn’s stable.

“Welcome.”

As I entered the stable, I saw a stable boy cleaning up horse droppings.

“You can tie your horse to any empty spot.”

Following his instructions, I tied my horse to spot number 20 and took out my wallet.

“I’d like to feed my horse.”

“That’ll be one silver coin, sir.”

I handed the silver coin to the stable boy, who then began bringing over a feed trough.

After watching my horse start eating, I opened the door connected to the stable and entered the inn.

When I opened the door, I saw that there weren’t many empty seats, so I quickly sat down at an available table and waited for a staff member.

As soon as I sat down, the remaining empty seats disappeared in an instant. I inwardly celebrated my good timing and spoke to a staff member who had approached.

“What’s popular here?”

“The tenderloin steak, marrow potato bake, and chili soup are our best sellers.”

Marrow potato bake? What’s that?

“What’s marrow potato bake?”

“Ah. It’s beef marrow mixed with butter, combined with mashed potatoes, and then baked.”

“I see… Then I’ll have those three.”

“What would you like to drink?”

“What do you have?”

“Dark beer is our most popular. Would you like that?”

“Dark beer it is. How much is everything together?”

“80 copper coins.”

I handed over 1 silver coin, and the staff member gave me 20 copper coins in change from a pouch full of coins.

“Thank you for your order. Please wait a moment.”

“Mm.”

After the staff member left, I half-opened my eyes and observed the other customers in the inn.

I was the only one alone; everyone else was in groups of two or three. Judging by their armor and weapons, they were clearly adventurers.

I perked up my ears to eavesdrop on their conversations.

“…so are you going to the dungeon?”

“I’ll pass. I found a request I like.”

“That dungeon’s low-level anyway. Even if you scrape everything together, you’d barely make 100 silver coins.”

“True. Unless you’re below Iron rank, it’s not worth it for our level.”

Oh ho! It seems a new dungeon has been discovered recently.

From what they’re saying about “below Iron rank,” it sounds like a dungeon perfect for novice adventurers like me.

It looks like tomorrow is going to be a busy day.

*

“Your order is ready~”

“Ohhh…”

As the staff member placed the dishes on my table one by one, I was captivated by the aroma of the food.

The tangy scent of chili soup, the savory smell of marrow potato bake, and the rich aroma of tenderloin steak—isn’t this the epitome of a feast?

“Your dark beer.”

Finally, the dark beer arrived to quench my thirst. I took a swig to mark the beginning of my meal.

“Hmm. Quite good.”

True to its name, the dark beer had a distinctly different taste from the yellow ales and lagers I’d had before, and it was excellent.

Next, I took a spoonful of chili soup, and with a smile at the spicy flavor, I cut a piece of the marrow, butter, and potato mixture and put it in my mouth.

The potato bake was mixed with butter and marrow, but since potatoes are naturally bland, the seasoning was perfect when eaten this way.

“Hehehe… This is the true taste of adventure.”

I can tolerate many things, but not poor food.

This value was probably instilled in me thanks to Eileen.

Usually, food expenses are the first to be cut, but Eileen always provided meals that were plentiful in quantity, if not always in quality.

“Hmm… Eileen…”

I thought I’d never see her again, but now that I’m in a different city, it’s natural that her face comes to mind.

She wasn’t a woman I could depend on, but she was the only woman in my life I could trust.

Slice-slice-

Feeling a bit gloomy, I cut into the tenderloin steak and put it in my mouth.

The distinctive rich flavor of beef filled my mouth, and I soon fell into a small ecstasy, slowly savoring the food before me.

If I hadn’t learned to read and write, I wouldn’t have been able to describe or even mention the taste of these foods.

While I was thinking about this and trying to push thoughts of old Eileen out of my mind, a woman was entering through the entrance counter in the distance.

But what could she do? As far as I could see, there were no seats left.

I looked around while gulping down the chili soup.

Judging by her long ears and green skin, she appeared to be a Wood Elf, though I wondered why a Wood Elf would come down to a city like this.

As I was thinking about this, having emptied about half of my dark beer, the staff approached me.

“Excuse me, sir…”

“Hm?”

What’s this?

I haven’t even finished eating yet, so why are they coming to collect payment?

Do I look that broke?

“Um, I’m sorry, but would you mind sharing your table?”

“Ah…”

Oh, it’s a request to share the table…

“With whom?”

“The Wood Elf lady standing over there.”

I see.

“Sure, why not.”

“Thank you very much!”

*

And so, the Wood Elf woman and I ended up sitting at the same table.

However, that didn’t mean we started conversing, so I just continued to chew and swallow my food diligently.

“…You must have a lot of money?”

“Hmm?”

Suddenly, the woman spoke to me.

“Well… I have enough to spend on things like this.”

“Heh… I envy that. Some of us don’t even have money for equipment and have to make do with what we have.”

“Pfft.”

I took a sip of dark beer and examined her closely.

She wore mass-produced human clothing, not something made by elves.

And even that showed signs of having been mended in several places.

“Are you short on money?”

“Yeah…”

“That’s too bad.”

I felt genuinely sorry for her.

In this world, having no money essentially means you don’t deserve to live.

“I see you’re carrying a sword, so you must be an adventurer… a Battler?”

“Mmm. And you?”

“Scoundrel.”

“Then you can disarm traps and such?”

“Of course. Scoundrels specialize in that. I’m not just a petty thief.”

“If you have such skills, why are you broke?”

“Ugh…”

The Wood Elf Scoundrel seemed struck by my question.

“It’s because my rank is still low… I’m only Flint rank…”

“Hehe. I’m Flint rank too.”

“What?”

“I earned 50 silver coins from my last quest. Rank doesn’t matter for making money. You’re just not skilled enough.”

“…”

The woman stared at me without saying anything.

In this exchange, she couldn’t win against me.

Speaking of Scoundrels…

Suddenly, an idea came to mind.

“What’s your name?”

“Seriya.”

“I see… Seriya. Are you currently in a party?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Then, would you like to form a party with me and go to a dungeon?”

“Dungeon? Oh… you mean Shen’s Dungeon?”

“Shen’s Dungeon?”

“Yeah. The dungeon where low-ranked adventurers like us are gathering.”

“Well, I suppose that’s what I’m talking about.”

After a brief conversation, we exchanged information, and I learned that the dungeon the adventurers were talking about was indeed Shen’s Dungeon.

She agreed to let me lead the party as the party leader, and thus a party consisting of a Battler and a Scoundrel—without a healer—was formed.

“We’ll need to split the earnings fairly. I’m in urgent need of money.”

“Well, since I’m not strapped for cash, you can have everything except the coin.”

“In that case…”

Seriya’s expression brightened.

Given her urgent need for money, she probably had debts to pay.

At this point, I decided to set an example as the party leader.

“Here.”

“Hm?”

I handed her the menu and said:

“Choose whatever you want. It’s on me.”

“Huh… Is this what party leaders do? Take care of their members?”

“Of course. You’ll be running around all day tomorrow. You can’t do that on an empty stomach.”

“…You’re right.”

After muttering that, she selected a suitable item from the menu and ordered. When her food arrived, she devoured it in the blink of an eye.

“…That’s impressive.”

“Sorry… I haven’t been able to eat properly lately…”

With the embarrassed Seriya, I went to sleep, and soon the morning of the next day arrived.