Ch.3030. How Is It?

Even the most ignorant country bumpkin knows how extraordinary wizards are.

For adventurers who spend long periods in dungeons, wizards were especially valuable.

This was because they not only excelled in combat but also improved the overall quality of life.

Of course, the rarity of wizards was only true for the outside world; in major cities, they were fairly common.

The white tower standing tall in Lindvale was the headquarters of wizards, after all.

The only problem was that wizards tended to be quite eccentric and arrogant. Not all of them, but most treated ordinary adventurers like commoners and preferred to associate with knights.

For this reason, the party cheered at the news that Elin would be joining them.

“You, as I look at you now, you’re quite the lucky charm.”

Naturally, Rex also received praise for bringing such a precious wizard to the team.

It was psychologically uncomfortable to have a bearded old man looking at him with the tender eyes of a lovesick girl.

Rex avoided Harald’s gaze and gave a bitter smile.

“I’m relieved. I took a chance, but I was worried about what would happen if I got rejected.”

“No, do you take us for blind fools? A wizard is someone we’d prostrate ourselves before without hesitation. Anyway, this worked out well.”

Harald patted Rex’s shoulder and laughed heartily.

The party members then began introducing themselves.

Everyone stated their name and role, but Elin didn’t say a word throughout.

Still, judging by the occasional slight nod of her head, she seemed to be listening properly.

“Lastly, this squinty-eyed fellow is Connor. He’s our only archer position, but now that we have a wizard, our ranks have grown. May I ask your name, Lady Wizard?”

“Elin.”

“What a beautiful name. Surely beneath that hood lies beauty that would make roses weep with envy.”

“……”

“Haha… I, I’m sorry.”

Harald had tried to lighten the mood with a joke, but when Elin gave no response, his expression turned awkward.

The atmosphere instantly grew chilly. The female members of the party, in particular, were glaring at Harald as if they wanted to kill him.

Rex, unable to stand by, stepped in to salvage the situation.

“Elin is naturally quiet. I don’t think she’s particularly angry. Right?”

“Yes.”

When Elin nodded, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In the face of a wizard’s status, they were completely at her mercy.

What if Elin suddenly changed her mind and decided to forget about joining the party? The thought alone was terrifying.

Naturally, all sorts of criticism was directed at Harald, who, guilty as charged, couldn’t defend himself and just sipped his wine in silence.

“Ahem. Anyway, it’s getting late, so let’s part for now and meet again tomorrow morning in the merchant district. We’ll make further plans then.”

Harald cleared his throat, stood up, and left the restaurant without looking back, almost as if fleeing. The others, who had been watching his retreat with disbelief, soon dispersed as well.

“Rex.”

Cloe stopped Rex just as he was about to return to the inn.

“You don’t know where the merchant district is. I’ll go with you.”

At her words, Rex brightened and explained the location of his inn. Though all he could specifically tell her was the name, “The Night Fox,” that was enough.

“You picked a good place. I’ll come find you tomorrow morning, so be ready.”

“Thanks, Cloe.”

“…It’s nothing.”

With that, Cloe departed as well.

“Shall we go, Elin?”

“Yes.”

Rex set off with Elin. The others had scattered in different directions, but Elin was heading the same way for part of the journey.

As they walked through the twilight streets, Rex spoke up.

“They’re all good people, aren’t they?”

“…I’m not sure. They seem somewhat decent.”

“That’s a relief.”

Before long, the inn came into view.

“Goodbye.”

“See you tomorrow.”

Elin started to wave her hand lightly but hesitated and turned away.

Only after Elin’s figure had completely disappeared into the shadows did Rex enter the inn.

It was late at night, and the guests seemed to have gone home, leaving the inn’s interior quiet.

However, a candle on the counter was dimly lit, and beside it, a man was dozing with his head down.

Rex approached the counter with a puzzled expression.

The innkeeper, Wolfram, spotted Rex and spoke to him.

“Why are you so late?”

It seemed he had been waiting for Rex all this time.

“I went to a dungeon.”

“What? A dungeon? Weren’t you supposed to go register at the Adventurers’ Guild?”

“I did register, but… haha.”

“You’re the only one who would recklessly enter a dungeon on your first day.”

Wolfram grumbled in a gruff tone.

“So, who did you go with? Rookies get paired with veterans for their first time at the guild, right?”

“Ah, do you know Harald’s party by any chance?”

“Of course I do. They’re quite famous adventurers around here. There are plenty of people desperate to join them, willing to even be porters just to be used by them.”

Rex gave an awkward laugh. He wondered how Wolfram would react if he knew that Rex had been recruited into that party.

Unable to tell the truth outright, Rex silently listened to Wolfram’s lecture.

“Anyway, as you’ve seen for yourself, dungeons are not to be taken lightly. You’re still young, so it would be better to give up such dangerous work and find another profession. Learn a trade or something. There are many ways to make a living in this world.”

Though his tone was gruff, his words contained genuine concern for Rex.

“Thank you, mister.”

When Rex noticed this and gave a gentle smile, Wolfram clicked his tongue and waved his hand dismissively.

“You’re not listening to a word I say. Fine. Just go to bed.”

“Take care.”

Rex bowed his head and went up to his room.

On the table in the corner of the room were milk and a small piece of bread.

‘You really shouldn’t judge people by their appearance.’

The bread and milk were still warm, as if they had just been heated.

After finishing the snack, Rex tossed his clothes carelessly on the floor and flopped onto the bed.

Today had been eventful.

He had made good friends too.

Tomorrow would be another enjoyable day.

With these thoughts, he closed his eyes.

***

As promised, Cloe came to the inn early in the morning.

Rex equipped himself lightly and immediately set off for the merchant district with Cloe.

“Did you bring money?”

“Yes. But why do I need money?”

“You need proper equipment now. There are many good armories nearby, so let’s get you fitted while we’re at it.”

Rex thought for a moment and nodded.

His current equipment was light—quilted pants and leather armor. Considering future deeper dungeon explorations, he needed to purchase sturdier armor.

After walking for some time, the surroundings became more diverse, with occasional elegant buildings appearing.

“There they are.”

Cloe pointed to a distant spot. The party members were gathered in the middle of the street.

Harald was carrying a sack large enough to fit a person, which appeared to contain the spoils from yesterday’s dungeon.

Elin was standing alone, quite far from the party.

It was difficult to close the distance with strangers in just one day. Especially for someone like Elin.

The others also seemed uncomfortable, conscious of Elin’s presence. The party looked relieved when Rex appeared.

“Hello.”

“Hi.”

After watching Rex and Elin exchange greetings, Harald spoke up.

“Now that everyone’s here, let’s get moving.”

Today’s objectives were twofold: to sell the spoils and distribute the profits, and to discuss plans for the next dungeon exploration.

Cloe raised her hand.

“Wait. Rex and I will skip this. I need to help him buy equipment.”

“Alright.”

Then, unexpectedly, Elin joined the conversation.

“I’ll go with Rex too.”

“Very well.”

Harald agreed without protest. Cloe had a valid reason, and Elin was a wizard whom he found difficult to deal with. He was actually glad that she was willingly sticking with Rex.

“Let’s meet again at the Adventurers’ Guild at noon.”

Harald hoisted the sack and turned away. The others followed him.

“Let’s go too.”

Cloe glanced at Elin as she spoke to Rex.

The merchant district was lined with numerous armories, and Cloe confidently approached one of them.

“This is a shop I visit frequently. The owner is also a blacksmith, so the quality is excellent, and the prices are reasonable.”

As they opened the door and entered the armory, the pungent smell of steel invaded their nostrils. The sight of dozens of blades displayed on one wall was truly magnificent.

Any warrior would have their heart racing at such a sight.

Rex looked around in a daze.

A plate armor displayed on a wooden stand particularly caught his eye. It was a full plate armor, often called the symbol of knighthood.

Even the knight who had visited his village in his childhood wore such armor. Though he had only glimpsed it from afar for a moment and couldn’t see it in detail.

The armor before him now was truly captivating.

Rex unconsciously murmured.

“It’s beautiful.”

Just then, a hoarse, cracked voice addressed him mockingly.

“Give it up, boy. Even if you offered several times your entire fortune, you couldn’t afford half the price of that.”

A hunched old man was looking at them, and despite his frail appearance, his eyes were sharp and clear.

“Grandpa!”

Cloe called out with a smile. The old man walked over slowly, leaning on his cane.

“Cloe. Have you finally come to replace that worn-out dagger?”

“It’s still perfectly usable.”

Cloe shrugged and drew her stiletto dagger. The old man retorted in a mischievous tone.

“Please remove that piece of iron from my sight. I’ve told you countless times I’ll sell you a new one cheaply, but you never listen. Tsk.”

“Yes, yes, I’m sure you would. Anyway, I’m not here for myself today, but to get equipment for this guy.”

Cloe chuckled and pulled Rex’s shoulder.

“Please pick out some suitable armor for him.”

“Do it yourself. I’m not interested.”

“You have no customers and are just swatting flies anyway, so help us out, will you?”

“…Cheeky brat.”

The old man scrutinized Rex with indifferent eyes, then abruptly took Rex’s greatsword.

Just as Rex was about to ask for his sword back in surprise, the old man spoke first.

“An excellent sword. The weight distribution, the width of the blade, the length—not a single flaw anywhere. Only someone who understands the essence of weapons could create such an item.”

The old man slowly caressed the blade with his hand. As if feeling something invisible through his skin, his eyes were tightly closed.

The old man returned the greatsword to Rex with a satisfied expression. Despite what appeared to be quite rude behavior, Rex couldn’t say anything.

This was because the old man exuded what could be called the dignity of a master craftsman.

“It’s well-maintained, like new. You can tell a person’s character by how they treat their possessions.”

Cloe nudged Rex’s side and whispered.

“He likes you.”

“Ah, thank you.”

As Rex awkwardly scratched his cheek, the old man spoke in a more mellowed voice.

“You need armor?”

“Yes.”

They had already discussed what to buy on the way here with Cloe. They had ruled out heavy armor and decided on a gambeson base with chain mail over it to avoid restricting movement.

“I have just the thing. Wait a moment.”

The old man leaned his cane against the wall and went into the storeroom.

Though they had clearly said they would only buy a gambeson and chain mail, the old man returned with armor for all body parts.

“Put these on.”

“What? But…”

Rex hesitated, but ultimately couldn’t overcome the old man’s stubborn attitude and began putting on each piece of equipment.

‘It’s heavier than I thought.’

Even though it wasn’t solid iron equipment, the weight was quite substantial.

Rex looked down to examine himself.

He wore chain mail over a thick gambeson, topped with a thin brown surcoat.

Tough leather gloves wrapped around his wrists, and small iron plates were attached to crucial areas like elbows and knees. Finally, he donned steel greaves and sturdy boots.

He definitely looked unrecognizably different from before.

Rex turned his head.

“How does it look?”

He had asked the old man, but the answers came from elsewhere.

“It suits you.”

“It looks good on you.”

Elin and Cloe responded simultaneously, as if they had rehearsed it.

They looked at each other.

“……”

An awkward silence descended.