Ch.47Dreisen (5)

“Hmm… The mountains are treacherous, they say.”

The path from Dreisen to Faerus Vale in the center of the continent was incredibly difficult.

To be more precise, following the coastline would have been safe (by my standards), but it took far too long.

That’s why I started looking for a direct route, and it seemed many others had the same idea, as there was indeed a path from Dreisen to Faerus Vale.

The problem was that it was a winding, treacherous route that required passing through various cities.

But this was actually good news for adventurers like me.

Having many cities meant reliable supply points along the way, and opportunities to earn money through guild quests.

However, no matter how I looked at it, traveling alone made me uneasy.

I wanted to find at least one party member, but the adventurer’s guild in Dreisen didn’t have suitable candidates.

Not that they were weak, but simply that our dispositions didn’t match.

I wanted to touch, feel, and even taste every unusual thing I encountered on the road.

Simply put, I wanted to help every person I saw, kill every monster I encountered, pick every medicinal herb I found, and climb every tree along the way.

Naturally, other adventurers couldn’t understand my adventurous spirit, and my attempts to recruit party members repeatedly failed.

“Damn it…! I should have held onto Seriya…!”

I pounded the ground as I called out Seriya’s name.

If I had just controlled my temper a bit, we would be crossing the mountain paths together by now, but I couldn’t tame that temperament I’d developed living in Parchifal, and I ended up letting a beautiful woman slip away.

“Ugh… But I can’t compromise on adventure…”

What is adventure?

Simply walking along a path is not adventure.

It’s boldly diving into caves that clearly scream “I’ll be screwed if I enter here”!

It’s bravely ignoring suspicions like “Helping that guy will probably get me screwed”!

It’s courageously overcoming fears like “If I throw the first punch at that guy, my spine and neck might get dislocated”!

Isn’t the romance of adventure about overcoming such trials and gradually growing?

If you call yourself an adventurer but don’t actually adventure, how are you any different from mercenaries working for a detective agency?

For me, adventure is romance…!

Because that’s what I believe!

I won’t accept any objections.

“Adveeeenture…”

I was grumbling like that on the inn’s bed.

I never imagined there would be so few people who pursued romance like I did.

“Tsk…”

I wiped my mouth and got up.

If there was no one to form a party with me, that was fine.

Traveling alone was also a form of romance.

However, unlike my previous journeys, as I got closer to the center of the continent, both the number and danger level of those targeting my life would increase significantly. I realized I needed to strengthen my armaments.

After all, four swords and one chain mail suit didn’t seem adequate.

*

Dreisen’s forge.

I came to where hydraulic machines were noisily operating.

To strengthen my meager armaments.

I opened the door to the forge and approached the clerk at the counter who had noticed the door opening, and conveyed my requirements.

“You want me to make a double mail?”

“Yes. In the 8-IN-1 style.”

Double mail refers to chain mail made with doubled chains.

Since I used dual swords, wearing plate armor that sacrificed mobility for protection would actually reduce my combat effectiveness. That’s why I ordered double mail, which could maximize protection while maintaining mobility.

“Hmm… Anything else?”

“A halberd, one that can be wielded on horseback, and four daggers.”

“Heh, with that much you could wipe out a decent bandit group by yourself. Aren’t four swords enough?”

The halberd was for facing large monsters, and the four daggers were to be placed two under each armpit and two at the ankles for assassination purposes.

Swords alone couldn’t kill all monsters, especially those like slimes where range was important.

“Unfortunately not.”

“Alright… The price…?”

I took out a gold coin from my spatial storage and paid the clerk.

Not being a blacksmith myself, I wasn’t sure of the exact cost of the weapons I requested, but one gold coin should be more than enough.

“Is this sufficient?”

“More than enough. The weapons can be prepared quickly, but the armor will take some time.”

“Then I’ll wait. Here’s the inn where I’m staying. Call me when everything is ready.”

“Will do.”

Calculating simply, the armor would be twice as heavy, so at least 30-40kg, the halberd about 3-4kg. My longsword and middle sword were about 3kg and 2kg respectively, and each dagger about 1kg.

One double chain mail (40kg)

One halberd (4kg)

Eight swords (14kg)

In total, I would be carrying about 58kg, or rounding up, 60kg of weight at all times.

Adding the weight of various potions on my belt and my coat, it would probably exceed 60kg.

But it wouldn’t be difficult.

I used to carry hundreds of kilograms of water containers from the docks to skyscrapers during my 240-hour work weeks.

A ‘mere’ 60kg, about the weight of an adult woman, wouldn’t be much of a burden on my body.

“Urgh… water containers…”

Thinking about those times, the nightmare began to resurface once more.

I don’t understand why there are bastards who live at the top floor but forbid delivery people from using the elevator.

Especially that crazy bastard who complained the water was cold and told me to take it back. If I ever return to Parchifal and see his face, I’ll cut off his head first thing.

*

Sewers exist everywhere, and wherever there are sewers, there are rodents gathering in them.

I was killing rats in the sewer on sight to earn money, and soon there would be no rats left in this sewer.

Whoosh!

“Sizzle!”

Crack! Crack!

The wet rats instantly burned to death when I activated Ignatus.

I’ve heard that burning small rodents is definitely an effective method of pest control, but experiencing it firsthand by burning them myself gave it a different perspective.

“Tsk… The smell is really…”

Collecting the rat corpses one by one was laborious.

Thankfully, I had Tuta, so I didn’t have to touch them directly with my hands.

“I guess buying all those things at once was a bit excessive…”

This is one of my bad habits.

Once I earn money and save it up, my desire to spend suddenly explodes, and in just a day, or sometimes just a few hours, I end up spending all the money I’ve saved.

It’s not so much a feeling of “I must buy this!” but more like “After all that hard work, can’t I at least buy this?!”… It’s stress-relief consumption.

I thought I’d somewhat fixed this habit since becoming an adventurer with stable income, but apparently habits don’t change in a short time.

“Sigh… At least I still have a good amount of money left.”

Even after spending one gold coin, I still had hundreds of silver coins left.

While this was a lot of money, once I started preparing for a serious adventure—buying food, potions, oils and tools to maintain armor and weapons—it was only a matter of time before hundreds of coins became just a few.

That’s why I was in this filthy sewer burning rats to death, and why I visited the guild multiple times a day to earn money.

“Faerus Vale…”

I muttered as I submitted a sack full of rats to the adventurer’s guild in exchange for a few silver coins.

The capital of the Faerun continent, a city filled with artifacts from 300,000 years ago.

A vast metropolis spanning 10,000 square kilometers where 500 million people lived…

Although Parchifal was a large city, it was merely a new city built after the Extinction Era.

I wonder how citizens of Faerus Vale would react if I said “I’m from Parchifal”?

Most would probably respond, “Where is that?”

It’s not strange at all.

To those blessed enough to live in that city, Parchifal would be little more than a slum.

When I reach an age where I can no longer adventure, could I live in such a big city?

With the money I’ve saved until then.

“…”

For some reason, I didn’t think I could.

The sensation of becoming part of something much larger than myself, of becoming a nobody, felt too unfamiliar.

Perhaps learning to accept that sensation is what aging means, but I’m still too young to age.

With that thought, I tore off the next quest from the request board.