episode_0025

To commemorate their second meeting, Donatas made the beer he was drinking ice cold.

It could be said that he easily gained favor with someone he had just met.

“But, I heard there are a lot of dangerous friends wandering around these days. Are you okay with that?”

It was a question that came from pure curiosity.

Because I was curious.

Even though I was not bad at my job as a hired muscle and took on requests like this, I didn’t know how skilled Donatas was.

Because I wiped out last time.

“Well, don’t worry about that. I intentionally don’t rank up to the gold tier because my skills are not silver tier.”

“..Is there a difference if you rank up to the gold tier?”

Actually, I don’t know much about adventurers.

I only read a guide for adventurers that someone wrote last time.

No matter how smart I am, I don’t know well about things I haven’t learned.

That’s why I’m asking Donatas right now.

“Hmm? You don’t know that. If you rank up to the gold tier, you have to invest 10% of your profits in the Adventurer Guild.”

“..Is that okay?”

“It’s like a kind of tradition. But sometimes dividends come in. The problem is that they are so small.”

I could immediately understand Donatas’ words.

“It’s like a commission.”

“That’s right.”

A commission.

I was curious if there were similar traditions elsewhere, so I decided to ask.

[Writer: RealScumbag]

[Title: Wait, do adventurers really have to give up 10% when they reach the gold tier?]

[Content: Wait, I was talking to a dwarf old man just now, and he said they take 10% when you reach the gold tier for real? Is it the same elsewhere?]

I was a little annoyed at the thought that the Adventurer Guild would take the money I earned.

I understand taking 10% under the name of a commission.

But taking 10% under the guise of ‘investment’ was unacceptable.

“By the way, when will the other person arrive?”

“They should be coming soon.”

While we were having that conversation, suddenly-

“Ha-ha! Hello there!”

A young man wearing armor that clearly said ‘I’m a holy knight’ appeared.

He walked towards us with a spring in his step and stood in front of us, starting to speak.

“I am Dionysia Hartz. Just call me Hartz!”

“Ah, okay.”

“..Got it.”

His energy level was very high.

I would say it was a level of energy that I couldn’t handle.

The last party had a decent level of energy, which was nice.

But this party already felt exhausting.

I didn’t know about other things, but this high energy level was really off-putting.

While I was thinking that, Hartz continued to speak without a break.

“By the way, dwarf, what’s your name? If it’s not too rude, may I ask!”

“It’s Donatas.”

“Wow, Don Gas. That’s a really cool name.”

“..Thank you.”

I was planning to ask Donatas to lower his energy level a bit, but when he complimented his name, Donatas looked embarrassed.

So I couldn’t ask him.

By the way-

‘No, objectively speaking, it’s not that cool.’

His name wasn’t that cool.

It was just average.

He seemed to know very well how to win people’s favor.

While I was thinking that, Hartz approached me and shook my hand.

“Nice to meet you, wizard! What’s your name by the way?”

“It’s Eugene.”

“Eugene.. That’s a nice name!”

Huh?

Didn’t he say Donatas’ name was cool?

Why is he only saying mine is nice?

Is it because of my mood?

As I was thinking something was strange, Hrutz started speaking.

“I am Hartz, a knight of the Shurk Holy Order. I have come to sweep away the wicked monsters under the command of the goddess.”

“Oh, you’re quite impressive.”

“Haha, it’s nothing special. As a knight, I must do whatever the goddess commands!”

“Still, you’re quite impressive.”

With praise being showered upon him, Hartz smiled happily and ordered some beer.

“Wouldn’t everyone like to have some beer! I’ll make sure to buy plenty!”

Hmm.

Plenty of beer, indeed.

One could say he was a generous friend.

Buying three glasses of beer, no less.

As he was thinking about that, the beer suddenly appeared.

But then, Dantas spoke up.

“By the way, is it okay for a knight to drink alcohol? I thought it was against the teachings.”

“Haha! The goddess doesn’t concern herself with such things!”

Hartz said, trying to drink his beer.

“Just a moment.”

But he couldn’t let him drink lukewarm beer.

It would be better to show some goodwill since they were now working together as knights.

“Why are you doing this?”

As he tried to stop him from drinking, Hartz’s expression suddenly turned hostile.

Like an animal whose food was being taken away.

So, an explanation was in order.

“Oh, I was trying to make some ice-cold beer for you.”

“…Is that possible..?”

As he said that, Hartz’s expression softened again, returning to its original state.

[Frost]

Crackling-

Ice began to form on the surface, turning the beer into a chilled delight.

“Enjoy your drink!”

Hartz said, downing the beer in one gulp.

And then, after a moment of silence-

“Ah… it’s really delicious.”

He quickly evaluated the taste in a calm voice.

He was a truly strange person.

Is this how knights are supposed to be?

Thinking that, I checked the comments on the post I had just uploaded.

[Author: Seriously a loser]

[Title: Do adventurers really lose 10% of their loot when they die?]

[Content: Just talked to a dwarf elder and apparently it’s true that they lose 10% of their loot when they die? Is it the same elsewhere?]

L: Yeah, surprisingly it’s true haha

N: I was surprised at first too, but now I just accept it

N: It really sucks

L: In Lukpeltan, it’s actually 20% haha

N: There aren’t many adventurers there anyway

N: So they take more

N: Shouldn’t they take less if there are fewer?

N: Dunno

L: In Kurotom, it’s 5%

N: There are so many adventurers there that they probably only take that much haha

N: Perus: Seems like there are a lot of adventurers coming these days, so they’re taking a lot of investment money.

I didn’t know this fact.

Lukpeltan takes 20%, while Kurotom takes 5%.

It was a fact I had never considered.

I had lived in Lukpeltan for a year, but there weren’t many adventurers there, mostly wizards and knights.

So, there wasn’t much information available about adventurers.

This kind of trivial information didn’t circulate much on the forums either.

As I was thinking about that, Hartz and Dantas, who were already getting along, started chatting.

“Hey, Dungas, how much iron can you lift at once?”

“..It’s Dantas, not Dungas.”

“Haha, sorry! Your names are so similar.”

“I’ve never tried lifting iron, so I’m not sure, but maybe I should try it sometime to find out.”

“Hmm, I see. Thanks for answering!”

It really seemed like they were treating Dantas like a pet.

Dantas seemed unaware of this fact.

It made me feel a little sorry for him, but now wasn’t the time for such concerns.

“Anyway, shouldn’t we start heading out soon? You bought us beer, after all!”

“Right, let’s go right away!”

Dantas was also starting to mimic Hartz’s way of speaking.

It was strangely addictive.

With those thoughts in mind, we all purchased the necessary equipment to explore the sewer.

“Ugh, this jerky really doesn’t taste good.”

“..It doesn’t taste good?”

“..It seems like Eugene doesn’t have a sense of taste.”

“I agree.”

Everyone suddenly betrayed me.

I felt unjustly treated.

The jerky was delicious, that’s why.

To say such things.

It’s unbelievable.

While chatting, we made various purchases.

We bought special containers to hold slime byproducts and stocked up on torches.

It would be a disaster if there was no light in the sewer.

“Well then, let’s go in!”

And so, led by Hartz, we entered the sewer.

Squeak, squeak-

The sound of rats could be heard throughout the sewer.

Maybe that’s why.

I felt a bit eerie.

In horror movies, don’t they add the sound of rats to create a dangerous atmosphere?

Thinking that way made me feel a little less scared.

But then.

Squeak-!

“Damn it!”

Suddenly, a rat fell from the sky, and Hartz cursed loudly as he swiftly killed it.

He seemed quite startled.

“Alright, I took care of the rat in front! Let’s keep moving forward.”

Even though Hartz was shameless, he seemed a bit embarrassed by the recent situation as he chuckled.

So, we decided to play dumb and relied on our torches as we began to explore the sewer.