And the next day. Today, I go shopping in the morning and make an
appointment for potions.
While I was there, I explored the town, widening my scope of activities
a little each time, but it was taking time because sometimes there were narrow
streets that smelled dangerous.
As I was walking along the main street after leaving the inn, a strong wind
suddenly blew, and I shivered.
“I wonder if it’s getting a little colder…” (Rook)
I wondered if summer was almost over.
In this world–or rather, this part of this world—the climate is
similar to that of Europe, and where the summer it is relatively easy to live
in. So far, I have not felt any particular problem in terms of climate. If it
is similar, in that case, winters may get quite cold. It may be better to move
to a warmer area at an early time, but for now, the dungeon is my top priority.
I bought some dried meat, and then went to my usual alchemist’s store.
“Hello.”
(Rook)
“Oh,
it’s you. Another batch of magic potions today?” (Alchemist)
“Yes,
the same number of potions, and as usual, I want them by tomorrow morning.”
(Rook)
While saying that, I tried to take out the advance payment from my bag.
“No,
I don’t need an advance. I know you’ll pay me. Besides, I’ll set the price at
40 gold coins for 30 bottles.” (Alchemist)
“Really?
Thank you very much!” (Rook)
Is this what it means to be trusted?
With this kind of thing, I can understand why adventurers want to stay
in the town where they were born, right? But if they go to another town, they
become strangers, and they have to build a relationship of trust from scratch.
“You
didn’t bargain from the beginning, even when the price was this high. I’m
always willing to do what’s right for customers who trust my work.” (Alchemist)
The owner continued, wiping the beaker-like glass container with a
cloth.
“Some
people kept trying to bargain recently, and it makes me angry because I’m a
legitimate businessman. It’s not good to bargain for everything.” (Alchemist)
“……you’re
right!” (Rook)
No, the biggest reason I didn’t bargain was because it was too much
trouble to negotiate the price down. …Well, what goes unsaid bore fruit.
From now on, I have to be careful about bargaining. If I am dealing with
a shopkeeper who has a certain amount of pride, I might start a problem. If I
am leaving the town after a short period of time it is fine, but if I will be staying
in the town for a long period of time, or especially if it is a store I use many
times, I should be careful. …You may fail to build trust if I make a mistake.
“Oh,
yes. While I am here, can I see your grimoires?” (Rook)
Come to think of it, I haven’t inspected to see if I can use new magic
even though I’ve been leveling up a lot lately. I’ll check it out next.
“
Oh, sure, sure. What kind
of grimoire do you want?” (Alchemist)
“I’d
be happy with a ball-type grimoire, and preferably a [Light Arrow].” (Rook)
“I’ve
got Light Arrow, and for ball-type magic, I’ve got Water, Light, Fire, and
Darkness. …so, light attribute means you have recovery magic. How outrageous is
your party?” (Alchemist)
“What?
Oh… well, there’s a lot going on!” (Rook)
Well, when you buy magic potions, you’re seen as a magician, and the grimoires
you want will tell others what attribute you have. And if it’s Light Attribute,
you are a healer. That’s the kind of recognition you get when a healer is
buying magic potions… Well, this kind of information is nothing to worry
about, and it’s a little late for that. Since have already been unnaturally
buying a lot of magic potions in this store, but it’s probably not a good idea
to stand out too much.
“Well,
if you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine.” (Alchemist)
“Well,
we have a lot going on!” (Rook)
Making light excuses, I touch the grimoires.
First of all, I touch the [Light Arrow] grimoire on the counter.
“…….”
(Rook)
Yeah, I don’t feel anything…
I can’t believe I can’t even use Light Arrow yet even though I’ve
leveled up so much…
As I recall, C-rank adventurers that were the strongest in Rankfurt, during
the time of the Stampede, they have Arrow-type magic flying around. In other
words, the magic should be usable at around C-rank level…
I guess that means I am not that strong yet.
The next step is to touch the grimoire of the ball-type attribute magic
other than light.
…Yeah, it is no good either.
I heard that ball-type magic are the easiest attack magic, but I can’t
use them either.
There is a possibility that I can learn it if I wear the Orichalcum ring,
but I don’t think it’s a good idea to equip it here, so I’m not going to do it.
There is still a long way to go. …I’ll be the one to say “Take
this! Wind Slasher!” It will be a while before I can show off my cool
magic in public. For the time being, I’ll just throw white balls at them.
I guess it’s still better that the ball is white. If it was a black ball
with a dark attribute, it would remind me of a chimpanzee throwing some black
ball at me in some zoo.
“Ah!
That’s right, I have a question, what is the difference between this magic
potion and the low-grade magic potions that you can find in dungeons?”
(Rook)
“What
do you mean… They are very different. The recovery speed of these here are faster…”
(Alchemist)
“That’s
the thing… Excuse me, but does that mean that dungeon potions are more
effective?” (Rook)
“Well…
I wouldn’t necessarily say that. I don’t even want to say this as an alchemist…
Some studies have shown that potions and magic potions made by alchemists heal
better overall than dungeon-produced low-grade potions because of their longer effective
duration. …However, there is no doubt that dungeon-made ones are superior in
terms of shelf life.” (Alchemist)
Saying so, the alchemist shopkeeper made an indescribable face.
“How
long exactly is the shelf life of dungeon-made potions?” (Rook)
“…
Well, let’s see. I know
that they last for years, but I don’t know the specific period.”
(Alchemist)
I see. I had thought of that possibility, but dungeon potions have a
longer shelf life, and the order of magnitude is different when it is based on years.
So, even if the price is high, it is worth it, maybe?
To be frank, both alchemists’ potions and magic potions have a short
shelf life and are not suitable for regular use. And they are also expensive.
At the moment, only rich people or people with a clear purpose like myself
would buy potions. I can understand why adventurers don’t always have potions
on hand.
And perhaps this and the lack of healers is what is keeping adventurers
away from actively adventuring. One mistake and you are injured, and you are
looking at the face of death. That’s exactly what happened to Dan.
“Thank
you. It’s no good. I don’t seem to be able to learn any.” (Rook)
“I
see. That’s a shame.” (Alchemist)
I returned the grimoires to the shopkeeper and I left the store after
saying, “See you tomorrow, please take care of the magic potion for me.”
That day, I practiced until I fell asleep, called Lizzy, and enjoyed a
temporary vacation.