"Please buy it!"
"How much is this one?"
"It's only 4 silver coins!"
"Fresh meat for sale here!"
—
The horse carriage we were riding passed through a marketplace in the city of Ulvur.
It had been quite a while since the last time I went to a market, and the lively atmosphere was still the same.
I wasn't bothered at all by the noisy voices — in fact, when things are this lively, it's actually fun.
Honestly, if possible, I wanted to get off the carriage and stop by one of the stalls to buy some snacks.
Well, how could I not be tempted?! I've been seeing so many delicious-looking foods that are making me hungry!
Also, the lunch Lis-san gave us had already been eaten earlier.
I had tried to sneak off quietly, but... there's no way it would be that easy, right?
"Yukito-sama, where are you going?" asked Yuu-chan, who had been watching me.
I turned around — and not just her, even Hime was smiling at me.
A-... I shouldn't be doing that carelessly...
In the end, I reluctantly sat back down beside them, before I ended up getting punished.
Maybe later, once we arrive at the guild, I'll buy some food for myself.
I don't plan to share it with them, of course, because I want to eat in peace and without interruptions.
Besides, they'll probably buy some snacks for themselves later anyway.
——
"We've arrived."
The carriage stopped right in front of a large brown-colored building.
From the outside, it looked like it only had two floors, but the building itself was quite spacious.
However, the design looked plain and unremarkable. Honestly, it only stood out because of its size.
The three of us got off the carriage and left behind the basket that Lis-san had given us.
Hime said that once the carriage returned to Lis-san's house, the basket would be returned as well.
Well, since she said so, I just nodded and followed along.
——
Inside, I felt like I was standing in the middle of another market.
There were so many people inside the building — from grown men to small children.
Everyone carried weapons on them, probably as protection in case of an attack.
Well, that made sense — after all, we were inside a guild. Wait, this feels really different from the one in Necvalion—
"Hime, is it just me, or is the guild here bigger than the one in the capital?" I asked.
"You noticed? Well, yeah, this one is indeed larger than the one there," Hime replied.
Even though Necvalion was a kingdom, why was its adventurer guild smaller than this one in Ulvur?
Logically speaking, shouldn't a bigger city have a bigger guild too?
—
I waited in front of a large board that had various quest papers posted on it.
Well, while the two of them were at the receptionist, I might as well take a look at the available quests.
Hime said she was going to show the quest we had taken before — traveling from Necvalion to Ulvur while defeating monsters along the way.
As far as I could remember, we didn't encounter any monsters at all, so that quest seemed pretty easy.
Even so, Hime said we'd still get paid the full reward upfront.
That's great — at least we'd have enough to rent a room for the night.
If I hadn't been traveling all this time, maybe I could've built a house by now.
Well, maybe I'll do that once I've saved up more money.
Right now... I'd probably end up drowning in debt and suffering miserably.
—
Oh, this quest looks pretty good.
I took one of the quest papers and read what it was about. From the drawing, it looked like a bear.
If there's a bear in the picture, the quest is usually something like capturing or slaying it.
That sounds easy, right? A small bear wouldn't be able to escape if it ran into Yuu-chan and Hime.
Me? How could I defeat it? I don't even have enough money to buy a sword.
I finally realized, after fighting Cyve, that my swordsmanship was still fairly decent — especially compared to my attempts at using magic.
—
Actually, there weren't many details on the paper.
There was only a picture of a bear and the reward amount for completing the quest.
Well, I'll just tell them about it later when they get back.
——
Not long after, the two of them returned carrying a small pouch filled with coins.
Hime said it contained about 10 silver coins and 20 bronze coins. She also said that would be enough to rent a room at an inn.
Then, I showed them the quest paper I was holding.
Their expressions immediately changed — they looked unmotivated after seeing the quest I picked.
"Listen, Yukito-san, don't ever get fooled by quests like this," Hime said, explaining to me.
Of course, I was confused by what she meant.
"Usually, quests like this are harder than they look," Hime said while pointing at the paper.
"For example, why would the reward be this high if the picture only shows a single bear?" she asked.
I shook my head, meaning I didn't know.
"Usually, the bears in these quests aren't ordinary bears. Sometimes they're even dangerous species."
"So it's better to pick something simpler," Hime said, sticking the paper back onto the board.
Yeah, maybe I just didn't think that far ahead.
B-but still, the reward was 15 gold coins! How could I not be tempted?!
If I could earn that much money in such a short time, then surely I could stay in a much nicer inn than usual.
"Yukito-sama, please wait here. We'll decide which quest to take," Yuu-chan said.
Yeah, before I make them mad at me, I'd better just listen to them.
Who knows — maybe they'll find a safer quest than the one I picked earlier.
While waiting for them, maybe I should chat with someone else.
——
Ah, there he is.
A young man, maybe slightly shorter than me.
He carried standard-looking gear, but he seemed more experienced than I expected.
I approached him, just wanting to find someone to talk to.
He looked a little troubled, like he was searching for someone to speak with. Jackpot!
"Umm... can I help you with something?" I asked.
He realized I was talking to him and quickly extended his hand toward me.
"I'm Zev, an adventurer ranked E. I'm looking for someone who can help me," he said.
Of course, I shook his hand and introduced myself in return.
"I'm Yukito. So, what exactly are you trying to do?" I asked.
Zev let go of my hand and handed me a quest paper.
I took it from him and read its contents.
Basically, the quest was to defeat goblins in their nest — estimated to be in the hundreds.
I immediately asked Zev why he was taking on such a dangerous quest.
"Why do you need to finish this quest? Is it that important?" I asked.
"The goblin nest isn't far from my brother's house on the edge of the forest, so I'm looking for a party to help me wipe them out," Zev explained.
I personally didn't mind helping him, but what about the other two?
"I'll pay 20 gold coins and 40 silver coins, so please, I'm begging you for your help!" Zev pleaded desperately.
Do I look that strong to him or something? Still, that offer was very tempting.
Yuu-chan and Hime then walked over, looking confused about why Zev was begging me like that.
"Yukito-san, are you forcing someone again?" Hime asked, glaring at me.
"It's not like that. The thing is—"
After that, I explained to the two of them what was going on with Zev.
Whether they believed me or not, at least they agreed to listen.
"Zev-san, when do you plan to go to the goblin nest?" Hime asked.
"If possible, I'd like to go this evening — that's the best time, since the goblins will be asleep," Zev answered.
Well, it seemed like the two of them wouldn't be helping Zev—
"All right, the three of us will help you," Hime said.
"R-really?! T-thank you so much!" Zev said, looking overjoyed at her response.
—
Yuu-chan said she didn't mind either, so I guess we'll be helping Zev first.
As for the inn, we can handle that later.
For now, the three of us have to help Zev.