103 - - New equipment and new requests

The old man appeared out of nowhere and approached the couch with a broad step.

With a gliding motion, he sat down next to Zazam, whom he called his uncle.

The old man, who had sat down without the permission of the master of the room, stared at Thor and opened his mouth.

"Indeed, it's been a long time since you were summoned..." he said.

"It's been a long time,...... Mr. Dudgeon. You look as good as ever."

"Hmm, it tickles me to be called that. You can call me Master as usual."

The old man repeats the same complaint that we have just heard, and gives a small sniff.

Thor let out a breath of exasperation at the sight of his mentor who had suddenly appeared and started a conversation as he wished.

Then, he spoke the first question that came to his mind.

"So, master..."

"What is it?"

"Did you make this whole exchange happen?"

"Don't be so rash. It's a parental love.

Dadaan lifted the corners of his mouth in a deliberate gesture toward his apprentice, whose eyebrows twitched.

"You know that the Wilderness of the Ruined Wind is called the Wilderness of Disappointment. It's a place where hard white and black steel tend to give up. They wonder if they can go on. ...... roughly 40%, almost half of them decide to retire."

Seeing the reaction of Thor and the others who had fallen silent, Dadan exhaled lightly and continued his explanation.

From the wilderness, we are faced with monsters that mimic or are unable to survive a half-hearted attack.

In addition to the prolonged battles and the increasing number of wounded, the awkward environment, which makes it difficult to move around, is also heavily draining.

Thor and his team were so well matched that they hardly noticed, but under normal circumstances they would have been forced to fight even harder.

And even if they managed to adapt to the wilderness, the dreaded swamps and the infamous dungeons of immortality lay ahead of them.

It was no wonder that the words "give up" crossed his mind.

"It's about time you guys had some doubts,...... I've been worrying about that."　

"That's why I tried it."

I'm glad my fears are unfounded. Here, Uncle, give me the thing.

"Mm. I appreciate your spirit, but if that's all you can do, you'll have no trouble. So let us help you.

With these words, the temple head took out two boxes from somewhere and put them on the low table.

Sola and Mu both cheered with excitement as the lids were removed and the contents appeared.

The first was a pair of small boots for children.

They seemed to be made of animal skin with beautiful purple stripes.

The second was a crown.

It was about the size of the palm of your hand, and it had a clip in the hair to prevent it from slipping off.

It had a purple stone in the center, and a jagged lightning bolt-like projection covered the top of the crown.

"Now then, let us begin the ordination ceremony."

Suddenly, Zazam's tone turned grave and he extended his right hand toward Mu.

With his palm close to the child's head, the temple head continued speaking.

You have the great blessing of the Lord Gigilo, and you deserve the lower rank of the trunk. I bestow upon you this gift so that you will remember your devotion to honor, pride, and respect for others, and will not tolerate injustice.

"You'll give me this?　Thank you, Grandpa!"

Mu, who does not understand the solemnity of the ceremony at all, has a twinkle in his purple eyes when he sees the crown and shoes pointed out to him.

The child, who was quickly helped by Sola to put on the ceremonial equipment, proudly twirled around on the spot.

"How do you like it?　Tor-chan."

"Yeah, it's good."

"Wow, he's so cute, Moo-chan."

"Mm-hmm, it's perfect."

"Yes, yes, it suits you well."

The faces of the old men turned into those of grandfathers watching over their grandchildren.

Then, perhaps noticing the gazes of Thor and the others, the temple head cleared his throat lightly and returned his voice to normal.

Then, let me explain a little. That crown is called a small crown of thunder, you can think of it as a ritual to catch more thunder. Your shoes are the leather shoes of thunder beasts. It will make it a little easier to walk.

"Thank you for everything. Can I have two?"

Normally, only one ritual implement is given when a new rank is conferred.

"Yes, it is an advance payment of expectation. And when I said I was willing to lose it, it was unmistakably my intention.

Zazam smiled pleasantly at Thor, who bowed his head in silence.

Then, while ruffling his long white beard, he added casually

"Oh, and from now on, I want you to give me the fangs of your fur as an offering.

"Is it different from a tail?　And what is the rank of the trunk?"

Sola's curiosity finally got the better of her and she started asking questions one after another.

Zazam looked a little surprised, but his love for teaching, which is characteristic of priests, came out and he began to explain the situation happily.

First of all, the ranks are divided according to their roles. Do you know this?

"Wow, that's new to me!

"Well, let me give you a lecture from the beginning.

There are seven major ranks of priesthood. All are named after the parts of the tree.

The first and highest rank is the crown rank.

This is given to the one who presides over the teachings and is the leader of all priests.

Next is the treetop level, the highest level.

This is given to priests who are recognized as those who honor the teachings and serve as the heads of temples. It is also a so-called managerial position.

The next three intermediate levels are called the leaf level, the trunk level, and the branch level.

The leaves are those who spread the teachings.

The leaf is the one who spreads the teachings. Most of the priests who serve in the temples are of this type.

The trunk protects the teachings.

The trunk is the protector. It is given mainly to adventurers, such as Euril and Mu.

The branches support the teachings.

They are the performers of miracles, and are also called teachers, healers, judges, and so on.

The lower rank is that of the buds.

They are those who learn the teachings and are apprentice priests.

Finally, the lowest but most important of the lower orders is the root order.

They are called followers of the teachings and are mainly lay people.

Except for the crown, these three ranks are further divided into the upper, middle, and lower ranks.

Furthermore, the ranks themselves are not simply ranked in a hierarchical manner, but sometimes the upper ranks of the root receive more hospitality than the middle ranks.

This is because of the influence of offerings.

The trunk, branch, and root ranks, which do not have temple duties, are obliged to make offerings, and their income determines the degree of dedication.

They are indicated by the parts of the beast: the tail is one-tenth of the income, the tusks are one-fifteenth, and the claws are one-twentieth.

Higher ranks are said to receive 20% of the forelegs and 30% of the hind legs.

The income from the recent search was 21 silver coins and 6 large copper coins, but in fact, 5 large copper coins, or 10% of Ulir's share, were deducted from the quarter that was Ulir's share, so the exact amount was 21 silver coins and 1 large copper coin.

Sola smiled broadly, perhaps happy that her doubts had finally been answered.

Ulir, a former teacher who had been assigned as a commentator, pricked up the tips of his ears a little, though.

When the conversation was over, Dadan casually spoke to Thor.

"By the way, I'd like to ask you a few questions.

When Thor nodded his head, he let out a deliberate sigh of relief and began to talk about his business.

For a while now, Thor had been out in the wilderness, a new hunting ground, but for a month or so before that, he had been holed up on the banks of the Bloody River, hunting slime.

The materials brought by adventurers are basically purchased at a fixed price.

If this were to be changed, the already unstable lives of adventurers would become even more difficult.

This is largely a relief measure for this reason.

However, the price for processing and selling brought-in materials is free.

In other words, prices follow the principles of the market, getting lower when there is an overflow of goods and higher when there is a shortage of goods.

Of course, the monopoly market does not allow for extreme fluctuations in prices, but sometimes the people in charge make a mistake.

Such is the case with slime mucus in this case.

It seems that Thor and his friends have hunted too many river slimes and have caused an oversupply.

Slime mucus has various uses and is a commodity that can keep a stable price even if it is left alone.

However, the amount of slime is so large that it puts pressure on the warehouse, and it is sold at the drop of a hat by the head of the buying office.

Then, craftsmen with a sharp eye buy them all at once.

After selling off most of the goods, Thor easily leaves the hunting grounds of the bloody river.

The water god season is over, there is not much rain, and the outbreak of river slime has subsided considerably.

Therefore, the bridge of the sand hill, handmade by the three Thunderbolt brothers, has been maintained only by showing up at the riverbank once a week and it directly.

"In other words, the craftsmen have been pushing you up against the wall.

I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to come down to the riverbank for a while this weekend. The weatherman says it's going to rain a little.

"...... is good, but not all the time."

"I'm well aware of that. Well, that's a relief.

Thor looked at Dadaan with suspicion as Dadaan nodded his head in agreement.

It seemed as if he was trying to make it look like a good story, but this was the real deal.

"Are you sure you've been hiding in there all this time for this request?　Master."

"No way, that's not possible. ......"

"So that's why you were complaining that they were coming so late."

Probably this information must have reached the Director's office every time Thor and his group entered the inner city.

However, since they had stopped only at the temple of exploration last time, they must have been kept waiting.

The old man, perhaps having been pointed at the right place, hurriedly added, "I'm not sure if I'm right or not, but I'm not sure.

"Oh, by the way, I have a little gift to thank you for accepting my invitation, which is only lent to those who are C-rank or above. I'm sure it will be useful.

"You seem to be in trouble, so I'll do it, but I don't know, even if Deputy Director Sacco scolds me."

"Ugh, don't mention his name so carelessly. You never know where he might be listening.

With Mu's appointment safely completed, Thor and the others stand up to thank him.

Zazam nodded gravely as he spoke words of thanks.

"Seeing and hearing so much in a place where lives are at stake is a priceless experience," he said. Take good care of the boy.

"Yes, I will do my best as always."

"Hmm. By the way, there are many things that young children need to learn fundamentally. Can you spare a couple of days a week?

"We have already taken care of that at the Temple of Inquiry, Temple Master Zazam."

Yuril, his ear tips twitching, quickly interrupts Thor and the others' conversation.

"Is that so?"

"I'll think about it, I hope."

Then there's no problem. There is no other place to learn about the god of thunder than here.

No, there is no better place for a child's learning than in a temple of exploration.

They began to insist on the merits of their own temples to each other, and Sola asked Moe, who was spinning around, if he was dismayed by their insistence.

It would be better to ask him. Which one do you like better, Moo-chan?

What?

Which do you like better, the Exploration Temple or the Court Temple?"

"Well, I guess I'll go to Grandma O's."

To the temple head, who was speechless at the answer that had been decided so quickly, Moo innocently gave his reason.

"Because the railing is no good here..."