169-Episode 169: Black Material

The next morning, we met up with Mr. Aug, and we were on our way to Mr. Gordoff's shop.

"d*mn it, they can't be shy about eating stupid food...

Mr. Aug is in tears because he ordered a lot of alcohol and food at a banquet that started unexpectedly last night.

"Haha, is your wallet okay?

Oh, whoa!　Don't worry. I've checked the price of the dragon scales and I've left enough money to pay you and Goldov's husband as it is. This is still a knight, you know?　I'm paid pretty well!

Mr. Aug laughs with a thumbs up that there's nothing to worry about.

'Wow, knights are paid so well!　The quintessential Mr. Aug!

'Ha ha ha, well!　

In my previous life, I heard from the knights that knights who rose to commoner status were poorly paid, but it's different now.

It's not so much the knights, but rather the fact that they're former A-ranked adventurers.

The one who said that was Liliera-san.

Jairo-kun and the others went to the Adventurer's Guild to receive another request, but Liliera-san seemed to be curious about Aug's equipment, so she followed him.

''Is that so?'' What is it?

''Yes, a high-ranking adventurer is like a guaranteed ability, if you will. From the employer's point of view, they can be hired with more confidence than a poorly skilled mercenary. Moreover, an A-ranked adventurer is practically the highest rank. That's why I'm going to recruit them with good treatment.

I see, so the adventurer's guild ranks have that advantage as well.

However, I suddenly question Liliera-san's words.

''Huh?　So, practically, you don't hire an S-rank?

'The S-ranked ones make a different kind of money, so they can earn enough to feed themselves in retirement without someone hiring them, so apparently no one bothered to hire them.

I see, it's true that even I've made a surprising amount of money, and everyone else could have made more.

But then Liliera-san continued to speak as if to muddy her mouth.

It's not a good idea to have a good employer. In the past, there was a nobleman who hired a certain S-ranked adventurer as his personal assistant, but he did it so flamboyantly that it became a problem.

Um, why did you just look at me in the middle of a sentence?

Then Liliera-san huffily looks away.

Hey!　I'm really curious about that one!

"Hey, what did that S-rank do to you?

That's why, apparently, everyone involved kept their mouths shut and didn't answer anything.

Mr. Aug asked, and Liliella shrugged that she didn't understand either.

What did she mean she didn't answer?

Hmmm, I'm sure they had something that would get them in trouble if they answered poorly. If a catastrophe occurred because of my orders, that person could be held accountable as well. Ordinary adventurers would be able to put the blame on them, but when it comes to the statements of an S-ranked adventurer, the country would be unable to ignore them. Well, if you're an adventurer, you'll hear about it from time to time. It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them.

Well, that's what happens when you hire too many great people.

To be honest, my acquaintances from my previous life and past lives were like that too.

They have a habit of causing a ruckus as a matter of course, but they don't feel bad at all.

The first thing that comes to mind is the fact that what Lex-san did is, in a sense, so important that the people involved will keep their mouths shut, if you say that, right?

Huh?　I don't think they did, though, did they?

Well, that's why. They're saying that an A rating is the best way to hire them in many ways.

"Oh, I see.

You're a very well-informed person, Liliera.

Datei, you haven't had a solo career for years!

You're not going to be able to do that.

Hey, Mister Gordoff!

As we entered the store, Mr. Aug approached Mr. Golduff in a good mood.

'Ah?　What the hell are you doing here? I can't find any materials for dragons after what happened yesterday.

Mr. Golduff, on the other hand, seems to be in a bad mood.

The reason is probably because of what he just said.

Yesterday, he was heckled that Gordov-san got mad at him because the armor he made from dragon materials broke.

''It's been a long time, Goldov-san.

''Is this Master?　Long time no see!　How can I help you today?

When I call out to him, Mr. Golduff's voice takes a turn for the better.

"Do you have a different attitude than I did?

Of course you do!　How can you compare a fool like you to Master?

I step in front of Mr. Gordoff to protect him from being scolded.

"Well, I wanted to talk to you about the business I came here today. I've been talking to you about, and I need you to make me a new piece of equipment for Mr. Org,

''Well, Master came all the way here on such an errand?

Mr. Golduff rolled his eyes in surprise and glared at Mr. Org with a snap.

''Fool!　Don't let my master waste his footing!

''Hee!''

''Uh.......Master, I'm sorry. I told this idiot, but as far as I'm concerned, we don't have any good material right now...

Yeah, as a forger, I know that it's a shame that you can't get enough material.

If you don't have good material in your previous life, you can just go get it yourself!　I said, "I've been hunting for materials alone, but that's an exception.

That's the thing, but I thought I'd like to offer you some new material.

"New material?

Golduff's eyes shine when he hears of the new material.

''Yes, Og-san seemed to like the Green Dragon material, but if you don't have it on hand, I can offer you a material of the same rank.

Ho!　Material as good as a dragon!

Hearing that the material is equivalent to Green Dragon, Golduff-san's eyes sparkle even more.

''It's this...''

I take out the Venom Beat material from my magic bag.

Too big a chunk would get in the way of processing it, so I cut it into pieces and place it on the table, just enough to process the armor.

'This is ... black, but it's light for what it looks like. What's this?

'No. You're not through cutting that material like butter just now?

Mr. Golduff ignores Mr. Aug's mutterings and becomes engrossed in the materials on the table.

He seems to recall the knowledge he's gained from books and the materials he's dealt with in the past, and he's trying to figure out what this is.

I don't know, I've never seen materials like this before. It's not scales like a dragon, or wood like an ancient plant. What kind of material is this?

This is Venom Beat material.

''Geez!''

Hearing Venom Beat's name, Liliera-san hurriedly stepped back.

''Huh?　What's the matter, Mr. Liliera?

'No, because that's what it is!　Because what's the Venom Beat?

Ah, come to think of it, Liliera-san was sick from Venom Beat's poison before the seal was broken.

Can't help but feel sick just by hearing her name?

''It's okay. I've detoxified myself properly.

Venom Beat Venom Beat does that sound familiar?

Didn't you just say detoxification?

Speaking of demons that need to be detoxified and have similar names, I'm pretty sure...

What do you know about it, Mr. Goldov?

'Yeah. Yes, my grandfather told me once when I was a kid. According to him, it's an old story about a demon as big as a mountain that spreads deadly poison all around and rots everywhere like a living disaster.

'Oh, ah!　I've heard that one too!　I mean, isn't that the guy from the fairy tale?　

Mr. Aug and Mr. Golduff look at each other.

''Hahaha, no, no, no,''

'How can you get anywhere near it when you're bombarded with poisonous air even when you're close to it?

Yeah, and I'm talking about the fact that its entire body is covered in poison that could kill you just by touching it. It's impossible to dismantle a demon of that caliber, even if it's a very difficult task.

"'Hey!　Hahahahahahahahahahaha!

"...glimpse...

They look at me.

'Hey Master, could it be that this black material is........'

''Yes, as you two have been talking about, it's the material for the Venom Beat, a highly poisonous demon.

''Whoa!?''

They jumped back from the table in a hurry.

''Whoa, whoa!　He's got his hand on it.

D-D-Do you see the poisoner?

The two of them rush to find the poisoner.

You'll be fine. I've already de-toxed myself.

"'What?　Really?

Yes, the detoxification magic has been used to remove the poison once and for all, so you can use it at ease. I mean, you can't do that without detoxifying it.

Oh, yeah.........

When they heard that it had already been detoxified, they finally let out a sigh of relief.

''But you don't mean to tell me that this is the material for that fairy tale monster...''

Now that I think about it, it's definitely a hideous black...

'It's just that the Venom Beat I encountered seemed to be quite weak, and it was no weaker than the original Venom Beat. So this material, compared to the original Venom Beat material, seems to be of a lower quality than the original Venom Beat material.

Yeah, so it's not so different from the dragons...

'Yes. So, Mr. Gordoff, could you make Mr. Aug a new piece of equipment for him with this?

Hmm, I'll use this to get new equipment...

Mr. Golduff was holding the Venom Beat material, weighing it and tapping it with a hammer to make sure it felt right.

Then, after checking them all over, Gordov looked at me seriously.

'I understand. If you insist so much, I'll take the job.

Thank you, Mr. Golduff!

''Please stop, Master. I'd rather be grateful to you for letting me use materials I've never seen before.

I'm in a position to ask for a favor, but Mr. Gordoff is so humble.

'Oh, crap!　I'll make it because of my master's words, but the next time you treat my armor poorly, I'll kill you!

Okay, I get it.

You'll pay for the rest, you hear?　Work is work!　Leave the money up front!

Oh, oh!

Mr. Org pulls out his wallet from his pocket and pays Mr. Gordoff the advance.

''By the way, I brought the money for my dragon scales, but how much is the market price for the Venom Beat material?''

What?

That being said, I don't understand it either.

This one hasn't been bought out by the Adventurer's Guild.

''Um, Goldov-san, do you know what the market price is for Venom Beat materials?''

''Yes!''

Mr. Gordoff is a famous blacksmith, and you know the market price for good materials. The quality is bad, but you can think of it based on the original Venom Beat market price.

''Well, Master, as expected, I'm not sure about the market price of legendary demon materials either...''

Huh?　You can't even understand it, Mr. Gordoff?

Oh, great, in my past life, I did defeat them, but I left the collection of materials to the military.

'In the meantime, why don't we just ask for twice as much as the most expensive material we know of?

As we were all wondering what to do, Liliella came up with an idea.

You know, don't you think twice the price of the most expensive material is too much?

Do you think so?　It's something you can't buy with money in the first place, then why not use the minimum amount of goods you can buy. I also thought that Lex-san would be reluctant to accept the market price as expected, so I dared to make it twice as vague as it should be. I think the price will probably be higher than that.

When Liliella winked at Goldoff, Goldoff nodded as if he understood something.

''I see, I'd say that's an appropriate price.

"100 gold coins?

Me and Aug's voice hummed at the unexpectedly low price.

100 gold coins is an amount of money that Aug-san, a former A-ranked adventurer, can earn right away.

It's an amazingly cheap price compared to the purchase price of the Green Dragon and Evil Boa that I had bought in this town before.

........No wait?　I see, that's what you mean.

The Green Dragon and Evil Boa materials were high purchases because they were hunted cleanly.

So the debilitated Venom Beet material would be like buying a battered material for the lowest price.

''If it's this big, that's probably about the price.

I don't know, 100 gold pieces, but that's...

Mr. Aug is surprised at how cheap it is.

It's a reasonable price. Oh, don't worry, I'll make sure to pay you the normal market rate on my end.

Ha ha ha....

Afterwards, there was a scene where Aug-san had inadvertently forgotten to withdraw money, so he hurriedly went to withdraw his deposit from the Adventurer's Guild, but the payment for the materials ended without a hitch.

''Then it's nice to meet you, Goldov-san.

Yes, leave it to me, Master!　I'll show you how to make equipment that lives up to my master's name!

Now all we have to do is wait for Mr. Aug to finish his new equipment!

But then the next day, something unexpected happened.　

"Sorry Master!

When I came to Mr. Goldov's workshop with a gift, he suddenly got down on his knees when he saw my face.

He got down on his knees.　What's going on, Mr. Golduff?

"I couldn't process the material Master gave me, I couldn't process it at all!

"...what?　What?

Couldn't you have processed it?　I... What does that mean?