Vol. 1 - Ch. 15 - Squealing Pig

That evening, after they had returned from the tower, Ash and Clara had dinner in the lobby of the inn.The menu consisted only of grilled fish and soup with lots of vegetables.

It was by no means a glamorous menu, but its nutritional value was more than sufficient.

However, it was by no means enough for Clara who was constantly saying, "I'm starving!"

Ash, in turn, stood up and called out to Blain, who was reading at the reception.

"Sorry that you had to treat us both yesterday and today. It was delicious."

"Hmph. You must not be picky at all given that you're satisfied with just that."

"Thanks to this, everyday has been a happy one. What should I do with the dishes?"

"Same as yesterday. Leave them there."

After he heard Blain say that, Ash turned his back to her and began walking.

He headed straight for the front door when Clara asked him, "Where are you going?"

She was still eating, and both her cheeks were puffed out.

"I thought I'd go for a quick walk outside."

"Hmmm." She muttered.

For a moment Clara seemed to have an interested look in her eyes, but that quickly disappeared.

She once again dropped her gaze and began chomping down on the soup with her tiny mouth.

(She looks just like a small animal.)

With this in mind Ash left the inn.

◆◆◆◆◆

Many people were still present in the central plaza.

Ash thought he could enjoy a bit of a quiet night, but apparently, that would be some time in the future.

Many of the stores on the street were closed, but a few leaked pale golden lights.

(Those are probably the pubs. Just what I wanted.)

Ash turned and headed towards one of the open stores.

The sign hanging at the entrance read <Squealing Pig Pavilion>.

"That's a crazy name alright." Ash remarked.

He briefly considered going to a different pub, but then he remembered that he had never been to a good pub before, so he opened the door.

The sound of a clanging bell rang out, and shortly after that, a middle-aged man with a bright red face appeared in front of him, shouting, "SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"

Ash quickly stepped to the side, and the middle-aged man fell to the ground.

Ash wondered what was going on but he quickly figured it out.

In the middle-aged man's hand was a wooden cup filled with ale.

Ash realized that he had to take back what he'd said before.

The Squealing Pig Pavilion was indeed a fitting name.

While he was distracted by the middle-aged man, he could hear the bustle and noise of the pub. Of course, the stale air and slightly sour smell were an added bonus.

At a cursory glance, there were perhaps 30 guests.

The interior of the pub was larger than expected, but the oppressing atmosphere was so pronounced that it still felt cramped.

Ash would've liked to go order a drink straight away, but first, he had to deal with the drunken middle-aged man before he could close the door.

He immediately tried to pull the middle-aged man's leg, but quickly gave up the idea.

Instead, he chose to lift up the man by the collar and placed him leaning against the now closed door.

"This should do it." Ash said with satisfaction.

After which he turned around and walked away.

Soon after the pub's door was heard opening once more, and another vigorous squealing sound was heard in the background.

(It seems like it went just as planned.)

With a smug look on his face Ash walked to the counter and approached a young Milma, who was busy serving drinks to the customers.

"How much for a drink?"

"Oh my, a new face! A cup of ale is 100 Duri. But, since it's your first time here, it's half price~!"

"Thanks!"

However, even at half price, it wasn't cheap.

Although Ash had earned money today, he'd also paid for the weapon exchange.

He wasn't that well off just yet, but he couldn't skimp on information gathering.

Ash grabbed the Gamal.

"Could you take out 50 Duri?"

He pressed his thumb on Gamal's soft belly as he said the amount he wanted. The Gamal then made a "Gue!" sound before spitting out five red gems, a total of 50 Duri, onto the counter.

It wasn't the first time Ash was withdrawing money like this, but he was concerned about whether he would get used to it in the future.

"Thanks. Here's your cup!" the Milma exclaimed

After successfully purchasing the ale, Ash began his search for an empty seat.

However, at a quick glance, there were no seats available anywhere.

He could wiggle his way someplace, but if he didn't choose right he'd only end up being a nuisance.

(Where should I sit...)

"Hey! Ash! Over here, over here!"

A man was waving from a small table in the corner.

Ash would never forget his aristocratic, boyish appearance.

It was none other than Leo, with whom Ash had gotten acquainted on his first day on the island.

Opposite Leo sat a man in a plain, haze-colored robe.

Ash felt a little uncomfortable going to Leo, but other than touching his butt, Leo was basically a good person. Besides, there were no other available seats. Ash had no reason to refuse, so he decided to take advantage of Leo's kindness.

"Come, come. Sit."

Leo took the liberty of bringing a chair from a pile in the corner of the pub and placed it near the table.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it. If it's for you I'd even stand and offer up my own seat."

The excessive kindness made Ash kind of back-off, but he put up with it, partly because Leo had helped him find a seat.

Ash glanced at Leo's seatmate as he took his seat.

The man was probably around 30 years old.

His cheeks were a little puckered, but his presence was undoubtedly dominating.

It was so sharp that it felt like it could cut through the air.

"Is this person your teammate, Leo?"

"No, no. His name is Lucas. And he's got a nice butt."

Ash realized that it had been a mistake to ask Leo.

As Ash sighed, the robed man, Lucas, spoke.

"Leo, who is he?"

"His name is Ash. He's my best friend."

As soon as Lucas heard that Ash was Leo's best friend, his face contorted and he looked at Ash.

He stared at Ash as if he were staring at a maggot.

"I think you have the wrong idea about me." Ash remarked.

"That's a relief then. It seems we'll be able to get along."

"How strange, me too."

Ash shook hands with the relieved Lucas.

He was glad to hear that the misunderstanding had been cleared up.

"Hey, hey, wait a minute! You don't act the same when you're around me!"

"Isn't that obvious?" Lucas teased

"Of course we don't..."

As Leo sunk into his depression, Lucas rubbed his chin with his finger and made a thoughtful face.

"Come to think of it, Ash, are you that Ash that picked a fight with Darrion?"

"You know about that?"

"The rumor has spread to some areas. It says that a newbie took up a reckless gamble."

Given it was something that involved a newcomer, Ash had thought that it would get swept under the rug, but contrary to his expectation, it had turned into a big deal.

"What? What's this thing about a gamble?"

Leo, who had somehow resurfaced, entered the conversation with a curious look on his face.

Lucas took a sip of his ale and proceeded to explain.

"You know about the girl that's always hunting in the Blue Tower's 1st Floor, right?"

"Of course. The one that's had the nickname 'The Blue Tower's Ghost' for a while."

Hearing their story, Ash let out an unintentional laugh.

(It seems like Clara is quite famous. Albeit in a strange way.)

"That's the one. So this girl has been on the island for almost a year now, and she hasn't made it past the 10th Floor yet. So Darrion agitated her about how useless she was and how she was about to get expelled."

"He's quite far from being a gentleman."

"And then Ash here ended up agitating Darrion in return. He apparently told Darrion that he had to take back what he said after he and that Clara girl cleared the 10th Floor." Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ ɴovᴇlꜰirᴇ.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

"Nothing less from my best friend! Good job, Ash! You're so cool~!"

Leo patted Ash on the shoulder while being in an extremely good mood.

He didn't show any signs of stopping so Ash had to forcefully stop him.

Leo was definitely not someone Ash could let his guard around.

"That about covers it... But you're awfully knowledgeable about it." Ash remarked.

"I just know a guy who happened to be at the scene."

Lucas downed the ale in one gulp and left, saying, "I'm going to get another one."

Leo rubbed his hand that Ash had hurt just now while asking, "So what did you bet, Ash?"

"Oh that. I'll also be expelled if I lose."

Leo froze with his eyes wide open.

Eventually, after a long exhale, he looked at Ash with pity.

"Ash, it's my treat tonight."

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because usually you'd try to get a group of four to clear the 10th Floor... If possible even the maximum of five. And even if that isn't enough, you'd try to scavenge all the money you have to strengthen your equipment until the next newcomer arrives. Though, I do admit that there are some exceptions."

As soon as Ash heard about the exception, Uru's words came to his mind.

(She did say that Lapis was a loner. She's probably the exception Leo is talking about.)

Ash was sure that there were probably other people who had also cleared the 10th Floor alone.

"I might also be an exception, you know." Ash chuckled.

"Then that'd be great!"

"For a guy who calls himself my best friend you don't seem to believe in me that much." Ash said, trying to be sarcastic, and Leo's eyes widened in shock.

"Oh my! How could I mess this up so badly?! You're right... If you're my best friend I should believe in you and give you a grand send-off, shouldn't I?"

"Hey, Leo, just what are you-"

Before Ash could finish his sentence Leo stood up and leaped to the center of the pub, holding his ale high in the air.

"I, Leo Grant, have realized that this is the moment where I must show that I am a real man! Everyone! Drink to your heart's content! Tonight is on me!"

The cheers were so loud that the pub shook.

The challengers began to drink so wildly that it no longer mattered where they were seated.

Utter chaos ensued.

"Just how did it get to this?" Lucas asked as he returned with a cup of ale into his hand.

"Beats me... But is Leo going to be alright? You know, buying everyone drinks and all."

"That's not a problem. He's already ascended up to the 69th Floor so he's loaded." Lucas explained.

Uru had told Ash that there were only 10 challengers who'd made it past the 70th Floor.

This meant that Leo was one of the challengers closest to those ten.

"He's quite high up." Ash exclaimed.

"Sure is. There's nobody on the island who doesn't know who Leo is." Lucas said, while the person in question was dancing naked before them.

It was clear that he was already completely wasted.

"Why do I feel like he's famous for other reasons..." 

"I can't deny that." Lucas replied.

Ash had no plans on drinking with a man's naked body as his side dish.

Thus, he shifted his gaze away from the naked Leo and took a sip of his ale.

The bitterness of the foam was followed by a slight sweetness.

It also had a clean aftertaste.

It was a taste that made it hard for one to stop at the first cup.

(It's no wonder the pubs here are thriving.)

With this in mind, Ash placed the cup on the table.

"You seem to be quite knowledgeable about Clara, I mean the girl we were just talking about. Could you also know about the time she was climbing together with Darrion?"

"A bit."

"I went hunting with her today and I have to admit that her ability as a Healer isn't half bad. I'll admit that we had some close calls, but her ability in a drawn out fight is amazing. Knowing that I can't seem to understand why they'd kick her out."

The reason Ash visited the pub this time was to obtain this information. 

After Ash's explanation Lucas began to speak.

"This is something I heard from Darrion and his teammates, but they basically said that she was useless apart from her Heal."

"Isn't that more than enough for a Healer?"

"For better or worse, Darrion's team is full of muscle heads. That's why my hypothesis is that they didn't pay attention to the monsters that slipped through to the rear."

"And that made it impossible for Clara to use her Heal, thus labeling her as useless, huh..." Ash muttered.

Ash didn't know if what Lucas said was true or not because he hadn't been there, but if it was true, then it was just too unreasonable.

"From what I've heard, it really does sound terrible." Leo, who had just returned from the center of the commotion, said.

Ash had assumed that Leo wouldn't be this serious, given that he was constantly holding his ale cup with one hand, but he was wrong.

"Though, the towers on this island aren't that straightforward. There are times when Healers are required to deal with challengers on their own. You should do well to remember that." Leo explained.

"I figured as much. I appreciate the advice. Though--" Ash let out a sigh as he looked at Leo, "Please put some clothes on before you say such serious things."