CH 86

Chapter 86 – Helping

We crossed the Ardenfeld border in the carriage, and continued into the undeveloped land to the northwest.

While the road to the Viceroza Grand Dungeon was long, it meant there was a lot of free time as well, which I would never complain about.

After all, it meant that I finally had time to read the magic books that I had set aside, due to not having enough to read them.

And so I spent my time blissfully reading books.

When we finally arrived in the dungeon city of Viceroza, I saw that it seemed to be a fortress city that was surrounded by gigantic walls.

The stone walls protected the city from the monsters of the land, and they had the look of being quite worn with age.

The Adventurers who took on the dungeon, and the residents who lived off the money they spent here.

Most large dungeons came with such towns and cities, but there was something about Viceroza that was completely different from the others.

It seemed prosperous and busy.

It was no wonder. Since it was counted as one of the seven great dungeons of the west.

And after this recent push from all the lands to be the first to reach the 80th floor, there were even more Adventurers gathered than usual. This was told to me by an innkeeper.

“We have only one room left. But it is for two. Is that alright?”

Luke had been quite adamant that I get separate rooms for us, but they were not available, so it could not be helped.

After checking in, I went out into the town with the note he had given me.

In order to prepare for the dungeon as swiftly as possible, we had split up with our own roles.

My role was to get us rooms and buy supplies.

However, the latter turned out to be a lot harder than I expected.

There were three times as many Adventurers as usual, and so the magic tool stores were incredibly crowded.

Every store had a long line in front of them.

Surely there must be a hidden, less crowded store somewhere. I thought, as I continued to search. But I gave up after going to the seventh store.

Damn it. I would just have to wait in line.

And so I searched for the back of the line, and then I suddenly noticed something.

This store. It had an incredibly long queue in spite of being quite small.

“Hurry up! We’re going to the dungeon! How many hours are you going to make us wait!”

“I’m very sorry! Just a little longer! Please wait a little longer!”

Said a short girl. She was bowing her head with teary eyes.

It seemed like she was new here.

And she was troubled, as there was too much work for her to handle.

“An old type…magic mechanism from two generations ago…?! How would I know this…”

What were the others doing?

It seemed ridiculous to leave this one person to tend to the store, when things were this busy.

And so I looked at what the girl was holding and said,

“I think that the power unit structure is weak. Do you know the technical structure of the Flowbell magic system?”

“I’m sorry. I haven’t learned that yet…”

“Most beginners wouldn’t. Let me see that.”

I carved away part of the worn power unit, and carved in a new technique to reinforce it.

“Huh…?”

I felt happy, seeing the look of surprise on her face.

I had toughened up in various ways during my previous job.

And so I was quite confident with how fast I could work.

“Is there no one else here?”

“The manager and my coworker have gotten sick…”

So that was why she had to tend to the store by herself.

It wasn’t too unusual for these small stores. It was just the timing that was terrible.

No matter how you looked at it, there was no way that she could deal with everything by herself during such a time.

“Well, since I have nothing to do while waiting in line, I could help you?”

She looked at me with great astonishment.

“Ar-are you sure?”

“Yes. We should help each other when in need.”

“Thank you! I will go and ask the manager!”

And so she ran to the back of the store.

As the manager understood the situation, he would likely give his permission.

Helping at this magic tool store would surely help me gain information about the city dungeon.

Good. Let’s do this then.

And so I rolled up my sleeves, ready to get to work.

◇　　◇　　◇

To the beginner magic artificer, Mia Linx, it was a day from her worst nightmare.

It was expected that someone would reach the 80th floor in the dungeon for the first time ever.

And so many Adventurers had gathered together, causing the city to be overflowing with people.

‘I have a bad cough and fever. But I still mean to go.’

And that was when her coworker got sick.

As she had just gotten started here, there was so much she didn’t know, and so she had received a lot of help up until now.

Mia wanted to do what she could to repay them.

‘Don’t worry. I’ll be fine. I can do it.’

While things would be quite harsh, she did not want her coworker’s condition to worsen.

If that happened, the situation would only become more dire. And so the decision to do extra work for one day was surely not a wrong one.

What was unexpected was what happened when she reported this to the store manager.

‘Sorry, I also have a fever…’

‘What.’

‘I will rest today, so that I’ll be better tomorrow. So, Mia. Just for today, you’ll need to take over.’

‘WHAAAAAAT…!?’

In the end, Mia was forced to hold down the fort during a record breaking time.

But many of the jobs she was asked to do exceeded her skill level.

And though she did her best, the line in front of the store just grew longer.

She could not take any breaks.

She continued to work without eating. And even then, the situation only grew worse.

“Hurry up! We’re going to the dungeon! How many hours are you going to make us wait!”

“I’m very sorry! Just a little longer! Please wait a little longer!”

Mia bowed her head again and again. She was about to burst into tears.

She felt bad for making the customers wait.

At this point, she wished that she could just faint, and it would be over.

But that was when it happened.

“I think that the power unit structure is weak. Do you know the technical structure of the Flowbell magic system?”

Asked a very short customer.

“I’m sorry. I haven’t learned that yet…”

“Most beginners wouldn’t. Let me see that.”

Mia was astonished by the speed at which she repaired it.

It was such a complicated technique, but she made it look easy.

Such systems required specialized knowledge in various departments, and even a veteran crafter would have struggled with it.

But as Mia looked stunned, the girl just smiled at her and said,

“Well, since I have nothing to do while waiting in line, I could help you?”

After that, she worked in a way that was different from any ordinary magic artificer.

She used acceleration magic.

And like that, the mountain of work was completed before she knew it.

Who…was this person…?

But there was one thing that Mia did know.

She was currently working with someone amazing.

Bonus chapters courtesy of Al. Thank you so much!!