Volume 3, Chapter 0.2

Volume 3, Chapter 0.2

Translator: Kureha

Editor: Weasalopes

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Now would be a good time to give some information about the country which Hiroshi and the others have entered.

Darl is a colossal country located south-east from Farlane where the majority of its land is located in the tropical region. That information might have been evident from the fact that the capital city is located in the subtropical region. Although Farlane and Darl are neighbouring countries, their lands are not physically connected. The only way a person can enter the other country via land is either through the southern highway or through the detours in the great forest. And even those pathways have bridges so the only possible transports are by foot or by chariot.

Referring to Earth’s geography, Farlane and Darl are like Europe and Africa. The only difference is that there are no Mediterranean borders and the desert area is much smaller with more lands covered with vegetation. The continent which Darl is located in is separated from the other continents by two sagas. It is safe to say that the Darl Nation can do whatever they please with the entire continent. Majority of the land is independent of other continents, although there are areas which are under the policy of Species United States. But if you just look at the surface area of the continent, it is safe to say that Darl is the largest nation in this universe.

The characteristics of people who reside in this nation are the skin tone which is slightly lighter than the native South Africans or the people from East Asia. However, their physical structure is much closer to Europeans, giving them a very unique look. These characteristics weren’t adopted only by the humans in this nation. The natives of the other species, tribes in the great forest and the rainforest in the south side and even the elf community residing beyond the Sharune river has the same traits. However, the land further away from the capital is an independent land for the local native tribes. The people who belong to those tribes have darker skin tone compared to the other citizens in Darl.

The characteristic of Darl is that from the capital city, it only takes a day and a bit by a chariot to reach the Torrid Desert. Torrid Desert which is located along the edge of the nation is known for the Sweltering Tower which was built in the middle of it. The desert is bad enough on the outskirts. However, towards the middle is an area which is forbidden for anyone who is not an adventurer. Even then, the adventurer must be above class 5. The monsters in that area are usually very high in levels. The common ones are Giant Scorpion, Giant Centipede, Sand Shark, Giant Sinkhole, Basilisk, Desert Crab and so on. It is a high-risk area without a doubt. Although that area is out of bounds, there are no guards or lookouts in the area and if people go missing in the surrounding area, there will be no search party sent out.

However, the materials which are harvested from the desert biome are usually very fine in quality. They are often used for making items such as ceramics, bricks and glass. There are only a handful of items made from desert materials and their value is understandably high. Also, the sediment materials excavated from the Boulder Desert are also very valuable. The ones which have been excavated through intense labour are used to build the fortress of the castles in this nation.

Although Darl is located next to Farlane, as they are separate continents, the arts and the culture of Darl is very different compared to Farlane. The one disadvantage of Darl is the low food production rate. On the daily, the nation has no problem feeding the citizens. However, if something was to happen, poverty would be inevitable. It is a concern which Farlane will never face. Therefore, Darl needs to maintain a good relation with Farlane which is their main importation country.

Hiroshi and his friends were about to start their new life in this nation, Darl. An artistic country with its culture influenced by the western, eastern and the central nations of this universe.

「How did the house hunting go?」

Hiroshi’s group was eating dinner at the moment. And Haruna asked Hiroshi and Tatsuya who have been house hunting all day.

「Welp, we managed ta rent out a half-broken house which we have ta renovate. T’ least it was mighty cheap.」

「By half-broken, how bad are we talking about? Even if it was really cheap, I couldn’t stand living in a place where the floor might break through just by walking on it.」

「Don’t be a spoiled sport. If we spend a day renovatin’, there shouldn’t be a problem livin’ there.」

To Makoto’s comment, who was drinking ale brewed from sand wheat, Hiroshi gave a light-hearted response as he ate bread baked from sand wheat and a dry stew. Sand wheat is a very important food source in Darl as it is very strong against extreme heat and dry weather. For that reason, they can be grown even in the desert. The harvest rate of the sand wheat matches up with the normal wheat and the farms only need to be restored every eight years. Meaning they have greater efficiency than the standard wheat. However, when used for baking, the bread ends up having a dry texture and the colour ends up being as dark as the black bread.

「Fine, but how much was the rent?」

「10000 seneca per month. Don’t you think it’s cheap for a place that could be our base?」

「By the way, what’s the average rent in Darl?」

「Well, both the land and the building are pretty cheap. If we’re looking at a one-room apartment it’s around 5000 sceneca per month. I think the houses were around 30000 seneca.」

The rent was cheap, especially since they were expecting the rent to be around 20000 seneca a month. The cost for the inns included food and there was the need to book it beforehand. However, in this country, the cost for the food which the tenant didn’t eat will be given back to them. Also, the price for the inn includes housekeeping price. So, it’s hard to say that the nightly rate is over-priced. However, it is definitely more expensive to stay at an inn if it’s not booked beforehand.

「Okay, I get that the rent is probably the cheapest we’re going to get. But how were the other properties?」

「Others were way more expensive. The rent was around 300000 seneca a month so we didn’t even bother looking at them.」

「Welp, since we’re lookin’ for a business and industrial-use properties, tis expected that the rent would be high.」

「Do we really need an industry size building?」

「T’ first we didn’t think such space was necessary. But when we were lookin’ at houses n’ apartmen’ the rent was cheaper but livin’ n’ workin’ in that space would be difficult.」

When they first arrived at Farlane, the number of things they could make, and the materials and equipment which they were familiar with were very limited compared to now. So the small room which they have rented back then was more than enough space for them to work and live in. However, that was no longer the case. The amount of space which they used to work in back then was definitely not sufficient with their current crafting capabilities.

「Either way, ‘morrow I’m gonna renovate the house so brother n’ Makoto-san, feel free to taken on a request or somethin.」

「Got it, I guess it’s about time we start working on our ranks.」

「We need to be able to fight head-on when we’re going into the desert.」

Hiroshi nodded with a serious face at Makoto and Tatsuya’s comment. Although they have completed a couple of missions in Farlane, Hiroshi, Haruna and Mio still lacked experience. The three of them were still in class 8. Tatsuya and Makoto have completed their training on being a bodyguard and have successfully completed a mission, boosting them to class 6. However, that still wasn’t enough for them to enter the Torrid Desert.

Increasing their ranks wasn’t their top priority but it would definitely benefit them in the future.

With all of that taken into consideration, Makoto once again was reminded how much time they have wasted from running a food stall. People could transfer their ranks between Farlane and Darl’s Adventurer’s Association. However, this did not mean that the two were the same organisation. The achievements which they have made in Farlane won’t be completely useless. Yet, it didn’t mean a lot either.

「Anyways, where ta start renovatin’ that house?」

「I guess we don’t have enough information on this country do we?」

「True dat. Since we don’t have ‘nough information, we can’t just run ’round the town」

「It’s hard to gather information about the country when we don’t have anyone to rely on.」

Everyone thought about Mio’s comment for a moment. When they were in Farlane, they didn’t even have time to think about such a thing as they were always getting dragged into problems with the court. However, this time, they were focusing on gathering underground information on Darl. When they were in Farlane, the information they needed was passed onto them from the court. However, in Darl, they didn’t have any acquaintances so gathering information about the country was a challenge.

From now on, they would need to gather information through libraries, adventurer’s association and even through rumours. However, they didn’t know anyone with a combat skill high enough to get away from black ops after approaching them. Haruna might have been able to manage it but everyone was reluctant to ask her to do a dirty job.

They needed a way of gathering information before they started working on their ranks or getting their routine back. Nobody in the group objected to the unspoken plan. However, nobody could come up with a detailed approach.

「For now, let’s just gather some rumours that are going around this country.」

「I agree, I might try singing to get some information out later,」

「I’ll leave that to you.」

They talked as if they had a solid plan when all they had was a direction the plan should head in. As expected Hiroshi’s group had a very Japanese way of handling the problem; always starting off with the very basics.

「That aside, the dishes in this country are so spicy…」

「Maybe cuz we’re in Southern Nation?」

「Yeah, I get that. But….」

Now that they have decided on the direction which they are heading in, Tatsuya whispered his opinion on the dish so that people around him couldn’t hear. The lamb meat had more than enough spice marinated into it. This wasn’t unusual amongst the dishes in Darl. Unlike Farlane where people are more concerned about parasites, people in Darl are more concerned about food poisoning.

The food wasn’t spicy to the point where it didn’t have any flavour. However, for someone who was used to eating Hiroshi’s food which had just enough seasoning to it, the level of spice was shocking. Nothing could be said about the way people of Darl cooked due to their climate. However, since nobody knew how long they would be staying in this country, it would be better for them to get used to this flavour.

「Personally, I think the food would taste better with the booze if they cut down the spice a little more.」

「Once we move into the house, did you want me to try cooking with less spice?」

「That would be great!」

Tatsuya pleaded for Haruna’s suggestion. Afterwards, he continued to eat the over-spiced meat and vegetables as he did not want to waste the food which somebody has cooked for him. Swallowing down another lump of prawn and onion stew with a very obvious taste of vinegar. None of the dishes were bad. It’s just the taste was very unfamiliar to someone who was used to eating Japanese food.

「We should try makin’ small adjustments to da food.」

「Yeah~, you’re right」

Haruna agreed with Hiroshi. The two had nothing to complain about the food which the inn has provided them. Not because they were adapting to the new place, but because the flavouring wasn’t actually bad. But that didn’t mean that they didn’t understand where Tatsuya was coming from. So, they didn’t see the problem with adjusting the food so that it was closer to Japanese cuisine.

「Personally, I don’t mind the spice.」

「Do you like spicy food?」

「Well, I prefer dishes with just enough spice that you can taste the raw flavour. I guess I’ll get used to it eventually. But right now, all I can taste is the spice.」

As expected, Makoto too was a typical Japanese person. Overall, everyone agreed that the level of spice was too much for them at the moment.

「I’m surprised Mio can eat something this spicy.」

「This isn’t bad.」

Mio did not have any issue eating the spiced food like Hiroshi and Haruna as she was used to cooking and have a well developed taste buds. So, unlike Makoto and Tatsuya, she was able to detect the different flavours in the dish.

「Although they’re neighbourin’ countries, I’m surprised how different the dishes are between Farlane and Darl.」

「I know right.」

Although they didn’t have any problem with the food in this country, Haruna and Mio could not help it but agree with Hiroshi’s comment. Tatsuya and Makoto had no reason to object to the statement.

Hiroshi and others were now wondering if Japanese food will sell well in this country.