She is definitely going to need a few of the more advanced pieces of equipment in order to make up for the fact that she is just going to be starting her adventuring together with us, so first things first we are going to go to the Armor Shop to get her some protective equipment. Miria, if there is anything else that you think you might need, be sure to tell us and we are going to get it for you.
Understood, master!
With that said, I warped to Quratars Adventurers Guild. Miria is still surprised, so I leave her in Roxannes care. I did not use any incantation when I was warping us all here and from Imperial Citys Slave Shop back home, but Miria was not making any kind of fuss about it outside, most likely because she was already doing that I instructed her to: keeping that thing, and many more others besides it, a secret. We head to the Armor Shop in the center of the town. On the way there, Miria stares fixedly at a fishmongers store. She really does have a one-track mind, huh? Well I guess she just cannot help herself since she was unable to eat her beloved fish for God knows how long.
Even though I said that the shop was a fishmonger, not many fish can be seen there. There seem to be only three or four kinds, including carp and salmon. They are all fresh-water fish, so they must be from somewhere nearby, and since Quratar is far away from sea, there are no sea-water fish here.
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When we were passing directly by the fishmonger, the wind carried Mirias quiet murmurs to my ears.
I thought that once she sees and smells the fish then I would not be able to make her budge from there for even a centimeter, but thankfully she did not stop walking and followed me quite obediently.
Roxanne, can you ask her what was she saying just now?
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Snakehead, Rock Sole, Baiji. I believe these are the names of the fish that were being displayed at the fishmonger.
Yes. Until now, Roxanne and I used to take front-back or left-right position in order to guard you. But we have one more person with us now, and because of that our usual formation is going to have to be changed in order to be more effective.
Ahhh, so this why they never used to rush out towards the enemies in the Labyrinth even when they had perfect occasions to do so and always stuck close to their positions without straying too far away from them? Because that was the formation that the two of them have agreed upon? I never even noticed it before. To me, it always looked like they were occupying the positions that they were occupying simply because that was how they were standing at any given moment, but apparently there was much more to it than meets the eye, but I, being the blockheaded idiot that I am failed to realize something so important. Way to go, me!
Really? I am so pathetic then, because I have never noticed that about the two of you. I am sorry for being so ignorant, and thank you for your continued hard work, Sherry, Roxanne. Honestly, what would I have ever done without the two of you around to support me?
Thank you very much, master, but that is not something that you have to thank us for. You are our precious master, and keeping you safe from harm at all times was, is and always will be our duty.
Of course, I should have known as much. I am their master and they are my slaves, so of course they are going to be guarding me with their lives on the line unless I explicitly am going to tell them not to do that. And since I was being pretty laid back with giving them instructions related to battle or how they are supposed to be behaving themselves while we are in the Labyrinths, then Roxanne must have come up with her own set of rules and instructions and implemented them to ensure that our sailing through the dangerous, monster infested corridors was going to go as smoothly as possible.
This just proves to me once more exactly how much of an incompetent master I am. Coming up with such things as formations and strategies should be something that I, the master should be taking care of, and what was I doing instead? Always taking the easy way out, allowing my slaves, my Party Members, my companions to do pretty much everything else for me. This is my biggest fault up to date, and I am going to have to work extra hard to ensure that this fault of mine is going to be corrected as soon as possible. The sooner I start taking charge of our actions for real, the better, both for my Party as a whole and for my own reputation in the eyes of Roxanne, Sherry and Miria.
When we finally arrived at the Armor Shop, the first order of business was to go and find a shield for Miria and Roxanne. When it comes to her, up until now she was using a small Wooden Shield because she did not want to have anything bigger and heavier that could affect her movement in a negative way, but now that we are heading to the higher floors in the Labyrinths we cannot compromise on it anymore, and so I ended up choosing an Iron Shield for her. It should be a tier above the Wooden Shield, which means that it is going to provide her with better protection while still being small enough not to hinder her movements too much. Also, the one that I ended up choosing comes with two Empty Skill Slots in it. When Roxanne tried holding it in her hand, she nodded at me approvingly.
You were right, master! It is still small and thin, and only slightly heavier than my old shield, but defense-wise it is definitely going to be a big improvement.
Glad to hear it. So Miria, tell me, what do you want for yourself? A reinforced Leather Jacket or a Chainmail?
After choosing Iron Shield for Roxanne, I ask Miria what kind of protective armor for her torso does she want.
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