As always, the Whole Fish tatsuta-age is amazing, and everyone loves its taste, but...
「It’s boring to eat the same thing every time we celebrate breaking through a floor, don’t you think?」
「X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X?」
When Roxanne translates my casual remark, Miria looked at me with eyes filled with sorrow. Is... is she going to cry because of what I said just now? Because that wasn’t my intention in the slightest! I just wanted to start this topic to get them to tell me if there was enough Whole Fish Tatsuta-age in the dish or if I should’ve added some more of it!
「I-I didn’t mean it like that. It is certainly delicious but it won’t remain delicious if we eat it all the time, so I wanted to ask for any ideas you might have for improving it!」
「...Bread crumbs, desu.」
After pondering over the matter for a while, Miria speaks to me again. So she wants me to make fish fry again? Is that it? If I remember correctly, I made it back when Miria joined us. It was the very first fish-based dish that she ate with us, so maybe it has some special meaning for her?
「That, huh? Well certainly, that can be arranged. Then how about Whole Fish fish fry for the next celebration?」
「It will be good, I think.」
「Yes, I look forward to it as well.」
I obtain Roxanne’s and Sherry’s approval for making Whole Fish fish fry.
「Eat, desu!」
Miria’s eyes immediately brighten up. Now that she regained her usual liveliness, she bites into the tatsuta-age with renewed enthusiasm. She looks really happy, but even though we have agreed upon what to make for our next celebration of breaking through another floor, Miria still droops her shoulders after eating last piece of the Tatsuta-age. That amount is not enough to make up for the feeling of loss on her part, I guess.
On the next morning, after having breakfast, I headed to the Merchants Guild by myself while asking Roxanne to do the laundry and cleaning in the meantime.
I don’t want to go to Luke now, but unfortunately I have to. Then again... can’t I just say that I’m far away and can’t come back on time? No, this excuse is definitely not going to be valid for this world. That’s because Adventurers can always use 「Field Walker」to go wherever they need to in the blink of an eye.
It’s arguable whether it’s a convenient ability or not, but if I chose to go with that pathetic excuse of mine, then I would definitely get questioned about where is this place that I currently am.
「I get it. It’s not wise to go for Scissoresque Carnivorous Plant Skill Crystal at the moment. For now. I’ll just wait and see how the situation develops.」
I have yet to find a Damascus Steel Sword with Empty Skill Slots in it. I’ll have to test the effect with a Steel Sword first, it seems.
「Very well. Also, before I forget, there was a message for you. I believe it is a summons from the Knight Order of Hartz Duchy.」
...... Fuck. There’s a summon after all. I was hoping that we’ll be able to conclude our business here for now, but no, he just had to go and say the thing that I didn’t want to hear the most. Okay Michio, just calm down and act natural, and hopefully things are going to work themselves out before you’ll know it.
「... Now that you mention it, have you heard any rumors about a certain family?」
I nod slightly at Luke and try to change the topic f discussion as discreetly as possible. The most important thing here is for me to not have an unpleasant expression that would reveal my true emotions on my face. I had made up my mind beforehand, so now the only thing that I can do is to stick with it all the way until the end and hope that everything’s going to be alright.
「A certain family?」
It has yet to be confirmed that the family that went bankrupt was actually the Baradam family, so I don’t think that I need to mention their name, or at least not yet.
「They seem to be in financial crisis, so a lot of equipment with Skills have been sold onto the market recently.」
「Ahh yes, that. Why do you ask about that? Is there any particular piece of equipment that you’re looking for?」
「Not really, I was just trying to informing you about it to see if you knew anything more about it or not. Besides, I have already purchased some of their equipment.」
「I see. Thank you for your concern, and be careful when making such purchases, since you may never know what you’re ultimately going to get.」
After Luke sees me off, I leave the Merchants Guild.
And on the next morning, when we returned from the Labyrinth after the morning bit of exploration, it was already time.
I always visit the Harz Duchy at this hour, so there’s no choice for me but to go.
「I’ll head to the Bode castle now. I ask of you three to prepare breakfast.」