Chapter 48

Chapter 48

Companions (2)

After a brief spell of silence

The dwarf, who was looking hesitant about what to say, finally spoke after a period of contemplation.

"Is that so?"

His reaction was in equal terms bewildering and surprising.

"Whatre you so surprised about? You must have at least one of these, too, right?"

"No, just was your personality always like this?"

Well, I had no idea what misconception hed had about me.

But this would have to be enough. I wasnt going to suffer any more embarrassment.

As long as I gave him a little time, even with just this little bit of information Id craftily leaked out, he should be able to make an estimate of my overall equipment level.

With this, no matter how short my careers been, I don't think hell try and mess around.'

Of course, the recruitment notice had clearly stated equal distribution'.

But I still remembered very clearly

The expression on his face when hed lamented that he only got rift stone and had to give up all the rest of the loot in the Bloody Citadel.

After all, no matter how nice somebody might be on the outside, adventurers are adventurers in the end.'

If you started off by giving an inch, theyd take a mile and still keep coming, forever.

Therefore, I plopped down on the seat opposite him, without even asking if I could sit.

And didnt hesitate to ask

"Not going to buy me a drink, Hikurod? You got that numbered item thanks to me, after all."

A statement that harkened back to my abilities and reminded him of his debt at the same time.

"Eh? Ha ha ha ha! Is that so?"

Although the dwarf laughed out loud, he didn't deny it.

Because Id indeed been the biggest contributor in the Blood Citadel'.

"Well, thats not wrong! It's a bit late, but I'll buy you a round in thanks. Let's talk while drinking!"

"Good."

It seemed that the food would take a while, so we grabbed the alcohol that got served first.

And our conversation started in earnest as we drank.

The dwarf started with a string of rapid-fire questions.

"I was really surprised when I found out you were the one who applied, you know? What the hell happened? Did you find there some sort of treasure hidden in the rift? Surely that wizard girl mustve looked around, too, but she never found it?"

It wasnt surprising that he had so many questions.

After all, Id changed too much.

Although, we werent familiar enough that I had to give him an honest answer.

"Yeah, thats pretty much it."

"What do you mean? Please tell me more!"

"Like you said, there was a treasure there. That's it. Don't ask any more."

As I drew my line in the sand, the dwarf smacked his lips.

He understood that getting any more information would be difficult even if he pressed.

"I don't know what kind of treasure you got, but you got lucky too, huh."

Me, lucky?

This guy had been the one to benefit the most from the Blood Citadel'.

While I got hurt to the very edge of death

Wasnt he the only one going in solo, who got out with a numbered item?

I wonder what exactly dropped Ill ask about it later.'

The meal Id ordered soon came out, so the conversation went on while I was filling my stomach.

Starting with the obvious

"So, have you got a full team?"

"I dont really like any of the applicants, so youre the first one Im meeting face-to-face."

"I see."

Nodding, I went straight to the point like a barbarian should.

The real purpose behind the meeting

"So? What do you think?"

Would Hikurod Murad accept me as a team member?

"Um, thats actually, I invited you just to check if it was really you. More than getting a teammate, I just wanted to talk to you. Um, although I wrote in the notice that we were going to explore the 3rd floor, I was considering going up to the 4th if the team seemed solid enough"

He was just needlessly chattering on.

It wouldve been enough to say he never intended to accept me in his team.

"So, have you changed your mind now?"

At my piercing stare, the dwarf answered, stroking his well-kept beard.

"Heh heh, you could say that. After all, nobody would call you a rookie anymore if they just got one look at you. Really, if it werent for the fact that gathering the rest of the team would be problematic if they saw a rookie had joined, I wouldn't even have worried about it!"

Instead making such cheap excuses, I wished he hadn't said anything in the first place.

But the fact that the dwarves lacked the artifice to take such a tack was also a part of their charm.

"Then, is this it?"

"Hahaha! Lets seal the deal."

I picked up my drink, and the dwarf followed suit.

"Heres to the future!"

A team, was formed.

Although it had two people in it

But I could just pretend in the future to have an intense discussion before I made the choices according to my own thoughts.

***

"Hikurod, didnt you say earlier that a lot of people had applied?"

"Yeah?"

"Who were they?"

"Hm? Who cares? They were just 8th ranked kids with less than a year in the trade."

Oh? Didnt that apply to me too?

After a moment of serious thought, the dwarf suddenly spoke up as if hed remembered something.

"Ah! Come to think of it, I never asked! How did you get promoted so quickly? Itd be difficult to get rank 7 with just one corpse golem essence, right?"

"One corpse golem essence?"

My muttering trailed off.

Right, hed passed out, hadnt he? So he still didn't know, that Id eaten the vampires essence.

Should I tell him the story?

While I was locked in an internal struggle

"Oho! Thats right!"

Theres a huge gap between the team leader being seventh ranked and being sixth ranked, which cant be bridged by mere words.

"Hikurod, go to the guild today and raise your adventurer rank, first."

" Whats this all of a sudden?"

"Dont you have 50 million stones worth of equipment? If you apply for review, the guild will definitely take it seriously!"

"But, its too sudden "

"So you dont want to?"

"No, its not that"

"Then go, now!"

I even followed him to the guild and watched him submit the application, in case he got sidetracked.

For reference, the evaluation results took six days, a little later than expected, but fortunately the promotion request was successful.

And then the quality of our applicants rose dramatically.

More than ten came in every day.

And while the dwarf and I were busy carefully vetting the applications, very happily

"Oh, a wizard?"

Suddenly, a wizard's application arrived.

Of course, he wasn't somebody from the Magic Tower, and was only 8th rank, working in a guild or a public institution somewhere

Still, a wizard was a wizard.

"Hey, Bjorn, isnt something wrong? How can a wizard be attracted to a team like ours?"

"Yeah, its really weird. He couldve picked a much better team than ours."

"Well, what should we do?"

There were some questionable parts, but we still decided to meet him, and informed the guild.

And, this morning

Finally, a place and time were set for the appointment.

"He wont ask for half the share, right? They say all wizards are snotty"

I didn't know what made Hikurod so nervous.

He hadnt given a single inch against Raven, who belonged to the tower, while haggling for his share.

"Whatre you so worried about? If he makes a request like that, you just say its unfortunate and leave."

"That, ah, right?"

Was it because it was the first wizard he was meeting as a team leader?

While I was teasing the dwarf who was so nervous that his chubby legs kept occasionally knocking together, a man in a robe entered the tavern.

He looked at us and waved his hand.

"Yo, barbarian! Dwarf!"

Fuck, was this another landmine?

How could somebody sound so offensive with just a short greeting?

I was already expecting a catastrophe, but just in case, I decided to wait a little longer.

"Hahaha! Nice to meet you! Are you the wizard were here to meet today?"

"Whatre the odds of you coming across a second wizard at the same time and place, dya think?"

At the young wizard's question, the dwarf looked at me in bewilderment.

Haah, really, why was he like this?

" He means, youre right."

"Oh, is that so! Hahaha! Anyway, nice to meet you! My name is Hikurod Murad!"

"Thats one weird name. I am Reol Webb Dwalky, an 8th rank wizard officially acknowledged by the royal family of Rafdonia."

" R-, royal family of Rafdonia?"

Again, what was this guy so surprised about?

"It means he isnt from a guild, he does administrative work in a public institution."

"Ah, is that so?"

The young wizards roundabout way of speech was also contributing, sure, but it was the dwarf, dazzled at every turn, who was really driving me up the wall.

"Haha! Even though you're a barbarian, you're very knowledgeable. What's your name?"

"Im Bjorn, son of Yandel. Please sit down."

Id just been planning to watch for a while, but it was so frustrating that I decided to take the lead in the conversation.

Because thatd save all our time.

"Dwalky, Ive pored over your application. But I still have a few questions that Id like to ask. Is that alright?"

"Of course."

"Do you have a labyrinth pass?"

"Would I have come here if I hadnt?"

Well, assuming that was true

"One more thing. Why do you want to be an adventurer, when you can make enough money in the city?"

It was rare for eighth ranked wizards to go on labyrinth expeditions.

For a simple reason.

They didn't have the skills to explore the middle or higher areas. But there was hardly any money to make on the lower floors.

Working in a public institution would net them much better income.

Considering the difficulty of obtaining a pass, and the risks involved, it wasnt worth the cost.

"Hmm, thats an unexpected question."

Dwalky, whod tilted his head for a moment, continued.

"Its simple. I want to become a great adventurer, to honour my liege, Baron Martoine."

His face was shing with pride as he declared his aspiration.

The dwarf, whod had been sitting by the side listening quietly, apparently felt a chill down his spine.

"B-, baron? You, a-are a noble? No, why would a noble?"

Nobles.

The most powerful group inside Rafdonia. The masses usually lived out their lives without ever meeting a single one.

As if he felt quite content with the dwarf's reaction, Dwalky burst out laughing and proudly declared.

"Fufufu, Aunt Enka, my mothers sister, happens to be the wife of Baron Martiones third younger brother."

"!!!"

The dwarf was hyperventilating as if he was about to faint, and Dwalky patted his shoulder as if he understood.

There was a kind smile on his lips.

Seeing that smile, I thought

"Dont be too nervous. I wont abuse my status to mistreat others."

This punk, did he really have a few screws loose?

Editor's Notes:

[1] (lit. wrist guard). This literally translates to bracers which are used by archers. As this is supposed to be a melee warriors equipment, perhaps the author means vambraces instead.

There's been a pretty big problem with the translation till now. Rank and level were being used interchangeably, which is obviously incorrect in hindsight level is a more game-specific term and starts from one at the bottom, going higher. Rank/rating/grade is a term more specific to the reality, with rank nine being the bottom and going lower as you get stronger. Mostly all previous chapters have now been corrected, but if you notice an error, please leave a comment on the relevant chapter!