Atelier Tanaka Chapter 4

Adventurer's Guild pt.3

I got a room at an inn for the night.

In the morning, as soon as I'd had breakfast, I headed towards the Adventurer's Guild again.

The same bald macho guy was at the counter. I wondered if I happened to come in on the days he worked, or if he just worked a lot.

"Hello."

"Ah, you again."

(Apparently he remembers me. Well, Asians are probably conspicuous here. I've seen elves and a dwarf and even beast people, and yet all of them are Western-looking.)

"I'd like the same medicinal herb gathering quest as yesterday."

"OK, bring them back here when you're done."

"Also, I'd like to check how those herbs look."

"Eh? You seriously don't know?"

"No, I just want to make sure I'm getting the right kind."

"Really, you're a lot of trouble."

While mumbling complaints, he took a leather folder from a shelf behind the counter, and took some pages out of it.

"You can collect any of these three, and we'll buy them."

"I see."

The sheets he put on the counter had some pictures of grass and flowers. The drawings were quite good. I tried to memorize the plants on them.

"Thank you very much."

"I'll put this away away then."

"Sorry about the trouble."

After that straightforward and short conversation, I left the guild building and headed towards the forest again. I decided to stay along the road or stream so I wouldn't get lost.

I reached the stream and walked along it until I entered the forest. A little while after that, I saw a figure that I remembered from the other day.

"Oh, are you the goblin from yesterday?"

"Human..."

It was the friendly goblin again!

It stood by the stream, staring at me. Looking at it more closely, there was a smaller goblin clinging to its arm. The smaller goblin was breathing roughly and had an arrow in its arm. It looked like it had been hit some time ago. The area around the arrow was very swollen.

"What happened?"

"Sizter...dying..."

"Yes, I see, your sister."

"...human, thiz, heal."

"Yes, OK. Leave it to me."

I used my recovery magic on the goblin's sister. The arrow got expelled from her arm, and not long after, the skin healed. The swelling went away, and the skin around the wound went from reddish to green.

Altogether, that took a few seconds.

(That's fast! There's no way this kind of skill isn't valuable.)

"Oh..."

The goblin was staring at me in wonder.

(It was something I received, though. I wonder what that god I met is doing now.)

"Brother, hurt...gone. Gone!"

They spent a little while just hugging each other.

(Good for them.)

I was actually a little touched, but I couldn't entirely understand their joy, never having had to face life-or-death hardships.

"....human, saved us. Thank you."

"Ah, don't worry about it."

"Thank you."

The goblin's younger sister stared at me while holding onto his arm.

(Well, that's normal for a goblin.)

(I wouldn't even have known she was female. I guess that's how species differences are.)

"I have work to do, so I'll be going now."

I still had to find some medicinal herbs.

The goblin stopped me. "Today, also, herbs?"

"Oh? Yes, that's right."

(Those who don't work can't eat, after all.)

In Japan, even if you did no actual work for a day or two, the company would still pay you. You could just look at some random websites, say you were studying the industry or developing your skills, and everything would be fine.

But now, only having a sack and the clothes I was wearing to my name, I couldn't stop worrying.

(If I didn't have my recovery magic, I'd probably be going crazy right about now.)

"Then, wait. I'll go get."

"Eh, really?"

"Going out. But, wait. Stay here."

"OK, I'll stay here."

(It would be really helpful if he gathered those for me again.)

(I'll just wait a little while, then.)

Around when I was about to give up on waiting, the goblin returned. He was carrying a large leather bag with both hands. His sister was with him, carrying another leather bag.

"Oh, those are some large bags you have."

"These, have herbs."

They left the bags at my feet with a plop. Looking inside one, it was full of various grasses.

(How much did they collect?!)

"You're giving me all of this?"

"More. Little more, wait."

"No, no, this is enough. This is plenty."

(I'm not even sure if I can carry all of this back.)

"...enoff?"

"Definitely. I don't need more than this. "

"I shee..."

He actually looked kind of disappointed.

(This goblin is such a nice guy!)

"Goblin, can't go to town. Here iz OK?"

"Yes, this is fine. Thank you very much."

"This iz thanks for healing sister."

"Yes, right. I understand. This is fine."

"Thank you. Yoo saved her."

"Ah, by the way, I have a sort of warning, or situation report..."

"...report?"

"In the town along the stream, humans pay money for hunting goblins here. So, being in this forest is dangerous. If you can, it would be good to leave."

"...yoo alzo, going to kill uz?"

"No, no, no. You saved me life before. I wouldn't do something like that."

"I shee."

"If you want to keep your sister safe, you should move somewhere else."

"...I undershtand."

"But I won't say it's impossible to stay here."

"Mmm, yez."

(This goblin is actually kind of cute.)

"Brozher?"

The goblin's little sister was looking at the faces of me and her brother with concern.

(Well, they would be cute if they weren't so ugly.)

(The sound of the sister's voice isn't bad, though.)

"Undershtand, then, this foresht, leaving."

"I think that's a good idea."

"...good baaye."

"Yeah, goodbye. Maybe we'll meet again someday."

"Yez. Meet again, someday."

The two goblin siblings then left, heading deeper into the forest, leaving me with a large amount of medicinal herbs.

I headed back, carrying the two large leather bags. Because of that, returning to the town took twice as long. Being full of grass they weren't too heavy, but the bulk was awkward.

From the town's entrance, I headed straight to the Adventurer's Guild.

I pushed through the wooden doors. I still wasn't used to not hearing "irasshaimase" when I entered places.

"Excuse me, I'd like to turn in these."

I put the two bags on the counter with a "dosan" noise, and the same macho bald guy came out to the counter.

"...what is this?"

"These should be medicinal herbs..."

I opened one of the bags and started sorting the grasses into piles. There really were a lot of different kinds. Honestly, I didn't know what was what.

"You got a lot, huh..."

"There was a lot where I went."

He looked amazed. I was amazed when I got them, myself.

"Well, that's fine, you can sit down over there while I sort this out."

"OK."

I sat down where he'd pointed.

The time was a little after noon. The guild building was something of a gathering point for adventurers, so there were several around. I'd seen some in their teens, but most of the adventurers seemed to be 20 to 30 years old.

"......"

I could feel someone staring at me.

(I seem to have attracted a little attention. Probably because I'm Asian. If a white guy went shopping in my hometown, they'd get stared at too.)

(But not in a bad way.)

"........."

I was starting to feel very uncomfortable.

(If I somehow get back to Japan, I swear not to stare at westerners.)

(And I'm bored.)

Looking for something to do, I noticed the bulletin board. The notes were written on parchment in characters that I couldn't read, and held up by pins.

(I wonder what's written on them.)

As I was wondering that, I realized something.

(That's what skills are for. Skills! I think I still have one point remaining.)

"Letters, letters, letters. Reading, writing, literacy skill. Letters, letters, whatever it is, I want to be able to read and write here! Come on!"

I mumbled to myself like a Buddhist monk reciting a prayer.

And then, I felt a "bikun" in my heart, and a ringing in my brain.

(...there it is!)

magic recovery: Lv.Max

language skill: Lv.1

active:

fire magic: Lv.1

remaining skill points: 0

[Party Member Recruitment]

rank: B or higher

organization: Black-Winged Dragon (party)

[Guild Member Recruitment]

rank: C or higher

organization: Daybreak Company (guild)

[Party Member Recruitment]

rank: B or higher

organization: Endless Spear (party)

[Party Member Recruitment]

rank: E or higher

organization: White Rain

[Looking for Party]

rank: C

[Looking for Party]

rank: B

[Party Member Recruitment]

rank: C or higher

organization: Metal Goblin (platinum)

[Looking for Party]

rank: F

◇◆◇

After eating, I headed back to my inn and slept.

Chapter end

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