What a Quirk
“Well, well…”
“My, it’s delicious.”
“How smooth it goes down.”
“Drinking with ice from a Fenrir… incredible.”
“This is my first time tasting oume liquor, and it’s good.”
“Yeah, fragrant and easy to drink.”
From the top: Belle’s father, Belle’s mother, Lady Isabella, Hans, Eric, and Gene. They were drinking five-year plum wine, aged with the Storage function, poured over ice that Pearl had provided.
“Joan, the oume juice is tasty too!”
“It really is.”
Belle and Joan were drinking it diluted with water like a syrupy juice.
Now that they knew oume could be made into syrup or alcohol, Belle’s father said he would seriously consider a local-production revitalization plan for the territory. He wanted advice later after drawing up a list of local products. When Joan said she’d help if they didn’t mind her, he beamed and headed for his office.
＊＊＊＊＊
“Sorry to keep you waiting. Now, let me guide you to the dissection site.”
So said Don, Guildmaster of the Burst Adventurers’ Guild, as he walked ahead. His build was slim—hard to believe he had once been an adventurer—his dull silver hair and silver-rimmed glasses giving him more the look of a civil servant. Still, anyone in the Guildmaster’s seat surely had more than a quirk or two.
After receiving the Giant Snake at the dissection grounds, somehow they ended up having tea in the Guildmaster’s office.
“Thank you. I’m sorry for troubling you to guide us yourself, and then even serving tea…”
“No, no, I happened to be free, so don’t worry. Besides, things have been smelling a bit fishy lately.”
“‘Fishy?’”
“Yes, it isn’t confirmed yet, so I haven’t reported it to the lord… but I’d like to keep this between us.”
“You realize you just said that in front of Belle.”
“Ah-hahaha, true enough. I forgot Young Lady Belle is both a proper adventurer and the lord’s daughter. My mistake, hahaha.”
“You may treat me as just an adventurer. What happened?”
According to Don, lately in Burst territory some men claiming to be adventurers from the Royal Capital Guild had been causing trouble—dining and dashing, extorting rookie adventurers, harassing female adventurers. The dining and dashing excuse was always “there was hair or bugs in the food,” so restaurants couldn’t press them. The extortion and harassment were done out in the wild where there were no witnesses. A story Joan had definitely heard before…
“I see… And the fact you’re telling us this means you have an angle, don’t you, Don?”
“Oh? And why do you think so? Maybe I just let it slip.”
“My guess is… Guildmaster Morgan talked about me, didn’t he? How in the Lampail territory there was a similar problem, and it was solved when I myself acted as bait and the Lampail family caught the culprits. Knowing Morgan, he bragged about it. So you told me, hoping I’d act. If I solve it, lucky for Burst. If not, no loss. Maybe you’ll even get some evidence out of it.”
“… Ah-hahaha, as expected of Young Lady Joan. To see right through it.”
“Guildmaster, that’s rude to Joan!!”
“It’s fine, Belle. But thank you.”
As expected… what a quirk.
But you think I’ll just play along that easily?
Do you take me for a fool because I’m a noble lady working as an adventurer?
“So? What’s in it for me if I handle this? I might’ve done it in the Lampail Guild, but here I’m not lifting a finger for free.”
“Then, if there were compensation, you would?”
“Joan!?”
“That depends on the terms.”
“And what would those terms be?”
“Hmm, let’s see. First, I want this officially posted as a request. Plus hazard pay and scolding pay, total four large platinum coins. Then three small platinum coins for each culprit caught.”
““Four large platinum!?””
This world used eight coins: copper, silver, gold, and platinum, each in small and large sizes.
Small Copper - 1
Large Copper - 10
Small Silver - 100
Large Silver - 500
Small Gold - 1,000
Large Gold - 5,000
Small Platinum - 10,000
Large Platinum - 50,000
The unit was gord (G), with the same value as Japanese yen.
1G = 1 yen.
A commoner’s daily living cost was around 5,000G, mostly using copper and silver. For reference, snacks at the Jo Company’s Lampail Dock were 120G, drinks 100G—quite reasonable.
Given that, Joan’s demanded reward was:
Four large platinum = 200,000G = 200,000 yen.
Three small platinum per culprit = 30,000G = 30,000 yen.
“T-that’s a bit…”
“Then let’s just say this conversation never—”
“W-wait, Young Lady Joan. Hazard pay I understand, but… what’s scolding pay?”
“If I get involved, my parents will definitely scold me. Why should I have to suffer that for free?”
““Ahh, I see…””
“And by the way, Morgan running his mouth about me makes him equally or more guilty. Don’t forget—I am the daughter of a Margrave.”
“!! M-my apologies.”
Don immediately got off the sofa and bowed to the floor.
“Sorry, Joan.”
“It’s not your fault, Belle. But as things stand… right?”
“Yeah… Guildmaster, I’ll have to report this to Father after all. Understood?”
“… Yes. I’ll call on him later myself. Young Lady Belle, Young Lady Joan, forgive me.”
See? Underestimating me only ends up tightening your own noose.
And I really ought to shut Morgan’s mouth too…
What do you think about this chapter?
