Request and Consultation
“Ahhh, I’m exhausted~”
“If you’re already that tired, Tony, won’t it be impossible to take on requests after classes next year, even if you register as an adventurer?”
“No way! I’ll totally have more stamina by next year!”
Tony flopped down on the ground, arms and legs spread wide, the moment the bell rang—probably because, unlike me and the sheep trio, the rest of the class had kept up a solid workout until the end.
Oh, right, I was planning to go gather materials after this. Maybe I can manage it if I take a nap first. The wobbly fawn syndrome has mostly passed, at least…
“Vio~, are you feeling better now?”
“Ah, is Mr. Alke already here? I’ll go call him for you!”
While I was sluggishly getting ready to leave, Hachi and Nachi came over. Despite all that running, Hachi didn’t look tired at all. Maybe because he saw how pathetic I was on the stairs yesterday, Nachi dashed out of the room the moment he said that. I'm really grateful he's going to get my dad.
Before long, Dad arrived at the entrance to the training field to pick me up.
"Oh, today was one of them PE days, wasn't it? You look plumb tuckered out. How's about we skip gatherin' today and give them ol' bones a rest, huh?"
“What!? No way! I’ll do it. I’ll be fine if I take a short nap first!”
Dad offered, likely after Nachi told him about today’s class, but I want to build my stamina, and more importantly, I want to save money to get him a present—so I want to keep working hard.
“Ah, Mr. Alke, I actually have a little something I’d like to discuss with you about the gathering stuff. Would you mind if I explained later with my dad present? Right, Lun?”
“Ah! Yeah, that’s right. I want to talk to you too, and if possible, I’d like Vio to listen in as well.”
Just as I was thinking about my dad’s present, Nachi and Lun brought up something they wanted to talk about. My dad thought it over a bit, but agreed to hear them out later. Maybe because they said they wanted me to listen too. I wonder what it’s about.
Len and Hachi had already left, saying they were hungry, but with the two older brothers, we returned to the first floor, where Mr. Taki was waiting for us at the table seats on the right side of the reception area.
“I wonder what the consultation is about. I hope I can follow along.”
"Oh, is that so? Ain't that a consultation about you, Vio?"
Dad was carrying me, so even though we weren’t exactly whispering, it was easy to speak quietly.
“Ah, sorry for dragging you into this, Mr. Alke. Actually, yesterday, your daughter gave a really great suggestion to my son and Len, and I wanted to talk about that.”
What Mr. Taki was referring to was the offhand suggestion I made yesterday to Len and the others about how to become a skilled herbalist.
It was about how they could learn to identify the herbs growing in the village, and practice collecting them like an extension of playing in the dirt with the little ones—picking out what was and wasn’t medicinal.
“Lun and I are already registered adventurers, so we’re earning points by doing requests all over the village. Up to Bronze rank, there aren’t any monster-hunting requests outside the village, so we’re taking requests every day after class.”
“Our younger brothers haven’t had their Blessing Ceremony yet, so they can’t take requests, but like we heard yesterday, they can still get used to gathering herbs. Even if they don’t get points, they can still earn rewards.”
“Yeah, the plants that can be collected in the village are mostly basic materials that grow all over the Lizmoni Kingdom. It’s educational, they can make a bit of pocket money, and more importantly, they won’t just wear themselves out chasing after their younger brothers all the time.”
Ah, so that game of tag had a purpose after all. And if you’re not registered with the guild, you won’t earn points, but if you deliver the materials, you still get paid—then it really is worth the effort.
"Well, I reckon it ain't a bad thing for the young'uns to put in some hard work gatherin' herbs before they register. But I'm not quite sure why they need to consult me about it."
Dad, who had been listening and nodding along until now, asked Mr. Taki. Come to think of it, he did say he had something to consult about.
“Ah, well, that’s the thing—we were wondering if Vio could let our little brothers join her on her herb-gathering outings.”
Prompted by Mr. Taki to explain himself, Nachi spoke up. The wooded area in the village isn’t technically anyone’s yard, but since it surrounds Dad’s house and he maintains it using his wood magic, everyone just calls it Dad’s forest. He regularly thins out the trees, so the soil is in good condition, and more herb-type materials grow there than in other places. It’s a great spot for kids to earn some pocket money. I glanced to the side and saw Dad crossing his arms, looking conflicted.
"Hmm... Vio's still learnin' the ropes and gettin' used to gatherin'.
It's a safe enough area with no monsters, but gettin' too close to that river can be mighty dangerous. The more kids there are, the harder it is to keep an eye on all of 'em. I can't promise to watch over 'em every day. And if somethin' were to happen, I want you to understand that I'll be prioritizin' Vio first."
Was that… a refusal? I mean, I don’t go near the river alone! Okay, maybe I’m not the most convincing person to say that, given I literally “came out” of the river—but that was out of my control!
“Dad, I won’t go near the river or do anything dangerous, so please don’t worry. Hachi and Len will be fine too, as long as we explain everything properly to them first.”
“U-um, Mr. Alke, we weren’t planning on going every single day. After hearing about Vio’s herb gathering yesterday, we realized that collecting gives more points all at once.
So Nachi and I decided we’ll take turns going with our little brothers, one day each. We just want them to learn some gathering tips on the first day. After that, we’d only ask for your help occasionally.”
“Those two really admire Vio, you know—they even call her ‘teacher.’ They’ll listen to her without question, it’s kind of amazing.”
“Haha, it’s true. Our Hachi actually got up on his own this morning, which shocked me. He said, ‘I’m gonna learn math from Vio~!’ It was the first time he ever wanted to go to the school on his own. Vio, you’re an amazing teacher. Really, thank you.”
Ah, yeah, Len also said he helped out at home. I still don’t understand why those two got so attached to me, but they really do take everything I teach them to heart. Dad listened to the three of them and ended up laughing.
"Well, if that's the way it is, I reckon it's fine. You'll need to get things ready today anyway, so it'll start tomorrow. Your youngest brother's joinin' too, right? If he's still mighty little, a knife might be too dangerous for him."
“In that case, I’ll prepare scissors with rounded tips. Hachi could probably handle knife practice, but if his older brothers get to use them and he doesn’t, he’ll just sulk. Once the scissors are ready, would it be alright to ask Teacher Vio to guide them in gathering?”
Teacher Vio, huh… Well, with rounded scissors, there’s less worry about stabbing injuries. Of course, there’s still the risk of cutting their hands, but that’s part of learning to handle tools—and we have healing potions, so it should be fine.
Nachi and Lun seemed satisfied and said they were happy to teach their little brothers once the scissors were ready. Ah, that explains why they both left so quickly earlier. There’s no way those two would hear about something this fun and not join in.
Apparently, Mr. Taki will pass the word along to Mrs. Lilium, so until the scissors are ready, Dad and I don’t have much to do and will just stay on standby for now. Heh, heh… I’m really looking forward to gathering herbs with the little ones.
What do you think about this chapter?
