Episode 235-1 – Eagle Talon
TL Note: So the author messed up and released duplicate chapter numbers on accident. He released Chapter 235, then 236, then 235 again, then 236 again, before going to Chapter 237. It was difficult for me to figure out how to solve this problem without messing up the page numbers in NovelUpdates and Foxaholic, but I decided to just release all 4 of those chapters together. Therefore, Chapter 235 will consist of 235-1 and 236-1, and Chapter 236 will consist of 235-2 and 236-2. I’ll be releasing all of those chapters at once today as a Christmas edition release, so it’ll be essentially a 4-chapter release. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!
After we enjoyed the wonderful vegetarian cuisine, we drank our smoothies while discussing which shop we wanted to visit next. We ended up letting Aruna go first with deciding on which shop she wanted to go to.
Then, we thanked the waiter and left the vegetarian restaurant. Aruna began to lead the way to the next shop.
“Is the shop close to here?” (Lewin)
“Yeah, it’s right around the corner.” (Aruna)
Believing in Aruna’s words, we certainly ended up stopping in front of a store not far from the vegetarian restaurant. It was Aruna we were talking about here, so the shop ended up being more or less what I expected it to be… a weapons shop.
Written on the sign above the shop we had stopped in front of were the words “Eagle Talon”, and next to it were the words “weapon shop”. By the looks of it, they didn’t sell the weapons they made themselves here like at Dantetsu’s shop, Iron Will. Rather, this shop seemed to order weapons and then sell them.
“Is it here?” (Lewin)
“Yup. I always come here.” (Aruna)
“E-Eagle’s Talon…? I’ve never h-heard of it before.” (Rosalie)
Rosalie’s excitement from visiting the vegetarian restaurant seemed to have worn off, as she started to stutter again. Anyways, I wasn’t expecting much if even Rosalie didn’t seem to know about it.
Besides, now that I thought about it, it hadn’t been that long since Aruna came to Landaust. She didn’t give off the image of someone who really went out often, so I was guessing that she probably had around the same level of knowledge about this town as me.
Lowering the bar in my mind, I entered the shop, but as soon as I went in I was immediately surprised. Right in front of the entrance was a display case with a longsword that had a jet black blade, glittering with a black luster. I didn’t know much about swords, but just from first glance, I could tell this longsword was incredibly sharp.
“What is this longsword…” (Lewin)
“This shop’s best weapon, apparently. I’m not interested in it.” (Aruna)
“I don’t know how to put it into words, but… I can tell this sword is really amazing!!” (Rosalie)
Rosalie’s excitement seemed to have been reignited by the appearance of this jet black longsword, as her words began to flow once more in a fervent outpour. Looks like it’s not just me; Rosalie also feels that this is an incredible longsword.
I had seen top class adventurers over the projections several times, but even among them, there weren’t any people using weapons of this caliber. Our attention completely drawn in by the longsword, Rosalie and I practically had our faces stuck to the glass as we started to ogle the sword.
“I wonder what material it’s made of. Some kind of unknown crystal or metal, maybe?” (Lewin)
“There’s a chance it could be made from dragon materials or some other strong monster! It’s exciting because you don’t know what material it’s made from!” (Rosalie)
“Fwaahahaha. This longsword is made from a metal called Black Adamantite, you know.”
When I looked over to see who the owner of the voice that had suddenly butted into our conversation was, I saw a well-built old man wearing a green apron coming in our direction. The shopkeeper of this store, probably. Also, he’s so tall.
“I’m here for arrows.” (Aruna)
“Ah? It’s Aruna, huh? I was talking to these customers so wait over there for a second.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“These two people are my companions.” (Aruna)
“….Companions? You really formed a party?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Yeah. Anyways, hurry up.” (Aruna)
Aruna pressed the old man that seemed like he was going to talk to us, so he went towards the back where a bow and arrow were placed. I wanted to look at the longsword for a bit longer… but I followed after the other two anyway.
“Here you go. The 100 custom made arrows that you ordered. Still, you really go through arrows quickly, don’t you?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“I’m lazy so I don’t want to use skills or magic.” (Aruna)
“I would suppose it’d be better than spending more money… Anyway, how about some Elemental Arrows―” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Don’t need it.” (Aruna)
Shutting down the conversation with a flat out refusal, Aruna began to pick up the arrows one by one to examine the workmanship. From the conversation just now, it was said to be a custom order. So Aruna is this uncompromising about her arrows?
“When she becomes like that, she’ll be out for a while. So did you guys really form a party with her?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Yes. It hasn’t been too long since we formed our party, but we are indeed in the same party.” (Lewin)
“So it was really true… Fwaahahaha! It’s really something for you two to go along with her.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“She does work harder than anyone else in the Dungeon though,” I responded with a wry smile.
The woman from Araku Village said the exact same thing. For the people who were close with Aruna, it seemed to them like a bad idea to form a party with her.
“Shopkeeper-san, have you known Aruna-san for a long time?” (Lewin)
“No, not that long. Around the time that she had come to this town, she seemed to be trying to search for a bow and arrow. She went around to multiple shops and found that she liked mine the best out of them, so she became a regular here… it went something like that.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“So that’s how it went? From the way you two were speaking, I thought for sure that you two had known each other for a long time.” (Lewin)
“It’s just because of Aruna’s character. I found that talking with her was amusing, so we ended up on pretty good terms. Anyways… Did you come here looking for weapons?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
Weapons, huh…? I wasn’t searching for anything in particular, but there were all kinds of weapons here so I did want to take a look around.
“No, I wasn’t searching for anything in particular. But there are so many weapons here, so, if you would allow me, I would love to take a look around.” (Lewin)
“I see. You can go ahead and take a look at however many weapons you want, I don’t mind at all. If you see a weapon that you like, please feel free to call for me. I can give you a description of the weapon.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Ah! I w-want to look at that s-sword from earlier, so can y-you continue where you left off with a description of it?” (Rosalie)
Rosalie, who was next to me, had heard the conversation. As if a lightbulb had gone off in her head, she immediately brought it up to the old man shopkeeper. Come to think of it, Aruna cut off our conversation, so we didn’t get to hear the full description of it. If I recall correctly, it was made from Black Adamantite or something…
“Oh yeah, that’s right! I was in the middle of explaining about that sword. Its name is “Soulgram”, and it’s a magical sword. It was said that the sword was used by a certain hero.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Soulgram… so that’s its name. For a shop to be able to sell the sword of a hero is really amazing.” (Lewin)
“Nope, that one’s not for sale. An old friend of mine told me to take care of it for him. Well, in return, I’m putting it in the most prominent place of the store for publicity.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“I see. But won’t it get stolen if it’s placed in such a conspicuous spot?” (Lewin)
The moment I casually uttered that, the old man’s sunny countenance suddenly disappeared, and a powerful, bone-bitingly cold bloodlust filled the room.
“Fwaaaahahahaha! If they can steal from me, I’d love to see them try.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
The old man’s body, which was already big enough, seemed to become one size larger. Just like the grandma from Elf’s Tears, my instincts practically screamed that I would be no match for this guy.
“U-Uhhh… I would l-like to hear a bit more about the sword, would that be okay? A hero’s sword i-isn’t something you can see every day.” (Rosalie)
“Of course, no problem. I know a few things about that sword, so if you’re curious I can tell you.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
In response to Rosalie’s question, the old man shopkeeper retracted his bloodthirsty aura and he returned to his normal, kind demeanor.
I let out a big sigh of relief and wiped the sweat dripping down my face, and I then followed after the two of them to hear a more detailed explanation about the magic sword.
Episode 236-2 – Dungeon Pendant Company
“Man, that was an interesting shop. I’m glad you showed that place to us.” (Lewin)
“It really w-was interesting getting to see Soulgram and hear the story about it.” (Rosalie)
“Mhm. I always buy my arrows from that shop.” (Aruna)
Aruna wanted to leave the shop as soon as she had finished checking the arrows, so we ended up having to leave halfway through the shopkeeper’s conversation. I heard the story about the hero’s sword all the way through, but since we had to leave just when he was about to introduce some other weapons to us, we didn’t buy any weapons this time. The shopkeeper had a great personality and was very knowledgeable. He had told us to come back another time to buy some weapons.
“W-would it be alright for m-me to pick the next place?” (Rosalie)
“Yeah, please go ahead and introduce us to a shop that you recommend.” (Lewin)
“O-Okay. I’m not sure i-if you two will like it or n-not, but… I’ll introduce you g-guys to it.” (Rosalie)
After Aruna’s shop recommendation, it was Rosalie’s turn. She was the one who had stayed in Landaust for the longest out of the three of us, so I was really looking forward to seeing what kind of shop she would introduce us to in the end.
I excitedly followed Rosalie, and we eventually arrived in the very center of Main Street. This place was where the most people gathered in Landaust, and it was also the safest place in the town. The Perfect Circle General Store, Green Formula, and other popular newspaper companies headquarters were located in this area.
However, all of the shops on Main Street were well-known establishments, and I knew almost all of them. I was expecting a shop that I didn’t know about yet, so I was greatly disappointed.
“Is the shop in this area? I was also thinking of recommending a shop on Main Street, so I guess it would be killing two birds with one stone…” (Lewin)
“Y-Yeah. It’s in this area, but there’s a little trick to it,” Rosalie muttered in a meaningful way, as she began to head into the headquarters of the Dungeon Pendant Company, which was one of the bigger newspaper companies. I had ended up on good terms with Tobias and the Laudungeon Company, so I was trying not to get too close to other newspaper companies… But this time I had no choice but to follow along.
“This is the Dungeon Pendant Company, isn’t it? What in the world would we be doing here?” (Lewin)
“Once you g-go in, you’ll understand.” (Rosalie)
Could there be a weapon store inside? Perhaps we’d be able to get your hands on a weapon once we procured enough information― or something like that, which was entirely possible.
Feeling a bit nervous, I hid behind Aruna’s back as we walked into the Dungeon Pendant Company.
…The exterior was amazing because it was entirely made out of glass, but the interior was also just as incredible. This must be the most expensive building in all of Landaust.
“N-Not the reception desk, it’s this way.” (Rosalie)
As I tried to head to the reception desk in front of the entrance while peeping around at the interior, Rosalie pointed to the back room that was straight ahead. When I looked in that direction before us, I finally figured out the identity of the shop she was recommending.
“…A diner? So there was a diner in the Dungeon Pendant Company?” (Lewin)
“T-That’s right. It’s the employee cafeteria, but it’s open to the ordinary citizens as well. It’s not a very widely known fact, so it’s kind of a hole-in-the-wall place. I really recommend it.” (Rosalie)
“Hm? What’s that in the back?” (Aruna)
“T-That’s the exchange. They sell all kinds of interesting things there.” (Rosalie)
The employee cafeteria was quite spacious. The kitchen was on the right side, with the chairs and tables on the left and the exchange in the back. The place was permeated with all kinds of smells, and their repertoire of dishes was quite large.
“Are there any dishes that you recommend? I’m not that hungry, so I’d like to just order one dish of whatever you recommend.” (Lewin)
“The quality of all of the d-dishes in this cafeteria are high, so if you picked any one of them, it would be delicious. But… my favorite sweets here are their pancakes!” (Rosalie)
“Pancakes. It has a nice ring to it.” (Aruna)
“Sweets are normally pretty expensive, but here, you can taste sweetness at a reasonable price!” (Rosalie)
“Then, let’s all have some pancakes.” (Lewin)
I followed Rosalie’s example and ordered 3 pancakes and a glass of hot milk. After waiting in front of the kitchen for about 5 minutes, a tray with pancakes and some hot milk was handed over to me.
“…This does look delicious! It’s also crazy that the price is only 2 silver coins!” (Lewin)
“It’s pretty cheap, isn’t it? I think it’s the employee price, but the fact that even ordinary people can eat it is really generous of the Dungeon Pendant Company.” (Rosalie)
I couldn’t help but compare it with the Laudungeon Company and smiled bitterly at the difference between the two. There was an even more overwhelming difference between the two newspaper companies than I had initially thought. But I had been helped out a lot by the Laudungeon Company, so I wanted to somehow contribute to the Laudungeon Company. Even so, all that I could do was to try harder at clearing the Dungeon.
“Come on Lewin, don’t just stand there. It’ll get cold.” (Aruna)
“Ah, sorry. That seat over there looks good.” (Lewin)
My thoughts were interrupted by Aruna, so I hurriedly picked a seat and started to try the food. But I couldn’t help but think of Tobias when I realized that I was eating desserts in a place that could be considered ‘enemy territory’ to him, which made me feel rather complicated. Either way, the pancakes did nothing wrong.
Picking up the knife and fork, I cut the fluffy pancakes into quarters and put some butter and maple syrup on it. After waiting for it to soak a bit into the pancakes, I opened wide and took a big bite.
“So yummy….” (Aruna)
“This is really delicious.” (Lewin)
“Yeah, this is the best.” (Rosalie)
Everyone’s cheeks were stuffed with pancakes, and even though we just had lunch, we finished the pancakes in the blink of an eye. Phew. What a blissful moment.
I was savoring the lingering aftertaste of the pancakes, taking a sip of the hot milk― when the door behind me was suddenly flung open.
“You, are you Lewin-san?”
When I turned around, the reporter who had approached me when I first went down to the Dungeon was standing there. His attire was refined, giving off the typical appearance of a capable man. I really didn’t want to meet any reporters I was acquainted with, but I ended up meeting one anyway…
“Yes, that’s me. Are you a reporter?” (Lewin)
“Do you remember me? I approached you at the time that you were solo-clearing the Dungeon.”
“Yes, I remember.” (Lewin)
When he heard my reply, the reporter flashed a broad smile at me. I was reminded of the time when I had met Rosalie, as it was the same kind of scary smile that the Vice Guild Chief of the Adventurer’s Guild had given me.
“Well, well, it’s truly an honor. The ones behind you must be your party, I presume? Aruna-san and Rosalie-san, the two of you are strong, so I looked into your backgrounds as well. So what have you all come to this company for today?” (Dungeon Pendant Reporter)
I was trying to give as short answers as possible, but before I knew it, the flow of the conversation was already starting to be directed towards an interview. He had also taken out his notepad as if he was about to start writing things down. If things were to continue like this, it would be bad.
“U-Umm, we came to this cafeteria to have some dessert.” (Lewin)
“Hoh, is that so? It’s not widely known that this cafeteria is open to everyone. I thought that by chance you had come here to sign a contract with us, but it seemed that I had jumped to a hasty conclusion. So… is there anything else I can help you with today? You’ve gathered your party members here, so could it be that your next Dungeon―” (Dungeon Pendant Reporter)
The moment the reporter spoke to that point, Aruna, eyes flashing coldly, could no longer hold her words back.
“Shut up. You’re disturbing us after our meal.” (Aruna)
“…….Ah, I’m terribly sorry for that. At this company, I’m the employee that is the most excited about the three of you, who are rising to popularity. If you would be so kind, let’s talk a little bit, any content―” (Dungeon Pendant Reporter)
“We’re leaving.” (Aruna)
The reporter still looked like he wanted to talk, but Aruna just stood up and started walking towards the exit. Rosalie and I glanced once at the reporter and then followed after her.
…Aruna saved me there. With my personality, it was hard for me to flat out refuse. If I wasn’t careful with that kind of persistent prying, there’s a good chance I’d cave.
Plus, he was forceful and had the upper hand on me in conversation skills, so it was scary. Maybe because this was one of the leading newspaper companies, that reporter was really something else.
That reporter had completely remembered my face now. After this incident, it reaffirmed in me that it was probably best for me to stay away from any other newspaper companies aside from the Laudungeon Company, which I had a contract with.
It was really unfortunate that I wouldn’t be able to go and eat those delicious, fluffy pancakes anymore, though.
Episode 235-1 – Eagle Talon
TL Note: So the author messed up and released duplicate chapter numbers on accident. He released Chapter 235, then 236, then 235 again, then 236 again, before going to Chapter 237. It was difficult for me to figure out how to solve this problem without messing up the page numbers in NovelUpdates and Foxaholic, but I decided to just release all 4 of those chapters together. Therefore, Chapter 235 will consist of 235-1 and 236-1, and Chapter 236 will consist of 235-2 and 236-2. I’ll be releasing all of those chapters at once today as a Christmas edition release, so it’ll be essentially a 4-chapter release. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!
After we enjoyed the wonderful vegetarian cuisine, we drank our smoothies while discussing which shop we wanted to visit next. We ended up letting Aruna go first with deciding on which shop she wanted to go to.
Then, we thanked the waiter and left the vegetarian restaurant. Aruna began to lead the way to the next shop.
“Is the shop close to here?” (Lewin)
“Yeah, it’s right around the corner.” (Aruna)
Believing in Aruna’s words, we certainly ended up stopping in front of a store not far from the vegetarian restaurant. It was Aruna we were talking about here, so the shop ended up being more or less what I expected it to be… a weapons shop.
Written on the sign above the shop we had stopped in front of were the words “Eagle Talon”, and next to it were the words “weapon shop”. By the looks of it, they didn’t sell the weapons they made themselves here like at Dantetsu’s shop, Iron Will. Rather, this shop seemed to order weapons and then sell them.
“Is it here?” (Lewin)
“Yup. I always come here.” (Aruna)
“E-Eagle’s Talon…? I’ve never h-heard of it before.” (Rosalie)
Rosalie’s excitement from visiting the vegetarian restaurant seemed to have worn off, as she started to stutter again. Anyways, I wasn’t expecting much if even Rosalie didn’t seem to know about it.
Besides, now that I thought about it, it hadn’t been that long since Aruna came to Landaust. She didn’t give off the image of someone who really went out often, so I was guessing that she probably had around the same level of knowledge about this town as me.
Lowering the bar in my mind, I entered the shop, but as soon as I went in I was immediately surprised. Right in front of the entrance was a display case with a longsword that had a jet black blade, glittering with a black luster. I didn’t know much about swords, but just from first glance, I could tell this longsword was incredibly sharp.
“What is this longsword…” (Lewin)
“This shop’s best weapon, apparently. I’m not interested in it.” (Aruna)
“I don’t know how to put it into words, but… I can tell this sword is really amazing!!” (Rosalie)
Rosalie’s excitement seemed to have been reignited by the appearance of this jet black longsword, as her words began to flow once more in a fervent outpour. Looks like it’s not just me; Rosalie also feels that this is an incredible longsword.
I had seen top class adventurers over the projections several times, but even among them, there weren’t any people using weapons of this caliber. Our attention completely drawn in by the longsword, Rosalie and I practically had our faces stuck to the glass as we started to ogle the sword.
“I wonder what material it’s made of. Some kind of unknown crystal or metal, maybe?” (Lewin)
“There’s a chance it could be made from dragon materials or some other strong monster! It’s exciting because you don’t know what material it’s made from!” (Rosalie)
“Fwaahahaha. This longsword is made from a metal called Black Adamantite, you know.”
When I looked over to see who the owner of the voice that had suddenly butted into our conversation was, I saw a well-built old man wearing a green apron coming in our direction. The shopkeeper of this store, probably. Also, he’s so tall.
“I’m here for arrows.” (Aruna)
“Ah? It’s Aruna, huh? I was talking to these customers so wait over there for a second.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“These two people are my companions.” (Aruna)
“….Companions? You really formed a party?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Yeah. Anyways, hurry up.” (Aruna)
Aruna pressed the old man that seemed like he was going to talk to us, so he went towards the back where a bow and arrow were placed. I wanted to look at the longsword for a bit longer… but I followed after the other two anyway.
“Here you go. The 100 custom made arrows that you ordered. Still, you really go through arrows quickly, don’t you?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“I’m lazy so I don’t want to use skills or magic.” (Aruna)
“I would suppose it’d be better than spending more money… Anyway, how about some Elemental Arrows―” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Don’t need it.” (Aruna)
Shutting down the conversation with a flat out refusal, Aruna began to pick up the arrows one by one to examine the workmanship. From the conversation just now, it was said to be a custom order. So Aruna is this uncompromising about her arrows?
“When she becomes like that, she’ll be out for a while. So did you guys really form a party with her?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Yes. It hasn’t been too long since we formed our party, but we are indeed in the same party.” (Lewin)
“So it was really true… Fwaahahaha! It’s really something for you two to go along with her.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“She does work harder than anyone else in the Dungeon though,” I responded with a wry smile.
The woman from Araku Village said the exact same thing. For the people who were close with Aruna, it seemed to them like a bad idea to form a party with her.
“Shopkeeper-san, have you known Aruna-san for a long time?” (Lewin)
“No, not that long. Around the time that she had come to this town, she seemed to be trying to search for a bow and arrow. She went around to multiple shops and found that she liked mine the best out of them, so she became a regular here… it went something like that.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“So that’s how it went? From the way you two were speaking, I thought for sure that you two had known each other for a long time.” (Lewin)
“It’s just because of Aruna’s character. I found that talking with her was amusing, so we ended up on pretty good terms. Anyways… Did you come here looking for weapons?” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
Weapons, huh…? I wasn’t searching for anything in particular, but there were all kinds of weapons here so I did want to take a look around.
“No, I wasn’t searching for anything in particular. But there are so many weapons here, so, if you would allow me, I would love to take a look around.” (Lewin)
“I see. You can go ahead and take a look at however many weapons you want, I don’t mind at all. If you see a weapon that you like, please feel free to call for me. I can give you a description of the weapon.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Ah! I w-want to look at that s-sword from earlier, so can y-you continue where you left off with a description of it?” (Rosalie)
Rosalie, who was next to me, had heard the conversation. As if a lightbulb had gone off in her head, she immediately brought it up to the old man shopkeeper. Come to think of it, Aruna cut off our conversation, so we didn’t get to hear the full description of it. If I recall correctly, it was made from Black Adamantite or something…
“Oh yeah, that’s right! I was in the middle of explaining about that sword. Its name is “Soulgram”, and it’s a magical sword. It was said that the sword was used by a certain hero.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“Soulgram… so that’s its name. For a shop to be able to sell the sword of a hero is really amazing.” (Lewin)
“Nope, that one’s not for sale. An old friend of mine told me to take care of it for him. Well, in return, I’m putting it in the most prominent place of the store for publicity.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
“I see. But won’t it get stolen if it’s placed in such a conspicuous spot?” (Lewin)
The moment I casually uttered that, the old man’s sunny countenance suddenly disappeared, and a powerful, bone-bitingly cold bloodlust filled the room.
“Fwaaaahahahaha! If they can steal from me, I’d love to see them try.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
The old man’s body, which was already big enough, seemed to become one size larger. Just like the grandma from Elf’s Tears, my instincts practically screamed that I would be no match for this guy.
“U-Uhhh… I would l-like to hear a bit more about the sword, would that be okay? A hero’s sword i-isn’t something you can see every day.” (Rosalie)
“Of course, no problem. I know a few things about that sword, so if you’re curious I can tell you.” (Old Man Shopkeeper)
In response to Rosalie’s question, the old man shopkeeper retracted his bloodthirsty aura and he returned to his normal, kind demeanor.
I let out a big sigh of relief and wiped the sweat dripping down my face, and I then followed after the two of them to hear a more detailed explanation about the magic sword.
Episode 236-2 – Dungeon Pendant Company
“Man, that was an interesting shop. I’m glad you showed that place to us.” (Lewin)
“It really w-was interesting getting to see Soulgram and hear the story about it.” (Rosalie)
“Mhm. I always buy my arrows from that shop.” (Aruna)
Aruna wanted to leave the shop as soon as she had finished checking the arrows, so we ended up having to leave halfway through the shopkeeper’s conversation. I heard the story about the hero’s sword all the way through, but since we had to leave just when he was about to introduce some other weapons to us, we didn’t buy any weapons this time. The shopkeeper had a great personality and was very knowledgeable. He had told us to come back another time to buy some weapons.
“W-would it be alright for m-me to pick the next place?” (Rosalie)
“Yeah, please go ahead and introduce us to a shop that you recommend.” (Lewin)
“O-Okay. I’m not sure i-if you two will like it or n-not, but… I’ll introduce you g-guys to it.” (Rosalie)
After Aruna’s shop recommendation, it was Rosalie’s turn. She was the one who had stayed in Landaust for the longest out of the three of us, so I was really looking forward to seeing what kind of shop she would introduce us to in the end.
I excitedly followed Rosalie, and we eventually arrived in the very center of Main Street. This place was where the most people gathered in Landaust, and it was also the safest place in the town. The Perfect Circle General Store, Green Formula, and other popular newspaper companies headquarters were located in this area.
However, all of the shops on Main Street were well-known establishments, and I knew almost all of them. I was expecting a shop that I didn’t know about yet, so I was greatly disappointed.
“Is the shop in this area? I was also thinking of recommending a shop on Main Street, so I guess it would be killing two birds with one stone…” (Lewin)
“Y-Yeah. It’s in this area, but there’s a little trick to it,” Rosalie muttered in a meaningful way, as she began to head into the headquarters of the Dungeon Pendant Company, which was one of the bigger newspaper companies. I had ended up on good terms with Tobias and the Laudungeon Company, so I was trying not to get too close to other newspaper companies… But this time I had no choice but to follow along.
“This is the Dungeon Pendant Company, isn’t it? What in the world would we be doing here?” (Lewin)
“Once you g-go in, you’ll understand.” (Rosalie)
Could there be a weapon store inside? Perhaps we’d be able to get your hands on a weapon once we procured enough information― or something like that, which was entirely possible.
Feeling a bit nervous, I hid behind Aruna’s back as we walked into the Dungeon Pendant Company.
…The exterior was amazing because it was entirely made out of glass, but the interior was also just as incredible. This must be the most expensive building in all of Landaust.
“N-Not the reception desk, it’s this way.” (Rosalie)
As I tried to head to the reception desk in front of the entrance while peeping around at the interior, Rosalie pointed to the back room that was straight ahead. When I looked in that direction before us, I finally figured out the identity of the shop she was recommending.
“…A diner? So there was a diner in the Dungeon Pendant Company?” (Lewin)
“T-That’s right. It’s the employee cafeteria, but it’s open to the ordinary citizens as well. It’s not a very widely known fact, so it’s kind of a hole-in-the-wall place. I really recommend it.” (Rosalie)
“Hm? What’s that in the back?” (Aruna)
“T-That’s the exchange. They sell all kinds of interesting things there.” (Rosalie)
The employee cafeteria was quite spacious. The kitchen was on the right side, with the chairs and tables on the left and the exchange in the back. The place was permeated with all kinds of smells, and their repertoire of dishes was quite large.
“Are there any dishes that you recommend? I’m not that hungry, so I’d like to just order one dish of whatever you recommend.” (Lewin)
“The quality of all of the d-dishes in this cafeteria are high, so if you picked any one of them, it would be delicious. But… my favorite sweets here are their pancakes!” (Rosalie)
“Pancakes. It has a nice ring to it.” (Aruna)
“Sweets are normally pretty expensive, but here, you can taste sweetness at a reasonable price!” (Rosalie)
“Then, let’s all have some pancakes.” (Lewin)
I followed Rosalie’s example and ordered 3 pancakes and a glass of hot milk. After waiting in front of the kitchen for about 5 minutes, a tray with pancakes and some hot milk was handed over to me.
“…This does look delicious! It’s also crazy that the price is only 2 silver coins!” (Lewin)
“It’s pretty cheap, isn’t it? I think it’s the employee price, but the fact that even ordinary people can eat it is really generous of the Dungeon Pendant Company.” (Rosalie)
I couldn’t help but compare it with the Laudungeon Company and smiled bitterly at the difference between the two. There was an even more overwhelming difference between the two newspaper companies than I had initially thought. But I had been helped out a lot by the Laudungeon Company, so I wanted to somehow contribute to the Laudungeon Company. Even so, all that I could do was to try harder at clearing the Dungeon.
“Come on Lewin, don’t just stand there. It’ll get cold.” (Aruna)
“Ah, sorry. That seat over there looks good.” (Lewin)
My thoughts were interrupted by Aruna, so I hurriedly picked a seat and started to try the food. But I couldn’t help but think of Tobias when I realized that I was eating desserts in a place that could be considered ‘enemy territory’ to him, which made me feel rather complicated. Either way, the pancakes did nothing wrong.
Picking up the knife and fork, I cut the fluffy pancakes into quarters and put some butter and maple syrup on it. After waiting for it to soak a bit into the pancakes, I opened wide and took a big bite.
“So yummy….” (Aruna)
“This is really delicious.” (Lewin)
“Yeah, this is the best.” (Rosalie)
Everyone’s cheeks were stuffed with pancakes, and even though we just had lunch, we finished the pancakes in the blink of an eye. Phew. What a blissful moment.
I was savoring the lingering aftertaste of the pancakes, taking a sip of the hot milk― when the door behind me was suddenly flung open.
“You, are you Lewin-san?”
When I turned around, the reporter who had approached me when I first went down to the Dungeon was standing there. His attire was refined, giving off the typical appearance of a capable man. I really didn’t want to meet any reporters I was acquainted with, but I ended up meeting one anyway…
“Yes, that’s me. Are you a reporter?” (Lewin)
“Do you remember me? I approached you at the time that you were solo-clearing the Dungeon.”
“Yes, I remember.” (Lewin)
When he heard my reply, the reporter flashed a broad smile at me. I was reminded of the time when I had met Rosalie, as it was the same kind of scary smile that the Vice Guild Chief of the Adventurer’s Guild had given me.
“Well, well, it’s truly an honor. The ones behind you must be your party, I presume? Aruna-san and Rosalie-san, the two of you are strong, so I looked into your backgrounds as well. So what have you all come to this company for today?” (Dungeon Pendant Reporter)
I was trying to give as short answers as possible, but before I knew it, the flow of the conversation was already starting to be directed towards an interview. He had also taken out his notepad as if he was about to start writing things down. If things were to continue like this, it would be bad.
“U-Umm, we came to this cafeteria to have some dessert.” (Lewin)
“Hoh, is that so? It’s not widely known that this cafeteria is open to everyone. I thought that by chance you had come here to sign a contract with us, but it seemed that I had jumped to a hasty conclusion. So… is there anything else I can help you with today? You’ve gathered your party members here, so could it be that your next Dungeon―” (Dungeon Pendant Reporter)
The moment the reporter spoke to that point, Aruna, eyes flashing coldly, could no longer hold her words back.
“Shut up. You’re disturbing us after our meal.” (Aruna)
“…….Ah, I’m terribly sorry for that. At this company, I’m the employee that is the most excited about the three of you, who are rising to popularity. If you would be so kind, let’s talk a little bit, any content―” (Dungeon Pendant Reporter)
“We’re leaving.” (Aruna)
The reporter still looked like he wanted to talk, but Aruna just stood up and started walking towards the exit. Rosalie and I glanced once at the reporter and then followed after her.
…Aruna saved me there. With my personality, it was hard for me to flat out refuse. If I wasn’t careful with that kind of persistent prying, there’s a good chance I’d cave.
Plus, he was forceful and had the upper hand on me in conversation skills, so it was scary. Maybe because this was one of the leading newspaper companies, that reporter was really something else.
That reporter had completely remembered my face now. After this incident, it reaffirmed in me that it was probably best for me to stay away from any other newspaper companies aside from the Laudungeon Company, which I had a contract with.
It was really unfortunate that I wouldn’t be able to go and eat those delicious, fluffy pancakes anymore, though.
