TLN: Changed the name of the inn Ardis is staying at. It was previously translated literally as Stop Tree Tea Rooms, but it"s now been changed to Perch Inn 『止まり木亭』
Unfortunately, I"m slowly losing interest in this novel. As you can see here, the pacing is extremely quick and the sentences don"t flow together neatly. Furthermore, the interactions with the twins are minimal at best before he starts hunting again. Then the hunting is boring because he just flings his sword and kills them instantly. This is why is was taking me so long to translate. If it"s boring to read, please remember that the translator has to spend hours reading it over and over again.
Under the still bright sky, Ardis, who had separated from Gresch and the others, quickly headed towards『Perch Inn』
Today"s rewards for defeating the 4 Despairs were two gold coins and for the 14 beast king furs, 4 gold coins and 2 silver coins. Likewise, the horns of the beast kings sold for 1 gold coin and 2 silver coins.
Subtracting the 1 gold coin and 2 silver coins which were given to Gresch"s party as remuneration, there was still 6 gold coins and 2 silver coins remaining.
It was a good result today. With this amount of money, Ardis could stay in the inn for another month.
Although the rewards for Gresch"s party had reduced the money somewhat, it took more time for Ardis to skin the fur than to actually hunt the beast kings.
For Ardis who usually spends the afternoon doing the work himself and carrying two pieces at a time, it was a welcome encounter to meet Gresch"s party.
(They were rather efficient luggage carriers, should I hire a collection worker?)
Such an idea entered his head, but he immediately shook it off.
This time, they accepted the offer as they were heading back to town anyway.
In addition, they also felt like helping Ardis as they had been saved from a dangerous situation.
Would someone even accept the request if a strange mercenary like Ardis propositioned them?
Ardis is aware that his appearance is quite young.
They would not be interested if they thought of Ardis as some novice.
Also, at the end of the day there"s a chance the worker could be useless and cause the efficiency of the hunt to dwindle.
(It would be better to ask Gresch"s party in that case)
Although he had not seen the extent of their abilities, there was no problem with their characters.
Even if their fighting ability is low, that can be covered by Ardis.
In the gra.s.sland, he"d have plenty of leeway to hunt as much as he liked whilst also protecting 4 people.
(I"ll see if they can go tomorrow morning)
Ardis arrived at the Perch Inn whilst thinking about such a thing.
As he entered the inn, Kashiha with her hair tied behind her back spoke up.
「Welcome back Ardis. That was quick wasn"t it?」(Kashiha)
「I"m back. Well, don"t worry about it, I"ve earned enough for lodging」(Ardis)
Ardis quickly confirmed that there were no other customers in the area.
「Ano, how are the twins? Were there any problems?」(Ardis)
「I went to check on them every 2 hours….they don"t talk at all. However, they eat properly in the morning and noon, but when I leave, they always crouch together in the corner of the room」(Kashiha)
「They must be scared」(Ardis)
「Eh!? Do I look scary!? Onee-san is shocked!」(Kashiha)
(The scary one is not you though)
The twins probably find anyone other than themselves terrifying.
After saying「I"ll come back down to pick up dinner」Ardis went up the stairs past Kashiha towards his room.
Knocking on the door lightly, Ardis entered and was immediately greeted by the same scene he saw this morning.
In one corner of the room, the twins had gathered together hugging each other.
Ardis removed his equipment and sat on a chair, overlooking the streets below.
The view outside the window was still bright, as he had come back much earlier than planned. It will be some time before dinner.
Ardis didn"t feel like going out into the city right now, so he sat in the chair and stared outside.
In a room without conversation, he began to grow sleepy. Meanwhile, the twins did not move an inch, nor say a single word.
Laying down on his bed, he was immediately attacked with drowsiness and soon fell asleep as is.
He awakened at dusk, when the sky had grown red and the sun was about to sink behind the mountains.
「Soon, it will be dinner」(Ardis)
At dinner time, the appearance of the twins was the same as ever.
Even when presented with a meal on a tray, the two did not move until Ardis had finished and turned in to sleep.
The early morning of the next day, Ardis had an early breakfast and asked Kashiha to take care of the twins as he left the inn.
Walking quickly through the city, he travelled towards the inn that Gresch"s party was staying in 『Light Sky』
Ardis knew about the inn as it was the name of a well-known lodgings that catered to newbie mercenaries.
15 minutes later, he arrived at the inn and asked the receptionist at the counter to call Gresch"s party.
He was told to wait in the eating area and so sat down waiting for 5 minutes. It was then that a long brown-haired man and a young girl with scarlet hair came down the stairs from a room on the upper floor.
「Ah, Ardis what happened? Didn"t we only meet up yesterday!?」(Jio)
「Hey…don"t make such a loud voice Jio….my head is ringing….」(Konia)
Next to Jio who was as lively as ever, while holding her head, Konia turned towards Ardis, evidently hungover.
「Where are Gresch and Ralph?」(Ardis)
「They"re in bed. It looks like they"re still immersed in the aftermath of our drinking yesterday」(Jio)
「What do you mean?」(Ardis)
「They can"t get up because of how bad their hangover is….」(Konia)
Konia briefly supplements Jio"s unclear explanation.
Apparently, after Ardis left they continued drinking between the four.
Gresch and Ralph collapsed after drinking too much, Konia was also at her limit.
「Jio looks okay. Did you not drink much?」(Ardis)
「Ha ha ha!」(Jio)
Jio laughed without answering the question.
「Shut up Jio….my head is ringing….Ardis, Jio is an abnormality. He drank more than any of us, but the next day he"s perfectly fine….annoying…」(Konia)
Konia was resting her head on the table, with eyes that seemed to give up after seeing Jio.
Her semi-long hair was lying across her face, with orange eyes poking out in between.
If there was a phrase to express Konia"s current state, it would be 『The face of a defeated human』
I see, Ardis muttered in his heart.
The long-haired young man seemed to be quite the drinker. It didn"t fit his slender, somewhat pet.i.te build. He had a refreshing smile as opposed to Konia"s gloomy look.
「Then? What did you come here for today?」(Jio)
Jio asked about the job, as opposed to Konia who was still recovering.
「Well I was planning something, but…」(Ardis)
Ardis revealed his thoughts.
That yesterday"s help was useful.
And that he would like Gresch"s party"s help in the future.
Of course, it would only be when convenient for Gresch, so they could have discussions on it before hand.
「I see. I can"t reply without consulting Gresch first, but I think he will agree. What do you think Konia?」(Jio)
「Me….? Headache….」(Konia)
「So that"s that. Sorry Ardis, but can we conclude the talks tomorrow? Gresch and Ralph aren"t really up to it today」(Jio)
「I don"t mind. It was a sudden proposal anyway」(Ardis)
「Can you come again tomorrow? We"ll consult with the others then」(Jio)
「At noon tomorrow then」(Ardis)
Having told Jio about the remuneration and conditions around the offer, Ardis left the city and moved to the gra.s.slands to hunt.