Souta bows for the last time and leaves the room quietly.
When he tries to leave the store, he almost hits Elmia.
「Oops, sorry.」
「Ah, Souta-san, I am sorry about this! 」
Elmia quickly lower her head.
「Did you come here for Grandmother? 」
「Hm? Yeah, I’ve something to ask about the country of Elves.」
Elmia body trembles.
「A-Are you going to the country of elves? 」
「Yeah, I’m going there, though I"ll probably have a hard time entering the country.」
「Is that so… Um, er … it’s nothing after all」
She tries to say something, but stops and lowers her head.
「Hey is there something that"s worrying you ……」
Souta tries to call out to Elmia with a doubt.
「Souta-san, please be careful when you go.」
However, Elmia just ends the conversation and enters the shop in a hurry.
「It seems there is something considering her behavior … Well, if she doesn’t want to say it, it can"t be helped.」
Souta scratches his head and watches the door for a while before he leaves the store.
Although the sun already completely set, Souta heads straight to the adventurer’s guild without going home.
When he enters the guild, he can hear the noise of bustle from the bar.
Although there are adventurers in the hall, most of them are only exchanging information after finishing the report of the request. There are many reception desks vacant.
After looking around to check that adventurer from the afternoon isn"t there, Souta heads to the receptionist.
「Oh, Souta-san. Welcome back, have you been to the library? 」
When she confirms that Souta approaching, she smiles and greets him.
「Ah, I found out what I wanted to know. Thank you.」
「N-No, not at all! You can come and ask anytime! 」
Since Souta thanks her with a smile, Airi"s surprised and stutters.
「So, what kind of business do you have this time? 」
「I heard adventurers go to report to the guild if they want to leave the city? I came to report that.」
Airi is wide-eyed with surprise.
「Ehhh!! Souta-san, y-you are leaving this city?」
Souta puts his index finger on his lips.
「Sssshh, you’re too loud. I don’t mind if others know about it, but I don’t feel like spreading it.」
Airi covers her mouth with her hands quickly.
「Ahh, s-sorry.」
「I"ll come back since I bought a house in this city, but I think it"ll be vacant for a while.」
「How long will you go? Also, where are you going? Also, also, what do you mean you bought a house? 」
Airi forgets her blunder a while ago and asks questions in rapid succession.
「W-Wait a moment. I can’t answer if you ask all at once, calm down.」
Souta restrains Airi who leans over too far with both hands and tries to calm her down.
「Uuu, sorry, I am … …」
「I"ll answer your question one by one, but I don’t know how long it’ll be in the first place. I might return soon, but it’s only if there isn"t a problem getting there.」
To calm Airi down, Souta talks a little slowly.
「Next is where I’m going, I’m going to the country of elves. I don’t know if I"ll be permitted to go in or not though.」
「That means if it doesn’t go well, it might take years before you can come back…」
Although the country of elves is closer than the other races" countries, it still takes a long time to get there, moreover, immigration control will sometimes take months.
「Well, who knows. Then, as for the house, I got it cheaply from some connection. Though it"s only for this one time.」
「……. Somehow, after hearing the other thing, the thing about the house seems normal. Normally I should be surprised hearing that.」
「I-Is that so… Anyway, please tell your superior about it. There are other places I need to go to, so I’m going now.」
Souta goes out of the guild without waiting for Airi’s reply in order to avoid being called to the guild master room.
Souta’s next destination is the real estate agency.
When he opens the door, the lights are still on. Fuura is doing office work inside.
「Welcome, but we are already closed today, please come again tomorrow.」
She says without raising her head as she continues working.
「Sorry that I came after closing time. There"s something I want to ask from you.」
Fuura raises her head as she heard a familiar voice.
「Oh, Souta-san. If it’s you who bought the house that didn"t sell for so long, you"re welcome anytime. What do you need? Ah, you can sit over there.」
After sitting down on the chair at the counter, Souta starts talking.
「Didn"t sell … Ahh, never mind that. I want to ask something related to that house.」
Fuura puts the doc.u.ments together and sets them aside, she corrects her posture to listen to Souta’s words.
「What is it? Is there something wrong with the house? 」
Souta shakes his head lightly.
「No, it’s not about something like that. I"ve decided to go somewhere this time, so I thought I need someone to manage the house while I’m away. Of course, I"ll pay the management fee.」
Fuura places her hand on her mouth and thinks while supporting her head with her hand.
「Ummm, I don’t mind doing that, but for how long and how much should I do?」
「I don’t know for how long, but I think it will be a while. For management, it"s good enough to go there and see the situation, open the windows and change the air.」
Fuura now thinks with crossed arms.
「Wait a minute, you said you don’t know for how long…… That is the one that affects the payment fee the most.」
「If you take care of it, I"ll pay two gold coins per month. I"ll give you 10 gold coins as a deposit, and if I come back earlier, you can return the excess.」
「I’ll do it! I wonder if patrolling twice a week, ventilation, and simple cleaning is good enough.」
Since it’s more or less the same as before the house was sold, it doesn"t burden Fuura much. So there"s no choice but to accept, especially with such an incredible payment.
Souta also knows about this, so he gives conditions she won’t refuse.
t/n: another daily life chapter, btw want to bet how long it takes Souta to enter country of elves? i say 4 days, and i don’t read that far ahead yet, so it’s purely a guess