CHAPTER 70: THE DUNGEON SYSTEM AND MERCHANT SYSTEM

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　I proceeded to the seventh floor, fighting Forest Wolves several times.

 

 

“…”

 

 

　As I continue walking on the seventh floor, I suddenly find myself thinking.

 

　No, it’s not something I can really say about.
The floor, walls, and ceiling of this dungeon are all made of stone blocks, and the colors and patterns are all the same.

 

　So my sense of direction can get a bit confused, and I feel like I become depressed if I’m alone for too long.

 

 

“Hmm… I wish I had something to… distract me, but it’s a terrible idea to be distracted in a dungeon…”

 

 

　Well, maybe there’s nothing I can do about this.
I’ll just have to get used to it.

 

 

“Guga!”

 

 

　As I was walking along thinking about this, I heard a cry from ahead.

 

　I hurriedly readied my spear.

 

　I focused my concentration on my ears and heard two kinds of footsteps.
Is there more than one enemy?　I had to brace myself.

 

　As the footsteps got closer and closer, I could see the silhouette of a monster illuminated by the magic of the light source.

 

　On the left was the Forest Wolf.
And on the right… was a Kobold!

 

　It was a tiny bit shorter than me, and it looked like a dog on two legs with human arms.
Its face looks more like a hyena’s than a dog’s face… it was brimming with a sense of wildness.
The face is not cute at all, it has sharp teeth already bared and drooling.
It has no weapons, but its sharp claws are probably sufficient weapons.

 

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　The Forest Wolf and the Kobold seemed to be planning to take full advantage of the six-meter wide corridor to pin me down from both sides.

 

　It’s not a good idea to be attacked by both sides at the same time.

 

　I thought about this as I jumped to the left side towards the Forest Wolf and thrust my spear into it.

 

 

“Gyiii!!”

 

 

　Without checking to see if I’ve defeated the Forest Wolf, I immediately turn around, use my spinning momentum to step in, and slash the Kobold’s neck with my spear.

 

　After checking for a moment that the Kobold’s neck had been sliced in half.
I stepped away from it with a back step.

 

 

“Gugege…”

 

 

　The Kobold took a few steps forward, clutching at the fresh blood flowing from its neck, and then it collapsed to its knees.

 

　The two monsters disappeared as if they were sucked into the floor.
And only a magic stone remained where the monsters had been.

 

 

“Phew…”

 

 

　As I relaxed and let out a deep sigh of relief, I saw light swirling around me.
It’s been a while since I’ve received the Goddess’ Blessing.
As far as I can remember, this is the tenth time I’ve received this blessing.

 

　It seems that this Goddess Blessing doesn’t just happen when you kill a monster, but when you accumulate a certain number of experiences.
It could be cooking, sword training, or just running.
Things similar to experience points accumulate from various activities, and the Goddess’ Blessing occurs.
However, defeating monsters is the most efficient.

 

　I used to write down the number of Goddess Blessings I received, but I gave up trying to keep track of the exact number after I heard that you can receive Goddess Blessings while you sleep.
I won’t be able to know what’s happening to me while I’m sleeping.

 

 

“Anyway …”

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　This Forest Wolf and Kobold… seemed to be working together.

 

　But monsters seem to have a sense of camaraderie when they are of the same species, but when they are of different species, they can be predator and prey, or even enemies.
In fact, I’ve even seen Forest Wolves attacking and eating goblins…

 

　Since Forest Wolves and Kobolds are both wolf monsters, do they get along well?　Or is it just special to dungeons?

 

 

　The more I thought about it, the more I realized there were other things that were unnatural.

 

　What were the monsters in the dungeon in the first place? How do they live in a place made entirely of stone blocks? For example, there are only supposed to be Kobolds and Forest Wolves on this floor, so if they’re both friendly, there’s nothing to feed them.

 

　If you think about it, the beginner dungeon was strange too.

 

　It was also a dark, cave-like space, and there was only one monster in a certain area.
In other words, it was always a one-on-one battle.
I believe the receptionist at the adventurer’s guild in the southern village told me that this was the kind of dungeon they had.
At the time, I was just wondering if it was like that.
I didn’t really care, but when I thought about it, it was just too unnatural.

 

　No matter how dark it was, it would have been normal for two goblins to meet and join up by chance, or for them to move in close proximity to each other, but that never happened.

 

　And more importantly, the fact that defeated enemies disappear is also too strange.
Everyone around me is just convinced that it’s because it’s a dungeon.
So I tell myself that it was a different world, and think calmly about this… It’s definitely weird.

 

　…This just like… a game—

 

 

“…”

 

 

　If it was ……, what would that lead to?

 

　I’m not sure what to make of it from the information I have right now.
And at present, I don’t see any particular disadvantages.
In fact, I think there are more advantages than disadvantages because I don’t have to dismantle anything.

 

 

“Truly, this world has many mysteries.
And—it’s interesting.”

 

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　I spun my spear around and slammed the blunt end to the ground.
I used it as a walking stick, I began to walk deeper into the dungeon.

 

 

 

 

　 I got through the tenth floor without difficulty, hunting Forest Wolves and Kobolds.
I registered myself on the transfer monument on the eleventh floor and returned to the first floor.

 

　I took the shortest route from the sixth floor to the eleventh floor, but there were fewer adventurers on this level than before and the enemies were obviously stronger than the goblins, so I took my time.
I’ve worked hard enough, I think I’m done for the day.

 

　As I walked out of the dungeon, I noticed that the rain had stopped.

 

　I folded up my cloak and put it in my backpack.

 

　I walked along the road still wet from the rain, and as I passed through the three gates, I saw several food stalls and vendors lined up along the road.
I could also see many other people lined up along the road, shouting at the top of their lungs.

 

　Hmm? There was something strange going on.
Somehow, the atmosphere seemed different from the stalls I knew.

 

　Twisting my head, I walked closer to them.

 

 

“Forest Wolf Pelt, one silver and five copper coins! El Rabbit pelt, one silver!” (Merchant)

 

“This is the meat of El Rabbit! One silver coin! One silver coin!” (Merchant)

 

“Oak meat! Three silver coins!” (Merchant)

 

“I will buy any high-ranked material!” (Merchant)

 

“El Rabbit Meat! One silver coin and one bronze coin!” (Merchant)

 

“If you want to sell your armor, come here!” (Merchant)

 

 

　I see.
I kind of understand what’s happening.

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　In short, the people here aren’t here to sell things, they’re here to buy them.

 

 

　Basically, the Adventurer’s Guild does not buy anything other than magic stones and some items.
The reason is simple: the Adventurer’s Guild doesn’t want to take the risk of holding inventory.
Regardless of what can be preserved and even if the demand is stable, raw foods such as skins and foods such as meat are quite risky.
If they are not sold out, the Adventurer’s Guild will suffer a loss.
In addition, there would be an unnecessary increase in the number of things to do, such as securing reliable buyers and building sales routes.

 

　Also, from the consumer’s point of view, going through the Adventurer’s Guild has many disadvantages.

 

　This is because passing through another organization like the Adventurer’s Guild will increase the supply chain and raise the price.
No one wants to waste money on such a thing.

 

　Therefore, adventurers generally sell the items they have taken to merchants.
That’s probably why things are the way they are.

 

 

“Excuse me.
Can you buy this, please?”

 

“Yes! Forest Wolf Pelt… is in excellent condition.
How about four for seven silver coins?” (Merchant)

 

 

　When I handed the Forest Wolf pelts to the fur merchant, he offered me a better price than I had heard earlier.

 

　In fact, when I put the forest wolf pelt in my backpack, I secretly purified it because I was worried about the smell.
Maybe that was a good thing.

 

　I said to the merchant, “Please take it.” I received seven silver coins.

 

 

　But one silver coin and five copper coins for the pelt of an E rank monster?

 

　If I wanted to make a cloak out of a Forest Wolf’s pelt, I would probably need three to five pelts.
The purchase price of the pelts alone is around seven silver coins, and if I think about the prices of other materials, labor costs, technical fees, etc., no matter how cheap I estimate, it will not amount to anything less than three gold coins.

 

 

“That’s why leather products are expensive.”

 

 

 

　Yeah, I was convinced of my estimate and headed for the Adventurer’s Guild.