"Well then, cheers to our successful expedition!"

We wrapped up our exploration before sunset and went to the guild to cash in our spirit stones.

The chaotic spirit stones came up empty, but we managed decent colors on the others, so our earnings were excellent.

It was more than enough for a single day's work.

Incidentally, I had Reifrea handle the exchange while I stayed hidden outside. I didn’t want to deal with people making snide remarks about me being like a goldfish’s poop, or calling me a parasite, or accusing me of fish farming.

...Also, I just don’t like crowded places.

"I’m glad I got to join in, nyaan."

"Of course you did. Well, everyone’s staying off the booze, though."

"I can’t drink alcohol anyway, so no problem, nyaan."

　

Since I messed up a bit last time with alcohol, I'll be abstaining this time, along with Reifrea.

The shop is the same as last time.

It's affordable, the food is good, the lighting is dim, and it's mentally soothing for me.

I considered skipping the celebration, but weighing it against viewership numbers, it made sense to spend more time with Reifrea and Grapefruit.

I'm hated and disliked.

If someone like me appears to be thriving, viewership might drop—people usually don't want to see someone they dislike clearly enjoying life in another world.

Yet, paradoxically, viewership has been steadily rising since morning.

As they say, the opposite of love is not hate, but indifference—apparently, even dislike can be a powerful motivator.

I can't look away precisely because I hate it.

That's why this viewer count is proof of just how much I'm disliked.

"And... isn't it okay to earn this much money?"

"No, that's only what Flue brought down. Still, it's nowhere near a gold coin, so just keep it."

"Uuu... you're so kind... It'd take a whole month to save up that much doing things normally..."

"Just four silver coins..."

Today's earnings reached ten silver coins.

Well, I did slaughter monsters at a pretty fast pace, so that makes sense.

"Still, Refreia is strong. I really look up to her."

"I admire Hikaru. To be able to use magic so freely..."

"But if you can't defeat monsters, even if you can use magic, you won't advance in rank..."

Probably, Refia grew even stronger today.

She's defeated more monsters than me—over ten times as many. She was already far stronger than me to begin with, and now the gap is only widening.

"Then, how about we get Hikaru a new weapon?"

"I'd like to, but I don't have any money."

"You can charge it to my name—I'm trusted at the silver rank, so it'll be fine."

"Well, that's a bit too much, isn't it?"

I don't know why Refia trusts me so much, but buying weapons with someone else's reputation? That feels off.

"Hmm... something I could sell for money... I do have one, though I haven't mentioned it."

"Then why not sell it?"

"No... I'll pass. Anyway, I should check out the weapon shop."

Out of all my possessions, the one that'd fetch the highest price is the "Azure Moon Silver Sand Grass" I found in the forest.

That glowing flower was rated "valuable" in item appraisal—might even be worth a gold coin or so.

Still, I can't help but wonder if it's right to sell it, even though I'm not currently short on money or in need of weapons.

I don't have any connections to buy it at a fair price, either.

I suppose I could sell a mantis spirit stone, but even that could serve as a trump card, so I shouldn't rush into selling it.

"Well, I've got about ten silver coins on me, so I could probably afford a weapon of moderate quality if I pay upfront."

"Oh! You actually have that much? Then I can definitely buy one! Let's go tomorrow. The shop where I get my weapons made—really skilled, and the prices are reasonable!"

"Wait, you're not getting a pre-made weapon, but ordering one custom?"

"Of course, isn't it? I don't think a weapon perfectly suited to Hikaru's fighting style would ever be available in stores."

"I suppose that's how it is."

In any case, relying on that short sword as a primary weapon had become increasingly impractical. It would be better to order a new weapon before breaking it beyond repair.

"Then tomorrow we're heading to the blacksmith! I should get my gear tuned up too."

"What about you, Flue? I planned to hire you after we visit the blacksmith, since we'll be diving into the dungeon afterward."

"I'm sleeping right now, nyaa. Wake me up when it's time to go in."

Ah, so that's why cats sleep so much. Maybe it's just a stereotype.

Anyway, with that settled, they called it a day.

Still, the blacksmith. I've heard they're common in the territory of the fire spirit. I wonder what they're like?

◇◆◆◆◇

The next day.

We met at the guild early in the morning, obtained our dungeon exploration permits, and paid the one-day fee for Grapeflour in advance. If we don’t reserve her, someone else will hire her.

After that, we headed toward the shrine of the Fire Spirit, with Reflair.

This town is structured with a shrine of a Great Spirit at each vertex of a cross, with the labyrinth at the center.

North is Earth, East is Wind, West is Fire, South is Water.

The area where I’m staying falls within the territory of the Water Spirit, and since it’s close to the labyrinth, I’ve never even seen the shrine.

Inside the shrine, there’s a true Great Spirit, said to be supplying the town with endless spiritual energy.

"So basically, the Great Spirit is just trapped inside the shrine?"

"...Yes, there are certainly opinions like that. But since the Great Spirits could break free from the temple's constraints anytime they wanted, they're basically considered to be cooperating... that's how it's been presented."

"That sounds like something stuck between your teeth..."

"Using the Great Spirits in urban planning—well, more accurately, getting their cooperation—is indeed true. Thanks to that, we've been able to excavate spirit stones from the labyrinth and live comfortably."

"When the Great Spirits gather in one place, labyrinths appear... Is there no downside to that? Like monsters overflowing out?"

"Hikaru, you didn't know that either—oh, we've arrived."

While talking, they reached their destination: the blacksmith's shop.

It's still early morning, yet smoke rises from the chimney, and the sound of hammers striking metal echoes through the air—tonkanto, tonkanto.

The town is spacious, but not so large as a Japanese city.

Buildings are densely packed, with no cars, making the alleys extremely narrow, yet this means the town itself is quite small.

"Hello~"

"Yes, hello. Oh, it's you, Refreia. Come to have your sword maintained?"

The blacksmith's shop occupies no more than ten tatami mats, and the interior is stiflingly hot.

The shopkeeper, an old man with thick muscles and a short stature, sported a thick beard that immediately brought to mind the stereotypical blacksmith race, but of course, asking something like, "Are you a dwarf?" would be utterly inappropriate.

"No, today I'd like you to forge his weapon."

"Hmm, a recommendation from Refreia-chan, huh? What kind of thing do you have in mind?"

I took the lead in the conversation and shared the request I'd been thinking about.