Day 181-190/Day 182

Day 182
Our group members are scattered about in various places, as they move towards each of the locations that we were requested at.
As for the contents of the requests, they include:
* Town Defense
* Guard nobles as they go to inspect their territories
* Subjugation of a band of thieves hiding in the nearby mountains
* Subjugation of aggressive monsters
* Etc.
Before, our only client was the Tomboy Princess. However, thanks to our mercenary group’s name becoming well known, many new clients have suddenly appeared, forming a queue. Due to the recent coup d'état significantly affecting public order, thieves and bandits are moving about in the open. Knowing this, I’ve sent members towards villages where the feudal lords and village chiefs were troubled by the situation. By doing this, we should be able to take about half of the current requests.
By completing the requests we receive, our reputation will increase. Even though we’re not in need of money, there’s no reason to decline something that will result in a comparatively high monetary reward. For their convenience, I had the members that would need to deploy in the future gather at the mansion in the Royal Capital and in the Labyrinth City ≪Purgatory≫. By adjusting their schedules, they should be able to complete requests.
Although some of them didn’t want their vacations to end, they’ll just have to be patient for their own sake. Since a bit more preparation is required before we can start full-scale mobilization, I’ll treat them well for now.
Once I gave out instructions and finished breakfast, I returned to the Royal Capital. After being seen off by Blacksmith-san, I enjoyed my trip in the air for a bit. I caught several flying monsters on the way and ate them, but I wasn't able to learn anything new.
As I expected, I'd need to stop and hunt a large number of them. After I ate a certain amount, I stopped hunting them and quickened my pace a bit. I caught sight of the Royal Capital before too much time had passed. After landing on the ground, I used the【Proof of Belonging to Royal Authority】to enter the city.
There weren’t that many people out on the streets near the castle before, but the place appears to be back to normal and it's full of even more vigor than before. There were a lot of Humans walking on the roads as shopkeepers attempted to attract customers.
I headed for the mansion on the border of the Nobles and Castle Districts that I was given as a reward, all the while thinking, "As expected of the Royal Capital."
Along the way, while I was walking around and checking out the prices of merchandise in the stores and street stalls, the number of people around me that were whispering and pointing at me gradually increased. Thanks to my superior hearing, I was able to hear them without doing anything. Still, I used 【Wiretapping】 to get rid of the noise so I could clearly hear their voices. According to what I'm hearing, it seems that they're saying the following...
『Look. That’s the trump card I’ve heard from the stories.』
『His skills are the real deal. At the beginning of his fight, I saw him instantly kill a Jadar Wyvern in the arena. That guy is amazing.』
『Haa haa. Amazing, real one, the real one, it’s the real one! Buhaa!!』
Looks like most of them were present during my fight in the arena. It seems that they were whispering about my active role as a member of the Tomboy Princess’s camp during the coup d’état. On top of that, there were some men and women, both young and old, that had an atmosphere similar to that of the First Queen and Dark Hero. Many of them were acting like they were praying to the Gods, but they weren't the worst kind.
I was troubled by the number of people gazing at me with bloodshot eyes and flushed cheeks. They had the same ecstatic smile as the First Queen. This is troublesome. Their eyes seem to hold some sort of physical power and I couldn't help but shiver from the chills running down my spine. If this was a battle, I'm certain that I could instantly kill them. However, since I'm in town, I can't do anything because they are simply staring at me.
Religious fanatics are truly scary. For me, my compatibility with this sort of situation is far worse than it is with thieves and military forces. Thanks to the stress, my shoulders became stiff. Since my mood had soured, I quickly bought a bunch of barbecued chicken from a stall before leaving for the mansion.
However, I could sense a large number of stalkers following behind me, so I decided to advance by jumping on the rooftops. As I expected, they weren't able to do anything. I heard what sounded like regretful sighs, but I ignored them. I would just become more depressed if I took notice of them.
In this way, I finally arrived at the mansion located on the border between the Nobles and Castle Districts. Kanami-chan was waiting for me, and I proceeded to hug her tightly. Not knowing the situation that had occurred, she grumbled a bit as she buried her face in my chest. Looking at her arms, although slender, they had a constricting strength that was similar to heavy machinery.
While it's not really a problem for me, for others, she would break all of their bones, cause their internal organs to rupture, blood to flow out of their mouths, she may even end up splitting their body in two. No, I’m pretty sure Kanami-chan wouldn’t go that far. She shouldn't have any problems keeping her strength in check. Still, she probably has enough strength to crush boulders with ease.
Although she panicked for a moment, since this is a habit that should be mended, I chided her. Even though she was shaking her head out of embarrassment, I refused to let her go, and she gradually calmed down as I stroked her hair. When I finally let her go, she let out a sigh of relief, but I guess that was inevitable.
Redhead was standing behind the rampaging Kanami-chan with a bitter smile on her face. Auro and Argento were with them as well, and they were looking at Kanami-chan with envy. Together, they all smiled at me and greeted me, saying 『Welcome back』. It was a bit embarrassing, but I answered back with『I’m back』.
Now then, after coming home I decided to immediately begin the mansion's renovations. First, I planned to make two of the guest rooms on the first floor into part of the shop, so I began my expansion of the shop area there.
I kept tampering with the place until nothing was left untouched. Some of the extra walls were demolished or expanded as well, all in order to accommodate the interior's design. The question now is what kind of shop should we set up in the guest rooms.
There are many things that we can do. I'm considering buying and selling the clothes made by the leprechauns and the girls, led by Kanami-chan, have based their design around their accumulated experiences from the oil massages given at the ≪Parabellum Hot Springs≫.
While we have yet to decide which plan we'll go with, I personally think that a Stone Sauna would be quite popular with the nobles of the Royal Capital. I intend to take into account how the place should look, as well. Since we've already got a rough idea on what we'll go with, I'll have to make some small adjustments later as we continue to work as we planned.
Using my connections with the Tomboy Princess, I was able to employ famous and skilled craftsmen in the Royal Capital. Because of that, the renovations should be finished faster than it would normally take.
Still, in order to shorten the work period even more, I decided to mobilize many of our group members that have dexterous fingers.
By increasing our manpower and giving them work training, it’s like killing two birds with one stone. Or rather, since both the cost and time needed are also reduced, maybe I should say that it’s killing four birds with one stone. Be that as it may, it should still take a few days to complete the remodeling of the first floor into a shop.
In the afternoon, I was diligently processing lumber as I thought about how to display the merchandise that will be lined up in the future. Being able to make items was surprising by itself, but I was also able to learn how to make new items by watching others, thanks to【Job - Craftsman】and the recently obtained【Demigod of Shaping’s Divine Protection】. Because the best of the best had gathered here, I was able to learn things just by observing them.
Since I noticeably improved as we continued, I became motivated and made various items with considerable speed. One craftsman, specifically a man in his 50’s that was managing the other craftsmen, seemed to look at me in high regards. Even though it’s only been a short time, he is now teaching me techniques that he'd normally only teach his disciples.
The foreman has a blunt way of speaking, but his method of teaching was precise and easy to understand. Thanks to my abilities, I was able to easily learn the techniques just by observing him.
After finishing an item according to his teachings, he looked pleased and nodded with some satisfaction. Because he has a strict personality, it's said that even his own disciples rarely get such a reaction. Looking at me as I learned what the foreman was teaching me, one of his disciples in their thirties had an expression of astonishment stuck on their face.
I was grateful for the techniques I absorbed from the foreman, so I decided to show my gratitude by treating him to some elven wine after our work was finished in the evening. While we were at it, I held a party in the garden area that we had gathered in. I had the butlers and maids that were still working in the mansion join us, as well.
I was primarily in charge of cooking the dishes we served at the party. Since it was being held outdoors, I thought that barbecuing Black Fomorian meat and vegetables from our ≪Farmlands≫ would be appropriate.
I burned some charcoal that was made from lumber we had gathered in the Kuuderun Great Forest before placing a large volume of food on top of a huge wire mesh. After thoroughly enjoying it myself, the Yakisoba that I prepared and arranged on an iron plate was pretty popular.
Because a considerable amount of food was made at one time, it wasn't really that time consuming to prepare enough for everyone at the party. However, since Auro loves cooking and there was a lot of people there, she was helping cook the food beside me.
With the parent and child’s teamwork, there was enough food for everyone, even though there are some who were greedily devouring the food. Making everything myself was well worth it. As for the party itself, I think it was a success.
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Category:Novel
Category:Re:Monster Volume 5