"Why... are we here again?"

My back ached from the rough sleep I had last night. Sleeping on that bench wasn't worth it, to be honest.

"You're here with me since you should pick out a sword you're comfortable with."

I let out a groan while I rubbed my lower back. Zel didn't seem to mind, in fact, she was too busy looking around us that she probably didn't even hear me grumbling to myself.

To be honest, I was thinking of going out into the forest today to collecting some herbs to make some quick cash but Zel told me to wait for her near the guild. Now here I am, still wearing the clothes I wore yesterday, going out to buy some gear for a quest later.

It was just the two of us at the moment, probably because Olivia is still hungover.

Wheels creaked as a carriage passed by us, a strange sight to see back on Earth but a normal one in this world. I could hear the busy sounds of people filling their stalls and stores with goods, the shouts of vendors and clerks selling their items, and people haggling with them.

Despite being in a fantasy world, it all felt so munda-

Holy shit.

"Oh! A-Animal ears! Those are animal ears, aren't they?"

"Yes.... Have you never seen a Beastman before?"

"Not really. There aren't any in my country."

A girl with cat ears and a tail passed us by but not before giving a curt smile and a nod at Zel. The knight beside me simply waved before walking forward as if something amazing didn't just happen.

"Sooo cute."

I said with a long sigh.

"You're a strange one, aren't you?"

Zel chuckled while we continued walking at roughly the same pace as each other. 

The town is basically a typical, fantasy town with Elves, Dwarves, people with animal ears or is part animal, all kinds of people like that were just walking around.

There is an Elf in a bakery, a Dwarf is fixing a shop's sign to my left, and a dogman is buying apples from a Human. It was like walking through a videogame!

Holy shit, I feel like a kid!

"This is the first time I've ever seen someone this excited about Lorren."

"Well, towns in my country... didn't look like this to be honest."

A curious look filled her crimson eyes while she looked at me. 

"If possible, I'd like to know more about the place you came from. For now, let's focus on suiting you up."

A door slowly creaked open as Zel pushed it open. Immediately, the smell of smoke and dust assaulted my nose.

Looking around, I could see armor and swords hanging precariously everywhere while a tired looking Dwarf smoked a pipe with his feet up on the counter. He stroked his red beard with his gloved hand as he looked up at the people entering his empty shop.

"Hoooh..."

He puffed out a cloud of gray smoke while Zel and I approached.

"Haven't seen you for a while. WHo's the guy? Ya' boyfriend?"

"Ahaha. Good morning to you as well, Freir. Arthur, this bloated piece of coal over here is Frier."

Zel smiled while she shot a glare at the Dwarf. 

"Mornin' lad. I'm assumin' you're looking to equip yourself?"

The Dwarf put away his smoking pipe and stood up from his chair.

"He doesn't look like he's from around this part of the world. An Imperial refugee?"

My nose was immeditely filled with the strong smell of smoke as he brought his face close to mine.

"No, he's not. I think he's from further away."

"Ahhh... Anyways, why are you here this early? Shop's not open for 'nother hour or so!"

"Just help him pick a weapon he's comfortable in. I've got the money to pay upfront."

"Money's not the issue here, lass! It's me nap! Anyways, what's yer class, boy?"

"Class?"

My confused ass looked at the Dwarf while he stood there with a surprised and confused frown.

"Oi, don't tell me you still haven't registered as an Adventurer! Zel! What's the matter with you? Bringing me-"

"He wants to be a Swordsman for my party. I want to test him if he has the capacity to do so."

Zel folded her arms while she looked at me as well.

"Our agreement was that I'd join your party for one quest and one quest only!"

A deep sigh left my mouth while I scratched the back of my head in irritation. Freir stroked his beard with a scowl on his face while he looked at Zel.

"You vile woman. Stop trying to trick people into joining your idiotic group!"

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"I didn't trick him. We made a deal, an agreement!"

"Really?! Boy! W-What deal did you make with this lass?! You better not join their par- Ow! Ow! Ow!"

The Dwarf yelped in pain while Zel grabbed him by the beard in a tight vice. After a while, she released him from her grip.

"Anyways, give this boy a sword."

"Tch, fine! Boy, come 'ere! How in the 9 Hells will I equip someone who doesn't even have a class yet?"

Freir grumbled angrily while the two of us looked at the various swords strewn about everywhere. 

"You got any experience in wielding a blade?"

"Nope. Never held one."

I could hear Freir breathing furiously as he picked out some swords for me.

The pile of swords in front of us was caked in dust and spiderwebs. Freir groaned as he knelt down, cursing as he did so. He scratched his chin while the two of us picked out a sword from this rusty and dusty pile. 

None of the weapons really stood out to me, to be honest. The longsword felt too long for me, I'm not really comfortable with daggers, and the shortswords looked like they were about to break on the next swing. To be honest, they all looked like that beginner weapon every newbie is given at the start of the game.

I was about to reach for a rusty longsword when I noticed a something lying near me.

"Oi, what's that one over there?"

Everyone in the room looked not at the pile before us, but at the shortsword beside it.

It looked brand new yet its edge is dull and chipped. The handle's made out of old leather and it didn't really have any anything special on it. No magic runes, no beautiful etchings, nothing special really. It looked and felt like any regular sword but for some reason, I felt drawn to it.

"Haven't seen that one before. Did I even make that?"

"Well, it looks good to me!"

Immediately, I reached for the sword and examined it.

"Thought it was gonna be heavy! It feels just like a stick to be honest!" 

Before I started swinging like the idiot I am, I immediately stopped myself from doing so. 

I almost forgot that I wasn't in a videogame.

"That blade doesn't look like Dwarf or Elven made."

Zel muttered out as she took a close look at the sword.

"Human weapons aren't this cheaply made either! Who left this thing, I wonder?"

You know, trash or not, it doesn't really matter. It just need something to help me practice using a sword.

Freir, on the other hand, looked pretty pissed at the sword I was holding. I think even Zel was pretty uncomfortable with the sword I chose.

She looked like my sister when she found out I bought an eroge on my Steam account with the money she lent me.

"My apprentice probably tried to hide his failure with the goods. I'll give him a stern talking to tomorrow. For now, let's focus on getting you suited up."

The Dwarf grunted as he got up on his feet.

"But with a body like this-"

The wind in my lungs was knocked out when Freir decided to give me a firm, slap on the back. He chuckled as I gasped for breath.

"He'll need light armor. I mean, just look at his frame! He's so scrawny!"

"Y-Yeah... No need to point that out. Haven't exactly been doing some heavy lifting at my house."

The Dwarf laughed at my retort as he walked over to a set of armor hanging on the wall.

"This might fit ya. It ain't really good armor, but it'll do."

"Freir, please don't dump your failed works on Arthur here."

Zel sighed out as she walked over to me. Freir just laughed as he sized up the chestplate against me.

"It'll fit! Arms up, boy!"

"S-Sure..."

It felt cold. Hard, cold and tight to be precise. But it wasn't hard to move in at all, I could even move my shoulders pretty freely even with this piece of metal on top of my chest.

The buckle at the sides and at the buck sucks though. Its chaffing my skin.

"I'll throw in the gauntlet, the greaves, and a small shield as well. It might look good on the lad over here!"

The Dwarf let out a hearty laugh while Zel shook her head in dismay.

"Stop throwing your trash onto my hands, Freir.  Last time I was here, you sold a set of knives to Jin that was one use only."

"Then who's gonna take care of those stuff? Anyway, the armor here ain't that bad! It could probably take a few hits or so from some goblins and some green-skins before it needs to be thrown out."

That... was worrying.

"Haaaaah... If you weren't so damn irresponsible and... this! You'd probably be working at the capital right now. Fine, how much is the cost?"

Zel pulled out a small pouch that jingled with the sound of heavy coins.

"I worked there, actually. Didn't really like the attitude of them better off youths! Just cause you killed a Dragon or an undead doesn't mean you're some noble or some hero."

He grumbled out as he dragged himself to his counter. The chair creaked and groaned under his weight as he looked at me.

"Armor, sword, shield... I'll throw ya' a discount for the sword and shield. 2,000 Weis will suffice... Eh, fuck it. Let's make it 1,500 Weis since I'm feelin' generous today."

Zel pulled out a few silver pieces and tossed it at the Dwarf.

"Pleasure-"

"Clean the damn place first before you start greeting me like a customer! And open up the shop already, every shop around is already open, you're the only one that's still closed."

Zel stormed out of the place angrily as I followed after her. Freir chuckled behind us as he stored away the silver coins into his pocket.

"Buy the boy some nice clothes as well!"

I closed the door behind us while Zel muttered angrily under her breath.

----------------------------------------

"Feels odd."

I said as I moved my shoulders a bit to loosen up the fabric.

"Is it not your size?"

She looked at me with her red eyes as she asked in a concerned tone.

"N-No. It fits pretty well. It's just that the fabric in the place that I came from is pretty soft."

She glanced at the uniform tucked away in the bag that I'm holding. Particularly...

"That undershirt of yours is cotton, correct?"

"Y-Yeah... What about it?"

She paused for a long moment before asking me a question.

"Are you a merchant's son by any chance?"

"Not at all. Sure, my family's well off... But we're not rich."

Zel nodded as she listened intently. 

"Well, I still hope that the clothes I bought were to your liking. No one likes an uncomfortable shirt!"

Her kind and energetic smile made me blush a little. For some reason, she reminds me of that energetic class president of mine. Most likely, it's probably her charismatic charm.

The clothes she bought for me are supposed to be standard adventurer's clothes. Supposedly, it should help me move a lot more freely and without any restrictions. Well, I've got to admit, it is easier to move around in this compared to my uniform.

We also picked up a brown cloak for me so that I could finally return the one Maria lent me. It felt heavy, but it was the one that offered the most protection against arrows and projectiles. 

I caught a glimpse of myself on a store's window. I looked like an Adventurer from one of the many isekai animes that I always watched. 

Except I'm not really cut out to be an Adventurer.

"All that's left is too register you as an Adventurer and I could teach you some of my skills!"

"Yeah... Register. Zel, you sure you're okay with buying all this for me?"

I still feel bad for basically leeching off of this girl. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for the help she's given me, but I still feel that I should repay her somehow.

Zel, with a sly smile, wrapped her arms around me and said;

"My party is always getting the short end of the stick when it comes to quests and bounties. How am I supposed to pass up an oppurtunity to gather much needed help when the oppurtunity is right in front of me?"

She had that charismatic and energetic tone once more, but I could also pick up notes of selfishness as well.

"F-Fine... Anyways, I'll just have to join you for a quest and I could go my seperate way, right?"

I said softly as we approached the Adventurer's Guild.

Zel simply smiled, a kind smile this time, and nodded.

"You have my word. But Arthur..."

I looked up at her as we entered through the door. 

There was a sad look in her eyes as she stared at me with her bright, crimson eyes.

"If you were to become successful in the future, would you consider inviting us to your party?"

She had that genuine and kind tone in her voice as she asked that question.

I scoffed at her before saying my reply. 

"If I ever become successful. I'll probably have you tag along with me."

A deep, red blush ran across my face as I said that. I could hear Zel giggling as she walked beside me.

"I'm sure you'd become a succesful adventurer one day, Arthur."

Her kind voice made me smile a bit as we finally reached the reception desk.