We made our way out of the dungeon through an entrance held by the academy without incident. The eagle drew plenty of attention from the guards and passers-by, but we ignored them as we exited the outpost.
“Okay, now that we’re out, we should figure out what we’ve got to do next. We’ve got a few tasks to finish before we register at the adventurer’s guild.” Nisos said.
Jezibel was the first to respond.
“I am going straight to the Beast-Tamer’s guild to figure out how to handle Yasha’s egg. I can’t afford to make any mistakes, so I’m going to get expert advice there.”
“My evolution made my clothes and armor no longer fit comfortably with my wings. Since Kiara’s generously sharing monster materials, I don’t need to worry about armor, but I still need to get regular clothes.” Ati said.
“Well, I am not dragging this carcass with me all the way through town until everyone is done with their chores. I need to go somewhere that can turn the body into crafting materials before its condition degrades.” I shrugged.
“There’s no need for all of us to go to the same location at the same time. We can split up, get things done, then group up again. I’ll go and return the camping equipment we got, and you guys can do your own thing. Let’s meet at the guild in town within an hour or two, alright?” Nisos said, and no one objected.
The other three split up with us, each going to deal with their own chores, leaving me with Nicotris and the carcass.
“Well, what are you waiting for? Let’s get going.” She said.
“Huh? Why are you coming with me?”
“I’ve nothing else to do and the others don’t need my help with their tasks, unlike you. You don’t know where to go to butcher the eagle, right?”
“Of course I do!”
“Then do tell.”
“Uhh… The butcher?”
“That’s what I thought. No, you can’t go to a common butcher who handles chickens and cows and expect them to deal with a monster from the third layer. Now, how much do you need to pay and where are you getting the money from?”
“…I’ll pay the person in charge with some of the monster materials.”
A dumbfounded expression colored her face. Then it was followed by a look of horror, which she quickly schooled into a flawless neutral mask.
“Kiara.”
“Yes?” I smiled innocently.
“What is the name of the currency we use in the four nations ruled by the gods?”
“Gold coins…?”
The noble buried her face in her hands.
***
“Are you listening to me?” Nico asked.
“Yeah, yeah. Ten copper shekels make a silver shekel, ten silver shekels make a gold shekel, and ten gold shekels make a platinum shekel. Everyone buys and sells in shekels because it’s the Tyrian currency. Since Tyr rules the sea, they by extension rule trade as well. Did I miss anything?”
We were walking in the town located in the middle of the Serpent’s Throat, where the headquarters of the guild is located. Nicotris was forcing me to memorize a bunch of things she said everyone should know.
“Alright. Now, where are we going to get the eagle butchered?”
“The adventurer’s guild because they have monster processing specialists.”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“And how much do you pay for a monster’s processing?”
“A copper shekel for rank F monsters, five copper shekels for a rank E monster, a silver shekel for rank D monster, and so on until you reach five gold shekels for a rank A monster. Alternatively, you can pay with ten percent of the monster’s materials, starting with the most valuable parts – though that is an atrocious deal because you can always make more money through other means, but killing rank A monsters isn’t that simple. Not to mention that you can auction the materials for a better price than the guild offers. Can we stop with the questions already? I am not stupid!”
“You could’ve fooled me.”
I glared at her but failed to get any reaction.
“We almost made it to the guild. Keep staring at me instead of the road and you’ll run into something and embarrass yourself.”
“Yeah, sure, whatever. Anyway, we’re not just going to stare at the wall until the others come back to the guild, right?”
“No, we aren’t. We’ve got to set up a bank account for you, have lunch, and go shopping for clothes after that. You’ve been wearing the same leather armor for months and it’s embarrassing being seen within a ten-kilometer radius of you.”
“Hey! That was uncalled for!”
Nicotris raised an eyebrow.
“Am I wrong?”
“…You don’t have to be so rude about it, jeez!”
“Giving me lip, are you? What’s the name of the town we’re in, and who’s in charge of it?”
“Urk…”
“That’s better. Anyway, that was a trick question since everyone just calls it ‘the town’ in their own language. It’s only a little more permanent than the other outposts, having been demolished countless times by emerging monster hordes, so people just gave up on naming it. It keeps getting built back up anyway, since delving into the abyss is too lucrative for people to let go of it. The adventurer’s guild is in charge of the town, and the five nations let them call the shots because they pledged neutrality and because the only people who come here are adventurers and those who sell them goods and services.”
“Okay, okay, enough lectures! I am not going to memorize everything if you keep dumping it on me like that!”
She clicked her tongue.
“Lucky you, we made it to the guild’s front door. No more lectures.”
I turned away from her and took in a massive, hundred meter wide, fifty meter long, five story stone colossus of a building. I was gobsmacked.
“What the hell?! How did I not notice a building this big?!”
“That’s because you were too busy arguing back at me – and because nearby buildings are deceptively taller than you’re assuming. Anyway, be on your guard; the guild doesn’t get involved in conflicts between adventurers unless it gets someone killed, so there’s no telling what’ll happen when a rank A monster’s carcass is dangled in front of them.”
For the first time since we got out of the dungeon, I grinned and cracked my knuckles.
“Well, any idiot who thinks they can steal my kill is in for a world of hurt!”
“It was my kill; you just assisted me.”
“Shut up, Nico.”
***
We opened one of the tiny, saloon doors to the massive lobby on the first floor as we walked in. In contrast to the barren, gray wasteland that was the Serpent’s Throat, the inside of the lobby looked like it was made of wooden planks, much like an inn on the continent and in contrast with its stone exterior. The table to the receptionists was also like that of an innkeeper, except it happened to be the longest one I’d laid my eyes on. There were many booths on the table and, though most of them were currently unmanned by anyone, there was still an army of staff facing lines of adventurers and running around doors carrying papers and documents.
In front of the receptionist table were a whole bunch of round tables with wooden chairs around them, as plenty of parties sat around to talk, drink, and laugh. It was a pretty boisterous place.
Nico walked ahead and I followed, dragging the carcass with me as it attracted a few glances from nearby adventurers. The whispers soon spread like wildfire, and by the time we made it in line to one of the booths, just about everyone was staring at us.
Nico was expressionless as always, though I did notice her giving casual glances around. She was probably looking to see if anyone was a threat. Seeing her disregard the adventurers’ looks, I did the same, though it soon become apparent that others were not so willing to ignore us in return. Someone put a hand on my shoulder and started to talk behind me.
“Hey there, girlies! I don’t know which brute forced you to drag it here and get it butchered for him, but you don’t have to worry about it anymore! You can just hand it over to a gentleman like me to deal with and forget all about it. Really, I insist.”
I turned around to take a look at the speaker. It was some strange young man wearing some pretty shoddy gear. A quick use of appraisal confirmed my suspicions.
[Human Lv. 2 – Apprentice Warrior Lv. 13]
The young man gave me an ugly smile which was echoed by a bunch of groupies behind him.
[Human Lv. 3 – Petty Thief Lv. 8]
[Ratman Lv. 4 – Beginner Earth Mage Lv. 12]
[Human Lv. 1 – Deacon of Katu Lv. 9]
The man put his other hand on the eagle and an ugly, possessive fury burned in me.
“Don’t kill or cripple them. Anything short of that is fine.” Nico said behind me.
My brow twitched as the veins on my temple strained further.
If these morons want a beating so badly, I’ll be happy to oblige them.