Chapter 14
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: 3. Gathering Our Own Materials
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“Today, huh.”
The Adventurer Academy instructor, Suiven Rosu.
She had short, orange hair like a beautiful sunset at dusk and piercing green eyes full of spirit.
Her sharp features put her squarely in the beauty category.
Yet even as a woman, she boasted a massive build that had to be nearly 180 cm tall.
A former A-Rank Adventurer, she had been an outstanding frontline tank.
“Haa.”
For some reason, she let out a deep sigh tinged with regret.
“Instructor Suiven. Is something wrong?”
A female student in academy uniform approached the counter with a single Healing Potion in hand and asked.
“Oh? No... it's nothing.”
She shook her head and rang up the Healing Potion the student had brought.
That's right.
This was the general store inside the academy.
It doubled as a guidance spot where students could buy consumables needed for their adventurer training.
And Suiven had been temporarily running the place ever since the previous owner, an old grandfather, retired.
They couldn't just close it down until they found a replacement, so for now, they'd assigned a teacher to keep it open.
Any veteran adventurer would know the ins and outs of consumables—how to use them, precautions, and so on.
All they had to do was sell them at the right price and share that knowledge with students, so stationing one academy teacher temporarily made sense.
...That's what everyone thought at first.
But... placing orders for low-stock items, negotiating with alchemists, haggling over prices, and more.
Running the shop involved far more considerations than expected.
One slip-up could saddle the academy with losses and impact its finances big time.
So why had they entrusted the general store to Suiven?
Nothing special.
Before she discovered her talent and became an adventurer, she'd been an aspiring merchant.
Compared to the others—who'd only ever sold monster byproducts or Magic Stones at the Adventurer Guild—she at least had some formal training.
But in the end, as a mere aspiring merchant with brief past experience, she wasn't worlds better than the other teachers.
“No, this wasn't the price before...”
“Hey now, newbie. You wouldn't know, but raw material costs have shot up. Labor costs too. Haven't you seen the empire's economy lately?”
“......”
Facing battle-hardened alchemists who'd dealt with countless merchants, she was bound to get outmatched.
Naturally, the shop was taking bigger losses than under the old owner's watch.
In light of this mess, Director Mureos had gone ahead and hired an alchemist this time—one who could produce items in-house.
And today was the day that successor was arriving.
After a briefing on academy rules, they'd head straight here.
It's a shame.
Running the shop wasn't easy.
She'd worn the dunce cap for mistakes, botched orders, and gotten an earful from the finance staff about fund management.
But personally, Suiven had loved it.
Her talent had made her an A-Rank Adventurer tank, but deep down, she'd always dreamed of being a merchant.
It was tough... but fun.
That's why the regret hit so hard.
Once she handed things over to the newcomer, it was all over.
Back to teaching frontline position students, just like before.
“Hello.”
Then, it finally arrived.
“Ah, hello.”
Suiven stood from the counter and greeted the newcomer.
He wasn't wearing the academy uniform, and she had no recollection of seeing him around campus.
New teachers or rookie guards wouldn't need to come here.
Which means... he's the replacement.
Slim build, a bit shorter than her own 180 cm or so.
But he looked trained enough—not frail by any means.
Guess that's what comes from being a former C-Rank Adventurer.
She already knew some basics about her successor, Edin.
Including his history as a C-Rank Adventurer.
Even if his body seemed decently toned, he was still smaller than her— a woman pushing 180 cm with the sturdy frame of a tank, tougher than most women.
“I'm Edin, here as the new general store manager for the academy. Nice to meet you.”
“Hm...”
Most people who saw Suiven for the first time flinched.
Her pretty face was one thing, but as a woman, her height and size stood out.
Plus, as a former A-Rank Adventurer, her mana and presence were anything but ordinary.
The overwhelming aura unique to top-tier tanks only amplified it.
But Edin didn't bat an eye. He just smiled warmly and greeted her.
Didn't even flinch at the sight of me.
Even with prior info on her, meeting a tank's presence in person usually made folks twitch a little.
Not an ordinary guy. More than your average C-Rank.
It felt familiar.
That level of presence and mana.
Probably grew up around someone who exuded pressure like Suiven... or more.
Someone on par with an A-Rank tank or higher.
“Um...”
Edin tilted his head and spoke to Suiven, who was silently sizing him up.
She'd been staring without responding, which must have seemed odd.
Whoops. Old adventurer habit kicked in...
Observing and assessing others.
Essential for adventurers.
Is this person reliable as a teammate? Can we beat that foe? Is the client setting a trap?
Staring people down to judge became second nature during adventurer days.
Most long-time adventurers did it.
But in everyday life, staring was rude.
Suiven bowed her head in apology right away.
“Ah, sorry about that. Come this way. I'll walk you through the handover.”
“Yes, please do.”
Regret was regret, but Suiven was fundamentally responsible.
She gave Edin the most thorough handover she could.
“You use this like so. Oh, and since you're coming, the director prepared a separate workshop for you. Want to check it out?”
Counter operations, display methods, warehouse location and organization, and more.
After covering shop basics, Suiven led him to the underground workshop.
#
I headed to the general store as directed.
The Adventurer Academy sprawled across an area rivaling a small city.
Classrooms, dorms, and the shopping district were all separate zones.
Naturally, the general store sat in the shopping district.
Tucked alongside restaurants, clothing shops, accessory stores, and the like.
A place where students spent their money.
Academy students got provisional licenses, and they occasionally went out for real quests as class assignments.
A top student could make decent cash that way.
Plus, shops in the academy district offered students rock-bottom prices.
The setup let them blow money on fun stuff.
Well, I hadn't spent much back when I was enrolled.
Anyway, I arrived at the general store.
“Whoa...”
It was huge compared to the other shops.
Two stories tall, and just massively wide.
Like two average shops smashed together.
From outside, it looked two stories, but I'd heard the second floor was the owner's living quarters.
The entire first floor was the store, and the basement served as warehouse.
This was my new home base.
Kind of exciting.
Creeeak—
Shaking off my nerves, I stepped inside.
“Ah, hello.”
A tall woman emerged from behind the counter.
She must be the temporary teacher running the place.
For a woman, she was incredibly tall.
And her sturdy build screamed... tank, probably.
Striking features, beautiful even. And the tight clothes highlighting her form—maybe to show off the muscle?—left nowhere safe to look.
...Someone get her a jacket or something.
Feels awkward.
She'd stared at me mid-inspection like sizing up prey, but that's probably a veteran adventurer tic.
I let it slide and followed her guidance.
“Do it like this here... Oh, and we moved the warehouse over there.”
Hard to focus with her right next to me in those skin-tight sportswear-like clothes emphasizing every curve.
Muscular for a woman, sure, but not bulky like male tanks—just a sexy, toned athlete vibe.
Hm, tried to listen hard... but yeah, concentration slipped. Missed a bit.
...Whatever, I'll pick it up as I go.
Anyway, after the tour.
We headed to the workshop the director had prepped for me last.
They'd shrunk the oversized warehouse to parts of the first floor and basement, converting the rest into workshop space.
“They've stocked the basics and equipment you'll need, but let them know if anything's missing.”
“...Wow.”
She said that, but the vast basement was packed with insane gear.
Leagues beyond my old portable setup.
Even at the Adventurer Guild exam, I'd used something similar to mine, so I'd figured that was standard.
Glass flasks of every type... Gasp?! Those are from the Mailu Republic—world's best in glasswork, right?
Mana-powered semi-permanent lamps needing no fuel, engraved extractors with cooling magic to speed things up, and more.
Stuff you'd usually only see in the Alchemist Guild.
All this... for me?
Must've cost a fortune...
Gratitude for Director Mureos flooded in.
Followed by an even heavier pressure.
...Just how much are they expecting from me?