Affinity Farming 3

Contrary to Grace's sky-high expectations, the territory of Colmar County didn't have much worth seeing. Any mage, alchemist, or blacksmith worth their salt would have long since packed up and left for the Mage's City three days away. Just as people head to the capital and horses to the pastures, around here anyone looking to make real money set their sights on the Adventurer's City.

Even so, Grace seemed perfectly content, beaming at my side the whole time. She linked arms with me as we wandered the market, snacking on street food. The idea of a medieval European market selling chicken skewers and tornado potatoes was pretty absurd, but whatever.

The camera trailing us the entire way was a mild annoyance, but all in all, it had been a pretty successful date. Her smile never once left her face while we grazed on snacks and bought cheap bracelets.

"Come to think of it, where are we supposed to meet up?"

"Oh, right. We never set a meeting spot. Should we head to the Temple?"

We hadn't decided on a rendezvous point, but I wasn't particularly worried. Just as our short market date was wrapping up and the sun was starting to dip, a familiar voice called out from behind us. They'd been tracking us with the camera drone, so of course they'd "coincidentally" find us.

"Ah, there they are."

"Roland! Grace!"

Sure enough, the rest of the party popped out from the far end of the street just as we were leaving the market, having clearly been watching us through the camera. They claimed they'd visited the Temple and then come looking for us along the market street, joining up as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

With everyone gathered, we headed for the inn the coachman had recommended. Nothing spectacular, but supposedly the cleanest and most expensive place around. When a rural village coachman called something expensive, though, it was still just a business catering to commoners.

We settled into the inn's moderately busy hall, tossed the leftover coins from our market snacking as a tip to the little kid who came scurrying over, and ordered food.

"Apparently the Temple has a carriage leaving for the Adventurer's City tomorrow morning. We can just hop on that."

"Nice timing."

We talked over steaming sausages, slicing into them as we ate. Of course, whenever the camera wasn't pointed at me, I snuck a glance at the chat window. Setting aside my date with Grace, it looked like Han Se-ah had been working on Irene.

Not "working on" in any handsy, physical sense, of course. As the viewers spamming chat kept insisting, a simple LIKE-level affinity was more than enough to keep a party member from walking away.

Whether it was the promise of success as an adventurer, the appeal of a cold beer after a hard day's work, or the chance to grind hard and build up a retirement nest egg — that level of goodwill, plus a working relationship that didn't involve grabbing each other by the collar, was plenty. Or so the consensus went.

I chewed my sausage and side-eyed the chat while watching Irene and Han Se-ah sitting closer than usual. Looks like I was lower on the priority list — I'd been the one to approach her first out of genuine interest, after all.

Roland's planning to recruit a mage and get back to adventuring, so he's not going anywhere. Stick Grace next to Roland and focus on building a solid relationship with Irene. She's kind and loves taking care of people, so once she gets attached, she won't leave. Something along those lines seemed to be running through her head.

People really can be transparent sometimes.

Was there anyone the phrase "I can see right through you" fit better? Not that her motives were sinister enough to put me off — if anything, paired with ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her looks, it came off as oddly charming. She never would have made it as a streamer if she were genuinely unlikable.

After the meal, we booked five of the most expensive single rooms out of consideration for Kayden, who was still cross-dressing as a man. Irene seemed a little flustered by the extravagance, but once Han Se-ah — who needed to log out — and Kayden in his male disguise both accepted without complaint, she was more or less swept along and disappeared upstairs.

We spent the night at the inn, took a carriage back, camped along the way, returned to the city, and rested for a full day. The next morning, I fully expected our usual Tower-exploration routine to resume —

"What the hell? Why are you all still here?"

"Got a problem, punk?"

Familiar faces I rarely got to see were all gathered in one place.

It went without saying that after ten years in the Adventurer's City, I had quite a few acquaintances. People like Elise from the Guild and Rebecca from the mercenary company — connections that had formed naturally over years of climbing the Tower, completing commissions, and making money.

And it also went without saying that most of the people I knew were up in the higher floors. They'd be hard at work hunting monsters in the safe zones on the 30th and 40th Floors, or on the front lines of the 43rd. So while I knew plenty of people, there was almost no one around to actually meet. That was Roland's social life in a nutshell.

Or at least, it should have been…

Rebecca came charging over with her blazing red hair whipping behind her like a beast's mane and slammed a fist into my back with a solid thwack. The rest of the party's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠eyes went wide at her sudden appearance. Kayden, who'd once been part of Rebecca's mercenary company, visibly shrank into himself.

"Still not using that brain of yours, huh. Hey, dumbass — you think I came down alone just to gawk when something like a Gate shows up?"

"Everyone cleaned up so nice I barely recognized them."

"Feels damn good washing the grime off for once."

Rebecca cackled and jerked her thumb over her shoulder. A crowd of novice adventurers was packed around a table, gawking — not at the commission board, but at the people sitting there. And at that table sat a whole bunch of faces that were somehow familiar yet hard to place.

…Which meant most of my acquaintances had gotten stars slapped on them.

"Looking sharp there, old man. Been eating well all by yourself?"

"Look who's talking — those wrinkles all smoothed out. You pick something up in the Tower?"

Sitting at the table, chuckling away, were a silver-and-white-haired old warrior with a magnificent snow-white beard and an elderly mage whose every hair had gone pure white. Both the gray-haired man and the white-haired mage radiated a distinguished elegance that could only be described as peak elderly cool.

Of course, none of the old men I actually knew had ever been that handsome. I was just piecing it together from distinctive scars, gear, and speech patterns. They'd evolved from neighborhood mineral-spring grandpas into silver-fox models, and the stars they'd picked up must have been just as flashy, judging by how the viewers were losing their minds.

"A bunch of heavy-assed old-timers all come down together just to find me? Shouldn't you be heading to the Magic Tower?"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"My ass is pretty big and heavy, yeah. Rock solid, too."

"Ugh, you vulgar woman."

Rebecca slid into the conversation like she belonged there, and the novice adventurers' eyes sparkled like fans who'd just spotted celebrities. As people started joining the table one or two at a time, they couldn't even hide their gasps of awe.

Han Se-ah and I were watching the spectacle when a woman lounging in her chair waved me over.

"Roland? What are you doing over there?"

"What does it look like? Sightseeing. First thing in the morning and every face I know is sitting in one place."

"Yeah, well — everyone lost their minds and came charging down."

A beauty with downturned eyes that gave her a gentle, puppy-idol look. I didn't remember any beauty like this, but the distinctive gear made her instantly recognizable. A long spear that stood taller than a person even at an angle — among everyone I knew, only one person used a weapon like that.

Lily Depp. Born a young lady of a minor noble house, she'd grabbed a spear and run away from home rather than accept an arranged marriage.

"Oh, is that your party next to you? You kept singing about magic tools this and magic tools that, and you finally got yourself a mage. Planning to climb all the way?"

"Yeah. Taking her up to the 43rd Floor."

"By the time you get up there, I'll probably be around the 45th."

The glow-up was secondary — we'd been pretty close back in the Tower, so we fell into easy conversation. Then a soft hand slipped around my arm. Grace had appeared at my side without me noticing, linking arms and leaning into me like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Before I could even go uh, uh?, the two of them had already started talking.

"And you are… also Roland's party member?"

"Yes. I ran into Roland in the Tower, asked him to take me into his party, and he accepted right away."

"Well, a scout is essential for Tower work."

"Yes, I am essential. To Roland, that is."

Both of them were smiling sweetly, but the air around us suddenly felt several degrees colder. Even with Grace pressed so close I could feel the soft warmth of her arm against mine, I found myself shivering.

I wasn't some old-school shonen romance comedy protagonist — I wasn't about to pretend I hadn't just heard a favorability declaration that blatant.

The problem was the audience. From the Adventurer Guild Master to a high-ranking Magic Tower mage, a well-connected back-alley operator, and a mercenary company captain — this mixed crowd of heavyweights had started watching me like a bunch of aunties glued to a soap opera.

"Kid goes down the Tower and starts cashing in on that face of his."

"He already poached people from our side, and now he's snatching other parties' members too? No wonder intel on him was selling expensive."

"Really? Never thought I'd hear the word 'expensive' come out of an Information Guild agent's mouth."

"Servants from noble houses keep coming around asking about him. Guess a lot of lonely ladies out there with empty ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠nights."

Smith grinned and cracked wise, and the old men — who'd been bickering moments ago — turned to look at me and started snickering. Getting turned into gacha characters had erased their wrinkles, and apparently their dignity and decorum had gotten wiped right along with them.

And of course, those old men weren't the only ones laughing at my expense. Stuck between two women and looking thoroughly domesticated, I must have been quite the sight — the chat started pouring out every take imaginable.

The one who neatly cleaned up this entire mess was Rebecca, who'd been face-down on the table cackling.

"Hey! I'll grab you a room so the three of you can go have a proper free-for-all! Or I know an inn with real nice beds — wanna make it a four-way?"

"…No. We really can't put off the Gate-related meeting any longer."

"Roland, I've already checked a few commissions for you, so you should be fine heading straight for the Gate for a while."

Two sweet-faced beauties locked in a staring contest didn't stand a chance once a genuine maniac barged in — the tension dissolved on its own. Who'd have thought Rebecca's beastly nature would actually come in handy one day.