Research (11)
After our visit to the temple, Sister Mary grew quieter than usual.
"Mary? Are you all right?"
"Y-yes? I-I'm fine."
Given that she had been the one to suggest staying at the temple, she must have been shocked by its condition.
"Julian, I'm sorry."
"Wh-why all of a sudden?"
"I brought up the temple without really knowing the situation..."
"It happens."
She had only ever lived as a nun in the capital and the main temple, so she couldn't have known what other temples were like. Even to my eyes, though, this one was far too small.
"We have plenty of time. Let's look around here and there."
While sightseeing through the city, I sold the leather I had made this time. When I took it to a professional merchant, he was so pleased with its clean condition that he paid a premium for it.
"Seven gold for four sheets of leather—what a windfall."
"Couldn't you have gotten more?"
Maximilian's point had merit.
"If it had been tougher leather, I would have pushed for more myself."
But it was deer hide, so it wasn't as sturdy as I'd hoped. That deer... it had been so enormous I'd thought it was a magical beast, but it wasn't! What a disappointment.
"Where to next?"
"How about the Adventurers' Guild?"
He suggested that if there were any decent requests, we could take them on—earn some money and do a good deed at the same time. I nodded.
"Well, we've got nothing better to do. Shall we?"
The Adventurers' Guild had the same atmosphere no matter the city. Veterans with proven records lounged about, looking for work in a lively, friendly mood.
In contrast, the riffraff who had yet to prove their skills skulked in a gloomy atmosphere, groveling for any job they could find.
It reminded me of a few years ago... when I had been an adventurer on my own.
Since it was hard to take on requests alone, I would approach strangers and propose teaming up, or hang around parties that already had work and try to tag along...
The reactions were... often not good. How often does a party that's already set suddenly decide to add more members? Almost never.
It's a fond memory now, but back then I sometimes wondered why I'd even become an adventurer.
"I wonder if there's anything..."
I checked for available work. Of course there was nothing suitable. Just some minor gossip.
Some noble had harassed a woman... someone had succeeded at something, traces of a dangerous monster had been found nearby, some merchant caravan was hiring escorts.
"No interesting stories."
"Well, of course not."
If it had been a big city like Valdeck, with lots of people, we might have heard more news... but this place wasn't that large.
"I hear an academy delegation is coming soon."
Hmm? Something interesting caught my ear. Curious, I listened in. The story went like this:
Academy students and professors who had attended the exchange meeting at the Metis Church's main temple had finished their schedule and were returning to the academy.
The delegation included many children of high-ranking people, so for extra safety they might hire not only soldiers and knights but also adventurers. If you stood out, it could be a chance to make big money.
"Sounds like a hassle."
The moment the academy came up, Maximilian's expression soured and he called it a hassle.
"A hassle?"
"Yes."
Among nobles there were those who looked down on commoners and didn't even treat them as human, so getting involved was a pain, he said. Not everyone was like that, but there were quite a few...
"Especially the women need to be careful."
Noblewomen, at least, had to manage the household after marriage, so they tended to maintain decent relations with commoners, and bad rumors would hurt them in high society, making them cautious. But the men were different, apparently.
Maximilian leaned in close and spoke in a low voice.
"There are lunatics who brag about how many women they've slept with."
Some types who deluded themselves into thinking they were superior men based on how many women they'd been with...
Well... I suppose nobles vary just like anyone else...
"You wouldn't do that, would you, Maximilian?"
"Me? I'm a knight, so of course not."
He thumped his chest, declaring that protecting ladies was what a knight was for. He seemed to think it made him manly... but to me it just looked cute.
Considering what had happened at the temple and the advice I'd received, getting involved didn't seem wise. Out here it was unlikely anyone would discover I was the Saintess, but better safe than sorry.
"No need to get involved, right?"
"We should be careful."
Maximilian clearly wanted nothing to do with it.
I checked the board for other jobs or eavesdropped on conversations for rumors. It was a bust, and before I knew it, it was time for lunch.
"Let's keep lunch simple."
We went to a shop with a clean open terrace and ordered sandwiches. Though calling them sandwiches didn't capture the feel from my previous life. The bread was a bit hard, and there were no vegetables or sauce—just a big chunk of meat inside. Officially it wasn't even called a sandwich, just "meat bread."
If only it had been one of those soft, harmonious sandwiches from my past life...
And if the drink had been a clean cup of coffee, how wonderful that would have been.
After finishing the sandwich, I drank tea. A tea with a subtle, ambiguous taste and aroma.
Does this world not have coffee? If I ever discover it, I'll definitely spread it far and wide......
Compared to me, who was picking at my food halfheartedly, the others ate well. Times like this, memories of a past life are completely useless, you know?
"The tea is a bit disappointing."
Only Maximilian, who as a noble had probably tasted better things, voiced a slight complaint.
"Yes, the meat bread is decent enough, but the tea is lacking."
We sat on the terrace chatting and passing the time.
"Shall we look around the area tomorrow?"
"Around here?"
"Yes. For alchemy, don't you need various materials? We could gather some."
Since we'd be staying a few days anyway and had nothing else to do, he was offering to help with material collection.
"I'd be grateful if we could."
But even if we were gathering materials, I wasn't sure what to collect. Near the city, magical beasts, monsters, or animals would be hard to find... and herbs might be scarce too......
After lunch we wandered around more places. We checked a general store for decent materials and a bookstore for interesting books....
"Hmm..."
I quietly browsed the books. There were etiquette manuals, illustrated guides, even fairy tales.
Sister Mary, being a believer of the church, was examining books diligently, and Maximilian was looking through them too—but the only one showing no interest in the books was my sister.
"Shall I buy one of these..."
An illustrated field guide.... The latest edition of the one I already had.
"It's a field guide?"
"Yes. With this, even without me, you can gather materials."
Of course, flipping through the book one by one to check and gather was inefficient. Still, with this, even if separated from me, you could get some information.
"It is something I need."
She was the one who had come along to become my assistant. For an assistant, this kind of knowledge was important.
"Ah, if it's the old edition, I have it in my bag..."
"Is that so?"
Well, the latest was better, so I might as well buy one.
After browsing the bookstore for a while, I bought one field guide and left.
"We should look for lodging soon."
"Time has already gotten this late."
I didn't think we'd been in the bookstore that long... but the sun was already setting.
We headed to the area dense with inns before it got any later and looked around for a place to stay. And we were able to get rooms right away. It was an inn of similar quality to the one I'd used when staying in the baron's territory.
Cheap price, decent facilities, a shared bathroom that required a separate fee, and though the quality was lower, you could also get meals—that kind of lodging inn.
It was a bit regrettable that there was no triple room so we had to rent a quadruple, but still, the price per night didn't exceed one gold, so that was fortunate.
Maximilian will live comfortably alone in a single room, right? I'm jealous....
After unpacking, I flopped down on the bed.
"Ah, today was fun."
It was just ordinary sightseeing around the city, yet it was enjoyable. Just yesterday and this morning I'd been in a foul mood from my period, but now I didn't feel any of that at all.
People really are adaptable creatures. Periods? You can get used to them in a day.
Of course the sticky feeling hadn't gone away... but it wasn't enough to make a huge fuss over.
We ate dinner early and came back to the room to read books. I was curious what had changed in the latest field guide, so I read it. Sister Mary said she wanted to read my old edition, so I gave it to her.
Whew, tomorrow I'll try gathering something....
I looked through the field guide for anything that sparked interest.
"Hmm? What's this?"
Sister Mary suddenly reacted strangely, so I looked up.
"Is something wrong?"
"Ah, no, th-this flower?"
In Sister Mary's hand was a well-dried flower.
"That!"
The flower Maximilian had given me.... Something I'd felt was too precious to throw away, so I'd left it pressed between the pages of the book.
"It's the flower Maximilian gave me."
"Is that so..."
Sister Mary looked at it with a disapproving expression before quietly tucking it back between the pages.
Seeing that, a thought suddenly struck me.
I'd only ever received from Maximilian and hadn't done much for him in return....
Aside from giving him ointment last time, I'd really done nothing.
I felt a bit sorry... He was always kind and considerate. On top of that, he took care of food for me....
I'd been careful not to get involved with money issues as much as possible, but still, I'd received a lot of things.
Doesn't this make me a complete bad woman who freeloads off men? A bad woman who sponges off men!
Suddenly my heart pricked and it bothered me.
I felt I should treat Maximilian a bit better from now on......