Chapter 24
Chapter 24
Ch. 24 .｡.:✧ Basel (1) ✧:.｡.
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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Huh?”
[Yoo-jin: 0.02%]
[Known by a small number of people. Very low presence.]
Was it originally 0.02 percent? Did it go up a bit?
‘Well. Same difference.’
A change of a few hundredths of a percent could happen anytime. In the first place, the only ones who knew my name in this world right now were Undecided and myself. It seemed to have risen slightly because Undecided was traveling with me.
If it had jumped up by like 1 percent at a time, I would have been tense, but that wasn’t the case. It was probably nothing.
I turned off the reputation window and raised my head. The scenery that would be a waste to miss would soon unfold.
“Really. No matter how many times I see it, this place is fascinating. Right, Undecided?”
“…Yeah.”
Undecided parted her lips as if reluctantly answering. It was clearly just lip service. And understandably so. The village scenery spreading out before our eyes was cute and pretty, but not particularly fascinating.
At least not yet. The quaint buildings and colorful, lovely roofs. This was Basel, a village renowned for its craftsmanship. Also called the ‘Mirror World’.
Basel was the only dwarven village in the area. That came to be because the craftsmen who first settled here were all dwarves, according to the setting.
“Let’s find an inn first.”
Mana stone processing took quite a long time. Total work time often exceeded 24 hours. It was rare to receive the finished product on the same day, with the next day or the day after that being more common for pickup.
So I could expect to stay here for about two days. It wouldn’t be bad to hit the nearby dungeons during that time.
“Hey. Take off your shoes in advance.”
“…Why?”
“You’ll find out soon.”
Undecided lifted her head in puzzlement, then fumbled to remove her shoes and held them in her hands. I likewise took off my shoes and walked barefoot on the streets.
Reaching the plaza and looking around, everyone was shoeless like us. Many were even wearing shorts or swimsuits.
“Hear that sound?”
“…Hm?”
A swishing noise gradually grew louder from a distance. The sound that revealed this village’s identity. And the sound that explained why this village was also called the ‘Mirror World’.
Soon, water began pooling from the end of the plaza. In an instant, the shallow water rushed over and wet the soles of my feet.
“…Water!”
“Ack!”
However, at that moment, I had to groan as if my neck was being snapped in half from pain. Undecided, who had abruptly shouted ‘water’, stomped on my back and forcibly climbed on top of my head.
Undecided, who tightly gripped my hair as if not caring whether I went bald or not, trembled violently. The body of Undecided, who was always motionless, vibrated intensely like an electric massager.
Dumbfounded for a moment, I asked Undecided cautiously, “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of water?”
“…”
Mirror World. Another name for the City of Water, Basel. This village had a peculiar setting. None other than the fact that it periodically flooded.
Of course, the flood wasn’t anything major. Just enough for the overflowing water to reach ankle-level. The dwarves had put their heads together to try to solve this issue, but quickly gave up.
Not because it was technically impossible. Rather, Basel had started booming as a tourist attraction because of the flooding. The village had grown accustomed to the floods and took on a somewhat unique form as a result.
All the buildings had their foundations raised a level to avoid being submerged, and the chairs at street stalls all had long legs. This exotic appearance that couldn’t be found elsewhere held great appeal as a tourist spot.
When the water rose, the clear blue liquid mixed with minerals would envelop your feet. That transparent surface reflecting the entire cityscape upside down was also a spectacular sight.
The sunset viewed while sipping alcohol at a Basel street stall was absolutely unforgettable. To think you could watch the sun disappear beyond the horizon in this mountain village. It was a scene you could never tire of no matter how many times you saw it.
But why was I…
“But why are you…”
Why was I giving Undecided a piggyback ride? My shoulders were starting to feel sore. However, even when I subtly gave her a look, Undecided just tightly clutched my hair as if it were a lifeline, showing no intention of getting down.
‘Come to think of it, there were signs.’
I had felt something was off. This girl didn’t ask for food even when she was starving to the point of collapse.
She just sat still even when a bandit threatened her with a blade. Her default state was to do nothing, say nothing, and just freeze in place unless I gave her orders.
And yet, back in the dungeon, she had called out to me saying water was dripping on her head. I hadn’t given it much thought then, but looking back now, I realized.
For Undecided, having water fall on her head was an exponentially more urgent situation than being on the brink of starvation.
“Do you hate dipping your feet too?”
“Yeah.”
She promptly gave an immediate answer, forgetting to pause as usual. She seemed fine with water dripping on her head drop by drop, but hated even being touched by flowing water like this. I felt a bit of a playful urge rising.
“Eek!”
“Ow ow.”
When I slightly tilted my body as if to drop her, Undecided sniffled and crawled to the other side. I almost had my hair torn out trying to play a little prank.
I had the impulse to toss Undecided into the water once, but decided against it. Her aversion seemed to go beyond mere dislike, to the point of instinctive fear embedded in her genes, so I had no choice but to keep piggybacking her like this.
“What are you, a rabies patient?”
Was there a setting about blood ghouls being afraid of water? I had never even encountered a blood ghoul in all 12 regressions, so there was no way for me to know. Come to think of it, Undecided only drank blood and had never sought out water.
Then what would she do on rainy days? Would she go crazy and do a frenzied tap dance or something? I grew a bit curious. I hoped it would rain soon.
“Sigh. I wanted to enjoy this more before going in. But thanks to you, my head hurts, so I’ll have to get us a room at the inn first.”
“…Okay.”
Her voice sounded slightly crestfallen. It seemed like she was apologizing, but that was probably just my imagination.
“One room, please. One bed is enough. For 2 nights.”
“Room 201. Make sure to wipe your feet well before going up the stairs.”
The attitude was quite businesslike, but it felt surprisingly kind. Maybe I was too pickled in adventurer guild vibes. I thoroughly dried my feet with a towel and put my shoes back on.
Only then did Undecided slowly climb down from my shoulders and follow close beside me after putting on her shoes. Her face was nonchalant as if nothing had happened.
I soon found the room and inserted the key into the lock.
“Do you want to just hole up in the inn? The water comes down twice a day like this. You can stay at the inn, and I’ll handle business alo-”
The moment I swung the door open, my lips stiffened. Thinking I might have found the wrong room, I checked the number plate and the number on the door again.
This was the right room. A cozy room with a double bed, the kind a couple might rent for a few hours.
“Ugh…”
I had forgotten to specify a single room. Of course they would give us a double bed if two people came and asked for one bed.
Still, I had no intention of changing rooms at this point. The price difference between a single and double room was negligible anyway, and above all else, it was a hassle.
Having a wider bed meant I could sleep more comfortably. Of course, I planned to have Undecided sleep on the floor.
“Let’s go in.”
“…Okay.”
We entered the room and I began unpacking after closing the door. Glancing back, I saw Undecided just silently standing and staring at me without even taking off her outerwear.
It was so stifling that I ended up taking off her coat and hanging it up for her. Still, Undecided kept following me with her eyes.
“What? You want something?”
After staying together for a few days, I had learned one of Undecided’s habits. When she didn’t want anything, she would just vacantly gaze into empty space on her own, but when she wanted something, she would fixedly stare at me.
Just tell me, damn it.
“What is it? Are you hungry? Or need the bathroom?”
“…I don’t. Go to the bathroom. Or anything like that.”
“Of course you wouldn’t. Then what?”
“…Hungry.”
“I told you to say so when you’re hungry. I’ll abandon you if you collapse from hunger.”
“…Okay. I will. From now on.”
I had blood packs that I had bought in advance and stored with cold magic. I tossed one to her, but it just slapped Undecided’s face as she maintained her rigid posture and slid down.
Catch it, will you.
“Drink that.”
“…Okay.”
Only after I gave the command did Undecided pick up the blood pack that had fallen to the floor and held it in her hand. While she was drinking, I considered going out to find a craftsman, but then Undecided tugged on my sleeve.
I turned around and she handed the blood pack back to me.
“Why?”
“…This. Tastes bad.”
“Just eat it.”
“…Smell. I don’t like it. I like Yoo-jin’s blood.”
“Tsk.”
It was driving me nuts. Where in the world was there a blood ghoul that was a picky eater about blood? I must have been properly scammed by that slave trader.
If she was going to be this annoying, would I have to personally awaken her later or something?
“Open your mouth wide.”
“…Okay.”
She was a slave I got for free in the first place. Awakening her was an extravagant notion. I didn’t expect that at all.
***
“Is this the place?”
It was a workshop I had visited countless times. It looked much shabbier than in my memories, but that was to be expected. I had arrived well before this workshop would become famous.
“Welcome, customer. What brings you here?”
“I’m here to sell some raw mana stones. And I’d like to request processing for one of them.”
“Right this way.”
Entering inside, I saw dwarven artisans busily working. I had called it shabby, but that was only in comparison to its thriving future. Even now, the scale of the workshop was by no means small.
Appraisers sorting mana stones by grade were examining the stones with magnifying glasses in one corner. In another corner, craftsmen were engrossed in shaping and processing mana stones using various tools.
“Well then, could you please show me the mana stones?”
“These are the ones I’m selling.”
“Oh my. That’s a lot.”
Low-grade and mid-grade mana stones poured out of my bag in droves. High-grade stones were mixed in here and there as well. However, the employee calmly sorted the mana stones and passed them to the appraiser without batting an eye.
This much quantity probably wasn’t anything surprising for a workshop like this.
“And this is the mana stone I’d like to have processed.”
“This is…?!”
But the moment I took out the mana stone I had kept separate in a sack, not only the employee’s but even the gazes of the artisans who were working all converged here at once.
It was only natural. This mana stone, which seemed to emit its own radiance, was releasing a brilliant light as if it contained the universe within. One could tell at a glance that it was in a completely different league from the other mana stones.
“W-would you perhaps consider selling it?”
“I’ll only be requesting processing. It’s something I plan to use myself.”
“Oh dear, that’s a shame. But we’ll do our utmost to process it for you. What will its purpose be?”
They were probably disappointed that if they bought it, they could process it however they wanted and sell it, but now they had to process it according to my specifications.
The employee was sighing so deeply that he seemed to have forgotten he was in front of a customer. Since it was an exceptionally high-quality mana stone even among the highest grade, his disappointment must have been all the greater.
As expected of dwarves, they made no compromises when it came to work. I wouldn’t have to worry about them half-assing the job.
“Hmm. Before discussing the purpose, may I first choose the artisan who will handle the work?”
“Of course, that’s fine. You seem to be familiar with an artisan from our workshop.”
“Indeed, I am. A very skilled individual.”
“Hans! Allen! Karl! Come over here! These three are the most talented in our workshop, so you can choose from among them. Perhaps the person you heard of and came for is one of these three…?”
Some unfamiliar names lined up. Losing interest, I turned my back and the employee hurriedly followed after me. I began taking strides deeper into the workshop, checking the faces of the dwarves one by one.
“Hahaha. You must want to entrust it to someone you have a personal connection with. But please believe me. Those three are undoubtedly the most skilled in our workshop. I don’t know who you’re looking for, but it would be best to leave it to one of those three…”
“Ah. There she is.”
“Pardon? Who are you referring to?”
I had finally found her. Smiling brightly, I waved at her. Then, a dwarf girl covered in soot, who had been fetching tools and attending to an artisan, lifted her head.
She had a puzzled expression as if asking if I had really called for her. That’s right, Yonsuk. It’s you.
“I’ll be entrusting it to that child.”
“What?!”
The workshop erupted into an uproar.
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