Chapter 35
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Day Off
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'Was I a bit too harsh?'
Back in Reville, I took a seat at a decent restaurant and ordered a potato soup with no meat in it, spooning it slowly.
I just wasn't in the mood to eat meat after everything that had happened in the forest.
In my experiments with my ability, I'd torn apart and killed who knows how many goblins.
I didn't feel any pangs of conscience about killing goblins anymore, but going beyond that—dissecting them myself and examining their structures firsthand—was more disgusting and exhausting than I'd imagined.
Still, I'd gotten results worth all that effort.
"I managed to grasp the mechanism behind duplicating living beings, at least to some extent."
A few pieces of information I'd uncovered through my experiments.
Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say I'd discovered rules that applied not just to duplicating living beings, but to my Duplication ability as a whole.
"When duplicating beings of the same species, the quality reflects my understanding of that species to a certain degree."
As I dissected the goblins and meticulously examined their internal organs, building up my knowledge of goblins as a species, I could feel the quality of my goblin duplicates improving over time.
Even when duplicating individual goblins that looked similar but were distinct.
'Recalling what happened when I duplicated Karen, it seems my understanding of her as an individual was pretty important too.'
In any case, if I wanted to duplicate 'humans,' my understanding of humans would matter.
And for other species, raising my understanding of that species would help with duplication.
"Maybe I should head to the library next. Looked like they had anatomy books and such."
I wondered if knowledge gained from books, without direct experience, would help with duplication too. Something else to test.
Dissecting goblins had been pretty gruesome, but learning more about my own ability was surprisingly enjoyable.
And as a bonus, I could make one more inference.
"It doesn't just apply to living beings of the same species... The same concept seems to hold for objects made from the same 'material' when duplicating them."
A speculation bordering on certainty.
What I meant was this: duplicating hand axes made of 'iron' or that previous greatsword made of the same iron made it easier to duplicate other objects from the same material.
Just like how understanding a species aids in duplicating its members.
The reason I could duplicate that greatsword from the sewers after just swinging it once was probably because it was made of common scrap iron, nothing special.
Why did I come to that conclusion?
'The black iron sword can't be duplicated.'
I'd seen that black longsword and felt a rush of chuunibyou excitement, tempted to pull out my inner edgelord.
In that moment, I'd thought dual-wielding would look cool and tried to duplicate another black iron sword.
But while other iron weapons could be duplicated after a swing or two to get a feel for their weight and grip, this black iron sword just wouldn't duplicate.
My guess was that it was because I had no understanding of the 'black iron' material it was made from.
"Enough... My head hurts. I'll just rest up today."
Sorting through all this new information felt like my head was going to explode.
On top of that, this was the first time I'd used my Duplication ability so many times in such a short period, and the fatigue was no joke.
Ah, but constantly duplicating goblins had increased my Duplication power quite a bit. Not as much as I'd hoped, though.
"Who knew the growth in Duplication power would slow down like this."
From what I'd figured out, my Duplication power increased bit by bit each time I duplicated something new.
So I'd predicted a massive boost from duplicating all those goblins, but it hadn't grown as much as expected.
Probably for the same reason duplication got easier over time.
Duplicating goblins that shared the same traits meant they weren't judged as 'new' anymore.
"Karen said she had work today anyway..."
In any case, since my Duplication power hadn't increased as much as hoped, I'd been squeezing every last drop out of my limited reserves, and now I desperately needed rest.
Thinking about it, ever since coming to Reville, I hadn't taken a single proper day off—not even one day without training swordsmanship with Karen.
'I've got money... Time to splurge a little today.'
I still had plenty left from what Laila's master had given me, plus the bonus from the guild, so my pockets were full.
I had plans for spending it, so I couldn't blow too much... but a little indulgence for one day should be fine.
People aren't machines. You need days like this to let loose sometimes.
'I haven't even properly toured Reville.'
With my mind made up, I left the inn. But now that I'd decided to rest for the day, I wandered aimlessly, unsure what to do.
'If this were Earth, I'd just hit a cafe or a PC bang when I had nowhere to go.'
Stacking up another point of nostalgia for Earth, I headed toward the shopping district on impulse.
Figured somewhere crowded would give me options.
And in that shopping district, purely by chance, I ran into a familiar face I hadn't expected.
"Ricard?"
"Oh! You. Yuseong, right?"
A wolf beastman with gray fur.
It was Ricard, who'd taken the D-rank promotion exam with me before.
"What a coincidence! I heard about you during the investigation. While I was down, you took out that necromancer?"
"Just got lucky."
"Don't be so modest. I saw your skills firsthand—they're the real deal!"
As fellow survivors of that ordeal, Ricard greeted me warmly.
Apparently, he'd successfully promoted to D-rank adventurer too.
"I was a bit surprised, though. Usually when something like this happens, the guild sweeps it under the rug for E-ranks and silences everyone to avoid promotion, or so I heard."
Thanks to Karen storming the guild and throwing her weight around, Ricard had unexpectedly passed the promotion exam and even gotten his reward money.
"Anyway, thanks. You on a day off too?"
"Yeah. But I don't know what's worth doing in Reville, so I've been mulling it over."
"Ah, right. You said you hadn't been here long."
Ricard, treating me amicably, stroked his chin thoughtfully before grinning and offering to tag along.
"I was out relaxing with my reward money anyway. Come with me? I'll show you around Reville while we're at it."
"You sure that's okay?"
"Of course! And today, drinks are on me. I owe you my life—least I can do!"
I'd thought so before, but Ricard was a real good guy.
Most adventurers only looked out for themselves, but he was rare in caring for others.
Once, I'd saved an adventurer surrounded by goblins in the forest by chance, and the jerk tried to claim all the loot, complaining I'd stolen his kills.
"Alright, let's go."
Gratefully accepting his kindness, I decided to go with Ricard, and he grinned, leading me around Reville.
He recommended a street vendor with great value food, warned me about shops that overcharge newcomers, and so on.
Insider info only a Reville local would know.
"And... you use a sword, right? Hmm? Speaking of which, that sword at your waist looks different from the one I saw before."
As we passed the restaurant district into the workshop street, Ricard finally noticed the change in the sword at my hip and tilted his head.
"I was gonna suggest picking out a weapon here... but looks like no need."
"What's this, Ricard? A friend of yours?"
The armament shop Ricard brought me to was run by a beastman with brown fur.
Seemed he knew Ricard well, greeting him casually by name.
"Ah, this is Kuhn. Bear beastman, as you can see. Good craftsmanship—I'm in his debt."
"Thanks for the praise... but I specialize in beastman gear, so for a human like you, weapons are probably all that's useful."
As Kuhn said in his curt greeting, the workshop was filled with armor tailored to beastman traits.
Pants with tail holes, helmets accounting for elongated snouts, etc.
There were some weapons I could use, but most seemed lower quality than the black iron sword from Karen.
"Well, first-time customer and Ricard's friend, so I'll throw in some service. Pull out your gear. I'll tune 'em up."
I hadn't even picked anything out, but the blacksmith named Kuhn offered to maintain my weapons just because I was Ricard's acquaintance—clearly they were close.
"Give it a try. Kuhn's work is top-notch."
With Ricard chiming in, I drew the sword and hand axe from my belt and handed them over.
Kuhn took the sword first, drew the black iron blade from its sheath, and looked mildly surprised.
"Huh...? This... is quite the masterpiece."
He examined the blade under the sunlight, turning it this way and that, let out a small gasp of admiration, wiped off the faint bloodstains from yesterday's goblin-slaying, and handed it back.
"Not much I can do with this sword. No nicks, edge is pristine."
Well, I'd only used it for a day since Karen gave it to me.
"Still, it's unusual. A friend of Ricard's should be E- or D-rank, but carrying dwarf-made gear."
"Hold on. Dwarf-made?"
"Yeah. Didn't notice while using it? It has the signature finishing technique dwarves use when hammering iron."
Dwarves. A race of natural artisans who worshipped one of the five Good Gods, the 'Forger of All Things.'
The black iron sword was made by such renowned craftsmen?
'What the hell did Karen give me?'
I'd thought the subspatial pouch she gave me was the real valuable item among her gifts, but apparently, the black iron sword was no slouch either.
To give something like that as a mere D-rank promotion present...
"Alright, next up, the hand axe. Doesn't look heavily used either?"
As I silently reaffirmed my gratitude to Karen, Kuhn picked up the hand axe and inspected it closely.
Honestly, I figured its condition was similar to the sword.
The original had shattered in the underground ruins, and this was the one I'd bought from Hammer Uncle, the only blacksmith in Libilon. After that, I'd only thrown duplicates nonstop, never using the original.
At most, I'd thrown it once in the sewers.
"Hm. Compared to the black iron sword, this is basically scrap."
Kuhn gave the hand axe a harsh verdict right away.
Whoever made it had poor balance, an awkward join between handle and blade, and impurities in the edge, he said.
'Yep, that guy's craftsmanship really was crap.'
The image of Hammer Uncle, the city's sole blacksmith, bragging loudly and overcharging came to mind, making my teeth grind.
I'd suspected as much, but hearing it from a proper smith confirmed how awful he was.
Of course. If he had real skill, he wouldn't be in some backwater—he'd have his own named forge in a big city.
"Well, doesn't seem like you've used it much, so a tune-up should... Hm?"
Kuhn picked up the hand axe to sharpen the edge on a whetstone, swung it a few times experimentally, and frowned in puzzlement.
"Huh... What is this?"
"Something wrong?"
"Huh. Hold on."
He fetched a small hammer from the workshop and tapped the hand axe from various angles.
Then, tilting his head, he turned to me with a question.
"You use dwarf gear, and... do you handle mana at all?"
"No? Not at all."
I wielded the unique power called Duplication, but that was separate from mana.
Duplicating the death energy from the Evil Gods had convinced me of that.
"Tch... Then why?"
"Why do you keep saying that?"
"Hm... How to put it. This hand axe is in poor shape overall."
...Another problem with the hand axe? At this rate, maybe Hammer Uncle should quit smithing and go to jail.
"But it's damaged in a peculiar way."
"Peculiar how?"
"Not severe, but... like fine cracks inside?"
"Inside?"
Kuhn tilted his head, grabbed a pristine hand axe from the back of the workshop, and tapped it with the hammer to demonstrate the sound difference.
"Listen. This one rings more crisply, right? That means internal issues. Usually happens when low-grade weapons are forcibly infused with mana repeatedly."
"Really?"
"Yeah. After multiple times, micro-damage accumulates inside... Something like that happened here."
According to Kuhn, the hand axe's condition wasn't from the forging process, but from repeated micro-impacts building up internally.
Not a manufacturing flaw, then. Sorry, Hammer Uncle—scratch the jail comment.
"It's minor now, so fine for use, but if it keeps happening, it'll shatter like glass one day."
"Uh..."
I'd first wondered if Hammer Uncle had sold me junk again, but Kuhn's words made my expression harden.
Shatter like glass... That sounded just like how my previous hand axe had broken.
"Strange. It's not something you swing by hand—it's a throwing weapon, yet this issue."
He said it was extremely minor for now, polished the hand axe neatly, and returned it.
Regardless, I continued thinking with a grave look.
'Once could be coincidence, but twice is inevitable.'
The hand axe I'd been using had developed this issue... from repeated micro-impacts inside?
But I hadn't really used this hand axe properly. To save on repair costs, I'd deliberately only thrown duplicates...
'...No way?'
"Done? Alright, let's go. Still got places to show you."
A certain thought flashed through my mind... but Ricard's voice calling me made it slip away.
Right. Not urgent right now.
I'd meant to set aside complicated thoughts and just relax today anyway.
.
.
.
My tour of Reville with Ricard continued.
We saw street performers like bards and jugglers, but skipped those—not really a spot for two guys.
I learned about legal gambling dens and slime sumo, where they train a slime for fights.
As the sun began to set, we hit a tavern Ricard recommended and drank.
"Phew! You hold your liquor well."
That's when I learned my strengthened body had toughened even my liver—I drank a good amount without getting drunk easily.
Ricard seemed like a strong drinker too, but he tapped out first.
"Kuhuh... Nice. Stuffing myself with meat and booze like this."
"Thanks for today, Ricard."
After leaving the tavern, strolling the dark night streets as the sun fully set, I prepared to bid Ricard farewell.
As fellow D-rank adventurers, maybe we'd run into each other on requests sometimes?
"Hm? Heading back already? I was thinking one last stop..."
"Still more places? We've been drinking—maybe call it."
"There's a place that's only fun at night like this! Come on, I'll show you something good!"
But unlike me, who thought the day was done after drinks, Ricard insisted there was somewhere perfect for this hour and dragged me along.
An alley lined with booze joints.
Deep inside, a strangely unpleasant yet sweet scent tickled my nose.
Finally stopping in front of a building, I realized where Ricard had brought me.
"Brothel?"
"Best place for adventurers to blow off steam, right?"
A place where prostitutes sold their bodies. A brothel.