Chapter 17: The Transporter
“I’m really sorry! It’s all my fault for spoiling you!” Dean apologized fervently, almost bowing down to the ground.
“You were under the influence of the Spirit Possessed; you were merely misled,” Ash said with a broad heart.
I was busy roasting the remaining Rabbit. I should have brought some dried herbs, at least.
“I’m sorry too, Jean!” Dean added.
“It’s fine; nothing serious happened yet, so don’t worry about it.”
According to Ash’s explanation, that flower was only found on men in the Guild. Some even had just a single petal, and it seemed that those who had been together for a long time were the ones most affected, leading to skewed judgment.
If I saw the guys with pink artificial flowers on their heads, I would either burst out laughing or turn around and leave. I have to hand it to Ash for keeping his cool.
“I think it would be best to take Amir to the Spirit’s Branch after consulting with Kaina. If I collapsed, the Guild would be thrown into chaos.”
The Spirit’s Branch is a place where spirits gather, but it’s also where they can be expelled. There’s a room that burns a special incense that prevents spirits from leaving, making it a place where those who have become strange are thrown in to see if they can return to normal once the spirit departs.
Even though I can’t see the spirits, I know they’re there, so it seems that those who have gone a bit off are tested there to see if they can return to their senses.
By the way, Dean found out that I did something about the spirit. I really dislike perceptive guys.
“Well, if I take him there around bedtime, the damage should be minimal, right?” Even if I collapse, it would be on the bed, and if I’m asleep, I might not even notice.
“Ah, I see. No need to do it during the day.”
Dean promised not to mention that he could see spirits. I don’t know if he’ll keep that promise, but if things get troublesome, I’ll just change towns quickly. Ash seems to have a meeting with his butler in this town, so it might be difficult for him to move until they meet. Well, good luck to him.
“The Guild is open at night, even if the staff is fewer. I’ll find out the shifts and do it when there are fewer men. I’ll talk to the higher-ups about the money after that.” I turned my gaze to Ash for the latter part. It was about the money we got ripped off for at the inn introduced by the Guild staff.
“I’m really sorry! I’m heading back to the town now to smooth things over, so if you need it, feel free to use the transporter.”
“Transporter?” I asked, unfamiliar with the term.
“It’s someone who carries Bears.”
“Not just Bears, but yeah, Bears.”
The transporter refers to those who carry the prey hunted by adventurers. Depending on the collection point, it seems that novice adventurers often take on this job. If you’ve been going to the Guild, you’d naturally know about it.
You specify the time and place for them to come pick it up, but Dean has already requested today’s transport through his sister. If they can’t hunt, it’s a waste of money, so you need to have a certain level of confidence to make the request. That’s impressive, Gin.
Well, it’s worth a try, so I decided to gratefully make use of it.
“Hey, Jean. Stay alert even while resting, okay? See you later.” Dean left with those parting words.
Alright, I’ll do my best… I’m not confident, but I didn’t even notice when Ash arrived. How do you sense a presence? It feels like it would be faster to have a constant Exploration spell active.
With the transporter situation, I ended up hunting a Bear alongside Ash. But what came out was a pack of Wolf Demon Beasts.
Ash fought with calmness, using minimal movements to strike at vital points, dispatching the wolves one after another. His swordsmanship was like a model—clean and powerful.
For now, I tried to imitate him. Thanks to my Martial Talent and physical abilities, I could mimic his movements.
However, just as Dean warned me, I wasn’t accustomed to the environment where enemies were present, so if an enemy acted differently, I probably wouldn’t be able to maintain this imitated movement.
When I came alone, I relied on Exploration and went for a speed battle right from the start. I’m sure it looked more like I was swinging a club than cutting with a sword, probably resembling a game of Whac-A-Mole.
“Hmm, quick and efficient.”
Thank you, that’s you.
“The value per wolf is lower than a Bear, but it’s still sufficient. We can’t carry any more than this.” Ash sheathed his sword after defeating all nine Wolf Demon Beasts.
“Yeah, that’s true.” The body length of the hornless wolves seemed to be longer than mine, and the horned ones were definitely over two meters.
I collected the horns first.
“What about the Magic Stones?”
“Wolves lose a lot of value if their fur is damaged, so it’s better to leave it to someone experienced.”
“I see.”
I did my best to drain the blood and pack them into bags.
“Vertical packing, huh?” Ash muttered as he began to imitate me. After all, it would be impossible to fit all the horned ones in.
Thus, I moved to the meeting point with Ash, carrying a wolf with its head sticking out of the bag and another on my shoulder. Ash would carry the bags, and in return, he would help defeat any demon beasts we encountered along the way.
The two transporter guys looked stunned. Ash’s strength might even surpass Dean’s.
“Yikes!”
“No way! I’m not getting on!”
“It creaks, it creaks! It’s borrowed!”
The transporter guys cried out that the cart would break, and in the end, it was decided that Ash and I would each carry two wolves. Well, it’s a small cart, so it’s understandable since bringing a big cart near the forest would be tough.
We changed the delivery destination to the Merchant Guild for selling. I planned to sell it and split the profits with Ash later. Ash would sell the horns at the Adventurer’s Guild and then meet up after retrieving our belongings from the overpriced inn.
The assessment here is stricter, so it takes time. The fur of the Wolf Demon Beasts can fetch a good price, but as Ash said, if there are unnecessary damages, they’ll be bought at a low price.
I plan to show my face at the Adventurer’s Guild once the issue with Pink Head is resolved. After all, there are some inconveniences at the Merchant Guild.
“Now, where should we test it?”
“I might lose consciousness longer than Dean did. How about at the inn?”
“What happens if you’re out for several days? Dean had that aftereffect, and being directly affected might have a bigger impact, right? Do you have any acquaintances in this town?” I made sure to avoid mentioning spirits since there were people around.
“I don’t.”
“Should we wait for your butler?”
“I don’t know when he’ll return.”
If the butler had been nearby, we wouldn’t have gotten ripped off. Why did I take my eyes off him? What if the butler is actually a bit of an airhead too?
“If you don’t mind, would you like to come to my place?”
I had a desire to test just how much the spirit could do.
And so it was decided that I would invite my first guest to the house I borrowed. Can I even say I invited a woman to my home?