Chapter 71: Wild Heavenly Wolf Mushroom
“Wow, this is amazing!”
The room we were shown to was spacious, befitting its high price. The furniture and decor exuded luxury. The wooden countertop at the inn’s reception had a beautiful grain, and I thought it might be nice to furnish this place with the items stored in the Dimensional Box from my home.
“Now, we’ll bring your dinner to your room later, so please take your time.”
“Thank you.”
Once the maid, a staff member of the inn, left, I flopped onto the bed with enthusiasm.
“Ah, it feels so nice to finally relax.”
Thinking back, this was the first inn I had stayed at since leaving the kingdom. I hadn’t expected it to be so comfortable compared to the inns within the kingdom. Perhaps the room’s relaxed atmosphere contributed to that.
“I wonder if there’s an Adventurer’s Guild in this village?”
“Who knows? Shall we go look for it?”
“Yeah, it might be time to start working and level up our ranks.”
“Then tomorrow, let’s wander around the village and check out the Guild.”
As I rolled around on the bed, playfully teasing Rio, there was a knock at the door. Responding, I realized it was already time for dinner. Now that I thought about it, I was feeling a bit hungry.
“Excuse me.”
As I took my seat, the inn’s staff began placing dishes on the table. A salad, grilled items, and soup were laid out before us. It seemed that in this Otherworld, a full course meal didn’t come out one dish at a time.
“Wow, it smells amazing!”
“The grilled Heavenly Wolf Mushroom is wild-caught.”
“Oh, really?”
“What would you like to drink?”
The menu handed to us listed soft drinks and alcoholic beverages. But for us, the choice was clear: soft drinks only.
“Hey, they have fresh juice!”
“You’re right. Until now, I’ve only seen fruit water.”
“Let’s go with that.”
“Okay.”
“Understood.”
Once the maid left the room, I immediately dug into the salad. It was a mix of various leafy greens and root vegetables, accompanied by some grilled Heavenly Wolf Mushrooms drizzled with dressing.
“This is delicious!”
The grilled Heavenly Wolf Mushroom was on another level. The crunchy texture remained, but the umami and flavor were in a league of their own. I could tell the difference with just one bite.
“So this is what wild-caught tastes like…”
“I want to stock up on these!”
“We’ll have to venture deep into the Heavenly Wolf Forest.”
I felt like I was starting to solidify our plans for this village. I would think about the rest later. For now, I decided to fully enjoy the Heavenly Wolf Mushroom full course.
The next morning, after finishing breakfast, we decided to extend our stay at the inn. We planned to stop by the Adventurer’s Guild for some work and then head into the forest, so we booked three more nights. Naturally, we chose the same comfortable room.
“Alright, let’s go find the Guild.”
As we stepped out of the inn, we began exploring the village. When we arrived yesterday evening, we had gone straight to the inn, so today was our first real chance to sightsee.
Perhaps due to the prosperity brought by the Heavenly Wolf Mushroom, the entire village was bustling with energy. Many sturdy wooden houses stood tall, giving off a different vibe compared to the city.
“Hey, isn’t that it?”
Rio pointed to a sign featuring a sword and shield drawn over a Magic Circle. It seemed that even in a different country, the signs remained the same. The building was a solid stone two-story structure, with a noticeable wooden third floor added on.
Upon entering, we found the place bustling with people, likely due to the early hour. As we approached the request board, we noticed many postings related to the Heavenly Wolf Mushroom.
“It looks like there are a lot of requests for hunting monsters in the Heavenly Wolf Garden.”
“The Heavenly Wolf Garden is basically a cultivation area for mushrooms, right?”
“I think so.”
It seemed there were several Heavenly Wolf Gardens, each with its own set of requests. There were also monster-hunting requests around the Heavenly Wolf Garden, but those were ranked D, one rank higher than us, so we couldn’t take them.
“Still… the rewards can be either money or Heavenly Wolf Mushrooms.”
“That’s a dream come true for mushroom lovers…”
“Oh, there’s a request for gathering wild Heavenly Wolf Mushrooms too.”
“You’re right. But it’s ranked C.”
“Plus, it’s a constant request. Wild ones must be in high demand.”
Given that it was a specialty product, it made sense for it to be a constant request. However, C Rank adventurers were likely scarce in a village like this, unlike in larger cities.
“Haha, you might want to avoid that constant request.”
As we chatted while looking at the request board, a deep voice from an adventurer caught our attention.
“Is that so?”
Turning around, we saw a robust female adventurer standing alone. Looking around, there was no one else nearby who seemed to match the voice.
“Who else would it be? I’m the only one here.”
The deep voice definitely came from the woman in front of us. Wait, is she… a woman? Upon closer inspection, she was just a well-built female adventurer. There was nothing particularly odd about her, and she didn’t give off any vibes of being a cross-dresser. She was undoubtedly a woman.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“Hmph. It’s fine; it happens all the time.”
“So, why do you say we shouldn’t take that request…?”
Rio stepped forward to ask.
“Ah, one of the Six Great Trading Companies has issued a separate request for gathering wild Heavenly Wolf Mushrooms. If you’re going to gather the same thing, it’s better to take the request from the trading company rather than the cheaper constant one.”
She pointed to the request board, where indeed a request for gathering wild Heavenly Wolf Mushrooms was posted. It was also ranked C, but offered higher rewards than the constant request.
“You’re right… And there are several of them posted.”
“The constant requests are from the long-established Six Great Trading Companies…”
She sighed and shrugged her shoulders, but I had something else on my mind. I needed to ask about this.
“…By the way, what are the Six Great Trading Companies?”