Episode 12
"Haru!"
My voice echoed through the forest.
*Woof, woof, woof!*
Haru shot through the woods like a blur.
*SQUEEEAL!*
The wild boar, with Haru's teeth sunk into its leg, thrashed wildly, trying desperately to shake him off. But Haru let go of its leg only to lunge for its neck instead.
*Whistle!*
The moment I whistled, Haru stopped his attack and swiftly pulled back. Before the boar could recover, I aimed for its head and fired.
*Thwip.*
The bolt flew true, piercing the boar's head. It slowly toppled over, trembled for a moment, and then went still.
"Good boy."
I stroked the head of a panting Haru as he ran up to me, then stored the boar in my inventory.
For the past few days, I'd been hunting boars nonstop. The reason, of course, was to make money. Butchering the boars I caught and selling the parts on Conve∞ earned me a considerable sum. But perhaps I'd hunted too much. Recently, the number of boars I'd seen in this area had dropped sharply.
"Maybe I should take a break from hunting for a while."
It would be nice if boars respawned like in a video game, but this was reality. For life to be born, time is needed for breeding.
***
A fanfare rang out across the city square. Near the clock tower, in front of a large fountain, a group of musicians played, surrounded by a long line of food stalls. People were eating, drinking, and dancing to the music.
"So this is a festival…"
Just as Hans had said, there was a festival in the city today. It was my first time experiencing a festival atmosphere. Seeing everyone laughing and having fun, I could understand why people would travel from so far away to be here.
"Come on, it's not every day you get a chance like this! Flying Rabbit wings, famous in Houston! Just 80 bron for a limited time!"
"You can't talk about food without mentioning Caucasus Fries, only 60 bron! Come and get one!"
Merchants from the food stalls were shouting out their menus. And every single one of them was expensive. Even the Kurufupa skewer I ate on my first day was being sold for 50 bron, two and a half times the original price. The real price must have been half that.
"Well, that's just how festivals are."
The more people there are, the more expensive the festival food gets. It was hard to expect anything cheap when so many merchants were here to cash in.
"Haru, wipe your drool."
Haru had been restless ever since we entered the food stall area. He was looking around, drooling, on the verge of lunging at the food stands and devouring everything in sight. He had grown rapidly in the past few days and was now as tall as my thigh. I was genuinely worried he might end up half my size.
I was glad I'd disciplined him before he got any bigger. If I hadn't, he would have probably charged the stalls and eaten everything he could get his paws on by now.
*Ta-da-da-da!*
The sound of a fanfare again. This time, it wasn't just the trumpets. The clatter of horse hooves and the clanking of iron boots accompanied it.
From the castle perched high on the opposite side of the central square, a column of soldiers marched, carrying spears and banners. And the man leading them was, of course, the star of this festival.
"Lord Terbryan!"
He waved to the cheering crowd. Perhaps because he was the main attraction, he wasn't in his usual battle attire. Instead, he wore a nobleman's formal suit, adorned with all sorts of accessories.
Knowing the truth, seeing him reveling in someone else's achievement without a change in expression, I thought he had some serious nerve. But then again, maybe gaining profit without using any of your own strength was the wisest way to live.
*'I should have just stolen credit like that when I was at the company…'*
If I had, maybe I could have been like my team leader, leaving work on time without a single hour of overtime and earning money the easy way. But now, I was actually grateful. If that person hadn't dumped all that work on me and made me pull all-nighters for three years, I never would have come to this world.
*Clank, clank.*
Terbryan passed by me and headed toward the city entrance. He was probably planning to circle the entire city.
"Well, good for him, I guess."
I turned back, bought two skewers from a nearby stall, and sat down on a bench. I ate one myself and pulled all the meat off the other skewer for Haru.
"Okay."
Haru took the meat and swallowed it in one gulp without even chewing. I wondered if it was a dog's instinct to swallow delicious things without chewing. Since Haru was my first pet, it was a truth I'd never know unless I got another dog.
After finishing the salted skewer, I was resting for a bit when someone came and sat next to me. I turned to see a familiar face.
"You're…"
The girl I'd seen a few days ago when I brought the potatoes. Her name was Eina, I think.
Eina bowed her head in greeting and sat down next to me.
"Enjoying the festival?"
"Yes."
A short reply, and no question in return.
"The meat skewers over there were good. You should try one."
"Ah."
Another short reply. It was hard to keep the conversation going. After a minute of awkward silence, I stood up.
"Well, I'm going to head off. See you around…"
"Um."
Eina looked up at me as I stood. She turned her face away shyly.
"The vegetables you gave me the other day… they were delicious."
*'Ah, so she came to thank me.'*
"They were good, right?"
"Yes. My mother was very happy, too."
"If you want more, just ask Hans to let me know. I'll bring some over."
"Thank you."
"Well, see you. Let's go, Haru."
I stood up and headed toward the lower part of the square.
*'It feels like a waste to go home just yet…'*
Maybe I'll go to the inn. It's a busy time, but maybe it's quieter now that everyone is out enjoying the festival.
***
"Ha… haha…"
There was a huge crowd at the entrance. They were all lined up, probably trying to get a room at the inn. I wondered if they could even accommodate that many people, but judging by the faces of those coming out, it seemed unlikely.
"Listen up, everyone! There are no more rooms! Please, go to another inn!"
People grumbled and left, and Hans sighed deeply before going back inside.
"The inn is that crowded."
Meanwhile, Megan's Beauty Shop was completely empty. If I went to the inn during this busy time, I'd definitely be roped into working. I figured I wouldn't have to work at Megan's shop, so I headed there instead.
"Welco— oh, it's just you, Yuji."
Megan was staring out the window, her chin resting on her hand, sighing deeply.
"It's a festival today, why are there no customers?"
"Because there's no shampoo, that's why!"
She said, then continued with a weary smile.
"It's the festival period. Everyone's too busy playing and eating to care about cosmetics."
It wasn't a cosmetics festival, after all. It was true that not many people would come to buy cosmetics when everyone else was having fun. In fact…
"Welcome~"
"Do you have any shampoo?"
"I'm sorry, we're all out of shampoo…"
"Ah, I see. Well then, excuse me~"
The only customers were the ones looking for shampoo.
"Shampoo…"
Megan clicked her tongue in disappointment, staring into space.
"Agh, if I don't make a killing now, when will I? If only someone would make a deal to supply me with shampoo right now, I'd pay them triple the price~"
I was the only one in the shop. And I was the only one who handled shampoo. That comment was obviously meant for me.
*'She has a point…'*
People from all over the world were gathered here now. If I made a lot of money now, I wouldn't have to work for a while. And most importantly, I needed to buy and sell products to raise my VIP rank.
"Alright. I'll supply you with shampoo, just for the festival period."
"Really?!"
At my words, Megan shot up from her seat, rushed over, and grabbed my hands.
"Thank you, Yuji!"
I smiled awkwardly, and Megan closed the shop door.
"So, where do we need to go?"
"We don't need to go anywhere."
"Huh? We don't?"
I bought a large quantity of shampoo from Conve∞ and placed it on the shop floor.
"You had it in your Subspace Bag?"
"Yeah, I bought some in advance."
Hearing that, Megan nudged my side with her elbow.
"You didn't come here planning to sell it high on this day, did you~?"
"Of course not."
"But this…"
She tilted her head, looking at the shampoo bottle I'd bought from Conve∞.
"Didn't you used to sell it in glass bottles? And this picture…"
The surface was printed with a photograph of real flowers.
"Is this really a painting…?"
"It's a printed photograph."
"Print? Photograph?"
Megan tilted her head, not understanding.
"I'll explain the details later. For now, we need to re-bottle this quickly."
"Ah, right!"
I bought the same empty glass bottles I'd used for deliveries from Conve∞ and set them down.
"So, shall we re-bottle it together?"
"I suppose… we have to, right?"
The back pain I'd been feeling. I was so glad I could share the work with Megan.