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Chapter 10 – Negotiations Begin
Rona stops in front of the building they were looking for. Clare stops a little later, too, pinching the edge of her sword sash, so her face is not visible to the people around her, but looking up at the building with the girl doll.
“Is this the place?”
“Yes. It’s the adventurers’ guild.”
“Oh… this is the first time I’ve seen it in real life.”
–Adventurers. A place of employment for the down-on-their-luck. They are sometimes mocked as a jack-of-all-trades, but their position is officially recognized.
Regular knights and soldiers have other things to do besides monster extermination, such as training and maintaining public order, and cannot handle small cases. Therefore, they deal with sporadic monsters.
Investigation and extermination. Regular thinning of large numbers of monsters. Adventurers respond to such cases upon request.
There is also a need for a place to handle the materials obtained by defeating monsters. So there was a need for people to work on monster extermination and an organization to manage those materials. That’s why the Adventurers’ Guild was created.
Eventually, people began to ask if they could be asked to do various odd jobs such as collecting medicinal herbs and guarding transports, and the current system was established, where the guild would take on most tasks if a fee was paid — or so I learned from Rona.
“You seem to like adventurers and adventurer guilds quite a bit. You’ve never met them, have you?”
“That’s right. They were people you only encounter in stories. Maybe that’s why.”
“I guess that’s how it is.”
“That’s how it is.”
Clare was urged by Rona to go inside the building, while vaguely exchanging words so that it wouldn’t be a problem if someone overheard.
Clare looked around and headed towards an empty counter as if it was the most natural thing to do.
“Excuse me. Can I speak to you for a moment?”
Clare’s voice came from behind the counter — a ventriloquist, but actually a child’s. The out-of-place voice drew the attention of those nearby.
“Oh… Is there something, young lady? Do you need something from the guild?”
A woman doing paperwork asked Clare.
Children sometimes come to the guild.
If they come on an errand for an adult, there’s no problem. Sometimes the child is the client.
It’s not uncommon for children to come to the guild hoping to become adventurers.
The adventurer’s guild also has a social welfare aspect, so rather than people who are struggling and turning to stealing, registering as adventurers and assigning jobs that even children can do improves public safety.
However, only children who have grown to a certain extent can register as adventurers. It is difficult to entrust jobs to children who are too young, so in such cases, it is a rule that they will not register as adventurers.
However, even if they refuse to register as an adventurer, it is also one of the guild’s jobs to listen to the situation and take them to an orphanage if necessary. They will not be rudely chased away just because a child has come to the guild.
So what if a girl in front of a guild staff member says she wants to register?
She’s not that tall. She’s wearing a wide-brimmed hat, so her face is not visible, but when she calls out to you, you get the impression that she speaks well. You can see that she’s holding a doll in her arms.
In short, nothing is known except for her gender. In general, you can’t judge without listening to her in detail. I haven’t even heard what she wants yet.
“I’m Clare, an apprentice witch and apprentice to the witch Rona. I heard that you always sell my master’s medicine here, so I’ve come to personally bring the medicine to you as a greeting.”
With that, Clare and the doll bowed together.
“Eh—. Ah. The witch of the Great Sea of Trees…!”
The unexpected words seemed to stop the staff member in his tracks for a moment. The girl’s outfit was certainly similar to that of the Black Witch. It is understandable that the dolls move as if they are alive because it is the witch’s magic.
The employee looks around and sees the Black Witch herself, Rona, standing quietly near the doorway. The witch raises her bridle slightly to show her face and nods as if there is no problem.
“I understand. I will deliver the medicine and receive payment, right?”
“Yes. Thank you. Before we begin the transaction, there is something I must tell you. The things I brought today were not made by my master, but by me. However, my master has acknowledged that they are of the same quality, so I would like you to sell them at the usual price.”
He puts his hands on his chest along with the doll and says, “That is–I cannot decide on my own, so can you talk to me in the back?”
The employee seems to have regained some composure, and after chewing on Clare’s words, he replies.
“Of course.”
“You, Witch-sama, please come inside.”
“I told my apprentice that the delivery process is part of her training. I’ll wait here.”
“I see. Well then, Clare-sama, please come this way.”
Clare was led to a room in the back of the guild, but after waiting a little while feeling anxious and uneasy, there was a knock and the previous staff member and another man came in.
He was about 40 years old. He was a red-haired man with stubble.
“I’m Gwaine, the guild leader.”
“I’m Clare. Nice to meet you.”
Clare had the doll take off her hat, and they all bowed together. The staff seemed surprised by Clare’s appearance and age, but Gwaine looked interested as he observed Clare.
The head of the adventurer’s guild was included in the “minimum appearance” category. This is because there will be contact in the future. Rona’s opinion was “Well, I guess I can trust him to a certain extent.”
“Oh, you’re Grandma Rona’s apprentice. I heard you’d come to visit soon, but I didn’t know you were so young.”
“You’re so mature, even though you’re so young. I’m surprised.”
“Yeah. I was surprised that Grandma Rona had taken on an apprentice.”
“Really?”
“I’ve known Grandma since I was a kid, but I’ve never heard anything like that. I’ve gotten older, but Grandma hasn’t changed at all since then, in terms of appearance or lifestyle. So I was looking forward to meeting you, her apprentice.”
Gwaine gave a grin.
“I see… Nice to meet you, Mr. Gwaine.”
“Yeah. Well, we can always talk about old times. First, let me see the medicine you brought.”
“Okay. Well then.”
Clare put her bag on the table, then took out wooden boxes one by one and placed them on the floor. Each wooden box is clearly larger than the volume of the bag.
“That bag is interesting, no matter how many times I look at it. I’m sure it would be useful in many ways.”
“It’s not the bag, it’s the spell that’s cast on it, and the spell isn’t permanent.”
“Apparently. I asked the old woman if it was possible to prepare multiple bags, and she said it’s pointless because it would just go back to being a normal bag once the spell is worn off.”
Clare nodded in agreement with Gwaine’s words. The spell is a bit peculiar, and it’s the application of two curses.
Just like the witch in the story who casts a curse on those who break promises and turns them into toads, it makes things that meet the conditions to “be stored in the bag” smaller and lighter. That’s why it looks like the capacity and weight are different from normal from the outside.
However, although Rona and Clare don’t explain it, if it’s designed properly, it’s not impossible to maintain it semi-permanently as long as the magical power can be supplied. Mass production would be unrealistic in terms of the materials required and the cost, but there would definitely be a demand for it as a luxury item.
However, if it were lost or stolen, there was a risk that its structure could be analyzed and the magic reproduced, leading to misuse. In short, if Rona could use the magic herself and maintain it for as long as she needed, there was no benefit to letting others use it, and there was no need to reveal the mechanism behind it.
Clare had also been taught, but she had been told not to tell others about magic that could be used for such shady purposes, so of course she didn’t say anything.
As we talked a little about the bag, Clare began arranging small vials containing various medicines from the wooden box onto the table, including medicine for wounds, painkillers, fever reducers, and antidotes.
“Well… I heard that the medicine you made is comparable to the one the old lady made.”
“Yes. I’ve prepared a sample, so you can check the effect. If there is no problem with the effect, I would like to trade at the usual price.”
“Fine. However, if you think it is less effective, I will evaluate it at a price appropriate to that, but is that okay?”
“Yes. I will be satisfied if you give me a correct evaluation.”
Clare looks Gwaine straight in the eye and answers without hesitation. She approaches negotiations with the feeling of performing on stage.
“Heh heh heh. You seem confident. If it’s correct, you’re accepting it, so does that mean my pride is being tested as well? You’re not just a child in appearance, right?”
Gwaine shrugs his shoulders at Clare’s response, but laughs rather happily. Correct evaluation is not only a word about the efficacy of the medicine, but also a word about Gwaine’s actions, sincerity, and discerning eye. Clare is confident that the effects are the same, so if she thinks the other party is not being sincere, she will not make the deal.
Of course, if it is true that the medicine is inferior to Rona’s, it is also a public declaration that she will accept that fact.
“Well, well… I was trained quite strictly when it comes to making medicine. Also, I’m as old as I look.”
Clare responds to Gwaine’s words. In reality, it’s ventriloquism, but there is a hint of a bitter smile.
“Well, let me try it.”
The types of medicine can be distinguished by the shape of the bottle. After picking up the painkiller and wound medicine, Gwaine took out the knife he had on his waist and made a straight cut on the back of his hand without hesitation.
Then, leaving the wound as it was, he drank the contents of the vial containing the painkiller.
“Oh. Witch’s potion is outstanding after all. I knew it was a magic potion, but it works as soon as you drink it. It doesn’t hurt at all, but you’re left with a sense of danger and anxiety that something is wrong. It’s convenient.”
“Wow…”
Even though Gwaine cut his hand deeply, he was happily inspecting the effects of the potion, which made Clare’s doll and the guild staff look a little put off by his appearance.
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