Then we went out on the town.
I was worried… so I decided to take one garnet, one turquoise, and one purple crystal with me. I didn’t want to run out of money, so the garnet and turquoise were about 3 cm in size. The amethyst was one large crystal about the size of my hand.
After putting them in the soft cloth bag Fay gave me, I shove them in my pocket and ride out to the town, me on the Pegasus and Fay and Laocles on the flaming wolves.
Fay’s house is on the outskirts of town. It is on a slightly elevated hill. From there to town, we could have walked… well, the faster the better, or else the stores would have closed.
So, I decided to go for a walk. Because I was painting jewelry like crazy. Sorry.
When I get to town, I ask Pegasus to go back to Fay’s house. I’ll have him pick me up later. …No, because it seems that horses with wings are rare after all, and I was worried about the gazes of the townspeople.
“Okay. Then let’s go to the jewelry store first.” (Fay)
Fay smiles and pulls me.
“Oh, Laocles. If you find something you want in town, just let me know.” (Tougo)
I said as I pulled Laocles along with me. I am not familiar with life in this world and Fay is an aristocrat, so he may have different needs from those of Laocles. So, I have to ask Laocles to tell me what he needs.
“……got it.” (Laocles)
Laocles looked puzzled, but it was my first time doing proper shopping in town, too. Let’s get along with each other, or I’ll be troubled.
We enter a jewelry store that Fay is familiar with. There was a sign with some kind of mark on it. When I asked Fay what it meant, he said it was a mark of a purveyor to the nobility. I see. In other words, it’s a store that Fasy uses. Then I can relax. We then go inside.
“Hey, Young Master Fay. How’s it going? Are you looking for something?” (Shopkeeper)
“No, no. I’m planning on selling you something today. And by the way, not from me, but from my best friend.” (Fay)
Fay talked to the shopkeeper, then beckoned me over.
“All right, Tougo, give me one, just one jewel.” (Fay)
I walked next to Fay and, after a moment’s hesitation, pulled a turquoise out of the bag. The robin’s egg blue gem glistened in the light of the lamp in the store.
“Oh, this is…!” (Shopkeeper)
I put the gem in the shopkeeper’s hand, and his eyes lit up… Then he went over to the other side of the counter, pulled out a loupe, looked through its small magnifying lens, and started examining things.
…And then, huh, he let out a sigh.
“……wonderful.” (Shopkeeper)
The shopkeeper muttered to himself and asked with a serious face.
“Where did you get this jewel?” (Shopkeeper)
Well… I can’t say that I drew it. So,
“It’s a secret.” (Tougo)
So, this is the only answer I can give. There is no other answer. I’m not suspicious. Really.
“I-Is that so… Well, you don’t want to tell us the source of such a treasure, do you? Yes, that’s fine.” (Shopkeeper)
The shopkeeper said and decided not to ask about the origin of the gem for now. Thank you.
“However, it’s a wonderful jewel. With something like this, even a dragon would find it attractive. Of course, its size may be a little lacking, but… Hmm, it’s fine if it’s a little cramped, so this is fine. There are many summoned beasts that will like it, you know?” (Shopkeeper)
Yes, it was. It was actually so. The Red Dragon was stretching its neck toward the garnet, it seems that was the reason for that.
…I wonder if these jewels have properties summoned beasts like. As for Red Dragon, I wonder if it was something like “It’s a little cramped, but the ambiance is nice, the facilities are well-equipped, and I like the exterior, so I chose this house.” Probably.
“So, when it comes to the purchase price… what do you think of this?” (Shopkeeper)
The shopkeeper handed me a piece of paper.
…right. I cannot read.
“Fay, what do you think?” (Tougo)
So, let’s ask Fay. …and then.
“…I’ll give you a pretty good price for this.” (Shopkeeper)
Fay froze with a surprised look on his face.
…How much is it?
I got the go-ahead from Fay, so I sold the jewelry at that price.
And I suddenly have a heavy bag in my hand.
…The contents are gold coins. It is filled with gold coins. I was surprised.
This is what Fay meant when he said, “just one jewel”, about the jewel I was selling. If I had sold all three, the price would have been even more outrageous. No, Fay looks as if he didn’t expect such a large amount of money.
“…how much is this worth?” (Tougo)
I asked Fay after we left the jewelry store. I still don’t know how much this bag has and how much it is worth.
“Well… I can eat normally for a year, I think. Laocles, how about you?” (Fay)
“Two to two and a half years.” (Laocles)
… Oh, I see. Yeah, different people need different amounts of money to survive.
But, yeah. There’s that much. What’s in this bag?
“Can a single jewel fetch that kind of a price?”
“It’s a magic stone with such a high quality that a summoned beast can live in it. If it wasn’t a magic stone, it would only be enough money for a week’s worth of food.” (Fay)
Hmm… Jewels are jewels, but jewels that contain magical power are expensive. Yes. I understand.
“Then, it’s hard to keep a summoned beast, isn’t it?” (Tougo)
“Yeah. That’s why summoned beasts are weapons of nobility. Magic stones cost money, so… That’s all for me. I have no talent for magic. So, if I don’t prepare a good magic stone the summoned beast can’t go with me…” (Fay)
Come to think of it, Fay used to say, “I bought my ability with money” so that was what he meant? I see. I finally got it.
“… Huh? But, come to think of it, the Red Dragon has been attached to Fay since before she had the magic stone.” (Tougo)
After that, when I asked about it because I was a little worried, Fay just smiled wryly.
“The Red Dragon is a very special and unique creature. That was probably special in more ways than one. It just so happens that the red dragon likes me a lot.” (Fay)
Really. Well, I think I know why you are liked.
Not only because of Fay’s good nature but also because of his coloring. They look just like the Red Dragon’s. Maybe he feels a kinship with him.
“Maybe I’ll draw a dragon, too.” (Tougo)
Seeing Fay and the Red Dragon makes me a little envious. But if I draw a dragon, I feel like the horses will get angry.
“…Next time, please let me run out of magic for three days, okay?” (Tougo)
…Oh, come to think of it, there was that kind of problem, too. I’ll do my best.
Then we headed to the grocery store. At first, we bought a bunch of things that would last a day, for now. Some hard-baked bread, some chunks of cheese, and some ham. And ham. I think it’s called cured ham, or something like that. It’s very big and it’s on a bone. That’s amazing. I’ve never seen it before.
“Ah, this is delicious.” (Fay)
“Yes.” (Tougo)
And then there are a few other things that Fay recommends. Some kind of jam in a jar, and some kind of paste. In short, something to put on bread.
“You’ve got to try this!” (Fay)
And then there are the sweets Fay recommends. I heard that they are delicious, so I guess I’ll just have to try them.
“And clothes! Tougo! You’re always wearing that shirt! You need a change of clothes!” (Fay)
“I just have a bunch of the same ones.” (Tougo)
“I didn’t know that!?” (Fay)
I don’t need a replacement shirt and pants. Yup.
…As Fay led the way through the town, the number of purchases increased steadily.
I’ll carry some of it myself… but it’s mainly Laocles who does the luggage carrying for me.
“Is it too heavy?” (Tougo)
“No.” (Laocles)
I ask him, but his reply is something like this. Well, he has muscles like Hercules and Laocoon. Maybe I don’t have to worry too much.
But I’m sorry. A hunk of bread, a hunk of cheese, a hunk of ham on the bone, or even a jar of anything would all be heavy…
“Um, if there’s anything you want, just let me know, and I’ll buy it.” (Tougo)
So at least if there was something he wanted, I would buy it. The money has somehow become more plentiful than I had planned, and if there is something that Laocles wants, I would love to buy it.
…that was when it happened.
Suddenly, Laocles stopped.
He didn’t stop his feet, but his focused was stolen and his feet stopped. It was like that.
…Ahead of his gaze is an old store.
And in the shop window, there were a number of worn-out tools… and one of them was a sword.
Laocles’ face, while staring at the sword, had an expression that was unusual for him.
Like hesitation, like impatience. It was a complicated expression.
“…Laocles.” (Tougo)
When I called out to him, he became flustered and started moving his feet again. In the end, he stopped for only a few seconds. But that time seemed strangely long.
Laocles glanced once more at the show window… and then his eyes closed.
When… his eyes opened again, there was no more emotion in them.
As he walked away, I wondered if I should call out to him again.
That sword he was looking at was probably what he wanted.
But Laocles said nothing. I don’t know, maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.
… but I don’t feel at ease, even if I think so. It feels like impatience, anxiety, and above all, hesitation as to whether or not I should take the plunge. It all comes together and passes in an instant.
Behind me, walking in step with Fay and Laocles, the store that is moving further and further away from me is… probably a pawn shop.
If I don’t buy that sword now, it might disappear.
When I thought that, I really wanted to move.
“Oh, hey, Tougo. Where are you going?” (Fay)
“Just there!” (Tougo)
Fay called out to me, but I didn’t stop and ran.
The store was far away, but it was not that far if I ran. I turned down the street and went a few doors down.
I ran toward the store I had just passed… and opened the door.
It was dark inside. Various goods were lined up in a motley assortment, covered with dust. It seemed to be unkempt. Not even organized.
And inside the store, there were three people. Two people who seemed to be familiar customers, and the shopkeeper behind the counter.
The three people in the store looked at me with curiosity. This store doesn’t seem to be very popular in this area, and new customers are rare.
I felt uncomfortable being the center of attention, but it couldn’t be helped. I called out to the shopkeeper,
“Excuse me.” (Tougo)
“Shopping? Or pawning?” (Shopkeeper)
As I walked up to the counter, the two customers who had been talking at the counter gave me some space. So, I go over there and have a conversation with the guy.
“Um, shopping.” (Tougo)
“Oh, okay. What do you want? The ones over there are only one silver coin each. The one on the desk over there is five silver coins. The one on the shelf over there is one gold coin.” (Shopkeeper)
…I don’t really understand the sense of money in this world, but for the time being, I know that the pricing is very rough.
“I want to buy the one that was outside, not inside.” (Tougo)
“Huh. Which one? All the things outside are expensive. Can you even pay?” (Shopkeeper)
“I have money.” (Tougo)
I said, and the shopkeeper looked at the bag in my hand and looked satisfied.
“If you pay, I’ll sell it. So, which one?” (Shopkeeper)
Oh, good It’s not for sale.
So, I decided to tell him what I wanted to buy.
“I want to buy that sword.” (Fay)
As soon as I said that I felt that the atmosphere in the store had become strange.
The shopkeeper looked at me with a surprised look… and then gave me a quizzical look.
“…do you have any feelings for that sword?” (Shopkeeper)
Well… I don’t know how to answer this.
Because it caught Laocles’ eye? Because it caught my attention? But that’s not my reason.
“Well… I don’t have one, but… I really want to buy it.” (Tougo)
I have no idea. However, for Laocles, it may be something that he has a fondness for. I don’t know.
Somehow, I didn’t want to mention Laocles. It may be because the reaction of the people at the store was a little strange.
“I see…I see.” (Shopkeeper)
Then the store clerk looked at me, then looked at my hand… and grinned.
“Well, I don’t know. Then for the time being should I kill you?” (Shopkeeper)
