Chapter 149: Coloured Earth Stone

It was still early afternoon, and the Adventurers’ Guild hall was quiet. Only a few adventurers stood before the request board, while a member of staff wrote documents at the counter.

Heads turned when Ren opened the door. The clerk looked up, followed by the adventurers nearby.

“It’s the apprentice lad.”

“…You’ve brought something rather large today.”

Ren readjusted the hemp sack on his back, breathing a little heavily. In addition to the sack, he carried a large bird-type magical beast tied with rope. Even with its wings folded, its body was as broad as Ren’s shoulders, and its feathers shone amber in the sunlight.

It was an Amber Crow.

“Ren-kun, come here a moment.”

Ren turned at the familiar voice. Mikaila, the deputy guild master, came from behind the counter, looking more serious than usual.

“Ren-kun, you didn’t go all the way into the forest’s middle layer, did you?”

“Huh?”

Ren tilted his head, unsure why she was asking.

“That’s an Amber Crow. They’re commonly found in the middle layer.”

Ren looked down at the bird and remembered where he’d fought it.

“Um… it was fairly bright, so I don’t think I reached the middle layer…”

“You don’t think?”

“Yes. The middle layer is dark, isn’t it?”

Mikaila frowned lightly.

“Usually. The trees grow so densely that little sunlight enters.”

Ren thought back over his route. He had spent the day looking up into the trees for bird-type beasts, chasing Azure Wind Swifts and Flame Finches rather than following the packed path from the forest entrance.

Because he’d placed Small Box markers at intervals, he hadn’t needed to worry about finding his way home. Guild records said the main path had a marker showing where the middle layer began, but if he didn’t follow that path, it was difficult to tell whether he’d entered it.

He’d wandered freely without paying attention to how far he’d gone.

“…It was bright, so I don’t think I was in the middle layer. But maybe I reached somewhere close to it…”

Mikaila sighed.

“You’re still an apprentice. Don’t take unreasonable risks. You’re an apprentice until you can make those judgements for yourself.”

“Yes… I’m sorry.”

“Rather than apologising, let me check you for injuries first.”

Ren held out his arms, moved his legs, and rotated each ankle in turn.

“I’m not hurt.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

The battle had been dangerous. If he’d mistimed or misplaced a Small Box shield, he might have been injured. The same was true with other magical beasts, but he’d never used so many boxes in a single fight before. Even so, he didn’t have so much as a scratch.

After examining him, Mikaila finally relaxed slightly.

“All right. Next time you plan to enter the middle layer, consult someone first.”

“Okay.”

Ren nodded obediently, then remembered something and reached into his pocket.

“Oh, that’s right. The Amber Crow spat these out.”

He placed a small reddish-brown stone on his palm. It was rounded and had an unusual pattern.

“Oh, that’s a Coloured Earth Stone,” Mikaila said.

“A Coloured Earth Stone?”

“Yes. It’s used as a pigment.”

“A pigment?”

“A material for paints and dyes. It’s crushed into powder before use.”

Ren held it to the light. Layers of reddish-brown lines ran through it, making it rather beautiful.

(I knew it. I should be able to use this for writing.)

His first thought was the Charcoal-Core Feather Pen. Charcoal produced only black writing, but if this stone added colour, he could write coloured letters on a writing board.

“The guild will buy it too. Do you want to sell it?”

Ren considered, then shook his head.

“I want to try using it.”

“Have you thought of something to test?”

“Yes.”

Mikaila shrugged with a wry smile.

“Then I’m looking forwards to it.”

“Huh?”

“I hope you get an interesting result.”

She smiled and called to the clerk.

“A standard appraisal, please.”

“Understood.”

The clerk prepared the scales. Ren placed the large Amber Crow on the counter, followed by the hemp sack. He pulled out the smaller Amber Crow crammed inside, then the Azure Wind Swift and Sun Poppo. After looking at the Sun Poppo and thinking briefly, he said:

“…I’ll take the Sun Poppo’s meat home.”

While he waited for the appraisal, Ren headed straight to the workshop.

(Maybe I can powder the Coloured Earth Stone and bind it with glue. Or mix it with charcoal…)

Only a short while earlier he’d fought a dangerous beast, but now his mind was already racing with possible ways to process the stone.