Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 27: Cat and Dog ④
The next day.
“……”
I felt a little fidgety.
This was the central plaza of Hydrangea, where the Fountain of the Heroic Statue stood.
Behind me was a massive four-story building that looked like a fancy old European hotel.
It was the Hydrangea Branch of the Explorer’s Guild—second largest in this frontier region.
Looking at it again, it really was huge. This wasn’t my first time seeing it, though.
After the dungeon anomaly was dealt with, I had come out from the basement of this very building.
Now that I think about it, they still haven’t called me in for the dungeon anomaly.
Maybe it’s because the investigation team is still working on it—they’ll probably contact me once they finish.
Not that I really know what happened down there, anyway.
Apparently, I played a huge role, but to me, it was just another “It’s a New World” experience.
“…Come to think of it,”
I never did ask what kind of request it was, this whole harvesting-magic-silver-from-the-Monoceros thing.
So much has happened since then…
When we finally managed to pull Dagaa off of Pakira-san’s tail and butt… I really didn’t expect that to happen next.
That it would lead to that… I’m so powerless. I had no idea things would turn out like that.
“Wof.”
“P-Pakira-san! Good morning.”
“Hmm.”
Pakira-san, dressed in a black robe, came running over.
Even after everything that happened yesterday… she was still stunningly beautiful today.
Yesterday’s white robe had three slits. Today’s had four.
Two fluffy white tails, one long and one short, poked out from two of those slits.
“Juicy isn’t here yet?”
“Not yet.”
“Nah!”
“Hmph. So you are here.”
Pakira-san looked annoyed. Well, I guess that’s a natural reaction.
“Y-Yes, today Mineha-san is out on a job.”
“I heard she’s been teaming up with Bid lately.”
“And it looks like they’ve formed a trio with one more person.”
“Oh? That’s news to me.”
“Which means I couldn’t just leave him home…”
You can’t leave Dagaa to watch the house.
“It can’t be helped. But listen—if he does anything like yesterday, I won’t forgive him. Understood?”
“Y-Yes, ma’am.”
Her cat ears twitched up, and she let out a low growl. Most of all, her eyes were deadly serious. Cat eyes are scary.
“Nah?”
“Don’t move. Just stay quiet, and remain in knife mode.”
“Nah!”
Does he really get it? I’m worried.
“Um, um! Wof-sama! Pakira-san! Wan! Good morning!”
A cheerful dog came bounding over—Juicy-san.
She wore the same kind of outfit as yesterday, with a red cape.
“G-Good morning.”
“Such a lively dog.”
From a cat’s perspective, that energy must be exhausting. Yeah, I can see that.
I remembered our family dog back home running around while a cat stared down at it coldly from the fence.
“Nah!”
“Um, woof woof! Good morning to you too, Dagaa-chan!”
Juicy-san crouched down and greeted the area around my waist.
“Nah!”
“Stop yapping, knife.”
“Nah?”
“You…”
“U-Um, woof. Dagaa-chan—shhh, quiet please.”
She made the “shh” gesture with one finger over her lips. Cute.
“Nah?”
“Oh, whatever. Listen up, you two and one animal—be on your best behavior inside.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Um, yes! Understood! I’ll be good!”
“Nah!”
“You stay quiet and act like a knife.”
“Nah?”
“…I’ll make sure he behaves.”
“I’m seriously worried.”
“Nah!”
I really was worried.
Anyway, the three of us headed into the Explorer’s Guild.
The first floor of the guild was truly a spectacle.
Rows and rows of reception counters and receptionists.
The walls were plastered with request forms from floor to ceiling.
And in front of the counters were long benches for people waiting.
Even early in the morning, explorers were already scattered about.
Some stared at the request boards. Others sat on benches drinking. Some leaned against the walls drinking. Others drank while sitting on the floor.
They were all drinking.
The guild wasn’t combined with a tavern, but it clearly didn’t ban alcohol either.
Still, there was something about the air here—the atmosphere, maybe—that felt familiar.
I’d seen something like this before. A memory from my past life… what was it? This distinct vibe…
I was just about to remember—when it happened.
A receptionist near me rang a bell with a crisp riiing and announced:
“Ticket number 35, ‘Liquor-Soaked Force’. ‘Liquor-Soaked Force,’ please come forward.”
“That’s us.”
A group of rough-looking men got up from a nearby bench and walked to the counter.
That was… quite the party name. They looked more like bandits than explorers.
Those spiked shoulder pads—where do you even buy those?
“Thank you for waiting, ‘Liquor-Soaked Force’. Here is the reward for the Tarantula-Tara extermination and silk collection request.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Now, please submit your explorer tags.”
“Yeah.”
“Alright. I’ve added your promotion points to the tags.”
“Nice. We’re almost there.”
“Thank you for your hard work. We look forward to serving you again.”
“Yeah. See ya.”
Somehow, it all ended rather matter-of-factly. Despite their appearance and outfits, the “Soaked-in-Sake Force” were actually quite polite.
“Even so, this place is surprisingly systematic. Ah!”
Ah, I remembered! That’s it. This atmosphere—it’s just like a hospital, bank, or government office.
The number tickets, the waiting benches—everything has that same vibe.
And even though they’re drinking or look intimidating, the adventurers wait quietly and patiently.
That kind of thing feels nostalgic too. It reminded me of Axe-san and the others. The guild request from Lightning Fang…
That dungeon request, even the parts related to me, would have been properly processed, right?
Otherwise, I wouldn’t be getting paid by the guild.
“What are you doing, Wof? Over here.”
“Ah, yes!”
“Um, Wof-sama. So this is the Adventurers’ Guild? It’s my first time here—so exciting!”
“Right…”
To me, this place has suddenly become so familiar and nostalgic.
We went to the third reception from the left. The sign above it read “Special Request Reception”…?
“Hey there.”
“Welcome~~ What can I help you with~~?”
The receptionist responded in a drawn-out, slow tone. She was an unusual sight—a Fairial.
She wore the guild receptionist’s uniform and hovered lazily with four translucent wings.
Her hair was a black-and-gold two-tone. She had a white scrunchie and a side ponytail.
Her red lips stood out. Unlike Mineha-san, she had a small yet mature allure.
“I’m Pakira of Torquetum. There should be a designated request from the blacksmith Velent for gathering Monoceros magic silver.”
“A designated request~~ okay, please take number ticket 04 and wait a moment~~”
The receptionist floated off slowly behind the counter. Pakira-san held number ticket 04.
“Then let’s wait.”
“Pakira-san, can you explain?”
“U-um, what’s a special request?”
“Hmm, let me see…”
Pakira-san sat on a nearby waiting bench. We sat beside her.
“There’s a monster called a Monoceros in a dungeon. It’s about mid-tier in copper rank. It looks like a horse with a big horn and always moves in herds.”
“How is that related to magic silver?”
“Well, in those herds, just a few individuals have horns made of magic silver. Magic silver is used for many things—especially for repairing OOPArts. It’s a vital and rare ore. They usually go for 300,000 to 500,000 Ouro per horn.”
“One horn costs that much!?”
“U-um, if it’s that valuable, won’t they be overhunted?”
Even dungeon monsters can go extinct.
No one knows exactly why, but overhunting can make certain monsters stop appearing.
Before, silver slimes used to produce pure silver inside their bodies, and they were overhunted.
Since then, silver slimes stopped appearing in dungeons. But overhunting still continues.
“No need to worry. Monoceros live in a designated dungeon, and without permission from the Hydrangea Blacksmith Guild, no one can enter it.”
“U-um, then I guess there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Still, some fools try to sneak in, but it’s pointless.”
“But not all Monoceros have magic silver horns, right?”
“Right. Even in a herd of a hundred, only about five might have it.”
“…That’s extremely rare.”
Makes sense they’d go for 300,000 to 500,000 Ouro each.
“U-um, is it okay to take their horns? Won’t they die?”
“Na?”
“No worries. Their horns grow back. It’s fine.”
“U-um, I’m glad to hear that.”
“But we’ll need to collect a lot, right?”
If it’s rare, we’ll need to gather quite a few, even if it doesn’t kill them.
Mid-tier copper rank… about the same as goblins. It’ll be time-consuming.
“That’s no issue either. Now you understand, right? We’re going to Velent’s designated Monoceros dungeon to collect magic silver. We’ll be paid based on how much we collect.”
“Got it. But how much are we supposed to collect?”
Why did Velent-san give this request to Pakira-san in the first place?
Then, Juicy’s chestnut eyes sparkled as she said:
“U-um, Wof-sama. It’s probably for 1 million Ouro’s worth!”
“That’s… for the gauntlet!?”
“Yes, indeed.”
“…Pakira-san. Why would Velent-san go this far?”
We’ve barely met. Just exchanged a few words.
Why go to such lengths? Pakira-san looked at me and smiled wryly.
“For the same reason as you. He’s just a good person. Well, he probably wants to use Mazan’s materials too. Lately he’s been grumbling about only doing OOPArts repairs. I imagine he wants to create something as a smith.”
“Even so, this feels too generous to me.”
“That’s true. But it’s fine. That’s what I think.”
“U-um, I think it’s fine too! If Wof-sama is happy, then I’m happy too!”
“Na!”
I wonder if it really is okay… But it’s not a bad thing, so I’ll gratefully accept it.
Still, I wish the Dagger Knife would stay quiet. When it cried out just now, I noticed something.
A bunny-eared female adventurer passing by flinched and stared at me.
“Number ticket 04~ Pakira of Torquetum~ Please come to the special request counter~~”
“They called us.”
When we got to the counter, the Fairial receptionist had grown larger.