Chapter 203

Alright, I’m curious about Melt’s progress, and it’s already around noon.

When I get home, I decide to make lunch first before calling up to the second floor.

There’s nothing left in the fridge except preserved food, so I’ll use the ingredients stored in my menu screen again this time.

“Oh… right, I still have all the food Kilcrawler left with me.”

Dried meat, hard bread, dried noodles, monster meat, shrimp, squid—everything was left in my custody.

…If people start assuming it’s a storage where time is frozen inside, that might cause problems later.
So, sorry Kilcrawler… I’ll just go ahead and use it all this time.

If they ask, I’ll just say, “It spoiled inside, so I had to throw it out.”

“Alright then… it’s been a while, but maybe I’ll make a quiche-style French toast using the hard bread.”

I’m sure I can make it better than before.

And since I’ve got squid and shrimp, I’ll make something really delicious.

“Hey, Melt—lunch is ready!”

Once lunch is finished, I call upstairs, and—just like before—Melt comes down immediately.

But she seems concerned about the workroom. There’s a slight look of guilt on her face.

“What’s wrong?”

“Well… I asked Selene-chan to handle the separation process of the reagents, but she still has at least twenty minutes where she can’t stop. I feel kind of bad eating first without her…”

“I see. But you can finish eating first, then go back, and once Selene’s task is done, just tell her to have lunch. I’m heading into the town afterward.”

“Okay, got it. Thanks to Selene-chan, I think we can finish separating ‘Vermilion Sea Tears’ and ‘Azure Sky Drops’ from the liquor by the end of today. It’s really convenient having her handle tasks while doing other work…”

“I see, I see. And once that’s done, will you have the materials you need for your alchemy?”

“Nope, not even close. I’ll use Vermilion Sea Tears as the material to alchemize a gemstone called ‘Darkness of the Abyss.’ Then, using Azure Sky Drops, I’ll alchemize another gemstone called ‘Light of the Firmament’… and finally, once we obtain a gemstone called ‘Hamunchu Soul,’ I’ll use that to make a medicine called ‘Anima’s Cradle.’ It’s a drug that can house a soul inside a person or object, or shake an existing soul awake. Probably one of the rarest medicines in the world. You absolutely can’t tell anyone that I can make it, okay?”

“O-Oh… okay, I promise I’ll keep it secret.”

“That’s right, shh—shii~.”

Hearing Melt’s long-time-no-hear “shii~” is oddly soothing.

Lunch is delicious, if I do say so myself.
Feels like a hearty version of a seafood omelette.

The seafood broth has soaked into everything perfectly…

“It’s so good! I’ll definitely have Selene-chan eat some later, okay!”

“Yeah, please do. I’m heading into town—want me to pick up anything while I’m out?”

“Oh! Then marmetano and round bread! And some vegetables too! I haven’t had them in a while!”

“Alright, I’ll get enough for three people. For me, Serene, and you.”

“Four is fine! I can eat two!”

“Nope. I’ll cook something extra instead, so behave.”

“Okaaay.”

…Sometimes I think about it.

Melt may act childish, but the knowledge and skills she holds are top-tier even in this world.

And someone like that is basically being monopolized by me.

Isn’t that… an insult to humanity in this world?

No, she has shared selective knowledge before. Thanks to her, even low-grade but precious medicine became more common. That’s already a huge contribution.

…Still, I can’t help wanting to keep my adorable family all to myself.

“Alright, I’m off. Just soak the dishes in the sink.”

“Sure, I think I’ll have time, so I’ll wash them too~.”

And so, I head into town alone for the first time in a while.

Come to think of it, as Shizuma, I’ve almost never gone into town by myself.

Hopefully I won’t get dragged into trouble…
And no, that’s not a flag.

Recently, I noticed there are more beastkin around town.

Beastkin were rare even in Golda, so I guess it means they couldn’t settle in this country or Golda’s capital, so they must’ve all been pushed to the outskirts of that territory.

And now, they must’ve crossed over to Lendia as refugees.

But the refugees aren’t only beastkin. Citizens influenced by that country’s ideology—and even nobles—must be migrating here as well.

I just haven’t seen it, but I’m sure conflicts and trouble have been happening.

Even though this country does have beastkin nobles.

Actually, if someone openly discriminates based on race here, I’m pretty sure they’d be harshly criticized and lose their place in society… but, well, there are always people who don’t understand that.

With that uneasy thought, I arrive at the General Guild.

Not long ago, tons of adventurers were dispatched for field security and land development. I wonder what things are like now?

Probably as lively as always—I step inside.

“Oh how awful… why do we even have beastkin among the guild staff?”

“My thoughts exactly. I suppose I can tolerate beastkin doing grunt work like adventurers, but why are they allowed to be staff who interact with humans? Truly disgraceful.”

…You’ve got to be kidding me.

I just said I hoped I wouldn’t run into trouble!

At the adventurer guild reception, two people—probably nobles or wealthy upper-class types—were loudly spouting discriminatory remarks at the beastkin receptionist, drawing attention.

“Call another staff member, beastkin!”

“That’s right, replace yourself at once!”

When someone has business at the guild… what annoying pests.

I push past the two of them and speak directly to the beastkin receptionist.

“Excuse me, you don’t need to deal with people like this. I need your help instead. I think there should be a message from the castle—I want to register with the Adventurers’ Guild. Could you check for me? Name’s Shizuma.”

“Uh, um…”

“Please, I’ll handle things over here. You’re from Golda maybe? You don’t have to shrink back like that here. Go ahead and check.”

“Y-Yes.”

…Alright. Unfortunately, I’m not Same, so I don’t have the privilege of ‘being allowed to kill nobles and get away with it.’

But what I can do is escalate this into a huge incident… and destroy them socially.

“What do you think you’re doing! We were in the middle of talking!”

“Just ordinary obstruction of work. Honestly, you two were in a situation where even an adventurer restraining you wouldn’t be out of line. This isn’t Golda. Do you really think that kind of talk is allowed here? And besides— you’re nobles from a defeated nation, aren’t you? You’re never getting your status back. The country will crush that possibility entirely. Everyone in this guild hall is a witness. You’re not getting away. I’ll make sure your behavior is reported to your superiors.”

Sensing the shift in the atmosphere, the pair tried to leave, but I blocked them.

It didn’t matter if they tried to push past me or dodge around me. Impossible. The difference in our stats was too great.

Gradually, they seemed to realize that the “young man before them” was something far more dangerous— something far above them. Their anger twisted into fear.

At that moment, the receptionist from earlier returned, accompanied by Bark, the guild manager.

Apparently the noble-looking couple also knew Bark, because they grinned and immediately started complaining about me.

“Rondo-sama! Please seize this man! We were asking that receptionist to take us to you, but this youngster suddenly barged in and even threatened us!”

Huh? “Rondo-sama”? What’s that? Another name for Bark?

I asked them to contact the royal castle for me, but it seems they also had business with Bark. I wondered which of us he came to hear out.

“You must be Shizuma-dono. We have already received notice from the royal family. There are still some small ‘matters’ left to handle, but once I finish them, I will guide you to the reception room.”

“Thank you. I was worried the guild might be on friendly terms with beastman-hating bigots. At any rate, no matter what these two say, everyone here heard them. Anyone can testify.”

“I see. Now then… you must be the former Viscount Liebert. I heard you had an audience with Her Majesty this morning, yet you cause such trouble immediately afterward. I advise you to abandon your appeal regarding the redistribution of Golda territory. It seems you are simply not suited to the values of this nation. I will report this to Her Majesty accordingly.”

“N-No! This man is just making things up—!”

“He is, despite his youth, someone highly regarded by Her Majesty and has accomplished many great deeds.”

“W-What? That… that brat…?!”

“Give up. There is no overturning this now. You will simply have to start over as ordinary citizens.”

“Damn it… how did it come to this…!”

“We’ll overlook this incident, but discrimination against beastkin is a vile relic of the past in this country. Whatever retaliation you face, we will not protect you, and few hands will reach out to help you. Do not forget this.”

Terrified by Bark’s words and the unfriendly stares around them, the former viscount and his wife fled the guild in haste.

…This country is far stricter against prejudice than I realized.

“My apologies. I became heated. My wife is also a beastkin, you see. Honestly… among the former nobles immigrating from Golda, there are quite a few like them. I’m sorry you had to see that, Shizuma-dono.”

“No, I’m the one who butted in unnecessarily. Shall we?”

“Yes, this way.”

Just as we headed up the stairs—

“Well said, kid! I was this close to decking him!”

“You were awesome, lad! When you become an adventurer, team up with me sometime!”

“I’ll teach you anything you want to know! Always room for someone with backbone!”

Everyone started calling out encouraging words.

…Embarrassing!

“Heh. It seems everyone felt the same. As a place to employ refugees, we’ve been assigning beastkin as staff members and allocating people with aptitude to each guild. The guild already has a very welcoming atmosphere. And those two… As much as I hate to say this as the person in charge, seeing them shut down felt rather satisfying.”

“Haha… I see.”

We moved to the reception room, and I officially received my Ruby Gem Adventurer Tag.

It even had a “2” engraved on it — marking that I’d cleared two dungeons. I understood immediately.

“I heard you’re connected to the Brigade as well. Our nation is fortunate indeed. With your guidance, this country is truly changing.”

“Half of it is just circumstance. But Same has settled in this country, so I guess I just followed along.”

“I see. And where is Same now?”

“He returned to the Brigade. Lots of cleanup work to do.”

“I understand. And I heard Silent-sama headed toward Golda recently.”

“That’s what I’ve heard too. I don’t know the details though.”

I played along, spinning the current “status” of our still-fictional brigade.

…First things first— revive Same and Sheele. I need to help Melt however I can.

After receiving my tag, I left the guild and went to buy groceries. I picked up three Marmetano buns just as promised.

…And as usual, the line was long. The food stalls were unbelievably crowded due to the influx of refugees.

From what I saw… skewers were selling the best today! Hang in there, Marmetano!