Did you decide on what youâre going to make? If thereâs not enough kraken, I can get you more.ă
Rofas-san came into the hut while grinning.
ăSorry, I havenât decided. You see⌠I canât make the dish I was thinking of because thereâs no sugar.ă
In order to make the sushi rice, you need both vinegar and sugar.
ăSugar⌠Okay, I got it. I canât get you a large amount, but I might be able to get you a little.ă
Rofas-san said and left. Then, he caught one of the soldiers and began talking to him.
Thatâs right, a soldier.
The army came to subjugate the giant kraken and the other monsters that appeared.
Stampedes are when a large amount of monsters come out from the dungeons. The army is dispatched to wipe out all of the monsters so that the towns wonât be in danger.
However, if there are no troops stationed nearby, then itâll take a couple of days for them to arrive. Thatâs why adventurers are forced to take action until the soldiers get there. This time, the monsters came from the advanced level dungeons, so adventurers ranked D and above were sent.
âŚYes, I want to get to level 10 to be able to use magic, butâŚ
I have no confidence in battling a monster that big.
I looked at the kraken and sighed again.
If I avoid getting to rank D, then⌠Or rather, can I even get to rank D? I started late too. Iâm basically the same as a five-year-old.
Maybe, once I graduate from being an adventurer trainee and reach level 10⌠Iâll work at a place like a dinerâs for adventurers. I should look for a job opening.
No, maybe I should ask Rofas-san to help me look.
Since it took the soldiers three days to arrive, Rofas-san and Bryce-kun took down the giant kraken. Despite being only level 10, Bryce-kun played a big role in the battle⌠I had thought that maybe you didnât have to be very strong to participate at level 10, but apparently Bryce-kun was an exception.
As an adventurer, he jumped ranks from F to D within a day⌠Although I didnât understand exactly how amazing that was supposed to be.
Anyways, the soldiers arrived and had been wandering around the forest, doing a search-and-destroy operation to make sure the monsters donât wander off to town.
ăLike I said, I donât have any sugar on me!ă
ăYeah, so thatâll work. Itâs sweet, isnât it?ă
ăEven if it is, Iâm not giving it to you!ă
Rofas-san came back to the hut while pulling on the leather bag that the soldier had.
ăRofas-san! I told you before not to take peopleâs things forcefully, didnât I?ă
Geez.
This guy never grows up.
He probably thinks itâll be fine if he pays.
ăNo, Iâm not taking it, Iâll pay for it. Iâll buy more to give to you later tooâŚăContract: 1 candy. Will return ten times the amount.ăă
Rofas-san looked awkward as he proposed the contract with the soldier he dragged over.
Well, I guess heâs reflected on his actions a bit, since I could see it in his face that he realized he had made a mistake.
What a good person Rofas-san is. He wonât get angry at me for things like, Women and children shouldnât say their opinion in such an arrogant way!
I wonder if the soldier was in his mid-twenties. His skin was so pale, it was hard to imagine that he worked as a soldier.
He had light brown hair and eyes. He didnât look exactly Western, but was more like a half between a Japanese person and a Westerner. The parts of his face werenât super profound, but they werenât completely flat either. Rather than having a western-looking face, the soldierâs face felt more intimate.
The soldier spoke, but not to agree to the contract.
ăCome on, Saga, please. Just this once.ă
Rofas-san lowered his head.
So the soldierâs name is Saga.
ăIf you have the money to buy ten, then buy them yourself! Why are you trying to rob me of the one thing I was looking forward to during this dispatch! Do you know how tiring it is to lead the troops? I canât do it unless I heal myself with something sweet.ă
ăEh? Saga-san, you lead the troopsâŚ? Youâre still so young, thatâs amazing.ă
ăItâs not that amazing. Since there are many second and third sons from noble families in the army, they forced this position onto me because they needed a noble to take the position of a high-ranking officer.ă
Eh?
ăIn fact, if nii-san didnât run off to become an adventurer, heâd probably be the one wearing this uniform now.ă
Huh?
ăNii-san?ă
ăYeah, thatâs right. Saga is my seventh younger brother.ă
ăS-seventh?!ă
So Rofas-san is part of a big family, with many childrenâŚ
ăNii-san, Iâm the eighth brother. Please donât get it wrong.ă
ăE-eighth? âŚHow many siblings do you haveâŚ?ă
I asked. Rofas-san looked at Saga-san.
ăFifteen including me?ă
ăNo, right now there are sixteen, and the seventeenth sibling will be born soon.ă
S-seventeen siblings⌠Enough to make two baseball teams in one familyâŚ
As I stood there in shock, Saga-san looked at me with a kind smile.
ăThree of us are the legal wifeâs children, four are from the mistress, and the rest are adopted.ă