After leaving the labyrinth, I headed to the Adventurers' Guild alone.
The effects of the poison seem to have completely disappeared thanks to the medicine.
I also recovered my HP with Durandal, so there's no problem with my condition.
I continued my journey at the Adventurers' Guild.
Today, I flew to the town of Zavil.
According to Seri, this is a city located at the farthest border of the empire.
From here, I will fly to Permask.
At the Zavil Adventurers' Guild, I compared the posted notices and notes.
There doesn't seem to be any writing that matches what Seri wrote for Permask.
"How do I get to Permask from here?"
"You can fly to Permask three times a day: in the morning, at noon, and in the evening. The cost is five silver coins. The morning flight is over. The next one is around noon. There are still more than four hours left."
When I asked a resident adventurer, they answered.
It's confusing to be told morning, noon, and evening without a clock or time zones.
But the locals probably determine the time by the position of the sun, so it would be difficult without the sun being at its highest point at noon.
Since there's nothing I can do, I went back home from the Zavil Adventurers' Guild.
I immediately went outside and checked the position of the sun.
The sun in Koolatar had just risen.
Assuming it takes six hours to reach the southern sky, four hours would be two-thirds of that.
There seems to be a time difference of nearly two hours between Koolatar and Zavil.
Considering the time difference between Koolatar and the capital, the distance isn't as great as I thought.
Or perhaps it's not directly east but slightly north or south.
If the time difference is two hours, it means I've moved one-twelfth of the planet's circumference, or thirty degrees in longitude.
My MP has decreased significantly.
Can I really make it to Permask like this?
No, I'm just being negative because my MP is low.
It will be difficult to get to Permask like this.
No, it's a problem because my MP is insufficient.
"What happened?"
"I have something to do in four hours. By then, the sun should be about there."
"Four hours, then. I'll let you know when the time comes."
It seems I can rely on Roxane's internal clock.
Since there's no way to know the exact time anyway, it can't be helped.
After breakfast, I went to the Merchants' Guild.
I bought a monster card of a caterpillar from the merchant Luke.
I confirmed it with appraisal, so there's no mistake.
It doesn't seem like he has decided to sell me a fake yet.
On my way back, I returned to the waiting room of the Merchants' Guild and saw a familiar face.
It was Gosler, the handsome knight commander of the Halz public domain.
He looked like a painting just sitting there.
He exuded an overwhelming presence.
That's what makes handsome men.
Roxane, don't look.
I'm worried when handsome men are nearby.
I hope it's just a groundless worry.
In ancient times, the people of Qi worried that the sky and earth might collapse.
It's not something to mock as a groundless worry.
Mount Tai will eventually collapse, the pillars used in beams will eventually break, and wise men will eventually die.
Mount Tai will collapse, the pillars will break, and the wise men will wither.
Wise men die. Handsome men should die too.
Die now.
Die immediately.
Die right away.
"Oh, what a coincidence. Are you here for the auction, adventurer?"
Perhaps I cursed too much, as I was noticed.
I would have preferred to ignore him.
Gosler approached with an unnecessarily cheerful smile.
"Just a bit of equipment."
"I see. That's the most important thing for adventurers."
"Are you here for the same reason, Gosler?"
I moved forward to hide from the two people behind him.
Seri, don't look.
Thinking that, she immediately went to the bookshelf and started reading.
It seems words are more important to her than handsome men.
"The work of a duke is mostly about socializing. I often have to give gifts."
"To get the gifts?"
"It's a bit complicated for nobles."
You need to acquire various items using auctions.
Rare items and valuable equipment would certainly make good gifts.
The other half of a noble's job is to conquer labyrinths.
"Recently, the third prince's wedding will take place. I have to be careful since a new house will be built. Normally, for a royal wedding, an elixir is enough, and for a birth, a self-destruct bomb is fine. But I'm looking for suitable equipment for establishing a new house."
Building a house, not just a home.
It means independence, not succession.
Since he's the third prince.
"That sounds challenging."
"Do you have anything?"
"Unfortunately, no."
I don't have anything.
"Gathering gifts is time-consuming. If there's an opportunity to acquire a Weilingshen, I'd like you to let me know."
"Speaking of gifts, how about a mirror from Permask?"
I heard from Seri that mirrors from Permask are used as gifts among nobles.
"Nobles with territories close to Permask often use them. But we are in the north, so it's difficult to get to Permask."
"I see."
If you're giving a gift, it's best to use local specialties or easily accessible items.
That's only natural.
"Sometimes, for important events like a powerful person's wedding in the territory, items are acquired in the capital. By any chance, can you get a mirror from Permask at a lower price?"
"Probably."
"I use them as well, so if you can get them at a lower price, please bring them to the palace of Bode. I'll buy them."
I'm not sure if I can get to Permask in one go, but at least I can get to Zavil, the closest entrance to Permask.
If Zavil is the closest to Permask, maybe mirrors can be bought at a lower price there.
Or, I could rest in Zavil and then go to Permask.
"Understood."
"Then, let me give you this."
"What is this?"
"It's the emblem of Duke Halz. If you show this at the palace, you should be able to speak directly to me or the duke. I don't think it can be misused, but showing it unnecessarily within the territory is a crime, so be careful."
Gosler handed me a cloth with the emblem.
It's a well-made, beautiful patch.
I'm not sure if it's embroidered or woven, but it must be difficult to make.
Counterfeits are unlikely to circulate.
It's like a letter of introduction.
It seems to be the season for getting letters of introduction since yesterday.
"Sir Gosler, I have been waiting. A visitor has arrived."
As I was putting the emblem in my backpack, a familiar voice came from behind.
It was Luke.
"Is the visitor me?"
"Do you know each other?"
Turning around, I saw Luke looking surprised.
Nobles use intermediaries for auctions, it seems.
Luke must be a supplier for the Halz family.
"Just a bit."
"I see. Then, I'll take my leave."
Gosler and the two subordinates who came with him left with Luke.
The two subordinates were also elves, meaning they were handsome.
Damn.
"Ah, all elves are handsome."
"I guess so."
Roxane answered casually.
She doesn't seem very interested.
"Elves and intermediaries, a good combination."
Oh, Seri seems interested.
"Is it a good combination?"
"Elves and intermediaries are both people whose thoughts are hard to read."
"Is that so?"
"Dwarves are raised to be cautious of elves. The same goes for intermediaries."
It seems dwarves don't get along with elves.
Seri doesn't seem very interested in elves either.
Her wariness of intermediaries is well-known.
I wonder what would happen if there were elf intermediaries.
"Intermediaries who know elves are out of the question."
"Maybe not. Not all elves are bad. You need to judge carefully."
Seri is indeed reasonable.
It doesn't seem to be unconditional prejudice.
"Let's go home then."
"There are still about three hours left. I think it's fine to go to Bairel now."
As I was about to leave, Roxane informed me.
It seems safe according to Roxane's internal clock.
I had Seri make equipment, had breakfast, and negotiated with Luke.
Indeed, it took about an hour in total.
Following Roxane's advice, I flew to the Bairel labyrinth.
I asked Seri about things I didn't understand from my conversation with Gosler.
"What is a self-destruct bomb?"
"It's an item that performs a self-destruct attack."
"Scary."
"It's an item that can deal significant damage to monsters at the cost of the user's life. However, adults rarely use it because they would die. Children sometimes fail to detonate it, and the younger they are, the higher the failure rate. It's said to fail for sure for children under three years old. If it fails, it doesn't deal damage, but the user doesn't die. In some cases, a child who fails can become a mage."
I heard that using drugs in childhood is necessary to become a mage.
So, self-destruct bombs are used by children.
That's why they are a standard gift for births.
It's a strange name for a gift, though.
"An elixir?"
"The highest-grade universal medicine. It's said to instantly cure any injury, fatigue, or status ailment."
"And what did he say about giving something else?"
"It's Weilingshen. It's used as a raw material to make elixirs."
Weilingshen.
It seems the highest-grade items are used as gifts among nobles.
"Got it. Thanks."
After talking to Seri, I hunted until the time came.
It would be boring to wait at home, watching the shadow of the sun, so I might as well rely on my internal clock.
After all, there are three chances a day.
"Master, I think it's about time."
While hunting Slow Rabbits with a cook, Roxane informed me.
By the way, I think the skill to increase the drop rate of rare ingredients is not level-dependent.
The rabbit meat left behind is increasing.
"Is it already that time?"
"It's been nearly three hours since we entered the labyrinth."
It seems the same to Seri.
The proposal was passed with more than two-thirds of the votes in favor.
"Can we hunt one more time?"
"Yes, I think it's fine."
"Then, one last time."
I took out Durandal and had Roxane search for monsters.
I defeated a Slow Rabbit and recovered my MP.
I flew from the Bairel labyrinth to the Zavil Adventurers' Guild.
My MP decreased, not as much as before, but noticeably.
Actually, it seems to have decreased more than in the morning.
At this rate, it would be better to recover MP in the labyrinth on the way back rather than going directly home.
Bringing Roxane was the right choice.
No, is it really?
Why do I feel my MP is lower now than in the morning?
Bairel should be farther from Zavil than Koolatar.
It's not like flying east or west consumes different amounts of MP.
The only possibility is that the number of people warping affects MP consumption.
It's quite possible.
I haven't verified it because the only time I clearly consumed MP was when I went to get Roxane.
If the MP consumption changes with the number of party members, bringing Roxane and Seri was a mistake.
Well, it can't be helped.
I talked to the resident adventurer I saw this morning.
"Can I still make it to the flight to Permask?"
"Ah, the one from earlier. Yes, you can. It's the third person. The noon bell should be ringing soon. The departure is after the bell."
I wondered what he meant by "the third person," but the party can have up to six members.
Including the adventurer, five people can be transported at once.
If more than six people come, they probably make two trips.
It's probably the first five people who get to go.
"Stay here for a while."
"Understood."
I dismissed the party.
Seri walked towards the posted notices.
It seems Seri has a way to pass the time.
The noon bell rang.
"Those who want to go to Permask, please gather. It costs five silver coins."
I paid five silver coins and headed to Permask.
"Welcome. This is Permask. You can freely walk around the town of Permask. You can also freely buy and sell items. You need to exchange copper coins. It is strictly forbidden to take residents of Permask outside. All buildings in Permask, except the Adventurers' Guild, use shielding cement. You can only use field walk in the Adventurers' Guild. To enter or exit the town from the Adventurers' Guild, you need to be checked with an intelligence card by a knight under the Council of Censors. The entry tax is one silver coin, which you will pay at this time."
When I arrived at the Permask Adventurers' Guild, a representative from Permask was waiting and gave a long explanation of the rules.