Volume 7 Chapter 14 Coin The Merchant
We, who had successfully obtained the local specialty, were heading to the Traveler Mine's Guild where Coin was, in high spirits.
"...By the way, why is it called the 'Traveler's Mine' Guild, anyway?"
When I asked, Roman, Ridge, and even Windy, who was sitting in the driver's seat, tilted their heads.
"What do you mean, 'why'?"
"I mean, Ridge, wouldn't it be better to just call it the Blacksmith Guild if it's a blacksmith guild? Why do they have to add 'traveler mine' to it?"
"Ah... I used to see it often in the imperial capital when I was a kid, so I thought that's just how it was."
Ridge looked at Roman, as if to say, "What's the deal with that?" Adults tend to get all-knowing at times like this.
Roman explained, "It's a name related to the origins of humans and dwarves."
"From the very beginning, the act of 'traveling' is something that's only permitted to humans."
"...Huh?"
"For us humans, it's just a normal action that we can do without any issues. Of course, we don't do it frequently, but it's something we can do without any problems. That's what traveling means to us humans."
"I see."
"But there are many other races that aren't like that."
With that explanation, I finally started to understand.
"So, you're saying that non-humans can't travel?"
"It's not impossible, but they have a strong resistance to leaving their homes. Pure-blooded elves, dwarves, and beastmen, for example, dislike leaving their habitats."
"I've heard that the sl*ve hunters of the past exploited that nature."
Windy, who was sitting in the coachman's seat, said.
"When I was a kid, I saw sl*ves of other races in the city, and they all had this 'end-of-the-world' look on their faces. They would open their mouths and talk about their hometowns nonstop."
"As the emperor's mixed-blood policy progresses, the number of pure-blooded individuals will decrease, and things will change, I suppose."
After saying that, Roman added, "Of course, there are exceptions, though."
"For example, elves can travel if they leave the elven forest within 200 years of their birth. If they don't leave the forest by then, they'll become unable to conceive the idea of traveling due to fear."
"Wow... So, human blood is like a symbol of travel, huh?"
Leaving his hometown, Coin was able to do so while still retaining the dwarfish qualities of being a miner and blacksmith. That's probably how the Traveler Mine's Guild got its name.
As we were chatting, the horse-drawn carriage came to a stop. "Shall we go?" we said, and the 4 of us got off the carriage.
The Traveler Mine Guild was built in a prime location in the city, with a grand storefront. When we entered, we were surrounded by rows of weapons on display, and the adventurers inside turned to stare at us.
...It's been a while since I've seen this kind of thing. In Karditsa, there's no one who'd give me a look like that anymore.
"Hey, you 3 look pretty good. What's with you, coming to a place like this without a guard?"
A man approached me, grinning, and clapped me on the shoulder. I was about to take out my adventurer's badge, but then I remembered I didn't bring it because I was wearing noble attire.
"Rookie mistake."
"Ah? Well, in that case, I'll be your guard. The price will be...all the money you have, haha!"
Ridge muttered, "This is why I hate people like him...", while Roman was trying to hold back his laughter, saying, "Ignorance is scary..."
I let out a deep sigh and touched the arm that was around my shoulder.
"Object Point Shift, Object Weight Increase."
"Huh? What's going on now?"
But before he could even ask, the man fell onto the ceiling. "Whoa!" he shouted, sticking to the ceiling, and then [Weight Increase] kicked in.
"What the...? What's going on? Hey, let me down! Hey!"
"Got it. I'll let you down."
"Eh? ———Ahh!"
The man fell from the ceiling to the ground, letting out a short cry before passing out. The people who were laughing at us froze in shock.
I stepped on the man, and headed towards the counter. Ridge and Roman followed me, stepping on the man as well.
I handed the letter I was given to the small girl behind the counter, who was also frozen in shock.
"I'd like to meet the person in charge here. This is a letter of introduction from Margrave Birk."
"Ah! Yes, yes! An introduction from Lord-sama, isn't it? I'll get everything ready, so please wait for just a moment!"
The girl responded energetically and ran off to the back. "She's quite mature for her age, isn't she? Ridge, you can't lose to her, can you?" I said, and Roman replied, "Wade-kun, she's an adult now."
"Huh? Seriously?"
"Yes. Her ears are slightly pointed. With that feeling, she's an adult half-dwarf woman."
"Hmm... I had an image of dwarves being older, though."
I mean, the dwarves I saw in the carriage had an old-man face, didn't they? Ah?
As I tilted my head, Roman answered.
"That's true for pure-blood dwarves. Half-dwarves retain their human youthfulness while remaining small in stature. As a result, they look like children until they reach a certain age."
"That's interesting."
As I was impressed, Ridge chimed in, "Even so, I'm more mature!" with a mysterious tone. "Yeah, yeah..." I stroked her head, and she got angry, saying, "Wade-sama, you're so silly!"
Just then, the receptionist girl from earlier returned and told us,
"The Guildmaster of Coin Guild will see you. Please come this way."
As we followed the girl, a loud, rough voice echoed.
"You idiot! You're selling such crappy weapons! Bring me profitable weapons!"
A rough, gangster-like voice. I thought to myself, "This guy must be like a yakuza," as we proceeded. The receptionist girl opened the door, and a sturdy dwarf blacksmith with a tearful face rushed out of the room.
"I apologize for showing you something unpleasant. Please come in."
"Ah, yes..."
I nodded vaguely and entered the room. There, I saw a half-n*ked, short boy.
Huh? Ah... huh?
"Oh! So you're the ones introduced by Lord-sama, huh? Well, fine. Sit down over there for now."
The rough voice from earlier came from that boy's mouth, so we exchanged bewildered glances. However, there was no one in the room who seemed to be intimidated.
We sat down on the sofa, and then gazed at the boy intently.
He was a boy with a dwarf-like physique, darkish skin, and slightly pointed ears. He had a slender build, and you could even call him a "shota" (a young-looking boy) without any hesitation.
He was puffing on a pipe, wearing gaudy rings on all his fingers, and furrowing his brow right in front of our eyes.
What is this shota doing? He's so villainous.
"Huh? You're quite the looker, but are you a noble or a young merchant trying to make a name for himself? Hmm?"
The way he spoke, with a lisp and all, was like something out of a yakuza movie. I thought to myself, "This is crazy," and introduced myself.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Wade Gravitas Württemberg, the newly appointed Marquis Württemberg. These 2 are my attendants, and they're both nobles."
"I'm Ridge of Noble~desuwa."
"I'm Count Romantini Manheim."
"Hmph, you've got the basic manners of a noble, at least. Oh, sorry about the late introduction. I'm Coin, the Guildmaster of the Traveler's Guild in Margrave Birk's territory."
Coin puffed on his pipe and blew out a ring of smoke, saying "Puh-hah." His demeanor was completely like a mafia don, but he looked like a shota through and through.
―――This is crazy, after all! This villainous shota is actually a big shot merchant, Coin!
I suppressed my excitement and continued the conversation with a smile.
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