CH 44

Chapter 44 Honor Student Ian’s Weakness

「Master, please wake up. The food shopping team has returned.」

…… Hmm?

Ian, huh?

「… Sorry, I fell asleep. They found out that I’m an S rank… and I was tired because of the filthy love calls from the adventurers….」

When I returned to the first floor while ruminating in my head about the list of things to buy that Mona-san told me, the adventurers that heard I was an S rank were enthusiastically inviting me.

From friendly invitations to forceful ones… I was pulled and swarmed, but I somehow managed to escape when there was an opening.

Behind the reception counter, the receptionist who leaked that I was an S rank was crying, being scolded by a middle-aged man who seemed to be her boss, but I was too tired to defend her even if I was the cause….

「That’s… thank you for your hard work. Should I do the shopping by myself?」

「No, I’m going too. I’m also curious to see what the guild’s store is like. …… By the way, Ian, what happened to your face?」

His right cheek is painfully swollen, and he looks dispirited.

Where did the usual cool, handsome honor student go?

""

Good grief… who the hell hit you?

「No… it’s nothing.」

If nothing happened, there’s no way one of your cheeks would swell up like that….

Did he have a cavity and it suddenly became severe in just one hour?

…… Well, it’s probably related to his family.

「…… Do you want me to use recovery magic?」

「No need. Thank you for your consideration.」

I asked because it looked painful….

Well, I won’t force him if he doesn’t want to talk about it.

If it’s something that would affect me, I’m sure Ian would report it to me.

「Okay… I’ll just pretend that you skipped brushing your teeth and got a cavity. … If there’s no problem, let’s go shopping right away.」

「…… Thank you, Master.」

The store directly managed by the guild has product lineups that make me feel that it’s really under the direct control of the guild.

All the items they sell are mass-produced products, but… despite the price, they use good materials and the quality is consistent, so I think it’s a trustworthy store.

「Why are there no products that use better materials?」

However, they don’t have products made from high-quality materials above a certain level.

Earth Crocodile Shoes are probably enough, but for a directly managed store, there are too few choices for weapons and armor….

Mithril class materials are not too expensive that even intermediate class adventurers can afford it if they work hard, so I think they would sell well if they were placed there, but….

「Good materials are more profitable to trade directly with merchants, so there aren’t many adventurers who sell them to the guild. It’s a problem for the guild, but since we can’t offer a higher price than other merchants, we have no choice but to give up.」

Even the few high-quality materials seem to run out quickly to meet demand.

「The products we sell are of good quality, but we use materials that have been left over because of the large supply, and the color is plain. If we lower the purchase price because we can’t sell them, many adventurers will have trouble making a living, so we have to deal with the surplus materials properly….」

So that’s why they are cheap despite their good quality.

And yeah… at a closer look, the color is very plain….

They don’t seem to be popular among the customers, huh….

「Thank you very much!」

I don’t seek beautiful colors from the things that I use in combat, so I bought all the supplies I needed at the guild’s store.

I bought the highest quality products for three people, so the price was quite high, and the clerk was smiling.

My wallet is lonely….

I’m so sad….

「Um… Master.」

……What?

He’s been dispirited since a while ago….

…… Is he in the mood to talk?

「Actually… my younger brother, the son of the second wife that I killed, came to this city…. He may cause you some trouble.」

「I see…. And he punched you hard, huh? Legally speaking, you’re my slave… my property….」

Even though they were family and Ian was the killer of his mother, he injured a slave that belongs to an S rank adventurer without permission….

If I were to sue him, it would be quite a bad situation for him.

「…… I’m sorry.」

「Well, I don’t mind, but make sure that it won’t affect the exploration. If you get hit badly in the future, rely on me… or if you don’t like it, buy potions with your pocket money and do something about it yourself. I will overlook him as long as he doesn’t bother me, Nina, and the maids.」

I’m not so insensitive as to interfere with a dispute between siblings.

But if it causes harm to us, I’ll have no choice but to deal with it….

In the inn, I’m enjoying dinner to my heart’s content.

Although it isn’t as good as Nina’s cooking, the dishes that use fresh meat and vegetables have the right amount of volume and are satisfying enough.

「Master, you don’t need to scarf it down, the food won’t run away.」

Ugh….

「I can’t help it… I’m in my growth period after all. If you don’t have enough, you can order more, so eat as you like.」

The women haven’t eaten much since a while ago.

「No… we…」

「We got hungry when we were making food for tomorrow, so we all ended up eating some!」

「「Ah, hey, Nina!」」

……Yeah.

I heard it clearly, so it’s pointless even if you try to hide it in panic….

Hmm… it’s kind of frustrating…

Jink was desperately emptying his stomach by practicing swordsmanship.

When he noticed that the slaves were looking at him warmly when he was eating Nina’s food as late-night snacks, he continued his sword practice alone until late at night… while pouting.