Chương 186: Chapter 184 – Too Much Money.

"Thank the gods, we made it out of there in one piece, Rika."

"Yeah, my heart almost stopped when they started looking at us. That was really scary."

"Yeah." Two people were talking quietly together. One of them was holding a small satchel that clearly had a spatial enchantment on it. Their eyes were fixed on it as if a precious treasure were inside.

"Hey, guys." A feminine voice called out from the side.

"What is it, Tally?" Rika turned her head away from the young man with the satchel.

"I think we should leave. I feel like people are staring at us. What do you think, Oliver?" Their leader, the boy holding the satchel, quickly placed it into a larger pouch strapped to his armor. All three stood just outside the adventurers' guild, but for some reason, many others were watching them.

"Perhaps we should." The group lowered their heads and began to move. They were not sure if people were staring because of the recent events or because of the money they carried, but fear gnawed at them. They walked at first, then quickened their pace to a hurried step, and before long they were running. Eventually, they ended up in the slums, hiding behind an old brick wall.

"What should we do? Are they trying to kill us?" Tally shouted the words but was silenced quickly by Rika, who pressed a palm firmly over her mouth.

"Be quiet, what if someone hears us?" Rika kept her palm over Tally's mouth while slowly leaning to peek past the wall. Luckily, there was no one there, so she quickly ducked back and turned to her two friends.

"We need to get rid of all this money!" Oliver only nodded.

"We probably should. By now, everyone must know we sold that rainbow water crystal to the guild." All three sighed in unison and slid down against the rough brick wall. Exhaustion weighed on them after everything that had happened in the dungeon. They had managed to get out alive, but now they were stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"We were lucky to even make it out alive. They say it was a unique monster, but no one has ever found it." Oliver spoke as he remembered how they had fled from the darkness that swallowed the dungeon chamber. None of them had seen the rare creature, yet if it could destroy an entire D-rank team on its own, it had to be terrifyingly strong.

"It serves them right. They tried to rob us. I bet they would have killed us if that monster hadn't appeared." Rika muttered with a deep frown.

"W-well, it's fine now. We survived, and we have money. How about we use it to buy some new equipment?" Tally said, trying to change the subject. The three of them sat in silence for a few moments as they gathered their thoughts. Rika narrowed her eyes, still scanning their surroundings while her cat-like ears twitched at every sound, listening for the slightest sign of pursuers. Oliver kept one hand on the pouch strapped to his armor, his fingers tightening as if holding it closer might keep them safe.

"That might be a good idea, but what kind of equipment and where would we get it?" Oliver asked. The other two began to ponder and soon Rika replied.

"Not sure, but perhaps it would be best not to buy anything flashy. We don't want to stand out more than we already have." All three of them nodded as they examined what they were wearing and carrying. They had lost some of their weapons in the recent incident inside the dungeon. Oliver had lost his old spear and had not yet found a replacement. Rika still had her bow, but the string was ready to snap, and the wood was badly worn.

Tally's daggers were lost during their escape, and their armor was in poor condition as well.

"I think we need to get you something better, Oliver. You are the one at the front lines, and you should have equipment that will not alert the monsters." Oliver could not deny Rika's words. His gear was mismatched, and his boots were too large for his feet. During combat, he always felt discomfort, as though he could never exert his true power. He was a fighter type who could benefit greatly from heavier armor and a better spear with more weight behind it.

"But good equipment costs a fortune. Will just one rainbow crystal be enough to cover everything?" Asked Tally, who continued to whisper while mentioning the rainbow crystal.

"We could buy something less conspicuous. Most E-rank adventurers use iron or steel gear. Should we do the same?" Oliver added, glancing down at his rusted breastplate.

"Iron or steel... Well, anything is probably better than that half-rusted thing you call an armor. So yes, we should. But where should we go?" Rika leaned her back against the wall and tapped her chin in thought.

"Not the guild shops. Too many eyes. Everyone there saw us bring the crystal in. If we show up flashing coins, someone will follow us again." Oliver frowned and pulled his pouch tighter against his side. The three were quite paranoid about the situation. They had heard rumors of people vanishing at night, killed for owning far less than they did. While they felt that they had already stepped into the E-rank, without proper gear, they couldn't really consider themselves as such.

"Then where? One of the main shops? But won't they toss us out like last time?" The three of them did not look very wealthy. In the past, they had been thrown out of a well-stocked shop almost instantly.

"Won't any store do? We're not looking for anything rare, just something that will get us by for now." Oliver said, and they fell silent again, each lost in thought, until something caught their attention. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

"Hey, there's someone over there!" Tally whispered, pointing toward a spot just beyond the wall. The young adventurers froze and pressed against the bricks to conceal themselves.

"Who is it?" Oliver whispered, glancing at Tally. She edged closer to the corner, carefully peeking around it. After a quick look, she pulled her head back and turned to her companions.

"Well? Who is it?" Rika asked this time, her ears twitching as she perked up.

"Um… it was some children and… a silver ant." Rika and Oliver both raised their eyebrows. Once the ant was mentioned, however, the same thought crossed their minds.

"An ant? Wait, is it that ant?" Rika asked while Oliver leaned out to see for himself. A silvery ant moved on the other side of the wall. It looked a little different from the one he remembered, but its movements were familiar. This was a tamed monster that often stayed near a certain armored adventurer they knew.

"It's Gleam. That means Mr. Edmund must be nearby. But why is it here?" Oliver muttered. He let out a breath of relief. They did not know Edmund well, but he had always struck them as one of the more trustworthy adventurers, and his strength was beyond question. He was a D-rank, far above them.

"I don't think Mr. Edmund would ever try to rob us." Tally said while continuing to peek at the two children who for some reason looked quite similar. It was a boy and a girl, probably around the ages of nine or ten. They were holding something in their hands and raising it up.

"Probably not, and his armor always looks so shiny." Rika added as she also peeked over the wall. Being an archer with sharper eyes than most, she could clearly see that the children were holding a sign, one she could read.

"Living Metal Forge?" She called out, reading the words written there. She also noticed a hammer drawn next to them.

"What is it?"

"I'm not sure, but it sounds like it could be a blacksmith's shop." The three turned to look at one another, and it was clear they all had the same thought. They quickly stood and glanced toward the children again. One child held up a sign with the name of the smithy, while the other displayed an arrow pointing in its direction. There were not many people around, but a small crowd had begun to gather after seeing the silvery ant prancing nearby.

"Grand opening of the Living Metal Forge. Please come and behold Master Oswald's steel wares!" The young girl shouted while the boy turned the sign around. Gleam continued to move, drawing the attention of the three adventurers, who found themselves unable to resist moving forward.

"Excuse me, is there a blacksmithing shop here?" Olivier asked one of the children. The girl who had been shouting only a moment before looked surprised but quickly nodded.

"O-oh, that's right. It is just around the corner, you cannot miss it!" The trio craned their necks in the direction the child pointed. A narrow pathway led toward a shady-looking alley beside the city wall. The first building on the corner did not look very good.

"A smithy is in there?" Oliver raised an eyebrow.

"Y-yes, that's right." The place seemed suspicious. It looked gloomy and unsafe. They realized they had wandered into the slums, an area filled with people who could barely afford to live in the settlement. Most of them had no interest in a smithy since they were ordinary folk who did not use weapons.

"(・–・)""T-tally, leave the tamed monster alone…" Rika pulled her friend back, stopping her from petting the silvery ant. The group eventually followed the road toward the shop. At first, they remained cautious, but once they saw the sign and noticed a few people working beside, they relaxed a little. The shop itself looked like it was undergoing a full renovation. Parts of the roof had been replaced, while others still needed fixing.

The sign above the door resembled those in the city, yet it carried a touch of uniqueness.

"Should we go in?" Oliver asked as the three stood outside. There were windows along the side, but no equipment was on display. The place clearly was not ready for an official opening, yet for some reason, the craftsman called Oswald had already decided to operate there.

"Are you going in?"

"Huh?" A voice called out to them unexpectedly. The three had been focused on the sign and the entrance door, so they did not notice someone appear behind them. The person's presence was imposing, and a large shadow stretched across the ground from their frame, suggesting they were wearing heavy armor. Oliver froze. His hand tightened instinctively around the pouch strapped at his side. Slowly, he turned his head, and the others followed. Their eyes widened as the armored figure loomed over them. It was him.

"Mr. Edmund…?" Oliver's voice cracked. Relief and unease mingled in his tone, for he did not know why Edmund was here. Edmund was a D-ranked adventurer, perhaps even stronger than the ones who had almost killed them. A thought crossed Oliver's mind. Could this be an ambush? Perhaps this man could not be trusted and was here to steal their hard earned money just like the others.

"Yes, that's me, Edmund. So, are you here to shop?"

"Huh?" Oliver was still caught off guard as the large man pointed toward the door. Instead of attacking, he simply walked forward. He opened the door and beckoned them inside. Out of the corner of their eyes they could see that it was indeed a proper shop, filled with weapons and armor stands.

"Not here to shop? Why not shop anyway?" For some reason, Edmund kept urging them over, making odd, almost exaggerated gestures toward the door and holding it open. The three wondered why he was doing this. At first, they thought he meant to trap them inside, but that did not make sense. There were other people present. Behind the counter stood a boy of perhaps twelve or thirteen, and nearby a much younger child had dozed off on one of the chairs.

Even though these young adventurers were not very experienced, they could tell the atmosphere here was calm. There were no enemies in this place.

"Uh…" The three looked at each other and nodded. Oliver's boots scraped against the stone as he hesitated in the doorway. His knuckles turned white where he clutched the pouch hidden under his armor. Rika gave him a soft look, and he finally relaxed, letting his hand fall away as his attention shifted to the equipment on display.

"Stop fidgeting. I don't think we are in any danger here. Now, I see some arrows over there. I'll be right back."

"W-wait…" Oliver tried to stop Rika, but she skipped inside without a second thought. Tally seemed more cautious, yet she also drifted toward the sharp-looking daggers on display. The boy behind the L-shaped counter perked up and watched them silently.

"I might as well…" At last, Oliver gave in to curiosity and stepped forward. He noticed halberds mounted on the walls, but what caught his eye were the spears and suits of armor arranged along the stands.

"Wait, why does this look…" He froze, staring at one of the armor displays. Then he glanced at Edmund, who wore a nearly identical set, the only difference being the tint of the metal. The realization settled in quickly. If this was the shop where Edmund got his gear, then Oliver had nothing to worry about. A D-rank adventurer would never buy equipment that was anything less than sturdy and reliable. Soon, the three of them were walking through the store, examining every piece of gear.

The craftsmanship was not poor, but it was not outstanding either. Most of it was slightly above average steel work. Oliver ran his hand over the haft of a spear that rested against the wall. The balance felt right, solid and dependable, with none of the awkward wobble that marked cheap weapons. He tested the weight, gave it a light swing, and found the motion smooth.

"This is actually pretty good." He muttered under his breath, almost in disbelief. From the other side of the room, Rika called out.

"These arrows are sturdy. Better than the junk I have been using. They are not enchanted, but they will fly straight." Tally crouched beside a row of daggers, carefully picked one up, and ran her thumb along the edge.

"Sharp too. I like the grip on this one. It does not feel like it will slip in my hand." Behind the counter, the boy watched them silently, his gaze clear and steady. He smiled at the sight of the adventurers before glancing at Edmund, who stood in the corner without speaking. It seemed the three had found a good place to spend their gold. The shop was missing a few things, such as a wooden bow for Rika and leather armor for the girls, but Oliver could be fully outfitted here.

With smiles on their faces, they headed toward the clerk. They placed their orders, unaware that they were the shop's very first customers and that they would soon be the spark that spread its name throughout the settlement.