Chapter 4: Herb Gathering and My First Underling

Author: 十一屋　翠 (Juuichiya Sui)

 

The next day, having spent the night in an inn thanks to Aug-san, I headed to the adventurers’ guild to earn the money needed to repay him and for my daily living expenses.

“I can finally start life as an adventurer today!”

I unconsciously clenched my fist, and entered the adventurers’ guild in high spirits.

◆ ◆

Entering the building, I immediately headed to the request board all the other adventurers were gathered in front of.

“Heyo dragon boy.
Looking for a request?”

An unfamiliar adventurer called out to me.

Did he see what happened yesterday?

Adventurers are so frank.

“Yes, I was thinking of starting with a permanent F-Rank request!”

“F, you say… Well, those kinds of people also exist, huh.
Do your best!”

It seemed he was implying something with how he had said it, but I’m sure it was just that as a newbie I should try and reach for the higher requests.

Having made my way up to the request board, I looked for ones of my rank, F-Rank.

I could accept E-Rank requests as well, but I wanted to be cautious and start with a request that suited my Rank.

“All right, I’ll do this one.”

I had chosen a job to gather herbs.

It was only three copper coins per one batch of ten herbs, but since the request was a permanent one, which meant you could always take it, if I gathered a lot, the reward would also increase.

Furthermore, as another good point, this request had no penalty if you failed.

Normally, adventurers’ requests had deadlines, and one had to follow the client’s specifications.

Thus, it was quite common for adventurers who had bitten off more than they could chew with a request to not be able to achieve it and be penalized for it.

Was what Aug-san had told me the day before in a very good mood while drinking alcohol.

Not only had he lent me money, but he even told me such valuable information; he really is a nice senpai.

So, Aug-san advised me to take a permanent request that didn’t have a penalty.

And as for why herbs, I had searched for them often when we had to make a potion back at home, and thus knew the job well.

“Hey, are you really gonna take that one?”

I turned around, and found a handsome boy around my age standing there.

Behind him were a small group of people, also around the same age.

From their equipment, they were a monk and a magician, and the last one was wearing light clothes, so a hunter or thief.

“Yep, herb gathering.”

I said, and the boy broke out in laughter.

“Oy oy, even children can do herb-gathering.
You became an adventurer right after coming of age just like us, didn’t you?”

“So, you three as well?”

“Yeah, I’m Jairo, Team Dragon Slayer’s leader!”

The boy said his name, clenching his fists.

“Hey Jairo, we said we wouldn’t use that name!”

Said the magician girl behind him, putting on the brakes.

“That’s right, Jairo-san.
That team name really is embarrassing.”

“I’m not so sure about it either.”

It seems the name he gave the team is unpopular.

“But I think it’s cool.”

“Oh, you get me! You show promise! Want to become my underling!”

Umm, I think I’ll refrain from doing that.

“Anyway, we’ve finally become adventurers, so why not go for something flashy! No matter how diligently you work on something like collecting herbs, you’ll stay a low-rank adventurer!”

“Ahaha…”

I worried that the adventurers around us might get angry if he said something like that, but on the contrary, they were looking at him with really kind looks on their faces.

I see, they’re all cheering on the newbie adventurer full of dreams and aspirations.

“And I’ll eclipse the rumoured dragonslayer as well!”

“Dragonslayer?”

Heee, so there’s also someone like that.

“Yeah, I heard that he appeared out of nowhere in the guild yesterday and wanted to sell a Dragon in an incredibly good condition.”

“Heee.”

It seems like there are some really amazing people here.

How did they defeat a Dragon in such a good condition?

It must have been defeated in such a way that my green Dragon can’t even compare to it.

“Moreover, it was in such a good condition after being defeated that the guild couldn’t buy it, and now it’s to be put up on auction for nobles in the Royal Capital.”

Amazing, at an auction for nobles, eh.

“The man must be huge!”

“True.”

“Anyway, we’ll be doing a monster extermination request, so you should also not do something as lame as herb-gathering and look for a cooler job to do!”

Said Jairo-kun, leaving the guild.

Was that his way of encouraging a fellow adventurer?

“S-sorry about Jairo just going off and saying whatever he wants.
He’s a bit silly but he’s not a bad person I swear! Wait for me Jairooo!”

Jairo-kun’s companion, the magician-san went to the trouble of apologising before chasing after him.

What a good friend.

Maybe I should also form a team.

“But now, I’ve gotta finish this request I took.”

He is he and I am me.

I’ll do my best and look for herbs!

By the way, since it’s a permanent request, I don’t have to apply for it at the window there, it’s so nice and easy!

◆ ◆

“Now then, time to pick some herbs!”

Having arrived in the forest, I began searching for herbs right away.

It was something I did back at home too, but it was strange how thinking of it as work as an adventurer made it feel special.

“If I look for them where there’s shade… hey I found one.”

Finding one right away, I took out my knife and cut it off above its roots.

The leaves of this herb could be used as ingredients, so as long as one left the roots, they would grow again and again.

“Oh, there’s one over there too.”

I found herbs one after the other, gathering them all.

“There’s a lot of herbs around here, I won’t just get the specified number of ten for a batch, but might even be able to repay the money I borrowed!”

I had so much fun gathering herbs, I kinda fell into a trance while doing so.

There hadn’t been any shops back home, and since I had always gathered herbs for the village to use, I had never collected them in order to sell them before.

It seems like since they’ll get me a profit too, my motivation is completely different from then too!

I’m so glad I became an adventurer!

◆ ◆

“Now then, this should be enough, I think.”

I had collected a fair amount of herbs and was thinking about returning to town.

Since I had my magic bag, I couldn’t feel their weight, but if I was any later the reception would be packed like the day before.

And, it was at that moment.

Sound suddenly disappeared from the forest.

Not just the cries of animals and insects, but even the rustling of the trees.

“!?”

Something was definitely afoot when something like this happened.

Back in my previous life as the Hero, when sound had disappeared from my surroundings, a powerful monster had appeared or a terrible disaster had occurred.

And, as expected, the sound of trees crashing to the ground came from the depths of the forest.

“Over there!”

I sprinted off into the depths of the forest.

I made a couple large jumps along the way to check on the situation, peering forwards, where I saw the shape of a monster so huge it was breaking through the trees in its way.

“Is that an Evil Boar!?”

Evil Boars were large, boar-type monsters.

They were also known as magic boars, and, just like Dragons, appeared from time to time in legends or myths.

Unlike Dragons, Evil Boars couldn’t fly, nor could they breathe fire.

But they had an amazing charge, and, over short distances, could outrun even horses, not to mention their fur being extremely hard yet flexible, leading to low-quality weapons not even leaving a scratch on them.

They appeared in front of humans more often than Dragons, and since they were omnivores, they would devour the forest’s blessings as well as fields ploughed by humans, leading to them being feared even more than Dragons in certain areas.

And, this was the most terrifying part, Evil Boars acted in packs.

““““Buooooooo!!””””

That’s right, the Evil Boar ahead of me was also, as one might now expect, acting in a pack.

Perhaps they were excited, because they were running through the forest at full speed.

As they ran, the trees near them were all blown away as if they were just small twigs.

“Not good, they’ll hit the town at this rate!”

If they continued in their current direction, the Evil Boars would arrive at Tougai in less than an hour.

“I have to exterminate them!”

An adventurer belonging to the guild had to fight monsters bearing down on the town.

It was an adventurer’s duty to do so.

Whenever a pack of monsters like this appeared, the guild would fight to protect the town, not thinking even a bit about profit.

Thanks to that, adventurers, who were more of the rough types, had built up trust with towns and the country.

And, we grew up hearing stories about adventurers fighting with their lives on the line to defend a town ever since we were young.

And wishing to be like that, using sticks as weapons, we played adventurer-pretend.

This was what the children with dreams looked like, something that hadn’t changed since my previous life.

“Then, this time, I’ll have to be what children aspire to be!”

In order to annihilate the pack of Evil Boars, I began reparations for casting large-scale magic.

Unlike with the Green Dragon, I don’t have to pay attention to the condition of the materials.

If I just make sure not to destroy the forest, it’ll be all right.

Was what I was thinking, but then I suddenly felt something was off.

“Are the Evil Boars chasing something?”

That’s right, the Evil Boars weren’t moving in a straight line.

Occasionally, they minutely realigned themselves as if chasing something.

“What on earth are they chasing?”

I activated telescopic magic to strengthen my sight and looked where the Evil Boars were looking.

And since they were just perfectly in a clearing, I found out what the Evil Boars were chasing.

“They’re adventurers!?”

It seemed the Evil Boars were chasing adventurers.

They had probably entered the Evil Boars’ territory without noticing it.

“I can’t use large-scale magic then.
I’ll defeat them individually then, to avoid the adventurers getting caught up in it.”

Deciding so, I repeatedly jumped towards the Evil Boars.

As I got closer to the Evil Boars, the identities of the adventurers they were chasing became clearer.

“That’s… Jairo-kun!?”

That’s right, the one running at the front was Jairo-kun, whom I had met back in the adventurers’ guild.

The other members of his party were also there behind him.

Was what I thought, but the monk tripped!

“Not good! Hihaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!”

I jumped with all my strength, and the Evil Boar about to attack the monk ate a dropkick.

“Bumooo!?”

Their leader suddenly sent flying, the Evil Boars stopped running in a hurry.

“From now on, I’ll be your opponent!”

◆ ◆

“Uwaaaaaa!”

Why did this happen?

“Jairo! This happened because you made us go deeper into the forest saying we still could!”

“Shut up! How was I supposed to know something like those things would be there!”

My comrades threw accusations at me.

But it can’t be helped any more.
How was I supposed to know those things would be there!

At first it had indeed just been small fry like Goblins or Kobolds.

But we had been taught how to use swords by a former adventurer, and had fought very well actually.

I had support from my companions, and if anyone got injured, we could heal it with magic.

I thought this area would be a cakewalk.

And yet…

“Why’re there such huge monsters around here!?”

I’d never even heard of them before.

The grown-ups said there were no very strong monsters around here because the adventurers and mercenaries and sometimes the knights, all did monster exterminations.

But there are!! Huge ones!

“Ah!?”

Norb, our monk, fell over with a scream.

It seemed his foot had gotten caught on a tree root.

“Norb!?”

He’s crouching, holding his leg; is he injured?

I’ve gotta hurry and help him.

“Bumoooooooo!!”

Looking behind him, that monster was approaching with frightful force.

Not good, he’ll be crushed, I can’t save him, I can’t save him.

Abandon him and flee, or get trampled along with him.

Since I couldn’t decide which to do, my time ran out.

It was approaching the point where I wouldn’t be able to escape either.

“!”

My body froze up and I closed my eyes.

It was at that moment.

“Hiyaaaaaaaah!!”

“Bumoooo!?”

With that awesome sound and its echoes, the surroundings became deathly quiet.

Did I get trampled on by that monster and die without even feeling pain?

I slowly opened my eyes, and an unfamiliar person’s back was before me.

“From now on, I’ll be your opponent!!”

◆ ◆

Phew, I somehow made it in time.

“Uuuu”

Uh-oh, monk-san’s holding his leg crouching.

I’ll have to treat his wound first.

“Distant Heal!”

Since the Evil Boars were right in front of me, I couldn’t go over to the monk.

So, I healed the monk’s wound with remote recovery magic that didn’t need me to make physical contact.

“Eh!? My leg doesn’t hurt any more!?”

Thank goodness, it seems like it worked.

“Monk-san, go behind me!”

“Eh? Oh, yes!”

The monk seemed a little dazed, but he soon got the situation and moved back.

Good, now I can fight focusing only on the Evil Boars.

“Bumooo…”

Still weary of me, the Evil Boars stamped their trotters.

They were obviously going to attack straight at me, and try and trample me with their overwhelming mass.

But, I won’t let them.

“Hold Tree!”

I activated the magic, and the surrounding trees entwined themselves around the Evil Boars.

It was the higher-grade version of the magic that allowed one to capture one’s enemies with ivy; it turned the trees themselves into something like ivy and used them to catch one’s opponent.

“Bumooo!?”

The Evil Boars hurriedly tried to shake them off, but it was futile.

Perhaps if I had used it when they were at high speed during their charge, they could have shaken them off, but now, when they were stationary, it was impossible for them to do so.

Also, I had hardened the trees with my mana.

In the blink of an eye, the Evil Boars were all tied up, unable to move.

Wood is a material that is both hard, and sturdy.

No living being would be to escape if wrapped in such a material in the form of ivy.

And thanks to the magic, the trees’ roots had stretched far into the earth, entangling themselves with those of other trees, like one huge network.

It was an invincible restraint; the Evil Boars couldn’t run away.

“What is that!? I’ve never seen such magic before!?”

Huh? I developed that magic in my before-previous life, so I don’t think it’s all that unusual.

“Wait, did he just use magic without chanting a spell!?”

Eh? Chantless during battle is standard?

Oh right, they’re beginner adventurers so they wouldn’t know that sort of common knowledge.

I have my memories of battles in my previous and before-previous lives, but they don’t have such things.

“Now, this is the end!”

I jumped, and, when I was right above one of the Evil Boars, I stuck my broadsword into its head and released magic.

“Lightning Beat!”

The sword stuck in the Evil Boar, I use lightning magic.

In this fashion, one could easily defeat enemies with hard scales or thick fur.

And like this, it’ll end without the fur getting all roughed up.

I put an end to the rest of the Evil Boars in the same manner.

“That’s all of them.
Are you guys okay?”

Having defeated all the Evil Boars, I called out to Jairo and co.

Priest-kun was healed, but the other ones might still have been injured.

“Y-yes.
We’re okay.
I just used up a lot of mana, but I’m not injured.”

She’s out of mana?

Returning to town will be dangerous like that.

“Excuse me for a second.
Transfer Mana!”

I activated the magic, and a light moved from me to the magician-san.

“Fuwa!? Wh-what’s this!?”

“I shared a bit of my mana with you.
With this, you’ll be able to use magic for at least a little while, right?”

“Mana!? No way!? My mana really is full!?”

Well, there’s a mana loss as well, so it’s not like I could share a lot with her.

Now then, let’s finally collect the corpses of these Evil Boars.

These should get me some money too.

I stored the Evil Boars’ corpses in my magic bag.

“U-ummm…”

Jario-kun called out to me as I was storing them away.

“What?”

“T-thank you very much… for saving us.”

Mhm, properly saying thanks is a good thing.

“No problem.
It’s natural for adventurers to save one another.”

“U-umm…”

Jairo-kun stared at me as if steeling himself.

“Might I inquire as to your name?”

“My name?”

“Yes!”

Oh, right, he did tell me his name, but I never gave him mine.

“My name’s Rex.
Again, it’s nice to meet you.”

“…Rex-san.”

Jairo-kun mumbled my name to himself.

“What’s up, Jairo-kun?”

“Um, Rex-san, no, big brother Rex!”

“Yeah?”

Big brother?

“I swear I didn’t know.
Having only Goblins and such as opponents went to my head, and I exposed my comrades to danger with what I did.”

No, it’s really not that big a deal.

“And yet you took the trouble to save me.
I can clearly see the difference in our calibres as men!”

Oh now, calling it that is exaggerating.

“So, please let me become your underling!!”

“Huh?”

“I! Have been charmed by your strength big bro! So! Please let me be your underling!!”

Said Jairo-kun, grovelling in front of me.

“Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh!?”

That day, I got my first underling.

Wait, I don’t even need one!!

TN: just for extra clarification, the “big brother” Jairo addresses Rex as “兄貴” (aniki) is also used by gang members to address their leader / a superior, and that’s how Jairo’s using it
so no sudden adoptions