The next day, Haruka and I were strolling the streets of Sahlstat.
　Yuki and Natsuki were doing their last job, and Toya was staying at the inn as their bodyguard.

　It seems that Natsuki's physical skills have helped him fend off pushy pick-ups, but there's no guarantee that someone will think of something crazy when he quits. This is an insurance policy.
　It's a good deterrent, because Toya looks reasonably strong in his solid gear.

Haruka, do you have a purpose?　I'm not sure what to make of it.

　It's a port town that's basically for waiting for the wind to blow, so it can't be helped, but the food was bad, and honestly, at this point, I don't find it appealing at all.
　It is possible that there are good restaurants and inns, but yesterday's food had too strong an impact on me.
　Even if the food is below average, there are so many people who come to eat that food.
　Even if you take into account the fact that the restaurant has a signature girl, I can't help but think that the surrounding dishes are not much different.

"River fish may not be good for cooking, but it can be used as an ingredient, can't it?
"Oh, I see.
Although it's probably not worth it, because you have to keep the fish alive to remove the mud.
No?

　That muddy smell wasn't something you could get rid of by cooking.

If you can afford it, you might want to come fishing. The water might be cleaner upstream.
That's a good idea!　I've never fished before, you know.

　I've never fished before, even though I've always wanted to.
　I've never fished before, but I've always wanted to, but I've never had the chance to. The places where you can go fishing in the ocean are basically off-limits and fishing is prohibited, and fishing in ponds is not a good idea considering the invasive species.

　I mean, even a pond is trespassing, right?　Unless it's a reservoir that you own.
　If you fish there, you are embezzling property. If you release the fish, you are illegally dumping it.
　If you want to fish legally and cleanly, the only way is to go to fishing spots that are in business.

If Natsuki and the others join us, we might be able to afford a little more. Well, that's something to look forward to in the future. Our goal today is to find a bookstore.
The book ...... could be an alchemy encyclopedia?　It was sold out at Raffan.
Yeah. I've already taken Alchemy, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. Wouldn't you like to make a magic bag?
Sure. I've been practicing, but I still can't get my level in space-time magic.
It's so hard. You just have to keep trying.

　As we walked along the main street of Sahlstat, we easily found the bookstore we wanted.
　Facing the main street, the store was even smaller than Rafan's.
　Considering the size of the city, this is probably the only bookstore in the area.

　Inside, the structure of the store was the same as that of Raffan's, with bookshelves lined up behind the counter, so that customers could not pick up the books themselves.
　There are also wagon sales piled up with battered books as well.
　I suppose this is the standard ...... of bookstores in this world.

　However, this one is a little cheaper, at 1,800 rare per book.
　Even if the book is damaged and would normally be discarded, the book itself is expensive, so they try to sell it anyway. I guess that's how it is.

Do you have an alchemy encyclopedia?
"It's a little old, but we have the 18th edition.

　"It's a bit old, but we have the 18th edition." When Haruka approached the man at the counter, he replied without looking into it.
　It's amazing ...... that he remembers not only the stock but also the number of editions.

"What's the latest edition now?
"The 20th edition. It doesn't make much difference if you're looking up an item.
Oh, yeah. ....... Speaking of which, don't alchemists ever buy the latest version?
No, you won't. There's a supplemental edition out, but it's not relevant to most practitioners, so we've never had it in stock.

　If you're an alchemist, the items in the previous books will suffice.
　There is almost no advantage in paying extra money to buy the latest edition or the supplementary edition.
　Inevitably, there are no used books in the market.
　That's the point.

"How much is the 18th edition?
"It's a little old. How about 20,000 Reais?
That's a little high. It's two editions ago.　Can't you get a lower price?
But then again, ...... not many people in this town buy them. ......

　I look at the books in the wagon sale, watching Haruka negotiate the price out of the corner of my eye.
　Whenever I see something like this, I just want to look at it.
　I know there aren't many good ones because they're basically unsold books, but why do I feel like I'm looking for a bargain?

　But in the case of used books here, there is a possibility that the pages are not in order.
　If it's a ...... mystery novel, and only the last part of the resolution is missing, that would be bad.
　Fortunately or not, there seems to be almost no entertainment novels, but it is risky to buy an academic book, considering the possibility of missing important parts.
　Unlike today's mass-printed books, it's not so easy to find the same book.

　--Hmm?　There are three beautiful books mixed in among the tattered ones.
　There is nothing written on the cover or spine of .......
　This is not so strange, since there are many books in this world that have nothing written on them, as if the exterior is for decoration or protection.

　If you open the cover of the book, you will find .......　I'm not sure what to make of it.


　...... Okay, calm down.
　You're not looking at it wrong, are you?
　Yeah. I'm sure.
　This is 1,800 rare a book?
　Seriously?

　But we can't be hasty here.
　Let's check the facts first.
　I didn't hear how much the deal was, but I lifted the book and called out to the clerk who was giving the book to Haruka in exchange for money.

"Hey, shopkeeper. This book is beautiful, why is it here?
"Hmm?　Oh, that's right. It's a grimoire on space-time magic. I put it in there because it wouldn't sell anyway.
Doesn't it sell?
It won't sell. I don't care if it's a bookstore in King's Landing, who's going to come to a bookstore in the middle of nowhere looking for a grimoire of space-time magic?

　I see.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find something that you're interested in.
　Considering the scarcity of space-time magic, the clerk must think that no one would come to buy it.

Then it won't sell even if I leave it here, will it?
"It's a fine looking book, isn't it?　Why don't you leave it in your room, so you can look like an intelligent man and attract women?
Well, that's one way of thinking about it.

　No, no, no, it's not that simple.
　It's not as simple as that.
　I'm sure it's just a random sales pitch, right?

"How about you, brother? It's not a bad book, and it looks nice, don't you think?
Hmmm... as interior decoration. The price for a mere decoration is ......3 4,000 Rea. What do you think?
How about 4,000 rare for 3? At best, ......4,800 rares. My girlfriend bought it for me, so I'll take it this far, okay?
Yeah, .......
Nao, another waste of money?

　This is a great way to get the most out of your business.

It's a shame you wasted it. It makes you look intelligent.　It's not a waste. Hey, waitress?
"Oh, yeah. Yeah, I'll give you 4,500 Reais for your spirit!　Bring it to me!

　As expected of Haruka, nice assist.
　I guess he thought he'd better sell it before he was stopped, so he gave me a further discount.

"You're so generous, shopkeeper!　All right, I just got paid, I'm going to buy it and go home and be an intelligent man!
"Thanks!

　I pay the shopkeeper, who smiles happily, and get three books.
　Of course, I was going to buy it even if they didn't give me a discount, but I ended up spending 900 Reais on it.

　The shopkeeper might have treated me like a sucker, forcing a defective stock on a guy who didn't know what he was doing for 1,500 rares a book, but as for me, I got the book I definitely wanted at a discount, and I'm happy.
　I'm not sure if this is a win-win situation or not.

　　　　This is a win-win situation.

"Nao, you did well, didn't you?
"Yeah. "Yeah. I'd hate to say something bad and have someone say, 'It was a mistake to put it there. Thank you, Haruka.

　The book would probably cost ten times as much if you bought it normally.
　There was a possibility that the price would be raised if I showed signs of wanting it.
　It's not like modern Japan, where you can't just say, 'It has a price tag, so sell it at that price.

Three books are a bit heavy, but I'm sure Dingdol will be gone by the time we get back.
Well, Natsuki and Yuki must have had a serious craving for sweets.
Well, Natsuki and Yuki must have a real craving for sweets, and not just sweets, but good food too.

　This morning they had eaten two Dildos each.
　This is in contrast to us, who are satisfied with one or two slices.
　Well, we were like that at first, so we understand.

"But we finished our business earlier than expected, are you going back to the ...... inn?
No, let's see if we can find some good bread. You don't want to eat black bread today and tomorrow, do you?
No. It doesn't have to be good. I just need some bread that doesn't taste bad.

　All the bread I had brought with me on my way home was gone this morning.
　I don't blame Natsuki and Yuki at all, considering the food, but if I can manage it, I want decent bread, even if it costs a little more.

The problem is that the town is so small that there aren't many bakeries.

　There were only two bakeries on the main street.
　There were only two bakeries on the main street. I talked to people in town, but they said there were no other bakeries.


　I have no choice but to buy one loaf of bread from each bakery and taste half of it.

"How's ......?
"This one's not good. This one's not even good.
"Same for me. Then this one.

　You buy a loaf of bread, not good but not bad, for tomorrow.
　We can buy some more tomorrow before we leave the city.


　The next stop was outside the city.
　We built a fire and roasted the boar meat we had hunted yesterday.
　Thanks to Haruka's ability to make ice, we could eat it for a day or so if we changed the ice occasionally.
　I cut the meat, Haruka seasoned it and grilled it.
　I cut the meat, Haruka seasoned and grilled it, and we put it in bread and ate it together.

...... Yeah, it's tasty enough thanks to the meat.
Yes, it is. I guess it's okay if it gets a little cold.

　Since we couldn't have a bonfire in the city, we had to bring back food for the three of us who were staying at home and for tomorrow morning.
　It will be like a cold fast food hamburger. ...... But it will be much better than that dish.

"If I had to splurge, I'd want raw vegetables like cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes.
"I can handle pickles, but cheese is probably too expensive.　Raw vegetables are dangerous. Fortunately, we're all strong, but I wonder if it would work against parasites.
"If they're on Toya and Natsuki's level, they should be fine, right?

　I'm sure you'll be able to find something that works for you.
　Natsuki was a little sickly in his original world, so he took level 4.
　Yuki, on the other hand, was healthy, so she only took level 1.
　As Yuki is not sick at this stage, it seems that the effect of [Robust] is quite strong. .......

I'm not sure what to make of that. I'm not sure what to make of that.
"So boiling is the safest way to disinfect?
There's also chlorine disinfection and radiation disinfection, but they're impossible in this world.
Radiation disinfection?　Is that safe?

It's not approved in Japan, but it's used in other countries.　It's safe because they don't use chemicals like hypochlorous acid, and it's a good way to disinfect raw food.

"But it's not approved in Japan, is it?
No. The Japanese don't like radiation.

　Because it can be disinfected without heating, it is said to be a very useful method for food poisoning caused by raw meat such as liver, which was a problem at one time.
　In fact, it is also used for medical disinfection, so the fact that it is not approved for some other foods is just an image of avoidance.

Hmmm, maybe we can create some kind of gamma irradiation magic?　Don't you want to eat raw vegetables?
"I understand its usefulness, but please don't. What if the gamma rays exceed the expected level during development?

　Most of the radiologists in history have died from radiation damage.
　I don't mean to be a stubborn denier of radiation, but I don't agree with experiments in an environment without protective facilities.

"Can't we do something with 'purification'?
"Oh, no matter what, 'purification' isn't that versatile ......, is it?　I'm sure you'll be able to find something that works for you.

　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not.
　If this is possible, the usefulness of cleansing magic will be at the top of the rankings, maybe even in the Hall of Fame.

I'm sure you can do it. Or hypochlorite magic.

　This can be detected by smell, and if an accident occurs, it can be treated with magic.
　DNA damage, on the other hand, would probably be difficult to treat with ordinary healing magic.

Hypochlorite magic: ...... producing sodium hypochlorite?　I'm not sure if electrolysis of salt water is possible.　What would be the strain?　I'm not sure.　Wind?

　I'm not a big fan of chemistry.
　I'm not very good at chemistry, so I can't give you any advice.
　I'm afraid I can't give you any advice, as I'm not very good at chemistry, but I'm hoping that the three of you, Haruka, Natsuki and Yuki, might come up with something better.

　However, it seems to me that "purification" would be easier.
　You just pour it on a person, and it instantly cleans the inside of their pants.
　Of course, your clothes will be cleaned, too.
　It's like 'getting the grease deep inside the fibers'.

　If you think about it, wouldn't it be easy to clean the dirt and insect eggs on the surface of vegetables?