The next day, our lure making continued.

　I got tired of carving wood all the time, so I continued to work on it, weaving bamboo nets for a change, and by mid-afternoon, I had roughly completed the shape of the fish.

　It was not very good, but I consoled myself that it was not bad for an amateur, and painted it. I painted the fish like that. I lightly varnished the fish, and sprinkled gold dust on it. This is a little trick to make it look a little more like scales.

　After applying more varnish on top of the fish, attach the needle and you are done.

　To be honest, I didn't think there was a varnish that could be used for lures, but I found one that was strong and waterproof enough, although the raw material was unknown. The varnish was a little expensive, but since I only used a small amount, it was not a problem.

　The two of us happily went to show the finished lure to the ladies, but their reaction was subtle.

"It's well done, isn't it?
"...... for effort.
"You don't look like a fish.

　Natsuki was the only one who was kind, Yuki was cautious, and Haruka was dismissive.
　And if you wipe your eyes, which were clouded by the joy of completion, you will see that this is indeed ...... Natsuki's kindness that hurts.

Do you think this is impossible?
I don't know.　I've heard that you don't have to make it look like a fish. ......
It's fine. Even if you fail... It's a game.
That's true, but you want to eat the fish, right?
Yeah, ...... I'll think of something too.

　I've got a regular hook, a hair hook and a lure. I'd like to think that since I prepared three of them, I won't be out of luck, but I'm just an amateur. But I'm just an amateur.

Anyway, it's almost time for our appointment, are you ready?
Oh, that's... There's nothing to prepare.

　We're having a victory celebration at Aella's today.
　But it's not like I'm going to change into a full suit of armor just to celebrate with my friends.
　At the most, I'm just going to clean up the room that's been messy from making lures.

I'm looking forward to Aella's cooking. I'm looking forward to Aella's cooking. It's a bit expensive, but I'm sure it's delicious. ......

　I'm looking forward to it.

Haruka, we should also clean up soon. There's a lot of lint and stuff on the floor.
Well, I'll meet you downstairs when I'm ready.
"Yes.

　We nodded vigorously.

　　　　We nodded vigorously.

　The food at the victory party was pretty good, to say the least.

　If we had paid the same amount of money in Japan, we could have eaten much better food, but I don't think we should compare that.

　At the very least, it was good to know that even in this world, if you pay a lot of money, you can have a good meal.

　However, it seems that Mr. Aera offered the meal at almost cost price, and if you actually want to have the same level of meal at other restaurants, you will have to pay two or three times as much.

　In other words, 100,000 yen per person per meal. It's not an amount you can easily afford.

　I went all out this time, but even a tenth of that amount is enough to make me tremble. I am a small citizen.

　Given that, it is quite difficult to find a good and inexpensive place to eat.
　I'm hoping that Haruka and her friends will cook for me. But that will have to wait until we get the house.

　The victory party itself was just us and Aella, so we basically just ate and talked, but in the middle of the party, Aella joined us after she finished cooking, and we had a great time listening to her talk about various things.

　In terms of refreshing our spirits, it was a success.


　The day after the victory party, I went to buy a tent and a cloak that I had put on hold.

　After discussing it with Haruka and the others, we decided to buy only one tent, and one cloak for each of us.

　Once the shopping was done, we immediately headed for Sahlstat.
　When the gates of Sarstat came into view, we turned left and headed upstream toward the Norian River.

　After turning off the road, we stopped running and proceeded rather cautiously.
　The width of the river, which had been more than 30 meters at Sarstad, was rapidly narrowing as we proceeded upstream, and the volume of water was considerably decreasing.

There were no tributaries in this river, but why is it getting so big?

　Yuki wondered and said, "I don't know.

I don't know, but I think it's subterranean water or something.
"Oh, I see. Well, the mountains are deep, so it's not so strange, is it?

　Even though we traveled from the city of Laffan to Sarstad with the mountain range on our left, there was not a single river in between.

　If you think that the Noria River collects the rainwater that falls on the mountains in that area, it's not surprising that the river is so big.

It's there, so it must be, right?
"Toya, you're being blunt. But if that's the case, why don't we dig a well in that area? Why isn't it farmland?

　The only farmland in the city of Rafan is on the south side, and it's not that big.
　As far as we can tell, the grasslands on the east side of the city are less dangerous than the ones on the west side, so it would be a good idea to develop them into farmland.

It's just that there are no farmers. If you have a major industry, furniture making, you can import crops. If there are more people and less land, there will naturally be more farmland here, right?

"I see.

　If the first farmland was built on the south side, then when the farmers who have land on that side expand their farmland, they will cultivate that side.

　If Rafan is stable as it is now, there is no need to take the risk of bringing in new people and forcing them to develop farmland.



　I don't know if that's the right thing for a politician to do.

I'm more interested in the request. How long before the Great Salamander appears?
According to the data, it's about an hour upstream from Sahlstat. ......
That's pretty vague.
Yeah, it is. In this world, there's a huge difference in physical ability between people.

　It's not like there's a set standard like "5 minutes walk from the station".
　If we consider the fact that the document was found in an adventurer's guild, can we assume that it is the travel speed of an ordinary adventurer?

"We've been traveling for about an hour now, haven't we?
Yes. We've been here for about an hour now, right?

　Around Sahlstadt, the ratio of sand to rock was 7 to 3, but here it was 4 to 6.

　When we looked into the river, we found that the water was quite clear and not muddy as in the vicinity of Sahlstadt.

"Hey, Nao, how's it going?　Is it there?
"I don't know. Do they swim in the river?　Or are they hiding behind rocks?
Ahhh, ...... Natsuki, what do you think?

The Great Salamander of the original world was nocturnal, but we don't know much about the Great Salamander of this world. It's a good idea to take a look at the website to see if you can find any information about it.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find a lot more information on this in the future.
　We all proceeded upstream for another 30 minutes while observing the river, and when the ratio of sand to rock was about 2 to 8.

Ah!

　Almost at the same time I heard such a voice, a spear thrust from my side pierced the riverbed.

　At the tip of the spear, a flat, blackish creature that looked like a hybrid of a catfish and a lizard was skewered on the head, and its body was shaking.

"The Great Salamander.

　It was Natsuki who killed it.
　I also checked the help menu, and sure enough, it says 'Great Salamander'.
　The size of the salamander is about 80 centimeters.
　It's not different from my image of the Great Salamander, but ...... it's still a bit gross.

Natsuki, how did you notice it? I'm sure I've seen it too. ......
You're right. I was right next to you.

　I was right next to you." The spear was thrust out from right beside me, so my vision and Natsuki's were almost the same. Despite this, I didn't notice that the Great Salamander was in the river at all.

　I had seen a few fish swimming in the river, but how could I not notice something of that size?

The light reflects off the surface of the river, and it's hard to tell the color. It's hard to see the color.
"Oh, yes, of course.

　It's important to keep it fresh, so Haruka cools the Great Salamander down and puts it in her magic bag immediately.

　You can be sure to get at least 20 gold coins with this. It's a leisure activity, so there's no need to worry too much about how much money you'll make, but since you've traveled all this way, you might as well make some money.

I couldn't find it either, don't you know?　I couldn't find it either.
Well, not exactly. There are a lot of reactions in the river, but they're small, probably because they're not enemies.

　I'm not sure if it's because they're not enemies or because they're small. In a sense, this is a great help, because if you can sense information about all living things, it would be too difficult to use in a forest full of insects.

　In the river, there may have been some large salamanders mixed in with the fish, but I don't think the difference was that large. If there had been a big difference, even I would have paid a little more attention and would have noticed it.

How about you, Toya?
No, no, no. I have no idea what's in the river. I don't have the same skills as you, I'm more like a sixth sense, and I don't think I can do it in the water where my sense of smell is blocked.

　Perhaps Toya's search for enemies is based on a combination of sight, hearing, smell, and magic sensing. If one or two of them are blocked, it's hard to expect much.

"Mmmm ...... here?

　I concentrated on searching for the enemy, selected something that looked like it, and peered behind the rock to find a dark, slimy thing.

　It was noticeably shorter than the Great Salamander, and the help message said it was called a Poison Toad. It seems to be a poisonous frog.

　It is larger than a bullfrog, so it is a bit creepy.

Something ......!　No, you're not!

　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not. I'm sure the Great Salamander is just as creepy, but was it a bad idea to take him by surprise?

It's poisonous, so be careful. Poison toad, apparently?

　I know it's poisonous from the name, but is it bad if you touch it?
　Is it bad to touch it, or does it bite you or spray you with poison?

Poison Toad is not that dangerous. If you touch your eyes with it, or if you have sensitive skin, you might get a rash, but despite the name, it's edible.

Seriously? ......
Yes, I'm serious.

　If you peel it properly, wash it, and cook it, you can eat it.
　However, as Natsuki said, you can't grab them easily and you need to be careful when cooking them, so they are not usually used for food.

The taste is bland and not particularly delicious, so I guess no one catches them.
I guess the Great Salamanders that are requested are tasty.

　Even though they both look like that.



Or you wouldn't be paying so much. . ...... here?　--Oops!

　He turned over a rock and seized the creature with a spear thrust.
　A distinctive turtle, about 50 centimeters in size. It was a spoon.

Now it's a spotted turtle. What do we do now?

　When Toya strikes the spoon I'm holding down with a branch, the spoon stretches out its neck, which is longer than I expected, and bites the branch.

Oh, it's pretty strong. ...... No, too strong?

　Toya pulls on the branch, but as the name implies, it doesn't seem to let go at all, and I can even hear it snapping. The branch he's holding is thicker than my thumb, and no bigger than a pair of chopsticks. How much bite power does this thing have?

If it bites me, it'll tear my fingers off. ......

　Seeing this, Yuki, who had been watching from the side, stepped back as if in fear.

I'm not sure. It's dangerous for ordinary people. I think adventurers like us are probably safe, but we can't be too careful.

"But a snapping turtle is a snapping turtle, right?　Can you eat them?

Yes, you can eat them. They were also eaten as a luxury food in Sarstad. I've only heard about it.

　Suppon itself is also caught in the vicinity of Sahlstadt, and it is on the menu of the inn.
　However, considering the taste of the dish, it is doubtful whether it is good or not.

I've never eaten sponges before, are they good?

　Haruka looks at us, but we both shake our heads.

　At least, it's not an ingredient that usually appears on the dinner table, and my image of it is that it's a high-class dish that you would eat at a specialty restaurant. I, a commoner, had never had the chance to try it.

　The only one who didn't shake his head was Natsuki.

The only one who didn't shake her head was Natsuki, who said, "It looks a little strange, but it's delicious.
The only thing I couldn't shake my head at was Natsuki. ...... But Japanese people eat sponges but not frogs, right?

　If you want to talk about the ghetto level, it's similar.

I'm not sure if frogs are that tasty or not.　"Maybe frogs aren't that tasty, but if they are, people will eat them, because they are Japanese.

　This is a convincing opinion.
　They eat sea cucumbers, too.

If it's good, I'd like to try it. Is there anyone who can cook?　Can I get by with my cooking skills?

"It's not that hard to cook, but it takes time to remove the mud, so you can't put it in a magic bag.　The water is clean around here, so I don't think you'll need more than a week or two. ......

"It's too good to pass up. Now that we have one Great Salamander, why don't we camp here?

　No one objected to Toya's suggestion.

　The capture of the Great Salamander was just a side trip, our purpose was leisure. If we could practice camping while taking a break, that would be fine.

　Besides, there are plenty of fish in this area, so there's no problem for me if I want to fish.

So let's go to .......

　I lifted up the spoon that I had been holding with my foot and put it into the tub that Toya had taken out.

　I had prepared a rather large tub for the fish, but it was almost full with the 50cm long spoon. There was no room to move around.

　All I had to do was to fill it with clean water made by magic, close the lid, and place a stone as a weight to prevent the fish from escaping. After that, you can change the water from time to time.

　I'm looking forward to the first time in my life when I can eat a spoon.