After a while, Igarashi-san woke up, so I tried not to leave the living room and the bedroom became her changing room.

''Rear-kun, did your body hurt from sleeping over there?''
'What?　Oh, oh, it's okay. It was more heavenly than sleeping in a company chair.

　I didn't expect him to call out to me while I was getting dressed, and I was a little upset. I'll have to get used to it, since we'll be living together from now on, but I can't help but feel unsettled, as if I'm spending the night with the chief before going to work. It's as if my feet never touched the ground.

I'm sorry........I still have a lot more to apologize to you, Mr. Rear. Even last night, because of the strange things I said to you...
No, don't worry about it. I'm sure it's not easy to get nervous about sleeping with someone else all of a sudden.

　Is the assisted recovery working at bedtime, and if so, can I only activate the skill when I want to activate it? It's not that serious of a problem, as long as I can take action.

　Even if my trust level increased too much, I doubt Igarashi-san would come into my bed in the middle of the night or anything like that. That would be like putting Igarashi-san under some kind of spell.

　After getting dressed, Igarashi-san comes out with a slightly nervous look on her face. I was used to seeing her dressed over there, so it's something new - she blends into the fantasy world.

''.........''
'........Ah. It looks good on you. It's so natural, I was impressed.
I didn't mean to prompt you. If you look good in it, it's worth it. The fact that you're a town girl and not an explorer is what bothers me personally.
If you put an armor-like item on top of it, I think it will instantly become more like it. I'd like to buy a breastplate and some armor if I could.
''Well........money, I only have 3 copper coins left. The money for the armor....
Don't worry, we'll get you out. We're a team, aren't we? Unlike the company's project team, though, we'll split the profits.

　She's had a strict home, so I guess she thinks that's basically what you shouldn't do when it comes to lending and borrowing money. It's because she's that kind of person, though, that I can trust her to lend me money.

''..........well, I mean, I don't want to borrow it, but don't indulge me too much. I'd like to be an independent searcher, and based on the partnership between you and your partner, I'd rather not be a piggybacking on you....
Yes, I know. But isn't it a leader's job to get people to depend on them?
'So, you can get mad at me, like, 'Don't waste your money. It's easier that way.

　If you spoil them, they become restless, so I want you to be moderately strict with them. Even though I was told that, I couldn't easily be strict with people.

'But changing clothes isn't a waste of money. I won't get mad at you for that.''
Has anyone ever told you that you're like an older brother?

　Not only was he treated as an older brother at the facility, let alone a younger one, but he felt like he somehow understood why that was the case now.

　◆◇◆

　After having breakfast, I told Louisa-san at the guild about my plans for today's activities, and then I first visited the mercenary mediation office.

''Good morning, Leila-san,''
Hmm, you're earlier than expected. Good seekers always keep their promises.

　She is just as friendly as yesterday, though she is in full-body leather armor and has a powerful eye patch on her, but she is friendly. As they say, appearances can be deceiving.

I'm not going to be able to get a good idea of what you're looking for. It's a pleasure to work with you.
Mmm, you're the new guy I saw yesterday. I was worried about you because you were walking slowly towards the labyrinth by yourself. I'm glad you found some good company.
'Yes, I'll do my best not to slow him down.

　Igarashi-san's greeting was so quick that if he had a business card, he would start exchanging them.
Leila-san also seemed to be looking at it favorably.


'No, ask Theresa. I suppose we should try to explore all sorts of things, but we were working well together as of yesterday.
Okay, well, I'll get Theresa for you.

　I'll use one copper mercenary ticket with this one. I bought seven additional tickets earlier, so when I added up the amount Louisa-san gave me, I reached the limit of ten tickets.

　When I talked to Louisa earlier, she also asked me about how to get the copper tickets in a short period of time, and I heard that if you earn a certain amount of contribution, the purchase limit is removed.

　Once you reach 1000 cumulative contributions, you will become a 2 star explorer. Then the purchase limit for copper mercenary tickets would be removed. Since there are three silver coins per ticket, it takes thirty gold coins to buy a hundred tickets.

　In other words, the requirements for hiring Theresia are to earn a contribution and to have thirty gold coins ready to go. It would be more profitable to strengthen the party and increase the efficiency of the earning process rather than leaving yesterday's earnings behind.

''I don't mean to say this, but Lizardman's outfit looks like something out of a movie.
'The power is great, but she's reliable and excellent. Good to see you today, Theresa.

　Theresia nodded her head in a persistent way. She reacted faster than yesterday - even sub-humans remembered the person they had met once.

'It seems that Theresia has been waiting to be summoned, too. I'm sure you guys have your reasons, but I'd like you to dive for as long as you can in one search.
Yes, I think it will be longer than yesterday.
What are you going to do at noon, Mr. Rear?　If it's going to be lunch in the labyrinth, I'll have to bring my lunch with me.
'You can buy food from the stalls in front of the labyrinth. If no one else has the skills to cook in the open air, you should buy some.
'Thank you for telling me, Miss Leila.
No need to thank me. Then have a nice day.

　Leila-san and I parted ways and headed to the demon demolition shop next. Today, Theresia is still following me from behind - the shortsword has been taken care of and the buckler that received the demons has been restored.

''Was Leila-san also a former explorer?　You look so strong, don't you?
'I haven't heard of it, but I think it's probably true. It seems a lot of retired explorers turn out to be supporters.
'Hmm ... but we can always go out exploring. I wonder if we'll have to retire at some stage. Or.........
'Let's go as far as we can. "Let's go as far as we can. We can't risk our lives, but if we minimize the risks and move up the pecking order, we can see some things, too. It will make life more comfortable.
Yeah, I get it.

　Some searchers might want to retire as soon as possible. However, Igarashi-san didn't lose heart even after what happened yesterday.

(.........Theresia lost her life in the labyrinth and became a sub-human. Still, continuing to hide in the labyrinth as a mercenary is a bit harsh...)

　Someday we will turn Theresa back into a human, retire her from fighting and let her live a peaceful life. In order to do that, I can't stay in the current pecking order.

　◆◇◆

　When I went to the demolition shop, I saw a young blonde man was tanning the demon's leather.

''Um, excuse me. I'd like to ask you to dismantle a demon...''
Welcome to Rykerton Demolition. I'm Rykerton, the owner. And this is my daughter, Melissa, who's over there taking apart the big guy.

　A girl named Melissa, dressed in tuna-like clothing, is mindlessly dismantling demons with a large knife. Her eyes are sharp, and she has the look of a craftsman.

''There are a great number of demons hanging around, aren't there?
Yes, except for the furs and other materials that have been dismantled and are waiting to be removed. We're trying to keep the materials inside the demolition site from rotting for at least seven days so that we don't raise any complaints from nearby residents.

　In other words, it's the same kind of technology as this leather bag. In a labyrinthine country like this stone-built medieval city, one occasionally encounters things that feel like over-technology, but since magic exists, is it even that strange?

　Igarashi-san was overwhelmed by the strange atmosphere in the store, but he seemed to have gradually calmed down and was looking at the furs hanging in the store. Some of them looked like mink fur, which could be made into good quality clothing if processed. And a large amount of cottontail furs were packed and placed in boxes.

'Sir, may I ask your name?'
My name is Arihito. My name is Kyouka...
'Oh, well, well. I'm glad to hear that you and your wife are having a party together. When I was young, I too was hiding in a labyrinth with my wife, covered in the blood and flesh of demons and drinking and pudding... oops, my daughter will hear about it.
No, no, first of all, it's not your wife...
I mean, you don't have to deny it. It's just a social thing to do, you know. It's embarrassing to overreact.

　Igarashi-san is going to give me an adult's opinion. If the word gets out that she's my wife, that's going to be very difficult to explain.

　And this Mr. Rykerton, since he only dismantles demons on a daily basis - although it's rude to say so, but he seems a bit unusual. It's like he's always smiling, but his eyes aren't smiling. Well, as a craftsman, if your skills are good, you'll want to get along well with them.

"...Demolition is over.
Thanks, Melissa. Next up is this customer's material. When you're done with that, we'll take a break.
Okay.

　Unlike Mr. Rykerton, she is a girl with hair that is almost silver in color - maybe in her mid-teens. She's covered in returning blood, but her appearance is remarkably well-groomed - combined with the lack of expression, she looks like a bisque doll.

I'm sorry, he doesn't talk much. Don't worry, I'm as good a dismantler as he'll ever be.
You're still so young, but you've got that much skill.

　I was curious about their situation, but now I want to get the requirements done. I produce one Watadama and one Red Face from the leather bag. Igarashi-san's leather bag also had one Watadama in it.

　As soon as Mr. Rykerton looked at redface, he adjusted the position of his glasses. And Melissa, who was watching next to him, also opened her eyes slightly.

''Well 'named' can get rare materials. My father can do the processing, or I can bring the material to the armor shop.
'I would prefer to let me handle them if possible, but I'll leave it to your discretion. First, I will take back the two Watadama for two silver coins. As for redface, I will either dismantle it and return the material only or buy it for eight gold coins. If you only want to dismantle them, I will charge you 10 coppers.

　'Named' materials can be redeemed for a high amount of money - if the guild has a bounty on the line, the rewards are great. In the future, if we continue to encounter them while exploring, even the strongest enemies should be defeated by any means necessary.

''Rear-kun, what do we do now?''
'Well...'

　You can either have the redface material processed, or you can redeem it. If possible, you want to strengthen your party's strength as much as possible so that you can take out strong enemies - then process it.

What can I make out of Redface's materials?
''When Redface is on the verge of death, he uses a technique called 'Blaze Dive' which emits flames from all over his body and flies around indiscriminately. When processed, he can draw the power of this flame at will.

(You use such a dangerous technique when you're dying... thanks to the 10 support damage, you were able to stop him before he died.

I will take Redface's body hair and the Burning Stone inside his body and incorporate it into a weapon. Then you will be able to use a 'Blaze' type move that uses up magic power.
I see. So you can switch between no attribute and the flame attribute?
'As you can imagine. From a single redface, if you're lucky, we can create three or more Blaze weapons from one redface. If you request the dismantling and processing as a set, we will reimburse you for the excess materials and apply them to the dismantling and processing fee, and if there is still any excess, we will pay you cash.
What happens if I make armor out of leftover materials?
By affixing body hair to the shield, you can increase its durability against fire. The rest can be made out of scarves and other small items. Even if it's a small item, you can expect to see an increase in defense, but I'll use up all the materials except for meat.

　He was fortunate to be able to make multiple pieces of equipment thanks to being considerably larger than Watadama. This would allow me to strengthen everyone's armor.

　Teresia's buckler will be modified to be flame-resistant, and Igarashi's scarf. And I'll modify my sling shot.

''Rear-kun, have you decided what to do?''
Yes. Igarashi-san, do you wrap your scarf around your head?
I used to roll it up sometimes but maybe you could make it for me?
''I'd actually prefer an armor that covers a wider area, but I'm going to go to the armor shop now. As for flame resistance, I'd love to have it for the vanguard mid-guard, so...''

　I don't know if you'll meet any demons that use fire in today's quest, but it wouldn't hurt to save your resistance. I'd like to be prepared to defend myself against any resistance.

Then, this is Rykerton Dismantling Station and Workshop. This will take some time, so I suggest you take care of business in the meantime.

　As Mr. Rykerton prepares the paperwork, Melissa walks into the back with Redface - perhaps it's because it's a rare material, but his eyes are more alive than the first.

　The armor shop is next. You'll be at the stall in front of the labyrinth, let's go see Madoka the merchant.