Foreigner Volume 8, Chapter 184

Volume 8 Chapter 184, Steady Advance ~ 37

　Next morning.

　Isolde, who was thoroughly tortured by Satoru last night, bowed her head deeply with a radiant face when she saw Satoru waking up.

「Milord! From now on, feel free to use me too!」

　Satoru was taken aback by this unabashedly comment; It seems that it was worth the slow cooking to avoid the evasiveness of sex per se, but even so, it is too pedantic.

　The morning sleep time was interrupted, and Satoru's face, which was awake in his sleep, looked quite grim in Isolde's eyes, and Isolde even wondered if there was something rude about it.

「...... I suppose, for now, I'll use you every night until Liz and Rico's periods are over.」

　It's still going to take a lot of time to loosen her vaginal canal, which was so hard that he thought it might be covered with muscle. Isolde hissed and stiffened at Satoru's declaration in a very low, sleepy voice, but it was probably her own stubbornness not to say no.

「Also, you need to learn a little more modesty.」

「Modes ....ty. Uhh, uumuu........」

　Satoru stretched wide while smiling bitterly at Isolde, who was beginning to seriously anguish.

　Today is the day of Satoru's appointment with Vance the Black Bear. As expected, he doesn't expect it to be ready this morning. Vance said he would complete the project in three days, which would normally take at least a season, so Satoru just has to believe him.

　For now, I'll wait until the evening and do some shopping for the start of our journey.

　In addition to foodstuffs such as black bread, vegetables, meat, and fruit, he buys two items of clothing for each person, cotton cloth, cotton, and wool in anticipation of the cold weather. He plans to sew them into a futon later. The leathers and other items purchased are then used 【Shrink】 by Solor, with a 【Dispel】 attached, and carried in a leather bag.

　Sorcery is really convenient since you can carry a certain amount of the items in such a small package.

　Of course, it is not easy to use them. Even though all people have a soul, and each has his or her own talents, for example, the 【Shrink】 art used by Solor, with its 【Dispel】, can be used by no more than five practitioners in a single country. If it is just 【Shrink】, there are many more practitioners who can use it in their own way. In fact, peddlers make full use of these arts to carry a large amount of cargo with little effort.

　Foodstuffs are also packed in the bags that Rico usually carries, and in addition to the basic 【Preservation】 art, these bags also have a 【Cold and Dark】 art. This bag was taken from Leia's labyrinth and has the effect of prolonging the life of foodstuffs.

　Black bread, for example, can be preserved under normal conditions, but after a long time, it becomes so hard that even a knife cannot easily pass through it. So it is usual to soak them in soup to soften them before eating, but if they are kept in this bag, they will keep their softness for a week or so.

　After completing the common purchases, Satoru gave each of them a small amount of money and told them to buy whatever they wanted, and he settled down in the tavern on the first floor of the inn.

　Isolde with Liz was out shopping. Minerva and Solor are led by Rico ― Minerva and Solor have little common sense, so they desperately need someone to follow them.

　Incidentally, Leia is indeed unable to go outside, so she asks Rico to buy parchment for her. It is said that parchment here in Arsweta is cheap and of high quality, probably because sheep farming used to flourish in the neighboring country of Liese.

　The sun is still high in the sky, but the dwarves are still laughing with red faces and giggles. Many dwarves really like to drink. And their beards are quite thick. The women, by the way, do not have beards, and many of them have charming faces with bulging noses and ears that are shorter and yet more pointed than those of half-elves. The problem is that it is difficult to tell their age from a quick glance.

　Fortunately, no one tried to tangle with Satoru. It is rumored that Satoru has won a battle against Vance, a Black Bear, by sheer force of arms, but more than that, they seem to be in awe of Solor, the woman who defeated Vance in a drinking contest. Satoru has seen this scene several times, where the owner of the inn overhears the unusual presence of a human and glares at him, only to have him back away. The influence of Vance the Black Bear seems to be considerable.

「We're back.」

「Ouh」

　Liz and Isolde were the first to return. Satoru raises a small eyebrow when he looks at them and wonders what they bought. Liz had a small sword with a scabbard on her waist.

　Satoru was hesitant to give Liz a weapon because of her extremely low fighting ability. He didn't want her to get hurt, but this would be overprotective. Noticing Satoru's gaze, Liz smiled.

「Isolde-san picked it out for me.」

　Somewhat proudly, she indicated the sword at her waist. It seems to be in a scabbard, but it is still thin. The handle is finely decorated, and there is a curved metal plate covering the back of the hand. It is a short rapier.

「Even though Liz is not physically gifted, she asked me to teach her how to use a sword because it would be useful for her physical strength.」

　Isolde muttered apologetically. There was no way that the honest Isolde could win over Liz with her mouth. Perhaps she had been cajoled into it.

　Satoru scratched his head. It is true that it is useful for physical strength.

「Well, don't think about using it to fight, okay?」

「I won't do that. But I thought that having a weapon would make it harder to be attacked.」

　Well, that's a good point. And even though she's not likely to be in a fight, it's good to learn some simple self-defense techniques.

「Well, in moderation. What did Isolde buy?」

「A whetstone and other items to care for my armor. I would like to take care of that spare sword for Milord's Giant Killer.」

　Thinking back, Satoru has never taken care of his weapons. At most, he washes them with water and wipes them with a cloth. The Giant Killer is equipped with a 【Sturdy】 art that increases its durability, and no matter how roughly Satoru treats it, it has never been distorted, but it still needs to be cared for. Satoru doesn't know how to do it, so if Isolde can do it for him, there's nothing better than that.

「Ah, I'll leave it to you. ......Oh」

　Satoru saw the innkeeper approaching and peeked in.

「There's a guest for you.」

「All right.」

　Behind the innkeeper was a pair of dwarves, a man, and a woman, and Satoru raised his hand. For the man was Vance the Black Bear. Vance was being pulled by a well-dressed middle-aged Dwarf woman who was moving in front of Vance, and she was showing a discouraged expression on her face.

　When she came up to Satoru, she suddenly bowed her head.

「I'm very sorry. My name is Eldy, wife of Vance the Black Bear. It seems that our people have caused trouble for Dahl-san and this benefactor.」

「N-no, it's nothing like that.」

　Satoru is confused. Well, there was a little bit of trouble, but he felt that it was all over when he got the job. Eldy bowed her head and glared at Vance, who looked discouraged behind her.

「Come on, you too, lower your bald head!」

「O-Ow! All right, stop pulling my beard!」

　That must hurt. It's one thing to have a beard, but to have your mustache pulled. Satoru smiled.

「Oh, ouch......」

　Vance the Black Bear, forced to lower his head by his wife, is groaning while holding his mouth. He was also a little teary-eyed. Even though he is a fine craftsman who is looked up to by the townspeople, he seems to have a weakness for his wife. He gives a stern look to Satoru, who is smiling.

「I received a letter from Olof this morning. Luna...... Olof's wife is doing fine and on the way to recovery.」

「I see. That's great news」

　Satoru breathed a sigh of relief. Although he did not know whether the frozen water with magic power that he had given Dahl had helped or not, he was happy to hear that the wife of someone he had met on his journey had been freed from her illness.

「.....so?」

「Both of them are done.」

　Vance's chest heaved as Satoru squinted at him and asked. Almost a koku (4 hours) earlier than expected.

「That spiral metal rod and the receptacle you taught me about, that's amazing. It took me a whole day to make it, and it's much stronger and stiffer than just riveting.」

「I bet」

　Satoru replies with a wry smile. The spiral-shaped metal rod and receptacle must be a bolt and nut. Vance's voice is full of admiration, but there is also a tinge of excitement in it.

「To be honest, I'd like to know more about what you know, but that's not going to happen, is it? So I won't ask any more questions. However, I'm going to have more opportunities to use that spiral rod and the receptacle in the future, do you mind?」

「I taught it to you with that resolution. Do what you want with them.」

　In fact, Satoru thought it would be a bad idea to teach the concept of a screw. However, it was absolutely necessary to teach him about the lid of a water bottle, and even for an airship, the rigidity of a mere riveting was questionable, and he was afraid of disintegrating in mid-air. So, even though he knew it was unnecessary, he taught Vance.

　And once the technology was known, it would be unreasonable to force them to keep it hidden without using it. Even if they had left it alone, they would have found this technology in two to three hundred years.

　However, although it is a small thing, this is also a technological revolution. Satoru, with a bit of bitterness in his heart, replied in a composed manner,

「I'd like to know the name of that one.」

「The one with the pointed end is a screw. The flat one is a bolt, the receptacle is a nut, and the one in between is a washer.」

「I'll keep that in mind. Oi.」

　Vance's jaw was tilted toward his wife, who had been standing behind him since his initial greeting. As if she knew what she was doing, she held out a leather bag.

「I'll give this back.」

　With a thud, Vance places it on the table. Satoru's brow furrows as he realizes that it is the gold coins he gave Vance to pay for the production. The way the bag was bulging, it was probably hardly decreased.

「Hey, you barely used any of it, don't you?」

「You idiot! I can't accept this! The screw and bolt technique you taught me is worth that much, no, more than that. If you teach me such amazing techniques and accept money for them, you'll ruin the name of the Black Bear!」

　Vance barked, somewhat fretfully. I doubt he spent a dime, the way he said that.

　He must have decided that since he had learned a new skill and realized its usefulness, he would not receive a single penny from Satoru. A decision that was too manly. His wife Eldy, standing by Vance's side, nodded her head in agreement. She approves of her husband's decision.

「But」

「I can't accept it. Instead, I'd want to give you the money myself.」

「That's not how it works.」

「Then, let's call it a 50-50 split.」

　Satoru replied with some concern, and Vance continued to express his opinion in an endless stream. Satoru was stunned to see such a stubborn and single-minded craftsman.

　It is true that Vance's workshop can make a lot of money for a while with this screw technology, which does not exist in this world. But the technology would soon be imitated. Soon the advantage will be gone. The cost of the materials alone for an airship was 30 L, plus the labor cost of the last three days of overwork. They would just barely make it back.

「I don't want to be like that either, since I've forced you to do it.」

　Satoru scratched his head. He understands his manliness, but that doesn't make him feel comfortable with free gifts. Vance would not accept a single penny. Satoru thought about leaving the money behind when he departed, but Vance would probably be furious if he did that.

　He pondered ― and quickly came to a conclusion.

「Old man.」

「What is it?」

　Satoru calls out to the owner of the inn.

「I'm leaving the inn today, but if I ask the guys at the Black Bear Workshop to let them drink as much as they can for a couple of days, how much will that cost?」

「There are about 100 people in the Black Bear Factory. And there are a lot of leisured people, too. We'd have to open up all our sake barrels. ......around 20L.」

「Then, that's on me.」

　Satoru made a quick decision based on the innkeeper's reply, which he had calculated in his head. He randomly pulls out 20 gold coins from a bag on the table and slaps them on the table.

「Hey brother ......」

「Let me at least do that.」

　Satoru replied with a straight face to Vance, who was a bit stuffy. He understands Vance's pride. However, Satoru would also like to give something in return to the craftsmen in his workshop who were forced to go along with it. The best thing to do would be to give them money, but Vance would refuse, so the best thing to do is to let them drink as much as they can, which dwarves love.

　The innkeeper, who looked impressed, took only 15 out of the 20 gold coins on the table.

「I'll give you five back. If you talk like that, I can't be stingy either!」

「You're being a cheapskate when you brag about how you've reduced 5 L!」

　Vance yelled at his longtime friend, the innkeeper's old man. However, his face was smiling.

　The big human man, who understood their chivalrous spirit, showed them his gratitude. The innkeeper was honestly glad to see his kindness.

「Well, whatever. I'll accept it gratefully. Well then, I'll ask you to come to the workshop to pick up your order.」

　Satoru sat up just in time to see Rico, Minerva, and Solor return.

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