I followed Ronald to the Adventurer's Guild while he explained the preparation they've done for the Goblin subjugation. It seems that they pinpointed the village on the map rather quickly yesterday and the scouts were sent under the cover of night to find traces of the paths Goblins use to gather food.

From the reports received they were mostly successful, but after a close investigation, the number of Goblins seems to be a bit more than they originally expected. Since that was including the generous estimations we've made and leaving aside the fact that their levels might be higher than what the city possesses, they were left with quite the dilemma...

To make things more complicated, not only do those monsters have military knowledge at least at the same level as the humans of this world (if not better), but they might also have someone or something pulling the strings behind the curtains, given how well organized they are. It won't make sense otherwise, given that there are teams of 5 soldiers patrolling, or the fact that the gatherers are always escorted by the guards when foraging and hunting. Only Reaper knows what else we might find in the actual village...

I glanced at Ronald which had his gaze buried in the ground for the last couple of minutes and didn't utter a single word. His brows were furrowed showing that he was either thinking of important matters, or given his personality, there was a stronger chance that there was a subject he didn't know how to approach.

Given yesterday's interaction with the general and the commander, as well as the new found knowledge of the strength these monsters possess, is quite easy to figure out what the subject was. After all, the only logical thing they could do to defend themselves is get stronger! Fast!

So I pretended not to notice for a while, since the liveliness of the people and the crisp morning air were so damn refreshing. The streets were clean, there were no horses or carriages running around and the people all had smiles on their faces, showing content...

"This is a good city..." - I thought

[To be honest, I am here with instructions from Commander Laurence to issue a request to the adventurers...] (Ronald)

"Here it comes..."

[...more precisely, this request was proposed having you in mind.] (Ronald)

"Figures..."

"What is it? And just so you know, I can't take out the village alone..."

[Nothing of sorts! Is about the dungeon exploration. Since you are the highest level Scout there's in the city and are more knowledgeable regarding its mechanisms than we are, the general and the commander agreed that this request should be handled by no one other than you. Not only that, but they fear that sending another party to scout it... might result in the same thing happening all over again just like before and it will crush the barely gained morale our troupes recently accumulated. Obviously there will be a generous pay for undertaking the request and one for providing any useful information afterwards. Especially regarding how possible it would be for our soldiers to increase their levels in there and if there are traps that you could let us know about and... and...] (Ronald)

"I see."

[Eh!? You don't seem surprised at all.] (Ronald)

"I was more or less expecting either this, or reconnaissance in the forest. But I don't really mind it, since I wanted to check the dungeon myself."

Is that, you know. That! A dungeon! Even if I was welcomed with a life and death situation as soon as I stepped foot in this world, that was because of that useless game God. But now, my gamer senses were firing on all synapses making me think that this is kind of fun and interesting. Yes, killing humanoid monsters should be weird and it should make me feel a little bad, however, this is the world I'm living in right now and I need to be strong in order to survive!

But also cautious enough not to get caught in weird situations. I mean, really now! I don't want to experience that kind of feeling ever again. So, instead of waiting for such things to occur naturally, I'd rather take the initiative and actively search for them! Is not like I want to level up and get skills...nah...

[Thank you for understanding! The fee for undertaking the request is 1 gold by the way and the information fee will depend on the details you bring, so I can't say for sure but was advised to let you know that it will be considerable. I know is not much since you're risking your life...] (Ronald)

"I'll do it! I'll definitely do it!"

He thought I was doing it for the sake of the people in this city from the look on his face and was impressed by my eagerness to help... I'm so sorry Ron!

However, 1 gold coin you know!? That will put my balance back to where it was previously, if not, even higher since there's the information I can bring back as well. My goal for the near future, is to make enough money to be able to live without doing anything for at least a couple of years and travel around this world.

But that requires...well, I don't know how much is needed, however, I was certain that I lacked the funds. So this should be a good start!

We reached our destination while I was planning my future trips 'abroad' and went inside. At the receptionist's desk we were greeted by Helen that was still looking strangely at me. I wonder what did I do? Was it because of my level? Maybe she's just curious.

Anyway, Ronald submitted the request addressed to me and I accepted it on the spot. When she heard that I was going to explore the dungeon where so many scouts died, she looked even stranger at me...

"I wonder what kind of wrong-in-the-head type of person does she see me like?"

After undertaking the request and leaving the building, Ronald asked me to follow him to the Guard Station near the wall, in order to receive the few information they have about the dungeon. It was rather helpful since their party managed to advance a bit through the first level of it. They handed me a map drawn on a papyrus-looking kind of sheet, on which there was the layout of the explored area. It wasn't more than 100 meters and it was pretty much worth nothing, but it did give me some insight about what I should expect and also a good idea.

I asked of them to provide me with paper and something to use for drawing, only to instantly receive a stack of papyrus sheets and a quill prepared in advance. I blinked blankly in surprise to be honest, even if I saw it at the inn yesterday. Ron then handed over a small bottle that held a black liquid...probably ink. I decided not to ask about it and continued to exchange information in order to determine early on, exactly how dangerous this dungeon was.

I glanced at the watch on the wall of the Guard Station and it showed 11:50 AM. I decided that I gathered sufficient intelligence regarding my 'quest', mostly because they lacked the knowledge about how the dungeon system really works. So I got up and thought of heading straight to it, therefore asked for the location.

On my way out though, I realized that I was getting hungry and figured I should head back to the inn and have lunch first. If I do happen to die, might as well do it on a full stomach.

When I entered the inn, once again I was caught off guard by something unexpected...or maybe expected since I kind of created this scenario...

[Hello lad and welcome back! We were expecting you to return...well, more like Martin over here was yelling to bring you over as soon as possible. This crazy hyper old man...] (Fred)

[Oh! You're finally here! I was expecting you since morning! Didn't you promise to come over today!?] (Martin)

The clerk from the clothing store where I purchased the wearing necessities suitable for this world, was impatiently waving his hands around in a dramatic manner. Upon a closer inspection, he looked like a panda with those dark circles under his eyes, his round belly and short arms. It was quite amusing to be honest and I did my best to hide it.

"Good morning Mr. Martin. I did promise, however I had to buy new equipment and I planned to visit later this noon. Should we go now?"

[Yes! You will be surprised by the progress I've made!!!] (Martin)

[The lunch will be ready in half an hour, so try to take a break and come eat. You too Martin! You look like you skipped meals again...] (Fred)

We headed back to the store and the exhausted looking clerk from before, suddenly became amazingly energetic while giving me an update about the changes he's made since yesterday. It was likely that he didn't sleep at all and worked throughout the night. Is he okay doing that at his age? He looks at least about fifty...

When we reached the shop, I noticed a young man at the counter instead of Martin. He was probably an apprentice or a relative about 14-15 years old. He bowed his head and greeted us politely, as we walked passed him in a back room which Martin said was his personal working space dedicated to special projects worth his interest. I found there the result of the said hard work...

I was, for the third time today surprised. The kimono looked amazing! Even if he had no knowledge about it, each piece was perfect and was strung on a different 'sculpture' of sorts that looked like a human body. Rather, isn't that closer to a human body than what we had back on Earth in the form of mannequins!?

[This... how is it? I kept racking my brain and used the notes regarding what you told me yesterday and my imagination, but I am not sure how it supposed to look yet since I haven't seen one before. Tell me what I should improve!] (Martin)

He was really eager, however, I really don't think there's anything required to improve. Let's see...

"The material used?"

[Giant moth silk. Is a really rare moth that grew in size because of the mana in the air and its cocoon silk is of higher quality than your average moth. Is one of my prized materials.] (Martin)

"Oi! Is it okay to use it on something you're not sure is going to sell? What's wrong with this guy!?"

"Ahem... I see. Well then, let's look at each part."

I was surprised to see that each of the more than twelve parts of it, was done exactly as I describe it to him. The underclothing had blooming flowers designed on it, while the undershirt was pure white, making it a really eye-catching contrast. The outer layer was red with the same flowery pattern, while the sash looked like it wouldn't even be noticeable since it was perfectly following last night's instructions. Lastly, the obi, or the belt, was extravagant beyond words with gold engravings decorated with rubies. I gulped loudly, scared by this old man. He surely overdid it...

"It's...perfect! How did you have the time to make it? Didn't you say that you actually used materials instead of creating it from thin air? Even for a full night's worth of work, isn't this absurdly fast?"

[Hmm? Oh, yeah. I used my occupation's skill Craft and barely managed to wrap it up this morning... never mind that though! Is looking good you say? I wonder how if we could see it better than on the dummy...] (Martin)

"Let's go grab some lunch and we'll think about it there."

He was quite unwilling, but I managed to convince and drag him along. When we went back to the inn, we sat at the same table and even Fred joined in after bringing the food. We asked his opinion on how would be best to see it in action and advertise it at the same time, since the final product was looking real good. But all three of us were at a loss...

[Honey! Don't slack off and go help in the kitchen! What are you doing bothering customers like this again?] (Caitlin)

[Eh? But it has only been 10 minutes...] (Fred)

Again? Seems like he's quite sociable. Also, Caitlin keeps him in line quite nicely. It feels like I'm forgetting something about last night...

"Huh!? That's it! Isn't Ms. Caitlin perfect?"

[I know, right? I'm such a lucky man...] (Fred)

"Yeah...but that's not what I meant. I was talking about the kimono! Wouldn't it be good to have Ms. Caitlin wear it as a model? She looks about the perfect height for it and since she's beautiful, the red color would compliment her greatly. Don't you think so Mr. Martin?"

[You're right! Damn! I must be really tired if I didn't think about this! Caitlin, you'll be perfect!] (Martin)

[Eh!?] (Caitlin)

Confused, she looked at the three of us each ogling at her with different kinds of admiration, making her smile shyly and avert her eyes. It was then decided unanimously, that this night she would become a model and help us take a look at Martin's creation. It should be interesting to see their reactions to it, since they liked my yukata.

Especially Fred, since he said he would like to have one himself to sleep in.

"Well then. Now that I am done eating, I guess I should start my first quest!"

I left the inn after promising again to the clerk that I'll join tonight's fashion show and headed towards the place where the dungeon was.

I was stupidly excited to see what it looked like in real life.