"Just what is wrong with you...?" - Alf

"Shut up. We're here." - Garami

I stuffed the map into my pocket as I looked at the sign for the shop in front of us. "Armveil Smithy and Shipwright". That's a weird combination for one store, but I guess in this city, both are equally important.

"Hello. What can I do for you? We're not yet ready to open, but we can accept requests for preparing boats for ya."

A dwarf dressed in smithing gear and a black-burned beard that covered his whole face greeted us from behind the counter as we entered the store filled with weapons and armor of various kinds. It is quite an impressive display. I've got no chance in hell to use stuff like this, but I am still intrigued to take a look.

"We have an assignment for Blot. Is Armveil here?" - Garami

"That's me. And I bet that you're those Nightmare Voyagers people Blot talked about?" replied the dwarf, Armveil.

"......Yes." - Garami

"Stop being embarrassed over the name already." - Alf

As if it's that easy!

"*Cough*, we are here to report we have safely concluded the quest your boss was so gracious to give us." - Garami

"Whazzat?" - Armveil

"...We got the girl. Fork over the reward." - Garami

"Well, why didn't you say so?" - Armveil

Are they only speaking in thug-ish in this store? Anyway, after the dwarf had placed the "we're closed"-sign on the front door, I had Alf drop the crate we'd carried with us and revealed its content. It's the angel I'd knocked out, wrapped up like a cocoon, and gagged just in case. Her eyes have rolled back, showing only the whites, and there's quite a visible bump on her head. The culprit: me.

Of course, we did all that to her after luring the angel into a dark alley. It took only a few words of praise for her "tastes" to get her to follow us. Did Blot truly have problems with someone that gullible? No, maybe that's the reason why she messed up in the first place.

"Err..., yeah. This is no doubt Noire. Good job...I guess." - Armveil

"Uuuuuugh..." - Noire (knocked-out Flugel)

I figured as much. I did Identify her before luring her into the alley, but you can never be too sure when it comes to these magical disguises.

"I am so sorry about my GM's rough behavior." - Alf

"Why are you apologizing on my behalf!? In any case, we'll take our reward and be on our way." - Garami

"Right, the reward... Mind if you wait for a little for that?" - Armveil

"Hah?" - Garami

"No, I'm not trying to weasel out from paying ya, I promise! The problem is, we thought you guys would take more time finding Noire here." - Armveil

"We were quite lucky in discovering her even before obtaining the quest." - Alf

"Not to mention she has the reputation of being a slick little angel. Anyway, since we thought you would take more time to hunt her down, we haven't prepared any rewards yet. Heck, the shop's not fully ready for business yet even." - Armveil

"What about the stuff on display?" - Garami

"That's just it. They're the display models. Even a goblin could tear them apart." - Armveil

"...Why are you even displaying them then?" - Alf

"Because adventurers are equally occupied with fashion as with safety! Recent studies even say that the common adventurer favors fashion over practically with a 70:30 ratio." - Armveil

Yup, he's right. I can't deny that. Let's ignore Alf who's face-palming while looking at the ceiling.

"What were the plans for the reward then?" - Garami

"A full costume renewal." - Armveil

"Huh?" - Garami

"Hey, you guys made a contract with our company. Therefore, having you guys walk around in rags will paint even us in a bad light." - Armveil

Hmm, I can't deny that we're wearing low-quality items, despite being both a Guild and loaded with cash that could be used to get better equipment...

"The problem is, we don't have any materials yet. Blot tried to score some points from the Plain Island incident, but some internal trouble has caused us to go in the red..." - Armveil

"Internal problems?" - Garami

"Whoops, that is a confidential matter restricted to Nequitas officials only. Just be aware in case any drunkards try to pick a fight with you. Seriously." - Armveil

"I'm not so easy to be taken down by a booze guzzler. And are you one of the higher-ups like Blot?" - Garami

"Sharp of you to notice! Of the 12 leaders of Nequitas, you are talking to Armveil of Metal! Responsible for economics and crafting in the field. Pleased to meet you." - Armveil

"Metal?" - Garami

"The Nequitas organization is divided into 11 groups, with the leaders being named after the primary attributes. Blot is supposed to represent Order and is supervising the other 10 groups. And I think it was your president who represents Chaos, was it?" - Alf

"Bingo, fellow! Are you Alf, that hard-working lad Blot mentioned? Yeah, I can see how you survived those seven myths~." - Armveil

"Stop trying to digress." - Garami

"Whoops, I'm busted. Back to the reward talk, we're broke on materials. If you guys could donate some, we could easily make a full set of top-tier items for you for free." - Armveil

"It's our reward, but we have to work for it!?" - Garami

"Hey, no materials, no life. Or equipment. Besides, I am going to make this stuff myself. Do you know how much an elite smith such as I take for making even a little needle?" - Armveil

"He's right. Master smiths' works are treated as masterpieces even when it comes to everyday items." - Alf

"......Seriously?" - Garami

"Those rumors are sort of exaggerated, but they're not wrong. Especially when the order comes with high-quality materials. Only veterans such as I know how to fully pull out 100% of the materials' qualities." - Armveil

Hmm, so he's saying that the reward is not a free set of items in exchange for providing the materials, but rather the fact that he'll create ANY equipment despite the difficulty of the materials we provide? ...Now we're talking!

"Alf, prepare for a new expedition when the break week is over!" - Garami

"Yay..." - Alf

Show some enthusiasm! We're going material-hunting!

---

After the break week is over:

"You guys are late!" - Garami

I was stamping my feet in irritation as I waited for Mira and Alf at the docks. I've already loaded my little boat with my gear and trimmed its engine. All that's left is for them to arrive.

"Can you blame me?! It took a while to drag Alf with me!" - Mira

"No way..., not Mayhem Island..." - Alf

Wow, he's as pale as a corpse. Did he turn into an undead the few days I wasn't looking?

"Alright, girls and pitiful Alf? You guys clear about the plan?" - Garami

"Clear as crystal~. We are going to this Mayhem Island place to get materials for our new equipment. Dibs on getting the first new sword!" - Mira

"Why am I not surprised?" - Garami

"Hey, are you girls really fine with this? We are traveling to Mayhem Island, you know?" - Alf

"Is there a problem? I don't think it's any worse than Little Wasteland." - Mira

Mayhem Island got its name for being the home to a bunch of pipeline-like tunnels and rock formations, creating a network of caves above the ground. Several monsters live here, but none of them have any especially worthwhile materials, so most adventurers tend to stay clear of this place, only hunting monsters to keep the population to a controllable degree.

That, and thanks to the tunnels creating "indoor" areas where the sunlight can't reach, creates a perfect environment for the undead to appear. This allows me to gather a bunch of necromancy counters, and even test out how MY undead creatures fare in combat. I still need to think of a way to make them useable in places where the sun shines...

"Little Wasteland was not the home for several Dungeons!" - Alf

"Huh? You got something against the capital Ds?" - Garami

"Err...yes. My hometown was close to one. A rather nasty one at that." - Alf

"Did you try to challenge it?" - Mira

"Yes. And it ended horribly." - Alf

"If you're alive to tell the tale, then it was a successful Dungeon dive if you ask me." - Mira

Hmm, that's a point. Maybe I should consider diving a little then? I've already researched these "mini-Dungeons" on Mayhem Island, and they're not that bad. They're called "mini" by the adventurers because they are just a few floors deep, and you can clear one in a single day.

Plus, these Dungeons seem to be what the Kigal-Note refers to as "Chaos Dungeons", places that the god Chaos himself created as challenge areas for humanity to test their merits against. Meaning that there is no Dungeon Master, and maybe even not a Core to find. There are treasures to find there though, not to mention a few "first-time" achievements to be taken. However...

"It's a waste, but if Alf is bad with hostile Dungeons, then we can ignore them. Our main goal is the materials to be found on that island, not the Dungeons." - Garami

"Phew... Huh? 'Hostile'?" - Alf

"Tch. I expected Garami out of all people to be hyped over some Dungeon diving." - Mira

"Just moderately. And besides, there are more than just Dungeons there." - Garami

"...Those monster-related shrines?" - Mira

"I'm talking about those, yes. Don't you think they sound similar to Trial Grounds?" - Garami

"Those areas similar to the cave where we met? There is some resemblance between their description and that place but are we sure that they are not also emptied for aether like the cave on Little Wasteland?" - Alf

"Hey, the materials are still the main event. But nothing prevents us from looking at those shrines while we're at it." - Garami

"A bonus objective is always nice to have~." - Mira

"...Fine, I yield. As long as we do not have to enter any Dungeons, then I am good." - Alf

"Oki-Doki. But you should be prepared to change that mindset one day." - Garami

"So we're going to do it one day after all..." - Alf

Alf got a heavy case of the "blues" and sat lifelessly down on the boat's seat. I wonder how he'll react the day when he gets to know that our main goal is to create a Dungeon, not invade one.

A boat trip later and we arrived at Mayhem Island. ...And what a landscape fitting for its name. Though calling it a "plumber's nightmare" could also work. It sounds less cool, so I can understand the feelings of the guy who named this place.

Like Little Wasteland again, there is a port for people to dock their ships. The difference here is that there are multiple ways to anchor your ship, but the town connected to this dock is the only (slightly) civilized area you can find on this island. Everywhere else is a network of pipes and/or a monster's hive.

After paying the docking fee and preparing sleeping quarters for the duration of our trip, we ventured deeper into the island. Going into the pipelines on the first day would be stupid, so we explored the more open areas first. We encountered some lizard monsters, but they're easy prey. Newbie adventurers who have started to get themselves together often hunt these guys down, so they were far from any challenge to us.

We took care of some more lizards before heading back to the inn for the day, as it was getting dark already thanks to the boat trip having taken so long. On our way, some rat with a shell on its back, turtle-style, jumped at me, so I swatted it into the wall, killing it with the impact. A low-leveled tank shouldn't act as the attacker. Then I noticed something breaking off the rock wall and falling on the ground. That's...

"These must be the rocks that merchant in Velantas talked about." - Garami

"What are...GOLD?!" - Mira

"Nope. These are just gold-colored rocks," answered Alf after picking up some of his own. And that's not all. We got a rainbow's worth of colorful gems here. Did I hit the motherload? Thank you, turtle-rodent.

Maybe we can sell-*stab*-yikes!? Where did that arrow come from!?

"Hey, do not touch those rocks! I have been...looking...for..."

The assailant tried to scare us off with a warning, but their speech started to fall apart halfway through. The rude archer's identity is...... That Flugel. She needs another socking.