The Reality Check of Adventurer Life ( 17 )

"Damn it!" I sat on a rock near the stream, water dripping off me like I was a soggy sponge. At least I wasn't covered in horse shit anymore, but that fish slap? Still hurt like hell!

I sighed and pulled out my pouch, dumping the coins onto the rock to count. My grand fortune? A total of 10 copper coins. Great. Just enough to remind me how broke I was.

"Hah, 10 copper coins..." I muttered sarcastically, tossing a coin up and catching it with fake grandeur. I stuffed them back into the pouch, making sure not to lose a single one.

Looking down at my wet clothes, I groaned. "Ugh, I look like a sewer rat!" They were sticking to me, damp and uncomfortable, making me feel even more pathetic.

I tried to wring the water out of my shirt. Spoiler alert: it didn't help much. "Well, at least they don't smell like horse crap anymore," I muttered, trying to find a silver lining.

Sitting there, soaked and broke, I glared at the sky. "This is not how isekai stories are supposed to go! Where's my overpowered sword? My beautiful princess? My treasure chest full of gold? Huh?!"

Of course, the sky said nothing. Another fish jumped out of the stream like it was mocking me.

"Yeah, laugh it up, nature! Real funny!"

Haaa... better get to work now, I sighed, staring up at the sky as if it owed me an apology. "Maybe today I can at least earn a full salary…"

My stomach growled loudly, reminding me I hadn't eaten anything since… well, technically I had a "meal" last night, but let's not talk about that. "Ugh... no breakfast for me. Guess I'll just power through."

When I arrived at the worksite, the chief spotted me and yelled, "Oi! Shitman's here! Back for more?"

"Damn it, Chief! Stop calling me that!" I shouted back, but the crew burst into laughter.

Seeing my wet state, the chief chuckled. "You still smellin' fresh from that little 'incident' last night?"

I didn't bother arguing. Dignity was a distant memory. I stripped off my wet clothes and tossed them aside. The crew just kept chuckling as I stood there naked.

"Huh? What's dignity? Never heard of it," I muttered, grabbing the dry work pants the chief handed me.

"Alright, Shitman, same routine as yesterday," the chief said with a smirk.

"Stop calling me that!"

Ignoring the laughter, I got to work. I picked up heavy stones, loaded them into the wheelbarrow, and pushed them to the repair crew. It was backbreaking labor, but at least it kept me from thinking about how rock-bottom my life was.

"Damn isekai..." I grumbled, wiping the sweat off my brow. "This better pay off someday, or I swear I'm gonna find whoever summoned me here and—"

"Oi! Less muttering, more working!" the chief shouted.

"Yeah, yeah," I grumbled, shoving another load of stones into the wheelbarrow. Another glorious day in paradise.

Heavy work, heavy lifting—my arms and back protested by mid-morning. Drenched in sweat and covered in dirt, I could've cried tears of joy when the chief shouted, "Lunchtime!"

Like yesterday, I got in line for food. Free food, anyway. Today's lunch? Same as yesterday: bread and monster stew. I didn't bother asking what kind of meat was in it; better not to know. It tasted decent, though—better than bull meat. Not bulldog meat, okay? Let's not go there.

Munch, munch. As I gnawed on the bread and sipped the stew, I tried hard not to think about the horse shit incident or what I might have accidentally eaten last night. "Bitter… ugh, just don't go there…"

But this stew? A masterpiece compared to my hazy memories. The bread was a bit hard, but hey, free is free.

The group from yesterday—Robert, Zaben, Jubir, Ahlem, and Biston—surrounded me like I was a fireplace in winter.

"Oi, crazy guy! How's it going, Shitman?" Jubir teased, plopping down next to me.

"Don't call me that!" I barked, scowling as they burst into laughter.

"Well, you brought it on yourself," Biston said, grinning as he tore into his bread. "Who the hell sleeps next to horse crap?"

"That wasn't on purpose!" I snapped.

"Sure it wasn't," Ahlem smirked.

I shook my head and focused on the stew. At least the food wasn't judging me. "Haaa… someday, this world better start giving me a break. But for now, monster stew it is."

"Hey, you guys," I started, trying to sound casual, knowing they'd roast me for whatever I said next.

"Huh? What now, crazy guy?" Robert asked, smirking over his bread.

"Is there any place I can buy cheap clothes?" I asked, glancing down at my still-wet shirt and pants.

Zaben laughed. "Used clothes are cheaper. New clothes? That'll cost you two days' salary, minimum!"

"Ugh... fine. Used clothes then. How much are those?" I braced myself for bad news.

"Five to ten copper coins for the cheapest ones," Jubir replied, sipping his stew.

"Ehhh!?" I nearly choked. "That's more expensive than food!"

Ahlem leaned back with a grin. "Of course! What do you expect? Food is everywhere, but making clothes takes time, skill, and material. It's not like there's a magical tailor shop giving them away."

I groaned, slapping my forehead. "Ugh, whatever… maybe later, you guys can show me where to find this shop?"

"Sure, Shitman," Zaben teased.

The rest of the group burst into laughter, and I sighed, staring into my empty bowl. "This world's priorities are so messed up," I muttered.

"By the way," I asked, genuinely curious, "why did you stop doing adventurer work?"

Robert shrugged, a smirk on his lips. "Hmm? Of course, the pay is good. But imagine a quest with a reward of five silver coins."

My eyes widened. "Five silver!? That's a lot!"

Zaben rolled his eyes. "Oi, let him finish the story first."

"Okay, okay, go on," I said, waving my hand.

Robert grinned. "An adventurer party usually has four to six people, right? Let's say the quest takes three days to complete, including travel time. Sounds simple enough."

I nodded, trying to follow. "Alright, so five silver coins is 500 copper coins, yeah?"

"Exactly," Robert said, leaning forward. "Now, divide that reward among six people. How much does each person get?"

I hesitated, doing the math in my head. "About 83 copper coins each?"

"Correct!" he continued. "Now divide that by three days. How much does everyone make per day?"

"Uhh... 27 to 28 copper coins?" I muttered, realizing where this was going.

"Exactly!" Robert exclaimed, slamming his hand on the table. "Better to work as a wall repairman—50 copper coins a day, guaranteed! No monsters, no injuries, and no splitting the pay six ways!"

The others nodded in agreement, Ahlem chiming in with a laugh. "And no chance of dying horribly because a quest went sideways. Wall repair might be hard labor, but at least you get to live to spend your copper."

I leaned back, stunned. "Huh… never thought about it like that."

Zaben grinned, raising his mug. "Welcome to reality, Shitman. The glamorous life of adventurers? It's all smoke and mirrors unless you're at the very top."

"Well, being an adventurer isn't a bad job. Sometimes the pay is high, right? If you've got strong party members, it's worth it. But let's say you take a quest worth five silver coins and divide it among four people instead of six."

Zaben raised an eyebrow. "Sure, the cut would be better. About 125 copper coins per person. Sounds decent, huh?"

I nodded eagerly. "Yeah! That's a lot better, right?"

Robert leaned in, grinning slyly. "And now, factor in the risk."

Ahlem laughed, slapping his knee. "Exactly! Maybe you get ambushed by goblins, or a pack of wolves, or, gods forbid, a rogue ogre wanders onto your path. Suddenly, that 125 copper doesn't seem worth losing an arm… or your life."

I grimaced. "Ugh. Okay, yeah, I get your point. High pay, but high risk."

Zaben smirked, crossing his arms. "Not to mention, you have to pay for potions, repair your weapons, and maybe even pay healers if you get injured. Adventurers lose half their earnings just keeping themselves alive."

Robert chuckled, lifting his mug. "And that's if you survive. It's not even worth dying for! Aahahaha!"

I slumped in defeat, realizing how flawed my "easy money" assumption had been. "Man, and here I was thinking adventurers had it all figured out."

Ahlem grinned, patting me on the back. "That's just the way it is, Shitman. Dream big if you want, but don't lose your head over it."

( End of Chapter )