- The Adventurers' House -
The night was fast, I slept very soundly. Suddenly, a scent reached my nose, even with my eyes open, and while I was asleep, I wondered what this pleasant smell was. I opened my eyes and Koukova was standing in front of me with a plate in her hands. It was a plate of some kind of fish rolls floating lightly on the plate, filled with Rinelia flowers.
Koukova
"G-good morning, Ban... I wanted to learn how to cook something, and well... I may have used up almost all of our cooking resources, but I managed to prepare a dish." Her smile was pure and sincere. She handed me the plate. I find this strange but appealing food curious.
[YOU HAVE ACQUIRED AN EDIBLE ITEM]
Grade E Gogofin Rolls: Rolls made with floating fish and a Rinelia flower filling have a sweet and quite pleasant flavor and are served as a common food in several villages.
Ban
"Thank you very much, Koukova. Are you ready? When I'm done eating, I'll get ready, and we'll set off to become adventurers. Get ready." She nodded agitatedly and left my room to get ready. I began eating the food Koukova made and was surprised by the pleasant, sweet flavor of this dish, although it's a bit difficult to grab the floating fish rolls.
After I finished eating, I got dressed and met Koukova at the exit. We decided to set off on our adventure. After leaving home, we first went in search of a place to buy weapons. Since I have no power, I'll have to fight hand-to-hand. I was surprised that the place where there were so many merchants on the streets yesterday was now full of small shops and better-structured stalls. Everything has progressed very quickly. I realize that a shop stands out even more since it's a rather large place.
Kapi
"Young man! "Oh young man, how good to see you again." I turn to see the person speaking. It's the man I gave 5,000,000 gold tokens to when I sold my scroll.
"How nice to see you again. I want to thank you so much. If it weren't for your help, I wouldn't have been able to open this place. I truly appreciate it from the bottom of my heart."
I'm surprised to see that the most prominent place is owned by the man who, when I first saw him, only had a small shop among all the merchants.
Ban
"Wow... You don't have to thank me. I did it out of wanting to help, not because I expected anything in return." But quickly, an idea came to my head: I could become this man's partner. This way, I'd be making money without doing much. It would practically be my first active investment.
"But do you think we could do some business? Can we be partners?"
My question took him by surprise, but then I saw the excitement in his eyes.
Kapi
"Partners? That sounds great, plus it would be a way to thank him for what he's done for my family.
Ban
"Then we'll do this, Kapi... I'll give you 10 million gold tokens for the investment and growth of the business... (I read the sign of the business) From what would now be our blacksmith shop, but then I'll take 65% of any profit the establishment generates from now on, what do you think?"
Koukova looked at me in surprise at my offer to give 10 million to Kapi or another stranger, knowing he could simply run off with my money. But I know a father wouldn't do such a thing, much less with the person who helped him.
Kapi
"Hmm... Sounds great to me. It will be an honor to be an ally to the man who helped me." He shook my hand, and suddenly, a window appeared in front of me.
[ NEGOTIATION POP-UP ]
—User Kapi (34,485,899) wants to grant you a contract as an (ally) and give you 65% of all profits from the "Kapal Armor" blacksmith shop. If you accept, you will receive this benefit.
(Yes) (No)
I tapped Yes and received another piece of paper like the one I got when I bought the house, which makes me the owner of 65% of the profits from "Kapal Armor."
[ SYSTEM WINDOW ]
— Fortunately, you now have power over two material assets.
(1) Owner of a house in the Arayamuki Hills.
(2) Owner of 65% of all profits from "Kapal Armor."
I quickly open my inventory and take out one of the suitcases containing 10,000,000 gold tokens and give them to Kapi.
Ban
"Okay, Kapi, we're partners now. But I want something more. I'm going to buy some weapons since my partner and I are starting out as adventurers." Kapi smiles and accepts the tokens, then leads us into the store and shows off all the weapons he's learned to forge.
Kapi
"Go ahead, take what you need. You don't have to pay for them. After all, you're my partner now." I nod and analyze the weapons. They're not exactly outstanding. But I took two short swords and nothing else since I'm not someone who finds armor attractive.
Then we left. As soon as we left, Kapi was already planning the investments he'd make with the tokens I gave him for the business. Koukova stares at me, not wanting to comment on the matter. But her curiosity is greater.
Koukova
"Ban... Don't you distrust him? He could just take all the chips and leave." I knew she would ask that, and I shook my head.
Ban
"I don't think he'd do that, Koukova... I know when someone is grateful, and when they aren't, that man won't go anywhere. I know I can trust him." I continued walking without another word. She seemed to admire the trust I had in that guy. Thanks to Koukova's guidance, we managed to reach one of the adventurer houses called Red Fly C. This is where there are hundreds of guilds and freelancers looking to become adventurers or something like that, Koukova explained.
Koukova
"Are you sure about this? You know we can look for your sister another way and, for the moment, work on something less dangerous." She looked worried. I placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down and smiled.
Ban
"Relax. It's been my decision, and I'm not going back. I want to find my sister on my own." She nods and calms down a little, although her nerves and concern are still visible.
We approach the center of the room, where a very tall woman is manipulating some kind of holograms and magical things of that kind. I am simply surprised by her stature. I had never seen such a tall woman, and... well, she had other attributes that I preferred not to notice, or I would be seen as a pervert.
Koukova
"Excuse me, miss, we need some advice around here, right, Ban?" she said, realizing that I wasn't very subtle with my gaze. Koukova smiles softly and dangerously, making her displeasure clear to my curious eyes.
Ban
"Y-yes, miss, you see, we want to join as adventurers, and well, we don't know anything about this job." The tall woman stops what she's doing and looks at us, her gaze focusing on both of us, and she bends down a little to our height, revealing a bit of her generous bust. I try to move toward that spot, since Koukova's gaze is on me.
Galenvy
"Oh~ new adventurers! A pleasure to meet you with Galenvy. It will be my pleasure to welcome you... If you want to join, it will be very simple; just add your information to the system."
"She makes a window open in front of us.
[ADVENTURER WINDOW]
—Galenvy is offering you entry to the Red Fly C adventurer house. To join, enter your name and signature.
Name [ ] Signature [ ]
When I filled out the information, a simple welcome message appeared, and then the window closed.
Galenvy
"I recommend that you go well equipped, as the rifts can be dangerous. If there are only two of you, don't go to rifts higher than Grade E if you don't have the required skills.
Your names will appear at the top if you climb the ranks, and your profits are 95% of what you earn in the rifts; the rest goes to the adventurer house." She smiles warmly, her black eyes expressive, but her pure kindness is evident.
Koukova
"Can you please give us entry to a Grade E rift? We need to go now," Koukova blurted out, seeing how enchanted I am with the tall woman.
Galenvy
"Oh, but of course." She manipulated the holographic screens and showed us the map. There are hundreds of rifts opening and closing along the rift. She selected a specific one and gave us a small green cube.
"I'll choose your first rift this time. That cube is the key. Just throw it into the rift when you cross it. You'll get adventure points."
I smiled at her positive aura. Koukova dragged me to the exit so we could go in search of our first rift.