Chapter 69: 83-84: The Place of the Heart and Gorget Plate

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“Rifreya, I won’t run away anymore, so how about letting go?” (Hikaru)

“Don’t wanna. I won’t be letting you go the whole day.” (Rifreya)

“It would be troubling when going to the bathroom.” (Hikaru)

“I will go too.” (Rifreya)

“Seriously…?” (Hikaru)

Rifreya walks on and on as if trying to get as far from the dungeon as possible.

Walking in the city holding hands with a beauty stands out a crazy lot.

However, she doesn’t seem to have any intentions of letting go.

I gave up.

“And so, where am I being taken to?” (Hikaru)

“Hikaru, let’s go buy armor.” (Rifreya)

“Armor…? Why all of a sudden?” (Hikaru)

“This is something I have been thinking about this whole time. You are dangerous, Hikaru… At this rate, I feel like you would die in a place I am not even aware of. And the reality is that that feeling of mine was correct.” (Rifreya)

“It is not like I want to die.” (Hikaru)

“Going alone to a dungeon where a Demon Lord has appeared is a suicidal act… More so when you are a Loved One. If you were found by a Demon Lord, you wouldn’t be able to run away just by hiding in the darkness, you know?” (Rifreya)

A Loved One is even loved by a Demon Lord, huh…

Now that I think about it, she did tell me that.

“Even so, I am surprised you could tell that I was trying to enter the dungeon alone.” (Hikaru)

“Of course I would be able to tell. I have been watching you this whole time after all. I was actually suspecting the break days too, you know? But…I thought that you would hate me if I were to pursue it too much… However, I thought that I must stop you here today.” (Rifreya)

“I see…” (Hikaru)

When I went to the dungeon alone, I was hit by a Treant and was wounded.

I lied to her telling her that I went fishing and fell down, but I probably didn’t manage to deceive her there.

“Also…there’s no way I would just ignore a person that’s making such a terrible face, right?” (Rifreya)

“Face?” (Hikaru)

It is not like there’s mirrors anywhere in this world. You could say there’s rarely any chance to see my own face compared to the time in my previous world.

That’s why I don’t know what kind of face I am making right now. Maybe I should have bought a hand-mirror with my Crystals.

“Today and yesterday as well…you have been making a pale white face this whole time, Hikaru. It is as if your heart is not here… That’s why, when you said you were disbanding the party…I got really worried. That maybe you would disappear somewhere…” (Rifreya)

I couldn’t deny those words.

If I could meet the Demon Lord and get 1st place, I wouldn’t mind dying.

My heart has been entrapped in my previous world this whole time.

If I can bring Nanami back, my work coming to this world would be over; that’s how I thought of it.

Even Rifreya who is walking by my side…I haven’t been looking at her properly.

Just how was she feeling while watching that state of mine? Even though I would have been able to notice if I had thought about it even a little bit…

The heat transmitted from her hands was certainly proof that I am here, and it made me realize that I have not even faced those feelings of mine.

Even though she has been watching me this much…

◇◆◆◆◇

“Now, we have arrived.” (Rifreya)

“Armor shop…? Isn’t this an expensive store?” (Hikaru)

The place I was brought to was a splendid store that I would find hard to believe is an armor shop.

It is a 2 story building that has used wood unsparingly, and the white painted walls were in a city that has a lot of dirty buildings, so it really contrasted the fact that it is a fancy store.

“It is an armor shop for explorers silver rank and higher.” (Rifreya)

“If it is armor, we could have gone to the blacksmith’s place, right? I don’t have that much money.” (Hikaru)

“If you don’t have enough, I will pay the rest. I brought you here after all.” (Rifreya)

“Even if you tell me that…you also don’t have that much money, right?” (Hikaru)

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“I did earn money too. I have no problem if it is to buy your armor, Hikaru.” (Rifreya)

I entered with Rifreya pulling me by the hand.

The armor that’s placed on the shelves were all the type that protects from the neck to the shoulders… In other words, it is armor to protect the weak point of the living beings in this world that is the center of the Spirit Veins.

The shop assistant was a gentleman wearing a classy shirt and pants hung with suspenders. I felt so out of place with my dirty outfit.

“Ooh, Rifreya-sama! Have you come today to inspect the armor?”

“No, I was thinking about getting a gorget plate for this person.” (Rifreya)

“Ooh, a referral. Thank you very much.”

The hard to describe gaze of the shop assistant after taking a glance at me.

Well, Rifreya is like a noble lady and a guest of honor, so the fact that the one she brought was a dirty brat that looks like he would be swinging around a club must be disappointing.

“Forgive my rudeness, but can I ask for your name?”

“…Hikaru. Nice to meet you.” (Hikaru)

“What type of gorget plate have you been using until now?”

Judging from the flow of the conversation, a gorget plate must be the armor that protects the Spirit Vein center. A part of a metal plate armor that covers the neck, shoulder, and back with a thin sheet of metal. Rifreya obviously has one, and even the Lynxes have them equipped. It is basic equipment for explorers.

I didn’t know about that, so I don’t have any.

“I am a newbie, so this is my first time buying one.” (Hikaru)

“F-First time, huh…”

The shop assistant glances at Rifreya.

His face is fluently telling. It is a face that’s saying: ‘Our products are expensive. Can this guy pay for them?’.

Well, I don’t know if I can actually buy them, but the Garden Panther’s stone was sold at quite the high price, so it is true that I have a bit of leeway in my pocket.

“Hikaru, a mithril gorget plate would be good. I normally don’t take it off, and since it is something you have to constantly have on, it would be better for it to be light and sturdy. The ones made of iron are sturdy, but the maintenance is a pain, and it is heavy. In that case, leather ones would be better, but that has its own worries.” (Rifreya)

“Mithril, huh.” (Hikaru)

I don’t know what kind of metal is mithril in the first place, but it seems to be an impressive metal that is light and sturdy.

Is it like titanium?

The shop assistant that was listening to Rifreya brought a sparkly armor from the shelf that’s probably made of mithril.

“If it is for you, customer, I would say there would be no issues with this size. Please try wearing it.”

It is made in a way so that it goes through the head, and you adjust the size with strings to tighten the open spaces.

The inside of the armor has thick strings, and wearing it doesn’t feel uncomfortable.

It seems mithril itself has a stickiness to it, and there’s no feeling of obstructing my movements.

My neck feels a bit constrained though.

“It looks nice on you, Hikaru!” (Rifreya)

“I have never equipped myself with armor, so it feels weird. Even so, this metal is light.” (Hikaru)

I would say it isn’t that much different from leather.

It is thick at the base of the neck, but it is made thinly as a whole.

“Mithril is a special metal. It comes with the high price, but its lightness and sturdiness doesn’t fall short to steel.”

“Mithril is also called the magic silver. It is made by elves borrowing the strength of Spirits.” (Rifreya)

“Elves?” (Hikaru)

“Eh? You haven’t seen them before? There’s a number of elves who do dungeon exploration too.” (Rifreya)

“I don’t show myself at the guild that much after all.” (Hikaru)

In the first place, I don’t meet with other explorers that much inside the dungeon.

The dungeon itself is big, and when I feel the presence of people, I would try to change routes whenever possible, so there’s also that.

“And so, how much is this?” (Hikaru)

“Right…since this was a referral from Rifreya-sama…how about 1 gold?”

I don’t know the rate right now, but if it hasn’t changed much, that would be 40-50 silver coins.

It is not cheap, but it is a price I can pay.

A night in an inn is 2 small silver coins, so if we take that as 5,000 yen, then 1 silver coin is 20,000 yen.

1 gold coin would be around 800,000 yen to 1,000,000 yen. <10,000 usd.>

Converting it to japanese yen might be pointless, but what’s clear is that being a dungeon explorer is a job that you can earn a crazy lot.

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I understand why Rifreya said she does diving in order to train her abilities and for money.

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“The products here don’t have ornaments, and they are the simplest ones, so if you find something that’s to your liking, please tell me.”

These kinds of isekai stores must be a side that the viewers should be interested in.

I honestly don’t mind whichever we get, but I try checking all the shelves for now.

Looks like…this storewdw is exclusive for gorget plates. However, the materials go from steel to mithril, and there are even ones made of a mysterious metal (that has astronomical prices) on display as well.

The one I tried out was the cheapest one of the mithril, and the metal carved ones are even more expensive. However, it is not like the performance increases because of the metal carvings, and I will be hiding it with black cloth, so this simple one was plenty enough for me.

• Chapter 084: Magic Tool Store and the Two Alone

“What will you do, Hikaru?” (Rifreya)

“I am going to buy the one I am wearing right now. It feels good to wear too.” (Hikaru)

“That’s great. We match.” (Rifreya)

Now that I look closely, Rifreya is wearing the same one I am about to buy.

Well, that must mean it is the most practical and cheapest one.

I bring out silver coins from the Shadow Storage and pay for it.

The shop assistant probably didn’t expect me to buy it without hesitation, he showed a face of surprise he couldn’t hide. Well, it must be the first time he has a customer like me. I decided to just think it was that.

By the way, the rate of gold is 46 silver coins.

I leave the store while still having it equipped.

Normally, there are a lot of cases where they need to adjust the size, but it was fortunate that I am not blessed with a good physique. It was a size that was apparently tailored for women, so it would be a lie if I said it didn’t bother me as a man…

“Ehehe~, we match.” (Rifreya)

Rifreya laughed in an unseemly manner, and soon after exiting the store, she linked arms with me. Even if we match, it is armor we are talking about here. Is that something to be happy about?

“Thanks for showing me a good store.” (Hikaru)

“You’re welcome.” (Rifreya)

I was thinking about eventually buying armor that protected my weak point.

I am exploring a dangerous dungeon that can kill me at any moment, but it is not like I am seeking my death. If I can avoid it, of course I would avoid it. More so when I see explorers who become cold stones that tell no stories.

It was an unexpected purchase, but she introduced me to a nice store. If it had just been me, I probably would have chosen a leather one.

“So, what do we do now?” (Hikaru)

“I will have you accompany me to the tool store. I want to buy a variety of things for the Demon Lord subjugation after all.” (Rifreya)

I have almost never used a tool store either.

Or more like, I probably haven’t used most of the facilities in the city.

If I get too close to the church, the Great Spirit would get out from the church and would come to eat me after all. But even without that problem, I probably lack way too much proactiveness.

Rifreya entered another fancy-looking tool store while still having her arm linked to mine.

It is not the kind of store that has a lot of miscellaneous things lined up, but one that is one rank higher than that.

Inside the glass showcase, there are a number of weirdly shaped tools lined up.

“Hikaru, do you know what this is?” (Rifreya)

“Nope, first time I see one.” (Hikaru)

“Knew it… You really don’t know anything, Hikaru… This is also a magic tool.” (Rifreya)

“Magic tool…!” (Hikaru)

I remember hearing from somewhere before that there’s tools that use Spirit Stones as energy sources. So this is that, huh.

There’s a price tag on it, and it is outstandingly pricey.

I wouldn’t be able to afford one at all.

“Are you buying it?” (Hikaru)

“No, I simply came to take a look. I had a bit of an interest.” (Rifreya)

“I see. So, what can this do?” (Hikaru)

I could only describe this as a box that has a metallic board installed to it.

The box part seems to be made from sturdy-looking wood, there’s intricate carvings to it, and at a glance it looks like decoration.

“This is a magic tool that lets you know a monster is approaching by making noise.” (Rifreya)

“There’s something like that? That sounds handy… The price is amazing too though.” (Hikaru)

It is 5 gold coins.

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The price is overwhelming, but this will most likely be more important as you go lower in floors.

With this, you can catch your breath in the dungeon safely, and there’s no worries of getting attacked by surprise. That benefit is immeasurable if you do dungeon diving.

“Undine Rank adventurer parties always have this with them.” (Rifreya)

“Hooh, then, what about this one?” (Hikaru)

“That’s a healing pot. A healing magic tool that has the same effect as water healing abilities.” (Rifreya)

“There’s even something like that?” (Hikaru)

If there’s something like this, there’s no need to think about the use limit of Spirit Abilities.

Everything would be resolved with magic tools.

“Magic tools are useful, but only elves can make them, and only a few of those elves, so they are expensive. If it is Spirit Tools, they are more affordable though. Also, you need Spirit Stones to use them.” (Rifreya)

“Spirit Tools and Magic Tools are different?” (Hikaru)

“Magic tools move with Chaotic Spirit Stones. It apparently moves a variety of Spirits in order to bring forth their effects, so only an elf well-versed with Spirit Abilities can make them. Chaotic Spirit Stones themselves are expensive, so you can’t use them freely unless you are in a party with a lot of spare cash.” (Rifreya)

Chaotic Spirit Stones go for several times more than the normal colored ones.

On top of that, it seems like a healing pot uses a decently big Chaotic Spirit Stone whole for just one use of it, making its fuel consumption pretty bad. Well, being an explorer, one use of healing could decide your life or death. You could say this works as insurance.

“Spirit Tools can use both transparent and colored spirit stones, and they are not that expensive, and they can be made by others aside from elves. They all have simple effects though.” (Rifreya)

The ones lined up at the shelves instead of the showcase seem to be the aforementioned spirit tools.

The price is still pretty high, but there’s stuff like a canteen that gushes forth water, and something that resembles a lighter; they seem to be pretty convenient for everyday life. It is true that they are plain compared to magic tools, but spirit tools are plenty useful too.

I would actually want the canteen and the lighter.

“I see. This is interesting. There’s quite high engineering skill here, or like…it uses Spirits as energy, and turned into an industry, huh.” (Hikaru)

“You are using pretty difficult words there, Hikaru. It is true that a gathering of alchemists to manufacture things is called an industry or something like that.” (Rifreya)

“That type of stuff is called factory system manufacturing, right?” (Hikaru)

It is a form that I learned in school, and it is most likely the latest form of industry in this world.

If I knew this would happen, I should have studied harder. If I properly had modern era knowledge, I could have lived more intelligently.

There’s no doubt there are Chosen who are using that knowledge and getting a much better footing than me.

“Then, let’s go to a different store. We are going through all of them today.” (Rifreya)

“I will accompany you, Princess.” (Hikaru)

“Haha! Follow me, my loyal vassal.” (Rifreya)

Rifreya doesn’t stop smiling as we go through a whole lot of stores with our arms linked.

We entered a tool store for explorers, and bought smoke bombs and dried meat.

These smoke bombs and dried meat are called the two most important items for dungeon explorers.

When things get hairy, you run away with smoke bombs.

If it is an opponent that dried meat works with, throw them and run away.

They may be called explorers, but life goes above everything.

It is natural that you would prioritize your safe return over anything else.

By the way, I also have smoke bombs and dried meat in the Shadow Storage. It is important to be ready when anything happens.

After that, we entered a clothing store, and I bought brand new black clothes.

Even so, they are secondhand clothes, so they weren’t that expensive. On top of that, I also bought an overcoat that hides my neck.

I am finally a weirdo in full black clothes.

Well, because of the nature of my abilities, this is the most practical form though.

Rifreya also bought a few ones as well, but it seems like there’s the concept of fashion in this world too, it was unexpectedly stylish.

Or maybe it is just that the base is good, so she can wear anything and still look good.

“How is it? Does it look good?” (Rifreya)

“Yeah, you look cute. When you wear dark blue, your fair skin is accentuated, and it suits you a whole lot.” (Hikaru)

“I-Is that so? Uhehehe.” (Rifreya)

When I said my honest opinions, Rifreya laughed in a bit of a creepy manner and her face went beet red.

My little sisters told me: ‘When someone changes their look, allude to it. And then, praise them’. They really drilled that into me, so I ended up applying that.

After eating lunch, Rifreya taught this clueless me about this city while walking around.

But my day with her is far from over…you could even say, this is where it began.

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