“Captain, what are you doing!”

A group of apprentice adventurers, mostly kids, gathered and were shouting similar things, each with their own voice.
Why do kids always shout like that…?
There are over 20 of them in total, a mix of boys and girls… Some of them I don’t recognize. Are they friends, maybe?

This town is relatively safe, but it’s still pretty rare to see such a large group of children gathered like this outside.
In fact, this might be the first time I’ve seen something like this.

“Not Captain, Vice Captain! Got it? I came to check out the town today. What are you all doing?”

“We’re…!”

They all shout together.
The older ones are trying to calm them down, but it’s still pretty noisy.
Well… at least they have a lot of energy.

Most of these kids are the children of adventurers or merchants.
They’ve been helping with their family businesses during the festival preparations, not just during the festival itself, but also before it started.
Official work starts at age 14, but in other towns, they often start doing apprenticeships before then, and it’s the same in this town.
Considering that, it’s probably reasonable… but still…

Today is the last day of the festival.
Visitors to the town will still be staying, but the festival itself ends today.
Apparently, the kids were sent out with pocket money by their parents to play and enjoy the day.

Actually, it’s not just the group here; there are others scattered around and they’re supposed to join up later.
Right now, it looks like they’re checking out the food stalls…

“Find anything good?”

I was thinking about looking around too, but there’s no way I can check out every single stall.
I’ll have to rely on manpower for this one.

The kids start answering loudly.
When I look away for a moment, Marcus is holding up a map of the town and marking the locations of the stalls they mentioned.
He’s a capable one…

But… from what I hear, some of these stalls are quite expensive.
They’re run by the town’s own people, too.

“…I wonder why?”

If they’ve been running a business in this town, they should know the going prices… but the kids seem to be avoiding that topic.

“Most likely, the Hunter’s Guild is supplying the materials. The quality is better than what the adventurers sell, but it comes at a higher price.”

“…Ah, I see.”

Whether it’s monsters or beasts, the process of handling them changes the flavor.
Adventurers, who prioritize the kill, often aren’t meticulous about the preparation, so while the meat isn’t necessarily bad, it tends to lack flavor.
However, when the hunters handle the kill, it’s a completely different story.
The meat we use at the mansion all comes through hunters.

So they’re using that, huh…

“On top of that, since it’s monster-sourced meat, it’s a rare specialty. People from other regions are bound to be interested.”

“Mm, I see.”

It’s like promoting a local specialty to outsiders… well, it attracts people, so the approach isn’t bad.
But…

“It seems like there aren’t too many customers today.”

The kids, trailing behind in a large group, make their way to the expensive section of the market, but compared to other areas, there are fewer people, making the scene a little lonely.
I approach one of the stalls that sells skewered meat.

“! Hey! Is that you, Sera?”

The stall owner tensed up for a moment as the crowd suddenly approached, but then he recognized me and waved, greeting me.
I’d met this man a few times at the Commercial Guild; I believe he works for a merchant company that handles meat wholesale.

“One skewer, please.”

“Sure! But it’s a little pricey, you know?”

“That’s fine. I got some pocket money today.”

“I see. One skewer costs a silver coin. Wait just a moment.”

I see… that’s quite an expensive price.

But even though it’s just one skewer, it’s pretty large.
It’s about 30 centimeters long, so considering the amount, the price seems reasonable.

“Hey, how many of you are there in total?”

While waiting for the skewer to cook, I ask the kids who followed me here.
Just like there are adult communities, the kids have their own communities, but I haven’t interacted with them much, so I don’t know how many kids live in this town.
I could ask Liesel and the others, but I’ve never really bothered to ask before.

“Uh, we’re… maybe just over 100?”

One of the older kids answers while counting on their fingers.
Is he counting the number of groups or something?

“100… that’s a lot…”

There are that many of them, huh…

“It’s done!”

As I’m still surprised by the number of kids in the group, the stall owner hands me the skewer.

“Thanks. By the way, what kind of meat is this?”

I ask while handing over the silver coin, curious about what kind of meat it is.
There’s no menu, so I can only tell it’s beast meat.

“It’s boar. Since it’s from the monster realm, it’s got a strong flavor.”

“Oh… Hm.”

I bite into the meat on the skewer and chew… It’s surprisingly tender.
Maybe it was marinated, or maybe it was seasoned, but it tastes really good.
This is delicious.

“Hey, do the other stalls around here sell the same kind of thing?”

“Huh? Yeah… I don’t think there’s much difference in taste. Want to buy more?”

“Yeah… maybe just a little.”

I call over the leader of the kids who’s eyeing the meat, looking eager to try some.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Sera ・【Hideout】 +1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind Cloak】 ・【Floating Orb】 +1【Shadow Sword】【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Dragon’s Lungs】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Snake’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】 ・7 cards

Seriana ・【Range Identification】 ・【】 ・28 cards
Elena ・【】 ・【Green Fang】【Amber Sword】 ・3 cards
Alec ・【Strong Strike】 ・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】 ・7 cards