Go to the Fishing Port Town to Get Some Fish
"Tabatha was my savior. If I hadn't met her when I first came to the royal capital, I wouldn't be able to have my current life."
"She grew up in hardship, so she probably couldn’t abandon people in trouble. The fact that the people in the slums can have a better life now is thanks to her."
Tabitha had lobbied the important officials who came as her customers to get things like regular soup kitchens and orphan protection policies put into place.
"So, are you planning to leave this country?"
"No, as long as nothing happens, I have no intention of leaving for now."
"Nothing happens, huh.... Is that why you’re not trying to get citizenship?"
"You know how talented I am, right? I don't want the country to control me."
"I see."
"Hey, that’s the part where you’re supposed to poke fun at me for calling myself talented."
Margin felt embarrassed because Boss agreed that he was talented easily.
"I mean, you are indeed talented. Or rather, too talented. If the country finds out about your magic, they’ll try to recruit you no matter what, so not getting citizenship might be the right choice. Or you could become a Hunter."
If you registered as a Hunter, you would be freed from civic duties but, you would be tied to Hunter duties.
"I'm only interested in being the owner of a small spellbook shop that gets customers once in a while. If I became a Hunter, I'd be bombarded with troublesome requests."
"You can make a lot of money as a Hunter."
"I only need enough money to eat and drink every day."
"Don't talk big when you still come to my diner for free meal."
Boss laughed, munching on some grilled Okan meat. The two returned to the city after that. Boss said three Okans worth of meat was enough, so Margine decided to give the rest to the brothel.
"Oh, Margine. You've finally shown up."
"Shut up, Granny. Here's Okan meat. Share it with everyone."
"Hmmph, this won't be enough for everyone. Next time, bring twice as much."
The shrewd old hag replied brusquely and accepted the meat.
"I’m going to the fishing port town, so I won’t be around for a while."
"Bring lots of souvenirs when you come back."
"Alright, alright...."
Margine waved his hand and left the brothel.
"Thank you, Margine. Tabatha was able to pass away with a happy face because of you...."
The brothel owner thanked Margine who had already left in a barely audible voice.
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The next day, Margine headed for the fishing port town. The distance from the royal capital to the fishing port town was one day by horse-drawn carriage, or three days on foot. Since he was not in a hurry, Margine headed to the fishing port town on foot. Despite running would get him there faster than by carriage, he didn't want to attract unnecessary attention, so he took his time walking. Wagons and carriages passed Margine one after another as he walked along the highway. There was a lot of traffic between the fishing port town and the royal capital.
"Young man, do you want a ride to the next village?"
Suddenly, an old man driving a wagon, barely faster than walking, called out to Margine.
"I don't have money. Is that okay?"
"No problem. I’m not expecting money from someone who is traveling on foot in the first place. I'm bored, so let's talk until we get to the next village."
Taking the old man up on his offer, Margine got on the wagon. The cargo bed was covered in mud, so he sat next to the driver’s seat.
"My name is Kenpa. What's yours?"
“I’m Margine. I run a small spellbook shop in the royal capital.”
“Spellbook shop? You must be quite skilled despite your appearance.”
What do you mean by despite my appearance?
“I haven’t sold much, though. Are you perhaps a farmer?”
"That's right. I was on my way back from delivering potatoes to the royal capital."
"Potatoes? They're not very profitable, right?"
Potatoes could be used in cooking, but they were mainly used as a staple food. They were a relatively inexpensive agricultural product.
"It's not very profitable, but the taxes are low. It's enough to support two elderly people. In addition, we can also eat it ourselves."
"I see."
"Are you going to the fishing port town?"
"Yes. To eat some fish."
"In that case, stay at my place tonight. The old lady will be happy to have a young guest."
"That would be helpful, but it's not very safe to let a stranger stay over."
“Well, at this age, I don't have such fears anymore.”
Margine thought the old man was quite enlightened. After chatting about this and that, they arrived at the village just before nightfall.
"Oh dear, you brought such a young guest over. We only have vegetables here, but please make yourself comfortable."
"Sorry for showing up unexpectedly, Grandma."
“Nonsense. For old people like us, having guests is a pleasant thing."
I was born earlier than you, though --- Margine said so inside his heart. The dinner was vegetable soup with something like wheat dumplings. To tell the truth, he didn't find it very satisfying.
“Thank you for the meal. How do you usually get meat?”
"We barter with the village hunters for vegetables. Well, they also grow their own vegetables, so it's only occasionally."
They're already old, so it will be hard for them to hunt on their own. They don't seem to keep chickens, so they probably don't eat eggs either.
Early the next morning, Margine went out hunting, saying he'd be back around noon, and brought back an Okan.
"Did you hunt it yourself?"
The old man was surprised.
"That's right. I'll butcher and salt some of the meat now, so it will last throughout the winter. It’s a small thanks for your hospitality.”
The old woman seemed surprised, but also pleased. She then watched with a stunned expression as the meat was quickly separated into parts using Dismantling spell.
“So this is magic....”
"It's called Dismantling spell. I sell it for 5,000,000 G in my shop, but I haven't managed to sell a single one yet."
"5,000,000 G?"
"Yes, my spellbooks are expensive."
Margine answered with a smile as he salted the meat.
"Are there any potatoes left to harvest?"
"Ah, yes, we need to harvest those before the snow falls."
"I will harvest them. I just need to dig up the potatoes and put them in boxes, right?"
"You have to go to the fishing port town, don't you?"
"I don't have any set plans, so it's not a problem. In addition, this will be over quickly."
"Huh?"
Margine dug up the potatoes plot by plot with magic.
“Now, let’s pack them into boxes.”
Margine could easily do it with magic too, but since the old couple was so close to losing their minds, he decided to do it manually. He placed the boxes at equal intervals, quickly stuffed the potatoes into them, and carried them back to the shed. In the end, he stayed another night and ate Okan meat dishes for dinner.
“You have done a lot for us. Please come visit us anytime.”
“Yes. I’ll stop by with some fish on my way back from the fishing port town.”
Bidding farewell to the grateful old couple who bowed deeply, Margine resumed his journey to the fishing port town.
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Instead of staying at an inn, let’s spend the money on alcohol. I'll set up a tent in the camping area near the town square for tonight's lodging. This town's specialty is mead which has a deep sweetness and high alcohol content. It's much cheaper than buying it in the royal capital.
"Old man, can I have some mead and sausage?"
"Sure thing. Meat or blood sausage?"
"The meat one."
I'm not a fan of blood sausage because it has a strong iron flavor.
After enjoying some boiled sausage and mead, Margine set up a tent in the camping area near the town square. The tent Margine used looked like it was only big enough for one person from the outside, but it was actually spacious enough for several people to sleep inside it. This magic tool was one of his creations.
"I'm alone, so I don't need this much space...."
Margine had been using this tent since he was still a member of the Hero Party. Back then, the tent always felt cramped with the other members of the Hero Party slept inside it. He would often be called a pervert by the female members for accidentally touching their bodies when he turned over in his sleep. Inside the unnecessarily spacious tent, Margine closed his eyes while reminiscing about the past.