Apostle of the Void

Chapter 50: Wintering (1)

Arzen flung the windows wide open.

The early winter chill quickly filled the room with a crisp coolness.

He gazed out at the city, waking up amidst the dawn.

Steam rose from the coffee he\'d ordered through room service.

With one hand on his side, Arzen arrogantly sipped his coffee, surveying the outside world.

"Hahaha! Look at them! The cogs of society, heading to work with faces like ghouls on the brink of death! Meanwhile, I, the victorious one, am here on the 20th floor of the finest inn in Aurelinople, leisurely starting my day with the finest blend of coffee."

At the moment, Arzen had a whopping 120 silver coins in his possession!

A fortune that, by simple calculation, would take a commoner 120 days to save up, provided they neither ate nor drank.

Arzen had amassed this sum over the fall alone. His life as an adventurer had been smooth sailing.

\'That two-person coop... What an absolute scam! This place only charges six silver coins a day.\'

It seemed money only provided pleasure when it was spent freely.

Those who worried about the future and saved up were life\'s losers.

A true man didn\'t concern himself with such things.

Soon, the attendants brought in his breakfast through room service.

In such a luxurious inn, there was no need to go downstairs to eat.

"Your \'Es-Shi Fond Half-and-Half Chicken\' is served."

At a top-tier inn like this, even the attendants wore formal uniforms, like butlers and maids.

"Oh, and I\'ll be checking out today."

"Understood, sir. Please enjoy your meal."

Es-Shi... what now?

It was some half-and-half chicken dish made with ingredients and spices he couldn’t even pronounce.

\'They said one half was made with a meat-based sauce, and the other with a seafood-based one... But 50 silver coins for just six boneless pieces?\'

No matter how he looked at it, it was a rip-off.

With that kind of money, how many bowls of meat-packed stew could he get at the market?

\'No! That kind of cost-effective thinking doesn\'t suit a ruler! Stop it!\'

Still, if he was being honest, he couldn’t tell much difference in taste from market chicken.

At times like this, he thought he might not be the type to indulge in luxury after all.

After finishing his meal, Arzen started packing his belongings.

It was his second day back from the Red Mountains.

His \'Akahelu Skin Robe\' had gotten pretty torn up during his underground escape, so he planned to do some shopping today.

\'Now then...\'

If he wanted adventure gear, he’d have to head toward the adventurers’ guild area.

Most shops fought to set up near there.

However, in Aurelinople, the adventurers\' guild was in the central district, meaning the property fees or rent would be astronomical.

\'If I go there, I’ll probably end up paying a fortune for cheap gear.\'

Arzen had asked a guild receptionist yesterday to recommend some shops that had good reviews from adventurers.

"Welcome!"

His first stop was the Aurelinople branch of Royal Armoring.

It was an armor company founded by the Dwarf craftsman, Eimer, to rake in money from human society.

The notable feature was that all the products came directly from the headquarters as finished goods.

And, true to the perfectionist nature of Dwarves, their policy on exchanges and repairs was unparalleled.

It was considered a mid-range brand. The so-called best value for money.

"I\'m looking for a leather-type robe."

"Ah, that\'s over there."

The downside was that due to the price-fixing policy, costs were the same no matter where you went on the continent.

In a major city like this, prices should normally be lower due to the free circulation of goods.

Everything was accurately labeled on the price tags without any misleading ingredient listings.

Thus, it seemed difficult for Arzen to leverage his advantages here.

"Hmm, next..."

He wandered far out of the central district and entered an alley as the northeastern district began to unfold.

There was a small convenience store that looked like a hole-in-the-wall.

Compared to Royal Armoring, the place looked even more shabby.

\'This is a thrift shop!\'

Adventurers often changed their armor as they grew.

In the process, their old armor inevitably flowed into the second-hand market.

These shops bought such armor, refurbished it, and sold it as if it were new.

\'Of course, it’s not truly new, though.\'

An elderly woman was turning a sewing frame.

An older man with glasses greeted Arzen.

"What are you looking for?"

"A leather-type robe."

"We have plenty of good ones."

The grandfather hummed an indecipherable tune while skillfully prodding the clothes rack with a metal rod, pulling out various garments.

"Oh, oh, this is...!"

"Hmm, is there something good?"

"This is made from River Serpent leather! That insane \'B-\' rank monster! The material content must be over 50%, right?"

In fact, to sell existing armor at a fair price, the Divine Guillotine also tried not to bring it to large cities unless necessary.

In smaller towns, there was often no demand, meaning they couldn’t sell at the right price.

In contrast, large cities had many thrift shops willing to buy this armor, and there were also businesses that disassembled and recycled it.

"How much is this?"

"Hmm, let\'s see... It\'ll be one gold coin."

Since the River Serpent was a \'B-\' rank monster that could only be captured by adventurers of gold rank or higher, the price of its byproducts was steep.

\'They\'re cunning and crafty; once a hunting party appears, they disappear without a trace, which makes adventurers hesitant to hunt them!\'

For that reason, the leather was expensive.

Moreover, it couldn’t be easily cut with ordinary knives or scissors, which inflated the sewing costs even more.

\'What I mean is, one gold coin can actually be considered cheap!\'

This level of premium leather could provide armor class protection comparable to chain mail.

Of course, it would be a different story if it were made into chain mail from byproducts.

"Old man, you’re not going to hit me with any income tax or VAT on top of that, right? Just one gold coin?"

"Hmm, of course not. But it seems like it was worn by a woman; is that alright? After all, you should judge clothes by how they fit."

That was precisely why the length fit Arzen perfectly.

The total length fell just above his ankles, and the sleeves covered the backs of his hands, providing even better protection.

And since Arzen was still growing, it would fit him even better soon enough.

It would be nice if he could dye it a dark green, but he decided against it; if the expensive leather got damaged, it would be a big problem.

The elderly woman quietly working the sewing machine spoke up.

"It\'s pretty."

Arzen was looking in the mirror and had the same thought.

‘The dream I used to have, drooling over good equipment every time those guys from the Divine Guillotine made a purchase, is right here...!’

In a society influenced by capitalism, equipment certainly justifies its cost—the more expensive, the better it is.

‘In other words, it exudes a certain class!’

If one were to glance only at his gear, Arzen might appear to be a silver-ranked adventurer.

“Here you go! Real gold coins! If you don’t believe me, feel free to take a bite!”

The grandfather received the single gold coin with both hands and, with a gentle smile, handed Arzen a few ginseng-flavored candies.

“Winter is coming, so take care not to catch a cold.”

Perhaps this attitude was what made the shop popular; there was a warm, endearing feeling to it.

“Ah, are you selling this? I thought it might do well as second-hand after some repairs.”

When the grandfather looked at the grandmother, she nodded her head.

“I could give you about ten silver coins for it.”

Although it was bought for eighty silver coins, a price of one-eighth was fair considering the armor had become worn and tattered from all those battles.

He guessed that the grandfather would probably sell it for around thirty to forty coins later.

Arzen sold it right away.

"Hehe."

Feeling like he could fly, Arzen skipped out into the street.

He had the odd sensation that the people passing by were watching him.

It felt as though the entire world was focused solely on him.

So he deliberately tried to strike a cool pose and walked with a serious demeanor.

In reality, it wasn’t like that, but such are the trivial thoughts of a teenage boy.

“Welcome!”

Arzen returned to Royal Armoring.

Dressed in expensive clothing, he sensed that the staff’s responses were more courteous. Money equated to authority.

He had come here to buy boots.

Even so, buying used boots felt a bit off.

They might carry odors and possibly even athlete\'s foot.

‘Ugh… I bought that robe for almost a fraction of a fraction of its value, so paying full price for these boots is painful.’

As he picked up and felt each pair of displayed boots, he pondered.

The only footwear he could afford within his spending limit was a pair of all-purpose boots made from F-rank monster leather.

Descriptions stated that plates were reinforced on the sole, back, and vamp, protecting his feet from various dangers.

“I’ll take these.”

“Understood.”

“I’ll wear them right away, so no need for packaging.”

“Sure thing!”

He sold his old, worn-out boots—now giving off a foul smell—to the tanner for three silver coins.

He felt grateful that someone was willing to buy them.

Arzen headed to the docks to grab lunch.

‘If I don’t eat this half-and-half meat and shrimp stew, it doesn’t feel like the day has started!’

As he wore the River Serpent leather robe, he sensed the server’s friendliness had increased.

Money truly was king.

Having savored every last drop of broth, Arzen sat quietly under the early winter sun, gazing blankly at the flowing river.

‘Alright, now...’

He planned to refrain from accepting combat requests for a while.

Thus, he postponed his promotion test.

But he needed to earn money.

He had spent all his wealth except for three silver coins.

‘If I had known it would turn out like this, I wouldn’t have stayed at the best inn...’

Although it wasn\'t a combat request, a mission that allowed him to train his Void powers while earning money would be ideal.

The Void power was increasingly demanding Arzen’s focus.

Unlike the Void insects, where earnings were stable, the details of Evakta\'s power varied based on Arzen\'s proficiency.

‘Then again, considering that even the Void insects need daily training to increase their numbers, is it really any different?’

In any case, the newly acquired Re Taripo also seemed to require some training.

It would be good to have time to analyze its pros and cons thoroughly.

‘However, it’s better to stay in this area.’

The Adrion continent beyond the sea had a desert-like climate, making the winters bitterly cold like the nights in the desert.

He had heard that winter on the Akhrad continent was no joke either.

He wanted to spend winter around the Red Mountains.

After all, the Red Mountains kept the local climate warm year-round.

‘Okay.’

Finishing his thoughts, Arzen walked toward the central district.

He scanned the request board at the guild branch and eventually moved to the counter to ask.

“Are there any requests that summoners can do to earn some pocket money?”

“A summoner, huh… Let me check for a moment.”

The male receptionist bent down and pulled out a few papers from under the counter.

“Well, depending on the type of summoning magic, it can vary greatly, so it’s a bit hard to explain. Also, summoners are quite rare…”

“Hm.”

“However, recently… Well, I say recently, but it was two years ago. Someone who received a request through our branch completed a logging request.”

Logging?

His eyes widened in realization.

‘That’s right, logging!’

Logging would allow him to maximize the efficiency of Re Taripo and Evakta, and even Barolus, while also providing training opportunities.

“Is that request still available?”

“This request? Of course, it’s not.”

“No, I meant a similar request.”

“Just a moment.”

The receptionist soon spread a map out on the counter and placed the various request forms at their respective locations.

“If you want to take on a large-scale request, you’ll need to go quite far. The western part of the empire is known as Woodland, and it always requires logging personnel due to the abundance of trees.”

“Something closer, then.”

“If you want something nearby, the village of Marind in the southern region of Aurelinople is looking for logging personnel to prepare for the Grass Hut Festival.”

“Oh.”

“This request is for a maximum of two people, so it might be difficult if you have a party of three or more. The pay isn’t great, but meals and lodging are provided.”

“Is it warm there during winter?”

“The Aurelinople region is next to the Red Mountains, so it stays warm. Not as warm as here, but still decent.”

“Then I’ll take that one.”

“Let’s see… The requirements state that you need to be at least a bronze rank, but you have a certificate from the Aurelinople Witch Association registered, don’t you?”

“A certificate?”

“Yes, it’s issued only if you successfully complete a request commissioned by the Witch Association. The certificate is valid for six months.”

“!”

“With that, there shouldn’t be a problem, as the person requesting the logging is also a witch. Just a moment, I’ll stamp the request approval form for you.”

Arzen soon left the guild branch with the stamped request approval form from the Aurelinople branch.

‘My heart is racing...!’

He was excited about what kind of adventure awaited him this time!

‘Is this what the life of an adventurer is like!’

Arzen began to run toward the docks.