Vol 5 Chapter 3 (1/2)
Chapter 3: The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Part 1
The chilly autu Akiba's night sky was filled with
twinkling stars as far as the eye could see
The stars were brighter and inal world
Whether it was due to the clean air here or the gahtscape of this alternate
world was agloith stars
On this night of the Libra Festival, Akiba was still buzzing with activity late into the evening
As Akiba was the primary city of Adventurers, its functions were extremely specialized Said functions
encouild halls, cathedral, and the marketplace When Elder Tales was
still a game, Adventurers only needed these five facilities to survive In other words, Akiba had no
functions beyond these five That hat it meant to be 'specialized'
Before the Catastrophe, Akiba had lacked proper living quarters While places such as taverns and inns
could be found within the city, they were ive players the
feeling of being in an alternate fantasy world — they were like stage props which were not truly usable
But after the Catastrophe, Adventurers had set out to make the city truly livable For this to be
accomplished, a number of facilities were required just so they could re
restaurants were soes After them, all sorts of stores, private shops, and services
had opened as well
While some of these enterprises were run by Adventurers, most were either jointly run by Adventurers
and People of the Land or had been established by the People of the Land themselves
There were several reasons for this, the biggest being the incoap Compared to People of the Land,
Adventurers were capable of earningmobs, even
a mid-level Adventurer could earn more in one day than a Person of the Land farmer could earn in a
month
Although the disparity in production ability was not as drastic as conificant In
the eyes of Adventurers, even a Person of the Land hailed as a master of their craft would only be as
skilled as an Adventurer with a level sixty subclass
Of course, regardless of whether you were a Chef or a Tailor, as long as you reached level twenty, the
product would be good enough for nor
fresh-baked breads, delicious soups, crispy fries, as well as chicken fried to a perfect golden-brown A
Tailor of this level couldpants, coats dyed with bright colors, or
leather vests
People of the Land could also create these kinds of 'generic products' As a result, it was only natural that
Adventurers would focus on tasks that only Adventurers were capable of doing, leaving the eneric
and mundane tasks to the People of the Land
After these changes, Akiba was incoareat
multitude of shops and facilities Naturally, the population of the People of the Land also multiplied,
increasing in a geometric manner This resulted in shops which were run exclusively by People of the
Land opening up one after another
There was another reason for the growth of the city's People of the Land population
From the viewpoint of the Adventurers, this player city was just a stronghold for them Nearly all the
Adventurers siround, a point of departure But this place
held a differentto the People of the Land
Adventurers were cos co both superior
combat abilities and immortal bodies From the viewpoint of the People of the Land, this player city was
the pioneer settlement for the Adventurers in this world
Most of the People of the Land treated Adventurers with gratitude and respect While the large number of
Adventurers who dealt with the various wild beasts and monsters in the land of Yamato were considered
a reliable th also created a strong sense of fear in the People of
the Land This fear was also directed towards the city which housed their revival mechanism, the
cathedral It was possible that they werecity than by the Adventurers
themselves
The original People of the Land who lived in Akiba were a special type, descended from ancestors who
had lived in Akiba long ago In a sense, they were like priests or priestesses who served Gods in shrines
These special People of the Land perfor banks
However, the age of such fear had ended
The Adventurers used their frightening strength to defeat goblins, beastmen, and even various powerful
the People of the Land's lives numerous times Meanwhile, Adventurers
seemed to adhere to the teht that Adventurers could
only form superficial relationshi+ps with People of the Land
But recently, the Adventurers and the People of the Land had signed an agreement with each other
The significance of the agreeue of Freedom Towns Eastal and the Round
Table Council was definitely not small
It signified the declaration of the Adventurers to the People of the Land, that Adventurers were not just
'friendly passersby' but 'a part of this world' It also showed that the People of the Land accepted the
Adventurers as such
Raynesia was sent to Akiba as a syreement
Raynesia did not just represent the nobles, she was also a living exa
in the Adventurers' city” to the masses
Because of this reason, the population of People of the Land in Akiba increased each day
Originally, Akiba was a city streith the ruins of buildings However, after the People of the Land
were included into Akiba's society, even this streetscape started to change The rubble was gradually
cleared away, the spooky abandoned buildings were also cleaned up
Nearly all the Adventurers living in Akiba were japanese
In both a good and a bad sense, when these meddlesome people noticed the People of the Land were busy
clearing up the streets, they decided to help out since they were bored and had nothing better to do While
working together, they naturally started to converse, beco familiar with each other
In the current Akiba, the number of Adventurers who ereatly
Si business with Adventurers increased more than tenfold
— The ”Linguine”, a tavern run by People of the Land
This establishment, which norht of the first
day of the Libra Festival
”This is high quality tomato stew nya”
”It's delicious!”
Within this bustling establishment, two people were seated opposite each other at the innermost table of
the restaurant They were consultants fro Horizon, Chief Nyanta to be exact, and the Crescent Moon
Alliance novices' caretaker, Serara, who herself was a beginner
The place was filled with custoh it was now
October and the night air was chilly, the interior of the store felt stifling even without the use of heaters
Over the course of the past few days, many People of the Land came to visit this city for the sake of the
festival All accommodations within the city had been fully booked, even the temporary ones specifically
set up for the festival by the Round Table Council
It was the sa with customers Small eateries within the
alleys were filled with both Adventurers and People of the Land, toasting to the success of the upco
celebrations which would officially start the next day
The new cooking method publicized by the Round Table Council spread like wildfire throughout Yamato
Despite this, not many Adventurers or People of the Land could utilize it Due to skill restrictions, less
than ten percent of the population could be considered good at cooking Using liredients, these
people came up with new dishes daily
Adventurers tended to try recreating normal japanese food In contrast, the People of the Land, who had
no prior experience, co dishes which struck
their fancy Although the method of preparation could be relatively simple, some stores were extremely
popular due to the rustic flavor of their dishes
”Linguine” was one such place
The dish known as Kanto-style To the fact that
it was currently happy hour, the tavern was filled with a vulgar din While it was rather inappropriate for
young girls to visit this sort of place, Serara was extremely pleased that she was able to have a late dinner
together with her favorite Nyanta Even though the place was packed, the thought that their knees were
nearly touching under the table made her both happy and flustered at the same time
”Is Nyanta-san tired?”
”Not at all nyan”
Although Nyanta gave such a reply, it was as though he had a superhuman performance that day Crescent
Moon Alliance had set up several booths for the Libra Festival It was not just for the returning
Crescent☪Moon kiosk, their Tailors' sewing depart
services, their Blacksravings
Crescent Moon Alliance was just a suild, the size of its departments was not more than five people
This ti as the assistant instructor for the fitting department
”Have I done well?”
”You did well, Serara-cchi”
”I can't wait for tomorrow!”
”That's right nya~”
Passing a busy day together with Nyanta in thisa booth
come daybreak, Serara was filled with anticipation and happiness as she thought about these Given the
circumstances, it could be said that her anticipation ca able to spend the whole day
able to spend the entire day with Nyanta”
Honestly speaking, Serara was able to sympathize with Isuzu when she decided to leave Crescent Moon
Alliance Serara adored Nyanta from the day she was rescued in Susukino It would be a lie if she said
she had not considered doing the same to be with Nyanta
However, Serara was in charge of looking after the beginners in Crescent Moon Alliance Unlike Isuzu
who could start afresh after leaving Hamelin, Serara had comrades who relied on her
Serara had already apologized to Nyanta, after declining his offer to join Log Horizon She did not want
this resolution of hers, which she treasured, to be viewed as a hollow statement
At that time, Nyanta only s child nya” Nyanta the mature
gentleman had always been a warm person, however, he beca
attentively to everything Serara had to say Hence Serara was extre
interests
The delicious stewed to yet faintly sweet Like the
stew, the orange juice with added ice was very good Chatting with Nyanta was also delightful Serara
es as she had her meal
Suddenly, the sharp noise of so the clamor of the store for a
moment It seemed that a waitress had dropped a plate The tavern's famous tomato steas spilled onto
the floor, dyeing the stone with red geometric patterns
A white plate lay shattered on the floor This was a relatively common occurrence in the restaurant
However, just as the clientele were about to resume their normal activity, they were interrupted by the
sound of violence
Serara looked up froround A
over her
”Don't joke withto deal with this since it's been stained like this?”
The nantly
Serara quickly checked their descriptions and noted that both of them were probably People of the Land
since their job descriptions did notman wore
expensive clothes The man who seeence in a
disgruntledthat a loaitress like her could not possibly afford to compensate him
The silence within the establishan to criticize the tavern in a
haughtyon how small, dirty, and noisy the place was, how this establishment lacked
taste He scoffed at how it didn't live up to its reputation even after he had bothered to go there himself
He went on and on about the tavern's various shortcoarish manner
Serara felt a sense of distaste
She had been enjoying her meal
The food here was delicious While it was indeed rather noisy, this sort of a
In truth, did it not seem that everybody here enjoyed themselves? This place was simply the way it was
Whether you liked it or not, there was no reason to disturb the dining experience of other people, Serara
thought to herself
”Is this guy an idiot?”
Somebody whispered
This man was mistaken This place was not thisplace nor a
restaurant exclusive to high society Rather, it was an ”alleyway restaurant” famous for its delicious pot of
tomato stew
He was also mistaken about another fact The clientele was not speechless because they were intimidated
by his status or authority They were simply stunned by the sheer foolishness of his actions
”Who is it! Who insulted me just now!”
In response to the nation, three Adventurers rose fro
threatened, a Person of the Land warrior who looked like the uard also stood up This sudden
development caused the atmosphere within the establishment to be filled with tension
”Nyanta-san”
Serara cried out as she huddled in her seat
It was not out of fear Serara had taken part in the battle at Sand Leaf peninsula and had even been
involved in its worst part, the defense of Choushi+ She was a qualified Adventurer who had also fought
against undead creatures and er at the present
to her However, the tension resulting fro emotions and
the tension of the battlefield were two co with
everybody being tra sed by an
indescribable, oppressive atmosphere
”No need to worry nya”
As Nyanta turned to leave, he grabbed the young nobleman by the scruff of his neck at the same time, in
the saheld in this
manner
”Don't cause a co nya”
”Shut your mouth, commoner!”
”Yours truly is an Adventurer nya”
Nyanta's response caused the man to be at a loss for words A flustered look appeared on his face
Indeed, even if the number of People of the Land had increased in the city, this was still Akiba where
more than half the residents were Adventurers
With great difficulty, the otten this fact
”This concerns you even less in that case!”
”Ooo~”
”This is a private st People of the Land There are differences in social status a us
People of the Land Since this matter does not concern you Adventurers, please don't butt in I have no
wish to start a dispute with you people”
”Oh~ It doesn't seem that way to me”
”But you behaved in such an outrageous ularly
eh?”
The three people who had came forward from the depths of the tavern were indeed Adventurers One of
the waitress
The nobleuard appeared uneasy He licked his lips nervously, looking around warily
The disparity in strength between the two groups was evident just by glancing at their equipment This
would not have been the case if he was aa lord or
even another high-level Adventurer However being a guard of such a trashy noble, he was only around
level ten or so
As far as Serara could tell, this particular guard was only good for decoration
”Young master, it would probably be better if you”
”This is Akiba nyan Akiba has its own rules and regulations nya, don't cause a commotion here nya ”
Nyanta walked towards the entrance, interrupting the guard At first, it see
noble to throw a tantrum; however, the fact that the tall and slender Nyanta could
effortlessly carry hied caused him to open and close his mouth
wordlessly When Nyanta reached the door, he swung the young man in front of him with ease
”Don't worry about the bill nya! Consider it my treat this time nya Since today's a celebration, it's better
to enjoy yourself instead of going around starting fights nya”
The guard shouted ”youngmaster” repeatedly in a panicked voice as Nyanta proceeded to
throw the young nobleman out the door
The city guard of Akiba would not react over this se that as
long as there were no weapons drawn or any physical injury inflicted, the guards would not treat it
seriously
”Nyanta-san”
”Don't worry, don't worry, just continue to enjoy your meal nya~”
Serara sighed in relief after hearing these ords from Nyanta
Soon, the hustle and bustle of the tavern resumed as the tense atmosphere dissipated The waitress went
about issuing apologies to the other custo replies such as ”No need to worry” and ”It
couldn't be helped”, the girl's face was flushed with eave her thanks
”That incident just noas certainly unexpected though”
”That's because the People of the Land have changed drastically nya Furthermore, since today is a
festival, this city will be filled with people who are unfamiliar with it nya”
Nyanta took a finely cut piece of bread and ate it in one large bite after dipping it in tomato sauce
”The People of the Land seem to have an aristocratic society nya, they would probably be shocked after
seeing how things are in Akiba nya”
(Why would they be shocked) Serara was stumped
Serara had almost never lived anywhere outside of Akiba She had lived in Susukino for only a short
period of time and was unfamiliar with its urban at in Nyanta's
residence Therefore, she was conorant of the culture and habits of People of the Land towns
Serara felt that it would be tragic if the discri
their nobility
However, People of the Land were a part of this world They had the right to freely promote their own
culture and lifestyle Nyanta had mentioned this to Serara before At that time she had not understood the
true significance of those words
”However, this city is ours nya You need to follow its custoood food should be eaten with a smile,
the fun and entertainment of festivals should be enjoyed nya When it looks as though conflict is
inevitable, people just need to be careful and it should be fine nya”
Serara sighed in relief after Nyanta finished speaking, nodding her head in agreement
While this festival was for Adventurers such as Serara, it was also the first time an activity had been
organized with the People of the Land in ht arise in the
future, there was no reason for them to turn back, this was a necessary transition Serara came to this
conclusion by herself
The hustle and bustle resuain While this small
storht have left an impact on people, it did not dampen the hearts of the Adventurers If such a small
incident affected them, they would be unable to survive in this alternate world
Akiba's Adventurers had faced many trials and tribulations over the past five months
Hence, there shouldn't be any problems Serara relaxed and smiled at Nyanta
Part 2
On the saht, at a different location, a different pair orking, ing in dejection from the
amount of work they had to finish
They were the beautiful duo leading the Crescent Moon Alliance, Maryele and Henrietta They were
constantly giving instructions in preparation for the te and fashi+on show the next
day
Crescent Moon Alliance presently had sixty five h the Hamelin incident increased their
numbers, it was still moderately-sized and definitely did not have the manpower to set up stands in the
sauilds
Then again, it was a little-known fact that this festival was the suggestion of the uilds
New ideas did not just coh skill had inspiration,
he or she could come up with all sorts of new products This was the current Akiba If such eent
products cauilds, they would be publicized and spread by these large guilds But if the
artisan cauilds, it would be harder to do the same
Such points were given much consideration and formed the basis of this Libra Festival
In other words, by attracting participants and customers in the name of the Libra Festival, not only the
booths of the set exposure and popularity from
both Adventurer and People of the Land merchants
Crescent Moon Alliance had been hoping for such an outcoistered their booths
However, as trulythem was plain and simple enthusiasm Both Maryele and Henrietta
worked long hours simply because they hoped to enjoy the cultural festival-like ath
that was the case, they were not going to totally neglect the issue of profits while having fun
Currently in Akiba, the suilds had an opportunity to make a fortune The small-scale
guilds led by Crescent Moon Alliance were all looking forward to this
Daybreak was just moments away
The exhausted members of the Crescent Moon Alliance had probably collapsed around various parts of
the guild hall In the center of the rooh to play pingpong
on ooden crates piled to its side Due to the auild hall, it was
possible to partition the workspace in such a manner
After stuffing a shi+rt which had been dyed with plant dyes into a wooden crate, Maryele stretched and
took a deep breath, then began talking with Henrietta
”I say, shall we finish up?”
”Agreed”
At the other end of the table, Henrietta was exa
figures on the tally next to her, she attached them to crates
”Let's end here”
After hearing these words, Maryele gave a long sigh
The grand opening of the Libra Festival was scheduled for the next day
In Akiba, there were twothe city into four
quarters The liaison co these streets based on ballot results
Crescent Moon Alliance had ed to obtain one such store It was a small booth located at the central
junction where they planned to revive Crescent☪Moon Returning after a long absence, Crescent Burgers
would obviously be sold at a substantial discount this time around
”At that time, the price was akin to robbery”
”It was robbery indeed”
The tere exhausted froue with drained expressions
Even though ”the confident, beautiful and big breasted, Kansai-ben guild leader” Maryele and ”the
bespectacled, confident onee-sama who you wished would scold you” Henrietta were the pride of the
Crescent Moon Alliance, they were lazing around the office as it was just the two of them In this manner,
they were indistinguishable from any other female Adventurer
Henrietta felt as though she would doze off if they continued like this She shook her partner by the
shoulders shouting ”Marie, pull yourself together” But Maryele was not a disciplined person by nature
and even though she nodded repeatedly in acknowledgement, she was totally wasted
Henrietta gave up and assisted Maryele onto the sofa Maryele looked as though she had taken root there
”If you feel like sleeping, go sleep on your bed” However, she insisted on wanting to take a bath first,
stretching Henrietta's patience to its limit
”If you feel like bathing, why don't you go ahead and do so?”
”I'll rest a bit~ my HP is critical”
”Your HP bar is coreen safe zone Even if it weren't, can't you just heal yourself?”
The bodies of Adventurers had excellent physical characteristics Even for Henrietta as a Bard, the
exertion of packing for ten hours straight was no different froht exercise She was still far from the
point of collapse
Even though Maryele said and looked like she was physically exhausted, Henrietta suspected that it was
just ue
”Lemme rest a while!”
Henrietta gave a deep sigh at her shameless friend and sat beside her
”Marie, what's the matter?”
”Nothing”
”Don't try to lie to me”
Henrietta shrugged Maryele was too cute, so she lost the motivation to make a witty comeback
She could roughly guess the reason why Maryele was being so troublesome
It probably had so to do with a certain topic of entertainment which had come up repeatedly over
the past month
Henrietta accessed the in-game menu and cursor mentally
”— Yes, it'syou since it's already this late Hence it's
been like this ever since, that's right”
Henrietta see soh telepathy As she was
receiving the other party's voice directly in her ear, it looked as though she was talking to herself
Regardless of that, this forical communication could be used to communicate with faraway
friends
Maryele are of this fact, so she was not worried about her friend's mental health Instead, a look of
seriousness replaced her absentan to panic
”Henrietta? Who is it? Who are you talking to?”
”Ahahaha Indeed, indeed, it's as you say, I can't stand it, lazy to the point of being insufferable Marie is
acting in a troublesoain and it's really cute--when she does that she even jiggles her
breasts!”
”Who is it! Who are you talking tooo~!”
”Marie, I' telepathy, can you quiet down a bit?”
”You're obviously talking about me, how do you expect me to be quiet!”
Maryele grabbed the s Henrietta by her shoulders and shook her However, Henrietta was
experienced enough to deal with such a situation, having known her for such a long ti her pale
and slender fingers, Henrietta tickled her behind her ears,
her to the couch
”Yeah, that's right The u-san can help out— indeed, Marie
will also be happy”
The u” caused Maryele's body to shrink Henrietta continued her telepathic
conversation leisurely, co Maryele
”Sorry to trouble you Okay, okay see you some other time”
Henrietta had a bright s aardly
”Why is Henrietta such a bully”
”Bully? Marie must be mistaken”
When Maryele heard these words, a hesitant expression appeared on her pouting face Set within the
contours of her s eyes, full of expression, were extre
However, Henrietta had no intention of spoiling her or letting Maryele off the hook Henrietta's hobbies
included both teasing and encouraging her
”Are you sure it's okay to continue being like this? Naotsugu-san should be here in roughly an hour to help
out”
”He's coh it's so late?”
”Indeed Since it's hard to just rely on ladies to do all the ”
Henrietta replied without changing her tone Maryele stood up suddenly as though she had received an
electric shock, grabbing her cardigans which lay beside her before running off, o back to
her room to shower
”I I' out to pick some flowers!”
Uttering so which was obviously an excuse, Maryele left the room in a hurry ”Try your best,”