Yeah, Yeah, Another World, Another World
The paper handed over by Rio was opened.
“I hereby announce!!!”
The opened paper was shown to everyone.
“Oh… Oh?”
“Huh?”
“I can’t read it.”
I flipped the paper I was holding to check it.
Is this the script of this world? In other words…
“Ah, that’s my name.”
It seemed Rocco had won the naming rights.
“Then Rocco, please announce the name of our party.”
“Hmm?”
Rocco cleared his throat.
“The party name I came up with is ‘Bridge of Dawn’ (Suigyō no Hashi). I heard that the country you all lived in had a name meaning dawn, hence ‘Dawn’. And from the lake symbolizing the town of Rifoku, I took ‘Water’, and the ‘Bridge’ connects them. I incorporated the joy of miraculously meeting you all, Osart, and me into the name.”
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
“Eh? Was it bad?”
“No, no, no, no, no, no!”
“It wasn’t bad at all; it was so good that we were speechless!”
“Good job, Rocco!”
“As expected of Prince Rocco.”
“As expected of DQN Prince.”
“Don’t break people’s bikes.”
Rocco was being manhandled by everyone.
He looked a bit pained as Okuda patted his back hard.
He kept saying, “I’m not a prince.”
“Thank you for the wonderful name, Rocco.”
I made sure to thank him.
“Thank you, Rocco.”
“Stay well, Rocco.”
“I’m not quitting anytime soon!!”
Today’s retort was sharp too.
Thus, the name of our party was decided as ‘Bridge of Dawn’.
Upon hearing that, Rio returned to the reception counter and came back with seven plates.
“Here, these are your guild certificates. Rocco, please return your individual registration guild certificate.”
Though there were some writings on the received plates, I couldn’t read them now. Just looking at the plate gave me a slight sense of security, as if I had gained a small foothold in this world.
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The next day, to recover from the fatigue of dungeon exploration, we decided to take the whole day off.
Since arriving in this world, we had been rushing through food collection, temple exploration, searching for inhabited areas, and adventurer registration, so it was time to catch our breath.
After having breakfast and leaving the inn, Okuda chased after us from behind.
“Senpai, wait! Take me with you.”
Okuda requested to join us, and I granted permission.
I told him that we planned to wander around the city without any particular purpose.
With the expectation of finding a place where we could fish on such a holiday, we headed towards the harbor area in the northwest part of the city, known for its poor security.
The old lady at the magic shop had warned us not to approach without reason, but gaining confidence from facing monsters in the dungeon, I chose this destination.
◇◇◇◇◇
“It’s still huge.”
The vast lake spread out before us, only a part of the opposite shore visible.
At the port a little distance away, many people were loading and unloading cargo from ships even though it was early morning.
“What are you thinking?”
“Huh???”
I was confused by Okuda’s sudden accusation.
Had I been making a perverted face? Or had I unconsciously touched Okuda’s butt?
“Did you come here to think about something?”
“Ahh, yeah, that’s right.”
Relieved that I wasn’t scolded for making a perverted face.
Part of what Okuda said was correct. I intended to think a little about things after tomorrow. It would have been fine to reflect inside the inn, but since we were out, I figured we might as well scout for fishing spots.
“Well, it’s about future plans and improving our lives.”
I began talking.
Yesterday, the registration at the adventurer’s guild was completed, and we were now able to earn some income.
Admittedly, the gravure photos sold for a high price, but selling items from Earth was like a start-up bonus and not something we could do repeatedly.
Different from that, earning upward income through labor was essential for stabilizing our lives.
Though being a dungeon explorer might be considered a yakuza-like occupation.
And if we secured a steady income, we should address the dissatisfaction of sleeping together in a large room.
Especially for Aoi-chan, a girl of marriageable age, it must be quite tough.
“I don’t mind sharing a room with Senpai.”
“O-Okay.”
So I was considering looking for an inn with private rooms or perhaps renting a house.
“In other words, you’re planning to buy a mansion secretly inhabited by undead creatures and put up for sale at a bargain price?”
“That kind of convenient thing doesn’t exist.”
“This is another world, right? Of course, it exists.”
He stated it firmly.
“And also, the creation of staves for Rocco and Osarte.”
Yesterday, we lent staves to Okuda and Matsushita, but we wanted to make dedicated ones for them.
Based on the translation artifact, magical fibers seem to be plants mutated from prolonged exposure to mana.
I assumed the plants exposed to mana corresponded to the trees and branches near the initial cave.
“If dungeon exploration stabilizes, let’s revisit the cave.”
“At that time, we carried minimal luggage to search for inhabited areas. Now we can bring more various things back.”
Didn’t you include cat food in the minimal luggage?
◇◇◇◇◇
Since we’d come to the harbor area, Okuda suggested going to see the central part of the port, so as we walked along the road leading to the port, we discovered what appeared to be a fish market halfway.
Under a roof but with walls full of gaps, merchants presumed to be wholesalers and middlemen were shouting energetically.
“Why do they exchange words in raspy voices during auctions?”
“I think it’s because the content of the words is easier to understand even amidst noise.”
We noticed wooden boxes filled with multiple fish, and ice was also packed in with the fish.
“There’s ice. This isn’t scientifically made, right?”
“Perhaps it’s a magic artifact of ice? If it exists, I want one.”
“There’s water, though.”
Initially, I thought the attributes of fire, water, earth, and wind were the foundation according to the fantasy standard when we arrived in this world. But the appearance of the translation artifact raised the question, “What attribute is translation?” After much discussion, we concluded, “Why not a translation attribute?”
In short, instead of forcibly fitting various magics into the four elements, we just need to focus on the phenomena caused by the magic catalysts. Some scholar will categorize it nicely, so we abandoned further thought.
The point is, manipulating the water catalyst didn’t produce ice.
“We can’t deal damage by splashing water.”
A giant water sphere might blow someone away, but the cost of magic stones would pile up. A thin, sharp stream of water could cut things, but during combat, opponents wouldn’t stay still either.
For that reason, the water catalyst was returned to its original water bottle form.
I needed to try again the viscous water Rocco mentioned yesterday.
And then, there’s ice.
If I obtain a magic spell that throws solid objects like ice, it might be useful against golem-like monsters resistant to fire.
Wouldn’t it be nice if this fish market sold an ice magic artifact?
Thinking about this, Okuda pointed to the fish lined up at the storefront.
“Ah, isn’t this the pink trout fish?”
“Indeed. The color and dorsal fin look normal. The name is… Hmm, I can’t read it.”
Price tags were stuck in the boxes, with some writing that we couldn’t read.
Just then, an old man from the market called out to us.
“That says ‘Ishimass 1kg for 5 coins.'”
“Ho, so this fish is called Ishimass.”
“They can be caught in this lake and also often in nearby rivers.”
Thank you, Ishimass. You’ve filled our bellies.
“Are there any Ishimass with pink backs and fins for sale?”
“Ho! Young lady, you know something rare. That’s the monster version of Ishimass. They are called ‘Iwamass.'”
Monster version?
“That’s the phantom fish occasionally caught in this lake, a few times a year. Some scholar is apparently researching artificially monsterizing fish.”
“Does monsterizing them have any benefits?”
“Well, they taste delicious.”
“Ho, I’d like to try eating that someday. Thank you for telling us, mister!”
“Sure, come again.”
Saying that, we left the fish market.
◇◇◇◇◇
“Now we know which ones are safe to eat.”
“If we were told ‘Eating that is unthinkable!’ it would’ve been dangerous…?”
“Well, there was no helping it at that time. We didn’t have anything else to eat. We were forced to eat onigiri.”
“Sorry about that.”
Still, ‘monsterization,’ huh…
“In novels, consuming monster meat is quite taboo.”
“From the very beginning of coming to this different world, we’ve been eating monster meat.”
We started walking towards the port again.
“If we leave a potted mini tomato in the dungeon, would it become a ‘Magic Mini Tomato’?”
“Ma-mini Tomato, it’s definitely hard to say.”
Chatting idly, we finally reached the port.
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