LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 37
“Excuse me! Pardon the interruption!”
When I opened the door, a dull brown fur came into view, hanging from the wall. Various pelts were arranged, with price tags attached to them.
In the back, meats of some kind were suspended, also with price tags, indicating that these were for sale. This was a store dealing in monster meats, furs, and other materials—‘Fur, Bones, and Meats Store.’
“Hi there! Are you a customer?”
The one who came out was a girl who could easily be called young. She was probably a bit older than me.
“Yes, I would like to request a monster dissection.”
“I understand. Please fill out this order form.”
I began to fill out the form she handed me. After completing the basic information, my hand paused for a moment.
“Is something wrong?”
“It’s the part about affiliation. I don’t belong to any organization yet.”
“Ah? Really?”
“I’ll be enrolling in the Royal Academy next month.”
“Really? I go there too!”
I was taken aback by the unexpected coincidence.
“I’m in my second year… well, almost third year.”
Why would someone from the academy be working in a place like this? She must have sensed my confusion, and so she smiled and explained.
“My blessing is [Dissection]. I know the most efficient ways to break down monsters. So, I work part-time here with that in mind, thinking about my future.”
Ah, I see. That makes sense. After all, academy students are allowed to work part-time.
Compared to people from the rural areas, just being from the academy means she must be a talented individual.
“My name is Isabella. And you are… Erik, right?”
She must have checked my name on the order form.
“Yes. Thank you for your help, Isabella-senpai.”
I bowed politely.
“Ah, you’re such a good kid. Yeah, as a fellow student, I’ll vouch for you regarding your affiliation. Don’t worry about that.”
“But, aren’t you uncertain if I’m actually affiliated with the academy?”
“Hmm… You seem like an honest person. If I’m deceived, I’ll blame myself, so don’t worry about it.”
It seems that I give off the impression that I can’t lie. Is that why people trust me so easily, like Roberto and Isabella?
“I understand. I’ll accept your kindness.”
I replied, and Isabella began looking around, scanning the area.
“So, which monster do you need dissected? Is it outside?”
“Ah, I’ve stored them using my blessing, so if possible, could you show me to a place where I can take them out?”
“Would it be a problem here?”
“There are quite a few of them, so there’s no space here.”
“Hmm, you don’t look like it, but you seem to be quite the pro, huh?”
She looked at me with an assessing eye.
“Okay, I’ll show you to the back. Follow me.”
I followed her as she led me to the back.
“Could you take them out over there?”
It was a dissection area that took up many times more space than the rest of the shop. Several people were working there, disassembling monsters with knives in hand.
“Hey, Isabella. What’s with you? Why aren’t you handling the shop?”
One of the people, a muscled man, spoke to her.
“This is the kid who’s going to be my junior soon. He brought in a whole bunch of monsters,” Isabella explained.
“Oh? That many, huh? Well, we’ve had a decrease in supplies lately, so this is a big help.”
He gave a rather friendly smile.
“Alright then, I’ll start laying them out here.”
I received permission and began placing the monsters on a cloth-covered area. First, 13 direwolves, then 6 orcs, and finally 8 giant toads.
“Wow, these are some real big ones.”
Isabella didn’t seem to disbelieve me, but she seemed surprised, as if she had low-balled the estimate.
“Hey, hey, most of these are D-rank monsters. This is going to be quite a job, kid. Is it okay if I call you Isabella?”
“Is that what you mean?”
I tilted my head, not fully understanding.
“Right, I forgot to explain.”
Isabella clapped her hands.
“What do you mean by explanation?”
I asked, and she began to explain.
“There are two ways we buy monsters here.”
Isabella raised one finger.
“First is buying on the spot. It’s a rough estimate, but we decide the price after checking the condition of the monster and what parts of it can be sold.”
This buying method is used when you need the money right away. If you wait to disassemble the monster, it takes too much time, and in the meantime, you’re not able to prepare for the next hunt. Even if the price is a bit lower, getting the money immediately allows you to use it to gear up for the next hunt, making it more efficient.
“The second method is dissection requests. In this method, the client and the contractor split the proceeds, 80/20.”
“So, what’s the difference from just buying it?”
“Basically, after we buy it, we do the dissection ourselves, so we have time to take care with it, and experienced dissecters handle the work. But with a dissection request, that’s not the case. There’s a difference in skill between rookies and veterans, and even with the same monster, the materials you can extract differ.”
I see. That makes sense. Now I understand the meaning behind the earlier question.
Since there’s a chance that materials could be wasted, it’s natural that everyone would prefer to hire a veteran. Giving a job to a rookie means the profit will be lower.
“So, I think you should request the veteran instead of me, Erik-kun.”
Isabella made a slightly disappointed expression and asked the muscled man, “Can you handle it?”
Hearing that, the man said…
“Well, D-rank monsters are too much for Isabella. I’m fine to handle it if you’d like.”
Thanks to Isabella’s introduction, it seemed that the veteran was about to agree without hesitation.
I decided to turn down the offer…
“No, I’d prefer if Isabella handled it.”
“Huh?”
Isabella looked up in surprise.
“Is it okay if I do it?”
“Yes, of course.”
I replied to her, who was pointing at herself in disbelief.
“Since we’re both rookies, I think it would be better to work together. In the future, I’m sure I’ll need your help.”
It’s like an investment for the future.
The man had said it was too heavy a task, but he never said it was impossible. If Isabella can handle D-rank monsters, she’s got the potential. Building connections with people like her is important for business.
She smiled warmly and said, “Thank you,” as she shook my hand.
Then, with her work face on, she began filling out the order form seriously.
“What about the magic cores?”
I’d mentioned before that the magic cores of weaker monsters don’t hold much value, but as the rank of the monsters goes up, magic cores can be used for other materials too.
“I’d like to keep the magic cores, so please subtract the cost from my share.”
Since I needed the magic cores for the expansion of The World, I wanted to make sure to secure them.
“I got it. As for the final price, I won’t know until we start dissecting, but the direwolf pelts are pretty damaged, so there might not be much usable material. How did you defeat them?”
I couldn’t exactly say I hit them with a log for a home run. I’d have to be more strategic in how I take them down next time.
“By the way, do you buy ogres?”
I figured I’d check on the ogre I had stored away.
“Ogres? Their muscle is too tough and they’re too hard to handle, so we don’t deal with them here. You need a special tool to disassemble them.”
Monsters of higher rank retain their hardness even after they die. So, to disassemble them, specialized tools are necessary.
(I guess I’ll give the ogre to Kaiser then.)
“Got it, master. He’s happy about it already.”
Apparently, it’s not suitable for human consumption, but it’s perfect for the Crystal Bird.
“So, how long do you think it’ll take?”
With this many monsters, plus other dissections, it could take longer than expected.
“Hmm, it’s quite a lot… but I’ll finish in three days.”
I wanted to absorb the magic cores as soon as possible, but I’d have to be patient.
“Alright, I’ll come back in three days.”
“Got it. I’ll start dissecting now, so see you soon.”
With a look of determination, she immediately grabbed one of the large knives leaning against the wall.
As I began to leave…
“Ah, Erik-kun.”
“What is it, Isabella-senpai?”
“I’m happy you chose me, so here’s something for you.”
She handed me a piece of paper.
“What’s this?”
It had the location of a restaurant written on it, along with a recommendation letter.
“This store is our direct-operated restaurant. With this letter, you’ll get a 30% discount.”
A restaurant that serves the meat they handle directly. Since there’s no middleman, it’s a smart way to provide meals cheaply.
“Thank you very much. I’ll go check it out.”
I thanked her and decided to head to the restaurant.