WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Alyo

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◈ Surviving as a Warrior in a TRPG World ◈

Chapter 20: Sewer (1)

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"If I look busy, you can tell that apprentice over there! That guy can handle that much well enough."

The Dwarf must have truly hated the thought of the longsword he had poured his heart into making getting damaged, because he made Gerik promise him again and again.

After assuring him that he would, Gerik said goodbye and finally managed to leave the smithy.

'Ten copper coins isn't bad.'

The blacksmith hadn't lied when he said he'd maintain the sword cheaply.

Having a craftsman of that caliber work on a sword for that price was practically free. It seemed to be a courtesy price, offered with the finances of a novice adventurer like Gerik in mind.

After that little incident at the smithy, Gerik wandered around Stonecreek to look over the rest of the town.

For its size, it was far more crowded and lively than Riverbridge.

'Must be because there are so many people passing through.'

It was only natural, considering adventurers and merchants, people whose lives revolved around travel, were constantly coming and going.

Thanks to its thriving commercial district, Gerik could browse a wide variety of shops for such a small town.

'They really sell everything here.'

There were shops selling all kinds of adventuring medicines, including painkillers, anti-inflammatories, and hemostatics made from herbs found only on the frontier, pawnshops specializing in spoils, and general stores selling every sort of miscellaneous item for adventurers.

There were countless shops, but the one that caught Gerik's eye most was Lushana's Magic Basket.

'Healing potions actually exist...!!'

Lushana's Magic Basket sold several kinds of low-grade magic items, including low-grade healing potions with powerful magical healing effects despite their side effects.

Their effects were impressive, but their prices were just as terrifying, so Gerik couldn't even dream of buying one.

'Thirty silver coins each... Isn't that insane?'

Looking at the outrageous price of the healing potions, Gerik understood why Aron's party had gone out of their way to ask Osrik for healing.

'For thirty silver coins, Priest Osrik would take some time, but he'd completely heal Lugos's injury and treat every last injury among the rest of the party too.'

If Aron's party had tried to treat Lugos with healing potions instead, they would've needed gold rather than silver coins. They would've surely gone bankrupt.

'Still, having even one someday would be a huge help.'

Ever since he had watched Osrik, a priest of Num, easily heal the seriously injured Lugos and his companions, Gerik had developed a strange yearning for the power of healing.

He vowed that once he truly grew into a capable adventurer, he would buy and carry magic items such as healing potions.

'The fastest way to become a capable adventurer is through training.'

With that in mind, Gerik returned to the inn, his expression resolute, and began practicing Slash again.

* * *

The next day, Gerik headed to the Adventurers’ Guild to meet Wilber and Olin again.

He thought he had left fairly early, but Wilber and Olin had arrived before him and were waiting.

"Hey! Gerik! Over here! Over here!"

Perhaps worried Gerik would party up with other adventurers, Wilber shouted for him as soon as he appeared.

'What's with all that...?'

As Gerik stared at them in disbelief, Wilber came over without a care and took his hand, leading him to the reception desk in the cheerful manner typical of a Gnome.

"Hey! Miss Receptionist! We're taking on the Sewer Goblin Extermination again! The three of us! We can still sign up, right?"

"Yes. There is no limit on Sewer Goblin Extermination, so you may apply at any time."

Since it was a closed underground sewer, continually exterminating Goblins would eventually wipe them out or reduce their numbers drastically.

There were few applicants due to the stench and filth, so it seemed the Adventurers’ Guild had placed no restrictions on Sewer Goblin Extermination.

'They can't come in from outside, so their numbers will eventually fall. Once it stops being profitable, adventurers will quit on their own, so there's no need to impose a limit... Is that it?'

Gerik quickly grasped why the sewer extermination commission had no restrictions unlike other missions.

Satisfied with that answer, he headed into the sewer once more with his companions, who were starting to feel familiar.

The three naturally took up the same formation as the day before.

Olin took the lead, Gerik held the middle, and Wilber provided fire support from the rear as they began slaughtering Goblins.

They had grown more in sync through the previous day's experience, and by the latter half, they were harvesting Goblin heads almost mechanically.

Gerik's growth as a beginner was particularly remarkable. He used Olin as a shield while watching for chances, then whenever an opening appeared, he unleashed Slash with lightning speed and sent a Goblin's head flying through the air, earning the party's admiration.

"Whew! Looks like our pockets will be nice and full today too!"

Wilber's leather pouch was once again filled with Goblin ears. They had gone deeper into the sewer than the day before, so gathering the ears of twenty-five Goblins had taken a couple more hours. Even so, compared to other outdoor commissions, the productivity was overwhelming, and Wilber remained delighted.

"It seems there are still more Goblins. We should be able to exterminate them another time or two. What do you think?"

For someone as quiet as Olin, it was a fairly long question. Gerik's fearsome Slash over the past two days must have made quite an impression on Olin.

As the vanguard, Olin keenly understood that Gerik had been the biggest reason their exterminations had gone so smoothly these past few days. Naturally, Olin asked Gerik whether he wanted to continue as Olin considered their next steps.

"I don't mind."

Unlike outside commissions, which had many variables and challenges due to his limited experience, the sewer had become a fairly manageable adventuring commission for Gerik now that he was familiar with its layout.

The income and contribution were good for the time invested, and Slash's proficiency was rising quickly, so Gerik agreed without complaint.

"Oh! Then let's loot the place just once or twice more! By the way, don't you think we work pretty well together?"

When Gerik signaled his agreement, Wilber, who had been quietly listening, tried to subtly draw him into the party in Wilber's usual bright but sly tone.

Gerik didn't dislike the two people, who were as different as fire and ice, either. He smiled and nodded.

"Then let's meet again in two days! Hehe!!"

Like the day before, Wilber received a Grade 1 rating and the hefty reward of one silver coin and fifty copper coins. Wilber handed Gerik fifty copper coins, his share.

It was a considerable amount for a one-day Wood Plate commission, and Gerik smiled as he accepted it.

After parting with the others and returning to the inn, Gerik finally felt himself becoming accustomed to life as an adventurer.

It was a bloody journey, but the thrilling rush he could never have felt in his previous life made him feel alive.

* * *

"Whew... Let's make today the last day we loot the sewer. It's starting to get tiring~"

Wilber spoke in Wilber's usual cheerful tone as the party prepared for their fourth extermination.

Over a little more than a week, they had combed through every corner of the sewer and thoroughly exterminated the Goblins hiding within, leaving their numbers extremely low.

The day before, they had needed to go deep into the sewer just to gather the ears of twenty Goblins.

So they decided to finish their Goblin extermination after clearing the deepest area marked on the map.

"We shouldn't go deeper than the sewer area marked for adventurers, right?"

"Yeah. That would be too much. As far as I know, the Adventurers’ Guild only gives maps for deeper areas to Copper Plate adventurers of Rank 3 or higher. That means they're dangerous."

The sewer built by an ancient civilization was as vast as a decent-sized modern city from Gerik's previous life.

Because such a massive sewer had gone completely unmanaged for so long, the deeper sections were at serious risk of collapse, and entry was prohibited.

"Will there be Goblins at the deepest point? We won't go all the way down there for nothing, right?"

"There'll definitely be some! I heard the plaza at the very end is huge, and filth has piled up there until it's like a swamp! It's exactly the kind of place those gloomy Goblins would love! There's no way there aren't any~!"

Worried Gerik might drop out, Wilber quickly answered his question.

"Let's loot only that place, then call it quits! It'll be around sunset when we get back... but it's still way faster than other commissions! You're not going to bail on us... right?"

"I'll go. Don't worry."

Wilber looked ready to follow him back to the inn and grab his pant leg if he refused, so Gerik gave a bitter smile and reassured him.

It was frustrating that the commission grew more exhausting as Goblins appeared only deeper in the sewer, but Gerik could still endure it well enough. He had no intention of giving up on sewer commissions yet.

'Slash's proficiency has already reached sixty.'

From his experience over the past few days, Gerik had learned that even if he trained himself to death all day, his proficiency would only rise by around three to five. Intense combat, on the other hand, raised it at least four or five times faster.

'Killing one Goblin is about the same as swinging a hundred times alone.'

As Gerik pondered the level of Slash, his bread-and-butter skill, the party arrived at the sewer entrance, which had become as familiar as home.

"Well then, shall we loot the place again today?"

Wilber's face was full of confidence after making a tidy sum without much hardship over the past few days.

The rest of the party felt the same, and they entered the sewer in high spirits with torches in hand.

"Huh? Where did these things crawl out from?"

Unlike their previous exterminations, when they had needed to go deep inside to encounter Goblins, a handful appeared right at the entrance. Wilber muttered in confusion.

"Could Goblins really be coming in through a damaged part of the sewer we don't know about?"

There was no reason for Goblins they had slaughtered to the point of near extinction to be wandering around the entrance in small groups otherwise, so Gerik voiced his own suspicion.

"Then that's good. Let's just finish quickly."

After hearing their doubts, Olin gave the usual cynical answer and charged at the Goblins. Used to Olin's charges by now, Gerik instinctively followed behind.

Olin shouted as he slammed into the Goblins before him, breaking their formation.

Gerik seized that opening without hesitation and used Slash. At the same moment, a Goblin's head soared into the air.

"Good! Great! That's a very good start~"

Wilber had become so used to Olin and Gerik's coordinated tactics that Wilber even tried making small talk while firing quarrels from the crossbow.

"Something... feels a little... strange."

"Hm? Why?"

Though they were hunting Goblins smoothly, Gerik suddenly said something felt off. Wilber, who had been cutting off Goblin ears with a dagger, looked at him curiously.

"Don't these guys... look more and more ragged the deeper we go?"

Unlike the energetic Goblins near the entrance, Gerik noticed that the Goblins they encountered deeper in the sewer seemed exhausted and intimidated.

"Hm? Do they?"

"Yeah. Um... how should I put it... Don't their reactions seem slower, like they can't focus?"

"I don't know... I can't tell..."

Footnotes:

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