Chapter 3: Melissa’s Request

「So-sorry to have kept you waiting―」

Melissa exited the wagon with a somewhat embarra.s.sed look but…… I think I know the reason.

Well, honestly I couldn’t equip it because I was a male, and I didn’t really worry about it since it was in the game but―

This is quite erotic to say the least…

The Mirage Dress had a V-neck design around the shoulder region which was tailored to emphasize cleavage. In addition, the hem of the dress was also considerably short.
More accurately, it was so short that it seemed like her thighs would suddenly be exposed at any moment.
It was a super-mini dress. Honestly, isn’t this almost the same as wearing underwear? That was essentially the case.
Still, to be given something so bold and extreme… I’m the one that gave it to her, though―

「Uhh, somehow, I’m sorry. Who would’ve thought it had that sort of a design.」

「Tha-that is not true! I think it is quite wonderful! Rather than wearing only underwear, this is honestly much better! Thank you so very much!」

While blushing she desperately tried to follow through with me.
I’m glad from the bottom of my heart that the first person I met after coming to this world was such a honest individual.

「You don’t have to thank me like that. Ah, but can you hear me out for a bit?」

「Yes! Of course I will! Hitto-sama, please feel free to ask me anything you like, ah, I am not sure if I will be able to answer everything but……」

「Of course, it’s alright if you just answer what you know. Also, since being called “sama” is a little embarra.s.sing, it’s fine say my name normally, okay? 」

After all, I was originally a j.a.panese person. I’m not too comfortable with that sort of thing.

「Huh? What do you mean by “normally”?」

「Yea, I mean that I don’t mind if you call me by just “Hitto”」

As I was trying to tell her that, Melissa began shaking her head from side to side while going “Buun Buun[1]”

「That is absolutely out of the question! Not only did you save me but I, who has the social status of a slave, for someone like me to call you by your name like that!?」

Yea, somehow I expected that sort of a response. Because she’s a slave, huh. She’s not exactly my slave though.
Actually, since her old owner died, I suppose she shouldn’t be a slave anymore.

「Then at the very least it’s okay to call me by something like “-san” or just “you”」

「……I understand. Then allow me to address you by “Hitto-san”. Although it is still very daunting to be calling you as such but―」

For some reason she’s acting awfully humble, huh. Typically this sort of this is really difficult to deal with for me. I think I somewhat understand how the main character of a story feels when he says that he just wants to be approached normally.

……Well, never mind. For now I have a question.

「Soo with that, first of all about this place, if I am not mistaken around this area is the “Arts” region, correct? 」

「Yes it is exactly as you have said. This place is the Great Konbo Woods of the Arts region.」

Yea. This area is exactly what I thought it was. Well, the map also indicated that it was so I thought there would be no mistaking it.

「I see, then next I’ll ask this. Since you are somewhat related to this, Melissa, where exactly was this wagon headed to? Also what happened to these people who died?」

「The one who owned this wagon was the merchant Tornelo. Having hired adventures as escorts, we were to travel through and exit this forest from the Northeast and travel a little further to the city of “Central Arts” while bringing along alcohol but what happened on our way there was, this band of robbers began to a.s.sault us and……」

Fumu. Central Arts, eh. Wanting to build a city on a hill, it was a city built around a castle that was constructed by the lord who governed this area.
I remember it being a somewhat large city.

「Is that so?― that’s very unfortunate. So then what do you think would be the best thing to do with this wagon and corpses? Since the robbers were exterminated, I wonder if the cargo is safe?」

「It is indeed as you say. In regards to the wagon since its owner has now pa.s.sed away…… If Hitto-san so desires it then it is possible to take its possessions as your own. But it is necessary to have a legal transfer of goods, so you will need to bring Tornelo’s certificate to the Merchant Guild. After that is completed, since the alcohol inside is waiting to be delivered to Arts Central City[2], if you were to bring the goods there then it would be possible to receive a reward but―」

Fumu, so it’s something like that, huh. Naturally I did not know about something so complicated back in the game. Really, it’s a good thing I saved her.

After hearing about it I immediately took a peek into the wagon but, piled inside were about 10 wine barrels.
According to Melissa, each barrel was worth around 2000 Gold, or so I’m told.

By the way, Gold was the unit of currency. Well, it was the same back in the game.
Inside the wagon there was also a sack of money that was thoughtlessly left behind.

How careless. Just because you had adventurers as bodyguards you were taking it quite easy by carrying this around.
Well, with five people I would feel the same way. Still, just how weak were these five?

Incidentally, back in the game when you defeated monsters a coin-like thing came out and you can use that as money after collecting it. In reality, this world had things like copper, silver, and gold coins though.

I confirmed this with Melissa. That said  I just couldn’t take her seriously , this bag was filled with nothing but gold coins after all.
Even without copper and silver coins in the bag, based on her reaction I felt she understood my question correctly.

If I was completely mistaken then she would have tilted her head at me or something like that but, because Tornelo was carrying nothing but gold coins, since she gave such a reaction then there was no mistaking it. (for clarity click here [3])

Currency was divided into finite units, gold coins were divided into three denominations: golden coins worth 5,000 Gold, 10,000 Gold, and 20,000 Gold[4].
If the value was different then the type of material in the coin was probably different as well.

If the actual value was larger than I think the weight would be somewhat different too.

「If you were to bring along the heads of the thieves then you will be able to receive a bounty as well. Also, umm, in regards to the belongings of the adventurers who ended up losing their lives, if were to you bring their adventurer licenses to the Guild, then there should be no problems even if Hitto-sama took their belongings as your own possessions.」

Fumu, this sort of thing is different from the game huh.
Well, in the game even if you ended up dying you would simply be revived and sent back to the town after all.
Also in the game everyone started out as an adventurer but, there wasn’t anything like an adventurer’s license.
You could always confirm it in your Status after all.

By the way, if I didn’t bring along their adventurer licenses, because there was no way to confirm these adventurer’s proof of death, their belongings would be treated as stolen goods and it seems that it would cause a lot of problems.

The same thing would happen for both the wagon and the alcohol as well.
Well, it wouldn’t really take much time to take them both separately to the Adventurer Guild and the Merchant Guild though.

「I see, then for now I guess I’ll take everything that seems useful.」

「Ah, yes! Allow me to help as well!」

With that said, along with Melissa’s cooperation, we began removing pieces of equipment from the adventurers  and started to reviewed them.

As for the thieves, making a girl decapitate them would be way too cruel so I did it instead.
Of course, since it seemed okay to freely take the thieves’ belongings, I also looked them over.

And as for the merchant Tornelo, it looked like he was wearing somewhat nice clothes but, since the thieves slices them to pieces I doubt they would be worth anything.

However, on his finger was a ring that seemed like it was quite expensive. Let’s take it with us.

The thieves had weapons that looked like they were worth some amount of money, huh. They left behind only a small amount of money.
The adventurers’ gear also looked the same but, their equipment was higher quality than the thieves’ equipment.

For now I just randomly stuffed things into the Magic Bag.

Should I also put the money in the bag, since it looked quite heavy.
Speaking of which, copper coins were divided into four denominations: 1 Gold, 5 Gold, 10 Gold, and 50 Gold copper coins.
Silver coins were also divided into three types: 100 Gold, 500 Gold, and 1,000 Gold silver coins.

There was only one kind of copper coin but there were still ten types of coins in total[5].
It would be troublesome if they all got mixed up.

「Ah、ano[6]―」

As I was busy cramming loot into Magic Bag, while I was lost in thought, Melissa was nervously squirming while calling out to me.

「Hmm? Do you need to use the toilet?」
「Tha-that’s not it at all!」

Her face was blushing as she cried out.
Did I not ask with enough delicacy?

「Actually, umm― I’m sorry! It must be impossible after all! I will give up on it!」

…… Huh? Wait, I haven’t even heard what you had to say and to suddenly give up is kind of…

「I don’t really understand what you are saying. Can you properly explain it to me?」

「Eh? Ah, I’m sorry. But to ask this of you would surely be an annoyance……」

Did she want to request something from me? Well, it would be troublesome if she asked something absurd but she did teach me quite a few things after all.

「What is it? It isn’t like I can accept any request but, it’s alright to go ahead and ask without any hesitation. It doesn’t cost anything to just listen after all.」

She was strangely fidgeting while unable to say it clearly. I wonder what it is? Was it really something so troublesome?

Anyways if she stays like this then the conversation couldn’t proceed.
With my eyes, I tell her “its okay to speak your mind”.

「I-I understand. But, I believe it will be quite difficult but, i-if Hitto-sama would accept me as his slave, then! Or, something like that―」

……What? No wait, she shouted out the part about being a slave but her voice faded towards the end of her sentence. Somehow I feel a bit overwhelmed by all this.

Did I hear her wrong?…… No that can’t be right.
This girl just said that she wanted to be a slave, right?

「Ah, ano, it must be difficult after all, right?」

Melissa wait for my answer to come as she looked at me with upturned eyes. That gesture was very lovely but, at this point it wouldn’t work anymore. [7]

「No, instead of being difficult I’m more surprised by it but― Just in case I’ll ask but why would you want to be my slave?」

「Tha-that is, there is also the fact that you saved me before but, after talking to you I can see that you do not seem to be a bad person, or something like that……」

Since I’m not a bad person she wants to become my slave? I can’t really understand her way of thinking.
If I wasn’t a bad person then I wouldn’t make her a slave in the first place.

Well, certainly there was slavery back in the game but, this girl definitely has a will of her own.
It wasn’t like she was living in a game program or something like that.

「I have the feeling that with only that as a reason you shouldn’t be readily saying something like “let me be your slave” though―」

For the time being, I just voiced how I felt about the matter.

「O-oh course I understand that I am asking something disrespectful! A lowly woman such as myself asking an educated person such as. .h.i.tto-sama like this……」

「No! It’s not like that! That’s not what I meant. It isn’t a nuisance to me at all. It’s more a problem for you yourself, right? Regardless of the reason, you have finally become a free woman. And yet, there’s no reason to purposely go back to being a slave, right?」

I tried to persuade her by saying this. I might seem a little arrogant but there should be nothing wrong with what I said.
But, hmm? Somehow, eh? Why does she have a awfully surprised look on her face?

「……Umm, might Hitto-sama be unaware about the details of the slavery system?」

How impolite of her. For the record, I originally intended to learn more about it though―

Extra TL note: How evil of me to end on a semi-cliffhanger.

General note about honorifics if you didn’t know:
“-Sama” = master/someone you respect/respectful version of -San
“No honorifics” (ie. Hitto) = friendly
“-San” = most commonly used (like Miss/Sir)
“you” or [Kimi] = also friendly
(FYI: Melissa only called Hitto “-san” once and used “-sama” the rest of the time)

1.

TL note: Buun Buun is like the sound of pouting (as in she’s angry).

2.

TL note: not sure why the author said “Arts Central” instead of “Central Arts” but that’s what the original says.

3.

TL note: little hard to translate/explain in English. Basically if Hitto was wrong and asked “do silver coins exist?” he expected Melissa to react like “what are you talking about?” But, since she acted normally, he a.s.sumed he wasn’t wrong about the coins actually existing.

4.

TL note: The capitalized Gold refers to the currency. lower case gold refers the golden coins themselves. as in a 10,000 Gold gold coin.

5.

TL note: I’m guessing he means that copper coins all look the same (like how dollar bills used to all look like green pieces of paper despite being worth different amounts).
Also with 3 gold, 4 copper, and 3 silver there are 10 types of coins in total.

6.

TL note: In case you didn’t know “A-ano” is a verbal pause similar to “Uhh/Umm…”. Since this type of Ano it’s slightly different (as Uhh/Umm has the connotation of being perplexed) and I thought it didn’t fit, I left it as is (I translated other “ano”s that you will never know about, hehehe).

7.

By this he means that Melissa has been doing a bunch of cute stuff already so it doesn’t affect him anymore. That or he could mean that he’s way too shocked to care (I think it’s the former).