Full-Blown Family Feud – Part 01
In the town of Pond, Hikaru set out to gather some intel.
Two big obstacles stood in the way to solving the current problem.
Firstly, no matter how much Isaac—Ivy—paid back, as long as his stepmother, Vilma F. Taylor, kept borrowing money, the debt wouldn’t shrink. Hikaru had to put a stop to Vilma. But where she was hiding was currently a mystery.
The second obstacle was the enormous debt itself.
Should I tell them to wait for Isaac to prove the theory’s validity? Once he’s successful, a ton of money would likely roll in—after all, it’s an invention that’ll change the world of sorcery. But explaining the theory to someone not into magic would be like talking to a wall. If they asked when it would be done, all I could give them is “I don’t know.”
So, Hikaru was switching things up.
How about instead of Isaac, I try pressing Vilma to pay up? It might work. Since Vilma comes around regularly, I could probably find out where she lives during that window.
After a short nap following a late-night Stealth operation, Hikaru yawned his way through the morning streets of Pond.
“…”
“…”
As he tried to walk past the hot dog stand, the owner stared at him. People kept coming and going, buying hot dogs.
“Who knew there’d be such tasty food in this town?”
“Yeah, it’s become a Pond specialty.”
“Can’t anyone copy them?”
“Nah, the special sauce and the ten times spicier thing—no one can pull that off.”
While adventurers left with hot dogs in hand, the owner kept staring at Hikaru from about fifty meters away.
Heaving a sigh, Hikaru headed toward the stand.
“Master, I’ve been waiting for you.”
“I told you not to call me master.”
Others nearby caught wind of the exchange.
“Is this kid the one they call the Hot Dog God?” one person whispered.
“He’s younger than I thought,” another added.
What happened to this stand while I was gone?
Deciding it wasn’t worth worrying about, Hikaru said, “Give me one… no, make it three.”
“Sure thing. They’re good to go.”
“…”
Already?
“I was thinking of trying one with green sauce.”
“Already included.”
“…”
How was it ready before I even ordered?
Hikaru paid up, placed two in a small basket—though he’d planned to have breakfast elsewhere—and strolled along while munching on the hot dog with green sauce.
The texture of finely chopped onions mixed with the sauce’s acidity created a different flavor when combined with the hot sausage. It was a change from the regular hot dog taste.
I hate to admit it, but it tastes good. How did he prepare mine in advance anyway?
Since no hot dogs beyond the three Hikaru ordered were made, it seemed the owner knew what he’d want from the start.
Terrifying.
He considered checking the man’s Soul Board, but he didn’t want to invade someone’s privacy when it wasn’t necessary, and he feared the possibility of seeing an absurdly high value for a stat he’d never seen before. He decided it wasn’t worth the trouble.
The green sauce was a delightful surprise, adding a crispy texture without compromising the perfect blend of acidity and meat juices of a typical hot dog. Hikaru, having gobbled up one in an instant, regretted not buying another. Resisting the tempting pair in his basket, he made his way to the Adventurers Guild.
“Can we push back the schedule for this commission by a day?”
“Hey, the price for a bag of reishi tea sprouts has jumped up already. I just delivered some yesterday!”
“We’re short two members for the escort team. Anyone wanna join? Rank E and above, no questions asked.”
The Adventurers Guild in the morning buzzed with activity, with Freya and Gloria at the reception counters handling a steady stream of adventurers.
Unlike his usual stealthy entrance, Hikaru patiently waited his turn, given the numerous adventurers genuinely accepting commissions at this time of day.
“Over here.”
Hikaru, heading towards Freya, was too late in noticing Gloria smoothly appearing beside him. She had deliberately stepped out of her post. A subtle smile played on her lips, gentle at first glance, but to Hikaru’s eyes, it carried a hint of scheming.
“I’ll wait. I’m not really in any rush,” Hikaru said, not wanting to draw any attention.
“You deserve special treatment.”
Gloria’s eyes conveyed a message—come over here; you’re hiding something.
“Huh?! Hikaru! I didn’t see you there.” Freya was panicking behind the counter.
“I’m just here to gather information,” Hikaru said. “I swear.”
“You’re looking for information? Must be a tough commission,” Gloria said. “I’d love to handle it.”
“It’s not difficult enough to warrant your time.”
“Are you enamored of Freya?”
“Enamored?!” Freya exclaimed.
Her exaggerated reaction stirred the crowd. “Is this kid making a move on Freya?”
Hikaru sighed. “You win, Gloria. Here’s some snacks. Enjoy it later.”
“Oh, hot dogs. Thank you. Come this way, please.”
Gloria led Hikaru to the reception area.
“If you could please tell Mr. Unken I’m here,” Hikaru said.
“…What?”
“I came to talk to Unken today.” Hikaru grinned.
“What did you do to Gloria?”
It had been a long time since he saw Unken—as adventurer Hikaru, not Silver Face—and the man had not changed one bit. He still wore a perpetual frown.
“Nothing. I just asked her to tell you I was here and gave her hot dog as thanks.”
Gloria, suspecting Hikaru to be hiding something, had been pestering him for a while now. She speculated that Hikaru had some kind of special Blessing on his guild card.
When someone asked to see Unken specifically, she couldn’t possibly say that he could talk to her instead. So after informing Unken of Hikaru’s visit, she reluctantly returned to the counter.
She looks gentle, but her eyes are terrifying.
Despite her beauty, Gloria, unfortunately, only attracted muscle-brained adventurers.
“Would she really look like a demon over something so trivial?”
“Demon?”
“Yes, a demon. Be sure to talk to her later.”
“Okay…”
Dealing with subordinates and offering words of encouragement felt more like the job of the guildmaster, rather than his, Hikaru mused. As he was here today to speak with Unken, he decided to let it slide.
Unken’s office had a subdued interior with a sturdy desk, furnished with shelves housing a plethora of documents. Despite the professional setting, Unken, constantly clad in work attire, couldn’t help but exude the air of “an old man who accidentally wandered into an important person’s room.”
“I wanted to ask about Ballast Trading.”
“Hmm?”
Unken, caught off guard by the unexpected subject, blinked with curiosity. This suggested that Freya hadn’t relayed their conversation from yesterday to Unken. Hikaru appreciated discreet receptionists.
“You got into some sort of trouble?”
“Well, not exactly me, but a friend.”
“…I see.”
Seated on facing sofas in the reception area, Unken furrowed his brow.
“Ballast Trading thrived under the previous head, but it has faced challenges under the current leadership.”
Freya had said the same.
“That being said, they aren’t involved in any illegal activities. They provide a livelihood for rogues and help maintain law and order. It’s not within our purview to intervene.”
“…I see.”
“If only Edward’s brother had stayed in Pond.”
“What kind of person is he? And where is he now?”
“He’s in the capital. Samal Ballast, known as a brawling prodigy, was revered by delinquents in this town, and even wanderers could sense that Samal wasn’t ordinary. People thought having Samal here would make Pond safer.”
“Why did Mr. Samal leave Pond?”
“Perhaps he was too good. Staying in Pond would’ve been limiting for someone of his caliber.”
Hikaru considered it high praise coming from Unken.
Such a figure existed here in Pond, huh?
Hikaru hadn’t spent a lot of time in Pond, so he had never heard of Samal or the Ballast Trading Company.
“In other words, he went to the capital to make a name for himself,” Hikaru said.
“A straightforward way to put it, but yes.”
“Will Mr. Samal ever return?”
“Unlikely. It seems he’s doing quite well there.”
Hikaru hadn’t heard of the name Samal Ballast in the capital, but considering the vast scale of the city compared to Pond, it wasn’t surprising.
Can we get the brother involved? He might help if there’s something in it for him… but unless Edward’s up to something shady, it might be difficult.
Hikaru sought some sort of weakness he could take advantage of, but his conversation with Unken didn’t provide any.
If the guildmaster didn’t know anything, asking Freya or Gloria would likely yield the same result, he reasoned.
Comment (0)