Chapter 29
"Shin, what exactly is an adventurer's rank?"
It was during a time when we entered a diner to have dinner.
Naturally, Erika has never cooked a meal in her life, and while I'm not entirely incapable, I can't make anything suitable to serve her.
The only cooking I know is the kind adventurers make in the wild.
Since my mentor and senior disciples were the type of people who didn't care about the taste of food, the cooking I learned ended up being like that too.
So, for two people like us, eating out becomes the inevitable choice for daily meals.
Originally, it's difficult for adventurers to cook for themselves due to time constraints, so there are plenty of diners and taverns catering to adventurers in Hekatai, and we never had any trouble.
"What do you mean by 'what'?"
I asked back while swallowing a piece of fried potato.
By the way, thanks to the money from selling the Golden Ogre's magic stone, we're at a slightly upscale diner.
"When you mentioned adventurer ranks a few times, I thought it represented strength. If that's the case, why hasn't your rank gone up after defeating the Golden Ogre?"
It was a common misunderstanding.
"The Golden Ogre is a monster that the guild designates as an emergency subjugation target, right? Defeating it should be proof enough of your strength, I think."
Erika didn't seem to have any dissatisfaction or complaints about the rank not increasing; she was simply curious.
"True, an adventurer's rank does represent strength to some extent."
I lightly wet my lips with water before continuing.
"But strength alone doesn't determine rank. Things like the completion rate of requests are also important for raising your rank."
I explained while waving my fork like a conductor's baton.
Fortunately, Erika ignored my lack of manners.
"Simply being strong isn't enough to reach a high rank."
However——.
"That said, a weak adventurer won't reach a high rank either."
I see, Erika said.
"In that case, our evaluation must be low since we failed the request itself."
Erika laughed as if she found the situation amusing.
"We're not just starting from scratch; we're starting from a negative point, aren't we?"
Erika narrowed her eyes happily.
It was the look of someone who had found prey, or perhaps a goal.
"This is interesting."
"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself."
I said that sincerely, from the bottom of my heart.
*
The next day, we went shopping in the district where the town's stores are gathered.
The main purpose was to procure equipment for Erika as an adventurer and to find a replacement for my sword, which had been shattered to pieces.
"This is......"
Erika, with a puzzled expression, held out to me an armor piece with an excessive amount of exposure.
"Is this okay?"
Well, I also question the sanity of the shopkeeper who thought to display this.
"There are adventurers who prefer this kind of thing, with the mindset that protecting only vital spots is enough."
"I see."
Erika nodded, but I prayed she wouldn't choose that one by mistake.
I'm not confident my sanity would hold up.
For some reason, the shopkeeper looked at me with expectant eyes, though it seems he's already lost his sanity, while I still have mine.
"By the way, wearing just that is something only the hardcore among adventurers who like this style would do."
The shopkeeper clicked his tongue, but when I glared at him, he unnaturally averted his gaze.
"Erika, you're a typical magic swordsman type, so it's an option for equipment, but......"
The shopkeeper repeatedly made a guts pose.
"Considering the strength of your physical enhancement, you could pass as a pure swordsman type, so I wouldn't recommend it."
"Indeed, even if it's recommended, I'd be a bit troubled."
Saying that, Erika returned the overly revealing female armor to the shelf.
Behind Erika, the shopkeeper gritted his teeth in frustration, but I ignored him.
Seriously, what is up with this shop, or rather, what is up with that shopkeeper?
If it weren't for the introduction from Lana, the guild staff, I'd have left immediately.
And yet, frustratingly, the store has a wide selection, low prices, and good quality.
Other than the shopkeeper's eccentricities, it's undeniably a good shop.
I pondered the irrationality of the world while picking up a pair of monster leather gauntlets.
"By the way, Shin, do you have a preferred color?"
Erika asked while looking at the items in the store.
Color, a preferred color, huh.
"Not particularly, but if I had to say, it'd be blue."
"Why is that? And for someone who says they like a color, you don't seem to own anything blue."
I looked down at myself.
My outfit is mainly black to hide dirt, and the only color is the brown of my leather belt.
There's not a trace of the blue I said I liked.
I answered with a wry smile.
"I like blue because it's the color of the sky. I don't wear it because I tend to shy away from things I like."
"I see, that's very much like you."
I was thoroughly understood.
But which part of my answer did she understand?
Erika nodded with a hum.
"I've decided."
Erika said that and walked over to the counter.
Left behind, I told Erika, who was talking to the shopkeeper at the counter, that I'd wait outside, and then I left the store.