S-Rank Adventurer Betrayed by His Fiancée in the Hero’s Party Sets Off on a Journey to Heal His Broken Heart ~The Strongest Betrayed Adventurer Ends Up Forming a Harem Party~ - Chapter 07: The Border Town of Cahel

Chapter 07: The Border Town of Cahel

By the time we entered Cahel, the sky had turned a deep red. 

Once we arrived in the city, the job would be complete, and we would part ways with Harriston.

“Sir Abel of the Four Swords. Once again, thank you very much for your help on this occasion.”

“I really just helped out some friends, you know.”

“Even so, I insist. If you ever need anything, please don’t hesitate to use our trading company—Beryan Trading Co.. I’ll make sure to assist you in any way I can.”

With that, he handed me a letter of introduction and went on his way. 

He was smooth right to the end.

It was sincere, but I’m sure there was also some calculation involved—after all, having connections with an S-rank adventurer is valuable.

Now then, where do adventurers go after completing a job? 

The tavern? The blacksmith? No, there’s somewhere else we need to visit first.

“Job complete! Let’s head to the Adventurer’s Guild!”

“I wanted to visit the church, but I guess it’s better to go to the guild first.”

“We haven’t had a proper prayer in so long!”

Elmie raised the certificate she received from the client and shouted enthusiastically. 

That’s right, the Adventurer’s Guild—it’s where we go to collect the money.

Whether it’s to receive the reward for the job or sell any materials we’ve gathered, the guild comes first. 

Frey and Maria, who are devout followers of the Souther Sky Faith, wanted to go to the church, but normally, the guild takes priority.

“Yeah, I don’t have much money either, so I need to sell something…”

“Wait, aren’t you an S-rank adventurer, Abel? Don’t you get high rewards?”

“Nope. I sent most of the money I earned to the Hero’s party, so I don’t really have much cash or savings left.”

“What!? How have you been living, Abel!?”

Frey shouted in surprise when I answered Maria’s question. 

As adventurers move up in rank, the jobs they get become more difficult, but the rewards also increase.

Over the past three years, I made sure that my earnings were sent to the Hero’s party through the Adventurer’s Guild. 

The money was gathered by the Kingdom of Sildiel before being sent to the Hero’s party. 

Sildiel was the country leading the Hero’s party since it had long safeguarded the Holy Sword and performed the Hero’s summoning.

“How did you even survive like that?”

“I used magic swords for travel, stayed in cheap inns, and when I was hungry, I just ate rations. Even without money, I managed.”

Rations are a type of portable food. 

They’re solid nutritional meals made by alchemists, kind of like potions. 

A palm-sized portion contains enough nutrition for two meals, so they’re pretty useful in that sense. 

However, their reputation is terrible. Why?

Well, because they taste awful, of course.

“Rations!? Those are just bricks mass-produced by newbies and amateurs!”

That was Elmie’s opinion. 

They extract only the nutrients from various foods and mix it with grain used for livestock feed—there’s no way that could taste good. 

But since they’re easy to mass-produce and cheap, there’s a demand for them among the poor.  So, beginners or lousy alchemists make them as practice. 

For those who don’t need to buy them, they’re called inedible bricks.

And honestly, they might as well just be bricks.

“They’re cost-effective though. Two of them can keep you going for a whole day.”

“That’s if you can stomach them. Even people in the slums wince while eating them—it’s probably the worst food out there.”

Wow, she’s really trashing my main food source… But, I can’t argue. She’s right.

“That’s it! I can’t believe my student hasn’t been eating properly. As your teacher, I have a responsibility to make sure you eat a real meal!”

“No, really, that’s not necessary…”

“Aabel~?” “Abel?”

Just as I tried to protest, the twin sisters grabbed my arms, not letting me go.

For some reason, Frey had a scary smile while pinching me, and Maria was pressing herself up against me with a smile.

“It’s so sad… We finally meet again, and you don’t even want to have dinner with us…?”

“Let’s get you a proper place to stay too, okay? We’ll introduce you to one of our favorite inns.”

Wait, they’re not just grabbing me—they’re hugging my arms… So soft! And… huge… and soft!

“Alright, alright, I get it… just, please, stop clinging to my arms!”

“Hey! What are you doing!?”

“Giving him a little lecture~♪”

“Elmie, want to join in?”

“N-No, I’m good!!”

And so, we walked through the streets of Cahel, heading toward the Adventurer’s Guild.

・　・　・　・　・

Cahel is a key trading hub. 

The city thrives on importing salt from the coastal southern countries and exporting grains grown on its vast farmlands. 

Because of this, the atmosphere here is a mix of Sildiel Kingdom and the southern lands—relaxed and open.

The streets were bustling with lively people, and you could hear the sounds of trade happening all around.

Of course, where there are lots of people, there’s bound to be trouble. Problems tend to bubble up, and that’s when people turn to adventurers like us for help.

“We’ll go report the completion of the job now.”

“Don’t go wandering off, okay~?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to keep him close.”

The Adventurer’s Guild in Cahel was huge. 

The buildings were packed close together and extended at least three stories high, with the second floor opening up to the one below.

On the first floor of the main hall, there were counters for buying tools and materials, while the second floor had the job reception desk and a bulletin board for posting requests.

Elmie and Frey went upstairs to report the completion of the job, while I stayed behind to do my own thing.

“Alright, Abel, the guild’s purchasing counter is over here.”

“Yeah, got it.”

Maria pulled me along by the arm. 

It seemed she handled this kind of thing for Oathsworn Radiant Swords. 

In addition to receiving rewards for completing quests, adventurers can also sell materials from magical beasts to make money at the guild. 

Grabbing the strap of the bag slung over her shoulder, Maria was beaming with excitement.

“Fufufu, we’re going to make a lot this time. Thanks to you, Abel, we got the materials from two whole wyverns!”

“You guys took down three of them yourselves, didn’t you? It’s not just because of me.”

“No, Abel, you’ve always been reliable. Ever since the old days.”

“Ever since the old days, huh…”

She was just being kind.

I hadn’t really done anything impressive back then. Even now… I spent all those years chasing after Millia, only to be abandoned in the end—a pathetic man.

“Looks like there’s quite a line.”

“It’s evening, so it’s to be expected.”

Hiding my thoughts, I stood in line with Maria, and soon enough, it was our turn.

“We’d like to sell some materials.”

“You’re selling? But it doesn’t look like you have much on you… Do you have the items with you?”

The receptionist looked at me suspiciously.

Seeing me empty-handed, her expression seemed to say, Don’t waste our time.

Sighing, I pulled out my guild card with my rank on it and showed it to her.

“It’s a big one. Where should I bring it out?”

“Huh…? Wait, what!? M-My apologies! If it’s something large, please head to the dismantling area next door!”

The moment she saw my card, her face turned pale and she looked like she might faint. 

Well, she probably realized what might happen if you treat an S-rank adventurer carelessly.

“The area is just down the hall that way! I’m very sorry!”

Still trembling, she directed us down the hallway beside the counter. 

It’s not like I’d do anything just because of bad customer service…

Shaking my head, I nodded to Maria, and we headed down the indicated corridor.

“You shouldn’t scare her like that, you know?”

“That’s not my fault. It’s her fault for handling the reception so sloppily.”

I really don’t want to rely on my rank to intimidate people. 

But still, most high-rank adventurers carry magic bags with expanded storage. 

Oathsworn Radiant Swords also has one big enough to fit an entire wyvern—Maria’s bag over her shoulder is one of those.

The stronger the adventurer, the better their magic tools, so it’s a rule not to judge someone based on appearances. The receptionist should have known better.

“I think the real problem is that you’re not carrying a bag, Abel. Most storage magic items are in bag form. Yours is that ring, right?”

“Yeah, believe it or not, it can hold enough to fit an entire castle.”

Its name is White Phantom’s Vault.

A very convenient magic tool that lets you store and retrieve items in a separate space just by thinking about it.

“Hey, I’m pretty sure that’s on the level of a national treasure.”

“Maybe. I found it in the same ruins where I discovered the Hero’s legendary armor. So, of course, it’s high-performance.”

“In a place like that… Wait, Abel, you were looking for stuff like that too!?”

Well, I was told they couldn’t continue the journey without it, so I went and found it.

I sent other things I found along the way too, but I decided to keep this ring for myself.

“Shouldn’t you have given that to the Hero’s party?”

“I don’t owe them anything. If they wanted it, they could’ve gone and gotten it themselves.”

The Hero’s party had already been given a magic bag by the kingdom from the start, anyway.

＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

The other day, I received my first gift.

I froze the moment I saw it, completely panicking since I didn’t know how to process it. I never imagined I’d receive a gift, so I hadn’t even set up a message for it yet.

To the person who sent it, and to all my readers, thank you for reading and enjoying my work.