Chapter 3-6 : The Town Where The Sea Breeze Blows (part 2)
The hustle and bustle gradually died down as we left the shopping district.
The streets are getting less crowded now, so I don’t think we should keep holding hands like this. However, before I could ask Thea to let go of my hand, she suddenly stopped. Seems like we have arrived at the inn.
「Kako ojou-sama, we’re here.」(Thea)
「Uhh…」(Kako)
I was expecting a normal inn like the one I stayed at while I was in Tranto Town, but it was much bigger and more majestic. It looked more like a noble mansion than an inn. It’s even bigger than Father’s mansion.
「Is this really an inn?」(Kako)
「Yes. It’s called Shoal In The Night Sky Inn. Let’s check in.」(Thea)
While still holding my hand, Thea gently pulled me, and then we entered the building.
The interior was superb. The high-quality carpet covering the floor, the beautiful chandeliers on the ceiling, the magnificent decorations and paintings on the walls, and the expensive-looking vases and furniture made me feel like I was in a high-class hotel rather than an inn.
In Japan, I think a luxury hotel like this costs at least thirty to fifty thousand yen per night.
「This place looks expensive… Are you sure this place is always fully booked?」(Kako)
「Most of the time, yes, it is. Staying here is indeed not cheap, but this is the safest place to stay for travelers in this city.」(Thea)
「Safest? So cheaper inns in this city are not safe?」(Kako)
「There are safe ones, but mostly not. Millions of people from other countries come every year, and the crime rate in this city is high because of that. I heard that thieves tend to get into cheap lodgings in this city. If you’re not careful, you could even lose your life while you’re sleeping.」(Thea)
「What!? That’s so scary!」(Kako)
「There are even cheap inns where the staff themselves are connected to the thieves. They work together with those criminals to steal their guests’ belongings.」(Thea)
「That’s messed up!」(Kako)
「Right? That’s why cautious travelers stay at inns where they can feel safe, like this one. It’s expensive, but safety doesn’t come cheap in the first place. Think of it as the cost of getting peace of mind while you’re staying in this city.」(Thea)
「I see.」(Kako)
Thea has a point. Safety can be bought with money sometimes, and I think it’s a necessary expense.
「Kako, I agree with Thea-nya. You don’t have to worry about the lodging cost since you’re going to make a lot of money in this city anyway-nya. But if you want to stay in a cheaper inn, I can protect you from thieves. Your choice-nya.」(Nyat)
That’s right, I have Nyat. He will be able to protect me and Thea, but… No. I don’t want to burden him unnecessarily.
「I think I want to stay here.」(Kako)
「Wise choice. Kako ojou-sama, you can wait in the lobby while I check us in. I hope they still have a room for us.」(Thea)
「Alright.」(Kako)
Thea finally let go of my hand. She headed to the reception table while Nyat and I were waiting at the lobby, sitting on the comfortable, expensive sofa.
After a while, Thea returned with a smile on her face. Luckily for us, there’s still one room left available for us.
If we were a few minutes late, that room would have been taken by another guest. Thea was right to stop me and Nyat from stopping by those stalls at the shopping district earlier.
As soon as we got the key, we went to our room upstairs.
「Wow, not bad.」(Kako)
The room is bigger than my room in the mansion since it has two beds. One is a king-sized bed, and the other is queen-sized, enough for us three.
「Nyat and I will sleep on the bigger bed. Thea, you have the smaller one.」(Kako)
「Understood.」(Thea)
As usual, I will be sleeping with Nyat (my pillow) on the same bed.
「Alright, now we have secured a place to stay. Since we still have plenty of time until night, and I don’t want to waste time, I think I will start working now.」(Kako)
「I prefer sleeping until night, but I’ll go with you-nya.」(Nyat)
「Of course, I will accompany you too, but, Kako ojou-sama, do you have in mind where we will be going?」(Thea)
「Un. Let’s go back to the shopping district.」(Kako)
Before I can sell anything in this city, I need to learn the market prices of the goods sold here, because obviously, different places have different prices, and the best place to do the research is the shopping district we passed earlier.
After unloading our luggage in the room, the three of us left the inn.
◆◆◆
「Umm… Thea? Are we going to…」(Kako)
「Yes. It’s for your safety. At least until we leave this busy place.」(Thea)
As soon as we entered the shopping district, Thea grabbed my hand again.
Looks like we’re going to hold hands while we’re here. This is embarrassing…
「So, what now-nya? Are we going to buy some fish-nya?」(Nyat)
「Nyat, fish can wait. First, I want to check the shops selling products from the eastern region.」(Kako)
I’d like to find out the market price of the goods I’m going to sell, which are mostly eastern region products, and for that, I need to find a shop selling them.
「Come and have a look! We’ve got some rare fruit from the east!」(vendor)
「Oh, it seems like we’ve found our first vendor. Let’s go there.」(Kako)
After walking around the shopping district for a few minutes, I found a stall with a middle-aged man selling fruits from the eastern region.
He greeted us as soon as he saw us approaching.
「Welcome ladies, would you like some fresh eastern fruits?」(vendor)
What? Did he just say “fresh”?
I thought he was selling dried fruits, but… fresh?
Curious, I looked closely at the fruits displayed on the stall. They indeed looked fresh.
「Are they really fresh?」(Kako)
「Of course!」(vendor)
「Thea, what do you think?」(Kako)
「Hmm… Some of them look kind of withered, but mostly are fresh.」(Thea)
「Oi, oi. I only sell the best, you know?」(vendor)
While doubting what the vendor said, I grabbed a fruit from the stall. It’s called purua, and it tastes and looks similar to apples on Earth. This is my favorite fruit in this world.
I remember when I tasted it for the first time when I was at the blacksmith village, and the second time when I just got to Father’s mansion (ch 2-5, 2-7). I ate this fruit almost every day while I was in the mansion, and as a matter of course, I have tons of dried purua in my magic bags, ready for sale.
「Oh? Young lady, do you like purua?」(vendor)
「Yeah, I like it a lot. How much?」(Kako)
「Eight gold coins each.」(vendor)
「…What!?」(Kako)
I was so surprised. I didn’t expect it would cost a whopping eight gold coins.
You can buy one purua fruit for only ten copper coins in the eastern capital, but it costs eight freaking gold coins here? Are you for real? It’s eighty times the normal price! It’s insane!
Is this man trying to rip me off?
*/TL : Purua came from Japanese for apple, but spelled backwards.
アプル (a pu ru) -> プルア (pu ru a)
So, I could have translated it as “Pleap” or “Alppe”, but, idk, it sounds weird, so I kept it as “purua”.
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