9-3. At the Town of Magic Hunters (2)
Satou's here. I remember the time when I got a burn during my visit to my grandfather's house in the countryside, it wasn't cured with over-the-counter drug, but by applying ripped aloe that had grown on the garden to the burn. It was a folk's remedy, but I remember that it worked well. I wonder if there's aloe in another world.
◇
"Where are we going~?""Nodesu?"
"We're going to the harbor. Looks like they're selling many rare fruits there, so we're going on a sightseeing."
I reply to Pochi and Tama who have just asked about it when we're walking on the street while holding hands.
It's about 10 minutes walk from the inn to the harbor. According to the innkeeper, it's not a market, but just several stalls and food carts that are selling food and drink for laborers and sailors, so I'm just going to take a look.
Mia and the others seemed to be interested too, but since she looked like she was planning something with Arisa, I left them in the inn. Liza was also going to follow as a bodyguard, but since the security looked bad, I asked her to guard Lulu and the others. Nana was particularly fine with either, but since it was dangerous, I left her. There are a lot of sea lion children in the harbor we're going now.
There are a lot of one-story houses with good ventilations in this town, maybe it's due to the fact that the temperature is like everlasting spring here. Every house is built about 30 centimeters high above the ground, although not to the point of being a high-floor type houses. The roads are bare soil, and weeds are growing on the berm. There seem to be some vacant lots here and there too.
Overall, the people walking in the town are wearing thin clothes with short skirts. As expected, women older than 20s are wearing longer skirts, yet their ankles can still be seen. A lot of girls that are minors wear short ones above the knee. I couldn't care less about the men, but many are wearing nothing on the upper half, or bold open-neck shirts. There are a lot of children of around upper grade elementary school ages wearing shirts that display their bellybuttons on full. Apparently, it's not because of fashion, but because they're wearing old clothes that don't fit their bodies anymore. However, I think these make it feels like we're in a southern country. Many children who are below that age are wearing baggy shirts, but the rest are naked. At least, they're wearing loincloths, but they're running around in barefoot energetically.
Tama suddenly parts her hand and runs to the berm, apparently she's picked some grasses on the roadside and come back.
"Found ninigi grass~"
Ninigi grass is a medicinal herb for treating fevers. They can only be used in compounding since they have weak poison if used as is, you need to compound them in order to make them into potion. Therefore, most people don't recognize them as medicinal plants. Their poison only cause upset stomach, so they can also be used as laxative if diluted.
However, Tama does a good job remembering them even though we've only ever found them for 2-3 times during our journey.
I receive the medicinal plants from Tama, and put it in the bag into the Storage. While praising Tama, I search for [Ninigi Grass] in one kilometer radius. Apparently, the medicinal plants are growing commonly like grasses in the vicinity of this town. It's not a medicine that I use much, but I guess I'll secure some as a supply.
In the vacant land along the way, the ninigi grasses like earlier are growing en masse, so I ask Pochi and Tama to gather them. I search again just in case, and besides the mugwort-like plants that can be used to stop bleeding, there's no other usable plants. Besides having red veins on its leaves, the mugwort-like plants look just like normal mugworts. Of course I've warned the two to not pluck the mugwort-like plants. The local people here probably use them as common medicinal herbs.
After seeing Pochi and Tama, children from the neighborhood also begin to gather the ninigi grass and put them on the mat that I've put on the ground beside me. I wonder if they think this as some kind of play?
When half of the ninigi grasses growing in this lot have been collected, I announce that it's over, and give little something to the children. One penny for each. I feel that it's too cheap, but from the story of the aunties during the food distribution on the duchy capital, looks like it's enough. In fact, the children receive the money delightfully.
"Yo, Nii-chan, what are you trying to do making the children gather poisonous plants. Are you going to serve it to the damned lord?"
"They can be used as laxatives indeed, but they will turn into fever medicines if you compound them."
His words make him sounds like a hooligan, but it doesn't seem like he's trying to pick a fight. He's really just interested it seems.
This human young man seems to be a laborer. He's tanned with bulging muscles. However, since he's only level 4, Pochi and Tama are probably stronger.
"So you're really a pharmacist! Please, I'll pay the cost no matter what it takes, can you give me some medicine for burn?"
Burn huh....
I have a bad hunch, so I ask for the detail, and it's just as I've expected. The stupid noble from before came to them to ask about the white tiger princess, and threw several fire bolts toward the houses of beastmen, burning many of them to the ground. At that time, the big sister of this young man tried to save the beastmen children and got seriously injured by the large fire.
I ask the young man if the guards of this town do anything to him, but since the stupid noble is under the protection of the governor of this town, baronet Poton, they don't throw him into the jail. After the day the stupid noble started to be confined in the house of Poton, the servants of Poton house began to search for the whereabout of the white tiger princess. However, they're not getting any clue, and the servants' actions have become violent.
Of course there won't be clue. They (white tigerkin) are heading toward the royal capital after all.
The white tiger-kun party probably pretended to flee here to spread false information. I think it's quite effective, but it's troublesome.
"Nee-san, I've brought a pharmacist."
She only replies with a whimper. From the information on the map, she's a 22 years old, and should be single. No, her single status doesn't matter. Yep.
I ask Pochi and Tama to wait near the entrance in the room, and go to the interior room after the young man.
This is awful.
The burn is not spread, but it goes from her right hand to half of her face. The young man sends his nephew and niece to the room with Pochi and Tama to empty the space for me. Is she perhaps a single mother? No, it's nothing.
She can be easily healed with just one diluted medicine, but to do it without leaving a wound seems like it'll be difficult.
I guess I'll observe the effect in exchange for the medicine. I make the woman drink a magic potion with normal concentration without the boost from mana healing and titles. Since one bottle heals for 300 HP, it can heal the woman even if she's in critical conditions 10 times.
The young man beside me is holding his breath.
Yup, I understand that feeling. No matter how many times I see it, the swift effect of this magic potion feels unpleasant. New pink skin is already forming on the muscle tissues that can be seen.
Just in case, I make the woman eat things with high calories, and sleeping medicine that I've made for treating serious injury. She should be completely recovered by morning with this.
The young man thanks me to the point as if he's going to kiss my shoes, and as the reward for the treatment, I ask him to lead me to the place where that stupid noble has gone wild.
Three-story tenement? But, it's been burnt down. Several people are lying on the mats that have been spread under the shadow of the wreckage. Since I perceive that the beastkins are getting on guards from the humans us who are approaching them, I let Pochi and Tama to lower their hoods. The beastkins slightly drop their guards after seeing the two.
"What do you want. Human."
"I'm Hyona's little brother. I've brought a pharmacist."
"Come to think of it, I've seen you before. Go heal Hyona rather than us. It's already impossible for the fellows here. It won't be enough to buy medicines even if we sell ourselves."
It's certainly expensive if you buy them from shops.
However, this town shouldn't have problem with materials for potions if the magic hunters hunt the demi-goblins, the magic cores must be exported to the duchy capital after all huh.
There are two rabbitkins and one ratkin people who are sleeping. The degrees of their burns are more terrible than the young man's big sister. Their wounds are only covered with big leaves that seem to be for soothing fever.
They were recovered by just making them drank the same potion that Hyona-san had drank thought. I feel that the recovery effect is better, I wonder if it's because beastkins have good endurance. Since the three also look famished, I give them high calories food & sleeping medicines.
Since there are several people who have slight burns near the tenement, I leave one bottle of burn ointment. It's just a small bottle with 20 grams of it inside though. It's also a leftover from when I was experimenting for its effect, but it should be more effective than the one on sale.
◇
"Young master, here it is."
"Young master, it's here."
I said my farewell to the beastkins who expressed their gratitudes exaggeratedly, and arrived at my original goal, the harbor. The daughters of the rabbitkin, who are a 9 years old, and a 6 years old, that I've saved earlier have guided us.
Baskets full of fruits are lined up on the mats. There are small melon-like fruits inside a basket. There are also tachibana citrus and Japanese pears-like fruits. It seems everything is something that are growing wildly in the forest near this town.
"How 'bout it, anything is one penny."
Cheap.
Since we're here already, I buy various things and share it with everyone. Of course, with the rabbitkin girls too. It seems that the children have increased before I knew it, but it's fine. The melon is quite delicious with its watermelon-like thin sweetness, although there are also unripe fruits. I'm buying several of them as souvenirs for Mia.
The fruits peddler laughs while saying, "I'm gonna close my shop early today." jokingly. I wonder if he gets into it halfway through, he distributes the fruits to the children for free. he's a good-natured man.
"Yo nii-san, how 'bout some vegetables good for your health?"
Another man who seem to be attracted to this comes to pitch his vegetables.
No, I didn't come for vegetables.
I could have immediately declined him, but since Pochi and Tama were still chewing half of the melons I had bought, I asked him to show the line up while putting small aprons on the necks of the two. Putting these aprons now might have been too late. Let's clean them with [Soft Wash] before returning to the inn. Lulu will be angry if they return like that.
In the bastket that the man has brought, bitter gourds, paprikas-like vegetables, and red tomatoes!--It's probably tomatoes--are lined up.
Since he says that I can try it, I bite one of the tomatoes. It's a tomato alright, although it's a bit overripe. Seems they're called red fruits around here.
Pochi and Tama also take a bite out of curiosity, but looks like it doesn't suit their palate, their faces look complicated. Children relatively dislike tomatoes don't they.
"Are these all the red fruits you have?"
"There's a lot more on the field. But, it's still a bit more until they're ripe enough for eating."
I rather have ones that aren't this ripe, so I ask him to deliver them to the gate inn. When I gave him 10 copper coins as the payment, he vigorously rowed a small boat upstream as if he had grown wings to fly, and came back with the crops. There seems to be a small farm village on the upstream from here.
◇
Afterwards, we're trying various things like grilled dried oval squids, and grilled dried small fish.
What's with this pied piper of Hamelin situation.
After Pochi and Tama amiably shared their own shares, even though it wasn't excessive, it became like this. Well, they're something I've bought for the two, so they're free to do what they want with it.
However, seems I need to disperse them.
I pick up a decently-sized stone below, and play with it. I thought that it was light, when I check with the AR, it's not a stone, but a coconut-like fruit. It's probably unripe for eating, so it's been thrown away.
The stupid noble shows up his face on the corner of the road.
"There you are, you cursed white beasts! ■■■ ■■"
The people of this town are probably aware of this stupid noble's face.
Both the adults and the children are running away scattered. There's no helping it since the opponent is a level 20 magician. Men who look to be the stupid noble's retainers, and the baronet's personal troop follow behind him. Looking from their expression, they probably also want to stop this stupid noble's act of violence.
Since he's obviously aiming for Tama who is beside me, I throw the coconut to the face of the noble who's chanting fire magic in the downtown. While leaving a comical sound, the stupid noble fell from his horse. Since he was falling on his head, I reluctantly used [Magic Hand] to kill the momentum at a bare minimum.
However, I don't need to concern myself with stopping the retainers from stepping him with their horses do I. His health decreased fast, but thanks to his level 20, he narrowly escaped death.
The retainers dismounted their horses in panic, confiscated a cart from the nearby townspeople, put the stupid noble in it, and carried him to the baronet mansion. Sheesh, what busy guys.
I clap the shoulders of Pochi and Tama who have taken up their wooden swords and stood before me, removing their tensions. The two came forward and guarded me when the stupid noble began to chant magic.
Cheers break out from the townspeople, but please excuse me from this.