Knights, Let’s Smash Them

7 – Shouldn’t I pursue a rice cake in a dungeon? (1)

Pujac—!!

Cave loaches fell in numbers due to the sword that pierced the cave that flew along with the strong sound waves.

Green bodily fluid oozes from the walls of the dungeon, and a group of dismembered giant bugs flip over and struggle on their six feet.

f*ck. This is a bit disgusting to me too.

“Ugh, ugh!!”

Xianne immediately ran away in complete panic, and Heinkel hurriedly exited the dungeon with her pale blue face.

Of course I got out slowly. If you run like that and fall, it’s perfect for hurting your back.

I didn’t have a strong body like the knights, so I had to be careful of falling leaves.

I mean, my back has been quite sore lately.

When I came out of the dungeon like that, Xianne was pouring out her rainbow on the floor next to the cave entrance.

I fully understand.

It’s acceptable if you have a weak stomach.

“Even, what kind of monster is there, the captain is like that…….”

“It’s a giant cockroach.”

To Barbara’s question, who had turned pale at the sight of the disastrous leader, Milo stood with her hands behind her back and answered instead.

“Giant cockroach…… ?!”

“Ugh, ugh.”

Other than Lonz, the other knights trembled as they wrapped their arms around their bodies, as if they were able to recall the shape of Cave Roach.

“Centurion Milo, how far have you explored dungeons?”

“All done. You have reached the depths of the dungeon where the magic core is located.”

“Anything different?”

“Even the dungeon bosses were just giants of Cave Loch. There is nothing wrong with it.”

“Hmm.”

I was lost in thought for a moment. In fact, if the rustling cave is the habitat of the cave loach, it cannot be regarded as a joke.

On the contrary, it is much better than C-class monsters such as goblins and ratmen who only attack people and leave no usable loot behind.

At least Cave Roach doesn’t attack people first, and his body parts have always been used as alchemy ingredients.

In short.

I mean, how much money do you have?

In this regard, it was fortunate that the royal mages did not investigate properly and went back.

If the report had stated that this was the Cave Roach Dungeon, the vassals of Rupel Manor would have known the usefulness of this dungeon.

If so, like the other two dungeons, it might have been managed by a mercenary rather than a corps. Going in and out of dungeons freely like now must have had some restrictions.

It’s becoming more complicated for the Knights alone to sign contracts with other people. Anyway, it must have been a headache in many ways.

“Vice-captain Emain.”

“Yes, Magistrate of Luberne.”

“Are there any good alchemy shops in Petalonto, or herbalists that carry something like that?”

“Only one place…… There should be.”

The northern part is very barren. There must have been many alchemists and herbalists who came in search of materials, but not many who tried to live in the North at all.

Still, I’m glad I have one.

“Let’s go there for a while. Heinz, Barbara, Lons, please wait here with Cianne. …… That, the leader, please take good care of it.”

“Okay! Administrator!!”

Lonz replied in a booming voice. Reminiscent of a barbarian to anyone, he was a very reassuring knight, both in appearance and atmosphere.

I don’t know your skills, but I’m sure you have power.

“I’ll be back soon.”

I lightly waved to the knights and headed for the garrison stable with vice-captain Emain.

I’ve found a useful dungeon, but I need to deal with it quickly.

That way we can try something.

Because these damn knights needed money, more money.

***

Petaronto is said to be the largest city in the county’s territory, but what was it like to call it a big city?

There were less than 5,000 city dwellers, and most of them were hunting or logging, so the infrastructure was not good even empty words.

I wouldn’t have paid much attention to a territory like this if it weren’t for the production of amazing beer.

If you consider the environment of such a city.

The only alchemy shop in Petalonto, ‘Blue-Eyed Lizard’, was a fairly decent store.

Jjallang─.

“Welcome!”

As I opened the door and entered, a young man who appeared to be in his mid-to-late twenties greeted me.

He was an alchemist who went well with the gold-rimmed monocle and the subtle scent of the potion.

“What is Vice-captain Emain Lua doing with our store? And the person next to him…….”

“Nice to meet you. This is Lubern Alroy, the newly appointed administrator of the Knights.”

I quickly shared my voice. I was able to convince myself that he was a fairly skilled alchemist simply from his first impression.

‘Well, if you come down to this kang village and set up a shop, it’s impossible unless you have a lot of money or a great passion for alchemy.’

The big data he has accumulated while meeting quite a few alchemists since he was the administrator of the Knights of the Black Lion is still valid.

The fact that he managed the shop so well in Petalondo, where there is nothing, naturally proves his skills.

“Ah…… ! You are the new administrator! Nice to meet you! My name is Compton the Alchemist.”

Compton had a kind smile.

“Then the reason you two came looking for our blue-eyed lizard…… ?”

“Don’t you need Cave Roach oil?”

I went straight to the point. If you have to gossip about trivial things, you will only waste the time that came out.

“Cave Roach Oil… ….”

“Yes, we are looking for a merchant to dispose of the dungeon by-products managed by our knights.”

“Are the cave loaches inhabiting the dungeons managed by the Knights!?”

As expected.

Compton reacted as if he had never heard of it.

As I said before, Cave Roach is a fairly useful monster, except for its repulsive appearance.

First of all, the torso was very good as food for carnivorous livestock such as the Earth Dragon, and above all, it was used as a base material for high-quality potions when the oil glands hanging inside were well squeezed out.

“If you sign an exclusive contract with me for the disposal of by-products…… I have no reason to refuse. But, by any chance, how much commission do I have to pay?”

As expected, it was the proper attitude of a merchant.

Before you sign a contract, you should first check the fee.

Nothing is free in this world. Even if I was doing a favor for Count Rupell, I was going to receive a full salary anyway.

Moreover, the next most important thing is authority and work-life balance.

The Count promised to guarantee almost full authority over the Knights.

Thanks to that, the fact that I don’t have to live a life like a disabled person every day like I did at my old job gave me enough satisfaction.

Just.

This time, the price I received from Compton was not about simple money or work-life balance, as in the case of Count Rupell and myself.

“There is no fee.”

“Yes?”

“Yes!?”

Vice-captain Emain and Compton, who were watching from the sidelines, shouted almost simultaneously.

“We can’t lend a manpower separately, and Mr. Compton has to do all the collection, but insisting on a fee is kind of funny.”

“No…… Wouldn’t it be better to pay the dungeon entrance fee?”

I smiled and replied to Emain who spoke in a worried voice.

“Mr.

For money, it’s only fair when there are a lot of passers-by, and how much money they’ll take from an alchemist who comes a couple of times a month to collect materials.

Only then can we gather dust and become dust.

“Mr. Compton just needs to make a good quality potion using cave roach oil. Yeongji-min must be prosperous and strong for Yeongdo to be prosperous and strong.”

“I can’t… ….”

“I just want to ask you one thing. Is there a guild that conducts potion trading separately?”

Everything is supply and demand.

Medicines and potions made by alchemists and herbalists have always been representative products with higher demand than supply.

Even for the cheapest recovery potion, which only strengthens the healing power of torn wounds, 1 gold coin is basic.

Since the income of a typical tenant farmer after tax per month was about 1 gold coin, you can roughly know how high the value of a product called potion is.

If you are a tenant farmer, that potion will cost you a month’s worth of living expenses.

Because of this, there were quite a few guilds that only dealt with ‘potions’, excluding all other items.

They used to travel all over the empire, buying potions from skilled alchemists and herbalists relegated to these poor villages and selling them at high prices.

“Yes, I have one. The Hameln Chamber of Commerce visits Petaronto on the first week of every month.”

Hameln Trading Company.

It was a name I had heard before.

When I was serving as the administrator of the Imperial Black Lion Knights, I remember it as a company that competed for potion bidding several times.

It’s not that big, and the products it handles aren’t very attractive, so it’s the top that gets eliminated from the competition every time.

‘Still, if you’re in the Imperial Knights’ bidding competition, you’re guaranteed a certain amount of financial power. It won’t be bad.’

“It’s okay. Next time someone from that company comes over, let’s see each other.”

“Are you talking with the magistrate?”

“Of course.”

Anyway, the important thing now was to revitalize the economy of the territory.

It is said that the northern part has a very closed economic structure due to the nature of the region, but if money is circulated too much inside, circulation may be easy, but it is never good in the long run.

“If the other side finds out that there are good products in our territory, we will increase the number of transactions with the territory. Naturally, as external capital flows in, the city will become lively.”

All I wanted was a side effect. If you can increase the trading volume of the Merchant Merchants through Compton’s potion, it doesn’t matter if you let them use those D-grade dungeons for free for the rest of their lives.

“I agree with you. After all, you are the Luvern magistrate.”

It was only then that vice-captain Emain seemed to understand my true intentions.

“If that’s really the case…… How should I thank you…… !”

Campton, who had a lot of emotion in his eyes, bowed his head to me.

“If you want to receive affection, what do you think of providing our knights with an unfinished potion that is a little short of being sold as a prize?”

“Ayu! No wonder! It is not difficult to provide only level 4 to level 3 potions!”

“Then let’s do it that way.”

I smiled and reached out to the young alchemist. He hurriedly wiped his hands on my clothes and quickly responded with a handshake.

What is the first ‘public transaction’ signed after taking office as an administrator of the Snow Leopard Knights of Count Rupel?

It wasn’t a bad result.