36. Beastfolk

When Elysia told me to pick out one of each item at the department store, I had used Weaving and the Workshop to bring back the best-looking ones. I hadn't known their exact prices, but their grades and descriptions had given me a rough idea of their value.

The problem was that once I had them, I had nowhere to sell them. As soon as Ampere heard that I had brought them home, he shoved them into storage without so much as a glance. The inventory simply piled up.

And so, I brought Quinier to the Roah Estate.

Standing before the estate's main gate, she murmured, "... It's been a while."

"Have you visited our family before, Quinier?"

"Mm, no." She shook her head.

Then what did she mean, it had been a while? But rather than explain, she changed the subject.

"Let's go in."

When the gate opened and we stepped inside, Ampere was already waiting at the mansion's entrance. Quinier approached him and offered a greeting.

"It is a pleasure to meet the head of the Roach family."

Ampere returned the greeting.

"The honor is mine, Head of the Biet Family."

... Moments like these really drove home the fact that Quinier was the head of her family. She was only two years older than Frondier, but their positions were already worlds apart.

"My son brought home a collection of white elephants. It's a relief to hear that Biet is willing to look them over."

"Not at all. Quality merchandise deserves to be valued accordingly."

Quinier shot me a sidelong glance as she spoke. She was going to buy everything as my 'compensation' anyway, but that was how she had to put it to Ampere.

Yet Ampere continued to gaze at her. I had never seen him look at anyone for that long.

Eventually, he spoke.

"... Head of the Biet Family."

"Yes? Please, go ahead."

"... No, it's nothing."

And with that, the conversation fizzled out.

After a few more exchanges, Ampere went inside the mansion. Apparently, I was to handle the rest myself. I called a maid and asked her to show Quinier the way.

We followed the maid to a storeroom tucked away on the right side of the estate. Its doors opened to reveal the piles of goods I had brought back from the department store.

Quinier looked at me.

"So, which of these are the 'white elephants' you brought home?"

There was an edge to her tone.

I pointed.

"Everything with a brand name."

"... Everything? Every branded product in this storeroom?"

"Yes. My father doesn't care for that sort of thing."

Forget luxury goods—he didn't even carry a Sagephone. Maybe I should give him one? Atzier, too.

... I'd probably be lucky if they didn't slice them in half in midair.

"Hmm. Let me take a look first."

Quinier began examining the goods in the storeroom one by one.

She might not have been on my level or that of an experienced appraiser, but she had a good eye. All the more so now that she'd been honing her skills since that incident at the museum.

As she picked up one item after another, the look in her eyes gradually changed. She had recognized their value.

"Frondier."

"Yes?"

"How much do you want for the whole lot?"

"You're buying all of it?"

"You told me to. And it's worth buying. Every item here is excellent quality, and they're the most expensive products from their respective brands. Some will actually increase in value over time."

Hmm. I nodded. Since the goods belonged to me, I should be the one to set the price.

... But.

"I'll leave the pricing to you, Quinier."

"... Have you forgotten that I'm a merchant?"

"That's why I trust you to price them accurately."

And it wouldn't matter if she didn't. She could take them cheap. After all, I'd gotten every last one for free. Elysia had given them to me.

"... Hah. How did I end up saddled with someone like you?"

Saddled with me? Anyone listening would think I was blackmailing her.

Quinier pressed her thumb against her lips for a moment before speaking.

"All right. Eight million quir for everything."

"..."

"I can't go any higher."

Back when I'd held that auction, the starting bid for the unbreakable steel had been five million quir.

... Not to put these things down, but none of them were anywhere near Legendary Grade. There were quite a few items, sure, but were they really that expensive?

"... Are they really that good?"

"You can tell what's genuine, but you don't know what anything costs."

That struck a little too close to the heart. Wasn't that practically the essence of being Frondier?

"Most of these are signature products from enormous brands. And they were limited releases, both in quantity and availability, so collectors are already scouring the market for them. Products with those restrictions often have some kind of shortcoming, but these don't. Quality, rarity, and brand recognition. It's rare to find something that checks all three boxes."

Was a department store run by the imperial family really on another level? People said department stores in Etius had neither a floor nor a ceiling. I was starting to understand what they meant.

"Anyway, there's no way I can carry all of this by myself. I'll have to call some peo—"

Quinier stopped there. Her eyes turned cold as she looked out of the storeroom.

Ah. That look. I'd seen it on plenty of people by now.

"Menosorpo."

Without hesitation, I spread the magic circle.

As when I'd detected Renzo, Menosorpo could sense presences within its range in addition to its unique functions. That wasn't exclusive to Menosorpo; most large magic circles shared that property.

"... Someone you know?"

Menosorpo had definitely picked something up. Someone was standing motionless high in a tree outside the estate. Probably watching us.

"Yes. Probably the one who spread that rumor about me."

I narrowed my eyes. That made this serious.

"Shall I strike them down?"

They were inside Menosorpo's range, so I could launch a preemptive attack from here. But Quinier shook her head.

"No need. If we stay put, he'll come to us on his own."

"... Wouldn't that be dangerous?"

Quinier shook her head again. There wasn't a trace of tension in her eyes. If anything, she looked annoyed.

"Yes, it might be better for you to meet him, too."

With that, she walked away from the storeroom.

Better for me to meet him? What did she mean?

I walked over beside her. She was staring into the distance, in the direction of the presence Menosorpo had detected. I followed her gaze, and sure enough, there was someone up in a tree.

I hadn't gotten a sense of it through Menosorpo, but that tree was seriously tall. Wow. How had they gotten all the way up there? Was this a mage who could use Levitation on Elodie's level?

"... Just wait here, and he'll come."

"Sorry?"

At that moment, as though answering Quinier, the figure sitting in the tree sprang to their feet. So they really were coming. I instinctively tensed and clenched my fists.

Except...

RUSTLE, RUSTLE.

From that lofty perch, the figure was painstakingly climbing down, carefully moving to the branch below, then the one below that.

"..."

"..."

By the time the silence started feeling a little too long, they were about halfway down.

"This is taking a while."

"It is."

Having finally reached the ground, the figure charged toward us at a terrifying speed, seemingly forgetting all about that cautious, step-by-step descent.

... On all fours.

"Hey! Quinier!!"

With a single bound, he cleared the estate wall and landed in front of us.

"Who's that pitch-black guy next to you?!"

He was a boy with cat ears and a tail.

"... A beastman."

To think I'd meet one in this world.

Since Etius borrowed from all sorts of myths, it naturally had beastfolk. The Minotaur of Greek mythology wasn't much different, either.

Compared to humans, though, there were very, very few of them. Put simply, there weren't enough to call them a 'race.' Most were either part human or descendants of 'legends.'

As a result, every sighting of beastfolk in Etius caused a stir among players, even though they were a common sight in other games.

Even then, most beastfolk didn't match people's fantasies. They might have a horse's head, horse legs, or hooves for hands. If they were hostile, they were no different from monsters, but in Etius, anything intelligent that didn't attack people passed for 'beastfolk.'

That was how desperate the game was for beastfolk.

"Frondier, there's something you should know."

While the beastman continued indignantly demanding answers right in front of her, Quinier addressed me instead.

"What is it?"

"He gets furious if you call him a 'cat.' His ears and tail might look like a cat's, but he does have White Tiger blood."

"A White Tiger? Then it'd be dangerous to make him angry."

"No, I didn't say it was dangerous. I'm just letting you know."

... Hmm?

I didn't quite understand, but meanwhile, Quinier turned to the beastman.

"Kora, why did you follow me all the way here?"

"I asked first! Who's that pitch-black thing?!"

I wasn't that black. If anyone was pitch-black, it was Quinier. Her hair, her fan, her clothes—everything.

Kora straightened up, eyeing me with intense suspicion. His tail stood straight up behind him. He looked furious.

"Wow, you really are like a ca—"

Ah. That had slipped out.

Kora's eyes flashed. With a peculiar cry of "Rawr!" he thrust a hand forward and shouted at me.

"Flame Arrow!"

What?

Startled, I drew my short sword. Flame Arrow was a spell on the same level as Elodie's Storm Arrow.

A White Tiger beastman who could use magic on par with Storm Arrow? He was no ordina—

POP!

Something like a candle flame popped out in front of Kora's hand and fluttered.

The flame drifted toward me like a flower petal. It really looked as though the slightest breeze would carry it off somewhere, but it somehow made it all the way over to me.

"..."

I wondered what to do, then slashed it with all my might. Just in case it was something terrifying that would trigger a massive explosion on contact.

Nothing happened.

"..."

I stayed tense for another moment, in case it was a delayed attack meant to throw off my timing.

Still, nothing happened.

"Grr..."

Kora clenched both fists in front of me, trembling.

Feeling as though I ought to do something, I tried pretending to be hurt.

"... Aaargh?"

"Hey! Shut up! You're making fun of me, aren't you? Shut up! Hey! You bastard!"

What was I supposed to do, then? Why was he acting like the wronged party when he'd been the one to shoot at me?

Quinier sighed.

"Kora, I told you. Your magic won't work properly if you use the wrong activation word."

"It wasn't wrong! I was trying to cast Flame Arrow! It felt like it would work!"

... Flame Arrow with no incantation or spell formula, just an activation word?

Quinier hung her head as though she were the one feeling embarrassed, then spoke.

"Frondier, let me introduce you."

"Hey! Quinier! Answer my question first! Who is he?!"

Still paying Kora absolutely no heed, Quinier continued speaking to me.

"He has White Tiger blood, with incredible strength and reflexes. He was born with all the makings of a warrior, but..."

That made sense. Judging by his inability to use magic, he'd climbed that towering tree with nothing but his own body.

And I could guess what Quinier was going to say next.

"This is Kora, an aspiring mage who really, really, really wants to use magic."