We stayed in a dungeon city along the border of the Elf Queen Kingdom and the Dwarf Kingdom.
The next day.
After registering as adventurers, we lined up early in the morning to enter the dungeon.
"How about some grilled skewers for breakfast?"
"Preserved food! Preserved food is on sale now!"
"Recovery potions, wounds medicine, arrows, we've everything you need!"
The entrance to the dungeon was at the far end of the city.
At first glance, it looked more like a cave than a dungeon entrance.
The Dwarf Kingdom is surrounded by mountains.
This dungeon was discovered at the foot of the mountain.
High walls like castle walls surrounded the dungeon entrance. A steel door is wide open, with dwarf guards checking the tags of adventurers who will enter.
Stalls and vendors surrounded the area, trying to sell their goods to the adventurers who will enter the dungeon.
Gold standing in front of me seems very interested. He looks around with curious eyes.
"Hmm ... humans, beastmen, the dwarf race is the majority, while the elf, demon, and dragonmen are rarely seen."
"Since ancient times, the two races always have conflict in handling this dungeon, which is why the elves are rarely seen here. The reason why not many demons and dragonmen is simply because of the geographical factor. There are many humans because there is a dungeon here."
"As expected from Dark-sama (fake name). That's a great insight."
Gold, me and Nemumu are lining up in that order.
There is a purpose for this lineup.
Gold is in the front as a shield to protect me, and Nemumu, who excelled in detection, in the rear.
Although it's hard to imagine any surface world adventurer who can defeat me, it is a precautionary act.
It was Nemumu who insisted on this idea.
"We don't want anything to happen to Raito-sama," she assured me with a serious expression.
Therefore, Nemumu's hugging me from behind with her hands on my shoulders is purely to protect me.
It's embarrassing to feel her soft boobs against the back of my head, but if Nemumu insists, I have no choice but to obey.
After all, I'm 12 or 13 years old, and Nemumu is 17 or 18 years old.
From a third party's point of view, we would look like siblings.
However, it is still inevitable that we stand out.
The adventurers, vendors, stall keepers, and other people around us gave us curious stares, and a few rude ones said, "Who are these humans?
Gold is tall, wearing armor from head to toe. When he stands in the line, everyone can see his head.
Nemumu is a beautiful brown-skinned girl with silver hair that reflects the morning sun. The men look at her with affection and ulterior motives, while the women look at her with jealousy and other ulterior reasons.
I'm wearing a black hood and a mask. People are staring at me because I'm sandwiched between them and being treated carefully.
By the way, the Dwarf Kingdom is located just west of the continent.
The city we are in is located at the southernmost tip of the Dwarf Kingdom, and the Demon Kingdom is located at the north. One needs to cross the mountains or cross other race territories to reach there.
The Dragonmen Empire is located just east of the continent, so it is difficult to reach those two countries.
(.....Are?)
Ahead of us, a novice adventurer team with members around 15 years old. Suddenly a young human wearing a hood and carrying hand luggage cutting the line in front of the team.
His height is around 170cm. Despite walking with luggage in his hands, his balance is steady. I could tell that he had been working out a lot.
It was a little shameful that people with that skill cutting in the line.
The novice adventurers who were interrupted by that man are too scared to warn him, so they looked at each other and said, "What, what should we do?"
I read the air and offer a helping hand.
"Hey, hoody! Don't cut in."
I warned on their behalf, and the hood man turned around.
The young people in between us shrunk.
"How dare you warn me...? Do you know who I am?"
"How do I know who you are when you're hiding your face behind a hood? ....Even if I don't know you and you're a high-profile person, more reason for you to refrain from embarrassing yourself by cutting in."
"Wha-ha-ha! The Lord is right! I should be more scared if we know the identity under that hood. Are you drunk from slurping down alcohol in the daytime? Don't talk nonsense and quietly line up at the back of the line. You not just troubling us, but the others in line as well."
"Dark-sama is right. Now quickly go to the back of the line. Or are you too dumb to understand that?"
In response to my warning, Gold and Nemumu also raised their voices.
"The boy is right! You should be scared if we knew your true identity!"
"Yes, that's right! Line up properly as the boy said!"
It's not just Gold and Nemumu.
The human adventurers who lined up behind me who agree with my opinion also booed.
Maybe because they don't know the race of the hood man. Some of the adventurers are very brave, and perhaps they saw us as human adventurers and voiced their minds.
And the dwarves and beastmen adventurers in line are watching the scene with a silent and cold gaze.
They don't like the hoods' intrusion. Still, they're probably more annoyed that the humans they consider inferior make so much noise.
"You, you humans are just bugs that we used to trample..."
The Hood man had a lot of pride in his words and actions, and his whole body shook with rage when he was booed.
I could tell at a glance that he is furious.
But I didn't care and told him further.
"I'm warning you because you're breaking a rule that even a bug would understand. If you understand, please go to the back of the line.
"How, how dare you...?"
The hooded man stretches out his arms to take his luggage, holding his patience by clenching his teeth.
"Humans.... you bugs race got carried away. Remember that!"
After spitting out a few words, he left the line and started walking to the back.
the adventurers behind us praised me for showing the human race spirit.
After I had finished responding to them.
"Thank, thank you so much for your help!"
The young adventurer in front of us thanks me for my help.
Apparently, it was a party of four.
One of them is a boy with short red hair who seems to be the leader of the group, and hiding behind him is a girl with the same hair color and facial features.
The other members are a slightly short boy and a taller boy.
The girl is 12 or 13 years old, and maybe the boy is around 14 or 15 years old.
We didn't know what to say because it was so sudden. If we quarrel with other prideful races, we could get into trouble.... I'm sorry we ended up having you solved the problem.
"No, don't worry about it. I'm just doing what is right. Besides, we will be in trouble because our turn will be delayed."
The leader, the red-haired boy bowed his head.
I ignored his gracious attitude and answered with a calm voice.
The young people are completely relieved of the tension and laughed at each other, probably because my response was good.
"Thank you very much. That mask is really cool too. Is that armor really made from gold too?"
"Hey, Gimra! Don't be rude!"
"Leader and everyone else is curious too, right?
"Hahahahahaha! It's only natural that you're curious about my golden armor! By the way, this armor is not made from gold..."
"No, it's not. It's just a fake that looks like one. If you think about it, there is no such thing as gold covering the whole body. Above all, there is no point in making armor out of gold, which has a low hardness."
Nemumu, who had been listening to the conversation, turned to Gold and bluntly cut off the conversation.
The adventurers around her seemed to agree with her. "If one thinks about it with common sense, that's true."
Actually, the armor is a mixture of gold and rare metals to enhance its defensive capabilities and keep its golden glow.
But there is no need for him to tell them about it.
The red-haired boy who was called the leader bowed his head again.
"I'm sorry. Our party member was rude to you."
"Don't worry about it. It's Gold's hobby, or rather his... obsession, and people often misunderstood him. We've gotten used to it."
I let out a dry voice.
In fact, even if he painted it over, it would be useless because the magical effect would repaint it golden. By default, it's his appearance.
It is in line with our purpose of making a name as adventurers, so there is no problem leaving it as it is now.
"Every, everyone has their own preferences."
The young leader of the group took my words in stride and brushed them off.
Surely the adventurers around us think that he's a knight with a strange obsession.
The red hair leader is trying to change the weird atmosphere.
"I don't mean to be rude, but this is your first time in this dungeon, right?
"What? Is it so obvious to see?"
I asked, tilting my head at his point.
He nodded his head.
"There are many types of dungeons. The dungeons here are different from the others in that each floor is spacious. That's why it's common to stay in the dungeon. I can tell that because you all don't have any outdoor equipment with you. So the next time you enter the dungeon, I suggest you bring along some outdoor equipment."
As we are having a conversation, it's time for the red-haired leader's party to enter into the dungeon.
They bowed to us and hurriedly moved forward.
Soon it's our turn.
While I'm thinking, they called us to proceed to enter the dungeon.
("Item boxes" are rare, and "the three of us have it". It might look suspicious. Should I mention that one of us has an item box, or should we prepare a package with outdoor equipment for disguise?)
While thinking about which option to choose or is there any better idea. We step into the dungeon.