Prytaneum
Parboil
I couldn't help but marvel a bit as we entered. There were all kinds of businesses in Orario, the Labyrinth City. You had the usual stuff you'd expect for the civilians, but alongside it you'd find stores that sold magical weapons or deadly poisons or whatever else you might need as an adventurer. Officially, the Guild was in charge and decided exactly what was and wasn't allowed, but in practice, as long as certain rules were obeyed and a god was involved, you could get away with a lot in this city. As in, stuff that you'd figure would be illegal, you could run as a business.
For example, the Guild made a business out of issuing quests, after confirming and guaranteeing the reward and the person behind it, so long as the quest is completed properly. At the same time, however, Lili told me that there existed shady quests, like ones where the issuer refuses to reveal their identity, the request is deemed absurd, or the reward is unverified. And not only did they exist, but practically right across the street was a Familia owned tavern that operated as a quest and information brokerage. Lili had told me to just avoid anything that wasn't approved by the Guild for the time being and I couldn't understand why anyone would do otherwise, given all that—but they existed.
I guess some people will go a long way to circumvent the requirements of the Guild, whether to conceal themselves or earn a less reputable reward. But there were all kinds of places like that, which skirted the already dubious edge of Orario's law. According to Lili, there were several black markets in Orario, running the gamut from the sketch to the truly illegal. On the sketchy end, there were just stores that sold things without the technical approval of the Guild, like a market that was supposedly in the South-Eastern district, that ran a market similar to the main streets, but run by adventurers. The logic behind it was fairly simple; not everyone belonged to a business Familia. Not every Blacksmith could sell swords in Babel or stock potions in a store and if they were, say, the only person in their Familia with Blacksmith or Mixing, then buying a store wasn't worth the investment of buying a permanent place or taxes that the Guild charged. But how did you sell it then?
In places like that, apparently. The owner of the place apparently rented out stalls for a day or two at a low price, giving people a chance to sell their stuff. By its very nature, a lot of the stuff here could be bought more cheaply than at the stores but…at the same time, it was risky. Places like that didn't have any of the standards of quality or official oversight that places like the Hephaestus Familia were so strict with or that the Guild enforced, so there was no way to be sure if you could depend on the quality of the armor you bought or the effectiveness of potions. In fact, according to Lili, a number of people deliberately cut corners to save on materials, using substandard metals or watering down potions.
Lili said she had a lot of experience in places like that and had mentioned the idea of her selling things I produced with Mystery there while in disguise. It was definitely an idea, but I was leery about it, worried that something might happen to her as a result of the attempted secrecy. Given the choice, I'd rather reveal some of my secrets than dangle Lili in the middle of a shady market after surrounding her with valuables. She could handle herself, but there was a difference in knowing she could deal with a pack of wolves and throwing her to one. There were apparently other places like that, too, which dealt with higher class adventurers—places where individual items could go for millions of valis or more, auctioning off either extremely valuable items or extremely dangerous ones. Even the Guild, lax as it might be, would probably object to just selling something like Welf's swords to anyone who walked in the door and hoping they didn't blow up the city, that just doesn't seem to stop anyone.
Then, there were the shadier places—the real black market, if you will. A place that Lili had said she was thankful to have avoided, whether as a customer, a seller, or a product. Beyond illegal and dangerous materials, both monsters and people can apparently be sold, in and out of the city. That seemed like the type of filthy place that would be best cleaned by running a river through it, but one thing at a time.
Thankfully, we didn't go anywhere like that. I'd been a bit worried when Ryuu mentioned she knew a place to purchase materials, given that she apparently had an anti-hero origin story. The building we entered was near the Pantheon and looked about as fancy, with marble columns and polished floors. In fact, looking around, I noticed that a lot of the people inside appeared to be dressed in a modified version of the Guild uniform. The wide hall was ringed by glass cases, all of them with someone nearby, and most of them didn't even have items in them. The majority simply had cards with scribbles written on them, with only the front of the store seeming to have the actual products—which was bad news for me, since I couldn't read, but at least I had Ryuu here.
After a few moments, I managed to rub some brain cells together and get a spark.
"Is this what the Guild does with the items that are sold to it?" I asked.
Ryuu nodded.
"The Guild is by far the most reliable purchaser of drop items and Dungeon materials, Mr. Jackson," She said. "Most of them, they then resell through contracts, auctions, and stores such as this."
I nodded slowly. I'd figured they had to do something with everything they bought and I knew that they had a way to use magic stones to create items and appliances. I mean, they had to have some user for them, or why bother? As such, what I found here wasn't as surprising as it might have been, but…slowly, I looked over the drop items for sale and frowned.
"Can you buy anything in the Dungeon here?" I asked, counting the number of slots open.
"No," She replied. "Simply because the Guild often lack access to high-quality materials."
"Why?" I asked.
Ryuu was silent for a moment before answering, seeming to consider how best to phrase it.
"The Guild is a reliable purchaser of items because it would purchase anything of value," She said slowly. "However, at the same time, the Guild sets the standard of value. That is, the Guild can be relied upon as a sure thing, but will only buy things for the lowest possible price. At the same time, they will generally sell things for a relatively low price, but this tends to mean that valuable items are purchased exceedingly quickly by major business Familia, many of whom has deals with the Guild already. As both a buyer and a seller, it is not ideal; if one wishes to make as large a profit as possible, or acquire rare and valuable items, other means are often required. Quests are one method of acquiring such things, as many will often seek the specific items required to fill such an order, but naturally require that the requester offer a reward significantly higher than the Guild or immediate competitors, and make the risk worth the reward. For that reason, however, it's tempting to adventurers."
"So people don't usually sell their most valuable items to the Guild," I guessed.
"Indeed, Mr. Jackson," She replied. "Generally speaking, the Guild only has regular access to items from the Upper and Middle Floors, which are supplied primarily by Level 1 and 2 adventurers, the two most populous groups. Beyond that, demand begins to outstrip supply, and more money can be made in other ways. However, up to that point, a large number may be easily acquired."
I nodded in understanding and began to look around in interest. I was familiar with most of the items that were actually present, as the majority of them were items dropped on the Upper Floors, by monsters I'd been routinely swamped by. None of them really seemed to speak to me, however, not even the things like the Batpat Fangs that I'd already used. Was it because I hadn't killed them myself? If I was right about how Hunter and Mystery interacted, that could be both useful and a pain in the ass. Useful, too, in that I could potentially make use of anything I found in the Dungeon, but a pain in the ass because it would also limit me, especially right now.
Frowning to myself, I began to make my way around the store, looking at what else they had. Even if Hunter might have been useless here, I still had Hero, so something might speak to me. They had a collection of interesting things, from fruits and plants that grew on the eighteenth or below, to odd crystals that had evidently been harvested or even the weapons the Dungeon itself produced. I guess the Guild really would buy just about anything, and I made note of a few things that caught my eye and interest. There was even an entire section apparently devoted to Adamantite, from that contained in monster drops to the pure stuff, found in the walls of the Dungeon, the latter of which seemed to have long since sold out.
A pity, that. I'd have liked a chance to see some of that, if I could afford it. I wondered if Welf or Wayland had any?
"Hm…" I hummed to myself, frowning as I continued to meander aimlessly throughout the store. I'd mostly decided on things that were found in the Dungeon, rather than dropped by monsters, but that didn't make them cost any less—or me any less uncertain about what I'd make. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Since you have to be able to reach at least the eighteenth to get any of these things, it's no surprise they're expensive."
"You needn't purchase everything now, Mr. Jackson," Ryuu said behind me. "By my reckoning and given the examples of your work I have seen, you should be able to sell your creations at a significant profit. It would always be possible to return at a later date. If necessary, however, I could venture down to the Middle Floors to acquire whatever you need."
"I'd feel bad if I made you do that," I replied, which was true. Especially at a time like this, where she already had so much to worry about—and besides, I was pretty sure I could go down there as well, I was just too worried about endangering others to do so right now. Ugh, just when I say I won't enter the Dungeon, a bunch of things that would be made way easier by entering the Dungeon occur.
But Ryuu was right; I didn't need to by everything, especially when I hadn't even begun to sell what I had yet. Even if I wanted to experiment, I had to keep in mind what mattered most. Undine Silk I could produce basically for free, so that was easy enough. After that, I'd need to prioritize Nectar, which was thankfully pretty simple to make too, if dangerous to actually use. Still, it and my blood—or rather, the way they apparently mixed—seemed to be my claim to fame, Mystery-wise, allowing me to create things that other people either couldn't, or simply hadn't. After those things, the next in line was…
I shook my head, irritated.
"What do you think, Ryuu?" I asked. "Any ideas on what you want me to make for you yet?"
She was silent for a long moment, considering it again before nodding.
"Several," She replied. "Though I do not know if they are possible. If they are, however…a way to conceal myself or turn invisible would be appreciated, as would some means to view distant places. A magical mirror or crystal ball, perhaps. A means to fly, as you mentioned, would also be desirable."
…Apparently, Ryuu saw Mystery and thought 'fairy godmother.' Was it just me or was that a whole bunch of unreasonable request right from the start—I had no idea how to even start to do any of that.
But then, I guess I was the one who'd offered to try and make her wings. Maybe I shouldn't have set the bar so high from the very beginning, but there was no helping it now—I'd said I would try, so there was nothing else to do but give it my best shot. I mean, I knew all that stuff was possible, at least; I'd seen all of it before. I just had to figure out how to make ends meet. It didn't have to be perfect or even an exact match, in large part because I probably couldn't make such a thing if I tried. My pathetic imitation of the Golden Fleece had proved that much. For now, I'd just focus on making something that could get the job done, more or less, and go from there.
I sighed to myself and scratched my head, nodding once.
"Okay," I said. "I'll give it a shot, I guess. Just don't expect too much of me or you'll be disappointed.."
"I expect a great deal, Mr. Jackson," Ryuu replied. "But I do not expect to be disappointed by you."
Well, I thought. What could I say to that?
Invisibility caps, magic mirrors, and wings, coming right up apparently. Maybe I'd splurge on miracles and just make a magic potion while I was at it.