Following her through the office, we exited through a door that seemed to lead to a back area. Outside, carriages and carts were lined up in front of a warehouse, waiting their turn. I couldn't tell if they were picking up supplies to transport elsewhere or unloading them here; it was likely a bit of both.
"This is the small package receiving counter."
After that, the woman explained my situation to the staff before leaving.
"Please place the potion on the counter," the staff member instructed. I followed the directions and set down the healing potion in its wooden box.
The staff then selected one potion from the box, drew it up with a glass dropper, and held it up to the light before returning the liquid to its bottle. After inspecting it, the potion bottle was sealed and coated in wax.
"This is a Level 2 healing potion," they said. "However, we'll buy it at the Level 1 price. Is that acceptable?"
"Of course," I replied.
"That concludes the inspection."
"Was it okay to only bring one?"
"I've heard from the vice guild leader that you are a skilled alchemist, so it's fine."
Though it might have been flattery, it genuinely made me happy.
Soon, I was handed 252 gold coins. After counting the coins in the pouch and signing the receipt, I repacked the coins into the pouch and stored it in my item box.
I then introduced the children to the inspector, confirming that we could deliver goods here beyond tomorrow, before departing.
Next stop: the Adventurers' Guild. I didn't feel like I had walked too far, but the children seemed sluggish. It appeared they lacked stamina. Iona, in particular, had thin legs from previous mobility issues. It was clear we needed to focus on building their strength. However, I couldn't push them too hard.
"Alright, let's take a break and grab a drink from that stall over there," I said.
The stall offered grape juice and orange juice, so I let everyone choose the one they wanted. The juices were served in earthenware cups. I opted for the grape juice, but it was lukewarm and more sour than sweet, making it less than enjoyable. The kids, however, seemed to love it; all four of them were happily sipping their drinks with smiles on their faces. It appeared that the cups were to be returned to the stall—whether they would be washed and reused or simply reused as is, was probably better left unknown.
While the kids finished their juices, I asked the vendor, "Do you know where I can find a cart around here?"
He replied, "If you head straight towards the Adventurers' Guild, you'll find a large general store facing the street. You can buy a small cart there for home use."
After returning the cups, we made our way to the store. The kids fell into a line behind the vendor as he led the way—like little ducklings following their mother.
We quickly spotted the general store. I entered and told the clerk I wanted a smaller cart. He led me to the back of the store and said, "Please choose from the carts we have here."
To avoid any unpleasant mishaps while transporting items, I decided to buy two reasonably sturdy carts, even if they were a bit heavy. I also picked up around ten spare wooden boxes while I was at it.
I stored the cart and the wooden box in my item box. The shopkeeper looked at me in surprise, but that was all.
As soon as I left the store, I arrived at the adventurer's guild. With the children in tow, I noticed several adventurers inside glaring at us. There was nothing I could do about it, so I ignored them and walked to the left side of the hall, calling out to the woman at the stall.
"I brought potions today too."
"Oh, thank you!"
I handed over the wooden box containing one hundred twenty potions and received eighty-four gold coins in return.
"Starting tomorrow, these kids will be bringing potions here, so please take care of them."
"Sure thing! But what about the payment? Is it really okay to give the money to the kids?"
It was a valid concern; handing a large sum of money to children was risky.
"Please give me the payment when I come by."
"That's a better idea."
I thanked the woman and left the adventurer's guild.
Worried about the alchemist guild as well, I decided to stop by again on my way back to the inn to discuss the payment with them. With that settled, I felt more at ease about the kids handling the potion deliveries.
There was still time before lunch, so I wandered down the street and spotted a food shop. Curiosity piqued, I stepped inside to browse.
Upon reflection, it was a bit pointless for me to buy anything since I wouldn't be the one cooking, but there were dried fruits for sale in the store. They seemed like a good snack for the kids, so I picked out a decent assortment and made my purchase.
As I stepped outside, the lunch bell rang, so I headed into a nearby diner for a meal. It must have been quite a sight to see an older man dining with four children who clearly didn't resemble him; the other patrons gaped at us with curious eyes. I chose to ignore their stares and focused on our lunch before leaving the diner.
Afterward, it was supposed to be free time, but I decided to stretch my legs and explore the city instead. While wandering aimlessly, I spotted a large building down the street.
"Hey, do you guys know what that big building is?" I called back to the four trailing behind me.
"I think it's the city hall," replied Iona.
"City hall, huh? By the way, what's the name of this town?" I asked, even though knowing wouldn't change much.
This time, the kids looked at me questioningly, which was understandable.
"The name of this town is Valen."
It seemed that I needed to familiarize myself with the common knowledge of this world. While city halls here likely serve a different purpose than those in modern Japan, the children and I decided it would be fun to peek inside for a little social studies adventure.
Inside the city hall, it seemed different from any municipal office I had ever known; there were no citizens around. Instead, a few workers in what looked like uniforms were receiving instructions from a man dressed in slightly nicer clothes. Security personnel were coming and going, and amidst it all, four children had somehow slipped in with that same man, drawing curious glances our way.
Realizing this wasn't a place for us, I quickly decided to leave the city hall behind.
It wasn't until we stepped out that I noticed a rather impressive building next to it. "What's that building?" I asked.
"I haven't been inside, but I think it's a library," came the reply.
This library seemed far more promising than the city hall. Without hesitation, I led the children into the library we had just discovered.
As we entered through its grand stone entrance, we found a counter where we were charged an entrance fee—one Silver Coin per person, regardless of age. Based on my light novel knowledge, it's common for books to be expensive in this world, so the entrance fee didn't seem high.
Beyond the counter lay the reading room, where books were displayed spine-up on tables, their covers visible. There might have been bookshelves in a room behind the reception, but the reading area lacked any, which likely meant there weren't many books available to browse.
I entered the library out of curiosity, not because I was searching for anything specific or had a book in mind. Despite this, I felt a twinge of interest as I flipped through the cover of a book sitting on a nearby reading table. The pages were crammed with handwritten text, punctuated occasionally by illustrations. The book appeared to be written on what looked like parchment, so although it was thick, the number of pages wasn't particularly high.
I've seen paper before, but this one definitely felt inferior in quality, suggesting that paper books might not be widely used here. If we could import copier paper from modern Japan, it could yield a significant profit. However, while importing high-quality paper would enrich the local culture, it probably wouldn't be nearly as profitable as selling potions.
I continued to flip through the book without actually reading, while the children merely watched me, not picking up any books themselves. Yet, I figured that absorbing the atmosphere of a place like this would be beneficial in the future.
I closed the book I was holding and took the children around for a quick tour. "Shall we head out soon?" I asked, to which they energetically replied, "Yes!" This might have startled the patrons quietly reading nearby, but it was hard to blame them; after all, they were just kids.
It seemed the children weren't comfortable in such a setting. I had a feeling I was the same way when I was their age, which made me wonder if it was a universal experience.
As I stepped out of the library, a snack shop seemed to be placed there almost as an afterthought. The children looked fatigued despite not having read any books, their faces showing signs of weariness. I decided to take all four of them into the shop and let them order whatever they wanted.
"Feel free to order what you like," I said.
"Anything's okay?" one of them asked.
"Of course. Don't worry about the price."
"Thank you very much!" they replied in unison.
We pushed together two tables for four and sat as a group of five, each of us ordering our favorites. I chose spaghetti, while the kids opted for sandwiches filled with meat and vegetables.
Of course, the dishes weren't actually called spaghetti or sandwiches in their original language, but somehow, the way my mind translated it from the other world into Japanese seemed automatic. What I spoke was Japanese to me, but it seemed to the listeners like it was in another language.
This made me wonder if reading lips would be futile, or if there might be some strange influence that allowed it to work after all.
The kids had placed their food orders but hadn't ordered drinks, so I encouraged them, "Go ahead and order drinks too; don't hold back."
They each ordered their favorite beverages. Unsurprisingly, all four ordered juice; no one requested alcohol. I would have liked to order a cold beer if it had been available, but since it didn't seem to be an option, I settled for water. Naturally, the water came with a charge, and the price wasn't much different from the juice.
As I watched the children drinking their juice, I had a sudden thought: what if I tried to create ice in my alchemy workshop? To my surprise, it worked perfectly.
"Do you kids like cold things?" I asked unexpectedly. The four of them paused their meal, startled by my question.
"Put your cups with drinks on the table here," I instructed. They obediently lined up their cups in front of me. I then added the ice I had created into each cup.
"I've put ice in your drinks, so they should be a bit cooler now. Go ahead, try it."
With a mix of curiosity and caution, they each lifted their cups and took sips of the remaining juice.
"It's cold! This is ice!" one exclaimed.
"It's delicious! I've never seen ice before!" another chimed in.
"It's really cold when you touch it!" a third said.
The children seemed to have never encountered ice before, which suggested that even in winter, temperatures around here didn't drop much.
Once they finished eating and drinking, I said, "Looks like you're done. Shall we head back to the inn?"