Helping with Adventurer Party Management - Chapter 175

The place Gooljin leads me to is the same windowless room where we previously discussed the shoe business. This inn has several rooms like this, likely because many merchants come here to discuss trade secrets.

As soon as the door closes and we sit down, Gooljin bellows loudly. “So, what’s this money-making deal you’re talking about?”

“Hey, calm down. You’ve had a bit to drink, and this is a rather complicated issue. Besides, you’ve been away from the city for a while, so you’re probably not up-to-date on the latest developments. First, I want to share some information with you,” I reason.

Gooljin, who has been half-standing, lets his large frame slump back into the chair, causing it to creak under the strain.

“Hmph, fair enough. I’ve got plenty of stories from my side to share too.”

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After listening to Gooljin boast about his shoe sales for about an hour, I explain briefly how I draft a report for the Adventurer’s Guild to present to the kingdom, how I spearhead organizational reforms, negotiate with the church on the treatment of adventurers, and establish a cooperative framework. I also explain how a priest, working under a cardinal, asks me to mentor young clergy members, and how I help design a training program for the church’s frontier development leadership team.

At first, Gooljin is cheerful, laughing and nodding along—possibly due to the alcohol. But as my story progresses, his smile fades, and he grows increasingly quiet. The atmosphere becomes thick with tension. When I finally finish speaking, Gooljin opens his mouth and bursts out in confusion.

“…Is that it? I’m not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, so I don’t really know how to put this, but your explanation makes no sense to me. I understand the words you’re saying, but none of it adds up. You wrote a report for the Adventurer’s Guild? Then that got sent to some noble, and you ended up talking to the church’s priests, and somehow you became a teacher? What the hell? Why are you involved in all that? Hey, tell me, will you? Am I too dumb to understand what you’re saying?”

My answer is already clear. “To support adventurers. Everything I’ve done—the shoes, the involvement with the guild and the church—it’s all for that purpose.”

But my words are drowned out by Gooljin’s loud voice. “That’s not what I mean! …What the hell are you, anyway? You’re unsettling. Even Jilboa has some mysterious aspects, but you’re even more baffling. You used to be an adventurer, right? Are you a noble? But then again, maybe not. Nobles have a certain distinction. What are you?”

There is no longer the drunken rogue I had seen before. Instead, the man who has survived years of adventuring and now leads a caravan of over a hundred people is sharpening his instincts and senses, honed by a harsh life.

I notice Swiberry, standing beside me, slightly tightening his grip on the hilt of his magic sword.

For a moment, Gooljin and I lock eyes, both trying to read the other.

But the tension doesn’t last long.

Gooljin looks away and bellows in his usual bright tone. “Well, fine. The fact is you’re making us money. Those shoes are selling like crazy, and the caravan is showered with gold and silver. It seems you’re also getting along well with Jilboa from the Sword Fang Battalion. Hard to believe, but it seems you’re even doing well with the church. If that’s the case, then all the better. …Just recently, you were an adventurer with some strange shoes, and now look at you. Well done.” He then props his feet up on the table in an unrefined manner and says, “So? Let’s hear it. I’m not surprised by anything anymore, no matter how bizarre it might be.”

It seems we are finally ready for a proper negotiation.