NOVEL NEXT Chapter 167
167. My Job Is All About Cross-Cultural Exchange, Isn’t It?
Mizuho Divine Nation was a beautiful city, blending vermilion, wood grain, and gold.
The streets were lively, lined with uniquely shaped buildings.
Their overlapping-style clothing was distinctive, and women wore vibrantly colorful garments.
There seemed to be a class divide; some women looked glamorous, while others were dressed in patchy, drab, mouse-gray clothes.
Yet, strangely, everyone smiled, and there was no sense of despair.
I looked around, excited. I knew I was gawking like a wide-eyed tourist, but I couldn’t help myself.
I remembered why I had become an adventurer. Growing up in an orphanage, my world ended at the borders of the town it was in.
As a child, I thought that was everything, and I was content with it.
But hearing stories from an adventurer who was also an orphanage graduate made me realize there was a world beyond.
That sparked my desire to see it for myself.
A mage adventurer had once told me I had strong magical power. Before I knew it, becoming an adventurer became my goal.
After becoming one, I planned to travel the entire kingdom. The reality wasn’t so kind, though—I could barely scrape by to survive, let alone fund travels.
Still, by occasionally moving bases, I saw more of the world than the average townsfolk.
And for a while, I was satisfied with that.
But.
Here I was, standing in a foreign land at the northernmost edge of the world.
A bit of nostalgia for my old dreams was okay, right?
“Shall we find an inn first?”
Kyle, though amazed by the city, composed himself and took charge.
“No, we should exchange currency first.”
“Couldn’t we ask the inn about that?”
Eva chimed in, responding to my suggestion.
“Good point. The samurai guard at the gate mentioned staying at an inn on the main street for easy finding. He said we could roam freely, as long as the inn knew where we were.”
“Indeed. Though there didn’t seem to be much intercity travel, there were plenty of inns here.”
“Now that you mention it, that’s true.”
The streets were bustling with carts, but unlike the kingdom’s cities, there were fewer traveling merchants.
“It’s probably seasonal. Around harvest, merchants are much more common—though mostly in the areas around Mizuho. That said, it’s been ages since I came here, so I’m not too sure.”
Lucas, the adventurer we met on the road, answered our question.
“…Hey, wait. Why are you tagging along with us so casually?”
“Huh?”
“You’ve reached your goal—Mizuho Divine Nation—so go somewhere else.”
“Harsh, man!”
“Half-joking, but really, why are you sticking with us?”
“So half-serious, huh? Well, I just came here for work, no big goals. Figured I’d book the same inn for now.”
“Fair enough.”
I shrugged, and Lucas darted over to a stunningly dressed, bewitching beauty walking across from us.
“Excuse me, miss in the beautiful kimono! Would you like to visit my room now? What? Calling the guards? Haha, it’s just a little joke!”
This guy really started flirting now? Whatever, I’m leaving him be. We headed into the biggest-looking inn we could find.
Inside, a middle-aged woman greeted us with a smile.
“Welcome! Oh my, such unusual attire. Are you from the Empire?”
“No, from a southern kingdom.”
“Well, isn’t that rare! I heard monsters were running wild down south. Were you alright?”
“More or less. We ran into a few monsters, but we’ve got reliable escorts.”
I glanced at Raidoc.
“Ah, a fine man and strong to boot! Impressive!”
“Haha…”
Raidoc chuckled wryly. Even the innkeeper liked him! I’m officially giving him the title of Madam Killer.
“No thanks.”
“Anyway, jokes aside, we’ve got four men and eight women. Got any good rooms? Oh, and the flashy one’s separate.”
“Harsh!”
The innkeeper quickly grasped the situation and checked for available rooms.
“How about the women in a dormitory-style room? The men can take two doubles, or another dormitory if you prefer.”
Fair enough. Two dormitories would be better for security, in my opinion.
“Can we use kingdom currency? If not, could you direct us to an exchange?”
“Imperial coins are fine, but for kingdom currency, there’s a money changer right next door.”
“Thanks. I’ll handle the exchange; you all go settle into the rooms.”
“I’ll go too,” Kyle insisted.
To my surprise, Myrna clung to my waist, ready to tag along.
Raidoc, smiling wryly, gave instructions.
“Eva, Camille, you’re on guard duty. We’ll handle the luggage and the wagon.”
“Understood.”
“Got it.”
We didn’t have much luggage—just essentials everyone carried on them. Leaving the wagon to them, we entered the small exchange building next door.
It had only one counter, where a raccoon-like old man was flipping through a ledger.
“Hmm? From the Empire? No, maybe the Kingdom or the Confederation?”
As expected of a money changer, he was sharp about foreigners.
“Yeah, from the southern Maugalia Kingdom. I’d like to exchange some kingdom currency—recommended by the inn next door.”
Not knowing the rates, I might get ripped off, but mentioning the inn might keep him honest.
“Haha, cautious, aren’t you? There’s a fee, but I’ll exchange it at the standard rate.”
“Much appreciated.”
Of course, you can’t fully trust a merchant’s word.
“Still, you might find the rates surprising.”
“Why’s that?”
“Well… need to exchange gold coins?”
“Of course. Also, some silver and copper if possible.”
I pulled out ten gold coins—enough to last us for a while.
The man took out four unusually flat gold coins.
“These are gold coins here. They’re called ‘kobans’ in this country.”
“Four? That’s quite a markup, isn’t it?”
The amount of gold seemed similar between kobans and our coins.
“Gold’s worth about half here compared to your country.”
“What?”
“If you don’t believe me, feel free to check around. This country’s got a massive gold mine, you see.”
I exchanged a glance with Kyle.
“We’ll have to take his word for it.”
“Alright.”
The man then brought out small, square silver coins.
“These are silver coins, called ‘ichibu-gin’ here. And…”
Next, he placed string-tied copper coins, each with a square hole in the center.
“These are copper coins, called ‘ichimon-sen’. With the gold coins, you get these kobans, silver coins, and copper coins, minus the fee. Deal?”
“Deal.”
We obtained the Mizuho currency, returned to the inn, and paid for five days of rooms.
Back in our room, Kyle studied the copper coins—the ichimon-sen—intently.
“What’s up?”
“These coins are impeccably cast, and the central hole is ingenious. Their minting technique is remarkable.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
I decided to ask Riefan about it later.
“Plus, tying the most-used copper coins with string is incredibly practical. I must inform His Majesty about this.”
“Yeah, that is convenient.”
Raidoc tied a string to his belt, experimenting with the setup.
“This way, they could even be a weapon.”
Using the string as a handle, he swung the coins like a makeshift flail. Of course, only Raidoc could think of that.
With his skills as a swordmaster, he could probably wield even this effectively.
“So, what’s the plan now?”
“Well…”
Kyle glanced at Myrna, sitting on my lap, and grinned playfully.
“Until we’re contacted, let’s go sightseeing.”
“Yay!”
Myrna cheered. We didn’t have anything else to do anyway.
Remember, sightseeing is about understanding the culture, not playing around, okay?
“Let’s find some good food!”
Yeah, sure, Jitaro.