In Danmachi with My System

After a ride in the elevator, we reached the fourth floor of the tower. The mechanism, activated by magic stones, had seemed impressive to me, but in the end it was just a practical means of getting there. Taking the first step outside, I paused for a moment to look around.

The shops were peephole rooms with showcases of weapons and armor in displays lit by magical lamps. Adventurers walked back and forth, some watching with interest, others just chatting.

But what struck me was... How do I put this?

"Did you expect something more impressive?" Rose's voice reached my ears. She was standing next to me with both hands behind her back, bowing slightly, her red hair cascading down.

"Yeah, a little. I thought everyone here would be more..."

I had expected people with shining armor, intimidating weapons, and powerful auras. But most of them wore cheap clothes. Few looked like seasoned adventurers; most were novices like me.

Rose shook her head. "Not everyone here is high level. Many come to look and dream of what they could buy if they had more Valis."

I understood that very well. I looked at a sword in the next showcase and shuddered at the price. Dreaming was definitely the only thing I could do now.

'Huh? Wait... I got two million yesterday. Now that I see the price, 50,000 Valis isn't that expensive either'.

"Oh, did you know that? They're looking at you."

"Huh?"

Hearing Rose's words, I turned to see the female adventurers whispering to each other and averted my gaze when I noticed them. I felt like I was missing something. "Why, I'm not doing anything weird, am I?"

Why so much interest? I wasn't wearing anything special, just a decent set of clothes I'd bought especially for this outing. Ah, are they looking at Rose? She was definitely noticeable.

"It's your face, silly. If you dressed like that every day instead of looking like a bum, you'd get more attention." Her golden eyes looked up at me, almost mocking me.

"My face?"

"Yes, you have a beautiful face, don't ruin it by dressing like you normally do. Maybe you're even quite handsome, but you ruin it with your carefree attitude."

I couldn't believe she had gone to so much trouble to explain why. But the way she phrased it made me feel a strange warmth in my heart. I scratched my head.

"It's not like I have much of a choice. Decent clothes cost money and I'd rather spend it on other things."

"I understand, but if you keep wearing those rags, girls will keep looking at you, but for the wrong reasons."

Girls, huh? You're giving me fashion advice? Wait, why is that good or bad? I couldn't help but laugh. "Well, looks like I'm scoring points today then, huh?"

"Yeah, right." Rose sighed. "Well, let's get to Hephaestus before more people come to look at you."

She moved suddenly, and I fell in behind her as we walked towards a staircase that led to another floor.

I looked at myself in a mirror. My dark hair looked a little disheveled, but I wasn't complaining. My black eyes sparkled slightly and my face was relaxed. Although my clothes were modest, I liked it.

While I could certainly be considered handsome, there were much better-looking men than me, even in this city. If you asked me, I would say that most girls would notice them before me.

Still, I didn't really care what others thought.

"Come on, come on, what do you think?"

Rose had taken me up to the fifth floor in the middle of a room that smelled of metal and forced me to try on some light armor.

A metal breastplate with covered chest and arms, and long boots. The armor was lined with something soft.

"I feel light, do you like it?"

"Yes, the design is perfect. And the silver color suits you."

I moved my arms and legs and felt the armor move with me. It didn't make me uncomfortable and I could move without any problems.

So far, Rose had let me try different armors, but I hadn't liked any of them. This one turned out to be the best option.

The price wouldn't break my budget either. It only cost about 100,000 Valis in total.

'Huh. No, it's definitely expensive. I can't deny that it's really good, though. It looks like it's even good against some level 3 adventurers' attacks.'

"Rose, do you think this set will fit me well enough to enter the lower floors?"

She looked at me and narrowed her eyes. "You're definitely not going to be stupid enough to jump into the lower levels, are you? Even if this armor can protect you from some weak attacks, it's not strong enough to survive there."

"Ah, hehe." I slid out of the armor. "It's just that... I wanted to ask."

"Eithan, you were really reckless, you know? A level 1 adventurer facing a boss that's almost as strong as a level 3? yes, you're a hopeless fool. But that's who you are. And even if I scold you as usual, you won't listen to me and want to enter the middle floors. Then you should get yourself a good weapon. Do you prefer daggers, swords or...?"

"Em. Actually, I already have a good weapon. It's a rare sword. A gift."

"Oh, really? So you don't want another one?"

I shook my head. "It's okay, the sword's pretty good."

We walked to the cash register and she pulled a bag of coins out of her pocket.

"Rose, let me pay. I have money."

On the way here she had said she would pay, but....was that okay? I felt that if she paid, I, who had two million, would feel useless.

"No, no. You don't know this, but I have a lot of money. I can pay this easily."

That person left me a lot of Valis, she said.

"Well, I can do it too. At least let me pay half.

For some reason, I felt terribly uncomfortable letting her pay for everything, but she wouldn't let me choose.

"I refuse."

Before I could retort, she had put the coins in the box and the salesman handed her some change.

"Just get yourself a nice place to live. You can always pay me back later."

She said as she put the coins in her pocket. She seemed to know that I was living in the abandoned church.

I walked with her to the exit of the store, feeling a little discouraged. I didn't want to take money from her, but I guess I'll need it soon.

'Wait. Rose said she had a lot of money, but did she really? She said earlier that she'd have a hard time finding another job if she left the guild. Maybe she was just making that up to help me.'

I thought about how much money I had received and wondered if I could give it to her. Maybe I would.

'Umu. I can do that.'

On the way back, I popped into the System Store. After scanning the entire list of cheaper options, I decided to buy a gift for Rose.

It was a little late when we arrived in front of the fountain in the main square. The late afternoon sun tinted the sky with shades of pink and gold, and the silhouettes of couples overlapped as the last lights of the day reflected off the crystal clear water of the fountain, creating sparkles that danced like little stars on the surface.

"Hey, Eithan. It's almost time for me to go back to my place, so let's say goodbye here." She seemed to notice the romantic mood, making her voice softer than usual. As if realizing this, she continued in a harsh voice. "I hope you'll be careful when you go hunting monsters."

"Before you go..." I stepped closer to her, and because she was shorter, she had to look up to see my face, and for a moment, her golden eyes seemed to capture all the glow of the sunset. "Rose, can you close your eyes?"

As the light breeze swayed the flowers scattered on the ground, I spoke those words. And in this cozy, intimate setting, I had to admit that those words sounded quite treacherous.

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