I had ended up coming into a massive amount of money.
Thirty silver coins was an unprecedented sum for me to receive all at once.
Getting my hands on that much in a single go shook me so badly that I fled straight back to the inn.
I spent the remaining half of the day throwing myself into training, and went to bed even earlier than usual that night.
"I thought it was just a dream, but it really happened..."
Waking up the next morning, I checked the wallet I had stashed inside the safe in my room.
The silver coins I received yesterday were sitting right where I left them.
I was truly glad this inn provided a safe.
Without it, I probably wouldn't have gotten a wink of sleep last night.
"I need to raise my adventurer rank as soon as possible..."
One of the services provided by the Adventurer's Guild was banking.
However, not just any adventurer could use it.
It was restricted to those of Bronze Rank or higher who had built up a solid track record.
Apparently, any adventurer used to have access in the past.
However, a huge number of people had registered solely to use the guild as a personal bank.
As a result, the guild's administrative workload exploded.
There were even days when the reception desk couldn't function properly because of long lines of people making routine deposits and withdrawals.
Taking the situation seriously, the Adventurer's Guild decided to place rank restrictions on the service.
Even reaching Bronze Rank didn't guarantee you could open an account, either.
You could only do so if you had built up a sufficient record of achievements at the specific guild branch you operated out of.
"Even if I try to build up a record, I don't know if odd jobs around town count for enough... I guess I really need to show my strength as an adventurer through outside requests too, huh?"
Pondering this, I decided to start the morning by doing the laundry, just like usual.
"Thanks to training for half a day yesterday, my EXP has built up quite a bit."
◇
You have trained in [Swordsmanship].
Gained 1 EXP.
91/100 until skill acquisition.
◇
It had already broken past 90.
Emptying my mind yesterday just to forget about the money might have worked in my favor.
"I'll acquire the skill today. At this rate, I should be able to get it with just a little training this afternoon."
I continued my [Swordsmanship] practice after that until Amanda-san arrived.
Compared to when I first started, the way I swung the sword had changed considerably.
The improvement was clear enough that I could vividly feel the difference myself.
"Delicious as always."
Amanda-san came out to the backyard shortly after, and we hung the laundry together.
Lately, thanks to my help, things seemed to have gotten a bit easier for her.
She mentioned that she used to run out of energy before the morning was even over, leaving chores unfinished.
Now, however, she happily told me that she was easily wrapping them up before noon.
After receiving another generous portion of breakfast from her, I took my time enjoying the meal.
Once I finished, I returned to my room to prepare for the job, left the inn, and headed for the Adventurer's Guild.
"Erik-kun, here's the quest form from Harold-san yesterday. You'll take this quest, right?"
"Yes. Please."
I lined up at Reina-san's counter, and when my turn came, she already had the paperwork prepared.
The request slip was formatted just like any standard guild quest. I marveled at how remarkably efficient Reina-san was at her job.
With the formalities completed, I headed toward Harold-san's shop.
"Harold-san, I've accepted the quest."
"Ooh, you made it, kid!"
When I arrived at the shop, Harold-san was already waiting for me.
After exchanging quick greetings, he led me toward the back.
"This really is quite a mess."
He brought me to the warehouse that would serve as my workspace for the day.
Shelves that had once held supplies were completely toppled over, and the floor was in a terrible state, strewn with scattered tools and raw materials.
"I tried tidyin' it up a bit myself, but there's just too much damn stuff. Decided it was a lost cause for me."
"When it's this bad, most people wouldn't even know where to start. But don't worry, I can clear this up in no time. I'll get right to work."
Reassuring Harold-san, I immediately got to business.
Figuring out what caused the collapse was important, but right now, there wasn't even enough clear floor to walk across.
I began shifting the cargo to clear a path while investigating what had gone wrong.
"Ah... the floor gave way."
After about an hour of organizing tools and opening up a pathway, I tracked down the source of the problem.
There was a hole in the floor at the very back of the warehouse.
It sat right beneath one of the shelf legs. When the wood gave out, that shelf collapsed, knocking over the others in a chain reaction.
I quickly pieced together the full picture of how the warehouse had ended up in ruins.
"Never would've guessed the floor would cave in like that. I've lived here for ages, but nothin' like this has ever happened before."
"Is that so? Then there might be a specific reason the wood rotted away."
With that, I continued clearing out the room.
Tidying as I went, I widened the path while swiftly sorting the tools from the materials.
Once the bulk of the clutter was cleared, I was finally able to clean around the hole itself.
Searching for anything that might have triggered the collapse, I noticed a dark stain on the damaged shelf.
Looking down through the hole, the splintered timber beneath was noticeably damp.
"Harold-san, do you remember what you had stored here?"
"...I think I had materials from aquatic creatures sittin' on that rack."
"If that's the case, that's almost certainly the cause. The wood rotted from the moisture, and the weakened floor couldn't bear the weight of the shelf anymore."
I explained my findings, pointing out the rotted timber and the stained wood.