Chapter 96: The Dismantler and the Aspiring Apprentices

After we finished lining up the materials, we went out into the town to have a meal, just as the staff member had advised. However, since we stood out in a weird way, we kept our hoods on while eating. Hmm, it’s hard to eat.

Ah, but this is similar to an episode from the story The Great Swordsman Liegard’s Escape to the Beyond. There’s a scene where Liegard, framed by villains, curses his luck while eating with his hood on during his escape until he catches the real culprit. Hehe, I feel a little bit like Liegard.

“Man, this is hard to eat.”

“It can’t be helped. Just endure it.”

As expected, Jairo and the others also found it difficult to eat while wearing hoods.

“Hey Rex, why don’t you use that magic that hides our figures?” Meguri requested the invisibility magic.

“But if we use that, we have to stay huddled close together, you know?”

Wouldn’t it be hard to eat if we were huddled together?

“I think it’s better than keeping the hoods on.”

“That’s true. I want to be able to eat comfortably, at least.”

Liliera agreed, and everyone else nodded along.

“Well, if everyone says so.”

We moved our chairs to sit close together and activated the invisibility magic.

“Phew, now I can eat in peace!”

Jairo immediately took off his hood and resumed eating.

“Hey Jairo, your elbow is bumping me!”

“Oh, my bad, my bad.”

Well, that’s bound to happen. It was a little inconvenient bumping into each other, but this kind of meal is interesting once in a while.

Though, halfway through, I was surprised when several people suddenly burst into the restaurant. After looking in our direction, they said things like, “Damn, did they escape!?” and “Search! There’s steam rising from the food, they must still be nearby!”

They seemed to be looking for someone, but it looked like the person managed to get away. I was curious why Liliera and the others suddenly became silent after hearing that conversation, though.

◆

“Well then, the appraisal should be done by now.”

After finishing our meal, we returned to the Adventurer’s Guild.

“Huh?”

We came back, but the atmosphere inside the guild was strange. It felt oddly restless, or rather, on edge.

“Excuse me, I’m the one who asked for an appraisal earlier.”

For now, I went to the reception and showed the wooden tag with the number 7 written on it to the receptionist from before.

“Ye… s.”

Huh? The moment the receptionist looked up and saw the number on the tag, she stopped moving like she had been petrified by a Basilisk.

“Wh…”

“Wh?”

“Wh-wh…”

“Wh-wh?”

The receptionist seemed stuck saying “Wh”. What’s going on?

“WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!?!?!?”

“Eh? We went to eat.”

“Our staff searched the entire town! It was a huge uproar in the guild because we couldn’t find you anywhere!”

Ah, because we had erased our presence with magic.

“I knew that commotion earlier was about us.”

“They were looking for Rex.”

Oh? Liliera and the others had realized?

“Anyway! Please go to the dismantling area immediately!”

Perhaps surprised by the receptionist’s ferocity, the gazes of the adventurers in the guild gathered on us. Hmm, we’re standing out in a bad way. Let’s go quietly to the dismantling area.

◆

“Excuse me, I’m the one who asked for dismantling earlier.”

Repeating the line I said to the receptionist, I showed the wooden tag to a nearby staff member. And that person also stopped moving.

“He…”

This time it’s “He”, huh.

“He’s here! Number 7 is heeeeeere!!”

“WHAT!?”

Hearing the staff member’s shout, the dismantling area staff and adventurers all looked at us at once.

“Hey, is it really Number 7!? These guys are kids!?”

“No, it’s really the Number 7 tag, no mistake!”

“Show me!”

A staff member who seemed to be a supervisor stared intently at the wooden tag.

“It really is Number 7…”

“Then they did that?”

What on earth is everyone so excited about?

“Hey, did you guys hunt that?”

The staff member pointed to the mountain of dragons we had piled up. Yeah, since they wouldn’t fit in the Number 7 storage area, we piled them up into a mountain. Also, since stacking the Golden Dragon’s scales and horns on top would make it unbalanced, we placed them next to it.

“Yes, those are the dragons we hunted yesterday at the Dragon Peak.”

“Hey, hey, seriously!?”

“Isn’t he bluffing?”

“Didn’t they buy them to raise their rank?”

“Idiot! Where would you buy a whole raw dragon, let alone a mountain of them!? It would cost a fortune, and who would hunt this many dragons in the first place!? It’s not just parts, it’s whole bodies!”

Adventurers watching from a distance said such things.

No, no, most of them are lower-ranking dragons. Since we stacked the high-ranking dragons on top, it just looks like a lot of high-ranking dragons.

“No wait, isn’t that woman the one? The female adventurer who defeated the dragon that attacked the town a few days ago!”

“Is she the rumored Dragon Princess!?”

“Ugh… they still remember.”

Liliera held her head, but it was only a few days ago, after all.

“The group with her is the one that hunted Wyverns together too.”

“But the difficulty of subjugating Wyverns and Dragons is completely different, right!?”

Hmm, I don’t think it’s that different. Isn’t it within the margin of error?

“I don’t recognize the guy holding the tag, but being with them means he’s not ordinary either, right?”

“Heh, it means the era has finally recognized us Dragon Slayers.”

Jairo, receiving looks of awe from the adventurers, smirked, seemingly in a good mood.

Is he no longer embarrassed by the name Dragon Slayers?

“We just became magnets for trouble, you idiot! Ugh, we’re still C-Rank. We’re definitely getting dragged into trouble.”

Ah, being overestimated is troublesome, isn’t it? I was surprised when my rank suddenly went up just after becoming an adventurer too.

“Ah, you guys are associates of that Dragon Princess. Then well… maybe it is possible. No, since it’s actually here, I have no choice but to accept it.”

He seemed to wonder about something and then convince himself, but if he’s convinced, is it okay?

“Anyway, regarding this mountain of dragons, there’s too many; we can’t possibly dismantle them all. We don’t have enough space or manpower. So, it’ll take days, no, weeks to dismantle everything. Drago… we’ve dismantled a single tattered Green Dragon hunted in a past great subjugation, but ordinary blades won’t even pass through this Black Dragon. We have to start by preparing blades that can cut this guy, so the appraisal will be even later.”

“Ah, the internal organs will rot by then.”

No matter if they are dragon materials, leaving them as is will cause them to spoil.

“No, these are precious dragon materials. We’ll hire mages to apply freezing magic extensively. It’ll cost money, but with this many dragons, there’ll be plenty of profit even after deducting the freezing costs.”

Hmm, even so, the freshness will drop. Returning them to the magic bag until the blades are ready is an option, but having no income until then… I have enough money so it’s fine, but it would be tough for Jairo and the others.

“In that case, I’ll dismantle them.”

“You!?”

“Yes, I’ve been dismantling monster materials for a long time, and I have blades that can pass through dragon scales and hide.”

“I see, if you can defeat a Black Dragon, naturally you’d have a sword that can cut a Black Dragon… but leaving dragon materials to an amateur dismantler is…”

Ah, stepping into a professional’s territory feels bad for them. A blacksmith I knew in my past life said that a craftsman who takes pride in their work and doesn’t compromise is trustworthy.

However, our livelihood is at stake here.

“Then, could you let me dismantle one Green Dragon as a test? Please judge whether to leave it to me after seeing my skill.”

“No, but still, it’s dragon material!? If you fail, a huge amount of money goes poof!?”

The dismantlers and adventurers waiting behind him were nodding in agreement.

“But well, there’s a mountain of Green Dragons.”

Hearing my words, the supervisor looked at the piled-up dragons.

“…No well, that’s true but… hmm, if he insists, maybe it’s okay…?”

Since I seemed to have convinced him for now, I decided to choose the Green Dragon in the worst condition from the pile to dismantle.

“Then, I’ll begin dismantling!”

“H-hey, I knew it…”

I took out the dismantling blade I’ve used for a long time and passed the blade between the Green Dragon’s scales. And without hesitation, I pulled the blade in one go, slicing open the Green Dragon’s hide.

“Woah! What hesitation-free dismantling!”

If you hesitate while cutting, the cut becomes uneven.

“Or rather, does dragon hide tear that easily!?”

“There’s a trick to how you pass the blade.”

And I continued dismantling, careful not to thrust too deeply and damage the internal organs.

“What a brilliant dismantling technique! The dragon’s massive body is being dismantled with lightness as if cutting a slime!”

“That blade has incredible sharpness! And that boy, despite dismantling a dragon, shows no pressure at all! It’s vivid, as if he’s dismantled hundreds of dragons!”

Exactly. In my previous life, an acquaintance dismantler thoroughly drilled the art of dismantling subjugated monster materials myself into me. Some monsters’ materials spoil rapidly right after being defeated, so he told me, “You should be able to at least dismantle them yourself.”

So I dismantled a mountain of Green Dragons as practice. And to cherish the ingredients, I wasn’t allowed to eat anything but meat dishes from the monsters I dismantled endlessly until I passed. It was harsh training where if I wanted to eat different ingredients, I had to dismantle the material I was handling perfectly.

Because of that, I quickly finished dismantling the familiar Green Dragon.

“I’m finished.”

At my words, the dismantlers swarmed around the dismantled Green Dragon materials.

“A-amazing… what speed.”

“It’s not just fast. Look at this cut! It’s such a clean cut you wouldn’t think it was severed! It’s almost enough to make you mistake it for being shaped like this from the beginning.”

“It’s like the work of a master dismantler… no, it’s the return of the legendary dismantler, Dismantling King Parfero!”

Hmm? That name sounds similar to a dismantler I knew. Well, it’s probably just a similarity in name, not the person.

“How is it?”

I asked for confirmation from the head dismantler.

“…”

But the supervisor just stared at the dismantled Green Dragon with a dazed look.

“Um, how is it?”

When I asked again, he shuddered and finally turned to face me.

“…I.”

“Yes?”

Hmm? What did he say? The supervisor’s voice was too quiet to hear.

“I… render.”

The supervisor muttered again while trembling, but I still couldn’t hear.

“Um, your voice is a little quiet so I can’t he…”

“I SURRENDERRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!”

As soon as he shouted, the supervisor suddenly prostrated himself before me.

“Ehh!? What on earth!?”

No, seriously, what!?

“I am truly sorry for testing someone with such skill!!”

“Eh? No, no, I’m not that skilled. My master can dismantle much more beautifully.”

“SUCH A MONSTER EXISTS IN THIS WORLD!?”

Yeah, I understand the feeling. That person’s dismantling technique was truly monstrous. Compared to that person, my dismantling technique was just “meh.”

“To think I got conceited being entrusted as the head of the dismantling area, what a fool I was! To think there was someone in the world with skills not just above, but literally heavenly!!”

No, I don’t think you need to humble yourself that much.

“Please! Please make me your apprentice!”

“Ehh!?”

The dismantlers raised voices of surprise at the supervisor’s words. I was surprised too.

“What are you saying, Dismantling Chief!”

“That’s right! You’re the leader of the dismantling area in this guild!”

Yes, yes, please tell him more, everyone.

“Idiots! After being shown such brilliant skill, how can I call myself a dismantler without shame!”

No, you don’t have to go that far.

“Of course we understand!”

You understand!?

“We feel the same way, Leader!”

“It’s unfair if only you become an apprentice!”

The situation is getting weird. Weren’t you guys supposed to persuade the supervisor?

“If you’re becoming an apprentice, we’re joining you too!!”

“That way!?”

“You guys…”

“Hehe, that’s how it is, Leader.”

Wait a minute, why are you making this a touching scene?

“Ah, I got it. We are members of the same dismantling area, after all.”

Please don’t get it.

“Master! Please accept us as your apprentices!!”

What is this? Of all things, all the guild’s dismantlers applied to become my apprentices. While performing a beautiful prostration in unison.

“Umm…”

“Please! We’ve fallen for your skill, Master!”

“Being a dismantler in the land of dragons and not being able to properly dismantle a dragon is a dismantler’s shame!”

“If becoming an apprentice isn’t allowed, we’re prepared to quit being dismantlers!”

“Wait, please don’t have that kind of resolve!”

Wow, what should I do… If I mishandle this, it’s a matter I’ll get scolded heavily by the guild for. Like, “Because of you, there was a mass resignation of staff!”

“…Big Bro.”

Just then, Jairo spoke to me from behind.

“What is it, Jairo… hm?”

When I turned around, Jairo directed a very refreshing smile at me.

“I understand their feelings.”

Eh? You understand?

“After all, I became Big Bro’s disciple with the same feeling.”

Ah, come to think of it, that happened too.

“So, make them your disciples too, Big Bro!”

“No, they’re apprentices, not disciples.”

I looked at everyone, wondering what to do. Then Liliera and the others looked at me with affectionate eyes.

“Well, why don’t you just teach them quickly? It’ll be over faster that way.”

“We are also in a position of being taught by Rex, so we can’t really say much.”

“It means they want to bring their own skills to a higher level. It’s not for an evil reason, so I think it’s fine to make them apprentices.”

“It’s Rex’s skill, so I think Rex should decide.”

“Well, in the end, that’s it.”

Eh, in short, decide for myself…

“Please, Master!!”

I’m not the type to be called Master, and my skill isn’t that amazing in the first place. But if I refuse here, they say they’ll quit being dismantlers, and that would cause trouble for the Adventurer’s Guild.

“…Just the technique for dismantling Black Dragon materials.”

“!? Master, then!?”

“If it’s just teaching the technique to dismantle the dragon materials we hunted this time, I don’t mind.”

As Liliera said, teaching them quickly seems like the way to clear up the trouble.

“Thank you very much, Master!!”

Thus, by some twist of fate, I became the temporary master of the Adventurer’s Guild’s dismantlers.