While I hadn’t won the tournament, it had definitely resulted in a boost in confidence and it had been a good experience . That being said, it was now very difficult to live within the imperial city . I never did like to draw attention to myself . I didn’t even like my alias . Still, a part of me must have been getting carried away by fame, even though I wasn’t aware of it . This was a good reminder .

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“We should hurry up and leave…”

I couldn’t help but mutter to myself as I felt the stares . My mind was in a very negative s.p.a.ce now… Nope . Nope . It was best to stay positive if you wanted to enjoy life .

And so I sighed and switched gears before continuing my shopping .

It didn’t take long to arrive at the closest store that sold magic tools .

“The ‘Rabbit Magic Tool Store . ’ …Rabbit . ”

Maybe I was still in a negative mood . Still, a kindly old woman I had asked on the streets had recommended this place to me .

There was a sign over the door that had a painting of a pink rabbit on it . Alright, it was sort of cute .

“Well, no point in standing here . ”

I muttered as I opened the door . The bell of the door rang, announcing my arrival . The place was packed with all kinds of things . There was something fancy about the designs too . The kind of stuff girls would like .

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As I wandered around, I heard the sounds of footsteps from the back of the store . It was probably the clerk .

“Welcome . ”

A young girl popped out . She had twin ponytails that were tied up with ribbons .

“h.e.l.lo . Do you help around here?”

“That is so . I’m Miruru . I am the manager . ”

“Ah…are you now?”

She seemed to be very proud of her position as well . I had met a lot of people in my life . Sometimes they were just as they seemed . Sometimes they weren’t . This person seemed like the later . My Adventurer’s intuition was telling me this .

“Hey, you! I told you not to go out there without permission!”

Just as I was about to trust my instincts and ask for advice on what to buy, someone else stormed out from the back . This time it was a woman with a single ponytail . There was definitely a resemblance…

“Bu…but, I am the manager . So I have to help the customer…”

“I’m the manager! You are too young to be a manager!”

“But…bu…!”

Her mother scolded her with the kind of authority that proved she was correct . Miruru stomped her foot in angry defeat .

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“Hey, stop doing that! We’re in front of a customer! Oh, I am terribly sorry about this . She just…”

“Ah, please don’t mind me . ”

“This customer is a nice man . ”

Miruru stopped stomping her feet and ran to stand behind me . Perhaps she thought I’d protect her from her mother .

“Hey! Come back here!”

“No!”

“Ah, this child…”

“Hmph . ”

The girl was quite bent out of shape now . She would not listen . Well, it seemed common enough at that age . Not that I had any kids of my own .

“Ahaha… I really don’t mind . ”

“I’m so very sorry… I am the real manager here . Maruru . Can I help you with anything?”

And so I asked the one true manager if she could recommend anything for our trip . As for me, I was thinking of something that was much more powerful than our current barrier tools . If there was something that had the power to keep monsters away… We could sleep so much easier…

“Those things are over there . ”

“Hey, be quiet!”

As the manager pondered over where she had put them, Miruru quickly pulled me by the hand and guided me through the store . Surprisingly, she seemed to know her way around it better…

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Miss Maruru sighed with annoyance but followed after us until we arrived at the shelf . Here, there were some square-shaped magic tools . They had rabbits painted on them . I generally preferred more minimalist designs… Still, what were they?

“This is a tool that stops monsters from getting inside . ”

“Getting inside?”

“Yes . It is much stronger than your average barrier tool . Thunder magic will activate and stop any monster that tries to invade . ”

“Ah . That is exactly what I wanted . ”

“You can place four of them around the area that you want to protect, like this . Well, the minimum is three, but four is advisable . ”

“So four is enough . Anything else I should be careful about?”

“You will want to be careful that there aren’t any obstacles between the devices . For instance, it will not work within a forest . Gra.s.s and small bushes should be fine, but not trees . ”

“I see…”

“Additionally, most barriers emit magical energy that makes monsters avoid them . So while they may have the same use, the result is a little different . ”

Hmm . I hadn’t known that . Still, I liked the more obvious way that this barrier was activated . It seemed like it would be very useful .

“Right . I’ll take four then . …Uh, no . Plus two as backups . ”

“Thank you so much!”

Miruru shook my hand in triumphant joy . Kids really did get excited over the smallest things . It was cute .

“Thank you . Each device costs fifty pieces of gold and thirty in silver . A set of three costs one-hundred and sixty in gold . As you are buying two sets, that will be three-hundred pieces of gold in all . ”

“Th-that’s quite expensive…”

I had thought there was something suspiciously fancy about the design . And it turned out that the price was pretty severe . The kind to make you sweat .

We had money, but we didn’t want to waste it . But these really did seem good…

No, there was no point in worrying over it . This was the time to make the purchase! Yes, I would do it . It was a once-in-lifetime opportunity . If you’re uncertain, just buy it!

“…Any chance of a discount?”

However, Asagi had less backbone than he’d like to thing . And he decided to negotiate first .

The result? Three-hundred . Wonderful…

Aside from the barrier tools, I bought some better magic tools for making fires, which replaced my old ones . Also, a water bottle . It was a water bottle that had a lid made of water ore . This meant that it could draw out the moisture from the air and store it inside the bottle . So, if ever I was in a situation where I couldn’t use magic, I would still have drinking water . I bought an ignition tool and water bottle for Daniela as well . By the time I left the store, it was just before sundown . Things had taken longer than expected .

“Better go back then…”

And so I headed down the west road in order to return to the inn we had just rented and would be leaving soon . As I walked, I could hear the bustling of the city . You could feel the approach of the night not just with your eyes, but with your ears . I had been in this city for a month now… Was that long or short? It had sure been an eventful month .

I thought back on this city that we’d be leaving . The tournament had ended . And things had gone back to normal . Of course, normal here was still incredibly lively .

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