After spending some more time calming her down, Flaf gradually regained her composure.
After that, she booked a second room in the inn, and the two of them spent the night in Dice Town.
Funny enough, when Arlette opened his eyes the next morning, his first reaction was to wash up and then go wake the young lady.
That habitual reaction was etched deep into his very being, and it wasn’t until he saw the unfamiliar surroundings that he realized—today, there was no need to serve the young lady.
“Ah, I really am not used to this.”
“Without my help… can the young lady really brush her own hair and make food?”
“I’m a bit worried.”
Normally, Arlette always woke up early.
However, after everything that happened yesterday, his body was just too exhausted. Today, he actually slept all the way until nine in the morning.
The good news was, his body didn’t feel so bad anymore. The cold seemed to have completely healed.
After a simple wash, Flaf came knocking on his door.
The girl who usually loved sleeping in had, for once, gotten up early today.
When Arlette opened the door, she stood outside timidly and greeted him.
“Good morning, Sir Knight…”
Even after a night’s sleep, faint reddish marks could still be seen around Flaf’s eyes.
It was obvious that what happened last night had left a deep impact on her.
“Morning. Not sleeping in a bit longer today?”
“N-no. I’ve slept long enough.”
She didn’t seem to have slept well; her face looked a bit pale, and her hair was much messier than usual.
“Let’s not talk about that. Sir Knight, I brought you breakfast.”
As she spoke, Flaf handed Arlette a warm paper bag.
“Breakfast?”
He opened the paper bag in confusion, and a delicious aroma wafted out.
Inside was a cream-filled bread, dusted with snowy white sugar. It was exactly the kind of flavor Flaf liked.
“Looks really sweet. I don’t usually eat sugary things like this.”
“Ah…”
Hearing this, a trace of panic flashed in Flaf’s eyes.
“Sir Knight… you don’t like sweets?”
“Mm. Eating too much sugar makes you sluggish. And it makes you gain weight—that’s what the young lady told me.”
“I see…”
Just as Flaf looked ready to turn away in disappointment, Arlette suddenly added,
“But it’s fine to have some once in a while. Thank you.”
“Really? That’s great!”
Seeing Arlette wasn’t refusing, a faint smile finally returned to Flaf’s weary face. She seemed to perk up all at once.
“Um, Sir Knight, how’s your body? Are you feeling better?”
“Yeah, the fever’s gone. The wound doesn’t hurt much either. With a few more rounds of healing magic today, there shouldn’t be any big problems.”
“That’s wonderful, really wonderful!”
After chatting for a bit, Flaf left the inn to go stock up on supplies.
Before leaving, she made sure to tell Arlette that she’d spend a little money to hire a few fellow adventurers to escort her, so he didn’t need to worry.
And after Flaf set off, Arlette began making plans.
“The goal is clear now: get stronger, and then help the young lady keep advancing through the dungeon.”
“If I want to get stronger… the fastest way really is to use the ritual to strengthen my body.”
Ritual enhancement—this was a secret art Arlette had learned in the Vampire Territory.
Normally, if someone wanted to make their body tougher, the only choice was basic training.
Those with more money might use special medicines to help.
But ritual enhancement was another, much more efficient way.
By using materials from various monsters, you could directly strengthen your body.
This time, Arlette was going to use the “Lava Slug Shell” and “Lava Slug Core” that Vivian had brought back for him as ritual materials.
The effect of the ritual depended fundamentally on the materials used.
For example, with the Lava Slug’s materials, naturally, what would be enhanced was Arlette’s resistance to fire.
The party was currently stuck on the sixth floor, the “Lava Heat Zone.” Increasing his fire resistance would obviously make it much easier to progress.
However, just the core materials weren’t enough.
Auxiliary ingredients were needed.
If only the Lava Slug was used as the material for the ritual, the fire resistance boost would be great, but the side effects would be just as strong.
For example, he’d become more vulnerable to cold.
But the right auxiliary materials could neutralize these side effects, and might even provide extra benefits.
“If I just go for basic materials, Dice Town should have them for sale.”
“After all, it’s right by the dungeon—monster materials can’t be in short supply.”
Once he had decided, Arlette immediately donned his armor and left the inn.
He really was feeling much better today—even wearing heavy armor, he could walk freely.
“Static Fireflies…”
“Frost Rattlesnake Scales…”
“So you really can buy all this stuff.”
After a quick sweep through town, Arlette had basically bought all the auxiliary materials he needed.
He was so focused on gathering what he needed that he didn’t notice the growing number of people whispering about him behind his back.
“If I check everything over again, I should be ready to start the ritual.”
Just as he was about to head back to the inn, a voice called out behind him.
“Hey, you, the heavy knight, wait up—guu.”
Arlette turned to see an elderly beastman.
Beastmen came in many subspecies, and this elder was an Owlman from the birdfolk.
He was short and stout, with glasses perched on his beak, giving him a kindly and knowledgeable air.
Perhaps due to his race, he spoke with a peculiar verbal tic, ending each sentence with a “guu.”
“What is it, elder? Do you need something from me?”
Arlette turned fully around, his heavy armor clanking.
“Aiya, you must be the young fellow who took the initiative to help fight off the goblin horde in Dice Town yesterday—guu?”
“Yeah, that was me. Why?”
Arlette answered without hesitation, curious about the elder’s purpose.
“Aiya, you really were a big help—guu.”
“That goblin horde’s been haunting the outskirts of Dice Town for a while now, attacking travelers—guu.”
“At first, our Adventurers’ Guild didn’t pay them much mind, but they just kept growing in number, and finally, they attacked the town itself—guu!”
“That was our mistake, so to thank you, I’m here on behalf of the Adventurers’ Guild to give you a small token of our appreciation—guu! Please accept it—guu.”
As he spoke, the Owlman elder spread his left wing and rummaged through the thick downy feathers.
Finally, he produced a sturdy wooden box and handed it to Arlette.
“It’s not much, but it’s a gesture from us. Please don’t refuse—guu.”
Arlette accepted it and opened the box.
The instant he lifted the lid, a brilliant flash of rainbow light shot out—
His eyes widened in surprise.
“This is…”
“A Gem Dragon’s Reverse Scale?!”