Chapter 304: We Arrived at a Desert Town!
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After changing clothes, I got off Char and stored him away. I had Sword change his outfit too.
As such Sword was now pinching the edge of his turban while asking, “Is there any meanin’ in these clothes?”
“Hmm? Let’s see. If you coil a long piece of cloth around your head, it’ll prevent sand from entering, and it’ll keep the harmful sun rays away. And in case of a strong wind, you can cover your mouth and nose with the cloth to make it easier to breathe while not having any sand get in. As for the bodywear, if you wear it so that it covers this, it’ll prevent sand from getting inside and it’ll be hard for sand to stick to the clothes, right?”
Sword was astonished.
“Hoooh, sounds like quite a bit thinkin’ went into this. Without you ‘round, it’s equipment you’d definitely. But, only as long your not ’round.”
Yep. Right now I ‘m blocking the wind, sun rays, and sand with a magic element barrier. But, nevermind all that! You have to follow the local rules when you enter a new region!
I soothed Sword, “Now, now, it’s customary. Moreover, it gives you a nice deserty feel, right? Let’s play with our new toys afterwards! I made that two-wheeled golem 【Plonk】 which is capable of driving across cliffs and deserts…the one I mentioned at the ocean town a while ago…before coming here! It should be a blast to drive around on Plonk! I also remodeled the sea surfing board into a sand surfing board. So we’ll also be able to have some fun by gliding across the sand!”
“Yay! All hail magic tools! The desert rocks!”
At once, Sword praised me exaggeratedly.
＊
The tall wall near the oasis was incredible. On a closer inspection, it was a wall made out of sand.
Sand art!
As we walked while admiring the nice architectural feat, we spotted a checkpoint, and thus decided to go there.
A person looking like a government official was present over there. His attire was similar to ours.
As I thought, the people over here came up with the same fashion. But I guess it’s only a logical conclusion to go with this sort of clothing.
Sword was surprised.
“What? So you knew about the way folks dress over here?”
I shook my head at his question.
“Nope. If you live in an area like this, it’s fashion that’s suitable to the environment and it adds a fitting resistance to the various natural obstacles. These clothes work in any desert area.”
“…Nothing less of you.”
Sword was seriously impressed by this. And yet he had asked me earlier, “Your gonna block ’em with magic anyway, so what’s the point in wearing such clothes?”
＊
The official scrutinized us quizzically, and then asked, “…Haven’t seen you guys before. Where did you come from?”
Sword held out his card.
“We’re adventurers. We came here from a town called Ys. Well, we’ve been travelin’ all over the place, so that town is simply our base, I’d say.”
The official took the card, held it up against the crystal, and then looked back and forth between the card and Sword several times.
“……Umm? You seem to be an amazing person or something, Sir, but what did you do?”
The official’s tone became a tiny bit politer. Sword laughed.
“I ain’t amazin’ or ‘nythin’ like that. I’m just an adventurer wanderin’ all over the country.”
“To be precise, we explore the unknown, so we visited this place to make some thrilling discoveries and encounter mighty, new foes! This place here is unknown to us, so I’m looking forward to it very much!” I added to Sword’s explanation.
After looking at Sword and me while blinking his eyes in surprise, the official said in admiration, “Hooh… I see. So that’s how adventurers outside our town operate, huh? Please allow me to welcome you then. Also, I need to give you an important precaution. You might already know, but water is extremely valuable in this town. It’s nothing you can use in the same way as in other towns. Keep in mind that we struggle to just secure water to drink.”
Oh, okay. I suppose they’re not lavishly using the water of the oasis then.
“Got it. We can handle our own water supply, so don’t worry.”
This surprised the official.
“….Nothing less of the man called a hero in the capital.”
Sword shrugged his shoulders, “Not really. Even the guy hailed as a hero in the capital can’t supply himself with water. The girl, who’s a lot more amazin’ than that hero, can do it, however.”
Now it was my turn to shrug.
“I don’t know whether it’s amazing, but I do understand that it’s special.”
Mr. Amato, who came here from the other world, and Damsel Scarlet, who was born over here in a similar fashion as me, aren’t able to do it, so it must be special, I guess.
The official looked at me, tightened his expression, and bowed deeply.
“If you possess so much that you would not mind selling some, I would be very delighted if you could sell it to the adventurer guild or the town hall, instead of the merchant guild.”
I see. They’re really running low on water.
＊
We asked him about the location of the adventurer guild, and while at it, I refilled the water jugs at the checkpoint with water magic.
Thereupon, the official became so grateful that he was almost in tears. He lowered his head so much that his torso was parallel to the ground while standing, before clasping my hands and repeatedly shaking them up and down.
“…Well, it’s only natural since we’re in a desert, but they’re low on water despite having an oasis? They should be able to at least provide a sufficient amount of water to drink, no? Wouldn’t they die from lack of water otherwise?”
After separating from the ever-thankful official, I asked Sword while tilting my head in doubt.
Sword scratched his head, “Hmm… Well, either way, let’s go to the guild for starters?”
Being urged by him, both of us headed over to the guild. The sun was still standing high in the sky, so the streets were literally empty.
“I see! I see, I see!”
Sword asked while looking at me, “Hmm? You like the scenery?”
I nodded.
“It’s got the right atmosphere. The sunlight is basically cooking the surface unhindered with the light being so bright that you won’t even be able to consider looking upwards. The roads have sandy-yellow colors, and the same applies to the buildings as well. The sunlight is being reflected from all of this, making them actually look white. Occasionally you will find patches of deep, vivid green in that world of sandy white. And you got an oasis nearby, overgrown with plants that scream dry-resistant even next to water.”
Sword surveyed his surroundings.
“Now that you mention it, you’ve got a point. …I see. That’s how your lookin’ at this area, huh?”
I looked up to him, “How does it look to you?”
“Folks are tough to make a livin’ in such a harsh place. It’s obviously accompanied by many hardships. Very likely, they used earth magic to build a wall to defend against monster invasions and sand. But, water is scarce, just like vegetation, and most likely, monsters as well. You can’t eat stuff like undead, so I’ve been thinkin’ that it might be smarter to not force yourself to live in a place like this.”
……Certainly, he got a point there, but…I think he’s being too simple here.
“Hmm, this sort of environment might be kept up because some people strive to survive in a place like this! Don’t be so hard on them!”
“Yeah, yeah,” he answered with a tone lacking seriousness, before ruffling my head.
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