Chapter 57

Today, there was a place I wanted to visit during lunch break—the school’s supply store. I parted ways with Nanami-san for now, as I wanted her to enjoy her meal at her own pace.

While the regular ‘school store’ exists in several locations on campus, the ‘supply store’ is used to prepare for dungeon expeditions. It’s often referred to as the ‘shop’ around here.

When I visited the shop, a woman in a suit greeted me. She had her hair tied in a ponytail and wore glasses—she gave off a more straightforward vibe compared to Iganono-sensei.

“Oh, preparing for a dungeon exploration? It’s rare for a freshman to start their independent explorations after school so soon.”

“Yes, I’d like to start today, if possible.”

The ‘shop’ was housed in a separate building, with various goods displayed on each floor. The first floor sold camping equipment for use inside dungeons—just looking around filled me with excitement.

Even in another world, thorough preparation of supplies before diving into a dungeon was crucial—food, light sources for dark areas, pickaxes or sickles to clear obstacles. The hardest to carry, though, was the full set of camping gear.

“Forgive me for the late introduction. I’m Aoki Aoki, the person in charge of this shop. I’m also a teacher at this academy.”

“Nice to meet you too, Aoki-sensei.”

It felt a bit odd receiving a business card from a teacher, but I accepted it politely. Her full name seemed to be Kasumi Aoki.

“There’s also a male teacher here who handles the sale of weapons and armor. You can also bring materials obtained from dungeons for processing.”

“Ah, like a town blacksmith’s workshop… wait, so you can process materials here too?”

“Yes, though monster materials and ores are quite heavy, so it’s often hard to bring them back. By the way… it seems like you’re a ‘carrier,’ right, Fujiwara-san?”

Aoki-sensei used honorifics even with students, and she didn’t treat me differently despite knowing my occupation was ranked E.

To be honest, it was a relief to meet someone who didn’t know me. I was tired of being referred to as ‘that guy from the video’ or ‘the number one freshman in the rankings.’

“I think my job is suited for carrying materials back.”

“Indeed, if you team up with members skilled in combat, you could achieve great results. So, what are you looking for today? We also have a ‘Beginner Exploration Set’ available.”

She showed me a catalog, and the set included ‘Small Healing Potions,’ ‘Antidotes,’ ‘Portable Food,’ ‘Lanterns,’ and ‘Batteries.’

“Do you sell magic recovery potions?”

“We do when we have the ingredients, but right now we’ve sold out due to the dungeon training camp.”

“Ah, I see.”

I had thought about buying a lot, since I could carry everything using ‘Compression,’ but considering their stock, it wouldn’t be good to buy everything.

“Are there any requests for gathering the ingredients for magic recovery potions?”

“Yes, we have material requests posted on the bulletin board over there.”

Aoki-sensei guided me to the bulletin board. There were not only requests from the shop but also personal ones.

(Mahoroba Grass… 1 bronze per stalk. It only restores a little magic when used directly…)

There was no limit on the Mahoroba Grass gathering requests, but I didn’t see any listings for ‘orbs.’

I wondered if orbs couldn’t be found naturally in dungeons—or rather, I didn’t even know how orbs were generally regarded since I only realized they were created when I used ‘Compression.’

“…Aoki-sensei, do you know anything about this as a magic recovery item?”

I showed her an orb—I hesitated, as it could be considered confidential, but I decided it was important to show it.

“That is… a ‘Magic Gem’!”

“Gem…?”

“Yes, where did you…? This is something that can occasionally be found in areas rich in magic inside dungeons. It has a value equal to that of a gemstone!”

“A gem… this… is worth that much?”

“Yes, yes, yes…”

Aoki-sensei almost clucked like a chicken—she hurried to the back of the counter and returned with a file.

“Here, doesn’t this look similar? ‘Magic Gems’ are highly pure condensed magic. They’re even prized by top dungeon attackers because of their immediate recovery effect.”

“I see… I had no idea. Thank you, I’ve learned something new.”

When I fought Joker, I bit into the orb I had in my mouth. Without that immediate recovery effect, that method wouldn’t have worked.

Though I didn’t know its value at the time, it felt like a waste that I had only generated three orbs. In the mountain behind the dorm, Mahoroba Grass was abundant, so I could produce one orb for each stalk.

“How much would one of these orbs be worth?”

“One orb would be around 50 gold, though prices fluctuate.”

“F-Fifty gold…?”

I thought even one gold was more than enough to cover my expenses at the academy, but now my perception had shifted. Maybe Akizuki-san could raise the price of her additional menu—it was far too cheap at one silver.

“If you’d like, we could buy the orb from you. That would provide enough funds for thorough preparation.”

“I have a lot of things I’d like to buy, but I was planning on making one big purchase. I don’t have enough on hand, so could you buy one orb from me?”

“Certainly. What is the big purchase you’re planning? If it’s a vehicle for use inside the dungeon, renting would be more economical than buying for 50 gold.”

“No, it’s camping equipment.”

Essential items for tackling dungeons—that’s the camping gear.

At least in the world of Beck, camping gear was essential for adventuring, and the fact that it was sold here indicated that camping inside dungeons was common.

“The usual strategy for after-school dungeon explorations is to spend about two hours, then wrap up for the day. It’s rare to extend it into the weekend…”

“Well, I like to be thorough.”

“In that case… camping equipment starts at 5 gold. The price depends on how many people it’s for.”

“Hmm… let’s see. I’ll take a small tent, and one for six people, please.”

A larger tent would prevent feeling cramped. Utilizing ‘Compression,’ I could buy bigger items. As for myself, a one-person tent was sufficient—unless Cipher ended up joining me.

“The six-person set will be 30 gold. But carrying that much camping gear will be quite a burden.”

“It’s fine. For me, camping gear is essential for adventuring.”

“Adventuring… You sound more like a fantasy-world adventurer than a dungeon explorer, Fujiwara-san.”

“Haha…”

It wasn’t surprising that she found my obsession strange, but camping in the dungeon had brought many benefits to the party in my previous life.

I didn’t plan to stay long in the dungeon today, but depending on the situation, the investigation might take longer.

“I’ll prepare a backpack for carrying the gear.”

“I’d like a backpack, but I’m fine for now. If possible, do you have something like a binder? Like the kind used for coin collections.”

“A binder? You mean you already have a backpack? And a coin binder…”

My shopping seemed to baffle Aoki-sensei, but she prepared everything I asked for and loaded it onto a cart.

The total came to 41 gold, 76 silver, and 40 bronze. Quite a large expense, but now my preparations for exploration were perfect.

“Well then… let’s do this.”

I wheeled the cart behind the shop, made sure no one was around, and activated my skill.

《Skill ‘Compression’ activated. Transforming objects into chips.》

“Chip Contents: Dome-shaped Solo Tent × 1”

“Chip Contents: Camping Gear for Six-person Party × 1”

“Chip Contents: Envelope-style Sleeping Bag × 4”

“Chip Contents: Portable Stove × 1”

“Chip Contents: Outdoor Tableware × 6”

“Chip Contents: Small Healing Potion × 5”

“Chip Contents: Antidote × 5”

“Chip Contents: Explorer’s Ration Type A × 4”

“Chip Contents: Explorer’s Ration Type A × 4”

“Chip Contents: Bottled Drinking Water × 4”

“Chip Contents: Bottled Drinking Water × 4”

“Chip Contents: Lantern × 2”

“Chip Contents: Battery × 2”

For now, this set is enough, and I’ll add whatever is missing as needed. Even if some items go unused, that’s fine; being prepared is what matters.

I put the chips in the binder and stored them in my bag. I picked one that was just the right size to fit the binder.

Since there was still time left during lunch, I decided to buy something to eat at a nearby shop. I thought the ‘Search Glasses’ would help with my disguise, but of course, I ended up being recognized as usual and had to run away again—it might be time to think of a different disguise.