“Ugh, what was their deal anyway?”

I let out a heavy sigh as we watched the adventurers flee. They had even abandoned their weapons, but I had no intention of picking them up. I didn’t want to carry anything that could bring unnecessary trouble.

“Honestly…”

Rio was still fuming, though her magic aura had settled. Note to self: do not anger Rio.

“Let’s head back,” I suggested.

Though it meant following the same route as the trio, we had no other option. I deliberately kept our pace slow to avoid running into them again.

“Ah, I’ve been waiting for you,” a familiar voice greeted us at the city gates.

It was Fleur, the merchant who had purchased our kills last time.

“I see you’ve brought a Land Turtle and another Great Deer. May I take a closer look?”

“Go ahead,” I replied.

There was no reason to refuse. If we sold to her, we could lighten our load and earn some cash at the same time. After a thorough inspection, Fleur offered 1.16 million Fron for the two monsters, and we quickly sealed the deal.

“Thank you for the excellent quality goods. I rarely come across such fine specimens. Please, continue to favor our trading company,” she said with a gracious smile before departing with her assistants carrying the spoils.

“Next stop, the guild,” I said.

At the guild’s buy counter, the ever-familiar "Hey-hey" merchant greeted us.

“Hey-hey, looks like you’ve got more Regulus fruits again. And wait a minute—Ironleaf? That was just posted yesterday! You already gathered it?”

The man’s eyes widened, clearly impressed.

“Well, here they are,” I replied with a shrug.

“Hey-hey, not bad. That’s 5,800 Fron total. Check it over.”

“Thank you,” I said, pocketing the money.

We also reported completing the E-rank quests. That brought our total completed quests to 27. To reach D-rank, though, we’d need to tackle some hunt quests in addition to gathering. Not that I felt any rush; we were earning plenty as E-rank adventurers.

“Ready to head back?”

“Yep. I’m beat.”

“Yeah, especially after dealing with those idiots again…”

By the time we returned to our inn, night had already fallen. As we walked in, the cheerful voice of Anya, the innkeeper’s daughter, greeted us.

“Welcome back!”

“We’re back,” I replied.

“Will you be having dinner tonight?”

“Yes, please. Two meals,” I confirmed.

“Got it! Mom, two more dinners!” Anya shouted toward the kitchen.

“Coming right up!” a lively voice responded from the back.

Choosing to eat at the inn was convenient, especially at this late hour. The meals here were solid and reliable—not spectacular, but far from disappointing.

After setting down our things in the room, we headed to the dining area. Soon, plates of stir-fried meat and vegetables, a bowl of soup, and some white bread arrived at our table. It was simple but satisfying.

“So, Shu and Rio, have you had your wedding ceremony yet?” Anya asked suddenly as we finished our meal.

“Huh? Wedding ceremony?” I asked, tilting my head.

Did she mean something like a wedding? I realized that while I’d proposed to Rio, we hadn’t done anything formal about it. This might be the perfect chance to learn more about the customs here.

“You don’t know?” Anya looked surprised.

“Well… we’re kind of new to this area. Is it some sort of ritual?”

“Oh, yes! The ceremony is held at the temple. You give a donation, and the priest prays to the gods to officially recognize you as a married couple,” she explained, clasping her hands and gazing dreamily into the distance.

“So, it’s a religious thing?”

I vaguely recalled the old white-haired god I’d met before coming to this world, though his face had grown blurry in my memory.

“For nobles, when the gods recognize their marriage, their surnames are unified, and their full names change,” Anya added.

“Interesting,” I murmured, thinking of the "names" that appeared through appraisal skills. Maybe the gods were the source of those records.

“Do you need anything specific for the ceremony?” I asked.

Rio, who had been quietly listening, now watched us with a mix of curiosity and nervous excitement.

“Not really! You just need to book a time with the temple. Oh, but rich people often wear beautiful dresses and formal clothes for the occasion!”

“Then we should get some proper outfits made,” I said, glancing at Rio.

“Yes!” she answered, beaming with a bright smile.

Her joy made it clear I’d made the right call. I also decided to look into getting rings—surprising Rio with one would be worth the effort. Now, I just had to figure out her ring size.