“So, what should we do for the next two weeks?”

“Maybe we should expand the camping house for starters?”

“Ah, yeah, that’s a good idea.”

“If we want to take on any requests while we’re out, we’ll have to visit the guild though...”

We were still standing in front of the Beldran Workshop. If we were heading to the guild, we’d go east; if we were going out of town, the west gate would be closest. The time of day was just before evening.

“Hmm. Given the time, maybe neither today. But it might be worth checking what requests are available at the guild. Or, we could also visit the trading companies Beldran mentioned for fun.”

“Let’s ask the guild for the locations of those trading companies then.”

“Sounds good.”

With the day’s plans decided, we headed east toward the guild. I had a feeling that all of the six major trading companies would have branches in a craftsman’s city like this.

“Let’s narrow it down to two or three places to visit.”

When we arrived at the guild, we immediately headed to the request board. Since it was just before the end of the workday, the area around the board was relatively empty.

“Most of the requests are for material gathering.”

There were a lot of gathering requests for the western Fenrir Forest and the eastern mines.

“Yeah... Oh, there’s a request for gathering Skywolf Mushrooms.”

“You’re right. So, they’ve got those requests here too.”

Come to think of it, that made sense. This city was near the Fenrir Forest too. If only I could identify them by scent, it’d be easy to find them. I wonder if beastkin with their keen sense of smell would be better at this... I wasn’t sure how much I’d managed to enhance my own sense of smell, so I couldn’t say for sure.

Looking closer, there were two types of requests posted: regular requests and constant requests. It was probably the same situation as the Fenrir Village. The regular requests were priced higher, with newer-looking, non-yellowed postings.

“If I remember correctly, the constant requests are from the Lacia Trading Company, and the regular ones are from the Mimina Trading Company, right? Maybe visiting those two would be enough.”

“Mimina Trading Company... That’s the place with that overbearing old man, right? Let’s go there first for some reconnaissance.”

I didn’t think news would’ve reached this city yet, but just in case, it was good to gather information.

We asked a guild staff member about the six major trading companies and learned, as expected, that all six had branches in this city. We also got the locations of the Lacia and Mimina Trading Companies.

“Let’s visit the closer one first.”

“Okay, so that’s the Mimina Trading Company.”

Leaving the guild, we crossed the central plaza and headed south down the main street. Soon, the Mimina Trading Company came into view on the right. It was a splendid, newly constructed shopfront. Apparently, they’d just opened their new store in the middle of the main street.

“Welcome, nya~!”

As we entered, a cheerful female clerk greeted us enthusiastically. She approached with her ears twitching and flashed us a bright smile.

“If you need assistance, just let me know, nya!”

A human being who actually spoke with “nya” as a suffix—what a world. Her fluffy cat ears and the tail poking out from her hot pants were undeniably enticing to a certain type of enthusiast.

“We’re just browsing, so don’t worry about us.”

“Understood, nya. Please take your time, nya~!”

Rio jabbed me in the side and glared at me.

The clerk reminded me of Emily, the scout we’d met on the shared carriage. Were all catfolk this lively and carefree? Perhaps it was just a common trait among them. Not that I’d been staring for any particular reason or anything...

“As expected of a craftsman’s city, they’ve got quite the selection.”

“Yeah, lots of furniture and tableware too. Looks like they have accessories upstairs.”

“Oh, hey, doesn’t this look familiar? Is this the same cup we had tea from at that food stall?”

Looking closer, there was a label touting its excellent heat retention.

“... ‘Excellent,’ huh?”

Rio frowned and scrutinized the label skeptically. There was also a pot claiming to have excellent heat retention, but wouldn’t that just mean it conducts heat poorly? Something about it felt suspiciously like false advertising.

“Ah, you have a good eye. That’s one of our company’s latest developments, a heat-retaining cup. Supplies are limited, so if you’d like to purchase one, now’s the time!”

A tall, thin man with narrow eyes appeared out of nowhere. He looked the part of a gentlemanly shopkeeper—probably the store manager or someone in charge.

“Or perhaps...”

He paused for effect and then dramatically widened his narrow eyes.

“You’re familiar with a cup that offers even better heat retention?”

There was a distinct pressure in his voice as he asked.

“Ah, no, sorry! I must’ve been mistaken. I had tea in a similar-looking cup once, but it didn’t seem to retain heat very well...”

“Is that so? My apologies then. Please, feel free to browse our other products at your leisure.”

Rio offered an awkward smile, but the man walked away, leaving a sharp gaze lingering behind.

“Phew, that was close. I’d better be careful about making critical comments...”

“Haha, rough luck there. Still, I guess not everyone at the Mimina Trading Company is bad, huh?”

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the energetic catfolk clerk cheerfully greeting another customer with her signature “Welcome, nya~!”

“Who are you talking about?”

Rio puffed out her cheeks and punched me in the side.

Her angry face was adorable, but man, that hurt.