Chapter 62 – Research and Development

“Robin, isn’t that Fangworm meat?”

“Hm? Oh yeah. It’s crunchy and delicious. Pairs really well with ale.”

He said it so casually. Everyone else was eating it normally too, and once it’s cooked, the appearance isn’t really that bad either.

This must be normal in this world’s food culture, but for me, there are some things I’d occasionally prefer to pass on. Maybe this is similar to how some people can’t eat mantis shrimp.

Fangworm. A monster that looks like a giant worm with fangs. It’s definitely not an appearance that stimulates appetite, and the unclear classification is a bit of a drawback.

Whether it’s true or not, they say the taste resembles shellfish. If it were actually a terrestrial relative of shellfish, maybe my rejection would decrease…?

“Theo-kun, are you not good with worms?”

“No, it’s more like I’ve been avoiding trying it without actually knowing.”

In BFO, you could cook monsters too, but many people avoided worms.

…But this might be a good opportunity to challenge myself.

Steeling myself, I put the boiled worm meat in my mouth… It’s actually delicious and has a good texture.

From the name “worm,” I thought it might be an insect-type monster. But judging by the taste, it’s definitely more like shellfish.

“Hmm. Surprisingly edible, I guess.”

“Right? This place’s worm is especially tasty.”

The restaurant Forestbird brought us to was quite crowded and lively, probably because it was lunchtime. Seems like a popular establishment.

“Speaking of which, I heard you took down a Guardian.”

“That wasn’t me—it was Grace.”

As attention turned to her, Grace’s cheeks flushed slightly with embarrassment.

“I knew Grace-san was amazing.”

“Ashley-sama is diving together too, right? Ashley-sama will probably become amazing soon too.”

“Yeah. You really feel yourself growing when you dive in labyrinths.”

“N-no, I still have a long way to go.”

“And that’s compared to Theo-kun and Grace-san, right?”

Forestbird and the others exchanged looks and smiled wryly.

“What happened to the Guardian?”

“That one, aside from equipment… is scheduled to become bacon and jerky.”

While neatly removing fish bones, Sheila explained the Sword Boar’s disposition.

Boar meat is nutritionally rich, so we plan to preserve it for use as emergency food in the labyrinth.

“Shall we share some?”

“I’m interested in the taste, but it’s too valuable for me to accept.”

Fitz smiled wryly and waved his hand sideways.

“—Eh, Irmhild-san is a Lamia?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Now that it’s been revealed and she has backing, it seems there’s no need to hide it anymore. When Irmhild smiled and answered Monica, Forestbird’s energy level rose slightly.

“It’s my first time meeting one, but I wouldn’t have known at all if you hadn’t told me.”

“I can eat normal meals too, so it’s not completely meaningless. Though I can’t eat very much.”

Irmhild said this while cutting chicken into small pieces.

According to her, if she doesn’t occasionally consume blood as part of her diet, she gradually weakens. Probably, for Lamias, normal food is difficult to digest or absorb properly.

“Once long ago, when I tried to endure without it, my Humanization Spell broke and it was terrible.”

“Director and I found her then.”

Sheila supplemented Irmhild’s words.

Ah, so the orphanage director knew about Irmhild’s true identity from the beginning. It’s precisely because the director and Sheila protected her that she’s where she is today.

“Fufu. Sheila-chan and I have known each other for a long time.”

“Mhm.”

Sheila nodded with a small “kukun.”

Our long-awaited lunch with Forestbird proceeded in that kind of peaceful atmosphere throughout.

Well then. After this—I plan to stop by the workshop, but what about telling Alfred about Forestbird then? Of course, only if Forestbird agrees.

Forestbird is close to me, and eventually they’ll probably learn about Brightwelt Workshop anyway, but I think the impression would be different depending on whether I tell them from the start or not.

“—Heh, there are such interesting adventurers?”

After getting Forestbird’s pleasant agreement, I didn’t mention their names but conveyed their personalities to Alfred while mixing Potions. As expected, he showed interest.

“Well, how should I put it—they’re adventurers who are properly adventurous in a good way. So I thought it might be interesting to hear their opinions too.”

“Hmm… That’s good. I’d appreciate it if you could arrange a conversation with those adventurers.”

It would depend on Forestbird’s agreement, but I’ve already discussed it with them. Having customers who order the workshop’s tools or testers for prototypes who can evaluate items from perspectives other than mine would be helpful.

Alfred had been smiling cheerfully, but eventually his expression clouded slightly as he spoke.

“Even though you’re bringing me such good news, I’m sorry that I only have bad news on my end.”

“What is it? So suddenly.”

“Well, it’s about Greg.”

Alfred’s words came out hesitantly.

“Did he do something again?”

“Yeah. Because of discussions from Lady Mercedes and His Highness Albert, Greg’s proposal apparently reached the upper levels. It seems he argued that we should provide benefits to adventurers too.”

When I blinked in surprise, Alfred smiled wryly.

“According to Greg, the reason adventurers were dissatisfied was because the benefits weren’t sufficient.”

“To summarize, he’s saying money can solve everything?”

“That’s right. From the kingdom’s perspective, they don’t want to worsen relations with the labyrinth that generates profits even without intervention, or with the associated Guild and adventurers. There’s no objection to maintaining good relations. You know there are former adventurers among the nobility, right? So those people agree too. Things like properly budgeting including hush money and paying, or hiring adventurers to guide us locally. Apparently, surprisingly many such voices emerged.”

“Hmm. The Sealed Door is supposed to be a secret, right?”

“Supposedly, yes. Since we can’t close the labyrinth, His Majesty seems to think we can’t completely hide its existence itself.”

In other words, as long as the specific details about what’s beyond the door, or matters related to Moonlight Temple and Demons don’t leak as information, they view it as not particularly problematic even if adventurers get involved there.

Rather, paying adventurers in the form of Requests there could be reframed as job creation. Some adventurers aim to be employed by the Royal Castle.

“So the proposal to hire adventurers passed relatively easily.”

“I just wish it hadn’t been Greg who proposed it.”

After all, initially he tried to squeeze them for free.

“Exactly,” Alfred shrugged at my words.

“But adventurers have their pride too. Fernando, was it? I think his team will keep their distance.”

“I think so too. Greg might pour his personal wealth into letting Fernando achieve merits.”

…Has he become that desperate?

Any adventurer who accepts that offer would have to be prepared to be looked down upon by other adventurers. Whether searching for or accepting such offers, it seems like it would be quite tough.

“Well… I’m getting tired of their stories, so let’s leave it at that. On my end, the preparation for processing is coming along. If you have any requests, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“…Um.”

When Alfred asked, I thought for a moment—then answered.

“How about items that can cast Enhancement Magic on Lunaworm dresses?”

“Dresses would mean… taking the form of women’s Ornaments, I think. The material for your coat is Lunaworm thread too, right?”

“Ah, I can Enchant it myself, so I’m fine.”

In Grace’s case, she needs to have Magic cast on her by a third party. So if she could activate Enchant on her own, it would be reassuring, and I’d feel more at ease too.

“—Understood. Then I’ll try making a brooch. I have various ideas on my end too… Besides such orthodox items, I want to challenge new things through long-term research. If you notice anything inconvenient during labyrinth dives, it would help if you told me.”

Hmm… That’s the “necessity is the mother of invention” approach, I guess.

Inconvenient, inconvenient…

“—It would be helpful if we could communicate with distant partners. Like when we get separated during labyrinth Exploration.”

In BFO, there were individual Chats and mail from the Menu screen… But the fact that these were supported by system functions means, conversely, that Magic with such effects doesn’t exist within the game world.

“…Yeah. That does sound convenient. Let me think about it a bit.”

Magic Stones can contain more Spell Formulas inside them the higher their quality. Essentially, you could understand it as similar to programming.

What’s important here is how to reduce the scale when carving Spell Formulas into Magic Stones. High-quality Magic Stones are truly precious, so if they become too high-end, they’d become unsellable.

“Ah, um. I have several ideas about methods to reduce the scale of Spell Formulas.”

When I said this, Alfred blinked in surprise.