Thanks to the help of the carriage driver, it has been a month since I first set foot in Orario, and now I am...
"Oh my~ This young one has such a kind heart."
"Hey Kai! You look scrawny, but you're good at physical labor!"
"Hey kid! Before we start work, why don't you sing that song from the tavern the other day again!"
"Ah, Kai! Since you're here for dinner, can you take a look at this table? It's been making strange noises since yesterday."
Using the alias Kai, I was diligently saving money while working various odd jobs around Orario.
'With 8,600 credits saved from working hard for a month... Can I really become an adventurer with this?' . . . It was two days after I arrived in Orario.
After parting ways with the carriage driver, I found a cheap inn while looking around Orario, which was good, but
"Staying here again tonight? It's 150 credits per night."
"Here you go..."
Now, the money was starting to run out.
'Ugh... The money the driver gave me is almost gone too...'
With only 550 credits left, even if I stretched it by eating as little as possible, I could only last about three days, so I had to earn money somehow.
'If I only eat one meal a day, it costs about 50 credits, and lodging is 150 per day, so that's at least 200 per day...'
While looking for ways to earn money, I spotted a notice, and
"Help wanted ad..."
So, I had no choice but to work as a day laborer and temporary replacement at shops to save money. . . . "Well, thanks to that, I've built up basic knowledge of this place and made more acquaintances, so it's not all bad, right?"
Thanks to the connections made while working, I found cheaper inns and restaurants with better quality food at similar prices to what I used to eat, which helped in many ways.
"Now then, before becoming an adventurer, I need to meet a god and get a Blessing engraved, but..."
Based on my investigations while staying here, the gods in this place can be simply described as follows.
'I have to find a sane one among these eccentric gods...'
These gods cause all sorts of incidents every day, so whenever I went to work, the older men would talk about which god caused what accident, and it never stopped.
'If only it were a story I knew well, but I only saw the beginning and forgot about it...'
So, I told the place I was working that I was taking a break to join a Familia and asked if there were any recommended groups.
"What?! You want to become an adventurer?!!"
"It's a dangerous job that risks your life... But we can't stop a young man's dream..."
"Well... if you fail to join, come back here."
Including the boss, the workers came to me and gave me various advice filled with encouragement, support, and worry.
"By the way, Miach Familia... Wasn't that the god who shared potions with the protagonist in the beginning?"
After carefully considering the information I gathered and the evaluations of those around me, the Familia I decided on was Miach Familia.
"Hmm... I think the name was 'Blue Pharmacy'... Ah, there it is."
Thanks to the map the men drew, I was able to arrive at Miach Familia.
'Ding~'
"Excuse me... Is this Miach Familia?"
"...Huh?"
"Ah, come on in."
Inside the shop, a wolf-kin woman and a handsome man who even I could tell was exceptionally good-looking were sitting at the counter, emanating a mysterious aura.
"Um... I came to apply to join the Familia."
"...What?"
When I mentioned joining, the god smiled and approached me.
"Let's, let's sit down and talk first!"
Caught off guard by the unexpected response, I was stunned for a moment but quickly composed myself and sat facing the god to introduce myself.
"First, my name is Kai."
"..."
The moment I said my name, the god's expression sharpened for an instant, and I finally remembered one fact.
'Come to think of it, I heard that gods here react sensitively to lies?'
"Ah! I have a real name, but people here have trouble pronouncing it, so I'm using an alias."
"Ahh, so that's how it is~"
After I added the explanation, the god relaxed his expression and started smiling again.
'...As expected, a god is a god, huh?'
I was momentarily intimidated by the immense power hidden behind the kind-looking smile.
"I've been in Orario for about a month now. Since I didn't know when I'd become an adventurer, I earned money by doing whatever work I could within my abilities."
"Oh, you're a rare, diligent child. But our Familia isn't an exploration-type; we focus on medicine and healing. Is that okay?"
"I heard that even if it's not an exploration-type Familia, they don't completely avoid the Dungeon..."
"..."
The god smiled as I honestly introduced myself, but the wolf-kin sitting right next to him kept glaring at me as if uncomfortable.
"Um... Did I do something wrong?"
"Even though you're just going to leave soon anyway..."
"...Huh?"
As I was flustered by the unexpected words, Miach scolded her as if reprimanding.
"Enough, Naza!!"
"You know it too, Miach! As soon as debt came to the Familia, everyone abandoned us like worn-out shoes!!"
"That is..."
"It's obvious that this guy will leave once he finds out we have debt!"
It seemed there was a story in this Familia that I didn't know about. . . . "I'm sorry... She's usually a good kid, but she's been through a series of bad things recently..."
The argument between the two ended with the woman called Naza going to another room first.
"By the way, what do you mean by debt?"
"Well, the truth is..."
According to Miach, in the past, Naza was seriously burned by a monster's magic attack in the Dungeon and collapsed, unable to move, and had her limbs attacked. After being rescued, thanks to Miach's devoted nursing and medication, her life was saved and her severe wounds were healed, but her right arm, which had been badly damaged, couldn't be treated normally. So, Miach incurred a huge debt to request a specialized prosthetic from a fellow medical faction and equipped it for her.
"Don't tell me the debt is..."
"...Yes, it's the cost of the prosthetic arm I asked my colleague to make."
The prosthetic firmly settled as Naza's new right arm, but to purchase it, Miach incurred a massive debt. Miach Familia, which had been a mid-tier group with considerable scale, lost all its members except Naza to other Familias as soon as the debt arose, becoming a small Familia with only one god and one member.
"I'm sorry for deceiving you..."
Their story was information I could have found out if I had investigated a bit more before coming here, but in my haste to join a Familia quickly, I ended up touching their painful memories.
"No... It's my fault for coming without knowing anything."
"Let's consider the application as if it never happened... Please, find a better god than me..."
The moment I saw the god's face as he was about to get up, I felt the numerous emotions hidden behind his smile.
'Guilt, regret, sadness, self-reproach, and... worry'
The moment I realized he was genuinely worried about me, whom he met for the first time today, I found myself grabbing Miach's sleeve as he was passing by.
"...I'll do it. I'll join."
"What are you..."
"I'll join."
Due to the god's ability to detect lies, Miach realized my words were sincere and was inwardly pleased, but immediately asked me the reason for deciding to join.
"Thank you for saying you'll join even after knowing all the circumstances, but... can you tell me why you insist on joining a Familia that can't offer much and has debt?"
"The gods I've seen so far are, how should I put it... most of them are so devoted to their own desires that they don't even try to restrain themselves."
"Certainly... there are many gods who don't care about causing trouble as long as it's for their own fun."
"So, I think you are the closest to a good god among those I've seen so far."
"R-really?"
Perhaps embarrassed by the sudden praise, Miach scratched his cheek.
"...Moreover, I felt that you were genuinely worried about me, whom you met for the first time today."
Perhaps because of my honest answer, Miach made a surprised expression for a moment, then smiled and reached out his hand to me.
"Welcome to our Miach Familia, child."
I smiled as I shook Miach's hand.
"I'll be in your care!" . . . "Since that's how it is, let's get along well from now on."
"I'll be in your care, senior!"
"Sigh..."