[What's the job, master? Do I need to kill someone?]
'No, you idiot. I want you to travel to another city. I plan to move and keep an eye on what happens in Orario from a distance. Staying here might be dangerous.'
[Another city?! That's exactly what I was going to suggest! A lot of people I talked to said you could go to other cities to sell your things. They said you can charge even higher prices in other places.]
'Oh? That's good. I'll kill two birds with one stone then. I'll pick the city, and you handle the rest. You'll need to find your transportation.'
[Don't worry, I'll take care of it.]
'Ah, before we cut contact—how's Madara? He hasn't contacted me in a long time.'
[I don't know where he is. I saw him three days ago, but then he disappeared.]
'I'll get in touch with him soon. Hang tight while I decide which city to choose.'
[I'll be waiting.]
I cut the connection with Fang Yuan and tried to remember all the well-known cities in this world and which one might be the best choice.
I'm only going to another city to keep my original body safe.
Keeping it outside Orario makes it harder for anyone to reach me.
Interesting places… What about Melen? Preblica? Maybe even heading to the Empire wouldn't be a bad idea. The problem is that the Empire is too powerful, and if I'm discovered, I'll be hunted just like in Orario.
I think a small city or village might be more suitable.
'I'll choose a city or village for now. Later, I'll place a clone in each city in the world so I can escape or move around the world easily.' Yes, that's decided.
It doesn't even need to be far away. As long as it's small and doesn't attract the attention of the gods, it'll be fine. I should pick a city or country that isn't involved in conflicts like the Empire or Rakia.
What about Edas Village? It's a small village in a somewhat isolated location. Plus, many different races live there, so it'll be easy to blend in.
There's also Melen, which I mentioned earlier, but I remembered that the Njord Familia is based there.
'Alright, it's settled.'
Then, I contacted Fang Yuan again.
'Fang Yuan, find a way to get to Edas Village. Only contact me once you've arrived.'
[Edas Village? Sounds like a small place. You might not be able to sell things there.]
'That's fine. Just do what I said.'
[Alright. I'll do everything I can to carry out your order.]
'Just don't cause too much trouble.'
[Don't worry. Everything's under control.]
It might be a little tricky once he reaches the Beol Mountains, but I think he'll be fine.
####
After cutting contact with Fang Yuan, I reached out to Frieren to tell her what had happened. Once I updated her, I spent some time at home and summoned Clone 16 again.
After summoning him, I changed his appearance completely.
This time, I chose the look of an extremely ordinary adult man. I gave him just enough muscle to appear strong, but nothing excessive.
His black hair grew down to his shoulders.
And his eyes were now a mossy green.
I also made some clothes for him: long black pants, black shoes, and a gray long-sleeved shirt. With his appearance fully changed, I took control of his body and headed to Frieren.
When I arrived at the potion shop, Finn wasn't around—which was good.
I walked inside and was surprised by the number of potions for sale. I expected a limited stock, but there was a lot. I started browsing the shelves and soon saw Frieren restocking one of them.
She turned and looked at me. She recognized me.
She gave the most natural smile she could and asked:
"What's the new ability you want to test?" she asked while continuing to restock the shelf.
"It's an ability that lets me create a soul. Your body doesn't have one, and that's a problem. Goddesses like Freya will notice if you're soulless."
"A soul…" Frieren brought the box to the counter and untied the apron she wore over her clothes. "That does sound interesting. I'd like to have a soul. But couldn't you have tested it on yourself?"
"I could have tested it on this body I'm using, but when you mentioned the potions, I got curious." I started walking around the store, reading the small signs.
They had information about the potions.
Healing potions, mana potions…
"Pretty decent."
"They're excellent potions—or so my boss says. I've never drunk one, so I wouldn't know."
"They're definitely weaker than abilities, but they should be enough for lower-level adventurers."
"Are you going to buy some? I can sell them to you."
"Sure. Let's see." Low, medium, and high-grade healing potions. They had all types here. The prices varied a lot. The lowest-grade potions were around 800 valis.
Pretty affordable.
The medium ones were over 2,000 valis, and the high-grade ones could go up to 10,000 valis.
10,000 Valis is a lot for just one potion.
'But honestly, I thought it would cost more.'
I picked a high-grade healing potion and a high-grade mana potion. I didn't really need them, but I wanted to test something. I took the potions to the counter.
Frieren climbed onto a stool behind the counter because she was so short.
I couldn't help but laugh.
"Why are you laughing?" Frieren grabbed the two potions and placed them in a special pouch to keep them from breaking. I handed over the money.
"It's nothing. Sorry."
"Why are you apologizing?"
"It's nothing." I picked up the potions. "So, mind telling me how you ended up with this job? And where's your boss?"
"She went out to grab something to eat and hasn't come back yet. Hmm... I got this job by luck. I was walking past the store, and the owner noticed me. She offered me a good daily wage, and I accepted."
"..."
"Money is important, right? Until I join a Familia, I need to earn something."
"But you don't get hungry, thirsty, or tired, right?"
"Even so, I can still taste food. Eating something delicious is great." Frieren's cheeks turned slightly red, and she gave a big smile.
"Well, I won't stop you from working. But please, don't forget to grow stronger. I told you before, didn't I? You need to go into the dungeon and kill monsters to evolve."
"I don't like that place. Can't I kill monsters somewhere else?"
"... Huff~~" I let out a long sigh. "No—"
"Frieren, who's there?" A woman appeared from the back of the shop.
She was an older woman, but very beautiful. She had long blonde hair and skin far too smooth for someone her age.
"He's a friend. He came to buy potions."
"Ah, but I heard him talking about the dungeon. You don't have a falna, do you? That's why I offered you the job. Hey, don't go telling her to go into the dungeon. You trying to get her killed?"
"I just said she should join my Familia and explore the dungeon with me, that's all. But I guess she didn't like the idea." I smiled and looked at Frieren. She got the message and said:
"Yes, that's exactly it."
"I see…" The woman looked at me with suspicion, and I decided to leave the shop.
As I left, I spoke to Frieren in her mind.
'Go back to exploring the dungeon.'
I couldn't test the soul creation ability on Frieren because I lost too much time and that woman interrupted. So I went to an alley, returned to my original body, and dismissed Clone 16.
Then, I summoned Clone 16 again and activated the skill.
[Do you wish to create a soul for this body?]
"Yes."
####
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Next chapters: Chapter 43 - You've reached the limit. / Chapter 44 - Outside Orario. / Chapter 45 - I'm going to rip your arms off (Pov: Fang Yuan) / Chapter 46 - Emblem.