The day after the divine meeting ended,
the Loki Familia was in a flurry of activity.
"Finn. What's going on?"
"The Guild has issued a request; we need to head out on an expedition immediately."
"A request?"
"To confirm whether the rumors about Evilus appearing are true."
"Evilus... I want to go too..."
"No. You're still too young."
"Even though I'm Level 3?"
"..."
Finn was left speechless.
Aiz was only ten years old.
She was still a child, yet she was already a fullyfledged high-ranking adventurer.
"Hmm..."
Finn pondered.
Was it really the right decision to take Aiz along?
"...Ah, that guy is still around, isn't he?"
After a moment of contemplation, the image of a red-haired boy surfaced in Finn's mind.
"...Why are you here?"
"Ahaha. Could you please not be so guarded?"
While I was busy hammering away at some iron,
Finn Deimna, the [Brave], had come to visit.
Why had that slippery old fox suddenly shown up?
"I'll tell you now, I have no intention of introducing you to any Pallum customers."
"Eh... I was wondering if that might be—ah, no, that's not it."
...He was just testing the waters, but is this guy some kind of Pallum fanatic?
"Bellf. The Loki Familia is planning to enter the Dungeon to search for traces of Evilus."
"...You want me to look after Aiz?"
"Exactly."
"No way. I'm not a babysitter."
"For someone who says that, you take quite good care of Aiz, don't you? You even make sure she has dinner every now and then."
"..."
Well, that was true, but...
"I'm a blacksmith, not a childcare teacher."
"Then let's make a deal."
"Whatever it is, I'm not accep—"
"Adamantite."
"What?"
Adamantite was a special ore mined from the Dungeon, one of the highest-grade materials used in weapon crafting.
It was also one of the few materials I had never had the chance to work with.
"One ingot of adamantite recovered from the Deep Floors. That should be enough, right?"
"...Isn't that a bit too high a price just for watching one kid?"
"Aiz is like a daughter to me."
"That daughter of yours doesn't seem to listen to a word you say."
"Ahem..."
"Fine. I'll do it."
"Great. The date is three days from now."
"Got it."
After Finn sealed the verbal contract, he turned to leave—
"Ah, by the way."
—but it seemed he still had something on his mind.
"What now? Something else?"
"Has a courageous Pallum ever come looking for you?"
"..."
"Ahem... I'm getting up there in age, so... I thought I'd like to experience a bit of romance..."
"With your reputation as the [Brave], you could probably land any Pallum you wanted, couldn't you?"
"It's just that I have a preference for courageous Pallums..."
"..."
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