Hi there! My name is Kirara and as you might have guessed, I absolutely adore everything that sparkles. My love for reading webnovels and light...

About a month had passed since the teleportation incident caused by Shafal. Things had been quite hectic and tough recently.

Firstly, the day after returning to the royal capital, I went to school, and my classmates and teachers asked me various questions about where I had been and what had happened. It was a struggle to dodge their questions, as I had been advised by Fia to keep the matter of Shafal as secret as possible.

After that, on the same day after school, I was called to the headmaster’s office and asked to tell the full story. Thinking it was best to inform the headmaster, I explained everything.

The headmaster listened silently for a while, then slowly opened her mouth, “Is Shafal-sama… still here right now?”

“Ah, yes. He’s here.”

When I called out Shafal, the headmaster gently stroked him with tears in her eyes. When I asked what was wrong, it turned out that the headmaster had loved stories featuring silver dragons since childhood and was moved to meet the real Shafal. Come to think of it, there was a large silver dragon painting hanging in the school hall. I thought it was cool and powerful, but was it the headmaster’s hobby?

About a week after that, there were midterm exams at the school. I was a little worried since I had missed a few days of school, but I managed to solve the problems without any issues. Another week later, the exam results were announced. I was able to maintain my position as the top student and breathed a sigh of relief.

The following days passed peacefully, and today marked the beginning of a two-month-long break from school.

“What should I do for these two months…” On the first day of the break, I muttered to myself while making breakfast.

“Why not take this opportunity to start adventuring in earnest?” Father, who had come to the kitchen for a drink of water after taking a shower, suggested.

“Father, are you okay with me going out of town alone?”

“…Well, honestly, I’m worried… but you can’t be a child forever, Lark.”

“In that case, I’ll give it a try as an adventurer! I’m looking forward to it…”

“Just don’t do anything reckless.”

I quickly prepared breakfast and ate a little faster than usual. Then, I headed to the guild with him. We entered the guild, and I separated from Father who is occupied with receptionist duties.

Speaking of adventurer activities, it’s all about completing requests. I’ll try to accept one right away.

I went to the bulletin board where requests were posted on sheets of paper and looked for a suitable one.

Monster extermination, gathering materials… There’s so many. Which one should I really choose?

As I hesitated, a familiar adventurer talked to me, “Hey, Lark. Looking for a request? During this time of year, it’s standard for newbies like you to learn about geography by taking requests like herb gathering.”

“Really? Then, maybe I’ll try that.”

“By the way, basic requests like herb gathering are called ‘permanent requests’ and are open year-round, so you don’t need to go through any formalities to accept them. Just go ahead and do it.”

“Understood. Thank you!” I expressed my gratitude and decided to accept the request to gather medicinal herbs.

Although the adventurer said I could go ahead and do it, I still made sure to inform Father by saying, “I’m going out to collect medicinal herbs,” before leaving the guild. I then headed out of town and made my way to the grasslands.

According to the map on the request paper, the medicinal herbs I’m looking for should be growing in clusters around here. However, since various plants covering the area, the search for them seems bit challenging. Well, it’s only natural for grass to grow in grasslands.

“It should be around here… Ah, found it!”

While scanning the area, I discovered the first medicinal herb. To be sure, I checked it with my “Appraising Eye” and confirmed that it was indeed the intended plant. Upon closer inspection, I noticed the medicinal herbs were scattered here and there. I decided to gather them as I came across them.

About thirty minutes into the task, an idea suddenly struck me. “I wonder if using the ‘Useful Box’ would make this go faster?”

I used earth magic to uproot the grass at random and collected everything in the “Useful Box.”

Upon checking the panel’s screen, I found that the collected plants were indeed sorted by type.

This method makes gathering instantaneous, and I also acquire materials I might use in the future. However, overdoing it can lead to environmental destruction… I should use it moderately.

After that, I primarily gathered the medicinal herbs myself, occasionally using the “Useful Box” without damaging the environment. Of course, I didn’t forget to observe the surrounding scenery and familiarize myself with the terrain during that time.

“Phew, maybe it’s time to head back.”

I had been so absorbed in gathering medicinal herbs and observing the scenery that the sun had fully risen before I knew it.

I washed the dirt from my hands with water magic and returned to the city gate.

As I entered the city, the gatekeeper called out to me, “Did you manage to collect the medicinal herbs?”

“Yes, I got a large amount!”

When I answered with a smile, the gatekeeper exclaimed, “That’s great!”

Eager to report my success, I hurried back to the guild and rushed towards Father, who was working at the usual reception desk.

“I’ve gathered the medicinal herbs!”

“Oh, any injuries? Well then, place the collected herbs here.”

Father took out a small silver tray from the shelf. No matter how I looked at it, there was no way it could hold all the herbs I had collected.

“Father, this tray isn’t big enough.”

“…Did you collect that many?”

“Yes, I got so absorbed in it that I collected quite a lot.”

“I see… In that case, let’s have you lay them out in the underground storage.”

Father and I then headed to the guild’s basement together.

Upon entering the warehouse, he then turned to face me and asked, “So, Lark, how many medicinal herbs do you have?”

“Uh, let’s see…”

I opened my storage panel to check the number of herbs.

“It’s exactly 500. Since I didn’t gather them all in one place, I didn’t really disrupt the environment or anything like that.”

“…I’ve had a hunch when you said they wouldn’t fit on the tray… but you’re the first E-rank adventurer to bring in such a large amount of herbs all at once during my entire career as a receptionist, Lark.”

“R-really?”

I guess I ended up collecting too many since it was so easy with the “Useful Box”.

Father later instructed me to put the herbs into an empty wooden box, so I did as I was told.

“Wait a moment while I count them.”

He then prepared another empty box and skillfully transferred the herbs one by one.

“…Alright, the amount is really 500. Now let’s head back up, so I can give you your reward.”

“Okay.”

I returned from the basement to the reception area and received a silver coin from Father as the reward for the herbs.

By the way, the reward for collecting herbs is one copper coin for every five herbs. Since one silver coin is worth 100 copper coins, his calculation is indeed correct.

“Lark, it’s good to be enthusiastic, but remember to exercise a bit of restraint.”

“Hahaha… I’ll be careful,” I replied with a wry smile to his caution, and then headed back home.

I’m kind of hungry right now, so maybe I should make some lunch…

I went to the kitchen and took out meat, vegetables, and rice from the “Useful Box.” I also took out a bottle filled with a black liquid.

That’s right; this is a familiar seasoning in Japan—a soy sauce. It exists in this world, too.

About a month ago, shortly after I returned to the royal capital, I visited Taldora’s shop, which stocks various rare ingredients, including rice. The old man told me that he had received a new product and asked if I’d like to see it.

When he showed it to me out of curiosity, it turned out to be soy sauce. The shock of tasting it for the first time is unforgettable even now. I immediately bought all the soy sauce available and asked her to continue stocking it along with rice.

“Now then, what should I make today…”

As I’m pondering, Shafal came out on his own, “Meat! I want to eat meat!” hollering loudly. Shafal, who finally learned to speak normally in the past month, was now flying slightly longer distances with his small wings while shouting his order.

“Alright, alright, no need to yell, Shafal,” I said to calm his boisterousness.

Over the past month, I had gotten used to speaking casually with Shafal. Following Shafal’s order, I cut the meat, stir-fried it in a frying pan, and added vegetables once the meat was cooked through. I seasoned it with soy sauce, salt, and pepper, completing the stir-fried vegetables dish.

I served both mine and Shafal’s portions on plates, carried them to the table, and began eating after putting my hands together and saying, “Itadakimasu.”

“I’d like a bit more meat,” Shafal remarked bluntly while eating heartily.

By the way, Shafal would eat anything—meat, rice, vegetables, you name it. While he did seem to have a fondness for meat, he had never complained about the presence of vegetables in his dish.

“Speaking of which, Shafal, were you able to see your own status in the end?”

“Yes, I offered a prayer to the statue like you told me to, met the god, and was informed about my status.”

That’s right, I had thought that maybe if Shafal prayed to the god Samady, he might be able to learn his own status. I had told Shafal that since he’s a divine beast, he might even be able to go to the divine realm where Samady is currently residing by offering prayers, and I was glad that my prediction was correct.

“So, how high are your ability values?”

“About an average of 5,000. I have a full range of skills that dragons can use, and my special ability is ‘Reincarnation.'”

“…I knew you’d be strong since you’re a dragon, but an average of 5,000, huh…”

You’re even stronger than me… although you just look like a cute baby dragon to me.

I pulled myself together and asked another question, “When you become an adult, you’ll be even more amazing, right?”

“Yes, from what I see of my status, it appears that I am currently in a state of ‘Weakened’ state after reincarnating, so my ability values should increase as I grow.”

“I see…”

It’s kind of depressing that you’re already stronger than me and will only become even stronger later.

After finishing our lunch, I took out a book on rice lent to me by Wallis from the “Useful Box” and began reading, spending my time leisurely.

As soon as I began reading, Shafal reentered my body. According to him, he felt better being immersed in my mana from within me rather than being outside. He also mentioned that my mana is cleaner and tastier than regular mana. I’m not really sure if mana even has a taste, but since there’s no point in thinking about it, so I decided not to worry.

After reading for a while, the sun started to set. It was about time for Father to come home, so I started preparing dinner. I cooked rice, prepared the ingredients, and made soup and a stewed dish.

Just as I finished, Father came back from work and peeked into the kitchen with perfect timing. “I’m home.”

“Welcome back, Father. Dinner is ready, so please go wash your hands.”

“Alright, I got it. I’ve been looking forward to it since I could smell the delicious aroma all the way outside,” he commented with joy, then washed his hands in the kitchen before heading to the living room.

We set the dinner on the living room table and sat facing my cheerful Father. Shafal also came outside, so we all had dinner together. Today’s side dishes were popular as well, with both Shafal and Father having three more servings of rice each.

After dinner, we took a bath together, wiped our bodies, said our prayers, before finally fell into a comfortable sleep.