“Uncle Larry! Show me some fish!”
A man who was preparing fish in a corner of the fishy stall turned his head. Although he was small, the muscles in his eyes and arms were unusual.
Instead of speaking, he pointed at the salted fish with his finger.
“Did you come in today? Are you fresh?”
Larry at the fish shop laughed sharply. Since it is an inland region, most sea fish are transported after being frozen or salted. So it’s far from fresh, but Carrot called it that way knowingly.
Then his mouth opened and a loud hoarse sound came out.
“…salt was properly pickled. It tastes good when you bake it.”
Smiles spread across the faces of the people around them. Among them, there were some surprise guests.
“Did you know how to say the fish shop man?!”
“wow! Larry spoke!”
Everyone thought they were dumb because they always replaced words with glances, chins, or actions.
“There is also a large knife mark on the neck. I just knew that.”
Leaving the whisperers behind, Carrot asked for 10 large salted fish.
After dipping the knife into the cutting board, Larry stood up and held out 10 salted fish tightly wrapped in paper. Putting it on the cart, Carrot took out a coin and put it in his hand.
“Thank you as always.”
“It is me who is grateful. Say hello to your master.”
Carrot smiled and waved. As I was pulling a cart through the market, someone started talking to me.
“What? Carrot? Is it Carrot?”
“huh?”
I turned around and saw a bald ghetto, a young woman, and a little girl.
“oh! Ghetto Captain! Anything special? Did you come to see the market?”
“This boy. Anything special is what I’m going to do. Do you see the market too?”
“Yeah, I usually followed the owner. These days, Crank is busy decorating the workshop.”
Saying that, Carrot looked at the women standing by the ghetto.
“Are you beautiful, the family of the head of the ghetto?”
“yes. It’s the automaton I was talking about before. Carrot.”
The woman with wide eyes nodded with a slightly bewildered face. Carrot raised her hand.
“oh! hello. ma’am! What a beauty she is. Is this the captain’s daughter?”
“Um, isn’t it pretty? it’s my daughter My name is Olive. I am 10 years old this year.”
“The eyes and mouth here resemble a ghetto chief.”
“oh! that’s right! Everyone said that!”
As he got closer, as Adam had said before, he was of the same size as Carrot. Carrot took off her gloves and waved her black framed palm.
“Hello, Olive. I am Automaton Carrot.”
The ghetto’s wife and daughter opened their eyes wide.
“Ah, hello…”
“Wah ha ha ha. You can speak comfortably. In terms of age, I’m about your age.”
said the ghetto.
“How are you these days? busy?”
“I have to do anything for money. Anything good?”
“Uh, actually… aaa!”
The ghetto’s wife, with blood on her forehead, pinched his buttocks, and her daughter bit his leg.
“no! You made a lot of money! Dad stays home for another month!”
“Oh no! Still, a month is too long!”
“Fhahahahaha! nice to see! Well, if it’s hard to say here, tell the guild. If Crank is interested, I’ll post an answer.”
“I get it.”
Olive grabbed her father’s leg and glared at Carrot.
“Don’t take my dad!”
Carrot smiled happily and whispered to Olive.
“I am not taking your father. It will stop me from taking your father.”
Olive looked puzzled as if she didn’t understand, but the ghetto and his wife showed a grateful expression.
“Oh, well, okay. I’ll contact you as soon as I get the case.”
“hmm! Let’s make it as easy as possible!”
The ghetto waved away, grabbed by his wife and daughter, and disappeared.
When I returned to the studio and told him what had happened at the market, Crank, who was checking his belongings, nodded.
“If an adventurer has a family, there are many obstacles in many ways.”
“So, you’re not getting married? I think your children are pretty cute too.”
“You sound like a mother. Maybe when I get the chance, but not right now.”
“oh! There is no possibility! don’t worry! I’ll take care of the baby!”
Krank, who had been slapped on the back by the automaton and had a pathetic expression, handed out a letter.
“what’s this?”
“I went to the guild earlier and got a letter from Mekro.”
“Macro…? ah! Bomba?! Other antique automatons?!”
“Iselia. A beggar made by the Aegstar family in Izelia. At the time, it was a high-end automaton with high performance.”
After reading the letter, Carrot turned her head.
“Then what do you do? It is a very early antique that is over 100 years old. It is an undeniable reality that it is too old to be used by collectors. Look, the letter doesn’t even raise an arm anymore. Crank was thinking of fixing this? I heard that it is difficult to find parts because it is an income.”
Crank jumped up and went to a corner of the workshop, brought a large wooden box, and carefully lowered it in front of Carrot.
thud···!
“It is a genuine standard part for the Aegstar automaton. I got it the hard way Don’t ask the price, it’s going to make you sick to your stomach.”
From noble mtl dot com
said Carrot, looking up at the crank with a frown.
“It’s sick. You are absolutely ill.”
“mmmhhh… Kufuhehehe…!”
Even Crank, who shows little emotion, smiles happily now. was a little naughty, but
“If not at a time like this, when will you open the automaton of Aegstar, a famous house in the great country of Izelia? Just imagining it is fun. I have to open each one and leave as many work tools as possible, so I need to prepare a notebook and paper separately. And while we’re at it, let’s pick up some of the things we’ve hidden around. Now that we have a workshop, we need to increase our livelihood in earnest.”
“oh! really? So now I have younger siblings!?! ha ha ha!”
Carrot, whose face was straightened, jumped up and down excitedly.
The next day, Crank, who borrowed a two-headed wagon through a guild relay, went out through the gate.
However, the guards in front of the gate looked worried when they saw them coming out with poor armaments.
“I know your prestige, but alone… would you mind?”
“I am used to it. It doesn’t matter.”
“And you’re not alone?!”
The guard, who looked up at the crank with a worried expression, looked at the little doll with a frown. Then he sighed and stamped the adventurer’s notebook and returned it.
“I hope for a safe return.”
“Carrot! you dude! Take good care of your master!”
“Heng! Don’t worry! No. 231! No. 232! I will be back! Let’s play hide and seek again at night!”
The guard automatons guarding the gate turned their heads and waved their hands. The guard who was watching exclaimed in ridicule.
“The guy who gets caught every time!”
“Because you won’t get caught next time?!”
“Anyway, be careful!”
“Yeah!”
As the crank started the horses, the wagon started moving slowly.
The slash-and-burn village of Mekro in the Argon Territory is located in the forest, 3 days away by wagon. But Crank was on his way back a little way because of collectibles.
“there is! here!”
Carrot, who had been searching the woods for a while, sang the crank. The rotten twigs and bushes were cleared to reveal the body of the automaton, along with torn clothing.
“That drunken adventurer’s automaton, right? I think it was like 3 years ago? that’s right?”
Krank took out his notebook and nodded.
“Exactly.”
“Who is the owner?”
“He died of a chronic disease two years ago.”
“There is no owner and no place to go, so it won’t be a problem if we take it now.”
Crank picked up the battered automaton and moved it to the wagon.
“Where next?”
Crank, who took out his notebook, map, and compass and examined them, raised his helmet.
“There is a stone mountain 2 hours away. There was a troll subjugation nearby, and I hid the damaged and discarded ones.”
Trolls were still roaming the cave in Stone Mountain, where they arrived two hours later.
Carrot, who hid herself on a rock, let out a panicked voice.
“uh? Weren’t you subjugated?”
“did. Looks like some new guys have come in. After all, that cave should have been destroyed.”
“What are you going to do?”
Crank pondered for a moment and said.
“This is a pass. I didn’t expect this. There is a shortage of equipment and personnel.”
“Heh, I was going to do it if I told you to rush in.”
Crank turned to Carrot as he headed towards the wagon.
“We only have one life, so it’s expensive. Are you unique?”
“Kick-kick-kick! Crank was pretty cool now.”
“Some famous person said it. Let’s avoid useless fights and move on to the next one. We have a long way to go.”
In this way, on the way to Macro, the Crank, which succeeded in collecting items stolen or abandoned during past commissions, arrived at Macro later than expected.
At the entrance of the village where the fields are spread out, I saw people one by one, and I waved my hand as I wanted to leave.
“and! A person!”
“Who is it? Is it a mobile shop?”
“grow-!”