Since Kazuma had no skills to speak of, he ended up starting manual labor at a construction site. Whether Aqua felt sorry for him or just wanted to work with someone she knew is unclear, but like in the original, she started working with him. I hadn't originally planned to work, but after learning I could gain abilities based on conditions and actions, I started working at a blacksmith's shop that was short on hands while making weapons to send to the capital and was hiring short-term part-timers. Perhaps because it was hard work, the compensation was quite good.
I didn't just work; every evening after work, I practiced swordsmanship and tried hard to control the mana that Enma forcibly absorbs, like Zoro.
"Zoro just went 'Hup' right after receiving Enma and could do it, why can't I?"
I tried to feel the sensation of mana being absorbed by Enma, but it didn't work well.
After finishing training, I bathed at the public bath. Konosuba had facilities like this, making life comfortable. While moving to the inn after bathing, I saw Kazuma supporting a drunken Aqua on his way to the inn.
"Hey~ Kazuma."
"Oh, Cassian! Finished training today?"
"Yeah, not much progress though... but I'll get better if I keep at it."
"Uhehe~ It's Cassian, Cassian~!"
The supported Aqua raised her head, recognized me, and called my name with a laugh. Then a strange smell, a mix of alcohol and vomit, rose from Aqua's mouth.
"Urgh... the smell! How much did you drink?"
I covered my nose and asked Kazuma.
"Well, you see, after work today, while eating, Aqua suggested a drink, and one thing led to another, ahahaha~"
"It's possible to have a drink while working, but drink moderately from now on, or you'll have a really hard time working the next day."
Together with Kazuma, I supported Aqua and tossed her onto the bed. Aqua then buried her face in the bed, started snoring loudly, and fell asleep immediately. Then Kazuma, also tired, fell asleep as soon as he lay down.
Then the same routine continued for three days.
Unlike the original, instead of a stable, the three of us shared one room at the inn, splitting the cost. Aqua used the bed, and Kazuma and I slept on the floor next to the bed, with a thick layer of straw bundles covered by a wide cloth. Of course, I could pay more for separate rooms, but I didn't see a reason to, and seeing these guys not thinking about saving money quickly for weapons and just drinking, it seemed it would take a long time for them to come to their senses. I decided to just endure, even if it was uncomfortable. The reason I'm not going independent and staying like this is because of Verdia. In the original, the reward for defeating the Demon King's general is all wasted on repair costs because the village walls collapse due to magic caused by Aqua, but I plan to prevent that, and I really want to obtain Verdia's 'Death Sentence'. With my current strength, I think it's too much to take on alone, so I plan to aim for the last hit by coordinating with Kazuma and the others.
On the fourth day of work, the weapons to be sent to the capital were all finished.
"Say, you wouldn't happen to want to keep working here, would you? I'd pay you handsomely!"
"I appreciate the offer, but my dream is to be an adventurer."
"I see... That's a shame, but can't be helped. Here's your pay for today. Thanks to you, we finished the work faster than scheduled. So I added a bit more."
At first, I worked relying on strength and stamina, but after obtaining the [(F)Blacksmith] ability, work efficiency started to rise. On the third day of work, it rose from F-rank to E-rank, and I could handle almost all tasks at the blacksmith's. As a bonus, I also got [(F)Flame Resistance]. I guess working hard to gain abilities made me look good to the workshop.
"Thank you for everything. If I need equipment made in the future, I'll be sure to ask you."
"Definitely leave it to us! I'll make it with care! Good luck, take care~"
Leaving the blacksmith's, I opened the pouch containing my pay; it had twice the promised amount. Receiving such recognition and reward, something I never felt in the modern world, felt good.
Now, taking a break from work, I continued trying to solve the swordsmanship and Enma issues, but with no progress, I went to the adventurer's guild and asked the guide Luna if there was perhaps a place to learn swordsmanship. Luna thought for a moment and told me about a retired adventurer with the Samurai job class living on the outskirts of Axel Town. I went there, paid money, and began learning swordsmanship, skills, etc.
The abilities I gained here were as follows:
[(D)Swordsmanship] Understanding of swordsmanship is increased.
[(D)Kingdom Samurai Swordsmanship] Samurai swordsmanship created by an otherworlder and refined by the kingdom.
[(C)Iaido] Gathers mana in the sheath and quickly draws the sword to slash the enemy.
[(D)Shunpo] Moves instantly as fast as the wind.
[(C)Wind Moon Slash] Charges the sword with mana and wind to send it flying at the enemy.
Here, I spent 500 points to raise Swordsmanship from D to C and continued swordsmanship training. Finally, I became able to handle Enma.
Ding~!
You have obtained [(C)Mana Efficiency]. Mana used for abilities is reduced by 10%.
"Wow! That's good~"
"What's so good?"
I was so happy I forgot I was with my retired swordsmanship teacher.
"Ahaha, well, you see..."
"Hmm... Anyway, you've learned all the skills, and you've somewhat mastered the samurai swordsmanship, so go to the guild, take requests, and try using what you've learned in real combat. There's no faster way to improve your skills than real combat."
"Understood."
"Don't overdo it, and if you feel something is lacking, come and ask."
This took 7 days. Others might say, 'How does it only take 7 days to learn and master swordsmanship?' but in the Konosuba world, if you look at a skill and immediately imprint it on your adventurer card, you can learn it, so it didn't require much effort. Of course, how well you utilize it depends on your own effort.
I immediately went to the guild, took a Giant Toad subjugation request, and went out to the plains, the Giant Toad habitat outside town. Looking around the plains area, a frog the size of a truck was hopping around making 'thump thump' sounds. One of them seemed to have spotted me, approached, opened its mouth, and shot out its tongue, but I easily dodged with 'Shunpo' and launched a 'Wind Moon Slash', and the Giant Toad was instantly cut in half.
"Ugh... this is a bit disturbing to look at."
The large frog being cut in half and spilling its guts was quite grotesque.
"We'll make good use of the meat. May you be reborn in a better world next time~"
After a brief prayer for the dead, I resumed hunting.
The request was for 5, but I had plenty of time and was getting into the fun of using skills, so after hunting about 30, it seemed the sun was about to set, and I returned to the guild.
"To hunt 32 Giant Toads alone is truly amazing!"
The guide Luna checked my adventurer card and was astonished. And for good reason; Giant Toads were not only large, but their slippery skin and thick fat made blunt attacks less effective, and their tongue attacks were fast, making them difficult to hunt alone. Even I, if told to hunt them with just a sword before gaining abilities, would have just given up and let myself be eaten gracefully.
"Request completion confirmed. Well done."
Luna calculated my adventurer card and Eris and gave them to me.
"So, combining the Giant Toad purchase and request completion reward, it comes to 260,000 Eris. Please check~"
"Confirmed. Thank you."
I put the received money into my inventory. 260,000 Eris is about 2.6 million won in Korean money. The money I received while working at the blacksmith's was 15,000 Eris per day, so I earned more than half a month's salary in a single day. Definitely, taking requests and hunting was more profitable.
Then the inside of the guild became noisy. Looking in the direction of the sound, some party was talking loudly to a little girl in a short red dress with a black cloak and wizard hat, holding a large staff. Wondering if 'trouble was being stirred up with the girl?', I went closer to take a better look. She seemed to be the person I was thinking of, so I understood and just watched.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing suddenly firing such a huge spell! Our party members could have gotten hurt too!"
"Yeah, right! And what are we supposed to do when you fire one spell like that during a crucial fight and then collapse!"
The party members shot their remarks at the girl. Then the person who seemed to be the leader sighed and spoke quietly.
"It's a shame, but we're not a good match. You'd better look for another party."
The girl, seemingly deflated, hung her head and slowly went to sit at a corner table. Then she shouted.
"One Toad set meal here~~~!"
She wasn't normal either.