Chapter 27. Garments of Mystery

"Edgar?! What's wrong? Why are you running left and right in front of your shop? Did something happen?" Ash asked casually.

"Huh? Oh, the annoying boy from before. What name did you mention last time?" Edgar, who was interrupted in the middle of his serious pondering sighed, and momentarily stopped his pacing, while looking at Ash with an unpleasant face but still didn't scold him. After all, He needed someone to confide in, fearing he might lose his mind if he kept his worries bottled up.

"Ash!"

"Oh, yes, Ash. As you can see, I am in big trouble. As you already know I recently renovated my shop, and tomorrow I wanted to open the shop with a lot of new things, but the peddler who was supposed to deliver my merchandise hasn't hasn't arrived yet. He was supposed to be here days ago! Now I am running out of stock and can't order another batch as well since it will take an entire month for new supplies to reach here, and my savings are also running out. I am in deep trouble now," Edgar nervously ran his hand through his hair, his anxiety evident, and after finished speaking in a desperate tone while again starting to run left and right in a loop. His big belly jumping up and down made it hard for Ash to concentrate.

"Where is that peddler coming from?" Ash asked seriously, even though he had been living in this town or this world for more than ten days, the information he was able to dig out about this world was still very limited.

"He was supposed to deliver several quality garments and some other things from the Elven Kingdom, so he is coming from the western road. There is a port city in that direction. I fear that something might have happened to him. That bastard definitely didn't hire guards to save money again. Damn it, I'm ruined! What am I going to do?" Edgar, like a heartbroken lover, slumped onto the ground making large belly jiggling, without caring about his image while mumbling nonsense like a madman while biting his nails.

"Why didn't you ask May... I mean the Lord Mayor, for help? Maybe he can send some soldiers to search for that peddler and save your drowning business?" Ash asked for formalities, although he already had guessed the answer. After all, if he could go to the Mayor, then why was he crying in front of his shop and wasting time?

"Boy, you are thinking too highly of me. Neither do I have a significantly high enough status or extra money. There is no such thing as a free lunch in this world. What would I give the Lord Mayor back in exchange for his help? Ladies' garments or unstitched clothes? I don't have anything particularly attractive for an old man like our Lord Mayor. Also, don't forget our town only has a limited number of soldiers. Asking for his help for free is the same as putting my name on his blacklist..."

He paused, then looked at Ash with a glint of hope in his eyes. "Wait a minute... You seem quite fit and powerful..." He hesitated, then corrected himself. "Forget about it, you don't look powerful from any angle, I can't deceive myself to that extent. Okay, fit and healthy. Boy, why don't you give me a helping hand? If you could recover my merchandise before sunset, I'll reward you with 200 coins and a set of clothes that fit you. What do you say?"

"Ah, and almost forget! In addition to garments, the peddler was also bringing some..." Edgar suddenly paused midway. He looked at Ash up and down, then at his young, tender face, with innocent and pure written all over it, and casually finished the sentence, "Medical supplies!"

Ash asked, raising an eyebrow. Seeing Edgar trying to be mysterious, anyone could tell after seeing his expression that the medical supplies he was talking about were not simple.

"What sort of medical supplies?" 

"Look, you're practically an adult now, so I won't going to lie to you, boy. When you reach a certain age, you might experience some trouble getting 'IT' up just by normal means. You understand what I mean, right?" Edgar hesitantly asked. After looking around and confirming that no one else was nearby, he vaguely pointed at Ash's crotch area.

After seeing Ash nod his head with a weird expression indicating that he understood his so called hidden meaning, Edgar continued, "So, I ordered some potions that supposedly grow up your little chap and make it a monster for a short period of time without any side effects."

"Of course, I ordered them for experimental purposes and the quantity wasn't large. If those potions sell well, then I might consider opening a secret shop. Anyway, I will give you an additional 20 coins for each potion bottle you recover." Finished speaking, Edgar wiped the sweat from his brow and waited expectantly for Ash's reply. Although he knew that asking for Ash's help was the same as throwing him in front of death, he had no other choice. He couldn't risk bankruptcy. If Ash managed to find his merchandise, then he would earn a lot, but if not, then he would be free from all the worldly troubles early. Everything depended on his choice. He wasn't forcing him; nothing comes free in this world. Take a risk, earn a hefty sum of money instantly, or not, then go back and work honestly no one is stopping you.

[ *Ding! New Quest:- Edgar's Dilemma

Description: Edgar, the one and only tailor and clothes shop owner of Woodworth Town, is anxiously awaiting his new wares so he can open his shop in a grand manner again after renovation. But the peddler transporting his merchandise from the Elven Kingdom via the western road hasn't arrived, and the expected delivery date has long passed. Edgar has asked you to investigate this matter since he had no other option and requested to bring back his merchandise no matter what, although in his heart, he had already given up.

Requirement:-

*Investigate the reason for the peddler's delay and recover the merchandise.

*(Optional) Retrieve Edgar's new experimental potions.

Reward:-

*200 coins and a new set of clothes.

*20 coins for each recovered potion bottle.

*50 Exp points.

*Any other miscellaneous items found during the quest.

Failure Consequences:-

*Significant pain.

*-20 Edgar favorability.

*Loss of a certain valuable opportunity ( Hint: There is nothing your little monster couldn't do, just don't forget to give it a special treat! )

*??? ]

"Don't worry, Edgar," Ash while ignoring the special hint given by the system for time being, asserted with a confident smile, pounding his chest. "Though I may not look experienced from the outside, you can trust in my abilities. I will investigate this matter and bring back your goods before sunset," He hammering his chest while giving Edger a thumbs up to assure him, who clearly wasn't looking convinced by his assurance.

Edgar sighed, his despair evident. "I pray you succeed. Otherwise, I will face poverty for the first time in my entire life before the next shipment arrives," He then patted Ash's shoulder and retreated into his shop.

"Poverty, my ass," Ash scoffed internally. "He's definitely faking this to get my sympathy. As the only tailor in the entire town, how can he lose all his savings on just one order? Were his garments spun from gold? This greedy bastard is definitely heartbroken by the fact that he suffered such a big loss but has no one to vent his frustration to. He really took me as an idiot. Sigh, forget it. For such a generous quest and Experience Points sake, I forgive him this time," He mutters with a sneer and spat in front of Edgar's shop with disgust.

"Now, I should save the file before starting this quest. This quest is definitely going to waste a lot of time. God knows how many times I'll have to repeat this same day before I will be able to complete this quest in the fastest and most efficient way possible. After all, I also have to hammer iron later," Ash grunted, rubbing his sore muscles.

[ *Ding:- No.2 File Saved.

Location:- Woodworth Town

Day:- 10

Total Saved:- 22

Death Count:- 3

Coins:- 95 ]

"Sigh, too poor. Even though it's been 10 days since coming to this world, I am still poor as f*ck. If an angel like Grandma Linda with unknown motives hadn't let me stay in her house and even given me three times of delicious free food, not eating anything for days like a bagger might be a minor thing for me."

"Sigh, saving money here is just too difficult. No wonder adventurers are scarce here. Getting sufficient money in the early stages of life for weapons and armor is literally a nightmare for commoners. Those damn devil-hearted authors always make it seem as simple as breathing and f*cking to surviving and becoming successful in another world," Ash, while finding fault with others to lighten up his frustrated little heart, started walking toward the west of the town.