The quest yielded a profit of 150 thousand Eris, which was divided equally among the five of them. It was only a few hours of traveling to the forest, less than half an hour of fighting, and half an afternoon transporting the loot back to the city.
"Tsk, it is a real shame," Kazuma let out a heavy sigh, the group was currently eating a feast made of fried toad meat at the guild tavern.
"Are you referring to the goblins?" Dust asked.
The Japanese boy shook his head a couple of times, drank the beer from his glass before letting out a sigh, "No, actually, I thought the goblins, especially being elite ones, would carry some things with them that we could resell."
The group looked at him for a moment before continuing with their meals, it was a natural confusion for many novice adventurers, normal goblins usually looted and used some things like swords or small leather breastplates for themselves, however, elite goblins followed a strict organization.
Although they also looted their victims, elite goblins prioritized equipping their strongest warriors, and only the scraps reached the less capable goblins.
"Are you an idiot, you do not even know such a basic difference between goblins," Aqua shook her head and narrowed her eyes, however, anyone could tell she was acting and hiding her own ignorance.
Darkness looked at Dust who, without anyone electing or voting for him, was acting as the leader of the group, she swallowed the food in her mouth before leaning against the table, "Why did you ask us not to reveal information about Lord Karmac?"
The blonde coughed slightly, looked around noting the few people near them before frowning, "Actually, those elite goblins are weirder than they seem, not only do they have a Lord, but their way of attacking and organizing is far too orderly..."
Dust continued, after all, even the smartest goblins, the elite goblins although they had a certain organization of resources, still moved in small tribes.
He explained that the appearance of a certain "Lord Karmac" who seems to be the lord of the elite goblins in the forest is something that had never happened before in the records of Belzerg, he also highlighted the taming of the mammoth so that one could ride it.
"Actually..." the blonde looked at the beer in his glass before looking at all his companions, "Maybe this could be a new breed of goblins," the corners of his mouth turned up.
"And...?" asked Kazuma, confused, "If this is a new breed, is it not better to notify the guild so they can send elite adventurers and eliminate the threat?"
The blonde let out a heavy sigh, looked into the brown eyes of the Japanese boy that shone with righteous determination, "Not only are your clothes weird, but also your thoughts, why would we pass up such a good opportunity as this?"
"If it is a new breed, then we can try to kill them and steal some treasure they might have hoarded, and if we are not strong enough to eliminate them, then, let us sell the information to an elite adventuring party, why would we give away this discovery."
A bright smile adorned the beautiful face of the water goddess, for a moment she brought a finger to her mouth, thinking of a bunch of brand name wines, some limited edition ones she could buy in case she got a good amount of money from this.
Darkness instead, stood there looking at Dust for a moment before shrugging her shoulders and continuing to eat. Kazuma frowned and pursed his lips, he wanted to say something, but the look from the blonde kept his words inside his mouth.
"Selfishness," that word lit up the Japanese boy's brain, he was thinking about several things at the same time, "It is likely that many innocent people will die at their hands..." Kazuma commented referring to the subject.
"But not us," Dust replied.
The situation escalated in intensity for a moment before the Japanese boy continued with his food, the blonde let out a heavy sigh as he opened his mouth, "Many people die every day, Kazuma, we are not fantasy heroes, not you, not me, not anyone at this table, we are just adventurers."
Kazuma continued eating as if he had not heard those words.
"Maybe we can do something to wipe out the elite goblins and keep the loot," Inox chimed in after a few moments of silence drawing everyone's attention.
"Ahem..." he cleared his throat while puffing out his chest and smiling, "Brothers, and sisters, I, a divine farmer, am about to have my second, I mean third harvest of magical vegetables and fruits in this world..."
After making what he considered a beautiful entrance, he got straight to the point, "In a couple of days I will harvest ten grade 1 papayas that increase strength and agility by 10%, the duration of the effect is one hour."
"Although it is likely that many adventuring parties will encounter other weird elite goblins, I can intuit that they will make the decision to keep quiet for the same reasons Dust explained, but we can have an advantage with my vegetables and fruits," he clarified.
Darkness's eyes lit up hearing that, she quickly raised her head and slapped the table with a bright smile and a blush on her face, "Do you mean something as tasty as that grade 1 tomato?" she asked.
Darkness had been licking her lips ever since she tasted that grade 1 tomato, and it was one of the secondary reasons besides the harassment from her former companions why she sought out Inox to join his party.
Although everything had happened too fast, she asked from time to time if Inox had more tomatoes, but she lowered her head and pursed her lips upon discovering there were no more.
On the other hand, Aqua looked at the prince with her blue eyes and cheeks full of food like a squirrel, she swallowed before speaking, "Will you not grow more carrots?" a little saliva escaped from the corner of her lips when she thought of the carrots she ate that day from that pot.
"Actually..." Inox let out a heavy sigh, grabbed a nearby napkin before standing up and approaching Aqua to wipe the saliva from the corner of her mouth, "Where was I, oh, yes, the grade 1 papaya is just as or more delicious than the grade 1 carrots."
Aqua looked at the prince with cautious eyes before smiling, "Look, look, Kazuma, Inox behaves like a true gentleman, why can you not be like that?" she smacked the back of the Japanese boy's head while speaking with her high pitched voice and rosy cheeks.
"Would it not be like a true Simp?" Kazuma thought but stayed quiet.
After a moment of explaining how his vegetables had a unique flavor and could boost physical attributes, and the confirmation from Darkness and Aqua who attested to the good taste, the group decided to meet four days later when the papaya and the corn were completely ready.
Inox returned to his rented room, he asked Dust to train Kazuma and Aqua for combat while he prepared for the next fight, the blonde insisted that he also needed training, but he refused with the excuse of growing new plants.
"Actually, System, can you tell me if the effect of increased physical strength and agility can stack, do the effects stack, what happens if you cut the vegetable and several eat it at the same time..."
Inox asked several questions in his mind, he followed an instinct that told him if he asked maybe he would get answers, but, just as he had imagined, nothing happened.
Letting out a deep sigh, he looked at the twenty two new pots he had bought stacked on the floor of his room.
"It is time to start sowing all the seeds I have been accumulating in the system," he said to himself, there was a doubt in his mind about whether the plants could grow to their maximum potential in pots or needed an open field.
But, he did not have a plot of land, and he did not dare to grow his plants outside on public land or outside the walls of Axel city.
Thinking that it is better to spend all the seeds now to earn Eris, buy a plot of land, get gold coins and buy seeds later, he decided he should continue growing his plants in pots.