"Can you help me sell some goods?!"
Naruto got straight to the point.
He excitedly took out a box of instant noodles and placed it on the counter.
"It's this."
"When adventurers take on quests, could you promote it for me? I'll give you a commission."
Upon hearing this, the Counter Lady's professional smile gradually stiffened.
"You came to me… just for this?"
"Yes, what else?"
Naruto looked puzzled; he really hadn't thought too much about it.
Besides, he was still young and growing, so it was better to lie low and develop first.
"Pfft…"
"What else?"
Her colleague's eyes were watering, and she desperately covered her mouth, afraid she'd burst out laughing and be "dealt with" by the Counter Lady later.
The Counter Lady first glared at her colleague, feigning fierceness, then smiled even more professionally: "Naruto, if there's nothing else, we're going off duty now."
She pulled a set of keys from under the counter, picked up an oil lamp, preparing to leave, and twisted the waist of her colleague who was struggling to hold back laughter.
"Aren't you leaving?"
"Hahaha… I beg forgiveness from the supreme god, I shouldn't laugh, I shouldn't laugh, I'll buy you a drink."
Her colleague held the balance sword-shaped pendant around her neck and prayed solemnly.
She was also a priestess of the supreme god temple.
She possessed a miracle called "Discernment," which could expose anyone's lies and played a crucial role in the adventurer promotion assessment.
Naruto stood in place, looking confused.
He felt like the Counter Lady was a bit unhappy, but he hadn't provoked her at all.
Could it be that the Adventurers' Guild didn't allow selling things?
No, the Counter Lady clearly often promoted expensive potions and scrolls to high-rank adventurers.
The shelves behind the counter were also filled with various luxurious and ornate equipment.
A woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea.
Never mind, he'd give the instant noodles to the Rein family to sell.
Naruto, being carefree, didn't mind. He put away the instant noodles, preparing to return to Iron Water Village.
"Wait a moment."
The Counter Lady, about to leave, suddenly turned back, took small steps to Naruto's side, bent down, and pinched Naruto's cheek.
The Counter Lady, who had been annoyed, felt relieved.
"Tell me, what is this thing called, what does it do, how many do you have, and how much do you want to sell it for?"
Naruto asked curiously, "Aren't you angry anymore?"
"I'm not angry at all," the Counter Lady replied with a smile.
Heh, women.
They change their minds faster than flipping a book.
Naruto didn't know why the Counter Lady's anger had subsided, but selling the goods was more important, so he began to explain how to use the instant noodles.
"It's food?"
The Counter Lady picked up the instant noodles, examining them carefully, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"It needs to be steeped in boiling water."
"Does the Adventurers' Guild have boiling water?"
"Yes, wait a moment, I'll go get some."
Her colleague quickly ran off and brought a kettle of boiling water from the Adventurers' Guild's back kitchen.
Naruto demonstrated how to tear open the packaging, add the seasoning packets, and pour in the boiling water.
Simple instant noodles, anyone could make them, but for the Goblin Slayer World, where instant noodles didn't exist, it was still very novel.
"If you like firmer, chewier noodles, steep them for a shorter time. If you like softer noodles, steep them for a longer time."
As he spoke, Naruto lifted the instant noodle lid, and a unique aroma wafted out, making one's mouth water.
"It smells so good!"
"It's just simply steeped in boiling water, why does it have such an astonishing aroma?"
"Incredible, this is simply a miracle from the gods."
Her colleague waved her hand above the instant noodles; the enticing aroma made her stomach rumble.
"I have another box."
Naruto broke open a fork and handed it to the Counter Lady, then made another box of tonkotsu char siu flavored ramen for her colleague.
The two women slurped it up.
"It's so delicious!"
"It's a hundred times better than coarse, dry, hard-to-swallow black bread!"
"The noodles are firm and smooth, and the soup is flavorful and rich. Very good, very good."
The Counter Lady and her colleague praised it endlessly.
After finishing the instant noodles, they didn't bother with decorum and even drank all the soup, still feeling a bit unsatisfied.
The Counter Lady saw Naruto staring "intently" at her, her cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly changed the subject: "Naruto, how much do you want to sell one box of instant noodles for?"
"Do you have any suggestions?"
"Hmm… it depends on how much stock you have."
"After all, it's food. Although this is a year of good harvest, the Demon Lord's army is stirring, and monsters are becoming more active. A loaf of black bread nearly sells for 10 copper coins now."
"I think instant noodles could sell for about 1 Silver Rank coin."
The Counter Lady analyzed it seriously for Naruto.
"How much does a blood potion sell for?" Naruto asked.
"25 Silver Rank coins."
The Counter Lady added, "Although blood potions can temporarily restore health, they cannot heal injuries."
"For healing, you still need to find a priest to cast healing spells."
Naruto nodded and replied, "Let's sell one box of instant noodles for 5 Silver Rank coins. We'll mainly target Silver-rank Adventurers. Scarcity makes things valuable. I'll bring ten boxes of instant noodles first."
"As for the Adventurers' Guild's commission, it should be whatever is fair."
Her colleague gasped.
5 Silver Rank coins for a box of instant noodles was quite expensive; only high-rank adventurers would probably be able to afford it.
"Will anyone really buy them?"
Naruto glanced at her and replied with a smile, "It's mainly because we're too far from the capital and the four major cities. Otherwise, if I took instant noodles to the capital and sold them to nobles and wealthy merchants, they'd cost at least 1 gold coin!"
"1… 1 gold coin!?"
Her colleague was instantly dumbfounded.
1 Silver Rank coin equals 100 copper coins.
1 gold coin equals 100 Silver Rank coins.
A box of instant noodles would be several times more expensive than a blood potion?
"Scarcity makes things valuable. You don't understand the world of the rich."
Naruto shook his head.
He felt that selling instant noodles in the capital for one gold coin a box might even be cheap.
First, the instant noodle box packaging design was different from the mainstream style. If he found an art master to marvel at it and sold the instant noodles as works of art, detaching them from their food attribute, the price would be far more than one gold coin.
Then, he could concoct a story.
For example, before the hero slew the dragon, he was trapped in the Great Snow Mountain, in freezing weather, hungry and cold, on the verge of starving to death, when he unexpectedly found a box of instant noodles.
Thanks to the instant noodles, the hero ate his fill and successfully slew the dragon.
A limited edition, hero-slaying-dragon-themed instant noodles, selling for a hundred or eighty gold coins wouldn't be excessive, right?
Naruto reined in his drifting thoughts.
After bidding farewell to the Counter Lady, seeing that it was already late, he didn't take a carriage back to Iron Water Village.
Moreover, the next morning, he still had to go to the Adventurers' Guild to act as his own shill, buy a box of instant noodles to eat, and open up sales among the adventurers.
So he stayed at the inn next to the Adventurers' Guild.
The first floor was a tavern, but Naruto staying on the fourth floor meant it wouldn't disturb him.
Inside the room.
The oil lamp's light was warm and soft.
Naruto sat at the wooden table, and with a thought, he brought up the item bar.
Looking at the semi-transparent pop-up window in front of him, Naruto casually swiped, and it was all miscellaneous items.
After clicking [Organize], arranged by rarity, Naruto easily found what he wanted—Professional Awakening Scroll (Purple)!
With a tap of his finger, the Professional Awakening Scroll was immediately retrieved from the item bar, appearing out of thin air on the desktop, lying quietly.
"Use Professional Awakening Scroll."
Naruto silently recited in his heart.