Everyone finally settled. It took a trip to the Capital, where I purchased a few more storage rings. However, I only found 2 left. These items did not grow on trees and getting them for the kingdom was exceptionally difficult. Jespain was the main country that created such magical artifacts, and there was only one enchanter in Aberis who handles basically everything. If it wasn’t found in a dungeon, it was probably enchanted by this guy, although he also had three apprentices who did most of the smaller things, like those that I had purchased in Chalm.

The Blue Mages of the Traveler’s Guild were already difficult people to work with, so the times the enchanter could meet with a space mage and create rings were few and far between. Even then, working all day only got them 3-4. They were too expensive, and so they didn’t sell well, which was the only reason I was able to get my hands on them. It was lucky to see ten a year made. Considering I had reequipped my five girls with storage rings twice now after they were destroyed, I had already used up over a year’s supply of rings in Aberis, and now there was a shortage. Of course, I had also gained a few from dungeons, which were always better than the ones made by the enchanter. Not that I’d say that to his face.

I’d like Celeste to level Enchanter. With her Wind magic, she could probably make some pretty interesting items. However, other things had always been more pressing. So, since the girls were up to three jobs now with the help of dungeon points, I equipped her with Enchanter instead of her favored Magic Singer. I was eager to see what progress she made when she finally returned from her trip.

So, long story short, those two rings had cost me five hundred gold thanks to the shortage. If I didn’t expect to get a lot of profit from the bandits, I definitely wouldn’t have bought the two I did. One went to Carmine and one to Salicia. Even though Ruby gave me sad eyes, she’s not even my slave and I have no responsibility to equip her. At least, I didn’t have to fight with Carmine over bringing any more stuff, and she seemed quite content with it. Salicia complained it didn’t have more diamonds and jewels on it. Both sisters seemed to have an inflated sense of self-worth, but where Carmine simply wanted things, Salicia wanted to be seen. She wore flashy clothing, and even now she had an assortment of diamonds and jewels on herself. It was enough to tempt any thief, so it honestly did its job.

“Master, where will we be going first?” Miki asked as we entered the traveling guild. “You won’t be taking us there by Portal?”

“I already wasted a round-trip with Portals by going to the Capital. Unfortunately, we’ve only walked the one road to the capital. However, there are no cities along that way now that Penbrook is wiped off the map. With the dungeon gone, no one felt the need to return to the city.”

I knew this because some people from Penbrook had ended up coming to Chalm in hopes of a new opportunity. Somehow, despite not really being able to do anything to help them, I had become a bit of a hero. I had helped all the families resurrect everyone who had died in the bandit attack, so that was part of it. They had also heard how I fought and defeated the clockwork dragon. Thankfully, most of them had already fled by the time Carmine had freed it, but many had heard and seen it flying overhead, so it left quite an impression on the fleeing villagers.

“Then, where will we be going?” She asked.

“The last stronghold against the Bandits. They have been cut off from Aberis’s Capital for nearly two months now. Well, not entirely. They’ve managed to hold out because a Blue Mage is there and they’ve been able to exchange some supplies through him. It’s more of a fort than a city now, with every resident who could afford to flee having since teleported away. It’s right in the heart of Bandit territory. It should be a good place to start.”

This was just the beginning. For the first time since I had been to this world, I had plans of my own.