Re:Zero - Starting Life in Another World as a Skeleton

Chapter 243: Denomination Errors

The third day arrived.

The "Dual-Kings Championship" officially raised its curtains. The entire Iron

Fortress Territory had descended into a state of collective mania; the Central

Plaza was a literal sea of people.

Bochi was no exception.

He bounced through the crowd, his gelatinous body allowing him to slide through

gaps that would have trapped a human.

"Make way! Make way! The champion is arriving to register his claim to the

throne!"

He finally reached the registration desk, though the length of the queue had

been enough to make his blue coloring turn a shade paler from exhaustion. After

a full thirty minutes of waiting, it was finally his turn.

The registrar was a tall, elegant Lizard-folk woman. She wore the official

uniform of the Sunflower Merchant Guild, a professional smile fixed on her face

as her tail swayed rhythmically behind her.

"Name, race, and tournament category," she droned.

Bochi puffed out his non-existent chest, shouting with every ounce of his

internal pressure.

"Bochi! Sapient Slime! Gomoku!"

The Lizard-folk lady's pen paused. She looked up, a flicker of curiosity passing

through her slitted pupils. "A slime? It's been quite a while since I've

encountered one with such... vocal capacity."

She scanned Bochi once before returning her gaze to the ledger. "Registration

fee: eight copper coins."

Bochi froze.

Reg... Registration fee?

Since when did glory require a down payment?

He stood rooted to the spot, his black-bean eyes blinking in a rapid, confused

rhythm. The registrar looked up at the motionless blue jelly. "Do you lack the

funds?"

Bochi snapped out of it and began a frantic, internal search. Having no pockets,

everything he owned was stored within his own body. Thus, under the bewildered

stares of the crowd, he began to "exhale" his worldly possessions.

A half-gnawed grilled fish bone. A melted-and-resolidified block of chocolate

covered in grass clippings. A dried, unidentified claw from some desert

creature. And several withered, crushed flower petals given to him by Lily.

He piled his entire inventory onto the registration desk and looked up at the

Lizard-folk lady with an expression of pure, pleading hope.

The registrar's mouth twitched. She extended a white-gloved hand, used the tip

of her pen to poke at the pile of junk, and then looked back at him with a tone

that was gentle yet absolute.

"None of these can be utilized as legal tender. Without coin, you cannot

compete."

She even reached out and gave Bochi's springy head a sympathetic pat.

Bochi's body deflated at a visible speed. The dream of the championship—the ten

gold coins—shattered like glass. He dejectedly re-absorbed his treasures and

bounced out of the line.

Who has the gold?

The Master has the gold! But Kaito had mentioned he was going fishing today, and

God only knew which riverbank he was slacking on.

Uncle Greed has the gold! He was the Empire's living treasury! But if he went to

find him now, that workaholic would likely press-gang him into moving tables for

the event. He'd be worked to death before he even saw a game board.

Bochi's brain processed at high speeds.

Aha! There is another!

Someone who was always smiling and full of joy! The Academy's own little

heiress! Lily!

Vitality returned to Bochi's form. He pivoted and sprinted toward the Evernight

Academy at his maximum velocity.

At that moment, Lily was sitting in the Academy's lounge area with Mig. A newly

published copy of Imperial History sat open on the table between them.

"Brother Mig, how do you pronounce this word?" Lily pointed at a term. Mig

glanced at it and read in a steady, academic tone:

"Macro-economic Stabilization."

"Oh..." Lily nodded as if she understood, then immediately returned to a state

of idle daydreaming.

Just then, a blue blur burst through the door, skidding to a halt before them.

"LILY!"

Bochi panted, his body heaving up and down from the exertion of his cross-city

sprint.

"Bochi? What brings you here?" Lily stood up, happy to see her friend.

Bochi rubbed his two tiny tentacles together, his gelatinous face contorting

into a smile that looked more like a grimace of agony. "Umm... Lily... my dear

friend... I was wondering... if I could... perhaps borrow a small amount of

currency..."

His voice was a tiny, high-pitched buzz. Lily blinked, then waved a hand

generously.

"Of course! How much do you need?"

Bochi extended a small tentacle and traced a shaky, crooked '8' in the air. Lily

stared at the number, tilted her head, and began a very "Lily-esque" chain of

logic.

Bochi is a Sapient Slime. He is Tier 3, nearing Tier 4. For a powerhouse of that

stature to borrow money, it cannot be a small sum.

Eight...

That must mean eighty.

As for the denomination... given his status as the Sovereign's pet, it couldn't

possibly be copper or silver.

Gold. It must be gold.

"Eighty gold coins?" Lily concluded, looking at Bochi with a look of extreme

seriousness. "I don't have that much on my person. Wait here, I'll go find Hans

and ask him for an advance!"

She turned to run. Bochi was paralyzed with shock. Eighty gold?! He could buy

his favorite dessert shop with that! He lunged forward, using his body to block

her path.

"No, no, no! Not eighty gold!"

Lily stopped, looking down at him with confusion. "Not gold? Oh... then eighty

silver?"

It seemed a bit low to her, but she tried to remain understanding. Bochi's

tentacles shook like a rattle.

"Not eighty! Eight! And not silver!"

Lily was now utterly lost. Not eighty, but eight. Not gold, not silver.

"Copper?!" her voice hit a note of pure disbelief.

Bochi shrank into himself, his tentacles twisting together in embarrassment as

he let out a tiny, affirmative "Guchi."

"Yes..."

Lily looked at Bochi, then at the bulging silk purse at her waist filled with

gold, and felt her world-view undergo a structural shock. Eight coppers? What

can you even buy with that? A single loaf of standard rye bread?

Bochi, seeing her "I've-seen-a-ghost" expression, felt his slime-dignity being

challenged. He snapped back to a vertical position.

"Hey! Don't misunderstand! I'm not poor! I'm incredibly wealthy!"

"I just... I invested all my liquid capital into the culinary arts! Yes! It's a

massive investment in the gourmet industry! I'm just experiencing a temporary,

strategic funding shortage! Do you understand?!"

He spoke with such frantic passion that it almost sounded plausible. Lily

blinked her large eyes, watching him, then gave a solemn nod.

"I understand!"

She unlatched her purse and began to rummage. Clink, clank. A gold coin etched

with a skull rolled across the floor. Lily scrambled to grab it, shoved it back

in, and continued her hunt. Finally, in the deep seams of the lining, she

managed to pinch a few coppers between her fingers.

She counted them. One, two, three... seven.

Still one short. She turned the purse inside out, digging into the very corners

until she managed to pry one more loose.

"Here!"

Lily placed the eight hard-won copper coins into Bochi's tentacle with the

gravity of a royal commission.

Bochi stared at the shimmering coppers, so moved that he almost secreted genuine

tears. "Lily! You are a true friend! When I win the championship, I'll split the

ten gold coins with you! Fifty-fifty!"

"No need for that," Lily laughed, waving him off. "Just go, before the

tournament starts without you!"

Bochi nodded vigorously, tucked the coins safely into his body, and sprinted

back toward the Central Plaza.

"CHAMPIONSHIP! HERE I COME!"

As Bochi vanished from sight, Mig, who had been silent the whole time, spoke up.

"Lily, was that the last of your copper?"

Lily nodded. "Yeah. I gave it all to Bochi."

Mig sighed, reaching into his own pocket to pull out two coppers. "Keep these.

In case you want to buy some actual candy later."

Lily took the coins, her smile returning.

Meanwhile, Bochi skidded to a halt before the Lizard-folk registrar. One by one,

he slapped the copper coins onto the desk with a series of rhythmic clacks.

"REGISTER ME!"

The registrar stared at the eight coppers, then at the prideful slime, and

finally lost the battle against her professionalism, letting out a soft chuckle.

She processed the paperwork and handed Bochi a wooden tag.

"Sector A, Number 134. Make sure you're back when the starting bell tolls."

Bochi held the tag as if it were the key to the very heavens. He marched off

toward the dessert shop; before he dominated the board, he needed to fortify his

constitution.

☆☆☆

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