âYo!â
âHello.â
âEh!? Wait a moment! Ehh? Seriously, wait!â
While exploring the ship, I spotted Evan-san and Scott-san.
âThatâs it! I wanted to see Takumiâs reaction to this!â
âNo, why are you here!?â
âWe were offered an escort request, so we took it.ân/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âWhat?â
âThe merchant ships are usually manned by the Merchant Guildâs own guards, but the Adventurerâs Guild was suddenly asked to provide an escort. The guild was short on manpower this time, so the Guild Master asked us if we were interested.â
I couldnât quite understand Evan-sanâs story, so I turned to Scott-san, and he explained the details to me.
âThey are short on guards? Did something happen?â
âLooters, probably.â
âââLooters?âââ
ââBuh!ââ
When we heard the reason for the shortage, the kids and I asked the same question. Then Evan-san and Scott-san bursted out laughing.
âTh, three people tilting their heads at the same time!â
âItâs a sign that they are on the same page.â
â¦â¦ Apparently, the kids and I were not only saying the same thing, but also making the same gesture.
What a coincidence.
âWhat do you mean by looters?â
âYou guys really do get along, huh~ By looters we mean just that. Plunderers. Pirates.â
âAh, I see. That kind of looters.â
Oh, that reminds me, there was something about pirates in the travel warnings. It was only a faint mention, though.
ââBad guys?ââ
âIndeed.â
ââWill beat them up~!ââ
âIâd rather they didnât appear, but if they do, itâs Evan-sanâs and Scott-sanâs job to deal with them.â
âWhat about Allen~?â
âAnd Elena~?â
âYou will be obediently waiting on standby?â
ââEhh~~~ââ
Iâll have to stop the kids from trying to beat the pirates to death.
âSo, whatâs the actual situation?â
âIt seems that they have been attacked frequently lately, but only by small and medium-sized ships. This ship is large, so itâs unlikely to be targeted. Oh, this is behind the scenes stuff, so donât spread it around.â
âYes, sir.â
Even if the possibility of being attacked is low, the Company must be very wary, because they have requested the Adventurerâs Guild to increase the number of guards.
âSo, you guys are working now?â
âThatâs right. I mean, if the voyage is peaceful, we will just be patrolling.â
âIs that so?â
âYeah, itâs also part of our job to deal with customers.â
â⦠That sounds like a stretch, though~ But if you guys are okay with it, can you give us a tour of the ship?â
âOu, leave it to us.â
So we resumed our exploration of the ship, with Evan-san and Scott-san showing us around.
ââThis place~?ââ
âThe dining hall.â
ââMeal~?ââ
âYeah, if youâre in first or second class, you should be able to come here and get three meals a day.â
âHuh? There are no meals for the third class?â
âNo, if you order it in advance, it will be served. However, the shipâs meals are a bit more expensive than regular meals, so many of those who take third-class cabins resort to eating portable meals.â
âOh, I see.â
The food in the special-class rooms was brought straight to the customers, so we hadnât received any explanation about this. Therefore, it was all new information to us.
âOi, it feels like youâve never heard of about this before. Didnât they explain it to you when you got on the ship? Is this a dereliction of duty on the part of the crew? Where your guysâ room at?â
Evan-sanâs expression turned grim as he sensed that we hadnât been briefed.
âOur room? Itâs a special-class room.â
âWhoah, a special-class room?â
âOh my, thatâs very fancy.â
But when Evan-san heard that we were renting a special room, his expression changed to one of surprise. Scott-san was also surprised.
âThe only rooms available at that time were the special-class rooms and third-class rooms.â
âOh well, I guess you would choose the special-class then. Takumi-san seems to have a lot of money, after all.â
âNow that you mention it, youâre right.â
The two of them, who knew more than a little about how much money we were making, looked convinced.
âThe room.â
âWas amazing.â
âItâs that incredible? I would like to see it.â
ââSure.ââ
âOh, you will show me? I will take your word for it.â
ââYeah, come.ââ
Evan-san and the kids are really good friends, arenât they?
While thinking thatââ
âI wonder if theyâre close in mental age?â
ââ¦â¦â
Iâm not sure if Scott-san was thinking the same thing I did, but he muttered some harsh words toward Evan-san.
Evan-san didnât seem to hear him, so he didnât raise his voice in rebuttal.
âIf you are serious, we have a break in the evening. We will intrude then.â
ââEvening~?ââ
âYeah.â
ââOkay~ will be waiting!ââ
âOh, in that case, would you like to join us for dinner?â
I have no problem inviting Evan-san and Scott-san to our room. The room is very big, after all.
I invited them to have dinner with us.
âItâs nice of you to invite us, but our food is for the employees, so it would be a little⦠difficult to eat alongside the food served in the special-class rooms.â
âI wouldnât be so mean as to eat different meals in the same place.â
The food in the special-class room and the employeeâs food would definitely be different in terms of luxury. Iâm aware of that.
âIâm sure we can order more. Even if we canât, Iâll serve you the food I have on hand, and you can have the employeesâ meals for a midnight snack.â
âAs tempting as it is to eat the special-class roomâs food, Iâd rather eat your food, Takumi!â
âIs that so? If you are fine with my food, I wonât be ordering more than?â
âOu!â
It doesnât feel bad when people say that my food is better than the food served in the special-class room.
âTakumi-san, are you really sure about this?â
âOf course I am. The more, the merrier.â
ââYeah, more fun!ââ
âSo if you donât mind, please come by all means, Scott-san.â
Scott-san seemed hesitant, so I asked him again, and he seemed to be happy.
ââWill be waiting~ââ
Even though it was part of their job to show the guests around, we couldnât keep them in custody, so we decided to split up.
Then, in the evening. As promised, Evan-san and Scott-san came to visit our room⦠but seeing the interior of the room, Evan-san was excited together with the kids like a child.