CH 150

Chapter 150 – Survivors and Dying Fates

When we entered the adventurer’s guild, the hustle and bustle stopped, and the people who had been rushing around stopped moving.

Everyone froze in place, looking at us like they were about to say something.

“Oh, Mir, Takifu, you’re still alive, huh?”

The only one who approached us was Tig, the tiger-beastman, one of the strongest men in the adventurer’s guild in Sarz.

He tapped me on the shoulder, patted me on the head, and pulled me to a table at the back of the room.

There, the members of the Battlecry were holding their heads in front of a sheet of paper with various things scribbled on it.

“Gununu…”

“What are you groaning about?”

Louis, the martial arts muscle girl, looks back at me with a don’t-know-what look on her face. She looked at Myrril and me and gave a pathetic smile.

“…O-oh, Mir.”

“Woof.”

A white lump that had been huddled at Louis’s feet humphs and snorts from between her knees.

“Hey, that’s Moff. Why is he here?”

“I don’t know, but it looks like he was waiting for you guys to come over.”

“Woof.”

“Well, he must have thought it would be a nuisance to come into that store. What a clever guy.”

You don’t get it, do you?

It’s probably a good thing we didn’t go into the jewelry store with a two-meter snow-white wolf.

“Isn’t this guy your familiar?”

“He is a magical beast, but he is not our familiar. He is one of us.”

“Woof.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Moff. I had to leave you for a while. Now that I have finished my business, let’s go and play later.”

“Woof.”

He seemed a little dissatisfied with being left behind, but I guess Myrril managed to convince him.

Not that it matters, but these two seemed to be having a perfect “conversation” with each other. I wonder if I’ll be able to understand this much in time.

Louis looked at us hesitantly.

“…Hey, you guys. …I heard you guys helped Calmon out.”

“No, it was just a coincidence. We don’t need to be thanked for that. More importantly, where is he now, and what is he doing?”

For a brief moment, the members of Battlecry are tense.

Myrril stood up to Louis, who came up to her. The two women, one large and one small, look at each other as if they were about to kiss.

“I’m going to ask you what you will do first.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I won’t touch him, or rather, I won’t do anything to him. I just thought he deserved a reward.”

“You don’t mean “retribution,” do you?”

“Don’t be stupid. What retribution does he deserve? He was indeed trying to protect a bunch of scum, all of whom were helpless, to the very last minute because he was the client. He was a foolish and clumsy man but a very honorable man.”

McCain, the giant gentleman, chuckled and shook his head.

“…I knew it. You guys did it to the end.”

“The only people we killed were a female dwarven boss and her men.”

“Only… you say? The mining fortress of Cofina is impregnable, and none of the guards or adventurers who went in to defeat them have ever returned.”

“That’s quite an exaggeration, isn’t it?”

“It’s not an exaggeration. The guild is aware that there are more than 30 people missing.”

That’s a lot. I knew we were right to kill those dwarven bandits.

“I don’t care about the end of the story. Just listen to me for a moment.”

Myrril beckoned, and the members of the Battlecry leaned in suspiciously. We faced each other at the table and kept our voices down.

“Peyblois and his men tried to silence his guard, Calmon, because he had seen them commit the crime but were beaten back.”

“What about that elf merchant?”

“If it was Beynan, she was killed by Peyblois.”

“That sucks.”

“…So. Calmon, at least, did more than his duty as a bodyguard. I think he should receive more money than he was paid for his escort services. Can we meet with him?”

“…I don’t mind if that’s the case, but where do you get that kind of money? When we entered the place, there was nothing left but a bunch of outlaws and a bunch of shitty thieves’ agents who were following us, and there wasn’t even any money left.”

“We took it.”

Hearing this, all the Battlecry looked up at the sky.

“I see. I understand. Well, he deserves a little something for it, too.”

“You talk about it like it’s somebody else’s business, Louis. That’s true for you guys too. I heard you were credited with the job, but did you get a reward?”

The tiger-beastman Tig answered on behalf of Louis, who didn’t seem to understand my question at all. As far as the external negotiations are concerned, it seems that he is the leader of the Battlecry.

“We didn’t do what we were asked to do. The only people we brought back from the raid on the hideout were a dying adventurer and a persistent thieves’ agent. Unless the little guy gives up some information, we’re not getting anything out of anywhere.”

“Sorry, but he’s not going to tell anybody anything. That’s why we’ll cover the reward for the Battlecry.”

“Isn’t that… unreasonable?”

“Yes, that’s right. But we are the ones who made a mistake. You may not agree with it, but will you accept it?”

“The condition of the reward is that we don’t give out any information about you. Am I wrong?”

“No. That’s the condition for avoiding any unnecessary disasters.”

Tig nodded his head in agreement with Mir’s blatant threat. Mir-neesan is a menace.

“Well, you are free to accept or reject the money. What are you going to do?”

The Battlecry look at each other awkwardly.

The reason for their hesitation seems to be whether or not to accept the money. Of course, it is not about the fate of the bandit’s dedicated agent, either.

“…I want you to help Calmon; that’s our condition.”

“Louis, that is.”

“Shut up, McCain. I’ve made up my mind. If you want out, fine, but don’t get in my way.”

“Who said anything about getting out? I said who will go? But don’t drag Takifu and the others into it.”

“Your story is roundabout. Let’s get on with it.”

Louis looks at us. Her gaze holds determination but swims somewhat uneasily.

“I’d like you to escort Calmon back to his hometown. Naturally, we will join you, but there will probably be an attack by the bandit guild on the way. There will be nearly fifty of them, including cavalry, mercenaries, and mages…”

“It’s fine.”

Louis, who had been about to look away, looked at Myrril and me with a skeptical look on her face.

Perhaps surprised, her usual stern expression was lost. The real Louis had a surprisingly childlike face.

“…Huh?”

“Of course, I’ll take it.”

“I don’t mind either. In any case, we had to do it for our own protection.”

“After all, we were the ones who brought this on him in the first place, weren’t we?”

Moff licks her crumpled face from the side. She shows signs of dislike but does not refuse, probably because she senses that the intelligent and gentle snow-white wolf covers up the fact that she is about to cry unintentionally.

“Woof.”

“Look, Moff is going to join us. He’s not as mobile as a horse, though, you know.”

“More importantly, I’m wondering why he’s going back home. Is his wound that bad?”

Tig answered my question again.

He might have been holding out a determination or something, but he looked out of sorts because of our casual ride.

“Eino healed most of his injuries with healing magic. But you know, he has a wife and kids. The bandit guild will take notice of him because of this incident, and if he stays in the town of Sarz, his family will be involved. Besides, the request is supposed to be a failure, and a scum who abandoned the client and ran away is blowing things out of proportion, and as far as it goes, he wouldn’t be able to get another request.”

Myrril looked back at me. Only her eyes were not smiling at all.

“That’s going to be tough. Louis, take us to Calmon at once.”

At her rather calm voice, those who were looking at us here and there in the adventurer’s guild turned their gazes to us with a startle. The glint of fury in her eyes sent chills down the spines of all who saw her. They all saw the brawl the other day. Or, rather, the one-sided violation by Myrril.

“Calmon is an honorable man who fought to the end. I will not stand idly by against those who would avenge him or dishonor his pride!”

An adventurer watching us from the corner of the room stiffens, and his swollen face palls. He looked like the man who had been in a fistfight with Tig during the brawl.

Was he the one who had driven Calmon into a corner? They had fled so quickly, and now they were dragging down a brave man who had tried to fulfill his duty to the end.

“It’s too late for you. I know your face, you know. Run as far as you can.”

Myrril and I looked at the red-haired adventurer, who was trembling. I don’t know his name. Nor do I need to know anymore.

The Battlecry who were living in Sarz could have just beaten him up, but Myrril and I were outsiders. To put it another way, there are only two choices: 0 or 1. Friend or foe? Alive or dead?

“W-wait a minute, I’m…”

“What? The next time I see you, it will be your last moment. I’ll send you off without any more pain.”