Anyway, lunch is here, so I know it's a little early, but I'll be eating--

　Just then, Garnett's voice came from the shop.

'The white wolf!　A visitor from the Golden Fang has an urgent matter to attend to!
What?　Hold on, I'm coming back!

　I quickly turned on my heel and turned back towards the store.

　Noir almost fell down and chased after me, arriving at the store almost simultaneously.

'Sorry for the wait. What can I do for you?'

　One of the men there was wearing the Golden Fang Knights' uniform.

　It was a face I had seen several times during my work in the 'Demon King's Castle Realm'.

''I have an urgent [Restoration] request. I would like you to come to the 'Demon King's Castle Realm' with me right now.
As usual, can't you give us the details?
I'm sorry, sir, but that's a part of our ongoing mission. I can't tell you about it here on the ground.

　The requests brought in by the Knights' Guild were usually like this.

　Not only were the requests made after opening the White Wolf Shop, but also requests via the Adventurer's Guild were similar.

　All requests accepted by the guild branches and guild houses were basically open to the public before inviting orders.

　This reflected the policy of the Adventurer's Guild that 'we will not accept anti-social requests that cannot be disclosed to the public'.

　However, as a special exception - the Knights and the Royal Palace were allowed to keep their work completely under wraps on the condition that they would provide various favors to the Adventurer's Guild - they were allowed to keep the details of their work completely under wraps.

　Anyway, they seemed to be extremely wary of leaking information about their military operations to the outside world.

'It can't be helped, I understand,'

　At least, every job the Golden Fang Knights have offered me so far has been of high importance.

　I have a degree of trust in them that it's impossible for me to say that it's a crappy job when I go there.

　-- but it's the first time I've ever asked you to come in right now in the middle of business.

　Normally, they've been approached days in advance and have had time to make adjustments, such as arranging extra days off or having their schedule shifted to a regular holiday.

　On the other hand, this time it was a genuine fire emergency.

I'm going to have to ask you to do something about it. Can you take care of the shop?
Wait. The white wolf.

　Garnett grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me in and put his mouth to my ear with such force that we were almost close.

"Don't forget. I have to remember that my primary duty is to protect you. That's one thing I won't give up, no matter what. You can't just let someone else take care of the store.

　With a level of voice that no one but me could hear, but clearly and clearly, Garnett refused to do anything other than accompany me.

　His face was serious, and I didn't sense any extraneous emotions.

'...... sorry, that's right. But I'm not sure if it's too early to let Noir take charge of the shopkeeping .......

　Garnett is only a knight sent by the Silverwing Knights for my protection.

　It's only natural that escort duties take precedence over the work of an employee.

　Then there is only one option left.

''Everyone!　I'm sorry, we're closed for the day!　Oh, and don't worry, I'll pay you in full for today!

　I take my bags and lunch baskets from behind the counter and prepare to leave while giving notice of the closing to visitors and short term adventurers.

　Right now, you can't run the store without me and Garnett.

　Then the best option is to close up shop.

'We'll charge the Knights for today's losses, you know.
'Yes. We've taken that into account in our compensation budget.

　After letting Sylvia and the adventurers leave, we left the shop with Garnett.

　Then, Noir followed us with his personal bag, too.

''Wow, I'm coming too ......!
I'm going to run to ...... to get there. Follow me properly.
Okay, ......!

　We descended the 'Sundial Forest' in a hurry as declared, entered the Hollow Bottom Fortress, passed through the 'Dragon's Loophole' and reached the 'Demon King's Castle Realm' as quickly as possible.

　I decided to eat the bread with ingredients that Sylvia brought me while moving at a fast pace.

　The adventurer me and the knight Garnett were used to eating recklessly like that, but Noir seemed to have the best of intentions just to do both at the same time.

''Actually, it's the suspension bridge that I want to request [restoration].

　While passing through the underground side of the fortress, the knight who greeted them finally began to explain the details of their request.

　Back and forth, several knights and soldiers joined him, and his companions expanded into a small troop-sized group.

''I'm sure you know that the rocky mountainous region of the 'Demon King's Castle Realm' is divided in two by a ravine. We have recently constructed a suspension bridge across that ravine and built a position on the other side of the river.
On the other side of the river is the demon tribe's territory, right? It's a frontline base for controlling the mine.

　I don't know what they're mining in that mine, but it's definitely a source of useful resources for the Demon King.

　It would be a natural decision to choose it as a control target.

''However, due to a surprise attack by the demon race, the suspension bridge was dropped and the camp on the other side of the river was isolated.
...... that isolated position is under attack?
'Thank you for being so quick to understand. If we don't restore the suspension bridge and send help as soon as possible, we will definitely be wiped out.

　A siege after cutting off the route of retreat and reinforcements - even I, who am not a military professional, can easily imagine the threat.

　We leave Hollow Bottom Fortress and continue hurrying along the sketchy road in the rocky mountains towards our destination.

　Along the way, Noir pulls a set of amulets and scrolls out of his bag and hands them to me.

'Here, hold this ....... ......
Thanks. I'd get away with it if I could.

　I put the amulet on my hip as I run and twist the scroll into the pouch.

　The fact that I'm using it means I'm exposed to some kind of harmful interference, plus I'm in a situation where I have to fight back with my own hands.

(...... No, I shouldn't take it for granted that for once I won't have to use it.)

　The demon race has intelligence just like humans, and the demon king's army is made up of such people.

　If they're taking a strategy of dropping the bridge to divide and attack the enemy troops, we should assume that they've already assumed that we're going to repair the bridge and head to support them.

　Either during [Repair] or after [Repair] - either way, you should be prepared for the possibility of being exposed to attacks from the Demon King's army.

''Don't worry, Luke-dono. This time, I've requested the cooperation of high-ranking adventurers as well. We're fully prepared against any interference from the Demon King's army.
That's fine, though: ......

　I'm sure the Demon King's army has factored in the fact that there are high-ranking adventurers, and this knight doesn't really think it's absolutely fine.

　He must have just thought I was getting anxious and tried to reassure me.

''I see it!　That's the suspension bridge we're after!

　Tensed by the sudden approach to the front line, I stared at where my accompanying knight was pointing.