33-Episode 33




'Good morning, Will. Hey, look what I found.

When I walked down to the cafeteria, the other three were already gathered at their usual table.
One of them, Satsuki, called me over and showed me something on her chest.

I took my usual seat and looked at what Satsuki was showing off.

'Is that an E rank adventurer's card?

Shining on Satsuki's chest was a small plate made of bronze.
If you look closely, you can see Satsuki's name engraved on it.
Satsuki wore it on a string around her neck like a necklace.

'Hmmm, so that's it. Will, who still has an F grade, can call me 'big sister'.

Satsuki is very proud of herself.
The contents of her statement are quite meaningless.

'Satsuki's stupidity has been accelerated by her E rank.

'I doubt that. I think she's always been like this.

The two girls, Mee and Cyril, were having breakfast as usual.
Their bronze adventurer's cards shone on their chests, as did Satsuki's.

Satsuki and the three others had been promoted from F to E adventurer rank after completing the previous quest to exterminate the undead.
The rank itself was raised when they completed the quest, but they must have received their new adventurer's cards this morning.

By the way, I also have that small plate adventurer's card.
It's made of ordinary copper because I'm still an F-rank adventurer.
I received it from the Adventurer's Guild the day after I registered as an adventurer.

The adventurer's card is made of different materials depending on the adventurer's rank, and is colored according to the material.
You can tell your adventurer rank at a glance by looking at it.

It's a little unsettling that I'm the only one in the party with a low adventurer rank.
It might be interesting to express this feeling as a joke.
I thought so, and decided to take Satsuki's comment.

'So, Satsuki. Could you pass me that butter?

I asked the waiter to bring me my breakfast, and demanded to Satsuki.
But Satsuki's reaction to this was strange.

'Hyah!

Satsuki made a strange sound and shuddered.
Then, while sitting on the chair, she started to flail about and fell back with the chair.

'No, this is not good! This is not good!

Satsuki got up and quickly put the chair back and sat down on it.
For some reason, her face was red and she was breathing heavily.

'No, it's not that I'm in trouble. ......'

'It's more like it's horrible ......'.

Cyril and Mee, on the other hand, were turning pale in the face.
I'm not sure how they reacted, but I'd say the response was the best I've ever seen in a joke.

While I was thinking about this, Cyril, who had regained his composure, asked me something else with a serious face.

'Well, Will, have you decided what you're going to do about that thing?

'Oh, that. ...... I think we should avoid handing it over to the authorities without thinking.

'......You're right. '...... I have to admit that I don't trust the higher-ups in our temple either.'

I'm sure you'll be able to find a lot more information on this in the future.

'Oh, you mean that thing? Isn't that the paper that was in the reference box in the bandits' mansion? I wonder why that box was locked so tightly, and why it was even trapped. I'm sure the name of the lord of that area was written on it.

Mi quickly blocked Satsuki's light mouth with her hand.
She quickly looked around to make sure she wasn't attracting any attention, and let out a sigh of relief.
She then released Satsuki's mouth and closed in on her.

'Are you stupid? Is Satsuki really that stupid?

'......, what? Did I say something wrong?

'Yes, I did! I'll think about whether or not it's appropriate to talk out loud in a public place like this!

'Oh, ...... I was so limp at the time that I didn't really read what was written on the paper.'

'...... I understand. I'm going to explain it to you, so don't shout and listen quietly.'

'Oh, okay.

Satsuki was pressured by Mi's attitude, but she showed her willingness to listen.
I'll leave it to you to explain to Satsuki, and I'll consider how to handle the documents again.

There was a box of documents in the office of the bandit house.
In the box, mixed in with a few bland documents, there was a more important document - several copies of the 'mission notice'.

And what was written on them was astonishing.

'Now ......! So, Count Goldart gave the order to the bandits to destroy that village?

Satsuki, who had heard Mie's explanation, whispered in surprise.
Mi raised her index finger to her mouth and urged her not to speak any more.
Satsuki nodded her head in silence.

Yes, that's exactly what was written in the document.

On what day, on what month, we will attack the village and kill all the villagers.
When you're done, I'll give you a substantial amount of gold or land and serfs.
You will be contacted shortly.

Along with that, the name of 'Count Goldart' was written, indicating that he would keep his word in the name of the Goldart family.
I had retrieved the documents from the box and brought them back.

The name Count Goldart was that of a lord who ruled a certain area in this neighborhood.
The city of Gordia, which is about a day and a half's walk from the city of Atratia, and dozens of villages in its vicinity are his domain, and the destroyed village of Filia was also in the territory of the Count Goldart.

However, there is a part of the story that does not fit with the fact that the lord destroys the village he rules.
The count's territory was entrusted to him by the king, but he had the right to collect taxes on the territory and could keep a certain percentage of the collected taxes in his own pocket.
It is unlikely that a lord, no matter how vicious, would willingly throw away his own financial resources.

There are many other aspects of this document that raise endless questions.
It is a document that should not be taken at face value, and various possibilities should be considered.
But...

'...... If that's true, it's unforgivable. Filia is because of him. ......'

Satsuki's eyes were filled with anger.
I nodded to Satsuki to show my agreement.

'Yeah, I agree with Satsuki. I agree with Satsuki. ...... But at present, there is too little information. And besides, we're just adventurers. We're not on the side of justice.

'......! What the hell, Will! You want me to pretend I don't know what's going on?



Hearing my words, a furious Satsuki put her hands on the table and stood up.
The dishes on the table shook.
The attention of the people in the cafeteria was drawn to Satsuki and our table.

'...... Satsuki, be quiet. You're not the only one whose guts are churning. You know what the god I believe in is in charge of.

Cyril sipped his tea and glared at Satsuki.
With that, Satsuki grudgingly took her seat again.

The eyes around her weakened to the point of glancing at her.
I confirmed this and explained to Satsuki.

'As I said before, I agree with Satsuki, and I can sympathize with her feelings. But things are not so simple. First of all, we have to check the facts, and even if the statements are true, we will be destroyed if we don't move carefully. It is necessary to consider social means in view.

'...... I understand, I'm sorry.

Satsuki seemed a little unconvinced, but somehow managed to apologize for her earlier comment.
I nodded at her and added another word.

'Also, as I said before, we are adventurers. It would be a bit unhealthy for us to work for free for the sake of justice and faith. If we're going to do something, we should turn it into a reward.

What about ......? Turn it into a reward, huh, how?

'I have an idea about that. I don't know if it will work.'

'Huh. ....... You can make your own rewards. ......'

With Satsuki looking on in disgust, I set about my breakfast.