The next day, Aldis wakes up later than usual.

　She looked at the bed next to her in her sleepy eyes, but there was no one there.
　Yawning, she looks around the room and sees the twins in the corner of the same room as yesterday.

　They are still huddled together, but their eyes are closed.
　They hadn't yet awakened from their sleep, and their bodies were shaking faintly in time with their breathing.
　The meal he hadn't touched yesterday had been neatly flattened before he knew it.

'Have you eaten: ......'

　He must have eaten it after Aldis had fallen asleep.

　The bowl of stew was as clean as if it had been licked off. There was no doubt that he was hungry.
　Still, the fact that he hadn't touched his food in front of Aldis probably meant that he hadn't let his guard down yet. Maybe it was the harshness of the treatment the twins had received so far that made it so.

　Aldis went downstairs to greet the innkeeper while washing his face, then took his breakfast from Kashisha and returned to his room.

　In the meantime, the twins were also awake.
　In the meantime, the twins were also awake, but like yesterday, they were huddled in the corner of the room and wouldn't come near me.

'Here's your breakfast. You want some?

　I called out to them, but they still didn't answer, and when Aldis began to eat, the twins didn't try to touch them.
　When Aldis finished eating, they still did not eat.

　In the end, they did not eat until Aldis left the room.
　Apparently, the twins couldn't even eat when Aldis was in the room.
　Deciding that it would be best not to force the twins to get closer to each other, Aldis suppressed some anxiety as she went to the tavern she would use for her meeting with Ted and the others.

'Oh, Aldis!　Over here!

　As we enter the tavern, Ted beckons us in, as if waiting for us.
　I can see Orphelia and Norris at the table.

'What's wrong with those girls?'

　As soon as we were seated, he asked about the twins who weren't behind Aldis.

'I left them at the inn,'

You okay?　What do you hear from the inn?

I've already been told. I mean, I got kicked out of my last place as soon as possible.

　The three of them clouded their expressions with an expression of "I knew it,

　Even just being a mercenary is a narrow shoulders.
　It sounds good if you say mercenary, but after all, many people see them as wimps who can't find a regular job, and their social status is low. He was a little better than a rogue.
　He is violent to the people of the town, makes one-sided demands on the strength of his power, forcibly hides a town girl who dislikes him, and overpays for his food and drink. There are outlaws, no different from criminals, here and there.

　Of course, unlike them, Aldis and his friends are law-abiding and do not abuse their power.
　There are heroic mercenaries who try to use their power to help others and to do good, and there are many who do their duty diligently and live their lives so as not to cause problems for others.

　However, in the general public's view, they are simply lumped together as 'mercenaries'.
　After all, there is no one to manage and supervise these so-called "mercenaries".
　Certainly, if they break the law, they will be captured by the guards and judged by the lord. However, his dignity does not reach places where the guards are not watching.
　After all, in this world, mercenaries are treated as crude and violent predators, no matter how far they go. No, it would be more accurate to say that they were also in this world.

　There are few lodgings that would bother to invite such snotty people in.
　It's still good because it's a big city, but if you go to a small town in the countryside, it's not uncommon that there are no lodgings to stay at.

Even so, I managed to find an inn to stay at.

　It was a rip-off, though,' Aldis complained.

'You were just lucky to have a place to stay. I was worried about you.'

Well, it's fine, but I can't help but be wary of it.

　Smiling bitterly, Aldis explains the situation.

He's been crouched in the corner of the room for a long time and won't go near it. She doesn't respond to my questions. It's as if she didn't even touch her dinner in front of me and ate it after I went to bed. It's like you're a Nora cat that I picked up.

Are you sure you want to leave it at the inn?

I asked the innkeeper to check on her. And while I was sleeping, they seemed to be going to the bathroom by themselves. The fact that they didn't leave their rooms yesterday, even though they had plenty of opportunities to escape, means that they're simply still wary of me.

That's not something to worry about. Considering their circumstances, it's unlikely that they'll fall in love with you all of a sudden. If you eat and sleep in the same roost for a while, they'll become less wary of you.

　Ted sums up this story as if it were over.

'Well, let's talk business. Norris, would you mind explaining what you just said to Ardis again?

'That's why I said we should talk about it all together later: ....... It's not a twofer.

　Sorry, sorry, Ted laughs and covers it up.
　Norris complains to him and starts talking about the request he received first thing in the morning.

'I got it this time, it's another investigation.

'What?　Now you're going to look for a heavy metal?

　Aldis laughs lightly.

　Even though they are mercenaries, this is how it is in a peaceful world.
　Like the last time, there are times when they have to fight for self-defense in the middle of an investigation, but the reality is that they are basically treated as a jack-of-all-trades.

　Sudden jobs and short term jobs that are not enough to hire people permanently are often requested by the mercenaries.
　Often the client is a merchant or the head of a town or village.

　Occasionally, requests may come from the state or military.
　There are quite a few jobs that knights are not good at, or that don't require long term detention of soldiers.

　On the other hand, it is not uncommon for them to be treated badly because they are mercenaries.
　There are occasional requests for disgraceful work that cannot be done by knights, or requests to discard mercenaries because they are lowlifes who have no problem with being dead.
　Compared to those, surveying was a rather good job.

''No, this time it's a survey of the land. The size of the road, the source of water, the drainage of the designated land, the geology, and much more.

　There was more than one place to investigate, but they were all located in the hills further south through the Caucasian forest, a day or two's walk to the border with the neighboring country.

'Heh, ......, who's your client by the way?'

Ostensibly, it's a trade association: ......

"But?

Maybe it's the country that's behind it.

What do you think, Aldis?

　Ted asks from the side.

'I suppose you could call it a preliminary survey of the garrison base and supply depots.

You still think so?

　Ted agrees with Ardis' reasoning.

'So, is that rumour about the upcoming war with the Empire true?

　Orphelia said anxiously.

What do you think?　I'm guessing that's not going to happen, with the market for heavy steel settling down.　I suppose that means we should look into it just in case.

What I don't understand is, why would the Trier Chamber of Commerce even bother to send us a request?　King's Landing would have been closer.

　Ted nodded at Aldis's thoughts, but was suspicious of the request coming to Tria.

'Maybe he wants to proceed as discreetly and secretly as possible. The fact that it's not a request from the lord or the army, but a request from the Chamber of Commerce is also probably for camouflage. The content of the request is probably a preliminary survey of the settlement anyway, right?

'Aldis is right. You said it was a prelude to a pioneering project or something.

I see. Maybe there are similar requests in King's Landing as well.

　Ted nodded with a convincing look on his face.

'I guess the reason the reward amount is so good is because of the country behind it. The minimum guarantee is 20 gold coins. The percentage of the investigation report is 30 gold coins. What do you want to do, Ardis?

　'Yes, ......,' says Aldis, after a brief moment of contemplation.

'I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to decline this time. If you're going to be near the border, you'll be out of the inn for quite a few days. I'd like to return to the inn every day for a while.

　No one asked why. It was because everyone understood that it was to take care of the twins.
　The voice in their hearts that said it was because there wasn't enough sleep in the encampment reached no one but Aldis.

'Well then, it's no use. 'I'll call on you when I'm on a day job.'

I'm sorry, Ted.

　After leaving Ted and the others, Aldis left the tavern and went out of town alone.

I'm not sure I'll be able to make it through the ...... Causus Forest on a day trip. It's no use, let's hunt for a beast king there.

　Aldis stepped out, murmuring as she took a quick look at the grassy field in front of her.