'No, that's funny. Ardis.

　Norris said in a gasp.

　This is a tavern in the entertainment district of Trier.
　Aldis was meeting with Ted and the other members of the Byakuya no Myojo, occupying a table there.

　It was only yesterday that Ted and the others returned after completing their request after a half-month-long journey.
　After receiving a call from them, Aldis went to the bar to give them an update.

"What?

　On the contrary, Aldis asks back.

　Once again, Aldis began to talk about what happened after he left Ted and the others earlier.
　That she received a request introduced by Ted and his friends and went to pick up Nere, and that it turned into a fight.
　He took Nere to the lord's mansion and accomplished the request.
　Nere stalked you afterwards.
　That you had no choice but to form a temporary party to hunt.
　That Nere had no prejudice against the twins, so he actively took them with him to accomplish his work.
　That Nere, who would not stay at the inn by any means, was currently staying at Aldis's house--.

'So that's what's wrong there,'

　Norris interrupted irresistibly.

'Is that funny?'

It's crazy.

'Nere has no prejudice against twins. So I don't think the twins are in any danger to themselves either.

No, no, no, it's not that kind of thing.

　Ted interrupted the conversation from the side.

If this woman is not prejudiced against the twins, that's a good thing. But it's one thing to know that it's okay for her to have contact with the twins, and another to live in the same house, eating and sleeping together.

Well. I've been listening to you for a while now and I'm getting the oddest feeling too. No ill will towards the twins, that would be good. They are trustworthy as mercenaries with their skill and personality, which is also good. But doesn't that have anything to do with letting them stay at home?

　After being pointed out by three sides, Ardis suddenly thinks about it.
　Nere is trustworthy as a mercenary. That's an assessment that Aldis himself has made after working together for a while now.

　Nere has no ill will or hostility towards the twins. So he won't be forced to keep the twins' presence a secret.
　But certainly, as Ted and the others say, there was no need to 'invite them into Aldis' house because of that.

'I see ......, so to speak. ......

　It's plausible, if you ask me.

　Nere is not a family by nature, nor is he a protected species.
　They hunt together and share their rewards, so there will be no shortage of money to stay at the inn.
　If you think about it, you can just let them stay at the inn and only join them when they are working.

　Aldis herself was only concerned with protecting the twins from malice.
　The surprise of Nere's denial of the goddess had probably blown any other thoughts away, even if temporarily.
　It was not even questioned if the temporary measure of taking shelter from the rain changed into the form of Nere's housekeeping before long.

　Lately, the twins are getting used to Nere, and although they don't talk to each other, they have gotten close enough to eat at the same table.

''Well, the twins are getting used to it, so it's good, isn't it?''

Are you sure?

　Ted is quick to butt in.

　It's not a problem for Ardis as long as she doesn't act hostile.
　It's a good idea to have an extra room to begin with, and although I'm not getting any rent, I'm getting money for my shopping.

　I don't know if he's serious or not, but Nere looks up to Ardis as his master and follows him around.
　He's not just a hostile but a cooperative mercenary, and he has no ill will towards the twins. If that's the case, Ardis has no reason to eliminate them.

''Hmm ....... If Aldis is happy with that, then maybe we shouldn't have any say in it.''

　Ted is unconvinced by this, but Norris is more open and easy-going. He is not the type to interfere too much with other people by nature.

You will be able to find out more about this. Did you hear the story?

You mean the one about the grinder coming down?

Yeah, that.

　It was a topic that had been causing a stir in the taverns of Tria for some time now.
　It all started with a large shadow flying through the sky that had been seen by the mercenaries in the grasslands about four days ago.

　At first, the mercenaries said it looked like a bird's shadow.
　In the grasslands that spread out around Thoria, it was not unusual to see a bird in itself.
　Whether you were a mercenary or a peddler, if you had ever traveled on the grasslands, you had more than likely encountered the shadow of a bird circling overhead.
　The area around the Trier is home to large birds such as the Killer Bird and the Watcher, which can be seen frequently.
　These are all carnivorous birds of prey. Not only do they congregate around the corpses of traders and mercenaries, but they are also very dangerous beasts of prey that can attack humans in flocks.

　However, although they are dangerous, they are only dangerous to merchants and ordinary people who do not have the skills to fight them. It's not a problem for mercenaries.
　If a mercenary is recognized as a full-fledged soldier, he will be able to fight back with ease. As long as they don't aim at your weaknesses or catch you by surprise as a group, they aren't that fearful of you.

　That day, the mercenaries who saw the bird's shadow were also aware of this at first.

　Until the next moment, the bird swooped down and attacked the huge body of the 'fighting bull'.

　A fighting bull is a herbivore with a huge body of about three meters in length. However, they have a very violent temperament, and if approached carelessly, they will strike a painful blow with their thick horns extending from the left and right sides of their heads toward the sky.

　The mercenaries who were watching the shadows descending from the sky quickly learned that their perception was wrong.
　Whether it was a killer bird or a watcher, its size was at most a meter or so with its wings outstretched.
　However, the shadow that attacked its prey was no less than three meters long, which is about the same size as the body of a fighting bull.

　The shadow, which had killed the bull in a flash, began to wiggle on the spot, holding the body of the bull with its wings as if to cover it up. Probably it was pecking at the body of the fighting bull.

　The mercenaries immediately left the scene as fast as they could and apparently returned to the city of Tria to report to the guards.
　It seems that similar reports continued after that. After considering the accounts of the witnesses, I have come to the conclusion that the master of the shadows may have been a grinder.

I know, but ....... Is it credible?　I've never heard of a grinder coming down from the mountains.

　Ardis said, raising an eyebrow.

It's hard to believe that it's a haphazard story, but I've heard that there are many witnesses to it. And we have a pretty good idea what the cause is.

What's the cause?

　Ted interrupted.

'I've heard that the number of mercenaries being attacked by dispersers and beast kings has been decreasing lately. I guess it's great news for the new mercenaries because they can hunt safely, but if the number of dispersers and beast kings is actually decreasing: ......

It's less, so what?

'The fewer predators there are, the less likely there are to be fewer prey beasts to prey on. Of course, there won't be more of them, but there will be fewer of them to prey on. There will be more herbivores on the grasslands than ever before.　Some people seem to think that the Grinder has become an attractive hunting ground just to come all the way out of the Canobis Mountains.

　If what Norris had heard was true, then part of the blame might lie with Ardis.

　Originally, Aldis alone had hunted many dispersers and beast kings.
　Furthermore, since he had started working with Nere, his efficiency had increased significantly.
　The number of disperses I hunted in the past half a month exceeded fifty, and as for the Beast King, I can't even remember how many of them I hunted.
　It is possible that the hunting of Aldis and his friends, which can be described as overfishing, has affected the ecosystem of the grassland.

　On the other hand, Ardis also has a sentiment similar to openness, saying that he can't take that much responsibility.
　If a grinder appears in front of you, you can defeat it while you're at it, but there's no reason to spend all that time searching for it to defeat it. It's better to stay home and sleep if you have time for that.
　That's why the tone of voice is also naturally very terse.

'So, so what?　It's none of our business, right?

'That's not really the case,'

　Aldis frowns at Norris' response.
　Based on his experience so far, when Norris has this kind of conversation going on, it's not a fragile one.

''For peddlers and troop merchants, it's a matter of life and death whether or not the streets are safe. Of course, for the ruling class, they can't just leave it alone. It would be a security issue.

　Norris is right, the security of the roads is the duty of the lords.
　It is a risk for merchants to carry their goods to dangerous lands. This would naturally reduce the comings and goings of peddlers and troop merchants, which would have a negative impact on the city of Tria in the form of higher prices.

　Unlike the dispersers and the Beast King, the grinder flies in the sky.
　Their range of movement is much wider than that of the dispersers, and to make matters worse, the grinder is strong enough to treat the despair of the grasslands as an infant.
　If the grinders are allowed to do as they please, victims will appear sooner or later, and the impact on logistics will increase.

Therefore, I heard that the territorial army is going to form a strike force in the near future.

　Aldis is impressed by the unexpectedly fast-moving territorial army, perhaps because it's too late after the damage is done.

　Although the territorial army cannot be said to have a good relationship with them personally, it seems that they are not a hip and incompetent group.
　Or maybe the lord is competent.
　In either case, there is no way for Ardis to judge the caliber of a lord she has never met.

I've heard that the core of the strike force will be the territorial army, but I've also been approached by some well-known mercenaries based in Thoria to make sure everything is in order. So, geezer!

　When Norris calls out to him, the tavern owner at the counter comes quietly over to the table.

I'm sure you've heard from Norris, but we have a request for your appointment to 'Byakuya no Meisei'. The client is the lord. The content of the request is to participate in the grinder defeating party. The reward for participation is three gold coins per day. The person who finds the grinder will receive 10 gold coins. The one who succeeds in defeating the grinder will receive an additional 50 gold coins.

　Three gold coins as a participation reward is the reward for the entire party.
　It might be a sufficient amount of money for a normal mercenary, but for Aldis, who usually earns more than ten gold coins every day, it seems less.

　That was probably true for Ted and the others as well.
　If they are good enough, they should be able to earn more than five gold coins a day, depending on the nature of the request.

''Are Ted and the others going to take it?''

　Ardis asks Ted for the amount of the reward.

It's a good thing that the reward for defeating someone is tempting, but I don't think you'll find it that convenient. To be honest, I haven't really received much: ......

　Ted's tone of voice showed that he was not very enthusiastic.

''Turning down a request for appointment from the lord isn't really advisable when you think about the future.

　The owner of the tavern speaks a word of advice, and Ted reluctantly says, "What is it?

It's a good thing ....... And even if you run into the grinder, it's not clear if you'll win. Well, I don't want to, but if Aldis is on board, I won't die even if I have to deal with the grinder.

So, we're thinking of accepting the offer, depending on Aldis.

　Norris, taking over Ted's words, says to Aldis.

　Aldis props his elbow on the table and puts his hand on his chin, and after giving a slight appearance of thought, he turns to the tavernkeeper and asks.

'Do I have to come under the command of the territorial army?'

''No, I heard they basically split up into small groups. A party of mercenaries wouldn't be working together with the territorial army.

　It seems that the territorial army has no intention of relying on such a louse as a mercenary to begin with.
　They probably think it's enough if they can find the grinder and stop it from happening.
　It seems that the policy was to do the rest as you wish once you've decided on the area to be searched.

'Then I don't mind, but ......, so what are we going to do about Nere?

　If he didn't have to face the territorial army, especially that stubborn general, Ardis would feel more comfortable.
　It's not a good idea to give the lord a bad impression as the "Meisei no Meisei" (bright star of the midnight sun). If that's the case, we should actively cooperate with them and bring a positive influence to their future activities.
　In that case, Ardis has one concern.

''Can I bring Nere along with me?''

　It's Nere, the partner with whom we have been constantly working for the past few days.
　If Ardis were to participate in the defeat, Nere would be on his own.
　However, it is Nere. It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get your hands on a new one.

"It depends on how useful that guy is.

　I don't need to be useless. Ted has a good point.
　The participation fee is the reward for the entire party, so the more people in the party, the smaller the share.
　Even though Ted and his friends are not money-minded, they are not so good-natured as to take a bunch of useless eaters with them.

"I'll give you my word on the strength. I'm strong enough to hunt the Whips by myself.

Well, at least we won't be slowed down. Okay, let's make that guy a member of the Byakuya no Meisei and take the commission.

　Satisfied with Aldis's answer, Ted made the decision to accept the request.

It's settled. So, the five of us are going to participate as the 'Midnight Sun', right?

　The tavern owner summarized the story with a relieved look on his face and went back to the counter.