After leaving the tavern, Aldis spent the morning browsing the shops for daily necessities.
　The bare minimum of things are taken out with him when he leaves Tria, but the amount is limited.
　We don't plan to buy a large number of items as everything is "just for now," but we will mend crockery, towels, and other items as needed.

　The most important thing is food.
　If you hunt in the forest, you can get meat. However, Ardis knows from experience that meat alone is not enough to keep them in good shape.
　That's why he eats a certain amount of fruits and vegetables, but the variety of foodstuffs available in the forest is limited.

　In addition, the next most important thing after the ingredients is salt and other seasonings.
　As far as Aldis is concerned, they don't place much importance on the taste of their meals.
　As long as you don't die from eating it, it's not a problem, and I'm not going to complain as long as I don't throw up everything in my stomach from nausea.
　But the twins and Nere would be different. The food would have to be better.

　After that, Aldis went back to the inn, having gone through all the shops, and had an idea of what he was going to buy.
　The time was already around noon.
　The busy lunch period was over, and there was no sign of Cesare in the deserted tavern.

(Did he get caught on a hook?)

　After confirming this, Aldis packed his bags and left the inn.
　The master of the tavern asked him, "Where are you going now? Aldis answered briefly that he would be heading towards the Empire and then walked slowly with his bags on his back to the south gate.

　Peeking at the stalls here and there, he walked leisurely through the city as if making a show of it, and then walked out of the south gate to the royal capital.
　Aldis, who was walking straight to the southeast, was stopped as soon as the gatekeeper was out of sight.

''Wait a minute, brother over there.

You're here.

　Without showing any signs of panic, I turned around leisurely and found five figures who looked like mercenaries.

　The one standing in the middle was an axe man who seemed to have called out to them. The two men who were flanked on either side of him were also holding axes in their hands. All three of them are heavily armed as if they were going into battle.
　The two men behind them are dressed in robes. It's not a bad idea to have a good time with them. It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

It's not a good idea.　Are you sure you're not mistaken?

No, it's your brother. Oh, yeah. Can you just shut up and catch me without saying a word?

At least I don't have any idea why we're getting caught.

If my brother doesn't have it, I know someone who does, so what?

　The man hints at the existence of a client.

　The question is who asked him, but there is no way he will answer honestly if you ask him.
　Furthermore, it's clear from the start that a fight is inevitable if you ask and answer the question.

(If that were the case--)

　Instead of replying, Ardis chanted a magic chant.

"The leaf of the word is thou that thou shalt break thy body and lead thee to the Mahoroba: ----

I'll have to catch him alive to get him to talk.

Morte Warne Sheep!

What!　That's fast!

　The mercenaries, who didn't even have time to brace themselves for the suddenness of the situation, were enveloped by a silver mist that shone faintly.

　It would be careless to antagonize someone who could use magic from a distance.
　Of course they were not amateurs either.
　From the fact that their companions look like sorcerers, they must have thought they were maintaining a distance that could be dealt with even if Ardis used magic.

　However, Aldis' chanting was much faster than the mercenaries assumed.
　For normal sorcerers, chanting is an unavoidable procedure, but for Ardis, who can use magic without chanting, chanting is just a decoration - a fake to cover up the lack of chanting! .

　The rushing mercenaries tried to attack Ardis, but it was already too late.
　The magic of sleep that carries Ardis' magical power instantly reaps the consciousness of all the mercenaries.
　With the magical power of Ardis, the mercenaries have no way of resisting Norris's 'unstandard' magic.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world and what's going on in the world.

''If we let them get away like yesterday, it'll be twice as bad.

　All five men were tied up with ropes and gagged, and only the leader of the group was dragged into the nearby bushes.

　Aldis removed the man's gag and slapped him on the cheek, forcing him to wake up.
　When the man wakes up, he is momentarily stunned, but soon realizes that he is tied up and begins to rant.

'What!　What ...... where is this place!　Hey!　What did you do!

　Standing in front of him, Aldis gave a cold laugh.

'What I did ......, I put you to sleep with magic to end it. Don't you remember?

　The man rushes to look around and says impatiently.

'Everyone is ......, what happened to the rest of the guys!

You beat me to it.

　Coolly, Aldis dismissed the idea.
　Of course it was a lie.

　Aldis would not show any mercy to someone who was trying to kill him.
　But these men had no desire to kill to begin with. However, it's a good thing that you have the sense to deal with your opponent to the extent that you can handle them accordingly, no matter how much you say you'll do your best to get rid of any fire that comes your way.

''Am I going to ...... kill you too?''

　The man's face paled as he finally seemed to understand the situation.
　Since he couldn't read Aldis' mind, the man would only feel that his life was in danger.

''You think you can help me at this point in time?''

　Aldis says in a gasp.

'd*mn!'

But you're really weak. Maybe you're just starting out as a mercenary?

　Aldis says to the man who is choking on his words in frustration, as if to provoke him.

'You!　Let him say it!

　Apparently, the man was the kind of person who said more words than he thought.
　'This might work,' Aldis chuckled in his mind.

'Bluster is all you've got. You don't even know how much you've been sold for.'

'What ......!　Sold?　What do you mean by that?

　Aldis snickered at this and said.

'Haven't you noticed it yet?　Congratulations on your head. That's all I did. I want you guys to get false information and attack me so I can turn the tables on you.

Fake ......, info?

　With a mocking look, Aldis drives the man away.

'Yes,' he says. You have been lured into this trap by false information. You thought you'd get me off on the hook, but you've fallen into the trap. They really hate you, don't they?

'You want me ......!　Who?!

　You're one step closer to this one.

You still don't get it, do you? Remember who it was that asked you to attack me? It's pretty simple, huh?

"............ Right, ......!　d*mn Cesare!

　It took.

You finally figured it out, you slow learner.

　Aldis grins inwardly as his mouth says so, but his name comes out as expected.

'd*mn it!　That bastard!

　The man taunted Cesare with a look of indignation.
　After listening to the man's curses for a moment, Aldis smiled a wicked smile and said.

Well, don't be so angry. 'Well, don't be so angry,' he said, 'I'll make sure Cesare gets his due.

What the hell are you talking about?　The bastard is me ......, duh!　I can't even die in this thing!

　The man screams with a sense of frustration oozing through his body.

　Then Aldis goes to seed.

'Well, well, you don't have to be so crass. Everything I said earlier was a lie.'

What about ............?

　The man looked up at Aldis with a pouting expression, unsure of what was said.

'Lying about ......, that the Cesare bastard sold me out?

Yeah. - Yeah. The whole thing about me getting a job from Cesare, about Cesare giving you false information, about Cesare selling you out, it's all a lie. Some of your guys are still out there.

......

　The man's mouth is half open and he looks like a pigeon that has been hit by a peashooter.

I'll give Cesare a good shaking. I'm going back to the capital now, and you guys can relax a bit more. I'm going to go back to King's Landing now, and you guys can stay here and relax a bit longer. This is just for your trouble.

　After saying this, Aldis stripped the man of the helmet he was wearing.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most out of your time in the city.

Eh, hey ....... Hey ......, wait!

　Only the voice of the man tied to the ropes calling Aldis off echoed around him.

　Aldis paid the toll tax again through the south gate and stepped into the royal capital.
　He headed straight for the entertainment district and entered the inn that he had pulled out of a few hours ago.

　The inn has only a handful of guests sitting around, except for the clerks working furtively to prepare it for the upcoming bustle.
　One of those customers is Cesare, sitting at the counter with a glass of fruit water in hand.

　As he walks up to the counter without suppressing the sound of footsteps, Cesare, noticing something wrong, turns around and then freezes when he sees Aldis' face.

　Aldis threw the helmet the mercenary man was wearing to a pale Cesare and said with an eerie smile.

'It's the one your acquaintance used to wear. It looks like you forgot it, so can you give it back to me?

'Oh, ah, ......, why are you here?　I thought you left King's Landing. ......?

　Cesare's voice is squeezed out, showing his dismay.

'I was going to do that, but as soon as I left King's Landing, some bad stray dogs got involved. It's a good thing we got rid of them, but they seemed to have forgotten their helmets.

　Aldis explains by paraphrasing the mercenary who attacked him as a stray dog.
　There's no way a stray dog would wear a helmet, but Cesare doesn't have the time to notice such a stub of a word now.

''So, that's right ....... So, that was ...... a disaster.

Well, it's no big deal, just a pain in the ass. I was attacked by a ragtag group of men in the back streets yesterday, but it's nothing to worry about. I don't care how many times I get attacked, I'm just going to take it back every time.

Well, you are a natural...

　The moment Cesare finally recovered from his sudden shock, he began to talk, trying to get out of the situation somehow.

　Aldis quickly closed the distance and whispered into Cesare's ear with a voice devoid of emotion.

'But you can only laugh and forgive me a second time. Guess there won't be a third time.'

　A warning that we won't allow it next time.

'Oh ......, eh ......, ha, yes ......'

　Cesare barely responded, his voice wavering.
　Like a frog staring at a snake, he popped Cesare on the shoulder as he stiffened in fear, and Aldis left the tavern as it was.

　There was a bit of trouble, but they were able to accomplish their original goal.

　Aldis looks up at the sky on the main street.
　The sun is setting, but there is still time before dusk.
　Even with time to buy food and travel time, they should be able to return by the time the night spreads.

　Thinking peacefully about what to bring the twins, Aldis turned to the streets lined with shops.