<<Previous Chapter | Let's Manage the Tower | Next Chapter>>
Translator: Kazumi
Editor: Silavin
In an abandoned house that no one would go near, two men met face-to-face.
The other day, they were talking about their ‘next move’ against Kousuke and the others.
However, the atmosphere today was different from the other day; it was acrimonious from the start.
The person in charge, who tasked the other party to do something about Kousuke and the others, was livid.
“What the hell happened!!!!” The man’s voice was muffled so others would not realize two people were having a discussion in an abandoned house. Nevertheless, he could not hide his agitation.
The man on the other side of the room was quietly taking in his anger in stride.
“Well. I didn’t expect our people to attack the convoy and fail again.”
The man’s anger was accelerated by this categorical statement, and a blue streak appeared on his forehead.
“If you can’t defeat one C-ranked party and two extra parties, you’ve all fallen.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m sure Herman-dono knows better than you that the ranks of the Adventurers’ Guild are simply guidelines to roughly assess their strength and are not accurate at times.”
“What?” Herman was about to retort reflexively, but the mention of his name on this occasion toned down his rage.
The organization the man belonged to had long been useful to him because of its ease of use. Each time Herman negotiated with them, the man in front of him was discrete enough to avoid carelessly mentioning his name.
Mentioning Herman’s name led him to settle down. He felt as if he was being manipulated, but even so, it was significant that he could now calm down, even if only a little.
Now, he could afford to think about the meaning of the man’s words.
Thinking about it carefully, he remembered that his words contained important information.
“…Is that so?” Although Herman had underestimated the adventurers due to their ranking, he had accurately read the meaning of the man’s words.
In essence, he was saying that Kousuke and the others escorting that convoy might not be on the same power level as the C-ranks he knew.
Herman had known the man for many years, and to his credit, he knew this was not the kind of man who would make a big deal about their abilities to hide his failures.
Seeming to read the thoughts in Herman’s mind, the man gave a small nod. “Yes. In terms of ability, I think it’s safe to say that they are around the level of A-rankers.”
“…What!?” Despite having once cooled down and ready to listen to the man’s words seriously, Herman’s expression once again turned doubtful.
A-rank adventurers were a group of highly skilled individuals. If they were that good, it would not be surprising to hear rumors about them in the course of his work.
However, Herman had never heard of Kou
“I have never heard of an adventurer named Kou?”
“Yes. I looked into it in detail here, and it appears that he recently moved here from the Central Continent.”
“I see.”
Even to someone who was in a position like Herman, adventurers who were active in the Central Continent had been known to be very capable people. Although he had never actually seen them, he had heard much about them.
Looking at Herman in thought, the man further explained the current situation.
“We have deployed the maximum force we have at our disposal, but it was still useless. It is pointless to send more people, as it will only cause more damage.” He said the same thing as before, that it was impossible. But this time, Herman was not outraged. He was already assembling in his mind what to do next.
“…Okay…You’ve informed me well.”
“Well. I did fail after all.”
Herman was reminded that the man in front of him was not someone he should be pointing his anger at. He was a long time acquaintance of his, someone professional.
He was a man who had done a lot of behind-the-scenes work, but had rarely failed. So much so that he had never actually suffered as much loss as he had this time.
Herman could imagine that his heart was also simmering with rage right now, but did not show it due to wanting to keep things professional.
Thinking about it, Herman, who could still make the next move, floated with a relaxed smile.
“All right. You don’t have to get involved in this matter anymore… No, you can wait until I give you further instructions.”
“Yes.” The man bowed deeply to Herman, bringing the discussion to an end.
♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦
Having completed most of the journey to the royal capital, Kousuke and his group were enjoying a bit of rest and relaxation as they stayed in a larger town.
Currently, the goods to be carried was being responsibly managed by the merchants’ guild. Therefore, Kousuke and the others were temporarily free from their duties.
Incidentally, if the goods got lost during this time, neither Kousuke nor Rein would be held responsible.
Since the trip was progressing faster than planned, it was time for a short break before the final spurt.
Just as Kousuke and the others were checking the items available at a magic tool shop, Rein came in looking for them, a bit flustered.
“Oh, thank goodness, Kou-san. I found you here.”
“Rein-san? What’s wrong?
“There’s a small problem with the goods… ”
Rein’s words were muddled, as if to say that he could not say anything here.
Kousuke noticed this and quickly returned the magic tool in his hand to its original position.
“I see. So should we go back?”
“Yes. Please do.”
By the time they arrived in this town, Rein’s level of trust in Kousuke had risen to all-time highs.
The fact that he came to call Kousuke while he was resting was proof of his trust in him.
Kousuke also thought that there was no problem with being called back because he was still technically Rein’s escort, even though he was on a break.
He was being paid a lot as for his escort fee.
Kousuke followed Rein’s lead to the merchant guild where they left his luggage.
When Kousuke and the others arrived at the warehouse of the merchants’ guild where they were depositing their goods, there was already a bit of a commotion.
To be more precise, a group of people wearing heavy equipment were having a confrontation with the gatekeeper guarding the entrance.
They were wearing heavy equipment worn by knights of the Tausen Kingdom.
In other words, a member of the official knight order of this country was causing a commotion.
On the way here, Rein told Kousuke that the knight order had suddenly offered to inspect the goods.
This in itself was not unusual, so he did not mind it.
Though normally, this was done before the goods entered town at the gate, and rarely would they inspect unannounced.
Since such things were common, the gatekeepers were calmly handling the situation, but the problem was that the knights who had come here did not have any written documents.
At least, as far as Rein had heard, the knights have not even produced one.
When there was such an inspection, it was usually along with a formal written document.
To put it bluntly, their move was extremely suspicious, even though they were saying that it was official.
Rein called Kousuke and the others in the hope that they would be able to stop the knights from forcing their way through.
With that in mind, Kousuke and his group entered through the back entrance instead of the front entrance.
Of course, there was a gate guard at the back entrance as well, but with Rein along, they could easily get through.
Kousuke and his group who were following Rein were able to pass through easily.
They took a look around the back area, but it seemed that the knights were not forcing their way in from any other direction.
Just as Kousuke and his group arrived at the location of the important goods, another group of knights appeared, complicating matters further.
<<Previous Chapter | Let's Manage the Tower | Next Chapter>>
