Chapter 28

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It had been two weeks since the incident with Albert. The Frontier City of Marhas was, more or less, enjoying a period of peace. A log wall had been erected along the border with the uncharted regions, and construction had begun on the central church of the city.

Word of the growing settlement had reached traveling merchants and job-seeking artisans, who were now trickling in, and the number of adventurers had grown even further. Naturally, that also meant more trouble. To handle it, Viscount Hirte had sent some soldiers our way—though somehow, I ended up being the one stuck solving adventurer-related disputes.

“Quit squabbling over petty shit! You want me to make both of you regret it!?”
“S-Sorry!”
“We’ll be more careful next time!”

Two adventurers bowed at a perfect right angle. The cause was a fight over who got to acquire a request slip first. Since it escalated into a fistfight, I broke it up by slugging them both.

“Request slips go to whoever takes them, not who sees them first. And the target is this one, eh? A bit too much for either of you on your own. I’ll talk to Katie and have the reward bumped up. You two, go together.”
“Me? With him?”
“Seriously…?”

I let out a sigh and glared at them both.

“Norton, your weapon’s a spear, right? And Coltos, you’ve got an axe and shield. If you coordinate properly, you’ll cover each other and take the thing down safely. Coltos pressures it, Norton strikes the weak point. Just give it a shot. I’ll buy you both a drink when you get back.”
“If you say so, Yulg.”
“Tch, fine. Let’s go.”

Still a little awkward, Norton and Coltos bumped fists before setting off.

“If it goes well, form a party. It’ll make the Guild’s trust management easier.”
“That’s just ‘cause you don’t wanna deal with the paperwork!”
“Shut it! I’m not a guild staffer! Now get going!”

I waved them off, flipping the request slip at them. Damn it, the more this place grows, the more chaotic it gets. We really need the Guild to increase staff soon…

“Nice work, Yulg.”
“Hey. Sorry, Rolo—dragging you into this.”
“Don’t worry about it. You’re doing your best, so I can’t fall behind.”

With the Guild’s workload growing faster than Katie could handle, Rolo and I had stepped in to support her. Honestly, if Rolo weren’t helping, we’d be drowning in paperwork by now. That’s just how many adventurers we have in the New District and how many monsters remain in the unexplored region.

For the adventurers, those monsters are a steady income. They can keep hunting them all day every day and there’d still be enough monsters to wave a stick at. But for us, keeping an eye out for another Monster Stampede, those monsters are a source of unease.

Things may look stable—but Albert’s case is still fresh in mind. It’s obvious Scarr is plotting something.

“Oh, by the way… Mom said she wanted to thank you. She wants you to come by.”
“Your mom?”
“Yeah. She said she’s sad you haven’t come for dinner lately.”

Hearing that brought her face to mind. Right now, like us, she’s incredibly busy. After all, she’s the proprietress of the only inn in Frontier City Marhas.

When they needed someone to manage the inn, I suggested her—and things just fell into place from there. That’s why the inn’s called Mercia, same as our party. It wasn’t on purpose, but as the official inn of Mercia, the pioneers of the Frontier Town, the adventurers treat it with respect. Also, the fact that I publicly declared I’d beat the crap out of anyone who caused trouble there might help.

Even setting that aside, her inn has a great reputation. She’s a hard worker, thoughtful, and she’s used to dealing with me—so she’s not easily rattled.

“Bitts and Arco are working at the inn too, right?”
“Yeah. Now Bitts doesn’t have to risk his life in the unexplored regions. Both Mom and I are really grateful for that.”
“Glad to hear it. Guess I paid a little of that debt back, huh?”

Rolo smiled warmly at my words.

“Maybe. But Mom said she’s making cheese gratin and waiting for you.”
“…Yeah, I’d be a fool to miss that.”
“Right?”

Walking beside the softly giggling Rolo, I couldn’t help but feel happy too. Just knowing someone’s cooking my favorite dish is reason enough to protect this place.

“Ah, there you are—both of you!”
“Fimia? What’s wrong?”
“Well, we have… some rather troublesome guests.”

Her expression was a little tense. Smells like trouble.

“Saran asked me to fetch you both.”
“Got it. On our way. Rolo, you good?”
“I’m good. Let’s go.”

We handed off our documents to the Guild’s temporary housing and walked quickly through the New District. The closer we got to the village, the noisier it became.

What the hell—is this turning into a full-blown ruckus?

“Who are these ‘troublesome guests’?”
“They seem to be from an adventurer company…”
“Huh?”

An adventurer company—a mercantile organization that manages a large number of adventurers. They handle massive hunts or manpower-heavy tasks by pooling bodies. As far as I know, Frontier City Marhas hasn’t officially allowed any in yet.

With Rolo and Fimia, I made my way to the village plaza. Pushing through the gawking crowd to the center, I heard Saran’s voice. Beyond him, near the village gate archway, were eight wagons and ten mounted riders. There were also a bunch of people on foot.

“As I said, we are not currently accepting adventurer companies.”
“Like I care! Let us in! Do you know how far we’ve had to travel!?”
“Then perhaps you should return to Hirte? They have beds and work available.”
“Shut your damn mouth!”

A large armored man on horseback kicked at Saran—but just in time, Fimia’s protective spell deflected the blow. Saran ended up getting an up-close view of the man’s boot sole, but hey, better than a broken nose.

“Here they are—the acting Guild Master of Marhas and the acting mayor of the New District.”
“Huh?”
“Wait, what?”

Rolo and I blinked at Saran’s declaration, but then I got it. A little playacting, huh?

“So, what’s the fuss, Saran?”
“Exactly what you see.”

The plaza had been trampled by horses and wagons. Looks like they even clipped the gate arch—seeing that it was chipped. Villagers looked terrified by the rough newcomers, and I spotted a crying kid—the grandchild of someone I knew.

Who are these assholes? Sure are doing whatever the hell they please in my hometown.

As my blood started to boil, I thought through what I should do. Saran’s really throwing me into the fire, asking me to act like the Guild Master here.

But, hey… this is a city of rough-edged adventurers. A certain kind of welcome is appropriate.

“You the one in charge? Get your—”

Before the loudmouth could finish, I delivered a backhand to his arrogant horse’s face. I felt the sickening snap of its neck—I doubt it survived. But if you’re gonna glare at me with that smug look, you better be ready.

The even more arrogant-looking rider toppled off and hit the ground hard.

“Y-You bastard! What the hell!?”
“Don’t you know basic manners? You dismount when talking to someone. Ain’t that right!?”
“You little—GAAHH!?”

As he tried to get up, I kicked him square in the face. I held back enough not to kill him, but I’m not forgiving what he tried to do to Saran.

I strolled up to the writhing man and flashed a pleasant smile. After all, the foundation of good communication is a smile.

“So then—who the hell are you guys, and who amongst you wants to die first?”