41-Episode 40: I'm not lucky, I'm just as planned.

◇

'Where did you go yesterday?

I was on my way to the guild with Aina and Aleria.

Aina, who doesn't know my situation, asked me a question.

I could honestly tell her that I was working for the kingdom, but that would be outside of ...... and I don't know who's listening. It would be safer to keep it under wraps for now.

'Well, sort of.

'Like the whorehouse ......?'

'Don't be silly! I don't think so!

'Well, I don't know. Don't men sometimes secretly enjoy themselves and put on an indifferent face?

'Yuki, is that so? I can't allow that!

'It's not only for me! Yesterday, ...... you know, I had a lot going on. I was busy and didn't have time for that.'

'Yes, you were busy.'

'I'm sure you're mistaken!

'Yuki is filthy. ......'

'Aleria will understand, won't she?

'At least I've explained to Aleria where I'm going and what I'm going to do, and you know that's not true.

You and Aina are in a bad way together. .......

Well, I'm glad that we've gotten to know each other well enough to have this conversation.

I arrived at the guild while being eyed with suspicion mainly by Aina.

'Ah, you've arrived at once. Let me recommend you an E rank request: ......'

As soon as we walked in, the receptionist brought us several request forms.

Before we knew it, we were being treated like VIPs.

Normally, I would have gratefully accepted all the recommended requests, but today's situation is a bit special.

'Oh, I'm sorry. I appreciate it, but I'm here for a different request today.

'A different request?

'It would take a long time if I were to raise my rank properly. I want Aina to take the promotion test and raise her rank to C by the end of the day.''

'A promotion test, ......? The guild doesn't have such a system ......! Please wait a minute!

The receptionist hurried back to check the manual under the counter.

It's no wonder she was like this yesterday.

We headed for the counter.

The receptionist who had finished checking looked up.

'The rules have changed as of today, and adventurers who start at rank E even though they clearly have sufficient ability are disadvantaged, so an exception has been made to allow them to skip ranks through a promotion test. ...... That's amazing timing. I'm amazed at how lucky you are, Yuki-sama. ......'

'That's great. What kind of test is it?'

I know I'm replying out of the blue, but I'm the one who lobbied the guild to change the rules, and I'm the one who conveniently sent out the request to do so. That's what yesterday's letter was for.

It's a very roundabout way of getting Aina to accept my request via the Kingdom and the Guild.

'Raid the bandits' hideout and capture them all. However, it seems to be a bit too difficult for a new adventurer to take on at first. ......'

'All right. I'll take it. If I complete that request, I'll be ranked C right away, right?

'I understand. Then we'll take the order from ...... and we'll need two or more supervisors, so I'll start looking for them now.''

'Me and Arelia should be fine, right?

'Uh, ......'.

The receptionist double-checked the revised manual based on the opinion.

''Ah, it seems that if there are high-ranking adventurers in the party, we can leave the supervisor to them! I'm sure you'll agree that it's better to have the same environment as usual so you don't get nervous. ......!

It's a rule that's too convenient for us, but it makes sense and will continue to be enforced. So it's not abuse of authority. I think it's just as safe as .......

I think it's safe to say that was written by Regulus, not by me, and that it was the guild that changed the rules since it was just an opinion.

It's not like I'm being questioned by anyone," he said, turning to Aina.

'I said I'd take it on my own, but in the end it's up to Aina to decide what to do. What are you going to do?'

'You mean it's a C-rank equivalent request, right?'

'That's right. There are about five bandits, so we should think about whether we can take on five C-ranked demons at the same time.''

'That sounds fine to me. I'll take it.

'I knew Aina would say that. So, let me take it.

If she had refused, I would have had to use the bathroom or some other bitter excuse to go and capture her alone.

'That Yuki-sama...'

'Hmm, what is it?

'How did you know that there were only about five bandits ......? I didn't tell you that. ......'

'What ......? Ah, well, it's just a hunch. You see, a bandit's hideout usually has about five people in it!

Since he was the one who made the request, it was natural that he should know this fact, but before he knew it, he seemed to have mistakenly said something he shouldn't have.

'Intuition? ......? It's true that the intuition of high-ranking adventurers often comes true. ......'

The suspicion in the eyes of the receptionist grew stronger.

She probably didn't find out that I was working as the head of the kingdom, but she might have noticed that I knew about it to some extent beforehand.

'Well, it doesn't matter, the request has been sent out, which means the situation is time-sensitive! Let's get out of here right now! Hey!

Forcibly accepting the request, we departed.