118-Chapter 7-6 Attack on Business

That's what caused the whole mess.

The one taking a statement in front of me was Mr. Jang, who happened to be passing by and heard the commotion.

He was tapping his finger on the desk with a very unhappy expression.

Because he was off-duty today. What's more, he had been off-duty for a long time for family service and got caught up in this mess.

His face, which could have been mistaken for a bandit if he made a mistake, grows grim every time he hears me speak.

However, fortunately, Jean-san is not angry at me or Amur and the others, but at the guards who freed the intruders and tried to capture Kerry on the contrary.

The actuality of the situation is that Temma and Blanca are not at fault for this matter, and as for Amur, although it is too much, there are extenuating circumstances... but as for Amur, you will be prepared to be detained for about two days. Even if they are that guy, they're still the guardsmen approved by the government.

Normally, Jang-san, who is a member of the Kingsguard, would rarely get involved in a problem like this, but he couldn't say that when I was involved, so he became the chief executive without a break.

It seems that all the noise about me goes to the Kingsguard, so Mr. Jang, who was there just in time, was like drawing a lottery ticket. Moreover, since he has the title of vice-captain of the Kingsguard, he couldn't run away, so he had to bow to his family.

The reason why the commotion about me is under the jurisdiction of the Konoe is because the Konoe are the best and most elite unit of the King's Army, and in addition, their royal family members are close to me and I have many acquaintances in the unit, so it's much safer than leaving it to the guards. I don't feel like I'm being treated like a dangerous person, but I'd rather have someone I know be in charge of it than someone I don't know, so I decided not to think about it too much.

''Ha~ you can go home, Temma. After this, you're going to search the house.......

I didn't miss the last words that Jean-san blurted out. I couldn't miss the last words, because they sounded so interesting.

"Mr. Jang, can I follow you in that?

No, of course not... no wait...

Mr. Jean was about to immediately dismiss the idea, but halfway through, he cut off his words and started to think about it, then called out to a nearby guard to bring him a piece of paper and began to write something on it in a smooth manner.

'Alright! Temma, I need you to sign here.

The paper that Mr. Jang asked me to sign had the words "Request for Cooperation" written in bold letters at the top. It is titled "Request for Cooperation in the Search of George Hyland, Representative of Highland Trading Association". It is said that "George Highland" is the name of the intruder who caused the trouble.

I've been told that the Highland Chamber of Commerce is a medium-sized chamber of commerce in the capital, but until a few years ago it was a small chamber of commerce.

It's not that unusual for an association to become large in a few years by successfully riding the wave of the times or by the wits of its master, but the highland association does not fit into the two, it is said that it is a black rumor that has risen around the center of the forceful trade.

If it is a normal house search, they almost never ask adventurers for help, but when they search a place where you can't know what will happen like this Highland Society, they seem to ask adventurers to be support staff for the search.

According to Jang, "The adventurer who has no problem with the ability and is related to the case, and whose identity is clear, is the perfect candidate for the request.

In addition to the basic fee of 10,000 G, he said, the reward will be increased according to the level of activity.

Jang said he wanted other reliable matchmakers, so he introduced Blanca and "The Sword of Dawn" to me, and the request was immediately submitted. However, since Blanca is being taken in a separate room in the same building, it seems that the approval was obtained within a minute. As for the 'Sword of Dawn', the young kinsman immediately flew over when I told him the inn I was staying at.

''It's past noon now.......I'd like to step in before it gets dark if possible.

It seems that at the same time Mr. Zhang went to call for the Sword of Dawn, he also sent a message to Wangcheng to get permission to search the house.

It seems that hiring us is arbitrary, but it seems that he originally planned to raid the Highland Trading Company whenever he had the chance, and since he had marked them for a long time, he had no problem getting permission to do so, so he didn't have to worry about it. Besides, Jean-san is the second-in-command of the Konoe Guard, so he's allowed to carry out this level of operation on his own.

'Oh, Temma. It's getting a little weird, isn't it?

As I moved to the conference hall for a meeting on the mission, Blanca appeared from behind me with an amused smile.

It seems that Blanca went to Amur's place before coming here and told him about the raid. When Amur heard about it, he told the guards on guard that he wanted to participate because he was also involved in it. However, he was refused, saying he couldn't participate, so he hid in the futon and slept unfaithfully.

In addition, although Amur is treated as a criminal on paper for now, the behavior of the guards who were obviously victimized is strange, so until the existence of the relationship between the Highland Trading Company and the guards is confirmed, we are not in the dungeon of the knight's branch where we are, but are confined to a single room used by knights.

Although it's gray and almost black no matter how you look at it, although it's gray to say whether or not there is a relationship between the Highland Chamber of Commerce and the guards, but Jean-san said that he would be innocent, but I want to say that he had caught them because they messed with the guards, so it was decided that Amur would stay in the room.

However, if it is clearly confirmed that there was a problem on the part of the guards, the next time they might say that the Knights had unjustly captured Amur, so Jean had asked Amur to give us a break as he would pay a reasonable fee when he was released.

Amur agreed to it and was put under house arrest, but he was not allowed to participate in the operation.

The fact that Amour is being held at the knight's branch is necessary. We can't let him out.

That's for sure.　

As we took our seats, looking at each other, a strategy meeting began as if we were waiting for it.

The strategy is not particularly unusual; it is divided into three groups: search, siege, and raid, and while the search group is investigating, the siege group prevents the escape, and the raiding group is mainly responsible for capturing or neutralizing the fugitives.

The search (raid) squad is fifteen people selected from the Kingsguard and the Knights, and the leader is Chris.

The siege team consists of one hundred men selected from the knights and guards, and their leader is Edgar.

The raiding team consisted of fifteen members of the Kingsguard and an adventurer's group (us), and their leader was Jean.

The Highland Trading Company is a three-story building located a short distance from the main street, built independent of the surrounding buildings, and stands on a square of land surrounded by passageways.

The search teams rush in in a single mass, but the siege teams form pairs of five men each, which are placed in groups of five on all sides. A total of seven groups, including five groups of three members each from the Konoe Guard and the Sword of Dawn and Temma Blanca groups, will be waiting around the Chamber of Commerce building to monitor the entrances and exits of the Chamber of Commerce.

There are four entrances and exits to the Chamber of Commerce.

The first one is the doorway in front of the shop. This is the largest, but since the search team will be entering from here, it's expected that there will be the fewest number of escapees. Two groups, including Mr. Jan, are in charge.

The next largest doorway, the entrance for goods. Since this is the most likely place for people to escape, the "Sword of Dawn", which has the largest number of people, and another group will be in charge.

Then there is the back entrance to the kitchen. This is a small place, but it's not the most popular, so you can't be too careful. Two groups of the Kingsguard are in charge, but one group stays away from the entrance so that it can go to the other group to support them at any time.

Lastly, my group is in charge of the entrance to the roof. To be honest, it's unlikely that this doorway will come out, but since it allows us to look around, it's up to me and Blanca to take charge because of our mobility.

I'll carry Blanca up to the rooftop with my flying magic, and if something happens down there, I'll just jump down.

And my team will be joined by the trusty "Three Servants" as well as Surarin, Shiroumaru and Solomon. Namitaro is not good at this kind of terrain (according to him) and will not be participating. When he said he wasn't good at this kind of terrain, he also said, "You don't know how many buildings will collapse if we go into a crowded area. After all, I will be the one to pay for the damages of the broken building....

'Oh! I think we're going in. Solomon, go up in the air. Slarin, set up a trap in the doorway. Blanca, Shiroumar, be ready to jump at any time. I'll cover you from here.

We'll each take up positions under my direction.

Soon after that, some people began to flee from the loading door and began to engage the 'Sword of Dawn'. Then, a little later from the loading door, heavy sounds began to be heard at the back door as well.

''Blanca, go cover the back door! Shilomar is a loading dock! There's a lot more resistance than I thought, I'm sure it's okay, but if we keep it up, it could do more damage to us.

"Yea!

Gawd!

Since both are in a state of turmoil, there was a risk that my magic would cause damage to my allies as well. It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

Without the slightest hesitation, the two fierce beasts ran down the wall like a reverse drop with their eyes on the battlefield below them (........).

The two flamboyant appearances startled the people who had escaped and stopped moving. The rifle team didn't miss the opportunity and defeated the enemy, capturing all of them in a matter of minutes.

It looks like a battle has begun inside the store as well. Whoa! Slarin, there's a visitor coming our way!

As we unfolded our search and examined the inside of the store, it seemed that a battle had started downstairs and we could hear the angry voices up here.

Then, from the group that seemed to be fighting Chris and the others, five responses began to move in the direction of where we were.　We began to hear a clattering sound from the doorway. It's probably because they are running up the stairs in a hurry, and the arrows in their quiver are making noise.

However, they don't realize that I'm here, and all five of them seem to be holding only a bow and arrow. I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most out of your time here.

I'm sure the enemy is waiting for them outside as well! I'll shoot you from above!

The five of them came out without warning, kicking in the rooftop door.

And they fell into the trap beautifully. It seems that they came up to provide cover outside, after all. Thanks to that, they were easily neutralized.

As a matter of fact, when I found out that the five of them were coming to the rooftop, I sprinkled water just outside the door beforehand to wet it down. It was also generous enough to create a puddle.

Then, when the five of them stepped into the puddle, he released a lightning magic stun to round them up.

'You won't be able to move for a while. I'll have the golem keep an eye on you just in case.......Solomon, you can take a break. Slarin, follow me.　

Chris and the others are struggling downstairs, but the enemy seems to have taken up positions on the stairs, and they are struggling against the attacks coming from above them.

However, if I attacked them from above, they would be caught in the crossfire and the situation would be reversed. But if you don't approach them without being noticed, they will lock you up in a room on the second or third floor, which makes capturing them a bit of a hassle.

'Slarin, I'm going to run into the middle of my opponent and flail around, so please neutralize the shotgun leaks.

I didn't have time to make a detailed plan, so I chose the simple and most effective method. It's a very simple method called exhaustion.

Then charge!

I took out a training stick from my bag and ran down the stairs like a flight of stairs in one fell swoop.

There were eight enemies, each of whom seemed to be quite skilled, and they took up positions on the second floor landing and used their advantage of height to return fire with spears and bows, keeping the search team led by Chris-san at bay.

However, they weren't paying attention behind me and didn't seem to have noticed my approach. Even if they had noticed, though, they weren't thinking of changing their plans.

They're not home in the back, sir.

He rushed between the eight men and first popped the first one with his body. Then I swung my stick around and defeated the two on either side of me.

By this time, the remaining five people notice me, but before I can start moving, I kick off the two people in front of the stairs. Two or three of the knights were caught up in those two, but they were quickly seized by the other knights. Three people left.

One of them tried to confront me, but the other two ran up the stairs in a flash.

''Slarin! We're both going!

When I call out to Slarin, who was supposed to be coming after me, the two who escaped are taken in by Slarin's emperorized body and are unable to move.

''So, lasttttt!''

The last one standing in front of me was surprised that his companion had escaped and that he had been caught in an instant, leaving him defenseless in front of me. So I stuck my stick out at his chin and the man collapsed off his knees and stopped moving.

'It's over, Chris,'　

When I called out to Chris-san, who was coming towards us, he made a bitter face. After all, it's like he took the most credit for me. Since it was Chris-san, I guess the problem was not so much the fact that I had taken the credit for him, but the fact that Jean-san might say something bad about him afterwards. So.

'Thanks to Chris and the others for getting those guys' attention, we were able to take them down without causing any victims.

I said, and he had a great smile on his face. I guess he knew what I was getting at.

'Right!' You're on a mission!

I don't know when they came up with the plan, but that's what they want to do.

'Well, let's get to work then! As we discussed, I want you to split up into three groups and check them out. And be careful, because there could be more lurkers out there. But first, someone needs to get these guys out of here.

When Chris-san clapped his hands and gave his support, the knights began to move crisply and scattered in a flash.

As expected from being chosen for an important squad, it seems that the skill level of each individual is quite high.

And, Temma-kun. What do you think is suspicious?

Chris asked me from the side, folding his arms in a pompous manner for some reason, and I couldn't help but ask him

'All these stores. Good luck with that.

And then he was about to leave the place. He wants me to join him in his search, but if that's how he sees any yucky materials related to the aristocracy, it's definitely going to be a hassle.

''It's just for a moment, you know? Come along for a little while, just a little bit!

Chris clasps his hands together, bows his head and asks me to do so. If this were the reverse of the s*xes, it would be the kind of line that would undoubtedly make you suspect an ulterior motive at first.　Well, I've heard that the pattern is often reversed these days, but.......

'Then it's just a little bit. And that's just to look around the ground floor and the warehouse for a bit.

If I look around the warehouse at random, I can point out one or two suspicious items that seem to be normal. With that in mind, I headed towards the warehouse and immediately found a suspicious place.............................it's also the stairs to the basement.　

When I happened to pick up a medicine bottle that was on the shelf, I dropped a weight that looked like a weight that was placed there. After investigating the floor where the weight had fallen, I found the entrance to the basement. It seems that the entrance to the basement is politely set up with some kind of device that interferes with the magic, and the first 'search' did not catch it.

''As expected of you, Temma-kun! Good job!

Chris-san wanted to rush into the basement immediately, but for the time being, he had Jean-san, who was outside, report to him to ask for instructions. It's not a good idea to break in without reporting, and above all, it's because there were ten people who reacted to the 'search' I used for the second time. And the appraisal results of those reactions were bad.

Race...Elves.

Title... slave.

State... debilitated.

The ages were all different, but this was the information that the ten people in the basement had in common.

When I saw this, it was enough to make my head hurt, ''It's a tricky one.

It's not that there are no elven slaves in this country or anything, it's just that there are elven slaves hidden (.......) in the underground.

Elves are often common in many tales as being 'brow-eyed' and 'proud', 'good at magic' and 'fond of the forest'. And that's true in this world as well.

Some stories are sometimes exclusive to other tribes, but as far as I know, I've never heard of it.

Rather, they are in the friendly category. Well, I've heard that they don't show any mercy when it comes to destroying the forest, but this is something that, if you put it in our context, it's like 'we don't show mercy to those who destroy their own homes', so we all recognize that it's a normal behavior.

Such elves can also fall into slavery in human society if they commit a crime or have incurred a debt, for example.

Elves are basically a peaceful people who like the beauty of the forest and the quietness of the place.

In the past, it has been very difficult to find a way to make a living out of them.

It's a good idea to have a few of them in your life. The most common is kidnapping.

And the elves in the underground are more likely to have been kidnapped or otherwise enslaved as long as they were hidden. It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for. It's not a trade, but rather a 'slave transfer', it's a rule that you have to go through a slave trader, town hall or guild.

I heard they found a cellar.

After receiving the report, Jean-san came over to me and Chris.

Mr. Jan started to prepare for the raid while listening to the detailed report.

But I waited for him.

''Jean-san, if a large number of people rushed in and the enemy was hiding, there is a possibility that we could be seriously injured as well. So I think it's best to have Slarin go check on them first.

'That's true but are you sure you're okay with just Slarin?　

Mr. Jean doesn't seem to understand the true power of Slarin.

So I made a serious face and

If Slarin were to make a serious assassination attempt, even Grandpa would be beaten hand and foot.

I said. This is true. After all, in Grandpa's case, he's always defenseless in front of us because he believes that 'me and Slarin would never do such a thing'. Therefore, if he wanted to assassinate us, it would be like twisting a baby's hand. Well, such a thing would not be possible even if the heavens and earth were turned upside down.

The knights around me seemed to be half-believing those words...or rather, they hardly believed them, but Jean-san and Chris-san seemed to have an idea of what I said, and their faces were drawn together.　

'Well then, please. You don't have to push yourself, okay?

Okay. Okay, Slarin, please. If you have any problems (...) let me know right away.

Slarin bounced his body once as he nodded, and then quickly went down the stairs.

I said that to Slarin before Jan-san and the others, but it is a definite matter that something is going on, so I gave Slarin instructions beforehand to turn back as soon as he reached the elves' place.

The basement is almost the same area as the building and only has one floor, but there are four prisons and three rooms, which shows that the Highland Chamber of Commerce was quite focused on the slave-trading-like business.

'Welcome back Slarin I understand. Mr. Jean, it seems that Slarin has found something very important.

About five minutes after Slarin went into the basement, he pretended to have heard Slarin's report when he returned and told Mr. Jean about the slaves in the basement.

'My God! We'll be on our way to the rescue in a heartbeat!

Mr. Jang, just a minute.

When Jean-san heard my report, he immediately tried to rush into the basement, but I stopped him again. The knights around me looked a little uncomfortable at that, but I didn't mind and continued to talk.

'According to Slarin, the majority of the slaves in the underground are women, and some of them are dressed almost naked. What would these women think if a bunch of men came in there to kill them? I think this is a good place to have Chris-san and the ladies of The Sword of Dawn precede us and get them clothed and settled before we go to the rescue.

'Well, I think that would be better for me, too.　

The men obeyed without a word, as Chris, the only woman in this group, agreed. Ms. Jean, who is also married, did not object to my idea.

Then let's get some clothes right away. Bring every piece of clothing you can find around here! Also, get one of the 'Sword of Dawn' ladies outside to come and tell you why.

The knights who received Jean-san's instructions started to fish out the costumes in the sales area. Since they don't know the body shape of the enslaved elves, they are gathering clothes at random, like a break-in robbery.

In the midst of all this, I made a suggestion to Jean, and instead of joining the knights in collecting clothes, I was scouring the other merchandise racks.

''For someone who's been doing this extensively, there's some rather good quality stuff on there.

I'm scavenging the food and medicine racks, and I figured I'd make a meal for the elves, who are probably debilitated.

I'd have to see them in person to understand the extent of their condition, but as long as they were on the shelves, I didn't think they were in such bad shape, so I began to prepare a kind of soup that would be good for their bodies and their digestion. However, if she was too weak to eat, even ordinary soup could be dangerous, so I would have to examine her before eating.

The ingredients we prepared were herbs for poisoning and wound healing, mushrooms (dried foods) for nourishing and tonic properties, and rice.

I couldn't find any rice, so I used the rice I had stored in my bag.

What I'm planning to make from these ingredients is "Shichikusa porridge-style heavy water". Originally, Shichikusa porridge was made to invigorate a weak stomach, while shikuyu is also used as food for the sick. I thought that if I could make it with herbs and other ingredients, the effect would be outstanding.

I choose herbs and mushrooms that I know are harmless to eat raw, so there is no danger.　

The first thing I do is grind the mushrooms into powder, throw them into a pot of hot water, add the chopped up herbs and a pinch of salt, take out the scum, take out the scum, take out the scum, take out the scum, put in the rice, and put in the rice. I'm going to stir it up and then I'm going to stew it up. Does it taste a little bitter?

While I was removing the acu, Chris and his friends went down to the basement. Shortly after that, we heard voices from the basement, and Jan and her friends went down there too, as I was pouring the rice into the pot and stirring it.　　

The rice had thickened nicely and as I was stirring the contents of the pot and letting it cool, the first one came out of the basement, supported by Chris.

The elf seemed to be a woman, and although she was disheveled, she was as pretty as most people who heard the word elf would imagine, with a well-rounded face.

The elves that came after them were also beautiful, though they differed from one another, and I think I understand one part of the feelings of those who wanted to be elven slaves.

If testimonies could be obtained from these elves, most of the people involved in George Highland and the Highland Trading Company would fall into slavery.

But first.........

'We have prepared a heavy water that is gentle on the stomach and good for digestion, try it. We will treat you at the same time.

We have to help the elves recover, both physically and mentally, first.