Book 5: Chapter 9

「Ara, Kain-kun. You’re together with Ys-chan today?」

A woman at the reception desk called out to Kain as they arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild.

The owner of that voice was Laura. She was the poster staff member of the Edius Branch which unified the Adventurer’s Guild’s St. Altlis Kingdom area.

The Adventurer’s Guild existed in every country, and Edius was originally the main office for it. However, having been struck by the current unstable situation, the main office moved to the Canal Kingdom together with the staff members that weren’t Human.

The current Edius Branch was managed by staff members that were all Human.

For the Adventurer’s Guild that touted freedom and equality, this situation was naturally unintentional.

「Ah, Laura-san. Hello.」

「Yes, hello. It’s good to see that you’re doing well today as well.」

Maybe because it was noon, the Guild that is usually a mess with Adventurers coming back was deserted. Even Laura, who he normally didn’t have much of a chance to talk to due to normally being really popular, was looking bored right now. For the male staff member who was alway free next to her, he was starting to doze off.

「Could it be that we came here with great timing?」

「That’s right. But, Kain-kun, it also feels like you always come here with great timing.」

Seeing Laura laugh with an *ahaha*, Kain replied with a forced smile.

Normally, this was where he would start with some frivolous talk but……as he felt a smirking presence from behind him, he just couldn’t get into his normal rhythm.

「Ara, how lonely. Even though I thought you would say something like “it’s because I came to see you, Laura-sanー” like you always do.」

「Geh, L, Laura-san!?」

「Ara. To say “geh”. How rude.」

With this exchange, he felt the presence of laughter being held in behind him.

Seeing as how Laura was displaying dejection with exaggerated gestures, it was clear that her earlier statement was intentional.

After breathing a large sigh, Kain raised a pathetic voice.

「Laura-saan. Please give me a break. I’m already being suspected of being a womanizer, you know?」

「Ara, I feel that that’s the truth though.」

Making a sidelong glance at Kain who had hung his head crestfallen, Ys stepped up to the counter.

「Might there be any simple requests?」

「Uーn. Then, want to try doing to medicinal herb searching?」

Laura pointed out to the written request documents posted up onto the wall.

After ignoring that, Ys placed her hands on the counter.

「Of course I don’t want that……is what I would like to say, but Kain, what might you think?」

「Eh? Me? Uーn, Ys, if you’re not into it, then wouldn’t something else be better?」

Seeing the two of them throwing the decision at each other, Laura took out a file that consolidated the written requests while making a wry smile.

「Well, let’s see. There are a good amount of subjugation requests in the Aledona Forest but. For Goblins……for Goblins……Also, for Goblins……and one for Goblins I suppose.」

「There’s nothing but Goblin requests.」

「That’s right. That’s just how urgent it is.」

Laura put down the written request file while making a wry smile.

In the Shutaia Continent, Goblins were known as Mazoku that anyone could typically encounter. They could create settlements anywhere, and they were savage due to their low intelligence. Moreover, they would increase in numbers right away.

One wouldn’t have a hard time if it was just against one of them, but once their numbers were large enough for them to form a settlement, they would become an enemy that shouldn’t be made light of.

Since they were easy to discover on plains, they would be destroyed relatively quickly. However, there were also many cases where their discovery was late when they start multiplying in forests and rocky areas, and they would increase into a number that can’t be handled by the time they’re found. And then, the extermination request would come in on the Adventurer’s Guild unexpectedly.

Of course, the extermination request would be sent to the country’s chivalric orders, but since the chivalric orders have other important duties, they can’t be dispatched all that often. That is why the problems that the chivalric orders don’t handle are settled by Adventurers.

「Well, it certainly would be troubling if they were to multiply in the Aledona Forest.」

「That’s right. The Canal Kingdom is an important place for trade after all……That being said, it looks like the state of that country has also been unstable recently though.」

For the St. Altlis Kingdom, whose relationship with the Jiol Forest Kingdom had become dicey, the importance of international trade with the Canal Kingdom, which also had Human merchants, was increased.

Of course, there were some among the St. Altlis Kingdom merchants that continued to do business with the Jiol Forest Kingdom as usual, but even so, the amount of goods circulating from there had drastically decreased when compared to before. Even the international trade with the Cylas Empire, it wasn’t at the same level as the Jiol Forest Kingdom, but it couldn’t avoid the effects of the situation.

The Canal Kingdom, which was currently the St. Altlis Kingdom’s greatest international trading partner, was the country that one would arrive at by passing through the highway that went through the Aledona Forest.

In other words, the fact that Goblins were multiplying in the Aledona Forest meant that they would become an obstacle for international trade with the Canal Kingdom.

「There are quite a number of people accepting the requests though. But even so, additional requests come right away……Honestly, it is really troubling.」

For Goblins, in cases where they are attacked by enemies and they escape, their multiplication abilities would generally make a sudden rise afterwards. For that reason, when Goblins that people failed to finish off were left alone, they would increase to a number that surpassed their original settlement.

The cause of this reproductive power change was unknown, but this special ability of the Goblins that they called 『Survival Instinct』 was one of the reasons why Goblins had yet to disappear from the Shutaia Continent.

「Even for the Guild, situationally, they have determined that the degree of difficulty was to be raised to greater than B. The Aledona Forest requests will be gathered and consolidated into a special designation request. It happened, just this afternoon.」

Seeing Laura make a broad smile, Kain unconsciously took a step back.

「Seriously……you really did come with great timing, Kain-kun.」

Special designation requests were things that the Guild would designate against multiple requests that had similar causes.

As for cases where it was applied in the past, there was the annihilation of the huge bandit group Griez. In addition, there was also one to deal with the Demon King Army that was lead by the Demon King Shuklous that had thrown mankind’s territory into terror in the past.

「Ah, no……um……This time, we didn’t come to take on that kind of huge request……」

「Then, we’ll take that. Please register us as a temporary party where Kain is the main and I am support.」

「Got it. But, if you’re doing this anyway, rather than a temporary party, wouldn’t it be fine to accept it registering as a regular party?」

「It’s fine. For the time being, we plan on adjusting it to make this time just a day trip. Being a temporary party is enough.」

Listening to that talk that was advancing on without a hitch, Kain became troubled while halfway extending his hand.

For Kain, he thoroughly understood the important of this time’s request. There is even talk of it having an effect on Sharon’s Tianot Company, so he couldn’t just leaving as having nothing to do with him. Sooner or later, it would be a story where he would have to cooperate in it though.

「Where is my will……in all of this……?」

「It’s not a problem. Kain, your will lives on inside of me after all.」

「That means that I’ve died, doesn’t it!?」

After making a retort on Ys, who was smoothly signing the documents, Kain breathed a large sigh.

「……Well, I guess it’s fine. More importantly, Ys, are we really going with just the two of us?」

「That’s right. It starts in the afternoon……That means that we’ll be the first to arrive. That’s just wonderful, isn’t it.」

「Calling it wonderful……Even if Seira is impossible, let’s at least take Sharon or Ein……」

Having finished signing the document and handing it over to Laura, Ys shrugged her shoulders while looking over it.

「In this situation where there’s no telling just how many Goblins there are, it would be dangerous to take Sharon along. Besides, up until now, have you ever found Ein in the daytime?」

「Mu……」

After being told that, Kain certainly had no memories of doing that.

He could find her if he generally searched on top of the roofs if it was at night, but when it was daytime, he couldn’t find her no matter where he searched. By some chance, she might be sleeping during that time but……even if that were the case, just as Ys said, it seemed like it would be difficult to find Ein during the day.

「Quelia-senpai is also busy at this time……Then Jeff……would reject it, so Nefas……Ahー, that’s right. He’s not in town right now. In that case.」

「Right, that’s far enough. Even though this is valuable time to be with me, I won’t allow you to waste it.」

Clapping her hands with a *pan*, Ys forcibly put a stop to Kain’s thoughts.

「To begin with, today is a date with me, right? The idea of trying to bring in another woman is quite boorish.」

「A date you say……It’s a Goblin extermination, you know?」

「Ara. Kain, every night, you’re with Ein doing an Al-mogamoh」

Kain hurriedly covered up Ys’s mouth as she was going to say “Alva extermination date……”, and Ys bit down on that hand.

「O, ouch!?」

After quickly getting away from Kain who reflexively pulled his hand away, Ys looked at Kain with eyes as if she were looking at something pitiable.

「And what might you be planning to do by covering up a maiden’s mouth during the day like this? I won’t say that I hate the roughness of it, but you should think about the time and place, you know?」

「I, I don’t know if I should talk about how you’ve got it wrong, or about how you said something so outrageous so readily……But you seriously bit me, didn’t you!? It hurts……!」

「Ara ara, you sure do get along, don’t youー.」

Laura was smiling with a grin. After Kain glared at her with teary eyes, Laura exaggeratingly backed away.

「Oh my. Kain-kun is looking at even me with scary eyes. What should I do, Ys-chan. To make him become more well-mannered, should I just pull “that” off and turn him into Kain-chan? Ah, but, if I were to do that, then I guess Sharon-chan would start crying.」

After making gestures of snapping and pulling something off, Laura said “forget it, forget it” and flappingly waved her hand.

The few men inside the Guild saw those gestures of Laura’s, and their faces went pale.

「Uーn. If you just report it to Seira or someone later, wouldn’t they hang Kain up in the plaza?」

「Ara, what a good idea!」

「Please give me a break……」

Having already lost the willpower to object, Kain helplessly leaned on the wall.