161 Episode 161: Knight Org and the Oak Empire

"Mr. Org... Knight!?"

I'm surprised the Adventurer Guild in the Town of Toguy, which I haven't been back in a long time, was awesome, but now Mr. Aug is the knight!?

"Ki, what happened to a knight and he became a knight!?"

"Ha, ha, well, there was a lot going on, but in summary, my ability caught the Lord's eye."

And Mr. Aug talks like it's nothing.

"So, but Mr. Aug is a civilian, right? Isn't it very hard to be a knight from a civilian?!?"

Certainly even civilians can belong to the Knights, but basically chores and general soldiers are normal.

Even when you are born, your squire is at best.

The status of knight is mostly filled with noble offspring.

In the meantime, it should take a lot of credit for civilians to become knights.

"Well. Honestly, I wasn't sure if I'd continue with the adventurer. I'm an A-rank adventurer, so I'm confident I'll make more money than a lousy junior nobleman. But if the lord says no, it's wild."

Indeed, A-rank adventurers are powerful enough to crusade powerful demons.

Even Evilbor, which I crusaded before, turned out to be 1,000 gold coins, so Aug, a skilled adventurer, must be making a lot of money.

Honestly, you don't know enough to know if Mr. Aug still remains A-ranked with enough strength to easily crusade a troublesome Evilbor child.

... No, maybe Mr. Aug is hiding his strength under some circumstances like mine.

That's why you're deliberately staying in A-rank!?

The more you think about it, the more you think about it, the better!

Hide your strength by not daring to increase your rank.

The boulder is Mr. Org!

I'm also convinced the lord wants it!

"But, well, an adventurer is not a job you can go on forever, and you don't know when you're going to die. It's a job. Ever since I broke up my last party, I've been thinking about how to shake myself."

Speaking of which, I don't know Mr. Org's past.

I've only heard of A-rank adventurers.

It's called concealing strength. Maybe you're hiding something deep.

Yeah, it's wild to hear that, isn't it? Stop asking about the situation in detail!

"Is that a good place to have a conversation? I need to talk to you about my work."

Shit, I'm obsessed with public speaking with Mr. Org.

"Excuse me, Guild Leader!

"Ha, ha, I don't care enough to warm up an old relationship. You're going to have to work with me."

"Together, is it?

I wonder what that means? Mr. Org is now a knight, so it has nothing to do with the Adventurer Guild, right?

"Oh. I want you guys, no, rightly, to investigate the incidents that are happening around this town of Togai."

"Is that an investigation?

When the guild leader nods silently, he speaks out the content of the request.

"An unusual number of oaks have become sighted in recent times near the town of Togai. At first I wondered if the orcs came running after the land after losing the battle with the other herds, but apparently not"

That's it. The guild leader exhales.

"The rookies who were out collecting, the guys who were escorting, they kept getting attacked, and once they said they had to take a massive crusade, they went on a joint orc crusade with the Knights."

But by the time we got to this town, we'd have fought quite a few orcs, right?

"Could you not have defeated me?

But the guild leader shakes his neck to the side.

"No, the herd of oaks lurking in the woods near the town was exorcised. In fact, there hasn't been any orcs since then..."

"Did you show up again in a while?

With a face like a bitter worm chewed up, the guild length nods.

"Exactly. After a while, the orcs began to show up again."

If that story is true, a good number of oaks are not far from this town.

"Could it be the Oak Empire...?

I see the Guild Leader react with words in my brain. [M]

"... I knew I would think so"

The Oak Empire, which is a country created by the supreme species of oak mutated by the mutation that holds up the other oaks.

It should be noted that in this case, empires do not build towns and cities and govern their lands as we do, but rather orcs who hide from humans and superior demons and increase their numbers slightly, all at once, in search of scarce food.

The flock of hungry oaks strikes nearby villages and towns, and barn zones, where they give birth and grow in numbers.

Another herd of oaks also merge from neighboring settlements, so the number of oaks will keep increasing.

That's how we call it the Oak Empire to be a bunch of orcs out of reach.

"Your lord is wary that the Oak Empire may have appeared, as you say."

"The lord? Aren't the Knights moving, then?

If the lords are moving, I think the private knights the lords hold are moving.

"Oh, naturally the Knights are moving too. But I hear the orcs are coming after the fields and livestock in the neighboring villages, and they can't get around to the investigation with that response."

So he wants us adventurers to investigate.

"The easiest way to confirm the existence of the Oak Empire is to confirm the boss at the heart of the herd. But even if we check with the boss, in case they find us, they'll surround us with orcs and refuse to leave. When that happens, it's hard to get away with it. The bigger the empire, the more dangerous it becomes, so you can't ask the lousy Jews."

"So it's me?

I understand why I received a request for a nomination from Wang Du's guild chief.

It doesn't matter how important the paperwork is, even if it's just an errand, it doesn't move the S-rank adventurer.

Is it true that Ninglo was destined for us?

Sure, it would be tough if there were a massive outbreak of oak emperors and oak queens from the top species.

"Oh, you in S-rank would be able to cut through on your own, just in case."

"Okay. If that's the case, I'll take care of it!

The town of Togai is the first town I've ever been to, so to speak, my second home.

Besides, the people of this town are all good people, and the orcs can't stop trampling me!

"That would help if you said so. I'd like to be accompanied by the Heppoko knights."

"Who's Heppocco!

Huh? Will Mr. Org accompany you?

But now that Mr. Aug is a knight, I'm not obliged to accept any more requests for nominations or mandatory calls from the Alliance?

"Uh, I'm gonna be the guy from the Lords. Because I'm a former adventurer, and if I look into the Oak Empire with you, I can see the face of the Lord's Knights."

As far as it goes, Mr. Aug is a former adventurer, so we know how to do adventurers, and we know how to scout in small numbers.

Considering that, it is certainly appropriate as a reinforcement from the Knights.

"Well, actually, they just pushed you for a role from the Knights."

"Don't say that, Guild Chief."

You're a patron? I knew there was always a time for that.

"Well, even if I say you're a nominee, that's a regular Knights side situation. You seem to think it's better because I'm free to move, and you gave me your permission."

Well, surprisingly, the lord of this town sounds like someone who understands the story.

On second thought, maybe he's the one who scouted Mr. Aug, and he's a nobleman who can think so flexibly.

"If that's the case, thank you very much from now on, Mr. Org!

"Oh, over here"

Me and Mr. Org hold each other's hands firmly.

"Speaking of which, this is the first time you've had an adventure with Mr. Aug"

"Yeah, no, no, no, no."

"Mr. Org's job scouted by the knight. Let me study!

"... hey, no, I don't think it's as monstrous as you'd expect, right?

I was excited to be able to see Mr. Aug's strength in this eye, and Mr. Aug doesn't break his attitude of humility that he's only no big deal.

As long as it's done, whoever you're dealing with won't break your pace. I guess that's Mr. Org's strength!

"Hmm, that sounds like a better way to put things together if you don't say anything"

And he snorted like the guild leader who was listening to our conversation convinced him of something.

◆

At the end of the discussion with the guild leader, I will join with Mr. Aug to explain the situation.

"That's why we're working with Mr. Org on the Oak Empire investigation."

"Say hello!

"Eh, are you with this old man?"

When Mr. Aug greets Ni with a grin, Gyro gives you a voice that you don't like.

"Mr. Gyro, Mr. Org is a former skilled A-rank adventurer, and now he's enough to be recognized for his work to be a knight. I'm sure Mr. Org will learn from his work for us."

"I think I'm better at my brother's job."

Haha, I'm glad you said that, because Mr. Org is a senior adventurer.

I am still an amateur as an adventurer, even if I have memories of previous lives and previous generations.

Let me take this opportunity to learn some skilled techniques from Mr. Aug!

"I'm Liliera, and I'm having a party with Mr. Rex. Best regards,"

"Whoa, nice to meet you!

He was the Aug who greeted Liliera, but for some reason he grinned with a niggling look at me.

"What's wrong with you?

"No, I thought you were gonna do it, too."

Did I do something?

"You did a great job throwing a party with this cute Cannojo."

"Or her!?"

Mr. Aug tells me she is, and Mr. Liliera turns a bright red face.

"Well, I can't believe she's like that... Well, if a man and a woman close to the age were partying, they wouldn't even look that way, but that's not why me and Mr. Rex are still in that relationship..."

"Mr. Aug, Mr. Liliera is one of mine. That's not the relationship."

"Huh? Seriously? You guys aren't dating?

"Yes! I'm not dating! Because he's one of us!

Mr. Liliera is a very reliable companion who knows nothing about the adventurer Iloha.

How rude of Liliera to be such an amazing person and lover on a boulder.

……

"Is that it, Mr. Lilliera?

For some reason, Mr. Liliera's staring at us jealously, what's the matter?

"... nothing."

What's really going on?

Oh, maybe I'm nervous because I met Mr. Aug, a skilled adventurer!?

Liliera hasn't been in A-rank long, so I guess she saw Aug behave and guessed she was hiding her strengths.

That's probably why I'm deliberately responding to remarks like Mr. Aug's joke.

To explore its true strength.

"We should say hello, too. My name is Mina. I was originally in the guild here, but I work with Rex in the guild of the king's capital."

"Megli. Also from the guild here ex. I'm acting with Rex now."

"It's Norb. You've never talked like this before."

Say hello to you, too.

When everyone says hello, Mr. Mina pulls you out, Gyro, who hasn't said hello yet.

"Damn, it hurts, I can't help pulling it! Damn. It's Gyro, nice to meet you, Osama."

"Hey, you."

Hi, Gyro. Looks like you and Mr. Org don't fit together.

I'm going to work with you, so I'd like you to get along.

"Yes, I've already said hello, and I'd better get back to the neighborhood survey."

"Hey, all of a sudden you're going!? This is a survey, right?!? Don't you need to buy food and tools first!?"

Mina turns her eyes round to Aug, who suddenly says she's headed for an investigation.

"Come on, Osama, hold on to me. You're still A-ranked."

Then Mr. Aug smiles with a niggle.

"Sweet ladies. This request is a nasty one to look for the other's main unit while diving through a massive herd of oaks. Moreover, the danger increases over time. Looking to the dark clouds in such a situation is a waste of time. First, we need to investigate the nearby field and find out which direction the oak is coming from."

"" "" Direction?

When Gyro and you are in Kyoton, Mr. Liliera speaks up enough to be.

"If you know where the orcs are coming from, you'll know where they can use horses, and if they need equipment other than food, rugged mountains and hard-to-move wetlands. Could that change the gear that you need a lot?

"Correct. And carrying heavy baggage around simply slows your legs and tires you. Let's minimize our effort."

To Liliera's answer, Aug says she's right with a full grin.

The boulder is Mr. Liliera. I immediately noticed Mr. Org's sincerity.

And neither Mr. Org, nor his opponents are alert to orcs or fine dust.

So this is the mindset of a truly skilled adventurer!

"Heh, a boulder ex-A rank."

"... well, you do it"

While it's a little fuzzy, Gyro, you seem to understand Mr. Aug's sincerity and be unconvinced.

"Okay. Then let's head to the perimeter investigation!

"" "" "" "Ooh!