Invaders: Chapter 3

Part 2

The capital of the Empire, often regarded as the manifestation of the Empire's power,

contained many aspects which surprised people. One of them was something which

the majority of travelers that arrived at the capital were amazed of—that every road

in the capital was covered by bricks and stones.

Amongst the surrounding countries—even within the technologically more advanced

Theocracy—the thought of having to cover the roads of an entire city in stones would

make most cower. Of course it wasn't possible to do the same for every city within the

Empire, but the fact that the capital of the Empire was capable of achieving this

further reinforced its might. It was something which often made the diplomats from

other countries sigh.

Especially the design of the roads; when one walked on them, one would immediately

be able to appreciate their elegance and practicality.

Unlike the typical roads seen elsewhere, the roads in the capital were segregated into

separate lanes where the ones in the center were the driveways for carriages and the

lanes on the two sides were the sidewalks for pedestrians.

To ensure safety, the sidewalks were raised higher from the ground and were

protected by a fence. At night, street lights which were placed in sets on the side of the

roads lit up, powered by magic. Furthermore, platoons of knights regularly patrolled

the streets to ensure the peace.

On one of these roads within the Empire's capital, a young man could be seen

humming and smiling as he strolled leisurely on the sidewalk. The man was maybe

170 cm in height, and looked around twenty years old. With blonde hair, blue eyes,

and a healthy skin color that suggested he had regularly been exposed to sunlight, the

man's features could only be described as common throughout the Empire.

He was not the pretty boy type. If put in a group of ten people, the man would

definitely not stand out. However, an indescribable charm radiated from him which

seemed to attract other people. It might be because of the invigorating smile on his

face, or his confident way of walking.

With every step he took, a metallic jingling which sounded like it was caused by the

friction of chains could be heard from beneath his. Knowledgeable observers would

realise that it was the noise made from wearing chainmail.

Two swords hung from his waist. From their length, they seemed to be short swords.

Parts of the handles were completely covered by the hand guard, with the blades

hidden in the sheaths. One could tell that they were definitely not cheap. And finally,

a mace and a yoroidoshi were stored behind his waist.

Possessing two weapons was considered normal for this world. However, it was quite

uncommon to see someone with weapons which could be used to slash, pierce, and

make bludgeoning attacks.

To an average person, the man would seem like an adventurer. However, the wellinformed

ones would be able to tell that he was a worker simply from the fact that

adventurers were required to wear metallic plates around their necks.

Worker. This word was used to describe people who left the career path of an

Adventurer.

The work given to adventurers was directly provided by the Adventurer's Guild, where

the content and difficulty of the tasks were thoroughly investigated beforehand. Only

the ones that were deemed suitable were assigned to adventurers and had

corresponding ranks according to the difficulty of the task. In other words, work that

were deemed inappropriate such as ones that might endanger the safety of the public,

or the law-breaking kind of work like investigating the plant materials used in the

creation of narcotics. Those kind of requests would be instantly rejected by the

Adventurer's Guild.

Also, work that might damage the ecological balance of an area was also rejected. For

example, the Adventurer's Guild would never issue requests involving the removal of

monsters that play certain roles in an ecosystem. This was due to fear that the removal

of the monster might trigger the collapse of the ecological balance in an area, which

might result in hordes of other monsters leaving their habitats and causing damage

to human settlements. However, if said monster left its habitat by itself and entered

human territory, it would be treated as a separate matter entirely.

In other words, adventurers were friends of justice.

However, the world did not operate on that principle alone.

Regardless of how one described things, there were people who were willing to take

on high-risk work simply for the reward. There also existed the kind of people that

simply enjoyed slaying monsters.

These people, when compared against the adventurers that stood in the light,

preferred to stay in the darkness. The "dropouts" amongst the adventurers. That was

what some people called them.

However, not all workers were the kind of people that were previously mentioned.

Hypothetically speaking, if a young village boy was heavily injured and an adventurer

group that was capable of performing healing magic happened to pass by, were they

allowed to cast the spells to save the boy?

The answer was no.

There was a rule that strictly forbade adventurers from using healing magic on the

common people unless a certain fee was paid to the adventurers.

This was because the common usage of healing magic was restricted by the temples,

where patients were required to come to the temples and pay a certain fee in order to

receive healing. If the adventurers ignored this system and freely went around healing

people, the temples would become unable to feed themselves.

For this reason, the temples had strongly pressured the Adventurer's Guild into

enforcing this regulation.

If adventurers were unable to obey the rules, then they could opt to become a worker.

Although this made the temples seem like the bad guys, this was not without good

reason. Due to the influence of magic on the daily lives of people, magic could be

considered as another political tool for power. In order for the temples to provide

benefits to the people without becoming controlled by politics, the only source of

income they could receive would be from the people. In exchange, the temples

provided healing, cleansing of the undead, as well as researching and developing new

healing spells.

If the adventurers ignored the regulations and used their healing spells freely, the

temples would be forced to become more secular, and their initial ideologies would

become corrupted.

As such, there were always two sides to a story. Without light, there would be no

shadow. The existence of workers could be described in the same way. For money,

they were willing to ignore regulations and often make a mess of things, however,

there were also cases where they had brought benefits to the people, such as the

creation of cheaper medicine.

Having said that, this was the kind of profession this man had—Hekkeran Termite.

"Hmm... what to buy?"

There were simply too many magical items Hekkeran wanted. For the time being, he

should probably focus on defensive items first. After that, there was one more that he

wanted due to special reasons.

"First I should deposit the money... the rest will be used to buy the magic items needed

for adventuring. Eh? Got the order wrong. First buy the items, and then deposit the

rest."

Hekkeran scratched his head.

If it's like that—

"As the vanguard, I need to have more magic resistance, maybe it's time for me to take

out my savings as well. No, if for some reason I still need to rely on subjugating undead

from Kattse Plains to make a living, it might be better for me to buy items which make

me more resistant to poison, paralysis and sickness."

Magic items were highly valued in this world. Especially the ones that were useful

during battle were highly sought after by adventurers. If it was a first-rate item, then

he would simply give up on buying it.

For the time being, the items on his mind were not the extremely expensive ones.

However, it would still require years of saving in order for an average person to

purchase them. That was why he was taking his time to properly think things through.

His relaxed face, which couldn't contain the smile behind his excitement suddenly

became tense the moment he sighted a group of knights currently standing by the side

of the road.

The group composed of light and heavy-armored knights were standing guard at a

road junction. Due to the Temple of the Four Great Gods being in the vicinity, the

amount of patrols in this area was considerably high. Although these knights wouldn't

just suddenly start questioning normal people who were simply passing by, Hekkeran

could still feel the gaze of the knights gathering on the weapons that he was carrying.

It might be alright for adventurers, but for workers like Hekkeran that had no backing

from any organizations or persons of influence, it simply wasn't wise to get into

conflicts with knights tasked with protecting the Empire.

As he had hoped, Hekkeran walked by without incident. After checking his face with

the list of wanted criminals and not finding any match, the knights made no further

movement.

Having made past the territory of the temple, he finally relaxed and set his sights

further ahead. A huge building came into view, and along with it, the sound of

cheering, battle and the thirst for blood.

That unique building was the Grand Arena, which only existed in the capital of the

Empire. It was also one of the most iconic buildings in the capital.

For Hekkeran, who had seen enough blood spilled during work and had no interest in

gambling, the arena was a place which held no meaning to him. However, to the

populace of the capital it was one of their most important sources of entertainment.

Even from where he was walking, the cheering could be heard. It seemed the arena

was completely packed today as well.

"Is it the finals? The excitement is really high."

In the past, Hekkeran had brought his worker team to the arena, where they had to

fight continuous hordes of monsters. Because monsters did not accept surrenders,

losing would result in death. Of course, it wasn't like casualties didn't occur during

battle between humans.

On a typical day in the arena, it was very rare to not see a single person die. If

something like that did actually happen, the pressure exerted by the audience was

strong enough to kill someone, since the events with many deaths were very popular.

Among these events, the one with the highest casualty rate was therefore the most

popular one, the Grand Combat Tournament.

Hekkeran shrugged.

He had absolutely no interest in seeing such bloodthirsty scenes taking place, and had

no desire to visit that place. However, events that happened in the arena were hot

topics that people often talked about, so there were always reasons to go.

I'm not planning on entering today, but when I get back I should probably ask for

the highlights. It seems like the matches that took place today are quite exciting.

While trying to memorize the plans that he made, Hekkeran started walking towards

an area that contained variety of shops. Soon after, he saw the familiar sign which said

"The Singing Apple Pavilion".

The shop was said to have started with the gathering of bards who built their

instruments using the wood of apple trees, but now it was a bar and an inn. From

outside, the shop seemed a bit outdated, but the interior was surprisingly tidy and in

good condition. It kept the cold out. The floor was kept well polished. The quality of

the shop was actually quite high but not overly expensive. To Hekkeran and his

comrades, no in fact, to the majority of the workers, this shop was regarded as the

best inn without a doubt.

Although it can't be compared to the top-class hotels in the Empire, those type of

hotels were better suited to the adventurers who stood on the public stage.

Firstly, the work given to the workers usually required discretion. Eye-catching hotels

in public places weren't convenient at all for the kinds of people that required the

services of workers. But at the same time, they couldn't always meet in shady locations

and conduct their business there.

Next would be the need for multiple teams of workers to stay in the same spot at the

same time. Therefore inns like "The Singing Apple Pavilion", which were much more

discreet and where guests could discuss things in private, were ideal locations that

met the clients' needs. Due to the fact that workers did not have the support of an

organization like the Adventurer's Guild, the clients were required to search for

worker teams themselves. It would be very troublesome for everyone if the workers

stayed in different places.

Furthermore, from the perspective of the workers, staying near each other brought

about a sense of camaraderie, as well as the benefit of avoiding conflicting jobs that

would cause unnecessary bloodshed. And last but not least—which would also be the

most important reason—the food here was really nice.

While thinking about tonight's dinner, Hekkeran opened the door to the inns. If it was

his favorite pork stew, he would be very happy. Having these kind of thoughts as he

entered, the words that he heard were not the typical "Welcome back" or "Good work"

which he expected but

"—I've already said! I don't know!"

"No, no, even if you say that..."

"It's not like I'm that girl's guardian or her relative. It's impossible for me to tell you

where she is."

"Aren't you comrades? I can't simply take 'I don't know' as an answer and leave. This

is my job after all."

On the first floor of the inn, in the center of the dining area, a man and a woman stared

at each other.

Hekkeran knew that woman well.

Though her eyes radiated an intense ferocity, the feature that stood out the most were

the pair of ears which were far longer than those of a normal human. That said, her

ears were still only about half as long as those of typical elves. That's right, her race

was half-elf.

Elves tended to be slimmer when compared with humans. It seemed like the woman

here had also inherited this trait. Her whole body was very slim. Be it the area around

her chest or her waist, there were no visible curves on her body. She was as flat as a

board. From afar, it wouldn't be surprising if people mistook her for a man.

Clad in neat leather armor, without the typical bow and arrow on her, the only weapon

she had right now was the short dagger on her waist.

Her name was Imina, and she was one of Hekkeran's comrades.

However, Hekkeran was unfamiliar with the man currently arguing with Imina.

Although he appeared to be groveling in front of Imina by lowering his head, not a

single shred of sincerity could be seen in his eyes. In fact, the feeling present there was

disgust. At least for now, it appeared that he was trying to keep things civil.

The man's arms and chest were packed with muscles. His appearance alone could

force anyone standing in front of him to give him what he wanted. While he didn't

seem like the type of person who relied on violence to get things done, Imina was still

capable of handling him if he did.

Even though Imina didn't appear to be very strong, deep in her body dwelled a

strength that was enough to take care of thugs who only relied on their muscles.

"Didn't I already say so from the very beginning?"

Noticing that Imina's voice was starting to become strained with emotion, Hekkeran

hurriedly interjected.

"What's wrong, Imina?"

Hearing the sound of a familiar voice, Imina turned her head and was surprised when

seeing Hekkeran.

For a ranger like Imina, who excelled in perception and awareness of her

surroundings, not noticing Hekkeran's approach showed just how distracted she had

been earlier.

"...Who the heck are you?" asked the man who was viewed as an intruder by Hekkeran.

Having met his gaze, Hekkeran felt that the atmosphere between them was on the

verge of coming to blows. However, for someone like Hekkeran, who had survived

countless life and death situations, the gaze was nothing compared to the intense

stares of ferocious monsters.

"...That's our team's leader."

"...Oooh, so this is the renowned Hekkeran Termite-san."

Hekkeran was disgusted by the sudden change of attitude.

Even though Hekkeran didn't knew the purpose behind the man's visit, if he came all

the way to what was considered by Hekkeran's team to be their stronghold—the inn—

the chances of him not recognizing Hekkeran were non-existent.

Perhaps the harshness in the argument from before was to measure the extent of what

Hekkeran was capable of. If Hekkeran displayed even a slightest hint of weakness, the

man probably would have proceeded to use intimidation next.

Amongst workers or adventurers, there were always those who were capable of slaying

monsters but rather timid towards humans. Even then, the most they would do would

be to take a step back, but if things were pushed too far, it would definitely end in a

bloodbath.

Even though we just met, he's already like this... This guy... is definitely the type I

can't stand.

While it was true that this was one of the commonly used methods for negotiation, it

was a method Hekkeran didn't like. He would much more prefer it if the other party

got directly to the point instead of going about in circles.

"...Could you be a little quieter, please? This is an inn, and you're disturbing other

guests. I'd be much happier if you could do that."

Although he was saying that, not a single guest could be seen nearby. Just where did

all the people go? It wasn't as though they hid themselves away, the guests of this inn

were already quite used to this kind of talk because the majority of them were also

workers in the first place.

However, it was truly a rare occurrence for this place to be devoid of people.

Hekkeran glared at the man using a strength on par with mithril-ranked adventurers.

As though confronted by a monster, the man wilted.

"I-I… I'm very sorry. I did not intend to do that initially."

After managing to calm his voice down, the man attempted to speak once more.

However, he instantly became quiet again when he saw Hekkeran's glare. Judging

from his reaction, it was clear that the man was used to this kind of work, where

violence was a common occurrence.

What's a guy like this doing in here?

Although the type of work that Hekkeran's team did was under-the-table business, he

didn't recognize this man, and Hekkeran had no idea why he had been sent here. He

simply didn't fit the profile of someone who came bearing requests.

It bothered Hekkeran, and he ended up weakening his gaze and asked the man

directly.

"...Just why on Earth are you here?"

"About that, I'm looking for a person that Termite-san also knows, Furt-san."

Hearing the name Furt, the image of a person appeared in Hekkeran's mind.

Even so, was hard to imagine that she would have any connections with this man.

That was Hekkeran's conclusion.

"Arche? Did something happen to her?"

"Arche... Ah! That's why. I got confused just then, but we're both talking about Furtsan

here, Arche Eeb Rile Furt-san."

"And!? Did something happen to Arche?"

"No, no, I only wish to discuss something with her... The content of the discussion is

private, that's why I wanted to know when she would return."

"As if I would know that." Hekkeran replied sharply.

For someone who was never direct when speaking, the man was briefly stunned by

Hekkeran's words.

"If that's the case, the conversation is over."

"I-It can't be helped then. If that's the case, I'll have to wait here."

"Get lost."

Hekkeran gestured to the entrance of the inn with his chin. Hekkeran's attitude shut

the other man up once more.

"I will make it clear, I don't like you at all. I simply can't tolerate guys like you within

my sight."

"But this is the tavern area, I should be able to..."

"Ah, that's right, isn't it? This area is indeed the tavern. But don't forget this is also

the place where drunks get into fights," Hekkeran smiled at the man. "But you don't

have to worry. Relax, even if you become gravely injured, we have a priest here who's

capable of using healing magic to heal you. As long as you pay the right price, that is."

"It can't be helped that we have to charge you extra. Otherwise the temples would

become very annoyed. We definitely don't want to attract any assassins sent by the

temples," said Imina. A grin was visible on her face. "Well, at the least we'll give you a

discount. Remember to thank me for that, won't you?"

"—And that's what's going to happen."

"If you plan on threa—"

The words coming from the man halted midway, because he saw the dramatic change

on Hekkeran's face.

Hekkeran took a step forward, all the way until the distance between their faces was

a fist away.

"Hah?! Threats? Who's making threats? Is it such a big surprise that bars have fights?

What the hell, I give you good advice for living a long and healthy life and you say I'm

making threats? Are you trying to start a fight?"

Hekkeran's current appearance was something only people who had faced death could

possess.

Confronted with the pressure coming from Hekkeran, the man took a step back. He

clicked his tongue for a bit and then reluctantly walked towards the entrance.

Although he wanted to hide the fact that he was frightened, one look at his back was

all it took to confirm it. As he reached the entrance, the man turned his and shouted

at Hekkeran and Imina one last time.

"Tell that brat from the Furt family! Tell her the deadline is approaching!"

"Hah?!"

Hearing the iron in Hekkeran's reply, the man quickly scurried away.

As soon as the man disappeared, Hekkeran's expression quickly returned to normal.

The change was sudden enough that onlookers might have thought that the entire

scene had been nothing but an act. And then, Imina started clapping, as though he

had really pulled off a great performance.

"So, what that all about?"

"I don't know. He only told me as much as he told you."

"Damn, I should have listened more before getting rid of him."

Hekkeran held his head in defeat.

"Just wait and hear it from Arche once she gets back."

"...But, it isn't good to pry too deeply into things."

"Well, even though what you said is correct, you're still the leader. Do your best!"

"In that case, I will use my authority as the leader to order you to ask her about it. It

would be much better if a fellow woman like you were to ask her about it, don't you

think?"

"Come on, give me a break, I don't want to ask either."

The two of them smiled bitterly at each other.

There were a few rules in common between adventurers and workers, where certain

things were simply not done. The first would be to uncover a teammate's past. The

second would be to display excessive desire.

In the case of the second rule, to some extent, excessive desire was unavoidable due

to the fact that many people chose to be workers for personal gains. However, even

that had a limit. Too much desire could cause a team to lose its coherence. For

example, it was difficult to trust teammates who were constantly grumbling about

money. Letting teammates watch your back during dangerous moments was a

fundamental part of teamwork and unity. As such, all teams needed a minimum level

of trust between each other. But how much could you trust someone who was known

to be greedy when you take on a high-risk, high-reward job?

Currently, it seemed like there were problems relating to Arche, which would affect

her reliability. That simply wasn't a matter which could be easily overlooked.

During the course of their jobs, they would be putting their lives in each other's hands.

As such they couldn't afford to have even a trace of doubt in their teammates.

Hekkeran shook his head, while displaying his reluctance on his face.

"Looks like it can't be helped, then. I'll have to ask when she comes back."

"I'm counting on you~."

Hekkeran narrowed his eyes at Imina, who was smiling and waving her hand, and

said, "Don't think you can get away. You also need to come talk to her with me, yo."

"Eh, ehhh..." Although Imina clearly wanted to refuse, she gave up as soon as she saw

the determination on Hekkeran's face. "Oh well, it can't be helped. Hopefully it isn't

anything big..."

"Anyway, where did Arche go?"

"Eh? Ah, she's gathering the information behind that job."

"Aren't Rob and I in charge of that?"

After returning from Kattse Plains, they received a new commission, with pretty good

terms for the nature of the work concerned. As such, they began the preparations for

taking the job.

Originally it should have been Roberdyck, who was best suited for this sort of thing,

to research the background of the commissioner as well as the compensation.

Hekkeran was to head to the Empire's Administrative office to collect the payment for

their undead subjugation—all work related to eliminating undead on the Kattse Plains

was treated as government work by the Empire—and at the same time, use alternative

methods to gather similar information as Roberdyck.

Imina and Arche should have waited at the inn.

"It wasn't just that. Rob needed help investigating the history and conditions around

the area of operations."

Hekkeran nodded his head, as a look of understanding dawned on him. Although

Arche had dropped out of the Imperial Magic Academy, she probably still had some

contacts there. She was probably more suited at gathering academic-related

information and she could also visit the Magician's Guild to collect additional

material.

"So that's why she went along. Rob is also quite knowledgeable, and has connections

to the temples. Anyway, how did it go?"

Hekkeran made a sound as he sat down into a chair, and spoke up.

"Although the request was only offered to workers, the content of the job isn't

anything bad. The reason why they chose to hire workers this time around is probably

because the location of the job is somewhere adventurers can't go. However, just like

the client said before, it seems like they've made contact with other teams as well."

"Are we really working with other teams? Even if it is said that the ruins they

discovered appear to be untouched, for them to be willing to invest this much without

any definite gains seems a bit..."

That Greenham guy—from one of the other teams that were contacted—was saying

the same thing. But in the end, 'Heavy Masher' seems to be planning to accept the

request. If we don't decide by tomorrow, things might become troublesome."

So far Hekkeran's team had only listened to the contents of the request, and they had

yet to accept it. Although they promised to give the client a reply by tomorrow, if they

were going to accept, they would have to start preparing immediately.

"And then, at this important juncture something else comes up… Are the two

somehow connected?"

"We can't rule out that it was done by another team that wanted to make a fortune

with this, but I think we should still wait and listen to Arche's explanation before

deciding. If it really is some scheme started by another team, do we back out or carry

on?"

"Of course we continue. If they plan on starting a fight, then we just need to keep

whacking them until none of them dares to mess with us again, 'till we knock all their

teeth out."

"That sounds quite excessive."

Although Imina seemed overly harsh on the outside, Hekkeran also thought her

approach to solving this problem was a good one.

While it wasn't too big of a deal to be looked down upon, their reputation would also

drop if they backed out. Losing reputation was something that those in the worker

profession wished to avoid.

At the same time a fiery determination burned within Hekkeran's eyes, a squeaky

sound of doors opening came from the entrance. The figures of two people walked

into the inn.

"—We're home!"

"We have returned!"

The first voice was somewhat whiny and belonged to a girl, followed shortly by the

voice of a man whose eyes were filled with righteousness. The momentary pause came

from the hesitancy of covering up the soft voice of his female companion.

The girl that first walked in was not too thin. The words "young beauty" would

describe her the best.

With an appearance between fifteen to seventeen years old, the girl possessed a face

with delicate features and shoulder long hair. Hers was an elegant beauty, but every

now and then, she also gave the impression of being a lifeless doll.

Her hands grasped an iron staff that was around the same height as herself. The

surface of the staff was covered with symbols and runes that could have been words

or pictures. The girl wore a loose robe, and under that, sturdy clothes which offered

quite a bit of protection. She was obviously a magic caster.

The man was wearing full body armor—although he had taken the helmet off—and

over the armor was a surcoat embroidered with the symbol of a crest. A morningstar

hung from his waist, and a necklace bearing the same crest as his surcoat laid around

his neck.

With a neatly arranged hairstyle and a well-trimmed beard, the man gave off a hearty

impression. Appearance-wise, his age seemed to be around 30.

These two were the comrades that Hekkeran and Imina were waiting for, Arche Eeb

Rile Furt and Roberdyck Goltron.

"Ooh, welcome back!"

Could this be described as good timing or bad timing? Hekkeran thought while

turning around to greet the two with a hard voice

"What's wrong? Did something happen to the two of you?"

Roberdyck used a tone that did not display any seniority to the two of them. One of

the reasons was due to personal choice, the other was because of the mutual equality

between workers.

"Th-there's no problem."

"Tha-that's right. Just as Hekkeran said."

Arche and Roberdyck both watched as the two of them waved their hands in denial.

"Umm, speaking of which, this isn't a good place to talk, how about we go over there?"

Being done with joking around, a serious expression appeared on Hekkeran's face as

he pointed towards a circular table at the back of the tavern area.

"Before that, err. About the drinks—Oi, Imina. Where did the owner go?"

"...Out shopping. I'm watching over the place for him."

"Is that so? Then what should we do? Is it fine for me to casually take out a bottle or

two?"

"—I'm fine with not drinking."

"Ah, I'm also fine, thanks."

"...Is that so? In that case... then let's start the meeting of 'Foresight'."

The relaxed expression on every member's face vanished. At the same time, they

leaned their weight onto the table, bringing everyone closer together. Although there

weren't any other guests at the moment, this sort of behavior had become an old habit

that was hard to break.

"First, I would like to confirm the content of the commission."

Once he made sure that he had everyone's attention, Hekkeran continued. His tone

and expression were completely different from before. As the leader of the team, it

was necessary for him to act serious and maintain dignity when the situation called

for it. That was only expected of a leader.

"The client this time is Earl Femel. The content of the request is to survey some ruins—

most likely an underground tomb—discovered within the territory of the Kingdom.

The compensation consists of a down payment of 200, followed by another 150 after

completion. The quality of the contract and the total amount offered as reward is

extremely high this time around. Not to mention that there's going to be a bonus at

the end based on the results of the investigation. All magic items discovered during

the investigation will belong to the Earl; however, the person that discovers them will

receive an additional bonus of half the market price of the magic item. As for things

like gems and precious metals, artworks and other treasures, after their value is

verified, half the amount will be given to the discoverer. Also, they've made contact

with other worker teams as well. Based on how events might unfold, it's most likely

going to become a joint operation—alright, I think I've said enough."

After sharing the information he obtained with Arche and Roberdyck, Hekkeran

returned to the content of the commission.

"The maximum duration is three days. The aim is mainly to explore the inside of the

tomb. The important part to note is, it's suspected that we might encounter monsters

during the investigation, but the type of monsters that we might encounter are

currently unknown. From the looks of thing, this commission really seems to be just

a simple investigation."

It was very common for monsters to use abandoned ruins at the outskirts of human

civilisation as their lairs. As such, the "survey" tasks given to workers tend to be

regarded as a reconnaissance by fire.

"The most important aspect about this commission is that it seems like the tomb is

unexplored."

The moment that was said, the atmosphere surrounding the group changed.

Two hundred years ago, during the time of the Demon Gods' unrest, many kingdoms

perished. It wasn't just human kingdoms that were destroyed, countries composed of

demi-humans and other heteromorphic species perished as well. The ruins of these

civilizations often contained many priceless treasures—the possibility of finding

magic items was also high.

Finding these treasures was a dream shared by both adventurers and workers alike.

As such, unexplored ruins were something that adventurers and workers all wished

to find. And suddenly, here it was, right in front of their eyes.

Having confirmed the excitement within the eyes of his comrades, Hekkeran passed

the ball to the two that went out for intelligence gathering.

"Finally, the provisions required for the trip to and from the site will all be

covered by the Earl. That is all the information that I've gathered. Next, Arche,

Roberdyck, tell us the findings of your investigation."

"—In that case, I'll start. Earl Femel's standing within the palace isn't very good. There

are rumors that the Blood Emperor is giving him the cold shoulder. Also, from what

I've gathered, it seems that he isn't in need of money."

"Regarding the ruins discovered within the territory of the Kingdom, both Arche-san

and I have tried researching the past history of recorded civilizations. So far, we are

unable to find any records of ancient cities being built near the site of the ruins. If it

indeed is a tomb, we should have been able to find clues left behind in books...

Truthfully speaking, I can't figure out why there would be a tomb built at that location.

Only a few small villages exist near the area, perhaps it would be better to search for

information there?"

"It can't be helped. We've been ordered to keep this operation has secret as possible.

The client wishes for as few witnesses as possible, in other words, we shouldn't be

making any unnecessary movements."

"—Of course, that region belongs to the Kingdom. If things gets exposed, we might

end up becoming enemies of the Kingdom and the Vaiself family."

Exploring the ruins discovered in a different country, this kind of borderline illegal

work was the reason why workers were selected instead of adventurers.

"So in other words, what we're doing is just plain old dirty work?"

"Although it can be seen that way, there's still a slight delicate issue."

"That's right. If the Empire's workers are caught inside the Kingdom, the Earl will

definitely get dragged down along with us."

"Which brings us to the main question."

"Where did this information on the discovery of the ruin come from?"

"Yeah. No matter how I think about it, it's strange."

"Is that so? Isn't it fairly close to the Great Forest of Tob? Perhaps it was discovered

during logging."

"—Weird. Take a look at this." Arche opened up the map and pointed towards a

circular spot. "Although the details aren't very clear, but spots like this..." Sweeping

her tiny finger along the map, Arche indicated their objective.

"—There's also a village here. However its size is really small. Perhaps it's better to

describe it as a hamlet. I don't believe a village like that is capable of creating such

large clearings within the forest."

"That's correct. The chances of these clearings being excavated by such a small village

is highly unlikely. Especially if the forest is inhabited by many dangerous monsters...

It's much more likely to think that it was done as a government project, but I can't see

any reason why the Kingdom would want to excavate that part of the forest. In the

end, we're still lacking information."

The four of them became more troubled after this. Should they accept the request or

not?

Unlike adventurers, who had the backing of an entire guild, it was absolutely

necessary for workers to properly investigate all details regarding the offered work

before deciding. First, they had to thoroughly investigate the client's background and

his connections, then the work location. Finally, based on the details gathered from

the description of the job, a decision is made on whether or not to accept it.

Even after having done all of that, sometimes it still wasn't enough. If one wasn't

capable of doing this, then they should quit being a worker. No matter how good the

payment for the job might be, it would be better to reject it if you couldn't wash away

the dirt that ended up staining your hands.

"...I've confirmed the payment already, this was given for the initial deposit—"

Hekkeran placed a metallic plate on top of the table. The surface of the plate was

inscribed with countless different small glyphs and runes. Although he was given the

plate, he would have to return it if they decided to reject the commission.

"I've already checked it with the Imperial Bank. The sum has already been credited to

my account, it can be converted into cash any time."

The metallic plate was a type of guarantee that was used by banks within the Empire,

in a similar role as a cheque.

In order to prevent counterfeits, the plates were made with great care and delicacy.

Although it the creation process was extremely long, and would definitely incur

additional fees for people to use, the advantages still far outweighed the drawbacks.

In other countries, this sort of thing was usually handled by the Adventurer's Guild;

however the metallic plates used in the Empire were guaranteed by the government

itself.

"From the looks of things, it doesn't seem like a trap... well, I knew they were dead

serious the moment they paid the deposit."

If it was a trap, there shouldn't have been a need to pay such large deposit. However,

it might just have been made to let people think this way, although Hekkeran didn't

believe that he had somehow offended the nobleman enough to merit a trap

specifically to target him.

"I—"

"Stop. Imina, I haven't finished yet. Please, keep your thoughts a little more flexible."

"Yes, yes. Let's hear them then. About this job that's offered to us... it seems that

they're quite pressed for time, however, there are still points I don't agree with. For

example, hiring multiple worker teams, what do you make of this?"

Just as Imina pointed out, considering the amount of time it took to contact multiple

teams, it would have made more sense to pick the first team that agreed and rush to

the tomb's location, considering that jobs like this required great haste.

"—I'm not sure either. To begin with, I don't understand why they're trying to rush

this. I also didn't receive any information on any emergency situations happening to

the Earl. It's not as if there are any events or ceremonies coming up in the next few

days. The only thing I can think of is that they're afraid the ruins might get discovered

by the Kingdom. Hiring multiple teams might just be to raise the success rate?"

"About that, Hekkeran. Did you hear anything from Greenham?"

"There's not much to be said. I only went and asked if they were also contacted, but it

seems that they were also coveting for information regarding this commission. It was

hard enough not to reveal anything to them."

Hekkeran shrugged helplessly.

"—If that's the case, then perhaps there's a third party who's also aiming for the

ruins?"

"That's definitely a possibility. If that's true then it would explain why so many

workers are being hired. Oh that's right, it seems that something big happened

recently in the Kingdom. However, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the

area close to E-Rantel..."

"Let's hear more of this, Rob."

Due to the lack of accurate information, Roberdyck could only explain what he heard

in bits and pieces. Since most of the details relating to the incident were pieced

together from rumors, the overall picture that was painted at the end wasn't very clear

or reliable.

"Hmm, we can't say for sure if the incident is related in any ways. However, I still

think what Arche said is the most likely situation. Rob also agrees."

"If that's the case then… hiring multiple worker teams, and considering that the job

location is within the territory of the Kingdom, is it possible that we're likely to end

up clashing with Kingdom adventurers that were sent to explore the ruins? If it's like

that then there's no point in collecting further information inside the Empire."

"The other thing to watch out for is an ambush made by the teams of other hired

workers. I definitely don't want to lose my life just as we reach our goal."

"We also need to watch out for ambush made by adventurers. Although speaking of

this, I'd much more prefer it if it was done by adventurers. At least we can try to

negotiate with them and it wouldn't be as treacherous as one set by other workers."

"If it's done by workers, then things will most likely end in blood."

"—What should we do, leader?"

The overall issues had been raised and discussed, and each member's opinions had

also been voiced. What was left were a few remaining speculations before coming to

a conclusion.

"Before deciding, I have one thing to say... I think there's a need for everyone to hear

this."

Hekkeran sighed deeply, and Imina, who sat beside Hekkeran, momentarily held her

breath.

"Arche, a strange man came and said he wanted to see you."

Hearing this, an eyebrow went up on Arche's usually expressionless face. Seeing this

reaction, Hekkeran understood that Arche knew the man.

"What did that guy say at the end? ...What was it again?"

Hekkeran blatantly asked Imina. What he received in return was a stare which said

"what the heck are you saying?". However, after realizing that Hekkeran had really

forgotten, Imina replied in a tired voice.

"'Tell the brat from the Furt family. Tell her the deadline is coming!'"

"Yep, something like that."

Being thrown into the spotlight, Arche took a deep breath and said with a heavy voice.

"—I'm in debt."

"Debt?!"

Hekkeran exclaimed in surprise. Of course, it wasn't just Hekkeran alone, Imina and

Roberdyck also had shocked expressions. Since there were no ranks within their team,

the income was shared equally. And thinking back on the amount they've earned so

far, the notion of being in debt was ridiculous.

"How much do you owe?"

"—Three hundred gold coins." Hearing the reply from Arche, the three of them

glanced at each other once more.

The amount that was owed was something that normal people wouldn't even be able

to dream about. It was something that even workers of their level wouldn't be able to

earn in one go. Although the deposit for their current given request was three hundred

and fifty gold coins, that amount was for the entire team. After subtracting the cost of

maintenance as well as buying necessary equipment and items, the amount left for

each member was only around sixty gold coins.

Furthermore, their team was counted among the top of the worker profession. Using

the same set of criteria as assessing adventurers, they would be equivalent to the

mithril rank. Even at their level, they couldn't earn that much in a go. That showed

just how much of a debt it was.

Arche's face began to cloud up as she felt the doubtful gazes of her companions on

her.

She naturally wanted to avoid this conversation. However, if she didn't answer it now,

it wouldn't be a surprise if she ended up being expelled from the team.

After a brief moment of consideration, Arche finally opened her mouth.

"...Since my family considers it a huge disgrace, I never told this to anyone, but... the

Blood Emperor revoked my family's nobility status."

The Blood Emperor—Jircniv Rune Farlord el Nix. Renowned for staining his hands

with blood.

Due to certain events that took place, the previous Emperor was forced to retire. Soon

afterwards, what used to be one of the Five Great Families of the Empire, the family

of the Blood Emperor's mother, was accused of assassinating the Emperor and

eradicated. Things turned sour after that, where the brothers of the Blood Emperor

died one after another. During that time, it was as if the winds that blew within the

city carried death itself, and near the end, even his mother got caught in it and

perished.

Of course, there was opposition during this period. However, this opposition was

meaningless to the Blood Emperor, who already controlled the Empire's knights

during his time as the crown prince. Using overwhelming military force, every

aristocrat that was capable of opposing him was cut down like wheat before the scythe.

The only ones who remained were those who pledged their allegiance to the Emperor

from the bottom of their hearts, and thus it ended with the complete centralisation of

power in him.

However, the Blood Emperor didn't just stop there. Many leftover aristocrats soon

had their nobility revoked due to incompetence. Instead, capable commoners were

given the chance to rise in status.

All in all, there were two main points that surprised people the most. First was that

the national power of the Empire did not drop a single bit during the mass removal of

aristocrats. Second was that the Emperor who had achieved all of this was only a boy

one or two years past the age of ten.

It wasn't rare to see families that lost their nobility status. However—

"—Even now my parents still live the same lifestyle as before. Of course we can't afford

the cost. That's why my parents ended up borrowing money from shady places."

Hearing this, the three of them glanced around at each other.

Although the three of them hid it well, feelings of anxiousness, irritation,

unpleasantness and anger passed between them.

"—I have confidence in my magic abilities. I wish to join." These words had been said

by a slender child holding a staff taller than herself.

The image of a small child with an expressionless face, who was holding her staff with

both hands while standing before them, suddenly came back into the minds of

Hekkeran and the others. Later, the image of their stunned faces after they saw the

display of Arche's strength in magic came into view in their heads, resounding with

nostalgia.

In the two years that went by, after experiencing numerous adventures and having

survived adventures where even one wrong move would result in death, the money

that they had gained was quite a considerable amount. However, Arche's equipment

had hardly changed since the beginning.

The reason for that was finally made known.

"Is that for real? Should I go and have a proper 'talk' with them?"

"I think it's about time for your parents to hear the voice of God. No, no, perhaps they

should meet the fists of God before that."

"I don't think their ears haven't been pierced yet, maybe I should start making holes

in them."

"—Please calm down. It's already gotten to this stage, what I want to say is, depending

on the situation I plan on taking my sisters away from my parents."

"You have sisters?"

Seeing Arche nod her head, the three of them looked at each other once more.

Although they didn't say it out loud, but deep down in their hearts they started to feel

that it might be better to give up on this particular request.

It was true that workers had a higher income than adventurers. However, the amount

of danger they faced was also much higher. Although they tried their best at making

sure the work they took on was as safe as possible, the chances of encountering

situations outside their calculations was still quite high.

A single slip might result in a tragedy for her sisters. However, it was pointless to keep

thinking along these lines.

"Is that so? ...Then let's put this topic on hold for now. We will let you handle your

current problem... Anyway, back to our main discussion topic, do we accept the

offered commission or not?"

Having said this, Hekkeran cast a cold gaze at Arche.

"Arche, I don't want to make it sound bad but you don't get a say in this."

"—That's fine. For someone who's in need of money, I can understand that my vote

would be compromised because of my debt issue."

That was what they meant by being blinded by greed.

"—Truthfully, I had thought that I might end up becoming removed from this team."

"What are you saying? After having a magic caster as skilled as you join our team, it

would be a huge loss for us to simply let you go."

This statement wasn't meant to provide any comfort. It was the truth.

Arche's innate talent. A pair of eyes blessed with miracles, had helped out Hekkeran's

team multiple times in the past.

If a name had to be given to Arche's innate talent, the 'All-Seeing Eyes' would probably

be the most suitable words to describe it.

Arcane magic casters were constantly surrounded by an invisible aura which wrapped

around their body. However, Arche's innate talent allowed her to see it directly. Not

only that, she was even able to see which tiers of magic the opponent was capable of

using.

The advantage of being able to gauge the power level of opponents went without

saying.

There was only one other person that Hekkeran knew of within the Empire that also

possessed this ability. And that person was the Empire's highest ranked magic

caster—Fluder Paradyne.

Although their eyes were the only things they had in common, it showed how gifted

Arche was, since she was comparable to Fluder.

"To think that the Magic Academy would let such a talented child go."

"Exactly. To be capable of using the same tier of magic as me at such a young age is

simply unbelievable. Perhaps it's possible for Arche to reach the 6th tier in the future."

"—I think that would be quite difficult to achieve. However, I would be happy if the

possibility exists."

Just as the previously broken atmosphere was about to recover, Hekkeran clapped his

hands. Everyone's attention once more focused on the topic at hand.

"Now now, about the current request, do we accept or not?—Roberdyck."

"I have no objections."

"Imina?"

"Why not go with it? This is the type of work I've always wanted to do."

The work given to workers usually wasn't trivial stuff. Only a few days ago, they were

still on the Kattse Plains exterminating undead. Work like that was quite different

compared to what was offered now.

"In that case—"

"—If it's for my sake, please don't. Even if we refuse the offer this time I still have other

ways."

The three of them glanced at each other, and a smile then appeared on Imina's face.

"No way. If you think about it, the request this time isn't the typical shady work. The

reward is also really generous. Right, Rob?"

"That's how it is. It isn't for your sake at all. There's probably lots of undiscovered

items within the ruins. Isn't it so, Hekkeran?"

"There you have it, Arche. Though it's regrettable that we can't make it known that

we're the first explorers of the ruins."

"—My deepest gratitude."

Seeing Arche lowering her head, the three of them looked at each other and smiled.

"Well then, Arche and I will go and convert the plate into cash. The two of you go and

prepare the necessary items for this adventure."

The items necessary for an adventure could include things like rope or oil, as well as

certain magic items. For someone with a meticulous personality like Roberdyck, and

Imina possessing the skills of a thief, this sort of work was perfect for them. On the

other hand, one could say that Hekkeran was simply unsuited for tasks like his.

"Alright everyone, let's begin! ...Arche."

Turning towards Arche who was tilting her head with a baffled description, Hekkeran

finally said out loud what he wanted to say before.

"The income from this commission isn't enough to cover your debt."

"—No problem. This much should be enough to extend the deadline by some time."

"You can borrow the rest from us."

"That's right. You can always pay us back later using the income earned from future

jobs."

Of course it wouldn't be given for free since 'Foresight' members are all equal.

"—Hold on to it for now. I've already returned most of what my irresponsible parents

borrowed. But give me some time to consider things through."

"That's fine. Take your time."

The four of them looked at each other one last time before heading off to complete

what they were tasked to do.