98 Episode 98 "I tried to exchange emails with slaves to save a little crisis in the town.".txt (1/2)

Mr. Dolgor-Hartland, a merchant who lived in the retreat, was a gruff man.

According to Iris, he had always been an adventurer.

After completing a few quests, he changed his job to merchant. He was also involved in shipping and is now a member of the merchant guild in the recreational area. I've heard that he mainly deals in marine products brought in from the south, and he also collects materials and distributes weapons and armor.

When I was young, my life was saved by the sea dragon Kerkator.

Mr. Dolgor said, holding a bottle of wine in one hand and stroking his bear-like beard.

''Since then, you have come to admire the sea dragon, haven't you? I've never missed a prayer to the sea dragon. If I betray the sea dragon Kerkator and the miko-sama, I intend to give my life to them. As proof of this, I bought a sea dragon mask to display in my room during the festival.

As we accepted the invitation, Mr. Dolgor smiled boldly at us.

It sounds like a joke, but ...... maybe he's serious. You can see it in this room.

We are in the parlor where we are sitting, and there are numerous ”sea dragon masks” on the wall.

Old ones and new ones. Some of them are made of iron, some of them are ceramic, and some of them are made of crystal.

There are more than just masks. There are also figures of the sea dragon Kerkator, tapestries, paintings, and poems based on the legend of the sea dragon.

It's just like the Sea Dragon Kerkator Museum.

Or rather, it looks more like a 'sea dragon nerd room' rather than a place to admire.

But Dolgor-san looked around the room proudly

So, when I heard that Lord Iris was coming to this town for a rest, I was hoping to have a long talk with her.

That's it.

To such a merchant, Iris replied with a gentle smile.

''I'm sure my guardian god, the sea dragon Kercator, is also grateful for the loyalty of Dolgor-sama.

Iris returns the words plainly while drinking the recommended tea.

This is indeed the daughter of the Ilgafa lord's family.

It's completely different from the indulgent attitude you get when you're with others at a party.

That's the true nature of it, though.

I'm still sitting under the table with Iris grabbing the hem of my dress.

We are in the mansion of the merchant Dolgor. It's a rather small house with a warehouse in the grounds, and we're having dinner in his parlor.

The people here are the merchant Mr. Dolgor and the mansion's maid. And me, Iris, Rita, and Aine. There are a total of 6 of us.

The guest of honor is Iris.

Rita and I were to be her bodyguards. Aine will be Iris's maid of honor.

The guards are also welcome to join us. Please do not hesitate to tell us about your travels.

Saying that, Dolgor-san offered us some food as well.

It's like a person who doesn't care about the details when it comes to letting his guards eat at the same table.

There was a person like that in the original world. He is a person who is a front-line worker and is evaluated on his ability regardless of his position. It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them. Pops, I hope you're doing well. ......

Speaking of which, do you know, Iris-sama, about the demon-occupied fort?

Mr. Dolgor said as he sipped his wine.

'Yes,'

Iris took a sip of her soup and then nodded.

'The prince will be leading the recapture mission, won't he?

'Goodbye. The Adventurer's Guild seems to be in an unprecedented state of turmoil.

'Iris is also an ouija - no, Goshji - no, this one told me. Isn't it?　Right?　There's no doubt about it, right?

Iris snapped and tugged at the hem of my dress.

Now it's my turn.

If you're going to gather information, you might as well do it as an adventurer.

Excuse me. Dolgor-sama, may I join in on the conversation?

Of course. I used to be an adventurer myself. It's nice to talk to someone who is working.

Mr. Dolgor stroked his beard and replied.

''And when you're the guard of the 'Sea Dragon Priestess', you must be very trustworthy, right?

Mr. Dolgor the merchant looks at me with a laugh and a guarded look.

Both Rita and Aine are nervous. The only one who is relaxed is Iris.

I heard that she had been helping the lord with his business and she was also getting to know the merchant. But, Iris, you can't sneak the cut up meat into my plate. The maids are watching you. And Aine says you should eat the carrots from the other side of the world, right?

I also heard about the fortification quest from the Adventurers' Guild.

When I regained my composure, I said.

'Although we don't have the luxury of time to worry about such things at the moment. Our first priority is to protect you and be with you, Iris-sama, with our lives.

I see.

Dolgor-san nodded.

''As expected of the 'Sea Dragon Priestess', she has a lot of trust in you.

...... is, yes. Iris, too, Onii-Cha ...... No, my main goal is to continue the journey with you. I guess you could say it's already the joy of my life.

Iris, you're blushing too much.

''Even for me, although the quest to capture the fort is tempting ...... now, I'd like to make sure I don't get my priorities wrong.

I said.

”That would be good,” I said. But that quest is on hold at the moment.

'Pottery,' Dolgor tells me.

'Do you know what the quest is about? 'The guards.'

The demons that went berserk took over the abandoned fort. ......

That's why the royal family was recruiting a lot of adventurers.

There was a condition that the best ones would be recruited into the royal family's regular army, and that's why it must have been a huge success.

But ...... as I recall, the reason why the demons became violent might have been due to the influence of the ”wrath of the celestial dragon's magic power”. I asked the residual magic power of the Heavenly Dragon about that when I was in sync with White. When I checked, the fort was located near the 'Land of the Heavenly Dragon Seal'.

Let's try to do some light exploration here.

''But if that fort attack quest is pending ...... could it be that the demons have become even more violent or something?

'It's the opposite. They seem to be getting rather docile.

Lie down, sir?

The demons had joined forces with the aim of invading a nearby village, but they have suddenly stopped coming out of the fort. The roars that they make every night have ceased, which is rather eerie.

...... I knew it.

The release of the ”Heavenly Dragon's Residual Demonic Power” unlocked the ferocity of the demons?

I did a bad thing for the adventurers who lost their jobs.

''But it's 'on hold', right?

'Yes. Because if the demon has grown up, then there's no hurry.

Indeed.

Therefore, since this is the case, we're planning to conduct a grand assault on Prince Kravis, the eighth prince, to coincide with his birthday.

............ How did that happen?

”I heard that all the adventurers who registered for the quest are in 'Yadoya Taiki'

'Waiting at the inn' is .......

It's like having a job seeker on 'stay at home' after receiving a job offer.

Is that enough for you?

I've heard that it's also an aptitude test for being hired as a regular soldier. They want you to respond to their call at all times. What do you think, guards?

By the way, how much does 'Innkeeper on call' cost?

He paid his own way.

Is it possible to cancel orders for ...... quests?　Mr. Dolgor.

''I think so too, but since I've already declared the number of people to the prince, it seems that if there's a hole, it will become a liability issue for the adventurer's guild.

An adventurer who decides to take an order and then cancels it has an aptitude problem. The adventurer's guild that registers these adventurers will also be held jointly and severely liable. ......

'But we don't know when the quest will start, do we?

Right. So we're going to have to 'wait at the inn until the official assignment is made'.

Translated in the style of the original world, it would be 'I've made a job offer, but I haven't decided on a placement at work yet. So I'm staying home. In the meantime, we won't give you another job. In the meantime, we won't give you another job. If you turn down the job offer, we won't accept any more job offers from that school.

Mm-hmm. Right.

I'll stop associating myself with the royal family.

''But for the sake of security, I suppose that's just the way it is, isn't it?

I said, trying to keep my inner thoughts from showing on my face.

I wanted to at least sigh, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have business with the royal family.

''It's hard to travel calmly with a demon in the fort,''

I see. But because of the lack of adventurers, demons are beginning to appear near the roads.

You can't go to ...... for that.

That's why the Merchant's Guild's wagon is not ready to leave. ......

It was Dolgor-san who sighed.

''Even if I ask you to exterminate the demons, the adventurers are waiting in the inn. Even if you try to submit a request to the Adventurer's Guild, if you intercepted the adventurers, the royal family would glare at you. ......

It's a problem, isn't it?

No, not at all.

As a matter of fact, the reason I have invited you and your party to join us is to discuss this matter with you.

The merchant Dolgor fixed the collar of his long gown and said.

''Since you are escorting Lady Iris, I take it that all the adventurers there are very skilled, are they not?

No, it's just average.

Is that normal?

To be frank, I've been an adventurer for about a month now, and I'm barely out of the novice game.

But it's not too much of a hassle to travel this far down the road, is it?

...... Indeed.

I'm actually here because we are traveling on the road where demons appear.

I'm not afraid of goblins or even big bats, but I can usually defeat them. I've fought the undead and the giant alligator. That's about the level I'm at.''

Then do me a favor.

So you want me to kill the demons in the street?

It's very clear.

From the story.

We are in real trouble, sir.

The merchant Dolgor-san began to speak.

Whenever a demon appeared on the street, I would usually ask him to kill it through the Adventurer's Guild.

Otherwise, we can't carry our supplies safely. I have an escort, but there's a limit to who I can deal with. To begin with, it would be useless if the guards are exhausted in a battle near the town.

That's why when a demon appears near the town road, we'll say 'urgent' and raise the fee for a quest request, but right now we can't do that.

Most of the adventurers are held up by the royal family. If we were to pull the adventurers out of the ”urgent” quests, the royal family might look at us and say, ”You're stealing our adventurers. If that happened, we wouldn't be able to do business.

That's why they wanted to ask for our help, which has nothing to do with the adventurer's guild in this town.

'I've heard that the Rock Lizard is presently haunting the streets. We have heard that one traveler has been eaten by them.

”Rock Lizard

A large lizard, less than two meters long from head to tail.

Its back is covered with a rock-like shell.

They are voracious eaters, feeding on rocks, people and anything else they see.

Their carapace, which is useful for processing, sells for a decent price.

The level is not high, but trying to defeat it without damaging its shell is surprisingly difficult.

''The Rock Lizard showed up around here.

Mr. Dolgor had the maid put the food away and spread the map on the table.

The place he pointed to was an abandoned village, about a day's walk from here.

It was located on the side of the road, and with a river running nearby, it was said to be an encampment for caravans and travelers.

It's true that ...... would be terrifying to encounter a giant lizard in a place like that.

'I will definitely pay you your reward. What do you think?

Mr. Dolgor turned to Iris and said.

We're supposed to be working for Iris. So the decision is hers to make. Ostensibly.

'...... big brother,'

With her front facing me, Iris mumbles with just her lips.

Tiny hands are tugging at my clothes.

The merchant in front of me, Mr. Dolgor, is not a bad person, I hear.

I've heard that part from Iris. Maybe it's because he's a hard worker, but he's also reasonably nice to his employees. He belongs to the Merchant's Guild, but he's not such a big deal, or maybe it's because he's not such a big deal, but he's also very calm. He's also very normal to Rita and Aine, who are wearing slave collars.

It's not a bad idea for us to have a little connection with them, either.

...... I don't blame you.

I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this as well.

Before that, it would be nice to do some light cleaning. If you can get a reward for your quest, it will help you get more road silver.

I squeezed Iris's hand back under the table.

'We'll do what we can. If Iris's guards can be of any use to the town.

So I think Iris sensed my intentions.

”Oh!　Thank you!

You'll have to talk to my guards.