「Sorry about this time」

After Orio and Natasha were taken away, we moved to the Guild Master’s office.

At that time, the adventurers who had been urgently summoned complained, and when the Guild Master gave them gold coins and told them that they could eat and drink as they pleased, they cheered loudly, but I’ll spare you the details since it’s none of our business.

「You’ve never seen me before, jō-chan. I’d like to introduce myself again, but I’m the Guild Master here, Nanou」

「I’m Yuan, an E-Rank adventurer」

I sat down deeply on the sofa facing him and shook hands with the Guild Master… Nanou-san.

Usually, it’s the high-ranked adventurers who talk with the Guild Master like this, so I feel out of place here.

「Maa, I’m one of the parties involved, so bear with me」

I could see it on his face, or so he told me.

「Now, I know you said you finished killing the Orcs, but let’s hear another detailed report」

「Deep in the forest, I found a group of Orcs gathered together」

「Any settlements?」

「No」

「If so, are they stray Orcs?」

「That’s very likely」

「Were there any higher-level members among them?」

「One General」

「General… how did you survive?」

「Thanks to Yuan」

「I see. So, what happened?」

Rinshia-san briefly told him about the battle with the Orcs.

Orio attacked her, the Orcs surrounded her, I helped her, and she ended up in a party with me.

I don’t think that last part was necessary, but it seems to have been a necessary report for Rinshia-san.

「I see, A thank you for Yuan and you, too, from myself. Thank you」

「No, I’m just glad that Shea-san is okay」

「Shea… ke. Rinshia, you’ve signed a contract」

「Yeah. Yuan is the best Lord」

「I see, good luck with that」

「I don’t have to work hard, I just have to be willing to follow along to achieve Yuan’s goal」

I couldn’t help but interrupt them, curious about their interaction.

「Um, Nanou-san, do you know about the contract?」

「Hmm? Yeah. I used to be an adventurer too, I was in a party with Rinshia’s father. I’ve heard a lot about the Shadow Wolves.」

It seems that there was a surprising connection.

So it seems that Nanou-san entrusted Rinshia-san with an important request and was happy that she came back alive.

「Back on topic, did you find out why?」

「There is a mountain cliff where the Orcs have gathered. In one corner of it, there was a crack that an Orc could fit through. That place is suspicious」

「Is it possible that there is something there, or is it connected to somewhere? I’ll send out a request for an investigation as soon as possible. Rinshia, are you willing to accept this request?」

「It’s up to Yuan」

「What do you think?」

So you’re going to dump it on me…….

「I will have to decline that request」

「Why is that? We’ll pay you accordingly」

「I’m happy to be rewarded, but I don’t want to waste any time……」

「A waste of time?」

「Yes, Shea-san and I also went there, but when I used sensing magic, there was no response that resembled a monster. I don’t know if we can go deeper, but it looked much deeper, so I don’t want to go back there. If we were to have a battle, it would be dangerous because of the narrow space」

「Fumu, are you sure about the accuracy of that sensing magic? I’ve never heard of such a magic before…」

「In 10 seconds, someone will be here」

Sensing magic has detected a dot heading for this room. It’s a blue dot, so that means it’s a non-hostile person.

10 seconds later, there was a knock at the door.

「Get in」

「Excuse me. I brought you drinks」

「Thank you, you can go back」

「Yes」

The guild staff put the drinks on the table and left.

Taking a sip of the fruity drink, Nanou-san exhaled slowly.

「I’ll take Yuan’s word for it. Then I guess we’ll have to plug that crack. Thanks for the information, was there anything else of interest to you?」

「None in particular」

「Okay, then, all that’s left is the reward」

With that, Nanou-san places 10 gold coins on the table.

「This is a reward for the special request. I’ve added more for having already defeated them」

He then placed 5 new gold coins on the table.

「I want you to accept this as a reward for the capture of Natasha. It’s a bounty of sorts」

It may be cheap to think that a person is worth 5 gold coins, but perhaps the Marquis did not care whether Natasha was captured or not.

Normally, a bounty would be worth a certain amount of money… 50 gold coins or units of white gold. Well, I don’t think anyone would pay that much for an E-Rank adventurer, though.

「And now, the ranks. Rinshia will stay the same, but Yuan can move up to C-Rank」

「Heh?」

I couldn’t help but let out a strange voice.

E-Rank to C-Rank? What a joke.

「Don’t give me that look. It’s a fair assessment. Originally, you could always move up to D-Rank. In addition, if you take into account the special request, the defeat of the Orcs, and the accomplishment of the request from the Marquis, it would not be strange, right?」

「No, thank you」

I quickly bowed my head to Nanou-san’s proposal and said no. Nanou-san looked surprised at my reaction.

「Why?」

「This is because I don’t care about raising my rank. Besides, if you have a rank of D or higher, you will be forced to participate in emergency requests, which is… a little troublesome」

「Yuan’s good, but either way, Rinshia’s bound to be there, since she’s C-Rank」

「Ah……」

I forgot. I was supposed to be in a party with Shea-san.

I realized that even though I didn’t have to participate, Shea-san could not.

「It doesn’t matter, I’ll join on my own. Yuan can rest during that time」

That’s what Shea-san said, but…

「That’s not how it works. If I’m going to work with Shea-san, we have to be together. Nanou-san… can you still raise me to C-Rank?」

I can’t just send my friends into danger and take a break. If we’re going to go, we need to go together.

It’s only yesterday, but we seem to have developed a sense of camaraderie. That’s how much Shea-san’s presence seems to have influenced me.

「It’s good for the guild to have more adventurers with higher ranks. Only those who have risen through the proper procedures are eligible, but Yuan will be fine. I’m looking forward to seeing you as a C-Rank adventurer from today」

I handed over my guild card and Nanou-san… the Guild Master gave me a raise in rank.

「Yuan and I match」

「Yes, we are!」

Shea-san looked at me happily.

When the time comes to move up in rank, it’s a surprisingly pleasant experience.

「C-Rank is a rank that anyone can reach, if you put it that way. From now on, only the chosen ones will be able to achieve higher ranks. I hope you will keep that in mind and aim high without wavering」

That’s what he said, and he’s tightening it up, but I’m not going to raise any more rank, okay?

Because it seems that there are requests from nobles above B-Rank, so it’s definitely going to be a hassle.

I nodded slowly, trying not to let him know that I was aware of it.

「And, are the Orcs still in the woods?」

「No, Yuan is storing them」

「Storage magic… all of it?」

「Yes」

「That would be amazing if it were true」

「If you doubt me, let them out here. Yuan, you can take them all out」

「I understand!」

When I tried to take the Orcs out of the storage magic at Shea-san’s words, Nanou-san hurried to stop me.

「Stop it! I’m sorry. I don’t want you to put them out here!」

「Then don’t underestimate Yuan」

「Ah… Yuan, I’m sorry」

With that, Nanou-san bows his head. You are a Guild Master, but you have a low-key attitude. Or is it that you can’t get your head around Rinshia-san?

「Huh… So what are you gonna do now?」

「We’re going to the Republic of Artika」

「Beastman country… when are you leaving?」

I looked outside and saw that the sky was already deep red. Night was approaching.

「We’ll be out in a minute」

「All right, give me a shout when you’re ready to leave, and I’ll talk to the receptionist」

「No, we’re about to leave, so there’s no need, okay?」

「Right now! ?」

Nanou-san shouted loudly at my words. You’ll be surprised if it’s out of the blue, won’t you?

「What do you mean now? It’s getting dark! ?」

「Yes, so if the gate closes, we will be in trouble. We won’t be able to go out」

「Are you planning on setting up camp?」

「Yes, there is no place to camp in the village, is there?」

「I don’t think so. But there must be an inn. There’s got to be someplace open」

「The inn will cost money」

「No, an encampment is dangerous, but an inn will provide some security, and you will be able to rest more comfortably than in an encampment」

「But… the money」

「I’m sure you’ve made a lot of money on this one… damn it, Rinshia, say something」

As if seeking help, Nanou-san asked Rinshia-san to speak.

「I’ll go anywhere with Yuan」

「You seem to have grown quite attached to Yuan…」

She was on my side.

「All right, I’ll pay for your lodging as a token of my appreciation. So please stay in this village for 2 more days」

「2 days?」

「Yeah, and I’d like you to deliver the Orcs to the guild if you can, because I’ll need them as proof of defeat. It should only take a couple of days to do so. I’ll pay for the dismantling」

「Can you share the meat with me?」

「I can’t do everything, but I’ll try to accommodate your wishes」

Mumumu, I can stay at the inn, get the Orcs dismembered for free, and have some share of the meat.

Isn’t that a pretty good treatment?

Maybe Nanou-san didn’t expect me to leave right away.

Maybe this was just good negotiating on my part!

It was not my intention to do so.

「Shea-san, what should we do?」

「Just do what Yuan wants to do, that’s fine by me」

「I understand… Nanou-san, please take care of the dismantling and the inn」

「Yeah, I’ll write you a letter of introduction. It’s a place that’s affiliated with the Guild, so they’ll give you some preferential treatment」

We were told that we could leave in 2 days’ time, and were reminded to show up again at that time. With the letter of introduction in hand, Shea-san and I headed for the inn where we were referred.

Of course, I was made to leave all the Orcs at the dismantling site.

The dismantling staff who saw the actual bodies let out a sigh, but I hope they will do their best to keep their promise. If you’re going to hold a grudge, hold it against Nanou-san.

Author:

To be honest, I was worried about whether to raise Yuan’s rank.

It’s easier to move around if you’re still an E-Rank adventurer.

However, I was tempted to match it with Rinshia’s.

That being said, it’s easy to move around, so I’ll make use of it in future developments.

Thank you for reading.