Chapter 56 – The Little Villain’s Ending
“What’s all the fuss about at this hour?”
Yagov-san, the guild master, took one look at me and glared at the three idiots.
“(What is it? I have a feeling that Yagov-san’s impression of the three of them is not good, but… isn’t their reputation originally good?)”
“Well, you’re bothering the others here. Follow me.”
Yagov-san walked to the back of the room without turning his head, and I followed him, and the three of them also followed him quietly, probably because the guild master had given his order.
At that time, for some reason, Amanda-san also got up and followed us, but… since Amanda-san is the Amanda counter, I think it will not be too much of a problem if she is not at the reception desk.
We all went to another room in the same row as the one where I took the training before.
There was a low table in the middle of the room with three sofas on either side.
Yagov-san sat in the middle, so I sat on the sofa.
Of course, the three of them went to the sofa opposite me.
I thought Amanda-san would stand behind Yagov-san, but for some reason, she sat next to me, which made me feel weird…
I felt like I had more allies, so I decided to agree without saying anything.
“So what’s the dispute about? Each of you should explain what’s going on. The leader, Adent, should speak on behalf of the party. While one of you is explaining, no one will interrupt until you’re finished.”
Oh, scary…
Those eyes seem to know a lie at a glance.
I get goosebumps, of course, but since I have nothing to lie about, I just tell the truth.
And the three of them―they don’t notice.
There is no way they could have noticed.
They develop their own convenient flower garden story filled with lies, and Amanda-san objectively explains what kind of consultation she received from me as a receptionist.
Then she explained to Yagov-san how today’s events came about.
“Hmm… First of all, the guild does not get involved in personal disputes between hunters. You understand that, don’t you?”
“Yes. I learned that in training.”
“Of course, I know that.”
“So let me say this, not as the guild master, but as my personal opinion…”
After this premise, Yagov-san continued.
“Adent. Why did you call Loki?”
“Huh? Well, since the boy was alone on the Rocker Plain, I thought I’d bring him into the party early as a senior member.”
“I heard that earlier. I’m not asking for a front; I’m asking for the truth.”
“That’s… Well, he’s collected a decent amount of material on his own, and I thought it would be a plus to have him in our party…”
“You’ve been a hunter for over five years now. You knew it would be a significant, if not small, increase in income, and in some ways disproportionate.”
“W-well…”
“In other words, you were more interested in your own income than in Loki’s safety. Am I wrong?”
“N-no! It’s certainly an invitation to expect income as well. I’m the party leader, so I should think about that! But it’s true that I tried to prevent the boy from rushing to his death!”
“Then why did you say that Loki used the magic… stone pillar? So you retreated when you realized you couldn’t touch the material? If what you say about the lucky charm is true, wouldn’t you have stayed there and hunted the monsters with Loki?”
“Th-that’s… I thought he was good because he was able to defeat them by himself… He also said something about efficiency…”
“Then what you said earlier is different. This is an action that doesn’t try to prevent haste to death at all.”
“…..”
Adent-kun, you’re screwed…
He is already dying from Yagov-san’s simple attack of logic.
And then Yagov-san spoke to me.
“And Loki, why did you put the basket on the stone pillar and start hunting? If you don’t mind talking about it, of course.”
“I have no problem with the reason. I just wanted to prevent theft of materials and hunt at a fixed point.”
“Fixed point hunting?”
“Uh… like I said, I hunt alone. So, if I put the material in a basket, it gets heavier and heavier and harder to move. So I put the basket down and hunted the nearby monsters almost empty-handed. When I can no longer hold the materials, I go back to the basket and put the materials in the basket… And repeat the process.”
“Hmm… did you do the same in Palmera?”
“That’s right. I think I did it from the very first day.”
“I see. That’s why the amount of Loki’s material that showed up in the report was always far greater than the rest, wasn’t it?”
“Well, I don’t think that’s the only reason. I ran as much as I could.”
“I see… and Adent tried to steal the material.”
“Eh? N-no, no, we did not try to steal it! We haven’t even touched his basket!”
Adent is a bit nervous to be suddenly approached…
This guy must have let his guard down when he thought the other person had moved on to me.
“Loki said that the stone pillar had several kick marks on it. That would mean that when Loki left his basket and went hunting, you tried to knock over the stone pillar, right? Not that you didn’t touch it, but that you couldn’t touch it. Am I wrong?”
“N-no, that’s not true! The kick marks are his bullshit!”
“Then why didn’t you deny it before?”
“Huh?”
“I spoke earlier on the premise that you couldn’t touch the material, but why didn’t you deny it then?”
“…U-ugh…”
Yagov-san is scary…
I want to go back to the inn as soon as possible because if I don’t, I won’t be able to eat the innkeeper’s food…
The other two realized that things were going badly, too.
Their faces turned blue, but I think it’s already too late.
“I-isn’t it strange! Why is the guild master siding with that kid who got carried away a while ago? Is that kid so important to you?”
“I’m not taking sides. Your story, Loki’s story, and Amanda’s story, who was consulted by Loki beforehand and saw how today’s events unfolded. I’m telling you this based on my judgment.”
“What the hell?”
“And you know what? I don’t want to create a situation where people die. Especially if it’s one of our hunters.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Hypothetically. What do you think would happen if you and Loki went up against each other?”
“Well… if push comes to shove, there are three of us, and if necessary, we can team up with some of the guys we know and…”
“The result is that you will all die, of course, but also all those who are easily caught up in the situation. That’s assuming the worst-case scenario.”
“Are you kidding me? Just one child…”
“That’s why you’re only an F-rank. You have no risk aversion whatsoever. What makes you think that someone who can collect more than several times the amount of material by himself is weaker than you? Where does this confidence come from?”
“…..”
“The amount of materials Loki brings back in a day is extraordinary. It’s not just for a party, but for a single person, it’s sure to set a new record in this city. If you’re a hunter, you know what I mean.”
“That’s…”
“Do you have that much skill, that much quick wit, that special something―only Loki himself can tell, and it’s best not to pry. But do you understand that you’re trying to antagonize this out-of-the-ordinary guy?”
It’s a bit harsh to be called out of the ordinary, but I consider myself out of the ordinary, so I can’t deny it at all.
And maybe… Yagov-san is wary of me being an otherworlder.
And the Goddess said that they give special skills to otherworlders.
If I tell him that I’m treated like an outsider and only get to see my status, he’d probably be disappointed, so I’ll just shut up and give off an aura that I might actually be amazing.
“W-we’re not trying to be hostile…”
“You forcefully recruit people to join your party, and when you fail, you try to take away their materials, and when that also fails, you try to take away their achievements for the day on a forced pretext. You also tried to force him to join the party tomorrow and even to carry your luggage, right? The only people who think this is not hostile are you.”
“W-what should we do…?”
“Yes… I didn’t think it would be this serious…”
“I’ll be serious from now on! Can’t you spare me?”
I looked at Yagov-san, but he shook his head.
“I’m sorry, but there is no future for you. Or, to be more precise, your future as a hunter. You tried to rob people of their materials. According to the guild’s rules, you will be permanently expelled as a hunter.”
“N-no way! We didn’t take it from him!”
“We didn’t make a single penny! On the contrary, we’re losing money by forcing ourselves to go along with the kid!”
“I can’t get another job now!”
“The act of trying to rob someone is evil to the hunter, not whether you actually robbed them or not. There is no reason to keep people with such thoughts in the guild.”
“Seriously…?”
“You’re lucky you didn’t rob him. If you had, you would have gone from the jurisdiction of the Hunters’ Guild to the jurisdiction of the law. Consider yourself lucky that you didn’t become a criminal slave.”
“””…..”””
“Loki, are you okay with this?”
I think to myself as I see Yagov-san asking me this.
It would be quite inconvenient to make him an enemy but too comforting to make him an ally!
Thank you, Yagov-san.
And even though she was just stunned, it was also reassuring to have Amanda-san by my side… Thank you, Amanda-san!
So let’s settle this matter properly in my mind as well.
“This is not good enough at all.”
Chapter 56 – The Little Villain’s Ending
“What’s all the fuss about at this hour?”
Yagov-san, the guild master, took one look at me and glared at the three idiots.
“(What is it? I have a feeling that Yagov-san’s impression of the three of them is not good, but… isn’t their reputation originally good?)”
“Well, you’re bothering the others here. Follow me.”
Yagov-san walked to the back of the room without turning his head, and I followed him, and the three of them also followed him quietly, probably because the guild master had given his order.
At that time, for some reason, Amanda-san also got up and followed us, but… since Amanda-san is the Amanda counter, I think it will not be too much of a problem if she is not at the reception desk.
We all went to another room in the same row as the one where I took the training before.
There was a low table in the middle of the room with three sofas on either side.
Yagov-san sat in the middle, so I sat on the sofa.
Of course, the three of them went to the sofa opposite me.
I thought Amanda-san would stand behind Yagov-san, but for some reason, she sat next to me, which made me feel weird…
I felt like I had more allies, so I decided to agree without saying anything.
“So what’s the dispute about? Each of you should explain what’s going on. The leader, Adent, should speak on behalf of the party. While one of you is explaining, no one will interrupt until you’re finished.”
Oh, scary…
Those eyes seem to know a lie at a glance.
I get goosebumps, of course, but since I have nothing to lie about, I just tell the truth.
And the three of them―they don’t notice.
There is no way they could have noticed.
They develop their own convenient flower garden story filled with lies, and Amanda-san objectively explains what kind of consultation she received from me as a receptionist.
Then she explained to Yagov-san how today’s events came about.
“Hmm… First of all, the guild does not get involved in personal disputes between hunters. You understand that, don’t you?”
“Yes. I learned that in training.”
“Of course, I know that.”
“So let me say this, not as the guild master, but as my personal opinion…”
After this premise, Yagov-san continued.
“Adent. Why did you call Loki?”
“Huh? Well, since the boy was alone on the Rocker Plain, I thought I’d bring him into the party early as a senior member.”
“I heard that earlier. I’m not asking for a front; I’m asking for the truth.”
“That’s… Well, he’s collected a decent amount of material on his own, and I thought it would be a plus to have him in our party…”
“You’ve been a hunter for over five years now. You knew it would be a significant, if not small, increase in income, and in some ways disproportionate.”
“W-well…”
“In other words, you were more interested in your own income than in Loki’s safety. Am I wrong?”
“N-no! It’s certainly an invitation to expect income as well. I’m the party leader, so I should think about that! But it’s true that I tried to prevent the boy from rushing to his death!”
“Then why did you say that Loki used the magic… stone pillar? So you retreated when you realized you couldn’t touch the material? If what you say about the lucky charm is true, wouldn’t you have stayed there and hunted the monsters with Loki?”
“Th-that’s… I thought he was good because he was able to defeat them by himself… He also said something about efficiency…”
“Then what you said earlier is different. This is an action that doesn’t try to prevent haste to death at all.”
“…..”
Adent-kun, you’re screwed…
He is already dying from Yagov-san’s simple attack of logic.
And then Yagov-san spoke to me.
“And Loki, why did you put the basket on the stone pillar and start hunting? If you don’t mind talking about it, of course.”
“I have no problem with the reason. I just wanted to prevent theft of materials and hunt at a fixed point.”
“Fixed point hunting?”
“Uh… like I said, I hunt alone. So, if I put the material in a basket, it gets heavier and heavier and harder to move. So I put the basket down and hunted the nearby monsters almost empty-handed. When I can no longer hold the materials, I go back to the basket and put the materials in the basket… And repeat the process.”
“Hmm… did you do the same in Palmera?”
“That’s right. I think I did it from the very first day.”
“I see. That’s why the amount of Loki’s material that showed up in the report was always far greater than the rest, wasn’t it?”
“Well, I don’t think that’s the only reason. I ran as much as I could.”
“I see… and Adent tried to steal the material.”
“Eh? N-no, no, we did not try to steal it! We haven’t even touched his basket!”
Adent is a bit nervous to be suddenly approached…
This guy must have let his guard down when he thought the other person had moved on to me.
“Loki said that the stone pillar had several kick marks on it. That would mean that when Loki left his basket and went hunting, you tried to knock over the stone pillar, right? Not that you didn’t touch it, but that you couldn’t touch it. Am I wrong?”
“N-no, that’s not true! The kick marks are his bullshit!”
“Then why didn’t you deny it before?”
“Huh?”
“I spoke earlier on the premise that you couldn’t touch the material, but why didn’t you deny it then?”
“…U-ugh…”
Yagov-san is scary…
I want to go back to the inn as soon as possible because if I don’t, I won’t be able to eat the innkeeper’s food…
The other two realized that things were going badly, too.
Their faces turned blue, but I think it’s already too late.
“I-isn’t it strange! Why is the guild master siding with that kid who got carried away a while ago? Is that kid so important to you?”
“I’m not taking sides. Your story, Loki’s story, and Amanda’s story, who was consulted by Loki beforehand and saw how today’s events unfolded. I’m telling you this based on my judgment.”
“What the hell?”
“And you know what? I don’t want to create a situation where people die. Especially if it’s one of our hunters.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Hypothetically. What do you think would happen if you and Loki went up against each other?”
“Well… if push comes to shove, there are three of us, and if necessary, we can team up with some of the guys we know and…”
“The result is that you will all die, of course, but also all those who are easily caught up in the situation. That’s assuming the worst-case scenario.”
“Are you kidding me? Just one child…”
“That’s why you’re only an F-rank. You have no risk aversion whatsoever. What makes you think that someone who can collect more than several times the amount of material by himself is weaker than you? Where does this confidence come from?”
“…..”
“The amount of materials Loki brings back in a day is extraordinary. It’s not just for a party, but for a single person, it’s sure to set a new record in this city. If you’re a hunter, you know what I mean.”
“That’s…”
“Do you have that much skill, that much quick wit, that special something―only Loki himself can tell, and it’s best not to pry. But do you understand that you’re trying to antagonize this out-of-the-ordinary guy?”
It’s a bit harsh to be called out of the ordinary, but I consider myself out of the ordinary, so I can’t deny it at all.
And maybe… Yagov-san is wary of me being an otherworlder.
And the Goddess said that they give special skills to otherworlders.
If I tell him that I’m treated like an outsider and only get to see my status, he’d probably be disappointed, so I’ll just shut up and give off an aura that I might actually be amazing.
“W-we’re not trying to be hostile…”
“You forcefully recruit people to join your party, and when you fail, you try to take away their materials, and when that also fails, you try to take away their achievements for the day on a forced pretext. You also tried to force him to join the party tomorrow and even to carry your luggage, right? The only people who think this is not hostile are you.”
“W-what should we do…?”
“Yes… I didn’t think it would be this serious…”
“I’ll be serious from now on! Can’t you spare me?”
I looked at Yagov-san, but he shook his head.
“I’m sorry, but there is no future for you. Or, to be more precise, your future as a hunter. You tried to rob people of their materials. According to the guild’s rules, you will be permanently expelled as a hunter.”
“N-no way! We didn’t take it from him!”
“We didn’t make a single penny! On the contrary, we’re losing money by forcing ourselves to go along with the kid!”
“I can’t get another job now!”
“The act of trying to rob someone is evil to the hunter, not whether you actually robbed them or not. There is no reason to keep people with such thoughts in the guild.”
“Seriously…?”
“You’re lucky you didn’t rob him. If you had, you would have gone from the jurisdiction of the Hunters’ Guild to the jurisdiction of the law. Consider yourself lucky that you didn’t become a criminal slave.”
“””…..”””
“Loki, are you okay with this?”
I think to myself as I see Yagov-san asking me this.
It would be quite inconvenient to make him an enemy but too comforting to make him an ally!
Thank you, Yagov-san.
And even though she was just stunned, it was also reassuring to have Amanda-san by my side… Thank you, Amanda-san!
So let’s settle this matter properly in my mind as well.
“This is not good enough at all.”
