Chapter 18
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Rewards and Framing
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Right after succeeding in the thief subjugation.
I had no choice but to return, seized by the nobles and knights.
It was true that I'd earned merits, but as an adventurer who'd acted against the plan, I deserved punishment for that.
Still, they weren't saying they'd just abandon me.
They promised to give me the punishment I deserved and separately reward me for my contributions.
With a sigh, I had no choice but to nod at their suggestion to calculate punishment and merits separately rather than netting them out.
Whether they'd actually keep that promise was anyone's guess.
Returning to the city took even longer than the trip there.
The rain had slowed us down some, but more than that, unlike the lighthearted journey out, we now had to transport the captured thieves.
An incident even occurred.
A few adventurers murdered two of the thieves in the middle of the night.
They were filled with resentment, claiming those thieves had killed their friends.
I could still hear them shouting at the soldiers trying to stop them, demanding why we had to keep such scum alive.
"I get being angry, but if personal revenge could be justified, we wouldn't need laws in the first place."
"...That's a pretty convincing point."
I wasn't walking on my own two feet either—I was being carried back by a knight—so my mutterings weren't exactly private.
The knight reacted with surprise to my offhand remark.
"What would you do if you were in their shoes?"
The road back was awfully boring, it seemed, so he tossed the question my way out of the blue. After a moment's thought, I decided against sugarcoating it and spoke plainly.
"I probably couldn't hold back either."
"Then wasn't that a bit too flippant about someone else's pain?"
"It's not my pain."
If I were in that situation, I'd obviously lose my mind and go berserk too, so maybe the knight had a point that my words were too casual.
But in the end, it wasn't my pain.
That's why I could say it so lightly.
Some people—no, most people—would be deeply disappointed by my answer right now.
I hoped they would be.
I was going to become a cruel, loathsome existence.
That was my goal.
If the world was cruel and repulsive, I'd mold myself to fit right in.
That's what I'd resolved.
"...You're awfully clumsy at lying."
"I'm not... lying."
"Even if it's the curse making you avert your eyes, your voice is shaking, and since that answer, your hands and feet haven't stopped fidgeting for a second."
"...That obvious, huh?"
"Painfully."
I let out a sigh at the knight's firm words.
Becoming a cruel person seemed harder than I'd thought.
"I don't know why you're trying to imitate a bad guy, but there's no benefit to actually becoming one."
"The world's repulsive, so to adapt to a world like this, I need to become repulsive too."
"You're maybe eleven or twelve, but you talk like you've seen all the world's ugliness single-handedly."
"Maybe I'm just being dramatic."
Anyone else seeing my behavior right now might call me a crybaby.
The knight pondered my words for a moment before scoffing.
"There's no such thing as 'overdramatic.' No matter the pain, calling it overdramatic just because someone accepts it differently means they're fools who think their own suffering is the greatest while looking down on others'. Even if such people exist, they're not worth dealing with."
"That's some solid advice."
"Your eyes are repulsive, but you're not yourself. That's why I'm offering counsel."
The knight glanced down at me and continued.
"Thanks to you, we won."
"It was just my job."
"The kind of loathsome person you want to be wouldn't say that."
He laughed heartily and slapped my shoulder—hard. It stung like hell, tears pricking my eyes, but there was no malice, just poor control of his strength, so I didn't complain.
"Once we're back, you'll get light punishment and hefty rewards, so ditch the gloomy thoughts and imagine something happy instead."
"...Thanks."
This was definitely going to leave a bruise on my shoulder.
But with all the kind words, it was hard to whine about it.
"Still, the situation isn't great for happy thoughts."
"...Fair point."
This subjugation had been a disaster in terms of casualties.
Word was, the thieves had been backed by a hostile city, and we'd gotten caught in the crossfire, leading to massive losses.
That Tyson guy in particular was a messenger from the enemy city.
"...Tricky."
"You all just got dragged into political games. Sorry again."
"What can you do."
Six soldiers dead, three critically wounded.
Even the knights hadn't escaped unscathed—one was so badly hurt he might have to retire.
If only adventurers had died with no losses on the noble side, I'd suspect they'd used us as meat shields, but given the circumstances, this was an unforeseen accident, so any blame lay with the lunatics backing the thieves, not them.
The supply unit was horrified when they saw us return.
No one had expected nearly half of us to die.
"For now, I don't want to join any more subjugation forces."
Suddenly the dice rolled, suddenly the difficulty spiked, and the thieves were way stronger than expected.
Their gear was good, sure, but thinking deeper, it felt like their raw 'strength' had somehow increased too—hard to comprehend, but there it was.
If I hadn't thought to use my traits.
If the thieves hadn't gone berserk and had spotted me sneaking in among them.
If that Tyson hadn't yelled out his position.
We would've been wiped out.
"That's up to you, but once this is settled, the rewards should be enough to keep you set for at least half a year without working."
"Looking forward to it."
A knight like him wouldn't make empty promises, and he'd know his lord's character, so I could trust it.
With that, our conversation ended.
A few days' journey later, things moved swiftly once we reached the city.
The thieves were publicly executed in the central square, as expected.
Those who'd surrendered hoping for a slim chance at survival as slaves ended up consumed only by rage and despair.
How could not a single one show even a hint of remorse right up to the end?
It was almost astonishing.
The thieves' severed heads were impaled on spikes beyond the gates as a warning, their bodies dumped deep in the woods outside for wild beasts to devour.
With the thieves dealt with, negotiations with the hostile city were none of our business.
Next up was my turn.
Punishment for leaving formation without orders.
The penalty: my adventurer status suspended for three days.
So light it barely qualified as punishment. Then came the rewards: a whopping 80 silver coins, plus a voucher for a special order at the smith favored by nobles.
For standard requests, the noble covers all materials, and the artisan—who takes only noble commissions—pours his heart into crafting whatever you want.
As long as I used it before leaving the city, anytime was fine. I nodded in satisfaction.
The noble thought highly of me.
Artisan smith voucher.
I already knew what to get.
A sword.
The one I had was good enough, but this incident had driven one thing home.
A long sword didn't suit my abilities.
I lacked strength, and my small body meant short reach.
What I needed wasn't a sturdy longsword, but something smaller, thinner, sharper.
A weapon to silently close in and sever a life in one strike, without facing them head-on.
"Grandpa's sword for frontal fights, the new one for when I need my abilities."
I'd use two.
Anyway.
Back at the guild after claiming my rewards, the stares were piercing.
I sighed.
I knew why they were reacting like that.
The adventurers I'd saved had spread lies during my three-day suspension.
Being saved by me was humiliating, they envied my rewards.
Yet they couldn't confront me directly, so while I was gone, they gossiped that I'd been a burden to the subjugation force and hogged all the glory.
People were easily swayed.
Partly because they already disliked my vibe, but mostly jealousy over my huge payout.
"Noble tastes sure are unique—getting hot over a little shit like that."
"Nobles' kinks are too twisted for commoners like us to get. But damn, strong stomach to fall head over heels for such a creepy bitch."
"Can't fight worth shit, but must be good at squeezing, huh?"
It wasn't whispered.
They said it loud on purpose, for me to hear. I had no intention of playing along with their filth.
They thought I'd snuggled into the noble's arms and fabricated merits for rewards.
Arguing would just sound like excuses.
I scanned the request board, picked a suitable one, and headed to the counter.
Even the receptionist eyed me coldly.
The whole guild seemed swept up in the rumors.
Incitement is easy; explanations are hard.
Tsking my tongue, I tried to ignore it when one adventurer sauntered over cockily and groped my ass hard.
"Not much to look at, so I wasn't interested, but hearing the noble's obsessed has me curious. Wanna give it a go? I'll pay."
He dropped a copper coin in front of me with a twisted grin.
"Ha."
I drew my sword and slashed his arm.
"Gaaaaahhh!!"
He clearly hadn't expected me to attack, shrieking pathetically as he clutched his half-severed arm, spraying blood everywhere.
"Like you said, the young noble lord favors me enough to cover something like this. Why? Wanna fight?"
One thing I'd realized from this mess:
Fellow adventurers' skills varied wildly by rank. I could beat most at my level.
I shook the blood off my sword and kicked the fallen bastard.
His nose caved in, teeth shattering onto the floor.
The annoying screams stopped.
Silence.
No one dared challenge me.
In this era, someone connected to nobles like me was untouchable around here.
I knew that.
I swept them with a bug-staring gaze and left the guild.
After commissioning the smith and picking up the sword.
I'd leave this place immediately.
The quality here was trash.
Stagnant too long—believing any bullshit from their own without question and shunning outsiders.
Half of them were off, but this seemed like the adventurer average. Shaking my head, I headed into the mountains for the request, a path I'd taken before.
Time hadn't stopped, though.
A familiar voice rang out.
[I was wondering what junk items suddenly filled up my inventory, what the hell is this?!]
Exaggerated tone.
It was Rie.
Some of my subjugation rewards had flowed into her inventory, apparently drawing her here to check.