The Suspicious Company Employee (9)
"In that case, I'll gladly accept it."
A breastplate in dark brown with shoulder guards attached. Unlike standard leather breastplates that only covered the chest, this one was designed to wrap all the way down to the waist. And every part was made from that incredibly precious Quaratus leather. Quaratus was a lizard-like monster that lived in the ocean depths, and its hide had magic-resistant properties, trading for prices beyond imagination. It was tough enough that ordinary cold weapons couldn't even scratch it, yet it had amazing elasticity, contracting or expanding on its own to fit the wearer's body perfectly. Sure enough, as I put on the armor, it slowly shrank, molding exactly to my size. The exterior was rigid, but when I moved, it responded with astonishing flexibility, like a second skin.
So this Patrick guy traded in stuff like this? At first, I thought it was overkill to deploy a mage just to kill one company employee, but now it was starting to make a little sense.
"Thanks. I'll make good use of it, Patrick."
"Compared to you risking your life to escort me all this way, this is nothing. Please, go on in."
Patrick bid us farewell and led the horses toward the city streets.
"Guildmaster. I've been thinking."
As I watched Patrick walk away, Celestine spoke up.
"No matter how I look at it, we should get close to that guy."
"'Cause of the bread?"
"That's part of it, but I have a feeling he'll give us good commissions later, and hand out expensive gear like this too."
"Same here. It's a trading company, so they'll probably need mercenaries or adventurers often. We should drop by regularly."
"Take me with you for sure."
"'Cause of the bread?"
"Yeah~."
I ran into Leana just as she was approaching from the other side of the guild entrance.
"Guildmaster! Celestine!"
Leana waved happily, holding a basket woven from straw in one hand.
"Welcome back! How'd the commission go?"
"All good. We just parted ways with the client."
Leana tilted her head at the Quaratus armor.
"That's new. Weren't you wearing something else when you left?"
"That got wrecked fighting a mage. The client gave me this as a sample to wear."
"A mage?"
Leana narrowed her eyes, clearly baffled.
"There was a pursuit squad. Patrick said it was a rival company, but I don't know the details."
"Even so, deploying a mage to kill one person?"
"I didn't get it at first either, but getting this armor changed my mind."
"What's so special about it?"
"Quaratus leather."
"Eek?!"
Leana's eyes widened like they might pop out as she felt up the leather armor.
"Quaratus leather?! Sell this right now!"
"Haha, no can do. We'll be seeing Patrick a lot, and it'd look bad to sell a gift like that outright. Plus, it resists magic, so it'll come in handy."
"Magic resistance? Wow, this is seriously amazing gear."
Leana smacked her lips regretfully, stroking the armor nonstop. I'd use it well and later, when we had more money, get it reinforced with extra features. Not sure if there were smiths in the duchy who could do that, though.
"That Patrick guy's no regular employee—probably executive level at least. Handing out stuff like this so casually."
"And he gave us bread too. White and soft-textured. Best bread I've ever had."
Leana burst out laughing as Celestine chimed in.
"Bread? Maybe he's a baker, not a company man."
"That'd be great. If Patrick opened a bakery, I'd go every day."
"You liked it that much? We should tour the city's bakeries sometime. So many good ones here."
Celestine's face lit up. Like with the wine before, she had a surprising appetite. How'd a girl like that survive an ascetic sect? But man, her head was thick. Patrick gave her bread, sure, but whether he baked it or bought it—who knew? Yet Celestine assumed it was homemade just because it came from him. Total airhead. That's what made her cute.
"What's that?"
I pointed to the straw basket in Leana's hand, and she held it out. Inside were about twenty white eggs.
"Picked 'em up from a simple commission. Eggs for dinner tonight."
"Sounds tasty."
Celestine smacked her lips with a slurp slurp.
While Celestine and I took turns washing up, Leana hummed in the kitchen, cooking away. Peeking in, I saw fried eggs, steamed eggs, rolled omelets, egg fried rice, and egg toast. Eggs galore tonight. Kimchi would make it perfect.
"Hey, Leana. No salt?"
"Salt? Why?"
"You need salt for flavor."
"Really? I skip it to eat healthy."
No way—she'd been cooking without any seasoning? Explained why her food was so bland.
"Salt and health aren't directly related. Sprinkle just enough for taste."
"Got it~."
Then she grabbed a fistful to dump on!?
"No! Too much!"
"Then how much?"
I pinched a bit and sprinkled lightly instead of explaining.
Leana eyed it curiously. "That little makes it tasty?"
"That's plenty. Always this amount from now on. Got it?"
"Okay. You know your way around cooking, huh? Trained professionally somewhere?"
Basic stuff, really... I just smiled instead of saying it.
We gathered around the first-floor round table, chatting as we ate. Leana brought the ledger and reported commissions that came in while we were gone. Mostly minor stuff; some she'd handled herself by stepping out briefly. Things like tax calculations or brain-teasers for illiterate commoners. Leana was sharp, unlike Celestine.
"No big ones yet, huh."
"Yeah. The other two guilds are holding strong. We're known for demon hunting now, but fame doesn't always mean commissions."
"Nothing from city hall?"
"Nope. They only outsource to guilds as a last resort. Oh, right."
Leana grinned like she'd remembered something.
"Clemence mentioned yesterday—they're giving us the water demon head. Too big to dispose of, and the mayor approved."
"Good news. Where to hang it?"
"Too big for indoors, so mount it on the outer wall like a signboard? I'll check with city hall if that's okay."
"Smart idea."
"About that Patrick guy, though. Huh? Where'd she go?"
Celestine suddenly bolted to the kitchen.
"More fried rice, please."
Her plate was empty. She really packed it away.
"You left your sect and now you're indulging every whim?"
Leana teased with a laugh, but Celestine shook her head.
"Not indulgence—survival. I was starving all the time before."
"Hmm, for someone who starved..."
Leana squinted at Celestine's chest.
"Guildmaster, won't her boobs explode from all that eating?"
"No way."
"They might. Anyway, back to Patrick."
Leana brushed back her hair.
"From what you said, he's no ordinary employee. I asked around about Dremond Trading while you were gone—nothing came up."
"Yeah, first I'd heard of them too. No noble house rings a bell."
"Exactly. Gifting Quaratus armor means serious backing, but you'd think someone would know them. And sending a dozen swordsmen plus a mage for one employee? How many rivals could privately mobilize a mage like that? Something's off, right?"
"Same thought here, but we got no way to dig deeper. He invited us to the branch later, so we'll check it out then."
Celestine returned with the rest of the fried rice and shoveled it in vigorously. Leana and I burst out laughing at the sight.
Seasoning was definitely the issue.
That night, after helping the guildmaster with dishes and cleaning, Celestine hurried up to her second-floor room. Not forgetting to greet her superiors.
"Good night, Guildmaster."
"Good work today."
"Good night, Guild Leader."
"Sleep well, Celestine."
In her light pajamas, lying in bed, she seemed to drift off—then grinned like an idiot with her eyes closed. She'd remembered the guildmaster praising her that afternoon.
The guildmaster said I did well. Said I was great.
Celestine had manifested holy power young and been dragged to the church. Her growth years were brutal training under cold high saintesses. As an adult, she was surrounded by blindly adoring priests.
In that environment, she'd never once received genuine praise. Everyone sang her glories, but it was all for the halo above her head—not her. She often felt the halo was her true self, and she just its shadow.
But the guildmaster was different. He saw her, not the halo. Recognized her as whole Celestine, not the halo saintess.
I'd lived as the halo's shadow my whole life. First person to see me instead.Hehe, feels so good... Said taking me into the guild was his best decision ever? I won't let you regret it—I'll work even harder!
"Kyaaah!!"
"Celestine! Quiet at night!"
"Sorry, Guild Leader...!"
Actually, Leonar had said it was his best for this year, but that tiny detail didn't matter to Celestine.
She rummaged in her bedside bag and pulled out a small pouch. Inside were several slime-processed condoms, prepared by Leana for emergencies.
Better keep these handy. Feels like I'll need them someday.
