Nightmare (2)
The orc extermination request had come from the pioneer village located quite a distance from Carpe.
To a pioneer village that lived primarily by timber, the mere presence of an orc tribe threatening their residents was a matter tied to their very survival.
Moreover, even in the nearby city, they would have to wait for the provincial lord’s army or knight order to arrive—by which time the village might already be gone.
Still, this village was one of the larger ones among the pioneers.
That meant they had more surplus funds that could actually be put to use.
With a larger size came a larger population, and judging by how much money they had thrown at the request fee, the open space in front of the village was packed with people waiting for the adventurers.
Sitting in the same spot as everyone else and surveying the other adventurers was Er, who turned to the person beside her—Jina—and asked.
“Jina, you said you’ve fought orcs before, right?”
“Yeah, I’ve fought a ton. I even wiped out the whole bunch in one area once.”
“You did it yourself?”
“Nope, my master and… my little brother did almost all of it.”
At the time, Jina had only just begun learning martial arts and was barely able to tear apart a goblin horde on her own.
Compared to her master and little brother, who had slashed through forests and punched holes in the sky, she was no more than a chick in front of an oil pot.
“But… I did catch a few myself!”
“Hmm…”
“Really? Those guys are strong but slow, right? And they’ve got so many openings, there’s always somewhere to hit!”
“…Wasn’t it scary?”
“Huh? What would be scary?”
It made sense to say that.
Whenever Jina faced orcs, her master and little brother had their eyes blazing behind her.
Naturally, she herself never came close to losing her life.
Under those conditions, orcs were nothing more than excellent training dummies and sparring partners.
There was no reason to feel fear over them.
“I’ve tested a bunch of things too. The Smash skill? I learned it by bashing an orc’s head!”
“…I see.”
“Er, have you ever fought orcs?”
“Yeah, but…”
Right in the middle of the conversation, Er’s face—unusually pale—froze as she tried to speak.
“Here you are.”
“Ahin, where did you wander off to this time?”
“When I’m gone, there’s always a reason.”
With that said, Ahin dropped himself into the empty seat beside Er with a thud.
“Eek! Come sit here! I kept your seat open!”
“…No thanks.”
“Why! Come on, Er, switch seats!”
“…I don’t want to either.”
“What?!”
A ruckus loud enough to shatter the tension exploded between them, and soon Ahin found himself wedged between the two women.
“Uhehehe…”
“G, gross, back off a bit.”
“The seat’s tight, what am I supposed to do?”
“Tight? Bullshit! It’s completely empty!”
“If it’s tight, then I’m the one who’s tight!”
Grinning at the way Jina clung to him, Ahin shoved her away with an expression of pure disgust.
In the end, the only person he could rely on was one.
“Er, save me!!”
“…”
“…Er?”
“Y-yes, what?”
Startled by Ahin’s call, Er lifted her head.
Despite the chaos unfolding all around her, she was still sitting there with her chin propped on her knees, lost in deep thought.
“What have you been thinking about so deeply lately?”
Ahin shoved the girl still attached to him aside and asked.
Er’s condition today looked especially bad.
In Carpe she had suddenly stood frozen in place, hands trembling, and even now, on the way to fulfill the request, there was still an uneasy glint in her eyes.
“You’re too tense before a promotion, aren’t you? It’s fine, you usually do duo promotion matches…”
In a tone that suggested it was only natural, Ahin gave her one of his usual lectures.
“I don’t know what you’re on about, but I can tell you’re just trying to reassure me.”
Er answered, her expression strangely devoid of warmth.
“Thank you, Ahin.”
“…Yeah, good. That’s all I wanted to hear.”
Answering Er with perfect nonchalance.
Yet even as he spoke, the helplessness in her posture made Ahin narrow his eyes, about to probe further.
“Everyone, thank you for coming!”
A middle-aged man with a large scar cutting across his face strode into the open space where the adventurers were gathered and raised his voice.
“My name is Rozo, and I am the village chief.”
“Is that the client for the request?”
“Must be.”
The man named Rozo had a sturdy build for a village chief.
The physique that showed beneath his clothes belonged to someone who had been systematically trained, and his eyes carried a sharpness that ordinary village chiefs rarely possessed.
“Rozo? Oh, the one who retired a while back…”
“Yeah, wasn’t he a Silver-rank adventurer?”
Hearing the whispers from the people around him, Ahin realized he must have been an adventurer himself.
One who ranked among the elite of the Silver ranks.
“Uh-huh, someone with that kind of pull wouldn’t just drop a request into the guild without checking.”
“Huh? You can’t just drop any request you want?”
“Large-scale requests are picky even for the guild. The paperwork gets complicated.”
Especially when the request involved wiping out an entire monster tribe. Even a normal person might not know when the approval would come.
If a tribe was named after monsters, there were more than a few things to decide on—reward amounts, supplies, or the request method itself.
But if the one who issued the request was a high-rank adventurer, most of the formalities could be skipped and the whole thing handled with a simple agreement.
Based on the trust and credit built up over time, they would submit their plans and information, and if nothing strange turned up, the request was approved without further questions.
Following the usual custom, Rozo, who had already accepted the request from adventurer guilds in several cities, scanned the gathered adventurers and announced the details in a loud voice.
“A while ago, one of our hunters was wandering the forest and spotted an orc. Just to be safe, I followed the trail and found an orc tribe beyond the mountain!”
“How credible is that information?”
One adventurer asked.
“If it’s a mistake or a lie, we’re walking into a dead end, right? We get a pittance for the reward, and we’re worse off than selling orc magic stones!”
Originally, these extermination requests were more about the magic stones that could be harvested from the monsters than the reward money itself.
Except for people like Er, who cared about the success or failure of the mission, most adventurers shared the same mindset.
Rozo had no trouble reading that.
“Since it’s reliable, you can trust it.”
“Who was that hunter?”
“It was me!”
“…”
What could anyone say to that?
It was information personally verified by a Silver-rank adventurer.
The odds of it being wrong were practically zero.
“As promised, I’ll hand over all the magic stones and other byproducts. In exchange, if anyone causes trouble in the village, touches the village’s property, or harms the residents, I will immediately expel them and report to the guild. That’s the deal.”
Adventurers from the guild, which placed strength first, often had terrible personalities, so such a warning was only fair.
Even with that in place, there would still be troublemakers, but Rozo would handle them.
“Well, with orc magic stones, there’s no need to cause a fuss over money.”
“There’s nothing worth stealing in a backwater village like this.”
After hearing Rozo’s firm answer, the adventurers who had been arguing loudly over the reward fell quiet.
One person—almost the only one who hadn’t cared about money—raised a hand and asked.
“How will we handle the extermination? Will we turn the village into a base and fight a prolonged battle?”
The one who had asked was Er.
Surprised that the request itself mattered more to her than the reward, Rozo answered with a bewildered expression.
“Of course I was going to explain, but for an adventurer to care about the request content before the reward is rare. Fine, since you brought it up, I’ll tell you. A prolonged battle is not the method we want.”
“Then what?”
“Tomorrow at dawn, as soon as the sun rises, we’ll launch a full-scale assault. Orcs multiply overnight, so we can’t afford to waste time.”
Most young orcs lacked magic stones.
The longer the battle went on, the more they would consume resources and the less real profit they would gain.
True to their reputation as adventurers who chased low effort and high returns, the adventurers nodded vigorously in agreement with Rozo’s explanation.
“The hunting style is up to each of you, but make sure you kill them cleanly. If any orcs escape alive, it will be a headache.”
“That’s basic!”
“Right, we’ve done this a few times before.”
“Then it’s settled. Today the village will provide food and lodging. Rest well and gather at the village entrance before sunrise tomorrow. Any other questions?”
No one raised their hands.
Satisfied, Rozo flashed a smile that somehow looked menacing, and a gesture from him sent the villagers who had followed him pouring out supplies.
“We couldn’t prepare separate rooms because of the large group. But I’ve prepared decent blankets and tents, so please bear with us. For meals, don’t expect anything extravagant! If you’re capable of moderating your drinking, we’ll provide it.”
Rozo, who had once been an adventurer, was clearly trying to make things as convenient as possible for everyone, and no one felt the urge to complain.
The same went for Er and her group.
While listening quietly, Ahin accepted a blanket from one of the villagers and muttered with a serious face.
“This is impossible to carry when we leave. It would make nighttime camping so much easier…”
“Ahin, why don’t we just stay at my place?”
“At least I’d have to crawl into a tiger’s mouth.”
“Why! Do you hate me that much?!”
“I’ll correct myself—into a dragon’s mouth!”
“Yo!”
Once again the two were bickering.
Watching them with an amused smile, Er spoke up.
“Both of you, don’t waste energy on pointless things. Get ready to fight tomorrow—”
And then, in that moment.
“…Er?”
The familiar voice.
Yet it was not a welcome one.
The instant the voice reached her, Er’s blood turned to ice.
It was a familiar sensation—the chilling feeling that dragged her back into her old nightmares.
Her hands began to tremble as if every inch of her body was turning to ice.
She swallowed dryly, looked behind her with trembling eyes.
Before her stood one female adventurer.
The only odd detail was that the sleeve of her left arm was unusually empty.
“It’s Er!”
“Y-you…?”
“Jane. Have you already forgotten?”
Of course not.
But she could not even bring herself to speak, and Er bit her own lip.
Looking at such Er, Jane’s face brightened as she spoke.
“I heard you’ve advanced to Bronze rank. Congratulations.”
“…Thank you.”
“Yeah, after all, your talent was already exceptional from the start. Maybe it was only natural.”
In her voice there was no malice, yet Er could not shake the unease.
She clenched her heart tightly so that any carelessness would not make the feeling spill out.
“…Jane, are you still working as an adventurer?”
Er asked, eyes fixed on Jane’s empty left sleeve.
The bitter expression that crossed Jane’s face as she answered Er’s question.
“I’d rather say… a porter.”
“…A porter.”
“With that, how can I even fight properly? I just pick up magic stones and carry burdens.”
“…”
Er pressed her lips shut at those words.
The guilt she could no longer hide from the face of such Er made Jane’s mouth curve upward as she continued.
“So, since we’ve met again like this, it’s fate… Would you perhaps do me one small favor?”
“…What kind of favor?”
A favor.
Er could not refuse a favor from her.
And Jane, who knew Er’s unusually anxious demeanor well enough to sense that she would never turn it down, spoke.
“I’ve been having a rough time lately. If you happen to have any money, could you lend me a little? I’ll definitely pay it back—”
Right then.
“Enough.”
A man who perfectly matched Er’s golden-blonde hair and golden eyes like molten gold stepped between them.
The same eyes that had once looked beautiful to someone now felt strangely frightening to Jane, who trembled as she asked.
“W-who are you? Why are you interrupting our conversation…”
“Me? I was Er’s party member.”
“Party… member?”
Jane’s eyes widened in disbelief as she immediately turned to Er and asked.
“Er, you’re still the party leader…”
“That has nothing to do with you. You were trying to borrow money from Er, weren’t you?”
“N-no? What’s the problem? It’s perfectly fine to borrow a little from an old comrade!”
Looking at the woman who had spoken so arrogantly, Ahin narrowed his eyes.
“You plan to pay it back?”
“…What?”
“Your face is screaming ‘scammer.’ You’re the perfect target for a con.”
“T-this person is…!”
Anger rising, Jane tried to lash out, but Er stepped forward and stopped her.
“Ahin, stop it.”
“Er, we have to shut this down cleanly.”
“I’ll handle it myself. You back off.”
With that, Er pushed Ahin aside and turned to Jane.
“Jane… so, how much?”
“Er!”
Ignoring Ahin’s call, Er asked.
“N-not much! Two gold coins, or maybe three at most…!”
“What? This crazy woman, three gold? Are you kidding? With that kind of money…”
“I only have one gold coin on me now. Would it be okay if I borrowed the rest later?”
“Er! Why are you doing this?!”
Ignoring Ahin’s shout, Er pulled a gold coin from her pocket and handed it to Jane.
Jane stared between the gold coin Er had given and Er’s face, then snatched the coin with a trembling hand and said.
“T-thank you! It’s not urgent or anything. I can take my time borrowing the rest!”
“Of course. Take care, Jane.”
“Y-yeah! You too, Er!”
With that, Jane turned and fled.
“Damn bitch…”
Ahin’s brow furrowed as he muttered curses while watching Jane run off, but…
“Ahin, stop it.”
“Er! Even if you’re a fool, this is too much! That woman has no intention of paying!”
“I know that too.”
“Wha—”
“Still, there’s nothing we can do.”
Er answered with a face stained by guilt and regret.
“That’s why I created Jane that way.”
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【Ahin】Philanthropist skill active. Healing support disabled for living targets.