CH 86

A back alley near Gray’s house. The area was almost deserted and surrounded by buildings, so it was dimly lit even in the daytime. In such a place, the man I mentioned earlier was discussing something with several strong men dressed like adventurers.

“Hey Buzz. Is that really the kid?”

The man called Buzz was the man who was interacting with Nina and Ares earlier.

“Ah, no doubt. It matches the characteristics I’ve heard. However, there are a few things that bother me.”

“What are you worried about?”

One of the men reacts to Buzz’s words.

“That kid’s parents should have been purged by the ‘Four Knights’. But why is she dressed so neatly and why does she seem to be living in a big house? I thought for sure she was either dead in the street or begging with the other orphans.”

“I mean, was it picked up by some well-to-do guy……Moreover, as far as I hear it, it seems to be quite a wealthy house. So, did you talk to her?”

Buzz nodded at those words.

“That’s what it is. Kill all the people in that house except the kid. If someone sees you, kill him before he makes a fuss.”

“Heh heh heh …… leave it to me. To be honest, I’m getting tired of playing adventurer, I thought I could do whatever I wanted as long as I was good at it. …… The adventurer law is a bunch of nonsense. I’d be happy to take the money while I’m kidnapping the kid, wouldn’t I?”

“Not at all. Thanks to this, even if the client is a nice girl, I can’t even taste her.”

“But that’s all over now. If I can bring that kid to the cathedral, she might be able to acquire the skill. Then we won’t have to smile at the “four knights” anymore.”

“Yeah. Those guys, they think they’re so big just because they’re a little bit better.”

The men grin and smile dismissively.

“Do whatever you like…..Capture the kid by the end of the night, and before it becomes a fuss, we’ll leave the town. We’ll be in the cathedral the night after tomorrow or the morning after tomorrow at the latest.”

(…… You idiots. How can a bunch of thugs like you, who are just vulgar and crude, receive the blessings of the goddess in the first place)

Buzz makes fun of the other men inwardly.

They are not believers of the goddess cult.

Although ostensibly operating as the C-level adventurer party “Xunrai,” they are in fact outsiders dispatched by a certain person with close ties to the goddess cult to provide support in such rough affairs.

For Buzz, the only friends he has are those who share his belief in the goddess cult. At first he tried to contact his friends, but for some reason he couldn’t reach them.

(The church is almost in a state of inactivity due to the coup d’etat of the Holy Knights. The Holy Knights are still too occupied with getting rid of the “pus” in the Holy City to spare any time for the goddess cult. The fact that we were able to find that kid with the transfer skill at this time must be the will of the goddess. …… I’m sure the archbishop will be pleased.)

Buzz turned up the corners of his mouth and smiled dismissively.

“I’ve heard the stories.”

Someone speaks to them, Buzz and the members of “Xunrai”, all turned at once.

Before they knew it, Ares was standing there with his hand on the hilt of a shortsword.

“You just… when did you do it?”

Buzz was surprised to hear that none of the scouts, including himself, had noticed Ares’ approach. Not only Buzz himself, but there were scouts among the members of “Xunrai,” and none of them, including him, had noticed Ares’ approach.

“Hey, what are you doing, you heard me talk.”

“I’m sure it’s obvious. …… Wait a minute. Isn’t this the kid named Ares who’s been hanging out with the Gray bastard lately?”

“Heh…it’s good, isn’t it?  I’m looking forward to seeing how the Gray bastard will react if I kill this kid.”

The members of ” Xunrai” were exchanging somewhat tense banter while holding their weapons, even though they were asked about an important conversation. As if to say, “It doesn’t matter …… because we’re just going to kill them anyway.

However, Buzz, who was listening to this “Xunrai” conversation, was quite impatient.

(Ares…is it the missing hero Ares?! I did think I had seen him somewhere..)

Buzz had seen Ares once in the past, when the oracle’s heroes were announced in Storia. But he did not notice him because he was quite far away, not dressed like today’s novice adventurers, and he was wearing pure white shining holy armor at that time.

“I apologize for eavesdropping…….But I can’t leave this conversation. We just want to live quietly. If you could, would you please leave us alone?”

At one point, he said so, but Ares knew from the conversation that Buzz and the members of “Xunrai” would not back down.

Because malice attacks regardless of the convenience of the other party.