Putting aside Xsaraâs alleged heroics, the problem was the group of people, more than a caravan, coming up behind Xsara.
They are a bunch of suspicious-looking people, including a stern bald man with a weapon, a Mohawk in fur, and a young man in armor carrying an axe. There were also several horse-drawn carriages, and they were riding on horseback.
Itâs the end of the century. The end of the century is here.
âSorry. I reported it to the guild, and there were a lot of idiots who wanted to get rich. Well, I know itâs a frontier village, so they are at least prepared to camp at night. I donât want to scare the villagers, so please let us sleep outside the village.â
Xsara said, but it was not to be. From now on, the adventurers are going to be our clients. They must be here to spread the good word about the village.
âWait a minute. For now, we can sleep sixty people for now. Xsara-san can go back to the village. Thanks for your help.â
As she announced this, Flamilia bowed gracefully behind Xsara. Sheâs definitely a lady, that one.
And then Xsara looks around as if remembering.
âWhere did the Young Master go?â
âOrtho-san and the others are exploring the area around the dungeon. But the location is not good. They havenât been able to make a base for exploring the dungeon.
âOh, really? I guess itâs my turn now. Well, take a good rest today, and tomorrow Iâll show them how itâs done.
Hearing that Ortho and the others were struggling, Xsara said in a good mood and headed for the village.
Arte muttered to himself as he watched her back.
âThat person was the daughter of the Baroness Stratos, wasnât she?â
âYou know her?â
As I ask, Arte pulls her chin with a sad face.
ââŠYes. I heard that after the baron passed away, the house fell into decline. Perhaps the house has been demolishedâŠâ
âOh noâŠyou look about my age, but you must have gone through such hardshipâŠâ
Till says this while holding her mouth, and Arte tilts her head.
âOh, no, there is only one daughter of the Baroness Stratos, and her age must be around 30âŠâ
âHuh?â
At Arteâs words, everyoneâs eyes turned to the village.
ââŠThe world is full of wonders, isnât it?â
Camsin muttered sullenly, but made no comment. An extra word about the womanâs age should be avoided.
âWell, then, weâre back to building the town. The stores wonât be open yet anyway, so I guess weâll build a temporary barrier as a stopgap measure. I think it should be enough to stop a medium-sized monster. If any bad guys come, weâll ask them to run away to the village.â
âYes.â
âIt might be better to surround the place where the carriage is to be placed with a wall.â
While we were having this conversation, an adventurer who had reached our place looked at us and opened his mouth.
âHey, hey, youâre playing in a very hilarious place, arenât you?â
âHey, hey, hey, youâre playing in a very hilarious place, kid! Even if the village is close, itâs not safe out there!
âHeh heh heh. Youâre a beautiful sister. You know, perverts will go after a girl like you, right? Weâd like to hug you, too. You should hurry up and go home.â
The man, who was like a villain at the end of the century, was cursing me.
What? They didnât harass you?
ââŠAre they worried about you?â
âYes, it seems so.â
âThey seem to be clumsy but kind people.â
âBut their faces are a little scaryâŠâ
This was a bit unpopular with Arte, but I was personally surprised in a good way. The three adventurers in front of the century-old adventurers fell silent with faces like statues of Shura, and the adventurers who had been laughing behind them came forward.
âDid they scare you off?â
âMy bad. Those White Oath guys donât look so good.â
âTheyâre so skilled, you know.â
The other adventurers followed up. The adventurers of the end of the century are a party with a name like White Oath? Why did they name it that?
As I look at the end-of-the-century adventurers with this thought in mind, a thin man in shining silver armor opens his mouth.
âBut what are you really doing here? Itâs not safe if a magical beast comes.â
He nods as he is told this.
âThank you. But donât worry, Iâll return to the village as soon as I find something.â
The man raises his eyebrows as he looks back at the village and replies.
ââŠAfter all, thatâs the remote village I was talking about. I heard from the guild that a rather young baron is the lord. Heâs spending a lot of money and manpower, but I guess thatâs how important this village is to the Marquisâ family.â
I tilt my head at the man who says this with a scowl.
Who is this baron? I wonder if there is such a young and capable baron in the Marquiseâs faction.
Well, rumors are rumors. The rumors must have changed drastically by the time we arrived at the royal capital from the marquisâ domain.
âSo, whatâs your game?â
I was thinking, and the man asked me something like that.
âWaiting for wood?â
ââWhat do you mean, waiting for wood?â
He answered my question with a question, which was answered with more questions. Well, seeing is believing.
âCamsin, give me a wood block.â
With that, Camsin came over to me with only three wood blocks left.
I took them and, with an image in my mind, quickly built a simple fence about 10 meters long on either side.
I made it a lattice fence so that I could use as little material as possible, but it ended up looking like a large dog run.
âIt looks a little bad, but well, itâs a temporary fence, so I guess itâs good like this for today. Meanwhile, weâre planning to surround the whole town eventually with a barrier about five meters high.â
When I turned around after saying that, I saw a group of adventurers with rounded eyes and mouths looking at the fence.
âWhat, what, what, whatâŠ?â
The adventurers were pointing at the fence, uttering words I didnât understand, but I was frustrated as well.
âYou know what I mean? Thatâs because you look unreliable. Well, itâs much sturdier than it looks, but weâll build a proper barrier in a week or so.â
He put his hands on his hips and muttered with a sigh, and some adventurers shook their heads from side to side.
âNo, no, no.â
âThatâs not what I meant.â
âWhat the heck is that magic?â
Someone starts a conversation, and the adventurers start screaming as if a dam is about to break.
Just as they were wondering what to do, Dee and the others brought in a log.
âVan-sama!
The adventurers open their mouths with stunned expressions as the Dee piled up the logs in front of me.
ââŠYou canât be serious, this kidâŠVan Nay FertioâŠ?â
The moment someone mutters this, Dee pulls out his sword and yells.
âWho said those words just now! Step forward! This Marquise FertioâŠno, Dee, the Commander of the Seat Knights, will defeat you!â
The adventurers groaned and backed away as Dee shook with rage. Oh no, heâs really out of it. Itâs terrifying.
If it were me, I would have been incontinent in front of them.
Some of them took offense to Deeâs words and came forward.
âOld man! Youâre going to cut us down? Try it, man!â
One of them complained, pulling out a long, thick iron sword and pointing the tip at Deeâs face.
He stared at the sword and swung it at the same time Dee dropped to his haunches.
The next moment, there was a high-pitched metallic clang, and the adventurerâs iron sword was severed about halfway through. The severed sword flew through the air and pierced the ground.
At the sight of this, the excited adventurers turned pale, took a step or two back, and fell silent.