In a certain town, a man who had been swindled out of his money was being comforted by his friend.
"…So, you’re not just going to let this slide, are you?"
In response to his friend’s words, the man answered firmly.
"Of course not! Right now, it’s still the days of biding my time, but I have friends who will become my red comrades. I will definitely make them spin in circles eventually!"
In this town, a special phrase had become a common expression from a certain day.
Biding: Lying low while plotting evil or preparing for a counterattack.
Red Comrades: Unmerciful, overwhelmingly powerful support forces.
Spinning: An act of disproportionate retaliation.
For a certain girl, it was a rather inhospitable town.
"Please draw water from this well to fill the bathtub and the tank on the water heater."
The six orphans nodded in unison at Rennie’s instructions.
Rennie’s parents had been convinced, especially by the long periods when the counter was unmanned, to allow the orphans to be employed when the 'Red Oath' was absent. The reward was cheap, but for the children who were guild associate members, especially the orphans who often lacked daily food expenses, it was a welcome job. After all, it was a job with no risk to life, a chance to build physical strength, and the money to buy several days' worth of food, which would continue for several days and might even be available again in the future, potentially becoming a regular client for the orphans. They showed the utmost respect to Rennie, who was not much older than themselves.
The reward was based on results, not time. In other words, it was paid for the entire amount of work. Whether it took one hour or ten hours, the reward amount did not change. Therefore, the orphans were trying to finish the job quickly by working together. They thought it would make the client happy, and the leader of the orphans judged that it would be too tough to continue for a long time alone.
However, their goal was not just that.
"Got it, right?"
After Rennie finished giving instructions and left, an older boy, around 8 or 9 years old, who seemed to be the leader of the orphans, reminded everyone.
"Brother Byle is staying here, and he is our benefactor. And it goes without saying that Brother Byle is head over heels for that person, right?"
The other five nodded.
It seemed that these orphans were being taken care of by Byle, who had been a substitute for Mile during her graduation exam.
Byle had repeatedly told the orphans that they owed their future to a girl named Mile, and if anything happened to him, he wanted them to repay her someday. He never expressed his feelings, but even a 4- or 5-year-old child could see through it.
"If you meet the benefactor, take a break from work and talk to them. Find out their hobbies and preferences subtly. Then, talk about how wonderful our leader is, and finally mention Brother Byle’s name. From there, lead to their reunion. Failure is not an option. Got it?"
"““““Yes!””””
Three days later.
"That’s strange… I’ve tried changing the work schedule, but I haven’t met her at all…"
While the leader of the orphans was thinking during a break, Rennie came over.
"Hey, is something wrong?"
The boy, asked by Rennie, hesitated for a moment before deciding to ask.
"Um, I heard that a female hunter party is staying here long-term, but I haven’t met them at all…"
"Oh, you mean Miss Mile and her party…"
Rennie, hearing this, laughed and explained to the boys.
"When Miss Mile and her party are staying, they use magic to provide hot water. So, I only ask everyone to do this job when they are away on business in the capital. In other words, you will never meet them while doing this job."
Rennie, who rarely had the chance to talk to children her age or younger, spoke in a normal childlike tone, not her usual adult tone. It seemed she had come to the orphans during their break because she wanted to chat. However…
"““““Whaaat~!””””
The orphans, who had fallen to their knees in despair, were in no mood to chat.
"That’s… That’s… Our ambition. Our grand plan…"
"To establish 'Griffin’s Den' and train the orphans to become top-notch hunters under Brother Byle and the benefactor…"
It seemed that Byle, who had heard some of Mile’s stories during his training, had also told the orphans.
"Huh? Huh? Huh?"
And Rennie, who didn’t understand, was left with a blank expression…
"Ah, it’s Rena!"
While the 'Red Oath' was looking at the request board at the guild, they were suddenly called from behind.
Turning around, they saw their training school classmate Fran and the three members of 'Flame Wolf,' with whom they had previously worked on a caravan escort mission.
"Oh, it’s Fran and the Flame Wolf team. It’s been a while."
"Huh, Fran, are you teaming up with Flame Wolf?"
Rena greeted them lightly, while Mile listened with interest.
"Hehe, that’s right. As you know, I was initially teaming up with my classmates, but they were all unreliable. It’s more reassuring and faster to grow when you team up with experienced seniors and let them lead!"
Fran, with her short bob of chestnut hair and big, round brown eyes, was cute and small but energetic and bright, and was popular at the training school. Her job was a magician, which 'Flame Wolf' had been looking for. She was quite skilled and could handle a wide range of tasks, from ranged attacks to healing.
"I’m being treated very well as a newbie, and I’m very happy right now!"
"That’s great to hear!"
Even though the party Fran had left must be struggling, it couldn’t be helped. They weren’t volunteers, so everyone prioritized their own interests.
After a brief chat, 'Flame Wolf,' who had already completed their request procedures, left.
Just before leaving, the leader, Brett, lingered and bowed to the 'Red Oath.'
"Really, I’m very grateful to you all. Thanks to that incident, our name became known, and we gained credibility. With Fran joining, we’ve managed to balance the team…
If we get one more magician, we’ll be perfect, but at this rate, it shouldn’t be long.
The only problem right now is that Brett, Chuck, and Daryl are sparking over who will date Fran. Haha!"
The four members of the 'Red Oath' watched Brett leave with a somewhat awkward look.
"““““……””””
"Ah… I wonder if Brett and the others know…"
"They probably don’t, judging by their reaction…"
"They don’t. I’ll bet a gold coin."
"I’ll bet ten gold coins that they don’t."
"That’s not a fair bet!"
Fran, the all-rounder magician. A graduate of the 12th class of the Hunter Training School.
With her smooth chestnut hair and big, round eyes.
Small and slender, but energetic, bright, and very cute.
I’ve heard she was the third son of a poor farming family.
…Yeah, she’s the 'third son.'
The four members of the 'Red Oath' prayed for the souls of Brett, Chuck, and Daryl.
'You said you wanted average stats, right!' Volume 1 is finally on sale tomorrow! (It’s the 13th when this is posted, so don’t get it wrong… (^^ゞ))
Earth Star Novels are usually released on the 15th of each month, but since the 15th is a Sunday this month, it’s being released on the 14th, a Saturday.
Ah, I hope the publisher doesn’t go into the red!
I hope the editor-in-chief doesn’t regret publishing my book!
My stomach hurts more than a kidney stone… (^^ゞ)
Oh, by the way, everyone, have you seen the CM for this work?
On the Earth Star Novels website, the CM video and a special page are available. In the CM video, you can hear Mile’s voice (by Hikaru Kode), and on the special page, you can see character introductions and sample images of store-specific bonuses!