In order to find Gaston, and to spread the word that if Gaston was not to be found, the ruckus in the forest was over, I and Mea headed to the Adventurerâs Support Station.
The Adventurerâs Support Center was noisy but not as lively as usual.
Everyone has a gloomy atmosphere and whispering conversations.
âI repeat the notice. From now on, the North Forest is hereby declared a Level B or higher danger! From now on, any intrusion into the North Woods by adventurers of less than Class B will be punished, in some cases! Be careful! See the board for more information!â
The staff are shouting loudly.
Apparently, the lordâs survey team took the situation seriously as they escaped and returned, and put restrictions on entering the northern forest.
There shouldnât be a person that is B-class or more in this Lomarn cityâs Adventurerâs Support Station.
At least Iâve never heard of it.
It is said that the lord of this place summons those who reach C class or higher and welcomes them as his private army, or if they fail to do so, a messenger of a nobleman from another land will come and conduct a light interview and preliminary examination, and then hire them as long as it is not a rare occurrence.
Itâs a guaranteed immediate strength by the authority of the Adventurerâs Support Center. Theyâre probably meditating on some character difficulties.
In other words, this notice is practically a blockade of the North Forest for the users of the Adventurerâs Support Center.
The North Forest is the most affordable hunting ground.
If this notice is passed, more adventurers will have to take on unfamiliar hunting grounds in the future.
They could be seriously injured, and if they hit badly, they could even lose their lives from this.
Suddenly, I found a pair of men with their shoulders slumped in front of me.
Judging from what they were talking about, they seemed to be the ones who were using the north forest as their hunting ground.
ââŠâŠ Maybe Iâll use this good opportunity to quit being an adventurer.â
âWhat are you gonna do now, though. I canât do anything else, and I donât have any help. If I had any such things, I wouldnât be doing this kind of work that doesnât pay off.â
âButâŠâŠâ
I tap the man on the shoulder.
The man looks at me and narrows his eyes quizzically.
âHuh, what is it, kid. Donât touch my shoulder like weâre familiar with each other.â
The man didnât even try to hide his irritation.
I take a sigh and then shout out to the entire Adventurerâs Support Center.
âDonât worry! As a matter of fact, Gaston-san killed the monster that was nesting in the North Forest! The blockade should be lifted soon!â
âWha-, Huh? Gaston? Thereâs no way!â
âNo, no, itâs true! I just happened to be in the forest and saw it!â
As I said this, the noise around us diminished a bit.
Some of them seemed to be listening to me.
The other man, who was one half of the group, entered the conversation.
âBu-, but didnât that Gaston guy boast that he killed a bunch of balm birds? If that was trueâŠâŠâ
âDonât tell me thatâŠâŠ H-, hey you, that better not be a hoax. Iâve remembered your face, you know. If I find out later that youâre lying to me, youâll not get away with it!â
As I was talking to the men, I saw the Gordon brothers at the back of the Adventurerâs Support Center.
They were looking at me to see what was going on.
I beckoned them over and called them over, then left the Adventurerâs Support Station.
As I stepped outside, the Gordon brothers came after me.
âH, hey, whatâs going on? Donât tell me brother Abel beat it?â
âYeah, yeah. So, I want to give that to Gaston. Inside is a valuable part of the forest monster. It should be enough to prove our defeat.â
I point with my finger the bag Mea is holding.
Inside it contains Evil Boundâs root.
âOh no, so easilyâŠâŠ Oh, yeah, but you knowâŠâŠâ
Gordon turned his gaze to Mordon.
Mordon raised his eyebrows in annoyance.
âIs there a problem?â
âNo, to tell you the truthâŠâŠ it seems that selling his beloved sword has become really unbearable, and now he seems to be strolling around the local bar alone, out of sight. I called out to him because I saw him, but he told me to leave him alone.â
âWhat?â
Originally, I went out of my way to humor Gaston by putting it up on the wall, but isnât it a bit early to snap?
Even now, Iâm just saying that Gaston had defeated it, and thatâs a bit of a problem.
Besides, if you keep changing people from one place to another, the chances of people thinking you are suspicious will increase.
I canât let him run away without permission.
âSo, if itâs okay with brother Abel, you can ask me or, if not, you can ask someone else to stand out in the open who looks like can be handled more easilyâŠâŠâ
âWell, thatâs a bit of a problem for me tooâŠâŠ and Iâm gonna need Gaston to do it for me as fast as possible.â
âWhat?â
âNo matter what, the staff will think itâs suspicious, and I donât want to change things so easily. At least this once, we need Gaston to do it. Besides, Gaston was just beginning to show signs of becoming easier to deal withâŠâŠ Originally, I had gone to the trouble of making this kind of a roundabout way to convince Gaston, and now he had to let go of his huge sword because of my own misdeedâŠâŠ I didnât want to do thatâŠâŠâ
Iâm sorry for the suggestion, but I canât back down here.
I put heat on my words and desperately communicate that with my gestures.