After breakfast at the guild cafeteria earlier than usual, the four headed to the City of Kyradea.
Of course, by foot.
The road between Rune and Kyradea was well maintained because travelers and goods frequently come and go.
Although considered well maintained, it was not cobbled but just compacted ground ⊠but it was still much easier to travel compared to uneven surfaces.
Along the road, occasionally there would be columns one meter in diameter and five meters in height.
âWhat are those occasional columns?â
Ryo, curious about the columns, asked nobody in particular.
And it was usually Etho who answered those questions.
âThose are Monster-Repelling Columns, columns meant to deter monsters. They should be built at 500-meter intervals.â
âA barrier âŠâ
Ryo murmured unintentionally. What came to Ryoâs mind was the barrier set up by Michael (pseudonym) around his house in the Rondo Forest.
âItâs not as effective as a barrier ⊠but ⊠well, unless there is a significant cause, monsters wonât come near. They are usually installed on the main roads of the Kingdom.â
Apparently, they were also on the road connecting Rune and Whitnash, but Ryo didnât notice them. At that time, he was more on focused extracting information from ăCoffee Makeră.
It seemed that there was a fundamental difference between these columns and the barrier around his house.
One day, he would want to solve the mystery of the barrier around the house ⊠another ambition sprung up in Ryoâs heart.
And then, it was noon.
The four rested while consuming the lunch box made by the guild cafeteria.
âAt any rate ⊠really nothing happened.â
âRyo ⊠what on earth were you expecting âŠâ
Niels answered Ryoâs monologue with a stunned look.
âNo, you see, when it comes to moving between cities ⊠the typical scenario would be like having to repel monsters that attacked incessantly or apprehending bandits that attacked in a group and conversely taking the treasures they accumulated.â
âWhat kind of godforsaken place are you talking about âŠâ
If such encounters happened frequently, the economic activity of the country would stagnate.
Niels explained.
Yes, the Swordsman Niels, who looked like a huge rascal, explained to him.
Ryo was astonished.
âOi Ryo, youâre thinking of something really rude, right?â
Etho who was snickering next to him finally couldnât resist laughing loudly.
After laughing for a moment.
âAbel-san once told Niels that before and he engraved it to memory.â
âEtho, donât expose me!â
Niels was flustered when Etho revealed the facts.
âI knew it âŠâŠâ
âWhy are you agree with him?!â
Ryo nodded in agreement while Niels protested.
Amon was listening from the side the whole time.
âBut itâs amazing how you engrave every one of those facts youâve heard properly to memory. Iâll do my best too!â
Amon was a nice guy.
That evening, the four arrived at Kyradea without incident.
âAt this time, the guild would be crowded with people reporting the progress of their requests. Letâs secure our accommodation first.â
At Nielsâ suggestion, they decided to secure an inn before visiting the Adventurerâs Guild.
It wouldnât cost them to camp out but since they were in a city, they wanted to have a good sleep in a proper bed.
Because the physical body is the asset of an adventurer.
After securing an inn and having dinner, the four headed to the Adventurerâs Guild.
As expected, the peak period to report request results had passed for the day and there were few adventurers in the guild.
And there was only one young male receptionist present.
âWe are adventurers from the City of Rune who accepted the subjugation request for Avery Village that came from this city. We wish to gather information. And this is the letter of introduction from our guildmaster.â
Niels explained and gave Hughâs letter of introduction to the receptionist.
âUnderstood. Please wait a moment.â
The receptionist replied and went into the door at the back with the letter of introduction.
âAfter this, a person would come out from the back room, and this cityâs adventurers and influential people would pick a quarrel with us and we would fall into an explosive situation. We would then have to solve the situation by force.â
Ryo talked about the typical development of a light novel.
âWhy does Ryo want the situation to develop into fights âŠâ
âIs Ryo frustrated because his mock battle was canceled?â
âItâs the thing Ryo said once before, everywhere is a battlefield!â
Niels was speechless, Etho shook his head, while Amon used difficult words.
But unfortunately, or a matter of course, that didnât happen and the four were sent to the reception room in the back.
âThe Submaster will explain about this request so please wait here.â
The receptionist told them and they waited five minutes in the reception room.
A Submaster was the second-highest-ranking person in the guild who assists the Guildmaster. When it came to guilds beyond a certain size, there would typically be such a position.
However, for some reason, there was no Submaster in Runeâs Adventurerâs Guild, which boasted the largest size in the frontier. For that reason, in Whitnash, Abel was dispatched in Hughâs place as a ăproxyă.
The man who entered had the image of a former Magician and was in his mid-thirties.
The man was as tall as Ryo, had a delicate body like Etho, and had a soft expression like Amon, giving the impression that he was easy to talk to at a glance.
âAdventurers from the City of Rune, right? Iâm Landenvia, the Adventurerâs Guild Submaster of Kyradea.â
âIâm Niels, the party leader. These are Etho, Amon, and Ryo, my party members.â
Niels explained politely, unlike his usual manner of speech.
Time, Place, and Occasion were the fundamentals of a working adult.
âI see, youâre Niels from the village that sent the request. It was written in the letter of introduction from Master McGrath. And that this party is a young party with great prospects. A party that Master McGrath has expectations for. âŠâŠ Iâm a little jealous he has such a party, because Kyradea hasnât had many new parties lately âŠâ
âYoung party with great prospectsâŠâ
âMaster McGrath ⊠that sounds cool.â
Apart from the three joyful tones, one person focused on a strange aspect, but I dare not mention who it was.
It definitely wasnât some Water-Attribute Magician âŠ
âIs our guildmaster such a famous individual?â
Submaster Landenvia was surprised at Ethoâs mutter.
âYou guys donât know about the Hero McGrath âŠ?â
âHero?â
All four asked in unison.
âHas it reached the time where the generation who doesnât know about that era becomes adventurers? In the past, no adventurer in the Kingdom wouldnât know the name ăMaster McGrathă. That was how famous he was. When youâre back in the City of Rune after this request, ask your senior adventurers to tell you. Master McGrath, the heroic tales of that man.â
âYes, we will.â
Still not recovered from the surprise, Niels nodded seriously.
âOkay, letâs talk about this request, but to be honest, we donât have much information.â
Kyradea sent one E-rank and one D-rank party.
The first E-rank party fought with skeletons and two of the five members were seriously injured. They withdrew.
The next D-rank party could not investigate the situation due to a lack of cooperation from some villagers. They withdrew.
After that, the village mayor visited the Kyradea Adventurerâs Guild to apologize.
However, no other party stepped up for the request after that, and the request was sent to the City of Rune, which was the largest city in the remote region.
âIâm sorry I donât have much information. Do you have any questions?â
âI believe it was submitted as a Goblins and Skeletons subjugation request. Were Goblins confirmed?â
Etho asked a question.
Certainly, in the reports so far, there was no mention of Goblins at all.
âNo, it was not confirmed.â
Landenvia shook his head and denied it.
âDid the E-rank party encounter Skeletons in the western graveyard?â
Niels, who was familiar with the geography of the village, asked a question.
âNo, they reported the encounter in the eastern forest, not a graveyard.â
âEastern Forest?â
Niels pondered the answer.
After that, the explanation by Landenvia ended after they had no further questions.
âWell then, I wish you good luck.â
Landenvia stood up and sent the four people from Room 10 out.
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