Chapter 14 : Escort Mission (3)
by AfuhfuihgsThere was a minor quarrel, but it didn’t escalate into a big problem.
Kaela, who had gone to report in the center of the caravan, returned, and Paul and Anna, who had been mocking us, immediately turned their backs.
Thanks to that, the atmosphere, which had grown tense, quickly returned to what it had been before.
…I guess they still want to earn some fees.
It seemed they wanted to pick a ridiculous fight with someone they had just met while still making some money on the side.
“Mr. Edgar.”
“Yeah?”
Ray, standing behind me, looked at me with her usual expression.
Then, in a voice barely loud enough for the front to hear, she made a rather chilling suggestion.
“Should I take care of it?”
Without even turning around, I instinctively replied.
“No. Not at all. I don’t know what you mean by ‘take care of it,’ but it’s really fine. Absolutely fine.”
“Even if you are a hero, insulting a noble can lead to legal consequences. Therefore, before any legal punishment takes place, I should handle it myself…”
“Ray, I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”
“That’s why I said not to hide your status. They don’t know enough about you, so they just act like those pesky insects…”
Honestly, I didn’t mind at all.
If similar people insult each other, I would get angry, but Paul and Anna were individuals who would fall after just a couple of swings of a sword.
I didn’t care what weaklings thought of me.
However, it seemed my maid thought differently.
Though her expression remained the same, her tone of voice had changed.
And her voice was much lower than usual.
Just from that, I could tell she was quite angry.
“Ray, are you mad?”
“No.”
“You sound angry.”
“I told you I’m not.”
“I’m fine, Ray. The arrogance of the weak has no effect on the strong.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Upon hearing that, Ray suddenly cut off the conversation unilaterally.
She slightly turned her head to avoid my gaze.
I tilted my head in confusion.
…She’s definitely angry.
It was clear.
Ray had never shown this much emotion, especially not directed at people who had ignored me.
It was both fascinating and unsettling.
Perhaps after my return, as she continued to show changes, Ray had also begun to change her perspective about me.
“Did everyone greet each other? We’re leaving right away!”
Kaela returned and announced brightly.
However, the escort group made up of instructors was fiercely individualistic.
Paul and Anna stuck close together and moved as they pleased, while Selena, the instructor, had been quietly moving from the start.
In the end, the only ones left to keep each other company were Ray and me.
“Looks like everyone prefers to move on their own.”
“Yeah… I had so much I wanted to talk about with the instructors…”
Kaela, who had maintained a bright expression, suddenly seemed to lose her spirit and slumped her shoulders.
But her natural cheerfulness didn’t disappear for long.
She quickly regained her energy and looked at me with a bright smile.
“Oh, by the way, Mr. Edwin and Ms. Ray, you can speak casually with me. Actually, I…”
“That’s great, I was feeling uncomfortable. Sure, Kaela.”
“Eh? Oh, yes!”
Kaela seemed flustered by my quick response.
Was my answer too sharp?
But perhaps due to my long life as a noble or a superior in this world, honorifics just didn’t come naturally to me.
At Tristan Academy, I had barely managed to use formal language even with senior instructors.
Given that, Kaela’s invitation to be casual was quite refreshing.
“But what were you trying to say?”
When I inadvertently interrupted her earlier, Kaela beamed once again.
“Oh, actually, I’m a new hero student entering the Swordsmanship Department at Tristan Academy this semester! That’s what I wanted to tell you.”
“Hmm?”
“…What?”
I, of course, was taken aback by her shocking announcement, and even Ray seemed surprised.
What the heck?
She’s my junior?
“Hehe. We might meet again at the academy. Of course, since you’re not teaching, we won’t see each other in class.”
Typically, new instructors start from the fifth-level instructor role, so they don’t have classes.
But my case was different, as I was assigned a leading instructor right from the start.
I might meet her as a student.
Even though I hadn’t even entered the office yet, I had already met a potential student.
What a remarkable connection.
“So, I was hoping to greet the instructors and ask them various questions about the academy, but it seems like everyone just moved off on their own. Well, since this is an escort mission, it’s fine as long as they do their parts.”
Kaela gazed at the instructors ahead with a hint of disappointment.
Seeing her, I couldn’t help but shake my head.
Adults who are twisted everywhere are a problem.
“But how can a hero who just became a student lead an escort mission?”
Suddenly curious, I asked, and Kaela clapped her hands.
“Oh, to be precise, I’m not leading it. I just went to find instructors to take on the mission and proposed a contract. You could say I acted as the spokesperson for the Litbel caravan.”
“Kaela, is it…?”
“Yes! The head of the caravan is my father.”
Could it be that “always” becomes “as expected”?
Kaela, you were also born with a silver spoon.
“We will soon be passing through the Red Thicket!!”
A hero in charge of the upper squad shouted in a loud voice.
He wasn’t from the training corps but a high-ranking hero hired directly by the upper squad, and since he was in charge of the entire command, his voice was quite powerful.
‘The Red Thicket…
A shortcut from Sachsen to Tristan.
In the very center lies the ‘Red Thicket’.
This was exactly the “place where monsters appear” that Ray mentioned earlier.
Originally, it was an area that didn’t have a special name, but after reports of low-level or the very least low-ranking monsters appearing, investigations were dispatched and it was deemed a dangerous area.
This was precisely the reason we were on escort duty.
“I personally hope monsters come out.”
Kaela, who was walking with us, said with an eager expression.
“Why is that?”
“Because I’ve only recently become a hero, and I’ve never fought a monster yet. I really want to put my swordsmanship and inevitabilities into practice.”
It was a clichéd yet pure reason that made me smile faintly.
“What will you do if even a mid-level monster appears?”
“Huh? It seems that Instructor Edwin doesn’t really know this area well, does he? Only low-level or below monsters appear in the Red Thicket.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes! The strongest monster that has appeared here is the Wulivarn… but honestly, I think I could take care of a Wulivarn on my own.”
That’s true.
If a group of mid-level monsters suddenly popped up in a place like this, the upper squad members would likely all be dead.
Generally, low-level monsters can be easily hunted by heroes who have blossomed at the “second crossroads” based on the destiny of a <Swordsman>.
And most of the new instructors participating in the escort mission for the Litbel upper squad were heroes who had blossomed at this “second crossroads.”
This was the reason why there was no problem passing through the Red Thicket.
But once it comes to mid-level monsters, the story changes.
These creatures require heroes from various classes to band together and cooperate. If someone were to hunt alone, they would need to be a hero who has at least blossomed at the “third crossroads.”
Especially in such a narrow area, it would be even more difficult to cope with them if they appeared in groups.
“Still, it’s best not to let your guard down. Monsters are unpredictable beings that can strike at any moment.”
“That’s right. A hero must always maintain a vigilant attitude.”
Ray, who had been following beside me, finally agreed with my words after a long time.
However, seeing Kaela’s lukewarm gaze, it seemed our discussion didn’t resonate with her at all.
“Actually, our upper squad has thoroughly investigated and chosen this location. I’m sure of it—mid-level monsters absolutely won’t appear here…”
But.
As always, crises come at unexpected moments.
The sudden scene unfolding before us.
Seeing that, Kaela was momentarily at a loss for words and stood frozen.
“…Huh?”
With an unsettling sound, a sense of presence was detected.
Monsters emerged from the ground, launching a surprise attack using their sharp body parts.
And in that moment.
The ankles of two heroes were torn apart.
I knew their names all too well.
Paul and Anna.
They were the new instructors who had randomly picked a fight with us earlier.
They looked like a couple at a glance, and now, they had generously given up their ankles to the attacks of the monsters that popped up from the ground.
That was the beginning of the assault.
“Gah, Gahhh—!!”
“Gyaaaah—!!”
The chilling screams of the two echoed throughout the entire upper squad.
Before they had a chance to react, the two allowed the ambush and writhed in agony.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
The monsters never let go of their prey once they caught it.
After succeeding in their first attack, they crushed Paul and Anna’s ankles one after the other.
“Gahh, Hahhh—!!”
“P-Please save me…!!”
*H-!!
It was only at that moment that all the nearby heroes drew their swords.
And the commander in the center shouted with all his might.
“It’s a mid-level monster, Kelleil!! Everyone be careful!!”
Mid-level monster, Kelleil.
For the first time, a mid-level monster appeared in the ‘Red Thicket,’ where only low-level or below monsters had emerged until now.
At this shocking revelation, the faces of the people turned pale.
Holding the sword I had drawn a while ago, I moved my feet calmly.
A power I had never used since my return.
Belonging to the fourth crossroads, <Knight of the Tempest>, was <Footsteps of Fallen Leaves>.
“The commission fee is going to be quite expensive.”
It seems that I’ll have to change the contract conditions for this escort mission.
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