episode_0009

We contracted at 8:2 and climbed the mountain together.

The slope was quite steep, but we could climb by holding onto trees or rocks.

Animal bones discarded haphazardly here and there told us that a predator was living nearby.

“Tell me about the characteristics of goblins.”

“Don’t you know?”

“I’ve seen them in books, but this is my first time seeing them in person. If there’s anything you know, please tell me.”

In response to my words, Ban went up briskly instead of answering, reached out a hand to me, and when I took his hand, Ban lifted me up with a light grunt and put me over the hill I couldn’t get past.

“As for the characteristics of goblins, they are weak in strength, small in stature, and have a protruding belly, and hitting there strongly is sometimes more effective than blowing off their heads.”

“The reason the quest fee is expensive despite them being weak and small must be because of their intelligence, right?”

“That’s right. Their intelligence is only about that of a 5 or 6-year-old, but even if they are weak, having even a little intelligence is much scarier and more cruel than being strong but without intelligence.”

Goblins possess intelligence.

That alone was the reason the quest fee was set high, even though they seemed unremarkable when viewed individually.

“And that’s why you have to be the bait.”

“…Couldn’t the adventurer become the bait himself?”

“I’m big, a man, and visibly muscular. Plus, I’m holding a spear. In the eyes of goblins, I’m not easy prey. Even if I try to lure them, they draw a line and don’t follow past a certain point.”

He had already tried it once.

He had already tried and failed, so he was looking for someone else to play the bait role and found me.

There was no way to tell if his words were a lie or the truth, so I decided to just believe him.

By the way, weapons.

“I have a weapon too?”

“Can you even swing that?”

“…I can’t, can I?”

As my grandfather had taught me, I replied while looking idly at a distant mountain, and Ban gave a light laugh.

“That’s a lie. The calluses on your hands are exactly those of someone who has held a sword, aren’t they?”

“You know things like that too?”

“Because calluses from miscellaneous work are different from calluses from gripping a weapon. If you want to play innocent later, don’t say you can’t handle a sword, just say you learned ‘a little’ for self-defense.”

“Okay….”

He was a strange person, but I didn’t think he was a bad person.

He was just… a person with a peculiar personality and a lot of greed for money.

As I sighed, Ban told me the reason why I had to be the bait.

“I only knew you used a sword after I held your hand, but would goblins notice that you use a sword? From the outside, you just look like a pretty girl, don’t you?”

“Unlike the adventurer, it means I look like easy prey….”

“That’s right. So if you become the bait, they’ll chase you without hesitation.”

In short, he was saying I was suitable for the bait role because I looked weak, so I didn’t feel particularly good about it.

It meant that even though I had worked hard for months under Grandpa Leon, it didn’t show on the outside.

“And since we’re talking now, if it really looks like you’re going to get caught, don’t hope for help or anything, just kill yourself.”

“…Pardon?”

“It’s better to die, you know? This is sincere advice, so take it to heart.”

I thought if you got caught by goblins, they’d just eat you and that would be the end of it.

When someone who had been acting lightheartedly until now said that with a serious face, it felt like there was something more to it.

As my body trembled slightly, Ban patted my shoulder.

“Well, it’ll probably be okay usually. More importantly, before the mission starts, I’ll tell you where I’ve dug the traps, so remember them well.”

And so, I went around the mountainside with Ban, checking the locations of the traps.

There were a total of 3 traps.

If even one of them was properly sprung, we could exterminate the goblins all at once.

“So if I lure them in and make them fall into the traps, the adventurer will take care of them, right?”

“Adventurer-nim, adventurer-nim, you’ve been saying that since earlier. You can speak more comfortably.”

“Mister.”

“I’m still in my mid-20s.”

My eyes widened in surprise.

Mid-20s with that face? Not mid-30s?

I thought his personality was quite twisted, and now I see it’s because of that face.

“You, uh, look quite aged.”

“I told you to speak comfortably, not to pick a fight.”

As I spoke out of pity because he looked so pathetic, Ban flicked my forehead and clicked his tongue.

“Ouch….”

“You, I know you’re very conscious of what people think, but if you’re not going to do adventurer work alone always, it’s better to get rid of that habit right away.”

“…Is that so?”

“Adventurers are basically rough people who only care about themselves. Do you think gentle adventurers like me are common?”

“Does a gentle adventurer propose 9:1 for a life-threatening job…?”

“If it wasn’t me, they wouldn’t have even accepted 8:2, you know?”

“Thank you… But how is this kind of work usually split?”

“It varies depending on the case, but usually 7:3 to 6:4 is possible.”

“Damn….”

Even doing it for 8:2 meant it was a profitable deal for him.

I should have asked for 7:3 after all.

“That’s why I told you. Instead of being conscious of others, you have to raise your voice and claim your rights yourself. Because no one else will look out for you.”

“Thank you for the advice… but why are you being so nice?”

“Nice?”

“Maybe not….”

Thinking about it, I was uncertain if this was even being nice.

While it was true he was giving me various pieces of advice, I also felt like he was mocking me somehow.

“You did rat catching yesterday, didn’t you?”

“…Yes.”

“I watched you telling the receptionist you completed the quest, looking dirty and tearful. You asked the receptionist how to handle the treatment and laundry costs, didn’t you?”

“That’s right….”

And then I was scolded for asking that to them.

“That, usually the quest giver has to pay for it, but you seemed to have taken a loss without knowing that. Seeing your state, I’m just telling you because I think you’ll be like this every time if I don’t give you some advice now.”

“Thank you.”

“If you’re thankful, want to do 9:1?”

“No.”

“Okay, just like that, express your intentions clearly.”

He seemed to be in a good mood, and his action of lightly tapping my head with his quite aged face felt subtle.

His mocking face was annoying, and at the same time, it was moving because the only person who had ever looked out for me this much was my grandfather.

When I sniffled, I could feel Ban becoming flustered.

“Crying?”

“I’m not crying.”

“Okay, fine. If you say so, that’s how it is. Anyway, for the past two days, with the handyman who was originally here, I’ve cleared everything that might get in the way like tree roots on the escape route, so literally, all you have to do is run hard. Got it?”

As I nodded in response, Ban looked at me intently and then gestured with his hand.

As I approached, he smeared something on my face with a plop.

“…What is it?”

“Mud.”

No, that’s not what I’m asking.

Why are you smearing mud all over my face like this?

“…Why?”

“If you’re too clean, even goblins have intelligence and will get suspicious. Let’s disguise you to look like you’re moderately lost in the mountains.”

“…Ugh.”

Because he said that, no words to refute him came to mind, and I was distressed.

I knew I wasn’t in a position to be picky right now, but this kind of work.

I thought this would probably be the last time.

I had to get revenge and earn money, but you have to do things step by step, so doing this kind of thing abruptly made me physically and mentally tired.

“……You’ll pay for laundry, right?”

“Of course, but… it might be better to just buy new clothes entirely rather than washing these?”

“What…”

“You smell like sewage.”

At the shocking words, I froze solid.

Seeing me like that, Ban continued speaking calmly, as if it wasn’t a joke but the truth.

“You were covered in sewage yesterday, weren’t you? Do you think all of that will come off just by washing?”

“……I don’t have money.”

“If you don’t have money, buy and wear used clothes instead of new ones. Used clothes are cheap, aren’t they?”

“I suppose so….”

I had to solve the immediate problem with this quest and also find a side job that would bring stability to my life in the future.

I did need new clothes.

Wearing clothes that smelled like sewage and asking someone to hire me wasn’t right, no matter what.

I chatted with Ban and disguised myself, and by the time my whole body was as dirty as I was used to, the sun was setting.

“I told you how to lure them, right?”

“Yes… it was screaming.”

Approach near the goblin settlement and let out a scream.

After confirming that the goblins are starting to chase me, run to the location where the traps are set.

That was the entire plan.

When I asked if it didn’t seem too flimsy, Ban replied, ‘A simple plan is a good plan.’

With my sword firmly fixed at my waist, I stretched.

And then, feigning a faltering walk, I approached the goblin settlement.

Perhaps goblins also know how to use torches, as the settlement was bright with torches set up everywhere.

Because of that, the scene of the goblin settlement came into view at a glance.

“…Fuck.”

Dismembered corpses were strewn around haphazardly.

In the center of the settlement, a totem was erected, made by weaving together human bones and women’s heads.

The heads stuck onto the totem all had expressions of agony.

Among the many heads, I saw a centipede crawling out from the empty eye socket of a head facing me.

The smell of maggots and rotten flesh.

The coppery stench of blood and semen.

“…They eat the men, rape the women, then dismember them and erect them as totems, is that it?”

I now clearly understood what he meant by saying it’s better to kill myself if it looks like I’m going to get caught.

My mouth wouldn’t open properly.

I had to let out a scream to attract the goblins.

It wasn’t easy.

I bit my lip hard to awaken my mind with pain and began what I had to do.

“Screeeeeeeeeam—!”

I screamed.

Loudly, so that not only the goblins but also Ban, who was preparing, could hear.

Rustling sounds were heard.

Goblins started appearing one by one from the crude wooden houses.

They seemed bewildered at first, but soon spotted me, and began running towards me, their lower parts dangling.

Seeing that, I turned my back.

I got into position, and started running.

I must absolutely not get caught.