Never touch Eldmia Egga - Episode 228
When Gronzel heard the sudden report, he couldn't believe his ears..
However, after seeing the employee with half of his face swollen to double its size in the stable that Kunz had brought down, and seeing the adventurer's extremely cold gaze, I felt uneasy that it might not be my ears that I should be suspicious of, but the other person's common sense..
"What does this all mean??"
I had to come to my senses. Gronzuel turned to the receptionist, who was in tears, wearing her friendly guild leader's mask..
All kinds of speculations begin to run wild in my mind, which starts spinning quickly. Did you get caught? That can't be possible. Are you just leaving because you know the laws and rules well? Even so, it was hard to believe that such violence could be used..
This is not a local market, but a city's adventurer's guild. An adventurer's guild where those without a background are afraid of repercussions, and those with a background tend to be cautious out of concern for their own interests. Without going crazy, it is impossible to use one-sided violence no matter how justified you are..
At least that's what he thought. As a result, Gron Zeel had to fall to the floor without understanding the dull pain he suddenly felt in his side..
And when he finally realized what the intense pain meant, the foot that had kicked his side was flying towards him once again..
"Wow!"
It is said that he was once an adventurer, but that was in the distant past. A body that had been fighting and living far away could not even defend itself properly. He was blinded by the pain and the best defense he could do was to protect himself somehow by curling his body into a circle, protecting his head and neck with both hands..
They said they would stay alert, but that meant only negotiations based on dialogue, so the violence that came so suddenly aroused a fear that had never been felt before..
"...?"
But the attack did not continue. Although he was groaning, he raised his head in confusion and a young man who was clearly a warrior appeared in his eyes..
"One slap for trying to cheat before negotiation, and another slap for wasting my time by doing so. wake up."
His arrogant attitude almost made him roll his eyes, but an alarm bell alerting him to danger rang again in his head, so he had no choice but to wake up drooling..
He resisted the urge to shake off several receptionists coming up to him and helping him, and even forced a few words of gratitude into his mouth, looking at the young man who had committed violence against him. And the young man opened his mouth to refute the first words he spoke..
"I'm Gronzel, the guild leader. I apologize for not responding in accordance with procedures. However..."
"'There is no ‘but’. The cost that comes with it is something you have to bear, not me. You've already crossed the line, so don't bother playing with words.."
Unless you want to give up right away. No, the young man made his intentions clear by pulling out the sword he was wearing at his waist and slamming it down on the floor..
"As soon as the adventurer came in from outside and refused the guild's secret request, his items disappeared and his horses died. Even though they were officially entrusted to the guild's stables, the only traces of resistance came from the horses' rebellion. Fortunately, the guild is convinced that what they call the deviance of the hired adventurers is precisely the work of the thieves who were the target of the secret request and who were causing problems in the city. These are thieves who came in at will and are isolated because they can't escape in the same way.."
Gronzel screamed inwardly. The young man's suspicions were valid, but I wanted to ask whether it made sense to move like this based on just such suspicions..
That feeling is far from unfair. It was almost like she was angry at the crazy guy who was destroying the plan she had worked so hard to build just because of suspicion..
"coincidence..."
"If you wanted to pretend it was a coincidence, you should have done it right. Still, there is an order to things, so you can calculate that later. How are you going to compensate for that?."
Gronzuel tried to understand the situation, barely able to control himself with reason after almost being swept away by his emotions for a moment..
Even though the young man was still with ten adventurers, he used the expression 'adventurers' rather than 'adventurers who came in from outside'. He even declared that the loot was his. Nevertheless, the fact that the people behind them don't even say a word suggests that it may be an employment relationship with them, not a colleague relationship..
Someone who has enough money to hire more than ten adventurers to form a party, and is also highly regarded by the head of the capital's adventurer guild? That kind of person is determined by law..
'Damn, are you noble??'
I've heard stories about knights, or children of immature nobles who dream of becoming knights, taking advantage of their family's wealth to pursue a strange hobby of becoming adventurers, but I never thought I'd see it in action. Of course, there is a possibility that this is not the case, but other than that, it was a situation that was difficult to accept and incomprehensible..
Therefore, Gronzel completely revised his original plan and slowly opened his mouth..
"...Regardless of your rudeness, of course we will fully compensate you financially for the dead horses.."
Never be servile. As if it was just doing what had to be done. He pretended to hold back his anger..
Originally, after dealing with the thieves who attacked the city, the plan was to identify and return the citizens' assets that they had taken, and while buying time, steal some of the loot and make some side profits. This is no different from the fact that the loot of an adventurer who has not yet been properly appraised falls into the hands of thieves and is impossible to prove..
Even if the adventurer was distracted and dealt with the thieves without even receiving the request, he had even planned to pay the request fee and coordinate things smoothly..
What if I die? The loot in the cache, not the den of thieves, would have become his property. It was unexpected that the horse died in the process....
"Are you really seeing what that means and answering??"
"...What are you talking about??"
Gronzel answered the question the young man asked as he interrupted his thoughts. But he pointed to his horse's rump as if telling him to go and see, and turned his body to make a path. Gronzel was very suspicious of the polite behavior, which was different from before, but he couldn't help but hesitate, so he approached the dead horse, checked the brand on its buttocks, and shouted without realizing it..
"Oh, Ogatorf.?!"
A pattern drawn around a shield and a sword. In EthisL, it is a symbol of a family with more acquaintances than strangers..
As soon as he learned the identity of what he thought was just a rather large horse, cold sweat began to run down his back. The young man behind him spoke calmly, as if he had expected such a reaction..
"It is a family-only military unit worth over 30 Itisel gold coins per unit. That's just the pure ransom, I don't know the damage due to training and maintenance.."
"Uh, how is this?..."
"How can a proven adventurer whose identity has been verified ride the Ogatorf warhorse safely? I didn't steal it. Is there an obligation to explain further??"
Of course, there was no such obligation. A fire began to burn in Gronzuel's head, as he could not have imagined that an adventurer would be pulling around such a ridiculously expensive horse. She's not at the level where you can call it a belly button rather than a belly button. As the young man said, 30 gold coins are nothing more than a ‘ransom price’..
A war horse is like a knight. Rather than simply aging with time, you receive professional training. There is a reason why it is controlled and managed for 'military use', and it is expensive. If that horse has completed all the required training and is in its prime, you will have to cough up almost double the amount..
Even if it is taken out of the guild's finances, it is a fatal amount. However, the bigger problem is that this was not an accident but a plan. And it was Gronzel himself who came up with the plan and put it into practice..
I don't know if he did it so perfectly that no one got caught, but Gronzel tended to cover up bigger crimes with minor incidents that could not be completely hidden..
His plan included a mix of corruption and authority overreach that could have been easily resolved if the problem of banditry was resolved. A minor transgression that cannot be hidden and does not need to be hidden. A deviation that can later be described as unavoidable for the greater good..
Naturally, the plan did not include a debt worth 120 gold coins. If things continue like this, even if everything ends well, he will be responsible for most of the debt and it will eat up a lot of the cash he has..
Although it was not comparable to the assets stolen so far, illegal profits always required money laundering, and there was not much cash on hand right away. Even that was all money kept in mind for investments and bribes, so if things continue like this, there will be a 'loss' caused by selling the items that were being laundered at a low price..
I couldn't do that because I only had two horses. Gronzuel's head began to spin once again..
"...Don't worry. I will definitely repay you for my honor and the honor of the Englem Adventurer's Guild. Even if it means mobilizing your own money.."
Stand up proudly and speak eloquently in a powerful tone to regain your dignity..
"But no matter how unfair the coincidence, this plunder had nothing to do with us. Although we cannot determine the intentions of the thieves who stole the adventurer's loot, it is a clear fact.."
"so?"
"I would like you to reconsider your decision regarding the request you rejected yesterday. for all of us."
First, we have to deal with the bandits first..
I didn't care whether this guy could really defeat the owner of the magic sword. If I just went and died, I would have a way to deal with this damn warhorse, so that wasn't a bad idea either. Even if they win, it will be difficult for a single blue or red adventurer to successfully block a magic sword that threatens the city guard..
Even if you don't do it, you'll suffer great damage. If you time it right... there will be enough of an opening to attempt a long-distance surprise attack..
In order to cover up original lies and sins, you have to commit bigger lies and sins. Even if the other party is a noble, the responsibility for death during the quest is the responsibility of the adventurer himself, so he will not be harmed..
"I already thought so. It won't end the way you hoped."
Gronzuel quietly burned with anger as he looked at the young man who was muttering something incomprehensible and pulling out the sword from the floor and putting it in its sheath..
It was anger towards the person who ruined his perfect plan..
After that, Gronzuel, who was staring at the sight of his group instructing his group with gritted teeth and not knowing what to do with the anger that engulfed his entire body, belatedly realized that the arrogant young man had not even introduced himself to the adventurer guild leader. I was more angry.
If I had known what that meant, other emotions would have taken the place of anger..
Of course Gronzel didn't know..
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