Today, under the cloudy skies of Yoshanka, a burly man walks through the town. Exiting through the main gate, he heads toward the Adventurers’ Guild branch office.
“Darn, that took more time than I expected,” he grumbles, scratching his cheek. His face, covered in scars, would deter anyone from approaching him.
“Don’t say that, please. We did our best,” a man and a woman walking behind him quickly retort. The man is slender and neatly dressed, while the woman is petite with a plain face and a constant smirk that hints at malice.
“I get it, I get it! Just stop with the nagging every time I say something, will ya?” The big man raises his hands in a gesture of surrender, clearly overwhelmed by the pair who, despite their small stature and unimposing appearance, he seems unable to stand up to.
“But what’s happened to Yoshanka while I was away? What’s with all this buzz?” he wonders aloud, looking around. He remembers Yoshanka as a quiet, almost deserted town, but now it’s bustling with adventurers, and even the parks are filled with chatty healers taking breaks.
“Isn’t it a good thing? I don’t know what happened, but…” the woman remarks.
“Let’s focus. We’re almost at the branch office. Time for the final act,” the man adds.
“Alright, alright,” the big man sighs, takes a deep breath, and reaches for the door of the Adventurers’ Guild. Just then, the door swings open.
“Whoa! Be careful with the door! If you break it, you’re paying for it, you hear!?”
A silver-haired young adventurer storms out of the office, his face red with anger, brows furrowed, and tears in his eyes. He seems oblivious to the big man’s presence, his vision blurred by fury, and disappears into the crowd.
“That was… Kamasse, wasn’t it?” The big man recognizes the young adventurer, a promising talent recently making a name for himself in Yoshanka.
“Come on, don’t get distracted. Let’s go inside,” the man behind urges.
“Alright, alright,” the big man mutters and finally enters the branch office.
◇ ◇ ◇
Meanwhile, inside the office, the receptionist, Pirritza, breathes a sigh of relief. The recent chaos involving the emergency eradication of Torgode Command and the subsequent commotion of chasing out the cursed child had been tumultuous, but she managed to navigate it to her advantage. No cumbersome paperwork due to the eradication being averted, the cursed child apparently left the town, and the complaining elders seemed satisfied enough to leave. All seemed well.
But then, unexpectedly, Kamasse stood up for the cursed child, protesting to Pirritza. He left in tears after failing to change her stance.
Pirritza stretches contentedly, relieved that normalcy would return. A life of quietly making extra money by manipulating records was waiting for her.
“What a joyful expression you have there, eh?”
Startled by the sudden voice, Pirritza jumps. She recognizes the voice and nervously looks up at the towering figure with a scarred face standing before her.
“Oh, you’re back, Boss?”
Indeed, it was the branch chief, Daccante, who had been away on extended leave.
Panic sets in as Pirritza remembers she left an envelope containing 150,000 Ean on her desk – her illicit earnings from the cursed child.
“Um, what’s this envelope about? A nice sum of money, isn’t it?” The slender man accompanying Daccante is already rummaging through her desk.
“Hey, what are you doing? Get out of the office! That’s private information!” Pirritza protests.
The man, seemingly unbothered, pulls out an Adventurers’ Guild staff ID and shows it to her. It’s identical to hers, but the details on it cause her face to twist in dismay.
“I am an investigator with the Adventurers’ Guild Headquarters, named Sainon. I am authorized to conduct verbal and physical investigations on staff members as per the regulations, and the staff members are obliged to cooperate with these investigations. You understand, right? You must have heard about this during your new employee training.”
Stuttering, Pirritza can only respond with a trembling voice, “An investigator?”
“Yes, an investigator. Now, Pirritza, what exactly is this money for?”
“It’s for paying an adventurer! It’s separated from others for an immediate payment!”
“The adventurer’s name?”
“I’m bound by confidentiality…”
“It’s okay. I won’t disclose anything you tell me. And you are obligated to answer my questions. So, who is this adventurer?”
“…Garisen.”
Pirritza, struggling to suppress her shaking, manages to say the name. Garisen is a fictitious adventurer she created for her records. All Saiyush grass brought by Emmy was credited to Garisen, and the embezzled rewards were marked as paid to him.
“Check the records. There’s nothing suspicious.”
Trying to maintain composure, Pirritza hands over the relevant documents to Sainon. She had meticulously matched the records so far, so there should be no issue. However, she would be in trouble if Garisen’s existence was scrutinized. For now, it’s a stopgap.
“Garisen? The wandering herb-gathering expert, Garisen? The blond with a big scar on his forehead, a third-grade adventurer?”
Pirritza’s ears perk up at a woman’s voice. It’s the woman who came in with Sainon, probably his subordinate or colleague.
Pirritza sees an opportunity. Garisen was a made-up name, but apparently, a real adventurer with the same name existed.
“Yes, that’s him! He asked to keep his name hidden for some reason. I was hesitant to share the information with the investigator!”
Her excuse seems plausible.
“However, that’s strange, Pirritza. Garisen passed away five years ago.”
“…What?”
“Garisen is deceased. So, he appeared in Yoshanka? How curious. A ghost, perhaps?”
Taiche, smirking, adds to Pirritza’s confusion.
Trapped, Pirritza’s face turns pale, lips purple. She feels dizzy and overwhelmed with questions.
Branch Chief Daccante interrupts, “Enough teasing, Investigator Sainon, Officer Taiche. What’s the real reason you came here? Any idea, Pirritza?”
She thinks of her many possible offenses: skimming rewards, inflating contribution points, mishandling stalled requests…
“…Which one?”
Hearing her response, Daccante sighs deeply.
“Probably all of them, Pirritza. You underestimated the headquarters’ investigative capabilities. They found out about your misdeeds, investigated further, and found more. I was called to the headquarters for a scolding… Anyway, this is the result.”
Daccante produces a paper with gold trim and a signature at the bottom – “Raiyleen Rune,” the indomitable, strongest special-grade adventurer and current leader of the Adventurers’ Guild.
“Ahh… ‘Due to various charges, we order the arrest of Pirritza, receptionist at the Teenidyth Branch, Yoshanka Office of the Adventurers’ Guild.’ So, Pirritza, it’s time to pay the piper.”
Today, under the cloudy skies of Yoshanka, a burly man walks through the town. Exiting through the main gate, he heads toward the Adventurers’ Guild branch office.
“Darn, that took more time than I expected,” he grumbles, scratching his cheek. His face, covered in scars, would deter anyone from approaching him.
“Don’t say that, please. We did our best,” a man and a woman walking behind him quickly retort. The man is slender and neatly dressed, while the woman is petite with a plain face and a constant smirk that hints at malice.
“I get it, I get it! Just stop with the nagging every time I say something, will ya?” The big man raises his hands in a gesture of surrender, clearly overwhelmed by the pair who, despite their small stature and unimposing appearance, he seems unable to stand up to.
“But what’s happened to Yoshanka while I was away? What’s with all this buzz?” he wonders aloud, looking around. He remembers Yoshanka as a quiet, almost deserted town, but now it’s bustling with adventurers, and even the parks are filled with chatty healers taking breaks.
“Isn’t it a good thing? I don’t know what happened, but…” the woman remarks.
“Let’s focus. We’re almost at the branch office. Time for the final act,” the man adds.
“Alright, alright,” the big man sighs, takes a deep breath, and reaches for the door of the Adventurers’ Guild. Just then, the door swings open.
“Whoa! Be careful with the door! If you break it, you’re paying for it, you hear!?”
A silver-haired young adventurer storms out of the office, his face red with anger, brows furrowed, and tears in his eyes. He seems oblivious to the big man’s presence, his vision blurred by fury, and disappears into the crowd.
“That was… Kamasse, wasn’t it?” The big man recognizes the young adventurer, a promising talent recently making a name for himself in Yoshanka.
“Come on, don’t get distracted. Let’s go inside,” the man behind urges.
“Alright, alright,” the big man mutters and finally enters the branch office.
◇ ◇ ◇
Meanwhile, inside the office, the receptionist, Pirritza, breathes a sigh of relief. The recent chaos involving the emergency eradication of Torgode Command and the subsequent commotion of chasing out the cursed child had been tumultuous, but she managed to navigate it to her advantage. No cumbersome paperwork due to the eradication being averted, the cursed child apparently left the town, and the complaining elders seemed satisfied enough to leave. All seemed well.
But then, unexpectedly, Kamasse stood up for the cursed child, protesting to Pirritza. He left in tears after failing to change her stance.
Pirritza stretches contentedly, relieved that normalcy would return. A life of quietly making extra money by manipulating records was waiting for her.
“What a joyful expression you have there, eh?”
Startled by the sudden voice, Pirritza jumps. She recognizes the voice and nervously looks up at the towering figure with a scarred face standing before her.
“Oh, you’re back, Boss?”
Indeed, it was the branch chief, Daccante, who had been away on extended leave.
Panic sets in as Pirritza remembers she left an envelope containing 150,000 Ean on her desk – her illicit earnings from the cursed child.
“Um, what’s this envelope about? A nice sum of money, isn’t it?” The slender man accompanying Daccante is already rummaging through her desk.
“Hey, what are you doing? Get out of the office! That’s private information!” Pirritza protests.
The man, seemingly unbothered, pulls out an Adventurers’ Guild staff ID and shows it to her. It’s identical to hers, but the details on it cause her face to twist in dismay.
“I am an investigator with the Adventurers’ Guild Headquarters, named Sainon. I am authorized to conduct verbal and physical investigations on staff members as per the regulations, and the staff members are obliged to cooperate with these investigations. You understand, right? You must have heard about this during your new employee training.”
Stuttering, Pirritza can only respond with a trembling voice, “An investigator?”
“Yes, an investigator. Now, Pirritza, what exactly is this money for?”
“It’s for paying an adventurer! It’s separated from others for an immediate payment!”
“The adventurer’s name?”
“I’m bound by confidentiality…”
“It’s okay. I won’t disclose anything you tell me. And you are obligated to answer my questions. So, who is this adventurer?”
“…Garisen.”
Pirritza, struggling to suppress her shaking, manages to say the name. Garisen is a fictitious adventurer she created for her records. All Saiyush grass brought by Emmy was credited to Garisen, and the embezzled rewards were marked as paid to him.
“Check the records. There’s nothing suspicious.”
Trying to maintain composure, Pirritza hands over the relevant documents to Sainon. She had meticulously matched the records so far, so there should be no issue. However, she would be in trouble if Garisen’s existence was scrutinized. For now, it’s a stopgap.
“Garisen? The wandering herb-gathering expert, Garisen? The blond with a big scar on his forehead, a third-grade adventurer?”
Pirritza’s ears perk up at a woman’s voice. It’s the woman who came in with Sainon, probably his subordinate or colleague.
Pirritza sees an opportunity. Garisen was a made-up name, but apparently, a real adventurer with the same name existed.
“Yes, that’s him! He asked to keep his name hidden for some reason. I was hesitant to share the information with the investigator!”
Her excuse seems plausible.
“However, that’s strange, Pirritza. Garisen passed away five years ago.”
“…What?”
“Garisen is deceased. So, he appeared in Yoshanka? How curious. A ghost, perhaps?”
Taiche, smirking, adds to Pirritza’s confusion.
Trapped, Pirritza’s face turns pale, lips purple. She feels dizzy and overwhelmed with questions.
Branch Chief Daccante interrupts, “Enough teasing, Investigator Sainon, Officer Taiche. What’s the real reason you came here? Any idea, Pirritza?”
She thinks of her many possible offenses: skimming rewards, inflating contribution points, mishandling stalled requests…
“…Which one?”
Hearing her response, Daccante sighs deeply.
“Probably all of them, Pirritza. You underestimated the headquarters’ investigative capabilities. They found out about your misdeeds, investigated further, and found more. I was called to the headquarters for a scolding… Anyway, this is the result.”
Daccante produces a paper with gold trim and a signature at the bottom – “Raiyleen Rune,” the indomitable, strongest special-grade adventurer and current leader of the Adventurers’ Guild.
“Ahh… ‘Due to various charges, we order the arrest of Pirritza, receptionist at the Teenidyth Branch, Yoshanka Office of the Adventurers’ Guild.’ So, Pirritza, it’s time to pay the piper.”
