In the northwestern part of the continent of Alphandis lies the capital of the Torisval region of the Storydia Kingdom, Tris. Not far from the town’s market district stands a building with plastered walls. Alec stopped and looked up at a sign that hung from those walls as it swayed in the wind. Lively chatter and noise could be heard coming from the building that had once been a shuttered inn and now, having been remodeled, was the Tris branch of the Adventurers’ Guild. It had been a little less than four years since he’d left, but the lively energy overflowing from the place was painfully nostalgic.
Kreee. As he pushed open the amber-colored wooden door, which had been worn glossy with age, its hinges let out a creak. Inside, the clamor paused for just a moment, and he was pierced with assessing gazes. There were familiar faces he hadn’t seen in a while, and the number of faces he didn’t recognize had increased. Most everyone quickly lost interest and returned to their conversations, but those who knew him tossed friendly salutations his way. He returned the greetings with one hand as he headed toward the counter.
A red-haired man had set up camp at the center of the counter, and was flipping through a ledger. He stopped what he was doing and looked up at Alec.
“Hey. It’s been a while.”
The man extended a rough and bony hand toward him. Alec grasped it firmly and returned the smile.
“So, the great S-rank adventurer has finally become a guild master, huh?” said Alec. “Should I be offering my congratulations?”
“The previous master said he was retiring,” the man replied. “Thankfully, they let me fill the empty seat. I was just thinking I wanted to settle down a bit, so it was perfect. But, man, this last job of yours was a long one, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah, you could say that. I ended up shackled to a taskmaster of a client for a really long time.”
“Did you just get back?”
“No, I came back about a month ago. Spent some time resting my bones at my parents’ place.”
“I see.” The red-haired man—Zack—smiled knowingly. “In that case, since I’m sure you must have energy to spare, can I ask you to take on a job for me? The difficulty level is A, but I’m having problems pulling together members for a party.”
Alec paused a moment. “So, there’s a taskmaster here too...” He looked over the request ticket Zack handed him and frowned. “Manticore suppression deep in the Fibria wildwood. I can see why you can’t get a party together. Not only is the difficulty level high, this is going to be a pain to do.”
Given the location, just getting there and back again would take ten days. After factoring in having to confront magical beasts along the way, the party that took this on probably wouldn’t return for about two weeks. And it would be hard for anyone to call that thickly wooded forest comfortable, with its heavy, damp air. For half a month you’d have to get by on tough, salty field rations and “beds” so uncomfortable that it would be impossible to get a good night’s sleep. While expenses were covered in addition to the generous reward, considering the term of the contract, the difficulty level, and the fact that you’d have roughly two weeks of awful camping, the job could in no way be considered a profitable one.
“This request has been sitting around for two months now,” said Zack. “The Tourism Association keeps pestering me about it. I do have a few people who said they’d take it on for me, but we’re short on vanguards. I was starting to think that, worst case, I’d go. But if a magic swordsman who’s basically S-rank took it on, that’d make up for any other minor deficiencies, right?”
Alec hesitated. “Heading straight back out into sleeping outdoors isn’t really...”
While Alec might have had a month to recuperate, he’d only just gotten back from a long-term job. Frankly, all he’d wanted to do today was show he was back and grab a low-level request to warm up. He sighed, not bothering to hide the gloom in his expression.
Zack gave him a smile pregnant with hidden meaning, as if to say he’d had an excellent idea. “Listen, if you do this for me, I’ll throw in my secret weapon. And in celebration of your return, I’ll pick up the hiring fee.”
“Some solo-type adventurer of yours, is it?” asked Alec. “You’re being generous and I don’t understand why. Is he strong?”
“Nah. Strictly a support-type mage. Not suited for battle at all, but she’ll definitely prove helpful.”
“Is that so? Well, this mage must be either incredibly skilled or very lucky.” Feeling a little like he was getting snared in a dubious get-rich-quick scheme, Alec turned a doubting gaze on Zack, who confidently told him that he’d understand if he took this mage along.
“She’s the reason the Tris branch’s success and completion rates on high-level quests has blown past those of the other branches,” said Zack. “Just take her with you. You won’t regret it.”
Considering that Zack was going to the trouble of paying out of his own pocket, he must have really wanted this long-neglected request cleared up.
After another moment’s hesitation, Alec gave up and nodded. “All right, I’ll take it on. Set me up to meet the other members.”
Zack’s red hair swayed as he laughed with satisfaction.
The next day, the members of the suppression party gathered together. One was an old friend of Alec’s—a dual sword wielder, who had started as an adventurer around the same time as him. There was also an archer, a man whom Alec knew by face and name but not much more, and a woman who was a physicker—someone who could use healing techniques. While all of them were B-rank or higher, the members skewed toward being rear guards. It all made sense now. Certainly, a group like this would be less than reliable as a manticore suppression team.
And then there was the mage in question. The woman, who had brought along an unusual slime as her familiar, had skin of a cream complexion that was rarely seen in the northwestern regions of the continent, and lustrous raven hair. Her eyes were so dark they were nearly black, and her features were even and flat. Perhaps she was from the east. Her face wasn’t beautiful in a way that stood out, but she was a woman whose gentle, reserved smile made quite an impression. And she had a small, dainty frame that could easily have been mistaken for that of a young girl. Given the glow to her skin and the shape of her face, Alec decided that she must have been around twenty years old. When he asked, he was surprised to learn that her age wasn’t so far removed from his own thirty-four years. She was from a people whose childlike facial features and small builds lent them a youthful appearance.
But her appearance wasn’t what was at issue. What they needed here were skills. And this woman, a B-rank adventurer, called herself a “housekeeping mage,” a title that Alec didn’t think he’d heard before. She said that she would take on cooking and all other routine duties while they were on their venture. Apparently, the others knew of her through rumors, and word that she’d be joining their party had put a sparkle in their eyes. Clemens, the dual sword wielder that Alec had teamed up with many times before, declared that he would personally vouch for her abilities.
In that case, she’d just have to show them what she could do.
With the introductions and preparations completed, the group dispersed. They had decided to begin their journey early the next morning.
“This... This is much too comfortable.” The murmur that slipped from Alec’s mouth was nearly a moan. Beside him, the archer, Linus, nodded emphatically in agreement.
To tell the truth, those same words had made it all the way up into Alec’s throat on the very first night of their expedition, but the idea of handing out praise so quickly and easily irked him, so he’d swallowed them before they’d reached his mouth. Now, three days into their travels, though, he couldn’t deny it any longer.