Chapter 537:
Problem Discovered
WE RETURNED TO THE INN to find the innkeeper with a perplexed look on his face. We said hello, and he directed us upstairs with a smile. I gave him a curious look as my father nodded beside me.
“Ivy, let’s go. Zinal and Fische are back.”
So the innkeeper was telling us about Zinal and Fische, then. Did he want us to go upstairs to their room?
“The innkeeper had a strange look on his face, didn’t he?” I remarked.
On the way back to the inn, we’d managed to confirm that the rumor of the guild master’s assassination had traveled far. It was obvious because the whole village was in a frenzy. We were also a little worried about the fire at the adventurer guild, but you could say the rumor was a success. And yet, the innkeeper looked worried. Had something else happened?
We returned to our room and stashed our magic bags there, then headed to Zinal and Fische’s room.
Knock, knock.
“Zinal, it’s Druid.”
No sooner did he speak than the door opened and Fische popped his head out. He was smiling, which came as a relief to me. That meant their operation had been a success.
Once we were inside, Zinal activated the magic item to keep our voices from leaking outside the room.
“It sounds like your little plan succeeded,” my father said. “All the village can talk about is the guild master’s murder.”
Zinal smirked devilishly in reply. He seemed happy about his results.
“By the way, who started the fire?” my father asked.
Fische sighed. “Oh, that. Yeah, Zinal did it…”
Zinal started the fire?
“There was somewhere else besides the office I wanted to check, so I did, but then somebody came in. So I tried to hide myself with smoke, but I messed up and accidentally started a fire instead. Ha ha ha ha!”
Oh, so he “accidentally” started a fire…
One look at Zinal’s face, and the words “on purpose” popped into my mind.
“I smell bull,” my father said.
Zinal shrugged his shoulders. Fische looked at him and gave a heavy sigh.
Yeah, I think we can definitely say Zinal started the fire on purpose.
“So what happened?” my father asked the pair, eyeing Zinal.
Zinal smiled angelically. “Those fools used those young adventurers like pawns.” Though there was a sweet smile on his face, his eyes were deathly cold. He was sincerely enraged.
“They’re flipping out now, since they don’t know how this all happened. The adventurers won’t help them out either because of the rumor. Hoo boy, it’s been a while since I’ve done such a good job.”
My father glanced at Fische. I joined him, wanting an explanation of Zinal’s ramblings.
“We found about a dozen contracts in the safe in the guild master’s office. All the contracts benefited the adventurer guild, and they were signed by young, inexperienced adventurers. The contracts bound the poor adventurers to impossible and pointless jobs they couldn’t refuse. There were thirty-four people bound under the contracts, but about seven of them were void—probably because the contract signers died. We’re looking into that right now.”
They’re looking into it? Was that why the innkeeper seemed so worried?
“I see. Have you already had a chance to speak with the adventurers under contract?” my father asked.
Zinal nodded. “We offered them protection and got their testimonies. Young adventurers still have a lot to learn about the world, and this was used against them to force them into the contracts. After signing, they were made to take on pointless or impossible jobs that paid very little, and some were even forced to commit crimes.”
My father sighed deeply at the news. “Well, that’s just plain evil. What did the contracts say?”
“That they can’t tell third parties about the contracts or refuse job requests, and if they breached the contracts, they would be forced into slavery alongside criminals. Y’know, they were so extreme I was almost impressed.”
Those contracts sound horrible. But why would anyone sign them?
“When they signed the contracts, they were shown different terms and conditions,” Fische explained, handing my father a piece of paper.
“Ah…so they tampered with the contracts. Yeah, young adventurers don’t know how to tell the difference between a legitimate contract and a sketchy one,” my father said to Zinal and Fische with a nod.
“What horrible people,” I muttered.
Just hearing about them made me fume with anger. Now I could understand why Zinal had “accidentally” set fire to the guild. My father reached over and gave my head a consoling pat.
Knock, knock.
“Zinal, Fische, the investigation’s done. Come downstairs.”
When we heard the innkeeper’s voice through the door, Zinal switched the magic item off.
“Got it. We’ll be right down.”
When the aura disappeared from the door, Zinal looked at us. “Anything unusual happen at the dump?”
“No, everything was fine, but a serpent met up with us,” my father replied.
Zinal raised an eyebrow. “Why? Wait, did you go where the serpents wanted to take us?” He suddenly looked upset.
My father smiled. “No, we didn’t go there. But the serpent wanted to take us, so we promised we’d bring you guys back with us tomorrow. You already have a lot on your plate, though.”
“It’s okay. The innkeeper is taking care of this village for us,” Zinal said.
Fische seemed a little worried about that, and I gave him a curious look. “Will he be okay?”
“Yeah. We were a bit slow to notice, but there’s nothing wrong with acting after the discovery. If we butt in too much now that things’ve gotten like this, that would be disrespectful to the locals. They’ve got enough hands anyway.”
Why would it be disrespectful? Would the reputation of the good villagers get worse if Zinal and Fische got too involved in their affairs?
“Yeah, fair point.” Fische seemed to agree.
Zinal noticed the skeptical look on my face and smiled. “This innkeeper and the shopkeepers of this village are supposed to protect victims and prevent further harm as much as they can whenever any problems arise here.”
So they were heavily valued.
“We protected the victims by bringing the contracts out, and we got their testimonies, too. And we spread the rumor and mobilized the adventurers, so there shouldn’t be any more victims. If we keep butting in now, that might throw suspicion among the group of good people here. You know, they might think there’s a traitor among them. So we had to know it was time for us to bow out.”
Time for them to bow out… If I were in their shoes, I would definitely wind up meddling too much because I was worried for everyone.
“It sounds like a very tough balance,” I said.
Zinal shot me an appreciative smile, then looked at my father. “We’re free tomorrow.”
“Okay. We’ll all go see the serpents then,” my father replied.
“Good. So, we’ll just hear what the innkeeper wants to say, then if there’s anything else he wants us to do, we’ll finish it up today.”
Zinal looked happy about my father’s proposal. There was a twinkle in Fische’s eye, too.
“We’ll go back to our room,” my father said. “Let us know tomorrow how everything went today.”
“Will do.”
After Zinal and Fische walked downstairs, we headed back to our own room.
“I guess there were more bad eggs here than we thought,” my father remarked.
“Yeah. I’m a little surprised.”
I let the creatures out of their bag and got some tea ready. Then I took some sweet snacks out of my magic bag and put them on the table. I was still a little mad, so I was craving something sweet to soothe myself.
“Both guilds are taught that it’s their job to nurture young adventurers and help them thrive,” my father said.
To nurture them?
I poured the tea into a cup and handed it to my father, who was sitting across from me. Then I poured myself a cup of tea and took a sip. Its warmth seemed to calm me a little.
“They’re our future, so they’re very important,” my father explained. “That means we need to pass on as much knowledge and skills as we can so it can all live on in as many people as possible. That’s the job of higher and mid-level adventurers.”
That all made sense. Without young adventurers, the village wouldn’t have the next generation of protectors.
“That’s why what this village’s guilds have been doing has been particularly nefarious. I wouldn’t be surprised if every single person involved is tried and convicted.”
“Every single person involved?”
After I’d heard all the news, a thought occurred to me: The higher-ups in the adventurer guild would do anything to hide their wrongdoing. Blackmail, threats, anything. And anyone who worked for the adventurer guild was also technically involved. Would those people be convicted, too?
“Well, not literally every single one of them. The ones with extenuating circumstances will probably be safe.”
My father seemed to have read my mind.
“The guilds have a magic item that makes communication possible right away if there’s a problem. The first step is to check and see if that magic item is set up for anybody to use. If it isn’t, they can’t call for help.”
That made sense.
“There will also be questioning and gathering of testimonies, so the innocent will be safe.”
I nodded at my father. It was reassuring that the victims would be protected from punishment.