∗ ∗ ∗
“It wasn’t as bad as I expected in Asyl...the former village of Asyl, I guess you’d say. There were just a lot of skeletons nesting in that ghost town,” I began.
Fresco nodded. “We’d heard as much from the merchants who were attacked, but they really were skeletons, huh? That’s unusual. That place turned into a ghost town ages ago, but not because people there had died horrible deaths or anything like that. Well, we don’t have much to go on since it wasn’t a very notable town, so we can’t say for sure.”
I hadn’t been given precise details because there were none to begin with. There wasn’t much to be done about that.
“I found it a bit strange too. Undead beings like skeletons are most often produced when someone is killed gruesomely and can’t pass on, or when mana solidifies in the presence of blood. But neither seemed to be the case there.”
On the contrary, the place seemed perfectly nice. I’d almost want to live there myself. But maybe I was just numb to it, after being immersed in the dangerous environs of the Purgatory Forest for so long.
“Huh, you can tell that?”
“A little, just by looking at the mana.”
This was true. Of the skills I’d gained from Aht, the sacred ones had proved most effective.
Fresco sounded pleased to hear this. “That’s a good skill. We could get a lot of mileage out of it.”
I frowned. “Don’t go looking for more uses for me already.”
“The adventurer’s guild leader’s real test of strength is to figure out how to get work for the guild’s adventurers.” He was the adventurer’s guild leader, but his job sounded more like that of a businessman.
“Spinning it in a different way doesn’t make it any better.”
“But I’m not wrong, am I?”
“Well, I guess not.” I wanted to argue back, but that was all I could say. I understood how important money was, now that I’d been reduced to this. If you had a chance to earn money, it was best to take it.
“Y’see? Anyway, jokes aside, that skill of yours could be in high demand. I’m not gonna ask for the technical details, but since you’re the one who has it, you do know how to use it, yeah?”
“I don’t know the exact specifics of my own skills, but yes, I should be able to.”
“Not many people understand the ins and outs of their own skills anyway, so it’s fine if you’ve only got the gist. Anyway, that skill of yours will let you know in advance to some degree where and when the undead will pop up, if I’ve got this right. That makes it easier to think up a strategy. And you could get rewarded just for standing by and watching. Sounds like a good deal, right?”
“Isn’t that kind of crooked? And doesn’t the Church usually take care of that kind of thing?”
“In this country, the Church of Astral’s influence means nil. They barely even take these kinds of requests. Only when it pays well. They won’t be able to complain much if we steal some of their demand.”
“Any other religions that might object?”
“None that would go making a fuss about it. The Church of Astral is just weird like that. Most clergy members can’t even go into gambling dens. Sure, they might take issue with us purifying a house where someone died, but nobody would complain about adventurers checking out a battlefield or other places like that.”
“I guess you raise a good point. Then if there’s no problem, you can pass those requests along to me. I’ll take them if I’ve got time.”
I didn’t plan to accept anything beyond reason. Not because it’d be extra work, but because standing out too much would cause me problems. Fresco seemed like he’d be understanding, but this was just to be safe.
“Okay, sounds good. Anyway, moving on.”
“Yeah. We defeated all the skeletons that spawned. There were about twenty of them. We gathered their mana stones too, so that should be good enough evidence.”
I spread them out on the table with a clatter. Fresco picked them up, one at a time, and inspected them with great interest.
“Oh, this one... Is it just me, or is it a little bigger than normal skeleton mana stones?” he said, head tilted in puzzlement. He seemed to feel like it was somehow unlike the ones he was used to. I couldn’t tell the difference, but Fresco was a seasoned veteran.
“Really?”
“Yeah, it just feels like it. I’ll have someone here appraise it. They might’ve just been skeletons, but for a group of four people—or three people and a cat, I guess—to defeat twenty of them? You’re way better than novices,” he complimented, though it might’ve just been flattery.
“That’s to be expected when someone with passable fighting ability registers as an adventurer, right?”
It was common enough for new adventurers to have been knights who’d retired or gotten fired, or warriors who’d gained full mastery of some martial art.
“True. Still, it’s rare for them to come as young as you... But enough about that, I guess.”
“Yeah. Oh right, I found something else curious.” I suddenly remembered, and pulled the item in question out of my pocket.
“Hm?”
“Take a look at this.”
Fresco took it in hand and studied it over. “This is...a medal, huh? Hm, there’s a crest here. It’s...!” His expression turned to one of surprise. Apparently, he had some idea of what this object was.
“What is it? Have you seen it before?”
“Yeah, I have. We better let Lady Katarina know about this,” he said with a serious look.
“I’m going to return to the manor after this, so shall I tell her?” I suggested offhand. I expected that Fresco would’ve preferred to tell her himself, but surprisingly, he agreed.
“Lemme think... Yeah, that might be best. Take this medal with you,” he said.
That seemed a little strange. “Are you sure? Shouldn’t you hold on to it as the adventurer’s guild leader?”
“No, that’ll just invite more trouble. Besides, Lady Katarina can put it to good use.”
This probably had something to do with the city’s power structure. If so, then it was probably better to have her take it.
I nodded. “I see, so that’s what this is about. All right. I’ll do that, then. By the way, what about my reward for this job?”
I hadn’t forgotten about that. Money was important, after all.
Fresco answered, “Right, your pay. Here you go. And you’ll get your portion of the mana stones once they’re appraised, so come pick it up in a few days. Sound good?”
“Yeah, thanks.”