The Adventurer's Guild Where The Clamor Never Ceases

“As I suspected, it suits you. The length is just right. When I saw it in the shop it seemed too long, but your legs are long, so it’s actually just right.”

“Well, thanks.”

Having successfully purchased a full set of clothes, I headed to the Adventurer’s Guild, which was my original purpose.

“……..”
“……..”
“……..”
“……..”

The moment I opened the Guild’s doors, every adventurer inside turned to look at me with appraising expressions.

When an unfamiliar person comes in, the Guild always gets like this.

Whisper… whisper…

“Never seen that face before.”

“That hair… a Shikai Tribe?”

“What is a slave doing here alone?”

“Look closely. There’s no collar. A free-status Shikai Tribe member—that’s rare.”

Whisper… whisper…

‘You’re as disliked as ever.’

“(I’ve long since gotten used to it.)”

Ignoring them, I walked straight to the reception counter.

After a short while, the adventurers who had been watching me resumed their conversations and meals.

The Guild also has a tavern attached, so the clamor never really stops.

“Excuse me, I’d like to sell Magic Stones, please.”

Thunk—I placed the brand-new backpack I had bought at the clothing shop on the counter.

Because the wear on the old backpack might link it to Sylvan’s Hero party, I had bought a new one to avoid being traced.

“Alright, one moment! Oh, is this your first time?”

“…Well, yes.”

The young receptionist, who always greets even rough customers with a smile, smiled and said hello.

Her name is Emily.

She knew my face, but she apparently didn’t recognize me.

“Then please start with Adventurer registration. Can you write the common language?”

“Yes, no problem.”

I smoothly filled out the form Emily handed me.

“Eh… Sid Ranorus?”

“Is something wrong?”

“No! One of my acquaintances—or rather, an adventurer I know—has the same name and is a Shikai Tribe member, so I was just surprised.”

“The Shikai Tribe is a small group. There aren’t many surnames, and ‘Sid’ is a common name among them. It’s not unnatural for another Shikai Tribe member to have the same name.”

“Oh! I see. I didn’t know that.”

Of course that’s a lie.

In fact, everyone in the settlement knows one another, so they wouldn’t give the same names to avoid confusion.

Though we all shared the same surname.

‘Wouldn’t it have been better to operate under a false name?’

“(It’d be problematic if my lies fell apart. I don’t know how long I’ll be staying in this town, so it’s better to choose my lies carefully.)”

‘You don’t seem foolish at heart.’

Though I lack education.

“We’ll appraise the Magic Stones now, so please wait a moment.”

“Please do.”

At that moment—the Guild’s doors were flung open roughly.

“Haaaaaa—finally made it back!”

“It’s because you can’t remember the way that it took this long!”

“What!? It’s not my fault! That bastard took all the luggage, didn’t he!?”

“That’s true, we should’ve at least retrieved the map. That’s my mistake.”

“It’s all that incompetent one’s fault, isn’t it!?”

“……..”

Heavy Knight Garen.

Mage Lilium.

Assassin Ruruu.

And—Hero Sylvan.

The hero party that used me as a pawn and abandoned me.

So I had returned before them.

The scum who used me up and left me behind.

My targets for revenge.

I’ll avenge myself someday.

I’ll grow far stronger than them.

‘In that case, you should check their statuses.’

Ekarraat offered advice from beneath the shadows.

‘The eye that sees reason can also view others’ statuses. Try it.’

As instructed, when I focused on Sylvan and the others as if checking their statuses, several panels appeared.

As expected of A-Rank Adventurers, their levels are high.

But except for Ruru, their HP and MP are depleted, showing they had quite a hard time on the way back.

“Ah! Lord Sylvan and party! Welcome back! Huh…? I don’t see Sid anywhere?”

Receptionist Emily was puzzled that I, the hero party’s baggage carrier, was missing.

She was one of the few people who treated me—the slave Shikai Tribe member—with the same smile she gave other adventurers.

Seeing her worry about my absence made me feel guilty for deceiving her.

But I couldn’t exactly say, “I’m that Sid.”

“He died.”

“What!? Sid!?”

“It’s because that incompetent one kept getting in the way—”

“—Garen, in front of the commoners, shut your mouth.”

Sylvan interrupted Garen and replied to Emily.

“Today we successfully cleared down to the 19th subterranean floor of the S-Rank Dungeon 【Crimson Night Moon】. But in the fight with the floor Boss on the 20th floor—the Minotaur—we were forced to retreat. That’s when our dear friend, who always supported us from the shadows, Sid, volunteered to be a decoy. We are alive now because of Sid; we won’t let his death be in vain. For the comrades who fell, I swear we will clear the S-Rank Dungeon 【Crimson Night Moon】!”

“Kyaa ❤ Sylvan is so cool~ ❤”

‘That blue-haired one talks big. They were routed and fled, yet they know how to phrase it.’

“Is that so… Sid… that’s really unfortunate.”

Emily’s eyes welled up hearing of my death.

As a Guild receptionist, she should hear news of adventurers’ deaths often.

Nevertheless, she was crying because of me.

That made me happy… and also guilty.

“So, Emily, sorry but could you give us some potions?”

Looking closely at Sylvan and the others, they were pretty battered.

It seemed they had several intense fights while fleeing the Minotaur back to the surface.

That would explain why they got lost.

I was always the one mapping the dungeon, so they weren’t used to making maps.

The fear of when the Minotaur would catch up likely added to their mental exhaustion.

“Potions, right? They’re 3,000 G each.”

“We dropped all our wallets and don’t have any on us. Put it on our tab.”

“I’m sorry, but that’s not permitted. If we managed tabs for every adventurer individually, the Guild’s resources wouldn’t be enough no matter what.”

“I’m from the Hero party, I’m telling you! Show a little flexibility! You’re uselessly stingy!”

“Impossible is impossible!”

Used to dealing with rough types, Emily didn’t back down an inch.

But Garen seemed very agitated and raised his fist toward Emily.

“Kya!?”

Garen’s fist approached Emily’s pretty face, and then――――