Episode 10: Bodyguard
Considering that Vollen Town was on alert, Bolt, being the least conspicuous, would enter the town disguised as a wandering adventurer.
I would accompany him, concealing my presence with Stealth in case of an emergency.
Bolt would scout out the location of the Kokkola Company, while I would provide support in Stealth.
Cokes, Kilza, and Hattie would stay behind in the dome constructed outside the town.
Hattie would practice Stone Lance to increase her combat capabilities for when the time came.
Bolt went to the market, ate at a food stall while complaining about the high price of salt, and subtly inquired about the two grain merchants.
However, in Vollen Town, the Kokkola Company was the grain merchant that handled salt and sugar, while the Torigan Company dealt with grains and spices in general, not salt and sugar.
Naturally, the conversation turned to the Kokkola Company, and then to the rivalry between the Kokkola Company and the Torigan Company for market share.
It didn’t take long to find out that the Kokkola Company had its store on Wise Street.
Thinking it would be unwise to talk any further, I whispered to Bolt to end the conversation and withdraw.
We stayed at a hotel for one night, left the town the next day, and returned to Cokes and the others.
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“How was it? Did you find out?”
“Yeah, it seems their main store is on Wise Street.”
“Are you really going?”
“I’m going. I’ll just give them a warning. If they don’t believe me, they’ll die, but if I sneak in, they’ll become more cautious to some extent. If they repel a thief even once, they won’t be able to say it was us.”
“There are only about ten days until the fledging day in June. They should be able to prepare to fight back.”
“Well, if the Honings Marquis and the others change their plans, that will all be for nothing. It depends on what happens as a result of us running away, but if they move up the schedule, we won’t make it in time.”
“Then we’ll head to the royal capital. Our new party name is Fangs of the Earth. We’ll be in the royal capital for about two months, so we’ll be waiting.”
“I’ll be in Vollen for about a month. If we get framed as the culprits, I’ll run to let you know. In the royal capital, make sure to show your faces at the Adventurer’s Guild every day, so you can say you were in the royal capital.”
“Leave it to us. We’ll bring in prey every day and deposit the money under the name of Fangs of the Earth.”
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It took quite a while to find the Kokkola Company on Wise Street, but I managed to infiltrate the store.
It had a front store, a separate building for storing salt and sugar in the back grain warehouse, and a considerable amount of space for residences and servant rooms on the second and third floors.
The chairman of the Kokkola Company was a fox-person, a dignified figure with silver hair.
I thought about sneaking into the family’s rooms, but since I wasn’t a thief, I looked for the office and followed the servants in after they left.
There were two guards. I held my breath, averted my gaze, erased my presence, and sat down in a corner of the room.
The guards probably wouldn’t leave their posts, so I decided to wait until closing time to give the warning.
The guards changed shifts twice, and a servant brought in the day’s books and left.
The guards seemed bored, so I slowly stood up and went behind Chairman Kokkola, who was looking at the books at his desk.
Chairman Kokkola, who raised his face from the books and looked around, seemed to have quite a sharp sense, but he didn’t seem to realize I was behind him.
I took out a drawn Short Sword from my Magic Pouch and placed it on Chairman Kokkola’s shoulder.
“Don’t make a sound.”
Chairman Kokkola stiffened at the warning, and the guards by the wall were shocked to see the Short Sword.
“I don’t intend to kill you. I’m just going to talk for a bit and leave, but if you call for help or resist…”
“Very well. You two, don’t move.”
“What I’m about to tell you might happen around the time of the fledging day next month. Around that time, this store will be attacked by thieves. That’s the plan… but the plan has gone awry.”
When I said that, Chairman Kokkola looked at the ceiling and sighed.
“You don’t seem surprised.”
“Are you saying it will become like Hunza’s Shop?”
“I don’t know about Hunza’s Shop, but I heard that the owner’s family was killed and the store was taken over by someone else.”
“Hmph, it seems they’re still not satisfied.”
“You seem to know who the opponent is.”
“Yes, there are scoundrels who moved into town after Hunza’s Shop was destroyed. And there are those who are intimate with them.”
“Then prepare to fight back. A messenger from the Marquis will be coming late tonight. The plan was to have the thieves break in with the messenger when the door was opened, but since the plan has gone awry, who knows what will happen.”
“Why did you come to tell me this?”
“Would you believe me if I sent a letter?”
“You’re risking danger to give a warning. I don’t understand the reason.”
“The reason is simple. If you guys are attacked and die, we’ll be framed as the thieves. Sometimes it’s necessary to catch and punish the culprits, but you can’t punish your own subordinates, can you? We don’t intend to be sacrifices.”
“If you don’t want to be sacrifices, I have a proposal. Will you listen?”
This old man is quite brave.
“I’ll listen.”
“I want to buy your skills for sneaking in here without anyone noticing. Of course, I’ll pay a suitable reward.”
“Unfortunately, I don’t intend to become an assassin.”
“How about as my bodyguard?”
“I don’t have any experience in interpersonal combat.”
“But if you stay by my side, erasing your presence, you can at least repel the thieves, right? The opponent won’t think there’s an invisible bodyguard either. It won’t be for very long, but what do you say?”
That’s true, but I don’t want anyone to know I was here.
If the Honings Marquis becomes quiet for a while if the attack on the Kokkola Company fails, I might as well help.
“Tell me the reward and how long it will be.”
I lowered the Short Sword from his shoulder and asked about the conditions.
“If what you say is true, it will be until the middle of next month. How about five Gold Coins as a reward?”
“That’s cheap for risking my life. Ten Gold Coins, a place to hide my presence, and a condition that no one but you can order me around.”
“Very well. Can you show me your face? I’ll tell them to keep their mouths shut.”
I removed Stealth while wearing the hood and stood in front of Chairman Kokkola.
He stared at my face intently, and seemed to realize who I was.
“You are… could it be?”
“I’d rather you not say any more. If you really want to know, please ask me when we’re alone.”
I would stay in this mansion as a bodyguard, but I would be free to act and not show my face.
I wouldn’t be a bodyguard from dawn to dusk, and I would be allowed to walk around freely.
When entering the chairman’s office, I would knock 3-1-2, so he should open the door.
He called the butler and ordered him to have me as Chairman Kokkola’s bodyguard for the time being, but not to ask any questions, and to give me one of the attic rooms.
He had the butler and guards turn their backs, and I hid my face with a scarf, put on my hood, and was led to the attic room.
At that time, I told them that I didn’t need meals to avoid contact with the servants.
I slipped through the busy preparations for opening the store and headed to the market, had breakfast, and then confirmed the location of the Adventurer’s Guild in Vollen.
After that, I went to the Torigan Company on Malme Street and was allowed to freely tour the inside.
The store itself didn’t have much security, but once you went deeper inside, the security was tight and there were guards standing here and there.
Tight security probably meant that they were used to making enemies.
As a result, I wasn’t given the honor of seeing Chairman Torigan’s face.
When it got dark and it was time to close the store, I returned to the Kokkola Company and waited until morning, lying on a mat in a corner of the entrance used for emergencies at night.
I didn’t think they would attack until the month changed, but I had to do my job.
According to Chairman Kokkola, the money from the installment sales in the surrounding towns and villages would be collected at the beginning of June and December, so that would be when they would be attacked.
When I asked if they didn’t go through the Commerce Guild, he said that there were no Commerce Guilds in small towns and villages.
There was also a method of bringing it directly to the Commerce Guild in Vollen, but he smiled wryly, saying that he had no choice but to collect it at the main store first because he wouldn’t know the details of each location.
I slept in the attic room for about two days, explored the town for a day, and explored the area around the Honings Marquis’s residence, waiting for the month to change.
Even after the Bestowal Ceremony and fledging day at the beginning of the month, quiet nights continued, and I thought that there was no change for three or four days and that the plan had been changed, but only about 70% of the installment money from the towns and villages had been collected.
It couldn’t be helped because it was an inconvenient world even though there was magic. Late on the sixth night, the sound of carriage wheels was heard outside and stopped in front.
I sensed the presence of many people with my presence detection.
The person on duty, sleeping near the entrance at night, seemed to slowly get up.
Unaware of me lying in the shadows some distance away, they approached the bolted door without any caution, peering outside.
I panicked, wondering if there was an informant, but thinking about it, it was only natural.
Even Chairman Kokkola recognized me on sight, despite never having met me before, so it stands to reason that someone is leaking information about the Baron family’s internal affairs.
There’s no time to wake up the guards and get them into position, and if I make a fuss now, I’ll miss the chance to capture the thieves.
Fortunately, it’s nighttime, and if I’m indoors, I should be able to use Flash to blind them and Ice Bullet to neutralize them without anyone knowing.
If I have no choice but to do it, then I’ll just have to steel myself and do it.
I heard the sound of the bolt being removed and hushed voices, and then a group of people entered the store.
Well then, time to get to work as a bodyguard, I guess.