“Yes, I will provide the promised reward.”
By the time we left the mansion, it was already late at night, so we disbanded for the time being and gathered again at the Guild in the morning. Even after we explained the situation, the bespectacled man—Lintei—remained skeptical. The Guild members who went to investigate the mansion returned in the evening. However, what they uncovered was a fact that was more bizarre than we had anticipated, even after the incident was supposedly resolved.
“The body of the client, Francoise, has been discovered. According to the soldiers, it seems she had been dead for nearly a year. She was found hanging in her room, but the decomposition had progressed to the point where her body had fallen to the floor in a terrible state.”
I couldn’t believe my ears when I heard this. She had definitely been alive when we questioned her. She even cooked dinner for us.
“So, the Francoise we spoke to was…”
“A Vengeful Spirit.”
“Z-Zowa—!”
Lintei raised his middle finger in disbelief. Roel was making a sound like “zowa” with her mouth. Despite her significant contributions to this request, she seemed completely unaware of the gravity of the situation. If this was true, it meant that Francoise had submitted the request before she committed suicide. The thought that such a thing had been left unattended for a year was unsettling.
“It was our oversight regarding the request form. I can’t believe I let such a request linger for a year…”
“Did no one else take it on?”
“Yes, even I… Huh? Where’s the request form?”
Suddenly, Lintei began searching for the request form, feeling around under the counter and on the floor, checking everywhere, but ultimately, he couldn’t find it.
“It was right here until just now, wasn’t it? How strange, it couldn’t have just blown away.”
“Yes, it was on this counter. If someone had taken it, we would have noticed.”
It was as if the piece of paper had vanished into thin air, as if it had never been there at all.
“The one who found the request form was you, wasn’t it, Roel?”
“Yes, I was looking for a request suitable for D-rank.”
“And yet it was left unattended for a year… Hmm, strange things do happen.”
When Francoise committed suicide, the request form had died with her. Perhaps what we had been dealing with all this time was merely the ghost of a request. It sounded ridiculous, even to me, but if that wasn’t the case, there was no explanation for the bizarre phenomena we had just encountered.
“Lady… might have wanted help… perhaps… waiting for someone… to save her… all this time…”
“Maybe she had lingering regrets… I couldn’t do anything about it.”
Regardless of the outcome, there would be no more strange occurrences in that mansion, nor any suffering spirits. While I felt a sense of accomplishment, there was also an undeniable feeling of emptiness. We had solved one incident, and that was all I could settle for.
【You have obtained a reward of 4000G!】
“And with this incident, both of you have been promoted to C-rank. Congratulations!”
“Ah, thank you!”
“No, we also caused you some trouble.”
Finally, we had reached C-rank. This meant we could take on higher-level requests. If we worked hard and reached B-rank next, we would be eligible for upper-class examinations. I was currently a Swordfighter, but if I could advance to an upper class, I would be able to use even more techniques. I had heard that I would become even stronger and faster. If that happened, I would be one step closer to confronting that “One-Winged Demon.”
The demon that destroyed my village… I could kill it with my own hands…
“Ah—! You guys have already become C-rank?!”
I was startled by the sudden loud voice. When I turned around, I saw Ord standing there, holding a spear.
“That’s awesome! Hey, Lintei! I’m working hard too, so I should be able to rank up soon, right?”
Ord barged in, leaning over the counter towards Lintei.
“You still have a bit to go, Ord. Keep it up.”
“Ha! You guys are definitely going to be left behind!”
Ord had just finished settling his request and was heading to check his level. Although I had somehow become his rival, to be honest, it was a nuisance. I had just been through so much, and his sudden appearance made me feel a bit ill.
On our way back, we decided to do our usual level check, and I noticed that Roel’s level had increased by four. Perhaps it was due to our encounters with the bone monsters or maybe even Francoise. Truppo also seemed to have leveled up by two.
【Lua: Level: Unknown, Class: Swordfighter, Rank: C】
【Roel: Level: 9, Class: Healer, Rank: C】
【Truppo: Level: 15, Class: Magician, Rank: C】
“My level hasn’t changed at all!”
Ord shouted as he burst out of the iron box next to us.
///
“Thank you for today.”
“Gratitude… this way.”
Was that meant to express gratitude? She was a bit hard to understand until the end.
“Vengeful Spirit-type… unexpected… Lua and the others… thank you.”
“I didn’t know there were things like that in the world.”
I recalled the strength of that Vengeful Spirit. Was that what a Vengeful Spirit was like?
“Vengeful Spirit-type… simple brute strength… no… lingering regrets and feelings… that is the power… But Lua… you broke that… who are you…?”
If that’s the case, it meant that the feelings of those people were incredibly strong. But I had things I couldn’t yield either. I couldn’t be defeated so easily.
More importantly, I wondered if this girl would believe me without laughing.
“Truppo, do you know about the Abyss Cave?”
“Abyss…?”
I shared the story of my ten years. I couldn’t see her expression, but I could tell she was listening seriously.
“If Lua’s story is true… that’s incredible… Abyss… King of Destruction… I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere…”
She seemed to think for a moment, but it appeared she couldn’t recall anything. Roel looked surprised; I realized I hadn’t mentioned it before.
“Lua-chan, that’s amazing…”
I could even hear Roel swallowing hard. Yes, I had spent ten years conquering a dungeon that extended to the 100th Underground Floor. That gave me confidence and a sense of pride. No matter how impressive a Vengeful Spirit was, it wouldn’t easily shatter my pride. I had conquered that dungeon… Now that I think about it, why did I even decide to venture into such a terrifying place in the first place? Perhaps it was because I was a child back then. I couldn’t remember anything about that time at all.
“This is where we part ways… I’m heading back to the inn… Lua, Roel… good night…”
“Yeah, good night. Don’t stay up too late.”
I tried to lighten the mood a bit, but Truppo didn’t seem to react at all. He really was a hard person to approach.
“Lua and the others… if there’s a chance… come to the Wizard Kingdom… there… is my… hometown…”
“The Wizard Kingdom?”
“It’s a country full of Wizards where magical technology is advanced. I’ve heard that everything in their lives is supported by magic. So, Truppo-chan was a Magician there.”
Truppo nodded. The Wizard Kingdom… I wanted to visit it someday.
“Then… someday…”
With an awkward farewell, Truppo walked towards the inn. We should head home too. From yesterday to today, I was truly exhausted. Ghosts, Vengeful Spirits, monster transformations, and the Wizard Kingdom. All of these were things I had never heard of before. The outside world was filled with countless things I didn’t know.
“That kid was strange, huh?”
“Yeah, but I think she’s just a bit awkward.”
Roel seemed like the type to gently support anyone, no matter who they were. But I also thought Truppo was a good person.
“I’m hungry. We haven’t done any shopping, but is it okay to eat leftovers?”
“Sure, I’ll eat anything Roel makes.”
“Then, how about salt soup?”
“No way.”
Even though I knew it was a joke, I pouted. Roel chuckled and corrected herself to something else. As I reflected on the fact that we had survived another day and accomplished our request, I settled into the narrow bed to sleep. And from tomorrow, another adventure would begin.
As I walked along the night road, I recalled the night we were attacked by the Mysterious Monster. What was that monster, and who were those people? I hadn’t told Roel because I didn’t want to worry her. I was curious, but if discovering the truth would put her in danger, then I would rather never know. I felt that way because I was enjoying the present so much.
The lights from the buildings along the night road reminded us of the comfort of our daily lives.
///
When I looked back, the two of them were walking while gazing up at the night sky. Without a doubt, if those two hadn’t been there, I would have died during today’s request. Although I managed to communicate and calm the spirit of the girl’s father, beyond the basement was a realm entirely different from my own. A Mortal Ghost, which a B-rank Adventurer could easily defeat, was still tough for me, even with party play. That girl, Lua, defeated it with her bare hands. She had apparently trained in a place called the Abyss Cave, but I had never heard of such a dungeon.
—No, wait, I feel like I’ve heard that name somewhere before.
But I couldn’t quite recall. Perhaps if I asked Lord Hast, I would find out. I was curious about Lua, but even more so about Roel. I had never heard of someone using Heal to dispel Vengeful Spirits and turn them into monsters. Normally, requests of that class required a specialist, an Exorcist. There were still many aspects of Ghost-type creatures that I didn’t fully understand.
Perhaps it’s because the concept of death remains an unknown territory for humans. It moves even after death, sometimes instilling fear in people. There’s no phenomenon more bizarre than this. Because of that, troublesome monsters abound, and the existence of specialists is significant. To be honest, I had taken on that request, but I was just about to discard it. Then those two showed up, and I thought, why not? So, I accepted it with a light heart.
“Who are those two…?”
I decided to cut my training journey short and return to the Wizard Kingdom as soon as possible. If I asked Lord Bardam, he might know something. At this moment, the presence of those two felt more significant than my training. Early in the morning, I left the inn and headed towards the port, passing through the town beneath the Castle of Avangarde. Hoping for clarity to my questions, I quickened my pace towards the inn.
Monster Compendium
Mortal Ghost HP: 332
A floating spirit that has absorbed malevolent energy and transformed into a monster. It tends to dwell in places rife with negative emotions. It wields area-of-effect magic and possesses high durability, making it impossible to defeat with inexperienced skills.