◆ Outside the Town in the Southeast Region of Avangarde Royal Capital ◆
“If it weren’t for you all, this town would have been finished! Thank you so much!”
“I truly appreciate the Special Operations Unit for bringing my daughter back!”
As we triumphantly returned to the town, it wasn’t just us receiving gratitude. Why were Ritta and her subordinates here, along with unrelated humans? There was a boy who supposedly used Illusion Magic; his name was Rash. Why did Ritta know such a young child? I couldn’t wrap my head around the situation.
“Mayor, what’s going on here…?”
“Well, according to Ritta and her team, this town was targeted by lurking bandits. If they hadn’t acted preemptively, it could have been dire.”
“Targeted? But we annihilated the Royal Quake Faction. Could there be more of them hiding around?”
“Apparently so. What a joyous occasion! Hahaha!”
The mayor was completely caught up in the celebration, barely acknowledging Captain Baste’s question. The town was in a festive mood, treating Ritta and her companions as the main heroes. The guildmaster was happy to have his daughter back, but his demeanor suggested it was expected.
There were about thirty bandits captured at a glance, and they should have been able to use Custom Magic. Yet, it was only Ritta, her two subordinates, and that boy Rash who managed to capture them. It was unbelievable; Ritta couldn’t possibly be that strong. Even I, her older brother, knew she wasn’t suited to be a soldier and had a reputation for being clumsy. Although she had her own squad now, it was hardly impressive.
“Let’s throw a welcome party tonight! I hope the Special Operations Unit can join us!”
“Um, while I appreciate the sentiment, not all the bandits are accounted for.”
“What?! There are still more?!”
“The Royal Quake Faction is one of the largest forces within the Comet Wolf Brigade. This number alone might not be enough. So, we would like to continue our mission here.”
“But we killed their leader, Gunnar!”
Captain Baste interjected. That’s right; there were quite a few hiding in that old mansion. We had taken care of them, so where else could they be hiding? From what we gathered, the Royal Quake Faction had about fifty members at most. Including those captured here, the numbers matched perfectly.
“Just because their leader is dead doesn’t mean they’ll stop fighting. In fact, they might even rally in his absence.”
“That’s just an assumption, isn’t it?”
“True, I have no solid proof, but I believe it’s too early to let our guard down. That’s why we want to stay in this town for a while longer.”
“You all?”
It wasn’t just Captain Baste who was displeased. Those who had been eager to celebrate and enjoy the gratitude of the townsfolk, especially the girls, wore bitter expressions.
“While it’s a kind offer, your unit should be off duty, right?”
“Yes, we’re on a break, so we’re enjoying our time off.”
“Hmph…”
I wanted to retort, but arguing here wouldn’t improve our standing. I couldn’t ruin the festive atmosphere, so I had no choice but to back down.
◆ Town Inn ◆
“What is going on…?”
“I was looking forward to a blazing night with beautiful women…”
“To think there are still enemies out there, what nonsense!”
The members voiced their complaints. Captain Baste seemed at a loss for how to handle the situation. Personally, I was relieved that no women had been subjected to the filthy desires of these men. However, the fact that the Special Operations Unit had left this undesirable atmosphere was evident.
“But we completed our mission as the Special Operations Unit, didn’t we?”
“Do you really think that’s enough, Nikka? The fact remains that we couldn’t fully protect the town. It’s infuriating…”
“Ritta-chan, did you know about the enemy beforehand and chose not to tell us?”
“Yikes! If that’s true! Heh-heh! You’re underestimating us! I’ll carve you up! Heh-heh-heh!”
“Ritta wouldn’t do something like that!”
I regretted defending my sister as soon as I spoke up. I knew the piercing gazes directed at me would lead to all sorts of accusations.
“By the way, Ritta-chan is your sister, huh?”
“You know something, don’t you?”
“I don’t know anything! I’m just surprised my sister came to this town!”
“…Everyone, to your beds. We’ll discuss tomorrow’s plans at dawn.”
Captain Baste quietly concluded the meeting. He had managed to quell the brewing conflict, but more importantly, he was the angriest one here. I couldn’t thank him for defending me; in fact, he might be the most upset with me. With his elbows on the table and fists clenched, he avoided making eye contact, which was unsettling.
“Nikka, since we’re at it, let me say this. You’re the weakest in the Special Operations Unit. You should be a bit more humble.”
“Lester, regardless of the captains, we’re all teammates. There’s no hierarchy among us.”
“Stop pretending to be equal. You’re the lowest level here. It’s embarrassing that even B-Rank members have surpassed you despite being A-Rank.”
“That was because of the Level Cap!”
“Is that all you have to offer?”
“Go to sleep.”
Captain Baste’s anger reached its peak, and I had no choice but to comply this time. My mood was terrible. I couldn’t stand being blamed for my sister’s actions. She had come to this town without telling me and had the audacity to hunt bandits. She wasn’t following orders. I had spoiled her too much; I had to firmly set her straight tomorrow.
◆ Outside the Town in the Southeast Region of Avangarde Royal Capital ◆
Outside the gates, Ritta and her companions were already there. They seemed to be discussing something. Ritta, along with her two subordinates, Irene and Shuri, and that boy Rash, were all gathered before dawn to strategize against the bandits.
“Hey, what are you doing over there?”
“Special Operations Unit…”
As Captain Baste called out, the four of them looked at us suspiciously. Ritta, looking anxious, might have sensed something.
“The remaining members of the Royal Quake Faction are definitely hiding somewhere. So—”
“I understand your concerns. Leave this town to us; you all should return to the Royal Capital immediately.”
“We came to this town on our day off, and the mayor asked for our help.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“We’re doing this because we want to.”
Despite Captain Baste’s attempts to resolve the situation peacefully, Ritta and her friends stubbornly refused to leave. He pressed his fingers to his forehead, trying to calm his anger, and fell silent for a moment.
“If you interfere with the Special Operations Unit’s mission… do you understand?”
“We won’t get in your way.”
“That’s for me to decide. You’ve already intervened too much.”
“Hey, Baste! Just so you know, if we hadn’t been here, the town would have been destroyed!”
“Wait, Rash…”
The boy with the pointed hat and prominent freckles was clearly cheeky and truly insufferable. How did Ritta come to know such a child? I figured he was just a kid, but it still piqued my curiosity.
“The Royal Quake Faction has been using Shadow Entry to burrow underground and observe this town for a while now. The guildmaster’s daughter was kidnapped because of it. If there are remnants of the Comet Wolf Brigade, that magic should be the first thing to be wary of. They used it to infiltrate Avangarde all the way to the Royal Capital.”
“I see… I had forgotten about that.”
“If you had known, you could have asked that old man Donboss over there to investigate. He can burrow underground, right?”
“Rash, that’s enough…”
Ritta seemed flustered by the loud-mouthed child. Aside from me, everyone here had levels exceeding 1000. Perhaps it was just the naivety of youth that made him fearless against opponents who could easily kill him in seconds.
“That’s a ridiculous story. If that were the case, they should have invaded much sooner.”
“Burning Mage Lester, someone of your skill should understand.”
“Oh? You know me?”
“I know most of the famous wizards, including Baste over there. They’re all my idols.”
The unexpected compliment left both Captain Baste and Lester bewildered. No one would frown at being called an idol. That’s why they couldn’t retort strongly against the boy who was challenging them.
“…If you consider what the Comet Wolf Brigade was, the answer should be clear.”
“They’re a bunch of fools plotting to overthrow the monarchy, right?”
“That’s why you can’t see anything!”
Ritta, who had been trying to stop Rash just moments ago, could no longer contain herself and spoke up. Perhaps caught off guard again, Lester seemed to be intimidated by Ritta.
“Those people were waiting for you, the Special Operations Unit, to arrive. And now, the abduction of the mayor’s daughter is all part of your… no, the Kingdom of Avangarde’s plan to tarnish its reputation.”
“…What do you mean?”
“The goal of the Avangarde Special Operations Unit is to fail in rescuing the kidnapped individuals, leading to total annihilation. That is the primary objective. If that fails, the next step is to devastate the town… which means the Special Operations Unit couldn’t protect it. This is the scenario they envisioned.”
“What?!”
“They have been thinking about how to bring down the Kingdom of Avangarde. If they had a whole day after arriving, they could have carefully considered and investigated to reach this conclusion…”
“Captain Ritta had already taken out the town’s map before we departed and was thinking about it the whole time. Right, Shuri?”
“Yes. Moreover, with the speed of the Special Operations Unit, we should have arrived much earlier. According to my predictions and calculations, this was a situation that could have been resolved without any issues by the Special Operations Unit.”
The two who had intended to go out hunting for women wore expressions of embarrassment as Ritta’s subordinates, the young girls, pursued them. They couldn’t retort after being lectured by children and having their shortcomings pointed out. It was an undeniable fact, especially since they had been fooling around before coming to this town. However, they had their own issues as well.
“Ritta, I’m asking not as your brother but as a member of the Special Operations Unit. If you knew the town was targeted in advance, you could have provided us with that information, couldn’t you?”
“We also investigated and thought it through to arrive at this point. When we met your… Nikka-san, we still didn’t know anything.”
Being called Nikka-san instead of “big brother” was more shocking than expected. I shouldn’t have tried to sound so composed as a member of the Special Operations Unit.
“We walked and investigated on our own… We consulted Lord Hast about countermeasures for Shadow Entry and got introduced to Rash-kun. We finally succeeded in restraining them by outsmarting the enemy. We may be weak… but we have the potential to draw out strength depending on how we approach things.”
“So you want to say that my Baste Squad is incompetent?”
“…I won’t deny that.”
“Hey, wait a minute. You just happened to be in the right place when the enemy attacked.”
Lester blurted out a ridiculous excuse. I thought about how absurd it sounded, but Donboss smirked, seemingly understanding his true intent.
“That’s right, Don. It’s rude to treat people as incompetent.”
“You say that so bluntly, but what about the hostages? If we hadn’t complied, they would have surely been killed.”
“I think that’s impressive. It’s something we couldn’t have done either; we also failed to prevent the kidnapping…”
“But we arrived in town later than you. We worked hard after that… what do you mean, ‘fooling around’?”
“Haah… fine, I’ll admit to the shortcomings.”
Captain Baste, who had been mediating the argument, turned his gaze toward Ritta and the others. Under the glare of someone over Level 1000, Ritta and her team showed signs of shrinking back. Even though they hesitated, they didn’t try to escape from us.
“Thank you for your cooperation. We’ll handle the rest, so you should return to your inn. If you want, we can cover your lodging expenses.”
“I thought we already declined that.”
“Any further interference will be deemed as obstruction, you know?”
“Captain Baste, it seems we have no choice but to resort to force. Hey, Nikka. That girl is your sister, right?”
So he’s telling me to do something about it. There’s no way I could convince Ritta now, and when I remained silent, I was kicked hard in the back. I forgot to brace myself for the impact.
“I’m saying it’s your responsibility. I’ll leave this to you; you understand what to do without me saying more, right?”
“Ugh… but using force…”
“Are you okay with not being able to stay in the Special Operations Unit anymore? I’ll be sure to report this matter to Captain Argil.”
Thanks to the Special Operations Unit, I had become stronger, and my life had improved dramatically. With my savings, my future seemed secure; all I needed was for Ritta to find a good husband, and I would have no complaints. Was it worth risking everything by opposing them here?
“Captain Baste…”
“…You need to figure something out.”
With Captain Baste’s dismissive words, I had no choice but to brace myself. I spun my spear, taking a combat stance. Even Ritta and her team seemed to take a slight step back, as if to say they were serious.
“Ritta, please listen. The Special Operations Unit is an elite force recognized by the kingdom; if you oppose us, you’ll lose everything.”
“The mayor’s request isn’t over yet.”
“Did the mayor request you when the Special Operations Unit was present?”
“He said he wanted to rely on as many forces as possible to eliminate any uncertainties. It’s a natural thought for the leader of this town.”
“What a foolish mayor…”
In other villages and towns, when the Special Operations Unit arrived, they would be welcomed, often sidelining the local militia or guards. This was the first time I had experienced something like this. The Royal Quake Faction was a particularly powerful remnant faction, so it was understandable, but it also meant they didn’t fully trust us.
“This is your last warning. Turn back into the town.”
“That’s precisely why there’s a high possibility that the Royal Quake Faction’s forces are still remaining.”
“I won’t ask for the basis anymore. This is originally the job of the Special Operations Unit.”
“It’s about the pride of the Special Operations Unit, isn’t it? Big brother, I mean, Nikka-san…”
“Are you okay with fighting me?”
I could just focus on defense without going all out. After all, Ritta, along with the others, wouldn’t even be able to graze me, who was at Level 820. If I held out long enough, they would eventually give up.
“From now on, whether you like it or not, you will enter the town. I will make it happen with my spear.”
Having made up my mind, everyone fell into a defensive stance. It was a sight that made me doubt their seriousness. Perhaps it was the assurance of not being killed that made them act this way. If that was the case…
“My level is 820. Do you understand what that means? If I accidentally misjudge my restraint, it could lead to the worst possible outcome.”
“Nikka-san, seriously? Are you really going to fight your sister?”
“Did you say Rash-kun? I don’t know what obligation you feel to be here, but this is also for Ritta.”
“Ritta, you see…!”
“Rash-kun.”
Behind me, Captain Baste and the others were glaring at us. There was no choice but to go through with it; a little intimidation would do the trick. Once they witnessed the power of someone at Level 820, they would quickly give up. Levels show a desperate gap in strength. Just like I had been before, Captain Baste and the other members of the Special Operations Unit would feel the same way.
If all went well, Ritta might realize her place and listen to me. If she could live like a girl, I would be satisfied with that alone. She had opposed my life as an adventurer countless times, but I would change that perception here. After all, I was now stronger than an S-rank adventurer.
◆ Shin Report ◆
Hmm, I can finally see the town.
It’s already morning.
Ah, just one more nap.