Chapter 136: Let’s Try Escorting a Large Ship
Two days later, we arrived at the harbor where a large ship was docked. After accepting the request, we had been diligently gathering information, and finally, the day to escort the ship had come. The vessel was about thirty meters long, and our task would involve eight C Rank Adventurers. We would set sail in the morning, reach our destination around noon, and then begin fishing. After spending the night on board, we would change locations to fish until midday and return to the harbor town in the evening.
“Good morning!”
As the sun began to rise, we made our way to the harbor. The crew was already busy loading cargo onto the ship, preparing for departure.
“Oh, you must be the Adventurers who are here for the escort.”
I approached a fisherman who was standing idly in front of the ship, and it seemed I was correct.
“Yes, I’m Shuu. This is Rio, and our Tamed Monster, Nil.”
“Woof!”
After introducing ourselves, Rio gave a slight bow, and Nil chimed in with a cheerful bark.
“I’m Goldof. Nice to meet you. By the way, you’re the first Adventurers to arrive for the escort. Since there’s nothing to do until we set sail, feel free to wait here until the others gather.”
“Understood.”
“…Did we come a bit too early?”
“Maybe, but it’s better than being late.”
“That’s true.”
As we chatted aimlessly, a group of adventurers who didn’t look like fishermen joined us, so we exchanged casual greetings.
“I’m Christoph. Nice to meet you.”
He was a slender man equipped with a bow, sporting short gray hair and matching gray eyes, giving off a refined vibe.
“I’m Alina.”
Interestingly, the one who introduced herself with “I’m” was a woman. She held a staff, indicating a magical profession, but she also had numerous daggers strapped to her waist, suggesting she was prepared for close combat. With her blue hair and yellow eyes, she exuded an energetic aura.
The last to join was a group of four men.
“Ugh.”
It seemed they were the party that had assessed us at the Guild, as the first words out of one of their mouths were this.
“Thanks for that time.”
Though I had felt a bit irritated back then, I didn’t think much of it now. We would be working together from here on out, and a tense atmosphere wouldn’t do us any good.
“Do the members of Silver Goblet know you?”
Christoph asked, looking somewhat surprised.
“Silver Goblet? Well, we met briefly when we first showed up at the Guild.”
“I see?”
“Hahaha! You all look so childish!”
Christoph responded with a questioning tone, but Alina found it hilarious and playfully slapped his back. He seemed to misunderstand, but no one pointed it out.
“Ha ha…”
The four men shared similar expressions, merely offering wry smiles.
“It looks like everyone’s here. I’ll guide you to the captain, so follow me.”
Though we hadn’t finished introducing ourselves to everyone, Goldof quickly boarded the ship.
“Let’s go then.”
Seeing this, Christoph followed suit, and we boarded the ship as well. By the way, Silver Goblet was the name of the group of four men, while Christoph and Alina’s party was called Hunter Cross.
“Captain! The escorting Adventurers have arrived!”
“Oh, you’re here.”
As we stepped onto the deck, Goldof called out to a figure who was inspecting the equipment at the back of the ship. It seemed this person was the captain. Contrary to my expectation of a burly figure, he had a fairly average build. With short brown hair and brown eyes that held a strong will, he looked the part of a seasoned captain, especially with his scarred arms.
“Let’s do our best today, as usual… Hm?”
Noticing us, the captain tilted his head. He probably wanted to keep things routine, but that would be a bit troublesome.
“Hello. I’m Shuu, a C Rank Adventurer.”
“I’m Rio.”
“And this is our Tamed Monster, Nil.”
“Hmm, I see some unfamiliar faces… I’m Captain Gargus. Nice to meet you.”
After thoroughly observing me from head to toe, he snorted and turned his attention back to Christoph.
“I’ll leave the assignments to you as usual, Christoph. We’ll set sail in an hour, so don’t be late.”
“Understood.”
With a wry smile, Christoph turned to us and began discussing the escort duties. The basic task involved pairing up in twos to keep watch at the front, back, and sides of the ship. Occasionally, sea monsters would attack, but it seemed the most frequent encounters occurred while fishing. Therefore, while the ship was moving, we had quite a bit of freedom to roam around, as long as we weren’t holed up inside. At night, we would take turns keeping watch in pairs for about two and a half hours each, from evening until dawn.
“Hmm. If we’re attacked by a swarm, the nearby crew will come to assist?”
“You can handle that as the situation demands.”
“I see.”
So it’s a bit of a hit-or-miss approach. Given the ship isn’t too large, we should have enough time to respond after detecting an enemy.
“Since we’re all strangers, it’s not easy to coordinate perfectly.”
I had swallowed the latter part of his sentence, but I agreed. However, that didn’t mean we would do nothing; as we discussed our strengths to some extent, the time to set sail arrived.
“All right, everyone, let’s set sail!”
“““““Oh!!!”””””
With the captain’s voice, cheers erupted from the surrounding crew. They were quite a boisterous bunch, but I didn’t mind this lively atmosphere. The ship, carrying around thirty people including the eight of us assigned as escorts, departed from the harbor town and headed out to sea.