Episode 420: Let’s Pass the Buck on Troublesome Matters
Having finished one job, I returned to the town’s harbor, which should have been deserted, but was now bustling with people. It seemed the ship that had been hijacked first, with the hostages, had returned.
“Ah, crap.”
The ship I asked Nil to look after… I completely forgot about it. The scenery was just the ocean the whole way back, and I didn’t sense anything, so it slipped my mind. And there’s something else I forgot.
『Nil, where are you right now?』
『Woof woof!』
I got a reply via Telepathic Communication, but I couldn’t tell where he was.
『Can you move away from the ship for just a moment?』
『Woof!』
After the reply, I sensed Nil’s presence after a short while. I pinpointed his location and headed there immediately.
I had already sent the TYPE Series back to the Dungeon, so I tied up the stretched-out crew members. Since none of the kidnapped people could operate the ship, I told them to wait, as I would dispatch people later.
“Well then, let’s go pick up the two of them.”
“Woof!”
After dealing with all the stragglers, we went to pick up the orphans, which was our original objective. I still couldn’t sense their presence, so I relied on Nil’s nose and followed him. Eventually, we found the ship we were looking for, and I landed on the deck.
“We’ve come to pick you up!”
“Ah, Shuu Onii-chan!”
Al and Rem, who were on the deck, noticed us and came running over. The crew members were tied up with rope and rolled into the ship’s cabin, so they couldn’t get out. Even if there were any magic users among them, the Metal Spider-made rope wouldn’t be cut easily, so it was safe.
But I wonder why Master had so much of this long rope prepared. I have to collect the rope after handing these guys over.
“The orphanage director is worried, so let’s go home!”
“Y-yes… But is it okay?”
Rem nodded, but when she looked back, there were other adults who had been captured as well.
“Don’t worry about us. Your families must be worried too, so you should go home quickly.”
The only woman said that, and the man who operated the ship nodded his head vigorously, while the other one had a “seriously?” expression, looking back and forth between the two of them and us.
“Ah, thank you very much!”
“Thank you!”
Rem bowed politely, and Al thanked us cheerfully. And when the two of them got on Nil’s back, the man who had the “seriously?” face turned pale and shook his head from side to side.
When we returned to the harbor, there were even more people than before. Looking closely, I could see a group wearing matching armor in the distance. They might be the knights. I heard it would take a little longer, but they were fast.
“Nil, go back to the orphanage first.”
“Woof!”
I told him to take the orphans back first.
After seeing the two children and one dog off with a wave, I approached the group to confirm if they were knights. I also had a favor to ask, so it was helpful that they came quickly.
“Are you perhaps members of the Knights?”
The armor had a familiar crest on it, so I was almost certain, but I asked just to be sure, as there were fewer people than I expected.
“Hmm? Yes, we are, but who are you?”
The group of about ten people heading towards the harbor stopped and turned to face me.
“I’m Shuu, an S Rank Adventurer.”
“Eh!?”
The moment I introduced myself, tension ran through the knights. They straightened their backs and looked ready to salute.
“Lord Shuu, is that you! What business do you have with us?”
A man who appeared to be the captain, with a magnificent beard, stepped forward and asked. It was a much more polite response than before. At this rate, they would probably listen to my request without any trouble.
“I’ve suppressed all the enemy ships offshore, so I’d like you to collect them.”
“…Huh?”
The man who seemed to be the captain was frozen with wide eyes, but I continued to explain the details without minding. The soldiers behind him were also buzzing, but no one interrupted.
“That’s the gist of it.”
“Yes! I’ll return and inform the main force!”
“It would be nice if I could get about two Magic Tools that can erase presence, so you can have the rest. You can deduct the collection costs from that.”
“We are just a vanguard, so we cannot give you an immediate answer on the spot, but I don’t think there will be any problems.”
I see. So that’s why there were so few of them.
“I understand. Well then, I’ll leave the rest to you.”
“Understood!”
After receiving a crisp salute from everyone, the captain turned around and gave instructions to his subordinates. They were probably going to deliver the information to the main force first.
After parting ways with the knights, I leisurely headed towards the orphanage.
When I passed through the gate and entered the orphanage, Al and Rem were surrounded by the director and the other orphans. Phonia was also there, making a fuss.
“Shuu, welcome back.”
“Yeah, I’m back.”
“Haaah, I’m so glad you two are safe…”
While I was exchanging a light hug with Rio, Ivan was crouching down and sighing deeply. He seemed more worried about the two of them than I thought.
“Ah, Onii-chan!”
“Shuu Nii!”
The two of them noticed me returning and ran over, and we were soon surrounded by the children as well.
“Shuu-san, thank you so much.”
The director, Katie, bowed deeply, and the children around her thanked me as well.
“No, no, I’m glad you weren’t hurt.”
I said that and patted the two of them on the head, and they returned a carefree smile.
I don’t know why they randomly kidnapped the townspeople, but I’ll leave the cleanup to the country.
Well, I thought things had settled down, but then Al and Rem’s stomachs growled in front of me.
“Ah.”
“Haha, that’s right, you haven’t eaten yet.”
When I asked the two who looked embarrassed, they slowly nodded.
“Alright, then let’s have a midnight snack now.”
“Yay!”
When I declared that, cheers rose from the orphans all at once.