Chapter 10 - The Adventurer Guild

When we return to the Dancing Dragon, we find that the bard is already

there. He's flirting with a female patron who appears to be quite taken by his

manners. Even though I think that his behavior is obnoxious, it actually

seems to be able to land him women in this world.

Let's mess with him.

"You already have me, but you still try to pick up other women?" I

approach him with a pout and hug Senka tightly, willing myself to tear up to

underpin the feeling of betrayal. It actually works, and I feel my vision blur

slightly.

"Huh, you already have someone?" The woman looks at me, and then at

the doll, I'm carrying, a hint of disgust appearing on her face. The bard is

taken aback by my sudden appearance and my words but has enough time to

share the woman's sentiment in regards to Senka.

Why does everyone dislike that design so much? Can't you see how

creepy-cute she is? I guess that concept doesn't exist in this world...

"I was not aware of such a relationship between us, Lady Marcott." The

bard is actually speaking the truth, but that's only giving me the opportunity

to add oil to the fire.

"Oh no! So that's how you treat me after all the hot nights we shared!"

Watching the bard's confusion and the woman's growing contempt for him is

so fun. Time for the finisher. "Now that I'm with child, you want to wash

your hands of me?"

I see the figurative switch being flipped in her eyes.

"You are scum!" Her words are accompanied by a resounding slap to his

face. She then picks up her bag and stomps off, leaving behind a completely

bewildered bard.

"Miss Marcott, what..." Luna stares at me strangely, but there's doubt

flickering in her eyes when she glances at the bard. Even though they've been

traveling for a while now, she has so little faith in him that it's almost pitiful.

"I was playing a prank on you." It seems my acting was so on point that

they didn't suspect me at all.

"Please, Lady Marcott, do not scare me so." Strangely enough, the bard

looks relieved. What, did you think something happened between us, and you

just were too drunk to remember? In your dreams! "... and what an...

interesting doll you have found."

"Yes, isn't she just cute?" Rubbing my face against Senka's, I feel her

stitches against my cheek. It's a strange sensation, but I don't mind.

"Umm... yes indeed, you could say she holds a... unique charm."

Obviously, he's trying his hardest not to say anything rude, like Luna did. I

can tell that he feels just as much disgust at the somewhat grotesque sight of

Senka as the half-elf does, but at least he's diplomatic about it.

"Anyway..." Luna sits down while clearing her throat and helps her

companion out from having to act like he doesn't actually dislike the doll's

design. "Where are Rolan and Gram?"

"They are not back yet. I found some interesting information and returned

early, in case someone was here already." He looks proud of himself. Let us

hear what you found out, and see if it can compare to what I uncovered. "It

appears the merchant Sveinn Itkonen always delivers his goods directly into

the manors and castles of nobles, and the escorts are always kept outside until

the transactions have been finished."

That's far from enough to implicate him, but it does look quite suspicious,

even without the information I uncovered. And it makes a lot of sense when

you know that he's trading in slaves since he obviously can't do it with

adventurers around.

"It explains how he could hide his illicit dealings for so long. We learned

from an encounter with some dangerous thugs that Sveinn is smuggling

slaves. They were in the process of taking Lady Nightwane when we

surprised them." Luna is leaving out the fact that she was knocked out cold

during the most crucial part, and that I got that information from them. But I

won't complain; when she's the one saying it, it's more convincing.

"Really? That is a troubling discovery. But if that is true, I wonder why he

needs to hire so many security guards from the guild. Would it not be better

to be using said thugs once he is out of the city?" The bard scratches his chin

and considers the new information.

"Maybe the guards employed from the guild act as camouflage?" Luna

assumes with a thoughtful expression. That's a pretty good point. Considering

how Gram was all friendly with the gate guards, it wouldn't be surprising for them to let the caravan through when their buddies are escorting it, without

even performing a check of their cargo.

"But how does he plan to transport several people and not let the escorts

know? It's impossible to keep that many living beings silent for such a long

journey." The bard brings up another fair point.

Since he has been doing his business for a while now, it's evident that he

must have a way. But having ten carriages means he has a large number of

slaves hidden away, and it's impossible to keep them all quiet. Aside from

them remaining completely still during the journey, locked in secret

compartments built into the carriages, and going without water and food,

there's just no way that nobody ever noticed them.

Additionally, if he orders the kidnapping of people who are established

personalities in various places, such as Lady Nightwane in this city - no

matter how badly her business is actually going - it will most likely cause

suspicions. Maybe he doesn't intend to return here after this job, or there was

some plan to make it appear as if she left on her own.

"I think it is possible that the slaves are placed inside barrels, and then put

under a Stasis spell." Luna rubs her chin and suggests a plausible explanation.

What's that spell? It sounds sci-fi.

As the two keep coming up with theories around this Sveinn's methods, I

just kept listening until their discussion draws to a close. The question in the

room now is what they should do about it. If it's an organization, not knowing

how far it reaches could be dangerous. After all, adventurers aren't in high

esteem and are mostly considered drifters. In many places, they're even

frowned upon, just like eternal part-time workers are in Japan.

It's slowly becoming dark outside and the time to meet back up here draws

near. We'll have to see Rolan's verdict on this matter since he's the leader.

"Oh, you're back already." It's Gram's voice. I turn around and find that

Rolan is accompanying him. Think of the devil, huh?

"Yes, we obtained some really interesting information." The bard slides

over on the bench, and Rolan sits down next to him.

This time, Gram is banished to the extra chair, which he pulls over from

another table. It looks laughably small compared to his massive frame and

creaks under his weight. Luckily, he left his shield in the room upstairs, or the

chair would have given out under his weight.

    - Adventurers are sharing information -

"I see... we have to do something about it. To think such problems still

exist in our kingdom..." Rolan has a grim expression and frowns at the

thought that there're still people who trade in demi-human slaves. I knew he

was the righteous type from the very beginning, because he 'saved' me from

the streets, and he wants to slay the demon lord to make life better for

humans. If I had been reincarnated as a human, I could see myself getting

drawn in by his charisma.

"I think it'd be best to let the guild know about this. We can search his

carriages before departure to see if there really are slaves on board, then

report him to the city watch as we pass through the gate checkpoint." Gram's

suggestion seems quite solid. I'd vote for that one if I had a say in this matter.

I'm not a proper member of the party, so I don't, though.

"Yes, we can do that when the time comes, but before then we should try to

get evidence. Let's go and find the three that attacked Runa and Miss Marcott.

If we capture them, we can get them to confess." Rolan suggests, and I

suppress a flinch.

Please don't try to search for them, they're all right here inside me, in

various states of digestion. But even if they weren't and you found them, what

would you do if they belonged to a large group with an extensive

underground network that includes skilled assassins and mercenaries?

At least that's how these things usually go in fiction.

"I don't think we should do that. If they have powerful people backing

them, we're at a disadvantage." Yes, listen to Gram, he's got the right

concerns. "The buyers are those with large enough estates that these slaves

never see the outside again. Those are always nobles, and running afoul of

them could be quite dangerous."

Is it just me or is this whole thing getting bigger and bigger? They're

talking about taking steps to break up an underground slave ring that may be

operating on a national scale.

You're only four people! That's an impossible endeavor.

Oh wait, maybe the adventurer guild also has quite some influence? I

mean, adventurers themselves may be frowned upon, but if there's a guild

hall in each city, it should be an institution with roots in the government. But

if that's the case, how can we be sure that they don't have a finger in the pie as well?

"What do you think, Miss Chloe?" Rolan is actually asking for my opinion.

And interestingly enough, Luna isn't glaring at him for calling me by my first

name. Maybe it's because this situation goes beyond such petty little

squabbles.

"As a noble, I believe it's my duty to act in the interest of the people." I'm

spouting some typical idealistic nonsense I learned from light novels. Either

they dismiss my words for unrealistic idealism or are inspired by it. No real

loss for me either way. "We can't leave slavery alone. Individual freedom is

the most sacred right one has."

I do have the opinion that everyone should be free, as long as they don't

lose said freedom through foolish actions. Such as attacking someone far

more powerful than they are, based on orders from a person whose face they

may have never seen. It's what landed a lot of people in those slave pens in

Rodens.

In either case, I don't mind going to war against these slavers, but I'll

abandon ship if it takes too long. I have to be somewhere within three years,

and at this point, I don't even know how many days make up a year in this

world. I'm marking every passing day on a notebook, though.

"Miss Chloe..." Rolan is looking at me in astonishment and a hint of

admiration. Oh, did you fall for me? "If only all nobles thought that way, the

kingdom would be a much better place."

Praise me more!

"Yes, I believe it's our duty to stop these criminal machinations. As a

matter of fact, they attacked Runa and could have taken her, too." I can smell

an ulterior motive called revenge, though.

Ah, the topic is going to head in that direction now, isn't it?

"But... you say this doll saved you?" He points at Senka with an

unmistakably displeased face. So even you dislike this design? Well, it makes

sense, her appearance is quite harrowing if you were to think of her as an

actual human being.

As if in response, Senka's neck makes a creaking noise, and she snaps her

head around to face Rolan. Her mouth opens and closes rhythmically while

mechanical laughter emerges from her chest area. She even got the perfect

angle, the same as the one she used on Luna earlier. This way she looks

consistent and the facade of her being an automaton is more believable - even though Lady Nightwane said that she's a cursed doll in front of Luna.

"Woah!" Hah, even he's freaked out by her moving like that! "That's...

quite the doll. You really want to bring it along?"

Yes, anything wrong with that?

"Yes, anything wrong with that?" Oops, I said it out loud. And in the same

tone as my defiant inner voice, too.

"H-huh? Well... no, it's alright." He's surprised by my attitude but doesn't

comment on it, and gives in easily. Hah, what a pushover.

"Actually, I almost forgot about it... but where did you get the money for

the doll from?" Luna finally remembers to ask. I was actually expecting that

question much earlier.

"The kidnappers dropped their purses and some other items when they ran

away." It may be unbelievable, but I have a few other items that could be

used as evidence if they need it. "I thought it was only fair to use their money

to free our savior from that awful store."

There, I said it, the store is awful. Luna has a sympathetic expression on

her face. So even she thinks it's awful. Why does she even know such a shady

place? Can't she get magic supplies and potions from a more upstanding

store?

Nobody questions my explanation any further. In fact, Gram gives a hearty

laugh when he hears it. Good, Senka was reluctantly accepted by the others,

so there's no problem. Luna has also resigned herself to the fact that I'll be

carrying the creepy-cute doll with me from now on, and can only shake her

head with a sigh.

"So, our next move is to contact the guild." Rolan is entering his leader

mode and hands out the roles to the party. "Gram, talk to your friends in the

city watch. Only those you really trust, we don't know whether they are in on

it or not. Sigurd, you go and find out more from your sources. Maybe there

are rumors about this."

That sounds like the bard has some questionable connections, too. Who

else could have information about illegal slavery, other than the dark side of

society? Then again, he did mention minstrels, and those are usually good at

picking up rumors.

"Let's all meet back here at midnight." I have to wonder how anyone can

tell time without clocks. Is there something indicating midnight in this city,

like a bell? Finally, the leader turns to us."Runa and Miss Chloe come to the guild with me. We'll need you as witnesses."

With this, the party splits up again. I'm beginning to feel hungry, especially

since it smells really nice all around us in the tavern. It's time for dinner, but

we don't have the luxury to worry about this right now.

Rolan, Luna and I cross the square and head towards the guild hall. I

haven't been in there, even though I did pass it by four times today, so I'm

interested to see what it looks like inside and what kind of people are

frequenting it.

"Phew..." Senka breathes a sigh of relief when we leave the tavern and

walk across the city square. "I couldn't speak to you with the bard around. I'm

sure he has incredibly sharp ears."

She's right on the mark; I'm lucky that she's so perceptive. I'm walking a

few steps behind the adventurer couple so that we can whisper to each other.

"So, you intend to stick with them for the time being?" The doll girl asks

me without moving, since we may still be seen by other people.

"Yes, they are quite interesting. I have to be back in the demon palace

within three years, so I have more than enough time for a small side trip like

this." It takes a weight off my shoulders to be able to talk to someone without

having to hide everything about myself. For some reason, I fully trust Senka,

even though we only met a few hours ago. I'm sure there must be a good

reason for it...

"I can see that. These two in front of us make the perfect targets for

messing around with. The bard, too." I hear her chuckle and have to suppress

a smile. I see she's a kindred spirit.

"What about Gram?" While she commented on the others, she left out the

big man for some reason.

"He reminds me of my foster father from a different era. Only that this one

has no hair on his head, but a magnificent amount on his face, while my

foster father was the other way round. Their height is similar, too." There is a

hint of loneliness in her voice even though she doesn't change her tone. "I

want to climb on his shoulders..."

Please don't do that; I feel like he'll get a heart attack from that.

"What do you think about this whole slavery affair?"

"Very textbook for such a fantasy setting."

"I know right? At least this world isn't as clear-cut good demons and evil humans, as is often the case when one is reincarnated on the demons' side in

such stories." Those have been getting really popular lately, after all.

"Just don't trip over that trope later on. Don't let your sympathy for the

humans cause you to hesitate, when the time comes for you to choose your

side." Senka's voice remains neutral, but I can tell that she's warning me

somberly.

"I won't." This topic should have given me reason to hesitate before, but

the time I spent with Maou-mama has taught me valuable things about life

and its priorities. "I'm a demon, after all."

Ah, the brainiac inside me just died. It seems his heart just gave out from

being unable to bear the mental strain of staying inside a Crawling Chaos'

body. Really though, he survived for quite a bit longer than my previous

experiment. All I did this time was to keep supplying him with oxygen. Next

time I'll try providing food, too.

The interior of the adventurer guild is a large hall, as expected. There's a

reception area on the left to the entrance and a supply store to the right.

Deeper inside are several long tables, where I can spot people in attire similar

to Rolan and his party's. They're standing around chatting, or sitting at the

tables and having dinner.

This entire place is very cliché.

Even the fact that the receptionist is a woman in her mid-twenties is just

typical. She's wearing something like a traditional dress and sports a small

cap on top of her brown-haired head. It reminds me of the receptionist girls in

a game series about hunting dragons with oversized weapons.

"I'd like to talk to Ingrid, is she in?" Rolan walks up to her and asks in a

casual tone. Unexpectedly, he's pretty good at acting like nothing is out of the

ordinary, even though there's something pretty urgent going on.

"Yes, she just returned from a meeting with the lord. I shall ascertain her

availability." The receptionist responds with a nod and walks out through a

door behind her.

"Did she say 'the lord'? Rolan, are you sure we can trust this Ingrid

person?" I'm just playing devil's advocate since it's a reasonable concern. I

doubt a woman is going to engage in business that involves the enslavement

of other women, although you can never be too sure.

"Yes, she may be the guild master now, but I've known her for a long time before that. She's like an older sister to me." He replies with a warm smile

into which I can't help but read a lot of things.

Was she his first love or something?

But Luna doesn't glare at him in jealousy and instead nods with an

understanding expression. I must have been reading too much into it.

Still, he's good friends with the guild master, huh? If she can be trusted,

then we'd have a pretty powerful ally in her. The guild master should have

quite some influence over the adventurers and be able to make them help.

"Rolan!" A firm female voice resounds through the guild hall, and all necks

snap around to its owner. "You haven't come to see me in a long time, even

though you've been going around making a name for yourself!"

A woman approaches us with a wide grin. She's about as tall as I am, but

her presence is much larger than just her appearance. Wearing a long-sleeved

top and a long skirt in earthen colors gives her an unassuming appearance,

but I can feel strength underneath it all.

It's like a rule for guild masters to be secretly really strong, but I don't

doubt that in this particular case. She's also quite beautiful and must be rather

young for her position.

"Ingrid, there's something we need to talk about." Rolan is very serious, so

her relaxed expression immediately vanishes under a firm gaze. For a

moment, she stares into his eyes, but then blinks and turns away.

"Must be something important. Let's go to my office." She walks away and

waves for us to follow her.

Said office is on the second floor of the guild building, which is a gallery

overlooking the dining and gathering hall below. Opening a plain wooden

door without any sign indicating that it belongs to the guild master on it,

Ingrid leads us inside.

The interior is overflowing with things. The walls are decorated with

various personal belongings and trophies; there's an unknown canine-like

beast's head, a jaw of something I would identify as having belonged to a

shark, as well as ornamental weapons and a large paper placard displaying a

dragon's morphology. Every single flat surface in the room is overloaded

with piles of files and papers, wooden and stone figures, as well as bones,

leather bags, and clothes.

In all honesty, it looks quite cozy in here. I like these kinds of rooms; my

own was like that, too. My father always brought souvenirs from his overseas business trips, and he actually had pretty good taste in those things. He never

bought into tourist traps like an Eiffel Tower keychain or a Statue of Liberty

lighter.

"Take a seat anywhere. Sorry, but I'm not sorry for the mess." She rounds

her desk and sits down on her revolving chair while gesturing into the room.

There aren't many places one could sit; I find one spot on the edge of the

couch, Luna sits down on a wooden barrel, while Rolan remains standing. "In

my line of work tidiness just means you're unsuccessful."

That's true for any job that will occupy every waking minute of your life,

just like my father's. Whenever he was home, he didn't have much time for

anything but having meals and sleep.

Why am I thinking back to my parents and my life in the previous world? I

will most likely never get back to it, and I don't really want to recall those

memories...

"So, you're saying that the merchant Sveinn Itkonen is secretly smuggling

elven slaves?" Ingrid's voice brings me back to the present. Wow, the

conversation seems to have already moved along for quite a bit while I wasn't

paying attention. "Where's your evidence?"

"We still need to find hard evidence, but there's enough reason to believe

that it's true. Runa and Miss Chloe here were attacked by three men who tried

to kidnap Lady Nightwane. Miss Chloe heard them mention Sveinn's name."

She's staring at me and then at Senka. Nothing is showing on her face, but I

can't help but feel that she's looking down on my taste in designs.

"Hm... alright, I'll send Vigi to check on the warehouses Sveinn frequently

uses, though he won't be back from a request until tomorrow morning."

Leaning forward onto the desk and folding her hands in front of her lips,

Ingrid concedes. Rolan and Luna look at each other with hopeful gazes upon

hearing that response. I'm just relieved that she doesn't make a rude comment

about Senka. "And where's Lady Nightwane?"

"We told her to close her shop until things are settled." Luna speaks up and

replies. When I think about it, that may not have been enough of a precaution.

Considering there's most likely an entire organization behind it all, and three

of their guys didn't return from the job, they might send people to check on

them. And I doubt a locked wooden door will stop them at that time.

"If they ran away, it's very likely that they'll return to finish the job. At that

time a locked door won't be a problem." Aside from the details, she can't know about, Ingrid and my thoughts are aligned.

"Oh no! We should go and bring her here, to put her under the protection of

the guild." Luna jumps up at the realization that Lady Nightwane might still

be in danger.

"I'll come with you." I stand up myself and announce.

"Wait... who's this girl again?" The guild master directs the question at

Rolan while pointing at me. That's rude; you can just ask me directly!

Wait, you only now care to ask? Even though Rolan even mentioned me by

name in his explanation just now.

"She's Miss Chloe Marcott. We picked her up in Birkas. She was attacked

by bandits and ended up in our care." The leader gives a quick explanation,

most likely because we're pressed for time.

"Any combat experience, Chloe?" Her piercing gaze seems to bore holes

into my eyes. No honorifics and straight to the name? Even if it's actually my

last name, it feels quite rude to be addressed so casually by someone whom I

just met.

"None." But I need to keep up the act, so I reply meekly while avoiding her

gaze. I only have minimal experience, so it might as well be none, so

technically I'm not lying. Not that it changes the fact that I'm most likely the

strongest being in this city, solely based on my physical attributes. Since I

don't know how powerful magic can be, I won't say that I'm the strongest

overall.

"And you still wish to go along to Lady Nightwane's store, knowing that it

might be a dangerous situation?" I don't like her tone. She's clearly judging

me for endangering myself - and those around me - by forcing them to look

out for me during battle.

"Ahhh, Miss Chloe is like that, you see. She also came along on our

extermination request with the wulfar." Rolan's explanation makes me sound

like a selfish noble girl. I'm posing as a noble, but I'm not selfish, you know?

"Yes, I got to know Lady Nightwane, so I want to make sure that she's

alright." And maybe get to know her a little better in the process.

"Oh well, she's your problem, Rolan." Standing up from her chair, Ingrid

remarks with a frown. This lady is really rude! "In either case, if Vigi finds

out that Sveinn is a slave smuggler, we'll be able to capture him. But I doubt

the organization behind him will stop. They'll find someone else to do it."

So, we would need to get to the core of things and break apart the criminal organization completely, before this can be put to rest. Or at least that's what

I get from the way she's saying it.

"I understand." Rolan nods with a downcast look. It seems he's fully aware

of the fact that such human evil can't be rooted out with some superficial

treatment. "But this is a step in the right direction."

I wonder what would have happened if I hadn't been around. Lady

Nightwane, and maybe Luna as well, would have been kidnapped and turned

into slaves, with Rolan and his party none the wiser. It would have been

treated as a missing person case, but nobody would have made the connection

to the merchant Sveinn and the fact that kidnappings and slave trading are

being conducted in this very city.

Isn't this helping the humans sort out their domestic problems? If they deal

with this and manage to end the black market slave trade, they'll be able to

focus on external issues, like the war against the demons. That's not what I

want. What would Maou-mama say, if she found out that I was involved in

helping to make the humans more united?

Well, for now, I'll just think about what I can gain out of this. Some of the

slave traders and their thugs could disappear under mysterious circumstances,

just like the three in Lady Nightwane's store did, so that I can eat my fill- I

mean, gain more templates for different physical appearances.

"Thank you, Ingrid." Rolan nods towards the guild master. At his gratitude,

she merely waves it off as something natural to do.

He turns to Luna and me afterward. "We should hurry."