World items
Akabaru was looking at the job board inside of the guild, with Yuri and her new gold rank plate at his side.
It was already the next day and Akabaru was just looking at some interesting jobs that were a more travel related as he was planning to go back to the fortress city of E-Rental and meet Ainz in his new persona there..
The only real traveling jobs were those to escort people from town to town but the farthest that those were heading towards the borders… excluding the Baharouth empire as they were the supposed enemy of the state..
Akabaru moved towards the reception to ask her about any jobs that would take him towards E-Rental.
"Excuse me miss.. I was looking for a job in the area around E-Rental as I was planning on going there myself but wouldn't want to waist time by not doing any work.."
"…Would a escort job service?"
"Yes..." Akabaru nodded wondering what other jobs required that much traveling.
"Well a Nobel is planning to move back to his estate, near the city of E-Rental as his house in the capital is receiving some.. redecorations.." The receptionist looked at Akabaru as if looking for confirmation.
"How much is he paying.. probably not enough for a Mithril rank.. right?"
"He is overing one gold coin for five adventurers but.. because of your higher rank the amount of adventurers can go down.."
The over would usually be to low, but Akabaru didn't have any problem with it.. it would be like getting travel expenses paid for but needing to travel slower…
Thinking it over in his mind Akabaru found that it sounded less favourable than before
-
When they had returned to their accommodation they found that the girl they had rescued was lying in bed still sleeping..
"Riri.. what do you want to do with her?" Akabaru gazed down upon Yuri looking her in the eyes.
"I don't know master." Yuri bowed her head..
"The warrior captain can take care of her for a while see if she can get some work…" Akabaru proposed a solution as he looked over the sleeping girl.
"Thank you master." Yuri bowed her head again showing her gratitude.
"We will move tomorrow at dusk.. the Nobel should be at the gate ready to leave at that point.. until then I will meet with Gazef and inform him of my plans.."
…
Akabaru arrived at the castle wearing the same outfit as always… He was stopped by the guards and as he showed the seal of recommendation the Gazef gave him it was almost taken away.. with the guard saying.
"Where did you steal that from.. You!" the guard stopped seeing the seal not move an inch from Akabaru's hands.
Akabaru looked down at his clothes and saw that he should have chosen something else as his adventurers outfit.. while the clothes he wore seemed dirty that was because it was design that way by him... as it wouldn't make sense for a wandering warrior to have clean clothes…
"There appears to be a misunderstanding.." Akabaru pout on a kind smile, to make him seem less threatening..
"No I see perfectly clear.. a beggar who robbed the seal of the warrior captain and is trying to enter the palace.." the guard didn't budge and due to the commotion more guards were heading their way..
Just as a fight seemed to be inevitable a new voice was heard.
"Faer… what are you doing here.." from the other side of the gate Lakyus and Evileye were walking towards him.
"The guard clamed I stole the seal of approval!" Akabaru angrily pointed to the guard..
"And what would give them that idea?" Evileye commented for Lakyus side..
"Says the one hiding her whole body with a mask and cloak… now Lakyus, would you know the current location of Gazef-dono?"
"He should be with the king in the throne room as they are having a discussion with most of the nobles present." She explained.
Akabaru sighed.. "Fine, I was supposed to meet with the king some day… now guard, repay me by guiding me to the throne room.." Akabaru looked down upon the guard.
The guard that had stopped him was scared of what would happened to him if he was reported to have stopped a personal friend of the warrior captain and more importantly a somebody that the king wanted to meet..
"No problem.. I apologies for my earlier actions.. I hope that you will not blame me for being cautious.." The soldier made a salute trying to win some favour.
"Just guide me… oh and Lakyus.. I will be out of the capital for a while, so our discussion will have to wait.."
Lakyus looked surprised and asked
"Where will you be going?"
"E-Rental.. I got word that a friend of mine has arrived and started his own adventurer career… I am sure you would like him more than me." Akabaru thought of Ainz charisma or rather his extreme politeness and ability to listen to others problems without adding his own.
"We should meet after you are back.. maybe discuss the issue that the kingdom faces.. your friend could probably tag along.." Lakyus suggested
"We will see.."
…
Akabaru arrived before the throne room, he was not permitted to enter unannounced and would need to wait for his name to be called..
While he waited Akabaru thought that it would be smart to change into something more suitable.. and as he looked through his inventory he couldn't find suitable looking gear, the best he had found were old armours but they had crests that would arouse questions..
He did find a suitable robe, a dark robe made with dragon scales, giving immunity to fire and increasing flame attacks by twenty percent.. the stats weren't really important but the look was.. pouting it on Akabaru found that it could hide most of his body making it suitable to be worn for now.
The door opened and out of it came the soldier that had brought him, signalling him to enter.
-
(that same day)
"What kind of food is this!?"
A shrill, nigh-hysterical voice cut through the air, and then the sound of crashing cutlery echoed through the dining room.
Several people turned to look at the girl who was kicking up a fuss.
The girl was so beautiful that using the word to describe her seemed inadequate. Her looks could rival those of the Kingdom's most beautiful woman, the one with the appellation of "Golden" and her anger only added to her charm.
In addition, every move she made was elegant and refined, even while throwing a tantrum.
She must have been nobility in some country, the heiress to a highborn family. She flicked at her long French curls in annoyance, and glared at the food before her in dissatisfaction.
All manner of dishes packed the table before her.
There were freshly-baked loaves of bread, still steaming in their basket. The plates were laden with thick, rare cuts of juicy red meat, served with sweetcorn and buttered mashed potatoes. The sight of them stimulated the appetite. The fresh vegetables which made up the salad were still crisp and soft, and their fragrant dressing filled the room with a citrus scent.
The highest-class inn in E-Rantel, the Shining Golden Pavilion used [Preservation] magic to keep their ingredients fresh. Naturally, only the finest of chefs were allowed to turn said ingredients into meals.
However, despite the best efforts of the most skilled chefs that used the finest ingredients to produce culinary works of art, which only nobility, royalty, or the wealthiest of merchants would be privileged enough to taste, the girl turned her nose up at the plates before her.
It was only natural to feel shocked by her complaint, but beyond that, the people who heard her also felt curiosity about what she normally ate.
"It tastes horrible!"
The words she uttered after that were singularly inappropriate for this place, and they left everyone in the room speechless.
However, the old butler behind the girl kept his expression neutral and did not change his stance Even when the girl turned and glared at him, he remained unmoved, as though he could not make any other facial expressions.
"Ahhhh, I can't bear to stay in this run-down city any further! We're setting out now!"
"But Young Mistress, it's already evening—"
"Silence! I said we're going, so we're going, do you understand me!?"
Only after hearing the girl's childish tantrum did the butler's posture change. He lowered his head and replied:
"Understood, Young Mistress. I shall begin travel preparations immediately."
"Hmph! If you understand, then hurry up and get ready, Sebas!"
The girl tossed away the fork she was holding and rose to her feet, before flouncing out of the dining room. She was still fuming as she did so.
After the storm had passed, a solemn, dignified voice lightened the heavy mood in the room:
"I apologize to everyone for the disturbance."
The butler picked up the chair which the girl had knocked over and replaced it, then bowed deeply to everyone in the dining room as a sign of contrition. Quite a few of them accepted the old man's immaculate apology with pitying eyes.
"—Innkeeper."
"Yes."
A man who had been waiting in the wings approached the butler.
"Once again, I apologize for startling everyone. Though I know it will not excuse this offense, I hope you will allow me to pay for the meals of everyone here."
Looks of delight bloomed on the faces of several of the diners as they heard those words. A meal in a first-rate inn like this would certainly not be cheap. If this old man was willing to pay for their food, that would be a good enough reason to forgive that girl.
On the other hand, the innkeeper's face remained impassive as he bowed politely in response to the butler's proposal. That natural reaction of his was proof that scenes like this had been seen many times, ever since this pair of master and servant had taken up lodgings at the Shining Golden Pavilion.
Sebas looked toward a corner of the dining hall, at a destitute-looking man shoveling food into his mouth. As the man noticed Sebas's eyes on him, he rose to his feet and quickly walked towards Sebas.
Compared to the other guests, the man seemed completely out of place. He lacked both style and class, and so he stood out from everyone around him.
Although his clothes were no shabbier than those of the people nearby, they did not go well on him. In fact, it was quite comical — like a clown in fancy dress.
"Master Sebas."
"What is it, Zack-san?"
The other guests frowned as they heard the smarmy tones in which Zack spoke. The way he wrung his hands went very well with the way he was toadying up to Sebas.
However, Sebas's expression remained unchanged.
"As a hired man, I have no room to propose an alternative… but would it not be better to reconsider the decision to set off immediately?"
"Are you saying you have difficulty driving a wagon at night?"
"That is one of the reasons, and… I have some… other business to take care of."
Zack scratched his head over and over again. Though his hair looked clean enough, the way he was scratching made it seem like he was going to start throwing off flakes of skin. Quite a few people's frowns deepened further. However, whether he had noticed or not, he ended up scratching even harder.
"However, the Young Mistress will most likely not accept that suggestion. Or rather, given the Young Mistress's personality, she will not change her earlier decision."
With a steely, unyielding look on his face, Sebas concluded:
"Therefore, we have no choice but to set out."
"But…"
Zack's eyes darted around, looking for some other excuse to give. However, he found none, and he grimaced.
"Of course, we will not be leaving right away. We will need some time to load the Young Mistress's luggage onto the wagon. During that time, please prepare for our departure."
Sebas noted the wily gleam in the eyes of the impoverished-looking man before him as he scrabbled for something to say. However, Sebas did not show any signs that he cared.
This was all to cover up the fact that all was going as planned.
"Then, when will we be leaving?"
"How about two, maybe three hours later? If we leave later than that, the streets will be shrouded in darkness. That is probably the limit."
That disgusting, calculative look appeared in the man's eyes again. Sebas once again pretended that he had not noticed it. After licking his lips several times, Zack replied:
"Hehe, that should be fine."
"Excellent. Then, can I ask you to begin preparing right away?"