Chapter 184: The Men at That Time
“Welcome, this is my store.”
Having handed the pirates over to the guards, I was told by Mr. Seibei that he wanted to thank me again, and came to his store.
The storefront was very large, making it obvious that Mr. Seibei was the master of a major establishment.
And on the signboard, written in the language of the Eastern Country, was ‘Echigoya’.
“Echigoya…?”
“Yes, welcome to ‘Echigoya’, Mr. Rex.”
Huh? If I recall, that should be the name of the store where we are supposed to receive the goods for the request we accepted.
I took out the memo with the details of the request from my pocket to confirm the store’s name, and then held out the letter the guild gave me to hand to the trading partner.
“Umm, actually, I came to this store because I have business here.”
“Oh, is that so! To think my life and goods were saved by a customer of our store, this is already destiny!”
No, no, that’s an exaggeration.
“Come, come, we shouldn’t keep standing here talking, please come inside.”
Receiving the letter, Mr. Seibei guides me inside the store.
” ” “Welcome back, Master.” ” “
Upon entering the store, the employees who confirmed Mr. Seibei’s figure all bow their heads at once.
“Yeah, I’ve just returned.”
“Master!”
Then, a flustered-looking man comes from the back of the store.
Compared to the other employees, he has an air of dignity; is he perhaps a heavyweight of this store?
“Your return was quite late, so I was worried.”
“Ah, sorry about that, Yokichi. We encountered a storm and the ship was on the verge of being shipwrecked.”
“Wh-What did you say!?”
The man called Yokichi turns pale hearing the circumstances from Mr. Seibei.
“Th-Then what about the ship!? The young men!? What happened to the cargo!?”
“Rest assured. Thanks to Mr. Rex here passing by, everyone is safe.”
“O-Oh! Thank you very mu… ch?”
Turning towards me to say his thanks, Mr. Yokichi trails off at the end of his sentence and looks around restlessly.
“Umm…”
“Yokichi, there is no mistake that it is this person. Mr. Rex is an excellent mage despite his youth.”
“Ehh!? P-Please excuse my rudeness!!”
Learning that the one who saved the ship was a youngster like me, Mr. Yokichi apologizes while turning pale.
“Honestly, you. Could you stop judging things by their appearance already? I apologize, Mr. Rex. This guy is still inexperienced.”
“No, please don’t worry about it. I haven’t been an adventurer for very long either.”
“Adventurer, if I recall, that refers to the handymen of the continent, correct?”
Saying ‘of the continent’ means the concept of adventurers doesn’t exist in this country, huh?
“Excuse me, Mr. Rex. I will confirm the contents of the letter you gave me and give instructions to my subordinates, so please wait a moment in the guest room in the back.”
“Understood.”
“Hey, you, show this gentleman to the guest room. He is a benefactor of our store. Please treat him with the utmost courtesy.”
“Y-Yes sir! Right this way, esteemed guest. Please take off your footwear here before stepping up.”
A young employee instructed by Mr. Seibei guides me.
“Please wait here.”
The room I was guided to was a room with a rare interior, featuring only a low table with cushions around it.
Instead, the wall was wide open, and a beautifully manicured garden spread out like a painting.
To think a commoner, not even a noble, can maintain a garden of this caliber, it seems Mr. Seibei is quite a capable merchant.
When the employee who guided me stepped down, this time a young female employee brought tea and sweets.
“It is but coarse tea.”
“Thank you very much.”
The tea and sweets prepared for me were very delicious, making me unintentionally breathe a sigh of relief.
The sweets were subtly sweet yet the sweetness could be distinctly felt, making it obvious that they prepared something of quite high quality.
Honestly, it feels more delicious than when I was invited to noble estates in my previous life.
Back then, I could clearly see the desires of the people I was having tea with, so I was in no condition to enjoy the meal.
Beautiful scenery, delicious tea, and sweets; this is first-class hospitality!
“Thank you for waiting.”
While I was enjoying the scenery and drinking tea, Mr. Seibei arrived.
“I apologize. Regarding the transaction goods, it seems it will take a little more time due to procurement circumstances.”
“I don’t mind. The client also said that was within expectations.”
That’s why we received a larger amount of necessary expenses, after all.
“Thank you for your understanding. Though it might not serve as much of an apology, please stay at our place until the goods are procured.”
“Eh? I couldn’t impose like that.”
As expected, I can’t take advantage of his kindness that far. We received accommodation fees from the client, too.
“No, you saved my subordinates and my cargo, Mr. Rex. I wish to repay you for that.”
Hmm. It was just a passing encounter, so he doesn’t need to worry that much about it, though.
Honestly, I feel like I’ve already received enough thanks with the tea, sweets, and the garden scenery he provided.
What should I do… Ah, that’s right.
“I apologize, but I have to look for my comrades who got separated in the storm.”
“Your comrades?”
“Yes.”
If procuring the goods is going to take time, I’ll go around the neighboring towns and villages to look for Liliera and the others during that time.
I think everyone probably reached a nearby town or village, too.
“I see, in that case, I will have the people of my store search for them!”
“Eh?”
“Most likely, your comrades are also searching for you, Mr. Rex. If everyone is moving around looking for each other, there is a risk you will cross paths and miss each other.”
That is, well, certainly true.
“However, this town is the town where the ship you rode on arrived, Mr. Rex. Lately, due to that storm, ships from foreign countries rarely come, so this town where a foreign ship safely arrived will serve as a good landmark.”
I see, certainly if that storm is the reason ships aren’t returning like we heard at the Adventurer’s Guild, this might indeed be the perfect landmark for everyone.
“By the way, what on earth is that storm?”
I tried asking Mr. Seibei about that storm.
Because I felt something artificial about that unnatural storm.
Who caused it, and with what intent?
If I don’t figure out the circumstances around that, ships coming to the Eastern Country will continue to be attacked by the storm.
“That is exactly what we do not know either.”
“You don’t know?”
“Yes. A few months ago, a storm suddenly occurred when a ship leaving the port reached the open sea. At first, thinking it was just bad luck, we let some days pass and decided to set sail again, but once more, a storm occurred. At that time, we thought bad luck just comes in successions, but after that, no matter how many times we tried to set sail, a storm would occur once the ship went out to the open sea to a certain extent, making us realize this was not a coincidence.”
If Mr. Seibei and the others think so too, it really does seem intentional.
Not knowing the cause is troublesome.
“Moreover, it seems the storm is occurring not just around here, but in the seas of this entire country.”
“The entire country!?”
That’s outrageous!? The Eastern Country is by no means a large island nation, but it’s still vast enough to be called a country. To cover all of that must take a considerable amount of effort!?
“The same goes for ships coming from the outside; our country has become unable to enter or leave. The only thing we can do is move between domestic ports while maintaining the bare minimum distance where the storm does not occur. Thanks to that, business with foreign countries is completely dead.”
It seems Mr. Seibei’s store also engages in foreign trade.
But right now, the situation is such that they can only do domestic transportation and sales.
“Haven’t any other anomalies occurred?”
Has there been any other trouble that might be related to the cause of the rough seas?
“Let’s see, aside from the seas being rough, there haven’t been any particularly troubling matters… Ah, yes, there was one major incident.”
“What is that?”
Mr. Seibei tells me about the incident with a rather reluctant demeanor.
“As expected, I do not think this is related, but… The Shogun-sama of our country has passed away.”
“Shogun? The Shogun of which country?”
Did a storm start occurring because of some military operation?
Passing away… no, looking at Mr. Seibei’s expression, it’s not a missing person.
It probably means he died.
“No, the Shogun-sama of our country is like a King to you foreigners.”
“The King of this country!?”
“Strictly speaking, it is different, but it is something similar.”
I see, the King passed away. That certainly is a major incident for the people of this country.
“But it doesn’t seem related to the reason the sea is rough, does it.”
“That is true.”
Hmm, is this matter not particularly related?
“Furthermore, immediately after the Shogun-sama passed away, the Young Lord also went missing, causing a huge uproar among the higher-ups. Therefore, rather than you moving around yourself, Mr. Rex, I think it would be better to have my young employees search for your comrades while they are out procuring goods.”
“I see…”
It seems Mr. Seibei offering to prepare a room for me was also out of consideration so that I wouldn’t be suspected by the officials due to such circumstances.
I want to go look for everyone quickly, but it might be more likely to find everyone sooner if I get cooperation from people familiar with the area.
“Understood. If that’s the case, I’ll be in your care.”
“Ooh, thank you very much! I will order the young men to find your comrades immediately!”
In this way, having arrived at the destination ‘Echigoya’, I decided to search for my separated comrades with Mr. Seibei’s cooperation.
I hope everyone is safe.
…But, just waiting around the whole time is going to be boring too.
◆ Jairo ◆
“Daryaaaaaa!!”
I slice the giant monster attacking the village cleanly in two with a magic sword enhanced with fire attribute.
“It’s alright now!”
I call out to the girl dressed in pure white who was trembling.
This girl was the sacrifice offered to protect the village from that monster.
Apparently, this village has been ravaged by the monster for years.
I was surprised to hear it too, but since this country doesn’t have an Adventurer’s Guild, villages can’t hire adventurers.
So it seems they have no choice but to leave it to the feudal lord if attacked by a monster, but the lord governing this area is a coward, and after fighting this monster once and losing, he’s apparently been ignoring the village’s pleas for help making up excuses.
Hearing a story like that, I couldn’t just stay quiet! I heard today was exactly the day the sacrifice was to come, so I hid secretly and waited for the monster to show up.
“Even so, it wasn’t much of a monster. Compared to a dragon or a Majin, it wasn’t a big deal at all!”
“U-Umm… th-thank you very much. I… I…”
The girl made into a sacrifice chokes on her words with tears in her eyes.
Well, she was desperately holding back the fear of being eaten by a monster until just a moment ago. It can’t be helped that she can’t sort out her feelings.
“Rest assured! As you can see, I beat the monster. There’s nothing to worry about anymore!”
I pull the girl into a hug and pat her head.
Brats who cried after facing something scary usually calmed down eventually if I did this.
Sure enough, this girl who was bawling her eyes out calmed down after a while.
“S-I’m sorry. I’m always such a crybaby.”
To the embarrassed girl, I tell her:
“That’s not true. I heard, you know. You volunteered to become the sacrifice. To protect everyone in the village. You’re amazing. A normal person could never say something like that. You are undoubtedly an amazing person. So, there’s absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about!”
“B-But, in the end, I couldn’t do anything…”
“Whether you could do something isn’t the problem! What matters is that you moved to do something! You moved to protect everyone! Ordinary folks couldn’t imitate that! That’s why I thought I’d protect you too! Have confidence! You’re an amazing person!”
“Y-Yes…”
Perhaps not used to being praised, the girl’s face turns bright red and she looks down.
Hehe, I properly understand your hard work! There’s no need to be self-deprecating!
◆
“Thank you very much! Thank you very much!”
The people of the village gathered in full force and bowed their heads to me.
“Don’t worry about it. I just beat up a monster bastard who was getting a little carried away.”
Then, the village chief offers me something.
“Unfortunately, we can only offer this much as a reward, but…”
“Ah-, it’s fine, it’s fine. It’s not like I took this on as a job this time; I just did it on my own.”
“Ehh? Isn’t it fine, young master? It’s a proper reward. Let’s just take it.”
“Don’t call me young master. Or rather, you didn’t do anything and just hid and watched, didn’t you.”
I smack the head of the pirate lackey who told me I should take the reward.
This guy was seriously trembling and hiding.
“A normal human wouldn’t try to challenge a monster like that head-on. Moreover, alone.”
“What are you saying. If it were Big Bro, he’d send an even bigger monster flying all by himself.”
“I’ve been thinking this for a while, but is that person really human?”
“Hmm, I think he’s human, probably.”
Well, it’s true that Big Bro has inhuman strength, but what’s important is that Big Bro is a man worthy of respect!
“Then let’s go. We gotta meet up with Big Bro and the others!”
“Y-Yes sir! Ah-, what a waste.”
He’s still saying it?
“U-Umm!”
Then, the girl who was the sacrifice came running to me, out of breath.
“Th-Thank you very much, truly!”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. It’s just something I did on my own.”
“I can’t offer a proper reward, but p-please take this!”
What she held out while saying so was a bag containing Eastern Country food.
“Did you make this?”
“I-I did my best to make it!”
She must have rushed here quite a bit. The girl’s face is bright red.
“Thank you! It’s the best reward!”
I was just getting hungry!
I immediately eat the rolled-up white food.
“Yeah, it’s delicious!”
“I-I’m glad…”
No, this is really delicious. It’s lightly salted and just right.
“Please come again. When you do, I’ll make lots of food for you!”
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it!”
Making such a promise with the girl whose face was still red, we left the village.
“Man, I’m looking forward to the next time I come to this village!”
“…Haa, young master, you really don’t understand the meaning of that girl’s words, do you?”
“I told you not to call me young master! Or rather, what meaning?”
“Ah-, no, it’s fine. If you don’t understand, well, it’s not my place to say.”
“What the heck is that.”
I don’t get it at all.
Well, whatever. Anyway, right now finding Big Bro and the others is the top priority!
If I keep being active like this, rumors of my exploits will reach Big Bro and the others and serve as a landmark!
“It’s like this everywhere we go. Just how many girls is this young master going to lead on before he’s satisfied…”
◆ Norb ◆
“Yes, the treatment is finished with this.”
Having finished the treatment, I call out to the girl who was shrinking back and had her eyes closed in front of me.
“I-Is it already over?”
To the girl asking with a timid, inquiring voice tone, I nod quietly.
Then, prompting the maid who was waiting nearby, the maid looks at the girl’s face.
“…!? My Lady!?”
At the maid’s surprised voice, the girl called My Lady twitches and trembles.
“A-As expected, it was… no good?”
“It is the opposite! The scar! The scar has completely disappeared!”
“…Eh?”
At the maid’s words, the girl blinks her eyes, not understanding what was said for a moment.
Then, trembling with a start at the mirror the maid held out, she slowly directs her gaze to the mirror with a hint of fear.
“…Ah.”
I can feel the emotion of disbelief contained in that single muttered word.
Next, a trembling voice leaks out as she touches her own face with her fingers.
“The scar is… healed.”
This girl is the daughter of a certain feudal lord.
However, she suffered a large scar on her face due to being attacked by a monster.
The worst part was that the monster was venomous. And it took too long to get her treated with recovery magic.
Because of that, although the poison was treated, the scar on her face could not be healed.
Since then, she apparently locked herself in her room and refused to come out.
For a noble… no, for a girl before marriage, just how painful it must be to have a scar on her face.
As a man, I cannot properly understand it, but even so, there is no doubt that she was immensely sad and suffering.
It was then.
Information reached the lord’s ears that a user of foreign recovery magic had appeared in town and was healing many people.
Yes, that was me. I was treating the townspeople with recovery magic, serving both to earn money to meet up with everyone and to gather information.
Thinking that my foreign recovery magic might be able to heal his daughter’s scar, the lord called me to the estate.
Ah, the pirate I saved in the sea is posing as my servant.
Because if it’s found out he’s a pirate, he’ll be hanged immediately.
Due to such circumstances, I ended up treating the young lady, but…
“It healed… it healed, Oshizu.”
“Yes, yes, how wonderful for you, My Lady.”
The maid called Oshizu is rejoicing as if it were her own matter, and the two of them are shedding tears together.
Hmm, I’m truly glad.
Honestly, with my old recovery magic, I definitely wouldn’t have been able to heal it.
This is all thanks to Rex teaching me various recovery magics.
I truly have nothing but gratitude for meeting Rex.
…Though I hesitate to be grateful for only that hellish training to increase mana capacity.
“Th-Thank you very much, Sir Mage…”
While I was thinking about such things, the young lady spoke words of gratitude to me.
“I am glad my power could be of use.”
I’m truly glad.
◆
“No, you truly saved us.”
Having finished the young lady’s treatment, we also received words of gratitude from the Lord.
“I am glad the power of an inexperienced one could be of use.”
“Hahaha, as if you, who healed my daughter’s scar that the healers of the entire country had given up on, are inexperienced!”
The Lord is in an extremely good mood and has been laughing continuously since earlier.
Since his beloved daughter’s major injury has healed, I suppose it’s only natural.
“As promised, I will be generous with the reward. No, I could even employ you as my direct subordinate!”
“N-No. I am grateful for the sentiment, but I am still a person in training.”
In fact, both as a person belonging to the Church and as an adventurer, I am inexperienced.
I still have much training to accumulate.
“That is a shame. But it would be cruel to hold back a foreigner like you in an unfamiliar land. Forgive me. I seem to have gotten carried away. Please forget it.”
It was probably just a courtesy. The Lord easily withdrew the proposal.
“Now then, you were searching for your separated comrades, correct.”
“Yes.”
When accepting the request from the Lord, I also made gathering information about Jairo and the others a condition for accepting the job.
Since that was my main objective originally.
“When I had my vassals investigate, we obtained information about people who appear to be foreigners.”
“Is that true!?”
“Umu, however…”
There, the Lord’s expression clouds over.
“It is a somewhat absurd report. It lacks credibility.”
“Absurd… is it?”
“Umu. Supposedly… the story is that a flying ship carrying foreigners arrived at the port.”
“Ah, that is undoubtedly an acquaintance of mine.”
“Indeed. No matter what, you can’t believe such an absurd stor… What?”
The Lord blinks his eyes and tilts his head at my words.
“The foreigner who arrived riding on that flying ship is my acquaintance.”
“…Huh?”
Yes, I understand that feeling very well.
But the only person who can do such a thing is Rex, after all.
Or rather, if such a rumor comes out, is it more accurate to say that I can’t not suspect Rex‘s involvement?
Well, either way, obtaining information about my comrades is a good thing.
All that’s left is to hope I can meet up with everyone without incident…
