Chapter 46 The Walking Shrine Maiden (Part One)
"Oh, what a joyous occasion, truly joyous!"
The big man, Geese, said with a cheerful laugh. This is the guild's dining hall and bar. We are having a grand feast to celebrate successfully defending the town from a large horde of monsters. Everyone is drinking, eating, and reveling in the festivities.
The guild's dining hall and bar are short-staffed, so the food is being catered from Martha's Diner. In this recent monster attack, we were able to retrieve magic stones that are essential to orcs and lizardmen, and the town has paid a substantial reward to the guild.
Adventurers who have become richer tend to turn their money into alcohol. Moreover, when the idea of holding a "gratitude banquet" from the town was raised, everyone couldn't help but be delighted. And that's how this grand feast came to be.
My comrades were also among them. Alice, Mizuno Kaede, and Aoki Runa, who were staying at Martha's inn, are now enthusiastically promoting food and drinks. And Tsubasa was already a central figure among the archers.
"That bow is amazing."
"How far can you shoot it?"
"Can you aim at the enemy from that distance?"
And so on.
There were even some who said things like "I want you to be my mentor." Tsubasa looked quite troubled and said, "No, it's all thanks to the bow," but the others wouldn't let it go at that.
On the other hand, Morimura was surrounded by magicians. It seems quite enjoyable over there. They are discussing various types of magic in this world. Some are even debating about magical theory, but Morimura seems to be listening with great interest. He might be happier living in this world instead.
The center of the warriors is the big man Geese and the handsome Michael.
A novice warrior said to Geese,
"But, Geese-san, it's amazing, isn't it? To sneak up on the orcs' flank with just five people!"
Geese laughs with a "Gahaha."
"Well, of course. But with my ability, it's only natural for me to do that. It's been a while since I could fully wield my strong sword."
He says, swirling his beer. He seems to be in high spirits.
Michael looks at Geese and says in an amused tone,
"But wasn't it Akito who first came up with that plan and gave instructions to Geese?"
Geese stiffens for a moment.
"W-well, yes. His strategy was accurate."
"Who was it that seemed oddly fixated on Akito?"
Michael says with an amused expression, causing Geese to scratch his head shyly.
"Don't say that, Michael. Well, I've always thought that Akito was an interesting guy from the start. So maybe I got more worked up and took it out on him..."
The surrounding warriors burst into laughter, watching Geese's behavior.
"Well, um, now that all of us recognize Akito..."
After saying that, Geese looked around nervously.
"Hey, what happened to Akito?"
I watched their actions from a seat near the wall, trying to avoid being noticed by diverting my gaze and shrinking my body. But there was no way I could hide with just that. Geese and Michael pushed through the excited adventurers and approached.
"Hey, what's wrong? Why are you sitting here in the corner, drinking quietly? Come to the center. Everyone wants to talk to you."
Saying that, Geese wrapped his thick arm around my neck. He must have had quite a lot to drink; he smelled of alcohol.
"That's right. You're the star of tonight. If the star is hiding in a corner like this, everyone won't be able to have fun. Let's celebrate together tonight."
Michael also said, urging me to come out.
"Thank you. But it's absurd to say that I'm the protagonist."
"What are you talking about? You're the most deserving today."
Upon hearing Michael's words, I couldn't help but let out a sigh.
"That's not true. I'm not even in a situation to be happy."
Geese and Michael exchanged glances.
"What's wrong? If you have any worries, I'm here to listen."
Geese sat directly in front of me. Forgetting everything that happened in the morning, he acted as if we were old friends.
"If there's something, please tell us. We all, no, the entire town owes you."
Michael said the same and took a seat next to me.
"No, it's not about worries or anything like that. It's just that there were no casualties in today's battle..."
"What happened to the casualties?"
I looked into Michael's eyes as he said that.
"In today's battle, I had deceived everyone and gathered them there. Some may not have wanted to participate in the fight. It's not unusual for someone to dislike fighting against monsters, even if it's a test of skills."
"Man, is that all?"
After Geese chugged his beer and ordered another one from the waitress, he looked at me.
"When you become an adventurer, you're prepared for the risks that come with it. Anyone who's scared of fighting monsters ain't cut out to be an adventurer. They better quit while they're ahead. If some coward like that only ends up with a scratch, they should consider themselves lucky."
Michael nodded in agreement.
"I think so too. And adventurers receive certain privileges from the guild for the sake of defending towns like this."
"Yeah, that's right. They won't give you money, but if you go to the guild, they'll at least give you a basic meal. It's just lousy bread and thin soup, though."
"And it's thanks to Akito that there was only one casualty and the rest were just injured. If they had attacked us in an unguarded moment, who knows how many would have died. If those orcs had destroyed the defense barrier magic stones, the entire town would be in ruins by now."
"Yeah, even though they're injured, they have no resentment towards Akito, they're grateful to him."
I was relieved by Geese and Michael's words.
"Thank you, both of you. Just by saying that, I feel a little more at ease."
"Yeah, the main character should have a more impressive attitude!" said Geese.
"No matter what you say, Akito is the hero of this town," said Michael.
Feeling lighter because of these two, I asked about something that had been on my mind.
"By the way, who was the gatekeeper at the southeastern gate?"
Michael and Geese exchanged glances.
"Who was on duty as the gatekeeper at the southeastern gate today?"
"I think it was old man Homin," Michael said.
I didn't know this person called Old Man Homin.
"What kind of person is this Old Man Homin?"
Geese answered first.
"I think he lives near the southeastern gate, on the outskirts of the town. It's a district where the poor gather in this town."
"Ah, I believe he was living with his sick daughter and granddaughter."
After Geese added this, he asked,
"Was something wrong with the gatekeeper?"
I hesitated whether to speak, but eventually decided to tell them,
"No, it's about the southeast gate today. It was clearly opened from the inside. It seems like the gatekeeper opened the passage himself to let the Lizardman in."
Both Geese and Michael briefly looked up.
"I couldn't believe it... because old Homin was killed by the Lizardman."
"That's why I'm also doubtful. Why did old Homin open the passage himself? Or was it someone else who opened it?"
Geese shook his head.
"I don't think it was someone else. There are only two keys. One is held by the mayor of this town, and the other is supposed to be held by the gatekeeper."
Michael nodded as well.
"That's right. The gatekeeper is supposed to take over those keys. It was old Homin's turn this week."
"Is it not possible to make a duplicate key?"
In response to my question, Michael shook his head from side to side.
"Not only physical keys, but also magic keys, like a Magic Lock, are being used. It's not easy to make a duplicate key."
"I see..."
I murmured quietly. I have a feeling of unease. I hope it's just my imagination... At that moment, the guild door swung open forcefully, and a bloodied woman entered.
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