Volume 4 Chapter 8 I'm Honored, But...
I headed towards the center of the village next.
Except for the Church, which served as a shelter, the place had been heavily damaged, but now it was slowly returning to its original state. Some houses had already been rebuilt, and there were new ones.
There, I witnessed an unexpected sight.
A crowd had gathered around Aina, who was holding what seemed like a map of the village in her hands.
"First, please remove the debris from this area. That way, we can ensure a clear path for transporting processed building materials."
"What should we do with the debris?"
"Use the smaller broken wood pieces as fuel for fire. The larger ones should be taken to the wood processing site. And for items that seem reusable versus those that don't, try to separate them as much as possible――"
Aina was giving instructions to the villagers and mercenaries one after another. She was only a 5th rank in terms of hierarchy and still a young woman. Yet, there were people who seemed much older than her or rough-looking men who followed Aina's orders as if it were natural.
"Oh, Yukina-san. Good job."
Aina noticed me approaching the church with blinking eyes. She flashed a bright smile, like a flower blooming.
"What's wrong? Is there any problem over there?"
"No, I... just finished my part of the job, so I was taking a break and wandering around."
"I see. Everyone here is working hard, and everything is going smoothly."
"Is that so... Sorry for asking something weird, but what are you doing?"
"What do you mean..."
Aina looked at the workers around her, glanced at the map in her hand, looked around once more, and finally tilted her head while looking at me.
"Are you the site manager?"
"Why the question?"
"Hahaha... I wonder why?"
This exchange feels familiar.
――Or so I've heard.
Initially, Aina, being a woman, took on the task of cooking for the workers along with the village women.
But then.
While transporting ingredients for the cooking, shouts from the Church reached Aina's ears.
The site managers, who were supposed to be in charge of different tasks, seemed to naturally take on that role due to their age and skills, even though it wasn't explicitly assigned to them.
With various tasks happening simultaneously, clashes were inevitable. What was supposed to be a discussion turned into heated arguments before anyone realized.
At the scene, there was the village head, who should have been in a position to mediate. However, due to his old age, his weak voice was drowned out by the loud voices of the supervisors, and it couldn't be heard.
The argument seemed endless, and there were mercenaries present, but they were newbies who had just become 5th rank mercenaries. The supervisors were all strong and imposing, and everyone was hesitant to intervene.
However, Aina, also a 5th rank like them, boldly stepped in without showing any signs of fear during the argument.
At first, the site managers were angry at Aina's sudden interruption, and their shouts were directed at her. But she calmly brushed them off and proposed a compromise between the two parties.
Aina's calm demeanor gradually calmed down the site managers, who had been boiling with anger, and eventually they began to listen to her calmly.
"--So, before I knew it, it felt like I was becoming the area manager, huh?"
Feeling like I might be getting in the way of their work, I stood a little ways away from Aina and listened to the villagers talking about her.
"Yeah, that's right. She's something else. It's like, you just naturally want to listen to her or follow her lead. She's really beautiful, but it's more than just that..."
"I can understand that feeling."
Well, she used to be a princess after all, used to being the one in charge. It's only natural, I guess.
Even though she's lost her claim to the throne, she hasn't lost the experiences she's gained all this time. Even without saying it, those things probably come through in her voice, her gestures, her posture.
Glancing over at the villagers, it's clear they're fascinated by Aina. They look like those guys who were getting treated by Kyunei, totally caught up in the moment.
I guess I should set things straight.
"That's my lover, so don't touch her."
"Seriously!?"
"Dead serious."
"Wowww!"
When people thought they were jealous of me, they actually respected me a lot. Maybe because I seemed unattainable, winning that made me become admired in the end.
I was about to head back to the work site from in front of the church.
"Oh."
"Oh?"
And on my way back, I bumped into Mikage unexpectedly.
"Hey, Mikage. Taking a break too?"
"Uh... well... something like that."
Mikage had a somewhat vacant smile. Her ears drooped and her tail hung limply.
"By the way, what kind of work do you do?"
"――Uh."
As soon as I asked, Mikage flinched.
"Y-Yukina-sama..."
"Yeah, what's up?"
Eventually, Mikage spoke in a strained voice.
"......P-Please... give me work."
"What are you talking about?"
"I... don't have any work."
"No, you must have some work."
Moving wood, clearing debris, rebuilding houses... Even with mercenaries helping from outside, there aren't enough people to do all the work. No matter how many hands they have, it's not enough.
"...Every place I go to turns me down."
"What do you mean?"
Mikage said,
"Maybe they are too afraid to hire you?"
"...Yes."
Feeling down as if carrying a dark cloud above her, Mikage nodded silently.
Most of those helping with the reconstruction are 5th rank workers, with only one 4th rank—me. Among them, Mikage stands out as a 2nd rank.
Rumors about "Silver Flash (Mikage)" have reached this village. Plus, her heroic actions during the recent goblin incident are well-known. Unlike Kyunei and Aina, Mikage's beauty has a sharp edge to it. Even if she doesn't mean to, she gives off an intimidating vibe to those unfamiliar with her.
So, basically, in this village, nobody has the guts to give the grunt work to Mikage as a 5th rank mercenary. Because of that, Mikage can't help anyone, even when she offers, because people get too nervous to give her the tasks. And since Mikage can't work, she end up not getting any work at all.
"It's tough."
"Yeah, that's why I'm wandering around the village with nothing to do."
Even right now, while we're talking, I can see villagers avoiding Mikage, making detours just to avoid her.
"By the way, what about the lumber transportation job I asked about?"
"I tried, but got turned down. Even though I thought I could handle it since I've been training..."
Got rejected.
It's not fair to say, but it's abnormal for a 2nd-rank mercenary like Mikage to be handling 5th-rank requests. No wonder the villagers are hesitant.
However, I feel bad for Mikage as things stand. However, what kind of job would be suitable for her?
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