The Corrupt Guildmaster, Refuting the Messenger
It had been about two weeks since Fiel joined the guild.
Emidia and I were facing a certain visitor in the Guildmaster’s office.
“… What… did you just say?”
Sitting beside me, Emidia revealed her displeasure. The noble-looking man on the reception sofa across from us shrugged with an exasperated sigh.
“I said, you must pay a gratuity to Guild Administrator Raltos-sama. The reason the profits of the Luminage Guild have risen since last month is entirely thanks to Raltos-sama prioritizing quest assignments for you. Paying a gratuity is only natural, is it not?”
At the words of the man claiming to be the administrator’s messenger, Emidia slammed the desk.
“The reason this guild is thriving is because of Zilkein-sama’s leadership!! Don’t come here after the fact and try to claim the credit for yourselves!!!”
Perhaps he hadn’t expected a rebuttal, because the man raised his eyebrows sharply.
“Leadership? All guild management is basically the same! And you, acting all high and mighty when you’re nothing but an underling!”
“You’re calling this guild the same as the others? Do you even know how much this guild pays adventurers!? The dorm!? The cafeteria!? Are you speaking without even seeing the work site!?”
“Silence! Look at this!”
The messenger opened the quest assignment list from last month. Each request had a mark indicating which guild it was assigned to. The guild with the most assignments was Luminage… in other words, the guild of this town.
In this world, quests are not issued directly from the client to each guild. The guild administrator gathers the requests and distributes them among the guilds. He probably brought this paperwork as “proof” that Luminage had been given priority.
“We’ve prioritized you this much!! And you still claim the achievement as your own!? This is why incompetent guild folk are such trouble! You receive the benefits and immediately forget to show gratitude!”
“You… are you really saying this…?”
Emidia’s icy voice echoed. There was none of her usual smile—she simply glared at the messenger with a flat expression. Leaning forward, she thrust the pen she held right in front of his face.
“W-what…!?”
The pen tip stopped just a hair’s breadth before his eyeball. If she moved it a few millimeters, it would stab. In that tense position, Emidia spoke again, her voice cold enough to freeze the room.
“If you dare insult Zilkein-sama any further… shall I gouge out those rotten eyeballs with this pen? That way, you’ll finally see reality clearly… won’t you…? Yes. That would be best. Being blind would suit you better.”
The messenger jerked back in panic.
“Y-you woman…!! How insolent!! What kind of education is the Guildmaster giving you!?”
Only daring to bark insults once he was a safe distance away… what a pathetic excuse for a man.
Still, Emidia was completely enraged. In that case, I should remain calm. That would be far more effective—especially for intimidation.
“What you’re saying may sound plausible at first glance… but it’s sophistry. Are you familiar with Article 4 of the Guild Act, ‘Quest Acceptance and Allocation’?”
“Wh-what of it?”
“What of it,” he says? This fool doesn’t understand anything. For them to send someone like this… they must really think lightly of me.
“It states the following: ‘The guild administrator shall allocate quests according to the number of adventurers belonging to each guild.’ Now then, tell me how many adventurers are currently registered under this guild.”
“119! I know at least that much!!”
“Unfortunately for you, that’s information from a month ago.”
“W-what…?”
It seems the man hasn’t been informed of anything. For collections, it’s best to send someone blindly loyal to their superior—far easier to manipulate.
“If you don’t know, I’ll enlighten you. We currently have 256 adventurers. That number is the largest among the Five Great Guilds of the Western Nations.”
“And it exceeds the second-largest, the Ilios Guild, by 51 people,” Emidia added.
I tossed the messenger a bulletin from the Guild Association, which clearly listed the number of adventurers belonging to each guild.
“Assigning more quests to a guild with more adventurers is simply the administrator’s duty. Your master demands gratuity for fulfilling his duty?”
“G-ggh…!?”
The messenger faltered. For other guilds, Raltos’s “authority” would function as an implicit threat—“You won’t get any quests if you don’t comply.” But that tactic doesn’t work on me. Nor does “hand over a bribe.”
Well. The argument is won. Now it’s time to drive this small fry out.
At this point, the man had already lost his psychological footing. I would corner him thoroughly.
I grabbed him by the collar and, in as low and menacing a voice as I could muster, delivered my message.
“… Tell Raltos this. He’ll get no bribe from me.”
“Wh-what are you doing…!? If you lay hands on me, you—”
“Oh?”
Unable to argue back, he switched to trying to scold me for my behavior. Perhaps I should teach him what happens when someone spouts nonsense like “violence is bad” inside an adventurer guild.
This place has its own rules. Time to educate him.
I hauled him up again by the collar, holding him where he couldn’t avert his eyes.
“If you’re confused, let me explain. Who is it that fights in your stead? Who bleeds in your place? The adventurers belonging to this guild. And you walk into this guild, demand money, and then whine, ‘Stop the violence’? Don’t push your luck.”
“We’re the ones giving you money!! D-don’t get full of yourself…!!”
He wants to use that logic? Fine. I’ll teach him through experience—the danger he’s forgotten while living the soft life.
“… Emidia. Bring me a sword. It seems this gentleman has no desire to return to his master.”
“Yes.”
Emidia took the longsword leaning against the wall and held out the sheathed weapon with both hands. The instant I gripped the handle, the man shrieked.
“Hii!? Y-you’ll regret this…! If you defy Raltos-sama…”
“Begone!! The Luminage Guild bows to no one!!”
Before he could finish speaking, I roared and unsheathed the sword. The metallic ring echoed through the room. The man’s face went pale as he tore free from my grasp.
“Hiiiii!?”
He ran out of the Guildmaster’s office. Looking out the window, I saw him scramble into the carriage parked in front of the guild and flee at full speed.
Trying to take my money… the funds of this guild are the result of my sweat and effort. Like I’d ever hand them over.
Still, after a display like this, they won’t send another messenger. Instead, he’ll use some other method—Raltos is that kind of villain, just like in the original story.
I humiliated his messenger thoroughly. You won’t stay calm now, will you, Raltos? Go ahead and do something stupid. That will make my move easier.
Now then—Emidia?
“Sorry. That was a bit rough.”
But instead of flinching, Emidia placed both her hands over mine. Her eyes glimmered with tears as she looked up at me with worry.
“Kind Zilkein-sama… to show such anger for the sake of everyone serving this guild… those words of his were so humiliating to me… thank you for speaking on my behalf…”
… It was just intimidation acting, though.
I returned the sword to its sheath and leaned it back against the wall.
“More importantly, Emidia. For the next week—until that man reaches Raltos—add a little extra to the adventurer payouts.”
“Eh? Why is that?”
“In one week, there will be a change in quest assignments to this guild. Raltos is that kind of man.”
Yes, in the original story, Raltos was a prideful villain. Retaliation always followed insult.
“What will you do…?”
She was keeping calm, but Emidia must have been filled with anxiety. I smiled reassuringly at her.
“Don’t worry. If he moves, he’ll commit some form of malpractice. When he does, I’ll use it to crush him.”
Raltos. If you’re going to act, then I’ll make use of you. Over something as petty as a bribe, you’ll end up gambling your life. Trying to take my money—you’ll regret it.
What do you think about this chapter?
