First Contact
Poof “Okay, we’ve arrived~ We’re back~”
“Welcome back, Joan. So, you came? Morgan… First, sit down.”
“Eh!? Stanley? … Ah!! Lady Lindsay. And Lord Will, too. What on earth is…?”
“We just teleported from the guild and brought you to the mansion. More importantly, I heard from Joan. Why didn’t you report it!”
“Well, um… I thought I should gather some evidence before reporting… I apologize.”
“Hey, Morgan? Do you still not understand your position? You know you need to report, communicate, and consult, right~? Don’t you think so?”
“Y-Yes. Y-You’re absolutely right… I’m sorry.”
As Morgan explained again, everyone made bitter faces.
Timidly raising my hand—
“Um… so, I was thinking I could be the decoy—”
“That’s not happening! What if something happens to you!!”
Father raised his voice loudly.
“Stanley, let’s hear Joan out first. Joan, tell us what you’re thinking.”
“Yes, Grandfather. I’m still a newcomer, and I’m a little girl, so I think I’d be the perfect target to be left behind or kidnapped. So I was thinking I could act as bait and record the scene using a magic tool… remember the hairpin magic tool Brother Noel used before? I’ll wear it and go to the guild. Then, the culprit will come and talk to me. Whether they try to leave me behind or sell me, it’ll all be captured on video as evidence.”
“No, but wouldn’t that still be dangerous for you, Joan?”
“Of course, it would be dangerous if I went alone. That’s why I’d like to ask Nancy for help.”
“Me!?”
“Yeah. I’d like you to come with me using your stealth skill. I want you to help me if I can’t handle it on my own.”
“I see. That way we could catch them in the act.”
“That’s true… but Nancy alone might not be enough. Shall we send a few more people? Father?”
“No, if we send too many, the culprits might notice. I’ve got Pearl too, so we should be fine.”
“That’s true… Alright! Morgan, is that okay with you?”
“Ah, of course. But… is it really okay to use the young lady as bait? She’s only ten, right? She must be scared.”
“Ah—don’t worry about that part. I’ll tell you now… Joan has memories of her past life.”
“Huh? Seriously?”
“Yes. She has memories from her past life, mentally in her twenties. She has three familiars and nine skills. So even if someone calls her a fruitless girl, it doesn’t bother her at all.”
“Ahaha… She’s definitely way more amazing than someone with regular magic attributes.”
“Right~ But I understand that I’m an exception. So if anyone mocks someone with Null attribute by calling them a fruitless child, I’ll be the one to deal with them, okay?”
“‘Deal with them’... Hii!”
I threw a kunai at Morgan’s feet as a light threat.
“Okay?”
I smiled sweetly and tilted my head.
In response, Morgan nodded so hard it looked like his head would fall off.
“Then starting tomorrow, I’ll take guild requests until they take the bait. Oh, but the first request has to be with someone of a higher rank, right?”
“Then how about going with Sarah?”
“Oh, that’s true. Sarah, would you mind?”
“Of course, I’d be happy to.”
Hearing Grandmother’s suggestion, I asked Sarah and she gladly agreed.
＊＊＊＊＊
The next day, I went to the guild with Sarah. When I looked toward the reception desk, Miss Lily used her eyes to signal the culprits. The adventurers she pointed out were four in number. They were scanning their surroundings.
A bearded giant man like a bear, a chubby man with droopy eyes, a small man with big ears like a monkey, and a man with slanted eyes and a jutting chin.
“So those are them. The Bear, the Raccoon, the Monkey, and… the Chin.”
“Pfft… W-Why is the last one not something like Fox, but Ch–Chin?”
(Eh? But she’s right.)
“Even Pearl…”
As we whispered to each other, the Monkey approached.
“Oh? Haven’t seen you around before.”
“Ah, hello~ Today’s our first time here~”
“Oh, really? No wonder. I’ve never seen such cute girls before. If you’d like, how about we take a request together?”
“Umm, we were planning to go gather medicinal herbs today…”
“I see? But… ouch!! What the heck was that for!?”
“What the heck are you doing?”
It was the Chin—no, Jarkul—who smacked the Monkey on the head.
“Sorry about that~ This idiot here. He didn’t do anything to bother you, did he?”
“Nope, we’re fine~ Ahaha, you guys sure get along well~”
“Yeah, I guess~ We’re childhood friends. I heard you’re going gathering, right? Once you’re done, let us treat you to a celebration for your first request. Well, it’ll be at that tavern, though.”
“Ehh! Really?”
“Really, really. We’re your senior adventurers, after all. Oh, I’m Jarkul. This guy’s Sharl. Over there are our teammates—big guy is Baird, chubby one is Kinuta… Alright, we’ll see you in four hours or so, right? Good luck~”
With that, the Chin—no, Jarkul—returned to his group with Sharl, grinning smugly.
“Anyway, let’s take the request and head out of here.”
We picked up the medicinal herb gathering request form and lined up at reception. Miss Lily’s window was open, so we had her accept the request and passed on a message for the Guildmaster: we’ll head to his office in five minutes.
We left the guild and walked toward the Jo Company.
“They really approach newbies in such a friendly way, huh~”
“Indeed. That Chin guy’s evaluating gaze made me want to crush his eyes right then and there. By the way, your acting as a fresh-faced adventurer was wonderful, Young lady Joan.”
“Really? Did it not give away my actual mental age?”
“Yes, you were every bit the image of a ten-year-old rookie adventurer.”
“Hehe, I’m glad to hear that.”
We arrived at the Jo Company and teleported again from the residential area on the second floor.
What do you think about this chapter?
