After dealing with the pack of Kobolds, a group of three Goblins that had been watching us from a distance launched an attack.

By the time we had taken down the Kobolds, the two adventurers were already quite exhausted, so the Goblins probably thought they saw an opening.

But in the end, they were just Goblins.

And only three of them, at that.

It was over in a flash.

There were still wolves and other monsters further away, but perhaps they had witnessed the earlier battle—none of them approached and instead retreated.

Wise decision…

Now then.

We can forget about the monsters that ran away.

What’s more important is the people here.

The adventurers and merchants all managed to survive without losing their lives, but because the merchants were so unreliable, the adventurers ended up having to brace themselves for something they shouldn’t have had to deal with.

After returning to the merchants, the adventurers were giving them quite the scolding.

I don’t know what sort of agreement they had, but the merchants—who should be the clients—were acting rather meekly… It seems the adventurers have the upper hand.

I’ll leave that matter to them to sort out amongst themselves. Right now, I’d like to hear the reason why they were taking this route at such an odd time, right before sundown.

“Are you done talking?”

The adventurers, who had seemed like they might draw their swords during the peak of the tension, had calmed down a bit after raising their voices, and now seemed willing to talk.

As I approached while speaking to them, one of them looked up.

“Aren’t you Sera from Riana? I don’t know why you’re out here, but… thanks, seriously.”

It seems they’re local adventurers, since they accepted an escort request in Zelkis—but they know who I am.

Maybe they’ve been to Riana before.

“I just stopped by the Müller family to greet them. I was on my way back and decided to take a little detour. …More importantly, why are you guys traveling through a place like this at this time of day?”

“Ah… well, it’s these guys’ fault…”

He motioned to the merchants standing behind him.

Huh…?

When I glanced in their direction, I locked eyes with the merchants, who looked awkward and were rubbing their hands together nervously.

◇

These merchants mainly operate around the capital of the Zelkis territory, and apparently always travel as this group.

The adventurers serving as their escorts also primarily work around the capital. While they’re registered to hunt in dungeons, that’s mostly for appearances—they mainly do escort work like this.

Well, their skills weren’t bad, though not exceptional either. Dungeon registration fees must be expensive, but I suppose the credibility it brings makes it worth it.

They’re all familiar with each other, and the adventurers tend to be cautious enough not to recklessly challenge dungeons. Their personalities match well, so when traveling around the capital, they occasionally work together—especially when using side roads like this, rather than the main highways.

Caution is good. Really good.

Even if you don’t die, a life-altering injury would be disastrous.

Being careful is the right call.

So why did these cautious folks take such a risk this time?

It was because the soldiers had returned from the war.

Yesterday, troops from various regions—excluding Riana’s—arrived in the capital and are expected to remain there for some time.

Just that information alone must be quite valuable.

If they hurried, they could bring goods into the capital while the troops were still there, or sell merchandise or prepare lodgings in the towns the soldiers pass through on their way back to their territories—lots of money-making opportunities.

The soldiers arrived in the capital yesterday, though not in the early morning, and it must’ve taken them time to gather information.

Once they finished sorting the information, they hired some familiar adventurers as escorts and departed the capital this morning.

They had been stopping in towns along the way to turn that information into cash, and since there had been no battles until now, they made better time than expected. By the time they reached the last village before this one, the sun was still high.

They debated whether to stop there for the day, but the merchants insisted on pushing ahead—and, well, here we are.

“Guess we got a little greedy.”

“Yes… I’m very sorry.”

The man who seemed to be the merchants’ leader bowed his head to the escorts.

“…It’s fine. But from now on, we need you to follow our instructions to the letter.”

“Of course.”

He bowed his head again in response to the escort’s warning.

Perhaps they let their guard down because there hadn’t been any monsters so far today.

Apparently, the next village is only a few kilometers away, so it should be alright from here.

“Well, it’s not really my place to interfere in that stuff, so you all can sort it out among yourselves. But can I leave the monster report to you?”

There were just over ten monster corpses, and it’s not good to leave them lying around.

It’s too late now, but in the morning, some adventurers or soldiers will need to collect them properly…

“Ah, leave it to us. What about you? Should we report your name?”

“Yeah… please do.”

It was a battle outside my own territory, and there’s nothing to hide—no problem in giving them my name.

“Alright then—I’m heading off now. Take care.”

At those words, the merchants looked a little uneasy, but I had no obligation to stay with them any longer.

This unexpected event cost me some time, but now, it’s time to move on again.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Sera ・Blessing・【Hideout】 +1 【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Water’s Garment】

Blessed Item ・【Floating Orb】 +1 【Shadow Sword】 +1 【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Dragon’s Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Serpent’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】【Red Sword】【Monkey’s Arm】・8 cards

Seriana ・【Area Detection】・【】・0 cards

Elena ・【】・【Green Fang】【Amber Sword】・4 cards

Alec ・【Strong Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・10 cards