“…Hmm.”
A large Orc sitting in the office.
Michael sensed something ominous.
It was a feeling he gained from his long mercenary life.
‘What is it?’
It was hard to express clearly in words.
He instinctively noticed that something “ominous” was about to happen to him.
Since this wasn’t the first time, rather than trembling in anxiety, Michael speculated about what misfortune awaited him.
‘Is it a gang issue?’
Probably not.
There were hardly any Orcs in this town who didn’t know that Michael was a mercenary.
The gangs weren’t foolish enough to provoke someone like Michael, who preferred to keep a low profile.
Then…
‘Is an unprofitable client coming my way?’
Put nicely, a private investigator.
Put badly, a courier service.
Since he was almost the only one doing such “business” in Redwood, it was a plausible guess.
But this too could be dealt with.
Unless an “outsider” from outside the neighborhood came looking for Michael, any troublesome events that might happen in this town would be pretty much the same.
Recently, the most challenging thing had been dealing with “mutant contaminants” that crawled out from underground.
Michael rose from his chair.
Still active on the front lines, thick muscles that were not covered by his clothes had a strong presence.
Moving towards the window, Michael gazed blankly outside.
It had already been several months since he returned home from his mercenary work.
At first, the peaceful scenery of the town looked serene, but now it felt ominous.
Michael felt like he was looking at a powder keg about to explode in that scenery.
At the same time, through the glass of the window, he clearly saw his own face reflected.
Instinctively, Michael raised his hand.
He felt an itch from the many scars on his face.
The more that happened, the more the ominous feelings in a corner of Michael’s heart began to grow.
“What the hell is it?”
He mumbled out of his frustrated mind, but there was no one to solve Michael’s curiosity.
In the end…
Michael brushed off his worries as just “feeling sorry.”
‘…It can’t be anything serious.’
Since he had quit being a mercenary.
Time dulls sharp senses, which was a sufficient reason.
Finishing his thoughts, Michael turned his body back towards his work desk.
Therefore…
Crack.
A clear sign of “misfortune,” a crack appeared on the pristine window.
Michael remained oblivious to it.
Michael’s dive out of the window.
Specifically, it happened 30 minutes ago.
—
“Your name is Michael, you say?”
“…Yep.”
…….
Who is that?
After briefly exchanging names with the Orc who jumped out the window, Michael pondered.
Without a hint of hesitation.
Meeting again with someone who simply launched themselves out the window was more awkward and uncomfortable than he had expected.
The position of the captured person must be similar.
I quietly speculated.
It would feel as if I paused time or rewound it.
Due to my magic, the Orc, Michael, returned to the room, and he was also in considerable chaos.
“…What the?! I definitely jumped—”
And then our eyes meet.
“Shit, there was a Unique Wizard! What the hell did I do wrong…!”
Well, indeed.
What did you do wrong to jump out the window? I was honestly curious.
Michael’s pupils, damp with cold sweat, darted everywhere, lost in confusion and fear.
He might just pass out.
“Hey, calm down.”
I grabbed Michael’s shoulders to help him breathe more comfortably.
“Breathe in one, two, that’s right.”
“Phew…”
Hmm.
This should be calming him down.
“So why did you run away?”
“…Cough!”
At my sudden question, Michael coughed loudly as if choking on something.
His breathing started to quicken again.
Ultimately, we managed to have a normal conversation with Michael after about ten minutes.
“…You see…”
Michael’s true gaze turned to Catherine, who was standing behind me, arms crossed, watching the situation unfold.
I already knew about the part where he tried to run away because of Catherine.
Because just before he jumped, Michael thought,
“Damn, it’s a meteor!”
I was not curious about that.
Even if it was Catherine, it was hard to imagine someone so infamous that they’d make a stranger jump out the window without hesitation.
“…”
Thinking about it, I guess that’s plausible.
“…I’m doing private investigator work, but before returning home, I was a mercenary.”
Oh, so you’re a fellow worker.
Michael calmly continued explaining.
“One piece of advice from a senior mercenary I owed a favor to was… if there’s ever a meteor in any location, run away immediately.”
His rambling speech delivered enough meaning.
“I thought he was joking at first. …That was before I heard the rumor that the group, including that senior mercenary, disappeared after getting hit by a meteor.”
There were more than a few people like that, so Michael assumed Catherine wouldn’t know who he was talking about.
Turning my head slightly, I glanced back at Catherine.
As I suspected, she was counting on her fingers, trying to remember who that senior mercenary was.
In the process of looking back, I made eye contact with Eve.
No matter the situation, Eve just kept staring at me. It was slightly scary.
I averted my gaze from Eve and turned back to Michael.
“…So that’s it. I instinctively jumped without realizing.”
The rest did not need to be explained.
Catherine wasn’t a tactical nuclear bomb.
Simply showing up made someone flee out the window.
In one sense, that was impressive.
“…But that’s a bit of an overreaction, isn’t it?”
Catherine quietly voiced her opinion.
However, upon hearing her voice, Michael flinched with a girlish scream, shrinking his thick trapezius muscles.
Given his physique, he looked like he could easily lift 800kg with just three workouts, which was even more bizarre.
As the certified safety manager, I raised my hand to intervene in Catherine’s words.
Catherine speaking up now would probably be a loss.
After all, we had come to this Orc, Michael, to make a “request.”
Making him feel excessively fearful wasn’t a good way to steer the conversation.
I approached Michael again, trying to change the atmosphere.
It was true that I was surprised by Michael’s unexpected “escape route,” but at least the situation had somewhat settled down.
His neck, which had curled up like a frightened snail, gradually peeked back out to take in the scenery again.
From the scars on his face and his muscular build, he looked like a legendary hero.
I didn’t understand why he was so timid.
I cleared my throat briefly.
“Ahem.”
Michael’s gaze focused on me.
“Let’s not be here with bad intentions, so please don’t panic and calm down.”
Michael came back to his senses at my words.
As if he felt embarrassed for the scene he had caused.
He wiped away cold sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief he pulled out from under the desk.
I had noticed it from when he jumped out the window.
This Orc seemed thoroughly prepared in various ways.
“…That’s right.”
Finally regaining his composure, Michael replied calmly to my words.
“…May I ask what brought you here?”
Finally, we could get to the point.
I answered Michael’s question about why we were here.
“…Do you know an Orc named Smith?”
“Roughly a few dozen—”
I asked the wrong question.
“Do you happen to know anything about the recent cases of missing Orcs?”
When I visited him, Smith mentioned that his “brothers” had gone out of contact.
That meant there was a high probability that Smith was not the only one missing.
Michael’s eyes fell into thought for a moment.
“…Hmm.”
Maybe I wasn’t clear enough.
I elaborated on what I knew.
The missing brothers of Smith.
Smith went out of contact about a week ago.
I explained that briefly.
Michael answered me shortly after hearing everything I said.
“…I think I understand a bit.”
As expected, a private investigator gathers different information.
I leaned forward, eager to hear more from Michael.
“Who’s behind the abduction? Or is there some culture we don’t know about?”
The last comment was a bit discriminatory.
Even Orcs wouldn’t have a hooded culture that trapped people for a week, would they?
Probably not.
Michael glanced around.
Once he confirmed that there were no more ears listening other than Catherine, Eve, me, and a dazed Tom, Michael lowered his voice to explain.
“Uh, I don’t know if you’ve heard it from other Orc brothers.”
He threw a side glance at Tom.
“Lately, gang disputes have intensified.”
I nodded in agreement, acknowledging what I had heard.
I had witnessed it in person, and that was one of the biggest reasons that made me realize this town was a disaster.
“I think it’s likely something done by the most recently formed gang.”
So it’s not a culture, just plain kidnapping.
That was the most plausible choice.
…It sure wasn’t an Orc hood culture.
I settled my slightly disappointed feelings and asked Michael.
“Can you specify which gang it is?”
“…It’s called the ‘Red Orc.’”
Their main weapons are probably sickles and hammers.
I pondered if the wave of the Red Revolution had begun even in the Orc world when Michael added further explanation.
“They’re genuinely nasty pieces of work. Not ones to be underestimated.”
The LED on Michael’s tusks lit up his face with sincerity.
“They’re incredibly violent, and engaging in illegal businesses is a given. Moreover, it’s rumored that they’ve recently allied with ‘Eco-Fascist’ groups and ‘Neo Luddites’ out there, so… their equipment is no joke.”
Perhaps my reaction was gentler than he expected, or he was worried.
He intensely conveyed how dangerous they could be.
“There are even gang members with military cyberware, having passed down through generations. They are definitely not opponents to be taken lightly.”
Well, even if you explain it that way…
I turned my head away while listening to his explanation.
“Oh.”
Michael’s gaze also shifted to ‘Catherine’ behind me.
No matter how scary she is, could she be a match for Catherine?
“What, why are you looking at me all of a sudden?”
“…”
Again, Michael regained his focus and looked at me.
“I must have been unnecessarily worried. I sincerely apologize.”
I nodded my head.
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