Chapter: 18
“Cool···”
“Hmm···”
So, how did it end up like this?
I pondered how I found myself in the current situation, smothered in the middle of the bed, flanked by cute girls on either side.
This all traces back to last night. Right after I got home and unpacked.
—“I will also sleep in the same room.”
—“···What?”
Having taken Astraea as a new member of the mansion, we were in the process of choosing her room.
The bombshell declaration that sprang forth was the turning point.
—“It seems you’re already sharing a bed with Ahae, so why can’t I do the same?”
—“Maria is still a child. A child. Is she the same as you?”
—“Yeah. Maria can’t sleep without her brother anymore.”
—“Why are you being so needy? Besides, you’re just a scarecrow; you can’t even sleep!”
—“Hey, are you crazy?? What are you talking about in front of a kid···”
—“···It’s not like I can.”
—“What.”
Thus, I was knocked out. I couldn’t stop Astraea, who was adamant it was a necessary process for a grand undertaking, and now, here I am.
After some pillow fighting, it seemed Maria and I were getting more friendly with each other. Maybe Astraea was hoping for this, too.
“Oppa… Maria will give it to you….”
What on earth are you dreaming about?
“Both of you! It’s almost time. Get up. We had plans to go to the guild today.”
“Uhm… Maria, just 2 more hours… Huh?”
I tossed the blanket aside, easily thwarting the expected protest.
Witnessing her colleague take a kick to the foot, Astraea quickly jumped up.
“Uuuu… Oppa is only thinking about work as soon as he gets back. Maria needs a little more cuddly time.”
“You know the weak and sensitive spots of a young girl so well, don’t you? Just because she didn’t run doesn’t mean you should underestimate her.”
“My brother explained to me yesterday how serious the situation is. Now, let’s eat first.”
Ignoring Astraea, who muttered while covering her feet, I took the staggering Maria to the dining hall.
The sight of her sleepily munching on bread tugged at my heartstrings, making me want to let her nap a little longer. Unfortunately, the guild master I had to meet today was a busy person.
*
The status of an A-class adventurer granted me the privilege to nudge a meeting with the guild master, even without any special arrangements.
And this was for the youngest, S-class prospect. Thankfully, it coincided with a stable schedule, allowing for a smooth arrangement.
“There is a traitor lurking among the adventurers?”
The guild master of the Adventurer Guild, Yeopeum-Aeul branch, Grand, narrowed his eyes in response.
With his forehead clearly visible and his gray hair and impressive mustache flecked with white, his weary eyes exuded an air of regret.
“Yes.”
However, the recent incident involving a group of bandits attacking the princess’s escort carriage… This wasn’t something that could just be swept under the rug for such a reason.
Initially, I intended to avoid getting too involved. I might not be qualified to say this, but…
Since visiting the Heavenly Demon Cult Guild, I had been doing a lot of thinking.
“It’s almost certain.”
Of course, returning to reality is important, and there’s absolutely no change in the fact that it’s our top priority.
However, loving this world and now living as one of its residents, at the very least, I wanted to resolve the issues that were right in front of me.
“···I hope you brought convincing evidence.”
“I believe you, Master, have heard about the bandit attack during this escort mission. And its scale.”
With only two A-class adventurers and the princess’s bodyguard, the party was clearly overwhelmed for a mere escort request and nearly faced annihilation.
In terms of quantity and quality, it’s common to target large guilds or iron merchants. Regardless of the passage of time, this remains the same.
There’s no way they would just be idling around, killing commoners or passersby.
“I thought they were just awaiting the perfect opportunity and struck right amid all the intersections. Could this really be something that happened by mere chance?”
“···So, there must be an internal accomplice who leaked information to the outside? Is that what you’re saying?”
“That’s right.”
“Ha···.”
Grand sighed deeply.
It’s understandable that such trouble arose during his term, especially towards the end.
“We can’t rule out the possibility that the thieves got the information themselves.”
“Well, that means they somehow infiltrated the city. Whether it’s due to lax security or collusion, it’s bound to reflect poorly on the lord.”
In fact, the lord was already under suspicion.
However, since there isn’t any solid evidence to touch upon at the moment, my focus remained on the Adventurer’s Guild for now.
If the lord was indeed in cahoots with the bandits, and even the internal spy got eliminated, it would certainly trigger foolish reactions.
“Alright… I understand. I will conduct an investigation at the guild level.”
“No. That will likely be too late. If they catch wind of it, they might flee. We will identify the traitor ourselves. Master, please just gather the adventurers together and cooperate.”
“What are you planning to do by gathering them together?”
“I want to verify them one by one.”
“Verify each one?”
Hah. The master scoffed.
Then, in his clenched fist, anger and annoyance surged, an emotion straddling an ambiguous line.
“I’ve managed to keep quiet for Maria’s sake all this time, but enough is enough! You want to verify each one? How foolish must you think it is···”
Bam—
“You can at least hear the full story!!”
“?”
“?”
Just as I braced myself for the master’s impending retort.
The door to the master’s room burst open, revealing a red-haired woman. Her cheek bore the same red pattern as the door, suggesting she had eavesdropped the entire time.
“Sally, what are you doing? Did you really just abandon your post and stand outside listening in?”
“It’s just ten minutes until lunchtime! Adventurers don’t come around much at this time anyway···!”
Well, hadn’t we been talking for at least 20 minutes?
“Anyway, that’s not what’s important right now! At the very least, let’s hear how you plan to verify it. Stop getting angry out of nowhere!”
“You suddenly took a vacation to a rural area that isn’t even your hometown, and why are you acting peculiar the moment you return? Did you eat something bad?”
“Oppa. When did you charm another girl?”
“What? You know, Maria, that’s the first time I’ve seen that guy since he registered as an adventurer.”
Regardless, I was grateful for the unexpected backup. And to be honest, I felt a little reckless in this situation.
What is the reason? I guess it’s a bit scary to hear that a traitor lurks among those coming for their documents.
“I’m not saying I’m going to interrogate them directly, but you have some sort of method, right?”
No matter how I looked at it, that trusting gaze completely eluded me.
Is it because I went to the palace and received a reward? Even accounting for that, it seems excessive. Even when leveling my main character, I hardly received such treatment towards the end.
“Yes, well… I will use my skill. The method and approach will be far from an interrogation.”
“Haa… Okay, fine. Let’s hear it.”
The master seemed to be equally puzzled, perhaps unable to fathom my reasoning. He spoke with a half-relieved attitude.
“Please prepare a large quantity of bean pellets that inflict 10 fixed damage—enough for everyone in the guild to use.”
I had no reason to turn away the opportunity presented to me.
*
All adventurers active in Yeopeum-Aeul received a summons order from the guild master. One by one, they were called in according to their schedules.
The purpose of their summons was as follows: to use bean pellets on the newly acquired scarecrow of the guild.
After puzzling over this bizarre command, they all remained silent and complied, knowing that resisting would only complicate matters further. It wasn’t particularly difficult, anyway.
“My brother is naked… in front of so many people… gasp.”
“Maria, what are you talking about?”
Of course, that scarecrow was me.
I took off my robe and fixed my feet to the stand, positioned there to be pelted with bean pellets by the incoming adventurers.
“There’s never a dull moment when I’m with you. I feel like I’ve found a worthy master.”
“I’ll make sure to have a lot of fun with you soon, so savor this downtime, Your Excellency.”
The reason I initiated this self-inflicted humiliation event isn’t due to any perverted tendencies.
A passive skill I obtained during the mission to rescue Ryona—Ally Compensation.
This, combined with bean pellets dealing a fixed damage of 10, was part of my plan to differentiate between allies and enemies.
The criteria for judging whether it’s ally damage was meticulously verified with the assistance of Maria and Astraea.
Even if you can’t identify who your opponent is, this omniscient system perspective conveniently distinguishes and applies accordingly.
In simple terms, if the damage is reduced by 30% like this, it signifies our adventurer companion.
If the damage comes in without any reduction.
Well then, that means they are most certainly the traitor.
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