Chapter 69

#69 Chapter: Tin Knight and the City of Springs 4 Act (3)

Peter was not the type to just act on whim without thinking.

Sure, he often moved on impulse and was a bit emotional, but he was also a seasoned veteran who had seen it all.

After all, if he hadn’t been, he wouldn’t have been able to reach the Gold rank.

There were two main reasons why Peter immediately started moving after hearing a few words from Sophia.

First, as he mentioned, the rumors about the guild had spread too far, and if he didn’t act in some way, he’d be in a tricky spot.

And secondly, it was his own pride.

To put it simply, Peter trusted his own judgment.

“It wasn’t a lie. Sure, there were parts she deliberately held back, but that woman really knew about vampires!”

While the world knew many stories of adventurers scamming innocent clients, there were just as many terrible clients out there.

There were those who would bow and scrape until the job was done, and then turn around and refuse proper payment, or those who called for help against a trivial monster only for the adventurers to find a whole horde waiting for them, or those who got dragged into crimes without even realizing it after merely accepting a request. To deal with all kinds of trouble, having a good eye for people was essential.

Peter was sure that Sophia wasn’t lying, and he had a gut feeling that she had a lot more dangerous information, namely information that smelled of adventure.

Well, he never expected her to be a “legendary monster” himself, but that was more on Sophia being weird than Peter being bad, so he’d cut her some slack.

Humming a tune, Peter began preparing to complete the request.

Knowing the truth was unfortunate in many ways, but in any case, he was glad he was enjoying himself.

***

Meanwhile, in the world where there’s a happy someone, there’s bound to be an unhappy someone.

Unlike Peter, who was in high spirits, the employees of the Schwarz Branch couldn’t laugh.

“What the hell happened with the work!!”

With the branch chief’s roar, the piles of papers on his desk flew into the air.

While the staff called to the branch chief’s office all shrinked back, one subordinate who felt an odd sense of déjà vu in the situation stepped forward and spoke up.

“…I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? Sorry? Yes, you should be sorry! You have to be! If you don’t feel guilty after screwing up like this, then you’re not human—you’re a dog!!”

Seeing the branch chief’s eyes bulging and barking like a madman, the staff all resisted the urge to show him a mirror.

I guess you really see what you want to see. It seems like he had turned into a dog and now saw everyone else as dogs too.

The subordinates’ subtle glances didn’t go unnoticed by the chief, or if he did notice, it’s questionable whether he cared.

He certainly didn’t have the luxury to worry about that right now.

“What the hell, what the hell did you do to get this situation…! Useless fools! Hopeless idiots!”

He simply couldn’t make sense of the current situation.

The forces he had sent to silence the noise had been nearly wiped out in a clean sweep.

To be precise, one survived, but that one had betrayed them and joined the enemy, and worse, bared all the Schwarz Branch’s dirty laundry, making things even worse than being dead.

In the northern empire, the “malicious, petty, and disgusting schemes” of the Schwarz Branch had somehow turned into jokes for drunks, and even among the high society near the capital, stories began to trickle out.

Platinum from the Weiss Branch wasn’t fighting to protect the guild’s reputation but was instead scratching at the branch chief’s insides, demanding the truth be revealed soon, while the other chiefs started to take a spectator stance, as if they just wanted to watch the show.

As the guild that should have banded together fell into a civil war, the Halder Trading Company saw this as a golden opportunity and began legal battles. Other companies, who had been cautious about the facade of the Adventurer’s Guild, realized they only needed to target the “Schwarz Branch” and so they moved in like a pack of wolves.

“The Great Lord of the North, Count TikTok, has sent a request to the Adventurer’s Guild headquarters to clarify the purpose behind sending ‘armed groups with malicious intent’ to TikTok. The headquarters hasn’t responded yet, but who knows how they will react if public opinion in the north intensifies.”

“No need to worry about the headquarters! What are they even good for! They’re just the corner king of a toy city that became famous for being a joke!”

“It looks like the Silver rank adventurer Kumara and his party are sending letters to adventurers they were previously acquainted with, informing them of the current situation.”

“Tell them not to get swept away by rumors! No, just capture them! They might be in cahoots with the traitors; they could be the culprits!”

“Adventurers are leaving the branch one by one. While the numbers are relatively few among lower-ranked adventurers who are burdened by relocating, the atmosphere among the originally well-connected and economically stable silver-ranked adventurers is tense. If we don’t act quickly, our branch will be left with nothing but slackers and rookies.”

“Due to the supply stoppage from the company alliance, we can’t even keep our stock of essentials.”

“Dammit!!”

Bam! Thud thud thud.

When the branch chief kicked his desk, all sorts of items on top of it tumbled to the floor.

“Useless fools. Hopeless idiots! Don’t just flap your mouths here—do something about it! Like a bunch of bugs!”

“……”

Honestly, looking at this objectively, this whole situation could largely be blamed on the branch chief himself.

If he had negotiated better with the Halder Trading Company from the start to secure the treasure, this wouldn’t have blown up into such a mess; it was the branch chief’s fault.

He’d sent management to the wayside if they didn’t sit well with him and promoted flatterers and bribers into key positions, dragging the whole organization’s integrity through the mud.

While he usually hid behind the guise of the Adventurer’s Guild, that tactic fell apart, and the entire organization plunged into chaos when push came to shove.

It was almost comical how the Weiss Branch was panicking instead of the other way around.

“Phew, phew.”

After ushering the staff out as if he were kicking them out, the branch chief rummaged through his shelves to calm his churning stomach.

Finally finding the bottle of wine he wanted, he turned around again.

“Yikes?!”

He screamed, dropping to the floor as he came face to face with a figure standing behind him.

Crash!

The spilled contents of the broken bottle soaked his pants, but the chief didn’t even think about wiping it off.

No, he couldn’t even rise, drenched in cold sweat.

Directed at him, the figure wearing a green mask asked.

《Your master is waiting for results.》

It was an incredibly bizarre voice.

It spoke human language, but it was unlike any human voice.

It sounded like winds escaping from cracks in the rocks, winds rustling through branches, and winds that made high flags flutter.

All the various sounds that the wind could make in nature converged in one place, feeling like it was imitating human speech.

While he felt a shiver run down his spine, the chief tried to act brave, as if denying he felt fear.

“Hey, barging in here without any notice? How rude! I’ll let it slide this time, but next time, be careful.”

The masked figure tilted its head.

It seemed like it didn’t understand what the branch chief was saying.

《Ruins. Treasure. Recovery. Still?》

The chief frowned at the figure’s words, but soon answered curtly.

“Ugh, your master must need funds desperately. I see. I will make sure to show enough goodwill. So, let’s end it for today.”

《Your master awaits results. Your master wants the treasure of the ruins.》

“I said I understand already! I’m generous when it comes to money, haven’t I?!”

《You’re really stupid.》

The sudden articulate tone made the chief flinch.

Before he realized, the color of the mask had changed.

The overall green hue remained, but the mouth part was painted blue.

The type of sound was also altered—no longer just the wind, but now it seemed mixed with the sounds of water in nature.

《Stupid human. Greedy human. Useless human. What your master wants isn’t just material goods. Don’t treat me like you’re some petty merchant. Disgusting.》

“What, what’s the meaning of this?”

As the branch chief fumed and tried to grab the masked figure, he found it wasn’t going to be that easy.

Before he knew it, multiple streams of water had erupted from underfoot and coiled around his entire body like ropes.

“Gah, ugh!”

He struggled to free himself from the water’s grip, but it was pointless.

No matter how hard he grasped at the coils squeezing his neck, they merely squished and distorted without relieving the strangulation.

Just as he was about to lose consciousness, a gust of wind blew, disrupting the rope of water around his neck.

With the mouth part of the mask painted back green, the figure spoke.

《Human. The friend of the master. We are. Servants of the master.》

In defiance, the mouth part of the mask changed back to blue.

《Don’t be ridiculous. Even among servants, there’s a hierarchy. We are your master’s precious right hands, and you are just one of many lackeys. Trying to lay a hand on me without knowing your place? Naturally, you must be dealt with.》

《You must not harm him. The master has not commanded such.》

《Among humans, being able to do things without command is a hallmark of competency, you know?》

《That’s a lie.》

It was a bizarre sight to see what seemed to be one person having a discussion with themselves in different voices.

After a moment, it seemed a consensus was reached among the masked being—or beings.

《State the location of the treasure.》

《You’re fired. Get lost from this job. Being here will only cause trouble.》

Barely having caught his breath after nearly suffocating, the chief turned red upon hearing the verdict.

He squeezed out a final stand.

“…I won’t let this go just like that! Our family stands at the heart of the royal faction! I’m one of the most loyal vassals supporting the madam! No matter how much—”

The branch chief’s words halted abruptly.

His tongue seemed to have suddenly gone numb, and he couldn’t move an inch.

No, it wasn’t just his tongue; his entire body felt the same.

It was then that the chief realized what he had done.

The mask, split neatly down the middle in green and blue, was staring at him blankly.

《Human. You’ve violated the contract.》

《Did your family not explain enough not to speak carelessly about the master?》

“──.”

A choking fear that he thought had retreated resurfaced once again.

This time, he couldn’t even struggle.

《I don’t know the treasure’s location. This is troublesome.》

《What can we do? Honestly, this isn’t our fault, is it? It’s the fault of your ‘friend’ who put such a useless person in this position. Or wait—is it that this useless person got pushed to this lowly job because he is incompetent? Hahaha!》

With the mocking laughter echoing in his ears, the figure shattered and disappeared.

A day later.

The completely stiff body of the branch chief was discovered, throwing the Schwarz Branch into chaos.

Two days later.

The Adventurer’s Guild headquarters announced the branch chief of Schwarz Branch had committed ‘suicide by poisoning.’

People whispered that under pressure from the rumors floating around, he must have made a drastic choice, or perhaps the guild had made an effort to cut ties.

Three days later.

The Empire’s Minister of Defense, Duke Lenart, made a comment saying, “There are those who scatter filth in the garden neatly organized by His Majesty.”

While the duke did not specify what garden he was referring to, people understood it was a statement about the Adventurer’s Guild.

Four days later.

A major personnel reform began at the guild headquarters and the Schwarz Branch.

However, since both the Shutenheim family that had traditionally controlled the guild headquarters and the newly ascending Pillane family were both people from the Empress’s side, many raised questions about its effectiveness.

Five days later.

An official apology from the Adventurer’s Guild to the Halder Trading Company was delivered.

Additionally, the new branch chief purchased all treasures that had caused the incident through official procedures.

Six days later.

The new branch chief announced he would use the purchased treasures for those affected by the previous branch chief’s misdeeds and actually implemented many welfare policies.

Many adventurers who had left or planned to leave the Schwarz Branch returned.

A week later.

At the pinnacle of the Empire’s wizards.

The Witch’s Apprentice from the South, Alingd Goodwitch, left the imperial capital.

Thus, a major incident that would engulf the entire Empire—

“Having done all I needed to, I’ll be taking my leave now.”

[‘Tin Knight’ is complaining that he hasn’t finished his sub-quests yet!]

– has not yet begun.

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