"...And so, we have accepted a free request and will be heading to Albarn Empire." (Mavis)
"Eh……" (Receptionist)
Mavis reported this with a smile, but the receptionist froze.
"As for the reason, we will be going abroad, but this is purely on request, so it is a free request that does not go through the guild. However, I would like to ask that the counter for the number of days of the domestic work obligation period that will exempt us from the obligation to repay the training school expenses not stop..." (Mavis)
"Whaaaaaat?" (Receptionist)
Yes, after that, Mile asked Little Mecha-Bird various questions and confirmed that their destination was the Albarn Empire.
As expected, Mile and her party were not adventurous enough to set off far away without any hint of their destination.
At first glance, this might seem like an impudent request, but they had not moved their base overseas, and this was simply a trip for a job they had received within the country. Even if the job did not go through the guild, the guild would not be so narrow-minded as to exclude them from the domestic work period.
Free requests, where the requester and hunter made a direct contract without going through the guild, might not directly benefit the guild in the form of fees, but they helped those in need, to allow hunters to earn a living and gain experience, and to increase trust in the hunter profession. The money that hunters spent would also help boost the town's economy, albeit slightly.
…Also, most of the money that hunters earned on food and drinks was spent at the bar attached to the guild.
So, Mile and her party didn't think it was such an outrageous request...
"You will now meet with the Guild Master. Please wait a moment!" (Receptionist)
"Whaaaaat?..." (All CV)
It seemed like it was going to be a bit of a hassle.
"Why go to the Empire?" (Guild master)
Suddenly, they were yelled at.
"No, we were given a designated request... It's a free request, but..." (Mavis)
That's right, since a free request was made directly to the hunter by the client, naturally, it became a designated request.
Of course, this time it's listed as a "Request from an anonymous person living in the Empire."
It wasn't a lie. There was no rule that said requests could only be accepted from carbon-based lifeforms.
"The Empire is an enemy nation. We don't know when they will launch another invasion to the Kingdom of Brandell, the Kingdom of Vanorak, or our country! And yet, going to the Empire at this time..." (Guild master)
(Huh?) (All CV)
The four of them looked dumbfounded by the Guild Master's words.
"So what?" (Mavis)
"Eh?" (Guild master)
If these words had come from Reina, who always spoke in a harsh tone, or Pauline, who always had a smile on her face but would sometimes utter harsh words and find fault with others, the guild master might not have been so surprised.
...However, the words came from Mavis.
From Mavis, who was always gentle, kind, and caring...
"Hunters have nothing to do with the war unless they willingly participate as mercenaries. The Hunters Guild always remains neutral and does not get involved or intervene in wars. ...Isn’t that right?" (Mavis)
"Ah, yeah..." (Guild master)
The guild master had no choice but to agree with Mavis's words.
It was written on the first page of the guild charter. To deny this would be to deny the Hunters Guild itself, and there was no way the guild master could do such a thing.
"In that case, even if things are bad between here and the Albarn Empire, or if a war breaks out, what does that have to do with our work as Hunters? Besides, merchants in this country continue to do business with the Empire, and there are Hunters who take on jobs that cross borders, right? Why are we the only ones who are reluctant to go to the Empire? Is there some kind of plan or ulterior motive?" (Mavis)
"Ugh..." (Guild master)
She was truly a party leader. Mavis was usually a good-natured person who tried to meet the needs of others, but even without Reina or Pauline saying anything, she firmly demonstrated the party's will to the guild master, who was her superior.
And the guild master was in a bad position.
There was no way to deny it when a sensible, non-idiot Hunter said this to him.
"Has this instruction been issued to all Hunters to refuse requests to go to the Albarn Empire? There doesn't seem to have been anything to that effect on the information board though?" (Pauline)
"Surely these orders aren't just for us, right? Should I check with the other Hunters?" (Reina)
She hit the dog that falls into the water.
There was a similar idiom in this country.
And of course, Pauline and Reina hit the Guild Master in succession, who fell into the water due to Mavis's attack.
"Ugh ugh... No, I was simply saying that because I was worried about you young women. It wasn't an instruction or an order. I'm sorry if I caused any misunderstanding..." (Guild master)
He probably had some ulterior motive, but it was unlikely to have been malicious. Perhaps he was just genuinely worried about them. As long as he apologized sincerely and didn't get in the way of their trip to the Albarn Empire, there would be no problem for Mile and her party.
Therefore, they accepted the apology, and without missing this opportunity that they were now in a favorable position, made a letter to the guild master clearly promising that the counter for the period of domestic residence, that would exempt them from the obligation to repay the tuition fees of the training school, would not be suspended.
Pauline was particular about that and showed no mercy.
And then, on the way back to the inn from the guild branch...
"And so, I've finished greeting each group. I gave the orphanage two normal orcs and three magically frozen orcs, so there's no problem. A trip to visit orphanages in other countries... It was supposed to be a 'training journey', but we bought supplies from the guild and butchers and did it ourselves, and we identified and fixed the problems during that time, so it should be fine. Plus, I'm leaving five orcs behind as a special favor..." (Mile)
When touring the orphanages, Mile would sometimes travel by herself by "falling horizontally with gravity magic" to travel around the orphanages she had trained, including this one, so it wasn't like she was taken her eyes off them for long periods of time...
"You're really smart when it comes to things like that, and you're really caring, huh..." (Reina)
Reina said that, but she also cared and supported orphans in many ways.
Of course, Pauline taught the orphans simple cooking and mending skills, and Mavis taught them the basics of swordsmanship.
And when they returned to the inn...
"Oh, ladies, you have a letter. A hunter on horseback came to deliver it a while ago. When I told him I didn't know when you'd be back, he said he'd like my signature and gave it to you." (Lenny)
Lenny-chan was well-known among the hunters who used the inn and restaurant, and had a reputation for her reliability and honesty. …She was a bit picky about money, but that was for the sake of the inn, and of course she was known to never do anything shady.
She was also famous among the children at the orphanage and homeless children because she gave the orphans work such as fetching water for the bath.
So those who took on the job of delivering mail from other towns to the guild branch had no qualms about delivering letters and packages addressed to guests to Lenny-chan.
"Oh, thank you very much." (Mile)
Reports from orphanages around the country arrived at the inn under the name of Crimson Vow.
When Mile looked at the sender's name, as she had expected, it was from the Aubram Kingdom orphanage.
"Huh? Didn't we get a regular report from the orphanage in the royal capital of Aubram Kingdom a while ago...?" (Mile)
Although tilting her head slightly, Mile headed to the room with everyone else.
She wouldn't do something rude like standing here to open and read it.
Then, sitting on her bed in her room, Mile slowly opened the letter, or report, or whatever it was, and read through its contents...
"What, there are signs of a monster stampede in Aubram Kingdom? ...Now that I think of it, Lenny-chan said earlier that 'A hunter on horseback came to deliver it.' Does that mean it's not the cheapest way to have something delivered by an orphan or a penniless novice hunter that arrives at the guild branch in a guild carriage, but an extremely expensive emergency delivery requested of a hunter who owns a horse? …Is this something emergency?!" (Mile)
After reading just the first line of the letter, Mile exclaimed.
Then, Reina and the other two's expressions changed, and they peered at the letter from either side of Mile or behind her.
Even though they were going to cover the shipping costs, the orphanage, being stingy with money, used an emergency delivery service which was ridiculously expensive.
This would be an abnormal situation on the level of Pauline donating money or TV Tokyo changing its programming to broadcast a special news program, in other words, a world-ending situation.
Perhaps they thought, "Now is the time to repay the kindness that Crimson Vow has shown to orphanages all over the country."
Then, Mile and her party continued reading the letter...
Author's Note
The Golden Week holidays are over and the series is back! (^^)/