"Well then, how about we sell her one of the rare high-ranking monsters that Mile has in his storage?
That way it won't affect the prices of other monsters, we can make a decent profit, and she could even set up a small shop, right? Then she'll be satisfied and be able to concentrate on running her shop..." (Mavis)
"No." (Reina)
Mavis's idea was dismissed by Reina.
"If we do that, she'll just demand more monsters that sell for a high price, and they'll just cling to us even more. What's more, when other merchants find out, they'll flock to us. We need to create a situation where people understand that this is a one-time thing and that it won't happen again... Besides, if such a high-ranking monster was hunted, people would investigate where and when it was hunted, an investigative team would be dispatched from the country, and it would cause a big fuss. There's no way a single monster would just appear out of the air, so you can assume there's a group of at least a few dozen living in the area. If we do that, it will naturally become public knowledge that we hunted, and that we were four wandering girls with no backing other than being members of the Hunter's Guild, and then..." (Reina)
"Ah~……" (Other 3)
From there on, they could understand without being told.
"In the first place, in order to deal with the danger of high-ranked monsters that don't even exist, we've sent out investigation teams from the territorial and national armies, stirred up anxiety among the local residents, and restricted the activities of Hunters in the area, causing a lot of trouble for a lot of people. If it turns out that these were lies later, we'll have to pay a huge amount of compensation, and as punishment, we'll be taken into custody by the country or the feudal lord, and we'll be treated however they like." (Pauline)
"Indeed... From the country's perspective, such a useful group of four (4-man Cells) would be much more useful as combat slaves with no right of refusal than as mining slaves..." (Mile)
Mile nodded in response to Pauline's words.
"No good…" (All CV)
All four of them then spend some time in deep contemplation.
"...That's right! How about a sea serpent? With that, there's no problem with where we hunted it or if there are still swarms of them around. And since there aren't any materials on the market, it doesn't matter if the market price drops. We can hunt as much as we like, and no one will be inconvenienced, whether the price drops or not. And if we want more, we can go and hunt them yourself, and we won't need to do anything dangerous like that again..." (Mile)
"I see!" (Other 3)
Reina and the others were convinced by Mile's proposal.
Certainly, there were no hunters who would go out to sea in a small boat to hunt sea serpents, and the only time such materials would be available would be when the body of a dead sea serpent washed up on the shore, at which point most of the flesh and skin would have rotted or been eaten by marine life, leaving only the bones and teeth as usable materials.
And even then, it only happened once every few years, if at all.
Rare material. Everyone knew where to go to hunt. And no one could say to a hunter, "Go over there and hunt more." Dangerous hunting grounds, dangerous prey.
"That's a good idea... So, how do we get to the open sea?" (Reina)
"Ah……" (Other 3)
The three of them froze when Reina asked them a question.
It was certainly an easy hunt then.
However, this was due to the existence of the Kragon as a vehicle for transportation and the ship as a platform for fighting.
This time, Kragon's presence wasn't really necessary.
But they needed a ship.
It's not like Mile couldn't fly, but when you thought about the other three, fighting, retrieving prey, and everything else...
And they didn't think there would be any fishermen willing to go out on a boat for such a dangerous endeavor.
A boat was a valuable asset to a fisherman.
This was probably about the same value as a home built by modern Japanese people in a prime location in a city.
Their soul. A precious asset that they would pass on to their son, who would take over as a fisherman.
Then, persuaded by the delusional words of a young outsider they met for the first time, set out onto the open sea to hunt sea serpents?
Only a fool would buy such a story.
"...Okay, I'm on board!"
"You're an idiot!"
And for some reason, the fisherman agreed to this reckless plan.
He was around 60 years old.
"I've already gotten my money's worth in life! Rather than continuing to grow old and causing trouble for everyone, I was thinking I'd go on a trip with my partner (Fune). My son built a new ship of his own, so he returned my ship that I had given him. A ragged old man and a ragged old ship, both of them will do well to shatter! To be surrounded by four beautiful women like that would be a luxury that even an aristocrat could not afford. I'll definitely ascend to heaven!"
In this world, 60 years old was a very old age.
People died easily from appendicitis and pneumonia, and more people died in childbirth—both children and mothers—than die in war.
Poor nutrition also caused them to age prematurely, and decades of exposure to salt and sun leave their skin cracked and wrinkled.
If they could live to this age and leave behind children and grandchildren, they would have no regrets.
And if they could just have an honorable end without exposing everyone to the ugliness of his old age, they would be incredibly happy...
"Vilal-jiisan, that's not fair!"
"Give that job to me!"
"You don't have a ship!"
"Please, let me ride too!!"
The elderly people who had been listening to the conversation nearby began to gather around, and the situation began to get out of hand.
This was the fishing village that Crimson Vow first visited when they came to this continent.
When they went there hoping to find some foolish fishermen with boats, they found the old people who had attended the banquet gathered there. They asked them if there were any fools around, and this was what happened.
…They were all idiots…
"It's not like we're going to die! If you are going to die, please do it by yourselves. We're young and have a future ahead of us. We don't want to be dragged down with you!"
"Hahaha, that's certainly true!"
"Wahahahahaha!" (Everyone)
So the ship and the helmsman were secured.
…And it was done…
A fishing boat left the harbor and headed out to sea.
It's a small ship with just one sail, but it's not one of those rowboats you'd see in parks. There's plenty of space for Crimson Vow to fight.
There's no problem since the prey was put into Mile's storage (item box).
Propulsion was achieved by using both oars and sails, but since wind magic could be used this time, it looked like the sails would be used more often.
… Of course, it's impossible to use wind magic all the time, but being able to use it when entering or leaving port or when the time comes was quite convenient.
And when it came to rowing...
"That's amazing, girls..."
"Would you like to become my grandson's wife?"
"Tahaha..." (Mile + Mavis)
Yes. Mile and Mavis ran for the position because they couldn't bear to make the old folks do the hard work of rowing.
It was amazing.
Of course, there was Mile, but there was also Mavis, whose whole body had been modified to withstand the recoil of her mechanical left arm and the power of the mechanical output. And on top of that, she had body strengthening magic called "Spirit power."
The strength of these two far surpassed that of the elderly men who boasted well-trained bodies even in their old age, and astonished everyone.
"Well, no matter how good a wife is at rowing, a fisherman's wife doesn't go on the boat, she stays at home and looks after the house, so it's pointless!" (Reina)
"I see..." (4 fishermen)
The old men were beginning to be convinced by Reina's words, but...
"Well, if that power can be passed on to my great-grandson..." (A fisherman)
"I see!!" (3 fishermen)
"That's why, we don't have any plans to get married anytime soon!"
The group was made up of four retired old fishermen, including the four from "Crimson Vow" and the old man Vilal, who owned the boat.
The old men were saying that "We need to make sure the number of escorts is equal," but it seemed that there was a "Fisherman's version" of Valhalla, a paradise for brave warriors, where fishermen who died at sea were summoned.
None of the members of Crimson Vow wanted to go to such a place, but they didn't say anything unnecessary and remained silent.
...In the first place, they had no intention of dying here, so it didn't matter.
And the ship headed out to the sea...
Author's Note
This is an announcement.
...